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Show THE PARK RECORD SATURDAY, JANUARY 24, 1998 Viewp A-ll oints. EDITORIAL Parking fines are isolating Old Town As residents and visitors to the Old Town district dis-trict of Park City continue their efforts to adjust to the new paid-parking program, a new and unsettling wrinkle has surfaced. Apparently in the city's zeal to protect Old Town neighborhoods from parking poachers attempting to avoid the Main Street meters, it has made it almost impossible for Old Towners to socialize. Park City Municipal Corp. this week announced that it had issued more than 3,000 parking tickets in the Old Town area. Unfortunately a significant number of those tickets were issued, not to over-parked over-parked shoppers, but to residents visiting friends in Old Town. ' The intent of paid parking may have been to reduce traffic congestion on and around Main Street, but the result, unless some of the regulations are changed, will be to turn Old Town neighborhoods neighbor-hoods into isolated ghettos. Old Town residents were originally issued one guest parking pass per household. That meant that roommates either had to take turns having friends over to visit or had to shuttle in guests from Prospector (better yet Kimball Junction). And what about dinner parties, kids' play groups, the inlaws? in-laws? Fortunately, city administrators saw a tidal wave of complaints headed down the canyon and last week, changed the allocation to five passes per household. But that change has not been publicized and in the meantime, locals are being hit left and right with $25 parking fines. Another challenge to residents has been the division divi-sion of Old Town into zones. Residents in Daly Canyon, who thought their resident passes gave them special parking privileges throughout town, have been ticketed for parking in another zone, three blocks down the road. The city's parking program may be a step in the right direction but until some of the side effects-like punishing residents for visiting one another-can be mitigated, the parking fines should be held to a minimum. min-imum. The current $25 fee, which exceeds Salt Lake City's standard $10 parking fine by more than 100 percent, is excessive and should be immediately lowered. IdidnV Know Kurt Cobain wroieTAuskmt Love LETTERS TO THE EDITOR A variation on parking problems JOHN KILBOURNR4AK RECORD Editor: This past Saturday night I parked my vehicle in line with two others in the driveway drive-way of First Security Bank's Park City Branch to dine at Adolph's Restaurant. All the vehicles were tight against the snow, well clear of the lanes leading to the branch's ATM machines. The bank, of course, was closed. During my meal I learned from the hostess that a towing company was placing boots on the vehicles parked on the bank's property. I dashed from Adolph's, saw that my car had not been booted, and started to move it. With that, one of the tow company compa-ny crew slapped a boot on my car as I was maneuvering from the parking space. I paid $65 to have the boot removed while the two-man tow crew repeatedly shouted that I had performed a "theft of services." In my mind, they were engaging in extortion. What has Park City come to? I have no argument that the bank has the right to prevent parking on its property, but what is the point of booting cars that are not interfering with the bank's business in any way? Not one single vehicle that was booted was anywhere close to blocking the drive-through drive-through for the ATMs. They were owned by diners looking to park in very crowded parking conditions, and in no way caused GUEST EDITORIAL Computers, kids and history make a perfect combination by MARC SCHULMAN, director of development Multieducator, Inc. In the past few months, a number ( of .i : widely circulated articles' have -exclaimed-; how computers have not lived up to. our. expectations in education, and furthermore, further-more, lamenting all of the money spent procuring them. This negative reaction is not surprising. After all, with the introduction introduc-tion of every new technology, critics there always come forth in protest. It is no different differ-ent in the case of computers in the classroom. class-room. There are many ways of learning about history. The earliest cavemen had the ability abili-ty to learn about events from visual depictions depic-tions in paintings. With the invention of the camera, in the mid-19th century, we gained a new means of learning about history, from the historical images that captured the events on film. The true honors of the Civil War were captured through the work of its photographers. Over this century, there has been a sea of change in the way humans receive information. infor-mation. When the century began, books and newspapers were the only source of information. As the century progressed, movies, radio and then, finally, television became major mediums for information and learning. As television became ubiquitous ubiqui-tous in the American home, it became our focal point for learning about the world around us. In the '60s most Americans received their daily dose of information by watching Walter Cronkite and his contemporaries contem-poraries on the evening news. During the last 20 years, new technologies technolo-gies have invaded our homes; cable television televi-sion and the computer. As a result, in the past two generations, there has been an incredible shift in how, and where, we receive the vast majority of our information. informa-tion. Yet, despite the tidal wave of new technology, the way we teach our children history has, by and large, remained unchanged. We still use the same type of textbooks and the same methodologies to teach history as we did two generations ago. And then we wonder why Johnny doesnt know much about history. Standard history books and texts alone have little chance of interesting a generation genera-tion brought up on computer games. We must find ways of handing down history to the next generation using methods that speak to their multi-dimensional, multi-input multi-input world. There is no panecea here. The answer to teaching history in the 21st century cen-tury lies in using every available tool. Demonizing computers and technology will certainly not help better the study of history. Fortunately, the same technology that has helped lessen the interest of students stu-dents in history has now come to the rescue.... res-cue.... The solution, the multimedia computer. com-puter. The advantages of computer-based multimedia mul-timedia must be used to present historical information in a most inspiring fashion. Done well, computer based multimedia can be as riveting as the best historical documentaries. docu-mentaries. No one can doubt the engrossing engross-ing nature of the Ken Burns' series on the , Civil War. It is without doubt one of rea- ? sons for the great increase in interest in the Civil War in the United States in the years following its screening on PBS. Multimedia history can combine all of the compelling nature of film documentaries documen-taries with interactivity and the advantage is non-linearality. In a computer-based multimedia mul-timedia program, students and teacher have the ability to explore particular areas of interest. A multimedia program can also contain more in-depth information, .allow,-!, ing -students to go far beyonifhe. original presentation. In many multinteha histojy programs, students can explore original source documents on the same subject as the multimedia presentations. The multimedia computer provides authors with the unique ability to synthesize synthe-size an array of diverse mediums. Instead of a picture book that is limited to a few hundred hun-dred photos (maximum) with very little text, we now have CD Roms with thousands thou-sands of photos, hundreds of pages of text and narration, and even video. So, a student stu-dent learning about President Kennedy, can read all about his presidency, see photos pho-tos of JFK, actually watch him deliver a speech, and if the student wants to examine the speech more carefully shehe can go and read the full text of the speech. Multimedia history CDs can be used in numerous different ways. In my view, multimedia mul-timedia CDs should be used instead of, or in tandem with, a textbook. Due to all of its many capabilities, a multimedia history exceeds the potential of the best textbooks. It is unfortunate that despite the low cost of CDs in quantities (less than $10 per unit) in most schools students do not have enough access to computers to allow the CD Rom to replace textbooks. However, where such a revolutionary course of action is not an option, there are several additional ways of using history CDs. Multimedia CDs can be used effectively effec-tively by independant study groups or in a computer lab. They can also be used by a teacher with an overhead projector to make presentations. History CDs can be placed in the library to be used as a general student resource. Finally, since all of the resources of our programs are exportable teachers can use our programs to prepare presentations for classroom use. I have been writing multimedia history software for more than eight years. In this time there have been tremendous technological techno-logical advances that have allowed greatly improved presentations. The first commercial commer-cial program I authored was available "without sound," on eight floppy disks or "with sound" on a CD using about 60 megabytes. The latest version of that same program comes on two full 650 MB CD Roms. The role of a multimedia historian (that's what my wife calls me) requires being one part traditional historian, one part documentary film maker, and one part scavenger, always looking for just the right image, or just the right document to illustrate illus-trate an important point. Technology has given me the tools to bring alive the events of the past in way that I hope can energize a student and gain his or her attention. We are, however, only on the first leg of a long and important journey. It is my hope that as computer technology becomes ever more powerful, (sometime in early part of the next century), I will be able to introduce students to Lincoln, Washington and other great historical figures face-to-face. , One of most important things that defines us a human beings, is our sense of shared history. Harnessing the good of technology and computers to teach history will only strengthen our ability to keep our future children connected to their past. harm to First Security's banking business. Sincerely, Michael P. Mealey Offensive photograph Editor: I was deeply saddened to open up my Park Record this past Wednesday and see the picture of the beautiful mountain lion which had been killed by the two hunters. What an incredibly beautiful creature, killed only for trophy to be stuffed and mounted on a wall. The look in his eyes broke my heart. I know I'm not the only one who feels this way. I guess I just don't get it. Why would a newspaper print such an offensive picture? Is this considered newsworthy? I understand under-stand it is a personal choice to hunt or not and I respect a person's right to choose. However, I would you to really evaluate the next hunting photo you receive and ask yourself if it is truly necessary to print a picture of a dead animal. Sincerely, Suzanne Pretorius Girl Scout Winterfest Editor: Even with the date of Jan. 10 for this year's Girl Scout Winterfest which was right before all the snow, the Girl Scouts of the Four Valley Service Unit enjoyed a fun-filled Winterfest thanks to the efforts of many. Many thanks to Ashley Argyle and Katrina Steigleder, Senior Girl Scouts from Troop 381, for their enthusiastic song leading and for inviting a local veterinarian veterinari-an to come and present valuable information informa-tion to the girls on pet care and responsi ble pet ownership. A great big thanks to Dr. Keith Lund, owner of White Pine Veterinary Clinic, for sharing this information with the Girl Scouts. Thanks to Julie Hewson, Bridgette Willoughby, Marcia Dent and Amanda Burton of Coalville Cadette Troop 994 for leading the Snowball Toss and relay game for all the girls to participate in. Also thanks to Linda Vernon for organizing orga-nizing the "Design the Patch" contest where the winning entry was used on a participation patch which was available for all the girls to purchase. This year's winner was Tara Wellman, a nine-year old from Troop 538 with her design of a puppy on a hill of snow. A special thanks to Kari Jernigan for bringing her dog sled team of four beautiful beauti-ful Siberian huskies and introducing the Girl Scouts to the world of dog sledding. Thanks a bunch to the troop leaders Julie Guany, Kim Weggasser, Nancy Stanislaw, Cindy Hewson, Donna Stice, Jennifer Habig, Kathy Wellman, Mary Nielsen and Fern Dent and parents for bringing the girls safely to and from the Summit County Quonset Hut in Coalville. Last, but not least, a great big thank you to the girls for coming with such eagerness and enthusiasm and making this event so much fun. Cfndyr Hewson Winterfest coordinator A proponent of Living Trusts Editor: In 1992, the Salt Lake Tribune published pub-lished an article bashing Living Trusts. The article infuriated the 30 million strong American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) and many Utah seniors. AARP has advocated Living Trusts for years because of "unreasonable' probate costs still being charged to seniors' estates. From the St. George Spectrum, "The GUEST EDITORIAL Tell your congressman...No Privacy Task Force for Utah by JOEL CAMPBELL, Utah Press Association legislative monitor Re: HB 186 Privacy Task Force In October, the Information Technology Task Force heard a bill that was so overly broad it would have made publishing the phone directory illegal. After testimony on behalf of the Utah Press Association and others, the task force backed away from the bill and proposed a task force to study the privacy issue. In November, the panel approved HB 186, sponsored by Rep. Blake Chard (R-Layton), (R-Layton), which would create an 18-member Privacy Task Force. The bill was recommended recom-mended by the interim Public Utilities and Technology Committee. The structure of the proposed committee is patterned after the task force which created the Government Records Access and Management Act. Included on the task force would be three House and Senate members, along with representatives of the media, state agencies, an attorney, two public pub-lic members, representatives of trade organizations orga-nizations and representatives of public interest groups concerned about privacy. Budget for the task force would be $39,000. The task force would be given eight months to do the following tasks: Defining personal privacy and existing law and self-regulatory practices to ensure consumer protection, individual rights and fair practices. Determining what personal information informa-tion is collected, used, sold or shared. Determining whether changes in laws or rules are needed. Determining remedies for those who violate the right of privacy. Reasons why Utah doesnt need a Privacy Task Force... It's too expensive. $39,000 could be better bet-ter spent in other areas. Just think how many textbooks that would buy. The motivation behind the task force is paranoia. There is no compelling interest by the government to further expand privacy priva-cy protections. Many Americans and Utahns confuse the "right to anonymity" and the Constitutionally-protected right of privacy. While there are certainly frightening frighten-ing isolated cases, there is no widespread abuse of private information as defined in Constitutional law. The public would be much better served if the Legislature addressed specific issues such as attaching criminal penalties to using information about someone to commit a crime. Another reason for the task force cited by some is the so-called "European Directive" which will require those engaging engag-ing in trade with Europe to adopt strict privacy pri-vacy protection laws or risk losing some of that trade. Unfortunately, the restrictive European standards do not take into account the United States' long history of freedoms including the First Amendment. We shouldn't be willing to legislate away freedom to accommodate the Europeans. The current law is adequate. Already, the Legislature has defined "private" information infor-mation in the context of government records. In addition, Utah law already imposes liability and sanctions for a wide range of privacy violations, including the abuse of an individual's identity, electronic eavesdropping or recording, false light invasion of privacy, publication of private facts, intrusion upon seclusion and misappropriation misap-propriation of another's name or likeness. Re: HB 181 Electronic Posting of notices Speaker Mel Brown has suspended the rules regarding HB 181 Electronic Posting of Notices, sponsored by Rep. Brent Goodfellow. In other words, there will be no public meeting and no opportunity to testify against the bill. Electronic Posting of Notices will be presented on the floor for it's third reading, and then passed. Please call your legislators and oppose HB 181 and HB 186. AARP, in its study of 900 probate cases in California, Delaware and Wisconsin, found that attorney fees sometimes exceeded 20 percent of the value of the property and it is estimated probate fees could cost $2 billion or more each year nationally." Sometimes attorneys charge by the hour. When I graduated from law school in 1960, fees were $30 per hour. In the 1990s, this law firm charges $300 per hour, a 100 percent increase over the past 30 years! OK, so what will it cost per hour in 2020, in another 30 years, with another 100 percent increase? $3,000 per hour? Unbelievable! A St. George senior whose widowed mother had just died lamented to me about the "reasonable" attorney fee quoted quot-ed on the $100,000 estate probate. An attorney in Cedar City quoted $8,000, another in St. George $5,000 and another in St. George $3,000. A will is a probate instrument! Where there's a will, there's a probate! Get it? A will is a four-letter word. Further, as to the probate delay, the former for-mer President of the Washington Bar Association, John Palmer, stated in an article arti-cle printed in the St. George Spectrum, "A probate takes at least six months to two years or more." My first cousin from Manti was killed in a farm accident and his probate took 20 years! A new article should be ( "Thp WondeffuTFamifj 'TjvlrigTrUs't.' Del B. Rowe, Attorney Bountiful and St. George The Park Record welcomes letters to the editor edi-tor on any subject. We ask that the letters adhere to the following guidelines:They should include the 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 let-ter every 28 days. Letters must not be longer than 350 words (guest editorials, 550 words) and should if possible, be typed. We reserve the right to edit letters if they are too long or if they contain statements we consider unnecessarily unneces-sarily offensive or obscene. The opinions expressed in our guest editorials do not necessarily reflect the views of the Park Record. The Park Record Staff PUBLISHER Andy Bernhard Editor Nan Chalat-Noaker Staff writers Kirsta H. Bleyle Bruce Lewis Dave Fields Melissa O'Brien Jay Hamburger Stephanie Howell Contributing writers Tom Clyde Rick Brough Jack Fuell Teri Orr Office manager Rachelle Eickhoff Classifieds manager Elaine Lindsey Classifieds Patti Christensen Subscription manager Jed Crittenden Advertising director Tracy Harden Advertising sales Donna Berger Mary Hall Sharon Paterson Bush Sid Pawar Carrie Davis Anna Hamlen Tami Searing Editorial production Kat James Photographer Scott Sine Production director Melisa Hyde Production jason osburn Amy Lucas Yvonne Ruth Scott Aste Jen Huckle Matthew Sullivan Trisha Hipskind Will Walsh Carrie Thompson Michele Chantrill Circulation Karen Yetter Gretchen Campbell CartoonistIllustrator Tim Peterson John Kilbourn The Park Record (USPS 378-730) (ISSN 0745-9483) 0745-9483) is published twice weekly by diversified Suburban Newspapers, 1670 Bonanza Dr., Park City, Utah. Periodicals Postage paid at Park City, Utah. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Vie Park Record, Box 3688, Park City, Utah 84060. Entered as second class matter, May 25, 1977 at the post office in Park City, Utah 84060, under the Act of March 3, 1897. Subscription rates are $32 inside Summit County, $60 outside Summit County, Utah. Subscriptions are transferable; $5 cancellation fee. Phone (801) 649-9014. Published every Wednesday and Saturday. |