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In London Ontario, you must be 18 or older to buy.....................MARKERS?
Another misguided attempt at "feel good" justice. I weep for the future of this country.
| quote: | Canadian first as London limits graffiti tool sales
Tue, May 2, 2006
By JOE BELANGER, FREE PRESS CITY HALL REPORTER
London is the first city in Canada to fight graffiti by banning sale of markers and spray paint to minors.
Meanwhile, a two-hour debate settled little on whether to ban pesticides, with council settling only on a date and information to be presented at a public meeting.
"It took some hard work, but we're the first in Canada to do this and I think it's great," said Coun. Bernie MacDonald, who spearheaded the graffiti bylaw.
Several council members, led by Coun. David Winninger and Controller Russ Monteith, both lawyers, argued the bylaw discriminates against youth, violating Canadian Charter of Rights.
Both warned a ban could leave the city vulnerable to a legal challenge.
"It's ludicrous," Winninger said. "It's offensive to the Charter of Rights. It's not reasonable that it can be justified in a free and democratic society."
But others on council, including Coun. Cheryl Miller whose Ward 5 takes in much of the core and Old East Village, welcomed the ban. "We need to take back the city," she said.
And Coun. Roger Caranci said the bylaw "is not a ban, it's a control. (Minors) can go to the store with their parents to buy them."
London police supported a ban, offering evidence suggesting minors are more often than not wielding spray cans and markers.
In the last two years, 25 of 42 people arrested for making graffiti were under 18, while 92 of 126 people seen but not caught were minors.
Also, MainStreet London backed the ban, noting the London Downtown Business Association spends $25,000 a year removing graffiti.
MacDonald and others argued a city heavily marked by graffiti gives visitors the impression it's crime ridden and no one cares.
U.S. cities have cracked down on spray paint sales, but no Canadian city has, police and city staff said.
MacDonald said the city hopes to provide locations and opportunities for artists and youth to express themselves through graffiti art, including murals on buildings.
On pesticides, council moved a public meeting to May 24 and, if needed, May 25, since no major civic facilities were available May 29.
Instead of presenting one bylaw to the public, staff were instructed to report on major issues, questions and options, along with examples of other municipalities' bylaws. |
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| quote: | Originally posted by jester
Everything in this country is illegal. |
"Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery…" Winston Churchill
"If you have ten thousand regulations you destroy all respect for the law" - Winston Churchill
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