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PAGE 4 ♦ THE CANADIAN STATESMAN ♦ July 13,2005 Tim Whittaker Publisher Joanne Burghardt Editor-In-Chief Chris Bovie 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 newsroom@durhamrcgion.com Canada takes responsible aid position ®jc Canadian Statesman Opinion | JULY 13, 2005 ■ durhamrcgion.com Phone 905-579-4400 Classifieds 905-576-9335. Distribution 905-579-4407 General Fax 905-579-2238- Newsroom Fax 905-579-1809-, E-Mail newsroom@durhamregion.com 865 Farewell St., Oshawa ON L1H 7L5 • Publications Mail Registration No. 07637 --: ~ -- „ - --1 dolighan.com Forgiveness of debt, increased funds benefits struggling nations and Canadians The plight of struggling countries countries in general and Africans in particular have received much needed attention' these past few weeks. Pretty much everywhere you turn, some staggering messages are being delivered by rock stars and political stars alike. To be fair, here in Durham, many groups have fought hard the last few yéars to deliver a similar message that seems to only now be sinking in with the high-profile assistance. Countless Countless individuals, church groups, and other organizations have travelled to African countries, among many others, providing missionary work and real relief to a people so much in need of and so appreciative of assis- , tance. Make no mistake, the struggle is great. Consider, for example, the HIV/AIDS epidemic that is increasingly coming to light with . , regards -to Afri^ms.^Adi'ordmg^ to UNAIDS,Fn\'umbrell^gja|p \ of United Naqons'jagèncreS-ànd | other prominent world bodies, an estimated 25 million are living with HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa, an area that is home to 10 per cent of the world's population, That figure represents about two- thirds of all people across the globe living with HIV. In 2003 alone, about 2.2 million people there died of AIDS, representing representing about 75 per cent of global deaths. Staggering indeed, and the future appears even more desperate. desperate. Which is why so much attention attention of late has been shifted onto raising awareness about .world poverty and debt relief for struggling struggling countries. It certainly was at the core of the Live S concerts and received prime-time attention attention at the recent G8 summit in Scotland. For its part, Canada is taking the right approach to aid in that it helps struggling nations while also looking after the needs of Canadians. The federal government is pledging to double the level of aid to Africa by 2008-09, which is part of a $3.4-billion increase to all international assistance over five years. It has also forgiven forgiven a significant amount of debt owed by poorer nations around the world. But, Prime Minister Paul Martin Martin must continue'to be resolute in his position that we cannot afford at this time to devote 0.7 per cent of our income to foreign aid. To do so would put pressure on our own economic position and our nation's stability moving fôhvtjrd. To weal^n our,position tioufialso weaken oüfabilit^ïô^ help qthers.. V- Will Canada's approach to for-' -' eign aid please everyone? Certainly not, but" Canada's approach of debt forgiveness and increased aid offers the neces- sary balance for all those in need and for all Canadians. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR e-mail letters to iicwsrooin@durhamregion.com BACKWARD GLANCE Goodyear plant, c. 1915 Mileage rate increase 'an insult' To the editor: Re; Council wore than doubles ^ \mïÊag$rate, July '% if I . .^•(Another i%e, vghat a surprise !1 ti'f drive, a GAdd JÏmniy. .\vhichl costs me $25 for èvery 200 kilometres kilometres I drive. V To drive'2,750 kilometres, like ■ the mayor, it would cost me $350 at 89 cents a litre. The mayor need $1,293. The ' extra $943 is for what? ■ j| To drive 1,200 kilometres, it would cost me $153> .. Councillors need $564? This raise is an insult to the intelligence of the taxpayers. We need to remember all these raises and perks come next election. election. There is a council meeting at Town Hall on Sept. 6 at 7 p.m. ' Attend this meeting and let councillors know what you think. Bob Hayward . Bowmanville Photo supplied by Clarington Museum and Archives This is an early view of the Bowmanville Goodyear Plant, c. 1915. Note the G.T.R. sheds in left foreground. Only in recent years was the Goodyear spur line, which ran along Hunt Street, dug up. Let's make effort to conserve power To the editor: ; Do we really need plug-in air fresheners? All levels of government are again worried about potential hydro shortages and are warning warning of rolling black outs if our consumption of power is not decreased. Unfortunately, most citizens don't seem too interested in conserving conserving what little power we do have. i Obviously," many people, will not sacrifice an iota of their own consumption to ensure the rest of us can have a degree of comfort; however there are ways power can be conserved with no effort ; from those selfish few. ..s,.. . L Shopping malls, plaza and "individual stôSsSoullEurnSüt „ fçw'.ligftts ? |id|uir^i |)ff, tlip-.;,,,. Iiradiqs.|i;|. \ | | ,i % Remember how peaceful shopping shopping was after the last blackout? 2. Do all those malls really ■ need to have their,neon signs glowing all night, when we're not there? 3. Electronic stores could turn off their stock until a customer actually enters. Do they really need to have every piece of equipment burning burning all our power? 4. If you have an "instant-on" : television sucking power from the rust of us, turn it off and wait that extra nano second before viewing! 1 5. Do we really want electric' pot pourri, decorative lawn lights and 24-hour air conditioning to . leave us in the dark? Remember: If we all save a little, we'll all save a lot." Catherine McKeever Bowmanville Council mileage increases make taxpayer 'sick' To the editor: Re: Council wore than doubles mileage rate, July 1. Recently our Municipal council council made the headlines with a pay increase that the average taxpayer would be sick over. They have raised the amount they get on road mileage by 100 per cent. For example, the mayor would get an increase to nearly $1,300 per month from $570 now. If this does not spell greed I don't know what else it would spell. Municipal councillors knew exactly how much they would 'get on being elected.: § feÿ k jf they are not satisfied, they should resign. They claim the gas prices have caused them to raise their mileage. mileage. What if every volunteer group, did the same thing? We would not have any volunteers. volunteers. What they are telling us is that they can raise their income any time they want to and we have nothing to say about it. I would suggest that if their cars are burning too much gas then they buy a more fuel efficient efficient vehicle. Anyway you look at it this increase is a disgrace and another another waste of tax dollars. Ernie Roberts Bowmanville LETTERS We welcome letters that include name, city of residence and. phone numbers for verification. Writers are generally limited to 200 words and one submission submission in' 30 days. We decline announcements, poetry, open letters, consumer complaints, congratulations and thank you notes. The editor reserves the right to edit copy for length, style and clarity. The newspaper newspaper contacts only those people people whose submissions have been chosen for publication. FAX: 905-579-1809; E-MAIL: Newsroom ©durhamregion. com. ' , Can anything we do stop terrorism? The recent subway and bus bombings in London are a clear indication,, if any was needed, that terrorists arc alive and well and intent on killing somebody near you. All the speeches we've heard over the years about having the terrorists on the run and how we have to fight them in Iraq so that we don't have to fight them here, sound like so much hot air, The terrorists had little trouble striking in a major city on an island just a few hundred kilometres kilometres away from the world's so-called eight most powerful men. They eluded one of the planet's most elite intelligence services, While vve can certainly empathize empathize with the pain and fear fell by those who suffered during 9-ll, Madrid and London, we in Tim Kelly Canada still feel safe now, don't we? Osama bin Laden may have named Canada on a list of countries countries to be hit by terrorist attacks -- three of live have now been attacked -- but our peaceful reputation reputation and our position in the ranking of world powers makes us a low-priority target, There is an odd mixture of curiosity curiosity here about what could conceivably conceivably happen blended with feelings of apathy that nothing will ever happen, Not in little old Canada, After all, we refused to join the war on terror in Iraq, while the United Stales and Britain led the ' charge. If anybody ought to be worried worried right now, it would be the Australians, who backed George W. Bush's foreign policy to the hill, sending troops to the Middle r East, If there is any method to the / terrorist madness, Melbourne or Sydney certainly ranks higher on the hit list than Toronto, Montreal Montreal or Vancouver. Should we be scared? How should we react when we hear there is a terror alert? What exactly does it mean to be'vigilant? be'vigilant? Everybody I know docsn'hi think twice; They simply go on living their lives as before. They may peck at the news or hear a report on the radio but it registers little more than docs the latcstvbaseball score. We note that security seems to increase on our subway lines in reaction to wliat happens half a world away. While the image of armed men and bomb-sniffing dogs appears .comforting, there is, ultimately, a sense of fatalism about terrorism. terrorism. No matter what we do, no matter matter how much we spend, can we really stop somebody who is bound and determined to slaughter slaughter us? God forbid, if wo did have a catastrophe at the corner of Bloor and Yongc, would it really change anything? There would be a call by the public for a more visible security presence. But there would be a resistance by many to having to pay. more in taxes to support that security presence. After all, it's difficult to convince convince people to pay to prevent something that hasn't happened yet. And, in the end, it seems the only possible way to beat terrorism terrorism is to clamp down on the freedoms we take for granted, on the lives we lead which arc protected protected by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, And that would be too high a price to pay. Copy editor Tim Kelly's column appears every other Wednesday, E-mail tke!ly@ durhamregion. com, infodurhamregion.com CLICK AND SAY : Today's question: : : Are you more concerned about a terrorist threat in' Canada after the bombings in London? Yes No Cast your vote online at infodurhamregion.com Last week's question: Do you believe Live 8 will have an impact on G-8 leaders and make a difference in helping solve the crisis in Africa? No 83.4% Yes 16.6% Votes cast: 181 HAVE YOUR SAY Do you think Clarington needs more big box stores?. Heather Qualtrough "No. We need to support local ' businesses. Little stores are dying because of the big box "■* stores." , Kristen Smith "No. There are enough of them; the downtown area is everything." Keri Giasson "Yes. I love to shop and now I ' have to go to Oshawa." Stan McKelvey "I don't think so. It's fine the way it is. Little businesses have enough trouble surviving v now." The Canadian Statesman is one of the Metroiand Printing, Publishing and Distributing group of newspapers. The Statesman is a member of the Bowmanville Clarington Board of Trade, the Greater Oshawa Chamber of Commerce, Commerce, Ontario Community Newspaper Assoc., Canadian Canadian Community Newspaper Assoc., Canadian Circulations Circulations Audit Board and the Ontario Press Council. The publisher reserves the right to classify or refuse any advertisement. Credit for advertisement advertisement limited to space price error occupies. Editorial and Advertising content of the Canadian Statesman is copyrighted. Unauthorized reproduction reproduction Is prohibited. V 1 \j \