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economist suntribune saturday sept 21 2002 stouffville tribune serving the community since 1888 a metroland community newspaper 9 heritage rd markham ont l3p 1m3 publisher ian proudfoot opinion editor in chief debora kelly business manager robert lazurko director marketing new product deveujpment brenda larson advertising director retail futer sales nicole mathieu advertising director classified real estate events management cord paolucci letters to the editor veneer of equality justice no reason to let gays raise kids re many ways to conceive children letter to the editor by diane and bill dodds sept 12 it is interesting to see how some people seem to think the 21st century is some sort of utopian culture to which we should all ascribe praise i congratulate the dodds for their long marriage but i cannot agree with their under lying premise of 21st century trends as the medium from which we should live our lives from this faulty premise they build their case against conventional families offering the bernardos as a pattern who they seem to think are representative of a traditional nuclear family in reality the bernardos represent the decadence and evil that the last century and this one have progressed to since soci ety rejected the timehonoured and treasured values that made our nation great as a society we should not coalesce with the trends of this century which has experi enced more bloodshed than all other cen turies combined but turn back to those moral and idealistic truths that bring dignity and worth to an individual it should be said that i would not want to see children raised by gay couples under the veneer of equality and justice children cannot grow as functionally responsible citizens unless they grow under the guidance of a man and a woman who realize the incredible responsibility that mar riage demands carmelo tropiano unionville patient polite boys bring smile to markham mothers face i live in markham with my husband and 18monthold son our home is near centennial park where i bring christopher to play on a regular basis last sunday i was delighted by four young boys who were between six and eight years old christopher hasnt learned to share yet or be patient and these boys were wonderful around him they played their games on the jungle gym but let christopher through as long as i gave the secret password they were polite and if christopher fell they made sure he was ok there were no other parents around so i couldnt thank them directly i dont know their names but in a world of pushy uptight people it was so very nice to see some young people who were polite and very nice to be around as long as we can keep the younger gener ation confident strong and polite the world may turn out to be a nice place i thank those boys for putting a smile on my face tammi jamison markham bible supports traditional families not gay parents re many ways to conceive children letter to the editor from diane and bill dodds sept 12 when my wife and i were married 22 years ago we were married in a baptist church by a baptist pastor and like the dodds our vows did not mention children i would hazard a guess that in most christian weddings this is the case the reason is because the traditional vows are based on the scriptures which are claimed to be the word of god i will attempt not to sermonize so the dodds and other interested parties can research the rest of the points in the bible as their hearts might lead them the priority throughout the bible is the husband and wife relationship this is the foundation of the family it is a relationship that consists of a man and woman there are no deviations from this in the bible even the anglican one if we sit down and think rationally about it male and female balance each other and fill in the weak areas that each possesses for the dodds to suggest some of us should be dragged into the 21st century insults all those who believe in objective truth and it insults the claims of scripture why is it that we should be dragged into the future as if to suggest that force be used seems to me that a man named jesus had a similar experience so why is it that children are absent from the marriage vows because children are not always part of a married cou ples future but love and commitment are if and when children do come along they thrive in a family where they observe mommy and daddy love each other like crazy i think most of us with children will admit we are not perfect parents its amazing how a healthy loving relation ship in our marriages can in our childrens eyes make up for many of our other short comings as for my wife and i we would not wish a dysfunctional parenting union on any child and only pray more moms and dads would learn to love each other like crazy so their children will grow up in happy homes and become welladjusted empathetic adults as for the wrong choices we all make at times throughout our lives following our human desires and selfish lusts rather than whats right the scriptures have an answer for that too for those who wish to discover it as their hearts might lead them see john 316 but now im sermonizing again arent i barry farndon unionville sponsors volunteers made grandmas run special event with all the demands on our time and energy in todays society it was great to see this communitys support for markhaven grandmas run sept 7 its no easy task to undertake a move from the current facility to make way for the much- needed roomier home the transition is tough on both staff and residents progress is not always easy i commend all those involved in making grandmas run most enjoyable our every need was anticipated and pro vided for all we had to do was go for our usual walkrun with company and have fun along the way country style donuts provided break fastdessert depending on your arrival time and was gracious in its service as were all the sponsors and volunteers doreenlawson markham smokers have no constitutional right to pollute air of others as a nonsmoker i think the nosmoking bylaw is a great idea and it is way past due what gives a smoker the right to light up a smoke a few tables away from a non- smoker is it that the smoker has the consti tutional right to decide to smoke well how about my constitutional right to live a healthy lifestyle and not pollute my body with the deadly toxins and chemicals found in a cigarette there is no argument that can give smokr ers the right to decrease my life expectancy and that is exactly what you are doing to your children and loved ones every time you light up around them as a smoker you have made the choice to engage in an act that will kill you and you have no right to force that act on me in the way of secondhand smoke because i have made the decision not to engage in the act of smoking as young advocates of nonsmoking it is essential we get our message across to local governments throughout the province so they will spearhead this issue i follow the leadership of mentors such as vaughan regional councillor joyce frustaglio who has made the difficult but right decision to implement the nosmoking bylaw her leadership will benefit the residents of vaughan and our future stephen lecce woodbridge letters policy the markham economist sun welcomes your letters all submissions must be less than 400 words and must include a daytime telephone number name and address the economist sun reserves the right to publish or not publish and to edit for clarity and space letters to the editor the economist sun 9 heritage rd markham on l3p1m3 email etterseconsuncom editorial editor jim mason newsroomeconsuncom advertising retail sales manager steve kane stevcklhcliberalcom sales manager new business development distribution dawna andrews dandreivserabanncrcom classified manager ann campbell anncerabannercom real estate manager mike rogerson production electronic communications manager john futhey jfulheyyrngcom distribution distribution manager barry black 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