neat, Saturday, October 5, 1991 FEE | ¢ oe sta OurWiEWS AdrianRAESIDE Kudos for committee Enough of this election business for a moment. Let’s take a look at a disaster that almost befell Castlegar over the last couple of weeks. We're talking about the problem the Castlegar Festivals Society had forming a new executive committee, a problem which threatened to force cancellation of next year’s Sunfest celebration. Just the thought of having to cancel Sunfest when it looked like the annual event was poised to become bigger and better is a shame. We suspect the festivals society, like so many other volunteer organizations, suffered — for ly only Pp ily — from a common symptom of an increasingly busier society: people just find it more and more difficult to find the time to volunteer their services. That’s why the people who have committed their time to keeping Sunfest alive — president Donna Jory, vice- president Betty Price, treasurer Cheryl Ogloff and secretary Larissa Plotnikoff — deserve kudos from the community. But as we reported last week, the executive still faces a monumental task of planning Sunfest ’92. Therefore, we urge everyone who can spare some time to contact the executive to try to make next year’s Sunfest a success. QUOTES “Trees grow again.” — Paul Johnston, subbing for Socred Dave McCullough Publisher Simon Birch Editor Peter Harvey Plant Foreman Mark Davis Advertising Manager Circulation Manager Burt Campbell Publisher Emeritus LV. Campbell ‘Aug. 7, 1947- Feb. 15, 1973 candidates forum in Trail, while candidate Walter Siemens at an all- Campaign gets curiouser Ed Conroy’s not without ome observati and thoughts on the Ross- land-Trail election race, a campaign that gets curious- er and curiouser. Social Credit - candidate Walt Siemens mailed leaflets to homeowners telling them that the environment was the number one issue with voters in this riding. No surprise ere. So what does Siemens do? He tells an all-candidates’ in Castl that the Comments from the Crossroads his problems, either. He’s largely unknown outside of Castlegar, though he’s had a chance to remedy that with the long lead-in time to the election. He’s had since May 1990 (16 months) to gear up for the campaign and get out and knock on doors in communi- ties like Salmo, Fruitvale and Rossland. Still, he some’ have a high profile. sense would sug- environment comes second to jobs. Then he goes on to say that he probably Md: with wae that since Conroy grew up in the Castlegar area, this would be his hold (just as Trail would be Siemens’ 't get i 1 ad- 2. why there’s no need for logging restrictions on private land “I’ve never found a minister so disgusting in my whole life.” — RDCK director Hans Cunningham, referring to Environment Minister Dave Mercier who was unreceptive to the region’s waste management problems and i il concerns. : It’s a bit like finding out everyone's favorite ice cream is vanilla and telling them that if they vote for you, you'll buy them chocolate. He also didn’t help his cause any by refusing to attend an environmental forum earlier this week in Trail. It sends a message to voters that Siemens is not only going to buy them choco- stronghold because he lives there). But famil- iarity is a double-edged sword: well-known doesn't always translate into well-liked. Acomment I've heard in the Castlegar area is that people can't stand the Socreds and would vote for the New Democrats at the drop of a hat, but for Conroy. The reasons? They are all different, but usually based on some point of friction with Conroy years ago. used foul language during the meeting vi late ice cream, but that he doesn't really like ‘anilla. ven though a recent BCTV E poll suggested that the So- creds were catching up to the NDP, Rita Johnston has got to do one hell of a lot better to pull this one out of the bag. That just isn’t good enough for the Socreds. After firing their best shots, their campaign is still lack- luster at best. What’s worse, they continue to be plagued by disas- ters. Perhaps the best indication of how bad things are going for the Hubert BEYER Report from Victoria Socreds are the poll results com- ing in from the central Interior. Nearly half-way through the cam- paign, the NDP was leading in seven of the 10 ridings in that area. The survey, conducted by EDUCOMP for the Terrace Stan- dard, showed the Socreds leading in the two Peace River ridings and ridings. The Socred in Cariboo North. The NDP led in Cariboo South, Bulkley Valley- Skeena and while, there doesn't appear to be a safe Socred haven in any of the 13 baggage is so heavy that Stan Hagen, seeking in Comox Valley, is pits running on his record, stu- diously avoiding any identification with the e party. of pl please see NORMAN page A7 Johnston must do better to catch NDP paign. All the optimism and en- thusiasm has shifted to the NDP which can almost smell victory. One socred strategist told the Vi Sun: “The Big Blue Ma- ing Boored stock is tha shortage of campaign volunteers. In some rid- ings, ‘the Socreds have had to pay wage to keep the election machine from sputtering to acomplete halt. It is one of the strangest elec- tion campaigns I have ever cov- ered. Even back in 1983, when Bill Bennett was in ble trou- ble until Dave Barrett said he chine is running B.C. politics again, but this time they’re work- ing for the NDP.” Not that gonmatons isn’t trying. treamely bad situation. She even joked recently oe io re e haven't had a pete rig in three But that’s not enough to win an election. Johnston as y, October 5, 1991 dhe News ma A, add or deliver them to 197 Columbia Ave. Letters should be Letters toWHE EDITOR Support explained A lot of people seem confused that I have chosen to back [independent candidate] Chris Lacy satiear Shan She Bortal Credit condi but I felt I had to go with my Senay other people, i have s great feat’ of the NDP becoming our government and I feel that though Walt Siemens is a fine man who has worked hard for Social Credit and Ross- land-Trail, Chris has more chance of winning this riding against the NDP candidate. eb nbag-ah pa Thave gained ad- ion for Chris as I d him over decisions of his own. He had been elected by fe people as an NDP candidate and felt ed the party an obligation, but his heart was not really-with many aspects of the NDP’s philosophy for a long time. ey was an agonizing decision in many ways, heart. Like they heel vege ropally cskwed? Chris has taken the time and the kindness to look beneath the views portrayed by the media and others. I believe, as Chris has said, that the constituents in his area do not really care about the controversy over the sale of Mr. Vander Zalm’s family business. They are more concerned about the meat and potatoes reality of a sawmill in the area that shut down, another mill that has.de- clared bankruptcy, the depressed lumber market and changes at the smelting opera- tion at Trail. Not long ago Chris even spoke out in the legislature telling all MLAs to quit playing politics and get down to the business of looking after people’s problems. I like that. I watched Chris D’Arcy work very hard with people of all political persuasions to con- vince the governments to allow the modern- ization of the Celgar pulp mill. He feels, as I do, that we need to do what we can to protect Chris appreciated the generous in which Premier Bill Vander Zalm treated our area in spite of the fact that it was an NDP riding. I admired Chris’ courage for boldly pointing this out after Premier Bill was (un- fairly in my opinion) disgraced. There was nothing for Chris to gain politically by doing 50. But I feel Chris gained something money or all the politics in the world cannot accom- plish. He showed his strength by speaking what was in his heart without worrying about the consequences, just as he has gra- ciously accepted my support in the manner it was given. I think there are a lot of people who could learn a lesson from him. I feel sorry for those who are trying to dis- credit Chris with their mean-mouthed re- marks about me being a radical Socred or a Zalmoid. Should people be labeled as radical ds or Zalmoids just b they speak up about their belief in the free enterprise system, or because they are loyal to a friend the but secure jobs are also im- portant. Without jobs we will not have a healthy economy that can afford the social programs necessary to help those that really need it. There has to be a balance. We both believe that often special interest groups go too far. For instance, when a log- ging plan is finally approved i in an Papees after the best job he can of helping to make the world a better place, not just for himself and his family, but for all of us. That is what we should all try to do. Iris Bakken Salmo Insights wanted Tam surprised that Mr. Ron Norman is so naive as to think that Iris Bakken’s support of Chris D’Arcy is anything more than a black-widow syndrome. What better way to discredit Chris than by trying to slough off some of the Zalm’s mud on him. Perhaps Mr. Norman should try to give the reading public some insights into the elec- tion rather than trying to fob his own socialist views off on us. . For instance, where is the $48 million bribe — oops, not bribe, helping hand — to the fruitgrowers going to come from? If Corky Evans is going to work for all the people, why doesn’t he list how many mem- bers from the Green party, Socred, Liberal or unknowns are also missing from the voter’s list? Could it be that he fe gulch to week easly for the NDP members as it would seem Ed Convey appears only to do. It appears that years have been spent developing it with community involvement) cial inter- est groups should not be allowed to stop woodworkers from earning their living. I watched how Chris and Howard Dirks worked together and was impressed with the respect they showed each other, though they were from opposing parties. Their goal to- gether was to work for the people of the area and to heck with the politics. I have watched Chris with his wife, An- drea, and their two dear little boys. I see how though he has had problems and made mis- takes in his life, just like the rest of us, he has worked hard to overcome them and is doing the election is appearing more and more like a horse race and we get a view from the south as they are all heading north. In any three-way contest, the majority will not have voted for the winner. But if Chris D'Arcy is the winner he has ably demonstrat- ed in the past that he works for the good of all, whereas in my opinion Conroy will work only for the NDP and its socialist dream no matter whether the money to pay for it all is there or not. And since both Ed and Corky wish to for- mulate statute law, should the Hasty and Lasca Creek protesters have been arrested? Fred Peitzsche Ross Spur Norman continued from page AG That’s the problem: when peo- ple get to know you well, they ei- ther like you or they don't. While a few local election issues (such as Columbia River pollution, education funding and logging in watershed areas) have reared their heads, it appears the provin- cial issues are still more dominant in Rossland-Trail. It seems that both the Socred and New Democrat candidates have to fight images created by their provincial parties. Conroy, for instance, has to deal with voter concern that the New Democrats are free spenders who will i increase taxes even before t the swearing them in. Siemens is in the same boat. He can tell everyone in Rossl Independent Chris D’Arcy i isin am unique position. He’s running as that his integrity is squeaky clean. But it won't help much if the So- cial Credit party as a whole is viewed as corrupt. No matter how good the local candidate, if voters are hesitant about the party provincially, they will be hesitant about the local candidate. The Green party's Angela Price is fighting the problem of being a one-issue candidate. Even with the environment as voters’ top concern, candidates must still be able to show they can deal effec- tively with h ocher issues, such as governor has fi Ith care. ib but not for the par- ty that was elected in this riding for the last 19 years. This election will show whether it was D’Arcy who carried the NDP all those years, or vice versa. As an independent, D’Arcy must overcome voter perception that he will never be part of the winning team. Inasense, electing an indepen- dent MLA is like el his constituents. During D’, last term, the West Trail approach was completed, a GO B.C. grant went to the Castlegar Aquatic Centre, and Selkirk College and Castlegar school board were giv- en money for expansion and up- grading of their facilities. Just how much can be credited to D’Arcy is difficult to judge. The point is that it came with him as an Opposition member. What's odd is that Siemens is to the Opposition (though not quite, because an independent can play off the government and Op- position). That's not to say an Opposition MLA can't do some good things for also cl credit for the accom- plishments. In fact, the Socred candidate used a favorable quote from D’Ar- cy in one of his leaflets. I told you this election gets cu- riouser and curiouser. Beyer continued from page A6 Try that one on someone who remembers her role in the Vander Zalm government. During my recent swing through the Cariboo, I asked peo- ple over and over again who they thought would win the el Over and over, people told me that an NDP government was probably inevitable, although they popular Mike Pearce, for- mer mayor of Quesnel, to win in Cariboo North. - There are two things that could 1975, 1979, 1983 and 1986, Cot boo residents would have unani- mously d any of an NDP victory. Not so this time. paign or two within NDP ranks. Neither appears very likely. The Socreds have all but ex- hausted their supply of Now we're down to gems like king British Columbia safe for issues. The Ontario budget, fea- tured heavily in Socred advertis- ing during the first week of the campaign, failed among voters. And sporadic attempts at link- ing the NDP to the crumbling so- cialist empire in Eastern Europe have run into something the So- creds didn't consider — the intelli- gence of the voters. children. Just this morning I heard a So- cred radio spot promising legisla- tion that would bar child abusers fromm ever agein holding « teaching eh As if the NDP was promoting child abuse. Like I said, Johnston has to doa hell of a lot better than that.