NEWS VIEWPOINT Young xenophobes y - ENOPHOBIA 1S alive and living in ‘the young hearts of some of our hildren.’: The apparently abrasive relationship be- _tween local young Iranian Canadians and~ native youths is a stark reminder that we as a community and a country stili have many challenges ahead in realizing the ideal multicultural cohesion envisioned by our social engineers. ' Whether we like it or not, population’ growth and immigration trends have made the world a much smaller place. _ As humans, our natural proclivity to fear . strangers and to back that emotion with violence, threatened or. otherwise, served the tribal imperative well. But such responses are no longer viable. Rather than sustaining the well-being of specific cultural groups, the impulse now threatens the real benefits ‘derived from belonging to a country that embraces and fosters the greater whole. | It does no good to deny the problem. in the case of the attack at Carson ‘Graham school, officials are seeing the in-' . cident as an isolated act of aggression. It is right to call it a community prob- lem. Hf and when a mayor’s task force to in- vestigate violence in North Vancouver schools is established, it must also take an honest look at the causes at. the root of the tension in our schools. ‘LETTER OF THE DAY Lethal slingshots must be restricted Dear Editor: Regarding the illegal selling of slingshots: I would think that if one runs a retail outlet, one should certainly be aware of all the pertinent laws. overturned, to quote the retailer. I do not think she should give them away ‘‘because her supplier won’t take them back.’’ I agree with Coun. Ernie Crist ‘that slingshots are Icthal weapons and pursuing the case. Why should the miscreant merely ‘“‘have her knuckles rap- ped’’ and not be fined the $500 or spend 60 days in jail according to aw? THREE WEEKS wandering around southera Ontario and the Maritimes, as the trees turn brilliant orange ané red f during this strangest fali election, have conviaced your.’ scribe of at least one truth. “Regional’’ the Reform party is NOT. Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and P.E.I. sprout green Reform lawn signs everywhere — even thougk the stricken economy of the Maritimes will lure them to vote for the Monopoly bucks promised by the Grits. In Metro Toronto, wealthy Markham, Kitchener-Waterloo, Burlington and Oakville the Reform signs adorn every block, Metro and local media coverage brackets Preston Manning daily alongside Kim Campbell and Jean Chretien, with McLaughlin and Bouchard trailing. Make no mistake. Except (this time) for Quebec, Reform now ranks, far outside its western - homeland, as a major national ‘party. But for all small ‘c’ conser- vatives that now brings a very real danger. The danger, of course, of split- ting the conservative vote between Tories and Reformers, thus han- ding the Liberals victory by ’ default. The irony being that the basic policies of the two right- wing parties make them natural allies. Both know that lasting employment depends on eliminating the deficit by cuts in government spending. Both also know this is impossi- ble without SOME cutbacks in social services. But Campbell, not daring to admit that self-evident fact, refuses to present any specific Tory plan. Trust Kim, is the party line — we'll tell you how we'll do it after you’ve elected us. Manning has the guts to give precise details of how he would go about the task, spelling out the painful truth about the financial crisis facing Canada, while dealing as gently as possible with such “sacred’’ social services as medicare, pensions and welfare. The overriding message from the electorate during the current campaign is the same as in last October’s Charlottetown referen- dum: don’t try to con us! Camp- bell is increasingly perceived as trying to do just that — hence her dramatic nosedive in the polls. So what does a caring conser- HITHER AND YON | vative — Tory, Reformer or as yet uficommitted — do to avert his/‘ her ultimate nightmare? The nightmare of a spendthrift Liberal minority government headed by a Trudeau-era retread, playing a cruel hoax on the unemployed with no money to fund its cynical short-term job creation promises. - And dependent on the support of a Quebec-only party dedicated to - destroying Canada. What the caring conservative « does is forget any former party .ties and vote in his/her riding foz the PC OR Reform candidate who - stands the best chance of winning:: the seat. It’s as simple as that. = HAPPY BIRTHDAY today, Oct.:, 13, to West Van Kiwanian Ron. Westcott . . . Many happy returns . of tomorrow, Oct. 14, to Socred leader-in-waiting Grace MeCar- thy... The same again to tomorrow's West Van birthday girls Beth Mathieson and Joan Greenwood . ... Likewise to North Van Lion Tom Hutchinson .. . And from the Better Late Dept., a great “‘new year’’ to Oct. 12 birthdsy boy Charles Disher of. West Van. WRIGHT OR WRONG: If you. : don't know where you’re going, ° said Henry Kissinger, every road will get y you nowhere. . Allison Michiels West Vancouver and must be restricted. I thank him for taking notice I do not think it is a petty mat- ter, nor that the bylaw should be Distribution 986-1337 Gs Subscriptions 986-1337 § Fax 985-3227 contains Administration 985-2131 peey recycled fibre Nortn Shore managed MEM8ER —- & ‘his Mewspapet Display Advertising 980-0511 Real Estate Advertising 985-6982 Classified Advertising 986-6222 Newsroom 985-2131 . . .Peter Speck Managing Editor ... Timothy Renshaw Associate Editor. ..... .Noel Wright Sales & Marketing Director Linda Stewart Comptroller .Doug Foot North Shore News, founded in 1969 as an independent suburban newspaper and qualified under Schedule 111, Paragraph lil of the Excise Tax Act, is published each Wednesday, Friday and Sunday’ by North Shore Free Press Ltd. and distribuled to every door on the North Shore. Ganada Post Canadian Publications Mail Sales Product Agreement No, 0087238. Mailing rates available on request. Submissions are welcome but we cannot accept responsibility for unsolicited material including manuscripts and pictures which should be accompanied dy a stampea, self- addressed envelope. Publisher . NEWS photo Clady Goxdman » NORTH VANCOUVER District Fire Services held a dedication | ceremony Oct. 7 at their training centre to unvell the Failen Firefighter Memoria! in honor. of Capt. Daniel Williams. Willams died accidentally in 1985 while working for the fire department. Firefighters John Weir and Dave Gould unvalied the memorial. per eres wala SUNDAY + WEONESOAY + FRIDAY 1139 Lonsdale Avenue, ~~ North Vancouver, B.C. V7M 2H4 Entire contents © 1993 North Shore Free Press Ltd. All rights reserved. 61,582 (average circulation, Wednesday, Friday & Sunday)