8 — Sunday, September 13, 1998 — North Shore News north shore news _____MAIL B OX Punish real child abusers Dear Editor: Re: Raising age of consent So four out seven North Vancouver City councillors, the North Shore News, Walter Gray (the mayor of flown) and Alan Walker (Raise A; Re O of Consent Now, Sept. 4) think they're going to protect our children from pedophiles and other adults who would exploit them sexu- sem rn ising the age of con- » Sent froza 14 to 18. ; they would really secomplinh is to make a whole lot of teenage boys into crimi- nals, guilty of statutory rape. How would that help solve the Problem? - Instead of making criminals our “of our teenage sons it’s time to start ercating the adults who. prey upon our teenage id youn ec)... children nd sons) with the they d deserve. “Columnist Léo Knight has ted out on more than one xploitation by the sex trade. at we scem to iack is the moral and political will to use che means at our disposal effec- tively, As a sovicty we don’t scem very concerned about tecnage and child prostitution, the predators who make a living off it or the consumers who make it profitable. We havent gor the judicial guts to destroy adult predators or keep them securely locked away until they die. We don’t have the guts to identify them publicly and keep track of A North Van Dear Editor: Re: A, Phillip’s letter to Larcc, Memo to big boxes: build in North Van (August 26 News}. Pil be bricf and to the point. take great exception to to A. Phillip” “setter to Larco. I can certainly: understand the frustration felt when ta: companics do not listen to the them. Until we do, the prob- [em of child and teenage sexu- al abuse is not going away. Raising the age of consent from 14 to 18 is just another one of thuse useless do-gooder motons that will make some people feel like they're doing something when they're not. I, for one, don’t want to niake criminals out of our young sons just because we're too cowardly to punish the real abusers of our children. i fassil North Vancouver amwa:sil@bigfoot.com big box beef voice of the immediate com- munity. However, the audaci- ty to suggest that i it be buile in someone cise’s “backyard” irks me to no end, Suitly, you did nor mean to imply that you are fine with the idea of big boxes, as long as they are not in your neighborhood! . Nesbist North Vancouver ATTENTION JEEP OWNERS: Quality Repairs by factory trained technician IMPEX AUTOMOTIVE 1335 Perberten Ave. Tel: 985-6237 Suspension lift Kits Sales & installations, All models. on Visit our iveb site: Sa www3.bc.sympatico.ca/impexautofimpexauto/.htmi Katherine Whittred, MLA North Vancouver - Lonsdale 303 - 126 East 15th Street North Vancouver, BC V7L 2P9 Tel: 988-3885 Fax: 981-0022 Sessional Overview Summer is almost over. Schools are open. Life is back to normal. Or is it? This is a good time to share with you an overview of the 3* Session of the 36* Parliament, which wrapped up its business a few weeks ago on July the 30°. Budget: On the 30 of March, the Goverment introduced its seventh consecutive deficit budget. At that time, the Minister of Finance said that our deficit for the next year would be $95 million. According to the Summary Financial Statements produced within the budget documents, however, the true provincial deficit wil) be in the neighbouvhood of $1 billion, if not more. The interest cost on our total debt will exceed $2.4 billion. This means the Government will spend more on servicing ux debt than on 11 ministries combined. Other government huve shown that balanced budgets and getting debt under control lead to lower taxes and more jobs. Yet BC continues to add more to the maintained that any change to the Labour" ° Code would ferther damage our already ailing :. economy and used a parliamentary tactic derail the legislation. In the end, the - Government had its way. Bill 50: On Friday, July 17, the Gove f ics & Science our proven programs help stu- pace, continually supported by the appropri- feud ope for building confidence and self esteem. © GRADE 1 TO 42 MATH © HIGH SCHOOL STUSY SKILLS provincial debt and the Governrzent has pushed back its planned balanced budget by oue year, The Dominion Bord Rating Service reflected our province's bleak financial - : pence & 12 SCIENCE idual Attention w Personalized Programs t ¥, Qualf ae J Tutors. W Enables 100% Understanding ee pecial! lg nitiation Fee > Equipment _ Total Body Workout ° Childminding : @ Pree Parking. ¢ Circuit Training « Free Weights ¢ Aerobics Classes For all Levels © Towel Service ¢ Workout Clothing ® Private Showers « Day Locker Use * Handicap _ Accessible ® One-on-One Personal ‘Training situation by dowr-grading BC's trend outlook from stable to negative. And CIBC's semiannual economic report anticipates a 1.3% decline in gross provincial product for 1998. . Grandoarents’ Rights: Both this year and last, by way of a private member's bill, the : Official Opposition introduced amendments: to the Family Relations Act recognizing ‘grandparents’ right to access and custody of their grandchildren. Finally, on May 25, the Attomey General anndunced that the Govemment would amend the Act to specifically include grandparents and relatives for custody azd access consideration by the courts. BC joins Quebec and Alberta as the only provinces in Canada with such legislation. Tudges’ Salaries; In late May the Judicial Compensation Commities recommended a salary increase for the provincial court judges of almost 22% by the year 2000. This 7 increase was approved without ever coming up for debate in the House. While I appreciate -. the work our judges do, how can such an increased in judicial salaries be justified when our legal aid system is in desperate need of funds and our court Systems are backlogged for month at a time? Labour Bill: Bill 26, a watered down version of Bill 44 (which was withdrawn last year amid strong Opposition) was introduced on June 17, This bill makes it easier for trade unions to recruit new members by allowing them to offer a single, collective agreement rather than requiring a newly organized unit to. negotiate a contract from scratch. The Government insisted that this was a harmless bill. The Official Opposition charges by th C soln elamsey Consus nae Tegulations ideas on issues that are important to you. CRIME & PUNISHMENT | : Leo Knight: every Wednesday on page seven in your North Shore News.