Kipling dead-on about African reality MORE NOTES for Com- monwealth enthusiasts: A century ago Rudyard Kipling was making his name as the poet and prophet of the Empire. And he was still going strong in our day. Well, my day, anyway. He kicked the bucket in 1936, He was not all glory and white inan’s rule, however. His Recessional was about how the cap- tains and the kings would depart and how the greatest empire the world had ever seen would be one with Nineveh and Tyre if it got too dig for its boots. He never reckoned it would get too small for its boots, which is what happened. He it was who coined ths: term “the white man’s burden”: “Take up the White Mar’s bur- den And reap his old reward: The blame of those ye better, The hate of those ye guard.” They don’t teach that stuff in the schools these days. Kipling is about as popular as the story of The Black Hole of Calcutta (ask your kids whether they have. ever heard of it). Betcha taey won't have. Such Sagas are not suitable for tender multicultural ears and would surely cause the B.C, Teachers’ Federa- tion to faint-en masse. But his above-quoted lines were dead-on. In what is now called the Third World, aid-givers gain no love, only demands for more. And the more oug Collins ON THE OTHER HAND they give the more they are hated. Or blamed. Just like Kipling said. Today’s events in Africa con- firm the Kipling theory. The burden is still there. The slaughter in Rwanda has opened a few eyes to realities, but the realities won't make any differ- ence to the starry-eyed. Can’t the blacks help thern- selves? Has any African country done anything? What about Nelson Mandela’s ‘new South Africa’? Have India, Pakistan, Bangledesh or the Caribbean done anything? No. It’s. Western govern- . ments that have played the Good Samaritan, and advertisements in Western newspapers ask people to get in on the act. But there’s stil! plenty of blame. We didn’t move fast enough, you see. Recycle e and reduce Dear Editor: When I saw the front page of the Sunday, Aug..14 paper, I did not ‘feel sorry for Mr. Sargit Ludu. * Instead, I felt anger, as | hope many of your readers did.. Visible in Paul McGrath’s photo of Mr. Ludu and his “garbage” is cardboard, garden compost material and newspaper. _ One highly suspects that lurking behind the gargantuan green ‘garbage can and black plastic bags are bottles, cans, plastic containers, and paper. To Mr. Ludu, and all those like him: Wake up and recycle! Since our household started recycling a few years ago, we have reduced our weekly garbage to half a cun (a reg- ular can, not those monsters like the one Mr. Ludu has). The only reason so much garbage accumulates is laziness and selfishness. If Mr. Ludu recycled, he would not be in a “trash tizzy” if the garbage collectors missed him INCREASE BOATING ENIOYMENT ENROLL in the upcoming CANADIAN POWER & SAIL SQUADRONS BOATING COURSE nearest you The natonaly recognized couse aches a variety of skits and raque eres to help you ery your “ Dosting wih satoty and knowledge. Call 985-3376 Capiano Cali $21-9395 Seymour Call 421-5719 for one or two weeks. Cheers to MP Ted White. Our tax dollars going to pay for the Women’s Monument Project? I'm all for recognizing the tragedies inflicted on women, but come on ladies, pay for it yourselves. These free lunches have got to stop. Michael Binkley North Vancouver Fast or slow, it's a hopeless task. Let's quote Kipling again, He referred to: “Your new-caught, sullen peo- ples, half-devil and half-child.” The old boy wouldn't get any medals for thal these days. either. But who could dispute its truth as far as Rwanda is concerned? Or for that matter Ethiopia, the Sudan, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Somalia, Nigeria (remem- ber “Biafra” in the late 1960s?), Burundi, the Central African Republic (where the Emperor Bokassa liked a nice cut of human flesh for dinner), and many others. Joseph Conrad described it all in Heart of Darkness, and nothing has changed. The liberal world doesn't want to know the facts. It just marches on, Claiming it’s really “the colonial legacy” that’s responsible for all the bad news. Well, 1'd bet a bone in the nose to a golden sovereign that nine out of 10 Africans would like to sce the French back in Rwanda and the British back in Somalia, ete. * [thas been stated in the British press that for the first time in 50 years “opinion makers” are saying Africa will never enjoy the bless- ings of peace and prosperity and escape the curses of civil war, famine, pestilence and genocide until the white man once again takes political control. That's not going to happen, of course. Hasn't he just given up the ghost in South Africa, thanks to pressure from lunatics, leftists and liberals the world over? LETTERS TO the editer must be legible (preferably typewrit- ten) and include your name, full address and telephone number. Due to space constraints the .North Shore News cannot publish all letters. Published let- ters may be edited for brevity. clarity, accuracy, legality and taste. Letters can be faxed to 985-2104 but still must be ° signed and fully addressed. JEWELLERS Semi Annual Jewellery Repair Sale Aug 15- “Sept 15 Repairs are done on our own factory by our highly skilled Goldsmiths with high-tech equipment and precision craftsmanship. plus “We offer you .~ free ESTIMATES - and One Year Guarantee on all our work African self-government has been a disaster and what we are seeing in the aid efforts to Rwanda is colonialism of a different sort. tt's the kind that believes, if only unwittingly, that Africans are incapable of running a country. Hence those ads. Hence too the “help Rwanda” concert in Vancouver. Many aid-for-Africa groups are the very sorts who whined about white rule: the white South Africans exploited their blacks; the FGGOD FOR YOO - Ponuan Quality Frozen A ee SE _ SD OTNR eE i REGULAR SIZE - SINGLE FLAVOR FROZEN YOGURT CONE (youd For You Watfie Cone Extra G whites in other countries did the same, they said. But it is now being reported that more than a few blacks in Zimbabwe now wouldn't mind see- ing former Prime Minister lan Smith back in the saddle. Obviously, they would like to be exploited some more. The Rwandans, meanwhile, are too busy carving one another up to have any opinions on the mater. The cuptains and the kings have departed. Too bad. EJ eb ocd For You pranks Royal No North - W. 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