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A 6 - The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday, December 1, 2004 EDITORIALS Mil LETTERS Till'; 01KVILLE III: lllill 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5567 Classified Advertising: 845-3824, ext. 224 Grculation: 845-9742 Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. IAN OLIVER P ublisher TERI CASAS O ffice M anager NEIL OLIVER Associate Publisher MANUEL GARCIA P nxiuction M anager JILL DAVIS E d ito r in C h ie f RIZIERO VERTOLLI P hotography D irecto r ROD IERRED Managing E d ito r CHARLENE HALL D irecto r o f D istribu tio n KELLY MONTAGUE A dvertising D ire cto r ALEXANDRIA CALHOUN C in ulation M anager DANIEL BAIRD Advertising M iu u ig e r M tto ta n l Pnr«ng f\4 te h r g A Dstrtmcng L B . r e tr ie s New, HjuklCwu fn torp nK N * w R *rw A d o re *. Bwnptan Gjantan B irtn g ttfi Poet B u rtnjio-i Stooping Mew* Catofcm O y Partrt. CcAnow-JOdWasaga Connector 1 * 1 t t A lA n ct Adwcalft'Ocgnlfy Ruitos, Elcbfcokn Guardian. ( U m tx ru u /i Rfttow. GaofQetowi tndrpendert'Adcn Frw Press, ItrrB tiy i Rmtew, ttjro r® Busnees Trws. I n l a y The Wwfc. M srVam Economsr & Son M o t f t t f w v o n g u t f * * Mnror Milton C an ad a O v p o n . U t n ^ < « i n j ttew tA s s s s a jp Busnass Im es Stesssauja H ttn Gck» Hchw &M .`Aurora Lra H a J u T t« B n 3 r«ws. t t r r YorV Mrrot, Oakville Baavtr, Oakv«B Shcoprg Msvw OWtimurs Itockay Nows. Onfca Today O^fwaMwttjy.i'aaffrHJion Port Perry Ih s Wee*. O w n S c m l Tnbuno, RalmorslDn O M ftW . f'tftertcroucji The WmK, Ptton County Gukto. Hcftmond KiHhorrr*VaMy«an llM ral. Scartwougfi Mfror. S taifM telfitn dg e Tntuw Forevw ftu x j. C*y d >t<V Goordton THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL M EDIA SPONSOR FOR: | oakvllle galleries | Recognized for Excellence by _ p L J Ontario Community Newspapers Association 1 lalton Healthcare 1 ATHENA JU Award O A K V IL L E (* 7 \ Canadian Community Newspapers Association C YuM f o n t o n Jm i& e B e * F u n d m E I jC O M B * rA G O N » W * if mvstm * na v r- r a i i o SK« Suburban Newspapers of America TV AUCTION YMCA T h e O a k v ille , M ilto n N K S ' O " m h; tin e v W »U FE Fraser keeps tab Anyone w ho pays taxes in this country ow es a debt o f gratitude to Sheila Fraser. C anada's current auditor general released her annual report to Parliament last week. And, in w hat's beginning to sound like a fam iliar refrain. Fraser blasted our federal governm ent for w asting tens o f m il lions o f our tax dollars. Specifically. Fraser suggests that Health C anada is m ism anaging the nation's drug plan. Her audit points out that hundreds o f C anadians are receiving m ultiple prescription drugs from m ultiple doctors across the country. She said m isuse like this could m ean people are taking advan tage o f the system to fuel their drug addictions or re-selling prescription drugs on the street. The audit notes Health C anada is unnecessarily increasing its expen ditures by refusing to buy in bulk or purchasing generic drugs, w hich are considerably less expensive. This is the third time F raser's scorn has been cast at Health Canada. "W hat does it take to get a departm ent to act on such a serious issue?" she asks. Taxpayers should be asking that, too. They should be asking why the federal governm ent has three tim es the m oney it needs in the Em ploym ent Insurance fund. They should be asking why a $1 billion annual investm ent to im prove First N ations education is not, as Fraser suggests, creating m ore First N ations graduates. And we should be dem anding answers. Fraser's scathing reports aren 't new. The AG, w ho uncovered the $250-m illion sponsorship scandal, has been revealing our governm ent's wasteful, som etim es negligent, w ays for years. If she looks exasperated each tim e she appears on TV to discuss gov ernm ent m ism anagem ent, it's probably because she is. Year after year, she reports o f wasted dollars and, year after year, it seem s our govern ment does little to heed her warnings. Fraser encourages m inisters and high-level bureaucrats to take a m ore pro-active approaches to ensuring their m inistries and departm ents are spending tax dollars properly. It's prudent for Fraser to call for these actions but. if recent history proves anything, her words are likely falling on deaf ears. r THEY AREN'T BOOING, SIR THEY'RE MOOING- Eric's Am azing Race a success LETTERS TO THE EDITOR thanks to everyone in vo lve d Oaklands residents deserve Political will needed to a full inquiry into deaths make Oakville bicycle friendly Re: In support o f Oaklands letter, Oakville Beaver, Nov. 24. At a time when parents o f chil dren with disabilities and people who care for and about them should pull closer together with each other and the community that supports them, we worry that the opposite may be occurring. There seems to be a misunder standing appearing within the letter by Jillian and John DaSilva that rests in a suggestion that the South family (us) did not step forward with our concerns until now. This is untrue, as meetings with Oaklands management and all the agencies providing support to our family occurred partially as a result of our complaints regarding concerns for our son at O aklands respite house. Unfortunately, as parents we were not able to regain the trust we needed to have in order to leave our son(s) in the care of House #5 even after these meetings were held. This is not to say that other par ents (or us for that matter) with differently-abled children/adults with different needs would have rightly reached this same conclusion or made the same decision. It is not our intent to point fin gers, dem oralize staff, condem n facilities, or to at all to demean deci sions made by other families - like ours - struggling desperately to hold our family lives together. Closer to the truth is that we are all deeply touched by the events recently highlighted that all have seem to have to do with safety. And safety can be threatened by a number of factors, including physical and structural environment and individual needs. Our request for an inquest was the same starting point we from which the DaSilvas seem to start and to what Dean Mogridge seem to agree. Our letter was addressed to the Provincial and Regional Coroners, copied for information to govern ment and media. On the need for a thorough inquest, we are united and in full agreement with the DaSilvas. We believe that it would be negli gent to not conduct a coroner's inquest into all of the deaths at O aklands, and- that this inquest should extend into all recent deaths in all care facilities across this great country o f ours. As families of people with devel opm ental disabilities, we all just want piece of mind in life situations where little o f this exists. If we all work together, we might just get what we all need. Perhaps we can create/find/revamp a safe place for our children/adolescents/adults that cannot live at home for whatev er reason, a great place for people who w'ant to give and help to work and a haven for parents who need a break from caring for high needs children at home. Im agine... We all just want to achieve the level of normalcy that "normal" fam ilies enjoy without even realizing it in many cases. Indeed, let us all get the whole story about the facility and the pro grams they run. If there are prob lems, let's try to fix them. If the problems are insurmountable, let's take another approach. We live in one of the intellectually, academical ly and financially richest communi ties in Canada. Let's show that to the rest of the world. VALERIE AND ROBERT SOUTH Whither goest Oakville. It begins with a vision. While, understandably, pluralism manifests somewhat competing visions amongst the various stakeholders, the need for envi ronmental sustainability and individual w ell-being is embraced by all. A critical component of achieving the vision of a safe and healthy community involves how people get around. No fur ther studies need be undertaken condemning the deleterious effects of auto-dependency. No additional surveys need be conducted praising the benefits of enhanced opportunities for walking, cycling and transit use. Personal engagement in acts of mobility, as well as intrinsically pleasurable, promote both fitness and a cleaner environment. Rather than a question o f money, transforming this vision into reality is rooted in political will. Compared to other pub lic services, the cost o f additional bicycle lanes and trails is peanuts. As for sidewalks, most are currently in place, and in good repair. Town Council must be convinced our collective vision of Oakville as a pedestrian and bicycle-friendly community is worth implementing. Only by making your feelings known, will this vision materialize. PETER D. PELUER The organizing team of Eric's Amazing Race Car Rally and Silent Auction would like to take the time to thank the people who helped make this year's event an enormous success. In no particular order: Tim Hortons (Guelph Line/Coventry Way), Rob's No Frills. Fortinos - New St. Ltd.. Vodden I.G.A - Brampton. Classic Coolers - Milton, Burlington Health Foods, Glenn Hautamaki, Philthy McNasty's - Burlington, La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries Burlington. Scotia Capital - Toronto, Claybrooke Marketing - Mississauga. MTM Group - Milton and Pioneer Gas - Burlington. A special thank you to the staff of the Burlington Post. Flamborough Review and Oakville Beaver for moral sup port and outstanding media coverage. A heartfelt thank you to our family and the many area businesses and friends who provided us with numerous items for the silent auction. Due to your overwhelming J support the 2nd Annual Eric's Amazing Race Car Rally and * Silent Auction was able to raise in excess of $18,500 for Jesse's Journey and Duchenne M uscular Dystrophy , research. Finally, thank you to John and Jesse Davidson for the inspiration, "...spirit with a vision is a dream with a mis sion." TED LINDSAY, HEATHER JOHNSTON, MIKE. DARLENE, DEVIN AND ERIC MORDEN Oakville should have a university I was thrilled to read coverage of M.P.P. Kevin Flynn's recent announcement of the expansion of Bronte Provincial Park, and of the protection of a large part of the ORC lands north of Hwy. 5. Perhaps the areas that are being allocated for development and for the new hospital could include a university. The recent editorial. Colleges and Universities Need Funding discussed the growth in attendance at colleges and universities. A large percentage of children attending high school in Oakville go on to attend university. Why continue to send all of our children elsewhere once they reach university age? Why not instead have a university in Oakville? The popula tion of Halton Region continues to grow, surely we could sup port such an institution to complement Sheridan College, the second largest employer in Oakville. Many cities and regions smaller than Oakville and Halton have universities that provide high quality jobs and otherwise add tremendous value to their communities. Why not here? That would be the ultimate in smart growth. DAVID DEBELLE Thanks to a special school To the wonderful school known as Gladys Speers. We are new to your school for the past two years and we are so delighted to be a part o f this "family". Recently I have read about Teacher of the Month and have thought about making a nomination. However. I can't choose as I have found so many great teachers here that 1 choose not to single anyone out. I want to say thank you first to all the lovely young boys and girls in Daniel's fourth grade class; your parents should be so very proud o f you for the kind and caring individuals you are. To Mrs. Crown, I thank you for being a wonderful teacher and a loving and caring person. I could never forget Mrs. Eade (principal) who has helped us get through all the necessary stuff. To Mrs. Lilliana Pavicic who is an absolute doll and she will always have a special place in my heart. To Mrs. Fortune and Madame Andrews who have inspired my son and gave him another love of learning. With my very most respect to the loving community of Gladys Speers PS. MARGUERITA CARDOSO, MOM TO DANIEL AND MATHEW Pud By STEVE NEASE snease@haltonsearch.ci How was.Y our a (ohiA. PR A C TIC E We want your opinion The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, ON, I.AK 3S4, or via e-mail to editor@ oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont.. M5B 2M7. Phone (416) 340-1981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that. In the event of a typographical enror. that portion of advertising space occupied by the erroneous Item, together with a reason able allowance for signature, will not be charged for. but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline.