6- The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday January 16, 2008 www.oakvillebeaver.com OPINION & LETTERS The Oakville Beaver 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5567 Classified Advertising: 845-3824, ext. 224 Circulation: 845-9742 Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: The Oakville Beaver is a division of IAN OLIVER Group Publisher Media Group Ltd. NEIL OLIVER Publisher DAVID HARVEY General Manager JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief ROD JERRED Managing Editor DANIEL BAIRD Advertising Director RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director SANDY PARE Business Manager MARK DILLS Director of Production MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution ALEXANDRIA ANCHOR Circ. Manager Time to ban handguns Why does a 22-year-old Toronto resident need a handgun? That's the question Toronto Mayor David Miller is asking in the wake of the shooting death of 42-year-old John O'Keefe. O'Keefe is Toronto's latest handgun victim. An innocent bystander, O'Keefe was shot in the head on the weekend while walking on Yonge St., the apparent victim of a stray bullet meant for a strip club bouncer. According to police, the gun involved in the shooting was a legally registered gun belonging to one of the co-accused -- a 22 year-old man. Police say he was one of two men kicked out of the strip club earlier, who allegedly returned and fired on security staff. O'Keefe, who was walking to catch a subway home, was just an innocent bystander caught in the crossfire. Miller, a well-known proponent of banning handguns, reacted bitterly to his death. "It's just not acceptable and I think it's time the federal government passed legislation to end the ownership of handguns in this country, period," Toronto's mayor said. We agree. If we can restrict the number of handguns in Canada, either legally or illegally, hopefully we can reduce the number of senseless deaths caused by these weapons. Hand-in-hand with a ban on handguns should be tougher penalties for anyone convicted of using a handgun in a criminal offence. Perhaps it may not be enough to discourage the illegal use of handguns, but at least it would punish those who callously disregard the safety of others. How many more people like John O'Keefe have to die before something is done? The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, ON, L6K 3S4, or via e-mail to editor@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Nothing flapdoodle about pursuit of medical certification Re: Doctor delivers story was nonsense according to reader, The Oakville Beaver, Jan. 9 Letter writer Charles Du Toit's inherent doctor distrust (of both Andrew Salik's financial woes, and the Beaver's reporting of such), left me choking on my proverbial pizza. As a recent (and foreign) medical school graduate, I can attest to the lack of ease associated with the Medical College of Canada's (MCC) accreditation process, and the daunting multi-task of working a hefty week while plowing through the textbooks required for said examinations (as not all of the material is one of daily working familiarity). Is Du Toit really doubting that a full-time career and simultaneous continued student-hood, can be taxing? Couple that with a recent move and a family to care for, and Salik certainly has his latex gloves full. And, isn't Du Toit guilty of the very shame he's accusing Salik of -- incomplete reporting? Does Du Toit really know the perils of the pizza industry, the number of hours or late shifts? Does he know the specifics of his familial finances, the "greater debt" incurred by the trans-continental move, or the cost of MCC textbooks? He so flippantly declares it all "flapdoodle" with nary any proof to the contrary. Educate us, Du Toit, tell us the real story, since the one reported was clearly "nonsense." Let me validate the fact that, after 10 years of university, debt is the only certainty, and what you see as doctors "lowering themselves for...charity," is actually the noble pursuit of medical practice. I'm a Canadian citizen, with three prior Canadian university degrees, who studied medicine in England, and through the years, I have seen many of my medically trained counterparts serving up lattes, cleaning floors or driving your late-night cabs, while trying desperately to become Canadian board certified. This country hosts an estimated 20 per cent of surplus doctors, yet the certification process is involved and lengthy, so I applaud the Women's Shelter's efforts at getting one more doctor into their scrubs. I suggest Du Toit have a side order of tact, with his pizza, before he sounds off on a situation he knows nothing about. LORI BONARI Pud BY STEVE NEASE snease@haltonsearch.com The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone 416-340-1981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline.