A 6 - The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday, February 20, 2002 EDITORIALS MD LETTERS THE OAKVILLE BEAVER 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax; 337-5567 Classified Advertising: 845-2809 Circulation: 845-9742 IAN OLIVER Publisher NEIL OLIVER Associate Publisher TERI CASAS Office Manager JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief STEVE CR02ER Circulation Director MARK DILLS Production Manager KELLY MONTAGUE Ad\'ertising Director RIZIERO VERTOLU Photography Director ROD 1ERRED Managing Editor THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: M e B d a n dP rk tn g .P uttthrg& D e ttb u o n gL B . Mute A ^ d 'iABmgfAwAawrtisw.AllstonHorntofaxwK.Artriur E n te rp ris eN e w s .B a rrioA d w n o a ,B a rry 1 *B a yT h h iV * * * . B o tto nE n te rp ris e .B n m c te nG u » d ia n .B u iin g ta nP c s J , B irtn g to nS h o p p in gN e w * .C * y P a re n tC o lin g w o o a W a sa g a C o m e c to n .E a s tV ix kM rro r.to nA c fc o c a ta /C o u n tryR o u te s . 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F o rtm rY b u n g ,O ffa tY o r kG u a rd ia n Recognized for Excellence by Ontario Community Newspapers Association A A G "* * " Community N*«5p»pm Association VM CA L C O M E ^t ........ i U «M wsisiNEssBtaxffce JJrtfeMFunJ ® rA G O N tn, " " te ... g | CkM rW tC hM r A ' 5 2 ® -waP^ |*4i»] SK » Suburban Newspapers of America ^ID HI -- n ,0 '.w m aam u V om id m uM ctTATi CiM dfind | oakville galleries I| OXT· · I n What does province-wide testing prove? A few years ago. comparative testing vated the provincial governm ent to o f Ontario students seemed a logical enact the Education Q uality and way o f offering accountability for an A ccountability O ffice, a quasi-indeeducation system that costs billions each pendent agency that adm inisters the year to operate. tests and releases figures for all to Keeping track o f how our publicly- peruse. funded schools are faring against Was province-wide testing supposed provincial standards seemed like a good to prove government-mandated changes idea once upon a time. to curriculum have indeed Today, w e're not so improved the system? O r If school boards don't sure. W hen school-bywere the tests intended as a think it's fair or school results from last way to put teachers on the accurate to compare year's Grade 9 provincial hot seat for all the system's one school to another, perceived ills? m ath test w ere recently released, H alton's two Some things are becom then why are we school boards once again ing clearer about provincebothering to test cautioned the data should wide test results. children in the not be used to compare First, the release o f new first place? schools. figures doesn't seem to It is human nature to carry the same impact the compare such figures and it is naive to first results did. think parents, teachers, students and Like violence on television, the more politicians aren't doing exactly that. we are exposed to test results, the more If school boards don't think it's fair or desensitized we may become. accurate to com pare one school to Secondly, if educated board staff another, then why are we bothering to require time to digest what all the num test children in the first place? bers mean, hard-working parents don't Certainly the public release o f these stand much o f a chance o f understand numbers leaves some parents feeling ing them. their child's school is som ehow inferior If the province insists on continuing (or superior) to others. to paint the success or failure o f educa How exactly is this resulting in a bet tion with test scores, the least it can do ter education system? is provide an accompanying explanation It's hard to know for sure what moti- o f what the figures really mean. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR MP applauded for questioning war on terrorism Two letters to the editor appear in the Feb. 13 edition of the Oakx'ille Beaver that criticize MP Bonnie Brown for anti-American com ments. One of these, by Brendan Stewart, claims that Brown does not reflect the opinions of the people she represents in her riding. Stewart seems to assume that everyone in his riding agrees with him. However. Bonnie Brown reflects my opin ion on the so-called war on terrorism very well. I am pleased to see that my elected representa tive apparently has the ability to see through the U.S. propaganda that attempts to convince us that it is in Canada's interest to support their socalled war. Stewart cites U.S. President Bush's remark, "You are either with us or you are for the ter rorists." It would certainly be nice for Bush if we believed that. After all. nobody wants to support terrorists, so that puts us on his side. But why should we believe Bush? He has little credibility as far as 1 am concerned. No, I do not believe that we must choose between the U.S. or supporting terrorism. It is a false dichotomy and I choose neither. I am for Canada. I do not like the way the U.S. has used terrorism as an excuse to erode our sovereignty. 1do not like seeing U.S. flags flying around me. I do not want to live in the 51st state. The U.S. wants to control or assimilate us. They do seem to prefer doing it without blood shed, but that does not make them the friends that Fred Winstanley's letter makes them out to be. The U.S. is currently the greatest threat to Canadian sovereignty. I am glad to see that at least some members of the Liberal party can recognize that. Well done, Bonnie Brown. JAYNE KULIKAUSKAS The struggle for democracy In the past few months since Sept. 11 there has been much said about freedom, democracy and the individual's right to choose. Most of the time people have focused on international conflict, the role of the United Nations and military capabili ties of Canada and others in a post-Cold War era. There is also the ancient conflict between religious faiths and even the divisions of ideology between those of the same faith. Many Canadians have expressed very strong emotions as they have looked at our way of life versus the acts of terrorism by AI Quida or the dictatorship of the Taliban. Most of us strongly believe that in Canada we as a nation have built a country that is inclusive of many ways of life and differences of religious faith. We know that such high ideals are by their very nature, a work in progress, that lessons must be taken from the mistakes of the past and that the seeds of tol erance and understanding that are sown today may take many years before they thrive. The fight for our way of life is taking place thousands of miles away, it involves huge armies and tremendously com plex weapons. Also in some ways, the conflicts of today are a continuation of disagreements that span decades, even cen turies. In effect, ordinary people, each of us as individuals, have begun to feel that we cannot make a difference unless we are serving the military or perhaps an international charity. We know which side we're on, but other than sending our dona tions and cheering for our allies we don't know how to help and for some we don't even know if we are truly helping anyone. While Canada may be the largest (geographically) country on earth with over 25 million citizens, we are in fact much more than that. To many people in the world, Canada is a place of hope and opportunity. Although there is no guarantee of suc cess. with perseverance and hard work, many immigrant fam ilies have built better lives and futures for themselves here. The true value of Canada cannot be found in the soil or in the waters, other nations have natural resources. What we have in Canada is an elected government, which is subject to the rule of law. We also have the respect and partnership of other great democracies and the commitment of many citizens who will guard those things at all costs, for the benefit of all. Many of those citizens began their lives elsewhere, in times of war. and some have seen first hand the misery inflicted on others by intolerance and greed. Sometimes the most distressing and difficult problems we can ever face have very simple solutions, sometimes they are so obvious that they are overlooked and they may even be triv ialized. The best way, and perhaps the only way for the ordinary cit izens to help the cause of freedom, is to take an active part in our democratic institutions. Take the time to listen to the can didates. learn more about issues that are important to you and feel free to contact your elected officials to state your views. We can defend freedom very effectively in this country by casting a ballot. ·" PAUL BARBER OPRA president supports ratepayer group registration Ed. note: This letter was originally sent to Oakville Town Council and a copy was submit ted to the Beaver for publication. I wish to apologize for not attending the Administrative Services meeting of Feb. 12. I was present at the Stakeholders' Advisory Committee meeting on OPA 198 at the time. It was w'ith some dismay that I read of the pro ceedings in the Oak\ ille Beaver as they relate to the Ratepayer Policy proposed by Council. At the November meeting of the Oak Park Residents' Association (OPRA) board, the idea of ratepayer group registration was discussed. The board of OPRA feels that our group cer tainly met any criteria that could be set up and is eager for the opportunity for more interaction with the Town. Contrary to many opinions repeated in The Beaver, OPRA hopes this initiative could assist in the creation and maintenance of Oakville res idents' associations. Council has the support of the Oak Park Residents' Association on this ini tiative. Currently, at our Web site (www.opra.info) you will find the minutes from all board meet ings. the charter and by-laws, contact informa tion for the board, and information on Oak Park and issues affecting our residents. Given that OPRA currently provides all of this information to any interested parties, I fail to understand the position that has been taken by the representa tives of other associations who were present on Feb. 12. On an additional note -- I was dismayed to see the comparison of this initiative to the poli cies of Adolf Hitler. As a student and teacher of history and politics, I have more than a passing understanding of Nazism and its effects on the world. The comparison, and the fact that it was subsequently featured in a newspaper article, will only serve to scare Oakville residents, and can in no way be productive to this discussion, especially since the two concepts have no rela tion to one another. I apologize that work prevented me from attending Council on Monday and supporting your initiative in person, but, in light of the unwarranted backlash you appear to be facing, I felt it was important you heard from both sides. JASON SPEERS, PRESIDENT. OAK PARK RESIDENTS' ASSOCIATION Province says OPA 198 weak in protecting environment Big News! Last week the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing reviewed OPA 198, Oakville's proposed plan for growth north o f Dundas. It appears the province feels the town's plan is lacking in several areas -- particularly preservation of environmentally significant areas, like the Trafalgar Moraine. The province agrees with what the residents have been saying for close to three years now. Here are some highlights of the report: 1. Mapping the Natural Heritage System Remember how we've been told repeatedly by town planners that we can't map the system in the OPA? Well folks, not only can we do this. but the Province is telling us that we should be mapping out the systems in our OPA now. par ticularly linkages. 2. Wetlands: Further evaluations are neces sary to determine their significance, and possi ble designation as a life science ANSI (area of natural science interest). This means that these lands cannot be designated yet, until after such evaluations are complete! 3. The Trafalgar Moraine: The Province says the moraine must be acknowledged in the OPA. mapped out and OPA 198 must speak to its functions. The Province's report is critical of the fact that OPA 198 is "virtually silent" on the presence and management of water resources! 4. It recommends that OPA 198 include pol icy, referencing all the above matters and that they be assessed prior to considerations of sec ondary plans. Such policy is currently missing in OPA 198, which also has major decisions regarding preservation put off until another day, sometime in the secondary phase. There we have it. The Province has spoken. We have been given the authority to write a strong OPA that protects our environmental features, and our vision of natural wildlife cor ridors that will connect the beautiful forests that exist in north Oakville. No excuses now! IRIS MCGEE Pud By STEVE NEASE Why is Oakville Saltville? As we all know this winter has been unseasonally mild -- enjoyable for all except possibly the skaters and skiers amongst us. The Town has also benefited from savings in its snow removal budget. However, one must conclude that judging by the amount of salt on the roads and sidewalks, poor Oakville does not have salt storage facilities. Therefore, all the salt budgeted for the year must be used regardless. Either that or the councillors with their infinite wisdom are trying to compete with Salt Lake City, not for the Olympics, but for making Oakville "Saltville" of the north. JAN STEPHENS