Does this fit your image of the village taking responsibility for raising its children? It happened last Thursday in downtown Spokane.

Several young folks were congregated in front of the Spokane Public Library, joking and drinking from long-necked bottles. One of the bottles was shattered on the sidewalk, prompting more laughing.

A handful of pedestrians in the area (yours truly included) walked by, minding our own business, but one motorist pulled over to the curb on Lincoln.

“Pick up that broken glass or I’ll hold you here until the police come,” he said from the rolled-down window.

The young man did as he was told.

What are your ideas about what happened here? What does it say about setting standards of conduct and holding one another accountable?

Citizen involvement is a cornerstone

On Tuesday, some “Bagpipes” readers described the initiative process for citizen-written law as fraught with mischief.

Brehon K. McFarland of Colville sees it just a little differently.

“As inefficient as the notion of citizen lawmakers and citizen involvement may be,” he said, “it is a cornerstone of our political system.”

When formal government gets too big and self-serving, the initiative process is a way for citizens to reclaim their authority, he said.

“It is the last bastion of defense, short of a second American Revolution,” said McFarland. “The only initiative I don’t see, but would vote for, would outline a constitutional amendment that would prohibit the Legislature from repealing or substantively changing any law passed by initiative or referendum.

“Government moves to fill a vacuum. The initiative process helps break the seal.”

That’s why they call it a ‘strike’

Tempers crackled a bit on the United Parcel Service strike line in Coeur d’Alene this week. One striker busted another in the nose, reportedly believing the bustee had crossed the picket line earlier in Spokane.

Part-time driver Philip Metcalf denied the accusation. He’d been out of town visiting family at the time his absence from the picket line had aroused suspicion, he said.

Let’s say, entirely hypothetically, that a worker had crossed the line once, then decided to join the strikers. So what? Does it warrant a punch in the nose?

, DataTimes MEMO: “Bagpipes” appears Tuesdays and Thursdays. To respond, call Cityline at 458-8800, category 9881, from a Touch-Tone phone; or send a fax to 459-5098 or e-mail to dougf@spokesman.com. You also can leave Doug Floyd a message at 459-5577, extension 5466.