Newspapers / Jones County Journal (Trenton, … / Oct. 22, 1970, edition 1 / Page 2
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'But, officer, how can you possibly suspect us V EDITORIALS i ‘ — r '1 ' 1 ■■ 1 , i. 111 11 yi K»ver Forget That These Editorials Are The Opinion Of One Man . _____And tie May Be Wrong On Capital Crimes Capital punishment has all but been abolished in the United States- Since 1064 there have only been 10 people put to death for committing premeditat ed) acts of violence. Seven in 1965, one 1966, two in 1967, and there were none put to death in 1968 and 1969 and so far this year there has not been a single use of this form of punishment. But if one takes even a casual glance at the news each day it is glaringly evi dent that if government has stopped putting people to death for the pre meditated murder of others. The crim inals have not quit. Last week for instance in neighbor ing Wayne County a man walked into a church and shot two women as they knelt in prayer and then he drove a block and shot down a young man. In, nearby Onslow County a young Marine is charged with stabbing to death one Marine, a young woman and critical ly injuring another Marine. It is our long and sincerely held view that when one person deliberately takes the life of another he has forfeited his right to live. This is an ancient belief, strongly held since recorded time began. But in this permissive era in which we live the reverse situation1 has devel oped. Today the weeping very largely vis for the “poor, misguided; criminal”^ rather than for the person, or persons, he may have'sent to an eternal grave. This iahot just the fault of the courts. Courts cannot go very far beyond the win of the public because the public the power to alter the courts, to HBiBB ed by jurors most generally takes the merciful, permissive direction in such affairs. Perhaps the public has permitted it self to be brainwashed by sincerely in tended people whose motives are ex cellent, but whose common sense is miss ing. The frightening increase in the capi tal crimes such as premeditated murder, forcible rape, first degree arson and first degree burglary will continue to grow worse until and unless the public wakes up and accepts the proven fact that swift and severe punishment is the only way ever found to keep that small percentage of criminals under any slight kind of control. ^ Picking on Jones In the five-year period 1964-69 the public schools of North Carolina had an increase of 10,024 students and 5,096 teachers, indicating that the system was adding about one deacher for each two additional students over that period. But when these figures are broken down for the 15 school systems around Kinston the disparity becomes strange, if not alarming. In these 15 systems there was a de crease of 2462 students and an increase }f 572teachers! ,::7 7.:- v.., conscience. Of course the actual pulling of the trigger in each of these political crimes was just the work of a single animal, but the climate which created and even encouraged such actions is the fault of the entire society. It extends to the home, to the church, to the schools at every level, to the various legislatures and finally comes to roost at the bar of justice, where it has fouled for too long too maiiy of the courts of our country as well as Canada. All of us capable of average reasoning know that there is a very thin veneer of civilization on this animal called man and he can and will shed that thin veneer unless he is kept in line by the morally preached by all religions and dic tated by the great 'body of common law that has grown up since the society of man 'began a very long time ago. But we have turned our churches into political playgrounds in all too many instances, where well-intended preach ers glorify the philosophy of turning the other cheek and! ignoring every other preachment for discipline upon which the church as well as civilization is found ed We have permitted and encouraged the transformation of our schools at ev ery level into custodial institutions where discipline of body or mind is sac rificed on the altar of permissiveness, and in our homes we have repeatedly made the same sacrifice. We blindly^ assume that the child appreciates and needs the firm guiding hand around all the pitfalls man is subject to. Our government is merely a mirror to these sins of omission and commission in our homes, our schools and our churches. But now that this monster of permis siveness is 'grown to frightening adult hood we cannot ecape the responsibility for doing all that is necessary to curb his ugly passions. He is our child and it is our duty to correct and punish him to whatever degree necessary to bring him under control. fered a reduction in teaching staff over this five-year period and its loss was just one teacher, while its enrollment was dropping 413 students. That might have been a busy single teacher who was dropped. But beside Jones County’s loss of one teacher and 413 students Lenoir Coun ty schools lost e^en more students than Jones (531) but for some strange reas on Lenoir County gained 25 teachers. Kinston schools lost 168 students but gained 38 teachers, Greene County lost 576 students and gained 37 teaohers, and the list I'uns in this same contrary direction throughout the sampling in our area.. Who on high has what against Jones County? If fewer pupils need more teachers elsewhere why doesn’t this same illogic prevail in Jones County? Is it that Jones County students are brighter and need fewer teachers, or is this just one more, horrible example of this “new math” used by the State Department of'Pub lic Instruction to penalize school boards that fail to jump through hoops exact ly as dictated from Raleigh. — There's, nothing that will i low switch ids notions like political parties. 'Tike for example my good friend Fitzhugh Wallace, who switched this ^spring from Democratic to Republican, and then became a can didate for office as a Republican. I\did not attend the forum Wednes day night, but Wallace was quoted as saying, among other things, that he fa vored tightening up the budget and get ting more for each dollar spent which is a very noble notion to which most any run-of-the-mill taxpayer would subscribe Let’s kick this notion a little further around. Wallace immediately before kick ing the party of his fathers in the head had served, and; served most ably, as the Democratic Chairman of the Lenoir County Election Board. Wallace installed the permanent form of registration, supervised the beginning of full-time registration and presided over what has to be the most efficient and most serviceable period in the en tire history of the Lenoir County Elec tion Board. I den’t think you can find anyone who> will disagree with the statement that Wallace did more and did it well to set up an efficient system but also spent a great deal of time and energy and in telligence in helping other county boards of election install the same system. . I do not suggest that the money was not well spent and I certainly do not in fer that the small fee of about $18,000 which Wallace was paid over this 14 year period was too much. My only point is that if you want to provide better services to the people, in every field, whether it is elections, schools, highways, welfare, recreation, the courts, or public health, is just sim ply costs more money. You cannot buy more aid better of anything for less money. JONES COUNTY JOURNAL Jack Rides, Publisher He was called on many times by state election board officials to help and he always answered and served diligently and expertly. So much for the flattery which is absolutely sincere and deserved by Wal lace. During the 14 years Wallace served as chairman of the Lenoir County Board of Elections the county spent more mon ey on elections than it had spent in the previous 50 years. All of this was spent at the request of Wallace, who sincere ly wanted to set up the very finest elec tion system possible for the county.
Jones County Journal (Trenton, N.C.)
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Oct. 22, 1970, edition 1
2
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