aoe 4 PNGB ELLER yg IE i gh 8 AES oy yep ae Hy mpee tem OE TE NR RE Mn DH ATES BH EH gl PARE py HiPery OCG EAT wo . ‘ . Page Ad ~ Terrace Standard, Wednesday, nay 9, 1990. Authored as second-class mail pending the Post Ctfies Department, for PAyMBAL Of postage in cash. , so) Eduard Credgeur TE - ‘Special. thanks to a = sh ‘Sports, Malcolm Baxtar:=-' Ke Y —s _ESTASUSHED coca * ine : a rough Compasiter, Rose Fisher — Front Offices Manager Our, ‘contributors. and: - Edltor _ Carn Andon ~ TpesttnDatro boreapandents. . Registration No, 7820 4647: Lazelle a. Terrace, BC., Vac 188 (604) 638-7203 si "Rod Link : ‘thelr: time and) See eit a Fale delpe and af bach mer by Caron Press {{969)L49. at 4847 Lazotia Ave. Terace, Bitish Columtia, <2 os aa oe a * Nalents: Besley 8 gene a statin 1 gr seices ay iene ie int aac ar ih pry o tm eon halders, Pedi Sern Press 1989). Is he Produotion Manager: eo , Reproduction in whos or in part, without written permission, is speciticully prowiboed EDITORIAL School district, board members should be forgiven for being reluctant to con- sider the subject of installing condom machines in secondary schools. In doing so they must deal with two issues — one of public health and one of emotions and morals. Unfortunately, they can’t deal with one without dealing with the other. The subject of condom machines in secondary schools first arose through a letter from the Skeena Health Unit sug-: gesting their installation would help pre- vent the spread of the HIV virus which leads to AIDS, Any move by the board to co-operate on a matter of public health would otherwise be welcomed and applauded. But the installation of condom machines then brings up the other mat- ter, the one that makes school trustees reluctant to talk about. This is that (no matter how much they, or other adults like to think otherwise) teenagers have sex, No amount of preaching, teaching, cajoling, pleading, threatening, videos, slide shows or modern education babble can prevent teenagers from doing so. Teenagers have always had sex. It’s just The real world one of those things. Barring locking them them in their rooms, there is no - way around it. Once trustees realize this, there then comes the problem of determining a‘ school’s role in the education of a young person. Is a school merely a place for the three Rs or is-it a place to prepare a young person for adult life? Is a school system a small portion of the greater society or is it a place where young peo- ple are kept in a never-never land where the real world doesn’t intrude on a rigid structure? ; And so the trustees face the questions. Will condoms in secondary schools help protect young ‘people from sexually .- transmitted diseases? Or will condoms in secondary schools encourage teenagers to take part in sexual activity? As reluctant as trustees may be, the - one reasonable thing they should so is allow the not fit the collective or single thinking of school board members. But it does recognize there is a real world out there. One for us _ The:. recent decision by the B.C, Utilities Commission to cut. B. con " Hydro’s latest rate increase is a small, but. significant victory for the people. Although the decision was written in terms about what kind of revenues are _nnecessary for the crown corporation, it also indicates governments can’t expect to have their actions whims go un; challenged. --B,.C, Hydro had wanted a rate in- crease of three per cent a year for the “Mext-three years. The official reason was to encourage energy conservation through higher | electrical prices. In reali- - ty, the government. decided it warited more money from the taxpayers.’ Since tax increases are unpopular’a back door way was found. That was to have crown corporations pay dividends to. the government. Those dividends would in | turn be derived from the corporations charging their customers more money. The planned increase was cut to 1.5 per cent. Since the effective date of the increase was last November, there will be credits on future B.C. Hydro bills. It _ won’t be a lot but it will be enjoyed. _ A deal is y don’t go along with Shames a deal Mountain Ski Corporation’s PR that taxpayers should share 29 per cent of their financial - risk because they're developing »@ ski hill which will serve the “community, Machine shops Through Bifocals by Claudette Sandeck!l ‘serve the community, too, but installation of condom ~ -machines in secondary schools. It may ‘they don’t expect taxpayers to _ take on their debts. Lf Shames’ backers had faith -in their project, they'd stake _ ‘their: private property as col- “Jateral fora bank loan, and not “ wimp out on their payment schedule yet again. <.t Shames’ directors may be "successful in their chosen fields, » but ‘as. ski hill developers, they best illustrate why TV's Venture ‘advises - enterpreneurs: Never tackle a business you know nothing about. In) 1986, after a decisive refetendum, the Regional istrict ‘of Kitimat-Stikine ught to. gel out of the ski hill debacle by accepting Shames’ $313, 650, principal and interest. Int the three and a half years jince, the Shames corporation as: ‘paid the grand sum of $3,000 (less than one percent of the purchase price, or $71 per nth), and renegotiated ‘the jayment schedule several times. Between the $456,952 egional district still owes on the yriginal loan taken out to fevelop Kitsumkalum, and the 313,650 Shames owes us, we xpayers. are funding $770,602 release us from an expensive At $21 or more per day for a Shames lift ticket, how many families will be ‘able. to ski regularly? Yet skiers argue Shames ski hill is necessary to keep Terrace’s: youth out of court. Consultant Dan Matthews predicts the Shames develop- ment will have paid for itself. in about three years. If thal’s so the regional district should renegotiate the . payment schedule a fourth time, We've already waited three and a half years, year if we can collect what? saw- ing to-us, Shames’ second pay- ment isn't due until’ 1992 anyway. If ever Shames Mountain Ski Corporation falls flat on. its financial face, I won’t feel guil- ty. Shames didn’t ask me before they started if I'd help them _ build a ski hill, Why do they now expect me to convert their = debt irito shares to serve as col. lateral so they can go even — deeper into debt by borrowing from a bank? \ ~ Should their judgement of bidding top dollar for what they ‘now describe as obsolele, worn out a rusting equipment strerigthen my faith in. their fulne of | predictlons for the pees What's an additional . I can understand why the regional district Shames’ payment schedule so many times: They were trying to follow voters referendum: in- structions. But memory of the referedum is fading. At the same.time’ their heads ‘are filling with fine fan-. tasies. Shames’’ spokespersons sweet talk them into sharing a dream, Already Kitimat and Terrace councils’ have fallen for. the © ruse. We need another election to remind them of their orders. “L raised our daughters with iio tules: Always get my okay before buying ‘anything 1] might have to help you pay. for.:Se- cond, if you make a deal, keep ‘That goes for Shames, too. renegotiated . the regional district's: -of powder. ‘sking. as; : CANT BRIAN oy HELP YOu? - VICTORIA — Their logo “spells “realwomen.”’ They are “. against, abortion, They are also. "against homosexuals, lesbians and anyone who says anything .on their behalf, tole. they, also. spread a... . ‘Message of hatred and i dns, - . tolerance toward afore: . : ‘mentioned homosexuals .and., lesbians, The R.E.A.L. stands for realistic, equal, active for « life. - Initially, [ was inclined not to tar the entire organization with the same brush. After all, it had been only one woman, Peggy Steacy, president of the British Columbia chapter of R.E.A.L, women president, who started the current furore. Steacy was the author of a newsletter that attacked les- _ bians, gays and feminists in a “manner that easily qualifies as ‘hate literature. Given an op- -portunity to distance . themselves from Steacy’s - remarks, members of the Organization agreed _ wholeheartedly, instead and must, therefore, share the ‘ blame. The letter says, among other things, that Mare Lepine, the .man who killed 14 women at the Unviersity of Montreal last December, might easily have * been. a man whose child was “aborted, | Steacy's diatribe against gays . and lesbians was more than just an attack. She went into virtual hysterics, talking of the “filthy habits'’’ engaged in by ‘homosexuals in what was fast becoming known as ‘‘Sodom ~ of the North’’ (Vancouver). **Most decent people do not know the disgusting, filthy ac- tivities indulged in by these -people, homos and lesbians - . both,” she ranted, - As for AIDS victims, Steacy _ complained that quite apart : from all moral considerations, ‘‘we are paying roughly ~ $100,000 a year to look after AIDS patients .. . who are ‘ ‘simply reaping what they have , HONESTLY SKOOKOM EDINT Se How Mv “SOMANY BURRS 7 IN YOUR FuR!! A. They espouse | hristian, prin: vig aT a =) hii WELL, T SPEND | From the . - Capital by Hubert Beyer - sown.”! What would you sug>. ‘gest, Madam, euthanasia? Or perhaps, we should simply | deny them treatment. ‘Women's centres which have been stripped of federal fun- ding also came in for Steacy’s wrath. These centres, she said, — were ‘‘nothing more than. ~ drop-in centres disseminating a lot of antigovernment, feminist literature.” What an incredible thing to say. Perhaps a woman who . 2 has just been raped and seeks “e ’ solace, moral support and : assistance at such a centre for © women could give Steacy.a better. answer to thal stupid remark than I’can: So much for R.E. ALL, women, The other interesting’ aspect of this controversy was the government's reaction. - Premier Vander Zalm, who had a duty to denounce the mean and malignant premise of the newsletter — the government has paid for the postage to send it out — did ‘nothing of the kind. _ I’ve never seen him running as fast, irying to escape seporlers, “And all he would. "say was he.won't be party to any censorship. It was asad ° ‘performance by the premier. Fortunately, Carol Gran, minister of women’s programs ‘reacted quite differently. She was a speaker at the conven- tion and didn't waste the op- ~ portunity to make her views known, - A. few days before the con. . vention, Gran had already con- demned the contents of the newsletter, saying. it smacked - of hateliterature, But she add- ; ed that there was material.on -both sides of the debate that ~ could be classified as hate - a ‘be, perhaps we should be 2 to REAL women * Hiterature: sth in her address to R.E, A. L. women, Gran left no doubt what she thought of Steacy’ 8 ' letter. “In a country like Canada; there is no room for in- _. tolerance,” she told the * delegates. ‘I would urge all‘of. the delegates here today to re- __ ject publicly the: contents of . "that letter,”? she added. - “Those of you who do not agree with intolerance must”: ‘stand up and be.counted, The. credibility of your organization is bigger than protecting the © views of few people,” Gran’ said, at “Unfortunately, her appeal * fell on deaf ears. Betty Green, president of the Vancouver. a Right to Life Society, called . Gran’s performance | | “disgusting.” : Steacy’s opinions, sadly -- . shared by quite a number of. Canadians, are in direct con- tragt to the reputation for -- _ tolerance. we all. like to:claim.* for ourselves, Steacy and com- pany equate tolerance with en- dorsement and approval. In Nazi Germany, - homosex: , 4 uals were killed: and as recent ly as 20 years ago, hamosex-.” uals in Canada risked being: jailed. I'd like to know what: fate R.E.A.L. women would -have in store for them, Gon-' sidering the hysterical tone‘of- _ the newsletter, I shudder tor" , speculate, — ‘But’ disturbing: as'the hate: mongering of Organizations: a such as R.E.A-L. women may grateful to them. At least they keep the hate mongers in on place where we can keep an; eye on them, . FJoud al or of TIME .. » LOOKING FoR Goer BURR. PATCHES !t!