A6 - The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday, April 16, 2003 E D IT O R IA L SA N DL E T T E R S ini': oakville ite m 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5567 Classified Advertising: 337-5610 Circulation: 845-9742 IA NO LIV ER Publisher N EIL O LIV ER Associate Publisher TERI CASAS Office Manager JILL D A V IS Editor in Chief M A RK D ILLS Production Manager K E L L YM O N TA G U E Advertising Director R IZIER OV ER TO LU Photography Director STEVE CROZIER Circulation Director R O D JER R ED Managing Editor THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: Motratand PrtnOng, Ptfjftshing & Distributing . tncUdas Nows Adwrtom AJWon HtfaWCoutor. Arthur Enterprise New*. Barr* A/Vanc*. Barry* Bay Tha Week. Boton Errtwpn*. Brampton kordtan. Burington Pott. Burtngion Shoppln-j Hrva Oty P»ort. CtttnptiOCVWaaQ] ConnecOon Cast voV Mnor, Em Afcocste/Comtry Wojtoi. Eeot»cok» Guardian. Fttrrtxxough P c * t Goorprtowi iKJaparOsnfActon (<N Pre». Kvrston Hm p * K i w u B uotnsn T im *. Kmgnon ThH M x *. I ndsay Th« > W . U *V w n Economa & S a i. Mrror. MNon Canadian Ctiampun. Mflon 9 i<votng H u m . QuKto. Newnartiet'Aoron Eri-Bame*. Northumberland Nwn Ncflfi VCA Mrrot, 0 * v * > Ooovw OoMto Stopprg N<rwi OtdOmon HoOe> Nww. Ontti Today. OdttwaV.nsb,' 'C»fiv ton Port Pirry Tho Mtek. O m n Sound Irtwn*. P * n jr c w i Ob*rww. FVtsrtetoucT Tho W w *. Rctan CouVr QuO*. Mtt/Thorrh*/V*jghm L O r t . ScarttrajgT' M»tor. S t x M » U t r d ) > Irtxrw. F a «v« Xung. C»y of Gu»tfcn Recognized for Excellence by I Ontario Community Newspapers Association /In V I A ' Canadian Community Newspapers Association I lalton Healthcare | oakville galleries"! Jin ge BeMFund m l=-'K«=r- i m n i r» S K 'i Suburban Newspaper* of Amend TV AUCTION 1 Cnpcn J 'b a tn l OakviUe &4wmSs FO RBU SIN ESS EXC EU EN C E G TV// © III M *l IITATI BO ARD |T| n » d M tit o M i> « l9*fe^`{faggf ra te AlUPT i kh«y« fumu: M UHAKY Unanswered questions The transfer of 88 frail and elderly residents from Oakville Lifecare Centre was nearly two weeks ago and we're still wondering why it occurred in the first place. Two residents died during the move. Although the Ontario Coroner's office is conducting an investigation into their deaths, we wonder if it will go far enough. While we assume the investigation will try to determine whether the move contributed to the seniors' deaths, we wonder if it will question whether the moves were necessary in the first place. Because, from our vantage point, the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care seems to be shuffling a lot of sen iors for no apparent reason. When the Lifecare Centre was first cleared out. Ministry officials said the facility was needed to isolate Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) patients. But that was later deemed erroneous and the Ministry now says the Lifecare Centre is being used to house acute care patients from other GTA hospitals to free up much-needed beds. However, this explanation doesn't explain why the 88 patients at Lifecare had to be moved out. especially in the middle of a fierce ice storm. The Lifecare Centre had 88 patients, but has the capacity to house 200 patients. Conceivably, 112 patients could have been added to the existing seniors' population. If the new residents aren't at-risk SARS cases, why not move them in with the Lifecare resi dents? But here's the part that really leaves us scratching our heads. In its wisdom, the Province moved 88 patients out of the Oakville Lifecare Centre and into beds at other facilities. A week later, they started transferring patients from acute care beds at other hospitals, Oakville Trafaglar Memorial Hospital and Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital in Burlington among them, to the Lifecare Centre. So we're left with an obvious ques tion --why move two sets of seniors? Why didn't the Province bypass the Lifecare Centre altogether and move the seniors from the hospital beds into the facilities which received the Lifecare Centre residents? Are we missing something here? Is this just too obvious? We're not quarreling with the need to free up the hospital beds, but we do question how this was accomplished. If the new Lifecare residents don't pose a threat to the former Lifecare Centre residents, why were they cleared out in an ice storm? . No matter how much we try, we can't come up with a logical explana tion to that question. We wonder if anyone can. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR A parent's views on hockey violence At a recent exhibition junior high I even had one parent say to me that school hockey game held at River Oaks the hit was okay because the ref did not between Holy Trinity and Loyola, I wit call a penalty on an earlier hit in the nessed everything wrong with the minor game. What is this called, a concussion game of hockey today. The incident was for a non-call? the first time in 45 years of hockey that 1 Another parent said the players felt the need to yell at the players and ref, should settle it on the ice. He was half and then forward this letter. right. They should settle it by a one-onThe incident, which occurred, left a one fight rather than continued cheap boy unconscious, lying flat on the ice shots. convulsing. He had done nothing wrong. 1 wonder how the parents of the In fact, at the time of the hit, he did not injured boy feel today about minor hock have the puck, having dished it off. ey and the way it has gone. Another charging player, who jumped As parents and coaches, as well as a and placed a well-aimed elbow to his community, it is our duty to ensure that head, knocking him unconscious, hit him the hits from behind stop, as well as the from behind. Is this what we are teaching jumping to deliver a hit. A well-aimed hit our players? I have to agree with Mr. to the head can do a lot greater damage Don Cherry that if the kids were allowed that even a stick, and there has never to fight once in a while to settle things, been a need for it in any game of hockey the cheap shots from behind to the head ever played. Maybe we should just start may stop. calling the police to deal with these inci A player may well think twice before dents. Just because it happens in a hock delivering such a hit if players on the ice ey area, doesn't make it okay. were allowed to take retribution on the GORD ROSS player on the ice the old-fashioned way. Ed. Note: While we certainly respect Instead, we get cheap shot after cheap a person' s right to their opinion, we shot, and eventually someone gets hurt. I would rather my son lake his don't agree with Mr. R oss' thoughts on chances in a one-to-one fight if he had to, violence in m inor hockey. We d o n 't rather than get blind-sided head first into advocate violence in any form . Over to you readers. the boards. Letter writer recalls Allied forces' liberation of village in Holland In answer to Martha Loeb's disturbing letter (Oakville Reaver, March 26, titled "U.S. is hated and despised all over the world") I have this to say. As an eight-year old boy. Allied forces liberated my village in the north of Holland, after being occupied for five years by the Nazis. For the rest of my life 1 shall live in debt to these brave people, and these events strongly influenced my decision to come to North America. At first opportunity, I became a Canadian citizen and, after near ly 40 years, I am still a proud Canadian. On occasional visits to the old country, I make it a point to visit one of the military cemeteries there, and just stand there humbly and in awe that so many young soldiers made the ulti mate sacrifice for people they did not even know. Ms. Loeb states America is a "melting pot", however on my many visits to the U.S. I found the people very patriotic -- they are proud of their heritage, they are Americans first and foremost. So many immigrants coming into Canada to make a new life, seem to desperately cling to the customs and rituals of the countries they come from. Why are they here if they do not wish to commit themselves to the betterment of Canada, and themselves? Ms. Loeb seems to forget also, that without the economic ties with our most important neighbour, our country would not be what it is today. And the fact the U.S. decided to go to war to rid the world of Hussein, whose actions are no different from those of Hitler during the Second World War. at least the U.S. has the courage to commit itself, rather than to hide behind the decisions of the U.N. as our government seems to do. Finally, the late President John F. Kennedy, on a visit to Berlin, offered an emotional offer of friendship to the German people by saying " Ich bin ein Berliner". In that spirit I say, "I am an American." HENRY M. VANDERBEEK Do you know anyone who advocates Dumb Growth? Urban sprawl must be a bad thing. We know this without even thinking about it. Sprawl is the very opposite of some well-established Canadian values. A sprawl is messy. Sprawling is the opposite of upstanding. People who sprawl are not practising good posture. Enlarging a metropolitan area by developing adjacent land could involve beautiful landscaping, fascinating architecture, sensitive live/work features, accessible and usable public transportation, good schools and access to health care. But none of this matters when you call it urban sprawl because urban sprawl is a bad thing. Smart Growth is a good thing. We don't need to know what it means to know that Smart Growth is a good thing because the default position is so undesirable. Do you know anyone who wants to advocate Dumb Growth? Whole neighbourhoods can be decimated to achieve greater and greater densities with people crammed together like sardines in a can, overloading traffic systems, health care delivery systems, sewer systems and it is okay. It's okay if it's called Smart Growth because Smart Growth is a good thing. This is pure spin and we should reject it outright. Smart Growth isn't smart because of what it's called and urban sprawl doesn't get to be bad because of its wording. These are perilous times for democratic decision-making. Our lives are intense, hectic and the issues that threaten us are increasingly complex. Snappy simplifications are tempting. It is a dangerous mistake, however, to embrace some crafted notion like Smart Growth without first running it through our central nervous system if only briefly. TOM SCOTT Truck driver expresses concern over location of weigh scale I am a paralegal but on occa sion 1 drive trucks. Recently, I had occasion to be eastbound on the QEW and entered the scale at Oakville which was open. As the truck was empty, I proceeded through the empty lane. There is a speed limit of 40 kmh throughout the scale which is typical o f most, if not all of Ontario's scales. 1 did not reduce my speed to 40 as that would be extremely unsafe. The reason that it's unsafe is because the exit ramp from the scale is far too short. It can't be lengthened due to the Fourth Line bridge, which crosses the QEW at that point. I have found that the maximum speed that I can get up to with an empty straight truck, is 80 km-h. That means that I must make the land change into 1(X) km-h or greater, at a speed that is too low to make the lane change safely. There is no choice to make the lane change since the alternative is to hit the bridge. Having talked with the scale supervisor. I'm aware that the ministry scale operators have voiced the same concern to their superiors with no response. My first question is, what idiot was responsible for locating a scale at that location when it would clearly put the motoring public at such risk? Not only is the public at risk, but also the MTO officers who man the scale. They are required to work out on the travelled lanes from time to time which is why the 40 km-h speed limit is there. So what do the drivers do? Ignore the 40 km-h speed zone through the scale to make a safe entry back onto the highway or follow the 40 km-h and put the public at risk? If I can't make this move safe ly with an empty truck, think what it is like for a loaded tractor trailer. W.G. WHIDDEN Tulip campaign a success On behalf of The Lung Association, we would like to thank everyone who participated in our recent Tulip Day campaign. Tulip sales in our Halton went very well -- beyond expectations -- and we were able to contribute sig nificantly to the provincial goal to sell 100,000 tulips. A special note of thanks goes to our many Tulip Day busi ness representatives. The time you took to organize the sale of the tulips and the collection of the money in your office is greatly appreciated. Without your personal help, a campaign like this could not be successful. For all of us the tulips were certainly a breath of spring in the middle of a cold winter. Many friends and family mem bers were delighted with the tulips they received from their loved ones. For the one in five people in Ontario who suffer from a breathing difficulty, tulips represent hope for a health ier future. All those who contributed to our Tulip Day in your office should commend one another for supporting a great cause and, in turn, for helping all those who struggle to breathe each day. Knowing that we can continue to provide the program ming and research necessary to assist those with respiratory illnesses truly makes us proud and so you should be too! Thanks again to all of you who purchased the tulips this year. We look forward to your involvement with Tulip Day 2004. Together we can1make a difference. SUSY BORGES COMMUNITY PROJECTS THE LUNG ASSOCIATION The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould S t. 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, togeth er 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 dedine. By STEVE NEASE H O W D Y , D00DY.