| Punishm AVI Lewis, the host of CBC’s Counterspin, portrays himself as one who challenges ideas “fundamental to our culture.” This is his facetious spin. Aviis Old Left establishment. He is the son of former Canadian UN envoy Stephen Lewis and raging feminist Michelle Landsberg, grand- son of one-time national NDP feader David Lewis, comrade in life to Naomi Klein of the banal anti- freemarket sloganeering, brother in-law to Seth Klein of the far left Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. Avi is a pedigreed pinko and not terribly original at that. Having failed to stray from the ideology of his clan, Avi is not that far removed from the powers that be. He champions a litde more regulation and thought control than the Liberals, more of a command economy and more welfare depen- dence. His fetish is the cul- ture of the commons — but, like the Grits, divisive identity politics is his modus. No one beats Avi for sub- mailbox conumnent stituting soundbites for sub- stance and smart aleck for intellectual acuity. Given the profile, is it any wonder Avi was in his post- modern, obscurantist element in a segment on penal aboli- tion last week? The movement for resterative justice holds that problems plaguing the crimi- nal justice system are reason enough to abolish it. Its posi- tion is starkly utilitarian: incarceration dsesn’t reduce rates of re-offence and does- n’t bring back the dead, ergo abolish it and heal the crimi- nal in the community. Justice, the activists say, must be sought in a redistrib- ution of wealth and resources. To activist Mara Taub, pun- ishment only stigmatizes dif- ference. erry a Hecate Unaware as [ was that criminality was an expression of cherished human diversity, [was even more surprised when Taub claimed that “redemption” for psy- chopaths would be better achieved through therapeutic than punitive means. Avi, who failed to get the goods on the efficacy of unconditional love with psy- chopaths, ranted about the “hyperbole of the crack down crowe.” A hallmark of an Avi Lewis argument is that you can invanably drive a 4X4 through it. True, crime rates in Canada have been going down. Public demand, how- ever, for tighter parole and tougher young offender laws, for example, need have noth- ing to do with falling crime rates. Why should aggregate crime trends impact individ- ual sentencing? Do we reduce the sen- tence for murder in the first degree because there were fewer murders that year? Taub sces crime solely as a consequence of inoptimal social conditions. Thus she concludes that the dispropor- Homosexuality is a disorder Dear Editor: Your article, “Staying in the North Shore closet” (May 7 News) gives results of the McCreary Centre sur- “vey, but fails to mention that only a small percentage of students took part in: thar survey, due to misgivings on the part. of parents. Therefore, the fact that none of the youth gave high sat- ings to the quality of their family relationships, is more ‘indicative of the likelihood that chose with good family relationships did not partici- pate. . ne ght alinnee club of : ‘straight alliance clubs in schools will do little to help “students who think they might be gay, if the only advice. they are given. is to ~ accept themselves as they are, * because .they are born that way. | This is. an unproven opinion and one not shared > by many psychiatrists, espe- “¢ially chose belonging to the ' National: Association — for Research’ ‘and Therapy of the fist of disorders Homosexuality. (NARTH) which is based in California. Their Web site is . In the April 2000 edition of the NARTH Bulletia, their official position is quot- ed as being, “that the condi- tion is a developmen disor- der —- particularly a gender- identity disorder — which leads to a romantic idealiza- tion and sexualization of same-sex attributes.” Dr. Robert Spitzer, the architect of the 1973 decision that removed homosexuality from y the American * Psychiatric Association had arranged to have a debate on the topic, “Sexual Reorientation Therapies for Homosexuality Work, aad are Ethical” at its annual conference on May . 17. He did this after listening” to testimonies from former homosexuals. However, he was unable to find two psy- chiatrists. willing to debate the NARTH representatives. What does that tell us? Dr.. Laura Schlesinger is now the object of a well-orchestrated lobby by gays te have her shows removed from radio and TV because she agrees with the view that homosexu- ality is a disorder. No one should be ridiculed or attacked. for suf- fering from this disorder. Anti-harassment programs in schools should target all s of harassment, not just that directed against gays. However, it is a false form of compassion to teach that homosexuality is something norma! and acceptable, when it is quite obvious that we are all anatomically created male and female to relate sexually with somcone of the opposite sex. No amount of propagan- da can alter this self-evident truth. Let’s begin with this truth and help those with a homosexual problem to find psychiatrists or other thera- pists who can help them overcome this problem. Jessica White West Vancouver A closet organizer for a woman's full wardrobe! wt tee “2 The Premier is designed with all your needs in mind, whether it's a long dress, bulky new sweater, or your shoe collection. ent pays big pub donate percentages of blacks and natives in jatls is sure proof of systemic racism. The alchemy of freshman Macs, Rousseau and dollops of post hoe never fails to make Avi smarm. Avi himself is big on skewering the pale, patriarchal, penis people for all ills. No doubt there are racist elements in the criminal jus- tice system, and some false convictions, but people go to jail, first and foremost, because they break the law. The fact that most incar- cerations are drug-related calls not for the abolition of the criminal justice system, but rather for the complete repeal of all laws against the production, use and trade in drugs. Next, a smirking African activist proceeded in tortured phrases to compire the cruel- ty of penitentiaries in Africa with our own. Ms. Agomoh recommend- ed we look at tradicional aib- al methods for meting out justice. I doubt we can pick Friday, May 26, 2000 — North Shore News - 7 up where Shaka Zulu left off, or even adopt Winnie Mandela’s more humane and conteraporary method of necklacing, to wit, placing a tire around the putative crim- inal’s neck and igniting. Suffice it to say that Ms. Agontoh’s ideas were any- thing but African. It is quite marvelous how self-appointed African advocates embrace the distinctly Western iccas of human nghts: the dignity of the individual and the respect for diversity — all outgrowths __ of the Enlightenment — and then proceed to slam the West while using its tradition. The most unabashed utili- tarian making an appearance on the show was criminolo- gist Don Andrews who vitu- perated “this retribution accountability stuff.” We are punishing not because we get public protec- tion from it, he hissed, buc because it makes us feel bet- ter. Punishment here is to he adjudged only in as much as it measurably retards recidi- Wak ad as sevice. Ol & Fitter | Fee waranty; 21 pt. Safety check, 15 minutes - FAST! approved Includes up to 5 litres of 10w30 Quakerstate ! 1362 Marine Drive 980-9115 Mon-Sat 8:00am-6:00pm, Sun. 9:00am-5:00pm Expires May 31/2000 BUY THIS G. lic dividends If punishment doesn’t de this, regardless of what is right or wrong, it must be abolished in favour of quick expedients. But whether pun- ishment makes people feel good, whether it reforms the criminal or safeguards the public is immatenal, although { would argue that a society with a moral code is safer in the long run than one with- out. Punishment is a public declaration of moral values. It is an extension of natural law. Descend into Avi’s amoral abyss, and you abolish the very fabric of our ethical tra- dition. —gnome@attcanada.net Hummingbirds Our summer hummer, the Rufous arrives in early March, They get all their vitamins, proteins and minerals from small flying insects. 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