2 5 PAGE 8 InNtON S Dave McCullough Publisher Scott David Harrison Editor Bob Proctor Marketing Manager Mickey Read Composing Room Foreman Warren Chernoff Accountant Mary Ann Fullerton Circulation Manager Burt Campbell Publisher Emeritus L.V. Campbell Aug. 7, 1947- Feb. 15, 1973 Wednesday, January 6, 1993 OurVWiEWS | novice Shooting blanks hen you go to war with a political veteran, you’re supposed to bring a bigger gun. Castlegar’s rookie councillor Doug Green didn’t do that Tuesday, shooting blanks during a failed attempt to have Mayor Audrey Moore dumped as this city’s representative to the Regional District of Central Kootenay. Green’s direct challenge was a attempt at derailing Castlegar’s warhorse politician. Sparked by the gang that got him elected — the Coalition Unaccepting | Rash Bureaucracy— Green’s motion to remove Moore from the RDCK | board received as much support as a 10-year-old girdle. Next to none. A pre-council telephone poll of his elected counterparts revealed only he and Coun. Doreen Smecher were willing to go the extra mile to have Moore given the heave-ho. The remaining councillors chose to stick to the original motion, reaffirming Moore’s December election to the RDCK board. Green’s challenge may be the first, but it won’t be the last. Council will be facing many challenges in 1993. After all, we are in an election year. Expect Green to kick up a fuss at every given chance and with good reason... he is campaigning. Campaigning not only for himself, but for the six other CURB members that will attempt to put a lock on each and every council seat during the November election. Like it or not, the race in on. Adrian RAESIDE » WHAT DOCS Cabo yFOST NEED i LAT are INCREASE Young offenders being coddled There’s something I don’t understand about the criminal justice system. Everyday in Canada we see crime touch the lives of innocent people. And everyday in Canada we see that these crimes are being committed by so-called children. Just last month a 13- year-old stabbed his 12- year-old school mate after an argument in_ the playground. That’s right, stabbed. Sure, I had my fair share of school-yard scuffles at that age, but at no point did I consider pulling a pen knife on my verbal combatant. It was the furthest thing from mind or any other kids minds way back in 1976. Today, however, stabbing appears to be an option, as it was in that Burnaby schoolyard. Boy, have times changed... anyone watching the nightly news can attest to Harrison | Comparison that. For that reason — and the fact that I hope to have children of my own one day, provided that I can find someone patient enough to put up with my many idiosyncrasies — I believe Canada has to redress its’ Young | Offenders Act. Put simply, the Young | Offenders Act is the | dinosaur of Canada’s J entire legal system. So much so, that we see average children committing less-than-average crimes, knowing the slap on the wrist they'll receive as court punishment is worth the risk. Locally, we have one case before the courts where a 17-year-old — now 18 — is alleged to have raped a female Selkirk College student. A Crown counsel application to have this serious crime elevated to adult court was rejected. please see HARRISON page 7 Street TALK Question: Should buses have been operating in the city for New Year’s Eve? Chris MacPherson Castlegar “Yes. It should make CounterAttack more effective.” eee Laila Fenner Castlegar “I don’t know anybody that rides Terry Strickland Blewett “Yes. It gives people an alternative to driving.” Marilyn Gordon “Yes. They’re always promoting designated drivers.” Annie Rayner Castlegar Castlegar “Yes. It’s a good idea.” @ Wednesday, January 6, 1993 Please address all letters to Letters to the Editor Castlegar News P.O. Box 3007 Castlegar, B.C. V1N 3H4 or deliver them to 197 Columbia Ave. Letters should be typewritten, double-spaced and not longer than 300 words. Letters MUST be signed and include the writer's first and last names, address and a telephone number at which the writer can be reached between 9am.and5 ~ p.m. The writer's name and city or town of residence only will be published. Only in exceptional cases will letters be published anonymously. Even in those cases, the name, address and phone number of the writer MUST be disclosed to the editor. The News reserves the right to edit letters for brevity, clarity, legality, grammar and taste. Other VIEWS : Letters icoWHE EDITOR First recycling day of the New Year set The first recycling collection of the New Year will take place this coming Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the old North End Works Yard (behind the Castlegar City Hall on 13th Avenue). We wish to express our great appreciation to the Beta Omicron Chapter of the Beta Sigma Phi Sorority for volunteering their time and energy to host the recycling day. As usual the volunteers will be accepting the following materials for recycling: 1. Newspapers: stacked flat in a box or bag. Place flyers and odd-sized newspapers in a separate box or bag. 2. Brown grocery bags 3. Corrugated cardboard boxes: flattened if possible. No cereal or shoe boxes, waxed or plastic coated cardboard. Egg cartons are OK. 4. Aluminum: including uncrushed beverage containers, clean foil, pots, lawn chair frames, kitchen utensils. invoices and cash register tapes. No carbon paper, sticky notes, tape or large metal fasteners (staples are OK). 6. Tin cans: cleaned and flattened cans and ends. No lids or bottle caps. Sort aluminum cans (eg. some cat food tins) into aluminum materials. It’s really important that each householder take the time to sort and bring the materials as described above. Otherwise it means a tremendous amount of extra work for the project. 5. Office waste paper: sorted into three bundles — bleached white, colored (including off white) and computer. We'll take photocopy, ledger, bond, computer paper, file folders, receipts, few volunteers who receive the materials and load them onto the Regional District of Central Kootenay Recycles truck for the trip to the Nelson Recycling Depot. Thanks to everyone for their great support for this recycling See you on Saturday. Ann Godderis Castlegar Ad Hoc Recycling Committee | For the past two years I have had | the opportunity to work with The News on various traffic safety promotions in the Kootenay Region. During this time The News’ support has increased coverage for our traffic safety messages. | Working together to increase public awareness about seat belts, drinking and driving and speeding is our best | chance to fight the ever increasing cost to our society as a result of traffic crashes. News’ support helps Toy Run, ‘Continued support of ICBC programs appreciated At this time I would like to inform everyone that I have accepted a transfer to Kelowna to continue my work with the Youth Leadership Review Project. My replacement is Geoff Koganow and this posting becomes effective Jan. 1. Geoff Koganow brings to the region a wealth of information and experience in Traffic Safety Programs. Iam sure that you will enjoy working with him. The West Kootenay Toy Run Association would like to take this opportunity-to thank The News for its support of our Fifth Annual Motorcycle Toy Run which took place Sept. 13, 1992. With The News’ help we were able to contribute $7,300 to the Salvation Army Once again, I would like to thank The News for its continued support and participation in the promotion of traffic safety issues. Please have a very safe and happy holiday season. Thank you. Jan Enns Community Programs Manager ICBC Traffic Safety Programs Department The large number of toys collected and the monetary contribution helped to make Christmas a little better for many of the less fortunate in our communities. Thanks for caring and sharing. Mona A. Evans Salvation Army Christmas Program. This contribution was divided between the Nelson, Castlegar and Trail offices. Secretary West Kootenay Toy Run Association Harrison continued from page 6 I don’t intend to prejudge the boy’s guilt or innocence, but we are talking about a serious crime here and I believe that it should be dealt with in a serious manner. Something as Mickey Mouse as Canada’s Young Offenders Act isn’t doing justice to the victims or the nature of these child crimes. Am I the only one that thinks children are — quite literally — getting away with murder? I think not. And, like others, I am appalled by what I watch, read and hear and I’m damn angry that there seems to be no urgency in revamping a 10- year-old act that is protecting children that are committing what used to be known as adult crimes. Why the federal government would spend countless hours on reworked gun control laws, rehashed constitutions and reshuffled cabinets and ignore the obvious flaws which crop up daily with the Young Offenders Act, I don’t know. Is the government so ignorant that it refuses to accept that children can kill, do kill and will continue to kill provided they are able to hide behind something as nurturing as the Young Offenders Act? I’m by no means saying that a revamped act will end child crime — sadly, that will persist. Instead, I’m simply saying that the punishment must fit the crime... regardless of age. No doubt there will be a few who believe these misguided children must be protected. To them, I submit the following; * a six-year-old girl is beaten, raped and murdered in Courteriay on Vancouver Island. The accused is her 16-year-old male babysitter. ¢ a 13-year-old and a 12- year-old break-in and rob the government liquor store in Courtenay at 2 a.m. * a 51-year-old Surrey man is hospitalized after being clubbed by a gang of teenagers for his Miami Dolphins jacket. * a 15-year-old is charged along with a 42-year-old male and 43-year-old female for possession of stolen property over $1,000 after police raid a White Rock home. Two other 15-year-old females and a 16-year old male are suspected of being involved in the series of break-ins that netted the thieves some $25,000 worth of audio, video and camera equipment. * two youths face stolen car charges after being caught joyriding through snow-covered streets. Where? Right here in quiet little Castlegar. Those are just a smidgen of the things that I shake my head at every time I pick up one of the nine papers I read ona regular basis. Convince me that a problem doesn’t exist with our youth, convince me that the Young Offenders Act is an adequate deterrent to any or all of these crimes? Sorry folks, I refuse to believe that our young offenders deserve the coddling that the legal system allows them. These so-called kids should be given the full smack of legal reality, complete with prison blues. I'll even buy the harmonicas.