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EQAO a waste of time and money RE: IT’S ALARMING (OCT. 9)

Joanna Frketich has done a great job outlining the issues schools face with EQAO. One thing not in the article is the fact that students who are unable to write the test are not exempt; they receive a score of zero. For example if you have a student who arrives at school and does not speak English, or a student in the classroom who is autistic, they obviously would not write the test but their score of zero counts in the school’s results.

The EQAO test is unfair to students who have special needs or are new to Canada. It does not accurately reflect the strong teachers and programs that exist in schools with a high percentage of ESL students and children with special learning needs. It is high time that the provincial government took a good, hard look at this test and the amount of time, money, and resources that are wasted on it each year.

Jill Dawson, Burlington

Cashing in on Tori’s death ‘repugnant’ RE: TRUDEAU RAPPED OVER TRANSFER (SEPT. 27)

I find it repugnant that a political party is using this case for political reasons. Public reaction is also disturbing. Correctional Services Canada is responsible for where inmates serve their time, for public safety and for rehabilitation. It is extremely naive to think that the government would or should have input.

The torture and killing of Tori is very upsetting to me. But she is dead, she is lost to her family, and no amount of punishment or vengeance is going to bring her back, or give healing to the family. If and when her killers are rehabilitated, they should be supported in this process by the correctional system. Terri-Lynne McClintic’s transfer to a healing lodge is a positive step forward — for her, and for the community. Rehabilitation of someone is a gain, no matter what their crime.

Revenge and punishment are flimsy bandages covering ongoing hurt and anger. When hurt and anger give way to forgiveness and letting go, everyone gains. Rosemary Sutherland, Hamilton

Other suburbs envy Waterdown RE: BURLINGTON ANNEXING WATERDOWN

Regarding possible annexation of Waterdown, this should come as no surprise. Political boundaries shift and change every so often. Waterdown was not thrilled to become part of Hamilton, but no one really cared about helping suburban communities stay independent or unscramble the egg later on. However, now the shoe is on the other foot, and this time it might be Hamilton which loses this game. Queen’s Park likely considers these matters rather petty, and won’t take seriously Hamilton’s indignance about losing a patch of land that wasn’t even under their control prior to 2001. Hamilton has enough on its plate and should welcome shedding a community that geographically seems to better fit a partnership with Burlington. This is a reminder that people still oppose amalgamation. I’m sure that as envious as the other former cities are, they are happy that at least one of us might actually get to break free from the Hammer!

Rob Hardy, Stoney Creek

City should stop cutting down milkweed RE: MILKWEED AND BUTTERFLIES

Now that most people are aware that milkweed is important to the monarch butterfly’s survival, maybe the city could educate all their grass cutters by showing them a picture of this plant, to prevent it from being routinely cut down on the walkways in our neighbourhood.

Ann Lawton-Barry, Hamilton

We don’t need more student housing RE: STUDENT LANDLORDS

I look down my street in West Hamilton and see nice single-family homes become multi-student rentals, taking away family homes that young people used to buy to raise young families. Now there are three and four cars extra on the streets, four or five students paying $400 to $600 a month for a room.

I wonder why the city does not force the landlords to pay more taxes, make sure that there are ways out in case of fires, clean up the grounds etc. Those of us living in this area never asked to become a student bedroom community for McMaster, and now the city wants to allow more of this housing in this area. As these landlords run down our neighbourhood by not looking after there properties, the city, it seems, has no problem increasing taxes for what little services they provide.

Call the city to clean up. If it looks like more students living in a house, call them. We pay taxes, so we pay for these services, anyway.

Dan Berk, Hamilton

Memorial shouldn’t be in Gage Park RE: FIREFIGHTER MEMORIAL

News that the development and design of a park directly across from the downtown central fire hall should set to rest the debate about the location of the firefighters’ memorial and the consequent threatened destruction of the harmony, symmetry and cultural and historical significance of the design of the Gage Park Gardens.

No better place could be chosen for the placement of this memorial than facing the equally historical, architecturally restored gem at the very heart of the service, so that the spirits and souls of those who are memorialized could gaze across to their home base, and 24-7 be surrounded by the sights, sounds and uniformed people leaving on missions of service from the building from which they themselves had served or were dispatched.

D I Brown, Hamilton