The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

It is a condition of everyday life, a flaw in our society, one we must never ignore, one we must continue to challenge. Ironically, in the case of The Merchant of the Venice, the Waterloo Courty Board of Education appears to have overlooked its most valuable resourceâ€"the art of teaching. But no problem was ever solved by ignoring it or putting it in a closet and pretending it doesn‘t exist. Racial prejudice existed in Shylock‘s time, in Shakespeare‘s time, and still exists today. And it doesn‘t sprout, like some uncontrollable monster, in virgin minds of those who have the misfortune of being in grades 9 or 10. The Waterloo County Board of Education would have better served its purpose by dealing with the Coalition‘s concerns in the context of its curriculum, not by altering it. If any part of the curriculum, Shakespeare or otherwise, is causing problems, the board of education should commence inâ€" trospective analysis to identify the problem, and then deal with it. If the problem is the teaching of the play, deal with it. If the problem is in specific schools or specific students at specific schools, deal with them. If the problem is at the board level, deal with it. And if the problem turns out to be no more than wellâ€"intentioned but overlyâ€"sensitive special interest groups, then deal too with them. Of no small concern, now that the board has reacted this way due to pressure from one special interest group, is the fact the board may be flooded by demands from other groups to alter its curriculum in other ways. And should those demands not be met, what is to stop said groups from going above the board to the Human Rights Commission for interpretations of ‘"appropriateness?‘"‘ Then what? If the board is to posture itself as morality meter, then how now are we to deal with such worthwhile programs as family life/sex education and drinking/driving campaigns? Are they too, and those like them, to be shelved because in exposing students to problems in our society, we risk adding to the problem? If that is the case, it‘s time to pack up the pencils and rulers and close our schools for good. It is a move that, as criticized, indirectly comments on the ability of the board‘s teaching staff to handle Shakespeare and deal with subject matter such as presented in The Merchant of Venice. It is a move that implies when a book contains material of a prejudical nature, that material will be interpreted by students as acceptable conduct, that students are unable to distinguish right from wrong. Does that also mean that any book, whether it is literature, history or otherwise, that deals with subjects such as murder, adultery, robbery, and so on should be shelved for fear it will guide our children down the wrong path? Perish the thought. PAGE 6 â€" WATERLOO CHRONICLE, WEDNESDAY, JJLY 23, 1986 We have no problems with the actions or efforts of the Coalition, which has attempted in its selective way to illustrate the harm done to local students, alleged victims of prejudice and racial taunts, through the portrayal of Jews through the character Shylock in the Merchant. Nor do we deny that prejudice, racial and otherwise, exists in far too many aspects of our society. ° But tossing out the Merchant, even if only temporarily, in hopes that prejudice and racial tension will be reduced or eliminated, is pieâ€"inâ€"theâ€"sky pretzel logic on the part of the board and a move that in all likelihood will backfire in more ways than one. The events leading up to the recent banning of the play from grades 9 and 10 in County schools and the suspending of the teaching of the play in all grades until its ‘"appropriateâ€" ness" has been determined by the Ministry of Education and Ontario Human Rights Commission are wellâ€"documented. It is also certainly a victory of immense proportion for the Coalition for Equality in Education, the Judeoâ€"Christian organization which has lobbied to have the board deal with the Merchant of Venice. In recently shelving Shakespeare‘s The Merchant of Venice, however, the board has betrayed that tradition, become entangled in a potentially explosive precedentâ€"setâ€" ting situation, and worst of all, set a bad example for the you‘th of today on how to deal with adversity and the ills of our society. Unlike some of its counterparts in this province, the Waterloo County Board of Education almost always has the best interests of its students at heart. Telephone 886â€"2830 News and Sports line 886â€"3021. Waterioo Chronicie office is located in the Haney, White law office building (rear :fiwm),wun-moomum.oommnm.o a.my‘ to 5 p.m. : Bill Karges Editor: Rick Campbeii Circulation manager: Greg Cassidy Classified advertising: Marie Kapshey Editorial: Melodee Martinuk, Mark Bryson (news); Richard O‘Brien (sports). Circulation: June Toushan, Jerry Fischer m‘ and Composing: Fairway Press s Paul(’Wlnkler » %( *,05,$ SN L /“ 3 Suturtan Mewepspers of America Second Class Mail .m___“;m..“‘ ooo vâ€"mâ€"'â€"' !834 Waterioo Chronicle is published every Wednesday by Fairway Press, a division of m-gumww..m.mmmrmm. §.. Address all correspondence to Waterioo office, 46 Erb St. E.. Waterioo, Ont. N2J 1L7 To teach or not to teach Helen Smiley, Paula Hummei Why am I so nervous about making public my talents, or distinct lack thereof, when it comes to cooking? Well, for the first 18 years of my life, I was spoiled on Mom‘s home cooking. The year 1972â€"73 saw that come virtually to an end when I ventured to Wilfrid Laurier University and found the answer to my constantlyâ€"grumbling stomach in a place called, sometimes appropriately, the Dining Hall. I had nothing against the food served there, though rather than names of dishes, colors ‘‘Don‘t worry," Sandy said, "since you would be new to the group you likely wouldn‘t have to entertain until sometime early next year." Still, I was a trifle hesitant to commit, fearing a yes confirmation would place me squarely, if not in the fire, to be sure in the frying pan. It will be a tasty treat for our six winners of the June Volunâ€" tary Paid subscription contest, each of whom will receive $50 gift certificates to Waterioo‘s Olde English Parlour. This month‘s winners include: D. Ruland of Old Meadowlane. Videos of Westmount Place, H. Kellsey of King St. N., B Novensâ€" The only problem is, there are not too many dishes coming from the Campbell kitchen that can, in even the loosest of terms, be described as gourmet. And that‘s using Canada as a theme. Gulp. You know what this means, don‘t you? To be a member of a Gourmet Club means that, about every six weeks, five couples get together with one couple as host for a gourmet meal, usually picking countries from around the world as a theme. The hosts are responsible for the booze and the main dish, and the other four couples chip in with complimenting side dishes. Next time around, another couple is host, with another country as theme, until the rotation is complete. Word has it it‘s a great way to spend four fun hours on a Saturday night, especially during the long winter months. ‘‘Well," Sandy continued, "we‘re already in a Gourmet Club now but we like it so much we‘re starting up a new one and we‘d like you and Beth to be a part of it." ‘"Of course I have." Well, I haven‘t really, but like, I know gourmet, as in Galloping Gourmet, who got his name from making one too many Mexican dishes. ‘‘*Hey Bool, (Campbool, get it?), we‘re getting a Gourmet Club together with five couples and we‘d love to have you and Beth be one of the couples," said statuesque Sandy, whose lifelong motto is "Gotta Tan Now." "A Gourmet Club?*" ‘*Yeh, a Gourmet Club, you‘ve heard of them, haven‘t you?" There I was, blissfully reclined under the shade of an maple Saturday afternoon, appreciating the cool breeze coming my way from trangquil Cameron Lake. Cottage country comfort. Suddenly, however, I was jarred from near snoozyland by a voice, I believe from my right. How dare anyone engage me in conversation without my permission? July Voluntary Paid winners Chronicle readers should be reminded that carriers will be making their July subscription canvass beginning next week and the prize will be perfect for the summer season as 10 lucky ki of Amos Ave., John Cammaraâ€" ta of Sir Sandford Fleming PI. and Joan Blackmore of Peppler St. Gourmet good Rick Campbell Chronicle Editor I would like to report things have improved over the years, but alas, I cannot. I recently made chocolate bran muffins somehow overlooking the cup of sugar. Mmmmmmmmmmâ€"good. Gak. My heart sank when, in making an attempt at breaded pork tenderloin, I was complimented for the ‘‘superb garlic bread."‘ Basic items, 1 can eek out a passing grade. But desserts I leave to my wife, who herself, until we were married, had to be led around the kitchen by hand. And any dish you have to say with an accent, forget it. To me, Accent is a tenderizer, period. And so, I was left Saturday with a dilemma. Should I spill the beans (why not, I‘ve spilled everything else in the kitchen) about what lousy cooks Rick and Beth are? We could agree to join the Gourmet Club and make Malibu Beach the theme (hot dogs, fries, cokes and popsicles for dessert). Should we join and take cooking lessons until our number comes up? Or should we deciine out of embarrassment and miss out on some good fun and great eats? ‘‘Sure, Sandy, we‘d love to be a part of your Gourmet Club," I finally said, ‘"but only if we can really be exotic when it‘s our turn."‘ ‘"You can be as exotic as you like," she said. Licence to kill. stick in my mind. Let‘s see, taking an aerial perspective of my cafeteria tray, there was goiden brown at direction two o‘clock, deep brown further down the plate at 6 p.m., and up at 10 o‘clock usually a variation of the color of green. Top corner of the tray at l1 o‘clock was either bright red or yellow, and one o‘clock, reliable white. Translation in order: fries, meat loaf, green beans, cherry jello or banana, two per cent milk. I count myself a survivor. The following year, I got a rude awakening when I moved to a house in downtown Kitchener with four roomies. For starters, the refrigerator does not automatically reâ€"stock itself with food each week. And much to my dismay, I found out that meals are labor intensive, that they just don‘t appear on the table when your morning alarm goes off or when you drive into the driveway at 5 p.m. after a hard day. I was not impressed. Of course, neither were my roomies with my first few attempts at meals after process of elimination established me as chief cook and bottlewasher. Let‘s see, that first month we had charred steak with Kraft dinner accompani, pork chops so fried and dried they were rejected by buyers for Mattel‘s Easy Bake Oven, beer marinaded with stew that I was told works better the other way, and an unforgettable chocolate moose (that‘s right moose, not mousse). winners will each receive a pair of tickets to ‘"Sun and Stars" which includes a day at Sportsâ€" world, lunch at Rafters restauâ€" rant, and evening admission to Lulu‘s Roadhouse. Those winâ€" ning tickets will be redeemable Wednesdays through Saturday for the remainder of the 1986 seaâ€"