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The Oakville BeaverLetter to the Editor467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5566Classified Advertising: 905-632-4440 Circulation: 845-9742The 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) 340-1981. Advertising is accepted on theWhen is enough waste enough?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. Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.our federal elections in seven years, at a cost of more than $300 million of tax-NEIL OLIVERVice-President and Group Publisher,MARK DILLSDirector of ProductionMFpayers' money for each election, is a total waste.etroland WestMANUEL GARCIAProduction ManagerDAVID HARVEY Regional General ManagerCHARLENE HALLDirector of DistributionMinimizing costs by eliminating waste, reducing head count and identifying and JILL DAVISEditor in ChiefSARAH MCSWEENEYCirc. Managerclosing symbolic/historical offices is long overdo as there are many millions of dollars ROD JERREDManaging EditorWEBSITEoakvillebeaver.comwasted annually with no real value added.DANIEL BAIRDAdvertising DirectorThe Oakville Beaver is a division ofThis can be achieved without sacrificing any basic fundamentals of democracy.RIZIERO VERTOLLIPhotography DirectorMany Canadians may not be aware that Canada with a population of some 35 mil-SANDY PAREBusiness Managerlion people has more senators (105) than the U.S. (100) with a population of 350 mil-RECOGNIZED FOR EXCELLENCE BY:lion. Also, in Canada, all of our senators have been politically appointed and can remain Ontario CommunityCanadian CommunitySuburban Newspapersin office until death or the age of 75 years. However, in the U.S., they are elected for a Newspapers AssociationNewspapers Associationof Americasix-year term.THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR:What is needed to address this particular issue is a reduction in the number of senators, replacement of the current appointment of senators with the election of Usenators, replacement of their appointments for life with a specifying term, assignment nited Wayof Oakvilleof responsibilities, holding them accountable and, if justified, terminating them for ATHENAjust cause. Ottawa is wasting millions of taxpayers' dollars annually in this area both in Awarddirect wages and expenses with very little in return.The second area that needs to be reviewed for wasted taxpayers' dollars is the office of Governor General and related staff. The office of Governor General has been in effect for more than 150 years. While in the beginning, this office was a necessity, it has only been symbolic for a great number of years. The signing of the Constitution in 1982 should have eliminated the need for this office. This is a prime example of something that hasn't been needed by our government. Currently it is an obvious waste of taxpay-ers' dollars.Probably the greatest waste of financial and human resources over the last 30 years for the majority of taxpayers in Canada has been the cot to avoid the breakup of Canada. During this time, hundreds of millions of dollars was spent on two Accords (Meech Lake and Charlottetown), three referendums and the formation of the Bloc Quebecois, all in the name of Quebec sovereignty. You ask, why do the majority of Canadians have to listen to Gilles Duceppe talk about sovereignty in 2011? We should not allow the Bloc to continue to hold our nation at ransom.Over the last few years, Ottawa has handled the Quc sovereignty issue much like giving a child candy for negative behaviour. Whatever it is , isn't enough. Based on the failure of the Meech Lake and Charlottetown accords, and the further defeat of three referendums, the Quc sovereignty topic should be a closed issue in Ottawa. The federal government, if necessary, should use its right to use non-Constitutional Reform (simply federal legislation enacted in Parliament) to prevent the Quc sovereignty MICHELLE SIU / OAKVILLE BEAVERissue from wasting anymore financial or human resources.A GOOD PLAN: From left, in back, Pine Grove School Vice Principal Gary Levante, Principal Brenda Albert, The time has come when many of the MPs and senators in Ottawa show the proper Emma Currie, Brennan Asbridge, Mariana Colussi-Pelaez, Selena Henderson and Ms. Griffiths; in front, Lindsey leadership strengths and skills to create sufficient followers to do what is really needed Higgs of Plan Canada, Hannah Burgess, Julianna Rutledge, Naomi Woods, and Megan Dalgleish at Pine Grove in Canada regardless of individual 'wants' and biases. It is well past the time for Canada School recently as the Grade 7 and Grade 8 students in the Global Issues Club handed over more than $1,600 to deal with the real issues of our nation.raised for Plan Canada by the Pine Grove School community.Walter Foster, OakvilleTechnological trends and an advancement that truly amazesegular readers of this column Fred, Wilma, these damnable things permanently having a basement with every album ever released in it.Barney, Betty, always appreciate your patronage attached to either their ear (making Tragically, Bangs died of an overdose in 1982, and never wit-Rknow that I am sometimes nervous and negative calls) or their fingertips (non-stop tex-nessed the age we live in now an age where not only can wewhen it comes to technology and its inexorable advance.ting). Theyve taken over our lives, were possess pretty much every album ever released, but we canDont get me wrong. Im not a Luddite (which, by the way, is using them to distraction, and were tak-magically, digitally capture all this sound on a tiny gadget, sticknot a cough candy as I first thought). No, I doubt I could even ing out fourth and fifth mortgages on it in our pockets, and take it out for a nice walk.exist without my TV remote control, or my microwave (both our homes just to pay cell bills.You know, I thought Id died and gone toStairway to Heaveninvented in 1955, by the way what a year). And I think my My only solace when I see my off-when the Walkman came out, enabling me to insert a cassetteexistence is infinitely improved by my computer, high-definition spring virtually living on their phones is (and, later, a CD) and take my music anywhere. This was technol-Andy JuniperTV, and my GPS that helps me find where Im trying to go, or, at that after we abuse technology, the next ogy I could really use. And it amazed me. Consider: less than 120least, gives me something to blame when I get lost.inevitable step is we become tired of it years ago, if you wanted to hear music, you had to travel to aStill, there are trends Ive noticed that generally follow and move on to something new. Ah, lets hope.music hall on your old donkey and catch it live. Then cameadvancements in technology. They go like this: we acquire new For me, there is an exception to the technology trend I out-recorded music. Then (drum roll) portable music. It boggled mytechnology. We go gaga over it. We quickly become complacent lined. Years ago there was a technological advance made available mind.and start taking it for granted. Then, inevitably, we begin abusing that thrilled me. And, remarkably, it continues to leave me in Still does. Only now, weve reached the point where we canit.absolute, utter awe. In fact, there isnt a day goes by where I dont cram15,000 of our favorite tunes on an Ipod and take those tunesTake cell phones (please). They werent originally the work of marvel at this innovation, and where I dont thank the inven-anywhere. Unless Lester was a Luddite, I think hed be similarlythe devil; no, they just evolved into that. Initially they were tors.awed. Imagine, Mr. Bangs: The Beatles, to go.handy, little devices that helped us maintain contact with family I was contemplating this technology the other day when I Andy Juniper can be contacted at ajjuniper@gmail.com,and friends. We rarely used them, paid minimum fees, and life came upon a story onSlate, the online magazine. The story found on Facebook http://www.facebook.com, or followed atwas good. Now, you cant find anyone who doesnt have one of talked of Lester Bangs, the early-rock journalist, dreaming of www.twitter.com/thesportjesters.www.insideHALTON.com OAKVILLE BEAVER Thursday, April 28, 2011 6