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It began with the removal of librarians from the school sysâ€" tem. they are to be replaced with Library Technicians. Did the powers that be at the school board ever think of asking the teachers if they felt that this was a reasonable move? I can only think that the answer must be "NO". In my own experience as a parent, I have noticed and often been told by teachers how invaluâ€" able librarians can be for helping children with their projects, teaching the love of books,. Dear Sir: In this day of questioning the effectiveness of our school sysâ€" tem, one has to wonder whether the Halton Roman Catholic School Board has the best interâ€" est of the student in mind. Dear Sir: On Sept. 9th, I went to the Oakville Humane Society to adopt a new kitten for our family. While I was there, I met with an adoption agent who told me I was not allowed to adopt a kitten unless it was older than five months. This was because I have children under the age of five years. I was surprised at this policy and went home kind of stunned. The more I thought about this policy, the more furious I became. I thought I could alleviate this problem by calling the supervisor the next day. I explained that we are Separate Board‘s staffing moves not in best interest of students I am puzzled by your trivialization of the Progressive Conservative proâ€" gram as "wishy washy". During the past two years or so, I have received a mailing from the PCs virtually every week. These mailings have included reports on current legislative activity, Provincial PC platform not ‘wishyâ€"washy‘ Angry because you seem to come very close to endorsing another five years of NDP government for Ontario. Humane Society adoption policy absurd Dear Sir: Re: "Four Years Later" (Sept. 9th edition). Your editorial leaves me puzzled and angry. ~ OPINION Manning will be walking a political tightrope in the ensuing months and he knows it. What he must also know is that this is no time to put forth narrow parochial views of a nation under siege from within. It‘s time for Manning to join with the prime minister to speak up for Canada. In so doing, Manning will be doing his party a favor and the nation a service. There is a lot of pressure on Manning for he is now representing a vastlyâ€" expanded constituency than elected him and his party. He must carry the torch for Canada and in doing so risks alienating the people who have backed the party, people who don‘t have a lot of love for Quebec or eastern Canada. But reports indicate we‘ll see a new Preston Manning in the current sitting of the House that started Monday. Manning is speaking tonight at the Oakville Canadian Club at the Howard Johnson Hotel. What he has to say is far more important than any other national politician in Canada except the prime minisâ€" ter himself. When Manning and his members were given a vote of confidence by westâ€" emners, much was expected of him and the party. Both have been a disappointâ€" ment to date in forwarding their fiscal views and wishes of the average Canadian. Then, much to his aggravation the PM catches the visage of one Preston Manning, standardâ€"bearer for The Reform Party of Canada. And it‘s Manning, ironically who is Chretien‘s and Canada‘s best ally. Further down he sees members of the New Democratic Party...again, leadâ€" erless and floundering to try and find one. Chretien looks down the rows of BQ members and finds a decimated Progressive Conservative Party with just two members and an actingâ€"leader. Whatever that means on a national scale. He‘s been left with few political allies in the House of Commons, that most democratic of political institutions. When he rises to speak in the House, Chretien stares across at Her Majesty‘s Loyal Opposition and the face of one Lucien Bouchard. A former Progressive Conservative cabinet minister and leader of the Bloc Quebecois, Bouchard leads a party whose sole mandate is to fashion the fracture of this country by severing Quebec from the rest of Canada. It was his way of letting the people of Quebec decide for themselves the kind of provincial government they wanted. He wouldn‘t intervene in an Ontario election and the same argument was true for Quebec. But that was then and now is now. Chretien‘s already on the offensive saying he‘ll do all he can to inform Quebeckers what a vote for separation would mean for them, their quality of life and their ‘nation‘. But it‘s probably the worst of timing for those Canadians who see a nation that must include Quebec as a vital part of its being. Chretien will, of necessity, have to carry the ball for Canada in the coming months as the clock starts to countdown to a referendum on separation. We‘ve seen little of Prime Minister Jean Chretien over the past few months and heard even less. Now that it has taken place and the Parti Quebecois have been victorious, at least in provincial legislature seats, it‘s worth thinking about how the coming year will be played out on the national political stage. tics isn‘t one of them. But this past summer it was different, with many people focussing on the Quebec provincial election and what it meant to the rest of Canada. S ummer months in Canada are usually times full of many things but poliâ€" In this corner knowing the teachers need and ensuring that the books they purâ€" chase will enhance the school curriculum. it was truly a sad day when the Board voted to remove the librarians. One can only wonâ€" der if this apparent "Cost Cutting Once again the "5/5" policy was enforced. It was made clear through our conversation that there were no circumstances that could ever change this policy. I was confused!!! I explained one more time that we were a loving family, who fit the criâ€" I went on to explain the cat we had for 10 years had died the week before, and we would really love another kitten. Our children love aniâ€" mals and were really excited about having a new pet in our home. experienced cat owners. Our children have grown up with kittens and are used to "kitten play". A key element of the program is the proposed 30% provincial income tax reduction which ought to be of great interest to all Ontario taxpayers. At first blush, this may sound like an impossible dream until you realize it only gets us down to where the In short, the PC party has been working very hard to develop its own credible program, rather than simply objecting to everything the NDP tries to do in the legislature (typical Canadian politics). surveys to determine the opinions of the electorate, and requests to particiâ€" pate in various petitions. The board, adding fuel to my doubts, chose to transfer approxiâ€" mately 30 Educational Assistants with no apparent forethought at all. And Educational Assistant is Measure" will not prove in time to be a very expensive mistake. Because we cannot adopt a kitten from the "Humane" Society, we would really like to hear from you if you have a kitten that needs a good loving home. Please call us at (905) 845â€"6075. A cross section of the responsâ€" es will be published in next Wednesday‘s Oakville Beaver. Kittens that would remain in a two foot by two foot steel cage, trying to sleep on a pile of newspapers or in their litter boxes! This is all because we have children under the age of five. HOW ABSURD! Where is the logic in this policy? All callers are allowed 45 secâ€" onds to express their opinion and must provide their name, address and phone number for verification. teria in all other ways, willing to pay money to adopt one of their kittens. Got a gripe? Give us a call. Readers are invited to express their opinion on a topic of their choice by calling 845â€"5585, box 5250. Alberta tax rate is today! In that conâ€" text, it seems like the appropriate tax reduction target any party should be aiming for if they want to govern the largest province in Canada. This also serves as a stark reminder of just how far down the road to ever higher taxes the NDP and Liberal governments have taken us. Dear Sir: Regarding the implementation of JK in January 1995, I find Dave Katz‘s comment that JK is not just a JK comments were revealing |SPEAK YOUR MIND The Oakville Beaver welcomes your comments. All letters must be signed and include the writer‘s address and phone number. Letters should be typed, doubleâ€"spaced and addressed to: Letters to the Editor, The Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, Ont. L6K 354 Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of the advertising space occupied by the erronsous item the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize and reject adverti .2 event of typographical error, advertising goods or service Tim and Lynda Kemp 467 Speers Road, Oakville, Ont. L6K 354 845â€"3824 Fax: 845â€"3085 Classified Advertising: 845â€"2809 Circulation: 845â€"9742 or 845â€"9743 AKVILLE | THE OAKVILLE BEAVER What will happen to these 30 or so children who had grown to trust their EA? I pity these chilâ€" dren, I pity the EA‘s who have been thrown into this awkward position and I pity the teachers who have these children in their class. They will have to set valuâ€" assigned to a classroom to assist the teacher with a chid who has special needs. That child may have a physical handicap or a learning disability. The teachers who have these EA‘s in their classrooms know how invaluable they are. The parents of these special children know how invaluable they are but the Board has no inkling of their value. This is obvious by the shuffling of EA‘s so randomly and without reason. As a matter of public interest â€" are Instructional Assistants required to have ECE qualifications or just hired randomly and expected to gain experâ€" tise through participation in (paid) Professional Activity Day workâ€" shops? Surely, it would be valuable trainâ€" ing for ECE students to be placed in the classroom and also result in sigâ€" nificant savings for taxpayers, as paid Instructional Assistants would not be required. watered down Kindergarten program interesting, in view of the fact that the East York board has successfully inteâ€" grated Junior and Senior students in "Family Grouping" classes over the past few years. The Junior Kindergarten students are admitted a few days later than the seniors, not four months later. The PC party is asking for the opportunity to start Ontario back on the road to the prosperity we enjoyed for so many years. It‘s the best chance we have. We better think seriâ€" ously about it. I don‘t know what the NDP‘s vision of Ontario is. Could it be Sweden or Las Vegas North?? Peter Riediger Robert Glasbey Advertising Director Norman Alexander Editor Geoff Hill Circulation Director Teri Casas Office Manager Tim Coles Production Manager Ian Oliver Publisher w I N R D upled 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 advertising goods or services at the wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. Advertising is merely an offer to sel withdrawn at any time. tsA J Parents should keep themâ€" selves alert to any moves that affect their children. Do not be placid, shrug your shoulders and say "Oh well". We are talking about your child‘s future. These are the learning years and every child is entitled to the best. Let the Board and your Trustee know that these moves are not in the best interest of your child. Remember, they deserve the best! Lisbeth DeAlmeida Past CPTA President Supply Education Assistant able time aside from the other classmates to help the EA until she can build the trust that her predecessor had worked so hard to build. These special children do not deserve this thoughtless disregard of their feelings. Another method of getting fair representation would be to split the whole of Canada into much larger ridings which mirror the population of Oakville. A side benefit would be a reduction in the number of federal politicians...Perhaps the FEBC should review the ridings again with THIS as their main objective. Colin Hardman Perhaps we should have asked the FEBC to take the longâ€" term view and split Oakville into two federal ridings right now. This would provide Oakville with rather more than fair repreâ€" sentation for several years (to make up for the shortage we have had), followed by fair representation in about 2020. Two factors are now at work to increase the population of Oakville significantly. (1.) All the planned new housing and (2) more intensive use of existing housing under current provincial policies. This extra population will result in Oakville eventually needing two federal ridings, not one and a quarter. Consider too what can result from the unfair representation which you and Bonnie Brown favor. What was it that gave the other communities of Halton enough votes to stick Oakville resâ€" idents with a multiâ€"million dollar tax hike called Regional Market Value Assessment? It was inadequate representation of Oakville at Halton Regional Council! Our target should b e to get as many votes as possible at all levels of government, not less than our share. Division of towns and cities to provide for equal representaâ€" tion is very common. Don‘t we get along quite well with MPP Gary Carr representing a section of Burlington in addition to Oakville south of the QEW? And is there a problem with MPP Barbara Sullivan looking after her half of Oakville? Dear Sir: Re: Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission (Ontario). Your diatribe against the above commission (Sept. 18th) was excessive. The mandate of the Commission was to recommend boundaries which provide equal representation for all citizens, so the members should be congratulated for keeping focussed and carrying out their mandate. Fairer representation HEW Pm pridiatey â€"arve wb sttb P ib ce hn News, Newmarketâ€"Aurora Eraâ€"Banner, North York Mirror, Oakville Beaver, Orilia Today, Oshawa/Whitby This Week, Peterborough This Week, Richmond HilVThomhilWaughan Liberal, Scarborlirror. All material in the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyr?fl Any rertoducflon in whole or in part of this material is strictly forbidden without the consent of the publisher. The Oakville Beaver, published every Sunday, Wednesday and Friday, at 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, is one of the Metroland Printing, Publishing Distributing Ltd. group of suburban newspapers which includes: Ajaxâ€"Pickering News Advertiser, Barre A ance, Brampton Guardian, Buri Post, Collingwood Connection, Etobicoke Guardian, Georgetown Independent! Acion Free Press, Kingston This Week, Lindsay This Week, Markham ist and Sun, Stouftville/Uxbridge Tribune, Milton Canadi Champion, Mississauga Newmarkatâ€"Awnra Era Romnar Kok Goi aanlll W" Eo September 21, 199 of the publisher