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" OQPINION However, this "Don‘t Worry Be Happy" conviction comes with a price. Over the next three years, his government plans to pile at least $100â€"billion more in government debt onto the backs of Canadian taxâ€" payers. Despite the Prime Minister‘s attempts to artificially shape a posiâ€" tive public mood, running up the tab on the national credit card isn‘t something most Canadians can feel good about. After cutting through the chaff, the poll that really counts is that of the world financial markets. Dear Sir: Pollsters are marveling at the federal Liberal party‘s high approval ratings. They tie it to the humble demeanor of our Prime Minister. A very likable fellow they conâ€" clude. Mr. Chretien said it best when he recently implored Canadians to be happy and not worry so much. Failing report card on some Halton Board members Dear Sir: Re: Letter of the day ‘Trustees deserve support‘ â€" Arleen Reinsborough Aug. 24th. Excellent letter. It certainly illusâ€" trates the 7â€"11 club...visâ€"aâ€"vis the seven who favor restraint over the 11 who favor ‘tax and spent‘. Incidentally, since the letter names only those trustees who have done a After sacking many ordinary workers of Ontario Hydro, I am sure they are just dancing in the aisles of their local U.L. offices, after they heard about the Costa Rican affair. If that was not enough to get them in a party mood; new reports of a purchase of 15% of Edelsur, which is part of the Peruvian Hydro Corporation, Electrolima, should have all of the Ontario Hydro‘s Power Workers‘ Union overjoyed. This is contrary to all known economic basics. Let us take the words of both the government and hydro as they are. We have the expertise, unsurpassed, by any other nation in the world. I would therefore ask â€" why are we paying the Peruvian government $53â€"million to fix their problems. Economic 101, states if you have the knowlâ€" edge and ability to fix someone‘s problems and they require your knowledge...they pay you to remedy the situâ€" ation. Mr. Strong seems to have this theory backwards. Dear Sir: What is the Ontario Hydro chairman, Maurice Strong, thinking of? It would seem that he is trying a new profesâ€" sion, Comedy. I may also point out, that he is not very good at this other profession either. akville and Halton are as deserving as any area for federal funding but the net coff to us all in terms of future and increasing indebtedness only reduces the numâ€" ber‘Sf years we have to control our own destiny. Like all those who are bankrupt, the money men will call the tune. That‘s quite a legacy to pass on to our children. Simply put, Canada is broke. We have no money to bail out many of social proâ€" grams and our cash flow is terrible. The Liberal answer to this problem is to head off to world bankers, cap in hand, asking for cash. These foreign lenders, asking top dollar for use of their funds, are still only too glad to hand over the cash. And so what, as Canadians, will be gain after the billions of borrowed money has been spent on infrastructure? We will have created a very few permanent jobs but we‘ll have great roads for the unemployed or UIC collectors to drive on as they journey from place to place in search of work. In Chretien‘s case, the answer was a simple as some of the viewpoints in his book. The PM saw the victory as a win for not only his party but also a personal mandate to rule with the red book as his guide. When the ambitious Bronte Outer Harbour plan was unveiled, everyone knew funding would be a problem. The feds, courtesy of former Tory MP Otto Jelinek, kicked in $3â€"million, leaving the rest to local, regional and provincial governments. The feds wanted to do more, so the story goes, but there was no more money. Flash forward to last Thursday, same site near Bronte Harbour and another Oakville Milton MPâ€"in this case Liberal Bonnie Brown and Mr. Eggleton, smiling as they look at artist‘s drawings for harbor improvements. What‘s wrong with this picture? If an earlier government had increased funding to this and other projects, it would have been chastised as being financially reckless. But since the Red Book makes it right, spending is in again...big spending. Political scientists have been and will continue discussing what really happened in the election for years to come. The central question remains this: did the people of Canada vote for the Liberals or against the Progressive Conservatives? In promising to spread government largesse, Chretien has been as good as his word. Let‘s take federal funding initiatives in just one Oakville project to illustrate the somewhat myopic fiscal view of our federal government. Aside from being the former Mayor of Toronto, Eggleton is the current President of the Treasury Board and federal Minister Responsible for Infrastructure. This is a lot of bureaucratic bafflegab for saying that Eggleton is the guy responsiâ€" ble for handing out money the federal government doesn‘t have simply to make good on promises made by the Liberals in the last federal election. It‘s a tough job, but someone‘s got to do it. The theory behind the grants, which will see $11.3â€"million worth of roads, harâ€" bor and other work done in town, is to put more people to work, while at the same time improve the country‘s infrastructure. That means spending money on things like roads, bridges, sewer systems etc. This was one of Prime Minister Jean Chretien‘s big promises in his ‘red book‘ of policies he trotted out to the electorate as reasons why Canadians should vote for him and his party. Ontario Hydro policies defy logic PM‘s credo of ‘don‘t worry, be happy‘ is wearing thin ,â€"__Ecoune _ ‘ ” Jhen Art Eggleton blew into town last week, he was greeted with open arms by officials from the Town of Oakville and Halton Region. And while it‘s hard not to smile when someone hands you $41.9â€"million, there should be a time when questions should be asked about the ‘gift‘ from Ottawa. Why the smiles? Re‘i‘ ns b o t o u g h ‘ s measurement...Dave Coons Ward 6, Linda Glover Ward 3, Marg Bullock Ward 2, and Don Cassidy Ward 5 (Burlington), and Lynn Clark Ward 1, along with Penny Siebert Ward 4 Particularly, foreign investors holdâ€" ing Canadian debt. good job on the Board, I feel predisâ€" posed to name the other four from Burlington and two from Oakville who have not met Ms. Here, the news grates like chalk on a blackboard to Mr. Chretien‘s ears. One German fund manager was recently quoted as saying that investing in Canada is like putting your money into a casino. Many have said that this is "laughable". I am sorry, but I find this a "weepful" situation. This Mr. Strong wants to spend our hardâ€"earned dollars to give it away to someone besides an Ontario (or even Canadian) resident. I cry just thinking about it. When will the Minister Responsible for Ontario Hydro do his job? Forget the excuses of armsâ€"length scenario. If it were totally armsâ€"length, we would not have a Minister Responsible for their actions. Since we do, he ultimately is Responsible. Here is a plan of action. Dismiss the 21 Ontario Hydro Board Members and be responsible for such idiotic deciâ€" sions. The government should fire the guy, and the rest of the inept board of Bob‘s appointees and save Ontarians future tax increases to support the $34â€"billion deficit Ontario Hydro faces; the largest Canadian Corporate debt to date. G. Trudell His efforts to reduce Hydro expenses by laying off hundreds of the workers, not management, is an exercise in futility. Especially, when he pays exorbitant sums of money to places such as Costa Rica and Peru. None of the six has initiated any ideas concerning cost control or cost reductions in their term of office. To date, their time has been consumed by finding new, ways to spend money or blocking the initiatives of the prudent fiscally conservative trustees. Therefore, we are now actively supporting their replaceâ€" Despite almost nonâ€"existent inflation, Canadians now pay interâ€" est rates that are 7% to 8% higher than they should be. Why? Because the loonie is in the can and keeps falling fast, as investors chill out on Canada and bail out of our bonds. (Oakville). All callers are allowed 45 secâ€" onds to express their opinion and must provide their name, address and phone number for verification. A cross section of the responsâ€" es will be published in next Wednesday‘s Oakville Beaver. Got a gripe? Give us a call. Readers are invited to express their opinion on a topic of their choice by calling 845â€"5585, box 5250. s UVHV JVET | daA. UTU OJVVJY 3 OW DCVWE D NOC T O k C o Teri Casas Office Manager Liberal, Scarborough Mirror. Classified Advertising: 845â€"2809 All material published in the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. luction â€" Circulation: 845-974290r 845â€"9743 Tim Coles Production Manager of h pait of is malers) s sticty forbidden without Te mfim o Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of the advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid fo heapplicsblsma.mpuwmmesflwfiwbmsgofimnndmamidmhheevemompogmphedmldvenimnggoodsovuwbasnlmeNMQ i g@wioesmayndbasohAdveris’ngsmWnoflartosdmdmybowahdmwnmmyim. The Oakville Beaver welcomes your comments. All letters must be signed and include the writer‘s address and phone number. Letters should be typed, doubleâ€"spaced and addressed to: Letters to the Editor, The Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, Ont. L6K 3$4 467 Speers Road, Oakville, Ont. L6K 384 845â€"3824 Fax: 845â€"3085 IN SOMEWHEREL, THE OAKVILLE BEAVER lgyp Would Jesus Christ have permitâ€" ted the interâ€"denominational squabâ€" bling and ‘turf protection‘ mode among his disciples? Why was the interâ€"faith group PLURA formed? I believe it was for this very reason. PLURA...Presbyterian, Lutheran, United, Roman Catholic, and Anglican. Get with it all you pilâ€" grims! Carl D. Stafford Millcroft needs a new school in the worst way, but have you seen any attempt by the two directors to initiate and sign a joint request for a school in the Millcroft area of Burlington? Premier Klein in Alberta, through Bill 19, and Premier Wells of Newfoundland, through a preâ€"legislation consultaâ€" tion paper, have moved in the direcâ€" tion of combining the school boards. With the dollar now trading at about 72 cents U.S. on spot markets, the value for three year futures The public school board trustees have been promising joint (shared) programs with the separate board since 1991. To date, they have not addressed joint busing or other meaâ€" sures to reduce costs. This, in spite of the fact both public and separate school boards have the same comâ€" puter program â€" Edulog â€" which would permit resource sharing. One needs to look no further than the foreign exchange markets where traders speculate on the future value of the Canadian dollar to see the potential of a crisis in the making â€" how the "Don‘t Worry Be Happy" policy is sinking the Canadian dollar over time. In effect, a steady ongoâ€" ing wage cut for all Canadians. ments at the board table. Their legaâ€" cy has been poor stewardship. One thing is for certain. The marâ€" kets have no interest in paying for Mr. Chretien‘s "Don‘t Worry Be Happy" style of government. Major international institutional investors are turning sour on Canada. To keep reluctant foreign lenders in Canadian bonds, the central bank has had to offer attractive interest rates. Rates much higher than those it otherwise would be paying if our governments weren‘t living so wildâ€" ly beyond their means. Ian Oliver Publisher Robert Glasbey Advertising Director Norman Alexander Editor Geoff Hill Circulation Director Yes, Mr. Prime Minister, don‘t worry, be happy. The party‘s just begun. Meanwhile, in Ottawa, the midâ€" night oil is burning over at the Department of Finance. High interâ€" est rates are trashing federal budget projections as the cost of borrowing rises and the deficit balloons. Be happy...with your failing stanâ€" dard of living and your rising mortâ€" gage costs. Feels good, doesn‘t it? A familiar story. One we‘ve heard before too many times. While a lower dollar may be good news for exporters, for most Canadians it means a lower standard of living and unnecessarily high interest rates on borrowed money. drops to $0.67, and for a ten year forward is in a lethal noseâ€"dive at $0.59. If we wish to reduce the cost of local government longâ€"term, here is one obvious area for serious attention; reduce the number of councillors. The upâ€"coming Councilâ€"should deal with this item early in its mandate to be ready for the elections of November 1997 â€" something that could have been done and should have been done for the elections held in November 1991 â€" six years ago. Don‘t think that our 54 representatives come cheap! Add up salary, mileage, fringe benefits, pensions, conventions, etc. Can there be any question that we have far more than enough elected representatives in Halton? On top of all this, we have the Police Services Board, four Hydroâ€" Electric Commissions, the Halton Region Conservation Authority, the Children‘s Aid Society â€" all impacting on costs of government â€" with three out of four of them having paid Boards. Halton has 54 elected representatives today for a population of about 360,000; 30 serve locally only, and 24 serve at two levels. By compariâ€" son, Mississauga with a population of half a million, has nine councilâ€" lors and a Mayor, all of whom also serve at the regional level in Peel. Edmonton has about 12 councillors an even larger city, and with counâ€" cillors carrying heavier responsibility for the airport, for police services, etc. A proposal was made in 1990â€"91 to reduce the number of councilâ€" lors serving regionally by at least two. As Oakville has grown, Halton Hills and Burlington are both proportionately overâ€"represented. If these municipalities dropped by one councillor each, Oakville‘s representaâ€" tion could remain static. This idea may merit serious consideration. Council would be reduced in size from 24 to 22 â€" a modest start in a desirable direction. The quick answer to inadequate representation here is always to add more councillors from Oakville. But, we already have at the Region a Council of 24 members and a chair. A third of the councillors do most of the work and make a significant contribution. Then, there are the seat warmers. There is no evidence that the decisions made by a group of 24 are any better than those made by a smaller group. Dear Sir: Municipal elections lie ahead and, at the regional level, Oakville will, again, be quite underâ€"represented for another three years. The earliâ€" est possible date for change now will be for the 1998â€"2001 Council. ‘_{ LETTER OF THE DAY â€"â€"â€" Too much government Paul Pagnuelo The Ontario Taxpayers Federation The Oakville Beaver, published every Sunday, Wednesday and Fridat\{i at 467 Sfeers Oakville, is one of the Metmuid(e , Publishing Distributing Ltd. of Bsub newspapers which includes: News Advertiser, Barrie ance, Brampt Guardian, Burlington Post, Colnowoodm%omwcton Etobicoke Guardian, Georgetor Independent/ Acton Free Press, Kingston This Week, Lindsay This Week, Ma Economist and Sun, Stouffville/Uxbridge Tribune, Miton Canadian Champion, Mississa: News, Newmarketâ€"Aurora Eraâ€"Banner, North York Mirror, Oakville Beaver, Orillia T Oshawa/Whitby This Week, Peterborough This Week, Richmond Hil/ThomhilWaug Liberal, Scarborough Mirror. All material published in the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Any reproduction whole or in part of this material is strictly forbidden without the consent of the publisher. John Graham September 7, 1