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Il - rl wT 6-The Canadian Champion, Tuesday, February 3,1998 SCOMMENT-- Box 248,191 Main St. E. MltonOnt.19T4N9 (905) q878-2341 Fax: 878-4943 Classified: 875-3300 Ian Oliver Publisher Neil Oliver Asseciate Publisher David Bsa General Manager Rob Kelly Editear Karen Huisman Circulation Manager Teri Casas Office Manager Ttm Coles Proaductioan Manager The Canadien Champion, putntsted tiîce weetuty at 191 Main St E Milton Ont L9T 4N9 (Box 248) ns one oTthe Metroiand liii il', Diii ,f!iiii J'iiiji fl,îîfîi i nies whîcio includesý Ajax i Pickering Nws Advetser. Barrie Advance, Brmpon uardian. Bulngon Post. City Parent. Clingwoud / Wasaga Cunnection, East York Mirror, Etubicoke Buardian, Georgetown findependentl Acton Free Press, Kngton This Week, Lindsay This Week. Martam Econumis & Sun. Midand / Peneanguistnene Minnun. Mîsssauga News, Newmarkel / Bununa Ea Banner, Nortumberland News, North Yrk Mrr. B atinille Beane, OBnlia Tday, Oshawa 1 Whitby / Cainglun TBis Week. Peer- borough This Week, Rclmond Hit/Thonîtill / Vaughan Lberal, Scatînrouag Minnr, Uxtnidge 1 SnuBfvile Tribune. Tdas Senlints. Aduertising is accepted un the condition Ia, in the enent ut a typo- graphical ennu. tsar poutionofuthte aduertising space nccupied thîe ennnenus item, tîgettnet wtl a easunabte atuwance tut sgnanure, wiii nul e changed In, but the balance ufthîe adetisementtii e paid Inn aI the applicable rte. Te ublsher relrenthîe right l Ilcal- egunîne adetisements ut ecine, Explore some options Halton Regional Police Chief Peter Campbell faces the same dilemn- ma that bas confronted managers in both the public and private sec- tors for the better part of a decade now. It is how to keep costs under control wben they are mostly reflected in personnel. There is no easy answer to the question, but some innovations need to be explored. At present, the Halton force, like many others, has fully trained and compensated officers performing ail sorts of tasks -some of which could perhaps be done by other people, or even machines. miin out speeding tickets cornes to mind, as well as issuing Jinfraction notices for other sorts of minor offences, or even investi- de chance of apprehending a perpetrator and the investigating officer is by and large cataloguing the stolen goods. These are mostly cleri- cal jobs. Granted, there is a strong organized labour presence in the police force that would argue against any such moves. StilI, there should be equal pressure to explore options in depth from the people who must answer to taxpayers - Halton regional politicians. Chief Campbell wants 9.3 per cent more money for his department this year than last -- $43.9 million in total. This comes in a generally stable community that enjoys one of the lowest crime rates in Canada. It is true that Halton is a rapidly growing area -- hence a need for more officers. It is also true that investigating serious criminals and crime is a time-consuming business in which results are often hard to measure. As well, genuine appreciation for the work officers do is not expressed often enough. Many is the time an experienced officer has lamented the fatigue associated with performing his or her work, and predictably expressed a desire to leave a given force at the earliest possible retirement date. These people, when they are being candid, will often confess that I they feel they have had little effect in terms of public safety over the course of their careers. They only see things getting worse. j One must feel for veteran officers in this position. They should (know that had it flot been for them, things would have likely been worse. They did make a genuine, significant difference by keeping the lid on crime, by holding the thin blue line. 'Mat said, however, politicians in Halton face the same old touchy task of dealing with a prickly financial situation when it cornes to the police. in any other area of public service today,. their budget proposaI would be immnediately dismissed, since it is far outside regional expenditure guidelines. It gives rise among other civil service departments, and even among taxpayers to the perception that one spending limit exists for every- one else and a more generous benchmark prevails for the police. Hopefully Chief Campbell's budget is but an opening garribit, to be rolled back by determined regional politicians once it is scrutinized and fully evaluated. -Mis arnounits to putting a good deal of faith in regional politicians, and attributing a certain degree of flexibility to Chief Campbell. Yet officers of the law are not generally known for their flexibility, nor gamnesmanship in budget negotiations. And, unfortunately, regional politicians are flot known for their con- sistent success in backing off the Halton Regional Police budget demands. So we will see, on the debating floor, and in our tax bills, how things stand.RoKel Letter writer has to be kidding Dear Editor: 1 say you must be kiddmng in response to E. Kddle's let- ter 'Wrestling photos too violent' in the January 13 edition of The Champion. 1 truly must ask where the nerve was found to write, let alone print, this article. For those of you that did not read the letter, in il E. Kiddle bluntly states that be/she found action photos of higb school wrestlers printed in The Champion 'distasteful" and con- tinues on to promote a 64-day campai&n of non-violence, which respectfully commemorates the careers of Martin Luther King and Ghandi. There is no doubt in my mmnd or surely anyone's that what Martin Luther King and Ghandi did for tbe world was prominent. However, I also know that on August 28, 1963 when King read bis Nobel Peace prize winning speech 'I have a dream', probibiting igb scbool wrestling pboto's from municipal papers was not part of bis plan. Or that Ghandi, in is rigorous atempts to promote peace among Hindus and Muslims, neyer believed sport to be an instigator of vio- lence. How could a bigbly competîtive sport as old as time itself ever promote violence? How could a sport that begins and ends witb a bandsbake between opponents. is notable for its commodore between teams and is based on tbe principle of bard work, dedication and respect, ever contradict wbat great men like Gbandi and King ever worked toward? Thle local wrestling team and its members are noted around the community for tbeir cbaritable involvemnent, +OUR READERS WRITE 'good behaviour and success As a graduate of a local high school and its wrestling team, I can only hope that photos and documentation of the teams success will continue to be printed in The Champion, as 1 look forward to seeing how hard work and dedication can pay ot. I'm sure the late Martin Luther King did too. Scott Mclaughlin Milton Please don't charge the Red Cross for space begs reader Dear Editor: This letter is regarding the recent story 'Town considers cbarging Red Cross for clinic space'. I have been a blood donor since the mid-50s. Myself and hundreds of thousands of others have neyer received a nick- el for this. The volunteers who man the stations taking names, mak- ing records and pboning committees also received the same amount. The only payment is the good feeling and the peace of mind in knowing that blood will be ready and waiting if myself, family or friends or anyone else needs it. Presently blood is available for no charge. Who knows how long this service will be free. Charging for the little bit of space required for a donor clinic once a month mightjust be enough to change the way we bave free service available now. Please don't rock the boat. NormCoufter Milton Pud___ __ _ by 5teve Nease