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2 - Orono Weekly Times Wednesday, September 1, 2004 Subscriptions $29.91 + $2.09 GST = $32.00 per year. Publications Mail Registration No. 09301 • Agreement No. 40012366 ^g|g Publishing 48 issues annually at the office of publication. "We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Publications Assistance Program (PAP) toward our mailing costs. w CanadS Hie Orono Weekly Times welcomes letters to the editor on subjects reVumedWe retrve'S S --i to „in,. Th. Orono Weekly Hmes wiil not be responsMe tor the loss or damage o, such „ems. ^ Weekly Times ORONO WEEKLY TIMES - 5310 Main St., P.O. Box 209, Orono, ON LOB 1M0 Email: oronotimes@rogers.com or Phone/Fax 905-983-5301 Publisher/Editor Margaret Zwart Sports and Display Advertising - Donna Wood Front Office and Classified Advertising - Rosey Bateman Our athletes come home In last week's editorial, we asked the question, "where is the spirit of the Olympics?" Now, a week later, things seem different. A few medals tor our Canadian athletes helped, as did the remarkable victory in men's basketball, by the Argentineans. To see the U.S. struggle to get the bronze basketball medal, makes one remember all those discouragements for Canadian hockey in years gone by. Last week, we mentioned the thrill of seeing an athlete, from a third world country, win. To see "golds" won by athletes from Bahamas and from the Cameroon's is truly inspiring. Argentina's overall performance in team sports was memorable, memorable, but did you notice that Canadian athletes won 12 medals to Argentina's six? So, what is Canada's problem? To our mind, the problem is our sports writers. These people, some of whom could not run 50 yards in a week, put unrealistic expectations on our athletes, to sell papers. Then, when (predictably) (predictably) the athletes do not perform to expectations, those same writers want a controversy. We hear cries "Fire the swim coach and questions about the dive selections. Apparently overlooked is that our young man won the world championship at age 19, and it took a perfect performance, which was poetry in motion, to beat him! . We might also reflect on the flag waving and the must-win - at-all-costs" attitudes. All levels of sports seem to want to use patriotism to sell seats. While some sports organizers really care about their country, others care much more about money. The games would be better without all the recurrent jingoism. One Canadian swimmer said " It was a thrill to be in the pool with such a great talent". He was referring to the Australian winner, winner, and the other competitors. Our athlete was prepared to recognize recognize greatness, regardless of nationality. When we remember that the population of Canada is less than one percent of the world's population, and that the several other countries have twenty times the number of athletes from which to choose, then we see the odds that our athletes bravely face. There is also the fact that if one removes hockey arenas from the picture, other countries have many more sports facilities. Even the U.S. can't win at everything. The men's basketball tournament proved that. Many, many countries can produce great athletes, and now have the resources to put those people into all international events. Few writers have commented on the fact that 201 countries sent competitors. With that 201 countries in attendance, competing for 909 medals, the mathematical average average could be 4.5 medals per country. Canadians won 12! Australia, with an even smaller population base than Canada, did remarkably well. This led some of our sports thinkers to blame "Ottawa", and demand more money. That, of course is taxpayers money, yours and ours. The International Olympic Committee now wants to help "Ottawa" spend our money! They will have to get in line behind the Provincial premiers, the Ontario Medical Association and the Canadian Federation of Labour. Don't these people realize that the federal Liberals are absolute experts in spending our money? While it would be preferable to spend tax dollars on sport, rather than fountains in the Shawinigan, or sponsorships in Quebec, or yet another reorganization of "Hydro"; would it not even be better to let the long suffering Canadian taxpayers keep a little of their own money? However, no one is commenting on the greatest benefit ot the Olympics. The greatest part is that all the competitors returned home. That seems so routine to us in 2004, but of the Canadians that went to compete in 1914 and 1939, not all came home. 100,000 died in Europe and Asia. The great achievement of the Olympics is world peace. 1-low can leaders of aggressive countries persuade their young people to go to war, and to kill, those other young people they competed competed against, and partied with, in the Olympics. Can a leader claim superiority over another country when 201 countries show then potential at the Olympics. We now know that every country in the world can produce young people who are just as capable, and just as devoted, as Brit's, Americans, or Canadians International sport, and especially the Olympics, is promoting world peace. That is something to cheer about, as is the performance performance of our athletes, when they overcome the population odds, and the financial odds, to keep competing, and--on glorious occasions--to win. f , , y.o. TDVWCH p/V Hi; i! , , ' ,1 ljil'1,1: B hiKijft; 111 life III! 15 , 'Tim'.'! PI® ; ji $$ T'-.: ; :: "T II IJii PH; III II?:; " 11 :. Letter to the Editor "That's entertainment" Dear Editor, The latest edition of the summer Olympic Games is officially over and the prizes have been awarded. Now, the real "games" begin. Who qualifies to keep their medal? The challenge to choose the "right" cocktail to prevent drug enhancement detection has been a major hurdle for professional athletes for decades. The winners with the best counter-measure drug plan will remain on the podium. The others who test "positive" (I could never understand how Staying in Touch MPP John O'Toole Agriculture Protection Part of Green belt Plan Agriculture will be a key component of a provincial greenbclt stretching from Northumberland to Niagara, according to a recent task force report, The Green Belt task force heard from 1,200 people during a consultation process earlier in the summer. Oshawa was one of several stops in the canvassing of public opinion. Recommendations Recommendations included the following priorities in protecting land for current and future generations. generations. h Ontario's natural heritage - Sensitive environmental "positive" should be the appropriate word here) will be publicly disgraced. Unfortunately, "private" drug analysis brings its own baggage and expecting the test results to be "clean" as in accurate--in this political arena, certainly raises other ENTERTAINMENT see page 3 areas, - Vital agricultural communities, communities, - Natural resources, - Opportunities for tourism, recreation and enjoying our cultural heritage. Forecasters predict Ontario's Golden Horseshoe area will gain an additional four million residents over the next three decades. In my view, the protection protection of agricultural land is a catalyst for creating the green space. Ontario's best agricultural agricultural land coincides with land under the most pressure for development. This agricultural agricultural land, within miles of a few million consumers, should be O'TOOLE sm p«0« 3