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Page 4, The Heraid, Thursday, June 12, 1980

ERRACE/KITIWAT

daily herald

General Office - 635-6357 Published by

Citculation - 635-6357 Sterling Publishers

PUBLISHER .— - Calvin McCarthy EDITOR . Greg Middleton CIRCULATION

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i

The federal government will shortly intreduce legislation to decriminalize marlijvana use, and It’s about time. .

. The legistation has been sitting in the wings for about 15 years now. Decriminalizing the use of cannabis will not mean possession of the drug will be legal. Trafficking, in marijuana will

‘still carry heavy penalties.

The legislation, if it is presented In the form in which it was drafted years ago, willsimply remove the stiff penalties for possession of small quantities for per- sonal. use.

There Is little doubt that heavy use of. the drug Is harmful. No doubt some of the money from the trade In the drug goes fo organized crime.

To continue to keep on the books a law which Is being: largely Ignored and Impose a criminal record on thousands for using a mild intoxicant while allowing the use of liquor and cigarettes is unwarranted.

The courts have long since realized that social use of marijuana is a small indiscretion and responded by lowering

the fines imposed. It Is. about time the

. government followed suit and eliminated the stigma a criminal record brings.

(— 1

“EDITOR'S JOURNAL

- by GREG MIDDLETON

L

Conservative MP Pat Carney is making all kinds of cluck-clucking noises about the hookers on Vancouver streets, and asking the federal government to give the police the power to clamp down on the commerce in sexual services.

It is rather ironic that the police are concerned about the now noisy trade in what has always been one of Vancouver’s biggest tourist attractions. It was the

- police who drove the hookers aut onto the street inthe -

first place. The prostitutes used to be a going concern in several

"of the downtown bars. It was not only well known that

you could pick upa little piece in certain places but the management would put it on your charge card. Taking

~ a fee for this service and charging the hookers and

their clients extra to come back into the cabaret was construed by the vice squad boys as living off the avails. Nice try, but close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. oe What did result from harassing the hotel owners was that the professional ladies had no other place to go but into the street. Taking some of their ill-gotten gains toa sharp Vancouver shyster got a couple of the girls off soliciting charges when a judge ruled that standing there and agreeing to go with a man who approached them was hardly soliciting. This opened it up. The police then found they ‘eouldn’t get a soliciting case through the court. And since the heat was off, the amateurs moved in. Now the streets are worked by the part-timers, No more are all the working girls druggies and low lifers. Some of the stuff that is for sale are secretaries trying to supplement their salaries and college kids working their way through. Oh, there are still the hard liners. Some of the pros

still take your money and go shoot it straight into their

arm. Many, however, find that a little on the side helps pay therent, The younger ones, and some are in their teens, find that the $50,000 a year they can make on their back in a hotel room is better than the $500 a month they can make on their feet hustling ham- burgers or answering a phone in an office.

It’s hard to argue with that.

The answer, of course, is not to spend a lot of tax- payers’ dollars to chase the hookers around, hassle

. them through the courts and into jail, but to legalize

and tax them.

_. For good reason prostitution is called the oldest . profession. There will always be men who will prefer

to pay for it and women selling their services.

Contro! is what's called for.

What is upsetting everyone is that the whole thing has become a nuisance. The shoppers are disrupting the flow of traffic down some main thoroughfares, some tourists are being turned . off, too.

Perhaps the best place for the pros to put out their gigns would be in the province’s proposed convention center. By renting out a few rooms and charging a finder's fee the Socreds could probably pay for the thing without using any federal funds. If business is as good in the tenderloin as Carney says it is, it might be a paying proposition for the province to put in hospitality rooms for the hookers.

This way we couldsave money and make the streets sate for sensitive Tory MPs.

_. The pimps are a

other," said Nicol. “They a0- elalize together quite a bit."

He said police can identify many pimps but cannot get criminal chargea laid without long Investigations consisting of weeks of sur- veillance. Therefore they, tend to concentrate on prostitution rackets ox-

VANCOUVER (CP) — Women are auctioned like cattle for as little as $200 a head to work as prostitutes ‘on Vancouver streets, police

gay.

The sellers are aaid to be pimps whe no longer want the prostitute because she is

lazy or wants to work for someone else.

And, on occasion, a pimp U.S. leaving town will auction Low-class prostitutes get his entire “stable” —wsually $90 to $60 for sex while the consisting of up to five betierclass hookers get $80 to

women. $100,

Police say they are vir- Detective Esko Kajander tually powerless to take said the pimpe get about i) acon to stop the sales - per cent of their girls’ ear- because the prostitutes view pimps as their caly security and refuse to lodge com- Paints. 7

“A prostitute is working in chances. When she walks avery sordid area,”’ ssid In- spector Bill Nicol, head of | , the city vice squad. “She getting ae feels she needs to have a Pollee specuiate that 70

bilizing influence."” per cent of the 500 proetitutes

Nicol, a member of the working Vancouver streets Vancouves police de a pean pimps, Pe most ment for 33 years, . ersc not unusual for pimps to sell own to avoid bringing heat proatitutes for $300 to $1,000 on their “old man.” ' depending on earning power. A prostitute working the

“Most pimps know each street without a pimp is

tending into Alberta and the -

be on their -

tly harassed by olber ’ She said he then bragged

regula

girls who fear thelr prices will be undercut. Freelance bookera also find themssives subjected to, violence if they . refuse to. work for a pimp, sald Kajander. —

Pimps constantly are looking for new recruits, said Nicol, and after seducing a girl into the trade, his favorite woman acts as supervisor, making sure the newcomer works and. turns over the money.

In return for soliciting, the woman is provided with the necessities such as clothing and a furnished apartment, but if she gets out of line, the pimps professed love quickly turns to violent anger

A 1@-year-old hooker, who failed t> turn over her earnings to her 31-year-old pimp, said she was kicked and slapped. ;

“My face was swollen and *T couldn't open my jaw. But I didn't want to go to the dactor because I couldn't tell

broken. one girl's- nose, locked another in a closet for days, and thrown another girl out of a sscondstorey window.” — :

Adds Nicol; ‘Prostitutes

sed people in the world.” Not alll pimps fit the public image of fleshy clothes and . cara and fashionable discos. In some cases they are husbands and boyfriends who, like the prostitutes they We ccah fo nupport "a ca sg = heroin habit, =

Vice officers speculate that 50 to 90 per cent of the low-class hookers are ad-

dicts. . - ‘And while vice officers complain they work with inadequate federal soliciting lawa,-they manage to keep a lid on the problem, sald

jander.

him how It happened.” “Otherwise, plmps would A soyear-old, hooker de- be far more out of co scribed how she was beaten - They'd come in and with a “pimp stick” — two over completely.” .

problem: *—

of assault on other. womet, “He. claimed to have’

are probably thé..moat | abused

attending

control... take

ONT CANAL ISSUE... MHL AY RASONNG?

Te) OS Can

| WO ELSON Zig-ZAGAING FLIP-FLOPPING, LOSS OF CREDIBILITY...

sattote

Ou |

Comment from the legislature

By JIM FULTON.

I was recently part of the Canadian delegation that met with American Congressmen and Senators in California. This meeting was arranged through the Canada-U.S. inter-parliamentary group and is part of a regular, annual series. This was my first exchange trip of this nature and I found it a useful experience.

The meetings dealt Poe ; with a number of im- portant bi-lateral issues concerning energy, the ‘environment, the economy, and general Canada-U.S. relations. I am very concerned about American attitudes. towards our country and §j our citizens.

The Congressmen and , Senators that .attended the sessions were, on the whole, very un- sympathetic to the needs and grievances that we ». presented. 7 i

On environmental matters such as increased west coast tanker traffic, the Garrison water diversion project in Dakota-Manitoba, transboundary acid rain (which is now costing Canada hundreds of millions in

damage from American pollution), and the Yukon- Alaska Caribou treaty; American attitudes were not open to our views. They either fail to admit that there is a problem in Canadian terms or fail to consider solutions that would assist us.

Although the bulk of my time was spent in energy and environment sessions, my NDP colleague Bob Rae (MP from Torcnto) attended the economic sessions and found similar attitudes. The difficulties Canada has experienced in the auto pact (hundreds of millions in deficit trade balance), with the Alaska gas pipeline, the eastcoast boundary and fishing agreement and other joint economic matters went largely unappreciated by the U.S. delegates. In almost every instance only a stronger economic and diplomatic position by Canada will see the U.S. positions change in this respect.

In short, Canada is going to have to get very tough in bargaining sessions and in our relationship with the U‘S. The east coast treaty is a case in point. After hard

€

A REPORT.

bargaining in which both sides made concessions, an agreement was reached on fishing rights and the international boundary. ;

Canada has ratified the agreement but it has been held up by U.S. Senators, including presidential hopeful Edward Kennedy. In this period US. fishermen have continued to overharvest scallops, polloch (in these cases they have taken more than double the agreed quotas) and other species in what would have been, and in my view still is, the Canadian zone. The U.S. administration has done nothing. How much longer can we afford to turn the other cheek to this abuse of good faith? Of direct concern to many

Skeena fishermen; action on west coast issues will not.

occur until at least the Georges Bank issue is settled.

Time and time again, on the issues we discussed, unilateral action by the U.S. endangers, threatens, or lessens Canadian positions or freedom of actions.

’ Where is our federal government on these issues? For

too long the Liberals have been coasting onthe ‘good neighbour’’ assumptions that in part explains why the US. owns and controls our economy. Our government must stand up for Canadian interests. We have the leverage In terms of resources and belief in our country and we must use it.

As a nation we cannot continue to rely upon good- will. I saw, first hand, that the American appreciation for our neighbourliness, for our rescue efforts in Iran, does not extend to the bargaining table. They are tough and hardnosed. For American politicians, national self-interest comes first and foremost, The Liberal government must respond in like fashion to ensure Canadian interests are protected. mc

_ One interesting sidelight to this meeting eccured in Ottawa after my return. Bob Rae and I issued a statement to the national press outlining our concerns on the U.S. attitude. Predictably, the Liberal govern- ment did not respond. But Conservative members of the delegation, including B.C. Conservative MP’s criticized Mr. Rae and myself for publicly stating our concerns. I can only assume the Conservative party warts more of the same from the U.S. and doesn’t want any New Democrats rocking the boat; or to put it another way, to stand up for Canada first.

I remind all Terrace residents that my represen- tative can be reached at 638-1818 in order to get in- formation or to get assistance. Or, you can write tome directly care of the House of Commons, Ottawa, Ontario Ki1A 0X2 (no postage required).

\ ‘

, ue by RODNEY WADE|

* tne risen popolarity of soccer as a spectator and

- participant sport in North America suggests im- —

minent social change: In that it distills those values held sacred by society, sport in general - and for this piece, soccer in particular - is life’s metaphor. ~~ Two nations: alone. refer to as football that gam played with an egg-shaped ball. Elsewhere, it is rugby -or rugby football.; In countries other than Canada or- America, football. implies soccer. 4 North America football derives from twin Ideals:

"utility and uniqueness. If soccer and rugby - in their '

original European incarnations - were casual and disorganized, their. players drifting without apparent purpose into random. sections of the field, like im- migrant's becalmed boats at Neptune’s mercy, the New World must be different. :

‘

-) WADE} —

Utility, meanwhile, is a concept poth close and dear :

tothe North American soul. In a society whose values

are cwled more from advertising slogans than the

evidence of history - it was ever so - the epithet - “TE it

-works, use it” - is the pragmatic refrain not merely of progressive entrepreneurs but of football coaches, too.

North American football reflects a style of life

native to this continent. The game is a mirror held up ' to the‘ values and aspirations of goal-oriented |

existence. If the object is to win by scoring points in numbers superior to an opponent coaches must devise 4 stratagems by which the ball is propelied relentlessly, ‘single successful step by single successful step, over that opponent's tine. . So too in the game of life. Success-oriented North Americans propelled by the combined motivations of Puritan work. ethics, imaginations tittilated by

television, fearful of impending catastrophe, filled -

with normal human greed find in football--a celebration of their values. ; ; For victory in life requires: participants proceed

step by step - if necessary by devious or'violent means -

- overall opposition. In the personalities of success- yearning-fans and goal-hungry players life and sport are one. The final whistle blows but the game con- tinues in street and office, boardroom and bedroom.

Out of the well-springs of yarkee hokum, from the deep, dark experiences of frontier life and the modern

- computerised psychology of a ‘get-things-done’’ in-

dustrial giant is hatched a game played by numbers; where points are production, players units of capital equipment and golden scores etched bright and clear. on a digital board are soon transmuted into those

black and red truths on the bottom line of a balance |

sheet. In sum, players and fans of football hold that

‘ achievement results from planning, that programs

produce progress. . Soccer afficionados inhabit a different world. Soccer is no game of relentless progress any more

than European - or South American - life is a gun-ho .

goal-oriented: get-up-and-go experience. Planning thete may be, but of greater-importance is that innate ability at improvization, the instinctive skill. which allows the spotting of gaps as they arise, the balletic technique which fills them - at speed and with pace, bravado andthe glories or spontaneous action. The game is as their life: a process of coping with the unexpected, unravelling the strands of life, following wherever they lead.

Plots may be devised in advance of action, more for.’

the sake of form than out of belief in their efficacy. . The prevailing - perhaps unconscious - philosophy holds that a real life is not subject to plans. Burns - and his ‘best faid schemes 0’ mice an’ men,gang aft a- gley,’ encapsulates pure essence of soccer whose fans

" know life cannot be programmed, that the unexpected will always occur, and that one must learn to aceept and handle these vicissitudes. _

Pragmatism. is inimicable to Old World soccer. - their politics may be included also - for, when con- sidered within accepted social parameters, it smacks of ungentlemanly behavior. Most appropriate would be this motto: “‘If it works, think aboutit.”

Soccer players, coaches and fans - this idealizes a basic truth - enjoy evenings on the Left Bank in Paris sipping wine, or swill beer at some local pub in the late-grey backstreets of England. They revel not in well-planned military formations scourging opponents drills, For them significance lies in those unexpected nuances, the’ subtleties and extravaganzas which hallmark a rich, full-bodied humaniifetime. Thelrs’ is an existance governed by process rather than goals. Achievement, accepted as occasionally desirable,

must be kept in perspective for the sake of sanity and

the quality of existence. The game’s the thing, the feel of the ball, pad of boot

on turf, shivers in cold showers, the dank, mildewed*

odor of a crowded, ancient locker room. When all is said and done it’s the comeraderie of a Saturday. af- lernoon and the soft promise of a sociable Saturday night. . ;

games were liquids, soccer would be vintage wine

and foothall soda pop. If sports were people, soccer. .

would be Aristotle, Plato, Jesus, Mozart, Einstein and their ilk: football Billy the Kid, Richard Nixon, Neil Armstrong and any politician et al. If sports were food, ‘soccer would be crepes, pate, quiche and souffle, football merely Big Macs, Kentucky chicken and take- out pizza.

For North Americans changes are imminent. In large numbers they worry about their lifestyle - if life itbe. Serious questions are posed about the wisdom of excluding from total experience all but those activities which promote quick goal achievement.

The rise in the popularity of soccer brings early -

warning of those anticipated changes, a hint from the

collective unconscious that the human psyche - for all

it flourishes under success - grows stunted, warped, irialignant when only one side of its immense capacity is utillzed. . mo

4 ———

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