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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Times-Advocate, 2002-11-20, Page 6well. Paul Ciufo, my hat is off to you. Zach Homuth who spoke at the high school assembly - bravo, you do remember. Overwhelmed at the turnout at the nation’s capital, being an ex-service man and losing a close friend while serving with the United States, it meant a lot to me to see the gathering of our nation. We are now in another conflict and I pray that no more lives are lost. We have lost four. Let us not for- get them. We do have lots to remember - WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Persian Gulf, and now in Afghanistan the war on terrorism. Lest we forget. STEVE DETTMER, Exeter Writer not aware of advertisement Dear Editor: This letter is in regards to the advertisement placed in last week’s Times Advocate stating that Trevor Edwards is now the manager of the Kill Floor at Thames Road Country Meats. I would like to send the message to the public that I was not aware of or consulted with before this advertisement was placed and that I have nothing whatsoever to do with Thames Road Country Meats (formerly Veal’s Meat Market) and never will and do not appreciate having my name exploited in such a manner. Thank you for bringing this to the public’s atten- tion. Sincerely, TREVOR EDWARDS POLICE BRIEFS Driver’s door caved in CREDITON – Sometime over the Nov. 9-11 weekend, a 1987 white Ford flat bed truck in a parking lot at Consolidated Signs & Lighting on Victoria Ave. E. in Crediton was damaged in a hit and run. Huron OPP report damage to the driver’s door is con- sistent with a vehicle driving into it and caving it in. Anyone with information is asked to please call Huron OPP or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222- 8477(TIPS). Computer,musical instruments stolen from church SOUTH HURON – Huron OPP report a break-in overnight Nov. 4-5 at the Exeter Pentecostal Tabernacle on Hwy. 4 in Usborne. A door to the church was forced open and an IBM computer, a burgundy Fender Joss electric guitar, a red Godin electric guitar, pearl six- piece drum set and speakers valued at over $5,000 were stolen. Anyone who can help solve this break-in and theft is asked to call the Exeter OPP office or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477(TIPS). 6 Wednesday, November 20, 2002Exeter Times–Advocate Opinion&Forum &News Panther Profile EXETER — On Thursday at 9 a.m., there will be a drug awareness assembly in the large gym of SHDHS. The program is titled “Know the Score.” Parents and members of the community are welcome to join the students and hear Julian Madigan speak on the issue of drug abuse. The SHDHS Girls Basketball team is heading to St. Mike’s Nov. 22 for WOSSA. Good luck Panthers! The Manufacturing Class is going on a field trip to Fanshawe College in London on Nov. 26. They will be learning about Tool and Dye, Robotics and Pneumatics programs. Grad photos are the week of Nov. 25-29 on the stage of the large gym. Students must sign up in the office to get their pictures done. South Huron’s Panthers are holding a fund-raiser by selling chocolate to raise money for Student Council events and pro- grams, including clubs, athlet- ics and dances. Students who had picture re-takes done can pick up their picture package in the office. Student Cards may be picked up in the office as well. Coming events Nov. 19-20 — Shakespeare on Wheels in Stratford Nov. 20 — College presentation: Canadian Forces at 10:20 a.m. — Drug Abuse Seminar for parents: Clinton Town Hall 2:30 - 4:30 p.m. Nov. 21— Drug Awareness assembly 9 a.m.- 10:15 a.m. in large gym — Boys basketball: Stratford NW at South Huron Nov. 22 — Girls basketball: WOSSA at St. Mike’s — Boys hockey: South Huron at St. Anne’s Nov. 26 — Manufacturing Class: Field trip to Fanshawe College Nov. 27 — University presentation: Redeemer at 9 a.m. Nov. 25-29 — Grad Photo week Nov. 28 — Flu shots Dec. 6 — PA Day Dec. 9 — South Huron bands: Christmas Concert Dec. 11 — Drama: Greek Theatre Dec. 12 — Semi-Formal dance Teen corner A More Violent Society? It's an argument that has been going on for decades, mostly concerned with television programming. Is television violence really desensitizing people to real violence? With movies and video games becoming increasingly violent, it begs the question: What would happen if we were actually witness to extreme violence? Would peo- ple actually help? Or would they just watch? Would it be disturbing, or would people pass it off because they've seen it all before? These questions bring to my mind a famous quote said by a witness to the attacks on the World Trade Centre last September, "It was just like a movie..." In truth, this statement recalled the exact feeling one got when watching the news reports from television at home. I, personal- ly, got the feeling like I had seen it happen before. I felt numb, but one side of my brain would argue with me, telling me it wasn't real. To this day, it is hard for me to fathom that so many people were lost. Real people, and real grief was felt. From the safe, com- fortable surroundings of my own home in safe, comfortable Canada, nothing felt real. All I felt were the programmed responses taught to me by action movies. I'm sure I'm not alone when I say I had to give myself a reality check more than once that day. However, I do find, as I'm sure most people do, comfort in the fact that people didn't just watch. Firefighters lost their lives trying to save people. Regular citizens became heroes. However, as the entertainment business has to work increasingly hard to entertain, the lines of reality become blurred. The shock factor increases, and new ways to both scare and amuse people push the limits of what is imaginary and what is real. The more this happens, the more desensitized we may get. Will there ever be a point in which our soci- ety falls to using real violence as entertain- ment? Let's hope not. JENN BAKER TEEN CORNER BETH HUNDEY PANTHER PROFILE Principal’s Message EXETER — Last year I received a great deal of feedback on a column I wrote about drug use among students. In the article I pointed out the term “4:20” was a sort of code for smoking pot, and I suggested parents might want to check out their kids’ notebooks for references to this or for drawings of marijuana leaves, and that if they saw these, they might want to initiate some discussion with their kids about drug use. At the time I wrote that column, I was con- cerned doing a column on drugs might give readers the impression we have a drug prob- lem at the school. The reality, of course, is that drug use and abuse are societal problems that exist in vir- tually every community in North America. Drugs and alcohol are readily available in our community, and as long as that is the case, we will have concerns about drug and alcohol use among our students. I would be surprised if there is a high school principal in Ontario not concerned about drug use among students. In fact, a study in 1999 by the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse suggested 67.5 per cent of students in Grades 7-13 in Ontario had admitted to alcohol consumption in the past year and 29 per cent had admitted to smok- ing pot. Please note these statistics refer to the per- centage of students who had consumed alco- hol or smoked pot at least once in the previ- ous year: the figures do not indicate regular consumption. My intent here is not to be alarmist. I don’t see this as a crisis in student behaviour, but parents do need to realize the pressure to drink or take drugs is an ongoing concern all young people face. And some of them are going to give in to the pressure. This type of peer pressure is not new, of course: young people have been facing it for generations. What has changed,however, are some of the attitudes. Under-age drinking seems to be accepted as long as they don’t drink to excess or drink and drive. The fear of getting caught, or of being charged by the police, does not seem to provide a deterrent. This attitude is not confined just to young people though: it seems to have gained fairly widespread acceptance in soci- ety. A similar rationalization exists when it comes to smok- ing pot. As some parents have found out, kids will often argue that “smoking up” is no different than drink- ing. And since adults drink, how can they find fault with young people smoking dope? The argument that alcohol is legal and mari- juana is not does not carry much weight with many young people. And with all the discus- sion in the media about the possible legaliza- tion of marijuana, how can we expect kids to think any differently? The aspect that concerns me most as an educator is some students do not see sub- stance abuse as having significant effects on them. Some do not believe there are any long-term effects from frequent drinking or drug use and believe that, in any case, they can quit whenever they want. Often, they deny any possibility of addic- tion or of the desire to try something more potent. They seem to be unaware or unwill- ing to accept there is anything risky at all in this type of behaviour. As educators, we try to make students aware of the potential dangers of substance abuse and we encourage them to make wise and healthy choices. As part of this effort, Thursday morning we are holding a presentation called ‘Know the Score,’ a drug awareness program sponsored by the Huron County Health Unit. Any par- ents interested in finding out more about this program are encouraged to attend. Your awareness and involvement are crucial to the success of any program of this sort. JEFF REABURN PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE Lots to remember Continued from page 5