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3 hours ago
10
Published Apr 19, 2026 • Last updated 20 minutes ago • 1 minute read
STAND EASY
I question whether Brad Hunter has thought out his suggestion of forced military service for young criminals in his column “Military draft could scare young criminals straight” (April 10). Do we really want to train these “Junior Al Capones,” as Hunter refers to them, in military tactics, weapons proficiency and hand-to-hand combat? At present, these kiddie criminals often can’t hit the target any better than our Maple Leafs hockey team. Do we really want to turn them into adept snipers and turn them loose on our streets once their tour of duty is over? It’s a dicey prospect, at best. Better to have them tried as mature adults if a serious crime has been committed and serve a stiff sentence unless they give up the adults who recruited them. The pitch that criminals and gang members use to lure kids into committing crimes is that young offenders serve minimal time in incarceration. If these kids were facing 20 years for murder rather than three to five years in juvie, chances are some of them would flip for a more lenient sentence and we get a chance to put away the bad guys behind the violence. We’d also give these kids a chance to turn their lives around. At present, when there are no consequences to violent actions, there is no deterrent for these kids to stop committing crimes.
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Bruce Etheridge
Scarborough
(But giving them the structure and discipline of military service could get them off that path they could’ve been going down to criminality. And it’s highly unlikely they would seek out a delinquent life after military service)
PRINCIPAL CONCERN
Re “Hero principal who tackled gunman on the mend” (Denette Wilford, April 16): Thinking about the school principal Kirk Moore, in Oklahoma, who tackled the gunman and most likely saved multiple lives. In Canada, the gunman would be out on bail and pressing charges for assault.
Arch Wilcox
Newmarket
(You are sadly correct)
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