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Fditorial | proportions. which preceeded it. ed and then analysed. landmark decision All of Penetanguishene was sleeping better after the Ministry of Education's proposal to move the students of ESPSS to MSS became irrevelant. There is no question that the Supreme Court's decision to expand Le Caron has avoided a great deal of conflict. As it was, the protest promised to go on forever and the animosity between the various education groups might have escalated to regrettable Still, the Supreme Court's decision is going to be an historic one. Right now it may appear to be yet another piece in a large puzzle or another legal statement which is no more important than all those But it is not. This has to be called a landmark decision. Many people are already saying that this could mean the ultimate crea- tion of a separate French language school board, something which is currently being tested in Ottawa Carleton. So whether you support the decision to expand Le Caron or not, it is most important that you realise what exactly is happening. This decision will influence the course of education in Ontario for decades to come. The fact that this is the case should be recognis- How long does it take?: Kaasgard Dear Editor: On July 5, 1984, the Pauze '"'clean landfill site" was given a three-year extension of its life as a dumpsite for area waste. I found that to be a violation of the health and welfare of the residents of Perkinsfield and of Tiny Township. Therefore, I committed direct ac- tion at the site (re: civil disobedience, by chaining myself to the dump's gates) which caused the closing of the landfill site for 40 minutes. In all of the years of midnight dum- ping and illegal toxic waste handling, I was the only person to be fined or go to jail over the Pauze landfill issue. Is this the way the environment is going to get cleaned up, by jailing people who care the most? The object of my action was to draw atten- tion to the problem, which would cause An- drew Brandt, the then Ontario Minister of the Environment, to reconsider the deal that gave tens of thousands of dollars to three families near the dump in return for keeping it open to pollute and poison for three more years. Mr. Brandt would not clean up the site. The Tories were removed from their 42 year reign over Ontario May 2, 1985. At that point, we in the Green Party and various environmen- tal groups celebrated. We anticipated some action on cleaning up the mess, from the Liberal-NDP accord government. But as you can see, one more election later still, with an overwhelming Liberal majority, hasn't clean- ed up the "clean landfill site'. It is now three years and you've just found a local for this area's waste, Environment Minister Bradley. People here have tried. There is enthusi- astic support for the local recycling program. Why not begin organic waste recycling, with compost for farmers and methane gas pro- duction. Perhaps we could run the busses in Midland and the area with virtually free fuel. Isn't it time the dump was cleaned up and the alternatives were given real consideration as opposed to new studies to renew the dump or you can expect a special direct action visit from us in the Green Party. Yours for a Clean Environment, Steven Kaasgaard Green Party Member Tiny Township People are often too willing to accept things because problems are seemingly solved thereby. However, often new problems are created and this certainly cannot be a long-term solution. To em- brace a plan that solves today's problems only to create tomorrow's is perhaps imprudent and reckless. Let us hope that the Supreme Court's decision solves the educa- tion problems of Penetanguishene. But let us also understand that a landmark decision is just that: an indicator of how our society is evolving. If we approve of that evolution then let us applaud. school says thanks for covering event and pretend that A is not A. If we do not approve then let us not sink our heads into the ground Dear Editor: Thank you very much for finding time dur- ing your busy schedule to cover our annual Thanksgiving dinner at Victoria Harbour Public School on Friday, October 9. We know that our students and parents worked diligently towards this event and they will enjoy reading your stories in the Midland Times in the future. Thank you again for your support. Sincerely, Staff and students at Victoria Harbour Public School Rat As IT see it rt ° Individual Rights or Collective wrongs: the choice is ours You hear a lot about rights today. It seems that everyone has rights of some kind or another. But actually, fewer and fewer peo- ple possess rights. Effectively, individuals are losing their rights while collectives are gain- ing rights. But you really can't legitimately gain a right. These rights which collectives take are not rights but wrongs. Collectives are not so much claiming an inalienable inheritance as robbing the family store. We are not talking about rights any more. We are talking about special privileges. Liberal democracies. have traditionally guaranteed the freedom and dignity of the in- dividual; this means that you and I have a right to life, liberty and property. In other words, the state restrains itself from abusing the powers which voters have endowed upon it. But what happens when conglomerates of individuals demand privileges which other in-dividuals do not possess? In other words, what happends when collective rights-- special rights for special - challenge the primacy of individual rights? Chaos is the inevitable result. The ultimate end of any rights is the net effect. There is no way that collective rights can expand -Penetanguishene Citizen-- Published by Bayweb Limited every Tuesday at 74 Main Street, Penetangquishene, Ontario Second Class Mail Registration Number 2327 Year subscription rate $39.00 Page 6, Tuesday, October 20,1987 without the concomitant dissipation of in- dividual rights. There are only a certain amount of rights available. If you expect a right to not have your home looted by hoodlums then you cannot expect an equal right to be a hoodlum. One right will cancel out another, resulting in anarchy. You both have rights so no one has rights. The increase in collective rights can only mean the inevitable disintegration of in- dividual rights. Technically speaking, groups do not exist. They do not think, talk or act autonomously; these responses are generated by individuals within the group hierarchy. How do you punish a group? How can a group truly accept responsibility for its actions? So now when a group wants a special status, you the individual will have to com- pensate for that special privilege. The next time some group demands that the govern- ment recognize their special status, ask yourself by whose right they do so. Ask yourself by whose right do they put a gun to your head and demand that you pay for their whims. By whose right do the thugs and hoodlums demand that you relinquish your liberty and 549-2012 Publisher: Andrew Markle Manager: Judy French Managing Editor: Tim Kraan Editor: David Krayden Reporter: Murray Moore Sports: Arnold Burgher understand their demands for special privileges? By whose right are your taxes rais- ed to fulfill the lunatic desires of any collec- tive who screams the demands of the worthless. The fact that they claim a host of special privileges simply because we have allowed them to. There are no prisoner's rights, homosexual rights or rights for any group which wants to be treated differently from other people in society. Only individuals are protected under the law to the extent that their rights do not infringe on anyone else's rights. I often wonder just what other group is go- ing to demand new rights next. Naturally this group will require our money to fulfill their expectations. Just as surely, if we balk at this suggestion, we will be called Fascists, bigots, reactionaries, dinosaurs or whatever other Leftist smears are popular at the moment. We will be made to feel guilty for our legitimate rights and forced to accept the idiocy of their claims. This is precisely why collective rights have ridden roughshod over individual rights for so long. People have been made to feel guil- ty for groups which cry for more. The peo- ple demanding collective rights/special privileges do not want to compete as in- dividuals; they don't want equallity. What they want is a general recognitionof their self- assumed importance. And they want you and I to pay for that acceptance. Governments will always throw money in their direction. Governments will never com- prehend that there is not a limitless pool of rights to fill the welfare cup. Someone has to pay; someone has to be made a sacrifice for group claims. You are not free when you are forced to pay for someone else's unwarranted freedom. As soon as the state recognizes the ascen- dancy of the group over the individual, it will ultimately trample over all liberty in the name of the public good. Your life, liberty and pro- perty will be at the mercy of the feverish demands of rabid groups who snatch up lit- tle bits and pieces of privilege. When that happens, the advocates of group rights will have realized their grand ambition. As the groups do battle for more "rights" our society will resemble the lunacy of competing tribes of savages. And the tribe with the big- gest club will receive the greatest privilege. Nothing could be more wrong than collec- tive rights. --Eetters Member -- #CNA Member The Penetanguishene Citizen welcomes Letters to the Editor. They must be legible, signed (by hand), and carry the writer's address and telephone number for verification. Pen names are not allow- ed and anonymous letters will not be published. Letters published by this newspaper do not necessarily reflect the opinion of this newspaper, its publisher or editor. 4] a age eae eae aR: