~DACI ~oeeî ~v w>î~ ~ .&~î~r ~ Ygr~nw PACiIe, WmTByp'p~g PREoeb WEDNESDAYb~MAROH7, leGO* LcA> Publishedýevery Wednesday By 677209 Ont ario Inc. Phone: 668-6111 66à -6112 Doug Anderson J VOICI 0OF THE COUNTY TOWN The ohiy Whiffby newsPaper independentfy ownedand operated by Whitby residents for Whitby residents. LiN 5S1 ~nd CIaBs Postai Registration #05351 Maurice Piher Editor Peter Irvine Advertising Manager 2dCaPouc esrtion anager If you read the papers or attendpublic meetings, you'm flnaIly getting a glimpse of what our polticans are made af, or, better, the dem ocratic process. O0'ver. the past weeks Whtby councIllors have dfis- cussed, debated' and decided to take a stand on Issues vital ta the weil being of Canada, Canadians, and he community. Last week' Whtby "officially" r effoni ed Canada's two officiai languages, Engiish and French. iSa what does that mean? Rt has no direct, Immediate efc on WhItby but Rt does mean somethlng. In a community that so0 openly tmeasures and protects its history, the decision ta recognize bilingualism Is f itting. Caunclilors, who are not elected on a party platiorm, had ta take a stand an a national Issue. To some t hat was distasteful while others feft iR was their political respansibility. Whether or flot you agree wlth the palitical views expreà ssd, or the outoame, Rl was a heaithy and Making'a difference valuable process. The significance af the dletision wIll unfold over time.1 The second Issue under heated debate just this week is that of na-fauft insurance l a form of car Insurance being push through by, the Province, mostiy through desperation, some wouid say. This Insurance wil l imit the vic-tim's rIght ta dlaimfi and sue for acident damnages while samnewhlat lowering Insurance premniums. Monday night the aperations committee debated the issue of no-fauit Insurance for over 90 minutes and flnaily recommended that the Town oppose the Ontario govemnment's proposai on no-fauft insurance. At the end committee chairman Joe Bugelli predic ted that nothing would corne of whatever council decides.on the Issue. Maybe not. But it's imperative that when these Issues corne up, and if they have the potential ta affect a whole cammunity, that a municipal stand be taken. The reason no-fault was . intraduced- ln the f lrst place was due ta mass opposition ta extravagant insurance hikes., People do. make a difference. If. enough people involve themnselves ln thîe' demacratic polftical process, there is a chance for change. The GST was revised due ta public apposition and VIA Rail was revived for at least -a few years. To sit idiy by and accept. unacceptable legisiation is throwing away the right to deniocracy that our ancestors fought for. lt Is our lob ta keep an eye on our politicians; it là ; their lob ta keep an eye on each oCher fia matter what the jurisdlction. Council decision pompous and self-righteous To the editon Dear &M vi. Feb. 289,19M0. fa f b<r ta'..- Capy of letter to MayorBo Attersley e:'Town supports concept Of two languages' Free Pres, Berm - envirnuental terrorist To the editon This letter is of grave concera. 1Ibfund it very interesting to see the headflines in the Whitby Free Presa, Wednesday, Feb. 21, 'Major fire impossble, No Tire Dumps in Durham Region,'which was referring ta, the Hlagersvile fire. Although we do not have 14 million tires ini any onm spot, we do have a major enviromental catastrophe sleeping on aur doorstep. is envirooental terrorist takes the fem ofa giant berm and so called a "temporay duinp.- iùs berm is lacated on Lake Ontario Steel Company Limited (Laaco) property, wth thousande of tons of ground-down plastic foais *waiting ta corne alive and possibly destroy aur lovely cammumity. It is time that we took a serjous look at what they are doing there. Do we have the fire fighting capacities and emergency procedures in place? Will our water, air and community be destiWed forever if this giant is awakened? Your. truly, Whitby Put Black in her place To the oditm- I see in the Whitby Pmreerse issue of Feb. 7 yet another letter frocm the esteemed Barbara Black. When I first began reading her lettersjn yaur papr, Ithought sornething was really wrong with the poor wornans mind. But now that she is such a regular cantributair, I see that she has a certain style, and, yes, even a conistency. In her letter of Jan. 24 she attacked VIA cutbacks, the Prime Ministersé air travel budget, the necessity Of Maias office," renovation casts at Sussex Drive, free trade, environrnental pollution (car* fumes), paper waster in the Prime Ministers office, and finally, Mr. Mulroney's apparel. The Feb. 7 létter lamnbastes aur language laws, cabinet ree gnations, the upcoring budget and the oei', VIA cutbackS (again), patronage appointments, the coats of the Governor Generals office, and ATn questions the necessity of a sOffice, and this tirne critizes Mila7s fashions. AU these topics rnay seern like a lot ta caver in a letter which is supposed ta be 'brief and ta, the point, are rarely over 300 words," and her mianiacal and raving style rnaybe needs the talents of an editor. However, just possibly she bas something there. You think her letters are worth printing, so why net give her a weekly column? flhen those of us who wish, could ignore it and concentrate on the essential business of reading the letters to the editar! Sinrey, Judy âBent Ajax I do flot su pport you and your fellow councillors in your recent motion. I do flot consider your position a hieroic stance against racism and bigotry. The motion isJ innocuous but indicative of the pressure that continues ta, be exerted on post-Sault Ste. Mje municipalities to do what Maid Peterson wants them to, do. J'accuse. You and your councillors will w L'lie ejLcoaL.e ir your pompaus and self-righteous attitudes. Attersley makes the grade k'reservation of English Language Rightsj is against fored Fuil marks ta Mayor 4ttersley and Whitby- coundil' for re-afflrming its recognition of Trustee replacement undemocrtic, To the edito-. Coy af letter to Ilm Brown, Cirman, Durham Board et Eduoetioei Dear Ian, Being a staunch supporter af the democrtic political proceos, I was dismayed to learn of the recent action of the Durhamn public ichool board, in the selection of a replacement for former trustee John Buchanan. How disheartening it mustý be for the unsuccesaful candidates in the st election Who, with the help of faznly, friends and volunteers, put in the time, money and effort necessary ta run for public office. I amn not alone in assuining that the vacancy would have been filled by the runner-up in the last election. By not doing soj the board bas invited criticism of their motives. Siincelyyorstedms fpltcladsca hostiites. Doug Renderon Whitby Cauinada'sq two off iciai languages English and F'rench, representing the countrys t'wo founding ethnic group S. This is the kInd of tolerant, statesinanlike, responsible action needed ta help sten the current, appalhing, English-onP declarations by several Ontario commuunities. It is encouraging ta note that several other Ontario centres, both large anid amail, have taken similar action. There is no place in this country for bigotiy, intolerance, or ignorance of Canadas history which accorded English and French emal value. Wouldn't it be greatifOur educational system taught bilingualism from Indergarten onwards. Then in a decade or sowe might be a tru]y bilingual country with countiess benefits as aremsut, and hopefully LETTERS The Whitby Free Press welcomes letters ta the Editor on any subjeet of concern to our readers. Letters should be brief and to the point - rarely more than 300 words. Ail letters must be accompanied by the name, address and phone number of the writer; however, on request, your name may be withheld from publication if we agree that there is a valid reason. The paper reserves the right to reject or edit ail letters. Send to: The Editor, Whitby Free Press, Box 206, Whitby, Ontario LiN 5&. or drop through aur mailsiot at 131 Brock St. N. WWIGIA --vif ~d~ê4t 131 Brock Street iNorth, P.0. Box 206, Whitby, Ont. 1 To the editur.