Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - August 1, 2006, Winnipeg, Manitoba A10 Winnipeg free press tuesday August 1, 2006 Freedom of Trade comment editor Gerald flood 697-7269 Liberty of religion Equality of civil rights editorials Fine tuning support t he supreme court of Canada yesterday refused to make new Law Over How child sup port payments should be set and so parents who pay such support can continue ? at their peril ? to write cheques that do not reflect their income. The court put those parents on notice ruling that they Are vulnerable to retroactive payments if they Are found to be dodging their financial obligations. The cases before the supreme court showed resolving such disputes takes a Long time. Parents would serve their children a interests better if they settled the Issue of How to adjust support payments before court orders Are made. Parents have wide Lati tude Over How to Struc Ture their financial obligations to their Chil Dren. Ottawa issued guidelines in 1997 to set child support payments according to the payers income but they Are not hard and fast rules and judges can set them aside if parents agree. Circumstances that influence their obligations Are individual and varied. Indeed in two of the four Alberta cases the supreme court judges ruled upon yesterday they decided retroactive increases were inappropriate because the fathers had supported their children according to agreements did not hide their incomes and in the Case of one the father earned $23,000 a year and could not afford to pay the $15,000 in Back payment. The two other fathers however were ordered to make substantial Back payments one had seen his income Rise considerably while his children struggled financially with their Mother and he had consistently thwarted her attempts to increase the payments the other initially the sole supporter of the children simply refused to help out when his sex wife began supporting the kids alone. All of the cases involved were at least three years old with requests for retroactivity going Back to 1997. They finally hit the supreme court last year. The judges said courts should give agreements reached by parents considerable weight and should be adjusted Only with care regarding the whole picture of the families. This indicates parents should take equal care in setting support agree ments. Indeed there is a Way parents can avoid protracted court Battles about whether support payments ought to be adjusted. The 1997 Federal guidelines included a mechanism for income review. Indeed the supreme court noted there is Good evidence that automatic recalculation is a reasonable solution. However most provinces have not established the services necessary to recalculate support payments for divorced parents. Manitoba has such a service. Parents can think about making the recalculation of support pay ments part of divorce agreements. In most provinces that do not offer this service or in disputed and complicated cases the Fine tuning will continue to fall to the courts. Yesterdays judgment stands As a guide As to the factors that play into shifting parental obligations. Disarm Hezbollah the deaths of civilians in Lebanon from israeli attacks against Hezbollah terrorists continues to cause concern in Europe and the Arab nations. The deaths of israeli civilians from an unending bar rage of Hezbollah rocket attacks on israeli towns and villages seems to cause less concern. The bombing by the israelis of an apartment building in the lebanese town of Ana on the week end brought the crisis of civilian casualties starkly into focus. An israeli missile killed 56 lebanese including 37 children and the International reaction was outrage and Calls for an immediate ceasefire. The Ana bombing however Only put part of the crisis of civilian casualties into focus. We know the numbers we mourn the innocent but Ana and the previous deaths of four in peacekeepers and the deaths of eight lebanese canadians obscures the Issue of who is responsible for these deaths. Except for the civilian victims there Are no completely innocent parties to this carnage. Israeli forces have certainly killed the largest number of civilians since the fighting with Hezbollah became open warfare. Israel is apologetic but unrepentant. The in has yet to explain Why it left four unarmed observers ? including a Canadian peace keeper ? in a War zone to die when in policy is to withdraw its observers immediately from War zones. Secretary general Kofi Annan a outrage against Israel now reeks of hypocrisy. The lebanese government is portrayed As the Vic Tim of israeli aggression but the truth is that it has left Hezbollah free to attack israeli settlements and cities from Southern Lebanon with impunity. Nei ther Beirut nor any other government has done any thing to implement the in Resolution that demands Hezbollah be disarmed. The greatest responsibility for the deaths of civil ians on both sides of the Border Falls on Hezbollah itself. Its rocket attacks ? now numbering in the thousands ? almost exclusively target civilians in Israel. In Lebanon it embeds its forces and its weapons in civilian areas deliberately putting women and children at risk. That is what happened at Ana where Israel was targeting Hezbollah rocket launchers. Their blood is on Hezbollah a hands. And there will be More of that blood unless Europe and the Arab states follow the Canadian and american example and recognize that the Way to end this Slaughter is not an immedi ate ceasefire but a ceasefire that requires the Dis arming of Hezbollah a terrorists. Have your say the free press welcomes letters from readers. They must include the authors name address and Telephone number. Letters May be edited. Letters to the editor 1355 Mountain Avenue Winnipeg r2x 3b6. Fax 697-7412. Email wars coming to Canada re tempers flare at peace rally july 30. Soon we wont have to go overseas to fight foreign wars ? they la be happening right Here in Canada. Timothy Connell Carman keep groups apart re tempers flare at peace rally july 30. I was shocked but not surprised to read that two groups with opposing views would be permitted to have rallies at the same place at the same time and on the same Day. To permit opposing groups with emotional issues to occupy the same place in time is to invite violence. Though both groups want peace the potential for violence was great As witnessed by the 18 police officers who were in attendance for the express purpose of stopping any violence. Those 18 officers would not have been needed if the groups had not been brought together. Any group without a rally Parade permit should have been asked to leave. If they did not leave then additional police offi cers should have been called in and they should have been removed. Those 18 officers were poorly deployed and used. Robert Kury Winnipeg dispiriting experience i had a very dispiriting experience Satur Day afternoon. I attended the pro Israel rally organized by christians and israeli expatriates held at Portage and main. The rally was peaceful we Sang hebrew songs some of us prayed others denounced Hezbollah and Hamas and several of us waved israeli and Canadian flags. Significantly there was not one placard or Banner not one insult not one jeer that took aim at lebanese palestinians arabs or muslims. Instead organizers expressed their Solidarity with All innocents in the conflict including those in Lebanon and emphasized that israelis and lebanese were All victims of Hezbollah a terror. My rally was in Sharp contrast to an anti Israel rally also held concurrently at Portage and main. Those demonstrators screamed ugly insults carried posters that called israelis and jews racists and zionist leeches and made rude be stipulations As Pic tured on sundays front Page. Our provocation for these hostile acts our pres ence and support of Israel and exhortations to denounce terrorism. The unbridled hate directed at me a Young Canadian woman was horrifying. Rachel Cooper Winnipeg unenlightened behaviour re the honest broker july 28. I take exception to the editorial writers affirmation that the Bloodbath in the Middle East is about what principle is involved that makes it acceptable to kill or maim hundreds of innocent people on both sides of the conflict since when is bombing and killing an enlightened Way of resolving letter of the Day peace begins in heart re tempers flare at peace rally july 30. I was very Happy to see a front Page photo about a peace rally but was sur prised when i looked at it. When the woman in the photo gestured at a Heck Ler both took the first step towards War together. Human conflict would i be Correct in Assum ing that both sides Are acting on principle Michel Mcdonald St. Norbert restaurant review wrong re some things right but plenty wrong july 28. I read with interest the review by Marion Warhaft of Beaurena a. By coincidence i dined at Beaurena a the evening before publication. I can to help but wonder if is. Warhaft and i were in the same restaurant. My experience was most positive in every Way. The appetizers were delicious As was the soup. The entree breast of Duck which was not on the men was made to order by the chef and was simply exquisite. I am delighted that a restaurant of such High qual Ity is available to me my friends and family. I fully realize that reviews of any kind Are purely subjective and i respect is. Warhaft a right to her opinion. However i strongly Dis agree with her review. I have no hesitation in recommending Beaurena a to anyone. Peter m. Klymkiw Winnipeg keep quiet at fringe plays As the Winnipeg fringe festival winds Down for another year congratulations to the coordinators volunteers technicians and performers who made this 12-Day event pos sible. But regarding those audience members who for some unknown reason have absolutely no clue regarding the proper behaviour when watching live theatre the rest of us do not want to listen to your conversations ? we paid to watch the perform ers. When the lights go out its your Cue to Stop talking. Others Don to want to hear you opening candies chatting with your buddies or text messaging your pals. When the tech plays the turn off your cellphone announcement its not just a suggestion ? turn off your phones. I saw 28 shows and heard four phones ring. That a four too Many. Have some respect for those of us who look it was quite ironic that we had Here in Winnipeg our own miniature version of the crisis in the Middle East. Both sides were arguing and jostling for the Best position just like the larger version. The very concept of what amounted to a protest of War is itself sadly ironic. Protesting a War is like drinking to your sobriety. Peace As we All know is not an absence of War but rather War is an absence of peace. Only by instilling the mechanisms for increasing the peace in the Region will we see any viable change. Its always Good to remember that when two sides argue or cast blame both Are wrong. So Long As we show anger towards War and to each other we Are on that dangerous Road to War ourselves. Peace must begin in the individual heart and then spread to the family neighbourhood coun try and finally the world. Mead Simon Winnipeg Forward to this event and if you can to have respect for us then have some respect for the performers who have spent unknown numbers of hours creating a show Worth watching. Please be quiet. You re not in your basement watching a movie. Lisa Springman Winnipeg punish dog owner s re toddler mauled to death july 28. The notion of a two year old being mauled to death by dogs is devastating and repulsive. How the child was or was not cared for is one Issue. The dog being put Down is another. Animals become what they Are Given. If they Are cared for loved and their needs respected they give the same Back. Though Offen Sive to me i understand the act of putting them what i Don to understand is the Lack of consequence for the owner s. A child died for goodness Sake. They should be charged Given jail time or Community ser vice preferably with an animal related organization and not be allowed to own another dog for a significant length of time. Marsha Dozar Winnipeg reverend deserves respect re West mural tribute july 27. After Reading the article i believe the writer owes Rev. Harry Lehotsky an apology. Surely there must be better adjectives to describe this dedicated Man other than gaunt looking cheekbones and frail i thought Rev. Lehotsky looked Radiant and overwhelmed with emotion. Lets face it everyone knows someone who has been led Down the treacherous path that cancer pulls them. And no one certainly needs to be reminded that they Don to look like they used to. Rev. Lehotsky deserves respect and positive Days ahead not constant reminders that the end May be nearer than his prayers May permit. Patti Gough East St. Paul Winnipeg free press. Today a question previous question is it time for a permanent ceasefire in the Middle East in View of his alleged anti semitic tirade will you Stop going to see Mel Gibson a movies yes 89% / no 11% / total 647 vote online at poll ? 2006 Winnipeg free press a division of up Canadian Andrew s. Ritchie / publisher newspapers limited partnership Bob Cox / editor published seven Days a week at 1355 Mountain Avenue Patrick Flynn / Deputy editor Winnipeg free press est 1872 / Winnipeg Tribune est 1890 Winnipeg Manitoba r2x 3b6, pm 697-7000 ;