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a4 tribune june 11 1986 editors mail supports doctors cause dear sir according to the media the majority of ontario residents polled were in favor of bill 94 does this suggest that the people of ontario want government control of our health care system if the government continues to in terfere health care as we know it will soon become obsolete the day will come when we no longer have the freedom to pick and choose our family doctor rather our doctor will be assigned to us the average person has been led to believe that money and greed are the principle issues and that their right to health care is somehow being threatened we in ontario have an abundance of doctors most of whom do not ex trabill and never intend to few of us will ever have difficulty finding a good physician who will not care for us under ohip what we are threatened with is a government that is attempting to ex tend its grip on every aspect of our lives once theyve gained control of our doctors which profession will be the next to fall prey if our health care is being threatened it is the government that is posing the threat i for one want my doctors to know that i support their attempt toward professional freedom sincerely patricia armstrong glad park avenue stouffville the tribune ontario comftuntv as jams thomas editor established 1888 bruce annan pat pappas jenni hutt publisher advertising manager distribution manager editorial dept chris shanahan kelly connelly display advertising dept lvnn moore real estate classified advertising joan marshman distribution doreen deacon karen heise national sales representative metroland corporate sales 4931300 the stouffville tribune published every wednesday and saturday at 54 main st stouffville oni is one of the metroland printing publishing distributing group of suburban newspapeis which includes the acton free press aj ax pickering news advertiser aurora banner brampton guardian burlington post etobicoke advertiser guardian georgetown independent markham economist sun milton champion mississaug3 news newmarket era oakville beaver oshawawhitby this week richmond hillthornhillvaughan liberal scarborough mirror topic newsmagazine willow- dale mirror metroland printing publishing distributing is a division of harlequin enterprises ltd single copies 50 subscriptions 2000 per year in canada 4750 elsewhere member of canadian community newspaper association ontario weekly newspaper association ontario press council and suburban newspaper of america second class mail registration number 0896 window on wildlife some hawk talk by art briggsjude 6402100 6492292 editorials sales barn an asset several eastend ratepayers have ex pressed concern over proposed expan sion of the stouffville sales barn some of their worries especially in creased traffic congestion on main street are legitimate however closer examination of the overall development concept reveals a sound approach to the future of one of ontarios largest and best known flea markets coowners norm faulkner and norm clements plan to tear down existing structures at the rear of the main barn building an adjoining building of rough ly the same proportions will be con structed to the east this move according to mr faulk ner will actually minimize outdoor litter and noise pollution by bringing much of the present outdoor sales activity inside in essence the 125 million project is more a reorganization of resources than an expansion management has also ensured town council and concerned residents that itll take action to resolve onsite prob lems like parking and sewage as was duly noted at a june 3 public meeting on the matter the hwy 47 mar ket has been part of the stouffville scene much longer than neighboring estate re sidential subdivisions such as westfield estates stouffville stockyards limited has been a solid corporate citizen for a period extending over a quarter of a cen tury at the same time it has helped put this community on the map in metro toronto and across central ontario there will always be those who cry not in my backyard at the mere hint of progress in this instance the benefits far out weigh the drawbacks theres something about the sighting of a hawk that brings out the best or the worst in people talk to most folks and they leave you with the impression there are no grey areas you either like em or you dont unfortunately in many instances its a case of misunderstanding in others its the fact a lot of cusual observers dont realize there are so many different kinds of hawks with vast differences between them from the small kestrel or sparrow hawk to the large buteos such as the red- tailed hawk there are close to a dozen species that frequent our neighboring counties add to this total the osprey the odd sighting of wolf lakes pair of resi dent bald eagles plus the increasing appearance of turkey vultures and not only does the list increase but the confu sion grows as well in some ways the built in hostility to wards these birds of prey is similar to the apprehension instilled in many peo ple concerning snakes the handed- down misbeliefs about milk snakes drinking the cows utter dry are no less appealing to impressionable young minds than the tall tale of the neighbors dog being hoisted aloft by one of those enormous socalled chicken hawks then too the unheralded arrival of a sharpshinned hawk scattering the feathered clients at a bird feeding sta tion or the rare occurrence of a goshawk attacking a barnyard chicken does little to enhance the hawks image among those involved similarily pigeon fan ciers have long dreaded the sighting of a merlin near their lofts or pheasant farm operators the appearance of a coopers hawk over their pens yet to put these winged predators in the right prospective you have to look beyond these scattered incidents and focus instead on their every day activi ties in our homestead surroundings for example with freeranding poultry and ducks we can count on one hand the deliberate attacks made by hawks on our domestic fowl this includes several night sorties by a great horned owl and a recent aerial dogfight involving a pigeon and what was believed to be an imma ture peregrine falcon contrary to natures scheme of things we as humans often create situa tions of increased bird populations that in the wild could prove detrimental to the future of that species in the case of a hawk at the feeder it becomes an emo tional issue a socaljed good bird ver sus an undesirable one however in the game farm or pigeon- racing business such conflagrations turn into a competition for the money and time expended and like herons at a fish hatchery steps often have to be taken to discourage these individual cul prits the least favorable of which is permanent elimination yet because raptors in general are such a vital link in the broad crosssectional chain of wild life balance such local or seasonal des truction could have widereaching effects when farmers for instance check their new tree plantings and discover many dead from mouse and rabbit gird- lings they could do a lot worse than en courage a few hawks to take up resi dence in their neighboring woodlot similarily an average population of meadow mice can consume a ton of alfal fa hay from a hundredacre field left unchecked an ever greater quantity of that same feed could be destroyed though biologists checks of stomach contents on redtailed hawks show a high incidence of mice squirrels rabbits and groundhogs as individuals working on the land we are often apt to misinterpret the actions of these socalled hen hawks sweeping overhead uttering their high- pitched screaming calls were sure theyre singling out one of our plump laying hens for their next meal actually there is so much confusion with hawk sightings and identification that any large bird soaring over the barns is immediately labelled a chicken hawk this holds true even for offcourse ospreys or fish hawks cutting overland from one lake to another in a quest for their only food source fish in the same vein the huge black- feathered vultures have become much i maligned in many circles here is a clas- i sic example of unknowingly killing the goose that lays the golden egg for the turkey vulture or buzzard as it is com- i monly called performs a valuable ser- vice to mankind possessing neither the strength in the j beak or talons to kill or subdue living creatures they must rely solely on dead i carrion for their existence in this way they rid the roadways and countryside of i any decaying carcasses that harbour in- fectious diseases and one feature tur- key vultures can rightfully claim is the i fact their digestive juices are so strong they kill any germs they encounter thus further rendering a potential hazard j harmless while there have been laws passed all hawks and owls are protected urider the a fish and game act as well as a general i awakening to the benefits these birds of prey excert on the outdoor scene far too many still fall victim to illadvised or thoughtless gunbearers this writerss- recent visits to the owl rehab centre near vineland and the avian care and i rehab facilities at verona only bear out these sad facts on the road back after the bad episode j with toxic sprays many of our raptors still face an uncertain future the failure of unters to know their targets and far- mers to recognize their feathered allies makes the black mark against the out- door almost indelible historic thistle ha homestead rises up from ashes of 1985 pickering blaze a ficldstonc shell was all that remained of hugh and elsie millers thistle ha homestead following a fire in january of 1985 right photo but a year and a half later much of the historic 19th century pickering home has been restored to its original state as shown in photo at left the millers held an appreciation day saturday to thank the wide circle of family and friends who supported their restoration project work will continue in an attempt to fully repair the dam aged structure located cast of brock road on cone 7 chris shanahan