To the Editor, Aayhow. The pom that Tam something that should have Happened When you graduate and | | am writing in response to the article titled Youth Violence and other Menaces to Society by Scott Bishop ( 20 September 1996). | found this article to sway off topic and give the reader a false impression of reality. | was born and raised in Prince Rupert and this topic touched a nerve. It was not made Clear how much time the author spent in our town, but | suspect that he did not spend enough time in Prince Rupert to truly understand and decipher everything that has been going on in the area for some time now. Yes, it is true that there is violence occurring in Prince Rupert, along with many other British Columbia towns or cities. The problem is young offenders filling the streets after the sun goes down. Many of them are looking for money, but obviously that is not always the case. The author did mention how barbaric the Prince Rupert teens were, although he failed to mention the actual root of the problem; where these teens are coming from and what they are struggling with in their homes. These teens are struggling with much more because what they have to go through is a vicious continuous cycle. The police of Prince Rupert, Contrary to popular belief, have worked _ extremely hard through the whole _ Course of this problem. Actually, | ~ applaud them for a job well done with the resources available. | was around the town before, during and after the murder and | personally saw how the police were handling the situation. They were there to protect many people, although it is difficult to protect every inebriated person leaving the bar, unable to walk and carry loads of cash in their wallets. Wherever you may be, you always have to be careful of what you are doing, especially at night. the death of Tyrgue Magnusson sparked a flame in many of the “Rupertites”, myself . included. it may be possible that his death could have been prevented, but not because the police were not doing their job, because there are only so many police to go around the small town of 17,000 people. | support, and always have the idea of a curfew. Of course more action is going to come out of a town when something tragic as a murder OCCUrS because no one Wants to see a repeat. trying to make is that it is not fair to bash Prince Rupert because of one incident. My deepest sympathy to the - author with his bad experience in Prince Rupert and | am sorry that his friend allowed him to walk home. But not everybody has a bad experience and it is not his job to deter people from the beautiful scenic coast. Yes prince Rupert has a problem, but Prince Rupert is not the only one with this problem. Georgina Nelson. Dear Editor, ; Re: Wednesday, 6 September, 1995: Gender Equity (for women only) | would like to inform Mr. Makowichuk and the rest of his ilk that | could care less if he wants to have a sex change operation... however, | do have some coin in my pocket and maybe | can help him achieve his goal: but personally, I'm quite happy with my trimmings. Mr. "M” as | will call him, asks the reader, “ When was the last time you leafed through a course selection newspaper and noticed a ‘Men's studies’ class? Or...How long has it been since we saw a case of male sexual harassment in the news?” Let me shed some light on the issue here. Firstly, men are assaulted everyday by women, but men are less likely to report the abuse. I.E. When was the last time you heard, “Mr. Police Officer, my wife (girlfriend, mother, aunt, grandmother, sister] just smacked me square in the face, and | would like to press assault charges on her." —fet the picture? A man is less likely to admit to anyone that he has been assaulted — especially by a woman. Could you imagine the ridicule he would have to go through? Not reporting is equivalent to keeping his masculinity intact. Secondly, Men's studies are a true rarity today— not surprising, when you consider that the entire planet is run by the patriarchy . all the prophets were male, [women were too dumb to be prophets right?], and 56 percent of this planet is occupied by women, yet they are the true minorities in all societies: most women with a BA can only hope to make af much money as a man with only a grade 72 education. Thirdly, Mr. “M” assumes that there is an increasing “feminist distaste for men.” | beg to differ; women today, are going through. centuries ago, it’s called “conscious raising”. There are courses today, appropriately called “Woman's Studies” which try to show women that, yes, they too can be autonomous in the world of paternity, and have every equal right to do so. Not only that, but women do more work in every field imaginable, and then some. Furthermore, much to your chagrin, the best combat-fighter pilots in the world are the women from Israel... you should phone up one some day and ask her to come over for some teal As a final note Mr. °M”, if you receive COLD stares from women when you hold the door open for them, remember this: In a politically correct world, WOMEN are quite capable of opening their own doors. Kevin Larson Student, U.N.B.C Dear Editor, | have read and reread the article by Jason Morris entitled, “The New Campus Radicals”, and | have concluded that the wind blowing Jason's kite keeps changing directions. | do not fault him for this as it is not a simple matter to sort out what is radical and what is conservative these days. Right and Left have lost the clear meanings they had in the days of Karl Marx. The constant in the equation that has remained unchanged since the days of the Communist Manifesto is that the Capitalists rule the world. It has become unfashionable to think of our society in terms of class, but this remains a class-based society. We, at the bottom, can squabble over the dismantling of the welfare state and it makes no difference to the powerful. The ideology of the rich ( that is, the Holy Market, and Global Competitive- ness) has taken over all of the political parties. No matter which party comes out on top the rich win. Noam Chomsky once said that the United States was the first industrialized nation to have a single political party with two factions. Now Canada has one party with several factions. No party is challenging the Establishment in any way that could threaten it. There is no place in the Current scheme of things for those who would have been considered Radical in earlier days. enter the nasty world out there with your sheepskin in your hand and your student loan on your back you will fight for the crumbs of the rich. you will probably try to find one of those elusive middle class jobs that are so rapidly disappearing. You will have no claim to that natural wealth that has recently seen Canada rated as the second most wealthy country in the world in per Capita resources. those resources are not ours: They have been claimed by the Corporations, mostly foreign, that have been allowed by our politicians to take them. §o carry on and split hairs over ideology as the ship sails on. None Of Us will have a turn at the helm unless and until there is a sea change in the relations between the classes. The rich Will not yield power to reform movements; it would require a revolution and that would only happen if people wake up to what is being done to them. Don’t hold your breath. James Loughery. LETTER 10 THE EDITOR EDITOR 10 THE LETTER STAFF CREDITS EDITORS PAUL BERARD MANPREET SIDHU WRITERS RICHARD KRUEGER ’ SCOTT BISHOP PAUL BERARD CHARLES HOGG ‘JASON’ VINCE YIM CHARLOTTE MCLEAN JES BURKITT IAN LORENZ POETS ANONYMOUS KELLY SHAFER KEN RENSBY GRAPHICS ROB BAIRD LUCAS HILLS LAYOUT LENA HENNING JES BURKITT PAUL BERARD PHOTOS GREG MUNBY PEOPLE, PLACES AND WILDLIFE OF THE WORLD OCTOBER 17, 1995 AUTAI REPUBLIC: ROOFTOP OF SIBERIA WIM KESSLER, FORESTRY OCTOBER 24, 1995 » AUSTRALIA: COAST 10 COAST KEW PERAER, BIOLOGY ALL SHOWS AT 12:00 NOON IN ROOM 7-238. ADMISSION IS FREE.