The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

PAGE 6 THE CANADIAN STATESMAN, September 10, 2003 www.durhamregion.com Tim Whittaker Publisher Joanne Burghardt Editor-in-Chief Tony Doyle Managing Editor Fred Eismont Director of Advertising Eddie Kolodziejcak Classified Advertising Manager Kirk Bailey Distribution Manager Lillian Hook Office Manager Janice O'Neil Cheryl Haines Composing Managers Clarington's Award-Winning Newspaper Since 1854 EDITORIAL e-mail letters to ncwsroom@(l iirhamrejjion.com It's not quite as simple as A,B,C Parties diverge when it comes to education policy I f there's one tiling the three major Ontario parties can agree to thoroughly disagree on, it's education. As far as Dalton McGuin- ty's Liberals are concerned, the Tories have essentially destroyed education over the past eight years, overseeing a decline in standards and quality while underfunding the system. Howard Hampton and the NDP would essentially back the Liberal Liberal criticisms, but would take it a step further by dumping Tory student student testing, eliminating the proposed private school tax credit and put $2 billion immediately into the school system. The Tories would assure you the system is far better now than when they took over in 1995. They'll add there is much still to be done and that, under Ernie Eves, they're just the ones to do it. What's a parent to do come Oct. 27 If education is your No. 1 issue, who do you trust to improve and look after the system for the next four or five years? A long look at the platform put forward by each of the parties shows there are enough differences to allow parents to make a choice. First, what are the similarities? All three parties agree the system needs more money. Both the NDP and Tories are willing to put $2 billion more into education right away. The Liberals have said they will invest $ 1.8 billion more into the system by the end of their mandate. All three parties want more accountability in the system to ensure dollars are reaching the classroom. All want to see students achieve more and excel. The differences are also vety clear. The Tories are alone in calling for a ban on teacher and staff strikes and work-to-rule action during the school year. They would have disputes ultimately settled by binding arbitration without disruption to school years. Both the NDP and Liberals suffered school strikes while in government, so the problem is not exclusive to the Tories. Though drastic, the Tory plan, which was. originally raised by Wliit- by-Ajax MPP Jim Flaherty when he ran for the leadership in 2002, may be the only one that keeps kids in the classroom. Neither the NDP nor Liberals support the Tories' plan to offer parents parents who may not be well off, the option to send their children to private private schools by providing a tax credit. The Tories are pushing ahead with their plan to make all students pass a mandatory literacy test before high school graduation. Such a plan, which has been in place for a few years now, is touted as a means to ensure all Ontario high school grads meet at least a minimum minimum standard before they enter post-graduate studies or the workforce. workforce. Such a plan is more stringent and demanding than anything the Liberals or NDP have advanced. All three parties certainly take the education issue seriously and want your vote on the issue. The Tories, who have been responsible for the system for the past eight years, have come out with the most black and white plan. Proposing bold initiatives like banning teacher's strikes and encouraging private school choice indicates an Eves government would continue along the path it has chosen in recent recent years when it comes to education - either you like the tough decisions decisions that have been made, or you don't. The tale will be told at the ballot box. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR e-mail letters to newsroom® (lurliiiiiiiejjiuii.com Let the buyer beware To the editor: Re: 'Cemeteries really are for the living ', This Week, Sept. 29, columnist Eleanor Toild. I agree with (Eleanor Todd) that there is nothing more fascinating fascinating than an old cemetery. At the end of her column she remarked that, at some cemeteries. cemeteries. one could buy a monument, monument, marker, flowers, wreaths and mom. She went on to say that she never thought she would see "one-stop shopping in a graveyard." It has been mv experience that cemetery stall'lark training when it comes to selling monuments or markers. Also, the prices at most large conglomerates owning cemeteries are very high, Cemetery staff, at times, will tell an unsuspecting public that the customer has to buy from the cemetery and nowhere else. This borders on fraud. I have been called many times by a member of the public asking me to get them out of a contract with a cemetery in which they paid loo much money. A wise person will shop around when purchasing a monument or marker. It only takes a short amount of time, and could save you hundreds of dollars. When I see a person throwing all their trust to the cemeteries, I can only shake my head, as they probably have paid more than necessary, The sad part is they never find out, and go on their way, content in the belief that "we look good care of that, didn't we.' Philip Dawson Oslntwa Efjc Canadian Statesman ■ Phone 905-579-440C Classifieds 905-576-9335 Distribution 905-579-4407 General Fax 905-579-2236 Newsroom Fax 905-579-1809 E-Mail newsroom@durhamreglon.com 865 Farev/ell St., Oshawa ON L1H 7L5 Publications Mail Registration No. 07637 September 10,2003 Metrolund Printing, Publishing & Distributing Ltd. infodurham egicii.com „*Aro iu wmws wous ...movm m \S ENOW MW doTighan.com LETTERS TO THE EDITOR e-mail tellers to newsrnom@durliaiiircgion.coni CLICK AND SA^ Today's question: Are you in favour of a publicly-funded auto insurance program? □ Yes □ No Cast your vote online at infodurham: jiar.com Last week's question: Do Darlington and Pickering nuclear stations need no-fly zones? □ Yes 83.3 per cent □ No 16.7 per cent Total votes: 246 HAVE YOUR SAY Question "Do you expect more trustee candidates to file to run in the next municipal election or is this a real problem for the local school boards." Frank Harris "I think they lost interest as they lost their previous incomes." Driving drunk is illegal at any age To the editor: In light of the. reaction to columnist Tim Kelly's suggestion suggestion the drinking age be lowered lowered to 18, I'd like to comment in his defence that the logic was perfectly reasonable. If the age of high school students was the reason for increasing the drinking drinking age to 19, then it is quite logical to switch it back to 18 if that is now the age of most graduates. If 18 is the age at which one is considered a legal adult, responsible responsible enough to marry and vote, it seems very odd the same 18-year-olds are not legally legally allowed to drink alcohol. Rather than copying the nearby states which have a drinking age of 21, why not copy the nearby provinces, which, unlike the states, are in the same country, country, and adopt their drinking age of 18? If we do wish to look at other countries we would find 18 is the typical age to drink legally in most of Europe, too. The key issue seems to be drinking and driving, but it is illegal illegal to drive drunk at any age, and many 18-year-olds still have only their G2, with a zero- alcohol tolerance. How much difference does the legal drinking drinking age really make to the drunk-driving stats when we consider how many culprits are driving and/or drinking illegally anyway? I have noticed the current crop of teenagers is generally very responsible about not drinking and driving compared to my own 70's coming-of-age generation. When typical late teens go to parties they have designated drivers or sleep over. There will always be those who take to the wheel drunk, but they are often the same ones who ignore the legal drinking age. Why penalize all 18-year- olds? Often the issue is not the actual actual consumption of alcohol but being allowed into clubs serving serving it. Linda Tabernev Bowmanvillc OPINION Slow down in school zones To the editor: After the first week of school everyone's slowly getting getting back in the swing, of things but there is a problem, drivers are forgetting to lower their speeds in school zones. 1 live in Courtice on Nash Road where there's a high school and an elementary school and it's a pretty common sight to see teenagers and even parents speeding down this stretch of road at speeds of 60 to 80 km/h during school hours. To slow these drivers down I suggest the government and all local police departments look at re-introducing photo radar in areas of high concern, mainly school zones, so that they can ticket all-these irresponsible drivers who need to 'SLOW DOWN'! Brad Miller Courtice Nicky MacDonald "1 don't think a lot of people see it as important and that someone else will do it." Mark MacLean "I think so. The education system took a tumble, but I think it's coming back." Greg Rowe "People might feel they don't have the time." e-mail tellers to newsroom @(111 rliam region.com Style over substance: Same old political song and dance H ere we go, election time again. And, oh what an election it's shaping up to be. If you haven't noticed noticed yet, so far the biggest issue is one of the least important: style over substance. Yes folks, it's more important important to look good than to actually have the best platform. It's become clear the leader of the party and his image is holding a lot more sway over policy policy than the issues themselves. Local candidates candidates are trying to earn name recognition, but they will have to rely largely on their leaders to make an impact in order to sway enough voters on Oct. 2. Mind you, none of the leaders leaders of the parties has inspired many people so far. Let's start with Premier Ernie Eves. The non-elected premier quickly look a sharp turn away from Mike Harris's 'slash and cut deficit' ways in a David Stell News Editor nol-so-subtle attempt to gear up for an election. It seems to have worked. The polls are showing a very quick shift from a big Liberal lead to almost a dead heat among decided voters in recent polls. Premier Eves's performance performance during the power shortage may have as much to do with his changing popularity though. As for the Liberals and Dalton McGuin- ty, talk about an image problem. No one knows this guy. If the Liberals lose this election, the blame will sit squarely on his shoulders, The man did a poor job his first lime around, having great difficulty thinking on his feel, making mistakes and getting tripped up on his party's policies. Mr. McGuinly will have to work his tail off, more so than any other candidate, to reverse that image. Look lor him to set himself apart in televised debates when they arc held. It should be interesting interesting to see if he resorts to continued mud slinging, which he and Premier Eves have done quite a bit of already, or if he takes the high road anytime soon. Finally, there's Howard Hampton, Imagine yourself in this man's shoes, trying to get out from under the shadow of the Bob Rae days of the early 1990s. The NDP's lone shot at running the province came at a terrible time, when the economy economy took a nosedive. So, will the electorate ever give them another another chance? The answer, according according to the polls, is not anytime soon. Interestingly, Mr. Hampton comes across as a stand-up kind of guy. Unfortunately for him, no one is interested. In a quick stopover in Oshawa Oshawa Mr. Hampton avoided some of the bailed questions reporters reporters threw at him trying to draw him into mini slinging. But on TV that same night, his words received very little play in newscasts. Read David Stell every oilier Wednesday in The Statesman, cCljc Cntmbimt grtatrsmmi is one of the Metroland Printing, Printing, Publishing and Distributing Distributing group of newspapers. The Statesman is a member of the Bowmanville Clarington Board of Trade, the Greater Oshawa Chamber of Commerce, Ontario Ontario Community Newspaper Assoc., Canadian Community Newspaper Assoc., Canadian Circulations Audit Board and the Ontario Press Council. The publisher reserves the right to classify or refuse any advertisement. advertisement. Credit for advertisement advertisement limited to space price error occupies. Editorial and Advertising content of the Canadian Statesman is copyrighted. copyrighted. Unauthorized reproduction reproduction is prohibited, AocnaHESH V.T" ftcNA nnc ^ ~ muni rtmiwNui