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2 The Canadian Statesman, Bowmanvillc, Wednesday, December 1,1993 A /Rl Section Two Editor - Peter Parrott For 139 Years, Our First Concern Has Been Our Community Publisher - John M. James Assoc. Publisher - Richard A. James Plant Manager - Donald J. Bishop Ad. Manager - Brian G. Purdy Production Rick Patterson, Ross Fisher, Laurens Kaldeway, Doug Lugtonburg, Sharon McMullen, Barb Patterson, Ralph Rozema, Jim Snoek, Vance Sutherland, Jim Tuuramo Advertising Lavcmc Morrison Editorial Brad Kelly, Lorraine Manfredo, Laura J. Richards Former Publishers office Rev. W. R. Climie, 1854-1878 • M.A. James, 1878-1935 • George W. James, 1935-1957 Angela Luscher, Junia Hodge, Grace McGregor, Nancy Pleasance-Stuman, Marilyn RuthorfoM Produced weekly by James Publishing Company Limited p.o. Box 190,62 King St. W., Bowmanville, Ontario, L1C 3K9 905-623-3303 Fax 905-623-6161 Down to the Wire For United Way The United Way's 1993 fund-raising campaign is going down to the wire and a last-minute effort is needed if the organization is to raise $3.05 million. The good news is that over three-quarters of the goal has already been reached. Thanks to the generosity of contributors in Oshawa, Whitby and Clarington, die United Way has collected $2.4 million thus far. .... , , . . Considering the current economic climate, the impact ot the social contract on public sector workers, and the many other challenges facing fund-raisers, the United Way has achieved much. But it is not yet enough. The United Way is the fund-raising agency for over 40 separate agencies in the Durham Region. Those agencies run 200 programs which serve an estimated 80,000 persons. So, a shortfall in United Way fund-raising affects not just one organization. It touches almost all of the major community groups which serve our three municipalities. , . , Here in the municipality of Clarington, there has sometimes been a misconception that the United Way funds arc spent mainly by Oshawa agencies. In fact, many agencies such as YWCA, Community Care, Big Brothers, the John Howard Society, and St. John Ambulance all have local offices in Clarington. Although it is true that some United Way agencies are based in Oshawa, these agencies serve clients in municipality of Clarington. A few examples of these would be, the Oshawa Deaf Centre, the CNIB, and Durham Save-a Heart.- So whether they operate within Clarington or at a central location in Oshawa, virtually all of the United Way agencies direedy benefit Clarington citizens. Donors can rest assured that their gifts help their own community. If you have not yet made a contribution, don't wait for someone to ask. In this festive season, you might want to consider a United Way donation as a Christmas present that you give to the entire community. There is more Than half a million left to be raised in the next two weeks. Yoiir help truly is needed ".Now, MoreThan Ever." Tougher Licencing Ontario appears to be moving ahead on its plans to introduce a graduated licence program by the spring of 1994. Legislation to launch the two-tiered system has been introduced by the provincial Transportation Minister. The concept has merit because it will allow new drivers to develop their skills in lower-risk driving conditions before they are considered fully equipped to take to the roads. However, graduated licensing is not a cure-all. It will help eliminate those accidents that are caused by inexpenence and lack ol knowledge. Unfortunately, highway safety isn't quite that simple. Statistics show that many fatal and injury-producing accidents are caused by a familiar foe -- alcohol. It's highly unlikely that those who drink and drive do so because they were never properly intormed that alcohol and motor vehicles are a deadly combination. So, a better system of driver education won't reach those people. ■ . Police spot checks, licence suspensions, fines and even jail terms will remain one of the first lines of defence against motor vehicle accidents. Public education and an increasing intolerance of drunken driving is another defence. , The newly announced process of educating young drivers should reinforce the message that the use of motor vehicles is not a right, but a privilege and that driving is a major responsibility. Furthermore, driving skills must be honed throughout a lifetime. Motorists can t possibly learn all there is to know in a few short months. News Item: All levels of government set to pump millions into community infrastructure improvements fob Lookl Its all Ike mon^v V/£ aaV£ I hem m last Marl i/ m sure I hear' Letters to the Editor Cloth Diapers Versus Disposable Debate ) - » t . L 1 rx tf-v ihfnn rlmie T ct nrtr»rl fl 'lnnrl nf rim- Dear Editor: I Regarding your article "No dump for Newtonville" in the November 17 edition, I would like to add my two cents' wordi to the cloth diaper issue. New mothers - hear our story and take heart. We are now at the tail end of four and a half years of diapers. Our boys were bom within 15 months of each other, and the younger one still needs night time nappies. We opted for cloth diapers from the . very beginning, beginning, and we used a wide variety of makes. We did not snuff at the convenience convenience of disposables and pull-ups; they arc great for trips. But, all in all, Listen up, parents. I need some advice. After searching our home for more than a month to find my VCR remote control, it's becom- . ing clear that my treasured "clicker" is missing in action. The question I have for all you parents is, "Where does a two-year-old hide a remote control?" control?" 1L We've looked between cushions, under the couch, in the dog dish, and just about everywhere we can think that Morgan could have put our Hitachi VT-3800A remote control. The only reason I know the model number is because I had to order order another one for $50! It's going to take about a week for the new one to arrive, and naturally, the old one will re-appear the minute I walk in the door with its replacement. The next issue to be addressed is what form of lunishment needs to be administered to "teach ft ...organ a lessen." We could withhold her allowance, allowance, but that's still a few years off. We could ground her for a week, but that never worked on me, so why would I expect that to work on her? I've got it, let's hit her where it really hurts. No Barney videos for a month! Unfortunately, that tough guy Daddy routine evaporates quickly whenever I ask Morgan where she has hidden the clicker. Each time 1 ask, she raises her eyebrows, shrugs her shoulders with arms extended at her sides and says, "All gone! I can't believe I'm having a battle of wits with a two-year-old...and she's winning. The following article by Dave Barry appeared In the Detroit Free Press recently. It's a humorous look at U.S. lawyers, but after seeing similar law suits appearing in Canada, it could easily have been written here. Read on to determine who are the winners and losers. So Sue Mel By Davo Barry, Detroit Proo Pross I am sick and tired of all this lawyer-bashing. When I hoar somebody say something bad about lawyers, it makes mo want to walk and spit In his face, thereby causing him to shove mo, so I can fall down and filo a $17-million personal-injury law-suit against him. Bocauso I happen to think lawyers are groat. I am darnod gratoful that I live In a country that has, pound lor pound, moro lawyers than any other country In tho ontiro world. Wo NEED a lot of lawyers, to protect all these rights we have as Americans, including - but not limited to - the rights to life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness, job security, decent housing, affordable health care, the capture of happiness, a non-smoking section, a joke-free work environment, a smoking section, cable TV, a team that makes the playoffs, rain- free outdoor weddings, risk-free bungee jumping, warning labels on everything including spiders, self-esteem and a choice of low-fat desserts. We have so many rights that we cannot possibly possibly keep track of them all with our primitive non-le- gal minds. This is why we need all these lawyers out there fighting for us, even when we are not aware of it. A fine example of this, brought to my attention by alert reader Leon Rothman, is the Case of the Denture Adhesive Menace. In case you missed this story, let me review the facts of the case. From 1985 to 1990, a company named Smith Kline Beecham manufactured denture adhesives sold under the names "Orafix Special" and "Brace". Smith Kline recalled these products in 1990 after they were found to contain trace amounts of benzene, a carcinogen. Smith Kline contends that the products were not harmful. There is no evidence anybody got cancer from using using them. Then a retired Philadelphia auto supplies dealer dealer named Meyer E. Duboif, who used Smith Kline denture products, contacted his lawyer, Jay S. Cohen. "He called me and said, "I've been using this stuff for years. Can you chock it out?" Cohen told a reporter. OK, is everybody following this so far? ONE GUY has called his lawyer. This guy does NOT have cancer. NOBODY has cancer. Nobody Is claiming ANYBODY actually got hurt. So the lawyer told tho guy, "Gosh, Moyer, nothing nothing really happened. Why don't you just forgot about It?" NO! Just klddingl That might happen in somo backward, undor-lawyorod nation llko Japan, but not horo In tho U.S.A.I , „ , What happened horo, of course, was that Cohen and somo other lawyors filed a class-action class-action lawsuit against Smith Kllno on behalf of Dubofl and all tho ottior donluro-adhoslvo users out thoro who, bocauso of a tragic lack of logoi ConlTnuod on Pago 8 Vwc'vc used no more than eight to 10 : regular sized packs in all these years. Although the environmental issue was close to our hearts, we must admit admit that the biggest incentive was the cost factor. The irony is that, in order to make ends meets, I had to work outside the home for the first three years and still do, part time. Not only that, I had to commute to a fairly well-paying job an hour and a half away to offset childcare costs for two. So time was at a premium, as well. Now, this is by no means Super Super Mom speaking (anybody who has visited my house can attest to that). ■But I tend to agree with Shirley Stapleton Stapleton in the above mentioned article, who stated that "one makes the time to do the right thing." Our boys' caregiver had nonobjections nonobjections to the "travelling diaper pail" and all it entitled (e.g. rinsing of ■stools in the toilet). In the evening, we picked up our sons, tossed the contests of both the "domestic" and the "day care" pail into the washing machine and ran a rinse cycle - no sweat. We never used a solution in the pails. Whenever a wash of our clothes was in order, about every two to three days, I started a Toad of diapers diapers already in the machine. Since we were committed to saving money, 1 did not want to blow it by using the dryer. Hanging the diapers took no more than ten minutes at a time, and I even had a clothes line in thé basement basement for the winter months. In the summer, the sun had a strong bleaching bleaching effect on stains. (I am speaking in the past now since the one lonely night diaper hardly counts.) All this does not sound too bad, and indeed is was not. Oh yes, there were days when I couldn't wait to see the end of it, but it really is all a matter matter of routine. And the best is yet to come: Statistics vary on the savings one can achieve on cloth diapers versus versus disposables, but we assumed ■ $500 per child per year and made an extra mortgage payment of $1000 annually. annually. This represented roughly the amount that went against the principal principal in the normal course of mortgage payments per year, so our formula was: each year of washing diapers cuts one year off the duration of our mortgage. And this, after all, is nothing nothing to sneeze at! Ulrike Fliesser by Laura J. Richards i J / [••> Michael Jackson I've been doing a lot of thinking .. '. lately about the claims against Mi- . chacl Jackson. Why do people think Jackson is completely innocent and that the child v is making up a story? Jackson says the child's story is a * part of a botched extortion attempt to get money from him, In a media interview not too long ago, a friend of Jackson's said Mi- . chacl has a dark side. Perhaps this is -part of the "dark . side." Let's face it, most people do have a dark side. However, many of ■ us arc able to keep it at bay just like Luke Skywalker did in the Star Wars ■; story. (Sorry, but sometimes thinking i simplistically helps put things into . perspective.) As. far as I know, this case seems ' to be the first, in many years in which someone who says he is innocent of ' such a heinous crime and is actually " being treated so. Or is it because Jack- son simply can't be found? However, if he were found by the ■ •' media, he can't say anything anyway. Besides, most people who are ac- J cused of sexually abusing children deny that they did anything really T wrong. In cases where sexual abuse has i been talked about, people generally A slam the accused every chance they A get. '! Just think back to when some of n the details hit the media' regarding 3 some daycare centre workers who ' were accused of sexual abuse in the United States. i However, for some odd reason, a Jackson is not recciveing the same 'i treatment in this case. ' _ • ■ I have one simple question 1 (which ■' will lead to others, of course): Why? Is it because Michael came'out of seclusion in January of this year to j show the world that he's not the odd ' ball most people had made him out to ! be? Was this a calculated move on his : part? " Is it the money -- how much Jack- J son has? And how much otherpeopic don't have? ■ ■ ;f . What has happened to people? Do ■' they think Jackson is so perfect that he 1 "could not have done whatever is be-' ing said about him?" We don't know if he did abuse a ' child and we don't know if the child is - making unfair allegations either. While some people want to believe that Jackson did not do anything : wrong, we may end up finding out ; that he did do something that people . won't have too much understanding for. Look at what Jackson has been able to accomplish so far. 1 He has won humanitarian awards for helping children at home and ' abroad. He is constantly seen with children. He owns Ncvcrland, the place where he never has to mature or grow old. He is one of the "Lost Boys" or perhaps even Peter Pan himself. He has created a fairyland to which ' he invites children. He has had better access to children who trust and believe believe in him than a Boy Scout leader or a sports coach. Continued on Page 3 We Asked... What do you think about the provincial govèrnment's new cigarette regulations? .. .And You Said Henry Lorrain Annie Park Bill Blair Orono Bowmanville Bowmanville "I think they're "I think it's mosh. "It's going to hurl the good ideas as I They say. nothing drug stores and put recall. The fewer about drinking which m0 rc people out of children who begin kills morc than cigar- WO rk." the fewer who die of cllL ' s ' ^ ^ unc l 0 lung cancer later." malarkey. Mamie Alexander Bowmanville "I don't smoke, so I don't worry about it. If people want to smoke they'll find a way to got the cigarettes." cigarettes." \vxt week's question: Wlut should the I .iberal government do to control the del ici t?