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§ (Stiff-Tribune The Sun-Th'bum’, welcomes your let- ters. All submissions must be less than 400 words and must include a daytime telephone number, name and address. The Sun-'n'lbune reserves the t to publish or not publls and to edit for clar» ity and space. LCM: to the Edltov. me Sun-Tubune 6290 Main St. W, on LM |G7 newspapers The Sun-Tribune, published every Thursday and Saturday. is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. Metroland is comprised of 100 community publications across Ontario. The York Region Newspaper Group also includes The Uberal, serving Richmond Hill and Thomhill. Vaughan Citizen,The Era-Banner (Newmarlret/Aurora), Markham Economist Sun, Georgina Advocatedork Region Business Tunes, North of the City, )orkregion.com and York Regen Printing. ADVERTISING 905-640-2612 Chuified: 1-800-743-3353 Fax: 905640â€"8778 jmason.yrm[.com Wedw Carrie MacFarlane mmd’arlaneéynngrom York Region Media Group community Manager Dawna Andrews dandrews@yrmg.com Mike Banuille mbunuilleOyrmg.wm LETTERS POLICY Bonnie Randal]: brondeau@ynng.com Carolyn Norman cmrman®yngoom 905â€"640-26 l 2 Fax: 905-640~8778 DISTRIBUTION Circulation lim Mason jmasanOyrmg.oam PRODUCHON Anvmmsmc MEDIA Marketing 8: Advertising DISTRIBUTION 905-640-2612 EDITORIAL Stoufl'ville EDITORIAL Overshadowed by the drama is Mayor Phyllis Morris' protests that the firing â€" a decision made prior to the release of the report, she insists -- is the result of a disagreement over the “crystal clear” complaints A predictable firestorm has followed: the self-proclaimed “unabashedly outspoken" Mrs. Buck is crowing over her presumed vindication and, likely, taking great delight in throwing council into turmoil once again; Councillor Alliâ€" son Collins-Mrakas is worried free speech is under attack; and former councillor Grace Marsh, who walked away from the job, is suggesting a petulant council is merely searching for the “right” commissioner to toe its line. The decision to send him packing comes on the heels of Mr. Nitkin’s dismissal of a complaint made by six councillors against fellow Council- lor Evelyn Buck's blogged comments about town employees. anted, again: An integri- ty commissioner for the Town of Aurora. After less than two months on the job, Aurora's integrity czar, David Nitkin, has been axed. At that time, most women were at home during the day with the ability to schedule their energy consumption to fit lower use energy times and businesses operated on a much more limited work week. As this no longer applies, I wonder how many more Had these policies been implemented in the 19503 and ’608, it would have been a workable model. Due to my age and cism, I tend to think it is the latter. ‘ Or is.this a further giant money grab hidden under engironmental responsibility? .In our haste tojump on the green bandwagon, it seems we have allowed the util- ity companies to put in place procedures without properly and logically planning the practicalities of the plan. Pardon my dimness, but it seems to me we have gone politically green, as well as politically correct. Rush to green bypassed HAVE You“ SAY common sense . c “3....-. lETTERS TO THE EDITOR ommissioner needed when councils slip I already turn my thermo- stat down, turn off all lights and power-consuming plugs when out of the house and wash in cold water, but no one has come up with any concrete solutions to do anyâ€" thing further, other than stay up all night as a family or operate a business from mid- night to dawn. Most families today have two working parents. How do the brains that come up with these policies expect fami- lies, never mind businesses, to reduce consumption when the only times available are the hours already in operaâ€" tion? hoops we, the lowly public, are expected to jump through, never mind pay for. > E-mail your letter today to editor Jim Mason at jmason@yrmg.com. Include a daytime telephone num- ber for verification. ' We can see for ourselves, should we want to, Sept. 8, the next sched- uleAdAcouncn meeting. I 'll spare you the details, but Mr. Nitkin wanted personal impact statements, according to the mayor, for instance, which aren’t part of the approved process. And when it comes to the report, she says it didn’t attempt to answer the question: Did Ms Buck breach the code? Instead, she interprets its comments to be about how the complaint was made. - process enshrined in the code of conduct. I N @m” Ms Buck has tfie report, but Debora Kelly S. RIZZO AURORA Codes of conduét and integrity commissioners. bottom line. should Mayor Morris acknowledges sim- ply having a code won’t prevent misbehaviour, but she agrees it's in the public's best interest to have clear statements about what kind of behaviour they should be able to expect from their representatives. It is no coincidence Vaughan was the first â€" these are the two coun- cils in the region publicly wrestling with conduct and integrity issues. The town is one of the few of the province’s 445 municipalities to have a code of conduct and enforcer after the province amended its leg- islation. Fortunately. the experience hasn't dampened council ’5 desire to have a watchdog at its side. (Though, I suggest they get an understanding on the complaints procedure before handing over the retainer fee next time.) Mayor Morris says she'll abide by the decision, but adds, “The matter has not been concluded, we're not out of options.” is also refusing to release it in its entirety, only putting portions of it on her blog. PUBLISHER Ian Proudfoot Tribune As Mr. Nitkin himself said on his appointment, “The general notion of government responsibility, per- sonal responsibility and corporate responsibility hasn't really changed all that much, but what has changed is that the world has become a more complicated and interâ€"connected place." Our politicians, firmly in the midst of that world, for their sake and ours, need not only to strive for the highest standards of behaviour, but have an integrity commissioner in the wings should they falter. There will be stumbling blocks along the way â€"~ this is uncharted territory, with the province sim- ply giving municipalities author- ity and independence to create the position. But it shouldn't prevent councils from showing leadership in accountability â€" and if it does, perhaps the province should step right back in. Certainly, Aurora isn't the only municipality to falter so far. Mea- ford’s integrity commissioner resigned last June, saying she wasn't treated with respect. be there for citizens Emma 1N CHIEF Debora Kelly Busmess MANAGER Robert Lazurko DIRECTOR, Anvmmsmc, Dlsmununou Nicole Fletcher Dummoa, OPERATIONS Barry Black