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PAGE6, WHMTY FRMUR 8:WEDNESDAY, JAN f 29; 1992. The only Whitby Newspaper owned and operated by Whîtby resîdents, for Whitby-resîdents! Published every Wednesday by 677209 Ontarioo mc. at 131 Broçk St. N, Whitby, Ontarlo Il N 551> Phone 66-111 Toronto Line 427-1834 Doug Anderson - Publisher Maurice Pither'- Editor Alexandro Martin- Production Manager 2nd Ciaýs Postal Registration #Q5351, Is it. progress? To the Editor: Today, we, admired an American kestrel -and a female marsh hawk as they visited aour Tcd, we admired the sight of aur méighourho skaters who met on theiceet Lick Pond. Today, we put, on aur own skates for some quality family time that involved* fresh air and exercise. Today, 1 arn sadened ta think that such values, found in natural beauty and 'spontaneous community spirht and healthy living must somehow be fartel du a'progress.' When a marshland area1 Lick Pond i8 deemned an 'eyeso 1 question what beauty là ta, faund in mare townhaws another plaza. If the decision is made ta bi an this land rather than an alernative, more approprii sight, the wildIffe will leave,1 children will leave, the famillesi leave. And what does that about 'progress?' Lima Laflami MhR lied like re,' be ses; uild an !aie the will by V By John G. Patte, treasurer, Whltby Chamber of commerce 1 refuse ta believe that a man of Mr. Rae's Intellect does not understand the pmoblem of aur econ .omy. 1 do belleve that a man of' hlm philosaphy may flnd Rt dffficult ta oept the obviaus explanatuons and solutions beforehlm. Yet a man of intellectual lnteg wl rllel examine hlm phllophy and change course when the facsd ie., Mr. Rae falled the test Jan. 21. Mr; Rae recognlzed that tthere are massive- structurai changes golng on ln the globa econamny,. changes that we In'Canada cannatiIgnare., escape or alter ta any ever,* thèse changes - often descrbed wlth, buzz words' Ilce globalizatlon, rationalization, consolidation" are not the product of the current recessian. Trhey started ai least a docade ago, athough we may not have recognlzed them iai the Urne, and *have acclerated ln recentyears. In the Financlal Post recently, an article clearly demonstnated that Canadian permanent job lasses from plant clasings peaked in 1987, before t he current recession, and, lncldentally, before free trade and the GST. .Curtailing increases ln government spending is a necessity - surely no one could have been surprlsed by Mr. Rae's comments here. We simply do not, as a province or a nation, have the resources and wealth-generating ability ta support the spending pragrams concocted in boom times. W. should have used theboom times mare wisely ta reduce deficlts and pay down debt. And surely the answer la nat in the massive capital spending programs that Mn: Rae referred ta. Here are a few suggestions: 1. Stop blaming the federal govemment, free trade, GST and- whatever other target that seems vuinerable - the problem is global. The U.S. is experiencing hard times, too, with permanent job lasses from- plant ciosings and consolidations, aVu cannat blame this on GST. 2. Scrap proposed changes ta the Labour Relations Act. Business and potential investors view these proposais more negatively than the hlgh tax rates. 3. Harmonize -the Ontario retail sales tax with the GST. Speakinp ta the 1991 Conference of the Canadian Tax Foundaitan on the subject of 'Competftiveness -and the Tax System,' Edward Neufeld, executive vlce-pesident of the Royal Bank of Canada,* stated that the one thing abave ail else that provincial gavemments could do ta make aur tax system mare conducive ta competition would be ta harmonize with the GST. Mr. Rae, please stop playing poiitics and do Rt now. 4. On the subjed 0of GST and assuming harmonization, encourage businesses ta use tax-inclusive pricing rather than tax-extra picing. The ane factor conceming GST that the. federal gavemnment -(and many commentators such as myseif) did not anticipate well was t he consumer's psychaiogical resistance. While 1 would not like ta retum ta a hidden tax like the aid manufacturers' sales tax, I do not have to b. reminded'every tUme 1 go ta, the cash register. (Only the federai gvoemment can legisiate tax-indlusive pricing.) 5. Consider a temporaiy reduction in the sales tax rate. t Previaus provincial governments have used this technique veny etfectively in the past ta encourage consumption. 6. Re-introduce the three- year corparate tax 'holiday' for new corporations. Lot us have some incentive to encourage new -business-formation. .r To te ebitor... Hospital hlot free from -r isk To the Editor: This is a response ta the lettei written by Dr. Alan Moîntyre (Jan 12/92 Issue) ln obviaus opposition ta both the home birth aof our sor Christopher and the publicity giver ta, it (Jan. 8/92 issue). Dr. Moîntyre accuses The Free Press of celebrating ani 'irresponsible attitude towards obstetnical health, care. There Is an insinuation throughout, hism latter that myself, family and caregivers have not only not acknowledged the 'riss associaied with aur choice af blnth place, but have jeopordized the safety of, aur baby Christopher ln the process. Being a mother, as well as a concrnedhealth-care provider myseff, I take great exception ta thm supposed belief., First, it is important ta undarstaind that any woman who chooses ta give birth away from ahospital has not only considered the risks 0 f -. hospitai birtha as opposed ta home birth, but has aima made an informed choice ln the best intereét of both ,herseif and. her baby. A hosplal lsby no means free from rlsk fTor a woman ln labour, or a newborn baby. Unfortunateiy,' many women are stuli endurlng the result of abstetrical Intervention one wrong or,. ad the very best, hinthe birth 'Operformed,"as Dr Mclntyr ee refers ta his practice of VBAC. Binthing may be tumed, into a frightening and demeaning process with bas af dignity. and comfort if a woman Is in an uncomfortable- or threaiening environment. Babies have been known to be injured by forceps, drugs, monitors and equipment; these after baing used when psychoioglcal support systems fan the mother have broken down on early intervention such as induction performed (after an attempt to make birth more time-convanient ta everyone but the mother and her baby). There lm no lack cf germs or brgh lights for a newborn in a hosppital as well. 1. hawever, arn not anti-medical or lacking, In respect for the woniderfuil Ife-saving services pravided by- the'haspital andilts corsfor the silkand Injured. Birth 'lm a-- naturel physio oical process --. not 'an Iîlnems. Somewhere alang the uine when blnth was taken out' dt the home and Into a hospital, we fargotto maké it famfily-centred andJhumane for mother and baby. kt wouid be wonderful if women could have it ail -- the continuity of care and expertise provided by a trained and capable midwife in an appropriate birth sunrounding (perhaps a birthin centre) and with necessary medicald backup for t hose, few lfe-thieaiening emergencies which staiistically occur. Mly doctor agrees. ln cing, I' would like ta comment. on recent recommendatios. .bofQr»- thie Ministry - -f - Healthr -whict-has suggested that VBAC be treaied as low risk and acknowledges that, many factars leading ta the f irst Cesareati arei not necessarily repeatable. Chritoher was my second home birth BAC -we doô you st op clasifying and talie the heaith of«,each pregnancy on Its own Indlividu l menit? Dr.* Kim Devonshire- Zlelonka Mother, Whitby. To theaditor:, A necent' lettan submttad by, Dr. Alan Moîntyre contained some, stataments ta which w. f elt' compelled ta nespond. He stated :that once a woman Taxpayers canyt, give any more To the Editor: An open letter ta Durham Raglon chairman Gary Harrama and ai politIcians responsible for budgets ai >ev=ry level of government ln Canada. The Manlo Boucher*article ln the Jan. 22Iassue of the Whitby-F"e Pres.indicatad 'Harrema Is- recommanding a<-,single digit- Increase'.0'The finance an administration committe wilI. 'attmp t ta keep thea'tex Increasà beo 0 par cent' Iý arn concerned. that the chairman and 'the committee's focus and, budget tax Increase objectivas are reprasantathe of the majority, of politiclans currantIy in.office. Durlng the relative prasparity 0f the eightlas we wara subjacted to doubla-dligit tax increasas from variaus lavals of governmant, inciuding the ragion. W. waatherad these increases by reducing our disposable incoma lavais and' household ex4penses. Taxpayars, bath individuel and' business, cannoît b. asked to give , more. I suggast ta chairman Herrema that ha re-eaxamnine the dally headlines ln aur nawspapers. Plant ciosures, high unampioymntÈ levaIs, waga freazes. and bankruptcles are being announced on a daiiy basis. The Ontario aconomy ls in a deep recassion and chairman Harrama and his committea naed to establish budget targats that reflect this economic raality. Banchmarklng against double-digit tax increases ta achiave 'single digit' tax increasas that excaed wage and cost of, living changes will increase Ontario's recession problems andc bning us closer ta the deprassion leva is we ail draad.y The rabudgeting task will not b. l easy and for many it may meana raduced servic'le lavais., This I sacrifice is far lama painful than taxC increases bayond the publie's I ability ta, pay.n has had. a'Cesarean, secti!on, any pregnanc-Ies that foliowed wauld nhotbe, iow-riskThis implies thet thèy would b. high-risk, since ha aima mentions ,ldire obstetnicai cornsequences thai hé believas can tollaw with this situation.- ý ,Ail 0f the i'nedical literatune avallable today sho *ws that vaginal birth attar, Cesarean is, very. sata (mbeh mater than at ked ,ree Cesarean) and thateif 1 the best avaliable option, with -very few exceptions. Weare very sunpnised that he hasnot kept up with these atudies, and so continues to beliave that VCAC Is dangenous.. S:We -aIma a ' bject ,ta his statement that women should onl b. 'aliowedw to have a VBAC !n'a hosphital andthai he, and ' his'fellow obstecans would- be happy tq: grform hMi *We.realy take oftaeeto this patriarc hal -attitude that demeans womfen a nd 'portrays 'tham -as> stui Wrd and unble ,to make reasonable -dédisions for themnselives and> thair unborn children. ft is just, thîs attitude of 'performing!, binth for wamen that leaves many feeling as if they had been, raped In chiidbirth, and leaves -many doctons. open ta lawsuits. Giving birth 18 a basic physiooicaltfunctian for women, and, one that most can do al on their own, withaut *the 'performance" of any doctor.' Those' few women -who do have difficulties in the proces -wauld benefit more- fram information'and support than fnom having a dactoný take over their bodies and perform a human salvage opanation'- for them. No one, not a ven' theý obstetrician, wants a live -,and haalthy bb more th 'an the parents do., <Give us' non-doctons -same credit., Given thea complet. information, we 'are- entinely capable of making -the besi decision for ounselves and' aur babies. More and mare cou ples are deciding -that the. paih that leads ta a healthy baby and'a fultilling birth expeience is the veiy ana thai leada ýaway fnam the abstetnicians door. Any ýparent or* prof essional who wishes accurate and. cunrent information about- vaginal birth atter Cesarean on infarmed choice, in childbirth 'can contact, tue Oesarean Prevantian, Support and Education' graup, an affiîiated rnember af VBAC/AVAC Canada. Arthur murcott Lima M. Westog VBAC is 'very safe' ViewpoiWntJ W II l