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"A Family Tradition for 130 Years" I ETTERS Education cuts are necessary To the Editor: The Harris Government has asked MPPs to discuss cutting costs with educators in a public forum. I attended one such meeting between John R. O'Toole, MPP Durham East, and educators at the Bowman- ville High School April 15. O'Toole outlined the govern- ment's position clearly and the task at hand seemed~simple enough: cut the annual educa- tion budget by something like 4 or 5 per cent. One prime sugges- tion the government offers as a way of cutting costs is amalga- mation of boards of education. Following O'Toole's brief in- troductory address a trustee gave a lengthy dissertation and touched on all the sanctified points in education. Without giving specific reasons for any of his views, he came to some negative conclusions which we all have heard before: Amalga- mation of boards will increase costs not cut costs, cuts are im- possible without affecting the excellence in education, and a delivery of a modern standard of education is not possible without raising taxes and more money in the budget. The trustee was asked why teachers were laid off to cut costs. He blamed the govern- ment, saying that cuts had to be made right away under threat of penalty, but now a review of other areas could take place. The education bureaucracy 1s unwilling to concede that costs can be cut, that quality can be improved, that education can be simplified, that excellence doesn't depend on expensive re- source materials, that teachers could work harder. The educators are like the sceptics warning Orville and Wilbur that "this contraption will never fly." It seems the "ed- ucrats" are trying to make a simple task impossible: like try- ing hard to lift the tub while standing in it. I expect this sce- nario will repeat itself many more times across the province in the coming months. Jann Flury, Oshawa Tragedy could've been avoided To the Editor: A recent double tragedy in Haliburton points firmly to our strong need to know much more about the wild world around our well-meaning animal handlers, like the unfortunate young lady recently killed by a pack of ex- perimental wolves. Recognizing volunteers To the Editor: \ The Literacy Council o Durham Region realizes that without volunteers we would be unable to teach adults reading, writing, and numer- acy skills. We wish to express our ap- preciation to all our volun- teers who have offered their time and talents in helping another adult gain indepen- dence and confidence in deal- ing with everyday situations. We applaud you for your work! Patricia Strickland, President .the case The pack was also killed in a knee-jerk reaction from other obviously ill-prepared animal handlers on the same premises. The whole episode smacks of a huge lack of understanding about wolf pack behavior. Here we have a young, inexperienced science graduate disobeying or- ders and oblivious to any first hand knowledge of wolves, who throws caution to the wind and places herself in a lethal situa- tion. Those who sought to rescue her should have had equipment other than bullets as backup to retrieve her from the enclosure. Darts or electric prods could have done the job as easily as . shooting the wolves to death for behaving in a way perfectly nat- ural to them. Now they are all gone, girl and animals. And what have we learned? Probably nothing, as usual. Long time amateurs like my- self and others could have per- formed better. Save us from ig- norance and nouveau professionals! Owen R. Neill, Port Perry Removal of trees a shame From Page 6 - lake or local conservation area. The problem is we have some- how divorced ourselves from nature when our society gave up living off the land, and moved into urban centres. They create these subdivi- sions, cut the trees down, then name the streets after the trees which had been there. Or, as is of Canterbury Commons they tell you they are going to plant grass and trees back from where they removed mature trees, trees which will not be visible for 50-100 years from now. Our council was against the removal of any of this woodlot. But the Ministry of Natural Resources, which is surpassed to protect these woodlots in Durham Region, has given the okay to destroy them. Fore! by request Name withheld "Editor's Notepad by Jeff Mitchell £3 E: ed. i JUST A SWEATY-PALMED NINNY TEMPEST IN A TEAPOT: Ontario Liberal leader Lyn McLeod looked more than just a little silly last week, ranting in the legislature about Hurricane Mike Harris accepting payment from his riding association for such items as dry cleaning and a golf club membership. She forgot to mention, of course, that her own party ponied up several grand for her frocks and gowns, and that the Dippers did the same thing for Bob Rae, and on, and on, and on. Could be that, in her own mind, she has a point. Could be she's clutching at straws and knows it, but figures What the Hell,let's go with it, and see if CBC Radio is silly enough to make it the lead item in its Ontario newscasts. (As it turns out, CBC took the bait. The same organization a couple of weeks ago came trumpeting forth with reports on parents in Barrie who were giving up their kids because their welfare payments were being cut. Great story; problem is, it's not true. But why, as we in the news business are fond of saying, let the facts get in the way of a good story?) | don't think many of us give a damn if Mike Harris' party pays for his membership in a golf club, the Elks Club, or the Old Tories' Mutual Admiration Society. People who care about the politics of this province want the opposition to act as a responsible and thoughtful foil for the government, and provide reasonable alternatives. What we don't want is sweaty-palmed. ninnies, screeching endlessly about nothing. MORE THEAS: Here's a cheer for The Borelians, Scugog"s local theatre group, for their terrific showing last week at the Association of Community Theatres - Central Ontario (ACTCO) annual awards presentations. Our own Bunty Webb, star of stage and screen, captured two THEAS, one of which she shared with co-star Mary Volmer for their turn in Gone to Glory. The other was recognition for her supporting role in the comedy 7 Stories. Also honored was Dave Ellis, who was nominated for Best Director for his guidance of 7 Stories. The recognition should serve as notice to those of you who've been meaning to check out the local theatre scene, but so far haven't found time: There's quality work going on at Town Hall 1873. Well done, gang. ANOTHER PLUG: And while we're at it, get off your arse and over to the local theatre some night during the next two weekends for the Scugog Choral Society's presentation of The Music Man. NC ---- 4h, a =A Lf et NB tN a ea Random Jottings A BR by J. Peter Hvidsten BUILDING IN SCUGOG FINALLY BREAKS-OUT Anyone reading local newspapers over the past couple of weeks is sure #1 to have noticed there'sbeen a dramatic increase in the number of building projects approved and ready to get underway this year. Compare this to the past four or five years, when the township almost ground to a haltin the area of residential and commercial development. Next week, Food Basics, the first of two new grocery « stores, opens its doors in the old Dowson's ValuMartloca- tion at Port Perry Plaza, and later this year, anew store owned by the Loblaws chain is scheduled to open on the Conway property across the street And if thatisn't enough, in a couple of weeks the $12 mil: lion Blue Heron Entertainment Centre on Scugog Island will begin construction. (more aboujdiles later) While there has been limited EA action over the past couple of years, this year app&ars to be the year Scygog breaks-out with some major projects. The long-awaited Canterbury Common senior lifestyles development began grading work last fall and is now ready to begin construction of agolf course and homes. This is good news for many who have been waiting more than two years for this project to get underway. And West Shore Development was finally given appro- val to begin its senior condominium project on the old "Pavlik Property," which includes a 62 unit complex and a number of duplex dwellings. And only last week, a large scale development in the. Prince Albert area was unveiled, which could see more than 600 homes developed over the next 10 to 15 years. All this construction is indeed good news for the town- ship, as well as local businesses and trades people who have been struggling for more than half a decade. CASION PLANS UNVEILED TO PUBLIC |. like many other Scugog residents, took the opportuni- ty to view the plans for the proposed Great Blue Heron Entertainment Centre last week at an open house held by the Mississaugas of Scugog Island. The casino, which is expected to open later this year, is a truly magnificent structure, although it's modern design caught me somewhat off guard. : I'm not sure just what | expected, but the large, futuristic roofline and bright colors were definitely unexpected, although not disturbing. Inside the Great Blue Heron centre, guests will be treat- ed to one of the most fascinating and modern facilities in southern Ontario. Its high vaulted ceiling willbe used to project images of blue skies and clouds during the day and at night, the stars will shine on the ceiling. The centre will try and accommodate everyone's inter- ests and thisincludes a variety of 40 gaming tables and bingo facilities for up to 700 people. Whether interested in gambling or not, it appears that gambling is the new "hot" industry of the decade. Aworld- class facility is about to be built in this community, and if we think and work positively with the operators, there will be many benefits for the entire community. This doesn't mean residents shouldn'tlet their concerns be known, and undoubtedly increased traffic is one, but with co-operation this facility will be a benefit to all.