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economist sunsuntribune saturday april 16 2005 suntnbune a metroland community newspaper 34 civic ave 3rd floor stouffville on l4a 7z5 publisher ian proudfoot editor in chief debora kelly business manager robert lazurko director production interactive media john futhey advertising director distribution director marketingpartnerships retail flyer sales nicole fletcher advertising director classified real estate events management gord paolucci circulation barry black director circulation systems lynnpashko director debra welter york region printing general manager bob dean letters to the editor no secret gifts from edc re hey mr taxman wheres my million dollar refund bruce annan column april 10 mr annan may have left your readers with the wrong impression about the role of export development canada in help ing bombardier aerospace inc and other canadian aerospace companies grow their international sales the assertion edc finances bombardier by way of secret gifts is false edc is an agency of the canadian government whose purpose is to pro mote the export of canadian goods and services around the globe we do this through the provision of unique financial and risk management services that moti vate canadians to da business in foreign markets and encourage foreign buyers to buy canadian in encouraging the purchase of bombardier aircraft edc provides financing to bombardiers buyers on all our financing we also publish aggregate volumes of our financing and insurance business by industry sector on a quarter ly basis this information is clearly post ed at wwwedccacorpinfodisclo- suremainpageehtm edc is selfsustaining and does not rely on taxpayerfunded annual appro priations to finance its operations our loan portfolio in the aerospace sector is also performing very well with 98 per cent of clients meeting their full obligations this has produced econom ic benefits for the more than 5000 sup pliers that are the backbone of the canadian aerospace industry these firms are the source of thousands of high- value jobs and economic growth for canada thus we are justifiably proud that almost every dollar we put into buyer financing for canadian aircraft actually does turn into a super dollar rosemarie boyle vicepresident export development canada chretien allegations no surprise recent testimony at the gomery inquiry reveals allegations of even further liberal corruption including the deliber ate siphoning of millions in taxpayer money through kickbacks to pay liberal loyalists campaign workers and even relatives of former prime minister jean chretien some may be surprised but quite frankly it is astonishing that anyone who knew the former prime ministers history would be surprised at any of this chretien a lawyer no less is the same man who when unable to find a proper purchase and sale agreement claimed he had used the back of a cocktail napkin to record the bill of sale for the golf course he owned the course was related to a hotel that received hundreds of thousands of dol lars in government grants after chretien personally lobbied the business development bank of canada jswartz markham my organs wont go with me when heave f you had a terminal illness and could only be saved with a transplanted organ would you accept one about four out of five people say yes and the fifth guy might change his tune if it actually happened if you were in an accident and declared braindead would you want your organs har vested if you said yes to the first question and no to this one look in the dictionary under hypocrite if you answered yes to both have you told your family because whether or not youve signed your donor card family approval is still needed after death when asked only about half of potential donors families agree how come i asked dr frank markel presi dent and ceo of the trillium gift of life network the agency created in 2000 to encourage and facilitate organ and tissue donation in ontario its puzzling he says my gut feel is that its just a veiy difficult time to be approached a very emotional moment when a loved one has just died we know of circumstances where the bruce annan donor card has been signed by the deceased but when we talk to the family they say no hes suffered enough yet for the departed the suffering is over for the living perhaps on a dialysis machine every day or worse the suffering continues riglit now more than 2000 people in ontario need a transplant in the united states where 87000 are waiting for an organ donation a movement is under way that says if you wouldnt give you shouldnt get members of lifesharers sign donor cards promising first crack at their organs to fellow members theres no sign of such directed donation arriving in canada but theres little sign of growing participation either april 17 to 23 is national organ and tissue donation awareness week auroras nancy and dale doiges have a message for you the doiges are active ambassadors for organ donation their 10yearold son ryan died suddenly of a cerebral hemorrhage in 1997 only weeks before ryan had seen his dad sign his organ donor card and asked what he was doing ryan was so impressed with the concept that he campaigned for organ dona tion asking other family members to sign their own cards as well the doiges have since created ryans hope delivering an education program to 7600 schools across canada to raise aware ness of organ donation they also frequently give talks to groups in the area sometimes alongside a recipient who owes her life to ryans generosity the doiges find more receptiveness among young people than the general public i asked them why there remains a gap between professed willingness to give and actual donation it has to be talked about more but in our culture death is something you dont talk about says nancy people need to be edu cated in advance of a death its not just good for the recipients says dale its been therapeutic for us ryan was only 10 years old but he did so much more than ill ever do with my life in fact at least seven people received transplants thanksto ryan all successful lets get personal should a 50yearold like me bother to sign my donor card weve had successful organ donors as old as 90 saystrilliums dr merkel and tissue donors over 100 years old so ive downloaded and signed my donor card from wwwgiftoflifeonca and talked to my wife and family maybe you should have the same conver sation tonight as the slogan goes dont take your organs to heaven heaven knows we need them down here bruce annan is a york region writer and consultant bruceannanfsgmailcom letters policy the suntribune welcomes your letters submissions must be less than 400 words and include a daytime telephone number name and address the suntribune reserves the right to publish or not publish and edit for clarity and space letters to the editor the suntribune 34 civic ave box 154 stouffville on l4a7zs jmajon8yrngcom editorial editor jim mason jmasonyrngcom administration office 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