The days are slipping away.     If you wish to have any influence on the Title IX issue, you must do something about it in the next few days. If you don't, you really won't have any right to complain about it.    Next week is the fourth and final Town Hall meeting of the Commission on Opportunity in Athletics, which is reviewing Title IX. This is the last opportunity for members of the general public to speak to the 15 members of the Commission with their viewpoints on Title IX.    The hearings will be held in San Diego, Calif. at the Wyndham San Diego at Emerald Park Hotel on November 20-21. It is during the afternoon session on Wednesday, Nov. 20, from 2:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. where the final open mike session of the hearings will be held.    We have put out the call for anybody and everybody interested in protecting wrestling and other Olympic sports to show up and participate in the November 20 meeting. Right now, the Commission is telling those who sign up that there is waiting list. However, at the first three hearings, many of those on the waiting list were able to speak. The wrestling community and the Olympic family needs to have a strong presence at the final meeting. If you don't get to speak, you can support those who do.    If you live in Southern California, or have some friends and contacts there, have them sign up and attend this meeting. All they have to do is notify the Commission by e-mail or FAX that they are coming and wish to speak. Please include your name, the organization you represent if appropriate, and a brief description of what you want to say.    This Town Hall hearing segment of the Commission hearings is very interesting. It is direct democracy in action. Common citizens from different viewpoints get 3-5 minutes to tell their story. I attended the hearings in Colorado Springs and have read the transcripts of the hearings in Atlanta and Chicago. They can be very compelling.    Wrestling needs to have a presence there in San Diego. Help us to pack the house!!!!    I understand that most people can not attend one of these meetings because they are too far away or they interfere with your work and family obligations. That is OK. We have had other people step up and make a difference on your behalf.     YOU CAN STILL DO SOMETHING TO HELP. YOU CAN SEND IN YOUR THOUGHTS.    The Commission allows people who do not attend the hearings to send in written statements and information. All you have to do is pick up a pen or bang away on your computer. You can let the Commission know that you seek changes in the interpretation and enforcement of Title IX.     THE DEADLINE IS FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2002. After that, the Commission will not accept new information.     Send it to their e-mail at OpportunityinAthletics@ed.gov or their FAX  at (202) 260-4560. Do it now. Don't wait. You won't get another chance.    The wrestling community has been a leader in the effort to seek reform about Title IX. Our sport has been gutted on the college level, losing more than 60% of its college varsity programs since the law was passed in 1972. With more than 425 teams on the scrap heap, the wrestling community has a right to be heard. And, more than any other sport, wrestling has been very vocal about change.    You don't have to be an expert to provide important information to the Commission. If you have personal stories on how Title IX and its enforcement has affected your life, that is great. If you just want to let them know that you are aware of what is really going on, that will certainly help.    I have shared the following speaking points with people who have participated in this process and sent in their ideas. You may have a different way to express your thoughts, but this information may be helpful in composing your letter to the Commission:    * Title IX is a good law that is being enforced in a way that is very bad and unfair. The unintended consequences of the law's enforcement are harming sports opportunities for men. It does not reflect the original intent of the law, to provide fair opportunity for all.    * Proportionality, the primary enforcement mechanism for Title IX compliance, is a strict gender quota which should be abolished. In fact, proportionality violates Title IX.    * The loss of men's sports opportunity due to the Title IX quota is harming the U.S. Olympic movement.    * The blue-ribbon panel should restore Title IX to its original intent by eliminating proportionality and developing a more fair method for compliance.    Anyone who would like additional information on Title IX and its affect on wrestling and other Olympic sports, feel free to contact me. I can be reached by e-mail at gabbott@usawrestling.org , as well as office phone 719-598-8181 or cell phone 719-338-7226. I am willing to help. I am excited that you care enough to give some of your valuable time to make a difference.    Wrestling has a chance to make its viewpoint heard on a national level. The fact that the government is spending the time and effort to take another look at Title IX is an opportunity we have never, ever had before. We have already gotten some good momentum through the previous three Commission hearings. We will work hard to make the final stop in San Diego equally positive.    Now is the time for good people to get involved. Take an hour and put your thoughts down. FAX or e-mail your letter to the Commission on Opportunity in Athletics. Take a stand and help wrestling. Do it before November 29.    The Commission will produce a report no later than January 31, 2003, outlining its findings. This is when we will find out if our voices have been heard. No matter what happens, if you sent in your thoughts, you can feel good about the fact that you were involved. You will have a right to your opinion because you participated in the process. You can look in the mirror and know that you did something about this. You will have been a part of the solution.     Thank you in advance for your personal involvement.