Editor, The News:
Re: Twisted (The News, Oct. 23).
I usually look forward to sitting down with a cup of tea at the end of the day to peruse my copy of The News.
Through the efforts of this newspaper, my family and I have been able to enjoy various community events and entertainment that, if I had not read it in your newspaper, we would have missed out on.
I have enjoyed reading about the history of Maple Ridge and the people from the past who contributed to this great city.
Along with this, there are many other educational and informative articles I have thoroughly enjoyed.
Today, however, when my copy arrived, it was difficult for me to get past the cover page.
The very polite young boy who delivered my paper was still walking down the street and I stood shaking my head in disbelief that a community newspaper would publish such a grotesque photo on the front page, knowing that most of your carriers are children.
It is interesting that this ‘horror’ scene, which depicts fear, murder and torture as something ‘fun,’ is on the same page as an article that reports but also condemns a brazen downtown shooting.
Turn over the page and there are two articles, one on a Maple Ridge man found in possession of child pornography and another an appeal filed in a drunk driving case. We read these and we are outraged at the criminals and their actions, and so we should be.
I realize that the ‘real’ world is full of pain and suffering. I have taught my now adult children to understand this and to be people who help bring relief in some form or another to those who are suffering.
A face disfigured and bleeding from a head-on collision with another vehicle is difficult to look at. Yet, as humans with compassion, we are able not to be repulsed by this, but are able to push through and offer assistance if we can.
The irony is this front page photo makes it all seem ‘fun’.
Perhaps my critics should speak to someone who has survived the horror of a brutal attack, or what about those family members who have had to identify the broken, beaten, unrecognizable or murdered bodies of their loved ones? Perhaps we should ask them how much fun that is.
It is my hope that in the future The News will exercise much more wisdom when printing certain photos and articles, especially on the front page.
Janine Willemsen
Maple Ridge
