Wednesday, December 6, 1995 Mioartiscd anane T./78 =e Se . If there are drug problems, let's do something Dear Editor: In your publication of Nov, 22, 1995 you bring to the public's atténtion the situation that exists within our schools and our judi- cial system. This should bring a Loy — F = 4 OPINION our community. Is there a problem? Do the administrators in the schools not really know what is happening in their schools especially when they are quoted as saying, “I've chairperson of the school board. “When something goes wrong with the child at school, a parent needs an answer now.” Yes, we do need an answer now. Whaivis the school board's from our elected representatives on the city, rey.onal, and (ur provin levels? Where is all this leadership? Are we now being faced with the social cost of progress coming their positions on this problem of drugs and any actions they will initiate to alleviate this problem. Perhaps The Sun may even mention the name of the unnamed judge, the defense lawyer and the courtroom sce- nario. Are these trials recorded? And if so, are they not in the pub- lic domain? T ANNE Vidrio | ime, ( ect Z Yd Ue by bd g \ Peter Popoff Y 4 Castlegar erties CORON GEL EE LRE LEEDS OP REED REID AEE ET ERP ROPERERARN GC COEDS VCETIIIN CEE Res os CAO As CEN EAA ALS 's ery by Sterling Ltd. at 465 Columbia Ave, Castlegar, B.C. VIN 1G8. The Castlegar Sun is politi independent and a of the Sterling News Service, Cana Serving the 16,000 people of the Castlegar area, The Castlegar Sun ov dian C P: B.C. C Newspapers Assocation, and the B.C. Press Council. Established 28, 1990. Mail 10420. PUBLISHER MARILYN STRONG TRENT BANCARZ CHRISTINE MOYER EDITOR PRODUCTION MANAGER: GARY SCHNEIDER PRO! CATHERINE ROSS REP. KAREN KERKHOFF REPOF JEFF GABERT SPORTS MARGE LALONDE rT NICOLE BEETSTRA ADVERTISING REP. FRED JACK ADVE! editorial comment After 30 years, the PM learned nothing He really ought to know better. Prime Minister Jean Chretien has been an MP for 30 years and a cabinet minister for many of them. He’s been through all kinds of constitutional wars. He was an architect of the 1982 Constitution Act, which basically tacked on the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to the old BNA Act. He was around for the failed Meech Lake Accord, albeit as a member of the opposition And he was offical opposition leader and an endorser of the Charlottetown Agreement that Canadians had the good sense to reject in 1992 All that experience and yet Chretien gives every indication he’s learned. nothing over the past 30 years. And that’s a shame because early on, he gave indications he may be the first Canadian prime minister to intelligently handle yet another in a never-ending series of Quebec crises “People tell me if you don’t talk Constitution, you will die prime minister,” Chretien had said in his endearing broken English during the 1993 election’s televised leaders’ debate. It was the correct strategy and one he stuck with until a week or so before the Oct. 30 Quebec referendum. Up to that point, Chretien had more or less ignored the referendum and wouldn't be baited into it. While he did so, the “No” side had a big lead. As soon as he started getting involved and dishing out the Promises as his predecessors had done, the “Yes” side starting catching up. Now that the No side has narrowly won the referendum, you'd think Chretien would once again leave well enough alone and get on with more important things. But now he’s decided to wade in up to his neck and pour more gasoline on the fire. The prime minister now proposes to sneak “distinct society WES ~ DISTINCT It’s a timely question. Should condom machines be put in schools? A recent survey undertaken by the Stan- ley Humphries Secondary School peer counsellors has resulted in some hard statistics. According to the survey, conducted last year, 73. per cent of parents believed con- dom machines should be in school and 95 per cent of students surveyed gave the nod to the machines. All parents surveyed thought students should use protection apd 98 per cent of parents believed students are having sex. Simple math tells you if 98 per cent of parents believed students were having sex and only 73 per cent believed machines should be in school, that means 25 per cent know kids are having sex, but don’t think condoms should be readily available at the place where kids spend a large portion of their time—school. A story in the SHSS Pride, the school’s newspaper, explains it well. “Parents opposing the idea’s main con- cern was that condom machines promote sex,” wrote Neal Henne in Pride. While I truly respect the 25 per cent’s opinion, I would like to make a few points in status”, a constitutional veto and a new ding formula in through the back door. This makes no sense for a number of reasons. For starters, it’s hard to believe somebody with Chretien’s experience would get sucked in by Quebec’s old gun-to-the-head game. You know, the one where the province threatens to leave and the federal government tries to appease it by granting con- cessions. Chretien had a perfect opportunity to call Quebec’s bluff. Had he done so, Quebecers would have seen their gun-to- the-head tactics weren’t working and would have rejected “sovereignty” by a wide margin. The pre-referendum polls cer- tainly showed this. Secondly, Chretien is showing much naivety if he thinks throwing a few crumbs Quebec's way is going to solve the prob- lem. Oh, Quebec will take the concessions all right and it will be back for more. You know, if gun-to-the-head works once, it'll certainly work again. Thirdly, ordinary Canadi including Queb s, clearly stated in 1992 that they want no part of distinct societies or spe- cial vetoes. Why does Chretien think the ideas are any more paletable now? It’s political suicide. Most Canadians are fed up with Quebec app and the C They don’t want any more constitutional wrangling, expensive roadshows to find out “the country’s mood” or any more of the CBC's obsessive coverage of the issue. They'd rather the government got on with important issues like burgeoning debt and increasing taxes. Chretien himself seemed to know this a mere two years ago. But by his latest actions, he’s condemned the country to yet more national unity navel gazing. It’s a recipe for certain electoral defeat as the Liberals found out in 1984 and the Tories in 1993 There’s that old saying, “those who fail to learn from history’s mistakes are doomed to repeat them.” The words seem to have been written specifically for a little guy from Shawinigan TNB ERRORS: The advertiser agrees that the publisher shall not be liable tor damages arising out of errors in any advertisement beyond the amount paid for the space actually occupied by that portion of the advertisement in which the error occurred, whether such error is due Wearing or not wearing a condom is one of the last (but most important) decisions kids make before engaging in sex. Their decision to become sexually active doesn’t magically appear when they gaze upon the d hine while hing their hands in the school bathroom. Their indoctrination to pre-marital sex began long before that. It began while they were much younger, etter safe than when their minds were pliable and when they were easily swayed by influences in their environment. Maybe it began while they were watch- ing soap operas with their mother in which pre-marital and extra-marital sex was sani- tized and promoted for ratings reasons. Or it could have began the first time they turned on the television and watched Brooke Shields scantily clad, oozing sex and bragging that nothing came between | her and her Calvin Klines. Possibly it began when they viewed. from kid-high level, the covers of porno- graphic magazines in bookstores or when ' they found their AN parents’ or brother's. porno INSIDE flick. Or it could LOOK have begun when their KAREN KERKHOFF friends began bragging about their pre-marital sexual escapades, Whatever the external cause, their minds are made up when they reach for those con- doms, IF they reach for those condoms. The issue is no longer solely whether our kids are having sex or not. Nowadays it’s a life and death issue. There was a time when condoms were use strictly for birth control. Or for kids like my brother who liked to buy condoms and walk down the street with them blown up like balloons to shock passers by. Condoms were also for young boys to keep in their wallets who, even though they were virgins, pretended they had need for such items as they opened their wallets sorry casually, pretending they were looking for something else. But condoms and pre-marital sex are no longer laughing matters. Sex nowadays is a matter of life or death. Promiscuity and AIDS have seen to that. My son is now almost 25 years old. While I never liked the idea of him being a sexual human, I reluctantly acknowledged that he was sexually active. We talked openly and frankly about sex, condoms, AIDS and birth control. He told me how embarrassed he was to walk into local pharmacies where everyone knew him and gossiped, he thought, about his clandestine purchases. He just knew that before the day was out, everyone in town would know he purchased condoms. Of course that wasn't true, but that fear didn’t stop him from acquiring condoms, thank God. But it certainly made it more difficult, and I'll bet there were times he didn’t always use a condom. It frightens me to think about it even now. I pointed out he would be a lot more embarrassed if he helped conceive a child before he and his parmer were ready. I also pointed out embarrassment is a fleeting emotion, while death is final. Should condom machines be in school? I firmly believe so. If that machine saves one teen from an unplanned pregnancy, or worse, from death, then it’s worth it—espe- cially if it’s your own child. I, for one, would much rather say “My child is using condoms” than “My child is dying from AIDS.” Do condoms promote sex? Maybe. But condoms also promote safer sex. And in the end, in today’s world, that’s the bottom line. On a scale of one to 10, I would rate Columbia a five. The problem with it is I see a lot of confusion with drivers entering and exiting some of the intersec- I work as a crosswalk guard for children in the morning and I see a lot of drivers who don't even pay attention to the crosswalk Columbia could high Speaker’s Corner Castlegar student Tamara Terry is pounding the pavement in search of answers to questions that correspond with news stories that have appeared in The Castlegar Sun. If you see Tamara, it could be your opportunity to appear in Speaker's Corner, which is published each week. Question: How safe would you rate Columbia fe The whole strip is not entirely safe. Trouble spots like the intersec- tion at'Castleaird Plaza need some work. The lane confusion is very accident prone and it I think I find Columbia safety satisfactory overall, but the parking down- town does need to be centralized away. from the main access. It's hard pulling in and a On a scale of one to 10, I would give it a six The road itself can use a few more crosswalks and stop lights and the drivers could be a little more considerate in deluge of concerns from both par- ents and elected representatives expressing a need for an action plan in dealing with judges that are sympathetic to drug dealers in heard some talk”, this being in reference to a drug situation existing within the schools? Perhaps the answer comes from a quotation given by the response to the drug situation? What is its response to the judge's view of bringing down lenient sentences for drug dealers? Will there be any response to our town amd are our elected councillors ready to gnize the social impact of their actions They may even respond to the Castlegar Sun's article, stating Education changes need scrutiny Dear Editor: While ion will benefit h in that they will have a greater choice’ about where they would like to work, potential cuts in education services to students make it very imp all of the ity look at amalgamation very carefully. All ministries in our government will be making cuts since $450 million in transfer payments will not be coming to B.C. The Ministry of Education has to make $80 mil- lion in cuts. One unknown at this time is whether post-secondary education is involved as well as the kindergarten to Grade 12 system. Reducing District staff alone will not be enough to make up the $80 million. While the ini of Ed ion, Art Charb , is on record as saying services to students and teachers will not be cut, it's up to our commu- nity to be vigilant so such cuts are not made Already there have been statements that grants for special education will be reduced, In the next three months, it is vital people discuss how amalgamation will affect educa- tional services in this community. In March, 10 regional gs will be held gh the province to get input. The timelines are short. We need to start assessing the impact of ion as soon as possibl Margaret Hill President CDTA Environment permit must be strict Dear Editor: A reflection on some local Trail history sheds light on Cominco’s requested revision of the Lead Furnaces environmental permit. Long ago, massive lawsuits from Washing- ton challenged the consciousness that a sul- furous, acid rain moonscape is the unavoidable smell of Cominco money. Only after the basic set of assumptions, called a paradigm, was forced to change to “there must be win/win solutions,” did the acid consuming Warfield fertilizer operations bloom. Paradigms are very powerful. Unchecked paradigms built a failed QSL Smelter project. A ingly though, a A sociobiological view of the world Dear Editor: Some have said global warm- ing is good to offset the effects of the Ice Age. It appears as though the Icad- ers of our nations will continue to burn fossil fuels and eradicate the forests with complacency to a self-destructive pattern in the hope they miay control the onset of the next Ice Age. Though the rapidity with which the greenhouse effect I am of the mind, as a sociobi- ologist, that the evolution of man is associated with increased lev- els of oxygen and the develop- ment of long term visions of genetic unfoldment. Man's ability to project the effects of his behavior into the future, derived from honest study of the past and present, must be perfected to prevent disaster to his own species and to all other lifeforms. P ign ility and account- ability. ly when it's envi always means lost money and maybe jobs. This is pre- Warfield thinking. Can a change of paradigm solve the escap- ing lead fume problem with virtually no net cost? I have written observation—based sug- gestions and long offered to give more, plus other input for free. Cominco management barely seems even curious. Serious implica- tions of simple, obvious observations don’t seem to register. No big consulting fee must not fit their paradigm. A strict i permit is a req necessity that, like in the past, would mother is that Rather than an entropic vision of our karmic realities, I suggest Cast increased consciousness within all our peoples will result in the gentle dissipation of the delu- sions of fate (suffering). It will return us to our position of self- determinate animals as a func- tioning part of the total bioniche s. More p Pe ness and accountable infrastructure may result, too. That can’t hurt with Trail in the QSL shadow. Residents will be living with the new fur- nace no matter how it finally turns out. Mean- while, perhaps for several years, the serious lead fume situation continues. And it seems worse lately despite completion of needed improvements. Is this the general trend toward “the best?” Trail must choose its paradigms well to avoid the risk of becoming “The Home of Losers.” ,__ Vincent Joseph Trail Are you, or someone close to you, affected by alcohol or drug use See ECOSYSTEM changes the atmosphere and heat retention quotients, is not specifi- cally known whether the effects of the Venusian greenhouse sce- nario show that it is a change that moves exponentially. Once it has begun, it may be very difficult to reverse. Naturally, as the earth's temperature rises, the polar ice caps will melt and the global water level would rise. Much of the arable, occupied landmass is below the projected rise in water. It is imagined the effect of this loss of food production and the displacement of billions of peo- ples would create cataclysmic upheavals within the infrastruc- ture of power. Panic by governr= nts, in view of the loss of their lands, and starvation would likely lead to warfare in an attempt to procure higher ground. The species would be reduced, once again, to archaic evolution- ary demands of survival of the fittest. The loss of our species’ most important conscious evolution, compassion, would return us to a collection of food hungry, power hungry, base-instinct units of warfare. The great flood of the Bible may have occurred before our time, but I am of the mind the messages within its doctrine are specifically contained to provide clues about the unfoldment of life upon our planet now. My suggestion is in order to prevent the manifestation of this judgement, that mankind should search for alternatives to pollu- tants and activities that increase carbon dioxide levels in the envi- ronment and decrease levels of oxygen, respectively. [aut B0by} ‘Complete Body & Paint Facilities Auto Glass Replacement plac Towing 3 eggs A Chef in your kitchen SIMON SAID... Simon Smotkowicz is a good friend. He is also one of the most decorated young chefs in Canada. His latest achievernent is being a member of the 1992 Canadian Culinary Team the Culinary Olympics. The Canadian Team came home with the Grand Gold Medal - as the World Champions! ‘Simon lives in Edmonton and “governs” the kitchen of the great Edmonton Convention Centre. Hi of thousands of meals a year, from a simple Chicken Cordon Bleu to an exotic Muskox Filet. | asked him recently what his favourite soup was when he grew up in Germany. “| like simple and rich tastes,” he said in our telephone conversation. “One of my ‘special comfort soups, from my youth, | can share with your readers,” he commented. The recipe he gave us is tich and wonderful potage. Try it - it is worth the precise preparation. (Serves 6) 2.5 02/75 grams goose or duck fat 8 cloves of garli 2 qW/1 L boiling water 6 bread slices 3 02/100 grams grated Emmenthal cheese 2 02/60 grams heavy cream (creme fraiche) 1 bouquet garni (a sprig thyme, a bay leaf, 2 sprigs sage (tied together) Method: Melt goose fat in large saucepan. Add chopped garlic and stir until golden. Add boiling water and bouquet garni. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, toast soup tureen with grated Emmenthal. Separate the eggs in two in Frankfurt at tureen and serve. serves tens exquisite recipe. CHICKEN LIVER PARFAIT (Serves 8-10) 8 medium shallots sliced 3 02/75 ml Port wine 2 02/50 mi Maderia wine 1 sprig thyme with a chicken aspic; to do so. ices of bread and formulas... Thank you Simon! bowls. Discard the bouquet garni. Beat the egg whites until foamy afid add to the boiling soup until it coagulates. Mix the yolks with heavy cream, add two tablespoons of the soup and quickly stir into the soup. Remove from heat; the yolks should not cook, but simply serve to thicken the soup. Pour soup into the The chilly and snowy winters of Western Canada are tailor-made for weekend get-togethers with good friends and good food. One of Simon's tried and true entertainment winners is this 9 02/250 grams unsalted butter 9 02/250 grams chicken livers (cleaned of all membranes and green parts) Method: Sweat shallots in 50 grams of butter until golden. Add chicken livers, season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Sautt very quickly with sprig of thyme (livers must not be overcooked, they should be pink, otherwise the parfait will be grainy and gray in colour). Add Port and Maderia and flame. Remove from heat and refrigerate. Once cooled, place in a food processor. Add remaining butter (make sure it is still soft), mix well. Season to taste and pour into a glass or china dish and chill until needed. You may coat the top of the parfait Soften two gelatin leaves in cold water. ‘Squeeze dry and dissolve into 9 02/250 mi Ah of warm chicken consomme. Let cool until . = g it is the consistency of raw egg and pour over the parfait. Enjoy the preparation and the beautiful results of these classic REWEWBER OUR KIDS AU CHRISTMAS YOUR COMMUNITY-MINDED DONATION OF NON-PERISHABLE FOOD ITEMS are being accepted for the yearly FAMILY CHRISTMAS HAMPER FUND & community groups will be accepted until Saturday, December 9th FOR HAMPER: + DEADUNE om LEGION HAMPER RECIPIENTS ARE - SINGLE FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN SALVATION ARMY RECIPIENTS ARE — SINGLE MEN & WOMEN Donate how you wish — but please donate WHEN THESE PARTICIPATING GROUPS CALL ON YOU —- PLEASE RE: ROUSLY Castlegar Firefighters Association Tarrys Fire Department Ootischenia Fire Department Vintage Car Club of Canada - Castlegar Chapter DUE TO HEALTH REGULATIONS - NO HOME CANNING ACCEPTED This ad sponsored in part by Graphic Solutions “Supporting & sommunity” partment Store of which we are a small pant. Though we have apparently A8 Christmas FADHCS cencsancnn40% Off Charistmaas THAMS cssee:ccexsameO% Off Fashion Fabrics 30% off Assorted Prints...........Up to 60% off % OFF yoo laa accessories Christmas Linens......... SO % off All Bed, Bath, Kitchen [and Table Lie tennnm 2576 Of WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY (e LATE LATE 9-9P.M Meee eA AAA AL ALALATAL ALATA TATATATATATATATAV AA AN 27 FREE SKATING 2-3:30 PM COMMUNITY \_ COMPLEX SD Santa's Here! Sun, December 10th 1:00 p.m.-3 p.m. | instore Draw Shop the Home Hardware Christmas Gift Catalogue for Special Prices c VIDEO PAINTER By V-Tech would help to paint the curbs yellow so they're tions. They need to be light its crosswalks controlled better. more. i — Neil Sowerby — Carol Callaghan out of parking spots with the steady traffic haul — Lori Postnikoff 2316 - 6th Ave., Castlegar 365-5114 to the negligence of its servants or otherwise... and there shall be no liability for non-insertion of any advertisement beyond the amount paid for such advertisement. All advertising subject to publisher's approval. Contracts must be completed within one year from contract date. No contingent orders accepted Stopping for pedestrians. — Sharon Batting 1217-3rd St., Castlegar Send your questions on any culinary topic to. Ph: 365-7782 “A Chef in your Kitchen” P.O. Box 18627, Delta, British Columbia V4K 4V7, or fax to GO4-943-8741 EAA EERE