Saturday, October 12, 1991 a inionPAGE } Op Dave McCullough Publisher Simon Birch Editor Peter Harvey Plant Foreman Mark Davis Advertising Manager Warren Chernoff Accountant Heather Hadiey Circulation Manager Burt Campbell Publisher Emeritus Aug. 7. Feb. 15, 1973 YourWiEWS A matter of honesty and integrity By Derek Todd I have friends in Castlegar whose invari- able reply to my now infrequent interjections on the subject of the piracy of the Robson fer- ry is to reply, “You're getting your bridge,” as if this should settle the matter. It is difficult to convey to people who don’t live in Robson that while the “ferry issue” ob- viously has something to do with getting from one side of the river to another, more funda- mentally the issue has to do with honesty and integrity in government. Social Credit candidate Walter Siemens takes credit in his campaign literature for “keeping the ferry issue before government.” In fairness, Mr. Siemens did take a position in favor of restoring the ferry on several occa- sions. In fact, he did as much as Jack Munro and Ken Georgetti who came down and did some huffing and blowing at the ferry slip and diddly squat thereafter in spite of the fact that the closure of the ferry was supposedly part of the provincial gover t's privatizati initiative, which the labor movement has bit- terly opposed. In any event, the closure of the ferry resulted in a direct loss of union jobs. To be even more painfully honest, Mr. Siemens did more, and at greater risk, than our actual MLA, the now “independent” Chris D'Arcy, who has been equivocal on the ferry ion from the beginni r if not down- right unhelpful. It is unfortunate indeed that Mr. D’Arcy’s navel gazing over the last while has failed to reveal to him that his close to two-to-one loss at the NDP nominating convention had some- thing to do with the way he did, or did not, car- ry out his duties. But Walter Siemens is a candidate for a party that has been in power throughout this dismal affair and there are some questions that he needs to address concerning the ethi- cal implications of this issue. We have heard plenty from Nelson-Creston MLA Howard Dirks about “dead issues” and how sick he and his colleague are of hearing about the ferry and about what might happen to the bridge if we don't stop talking about that (expletive deleted) ferry. What we have not had from government or its minions in the Ministry of Highways is a incing ex ion of why the decisi was taken in the first place. In the absence of such an explanation, the good folk of Robson and, for that matter, any Socred in a candid mood, would tell you that please see FERRY page A7 Real political change needed lections are about win- ning and losing. Peri- od. They’re not about issues. They’re not about vot- er concerns. They’re about power, pure and simple. That’s the way it is. But a growing number of voters are saying that’s not good enough anymore. You hear it every- where you go. People want a change; not necessarily one party for another, but a real change in the political fabric. They’re tired of the old ways. Ron NORMAN Comments from the Crossroads son to rep us in the leg- islature in Victoria. The per- son will look after our area’s needs and, with others who are elected, help run services like hospitals and schools. I said, for instance, the person we elect will help decide how much money should be spent for their schools and the kind of programs they and their classmates will have. That’s why it’s important to know what the candidates think about things, like edu- And after Tuesday's leader- ship debate you can’t blame them. The debate, to put it bluntly, was ugly. But I didn't realize just how ugly until the following morning. I was helping my daughters get read; for school and listening to CBC’s Daybreak ra- dio show at the same time. On came a clip of the previous night’s de- bate, the one where Premier Rita Johnston was shouting at Mike Harcourt something like, “We want the numbers, Mike, the numbers” in the middle of Harcourt’s response to a question. It sounded like a verbal fistfight. My eldest daughter (who is eight) ped cation. So the candidates put forward their ideas for how they will run things and we choose which one we like the best. It all sounded very rational. At least in theory. Then came the radio clip. It was about as rational as a drunken argument. This is how our leaders act? These are the people we want running things? My daughter wasn't impressed. And neither was I. ondary school. The students were each given a few minutes to make their statement and then p reb ls. They dealt with the what she was doing and listened. It was then that I felt uncomfortable; I could hear the de- bate through her ears. I could imagine what she was thinking: Is this what an election is topic because if they didn’t, they didn’t scor any points. There were some good debates: no one catcalled; no one interrupted the other thinking: all about? As a family, we had discussed the election many times. Both daughters had seen the lawn signs and asked what they were. Thad explained that we have to select a per- jpeaker; no one suddenly switched from one topic to another (or if they did, they lost points); no one stood there and pointed an accusing fin- ger at the others. please see NORMAN page A7 Wolfman Jack has last laugh on Socreds he joke was on the Socreds, and the laughter could be heard clear across the province. Wolfman Jack had done it again. For more than a year, the city slickers at Socred headquarters had been trying their best to get rid of Jack Kempf, the maverick MLA for what was the riding of Omineca, but it wasn't good énough. Not by a long shot. Kempf outsmarted them every time. Nominated twice before to car- Hubert BEYER ry the Socred banner into the elec- tion campaign in the new riding of Bulkley Valley-Stikine, party headquarters took one last run at Kempf and got its nose bloodied more severely than on the previ- fora rude awakening, a very rude ipped him of his blocking his way to the Socred time. y, October 12, 1991 OtherVIEWS Please address all letters to: Letters to the Editor Castlegar News P.O. Box 3007 Castlegar, B.C. ViN 3H4 or deliver them to 197 Columbia Ave. Letters should be Letters coWHE EDITOR Taking a stand Do my actions at Hasty and Lasca Creeks seem extreme and unwarranted? Thope the proof of the latter, such as when logging of my, or your, watershed is at hand, never comes. That is a good part of the reason 1 am sitting in jail right now, to prevent that. I cannot pretend that I know the answers as to how things should be. I can only stand in testimony with my friends and neighbors to the fact that things are not at present working, that this system is unfair and un- just. How can it be fair and just to arrest peaceful men, women and children that want only to protect their lifestyles, their water and the future of this planet? To my mind, and many others, we are ona roller coaster ride to disaster. At Lasca I make my stand, at Lasca I speak my truth. Need one wait until the engines of greed are in one’s own watershed? Is that not how we are kept apart and more easily picked off, one by one? No, for myself, I will take my stand here, in the hopes that my action will help bring change before my watershed, or my favorite park, or my special wild place is at direct risk. We, the multitudes, the people, we have the power, and we always have had. We just need to stand together and use it. And to ac- cept the consequences of our actions, as I do. Sixty-four people were arrested at Lasca; what if the thousands who are in favor of Las- ca being given more consideration as a park had stood to be arrested, being fully aware of and ready to accept the consequences? ‘The power in that would be staggering; I think Atco, Slocan Forest Products and the Forestry and Parks ministries would be more willing to deal with us on an equal basis. The way things are now, there is no equali- ty and our wishes are heard and then brushed quickly aside (as at Lasca) by the power of economic interest. I hope and pray for the sake of this planet, and the future of all life on it, that we can make the necessary changes quickly enough. But I do rather doubt it. Michael Gilfillan T ‘hr ums Priorities spelled out On the first day of the election, Mike Harcourt put forward a full statement of our priorities for government — the only party leader to do so. It’s not a spending menu, nor open-ended promises, but priorities shared by the vast majority of British Columbians. We're not promising miracles — we can only do what we can afford. We have set out the fiscal framework of a balanced budget plan within which we will pursue these priorities over the next five years. Our plans show spending increases of 1.5 per cent above what the Socred government forecasts. This increase is offset by two clearly spelled-out measures to raise new revenues: * A minimum tax on large corporations who don’t pay their fair share of taxes, and a high-income surtax increase for B.C.’s wealthiest individuals. * Clear targets for cutting waste in government. This will allow us to address B.C.'s priorities, while balancing the budget over the five-year business cycle. We.will not raise personal income taxes, the provincial sales tax, or fuel taxes as the desperate Socred campaign has alleged. British Columbians earning under $80,000 will not pay a single dollar more in income tax. Mike Harcourt will balance British Columbia’s budget, too. Ed Conroy NDP candidate Rossland-Trail Beyer continued from page A6 Next day, Kempf filed nomina- tion papers as an independent candidate, but Rogers didn’t show up to file as the Socred candidate. The result: Kempf is in the race; the Socreds aren't. How will Kempf do on Oct. 17? My guess is he will win, and he may well be one of the very few right-wing candidates from the central interior to beat the NDP. The entire Kempf episode shows how much out of touch the Socreds are with anything that goes on north of Hope. Too occu- pied with their silly little games of internal politicking, the Patrick Kinsellas and Jess Ketch on the province. While Mike Harcourt has been running a picture-book campaign, the Socreds have been bli to convert the undecided, she would more often than not confine her whistle-stops to visiting cam- ters of local candi- from one disaster to another. paign dates or speaking to friendly au- The fire and hasn't gone out of the Socred campaign; it was never in it. From the start, Rita Johnston avoided crowds. No main-street- ing, no pressing the flesh at shop- Ping centres. Instead of wading into crowds such as chambers of com- merce. Not surprisingly then, the polls reflected the Socreds’ lacklustre performance. Half-way through the campaign, the NDP led the So- creds by 15 percentage points overall. On Vancouver Island, the spread was 28 points, in the Low- er Mainland 22 points. An NDP win appears a foregone conclusion. The question is, how badly the Socreds will be mauled. All indications are that it will be a rout. And depending on the extent of the defeat, we could well be wit- nessing the end of the Social Cred- it party. Any regrouping under a free-enterprise banner will then be left to another party. Norman and not longer than 300 words. Letters MUST be signed and include the writer's first and telephone number at which the writer can be between to edit letters for brevity, i , Clarity, legality, grammar and taste. whom the Socreds rely for advice, have never understood what makes northern British Columbia tick. Kempf’s remarks that “that'll be the day when someone from the Lower Mainland can come up here and tell us what to do,” was not just political rhetoric. It was a statement of fact. Kempf's coup was just one more nail in the Socred coffin. They didn’t do much better in the rest of from page A6 Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with discussing as- pects of another’s platform or record. Mike Harcourt should have disclosed his five top priori- ties and how much his platform will cost. Rita Johnston should have an- swered questions on Social Cred- it government improprieties in the last five years and the billion dol- lar deficit. And Gordon Wilson should have told us who he will support ifhis party holds the bal- ance of power. Unfortunately, all those ques- tions came from the media panel — not from the other politicians, who were only interested in who could make the most mud stick. (And Socred candidate Walt Siemens has a right to examine independent Chris D’Arcy’s record over the last 19 years. Though it’s too bad he didn't just stick to facts and introduced partial quotes and letters from Socred supporters.) And then Johnston and Wilson proposed another debate. Like the last one? No thanks. Is it any wonder there is a gen- eral malaise among the popula- tion across the country when it comes to politicians. Voters are tired of the old way, of the old sys- tem. And the quicker politicians realize that, the better off we'll all be. Ferry continued from page AS the Robson ferry disappeared night and reappeared in Nelson- Creston mainly because ol’ land- slide Howard had the good sense to be a Socred while our “strong voice” in Victoria was yet to see the light as revealed by his soul mate Iris Bakken. Now if Mr. Siemens is elected to a Social Credit government and Mr, Dirks goes down to defeat will a Social Credit government dis- cover various services in Nelson- Creston are “too expensive” or per- haps really do belong in this rid- ing after all? If Social Credit is returned to government, will other little com- munities like Robson be punished among the unwashed in opposi- tion ridings be ignored, as Mr. Siemens seems to have been on this issue, when they attempt to speak up? Does Mr. Siemens or his leader Rita Johnst d d that for having the temerity to vote for the opposition and for seeking to defend their services? Will those supporters of and candidates for the Social Credit who have the misfortune to dwell when the ballots are counted and the lawn signs come down the suc- cessful party governs in the best interests of everyone and that this principle is all that stands be- tween a true democracy and a mere tyranny of the majority? Sadly, I think not. Mike Harcourt has promised to run our ferry again (and we would expect this until the bridge is com- pleted). We will not know if Mike Har- court keeps his promises or if he will bring some integrity to the practice of government until he gets the chance to prove it one way or another. This is one voter, however, who isn’t buying a bridge across the Columbia in three years’ time.