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6- The Oakville Beaver, Friday January 19, 2007 www.oakvillebeaver.com OPINION & LETTERS The Oakville Beaver 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5567 Classified Advertising: 845-3824, ext. 224 Circulation: 845-9742 Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS A DIVISION OF Media Group Ltd. NEIL OLIVER Publisher JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief ROD JERRED Managing Editor DANIEL BAIRD Advertising Director RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director TERI CASAS Business Manager MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution ALEXANDRIA CALHOUN Circ. Manager IAN OLIVER Group Publisher Is more violence inevitable? As society's moral standards and compassion for our fellow man continue to decline, we have to wonder, how low can we actually go? Violence, violence and more violence. We see it excessively in movies, video games and in the news. So many people simply have no respect for others, or for themselves. While a link between violence in the media and society is difficult to prove, isn't it obvious? Violence is only one troubling example of declining moral standards. Unfortunately, they're in abundance -- some more serious than others -- and they're often intertwined. But violence may be the most concerning as it puts the personal safety of innocent people at immediate risk. Halton Regional Police weren't kidding when they reported recently that although the crime numbers are down overall, violent crime is increasing. We say `crime numbers' because we have difficulty believing that with Halton's increasing population, incidents of crime could actually be down. We wonder whether many frustrated residents have given up reporting `minor' crimes because they know the report will be simply filed away and the culprit never caught. But the inarguable increase in violence makes us afraid to think what else is on the horizon for 2007. Will we see more violent robberies? What about sexual assaults, car-jackings and home invasions? The good people can only take the best precautions possible to protect themselves. One day will we see bullet-proof barriers between ourselves and store clerks when we stop to buy a jug of milk or a lottery ticket? That's the reality as no hint of a trend for improved moral standards seems to be in sight. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, ON, L6K 3S4, or via e-mail to editor@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. No need to ram save-the-tree deal through without public input As your editorial of Jan. 17 pointed out Mayor Rob Burton has totally bypassed the democratic process in trying to push through one of his own pet projects. In the Town brochure he states that he welcomes communication and is willing to serve us. The strategic priority is to provide transparent local government that embraces public input and participation in decision making. Not much of this has been happening with recent actions of our mayor and some council members. If they approve topping up the fundraising of the old oak tree preservation group at Halton Region, they will be committing our tax money to a project that has dubious merit and whose details are very unclear to the public. If they truly want public input, there is no need to rush. Construction on this project will not start until 2010, according to a document I received from the Regional Public Works department. A week or two will make no difference. And we need to get our facts straight. According to preliminary plans sent to me Jan. 10, 2007, two 50-year-old white oak trees on the boulevard will need to be cut down in order to accommodate building a 90-foot island in the middle of Bronte Road. Also the $600,000 budgeted for tree planting and reforestation will have to be eliminated because of the cost of the island and the new ring road design. So, for an extra $343,000 we lose many trees to save one tree. I am urging councillors to hold a public meeting with the Regional engineering department so we will know the correct information and what Regional Council plans to do with our $75,000. Construction is not scheduled to start until 2010. There is no need to ram this through. Let's have some transparency and public input. I am also sending this letter to all councillors and the mayor. When last I checked we still live in a democracy. LINDA DA COSTA Pud BY STEVE NEASE snease@haltonsearch.com The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone 416-3401981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of advertising space occupied 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 the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline.