NEW CRIME FIGURES SHOW IT'S TIME FOR A MAJOR CRACKDOWN

Statistics showing B.C.'s property-crime rate rose nearly six per cent
last year and is the highest of the 10 provinces should surprise no
one. In the Lower Mainland, in particular, our "liberal" politicians,
judges and other higher-paid, higher-purpose people have clearly
succeeded in their quest to create a crime-friendly
environment.

It's an environment that permits participation in B.C.'s illegal drug
industry to be viewed as a valid lifestyle choice, a willing cow to be
milked and an untaxed alternative to traditional work.

But there really is no use in crying over spilled milk. After all, our
institutions of higher learning long ago stopped considering criminal
behaviour as, well, a crime -- as opposed to the product of, say,
childhood repression. As a result, whole sections of the Lower
Mainland now are off-limits to taxpayers who still naively believe
they should be able to walk the streets without fear of intimidation
or harassment.

That's why I join with Vancouver police Chief Jamie Graham in
supporting the Safe Streets legislation introduced by
Vancouver-Burrard MLA Lorne Mayencourt (but opposed by Vancouver Mayor
Larry Campbell). The legislation may have its shortcomings, as all new
laws do. But at least it seems to give our police some extra power to
do their main job, that of maintaining law and order.

I also think Graham and other B.C. law-enforcement officials would do
well to examine a British initiative to let police issue on-the-spot
fines to shoplifters and other petty thieves.

Not that I don't think every theft warrants a court appearance. But
the reality is our courts are clogged, and police spend far too much
time on the form-filling necessary for a full-offence report. Writing
out a simple ticket, on the other hand, is a relatively quick procedure.

Yes, nailing criminals with $100 or $200 fines for thievery, vandalism
and other "lesser" property crimes makes good sense. If the perps
don't pay within a month, just increase the fine. And, if they still
don't pay, then put it on their individual records.

Now, I don't want to keep yakking about what is going on in Britain,
especially when so many of its folks appear to prefer what's going on
in Canada. But it does seem as if British Prime Minister Tony Blair, a
pro-business Labour Party leader, is light-years ahead of our
politicians on most issues.

Certainly, Blair is right about the fact that many of today's criminal
ills can be blamed on the collapse of values that began during the
permissive 1960s and came to permeate the "me generation."

Getting tough on crime at every level is simply part of a long-overdue
drive to redress the balance.