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PRA A RAR IAEA A NA BREET A Ak UN SEPA SR SHE GL OSCEAR ESTUARY 1 INA RAL ~ChatterBox by John McClelland August 6 has come and gone. For most it was just another summer Saturday; a day to relax at the cottage, go to a ball game, cut the grass, or just sit in the shade with a tall, cool drink. For a few, however, it was a day that didn't pass without some reflection. For it was on a summer's day, 32 long years ago, in a different place and a different time, that an American bomber climbed into an Eastern sky, set a course for the Japanese islands, and when the bombardier sighted the target, the payload was dropped and mankind stepped into a new, frightful era. Hiroshima. That single atomic bomb unleashed the explosive force of 20,000 tons of TNT. In a flash of energy and light hooded by a mushroom cloud, 71,000 human beings died, and hardly a building was left standing in what just a few moments before had been a city. More were to die later, of course; a tormented, hideous end from the after-effects of radiation. The free world rejoiced, believing the the bomb over Hiroshima and the second one over Nagasaki had ended six years of global warfare in which close to 30 million people had lost their lives. As time passed however, the rejoicing started to change to horror and revulsion when people began to grasp the magnitude of the destructive forces that man had first harnessed and then controlled for his own purposes. But curiously enough, instead of resolving quickly and resolutely to put this new force out of use for ever more as a weapon, man in his infinite wisdom went just the opposite route. The hydrogen bomb followed, then the nuclear warhead on a guided missile, and within the span of a few short years, weapons had been developed which if utilized would make the Hiroshima blast seem like a mere pop from a child's toy pistol. In fact, devices with the explosive power of one million tons of TNT have been tested by both the Russians and the Americans. Throughout the fifties and sixties, a curious and macabre jargon began to make its way into our everyday speech. 'Balance of terror' is one such phrase. "Mutually assured destruction' or MAD for those who like acronyms, is another, which supposed- ly describes how we can live in peace as neither side would start a nuclear war because the "second and third strike capabilities' of the other side would guarantee destruction of everyone. We also have MIRV, which is innocent enough sounding and stands for "multiple independent re-entry vehicle", or the capability of one missile to deliver a cluster of nucléar warheads against separate targets. Fascinating, and 3 St TRARY ahead SEER ANN RRR SR OAS a RR SR yet the technological advancements for destruction continued, limited it seems, only by the shortcomings of man's imagination. We soon had tactical and strategic nuclear weapons, missiles that could be fired from under the ocean, ground to ground, ground to air, 'air to air, air to ground. Weapons are now guided to their targets by laser beams, and the Cruise missile, the latest in the American arsenal flies at very low altitudes (under the enemy radar) guided by a computer which allows it to follow the contours of the terrain below. ; And of course what one country has, the others want. Great Britain, France, China, and recently India have joined the Americans and the Russians in that elite organization known as the nuclear' club. Israel is thought to have nuclear weapons (but re not admitting it) and at least 20 other countries, including Canada, have the short notice. In fact, just about anybody with university training in physics, a small laboratory, and the proper materials (said to be fairly easily obtained for the right price) could build a nuclear device small enough to carry in a suitcase, and powerful enough to des the core of any large city. of the future? As mentioned above, man's capacity to build bigger and better ways of killing and destroying is limited not by technology, but by the confines of his imagination. The last frontier, outer space, is being tamed, and there is no reason (based on performance since 1945) to assume that space technoloby will not be used as a theatre to play at the games of war, : Since that first horrible cloud of death rose over Hiroshima 32 years ago, there has been precious little progress to halt the proliferation of atomic destruction capabilities. And yet it can also be said that since 1945 there has not been a major global war, which might lead one to conclude that the balance of terror has preserved the peace. Assuming this to be so, it is indeed a precarious balance, with the international system sitting on the razor's edge. One tiny slip by any one of the actors in the game, and that razor will slice the throat of mankind, once and for all, Yes, August 6, 1977, has come and gone, Our concerns of the day are not of the event of 32 years ago. Our thoughts this year are on crime in the streets, the murder of a young boy in downtown Toronto, pipelines from the Arctic, Quebec, unemploy- * ment and a falling dollar. We are living with these ems every day. We shouldn't forget that we are ving with August 6, 1945, as well ' to join on very: SRR i a Vandalism: Do We Know The Answers On surveying the damage inside Prince Albert Public School last week one couldn't help but feel a variety of emotions. The first was shock: shock at the wide extent of abuse and damage that the school had been subjected to; shock at the sheer physical damage; and finally, shock at the thought that so much could be done by those alleged to be responsible, who are of such a young and supposed tender age. The second emotion was anger: an anger that suggested the punishment of those responsible must be severe enough to fit the severity of the deeds; an' anger that demanded retribution for- the costs of cleaning up and replacing the damaged materials and facilities. But after these first human reactions of shock and anger began to subside, a third, less definitive emotion started to take hold: a kind of uneasy dismay that made the pit of the stomach tighten slightly with a feeling of helplessness, frustration, and even foreboding. Vandalism, of course Is nothing new. The willful destruction of other people's property, and posses- sions by young and old alike has been with us for a while. : And while it may be dangerous to generalize, | ® especially in light of a recent incident like that 'ate Prince Albert School, it does appear that both the rate of destructive acts and their severity are on the increase. And this leads to all kinds of questions and precious few answers, What is at the very root of these kinds of incidents, where the words 'prank', 'practical joke", and even 'youthful rebellion' cease to have any application? Is this alleged increase In violent and massive destruction of property merely sympto- matic of a deeper problem within society as a whole? If the latter is true, and some would agree that i is; what has gone wrong; who Is to blame, and what, if anything, can be done to corgect the problem? Some may suggest that a stricter, more disciplin: arian approach should be taken by parents with regards to all aspects of bringing up children. Others may argue that the very institutions and private property which are often the target of attacks are themselves to blame. Still others may say that court decisions in general these days lack the force of deterrence, and that tougher punishment would be the cure. .And finally, there are same who would say simply that increases in willful destruction are just a sign of the times; that all of society Is on some kind of a helter skelter ride that Is heading for a complete destructive climax. : The answer probably involves a little bit of each of the above, and it likely includes an unknown variable which we simply cannot recognize, and wouldnt be able to explain even if we could see it. But that Is not to say that parents, educators, the police and the courts, civic leaders and concerned Individuals in all walks of life should give up the search for solutions to this and similar. kinds of anti-social behaviour. For everyone of us has a stake in this. Western Weekend What Can We Say In organizing any summer event, especially one that runs for three days, there is always an element of luck as far as the weather is concerned. Some- times you win, sometimes you don't. While Western Weekend got a bit of an unlucky break from the weatherman this year which resulted In smaller than hoped for crowds, the annual event was anything but a wash-out. There was considerable enthusiasm generated for the dances, the mutt show, the gong show, and the celebrity dunk. Everybody present got a kick out of the antics of the Scugog Superstars. And it was most gratifying to see the youngsters parade on Queen Street in the rain. Success, however, Is not counted in numbers or dollars, but rather by people enjoying themselves. And those who took part in Western Weekend did just that, whatever the event. : A lot of time and effort goes Into the preparation, and those on the committee and everyone who contributed In any way deserve a word of praise.