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t tf- if ft- 4 the tribune tuesday december 161997 st the tribune tuesday december 16 1997 vol 109 no 83 the tribune is a member of the ontario press council send your letters to the editor to the address below editorial share spirit of season the spirit of the season is alive and well in our com munity businesses and individuals are showing generosity and caring for their lessfortunate neighbours and there are many ways you can support them tc ensure everyone has a happier holiday first and most familiar the local food bank needs con tributions to stave off hunger pangs for those having trou ble putting food on the table the usual items are needed canned foods like fish beans tomato sauce juices and carbohydrates such as pastas and cereals then there are items such as diapers baby formula or cleaning supplies which certain families really appreciate if youre unsure what items are needed or where to drop them off contact the food bank there are community dinners visitations or perfor mances to cheer up the sick in hospitals and lonely in nursing homes and coat and clothing drives going on in every community right now church and community groups are reaching out in many ways to brighten the lives of the less fortunate in their towns whether you drop some money into the kettles of the salvation army or organize your office food or clothing drive thespirit of the holiday season will not only help others but warm your heart as well rtlet i going id cut down our very own twheelep jy j truth is first casualty of mega election when one heavy hitter calls another heavy hitter a liar its summersault time on the political stage while torontos mega mayor would like us all to believe that hell has no fury like a lastman scorned im not buying it it looks like business as usual to me the same old shameless the atrics on the political stage one of the realities of life in the gta today is people who live in stoufrville and uxbridge should pay close atten tion to what goes on in the new mega city remember if we learn from the off the record joan ransberry mistakes of others its a gift of sorts while mayoralty candidates in stoufrville and uxbridge ran dull pay- aswego style campaigns torontos quest for votes was indeed different the mega city campaign had life it had colour it was the one to watch you have to admit mel lastmans spunky spirited notax hike cam paign worked he walloped opponent barbara hall then reality came knocking last weekend we learned lastmans elec tion platform is dead before he even takes office when ontario finance minister ernie eves released the provinces fig ures for the costs of transferring responsibilities nooooobody noticed more then lastman torontos been told to take a 163million hit theres no dust under our tree just when i thought prechristmas panic had reached its zenith at chateau gilderdale we had the ducts cleaned inspired by a dust ball the size of mars wafting through the west wing on a recent weekend mr wallcthead had no trouble deciding who he was gonna call dustbusters arrived bright and early last thursday and by 10 oclock the old homestead was a dead ringer for the set of alien v pipes and tubes snaked their way up and down stairs and into sundry rooms hissing and puffing ominously as they sucked up the motley accumulation of grime lego paper clips jewellery and unidentifiable wellchewed objects introduced to the heating system by poc and spasm and their feline fore bears nice though it was to have the place pristine the process took all day and exacted its toll on the emotional stabil ity of yours truly whose idea of the perfect working environment is one of solitude and silence indications that the day was doomed came at 8 am even before the cleaning truck was in thcdfl ycyvia i hcj nsjstcirt warbjeof kate gilderdale the telephone hello i said as brightly as i could given the hour the headset emitted an earsplitting beep indicating that the fax machine at the other end was under the mistaken impression it was inter facing with another of its ilk oh well i thought we all make mistakes six calls and half an hour later my bonhomie had suffered an irreversible decline armed with my tormentors number i called bell canada for help they consulted their electronic oracle and promised to contact the perpetrator and tell him her or it to cease and desist by now ductman had set up his mother ship in the living room and was en route to my office bearing a length of tubing to sluice out the vent what had previously been a dull rumble lmnicdintqa9afeningfoar4iiijucda in vain to continue conversing with the kates person on the other end of the phone eventually i shut myself in the wash- lorrier room with phone notebook and pencil and concluded my interview seated inelegantly upon the throne at 430 pm i called clare she was babysit ting and she made the mistake of ask ing how i was from my incoherent babblings she figured i was in a cer tain amount of distress her suggestion lets go shopping was music to the ears of this closet val ley girl particularly since i had so far failed to buy so much as one stocking stuffcr by the time we got home i was beginning to feel a faint stirring of christmas cheer ductman was packing up at the end of a long day the amount of dust that had changed hands would probably be eligible for an entry in the guinness book of world records he did a great job but you have to wonder if it was all worth it as joan rivers said i hate house work you make the beds you do the dishes and six months later you have to start aujovanagaina j fim the figures not only prevent lastman from delivering on his tax freeze promise but the average taxpayer in toronto could see a 1 0per cent tax hike or about 500 added to each tax bill since alls fair in love and war and elections lastman didnt blink when he made the notax hike promise he didnt let the fact that the provincial fig ures werent in yet get in the way of his election bid if ever a politician should have egg on his face its lastman yet because hes lastman his face is clean as a whistle- on friday lastman reminded the voters that not only is he blameless but that they picked a leader with guts yes sirceeeeee lastman dropped the gloves and told the province hes not taking the hit lying down the tough bad boy pointed his finger at the tv cameras and called ontario premier mike harris a liar after which he said you screwed toronto mr premier you are cutting the heart out of the city id like to have been a fly on the wall at barbara halls house on the weekend harris kept insisting the provincial downloading would be revenue neutral but hall didnt bank on it she didnt promise the moon she ran a reality campaign of course she lost the clectionlt appears the first casualty in the mega citys first election was the truth if eves figures are the real figures residents of york region wont have to sell the farm to pay the taxes the revenue neutral deal means durham has to shave 10 million from its budget and york region will likely break even in stouffvillc mayor wayne emmcrson facing a possible 1 18000shortfali said hes still keep ing harris to his revenue neutral word theres one sure thing lastman tisjajhafd act to follow si nirsii tt rrrtrrti t r rtiirr stouffville tribune cr patricia pappas publisher andrew mair editor- in ch ief tracy kibble editor debra weller director of advertising mike rogerson retail advertising manager stacey allen classified manager barry goodyear director of distribution vivian oneil business manager pamela nichols operations manager about us 6402100 rmailsaks 905 6402100 classifieds 905 6402874 distribut 9056402100 fax sk email fstpofirvjlle ihhcd uvory tunday thursday tl saturday- isone i tin mtrtliml printing publishing and distribution group ot comma- tmtyifvivepinfn which include aj axpscfccrjnb nows ad vert ii r alllhtnn hirnldpnurjrr rnrrl f ctottingwoodwasag dcaoh c ntciroe yprkmfrrwreobis j coke guardian georgetown jhdc pendentacton fre press kingston this week tindsiy this i jweek maricliara economist a 9 i slidfandpcnetonguulionemir milton canadian 3baropi0oi i mis- a sifbwugo ncwsncwjnv6ctanri s erabanner nortliambeirlaud fnewnorth yorkmirrbr oakvillo xueavei orillia today osmwsks week jctcrborougbthi wee 3 i richmond htlvrhornhillvaoghan lwbctl mirror and ybridge tribune today senior canttatg cannot he reprinted with classify advertisement credit tor adertisonientiimitedf mmzmi vwawijsiiii letters policy the tribune welcomes your letters to the editor please keep letters to no more than 300 words note that letters may be edited for space libel spelling grammar while we endeavor to print as many letters as possible wc regret that not all letters may be printed