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The Citizen, 2001-11-14, Page 5THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2001. PAGE 5. Other Views A match made by Mattel K i f ds these days - whatta bunch of whiners! "There are no opportunities or us" they mewl. "We can't get ahead. It's not like it was in your day." Nonsense! Why, all young people have to do is put their shoulders to the wheel, their noses to the grindstone, pull themselves up by their bootstraps, put their heads down, their chins up, their chests out, their stomachs in and, and... Follow the magnificent example of Cindy Jackson. Cindy is an apple-cheeked young farm girl from the American Midwest who saw what she wanted for herself and set about getting it. I don't have a photograph of Cindy, but you really don't need to see a snapshot. You'd know Cindy the instant you saw her on the street. . Because Cindy Jackson looks exactly like...er, Barbie. And that's no accident. Cindy paid close to half a million bucks so that she could look just like Barbie. The money went for nose bobs, chin lifts, bum tucks and boob jobs. "I wanted to be Barbie," says the chirpy little Have you become accustomed to turning on your TV news and finding that the lead items are a combination of „accidents, shooting, hold-ups and the like. You frequently have to wait for a while become the first item of a positive nature comes on and even then it is only a break before the second round of negative news is presented. To carry this line of negative thought even further, we are more likely to believe something bad about a person or a situation than we are something positive. In spite of the fact that our law states categorically that we are innocent until proven guilty, people are frequently tried and found guilty in the court of public opinion before a judge ever gets around to ruling on it. -Finally, we also tend to accept pessimistic projections, be they economic, political or 'scientific rather than give equal credence to those of a positive nature.What needs to be done at this point is to demonstrate that this line of thinking gets us into believing some highly unlikely scenarios. Let me begin with the so-called population explosion. To hear some "experts" tell-it, the number of people on this planet is .going to increase exponentially while the supply of food will fail to keep pace by a wide margin. The not unexpected ' result? Starvation of massive proportions. Reality is somewhat different. In the 1960s the planet's population was increasing by two per cent a year. However, this increase has been decreasing steadily until it is now about 1.25 per cent a year and it is expected to be down to .5 per cent before the middle of the century. The population will, as a result, level off at about 11 billion. At the same time food production per year since 1960 has increased by over 50 per cent. As the production increases, prices drop, something that has been going on for the last century. The number of those starving in developing nations has decreased from 45 per cent in 1950 to 18 per cent today and it is expected to be at about 6 per cent at the next quarter of a century. While we certainly want to eradicate starvation, let's not overstate the situation and make all sorts of dire predictions. On to another topic! Take the Kyoto Protocol that has been very blonde who used to be Cindy Jackson. "Now I am. I'm just as plastic as she is. And it's wonderful." Silly and vacuous, you think? A pathetic waste of money? Obviously you're no visionary like Cindy. This gal's turned her plasticizing experience into a full time job. She's become a consultant and advisor for other people contemplating plastic surgery. Which is how she met her Dream Guy. He came through the door as a prospective client. He told her he wanted to transform himself the same way she had. In other words, he wanted to become a Ken Doll. It was polymerization at first sight. "Ken" became Cindy's pet project. "It's the most exciting thing I've done since my own transformation," she says. much in the news lately because of President Bush's decision not to honour the American agreement to implement it. Such a decision bothers me because it reflects the current U.S. tendency to reject things that it dislikes even while it preaches the opposite to the world. However, I have found the protocol to be greatly overrated in that its effect on the global climate would be very small even if it were totally implemented. One study shows that by the end of this century implementing the Kyoto Protocol Would decrease global warming only' THE EDITOR, We are writing to you in order to bring a matter of great importance to the public's attention. In December of 1997, with the direction of then Foreign Affairs Minister Lloyd Axworthy, the Government of Canada guided 122 countries into an anti-landmine treaty. This process, often referred to as the "Ottawa Convention," encourages all nations to stop producing, exporting and utilizing anti- personnel mines. Today, almost three years after the fact, we are pleased to inform you that the "Ottawa .Convention" has been immensely successful in eliminating landmines. As a continuation of this process and, in an effort to disarm landmines already in the ground, we want to take a minute to encourage you to participate in the Night of 1000 DinnersTM campaign. Landmines are among the cruelest of all weapons because they do not recognize the difference between the foot of a soldier and the foot of • a child. They kill and maim indiscriminately long after the warring soldiers have left the battlegrounds. They are not only a weapon of terror, but als%a huge impediment to economic and social recovery. They kill innocent people (many of them children) and ruin entire societies. The first thing Cindy did was send her putative Ken clone off for a battery of psychological profiles, just to make sure that he wasn't, you know, some kind of nut. Then the real work began. Plastic surgeons were painstakingly evaluated and selected for individual stages of the coming transformation. But that wasn't all the research Cindy and her beau did. Hollywood magazines were also consulted extensively. And now, two years and roughly $400,000 later, Cindy has the mannequin of her dreams. "He looks like no one else," says Cindy. He looks like bits of other people put on to him. We selected Brad Pitt's nose because he was born with the best nose in Hollywood. We selected Keanu Reeves' lips because the mouth structure was similar. The cheekbones came from Tom Cruise." Every body part of this walking amalgam comes from some idealized Hollywood model. Well, almost every body part. Cindy doesn't mention anything about the brains. Why is that not surprising? from 2.1 per cent C to 1.9 per cent C. Another study reveals that the protocol would delay reaching the 2.1 per cent only by six years. - Again this is not to say that we should ignore global warming, just make sure of our facts right when we consider doing something about it. Similar comments could be made about such things as loss of rainforests, pollution and the cost of saving one year of a person's life. If the latter sounds a bit confusing, let me *give you an example. How much does it cost to save one year of a person's life by installing air-bags in cars? Could more lives be saved elsewhere with a similar amount of money? Does that pique your curiosity? I hope so because I will have more to say en that in the near future. Thinking about global warming and population growth should keep you busy until then. At this time, there are between 50 and 100 million landmines, in 70 countries, lying in wait to kill innocent people and to destroy lives. Since the tragic events of Sept. 1I in the United States, the world (including many of the residents of Huron-Bruce) has asked, "how can I contribute to fighting terrorism?" In response, we would suggest - host a dinner. Terrorists need tools like landmines to create their devastation and havoc. By having a dinner, in your home on Nov. 30, you, along with your family and friends, are directly contributing to the worldwide de-mining operation and therefore reducing terrorism on a global scale. This represents an opportunity for you to do a very simple thing that will enhance the quality of life for many innocent people all over the world Should you have any further questions about Night of 1000 DinnersTM or the Canadian Landmine Foundation, please call 1-866-611- 7669 (toll Jree) or visit the website at www.1000dinoers.com Sincerely, Paul Steckle, MP Huron-Bruce Frank O'Dea, President and CEO Canadian Landmine Foundation. To raise the spirit I t s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Alone on the road on a lovely early November night I took in the atmosp , here — the temperature unseasonably mild, the evening clear, the moon, a waning gibbous,- still strong enough to brightly light my way, and the stars enchanting in their sparkling simplicity. And yet, though the night did afford a clear view of this cheery twinkling, the shimmer that really got my eye was beaming much closer to earth. A home decked out in Christmas finery cast a hazy glow over the area. Boy, I thought, that's a little early. But now, I'm beginning to wonder. This week, information came in for an ad to run in a couple of weeks, reminding residents of Brussels to get their homes and businesses ready by Dec. 8 for the Best Decorated judging committee. Most, I'm sure, will be ready and waiting long before that day. After all, people aren't stupid. Rather than battling bitter cold, untangling tiny lights with brittle fingers, climbing ladders while encumbered by thick parkas and clunky boots, more folks are taking advantage of a mild day in early fall to get those Christmas decorations festooning their homes' exteriors. Despite the common sense behind this approach, such action has before felt rather prematOre to me. With Halloween just barely over it seems to be rushing things a bit. However, as • previously noted, I'm beginning -to have a change of heart. Firstly, I'm an early Christmas shopper. so it's nice to have those colourful adornments to get me in the spirit . But secondly, those lights raise my spirit. Driving that night, after my initial sense that Christmas lights now are nonscri:e, I couldn't help) but smile just a nit as I looked at them. Warmth and cheer were words which sprang to mind and I thought that it's never too soon for those feelings. , Especially now. Few would argue that with the state of the world today, doom and gloom might seem to be the feelings pervading our existence more frequently. We continue to deal with the terrorist attack of Sept. 11 and its aftermath. War has come closer to home than evqk before, and for the first time the enemy is unknown. Fear, overreaction and panic are infringing on our once secure existence as threats of bio-chemical warfare shadow us. 4nd in the dark of night, when imaginations grow stronger, we wonder if we can ever again be sure of anyone or anything. But we get up each day and we go on about the business of living. In doing so, we remember that so much of it is so very good. People continue to forge new relationships. They marry, they have babies. They entertain, enjoy the company of friends, and build more memories with family. Now, too, we anticipate our celebration of h6pe, of caring, of generosity. In just a short time, the season of Christmas will truly be here and even amidst the concerns of life today, we will find comfort in this gentlest of holidays. So perhaps, getting a head start on the Christmas lights is a good idea for more reasons than relief of frostbite. There is something hopeful about those dancing bits of light, those festive colours, and there's really no timeline on that sensation. Are we being too negative? Letter to the Editor ,tr,"