,A - The Canadian Champion, Tuesday, August 15, 2006 OP, j IION £ Conflict must end For 168 days the resi- dents of Caledonia have bad tieir lix es turncd upside down. They have seen tieir peacelul litile tmwn bcconiw a battleground. tieir ecorto- tri> baitered, infrastructure vandalized and neigbibours pitted against one another. While thc ongoing native land dispute continues to simmer, we can only wonder bow inîcb loînger Premier Dalton Mc(auinty's govýem- ment întends to let ibis untenable situation carry on. I bai also appears to bc tbe question thai Ontario Supenior Court justice David Marsball was askîng lasi week wben be ruled negotia- lions ss'thtbhie native Pr- testers must cease untîl tbe protesters move off tbe bousîng developineni site tbey've illegally occupied since Februarv 28. Tbe Liberals' decision to bring in former premier David Peterson to bring boib sides tii tbe necgotialing table miay bave allowed for a briel cooltng oit period, buit ibis standofl appeai s b lia\ c rio end iii sîglit. \Vitb tbe iienîories ol Oka and lppier\wasb stîli fresb. ius understandable the Liberals want Io niove cau- îîously iin tbe C.aledlonit standoff. However, wben tbe courts bave ruled - repeal- edly - titihe protesi must end ifs tbe responsibilit' oil tbe governmient to act. No group in socicty - no mialter boss wronged tbey may bave been in tbe past can stand above tbe lass. Tbe resîdents of (aledonia bave been caugbit in a fîgliî ibat ssasn't tbeirs. Tbe premier, îndeed tbe Pnime Mînister, owes il bo tbose people to bave tbeîr lives returiied t normoal. Readers Write Send your lettars to muloned@haitonsearch.oem or drop thern off at 875 Main St. E. Walker's views on pesticide issue frightening DEAR EDITOR: Vim responding toi the letter written by Philip Walker condermning a proposed ban on cosmetic pesticides. Ahthough Walkers article was well written in the literary sense, thse content of his letter absolutely temrfied me. The ban in question involves pesticides used for cosmetic purposes, which means using poisons in our environment t0 kill somne weeds while leaving other ones society deems attractive. 1 don't mean t0 sound condescending. but l'm not sure Walker understands the meaning of the termi cosmetie. At times he drifted and implied that the livelihood of farmers would somehow be threatened by this ban. To be clear, agricultural use of pesticides isn't in question here. And if he did indeed know tbis, 1 would feel insulted as a farmner that he would attempt to maise fear in others to gain support. 1 understand the social and economic pres- sure toi maîntain attractive- looki ng landscape. Most people in Milton take great pride in tbeîr homes and their surrounding neigbbour- boods. Visually-attractive greenways and parkland draws many new citizens and busi- nesses to Milton, bringing with them com- merce and plenty of tax revenue for the town, which is a very good thing. As a biologist, 1 thoroughly enjoy ail tbe green space we bave in Milton, and 1 hope tbis trend continues. 1 personally dontî use pesticides, nor do 1 agree with the use of any poison, but 1 have no power to stop others from using them on their own property, includîng Walker. 1 bave faith that my good neigbbours will bave investigated the risks to their families,' pets and native wildlife before applying any such chemicals to our shared environmrent, as pesticides don't just land on weeds. They trav- eI tbrough the air and the water and soul, and we ingest them as resîdues or sometimes as the original chemicals in our water and food. Let's really think about meaning of peace DEAR EDITOR: What is peace? Peace isn't just the absence of war. Its mucb more. You would think that such an important word would be easy to define, but perhaps for many it isn't. In my view, peace is the main- taining of conditions for the sustainable social, economic, political and spiritual development of ail people. However we express the mean- ing of peace and how often we express it is also important. If's imperative that world leaders come together more 10, talk, not just about the need for peace but aiso, to give speeches about the meanîng of peace. A speech cao have more impact than the most powerful weapon. Bombs can destroy the lives of millions, but powerful speeches could save the lives of billions. We need such speeches now The urgency for this can't be over-expressed - for in the front of humani- ly's path may lie a most dangerous future. BOB HICKS BUIRUNGTON 1 also hope people understand thai jusi because many pesticides are commercîally available doesn't mean they're a healthy addi- tion to our environment. Toxic substances are tested individually for their immediate effects on specifbe non-buman species. Gover-nments then set standards based on these tests and regulate their use as tbey wouîd exist independently from ail others. The prob- lem bowever, is we're neyer exposed to only one chemical at a time, nor do we have any idea of the effeet of cumulative or interactive mixtures of these chemicals as they exist in our environnment. I'd like to state for tbe benefit of Walker that bleacb (sodium bypochlonite) is in fact bighly toxie, whicb is wby ifs used as a disin- fectant. Bleacb destroys viral and bacterial DNA, not to mention DNA from ail other bio- logical classes sucb as plants and animais - including humans. Thaî's why ifs sucb an effective cleanîng agent for bousebolds. So for Walker to, say that tbe pesticides in question are no more toxîc tban housebold bleacb isn't an argument in bis favour. For me, tbe bigger question is why we feel we bave to plant sod anyway Grass itself is a weed that requires an enormnous amouni of water, wbereas meadow plants sucb as clover and chamomfile grow readily and require little attention. lncidentally, the most hated plant -the dandelion - is actually one of tbe most nutni- tiously edible plants we bave, and is in fact sold in healtb food stores. Perbaps tbîs is food for tbought. JOHN WILSON SPRUCEDALE LANE lEbre C~anaelaan cbIantpion Milin s Commi niy Newspappr SinLn 1860 875 Main St. E., Milton, Ont. 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