wis sateen, aT joi. CENTURIES AGO (or so it scems), when | was growing up as.a child and: teen, we regarded one of our genera- tion who'd never periodical- “fy: had a sound spanking as some kind of a freak: “Tor stil indebted to a math | “teacher named James Makin, then "new. to my school, ‘for the noble : ‘character [ later: developed.. Asa know- all of {3, 1 was “dumb eviough to test his tolerance + for impudence. . ’ Hé hadn't any. At home that * evening, I shat myself in my.room, | . dropped my pants and examined ray buttocks in the mirror. ” “Grodgingly I had to admire the. / work of art imprinted on them by 4 the Makin cane — six flawless + blue-black stripes, all perfectly, par. “allel. ; “Afraid 10 share my, shame with - omy, parents, I suffered in silence,’; .. sat down as little as possible for* ‘several days and vowed never to repeat my. folly. Thereafter, Mr." ’ Makin and I got on famously.’ "Today, of course, the poor man! ae would be in jail — leaving endless other impudent. but unchastised ‘ know-alls of.13 to start sliding.” - down the slippery slope to a life of , God knows what depravity, Jail : being ‘also where five-year-old- “Rachel Peterson’s dad wound up. 3 When young Rachel threw a” tantrum and slammed the car door on her baby brother’s fingers, dad” ‘put her over the car trunk and: gave Comptroller - 985-2131 (133) . 21139 Lonsdale Avenue North Vancouver’ B. Cc. V7M2H4 «Nort Shore Managed Bares hither and yon her six of the best with the flat of his hand on her bare behind. . Rushed to hospital after a watching do-gooder alerted police, the tearful - lite darling was found to have no bruising, redness or tenderness. The pediatrician described her as normal, healthy and showing no . Signs of neglect. None of which, ~ however, saved Illinois vacationer -David Peterson from his night in the London, Ont. slammer, and a ‘court trial to séttle whether father - of the Criminal Code knew best. . The Code allows parents and “teachers to use reasonable force'to , discipline wayward kids, so last > week Mr. Peterson was acquitted. ’ But the.trouble is that.a judge, not . the parent or teacher, now decides ‘what is “reasonable force” and every five-year-old upward knows | ; mo . So bye-bye the strap. Bye-bye Ey ea Be LIE Re PALE AIG BIT de AOE ES ewes Wie wrenoird ORTH SHORE rapid transit is being sidetracked again by the forces of engi- neering complexity and obfuscation. From discussions raised again in the North Shore News about bridging the rapid transit gap between the north and south shores of Burrard Inlet, two key realities become apparent: & some practical alternatives to private auto- mobiles are needed now to relieve the transit pressure on the two inadequaie Burrard Inlet bridges; @ a rail link with the outside North Shore world is a natural. But approaches to the problem keep get- ting side-tracked on double-decking, twin- ning, tunneling and otherwise adding to Burrard Inlet links that would cost millions, if not billions, of taxpayers’ dollars. These are unnecessarily expensive and ES EE LAL TT MALE OREN ARE TALE REGRESS EA LENNY RRA AE ART EA, complicated engineering solutions because the North Shore is already blessed with the foundation for a rapid transit system that could not only link the North Shore to the rest of the Lower Mainland but the east end of the North Shore with its west end without dis- placing any homes, violating any neighbor- hoods, digging up any roads or erecting any elevated transit corridors. The existing trackage that services the North Shore’s industrial waterfront could easily do double time as a commuter rail [ink across the Second Narrows rail bridge to the rest of the Lower Mainland and from North Vancouver clear to West Vancouver and beyond. But there are two main factors weighing - against such a logical solution in the minds of government and other professional obfusca- tors: it's not costly and it’s not complicated. humane form of spanking. Bye-bye to as much as laying a restraining hand on any infant able to dial 9-1-1, What parent wants to be dragged from the dinner table into a paddy wagon summoned by litle Dick or Jane? We're not talking about cruelty or child-beating. Those deserve the harshest legal penalties, We're merely talking here about the tried- and-true methods ure! “or ages by loving parents in raising Ae. s a responsible adults — a process aii" occasionally requires a slightly more direct message than Dr. Spock’s sugary nestrums. — From 1986 to 1993, according to the Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics, violent crimes by kids aged 12 to 17 soared from 9,275 to 21,471, a 131% increase in just seven years. T wonder how many started out at age five like Rachel Peterson— but with parents too terrified of the law to do anything except try to placate their raging little monster ~ witha popsicle. PANDORA'S VOX vocal ensem- bie entertains in “In Treble Again!” May 5 to 6 at 8p.m. in Mt. Seymour United Church, 1200 Parkgate, N.V. Tickets $13, seniors $10 — call 925-9262, 922-2147 to reserve ... And wish many happy returns of today, April 30, to Mount Seymour Lion Bill Harbourne. ete WRIGHT OR WRONG: The ap en te & aby Ee “Guilty with an explanation? That’s an Ontario plea.” North Vancouver provincial court Judge Doug Moss, to a man charged with poaching salmon near the Capilano River fish hatchery, after the man announced that he was “guilty with an explanation.” (From an April 2 26 News story.) ole “Ig grabbed onte, his back and was almost rip ging into his skin to grab anything I could.” North Vancouver City Coun. ups ypata. “es Morrell Mussatto, deseribing . re” cue of a man attempting to jutup from the Second Narrows Bridge. (Front an April 26 News story.) eee “He had gone to extraordi- nary lengths to get the attention he required, that v was unfortu- hate.” ee Hee anton lipo x Paramedic Bill Hudson, at the same rescue, on the man’s subse- quent enrolment in a program to heip him deal with his personal problems. (Frat au April:26 News story.) “You realize... you are speak- ing to the converted?” North Vancouver City Coun. Stella Jo Dean, to Highlands United Church organist Len Henriksson, lobbying council to ban Video Lottery Terminals in the - city, even though council had already decided to prohibit the machines in the municipality. (From an April 26 News story.) eooe “It sort of spoiled supper.” ‘Michael Arnold, upon finding that a Toyota sedan had crashed Doe into his kitchen. (From an April 28. News story.) . Rail crossing an eyesore Dear Editor: 1am writing about that ugly con- traption that poses for a BC Rail overpass on 3/st and Marine Drive - in West Vancouver. For years rust and grime have stained the structure which, being of vintage Flintstone architecture to Start with, forms just about the most _ horrible entrance to one of Western, Canada's most scenic drives. Is it asking too much that the power-washer and a few. gallons of:* | paint to transform this visual pollu-.”. _tion into an. acceptable : structure.” somewhat integrated with the rest of. ~ the community? Not ‘only would thousands ‘of individuals passing under this'mon- _-strosity every day appreciate such a - gesture but the quality of life within.’ the whole West Vancouver commu- —. nity would be enhanced. : . Karl Peter a even the most sensitive and PO. Charis Johnson © ot Operations Manager ° . 985-2131 (166) aa North Shore News, founded in 1969 as an “independent suburban newspaper and qualified under Schadule 171, Paragraph 111 of the _, Excise Tax Act, is published each Wednesday, Friday and Sunday by North Shore Free Press : Ltd. and distributed to every door on the North Shore. Canada Post Canadian Publications Mail Sates Product Agreement No, 0087238. Mailing fates available on request. Submissions are welcome but we cannot accept responsibility for unsolicited material inciuding manuscripts and pictures, which''should be ‘accompanied by a - stamped, self-addressed envelope. only perfect science is hindsight. Timothy Renshaw... 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