Dae 6, WNhy pfme Pr e dnesoqa, Ari1010l6 The only Newspaper owned and operated by Whitby residents for Whitby residents! MEMBER 0F: CANADIAN ONTARIO COMMUNITY VRFIDCOMMUNITY NEWSPAPER NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION ASSOCIATION ISSN#0844-398X The Whitby Free Press is distributed free to 99% of the homes In Whitby, Brooklin, Ashburn & Myrtle as weIl as numerous public and commercial outiets In Whltby. Oshawa, Ajax, Pickering & Port Perry. 28,000 COPIES DELIVERED WEEKLY MAIL SUBSCRIPTIONS AVAILABLE Canada $36 + GST - Outside Canada $85 + GSI Published every Wednesday by 677209 Ontario mc. 900 Hopkins St. /Box 206, Whitby, Ontarlo, Li N 5S1 Phone: 668-611il Out of town: 1-800-668-0322 Fax: 668-0594 Doug Anderson - Publisher Maurice Pifher - Editor Donald G. Hinton - Sales Manager Alexandra Martin - Production Manager Printed on newspnnt with mninirfium 20% recycled content using vegetable based inks. e Ail wrtten materlal, illustrations and advertislng contalned herein is protected by copyriht. Any reproduction by an y means for commercial purposes wthout the express permission o the newspaper is prohibited and is a violation of Canadian copyrih Iaw. Reproduction for non-commercial distribution should bear a credît lune to theWhtby Free Press, Scrap sex-ed To the editor: Re: Letter, 'Elevate the debate,' b tnusee 801 Fairbum, Free Press, April :3 Felrbum comes rding out of the nebulous rnimt af acedemnic double- speak Ike smre knlght ln shining armaur. He avaws ta save the se»Jally actve, and sounde the battie cry. ' niI Àgnot abandon any af aur euat.* Alas-elack the knight does not corne ta save the maiden ln distrees; he camnes to attack her. He cames ta decry her wlth eîaveatedu diatribe - accuslng her for what he, hirnself, le atternpting - cherecter assassinetion. Molhlnks ho doth prtest tco much - about two columne ico much - more than the reguletion Iength af laters ta the editor prescrlbed by the Whitby Free Press. il ail sounds Okie Falrbum le preparlng for the neom trustee eledtion - irnpresslng the uninforçned wlth great flatulence of bloated rhetanlc. As for me, lrn gettIng sIck af the myhsthese self-professed nexpertsa ponltifct - lncluding Falrbumn. 1, for one, have no axe ta grlnd aid support no speclel Interests ln thîs malter, as he acaCueGaraI Swltzer. Howaver, il becames obviaus ta me thet Falrburn, Ike Mke Brousseau, professed author or editar ai TReduce the RIsk. bath have an axe ta grlnd aid have their own spediai inbtetsoher thai the wefare af the students. My sppraach ta this malter cames from a purely practical point of view: *9fa kid leok enaugh ta have sex and wente il, he wl try ta get some. He does nat need tue help af the echool board or public heehth, nor the trustees ta assist hlm ln hie quest - noc one has ta hold hie coat while he unzlps hie pante. Nor le there any spedeal shili required ta don or doit a condom. Sa why is aur school board ggonlzlng over what ta tell these lntrepid, young sexuel warnlors who want ta run the STD gauntîet on the battîeffeid af lust? Tel k ID thern as It le: mess around -aid you take your chances. Tel thom -themerIts of getting 'good ma*ni nacadernic subjects 50 :hey cen st*le toward .some warthwhlle goal n plan a future for the=ele - maybe aven reomain ýheath, gelM !nI aiIsea famlly. Don't saturate their budding minde with hinld and sordid variations on a timeless theme af nature. f kide want ta become sexually active, lot themn be aware af the peilis - whlch mhey can glean from vlslting publc healh dnics aiter echool - on their awn time. Aiter ail, if a number af Grade 12 students decide ta become soldiers, we don't invite the army ln or expect the whoie class ta talce bayonet practse aid learn ta Iili - let the would-be werrlors Mon the cadet corps. Falrburn: stop ta emell the roses. We dont need Io elevate the debate, nar intenelfy the rhetorlc - we need ta come ta aur senees aid let aur kids make decisions for themseNes and not Influence them thraugh r rograrne met convey inacixurate Infrmation, as nReduce the F1Je does. We need ta scrap the whoIe sex-ed curriculum, nat Intensify iR. The political furor that not adapting «Reduce the Riskf has created le preposterous. i lsl an insuit ta the taxpaylng public. The waste aoftime, money and effort that the harangue has ceused within the schoal board should ho an embarrassment ta them. In cuttlng comte, the Durham echoal board vvuld ho wefl advlsed Io consider the falaywing: "FarnIy iy fe educationn already teaches 108 dubiaus sex-related topice from kindergarten ta OAC . Twenty-ive years af sex education hem praduced no tangilIe prool af positive results - quite the opoite seeme ta ho the case accarding Ioofficiai government reparte and studios. AIl the Information that Programs suen au mReduce the RiskO ani lectures from public heatth offidiais have ta aller cen ho faund on ee packcet af condoms and blrth contraI Mills, W. dont need tue condescendence ai employees such as Nike Brousseau or public health nor elected enthusiasts such as Felrburn ta educate aur kids.- Our kide deserve more respect aid trust than what- these seif-appointed crusader *Knights af the -Burni ng PesttIV propose ta aller. Give aur klds respect, responslbilities and goad leadership. Yau woul ho arazed ed the positive respanse. "Your tax dollars are savedl" To theedo.. Costs wiII go up To the oditor: Copy 09 letter mombers ta Whftby council I am rnWltng ln regards ta the ongolng 1996 budget proposais. I muet admit that I was extemely dlsheartened by the discussions that took place during the April 2 budget meeting. Perhaps I was nat clear ln my presentatian ta coundîl. Coundi seemed unable ta comprehend the Issue at hand and contlnued ta 'tnviaize the budget Impact on the lndMdual communlty echoole by focueing on the prapased midnImum $5 fee Increase. Tawn staff have pledged to continue administrative support for the community echools. However, they have cleasly etated ta aur executive commlttee that ait dtrect finandial supportWIII be wthdrawn. The director af parks and recreation was vague ln hie discussions With coundil. The salaudes reflected ln the 1996 budget proposai are not soly dedlcated ta the communhty echool p rogram, as council was led ta blaeve. The supervisor ai community echools and speclal avents le responsibie for many other fundtions and aalvlties witNin the parks and recreation deparment. Marketin aid advertislng brochures WI continue Io be pdntied and dlstributed by mhe Town. This le an essentiel aspect ai aur pragram aid we apprediate the Towns continued invohement Many ai the indMvdual schools do, howaver, allocete addltlonal resaurces from theïr own budgets ta supplement the Town's advertlelng. The $6,000 ln comte Io be lncurred by each individuel communIty echoal comes from an annual total af approxlmately $22.000 for cuetodiel services provided by the board of education as well as $7.000 ln annuel telephone charges. Dunlng the budget discussions I wtnessed, the public works department defended the purchase ai 15 trees et a cost af $6,000. But the parks aid recreation staff were unable or unwiiling ta justiiy a similar expenditure for the benefit ai the approximately 1,000 participants et each communhty school throughout the year. I shauld point out that there le no Increase ln coste et thîs point. The Town af Whity ilseif le initiating an antfidali ncrease by chooslng ta aritrarlly ater its reîationship wth its community echools by transferding ongolng expenses ta the indMduai schoole. This Is a pracese that could very well spiral out af controL With the canceilation af the reciprocal agreement between the Town of Whitby and the Durham Board ai Education regarding aoees to schools and Ice dme, the board ai educetion MIlfhae no alternative but ta Increase permit -fees. The executive 'vomttee huabeen auMed that these feu uli be - sWabn dredyto the IndMdua communfty schoole. Through this "roes the Town le effecdveiy ina2 and le the catalyst for flore ng coM. Programmigng wil suifer as aur cmecontinue ta kicrease. No longer wlI we have the flexlbilty ai offedlng Sragra me based on merit and e9nefits ta aur community. Since 1987 aur comte have increaed only mlnimaHy~ for each school. The anly suaI Increases have been through the addition af new sohoals jolnlng the communlty echool partnership. WIth the generaus- support or the Tawn of Whltby, we have been able ta maintain aur fees and saladies at a reasonable, constant and very competitive levai. I urge this councdl once ain ta recansider its position an thi issue. The contlnued existenceai your communlty echools lesedsly lhreatened. I slncerely hope that this coundIl VAN continue ta ehare the vison and dedicetin ai its valunteers and work In a Positive manner towards flndlng a solution that wlI eneure the future af this vita, progreselve and Innovative partnership. K.ith Stevenson, chair, Executive commftte Whltby Community Schoole To the editor: I neyer thought thetI muid e the day that taxpayers ln Ontanlo wauld elbow qualty education ta deterlorate ta, a substaridard lavel For years the province has had a défiit problem aid athough we need ta steit ta correct the overspendlng, let's do this wth some compassion. it le impossible ta maintaln aur education standards with $24 million ln g ramt cuis ta aur board af education. Wlth the Queens Park agenda, trustees are faced with an impopsible task. To melntain the present standard, k w>uld mean more than a six per cent MiM rate Increase. In order ta have a zero MMl rate, il meais massive cuttIng of services ta aur ddildren. ln Seplember, smre programs are belng. eflinated, Mwith aers extremely cut beck. In 1995, there wes one educellonal assistent for every 164 epediai neede students and after the,,Iret round af budget To the editor: We are wnlting ln respanse toa'a disturbingletter from Sharon îles of the HeipngHends Food Bank ln Coutie eter appeared ln the Whftby Free Press on March 20. Firet, for the readers af the peper, we mulIke Io clear up the feot that drug abuse aid suicide are not rampent ernongst redpients aifaod benke. WhIle aur clentele are experlendng herd financial ddoffiue, they aie'naimare or kem ssptbi t these hornlflc probleme than anyone else.-W.i are truly sony for- the. difficuttiesMs. les has expenlenced ln her Ie, but they are not an aven remateiy accurate refiection an the Ilves af the average food prograrn recipient. Second, we wouid like.ta expiain why Helping Hande le not invoived Wih eny af th. local or metropolitan faad drives. Despie the iact that their bank le not easil accessed by the gqeneralpublo ad-the led that w. cule et the Durhem board,- the number wM lInreaseIoon. for avery 172 (eafIve per cent redudtian In peaple worklng with students and teachers>. Recently, $10 mllion wes trlmmed irom aur echoal syvstern, leaving an addltional $14 mikin ta go. k le time the people and espedelly parents woke up, spake up aid demnanded the stearnirolllng effect an their Icds ta bop now . As parents, we have an'obIgato1 pratect aur chldrnm dghti. At thle rate, l RwN not, be a nlght toae decent eduion, k WMui be a drearn for smre. and, a m.mnory for moot. laIlR more importat for us ta smue a few dollars today at the lsk ofiosing a qualty educetion for the leaders. aio tamorrow? Get ta yaur MPPs and stop this esseuit on aur children. Attend budget meetings aid make sure trustees are servicng yaur wenle. Corn Las Bugdsn Oshawa taxpayor have been walting for nearly two yeers for a meeting with their unldentiued board af dire=trs, we have offered tue HeIping Hande Inclusion under the conditian that they adopt the marne polies by which aIl area food bais dpmae These polides require ail agendies ta, coaperete aid share informaton aid are ln place speciflcally ta prevent fmJuduIent use of aur cammunly's resources. Regerdeos af the tact that il 1s common sense, and nt a lot toe skof any repectful agenc, Ms. îles refused. In amher words, se Is not included with aur food dMies beceuse she does naît want ta ho. Paul Dlckson, coordinator Voor Round -CriaI. Food.-Bank Snmo Hall Sottement Hou». Clere aMutton' dîrecor, Dreams and memories Letter 'disturbing'