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Show Mn tt HDn DMnton0 The Park Record Section A Thursday, March 25, 1993D Page A17 Responsibility on both sides Editor: "Love the animals. God has given them the basis of thought and joy untroubled. Don't harass them, don't deprive them of their happiness, don't work against God's intent."- Dostoyevsky I witnessed, on March 4, the senseless deaths of two fine dogs, killed by a motorist as they entered the street from a driveway. Snow piled high along the driveway impaired the driver's ability to see. Dog owners, when will you protect your pets by keeping them under control? If you feel that fencing or leashing somehow takes away from a domestic animal's quality of life, then don't own a dog. Do you let your young children roam the neighborhood? A dog judges a dangerous situation no better than a child does. Drivers, please go slowly through neighborhoods. Consider the added problem of deep snow which blocks visibility and narrows streets. I walk every day past the area where the accident occurred. Many dogs still run unguarded. I hope I don't witness another such traumatic event in my neighborhood. I won't, however, be surprised if I do; and I'll blame the owner for his or her negligence. Cindy Hammari Mad as Hell Editor: This letter is written in protest of the tactics employed by one of Park City's oldest and most established sports stores. The tactics I speak of are those of employing ARMED -'POLICEMEN ' to-stand to-stand at botlfexits of their store ' during their annual sale. When I went to their sale on Thursday the first thing I encountered was a policeman at the door. At first I didn't think much of it but after a few minutes of browsing it started to sink in: ARMED POLICEMEN protecting the store from would-be thieves. The more I thought about this the more incensed I became. I began to take this personally. As a consumer nothing infuriates me more than a retail outlet that suspects all their clientele are thieves and the only way to prevent them from stealing is by intimidating them with ARMED POLICEMEN the minute they set foot on their property. I spent four days in August 1965 under martial law in Los Angeles during the original Watts riots. There were National Guard and police from all across the state everywhere you went. They were all heavily armed. Very intimidating! These kinds of tactics are understandable during a period of anarchy when mob rule prevails but to my knowledge Park City hasn't reached that point of disruption yet., After speaking to the General Manager of the store about my complaint and not getting a satisfactory response I felt the only avenue left to me was that of public protest. We as consumers have right and if they are violated we have two recourses: 1. Refusal to support financially the offending institution. 2. Make use of our Freedom of Speech to bring the injustice to light. The injustice I speak of is that of being treated as a potential criminal. If I steal something then have me arrested and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, but don't meet me at the door of your business and say, "We think you are going to steal something from us so we have hired ARMED POLICEMEN to deter you from such an act. Now please come in and spend your hard earned dollars and don't mind our security." This is an insult to my integrity! As a long time resident of Park City, Tarn concerned about the direction and future of our town. If these tactics continue to be employed by the businesses here, then I'm afraid the charm and appeal that Park City has enjoyed for so many years will disappear forever and we will become just another cold and uncaring resort interested only in the pursuit of the almighty dollar at the expense of human dignity. In the words of Albert Finney, "I'm mad as Hell and I'm not going to take it anymore." How about you? R. Scott Getting the job done right Editor: On extremely short notice (only hours) I recently had the need to move my 87-year-old father and his furniture to a facility that provided more intensive care. This made it necessary for some of his furniture to go to his new home and some to be delivered to my home in Park City. The arrangements were made for the van and drivers and within hours of my call the - movewas-1 completed :and professionally very well done. ' Such excellent service was so relatively unusual that I thought I'd drop a note to compliment all those connected with the A- -1 Pioneer Moving and Storage Company here in Park City. Sincerely, Jo Collester In favor of one way street Editor: Re: Council makes Main Street two way again March 11, 1993. I was appalled to find that the City Council backed down and turned Main Street back to its two way chaos. A frequent visitor to Park City, I was delighted to find Main Street one way on my recent visit. While riding the town lift or shopping at Albertsons all the comments I heard were favorable. Then, all of a sudden, it was back to two way. It does not appear that the Council considered visitors, many of whom avoid Main Street in its two way format, in its deliberations. Rather the Council seemed to rely on a few Main Street "merchants." . The owner of TCBY yogurt told the council he had experienced a drop between 45 and 60 percent. If he can't monitor his business any better than that, it doesn't seem reasonable to rely on his statistics rather than Todd Gabler's survey. If the owner of TCBY is skeptical of Todd's survey, I'm doubly skeptical of his figures. Main Street is appreciably more viable as a one way street The City Council should not have made the decision to make Main Street one way if it lacked conviction insufficient to withstand the objection of a few disgruntled merchants. The Council ought to reverse themselves again and make Main Street one way. William B. Breed, Jr. New York, NY Council controversy To Honorable Mayor Brad Olch and , Park City Council: I was dismayed to discover that a few members of the Park City Council find fellow council member Leslie Miller (who, by the way, received more votes than any other candidate in the last election) to be a "baby" with "very, very weak relationship skills" who "doesn't think like a normal person." Because guess what? I promise to do everything in my power to elect three more JUST LIKE HER this fall. See you in September. Pamela Hainsworth Hospitality for balloonists Editor: The Utah Aeronauts Hot Air Balloon Club would like to thank all the residents and officials of Park City for their hospitality to hot air balloonists during the past 15 years. Our -flub.was jbnned.five, year? ago with this stated purpose: "to promote the sportsmanship and safety of hot air ballooning to its membership and the community." One critical facet of hot air ballooning is landowner relations. This area is not covered by the FAA pilot exam nor is it a required part of the pilot training process. It is, however, a formal, internationally interna-tionally recognized code of conduct handed down from pilot to student pilot and to chase crew. The Utah Aeronauts have a written "Landowner Relations Policy" and copies are available to interested parties. Balloonists are expected to gain permission immediately upon landing and to act in a courteous manner. All pilots are expected to take responsibility for their actions and deal promptly with complaints. Each landing in a hot air balloon brings an opportunity to meet new people. If any readers in Park City have concerns or questions please don't hesitate to call us. Thank you, again. Kip Warren, President Tom Rathke, Landowner Relations Jerry Shane, Director At Large Search and Rescue Editor: On March 15, Wasatch Search and Rescue were called Get ready to get foolish Don 't miss the April 1 st issue of TDne IPairik KLecoird. out to locate two missing ice fishermen in the Strawberry Reservoir area. The weather had been unstable and around 3:30 p.m. we decided we better get out. We became lost in a white out. The toboggan we were pulling behind our snowmobile kept getting bogged down in the deep slush, so we untied it. On the toboggan we left insulated coveralls, drinks and other items that would have been helpful later. When we ran out of gas we knew that we would be spending the night; we wondered if and when anyone might start looking for us, and we talked about dying. At 10 p.m., two family members had started looking for us. They found our truck but were unable to see our tracks. So they asked a UDOT truck driver to call Search and Rescue. At 1 a.m 12 volunteer Search and Rescuers began looking for us. At 3:30 a.m. they were within 400 yards of us but they couldn't see or hear us. But we heard them and knew that people were searching for us. That really helped the hours pass. At 7 a.m. Air Med was dispatched but it had to land on Hwy 40 because of poor! visibility. At the first break in the weather, at 10:15 a.m., the pilot and crew went up and, spotted us within 90 seconds., We were so cold we didn't think we could move but when the helicopter landed we found we could walk! We were fortunate that we were found and we suffered only mild hypothermia. We want to thank the wonderful, brave Air Med crew, Deputies Todd Bonner and Jeff Winerton and the other volunteer Search and Rescue people. Gratefully, Steve George and John Beck and their families ,' .' "Normal" behavior Editor. I am shocked and outraged by the behavior of the so-called "normal" members of our City Council during their meeting last week and the interviews on KPCW which followed. Congratulations to Leslie Miller for standing up for the rights of the public! My personal politics don't usually parallel Leslie's, but she's right on target with this issue. The way the Council handled calling up the sign permit application for ABC Reservations, which had previously been approved by the HDC, was an abuse of the Council's power. I hesitate to wonder if this is the first time information has been manipulated by the Normal Majority of the Council to satisfy their agenda. Sally Elliott suggests that "normal" 'people would not have reacted the way Leslie Miller did. As a normal citizen, I'm offended by her assertion. Public officials are expected to remain unbiased and impartial in their role. Clearly this is not the case with our City Council. I urge all Park City citizens to remember this incident when they go to the voting booths this fall. heard Sally Elliott's interview on KPCW. If, when acting as a City Council member, her attitude is anything like the self-righteous attitude she displayed dis-played on the radio, I can understand why Leslie Miller acted like she did. . It seems to me the Council's job is to bring all public matters, no matter how small and insignificant they may seem, before the people and not make any decisions among one or two chosen Council members. I cannot express the disgust I felt when I heard Ms. Elliott speaking so personally about Ms. Miller on the radio. Talk about having absolutely no interpersonal skiljs...l suggest Ms. Elliott should bite her lips more often, perhaps every time she feels compelled to damage someone's reputation. . If this is the attitude of the majority of the "club" on City Council, I suggest we dramatically alter the faces as soon as possible. Anne Kilgore Teaching Nancy Seraphin Interpersonal skills Editor: I was disappointed to hear the unprofessional conduct of the members on the City Council in last week's meeting. As elected officials, representing the people of Park City, I would expect, far better behavior. But my true dismay came when I philosophy The Park Record welcomes letters to the editor on any subject We ask that the letters adhere to the following guidelines: They should be submitted to the Park Record offices at 1670 Bonanza Drive or received in the mail (P.O. box 3688, Park City, UT 84060) no later than 5 p.m. on Monday before publication. They must be signed and include address and telephone number of author. No letter will be published under an assumed name. They must not contain libelous material. Writers are limited to one letter every 28 days. Letters must not be longer . than 350 words and should, if possible, be typed.We reserve the right to edit letters if they are too long for the space available or if they contain statements we consider unnecessarily offensive or obscene. by Linda J. Preston When asked what I do for a living, I announce with a smile, "I teach kids science!" Usually my comment is accepted with a frown, followed by "You know, I sure hated science when I was in school!" My comeback has always been "That's because you never had me for a teacher!" Science teaching today is much more than laboratory experiments, textbooks, films, and hard exams: it is actually a way of life. It is an exciting and creative interpretation of all that goes on around us. As a science instructor, I attempt to work within a philosophy of active student participation helping to develop attitudes of curiosity, of wonderment about and involvement with phenomena in their natural environment. Through enthusiasm and sincerity, I strive to develop in students an appreciation for the contribution of science to daily living and values toward solving problems in a scientific manner. After my first exposure to teaching physical science I realized that there had to be more than just learning chemical symbols and physics principles. Over the past seventeen years, I have organized many demonstrations that are quick and inexpensive to use as attention-getters to stimulate7 interest and capture my audience. For example, a density demonstration complete with hypothesizing and questioning is followed by an investigative lab. Each lab and activity that we do is constructed and designed to develop inquiry skills as well as good scientific method. Students are required to write up reports and draw conclusions from their investigations. Lectures are necessary from time to time to relay important information. I keep these to a maximum of twenty minutes followed by structured activity time. ... Realizing the importance of significant role models for young people, I am willing to serve both in educational and extracurricular capacities. Attempting to inspire students, I am career oriented, exposing them to a variety of scientific fields, techniques and occupations. Taking new courses, keeping abreast of scientific literature, attending conferences and seminars, and interacting with other professionals, helps me strive to improve myself professionally. (Guest Editorial I also involve my students in outside activities and experiences including the Humanities Symposium, Space Shuttle Students Involvement competition, Science Fair, Starlab (simulated spaceflight), numerous field trips, and science club. In addition to knowledge and inquiry skills, students are encouraged to develop competent verbal and written communication skills. This is accomplished by requiring notebooks, daily logs, written lab reports, and community presentations. I have incorporated an extensive science project aspect into my classes. Students choose a topic of interest early in the year. I take them through the process one step at a time, explaining the hows and whys as we go. I have taken this one step further by training a student judging team that works at my fair, questioning students and interacting with them. Students', strengths are identified, and they are guided through experiences that will develop and expand those interests. I have now developed the physical science program to include resource students. Using a variety of teaching methods, including the inquiry labs, discovery labs, and multimedia presentations, I help these students to realize that science is important to them as well. Once again the most important element is that the content is relevant to the students. I have incorporated library research and the computer writing lab into this program. As an opportunist, I introduce my students to new ideas and programs, creating in them both an awareness and desire to "search beyond." Five summers ago I saw a real need to provide exciting "hands on" experiences in science. With the help of other teachers on my staff, I created a summer experience for students in our school and across Utah, Students truly experience education as it is occurring around them. Three years ago I saw a need to help teach science methods to prospective teachers. I have successfully don this through in-services, workshops, and university settings. I believe that life is a complex series of experiences and education is the organization and interpretation of those experiences. Helping students to organize and interpret is the realization of a childhood dream. I am proud to be a teacher! , |
