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Wednesday, August 31, 2005 ORONO WEEKLY TIMES - 5310 Main St., P.O. Box 209, Orono, ON LOB 1M0 Email: oronotimes@rogers.com or Phone/Fax 905-963-5301 Publisher/Editor Margaret Zwart Sports and Display Advertising - Donna Wood Front Office and Classified Advertising - Ftosey Bateman Subscriptions $32.71 + $2.29 GST = $35.00 per year. Publications Mail Registration No. 09301 • Agreement No. 40012366 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. ---pr CanadS ' JiP 03 * . The Orono Weekly Times welcomes letters to the editor on subjects of interest to our readers Opinions expre^ed to r^ethè'Sd W^it°Kft New season approaching While the Labour Day weekend does not mark the end of summer, it does mark the end of holiday schedules. When the kids go back to school, Clarington councillors councillors return to holding regularly scheduled meetings, meetings, after taking the summer off. This is also the time of year that new programs are launched marking the end of re-run season on TV and radio. CBC employees across the country, except for in Quebec and Moncton, are currently involved in a labour dispute with their employer and have been locked out of their place of employment since midnight midnight on August 21st. CBC radio re-runs were tolerable when Peter Gzowski hosted his Morningside program. And, in the summer, CBC Radio One would replay the best shows from the previous season and call it, The Best of Morningside. Last year's line up with Shelagh Rogers, hosting a morning show called "Sounds Like Canada , featured interviews with contemporary Canadian newsmakers, authors, and artists, was barely tolerable the first time around. Gzowski, the master host that he was, always made Rogers look good on the numerous occasions they shared the microphone. It's too bad Rogers didn t pick up on the central fact, that her radio show is not about her. Who knows what will be offered on the CBC networks networks as the strike drags on. Hopefully both sides of the dispute will give a little, and we will once again feature Canadian news on our national broadcast service, rather than the BBC fare offered now. Letter to the Editor Orono inspires poetry Dear Editor, Last Wednesday, August 17th, my cousin and I explored your Village of Orono. It was a day that we immensely enjoyed. There were two things in particular that caught my eye and touched my heart. As a result, I wrote a poem about each of . them. I thought perhaps the people of Orono would like to read them. Thank you. Yours sincerely, Margaretann Gorham Newburgh, Ontario Mill Pond Off Sommerville Road is hidden A mill pond, and we didn '( know. A small brown wharf could be seen, But it was the verdant green Of the grasses that held the eye, The brown-black waters against the blue sky On its unrippled surface four ducks Glided effortlessly And to the side there buzzed a bee. Bullrushes decorated the corner shore And peacefulness reigned forever more. Etched, as if, in an English countryside, In Orono's backyard the pond abides, And just before us stills. Over a cement fall it spills. Its essence on a rocky river floor And journeys to where it has never gone before. Margaretann Gorham August 18,2005 Staying in Touch POEM 2 sm peg# I Ontario becoming "Have Not" Province Chamber of Commerce warns Since 1957, the government government of Canada adopted an equalization approach to federal federal funding that ensured all Canadians had equal access to government services. Since that date, Ontario has been considered a "have" province, which means its wealth is shared with provinces that are considered to be "have-not." In fact, we are the only province never to have received a dime in equalization payments and to have been in the "have" category category since 1957. Not even Alberta can make that claim. However, in a report released last week, the Ontario Chamber of MPP John O'Toole that the province is on its way to "have not" /status, unless the federal government government changes its policies. The Province of Ontario has already documented a $23 billion funding gap between what we contribute to confederation confederation and what we get back in return. This is not just a matter of Ontario claiming more for itself. Ontario needs additional additional federal funding if it is to maintain vital services such as health, education and training, and transportation as well as building and rebuilding rebuilding its infrastructure. Ontario is the largest province in Canada and is the economic engine that drives our country. However, like any engine, it needs to be maintained, u/wiinut n/t innate federal funds, this will not happen. This chronic inequity was first recognized by Bob Rae and the NDP in 1993. During that recession, Ontario's economy was hurt. My colleague, Wellington-Waterloo MPP Ted Amott, points out that Ontario has lost 52,000 key manufacturing jobs in the last year. This does not bode well for the future. However, it's not too late for the federal and provincial governments to work together together on a plan that will keep Ontario strong and will ensure this province can continue continue to contribute to confer- ation through its wide resource and manufacturing base. The Province must also consult organizations such as the Ontario Chamber of Com-merce in order to plan economic policy that is fair to everyone. Phase Two of the Chamber's report will focus on fixing the current system while retaining fairness fairness and equality within confederation. confederation.