Stifling Movie Violence Might Save More Lives

Barry Loukaitis is going away for a long time. If he’s sentenced to life without possibility of parole, as he should be, the 16-year-old Moses Lake killer might spend the rest of his life in jail. Who knows? Life without possibility of parole may mean something different in the future. It’s too bad our society doesn’t have the stomach to give this creep what he deserves the death penalty. That, of course, wouldn’t bring back his three victims, who included former Coeur d’Alene instructor Leona Caires. But it would guarantee that Loukaitis never would kill again behind bars or elsewhere, should he happen to break out of prison or be set free by a review of his case 20 or 30 years from now. However, this is wishful thinking. Instead, I’d settle for the families of the murder victims or Natalie Hintz, who still is recovering from her wounds, filing suit against the producers of “Natural Born Killers,” the celluloid trash that fueled Loukaitis’ rampage. Reining in Hollyweird’s violence might save more lives than injecting Loukaitis and other Woody Harrelson wannabes.

Coeur d’Alene School District still excludes unwashed

The Coeur d’Alene School District may have a new superintendent. But administrators still are pulling the same old tricks. Case in point: the formation of a committee that will draw new middle-school boundaries. Now, I’d be the first to admit there are some impressive people on the committee - Chairman Jack Smetana, Steve Sibulsky and others. But the committee was handpicked by the district office without any attempt to publicly solicit other interested patrons. In fact, The Spokesman-Review tried for a week to acquire a list of prospective candidates to attract interest in this important committee. But the district refused to turn it loose until after the panel’s first meeting. Superintendent David Rawls, who’d like to make the teachers code of conduct tougher, should overhaul his district’s committee spoils system, too.

Trail supporters finally have their day

A wise pastor once told me you move mountains one shovelful at a time. He must have been talking about the Centennial Trail. Ten years ago, I shook my head as I watched city Parks Director Doug Eastwood and others unveil plans for the trail. It’s too expensive, I thought; it’ll never get off the ground. Seven years ago next month, I attended the dedication of the western end of the North Idaho trail at State Line. They’ll never finish the middle section, I thought. It’s too expensive; there’s too much opposition. Today, I plan to attend the dedication of the last section of the trail at Huetter. Help my unbelief.

, DataTimes MEMO: D.F. Oliveria’s “Hot Potatoes” runs Tuesdays and Thursdays. You can comment on the items by calling (800) 344-6718 or (208) 765-7125 or by sending e-mail to daveo@spokesman.com.