Very few crimes strike a chord with me like those that are committed against children and ones that are committed against pets. I feel children and pets are vulnerable and put adults in charge of ensuring their well being. When this is betrayed, I become, deeply, troubled. A story that isn’t getting enough attention has been the disappearance of a number of dogs (likely more than a dozen) from the surrounding area of Yorkton. Prince Albert, recently, has had a story where more than six have vanished. In the Winnipeg area, it’s a number greater than fifty. These are not coincidences. It’s one thing to have to put a pet down after owning it for a period of time. It’s stressful. It’s hard. It’s a lot of things, none of which are pleasant. What’s worse is when you lose your pet and you are left without answers as to what happened to it. Someone, somewhere knows what’s happened to some, or all, of these animals. I am imploring you to do something about it. Put a stop to this. Stealing a dog from its own property is the lowest of the low. If you don’t stop it, there is a chance a pet owner (and not the police) will uncover what is going on and the person responsible is going to wish he/she was being caught by law enforcement. If this happens, I don’t wish the slightest bit of mercy on you. So, again, if you have information on these matters, please go to the authorities or call in an anonymous tip.
A vigilante in Saskatoon has garnered some attention for posing as a teenaged girl on a dating site, trying to lure in would-be child abusers. In the span of an hour and a half, he received 150 messages. That, alone, should be the focal point of the story; but no. What’s happened is that the vigilante has earned criticism from police for taking matters into his own, untrained hands to try and curb the massive problem of child sex abuse. In this case, the vigilante set up a meeting and video taped it, resulting in the firing of the potential abuser from his job (he tried to meet the girl in a work truck with the company logo on it). This should be applauded. While I agree he shouldn’t be doing this independent of the law, it’s very clear police are fighting a losing battle here. 150 messages in 90 minutes? No police force can make a dent on that. I say good for the vigilante. I hope he understands the risks. Should he end up getting hurt, I think he’s quite aware of the repercussions. I can only hope the vigilante ends up with a significant supporting force behind him.
As a total coincidence, my inbox was hit with a special on a book about a vigilante type of crime that occurred in the United States in the 1980s. Whether you agree or not, it’s a fascinating story and I may just buy it. The subject is Ken McElroy, a well known bully in a small community, who police tried to send to prison, over and over, but failed every single time for various reasons (most of which were because of witness intimidation). McElroy met his maker one day in front of 46 people as two individuals opened fire on him, killing him on site as nobody called for help. When police arrived, none of the 46 people at the scene claimed to know anything.
A Nova Scotia teacher is speaking out against ‘entitled’ students, who, she says, are ‘coddled’ on assignment deadlines. The 30-year veteran says there has been a shift in how students adjust to college learning — and it’s not good. She says, “They have probably been used to getting a badge for every single little thing they do, and they’re very disappointed when they’re being critiqued.” To Nova Scotia’s credit, a task force has been set up to respond to complaints of students not being prepared for the workforce or post-secondary education. I think we will see more and more of this in the very near future. I also think the issue is so wide spread that it’s the real world that is in the for wake up call and not the coddled young people. Eventually, there will be so many of them that things like hard-work, pride, and specialized expertise could become a thing of the past.
