A2 - Sunday, March 28, 1982 - North Shore News

strictly personal

by Bob Hunter

A new gas station has been unveiled in
California which is run entirely by computers.

Now I know I shouldn't be
a reactionary nerd. Give the
thing a chance, and all that.

But my Spidey Sense
tingled. I can't help it. 1
smell a micro-rat.

It's not just because this
monstrosity has been billed
as “the ultimate self-service
gas station” that I shudder.

There are good, solid
philosophical reasons for
worrying.

I can imagine trying to get
the keys to the Men's Room
from the computer at the gas
pump.

Or, better yet, asking the
terminal where the _ best
fishing 1s. How are the

roads? How far to the next
gas station?

The culprit in this case 1s
USA Petroleum Cor-
porauon, which is testing the

NV ‘punished’

FROM PAGE A1

bound by the submitted
modifications until
legislation is passed ordering
a revised budget.

“We have discussed the
ministry's request al great
length and we have agonized
over ita great deal...we have
protested and this board has
expressed its opinion that
this request has eroded our
autonomy,” Jessup said

The board. like West
Vancouver's school trustees,
feels it is being punished by
the restraint program as ut
had already submitted = a
restrained budget. and
would have done better if it
had originally submitted an
inflaréd budget

“Tt seems to me that we
worked pretty hard coming
up with a Gyht budget that
would have been fair to both

students and taapayvers but

now we are being punished
for restraining our oripinal
budget said trustee
Crawtord Kalan

onder the roStiatat
program the reductions i
the 19M! budget would take
effect an the fourth quarter
of the year Ser a ove brereal
treosat cd whieh sutbbarnittedd an
ratlated budget would hac oa

ORL fe Mae

1444 .ONSUALE Ave

New system as a way to cope
with cmme. According to
Paul Moller, the company
chairman, “the goal is to
eliminate the gas station
attendant.”

By eliminating
tendant, Mr.

the = at-
Moller hopes
to eliminate the crook as
well. How can you rob a
computer terminal? Go
ahead, try saying “Stick ‘em
up’ toa feedback loop.

On the other hand, try
saying “Fill ‘er up” to an
integrated circuit. I know
something’s going to) go

wrong.

My expectation is that the
next generation of gas
stauon bandits will simply
ignore the computer, jimmy
open the gas tank caps and
siphon off what they want.

The truly scary thought ts

higher base budget to work
within 1983.

Kilian pointed out that by
complying with the
ministry's request, the board
was not obligated to follow
its suggested cuts.

“Itas notindeed a contract
or a promise written in our
heart's blood.” Kilian said.

Meanwhile, the board also
expressed dismay at the new
finance formula = which
places the entire local school
taxabon on the shoulders of
the homeowner

Kilian said
COUVETE ts
punished
large

North Van
now being
attracting a
commercial
dustrial

for
and in
tax base because
thal tax source is now being
taken away by the provincial
xovernmeal

Beyond self service

Oh Oh. More trouble.

that Mr. Moller might sull be
nmght when he predicts that
“sooner or later. all gas
staulons are going to be on
this system.”

Dont mind my senile
blathering, children. but,
aye, I1can remember back to
a time when the guy who ran
the corner gas station ac-
tually had a name -- Hank or
Chuck or Bill or Fred

Why I even had one gas
station owner near a place |
hved who someumes took
me fishing on weekends. We
never caught anything and 1
seldom remembered coming

back to shore -- we were
both pretty blotto -- but i
was fun.

At Chnstmas I'd buy him

a bottle and sometimes he'd
fix the little problems on the
car for nothing.

1 know this sounds like a
scene out of a Norman
Rockwell painting. kids, and
those of you who have been

raised on television probably
wouldnt be able to com-
prehend the visceral un-
easiness that gmps an old-
umer ke myself upon
entering the dead sound
zone that. surrounds the
modern self-serve station,

Its a bit ke going into an
empty church, you know”
Without a preacher around -

i.¢.. a mechanic--nothing
makes sense

Not all of us can tell the
difference between a

crescent wrench and a
monkey wrench
For that matter, so far as

some of us are concerned.
“check the oil” is a mystcal
incantation thal works
providing you put money in
the collection plate. And
isn't that the essence of
organized religion?

Maybe I suffer from a
surfeit of existential gloom.
but at the mere sight of a
modern self-serve (all
concrete and glass with fish-
eye lens mirrors and plastic-
handled nozzles) a certain
Luddite reflex is tnggered
and I want to do bad things

If you think about i
objectively, a self-serve
station is) a kind ot
mechanical bawdy house.
where the cars and the

pumps have all the fun.
It's not just an accident
that as I stand there “ser-

by restraints

seems that Victoria
was not content with stealing
the golden eggs. It has now
stolen the goose as well.”
Kihan said.

According to Secretary
Treasurer Leonard Berg, the
ministry says North Van-
couver is “far too wealthy”
to receive any extra funding
above the now standard 60

per cent: provided by the
province
Superintendent Rod

Wickstrom summed up the
feelings of — the
meeting saying. “You
Madam Chairman, have said
we have not tared
the new finance
T would say thatisa
understatement We
are favormp as the worst in
the province

luesday

well
under
formula
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The

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board decided ta
with the North Shore
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©

vicing’ my car I feel like a
real hoser.

When all is said and done,
though. there is at least an
attendant in the cash register
booth to whom | can
complain about the pnce of
gas or the weather or maybe
fate itsell

Finally. |} can always ask
“Is there a real garage
around here someplace?”

Soon, ] won't even be able
to do that

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