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"A Family Tradition for 128 Years" PORT PERRY STAR - Tuesday, February 20, 1996 - 7 I _ETTERS To the Editor: It was standing room only for those who were late attending the Valentine's Day dessert social at R. H. Cornish Public School on Wednesday night. The rewards, were well worth the wait for the two to three hundred people in attendance. The food was terrific; ranging from pies to cook- ies, and trifle to cake. Suffice to say there was something to tempt and satisfy every palate! The entertainment was also equally varied as the many talented people in our community got up and danced, sang, acted, played a variety of in- struments, and even put on a puppetshow. The organizers of the evening would like to thank the community for its tremendous support in this endeavor. And a special thanks goes out to Dessert social a great success Ken Koury from "Nuts About Chocolate" for the raffle items; and the Pentecostal and the Presby- terian Churches for the use of their dishes and cutlery. Of course this whole thing would not have happened but for the efforts of the many people who helped out by organizing, setting up, serving, washing dishes, and of course cleaning up afterwards. Thank you very much!! For those who couldn't make it Wednesday night or who would like to keep that delicious' memory alive, orders are still being taken for the cookbook that will contain all of the recipies. If you would like a copy contact the school at 985- 4468. The cost is $5. Marion Barltrop, Port Perry. Members pay for union leader tactics To the Editor: Ford and General Motors in London are suing the C A.W. un- ions millions of dollars for illegal- ly shutting them down. They will probably win their case. As usual the union members because of the wrong tactics of their union leaders will pay for it. They will diminish their strike fund, and lose their bargaining powers at contract time during the collec- tive negotiating process. The em- ployer will then use it to their ad- vantage, using it as a bargaining tool against employees for getting concessions. Union members do not need this hanging over their heads when they bargain for a new con- tract. They end up losing. This month in Hamilton, Basil Hargrove, Gord Wilson and Sid Ryan are mobilizing a two-day il- legal shutdown under the ruse of callingit a protest. It is not by any means. It is to disrupt the citizens of the city hoping they will sup- port theirillegal actions. I as a union member of Local 222, believe in a legal strike to back up the negotiating team for the membership after giving them a strike mandate. However, I do not approve of those, who are encouraging dis- ruptive and illegal actions against the public and to jeopard- ize the bargaining process of the union members. On Sept. 15 this year General Motors workers in Oshawa will be negotiating a new contract. May they have a negotiating team who know the rules of the game, and not do anything stupid beforehand. Herman van der Veen, Oshawa Eliminating regional gov't just too much to expect To the Editor: The Task Force on the GTA gives us a Golden opportunity (pun intended) to re-examine Regional Government. Regional Council should be abolished. In Durham Region we don't need nine mayors, nine planning departments, nine groups of politicians and nine bureaucracies finding ways to spend money. Regional govern- ment (or any two tier system) is too expensive. Local democracy has been diminished by two tier urban centered government like Durham Region. Federal, provincial and local govern- ment is enough layers to pay. The GTA as no defined in- cludes rural communities with- in urban centered regions. This has caused a loss of sense of community, disenfranchise- ment and over-taxation of rural communities which are domi- nated by the urban centres. Durham region should be reor- ganized by eliminating Region- al Government and amalgamat- ing the lower tier municipalities into viable com- munity with acommon interest. Amalgamate urban Oshawa, Courtice and urban Whitby into a single city, urban Pickering and Ajax into a second city. The rest of Durham north of Taun- ton would form a strong viable rural agricultural based munic- ipality and would include Ux- bridge, Brock, Scugog, Claring- ton and north rural Pickering, Whitby and Oshawa. This would leave three mu- nicipalities instead of nine, each with common interests op- erating within policies set by the province. It would, however, be too much to expect Regional Coun- cillors or Regionai bureaucrats to agree to the elimination of their jobs. But taxpayers have a different viewpoint... Yours trul y, R. G. Almack. LY LA 4 Editor's - Notepad by Jeff Mitchell IS THE END IN SIGHT? ...YES! KEEP YOUR CHIN UP: Well, here we are at Feb. 20, and | think we can safely say that the end is, if not in sight, at least a remote possibility, or a theoretical point upon which we can ponder, or maybe just a wistful bit of fancy, or maybe, at the very least, the ghost of a chance. What a winter. It's been difficult even for get-tough-and stop-whimpering-we're-Canadians-dammit winter blahs poo-pooers like me. It's even got to the cat. The cat has been increasingly wiggy of late as the gloom persists. Being a cat, she disdains venturing out into the cold or wet, choosing instead to stay inside where she is constantly asleep, or underfoot. These last few weeks have pushed her over the edge, though. I'll be puttering around in my house at virtually any time, night or day, when | will hear her galloping from the next room. She'll race through the kitchen like a shot and be gone, the ka-thump-thump-thump of her four paws receeding. Then comes the sound of 20 claws digging into the hardwood floor, and a dull thump as she slams into a piece of furniture. Invariably she'll wander back to where | am, shaking her head furiously. She sits at my feet and looks up at me. She meows, and purrs. She feels better. CHIN UP II: There are, however, some undeniable signs of springs showing up. Here are just a few: a Road Kill: Yep. Our furry friends are beginning to venture out, and are being plugged by automobiles. Each morning they lie near the centre line, while big, black crows line up for the buffet. 0 Fog like crazy: Impentrable banks have been forming some nights in traditional fog belts, like the stretch of Reach Rd. through Epsom. 0 Daylight: The sun is appearing earlier in the morning, and sticking around until suppertime. a Spring Training Reports: The Boys of summer are limbering up, and getting set for another season of baseball. Hallelujah! a Flooding: With the periodic thaws of late have come ditches filled to brimming with water, and rivers and streams are straining at their banks. WELCOME ABOARD: Joining us as of this week for her co-op work placement is Mary Sanchez, a student at Port Perry High School, who hopes to go on to study journalism at university after she graduates. She's enthusiastic to get started, and some of you may be meeting up with her in the weeks and months ahead as we send assignments her way. Welcome, Mary. Now get to work. re sure things if the GTA is implemented. In fact, esti- raising of Canada's first flag. Random Jottings by J. Peter Hvidsten LET'S NOT BECOME COMPLACENT OVER GTA Beforeit's all over, if not already, we're all going to be sick of hear- | ing aboutthe GTA. Butindications wir. are we'llbe alot sicker and poorer if we don't get off our duffs and object strenuously to this new tier of government which will lump us with the likes of Toronto, Mississauga, Scarboro, etc. We must make sure the sprawl of the Greater Toronto Areadoesn't reach our boundaries, because it will have an adverse effect on each and every resi- dent of this community. The GTAIs far too large and complex for most to understand, but what we all can understand is hav- ing to pay out more in taxes. That's justone of the mates are that taxes in Scugog could rise as much as 21% if we're thrown into a pot with Metro Toronto. Another thing the residents of Scugog will have to contend with is a smaller voice in a big government. A much smaller voice! Under the present system Scugog has two repre- sentatives at Durham Region, but in a GTAgovern- ment, Scugog, Brock, Uxbridge and Clarington would have to share one voice. Justimagine how effective that would be for these four northern communities. It's time to get vocal. Call or write to your MPP, and your local representatives and let them know how you feel... before it's too late. DID YOU REMEMBER FLAG DAY? If Prime Minister Chretien hadn't runinto problems in Hull, Quebec last Wednesday, Flag Day would have come and gone with little publicity. The fact that he physically pushed a demonstrator who ventured too close, brought much attention to his being in Quebec on the 31st anniversary ofthe Personally | think the PM was justified in attempt- ing to silence this boorish heckler, but whether he was or notis notthe issue. Itwas Flag Day in Canada, and | wonder how many of us knew Feb. 15 was Flag Day before this much publicized incident? Well they knew at R.H. Cornish Public School, where the entire school body congregated outside on acrispday under bright skies to take partis a cer- emony to honor the occasion. From my vantage point, on the roof of the school where | had perched to take the picture you see on the front page of the Star this week, | watched as the kids proudly accepted abrand new Maple Leaf flag from our MP Alex Shepherd. It was an exhilarating experience to witness 700 kids and teachers waving hand-held flags and sing- ing O'Canada while the flag unfurled as it was being hoisted to the top of the flagpole. Congratulations to Reg Philip and the others at the school who helped organize the event.