The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

www.insideHALTON.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, December 14, 2011 · 6 OPINION & LETTERS The Oakville Beaver 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5571 Classified Advertising: 632-4440 Circulation: 845-9742 --Open 9-5 weekdays, 5-7 for calls only Wed. to Friday, Closed weekends 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: C Canadian Circulation Audit Board Member A THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: Recognized for Excellence by Ontario Community Newspapers Association S Suburban Newspapers of America o Canadian Community Newspapers Association ATHENA Award NEIL OLIVER Vice ­ President and Group Publisher of Metroland West The Oakville Beaver is a division of DAVID HARVEY Regional General Manager JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief DANIEL BAIRD Advertising Director ANGELA BLACKBURN Managing Editor RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director SANDY PARE Business Manager MARK DILLS Director of Production MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution SARAH MCSWEENEY Circ. Manager Time to take hard line with bullies No one has to put up with being bullied. We just have to do something about it. As Canadian pop star Shawn Desman told St. Luke students Tuesday, it is not tolerated. The Ontario government wants to clamp down hard on what appears to be an epidemic of bullying -- an epidemic that may be among the major influences of teenage suicide. There have always been bullies. No doubt, there always will be. They can be found on the streets, in the school yards and now, the internet has afforded bullies -- of all ages and sizes -- the opportunity to take the issue to new heights. If it is a behaviour that is tolerated, overlooked or shielded from view or disclosure, it may be that it is perpetuated. The provincial government is taking steps that could see Ontario students expelled for bullying or hate-motivated actions against other students. Bill 13, the Accepting Schools Act, was introduced at Queen's Park recently, but will probably not be debated until the assembly's next session that begins in February. If passed, Bill 13 would implement tougher consequences for bullying and "activities motivated by bias, prejudice or hate" -- up to and including suspension and expulsion. It would also require all schools to support any students who want to lead activities that promote understanding, acceptance and respect for all. Youths need not feel downtrodden that such a hard hand is needed. Isn't it legislation that demands civility of similar structure in the work place? Isn't something similar needed to guarantee women, particularly those facing domestic abuse situations, the rights they supposedly already have entrenched by the laws of the land? Isn't similar backing needed to boost the rights of native Canadians, new Canadians, religious groups, minorities, seniors... and the list goes on. To somehow feel small because a bully has taken advantage, is the same feeling we have all had at one time or another and for one reason or another. The holiday season is a special time of year, one of goodwill to others, and it may do us all well to remember not to pack it away with the decorations when the season is over. All people, particularly those perceived to be vulnerable, and especially children, deserve to be safe and feel safe. Letter to the editor Is Halton `enlightened?' It is refreshing to find the article "Residents rejecting fluoride in our water," published Thursday, Dec. 8, 2011, on the front page of The Oakville Beaver. Kudos, for helping to create awareness for this vitally important issue. Citizens need to become aware, most of the water in Halton Region is artificially fluoridated. If asked, Health Canada will admit the fluoride chemicals added to public water are actually industrial byproducts that are not regulated under the Canadian Food and Drug Act. In fact, the only official government classification given to these chemicals comes from the departments of environment and transportation that specifically list these chemicals as `hazardous waste'. To verify this, anyone can contact Environment Canada and ask them how they classify hydrofluorosilicic acid, which is the chemical used to add fluoride to Halton's water. Unlike chlorine, fluoride chemicals don't evaporate when water is heated. It is difficult, cumbersome and expensive to filter fluoride out. And, even Health Canada and dental associations agree at certain levels, ingesting fluoride, which is ubiquitous in our environment and bio-cumulative, can indeed be damaging to one's health. The decision to add a fluoride chemical to public water, in Halton, is made by regional council. Although public health and dental associations insist it can reduce tooth decay, the weight of evidence contesting this claim continues to grow, as does the list of communities that forgo adding hydrofluorosilicic acid to their water. May Halton Region choose to become one of these enlightened communities in January. Mary Pearson, Oakville Letters to the editor The Oakville Beaver r 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 r reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. Surveys show teens have fluorosis f Public health surveys of Halton students' teeth over the last 10 years show Halton teens have dental fluorosis rates of 21-35 per cent. More disturbing is the fact that between 4.6-10.8 per cent of teens have moderate fluorosis, a condition considered to be an adverse effect by Health Canada. Moderate fluorosis impacts 50-100 per cent of the tooth surface with white spots or lines and some pitting. Costly dental veneers are needed to fix it. Health Canada's latest report on water fluoridation, which is referred to in your article (Dec. 8, 2011) states less See Fluoride page 8 Headline dl is `f `false, l misleading' l d ' I know we live in a topsyturvy world when The Oakville Beaver r (Dec. 8, 2011) puts a headline on a front page article that follows on pages 5 and 11. All this copy from an Oakvillegreen meeting at Oakville Town Hall Tuesday, Dec. 6, which, I am reliably informed, attracted about 60 participants -- about one tenth (0.1) of one per cent of Oakville's adult (over 20 years of age) population. "Residents reject...," you must be kidding? The headline is false and misleading, as is most of the copy comments from the meeting that accompanies it. Ivor Davies, Oakville 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 416-340-1981. 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.