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A6 - The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday, April 10, 2002 E D IT O R IA L S A N D L E T T E R S THE OAKVILLE BEAVER 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax; 337-5567 Classified Advertising: 845-2809 Circulation: 845-9742 IA N OUVER Publisher NEIL OLIVER Associate Publisher TERI CASAS Office Manager JILL DA V IS Editor in Chief M ARK DILLS Production Manager K ELLY M ONTAGUE Advertising Director R1ZIER0 VERTOLU Photography Director STEVE CR02ER Circulation Director ROD JERRED Managing Editor & OWtUOHQ I B . I M m aX km M u Mora. M l en n» wmi. O m e c to r, fas* l * r c r fnr> M o c t t U u W f c u w E t t w M G uantox R a r e n u g T Post. Georgetown rdependtot'Aflon Ftw P-ws. H bt M ct f e w * v t n r o W « *. W W e m Eoonomei 6 Su i. M a B H W e n e tin gu e fre W r r K x v t Era Banner. W a lu i t t l r t O a M *8hm t. Shxcrg 0*n Suras T im * .K rgttn T T w ind sayT T wV S * * , S < x n 3T ftM ie Pin W i*. C tx rtyG u d » .F to v n o n dvW T harhM u^en Lbnl Scstxra^ M n c r, StoiM sUM gi :tu» F o w n r O yc #trt G uadsr I Pwry Tfca V M i . O b« i THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL M EDIA SPONSOR FOR: Recognized for Excellence by Ontario Community Newspapers Association a O L TM £A Jk&MFimd TV AUCTION LCOME^P r AGONin > ^ C N A Canadian Community Nnwpjpws AssodiHon SK* Suburban Newspapers o1 America m JXhm AABUgtB M TIT PQ SE SB aK S s Tha O w rr**. l A o n and O s t x t RIAL ISTATI tOARD C if c U F in d | o < k v lll« g a H e r l« s l Strength in numbers After far too much political pos turing, it now appears the federal Progressive Conservative and Canadian Alliance parties may be closer than ever before to forming a united front to challenge Jean Chretien's Liberals. Oh to have been a proverbial fly on the wall when Tory leader Joe Clark sat down yesterday (Tuesday) with new A lliance boss Stephen Harper to discuss the possibility of the pair co-leading a parliamentary coalition aimed at challenging every move o f Canada's ruling political party. Going into that meeting, it appeared both leaders were thinking quite seriously about the obvious benefits o f pooling their respective elected members to form an opposing coalition o f 77. Such a move would undoubtedly prove to be the catalyst for a chain of events that would likely see a party merger uniting the right just in time for the next general election. But why has a move that seemed logical in 1993 - when the Tories and then Reform Party of Canada were splitting enough of the popular vote to give the Liberals easy victories in three consecutive elections - taken so long to be realized? W hat makes these two leaders suddenly feel a sense of urgency to unify their troops into one political army. Perhaps it was the faint echo of an election call from off in the notso-distant future? A fter long being perceived by many Alliance faithful as one of the greatest roadblocks to unifying the two parties, all o f a sudden Clark seems to be taking on the role of one o f the proposed merger's staunchest supporters. Perhaps he realizes he's got a lim ited number o f general elections left before it will be time for him to step away from the political spotlight for good. W hatever the individual reasons, there's no denying that we are on the verge of witnessing the birth of a new political animal in this country. We just hope it's sooner, rather than later. W hether a hybrid Conservative party would prove strong enough to prevent the Liberals from earning another majority government will be for history and Canada's electorate to ultimately decide. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Parents must keep track of children's whereabouts Do you know where your children are? Well, do you? I like to think that I do, most o f the time, but 1 still worry that my daughter will get home safely. My heart goes out to parents o f that young man. who was killed recently on Upper Middle Road, just minutes from my home. I could see the lights and knew something awful had happened. 1 can only imagine their grief when they were told that their son would not be coming home. And yet only a week later, in Glen Abbey, several young teen girls were on a transit bus noisily stoned out of their young minds. Several hours later, a group of teens (boys and girls) were beating and kicking two teen boys on the ground. If a transit bus hadn't arrived on the scene. who knows if they would have made it home alive? They were actually tearing the clothes off one of the teens. Yes, the police were called, but the cow ards were gone by then. My child doesn't like the fact that she has a curfew and has to call and say where she's going, but she does. If she didn't. I'd be out there looking for her. Tough love, maybe for her, but for me it's called peace of mind and a fear for her safe ty and that o f all children. O ur youth don't need to be walking the streets at 1 or 2 a.m., they need to be home safely in bed, not lying stoned in a ditch or beating someone within an inch of their life. So please, from one parent to another ask your children where they are, who they are with and what they are doing. There were a lot of parents last weekend, who had children come home to them who had been doing bad things -- not only to themselves, but to other parents' children. Were they yours? Did you think you knew where your children were? The other day, I read about a boy in Alliston killed by another teen. He could have been our child. I told my daughter that I will make sure she reaches adulthood when hopefully she can exert some influence on her children should she be lucky enough to have them. If we can't compromise on an issue like curfew or places she can go, then I get the final say. She doesn't like it sometimes, but too bad. Kids need parents who care enough to be nosy, they have enough friends. C. DOWN i: i; hi the u i: i: k Many organic alternative lawn care products available After reading yet another letter from Mr. B.D. Hauser and then seeing Mr. Ivor Davies' response. I felt I had to write to maybe get some balance into the ongoing anti-pesticide cam paign. There have been many other excellent letters written regarding banning these substances, but they just don't seem to get it! Why are so many people getting worried about the ongoing use of pesticides? The plain fact is that many of these people have suffered some sort of health problem as a result of being exposed to a recent spraying. What is a person supposed to do if they have an allergic reaction and their next door neighbor insists on spraying their lawn year after year? Or if you have young children and pets? At the very least, they should have some advance warning. For me, the last straw was learning my sister, only 39, is now battling breast cancer, just a year after losing my mother to non-Hodgkins lymphoma. There is no history of cancer in our very large extended family. Their common link? She and my parents lived for many years on rural property near Lake Erie, where I do know my father did some spraying (he also had a form of cancer). I have lost count of the many other peo ple I know who have either survived or died as a result of dif ferent cancers within the past four years, one as young as 30! So where is all this cancer coming tarn ? I am an ex-Montrealer who lived in British Columbia for more than 20 years (I have been in Ontario only 2-1/2 years to be closer to family), so I can fill you in on some facts: In B.C. I do not remember pesticides even being an issue. My son. who still lives there, reiterated the other day that most people there do not use them. When I lived there and I walked down our street I did not see lawn after lawn being sprayed. Products were not sold off the shelves but rather kept behind glass. My husband once bought diazinon and even after being told how to use it properly, experienced dizziness and headaches. Needless to say, he has not used it since. I do know that pesticides have been banned in more and more municipalities around Montreal. I get this information from my family and friends. I also know that the province of Quebec is now moving to ban it throughout the entire province. I do not believe these are smokescreens, but are facts. We do not use any chemicals on our lawn, and it looks just as good as anyone else's. Our lawn is not infested with insects. Weed control? I simply pull them out. Need to get rid of weeds growing in the driveway and patio? I did not know what to do with those, so a friend told me to use boiling water. I tried it and it worked. There are now many organic alternatives on the market which many lawn care companies are offering if you don't have time to do your own lawn. And why just have a plain lawn? There are so many other imaginative things one can do, such as growing native plants, rock gardens, using decorative stones or groundcovers. I was in England last summer and saw that almost no one had lawns at all but rather beautiful flower gardens. The possibilities are endless. One thing you cannot do is keep fooling nature, because in the end there will be terrible consequences. Just look at the pol lution around you! It jumps out at me after living out West for so many years. I hate to say it, but Ontario lags far behind when it comes to the environment. It is time to wake up! ROSEMARIE GREEN Waiting list for cancer patients is inhumane Ed. note: This letter was addressed to Ernie Eves, the Ontario Premier --designate. I am an Ontario resident -- which until now has been a source o f pride. All that changed on Jan. 21, 2002, when to my dismay, I was diagnosed with Mycosis Fungoide (Lymphoma-type cancer). I am learning very quickly that being a res ident o f Ontario, who happens to be a cancer patient, is a dangerous and wildly emotional place to be in. Mr. Eves, living with untreated cancer, is living on a terrifying roller coaster ride. The word here is untreated. I am privileged to be under the care o f two very gifted and supportive doctors. Dr. D. Rosenthal and Dr. G. Jones, and their staff at the Hamilton Regional Cancer Centre, who through no fault o f their own, cannot provide me with the pre scribed treatment. Mr. Eves, what I would like from you is an explanation (not an excuse). W hy am I, the same as too many other can cer patients, on a waiting list of 10 - 20 weeks before being able to receive treatment? I know you and your government have prided yourselves on a common sense revolu tion. Where is the common sense in forcing can cer patients, not only facing the psychological trauma o f having cancer, which in and of itself is trauma enough, but add to that the trauma o f waiting for the potentially life-saving treat ment? It is my understanding that you believe your government has streamlined the Ontario healthcare system. How unfortunate it is at the expense of people such as myself, who possibly may not live long enough to enjoy the fruits of your labour. I realize all o f this may sound melodramat ic to you. The fact is. Mr. Eves, it is dramatic. It is frightening. Sadly, all this is so very unnecessary, but then you know this because your party creat ed the very waiting list on which I ride my roller coaster every minute o f every day. I look forward to a swift and humane reply; thank you, Mr. Eves. ELIZABETH CARMICHAEL Queen Mum walked among the ruins after WWII air raid I lived in London, England during World War II, in a place called Lewisham. We were bombed heavily all through the war and one weekend in particular I'll never forget. It was a Friday morning and the stores and streets were packed with people, young and old, shopping for the weekend and waiting in line for their rations. The siren went off and we had a terrible air raid. Hundreds of people were killed or wounded, and the air raid shelter suffered a direct hit. It was an awful sight. The next day, our dear King and Queen walked among the ruins and talked to and com forted the people. The Queen was so kind and gracious. I was very sad when I heard she had died. She was a wonderful lady and she will be sadly missed. GLADYS LUDWIG Pud WHAT ARE YOU MAKING FbR DINNER, m w - By STEVE NEASE l Your Opinion Counts The Oakxille Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considera tions and grammar. In order to be published, letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to T he Editor, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Road. O akville, O n., L6K 3S4. or via e-mail to ed itor@ oakvillebeaver.com . The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish any letter.