Your Turn Surveillance cameras not the answer Guest Column MARC GOTTWERTH I t was with some degree of sadness I read in your March 26 article on PNC and teen drinking that the decision was made to install video surveillance cameras at PNC Arts Center. I have seen firsthand the damage alcohol abuse has done to society. My oral family history states my grandfather's mother sent him to his father's factory come payday. He was to take the paycheck from his father and bring it home immediately to his mother; otherwise, the check would be spent in the local tavern and the family would not have enough to eat for the upcoming week. In another instance, at age 17 our town had a high school girl killed by a drunken driver on New Year's Eve. The same girl I had a crush on and had finally resolved to ask on a date once we returned from winter's break. "Where's Nancy?" I had asked in homeroom. Only to then hear the story of what had happened to her. This past history being said, I believe installing surveillance cameras is the wrong step to take in solving teenage drinking problems. It is contrary to the moral foundation under which my parents and my religion raised me. That being, one should follow the law because laws are reasonable, just and have our best interests at heart. If a law is not just, it should be repealed. As a youth, I was encouraged to learn about the damage alcohol does to our body and the potentially fatal damage that can occur to ourselves or others if we drove intoxicated. I was taught to look to the police as our friends, public servants, who had our best interests at heart. I believe having surveillance cameras in place fundamentally destroys that faith and trust. I was taught that laws should have compassion and a sense of community building as their foundation. I would have preferred to hear rather than to survey and arrest individuals, the decision was made to patrol the grounds in a nonthreatening manner, confiscate the alcohol and the concert tickets of the offenders and to call the teens' parents. Attending an AA meeting or performing community service should be offered as punishment rather than an arrest record and a fine. This is a policy that I believe is more conducive to community building and would also allow teens to approach police when they see a problem exists, knowing that the individual or a friend that was "ratted out" would not be subject to an arrest. Holmdel resident Pat Lynch seems to be very supportive of the proposed surveillance initiative. She states, "I like knowing I can tell my kids the police are watching you." Unfortunately, I don't subscribe to the "do the right thing because the police are watching you" mentality. It seems to be part of the "feel good" laws that politicians put forth all to frequently these days. Policies that on the surface look like they are addressing problems, but occasionally create even more problems. I would rather see teens being identified as alcohol abusers by the police at PNC concerts and offered constructive rehabilitation programs, than driving them away from not attending any concerts at all because of "the hassle" and wind up drinking in wooded lots or in Johnny Smith's basement. Just because you can't "see no evil" doesn't mean the evil no longer exists; it just means you've driven it underground and can no longer identify and help those who so much need our assistance, not our punishment. Marc Gottwerth resides in Middletown