The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Letters (pinion PAGE 6 â€" WATERLOO CHRONICLE, WEDNESDAY JUNE 28, Third, Canada‘s health care system would ber government contracted out the management hospitals. Canada‘s health care system may be sick, but saved. All it needs is a good dose of competition. The second reform would be to make the waiting lists for surgical and diagnostic procedures public. These lists should then be monitored by an independent third party. Anyone who wants to jump the queue should have to justify it medically. This reform would prevent those with power and influence from forcing their way to the head of the line and might just focus our politicians‘ minds on the need for health care reforms. First, the government should deâ€"criminalize private basic health insurance and allow the establishment of private hospitals. The resulting competition would bring about a drop in costs and increase the overâ€"all quality of health care. Some contend that if private medical insurance were allowed it would create a twoâ€"tier system: one for the rich and one for the poor. Canada already has a twoâ€"tier system, however, Those with the necessary means are now flying to the United States to pay for the kind of treatment they want in cash. The rest of Canadians have no option but to put up wflm long wgitixig lists and rationing. _ Both these solutions, however, have serious drawbacks. Governments have been increasing health care spending for years but demand for medical services continues to outpace supply. No matter how much is spent, it is never enough. The second option, while politically attractive, would succeed only in driving some of Canada‘s best doctors into a workâ€"toâ€" rule protest. Fortunately, other options do exist. In fact, three simple reforms, if introduced, woulld help to improve Canada‘s health care systems without raising taxes or angering qHngen doctors. Some contend that the proper cure is for governments to spend more money on health care. Others favour capping doctors‘ fees or putting them on salaries. Waiting lists for surgical and diagnostic procedures have got longer, services are being rationed and medical costs are rapidly increasing. Time to free up health care Ian Kirkby‘s article of June 14th describing his intrepid travels in search of condoms was both disgusting and disturbing. To suggest that it was his "dedication to advancing the frontiers of journalism", that drove him to provide a list of Waterloo stores which supply condoms for those "kwikies" after 11 p.m. was ludicrous. Kirkby depicts human beings as animals without the ability to control their own sexuality, without the ability to be responsible and rational, without the ability to say "no" to their "sexual energy". Although he may have felt his article was "morally incumbent‘" to his readers, I believe his article was garbage, pure and simple. Kirkby column was pure garbage _David Somerville National Citizen‘s Coalition _system would benefit if the the management of public Kathleen van den Berg Waterloo, Ontario it _ Frankly, the fact she will head up the committee looking at new procedures and the conducting of meetings, makes me nervous. > That‘s not to say there aren‘t some worrisome signs. Rookie councillor Susan Forwell has on several occasions now suggested the presence of the media interferes with her ability to do her job, and would prefer to meet with people behind closed doors. She seems to have a real problem understandâ€" ing the media is there to get information for the people who voted for her. But this new council has demonstrated a genuine commitment (so far) to openness. Witness the "councillor for a day" survey. _ Harry S. Truman once said, "Whenever you have efficient government, you have a dictatorship." It‘s a particularly sensitive issue in Waterloo, where voters made it clear in the last election that they were not enamored of the closed door feel of the previous council. Weekly, I continue to hear stories of past frustrations. So, it would not be unreasonâ€" able to assume a lot of people are cynical of the city‘s in'f:ention to streamlinp_ council meetings. It‘s going to be a tough one: how to operate an efficient democracy at Waterloo city hall; how to be open to citizens but not work late into the night when staff reports tend to get rubberâ€"stamped because everyone is too tired to think of all the implications. According to Waterloo mayor Brian Turnbull democracy and efficiency are now in conflict in Waterloo. It‘s an old problem. _ But I also agree with her that the current system Democracy in conflict _ Though imperfect, it‘s a grand idea, as long as there remains that avenue of appeal to the whole council. "At the region a committee system has evolved so it works very well," according to Mayor Brian Turnbull. Councillors would become miniâ€"experts in an area. People would make their viewpoint known to the committee, which would then make a recomâ€" mendation to council. If people objected to the committee recommendaâ€" tion, they could make one final appeal to council, but under stricter regulations than is currently the practice, said Turnbull. The new committee will look at a variety of options, including a committee system. Waterloo is no longer a small town, no matter how much some people would like it to be. A committee system will be more responsibe for the city as we continue to is getting bogged down in repetitious representaâ€" tions before council. The best recent example was the Waterloo Potter‘s Workshop representation at the June 5 meeting. Delegation after delegation said essentially the same thing, thereby wasting everybody‘s time, though for a just cause. City Seen lan Kirkby