October 11, 1987 STABLISHED AUG 7. 1947 LV. CAMmanLL Utd: prow S tc 980 INCORPORATING. Tad oud. WEEK MURROR PUBLISHED Ser" 12, 1970 AUG. 27,1900 PUBLISHER AUG. 7. 1947-FEB 15,1979 PUBLISHER — Burt 1 Compbel ADVERTISING MANAGER — Gary Fleming CIRCULATION MANAGER — Heather Hoadley NOTICE OF COPYRIONT: Full, complete ond sole copy! Sr as eta produced by Coste News ix EWEEKLY MAY 4.1 gh that part only of oover Good idea gone awry Premier Bill Vander Zalm's passports for excellence program is an example of a basically good idea gone awry. Under the program, high school students beginning in Grade 9 will be issued passports” that they will be able to turn into money upon entering a post-secondary institution. ditional funding or will it shuffle funds from the present scholarship system? Will teachers be subjected to a barrage of student and parent complaints ‘about marks? Gordon Shead, principal at Stanley Hum- phries secondary school, shudders at the thought of administering the Delegates to conference will notice this special 36-cent commemorative stamp... the ninth Commonwealth The hanics of the prog are still a bit fuzzy, but it appears the top 30 pér cent of the students will have their passports stamped each year. There is no indication yet how much the stamps will be worth, though by the time a student completes Grade 12, the passports could be traded in for as much as $500 or $750. Mr. Vander Zalm’s motives ap- pear well meaning. He says the program is int ind: to provide i ’ for students to academically. But the program has received a rough ride from provincial educators. Castlegar school trustees this week focused their criticism on the program's close link between education and money. Some trustees dubbed the program ‘money for marks”. To some extent that’s a legitimate assessment. Instead of learning for learning’s sake, or ap- proaching ed as a val Pl . He sees ond parents haggling with teachers over whether a student deserved a CorB Despite the many concerns, the program is well-intentioned. It at- tempts to encourage more studen- ts to Rslepedd Gttending | a Post. «makes a real nifty souvenir, but $10 and a call to any private courier service will guarantee prompt 24-hour service anywhere in ‘anada. s estimate Yhot about 10 per cent of Grade 12. students receive academic scholarships. This program would triple that number. The program also affects studen- ts who wouldn't normally write scholarship examinations. Some students have so many other things on their mind in their final year of high school, or haven't yet made up their minds about their future, that they don't bother to write the provincial scholarship examinations. This program would provide them with funding. And the program starts earlier than the present scholarship pro- lifeskills tool, the program teaches students that education is simply another commodity — like a loaf of bread. Students are also being instilled with the idea that the academic program leading to college or university is the best kind of education. It ignores vocational studies. Besides the philosophical con- mY there are also a number of sweréd ‘questions about the actual workings of the program? Will the province provide ad- gram. By b with Grade 9, the program gets students thinking about their future, especially those students who might not have con- sidered attending university. Regardless of the program's good intentions, it still isn't up to snuff. In its place Victoria should look at expanding the present scholarship system and at the same time providing outright student grants — beginning in Grade 9. The program should also include students who want to at- tend either a vocational post- secondary institution. Ron Norman The Rossland-Trail New Demo- cratic Party’s announcement this week that it will field candidates in the upcoming municipal and school board elections in four West Koote- nay communities could change the face of civic politics in this area. Up to this point, provincial polit ical parties have shied away from any formal involvement in municipal polities. Oh, there may have been some informal support in the past, but nothing as serious as the NDP proposes. Some municipal politicians have received funding from provincial parties to help pay for things like posters and advertisements, but that's about as far as it went. There certainly wasn't any obligation to run under the party's banner and the party's well-oiled campaign or ganization remained under wraps. The most recent “slate” was formed during last year’s elections when Len Embree and Joe Irving ran for alderman while Bill Hadikin took a shot at school trustee. That coalition was anything but formal, with the trio joining forces to share printing costs. And they weren't all that successful. Embree was easily returned, but Irving and Hadikin were also-rans. There have been other similar loose-kit coalitions, such as the year Nick Oglow and Terry Rogers joined forces — well, sort of. They both ran together and both hap- pened to get elected, but the first didn't necessarily lead to the second. Before that, there was the time Jim Gouk ran for mayor and shared office space with aldermanic candi dates Frank Stasila and Carl Henne Again, they were less than success ful. Gouk was soundly beaten, Stasila narrowly lost out in a bid for a first-time alderman's seat, and Henne was narrowly re-elected. The nearest thing to formal support has been the Nelson and Trail District Labor Council's an- nual endorsement of a few, select candidates. The common thread between the candidates was their strong support of the labor move- ment. And again, as many candidates won as lost. In fact, some think the labor council's endorsement did more harm than good by scaring off the average non-union voter. It was felt the labor candidates tried to appeal to too narrow a group of voters. But that’s where the NDP should be more successful. Their municipal candidates will appeal to a wider range of voters than the labor council, candidates. And that could spell big trouble for some municipal politicians who were closely linked with the Social Credit party — people like Castle- gar Mayor Audrey Moore and Trail Mayor Chuck Lakes (assuming, of course, suitable NDP candidates run). It could also spell big trouble for other non-aligned municipal pol- iticians, because the NDP-sup- ported candidates will have the backing of the provincial party's election machinery. Most municipal elections are run like popularity contests. You put up a few posters in some strategic places, run a few ads and knock on a few doors. If people like your face and your name, you win. If they don't, you lose. ~ That will all change with the NDP's entry into the municipal arena. They will introduce more formal campaign tactics and of. ganization to municipal politics, forcing out the small-time candi dates and making other candidates adopt similar election strategy. The NDP may not be out to take over civic polities, but its very presence will change the way municipal and school board cam. paigns are run Letters to the Editor Dispute unnecessary The most recent labor dispute in Castlegar need not have happened. The Canadian Union of Postal Workers was participating in a one-day, com- pletely legal, rotating strike Oct. 5 in an effort to have negotiations resume seriously. CUPW has been without a contract for over a year. Upon com- pletion of the one-day peaceful strike the union gave the required 12 hours written notice of return to work. Then Canada Post decided to “flex its muscles” and lock the inside workers out. It is my belief that the move was very deliberate and scheduled to coin- cide and thus take the heat off a potentially hotter issue — namely free trade. Canada Post deliberately created confrontation by hiring a private in- vestigator, photographers and extra security to escort the trucks across the picket line. The issue was not to save money or move the mail. It was another crude attempt to break the union. By inviting the confrontation against friend, or neighbor against neighbor. We live and work in this commun- ity. If the Conservatives are successful in franchising the jobs of Canada Post employees it opens wide the floodgates to privatization. Possible targets could include hospitals, ambulance services, Canada Post put the truckers between a rock and a hard place as well. With security people inside and hanging off their vehicles they were told to cross the picket lines of the people they work with or risk losing their contracts. These “security” people do not live here and could likely care less whether they have pitted worker against supervisor, friend ys, insurance schools, B.C. Rail, B.C. Hydro and others. Think of the impact to this community. If you think these issues are highly political, you are right. If you think they don't affect you, you are wrong. Robson PEOPLE PULL TOGETHER Nelson ‘businesslike’ Editor's note: The following col- umn ran in the Vancouver Sun under the headline “It’s a ‘sylvan fairy- tale enclave’ in the West Kootenay.” By VAUGHN PALMER NELSON — This sweet little town in the West Kootenay region has a right to hope the worst is behind it. The first half of the decade was not kind to Nelson. For years it relied on the railway yards, the sawmill, and the university. Then the CPR began phas- ing out its yards. Very well, Nelson still had sawmilling and a university. The mill closed. But OK, it was still a university town, that was something you could depend on. At the peak of restraint the Socreds closed the uni- versity and Nelson was down for the count. At one point in those dark years 1982-84, the site-selection committee for the B.C. Games took pity on Nelson and chose it for winter games. But Premier Bill Bennett vetoed the selec- tion. He thought Nelson, a New Demo- cratic Party stronghold for many years, had a bad attitude. The place had not taken the closure of its uni- versity lying down, staging angry pro- tests against the Socreds and restraint. Looking back, it seems the rough years may have helped Nelson find itself. The battle to save the university, though unsuccessful, taught the people how to pull together. Visiting the place SCENIC NELSON . . . Nelson has been around long enough to have a —CestheonPhate heritage, much of which is still standing. walking tours of a remarkable store of some 350 historic buildings, many in the high- or late-Victorian styles, in- cluding several id legendary architect F.M. now, one finds a refi ingly bus- inesslike attitude. Guided by Mayor Gerald Rotering, a New Democrat, the city has spent $2.5 million on downtown revitaliz- ation. It is boosting development of a marina on the waterfront and an airport terminal on the short landing strip beside Kootenay Lake. The former university, transfer- red to the city for $1, is scheduled to reopen as a private boarding school for students from Japan. The 50-year-old Capitol Theatre is being restored to former glories as a performing arts theatre, a $1 million project financed partly by the provincial lottery fund, partly by the city. Much of the new development is intended to capitalize on a rich and varied history. Founded during the silver mining boom of the late 19th century, Nelson has been around long enough to have a heritage, much of which is stil] standing. The chamber of provides maps for several A resort owen ts building a rep- liea of one of the steamers that plied Kootenay Lake until the 1950s. Stu- dents at Selkirk College are restoring the last remaining streetcar, a relic from the turn of the century, when Nelson had its own tram line. Down- town, the storefronts on Baker Street are becoming quaintly gentrified, a magnet for tourist dollars. ‘The region made one other im- portant investment last year, electing a Socred for the first time since the 1960s. MLA Howard Dirks, though hoisted to office by the narrowest of margins, is counted on to bring in government largesse, as that is how things work in B.C. Taking note of Nelson's new attitude, the Socreds dropped in this week for one of their regular caucus meetings. But if you ask Nelson residents where the recovery began, they are most likely to cite the arrival of film crews. Two major movie makers did location work here last year. One of the projects, Housekeeping, by Scots film- maker Bill Forsyth of Local Hero fame, is not yet released. But the other, Roxanne, a comedy with Steve Martin and Daryl Hannah, was one of the big hits of the summer of °87. Roxanne meant more to Nelson than the thrill of having film stars in town or the several hundred thousand dollars the movie crew spent during three weeks of shooting. The town it- self became a star, or so the reviewers thought. The New York Times: “The setting, which is as much a part of the film's appeal, is the gorgeous homey- looking little town of Nelson.” The The Washington Post: sylvan fairy-tale enclave.” The New Yorker: “This other-worldly, lost-in-a- trance locale.” Of course, people who've stuck by Nelson through good and bad times know all about its lasting qualities. As one of the founding fathers wrote in 1887: “My dream was that here, where nature was so bountiful, there might be the town of all towns for ci habitation, could we but keep \out newspapers and lawyers. _ Amen. A Remember When? 4 YEARS AGO From the Oct. 9, 1947 News Castlegar On Supday last the Trail High School Symphony orchestra and band presented a concert in the Castle ‘Theatre, under the sponsorship of the Only 100 residents took the oppor- tunity of hearing this grand organiza- tion, and they were thrilled. Mr. Potter, the conductor, is pleased with his orchestra, and well he should be, they take honors from any adult orchestra in the interior. . 28 « Mr. E. Bone of the B.C. Telephone Company was a visitor to Castlegar y- He was surprised with the growth of Castlegar and Kinnaird and altered his figures considerably as to the number of telephones that would be required to service the district. He said that a service would be put in next year but could not say at present if it would be dial phones or not. * 6 . The Castlegar Board of Trade held its meeting Friday night in the Parish Hall. A vote of thanks are extended to the airport committee for the fine work they had done in connection with the jews The 42.23 mile $15 million Kin- naird-Christina Lake highway, des- cribed as the jugular vein of the Koo- tenay’s highway system and one that followed the footsteps of the men who first trekked it, was officially opened last Friday afternoon. Highways Minister Phil Gaglardi snipped the ribbon opening the road at 3 p.m. He told a crowd of several hundred that the road “follows in the footsteps” of a group of Chamber of Commerce men who first hiked over the route in 1951. o 8 « No indications of when tenders will be called on either the Kinnaird- Salmo link of the southern trans- highway or the bridge span- ning the Columbia at Kinnaird, were given by Highways Minister Gaglardi when he visited the area last Friday. Kinnaird-Christina Lake link that “fin- ishing touches” are now being put on the bridge design and surveys for the Kinnaird-Salmo road. . 8 8 Lorne John Kavic, son of Mr. and Mrs. J.J. Kavie of Castlegar, has been awarded two scholarships for study at the Australian National University. The awards were made by the ian Ci Committee. 15 YEARS AGO From the Oct. 12, 1972 News Municipal Affairs Minister John Lorimer is meeting today with Mayor John Landis of Castlegar and Mayor Colin Maddocks of Kinnaird. He will be accompanied by his deputy minister Ken Smith. Area officials were in- formed of the meeting by telephone last week. . 8 This Friday and Saturday the Castlegar and District Hospital Aux- iliary will be holding a rummage sale. Profit from this sale as well as other rummage sales held over the past year, is used to aid in work and services performed by the auxiliary. All donations of saleable articles are greatly appreciated. . 8 6 The value of new construction in Castlegar is up a quarter of a million dollars this year over the same eight- month period in 1971. Ald. Ed Moseby told council's meeting last week that the value of new construction to the end of August was $575,775 compared with $306,291 in the same period last year. He said 14 building permits were} issued in August for $84,495 in new construction. In August of 1971 construction valued at $208,996 was undertaken. Where in Castlegar does a parent of a special needs child turn for help? Four years ago, Liz Thor-Larsen turned to the Hobbit Hill Day Care Centre program after shewas told her infant son would be blind and severely retarded for life. Next year she may be able to send him to public school. * 8 6 Castlegar hospital will not be forced to lay off any nurses, despite a decision this week by 11 registered nurses to discontinue taking a half hour unpaid leave of absence, hospital ad- ministrator Ken Talarico said Thurs- day. He said the hospital will look at other ways to recover the money the unpaid leaves saved the hospital. Creating a By PARTRICIA LAKES Press NELSON — The Doukhobors of southeastern British Columbia are out to create a new public image, putting behind them almost a century of hunger strikes, nude arson and From the time they began arriving in Canada from the Soviet Union in 1899, the Doukhobors have been at loggerheads with the Canadian government. As well as being rigid in their rejection of material wealth, they resisted registering marriages, births and deaths. But attempts to change public perception have not new image Doukhobors’ devotion to God. And after encountering persecution in Russia, Doukhobors coming to Canada had a natural suspicion of government, he said. Greg Cran, a spokesman for the Kootenay com- mittee, said there are about 20,000 Doukhobors in Canada who no longer belong to any of the three sects. The aim of the committee, which will meet again in , is to among all parties. Mark Mealing, a committee member and studetit of Doukhobor culture, theorizes the problem is based on a wide range of motivations and a narrow range of been without a price. The Doukhobors have been eritized internally for the of pacifism and rejection of material wealth that led. to their emigration from Czarist Russia. Earlier differences on how to adapt to life in Canada led to the formation of a splinter group in 1902 known as the Sons of Freedom. And although the radical group comprises less than 100 families in southeastern B.C. — compared with roughly 2,000 orthodox Doukhobors — the Sons of Freedom have garnered most of the attention. Also labelled Freedomites, the Sons of Freedom have espoused arson and nudity as a rejection of wealth and an affirmation of the spirit. Burning one’s own home was compared with burning weapons in the Soviet Union, when Doukhobors rejected military conscription. About 150 to 200 families are Reformed Doukhobors, former Freedomites who have renounced the public nudity and violence practised by the Freedomites. IMAGE BETTER The shift to a more favorable public image can be traced to the formation five years ago of the Kootenay Committee on Intergroup Relations. The committee, established under the auspices of the Ministry of the Attorney General, held many meetings involving the three sects, the RCMP, some provincial ministries and the CPR, which has been the target of bombings because an early Doukhobor leader was assassinated while aboard a CPR train. Doukhobor historian Eli Popoff says pacifism and resistance to government regulation were part of the Among those motivations, says Mealing, are attempts by Doukhobors to make a “clear and selfless spiritual statement. “There's no doubt whatsoever some people did it (arson) to support their faith or as an explicit statement of values,” Mealing said. But he says it’s not just the Freedomites who have been responsible for the criminal acts. WERE BLAMED All three Orthodox Doukhobor leaders in Canada, along with Reformed leader Stefan Sorokin, have been implicated in the burnings, bombings and arsons. Sorokin died in 1984. Symbolism has also had its place in the Doukhobors’ history. Mealing says a tradition of symbolic interpretations has left sect leaders either “automatically safe or auto- matically damned no matter what he said.” He cites a story of a Freedomite man passing the house of John Lebedoff, who had leadership standing. As the man was passing, Lebedoff happened to place a lantern in his window. The passerby interpreted it as a message to commit arson. Another obstacle facing some Doukhobors is their belief in their leaders’ infallibility. JOHN J. VERIGIN - government to blame These beliefs in leaders’ infallibility, described by one Doukhobor as “Russian shamanism,” have led to of D as ignorant p ts without a era Orthodox leader John Verigin has been an outspoken commentator on the Doukhobors’ place in society. He presided at an ambitious publie celebration last summer, a three-day festival celebrating Leo Tolstoy, the Russian novelist who assisted Doukhobors in theit emigration to Canada. Verigin says D: must résist but he believes individual, rather than communal, land ownership is not a rejection of basic principles as long as Doukhobors reject the attractions of greed. Verigin concedes the intergroup relations committee has helped lower the number of burnings, bombings and nude demonstrations, but he steers clear of saying they will cease completely. He places much of the blame for the violence on the government for its belated role as conciliator, but says their assistance is “better late than never.” Pauline Berikoff, in prison after being d for a 1986 arson, said refusing an order from a leader would result in a curse over seven generations. “You don't ask, you just do,” she once said. NO LEADER The Sons of Freedom currently have no leader. Mary Astaforoff, who Mealing says was one of four women who were the “intelligent and emotional power- houses of extreme action,” died following a 54-day fast while serving a prison sentence for arson. The three others now are less active. MP wants Pearson statue By GORDON GRANT OTTAWA — John Diefen- baker would love it. Lester Pearson, his old nemesis, is having a tough time with the Tories. There was no love lost between Diefenbaker, a for- mer Progressive Conserva- tive prime minister, and Pearson, a former Liberal and all should be well! Yes, by 9 a.m. Sundays you should be enjoying your Sun: day Castlegar News. It you're not, we want to correct the matter. ¥ you fal consistently to get y Castlegar 365-7266 and ask for cir- lation. prime minister. that the wine industry is re- Now,” With “porte =dead; there's a statue of The Chief of Parliament Hill and Lib- eral Don Boudria wants one of Pearson close to it. Boundria, member for the Ontario riding of Glengarry- Prescott-Russell, asked the Commons’ government op- erations committee to ask the Commons to select a Hill site and sculptor for a Pearson statue. But Tory members on the committee voted him down. The Tories had already ap- proved a motion for the Na- tional Capital Commission to study sites for monuments of prime ministers, both on and off the Hill. Boudria said the Tories were using delaying tactics for the statue, which he first proposed last January. When the Tories proposed the Diefenbaker statue, it passed the Commons in one day. SOME MEMBERS of the Commons never miss chance to play with puns. Some are clever, some are real groaners. Here's an exchange from the Commons while wine was discussed. Maurice Foster: Surely, all ceiving is the grapes of wrath . Mr. Axworthy: Here is an answer from the sour grapes herself. Hon. Pat Carney: The op- position is yelling sour grapes. I think that applies to their own question. SPEAKING OF Carney, her reputation as a food-lover gained some lustre this week. As minister for interna- tional trade — some say tirade — she held a lunch for reporters covering free trade “tom briet~ thenr-or-the--deat- She initially declined to eat but then decided to have some soup. Having finished that, she took half a sandwich from one of the reporters. That caused some com- ment because Carney ate fried chicken just before the deal was signed, then her first words on television ex- plaining what Canada had gained in the deal dealt with food. Law class planned Selkirk College and the People’s Law School are again collaborating to bring a program of legal education to the public. The first in this series of free workshops is “Buying and Selling a Home,” scheduled for Tuesday, 7 - 10 p.m. at the Castlegar Cam- us. tober 24, 9 a.m. materials. Basic Sewing For discusses other topics such as the types of home ownership, the interim agreement, title searching, the steps in a con- veyance, selling your home on your own vs. selling through a realtor, the agree- ment of sale and more. The three-hour session will WISE NOTED. SPACE IS STILL AVAILABLE lege Dnvitation You are Invited te drop in for our tt Anntveua 1 Calabrations during the month of Octgbas HENRY DAHMS ewEiLen LTD. 495 Baker Street, Nelson Ph. 262-5633, FRANCHISE OPPORTUNITY Join the largest Canadian owned tax preparation service and share its Sucpese, Personal Tax Services provides: * Financing for Capital Assets ‘and Supplies * Capital for Tax Refund Buying * Tax Courses and Quality Contro! Systems * On-going Supervision to Aid in Your Success * Supplies and Advertising ‘Support * Proven Management information Systems Explore this seasonal business op- portunity by contacting: SAI 1-(604)-852-4977 TAX REGISTER TODAY! CPR Course "C": A pre: tequtelte for the nursing program — Saturday, Oc- 3p.m. Reflexology: Tuesday, Gctober bh 7 to 9:30 p.m., $15. Shiatsu: Tues., Nov. 3-17, 7-10 p.m., Hunter Training: Tuesday and en ‘Nov. 20, 7 to 10 p.m., $90. Remembering Your Past Autobiog: November 24, 7 to 9 p.m., $25. Tole & Country Painting: Saturday, October 17, 9 a.m. - 6 p.m., $25 plus Writing Tuesday, October 20 to Stencilling: Monday, October 19, 6 to 10 p.m., $15. Beginners: T: p.m., Stanley Humphries Secondary School. “KUC COURSES WILL BE HELD AT THE CASTLEGAR CAMPUS UNLESS OTHER- vesday, October 20 to November 17, 7 to 9 For further information contact Denise Chernoff at: CASTLEGAR CAMPUS Box 1200, Castlegor, B.C. VIN 3JI 365-7292 be lead by lawyer John Car- penter, an associate with Moran and Co. of Castlegar. Advanced registration is required. to me. lately, I have been fully appreciated! 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