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10 - Orono Weekly Times, Wednesday, Februaty 19, 2003 c As I See It by Peter Jaworski Spelling guns and war protests A first grader came home from Lombardy elementary school with a list of words to spell at home. Amongst them was the word "gun." That story has sparked its own little haelstrom of opinion opinion and controversy. Surprising, really, when you think about it-the word itself is used so frequently that it ought to elicit indifference, if anything. Still, when a parent raises her voice, that should be incentive enough for the school to rethink its use of that particular word. I side with the mom on this one. No, not because the word "gun" is so controversial as to warrant censoring, but because moms (and dads) should have a tremendous say in the education of their children. children. Certainly strong enough to strike the word "gun" from any spelling lists. Perhaps not strong enough to alter the curriculum curriculum significantly (for that, you send your kid to private school). If the word "gun" had no alternatives for the purpose of becoming a better speller, then its inclusion would make more sense. But it does have alternatives. Like "gum," or "fun," or, gasp, "bum." Much ado about nothing. Shakespeare wrote a play about it. Lombardy elementary elementary school seems to revel in it. Because, frankly, it is the height of nonsense to make a big deal out of this. There is little of substance to this story-a parent doesn't like their kid learning about something. something. How is this news? And so, for a moment, we're distracted from things more important-like the recent anti-vyar. protest marches dotting dotting the globe. Far from eliciting good foreign foreign policy debates, the protests engaged in mass gatherings gatherings for the purpose of, uhm, mass gatherings and maybe some anti- Americanism. That seems the core centre of it-the driving force for why people got out of their homes on Saturday to scurry to the streets with, carefully carefully thought out slogans like "Bombing for Peace is like F * eking for Chastity," or "War is SO 20th Centuiy," or even "Who Would Jesus Bomb?" Spectacle always draws a crowd. Good arguments do not. There is always a striking difference between the number number of people who attend a circus circus as compared to those who attend a lecture. This isn't a denunciation of mass gatherings and boisterousness. boisterousness. Instead, it's a criticism criticism of engaging in foreign policy in such a way. Great to draw attention to a cause in such ways. Poor to have little by way of alternative or solution solution once the attention is there. That's the frustrating thing. "Okay," says I, "war is not the answer. What is?" I am convinced, by the way, that perhaps war is not the answer. Not now, anyways. anyways. Certainly not because of the flaunting of U.N. resolutions resolutions that did not explicitly call for war as a consequence. Yes, I know, 14 broken resolutions. resolutions. Still, war is of such consequence consequence that it needs to be clearly spelled out before you can pursue it as an option. Still, the U.N. resolutions butressed them with threats of "serious consequences" if Hussein does not follow suit. And he hasn't. So what "seri-; ous consequences" if not war? What should the U.S. or, more appropriately, the U.N. do in order to stave off threats of inconsequence and making it ignorable? Something, clearly, has to be done. Clever sloganeering- and it is clever-makes for a good laugh, but fails to elicit serious policy consideration. Thus a serious issue is wrapped in ridiculous inconsequential. inconsequential. Just as the general, and important, question of how much sway a parent should have over their kids' education can sometimes get mired down in silly stories about whether or not spelling "gun" is all right. NEWCASTLE BOWLING SENIORS' LEAGUE Scores 150 + February 11 2 # BOWLER GAME GAME ONE TWO Ron Burley 172 Hilda Cochrane 166 John Guay 175 Elaine Doty 156 179 Maureen Powell 154 Bertha Powell 172 Russell Powell 174 218 Joyce Stacey 163 184 John Tigwell 152 179 Frank Tufford 217 Bill Wade 152 Marg Wade 160 Can't see a way out? If you are concerned about your own, or someone else's use of alcohol or drugs, the Drug and Alcohol Registry of Treatment (DART) can guide you to the help you need. Call us 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Drug and Alcohol Registry ol Treatment Drogue et alcool - Répertoire des traitements 1-800-565-8603 .DART.ON.CA Fred DeVries proprietor • FREE ESTIMATES • COMPETITIVE RATES • • INSURANCE CLAIMS • FRED'S AUTOBODY (905) 623-6353 163 Baseline Road, Unit 1 Bowmanville, Ontario L1C 31.4 Complote Collision Repair, Restoration and Refinishing Spirit day at Clarke puts students to sleep Pictured above (L-R) are: Lauren Porter, Hypnotist Casey St. Jones, Mark Loster (teacher at Clarke). by Laura Williamson Hypnotist Casey St. Jones attended Clarke High School on Monday, February 17 to put on a hypnosis show for the students students of Clarke. Volunteers were taken from the audience to participate in this surprising event. The hypnosis hypnosis made them think they were on a beach scene, featured on Bay Watch, receiving new cars, and getting hit with Frisbees. More then a few laughs were had as student volunteers started to. dance, pose, get àngiy, and try to reclaim their belongings; as one student thought Casey was auctioning off her personal things. Everyone had a great time, and by the roaring laughter, seemed to enjoy the show a lot. > Casey had studied psychology psychology and was very interested in hypnosis and stated, "It just went from there." He has done over 1600 shows for many schools, events and banquets, and does this ten months out of the year. Lauren Porter, a student at Clarke stated, "I've never seen a hypnotist show before; and its much better then I thought it would be. I really had a good time and it was worth the two dollars I paid for it." People left the gym laughing, arid ended their busy days with a smile. The event was organized by student Council for the student body as a spirit day, and to give a few laughs. World Day of Prayer Christians from around the world will be focusing on the country of Lebanon at this years World Day of.Prayer. This day is coordinated by the Women's Inter-Church Council of Canada, and is held on the first Friday of March. Men, women and children are invited to join in prayer, song, and fellowship this day, in solidarity with the people of Lebanon. The theme of this years gathering is "Holy Spirit: Fill Us" and will take place at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church on 214 King Ave. E. Newcastle at 7 p.m. on Friday, March 7, 2003. The event is organized by representatives from the Clarington East Churches. For more information please contact: Gayle Esler (905) 983-5044 or Dennie Radcliffe (905) 987-3099. Students at St. Francis of Assisi School held a Flag Day Assembly on Friday which was attended by MP Alex Shepherd.