4 ¢ The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, May 8, 1996 5 A Case for conservation Alene N. Case Once upon a time, there was a city named Curitiba. It had all the ‘usual problems of large, growing cities in South America — unem- “ployment, pollution, congestion, flooding and squatter settlements. But, over the past 30 years, Curitiba in southern Brazil has 'become'a model to the world. What makes ‘mayors from Paris to ‘Toronto to Santiago want to learn fromi Curitiba? In a world — PLANNING. Jaime Lerner was described as a “visionary mayor” in an article about this city in the March 1996 issue of Scientific American. He was an architect and planner who looked for creative and appropri- ate solutions to the problems of his city and, by all accounts found them. Since his was a relatively poor city, he knew that he could not invest in high-tech solutions. Instead, he succeeded by solving multiple problems at once. Curitiba now has over two million inhabitants with an income pro- file that is similar to other cities in the region, but it has significantly less pollution, slightly lower crime rates, higher literacy rates, and no flooding. One of the most successful parts of Curitiba’s make-over was the installation of a rather simple system ofbusways. There are five main spokes which reach out to dense population areas or to in- dustrial hubs. The main hub, of course, is the center of the city. The buses are privately owned and operated. They maintain a [LIBRARY INEWS ‘By NANCY KOZEMCHAK The Back Mountain Memorial Library was the recipient ofalarge card board check, approximately 39 inches long and 23 inches high. This was presented to the library on Thursday, February 15 atthe ribbon cutting for the new Dallas Wendy's Restaurant. The actual check was for $256.00; the number of ways to order a Wendy's sandwich. The manager of the Dallas Wendy's stated they are committed to working with the library and the children for the future of our community. This money will be used for a special project. A “Stress” busting techniques program will be held at the Back Mountain Memorial Library on Wednésday, May 22, from 7 to 8:30'in the evening. The program will be presented by ‘Healthworks of Kingston’. Everyone is wel- come. Come and learn simple techniques to help relieve the stress of everyday living! Wear comfortable, loose clothing. Come and enjoy! New books at the library: “The Ugly Duckling” by Iris Johansen is a thrilling tale of contemporary romantic suspense that gives the age-old myth of transformation a stunningly unique twist—as an ugly duckling becomes a breath- taking beauty whose burning wish for revenge entangles her in a precarious world of sinister in- trigue and dark desire. This is an explosive, enthralling, powerfully engrossing entertainment novel. “Walking After Midnight” by Karen: Robards is a lively, sus- penseful. and sexy romantic thriller whose heroine discovers that the man of one's dreams sometimes wears adisguise. Sum- mer ‘McAfee is a survivor, and when her former life as anew York lingerie model went south along with her marriage, she founded Legion Post 672 to meet May 10 Daddow-Isacs Post 672, The Ainerican Legion, will hold nomi- nation’ of officers for the Legion and Home Association May 10, at the post home on Rte. 415. Al 8 p.m. The Home Association will give ils annual report and answer all questions on the business of the Association. Legion dues for 1996 are now due. Refresh*“ments will be served. Urban planning can help to solve many problems fast schedule partly because cus- tomers pay when they enter the raised “boarding tube” much as they would do at a subway station entrance. The tube also has a lift that allows wheel chair access. That way each bus does not need to be outfitted with a lift or wait while a person in a wheel chair enters the bus. All bus entrances and exits are wide, making for quicker boarding and disembark- ing at all stops. This sytem is so efficient and inexpensive that one quarter of all automobile owners take public transportation to work each day. By allowing people toreach their destinations quickly and easily, this mass transit system has pre- vented the congestion and smog which plague other large cities. There are also bikeways and pe- destrian areas that are incorpo- rated into the transportation sys- tem. These often lead through the parks along streams, ponds, and other drainage control areas that were created to alleviate flooding. Green space per capita is up to 50 square meters in comparison to less than one square meter in 1970. There is an area of down- town shops and cafes that remain open all night so that the center city is a vital part of people's lives. Curitiba also has innovative approaches to its solid waste dis- posal problems. First, it sets an example by recycling everything from old buses (used as mobile classrooms or offices) to utility poles (used as construction mate- rials for park buildings and walk- ways). Second, poor families who tend to live in settlements not regularly served by garbage pick- up services can exchange bags of trash for bus tokens, packages of food, or school notebooks. A mil- lion bus tokens and 1,200 tons of surplus food have been distrib- uted in this way. The city also hires temporary workers (usually retired or unemployed persons) to clean up areas of the city where trash has accumulated. The planning and innovation shown by the city of Curitiba could help any region with any set of problems. There are rural areas in the United States which have worked with landscape architects lo create greenways, minimize agricultural runoff, provide envi- ronmental education for disabled children, maintain the vitality of historic districts, conserve walter, elc. "As design professionals, they are able to synthesize and trans- late their knowledge and the spe- cialized input of others into com- prehensive plans or design con- cepts that will meet the varied needs of clients and user groups while also respecting the landscape’s role in the larger eco- system.” (From a booklet put together by the National Endownment for the Arts and the US Department of Agriculture, 1995). In other words, if we are willing to ask for some help in solving our present and future problems and if we are willing to work together, there are skilled people there wait- ing to help. Let us resolve to work together toward the kind of regional plan- ning that will lead us to innova- live solutions to our local prob- lems as the people of Curitiba, Brazil have done. And, perhaps, 30 years {rom now, the mayors of Miami and Tokyo will come to the Wyoming Valley to see how we did it. ....And we will all live happily ever after. Library will host program on stressbusting May 22 her own janitorial service as away to pay the rent. That explains why she’s cleaning the town's fu- neral home at two in the morning. “Love, Again” by Doris Lessing tells the story of a sixty-five-year- old woman who falls in love; or rather, falls into a state of love, which is another country alto- gether, and struggles to maintain her sanity while there. Widowed for many years, she is a writer who works in the theatre in Lon- don. She falls in love with a seductive young actor, and then with the mature director. She finds herself in a state of longing and desire. Mainstream John W. Johnson “What the hell we doin’ there?” Silas McMarner asks. “Doing where?” wonders Roscoe Bismark. The Breakfast Club has barely seated itself when Silas asks again. “There...in Bosnia?" “NATO.” Roscoe shrugs. “NATO don’t know,” McMarner mocks. The waitress at a nearby table picks up her tips and pretends not to listen. The diner crowd, as it always does, listens without pretense. Roscoe waits for a few seconds, knowing Silas will calm with his arriving coffee. Out come the newspapers for the obligatory five-minute lull be- fore the debate. And when it comes, resident historian Roscoe points out: The occupation of a foreign soil by U.S. troops in this century has become almost commonplace as it is now with our (and to say it is a UN occupation begs the ques- tions) occupation in Bosnia. Beginning with Beirut in 1982, U.S. troops have been on foreign soil eight times in the past 13 years alone, and in this century, the U.S. has interfered in Pana- manian affairs 13 times. Setting aside the world wars, Korea and Vietnam, the U.S. has intervened with military force in other na- tions an additional 11 times. The ‘interesting number is, with the Is it our duty to mind every TR other country's business? . exception of Lebanon in 1958, all of those military interventions prior to 1982 took place in Cen- tral America and the Caribbean. President Roosevelt began the century in 1903 with warships being sent to prevent Columbia from intervening after its north- ern province seceded to become Panama. A literal outgrowth was repayment to the U.S. by allowing building of the Panama Canal. Woodrow Wilson sent troops into Mexico from 1914-17 to protect American business interests dur- ing the Mexican Revolution. From 1916 through 1924 U.S. troops were sent lo the Domini- can Republic; the dictator Raffael Trujillo emerged after that occu- pation. From 1926 through 1933, both Presidents Hoover and Roosevelt sent troops into Nicaragua and insured the eventual rise of the dictator Samoza and his family. President Eisenhower sent troops to Guatamala in 1954, and in 1961 President Kennedy sup- ported Cuban troops in the Bay of Pigs invasion. This was followed, of course, by President Johnson's use of troops in the Domincan Republic in 1965, and President Reagan's 1983 in- vasion of Grenada. Should we have gone to all those places? Should we now be in Bosnia? Right or wrong, the in- tervention again raises the ques- tion of the U.S. military's role. “Can we do any good there?" Silas asks again. “Do we belong in a country which has, essentially, been fighting this same war for most of our century?” It was asingle shot by a Serbian assassin in 1914 which killed No sale signs on utility poles in KT Francis Ferdinand, and touched off World War I. Roscoe ponders the bottom of his coffee cup. “And in perhaps the ultimate political irony for the right-wing political hawks in this nation, it was Com- munism which kept Eastern Europe's warring factions at bay for the better part of this century,” he says into the cup. As usual, at the root of this centuries-old tragedy is minori- ties seeking power through seek- ing land, fermented by ethnicity, and fueled by religious fervor. Religion, once again, stands out as the single largest institutional mechanism for human destruc- tion. Since 1982 some 783 Ameri- cans have died on foreign soil as a legacy to American intervention. Each and every time, we were told it was either to protect American security interests, or to preserve a fledging democracy, or just to help the bullied survive the bully. “What's it going to be this time?” Silas wonders, his deep blue eyes shouting the question. “What's it going to be as history repeats itself? As this civil war, like all civil wars, plays itself out across the pages of history?” It was Shakespeare who said, “All the world’s a stage, and all of us merely players.” A stage whose props and lighting change virtu- ally every minute, and yet whose players almost always choose ancient angers over new under- standings. Ancient angers, in the pathway of which idealistic young men, regardless of race, creed, or na- tional origin, will always find them- selves thrust upon the altar of history. 3047 Lower Dedands Rd. Dallas. PA Mother's Day Seatings at 12:00 ¢ 3:00 ¢ 6:00 By Reservation Only 675-3550 "FREE" Automatic Pool or Spa "CLEANER" with the purchase of any Wilkes pool or spa When "ONLY" The Best Is Good Enoush MOM ... deserves a WILKES Mother's Day Special May 10th, 11th & 12th 30% Save Big 30% on all Chemical Packages / Free Shop On the Spot at Financing Home Service Available COME SEE THE WILKES ADVANTAGE Serving N.E. 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Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers