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6 stouffville suntribune saturday march 31 2007 stouffville mmm suntnbune 6290 main st stouffville on l4a7z5 wwwyoikregioncom publisher ian proudfoot editor in chief debora kelly business manager robert lazurko director interactive media technouocy john futhey director advertising distribution barry black director circulation systems lynn pashko york region printing general manager bob dean letters to the editor spring lawn cleanup would improve town many hours a week i joyfully spend jog ging or pushing a stroller around town i love stouffville i also love this time of year when warmer weather arrives and signs of life are every where i am always disgusted however by the amount of garbage on lawns and streets after the snow melts what a difference it would make if every homeowner would take five minutes and walk around his property and the curb pick ing up garbage or recycling if you have an elderly neighbour then take an extra few minutes to do his lawn as well as a community service project fami lies youth groups guide or scout troops could clean up their local schools or parks main street or reservoir a little effort from many people would result in a more beautiful town mary lucas stouffville mental health commission long overdue the conservative government should be commended for committing to the establishment of a canadian mental health commission the commission was recommended by senator michael kirby in his compre hensive report relating to mental health mental illness and addiction in canada titled out of the shadows at last which was released on may 16 2006 the announcement of action on the report is long overdue the establishment of the commission will help remove the stigma surrounding mental health and provide a strong national voice for those struggling with mental health issues according to childrens mental health ontario two youth take their own lives each week and one in five children or youth struggle with a mental health issue the time to act and eliminate these horrifying statistics is now while it is encouraging to see the fed eral government take ownership of men tal health in canada the heavy lifting has just begun on the heels of the federal budget which announced increased transfer payments of 394 billion over seven years to the provinces for social pro grams ontario must step up and deliver the funding to ensure each child and youth in ontario has the opportunity to live a socially and emotionally healthy life mark walsh president kinark child and family services think green when you think of your legacy i just turned 71 thats old at least in my books sometimes i cant believe ive made it this far other times i cant believe how much there is left i want to do at my age i think it is pretty common for people to start think ing about these things and what we want to leave behind our legacies politicians have a much shorter lifespan politically speaking that is they can be around for four years or less rarely more than eight thats why im often sur prised by how little they seem to want to accomplish in that time certainly i understand the lure of the status quo change is hard often vested interests will fight you every step of the way political advisers will say no no no stay the course dont make waves get reelected but what is the point of being reelected if you arent going to do anything yes yes maybe im being naive letters policy tlie suntribune welcomes your letters all submissions must be less than 400 words and must include a daytime telephone number name and address the suntribuncreserves the right to publish or not publish and to edit for clarity and space letters to the editor the suntribune stouffville on l4a7z5 jmasonyrmgcom maybe politicians are just there to support their vested interests take home a fat paycheque and pen sion and revel in the power of their office but surely there has got to be more to it than that the life of a politician is not one i envy it is hard sometimes brutal you are constantly under scrutiny you are always on the job it takes up your entire life that is why i honestly believe most politicians at least start out wanting to work for the common good many become overwhelmed by the muck but great leaders act they make bold decisions and move on them they dont tinker when big changes are needed and they dont change things just for the sake of change one of my pet peeves is the way some administrations will move into office and rather than take an honest assessment of what is working and what isnt instead set david suzuki out to dismantle everything the previous administration had done just to make a point of course its hard for leaders to act without public support but right now the environment is the top public concern the public will support strong environmental leadership so now is the time for our political leaders to act and politicians are indeed start ing to take note seeing the success of initiatives in europe some politicians in north america are making bold decisions and plans to clean up our environment california gov arnold schwarzenegger may have been the brunt of jokes when he was first elected but no one is laughing now as he has carefully crafted one of the worlds most progressive legislated plans to reduce pollu tion and global warming recently british columbia premier gordon campbell went to california to talk to mr schwarzenegger about his plans that is a very encouraging sign mr campbells speech from the throne earlier this year was very bold and painted a new vision of british columbia as leading north america in terms of sustainability given how proud british columbians are of their natural heritage progressive environmen tal leadership seems like a natural fit it will also help diversify and strengthen bcs economy in the long term and also be a model for other provinces this is exactly what our leaders should be doing learning from each other many provinces and states are coming out with exciting new pro grams toward sustainability ontario recently announced a standard offer contract system for renewable energy that is the first of its kind in north america i hope mr campbell and all our leaders take a good look at the best examples of environmental lead ership from all jurisdictions and incorporate them into their own plans in the end all we have are our legacies i have been on this planet now for 71 years i dont know how many years i have left but i promise you i plan to make the most of them i hope our political leaders look at their terms in office the same way take the suzuki challenge at www davidsuzukiorg editorial editor jim mason jmasonynngcom interactive media marketing advertising manager dawna andrews dandrewsyrmgcom advertising retail manager staceyallen saltenyrmgcom classified manager ann campbell acampbellyrmgcom production team leader sherry day sdayyrmgcom distribution manager megan pike mpikcyrmgcom oourto press council np fdsflj canadian qtuuwn aux board member ccab editorial 9056402612 fax9056408778 advertising 9056402612 classified 18007433353 fax 9056408778 distribution 9056402612 suntnbune a york region media group community newspaper the suntribune published every thursday and saturday is a division of the metroland media group ltd a whollyowned subsidiary of torstar corporation metroland is comprised of 100 community publications across ontario the york region media group includes the liberal serving richmond hill and thomhill vaughan citizen the erabanner newmarketaurora markham economist sun georgina advocate york region business times north of the city yorkregioncom and york region printing