A6 - Friday, September 14, 1984 - North Shore News

EE editorial page

Sunday tide

UCH AS some citizens and mer-
chants may deplore Sunday shopp-
ing, it seems here to stay. Among
Lower Mainland municipalities only West
Van and Surrey are still holding out--and now
even West Van is considering a referendum on
the issue.

Churchgoers and other traditionalists
argue that Sunday shopping destroys the
Sabbath day of rest and ‘‘renewal’’, plung-
ing society still deeper into naked materi-
alism. And some merchants fear Sunday
business, stolen from other days of the week,
may be insufficient to cover their extra
overhead.

Nevertheless, the surge of women into the
workplace and the two-wage-earner family-
-with its bigger disposable income but less
free time shared by spouses or partners—
means Sunday is often the only day when
they can shop together as a couple. The very
positive consumer response to Sunday shopp-
ing in adjacent municipalities indicates that
for many working households it is a real
boon.

As to the merchants, experience elsewhere
suggests the additional overhead can be more
than balanced by the higher saies-per-hour
volume, Sunday hours normally being
shorter than on weekdays. And closed stores,
of course, inevitably lose business to com-
petitors in neighboring areas who are open.

Local communities, even if out of step, are
entitled to decide these matters for
themselves. Except for stores in malls,
legalized Sunday shopping doesn’t COMPEL
any individual, merchant or customer, to
participate. But it’s pretty clearly the tide of
the future and, in the long run, attempts to
halt it are likely to prove as futile as those of
King Canute.

Mutiny strikes!

hame on the only two smokers left on
NV District council, Joan Gadsby and
Jim Ball, for introducing that new anti-
smoking bylaw. It’s bad enough for

persecuted puffers to be losing the battle
against today’s 70% of non-smokers, without
being struck by mutiny among their own
troops!

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THIS PAPER !S RECYCLABLE

ow the courts protect kids

N BRITISH COLUMBIA,
special] legal rights. At the same time, they are
prevented from doing certain things, because

of their age.

These rules are based on
the notion that an immature
child is not responsible for
his or her acts, and that
maturity is gained slowly
over a period of years. For
example, we allow children to
drive a car at 16, but prohibit
them from drinking liquor in
public until they are 19.

In B.C. a child attains the
age of majority on his or her
19th birthday. Unul a child
reaches that coveted age of
majority, the law describes
him or her as a minor or an
infant.

In B.C., the Infants Act
has some special provisions
which are designed to protect

children have

BRITISH COLUMBIA.
minors from making unwise
decisions about their own
economic welfare.

First, a contract entered in-
to by a person under 19 is
void, and unenforceable.
There are two exceptions to
this general rule. Minors may
contract for necessaries, such
as food, clothing, shelter and
other essentials. In addition,
a minor who is over 16 and is
not living with a parent may
enter into an cmployment
contract.

Second, if a minor is in-
volved in a court action, his

or‘her legal rights must be
represented by a guardian.
The guardian may be a
parent, another person ap-
pointed by the court, or the
public trustee.

If parents act as guardians,
they do not have the legal
right to approve settlement of
a court case prior to trial.

For example, suppose that
a minor is injured in a motor
vehicle accident. If the in-
surance company proposes to
settle the case for $10,000 or
less, the public trustee must
approve it. If the proposed
settlement is for over
$10,000, the court must ap-
prove it.

Once a settlement is made
the monies are paid into
court, and are held there for
the minor’s benefit until age

19. If the minor needs some
or all of that fund before age
19, for expenses such as
medical treatment or educa-
tion, an application may be
made to the court.

Third, any property owned
by a minor may be transfer-
red only through the public
trustee. For example, if
parents put title to a piece of
real estate in their child’s
name, or purchase a winning
lottery ticket in their child’s
name, that property or pro-
ceeds belongs to the child,
and may be transferred to so-
meone else only with the
public trustee’s approval.

ln deciding whether to ap-
prove such a transfer the
public trustee will always ask
himself whether it is in the
best interests of the minor.

LETTER OF THE DAY

Working against madness

Dear Editor:

You have published a great
many letters on the subject of
the arms race in recent mon-
ths I want to congratulate
you for keeping the issuc in
the public cye when so many
members of the media choose
to ignore it

Two years ago | was un
committed. Like most pco-
ple, 1 was horrified by the
potential destructiveness of
nuclear weapons but, at the
game time, | believed they
«were my best defence

As a writer I had inter.
viewed pcoplc involved in the
peace movement While what
they had to say always made
me feel uncomfortable, 1
always discreetly set aside
their pamphiets and books. |
was afraid of the complicity
surrounding this issue
afrard that | would have to
think, have to analyze
matenal for myself and, in
the end, have fo get involved

in Apni 1983 | planned a
month in the sun - always an
opportunity to read some
thick novels. But, while in the
bookstore, | passed the sec-
tion on the nuclear contro-
versy and | felt guilty. 1
realized | knew an incredible
amount of trivia but I did not
understand the major issuc of
our time. | realized | had
bought, wholesaic, the opi-
nions of others. I had not
thought it out for myself.

We took cight books on
our vacation They were all
on the same subjycct, nuclear
war and its) prevention
Reading them was no picnic
One day 1 felt depressed - the
acxt clated. I read both sides
but knew I had to get off the
fence. Affier three weeks of
thinking and looking out
across the Paafic Ocean
towards where the first bomb
was dctonaticd, 1 decided to
work for a venfiabic, mult
latcral freeze on nuctear
weapons.

1 joined a peace group

(without ny assistance from.

the Kremlin) and began my
own personal campaign. |
wrote to my M.P. and receiv-
ed his standard response to
**peaceniks’’. Every = single
politician to respond has
shown incredible ignorance
on the subject and a singular
reluctance to think creatively
on a global scale. It ts a sad
fact that anyone who reads in
details about the nuclear
threat will probably know
more than most membcrs of
their own government - until
it really becomes an cliection
issuc

For those of you in North
and West Vancouver who are
trying to decide where you
stand, 1 highly recommend
the documentary ““U S. vs
U.S.S.R.: Who's Ahead’.
which won the Bluc Ribbon
Award at the New York Film
Festival in June. It cnables
you to compare your op
aions on the arms race with

those of renowned military
and intelligence experts.

It answers hard questions
such as — Is the Sovict Union
really militarily superior to
the United States? It gives
both sides and is the most
thorough and powerful
presentation of facts on
military spending currently in
circulation. It lasts only 28
minutes and can be seen on
September 27 at 7:30 p.m. at
the North Shore Unitarian
Church, 370 Mathers, West
Vancouver.

! have alrcady gained s0
much from my own small ef-
forts to effect change. But
what | want, more than
anything, ts to be able to tell
my child) that 1) worked
against a form of madness
that used to threaten the
future of our planet | hope
we will both be able to laugh
at the stupidity of it afl

Vicki O'Brien
North Vancouver