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"A Family Tradition for 131 Years" PORT PERRY STAR - Tuesday, August 12, 1997 - 7 w LETTERS Family grateful for support during a traumatic ordeal To the Editor: My wife Melanie and I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank everyone present at the Seagrave Park last Saturday during the ball tourna- ment for helping our family over- come an extremely traumatic _ experience. Showing immense concern, eve- ryone raced to the aid of our 4 yr. son Trevor after he received a vicious bite on his left cheek from a dog present at the game, We would like to extend our gratitude toward so many people for the various roles they played, but in order to do so, The Star would have to print a second edition. Special thanks go out to Dr. Mercer who showed great care in dealing - 'with our son, and even went so far as to sing the alphabet with myself while putting in stitches in an attempt to help soothe him. As well we would like to ink the staff at Port Perry Hospisal, including the ambulance attend- ants, all of whom, helped calm us down. Also deserving recognition are my brothers Eric and Erik, Zoltan Domik, Kathy Bentley, Cecille, Mandy, my teammates, the fire- men and nurse present (regretful- ly we never got your name) and many, many others. We were deeply moved by the kindness of the remaining ball teams who not only cancelled the tournament, but also donated all their winnings for Trevor's behalf. Melanie and I are happy to report that Trevor's spirits are high and he's well on the road to recovery, thanks to the love and - support of family and friends. In closing we would like to say how lucky we feel we are for hav- ing the support of everyone around us and for the fast-acting and quick thinking of those - present. Eternally grateful, Gerry, Melanie, Trevor, Stephanie Douma, Oshawa English still language of communication for world To the Editor: The Pacific Rim is the fastest growing economic area in the world today.- With a population of more than 2 billion, plus those of the Indian sub-continent adds up to more than half of the world's population. English is the language of com- munication between these coun- tries. Both politicians and entrepreneurs choose English as a second language. French has no practical value yet students in - nine Canadian provinces are com- pelled to learn French instead of having the right to choose one of the principal languages of the Pacific Rim. In India, Pakistan and Bingladesh with a combined pop- ulation of over a billion, English is an official language. In Europe with a population of about 500 million the language of communication is English. The languages of the Americas is Spanish, English and Portuguese. English is the lan- guage of choice for communica- tion, among the 700 million. French has no practical value south of Canadian border. The language world wide in computers and the Internet is once again English. International medicine and air traffic is in English. Even the Pastuer Medical Reports issued from 'France are in English. Also the traffic signs. : Turn to page 8 Protesters send message To the Editor: ~ Marilyn Manson, the ultra-violent rock group which performed recently at Varsity Arena in Toronto, was protested for three pur- poses: to cancel the concert, to inform the pub- lic, and to stand against every antisocial, destructive and violent message the band encourages. While the protest failed in stopping the con- cert, the Toronto media was somewhat helpful at informing the public and in providing a plat- form for the rejection of the band's philosophy. One question frequently put forward was: Are you not helping the band' s promotion by protesting? While the protest brought attention to the band, it is highly unlikely anyone learning of the protest would be so dysfunctional as to attend the concert because of the protest. Recently, Stats Canada reported, while other crimes decreased, homicides went up six per cent. Does anyone honestly believe crime would go down if nobody complained about it? I am convinced that all crimes would skyrocket if every concerned spokesperson, in the media or not, kept silent from today forward. The police would be, quite literally, helpless - because the help stopped. Protesters send a message, to everyone who cares, that society is not entirely apathetic. This is especially appreciated by those who are hin- dered by priorities from protesting. . Furthermore, there is an abundance of sub- stantial reasons to protest. The following is just a few: Q Each band member is named after a con- victed rapist and mass murderer. The lead sing- er Brian Warner chose Marilyn Manson, taken from Charles Manson, for both himself and the band. Other band members chose from John Wayne Gacy, Richard Ramirez, Albert Fish, David Berkowitz and Henry Lee Lucas. There is nothing value neutral in taking the name of a serial killer. Q During past performances, the lead singer set his drummer Sara Lee Lucas on fire, repeat- edly smashed other band members with the microphone stand, slashed his chest with bro- ken glass and performed fellatio on stage. Q After Lucas quit, replacement dfummer Ginger Fish was rushed to hospital when hit by Manson's mike stand. Over 18 months, Fish was clocked in the head by the base of a mike stand at countless gigs, purposefully flung at him by his sociopathic boss. Fish has been scarred, bloodied and bruised. He also suffered a potentially fatal cracked skull. QQ Keyboard player Madonna Wayne Gacy nearly died when struck with a flying mike. Q Both their despair-laden lyrics and T-shirts encourage suicide. Their nihilistic "we hate society" philosophy i is a magnet for damaged ~ teens, some fui in despairing circumstances. Encouraging suicide ory adds to this tragedy. 2 In California, two girls tied themselves wearing a Marilyn Manson T-shirt and jumped off a bridge, killing themselves. J In a Guitar School Interview, Warner said, "At our shows, it seems, people don't know whether to ---- each other or kill each other, and hopefully the same goes' for listeners to the record (Antichrist Superstar)." Q One of Manson's slogans, chanted by his fans, is "We hate love. We love hate." One concert featured dead babies and a line of bloody clothes as stage props. Q Another concert featured a semi-naked girl tied to a cross. Q The band speaks openly about using hard drugs like coke and speed. Q Music critics noted the band's repeated use of Nazi salutes and fascist stage props, dismiss- ing them as "ironic." Q In '94, they had a contest to send "...a polar- oid displaying the most deviant usage of our name/logo. For example. Your father is passed out drunk and naked. You carve Marilyn Manson on his bald forehead and snap a pic- ture. Be creative. Disregard the law." Q According to Vincent Bugliosi, the DA who put Charles Manson away, Marilyn Manson recorded the lyrics for their album, Portrait of an American Family, in: the Tate house where the Manson "family" murdered five people. Sharon Tate was eight months pregnant when stabbed 16 times and hung from a ceiling beam. Q It is the policy of the Family Action Council that if one person is harmed, the cause of the problem should be altered to prevent it in the future. All of Manson's ideas and alterations are designed to cause problems if carried out by a fan. Finally, the concert could have been can- celled. It is appalling and deeply disturbing that the University of Toronto would discredit itself by 'endorsing Manson's 'Antichrist Superstar Tour. This is like Brock University staging a concert in St. Catharines with a band named Paul Bernardo or the University of Montreal 'promoting a group named Marc Lepine. Despite heavy lobbying from many groups, Mr. Bruce Kidd, the University's Acting Director of Athletics and Recreation, stated, "there is no better place for the source of this debate to be played out than on the grounds of a university." Have standards plummeted on the hiring requirements of educators? You can bef the uni- versity will never bring evangelical rock bands like Petra or Caman to Toronto. While explain- able with the same logic, they wouldn't be caught dead supporting it. Brian Chiasson, Coordinator. Family Action Council of Durham P.S. I submit this opinion hoping it is appro- priate since the 28th anniversary of the Manson murders was on Aug. 9-10. -- " rT TT i TS hw 1 believe the main lesson we all learned from this oulished ¢ our bodies with ren't bad either. © adventure was that despite physical exhaustion, the durance to be mind has an 'amazing ability to take over when the body _ is ready to shut down, And it's this 'mind over matter' ability that makes people excel and in life. While I'm extremely happy to have had this incredible experience... | wouldn't want to do it again! SIGNS OF SUMMER PAST It's hard to believe, but despite the hot, dry summer we've been experiencing the past six weeks, our favourite season is gradually winding down. 'Following are some signs that summer is almost over; « The Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) gets by J Peter Hvidsten 2 on for this arduous tri. | But aside' from the p hysical aspect, it was also GREAT WHITE NORTH - ° mental challenge, as eve LE corona ~ BEEN THERE, DONE THAT site with Lotta hazardo Matt and | had quite. an experience Ea @ chal a couple of weeks ago. bie nT We joined a group. of four fathers L000 and seven kids on a wilderness adventure in the far 4 "reaches of northern Ontario, near Temagami. : oan bi one each and every ys ay and | believe it's | e trip took us into some of the most beautiful. and ' el ana Shit ve. : underway this weekend. A bros of the north, where for six days we oe 7 feos rangir mr 12 years of "| awns have taken on a golden hue. Poa rtaged spond down ste , rocky age handled th mmeelves to roma a ai on L ere aking + Farmers are on their knees, praying for rain which and scaled s Sali get aro {ind waterfi falls, Ramet Si 207 packing th er ¢ d eke. ino. st « The muddy bottoms of small ponds have been baked A ne day's t ha toap ace. Bato Map onan headwinds, ; their. aris and or a, 0 8 Pe any and Stacked bythe Sn. til first fall f 4 | iled canoe hg for alma Soveh als ana iking sd didn't think they. could continue, but with encouragement ust over wo weeks Uni. our. fust.Yal, fair, of he ¢ Many retailers are discounting summer goods. lath om. he. 'Dads' and knowing if we rested even ntarily we * The Kids return to school in three weeks. Yes! , i wold be left to the mercy of the wind, "these young troopers dug in even harder.