on he 6 - Friday, June 28, 2985 - North Shore News Editorial Page The new war Terrorism -- the tragic focus of the world’s attention this month in Lebanon and the skies over the Atlantic, at Tokyo airport and British tourist resorts -- is described by na- tional leaders as a war against civilization. It’s a war as potentially destructive of civi- lized values as either of this century’s two world wars, but few of us are yet ready to face the grim implications. Namely, that winning such a war may involve the loss of innocent lives and the temporary curtailment of many individual liberties. Victory in World War Two came only at the cost of censorship, rationing, blackouts, internment camps and the slaughter of thousands of ci- vilians in Londen, ‘ Coventry, Hamburg, Dresden and countless other cities. Victory in this new war may ultimately call for similar sacrifices. A mobile UN com- mando force for fast rescue strikes anywhere in the world against aircraft hijackers and hostage-takers, with deaths of passengers and victims virtually inevitable. Arrests of the innocent rather than chancing the escape of the guilty, and the automatic death penal- ty for the latter. Rapid extradition pro- cedures between all ‘‘allied’’ nations. Much stricter vetting of so-called political refugees. Delays, line-ups and inconveniences in many public services. Even media censorship to deny terrorists their most sought-after weapon: publicity. It’s a biood-chilling prospect. But the alternative could well be the eventual destruction of civilization itself by faceless fanatics with guns and bombs. Crying wolf! I atest challenge to the electronic high tech whiz-kids comes from the home security alarms industry. Thousands of man-hours were wasted by Winnipeg police in the first three months of 1985 by the whop-. ping 97% of alarms that proved bogus — due. ‘to residents forgetting (o switch off or trig- gered by dogs or cats. Urgently needed now: alarm systems that sort out genuine alarms from those merely crying wolf! Display Advertising 980-0511 Classified Advertising 986-6222 Newsroom 985-2131 Circutation 986-1337 . Subscriptions 985-2131 1139 Lonsdale Ave., North Vancouver, B.C. V7M 2H4 Publisher Peter Speck General Manager Roger McAlee Operations Manager Berni Hilliard Marketing Director Advertising Directcr - Sales Bob Graham Dave Jenneson Circulation Director Advertising Director - Admin. Bill McGown Mike Goodsell Production Director - Editor-In-Chief Chris Johnson Noel Wrgnt Photography Manager Classified Manager Terry Peters Val Stephenson “North Shore News, founded in 1969 as an independent suburttan newspaper and qualified under Schedule MI, Part tll, Patagrapt IH of thes Excise Tax Act, is published each Wednescay, Friday and Sunday by North Shore Free Press Lid. and distributed to every door on the North Shore. Second Class Mail Registration Number 3885 Entire contents © 1985 North Shore free Press Ltd. All rights reserved. Subscriptions, North and West Vancouver, $25 per year. Mailing rates available on request. : No responsibility accepted {ot unsolicied matenal imciuding manuscripts and pictures which should be accompamed by 4 slamped, addressed envelope. | Member of the B.C. Press Council (SSE) 56,245 (average, Wednesday SDA DIVISION Friday & Sunday) THIS PAPER IS RECYCLABLE wa OO WHEN BIAS GRENIER RAN OUT OF MINERALS AND TREES... Mailbox 4 Restore OUR old strestcars Dear Editor: From 1906 to 1947 the B.C. Electric operated Sstreet-cars up and down Lonsdale carrying thousands of passengers to the shopp- ing area and the North Van- couver ferries. . One of these old cars, the only survivor, lies in a warehouse in Burnaby in need of extensive restora- tion. Yet we have a scheme underway (o go to the U.S, and bring in rubber tired, diesel-powered so-called trolleys to the tune of $50,000 - $90,000 each and try to pass them off as Lord knows what. The City of Nelson, B.C. has restored one of their ear- ly streetcars to operate as a tourist attraction, a nostalgic reminder to senios citizens, and a living history lesson to children of how transporta- tion used to be. Now with Expo in the offing, a Transportation Fair, and thousands ef visitors coming - in to look at transportation old and new, we have a pro- posal to operate something that looks like it belongs in Disneyland. We can offer our visitors a- rubber-tired joke instead of the real thing. Perhaps we could also put a diesel engine into the Royal Hudson with: a re- cording of real choo choo sounds, the thinking is the same, Operate tour buses or “Revolting, ugly’ sculpture must go Dear Editor: Once in ‘the dear dead days beyond recall, ‘‘art’’ was something that was beautiful or at least attrac- ‘tive and pleasii; '. look at. Now, it appears that the “experts’’ or the ‘‘in’? peo- ple have bought the idea that has been actively promoted by their ilk for the last too many years, that to be ‘‘art"’ the thing must be ‘‘dif- ferent’' or ‘‘original’’, period. No matter that it is an absolute nothing, is revolting or ugly, if it is something nobody has ever before dared to call a work of art, it must be good! ; This most recent choice of the ‘Arts Council” — the ‘“*sculpture’’ for the Lonsdale Quay — is surely the epitome of ‘‘modern” | taste. It is so ugly as to be revolting. It will be an em- barrassment to every person who sees it- — especially every resident of the North Shore who realizes that this ‘art’ work, to be seen by all comers, will be taken as an example of the local citizen's good taste! It turns one’s stomach! I plead with the City’s aldermen -— please do not be gulled into believing you must follow through with this. Admit to your mistake. Cut your losses and do not, for heaven's sake, throw more good money after bad. Believe me, it will ave to go. Better now than later. Say no now. J.W.D. Lewis North Vancouver ‘Japanese’ were Canadians Dear Editor: ] would like to reply to Mr. Frank Bernard's letter to the editor (Fri., June 21, °85). His understanding of the issue is way out of focus. The Japanese in question are Canadian Citizens, and are not responsible for the ac- tions of JAPAN just as the German and Italian Cana- dians are not responsible for the actions of GERMANY and {TALY respectively. It was an injustice when the Japanese Canadians were interned, and possibly racist as the German and Italian Canadians were not sub- jected to the same fate. However, since we are (ry- ing to resolve this issue, | would suggest that the Jap- anese Canadians accept the present Canadian gov- ernment’s proposai and to forget their so-called documentation of losses. To protong this issue will likely end up comparable to the native Indians issue. That is, negotiations upon negotiations that will con- tinue for a century with no favorable results in sight. Stephen Gene North Vancouver charabancs if we must, perhaps brightly decorated like the Blackpool trams. Or spend the money to réstore and display the old -B.C. Electric car as a living legacy to transportation in North Van. But let’s not. spend good money in the U.S.. for tacky looking imitations and © have our visitors remember us with a chuckle. ’ f Brian Kelly fos. North Vancouver NV schools. top national math contest Dear Editor: Who says the quality of education on the Nerth Shore is declining? Academ- ic excellence is alive and well in School District 44 (North Vancouver). Witness the Canada-wide math contest recently. Top student in the nation. Top school. Many North Vancouver scholars up front, their schools look- ing good. Three cheers for our scholarship winners, our teachers, our staff! Of the top 65 students in Canada, cight were from North Vancouver secondary schools. Peter McCor- quodale, Philip Morse and Byron Watt were in the top 15.° Handsworth was the number one school. Sutherland and Argyle earn- ed honourable mention. Financial restraint cannot be all bad. We have the ef- forts and the ability of our top flight students and ex- cellent teachers to prove it. Hon. Jack Davis, M.L.A. North Vancouver-Seymour