Dear editor,There were 10 pictures in the Crime Stoppers section of the newspaper today.Send them to prison! Let’s get tough on crime! Or maybe there is another solution to Bill C-10.The Crime Bill will make inequality worse. It’s not tough on crime; it’s tough on Canadians suffering from mental illness, addictions, and poverty. It targets youth for harsher punishments, and it will put more aboriginal people in prison.The Crime Bill threatens valuable programs. Mandatory sentences will clog the justice system and fill prisons, forcing the provinces, who pay for most of our justice system, to raise taxes, increase debt, or cut spending on essential programs like health and education.To reduce crime we should focus on what’s already working —  prevention and rehabilitation — and address the major causes of crime by reducing inequality and supporting people who need help.I just completed a course called Roots of Empathy (www.rootsofempathy.org/) to help teach kids how to treat each other and become loving parents. In this program we bring a newborn with mother (and father) into the classroom once a month for the entire school year.There is research from five countries showing that after three years of having had this in a classroom for those 10 months, the children are still showing lower rates of violence, aggression and higher rates of pro-social behaviour.If only our government could spend our money on implementing this in every school, we would not need more prisons.This bill is being passed right now. It is up to us to put a stop to it. Call John Duncan today at 250-338-9381.Dominique McGrady,Comox

Comox Valley Record