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LT 8 -- Eun Citizen -- Wednesday, September 8 1993 =z 3 say WII ZE: advertising sales : Chris Hudson accounting : Sibylle Warren reception : Liz Drebit published by Scugog Citizen Publishing Led. co-publishers : John B. McClelland, Valerie Ellis editor : John B. McClelland advertising manager : Valerie Ellis OCNA Member THE SCUGOG CITIZEN CCNA Member n independently owned and operated "ary community newspaper, is distributed, free of charge, to over 10,000 homes and businesses 36 WATER ST., PORF PERRY, ONT. L9L1j2 [| feature writer : Heather McCrae © CONA Verlfied® in and around Scugog Tounship. Phone : (416) 985-6397 Fax : (416) 985-1410 "Proud Canadians, proud to call Scugog Township home." Circulation Controlled Subscriptions sold outside Scugog Township. m-- rT IIIT EDITORIALS Kim's choppers How many helicopters does Canada need to properly engage in search and rescue operations and exercise its territorial integrity--D50, 43, 35, 18, none? It's tough to tell right now after Prime Minister Kim Campbell announced last week that the order for the super-tech EH- 101 choppers will be chopped from the original 50 to 43. It was a fancy dance with obvious political overtones for a Prime Minister about to set the date for a national election and .| mindful that opinion polls show Canadians are less than enthusiastic about spending in excess of $6 billion for these flying machines. | As defense minister in the Mulroney cabinet, Campbell was steadfast that the deal should be for 50, stating as recently as May 5 that reducing the number "is not a particularly effective way to save costs." On September 2, when she made the announcement of the cut by seven, Campbell said the savings will amount to $1 billion. Is this an effective way to save a billion or not? Back in April, Canada's chief of defense said the 50 helicopters "fit the minimum needs." There are so many numbers bouncing about in this tangled and confusing issue, the Canadian tax-payers, who will foot the bill for whatever number finally rolls off the assembly line, can hardly be blamed for demanding that the entire order be scrapped and the $5.8 billion applied against the deficit. After all, the federal Conservatives have made it clear their goal (if re-elected) is a reduction of the annual $30 billion deficit to zero in five years. But wait a minute. Should Canada's military and defense needs be bounced around the political winds as they appear to be now? That is the real 'question that ought' to be examined. The EH 101's were first deemed necessary several years ago when Soviet subs were cruising the qceans of the world and the Soviet Union was considered a threat to the soverignty of Canada and the Western Hemisphere. The conclusion of the Cold War has changed that scenario drastically since the Soviet Union no.longer exists and its once feared fleet of subs is sitting in dry dock. However, that's not to say that there are not subs from other un-friendly powers on the prowl. And keep in mind that the the first of the EH 101's are not destined for delivery until the year 2000. It's anybody's guess what the international situations will be like then. Who knows what will transpire in the former Soviet Union over the next seven years? And there are other reasons why Canada ought to be exercise some "punch" in its territorial waters over such things as illegal fishing, drug running and smuggling of all kinds, As well, Canada has a moral obligation to be ready to mount effective trouble off our coastline. Our present helicopter fleet is 1950's vintage, hardly effective in doing the kind of job Canadians would gxpect in an emergency, not matter what it is. The decision on whether we need 50 new choppers or none should be based on a totally objective analysis of need, and whether the order is going to be a decent deal for Canada in turns of defefffe industry employment. that respect, some $2 billion worth of contracts inside 4 stimulus for an ailing economy that any government can Fovide. As well, the main contractor for these choppers has made a commitnrent that on any further orders (no matter where they come from) at least 10 per cent of the work will be placed with Canadian companies. This a complex issue that should not find itself on the whim of politicians going into a national election. Do we need the helicopters, or not? Can we afford them? Is the order a decent deal for Canadian industry? Those are the questions that must determine the outcome, not whether it tickles the fancy of the electorate. On the bright side, if Kim Campbell can change her mind on helicopters, maybe we can hope shell change her mind on other things like the GST. search and rescue operations when ships or planes are in nada have already been signed, and that has to be as good a | THERE'S SOMETHING BIG ABOUT .A SMALL TONN | LETTERS - THE EDITOR Possible injunction a threat to pro-life rights To the Editor; It is my understanding that our 'beloved' NDP government has started to implement an outrageous injunction that would ban all pro-life demonstration activities. This is a very dangerous threat to any pro-life citizen's right to assembly and freedom of speech that falls directly under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This proposal is just one of the 46 recommendations that the members of the Task Group of Abortion Service Providers has unfortunately, yet successfully passed. Some of the recommendations include... #20 a requirement that all hospitals with ob/gyn services perform abortions. #38 and 39 steps to pressure all Ontario Physicians and nurses, regardless of their personal views, to make abortion referrals. ° #41 a call for the expansion of the roll of all counselling services to-include abortion referrals (eg. Children's Aid Societies and Family Service Associations.) #33 a comprehengtve state- imposed sexual health curriculum" (ie. including abortion education) compulsory in all schools from K to 12 and OAC. #40 provision for sexual health programs to-any person requesting service, regardless of age. This includes abortion. #21 and 22 a law denying the rights of ordinary citizens to protest or provide pro-life assistance at abortion facilities. #43 - 46 expediting the testing and approval of the abortion pill RU-486, and making the human pesticide free of charge. Many of these 46 recommendations have been quietly passed under the table. This is a sneaky effort on behalf of our government in order to avoid public hearings debate and outcry. This also contradicts its stance on what' I . a, _ democratic nation ipcheents, find it utterly disgusting that this provincial government would not even hesitate to proceed with implementing these injunctions. You cannot stereotype the actions of those pro-lifers who have been extreme in their actions. It is just as childish as an elementary school teacher who keeps their class in at recess because of one person's wrongdoing. Really! This is not politically correct and no longer is it a question of one's opinion on the subject; it is now a question of one's opinion not being allowed to be expressed in the open, regarding this subject. Our government has already denied the unborn of a right to life, now they take away my rights? I don't think so. K Ouellette Scugog Township Grants to Natives not part of treaty To the Editor; In reply to the outlandish claims by Gary Edgar, newly elected Chief of the Mississaugas Band on Scugog Island, as reported recently in our local media, counter action is underway. Organization has begun. and Provincial Governments have given to this small band close to 1.7 million dollars for new housing, store finaficing and a Bingo Hall over the past several years. This free-loading on the general taxpayer has to stop. It is not a part of any treaty, recent or past. Respectfully, Joel W Aldred, D.F.C. Scugog Island