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PAGE 4, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 1981, WHITBY FREE PRESS' - Volce of the County Town Michael Ian Burgess, Pubisher - Managing Editor The' onfl Whitby newspaper independenil% ossned and operated bY Whithy residents for %lWhith.% residents. ulished et". ' e'dnesda% by ..N.Publishing SandIl>hotograph% In(' Phow s6-61 Il The F'ree Ilre'sN Building. 131 Brock Street North, P.O>. Box 206, %Nhitb-,y Ont. MICHAEL J. KNELL ComrnunltY EdItor MARJO RIE A. BURGESS Advertlifl§ Manager Mailing Permit No 480 Mambo( of the Whitby Chamber of Commerce Task force offers food fo The Whitby Mayor's Task Force on the Disabled made public its 114 recommendations last week and, by and large, they offer much food for thought. If the task force has done anything at ail it has made ail of us more aware of the needs, desires and rights of those people whom we have labelled as handicapped or disabled. The task force has made it clear that the disabled do flot want "special" rights, but merely those rights that will allow them to be vital and contributing members of the community in which they live. Many of their recommendations requ ire that the community realize* their responsibilities towards the disabled through the expending of tax dollars to ramp our downtown intersections, hospitals and clinics and other public facilities. However, perhaps the more important recomm- endations are.the educational ones. The task for- ce has clearly stated that we must be educatted to anticipate the needs, desires and rights of the handicapped. Many disabled individuals and groups have said that while they have many disabilities they also have many abilities that can be put to good use. ln general, we concur with the task force when it cals for providing equal opportunities for the handicapped especially in the areas of education and vocational training. However, it is our opinion that in this time of financial restraint by goverfi- ment that the desire to meet the needs of the han- dicapped be tempered with what can be reason- ably af forded by the ta xpayer. Over the course of the term of the task force, its Strike Cost Small Business $3 Billion &y W. Roger Wort'h Postmaster General André Ouellet docsn'1 really beieve small business was hurt by this sumnmer's 42-day postal strike. ln fac, during tht' strike, Ouellet informed people operating the nation's smaller companies the% should find other ssays Io maLt' a living if the% have 1<> reiN on tht' Post Office. Oueîlet. of course, k s'.4a% off hase in his assesïsment, and a recent surveN h% the C(anadian Federalion of Independent Buieson th1e elfects of the' strike, among 1.242 ofilis 62,000 membhersN, proves hom% utifle understandirig the' Minister lias of small business. ln cold. liard detailed language, the surse% indicated: eThe' cosi (o the' countrN's small and medium-sized business sctor w'as a whop- ping $3 billion, even using con- sers ative estimates. a More than t'I.o-million man-days of s'ork '.'ere lost through temporary or perma- nent la> oîfs %% hen orders dîdn't arrive or '.'ere lied up in the mail. WNhile the' staggering cost in money, jobs and losi oppor- tunities is important, people (perating smaller companfies were hard pressed Io place a value on the anger, aggrava- tion and frustration involved when they were without mail .service. One' Federation membher, lfor example. poinied (oui th'e"x- treme emotional pressure thai results irom mo(ndering whdether the business was going to surv.ive if the strike b*as to continue. l'et the Posimaster (,eneral wtriouI slusggests itile mone% lias heen losi and that postal .o rk e r-,should contintie tg) hase the rnght Io strike. no matter ho%> mucli hasoc the% create. %Nhile the Post Office lias nowbecome a (2rovwn Cor- poration, and thus miglit become more efficient, the' government cannot allow' the entrepreneurs '.411 are pro- viding a majority of the coun- tr>'s ne'.' jobs 10 be caught in such a bind again. In fact, the damage donet o smaller companies is so horren- dous [bat 1the rght Io strike, pariculary in the postal ser- vice, should be eliminsted. CFIB Feature Servce chairman, East Ward Councillor Joe Drumm, has said that it is time for the community to face up to its obligations to the disabled. In fact, Drumm has said quite plainly that th e community must put "its money whére its mouth is" and get on with the.job. Once again, this is flot disputed, but it must be emphasized that caution be taken as to not put too great a burden on an already overburdened taxpayer. Recommendations such as the improvement of the HandiTransit service is an example of a suggestion that has menit, but will not place too great a burden on the taxpayers. However, the recommendations that caîl for the establis[hment of group homes or facilities like Chesire Homes sho'uld receive more careful scrutiny prior to implementation. This is not to say that this suggestion does not have menit, but that it should be approached objectively. Ahl-m-ahl the task force has done a splendid job and is a fine contribution by the Town of Whitby to the International Year of the Disabled Person. Many of their recommendations and findings should be taken to heart so that each of us who r thought are blessed with being "normal" or without severe handicap may have an understanding of those with disabilities. Whether a person be blind, deaf, confined to a wheelchair or suffer some other form of disabilitY he or she has a contribution to make. He or she also has the right and the obligation to make that contribution. On the other hand, the community has the responsibilit to ensure that these people have the opportunity to exercise their rights and obliga- tions, as they do for any other person. It is believed that the task force is not asking us for out pity, but is asking us to realize that we have to do our share of making these people a part of the community in which they live. The recommendations will be placed before Whitby Town Council on December 7 for approval and implementation. It is fervently hoped that our elected officiaIs will continue the spirit and intent of the task force into 1982 and the years beyond. Just because the International Year of the Disabled Person is coming to a close it does flot mean that our concern for these people should also be allowed to wither.