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A6 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday June 16, 1999 T h e O a k v il l e B e a v e r OPINION E d i t o r i a l s It's only (our) money The Mike Harris Progressive Conservatives have not backed away from many of the sacred cow issues in Ontario politics and the time has come for them to gore another. The issue is the outrageous system that sees defeated or even retiring MPPs receiving a sev­ erance package, regardless of their term in office. In the old riding of Halton Centre, former Tory MPP Terence Young, had to fight a duel with fellow PC member Gary Carr of Oakville South. Young lost and had to give up his seat, allowing Carr to battle for the new Oakville rid­ ing. Young was swept into office in the blue wave that washed across Ontario in 1995 but in being defeated in the party nomination process, was out Now a reasonable person might expect Young to receive nothing after serv­ ing one term in office especially since the voters didn't turn him back, his own party members turned him back. But luckily for Young and countless other defeated MPPs, the province's largesse for politicians sends them off in grand style. Just how grand? How about $39,004 worth of severance pay. The figure is based on the $78,008 yearly base pay of an MPP. It's enough to send corporate human resource personnel to the bottle. Under current legislation, provincial politicians receive the severance deal regardless of how they leave office. That includes retirement, defeat, resigna­ tion or death. Pretty comprehensive stuff. It's all a huge cost to Ontario taxpayers that has to stop. In the June 3rd elec­ tion alone, 20 MPPs didn't seek reelection and another 23 ran but were defeat­ ed. Our Members of Parliament have a similar deal and it too should be killed. The only group of politicians not covered are those on a municipal level. We urge the premier to be progressive and stop this practice. Letters to the Editor The Oakville Beaver welcomes your comments. All letters must be typed, signed and include the writer's address and phone number. Send to: Letters to the Editor, The Oakville Beaver 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, Ont. L6K 3S4 Undercurrent legislation, provincial politicians receive the severance deal regardless o f how they leave office. That includes retirement, defeat, resignation or death. of work. NORTH AMERICAN FREE TRADE...THE GST... YEAH BABY, YEAH! NOW TALKING... TO ANYBODY WHO'LL LISTEN! C r e e p i n g d e s e r t s c a n b e s t o p p e d Letter of the week Drought in Ontario, floods in southern Manitoba, forest fires, threatened harvests, lost crops... Despite the initial hardships brought on by these calamities, we have so far been able to cope, and things seem to balance themselves out. This is not the case in many other parts of the world. Each year, more and more of the world's soil is becoming too worn out to produce food. An inch of soil which has taken centuries to build up can be blown or washed away in seconds if not properly cared for. At this moment, drylands on every continent are being degraded by overcultivation, over- grazing, deforestation, and poor irrigation practices. This is aggra­ vated by the climate change that is occurring. The United Nations estimates that one-third of the earth's land surface is affected by this degrada­ tion, known as 'desertification.' Close to a billion people suffer from the impact - threatened in both livelihood and survival. Prime resources, fertile topsoil, vegeta­ tion cover, and healthy crops and water are the first victims of deser­ tification. Growing global aware­ ness of this threat has led to inter­ national solidarity and action. The UN has declared June 17th, Global Anti-Desertification Day. Third World poverty is both a contribut­ ing factor to, and a result of, the erosion of fragile lands. The people of the Sahel region of Africa are on the front lines of the battle against desertification. If their efforts to reverse the process of soil degrada­ tion are successful their achieve­ ments and methods will serve as models for the rest of us. Last year, I travelled to West All members of the Haviland family are invited to attend the 104th Haviland Family Reunion on July 17th at Waterford Lakes, Waterford Ontario. Captain John Haviland, a United Empire Loyalist, having served the British as an artificer in the Am erican Revolution, moved from New York and set­ tled in Townsend Township, N orfolk County south of Brantford in 1803. Descendents have held a reunion annually since 1896. Registration begins at 11 a.m. followed by a 12:15 p.m. potluck lunch. There will be games for everyone, swimming, renewing old acquaintances, genealogy sharing, displays of photographs and the sale of the Canadian H aviland Fam ily Genealogy book. For more information, contact David H aviland, 3950 West Africa, to the legendary city of Timbuktu and the drylands of northern Mali to see for myself what living conditions are like, at the edge of the Sahara. In particu­ lar, I wanted to see what local communities can do, and are doing, to fight off desertification. My Malian hosts from USC Graham Place, London, Ont., N6P 1G3 Telephone: (519) 652- 5995; Fax: (519) 652-5994 or e- mail: haviland@ican.net It's about respect In reference to the article in the June 6, 1999 paper 'Investors keen on Kerr St." Kerr St. people were referred to as Tow lifes'. This slur should never have gotten past the editor's desk but as it did and was a quote. The person or persons responsible should be identified. There are good and bad people in this community as in any other. An apology is in order. M . Beattie Ed. note: the following was the quote: "Thomas Cezette (a reataurateur) absolutely rejects any notion that Kerr Street's resi­ dents are 'low class ' and remains adamant that everyone is deserv­ ing o f respect. " Canada-Mali have been working with rural people in this remote area for about 10 years and some remarkable results can be observed. Villagers have reclaimed some 4,000 ha of marginal land, have planted trees, and created arboretums which protect the land, enabling the development of mar­ ket gardening. The participation of the local people in designing and implementing these programs has been the key to their success. The amount of work to be done on this critical issue is huge, but there is reason for hope. There is no more graphic illustration of this than the hopeful faces of people in these Malian villages who, by their efforts, have turned back desertifi­ cation. Much has been learned. There is much to share. June 17th, Global Anti- Desertification Day, is an impor­ tant symbolic occasion for the spreading of information about the issue, and for the celebration of the efforts of communities like the ones I visited in the fight against this threat to the world's food sup­ ply. It is also an occasion for us, as Canadians and caring planetary cit­ izens to renew our commitment to support, however we can, those who have taken on this urgent challenge. Bruce Cockbum For the Unitarian Service Committee o f Canada A n y M a v i la n d s o u . t t h e r e ? T iered em erg en cy response can be c o s t-e ffec tive I am writing as a concerned taxpayer. My concern relates to duplication of a public ser­ vice, tiered response. This double layering of service in areas such as M ississauga, Oakville and especially Toronto, adds up to millions of dollars. No council member can say that using two services for situations where one service is needed, is economic use of taxpayers' money. Toronto Ambulance already has a small paramedic first response program. These sin­ gle paramedic jeeps already have the fastest response to medical situations. With a small investment, into this program, tens of mil­ lions could then be saved by not sending hugely expensive resources to medical calls. The lateral resource allocation would allow the five services to enhance and increase training in Hazmat and other non-layered duties. The KPMG report, for Toronto Council, recom m ended that tiered response, be reviewed and that efficiencies be found (pages 93 and 120). Unfortunately, this lengthy and expensive report had its hands tied politically from the very start. The KPMG report stated that the detailed review of the tiered response system was beyond its direct mandate. I would put out an invitation to all coun­ cillors to please ride out and view the Toronto paramedic response program. Helping devel­ op this program would allow taxpayers, of the GTA and beyond, to have one of the world's best and cost-effective prehospital medical systems! I am humbly suggesting that city councils, especially the budget committees, realize that an innovative lateral deployment of emer­ gency services is needed in order for taxpay­ ers to have a cost-effective tiered response. Rory O 'Neill, B.Sc., DM CA, CM A Pud by Steve Nease B iting the hand that you need At the heart of a caring society lies the public good. Our willingness to share resources in equal manner ensures a quality of life for all Ontarians that reflects the abundance of our natural, intellectu­ al and material wealth. That millions of voters supported a party whose agenda mitigates against the public good is puz­ zling. It suggests that, individually, many of us have become subsumed by self-interest, personal aggran­ dizement and insensitivity. This adds up to a mean­ spiritedness hardly in keeping with those lofty ideals one associates with the impending millennium. In the space of four years, the Harris government has launched an assault on the public good, unprece­ dented in Ontario's history. It is as far removed from the traditional conservatism of Prem iers Frost, Robarts and Davis as chalk is from cheese. Public education, nurtured since the days of Egcrton Ryerson, was shell-shocked by both mas­ sive funding cuts and a wholly unwarranted attack against members of the teaching profession. As a result o f the poisoned clim ate, many excellent teachers have either resigned or accepted early retirement. In combination with severely diminished resources, this has left the system grievously impov­ erished. Likewise, hospitals were hammered with budget cuts, as well as the decimation of their registered nursing staff. Few families have escaped.at least one horror story affecting a loved one obliged to enter an Ontario public healthcare facility. With the shift in funding from the public purse to private donations through aggressive fundraising campaigns, the disparity in service levels between have and have not communities has widened signifi­ cantly. So much for provincial equity! Megacity was imposed on the people of Metro Toronto against the expressed wishes of 76% of those affected. So much for consultation and con­ sensus! Public transit, of critical importance to residents of urban centres, was downloaded onto GTA munic­ ipalities instead of being fully integrated and operat­ ed by the province. So much for responsibility! Legitimate welfare recipients experienced major cuts in benefits, along with an obligation to partici­ pate in workfare programs. So much for dignity of the person! In the face of this devolution of necessary gov­ ernment services, the Tories have promised yet another income tax cut (principally benefiting the well-to-do); further cuts to various government departm ents (upon which the quality o f life is extremely dependent); and a sell-off of public assets (without our consent). Indeed, this litany of abuse by those mandated to preserve and promote the pub­ lic good makes a mockery of the just society. In all fairness, premier Harris revealed his party's platform for all to see. Common Sense Revolution and Blueprint documents were widely circulated. Nevertheless, in 1995, 44.8% of those who voted supported this so-called vision. On June 3rd, fully 45.1% endorsed it. Some vision. Some government. P e te r D . P e llie r mailto:haviland@ican.net