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Page 4 The Canadian Statesman, Bowmanvillc, January 7,1998 t Canabian statesman Former Publishers and Partners Rev. John M. Climie and W. R. Climie 1854 - 1878 M. A. James, 1878 - 1935 • Norman S. B. James, 1919 - 1929 G. Elena James, 1929 - 1947 • Dr. George W. James, 1919 - 1957 Produced weekly by James Publishing Company Limited P.O. Box 190, 62 King St. W., Bowmanvillc, Ontario L1C 3K9 'Tel: 905-623-3303 HOURS: Monday to Friday 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. Fax: 905-623-6161 Internet - statesman@ocna.org Publications Mail Registration No. 07637 For 143 Years, Our First Concern Has Been Our Community Publisher-John M. James Assoc. Publisher - Rick James Plant Manager - Rick Patterson Ad. Manager-Brian G. Purdy Editor-Peter Parrott Production Supervisor - Ralph Rozema, Suzanne Bennett, Tim Bowers, Kevin Britton, Sharon Cole, Laurens Kaldeway, Barb Patterson, Tyler Sellick, Jim Snoek, James Stephenson, Vance Sutherland, Jim Tuuramo Editorial Advertising Laverne Morrison, Wanda Partrick Brad Kelly, Lorraine Man Credo, Laura J. Richards Office Supervisor - Angela Luscher, Junia Hodge, Grace McGregor, Nancy Plcasance-Sturman, Marilyn Rutherford, Libby Smithson GTA Traffic Woes Need Solutions Bring Back Photo Radar? , Sooner or later, you can expect to see increased police surveillance by means of photo radar and cameras mounted at busy intersections or along major highways and urban streets. - It may be the only effective way to reduce the growing growing problem of aggressive driving. By aggressive driving, we are referring to the people who routinely run red lights or drive 50 kilometres above the speed limit on Highway 401. Unfortunately, these individuals are increasing in numbers. And, it may not make sense to control them by means of increasing the number of police patrols. ; Two nifty ideas have been discussed in recent years which would successfully monitor traffic and enable police to perform more pressing duties than the enforcement enforcement of traffic regulations. ■ The photo radar vans were a good way to curtail speeders without tying up police resources. They were, however, subject to some political opposition. Perhaps, however, it is time to take a second look at this system. More recently, there have been proposals to place miniature miniature cameras at important intersections in order to nab aggressive drivers. ; Frankly, we cannot see what's wrong with either method. ; There are some who would have a knee-jerk reaction against such monitoring of motorists because they believe cameras have something to do with an infringement infringement on civil liberties and the threats to freedom imposed by "Big Brother" in the George Orwell novel. We cannot see this as a civil rights issue. ; Nobody would argue that their civil rights were being jeopardized if a traffic cop was stationed at a busy intersection intersection to nab dangerous drivers. Similarly, people would agree that it is the job of police to catch speeders on a highway. Docs it really matter whether the policing is done by real people or by camera and photo radar? •; In fact, in these days of government financial constraints, constraints, both tools may be the only way to provide adequate adequate levels of law enforcement without bankrupting the taxpayer. ' Or would people prefer to see more police officers and cruisers, but use the fines they generate to support the police force? We hear of some American cities where police radar traps are actually a form of civic fund-raising- fund-raising- ' • "" ; Certainly, there has to be more dialogue on how to keep driving safe in the major urban area known as the GTA. Another problem lies in the fact that the Toronto area's population (and we are on the fringe of that area) h?s probably grown ten times faster than its road network. network. Anyone driving through Bowmanvillc on a Saturday will understand this trend. Our population is growing in leaps and bounds. But the major streets haven't changed much to accommodate the traffic. ' Do we need more roads? More tollways? Better public public transportation to keep individual cars off the highways? highways? Planning restrictions which limit urban sprawl and funnel more of the population into a compact, European-style city centre? More bike paths and walkways? walkways? Photo radar? Traffic surveillance cameras? All of the above? i Someone should be looking into these issues if the Greater Toronto Area intends to continue to be one of North America's fastest-growing cities. Attention to tliese issues is of even greater importance if the GTA is to continue to be ranked as one of the best cities in the world in which to live, work and play. letter to the Editor Thanks for The Gifts To Animals dear Mi: Purdy: This letter is to express our sincere thanks and appreciation appreciation for the big basket of dog and cat "goodies" delivered delivered to our Clarington Animal Shelter as a result of the advertisement which you and "Rylcy" placed in the Statesman for "Moonlight Magic" asking for animal "treats" for the Clarington Animal Shelter. 1 When I attended at the Animal Shelter, our Animal Control Services Officers were excited about showing nje the huge basket full of various goodies and how grateful they were that our animals were the lucky recipients. recipients. ! What a nice thing for you to do! On behalf of Mayor Hamrc, Members of Council and our Animal Shelter Staff, I would like to wish you and your Staff a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year. Thanks again and please give your dog "Rylcy" a big hug for us. Best Regards Marie P. Knight, C.M.O., CMMII Deputy Clerk Letter to the Editor Déjà Vu for Cyclist? John Veldhuis writes of his continuing adventures on the road in this letter received from somewhere near El Paso. He's riding his "recycled" bicycle around North America to raise funds for a scholarship scholarship that will allow Haitian students to complete complete a year of university in Canada. This is former Mexican territory. The people look Mexican, have Mexican names and speak Mexican-Spanish. This is the area where Pauncho Villa raided the towns and killed the American settlers until General Pershing pursued him deep into Mexico but was unable to find or capture capture him. The reason for all this raiding and capture was, of course, not nationalism nationalism or idealism but economics economics as would become clear to me as I rode further further East and read some of the historical markers along the way. That afternoon I walked across the Mexican border and visited Palomas, Mexico. The people were very friendly but the roads were all torn up, as they had been for years, and reminded me a lot of Haiti. This is not.the tourist part of Mexico with all of its problems of beggars and bargains but a simple, quiet, little village with real and ordinary Mexican citizens trying to live a normal life. That night a large pack of coyotes howled very close to my tent and I knew I was in the desert. The next day I left early with a strong wind at my back and although I took a wrong turn due to the lack of road signs and ended up at the Mexican border again, I managed to reach the city of El Paso which is shared by New Mexico, Mexico and Texas. The temperature dropped and I looked for a motel to escape the coldest temperatures on record for this area, a condition that would continue for the rest of the week. Tuesday the wind continued continued to blow out of the West and I set a new speed record of 70 k/h! Now that is travelling! Along the route I stopped at a very small cafe (2 tables only) and had something to cat. I spotted a sign in the cafe "Room for rent". The price seemed right, the cold conditions conditions (20°F) certainly a strong incentive and I agreed to rent the room which turned out to be a converted school bus! At least I was off the frozen ground and dry. Wednesday started off with frost visible but no snow yet. That was to come later as I reached the higher altitudes in the mountains. The wind has also shifted and once again is blowing in my face. There will be no 70 k/h rides today. I have to travel 96 km of desert before I will meet up with another human being. Eventually I do reach Van Horn, Texas. It is named after Major Van Horne who in 1880 drove off the local Indians and secured the wells of the area for settlers heading heading West, After a good night's rest, I woke up on Thursday to howling winds and snow. I am told the next town is 293 km away (not true but enough Continued on page 5 Brenda needs a magic wand. She is one of many single parents in Durham Region, and probably all of Canada, who got off the welfare system system and then found herself in a position where she may have to return to it. What is a person to do when they find themselves out of work, able to apply for welfare, but finding themselves themselves owing money to the system? What is a person to do when they find themselves unable to make all the ends meet until the unemployment insurance cheque comes in -- if it comes in at all? She's been told that, because she was fired, she only has a 50-50 chance of plugging into that particular system. Those arc the questions. And that's the place Brenda finds herself in right now. Looking at the situation in an honest manner, she sees that she really has nowhere to ■turn. Brenda has two children in elementary school and was working up to a month or so ago. She wasn't able to work on Saturdays and, for a number of other reasons, was fired. Her future, as she looks at it, is pretty bleak. She really doesn't want to go back to welfare. She's been there, done that and "it took me seven years to get off of it," she says. Brenda added during those years on welfare, she felt she was continually fighting to get off. "It's as if they've got a thumb on you and arc keeping you down. The best analogy I can think of is you're a salmon going upstream. I've had to constantly fight to get ahead," she admitted. Brenda is not looking for a handout, but a hand-up. She's looking for help that retains people's dignity, and self-esteem. "When you're on social assistance people are treated differently and receive no respect," she recalled. , She doesn't want to be in that position again. Some may think Brenda's looking for a miracle. But, this is the time of year when miracles do and can happen. She would like to find a way to set up a type of nonprofit nonprofit loan system based on the "if you need a penny, take it; if you have one, give it" concept. "I want to make it happen," she said. Brenda noted that she has taken a course in therapeutic therapeutic touch, and would like to take a reflexology course, with the idea of eventually setting up her own business. Over the past couple of weeks as the Christmas spirit has infected people, she has had a lot of people ask about her, with the intention of making the Christmas season a good time for her children.. "I would like to take those intentions and be able,to,, spread them throughout the whole year," she said. The non-profit loan concept, in her estimation, would help spread the generosity of the season throughout the year. If you have any ideas of how to get a concept like this off the ground, you may write to Brenda c/o James Publishing Co. Ltd. 62 King St. W, Bowmanvillc L1C 3K9. Letter to the Editor Give Credit To Youth Society is sometimes quick to point a negative finger at today's youth, who are not given credit for their efforts whose lives they touch. I am a volunteer van driver for a local Senior Citizens' Centre. I was having a coffee in the lounge during the Christmas season, waiting to take some seniors home.. School students, were leading and helping seniors singing Christmas songs. With a tear in my eye, I joined in, and also sang a few carols. carols. It was so enjoyable and gratifying to see this camaraderie and goodwill. Sometimes we do not take the time to listen to our teens. They deserve a lending ear to let them know, we also care for them. They will be tomorrow's leaders and are our biggest asset. Society is more demanding than when 1 grew up, and is sometimes very hard on them. We also have to do our part to gain their respect, setting good examples, values and rules for them to follow. We have to be good role models. All of us should take some moments to listen to our children. We will all become richer for it, and a better 1998 is sure to follow. Herman van (1er Veen Letters to the Editor Invited We welcome your comments on any topics of interest interest to the Clarington community. Letters to the Editor may be sent to The Canadian Statesman by mail (PO Box 190, 62 King St. W, Bowmanvillc, Ont., L1C 3K9); by fax (623-6161) or via the Internet (statcsman@ocna.org). The Statesman reserves the right to edit letters for reasons such as length, style and general content, Thoughts Unlimited by Rick James No More TXirkey! Christinas has come and gone for another year and we can put away the chestnuts roasting by the open fire and quit worrying about Jack Frost nipping at our nose. Judging by the weather this week, we should think more about the leak in the basement than whether the snow blower will start. Once again this year, Moonlight Magic in Downtown Bowmanvillc was spectacular with an overflow crowd attending the festivities. The stores we visited that night were packed and the horses horses earned their oats after carting hundreds of kids and adults up and down King Street. Either I've been too busy to notice in previous years or the local merchants really improved their store window displays this year. There were a number of exceptional Christmas window decorations that received rave reviews from passers-by. It was great to see that the Christmas Spirit is still alive and well in downtown Bowmanvillc. And as for me singing Christmas carolcs with Ross Metcalf on stage in front of several hundred people, you can bet I won't be suggesting suggesting that again next year, With such a large crowd on hand, I'm quite sure the downtown merchants would not be too happy if I cleared everybody out with one off-key verse of Jingle Bells, versus the inexpensive plastic bags. We're still checking on the reasoning behind the purchase, but no doubt it must be cheaper in the long run and more environmentally friendly to re-use the canvas bags and locks than the disposable plastic plastic bags. We'll see what we can find out. Pricey Parking Meter Covers? Another Christmas item that caught the attention of visitors to the downtown was the new covers for the parking meters. In the past, red plastic bags have covered the meters to provide free parking for shoppers during the Christmas season. It was a generous gesture on the part of the municipality, but several people have questioned questioned the cost of buying the extravagant canvas bags and brass locks Rick the Writer Cheeked the Files... Of course, Christmas was also the time for my annual greeting set to the tunc of Good King Wcnccslaus. Thanks to everyone who mentioned mentioned they read and enjoyed it. But, off the comments I received about the column the number one question I receive each year is, "How long did that lake to write it?" Well, some years it has taken several days to put the toughest column column of the year together. Finding words that rhyme isn't the easiest task when you're describing events that occurred during the previous year. For example, I remember writing one verse two years ago of "Twas the Night Before Christmas" that read, "As I sat with my missus, missus, sipping gin fizzes..." Hey, you don't have to be nuts to write one of tliese columns, but it sure helps! Anyway, how long did this year's column lake? Only about three hours. Just like most columns, essays or stories, getting started is the hardest part, But, unlike essays or stories, the toughest part of a weekly weekly column is that it is weekly. When 1 start writing about things like seatbelt safety or one of the four seasons, you know it's been a tough week. With a belly-fully of turkey and dressing to slill burn off, Ibis week could qualify as one of those weeks,