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6- The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday December 10, 2008 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: NEIL OLIVER Vice ­ President and Group Publisher of Metroland West The Oakville Beaver is a division of IAN OLIVER President Media Group Ltd. DAVID HARVEY General Manager JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief ROD JERRED Managing Editor DANIEL BAIRD Advertising Director RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director SANDY PARE Business Manager MARK DILLS Director of Production MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution ALEXANDRIA ANCHOR Circ. Manager Bad drivers come in all ages The Ontario government's proposed Bill 126, which calls for changes to the Highway Traffic Act in an effort to reduce the number of accidents involving teen drivers, is an example of a good idea not given proper thought. Specifically, one of the aspects of the proposed law intends to limit the number of young passengers that drivers -- aged 19 and under -- can take in a vehicle during the first year of holding a class G2 licence. This is the bill's major flaw. Transportation Minister Jim Bradley says the intent is to cut down on rambunctious behaviour that can result when too many teens -- deemed more easily distracted, by the government -- get in one vehicle. If that's the case, Bradley must be assuming that a vast majority of teen drivers are reckless. We don't agree. Bad drivers come in all ages. By implementing this heavy-handed law, the Province would be penalizing the thousands of young drivers who obey the rules of the road. It would also place undue hardship on teens in suburban, rural and northern areas from getting to work, social events, school, etc. where there is no public transit; that there would be an exemption for family members makes little difference. Let's say, for example, five teens, all possessing a driver's licence, want to attend a soccer practice. Under this proposed law no fewer than three vehicles would be required for them to get to their destination. We won't even get into the effects that this could have on the environment. The unfair limit on the number of teens allowed in a vehicle could ultimately lead to more teen drivers on the road. Does that really lead to improved road safety? While parts of the Bill are sound -- such as an outright ban on those 21 and under drinking absolutely any alcohol before they drive -- the passenger limit is far too restrictive. The Province's intent to curb the number of accidents involving young drivers is laudable, but this bill, in its current form, needs fine-tuning before it is implemented. 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. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR I read the platforms. I went to the candidates debates. I made a decision. I took my kids to the polling station and showed them how democracy works. The results were tabulated and we elected a government. What do I tell my kids now? A coalition with no mandate to govern is clearly unacceptable to our idea of democracy. A bunch of angry people have decided they can work together like an episode of Survivor on TV and take power instead of earning it. Some of these angry people had spoken out just a few months ago and said that they would Coalition is affront to democracy never work together in a coalition. It sure feels like a "coup." This is Canada, the best country in the world where the Liberals in particular, experienced a significant rejection to their platform and their leader and now they think they can grab power by joining together to defeat the government. The coalition is an affront to democracy as we know it and will affect voter turnout for many years to come. Even more significantly, political instability will only deepen our economic challenges. BRENDA POTTER PHELAN Let parliamentary democracy unfold Steve Nease's cartoon What Banana Republic (Oakville Beaver, Dec. 6) conveys a misapprehension that far too many Canadians have -- that the Canadian political system is similar to the American system. Prime Minister Stephen Harper seems to think that like the president of the United States, he can do whatever he wants regardless of who controls the Legislature. What we are witnessing is our parliamentary democracy working as it should under the circumstances. If Harper's party does not have the confidence of the house, and clearly it doesn't, it loses the right to govern. That is our system. Considering that 64 per cent of votes cast in the last election were for parties other than the Conservatives, and considering the content of Jim Flaherty's economic update, it is no wonder that the representatives of 64 per cent of the voters decided the government should fall. If Harper's budget at the end of January fails to provide for the needs of the economy, then good riddance. GEORGE BRETT This week's poll The Oakville Beaver has a polling feature on its website oakvillebeaver.com. A new poll will be posted every Wednesday with the results of the poll published in the following Wednesday edition of The Oakville Beaver. This week's question is: Can Michael Ignatieff salvage the Liberal Party? · Yes · No To vote, visit oakvillebeaver.com Last week's poll: Would you support a federal Liberal-NDP coalition government? · Yes 22.31% · No 77.69% Total votes: 121 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. Pud BY STEVE NEASE snease@haltonsearch.com