OPINION wy The & stl ‘Gar Sun “AS PUBLISHER RAY PICCO NANCY LINGLEY JON JARRETT EDITOR ADVERTISING MANAGER JOHN SNELGROVE DONNA JOR. DENISE GOLDSTONE CATHERINE R ROSS CIRCULATION MANAG! ADVERTISING REP, FRANK ISERNIA REPORTER - NICOLE BEETSTRA BRENDAN HALPER REPORTER PRODUCTION CLIFF WOFFENDEN PRODUCTION Direct Department Phones General Office ....... 7 c Cl Language given to us to conceal thoughts} brief and ry interval between ; Ron W Jeffels Syndicated f Columnist one conflict and the next while arse- nals are rebuilt and forces mentioned on page iii of the preface, who pillaged the library, assembled the ized the data Or, if your want, peace is a declaration of war awaiting executive signature. Here are a few samples chosen at random from my Desperate Dictionary. Take tax shelter for starters, It has two definitions, Usually it means the per- A mscal and a curmudgeon once said that language was given to man so that he could conceal his thoughts, That's a piece of sneering hyp manent domicile of the rich. In your case and mine, it describes a badly constructed temporary abode, built of rotting poles and mouldering on of course, but some of the statements we've heard of late from world leaders and.their generals add credence to my cynic’s remark. In fluent and colloquial Pen- tagonese, surgical strike means 'mas- sive attack’. That cool, detached, ific word sounds much editorial comment Teaching young pups {and old dogs) new tricks Two weeks ago, in this editorial space, I slammed students as well as the school system in general, as the Tesult of a frigtening incident at the Senior Secondary level where a female student received flash bums to her face due to a the deliberate explosion of a disposible lighter by other students of an age that should have known better. That editorial was based on experiences I myself had recently had in school rooms in the intermediate and senior level grades. That editorial also caused an outcry from those in the education system at the primary level. I was invited, summoned may or may not be too strong a word, into two primary schools in our district. ‘What I saw and experienced there.was as.different from my experiences in the higher grades as night is from day. There has been a real change in the teaching of our little ones. To a visitor, they seem happy and produc- tive. They also have access to a mulititude of leaming tools never dreamed of just a few years ago. Many con- cepts have, apparently, changed. Maybe radically, but definitely for the best. Although the children showed interest in a visitor to their classrooms, they still applied themselves to their studies, which they were obviously enjoying. ° It is interesting, that I did not receive one response to that original editorial from any person in the intemedi- ate to senior grades, where, I can only assume, nothing has changed much since I was last in one of those classes. It is hoped that this love of learning displayed at the primary level, the aititudes being formed now, will stay with these children as they progress into the upper lev- els of education. It will undoubtedly help them safely through what are, admittedly, diffi cult years for a child anyway. In the past, perhap by suppression to keep order in the classroom was a necessary thing. The new attitudes shown today prove that there is another way to achieve the same result. And that is, after all, what learning is all about. RIGHT LANE Must BUY BROCCOLI ‘—NL. more gentle and humane than bombs, bullets, shells and missiles, don't you think? And an orderly and strategic tebe I (to p positions, of course) i is not the same as a desperate retreat in wild disarray. A combat by abeavy i « south, The wind will always blow from . , . the north, of course. Or what about economist; a fore- sooth sayer; one whose draws the gtaph of imprecision, the curve of . incaution and the table of temerity; a social scientist who m: dreams for reality. And an economic guide- Une is the check rain on the stallion of progress, One or more research assistants are usually hired to help prepare an eco- nomic report. Research assistant; that's a brilliant employee, briefly and wrote the report in its entirety, And he could probably translate it into French if asked. His name will not appear on the cover, of course. His research will require an elabo- rate and extensive filing system; Papers arranged in gross and approxi- mate alphabetical order, And, on occa- reproducing cartoons from The New Yorker for distribution to friends in remote parts of the world. Economic reports are usually trans- mitted for study and approval to our captains of industry: corporals with temporary commissions, After all, they're the representatives of free enterprise. That's the thin, very thin, margin of manoeuvre left after they've accommodated federal controls, con- sumer legislati ical restric- sion, the bya of a legal brief; lengthy lawyering. But I really ought to be fair to the author, After all, his name spears ¢ = the cover, and he's tions, labor codes, provincial taxes, the will of regional planning boards and, } the mood of the local city clerk on that” Preparing the final draft of ihe an incorrect table on Page 75, and a ‘That report may suggest several things to save the company. pad the ! } offering of lifetime guarantees for their, consumer products, Propesiy Setiped 1 graph that goes & Don't tell mel Tiknow! : ‘The final draft is always duplicated on a photocopy machine. That's the modem equivalent of the mediaeval village pump: a place for gathering and gossiping. And the use of that machine is restricted almost solely to a Hfetime g is the turer’s-earnest wish for your early . demise, At least according to my Des- perate Dictionary. Await further... entries, y Y \ R.R. Jeffels is a Richmond free-.' lance writer and former principal a a The Open Learning Institute, - the soldier's best friend - suggests that high tech has at last been brought to defence of the infantryman. It means a shovel, of course, but some- how it scems to be .. . well, I'll use that mod expression I don't quite understand . . . ‘at the cutting-edge.’ What we peed is a new dictionary, one that gives the real, not the appar- ent, meaning of words. So let's set aside the enormity of battle and con- sider some of the ordinary words and expressions we hear in time of peace. Peace, by the way, is best defined as a Slings and arrows WHICH WAY To SYRINGA cheek PROVINCIAL ie tay Wednesday, March 6, 1991 ‘The Castlegar Sun Jan Powers "Education is the backbone of our society. But how is the educa- tion system perceived in our com- munity? Education Week seemed an appropriate time to ask. The Castlegar Sun took to the streets to Sind out. Jan Powers, bakery clerk — “Our school district isn’t all that bad....its a friendly system, but I am not looking forward to the Year 2000 Program...I’m not irtpressed by it, and I think that tHe kids need more discipline. - Although they don’t show it I am sure that they really love it.” ; Jean Sullivan, desk clerk — Jean Sullivan have three kids in school. I’m not impressed with the school system. T think the teachers are in for the money, they're not in to teach the kids and that is why we have a 40 per cent illiteracy rate pouring out of the high schools .” Tom Larsen, restaurant owner — “I don’t think that teachers are fully qualified to teach our kids... especially sex education, with only three years of study behind them. Psychiatrists require seven years, and even they are exhibiting prob- Jems within their field.” “We are creating another mon- _ Ster by allowing teachers to teach Letters to the Editor Tom Larsen this topic when they lack the psy- chological credentials. It makes no sense,Teachers should still require seven years of education to qualify for a certificate. “Everytime we correct a problem within ‘the , School fabric, we create another problem. We are not solving the problems at their roots.” “Teachers, in my opinion, are setting a poor example for students to learn by through the manner in which they handle their contract disputes in public.1 rate our school system as being very poor.” Dr. J. Van Vliet, family physi- cian, “I'm happy with the system. Dr. J Van Vliet There is a good variety of courses and programs. It has been good for my children.” Barbara Bray, business owner — “Why can’t the school system Tetum to the old system of the late fifties and sixties when kids went from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and kids respected their teachers moré, ‘The days of the Golden Rule are gone.’ “It's getting to the point where the kids are running the school, and the quality of teachers are not: what they used to be. Teachers are teaching who should not even be in the education system. “Teachers lack patience and are Page 7A. Castlegar Comments Education Week March 4 - 9 Barbara Bray more concemed with money than educating our kids, granted they have bigger classes. The govern- ment doesn't help by cutting school funds.’ Bray feels that teacher person- alities clash with those of the stu- dents making ‘it difficult to instruct and teach the students properly. She also expressed concern that the abundant use of calculators hinders a student from having to exercise his full mental capabilities during problem solving. “Kids are stuck if they don’t have a calculator to rely on. Math formu- “ ; las are easily forgotten because of a Patty Strelaetf the abuse of calculators.” Patty Strelaeff, video store employee, said that she didn’t like the school system at all. “I think that they try to push too much knowledge in too short a span upon our kids. They stress too much education and not enough social activities during school. In ‘my days, not that long ago, we had more timé for other activities than today's students. My grade four child brings far more homework to do than I ever did. : “Students today don’t have to read book reports as often as we had to, thanks to videos. But that’s not a positive step it’s a negative: one because we learn through studying 1 reading material not by Who knows what might happen next? To the Editor: In September 1939 - at the beginning of World War II - those of my generation were just chil- dren, five or six years of age. Even so we were surprisingly aware of the tragic battle going on. { At news time every night - in our early day log cabin - we hud- dled with Mother and Father atound the old battery-powered radio to hear the tragic ups and downs of the war - as gloomily Arab rhetoric, with its repeti abuse and imaginative similes, doesn’t _ translate well into English. Nor, would it appear, does it translate well into action. Saddam Hussein's’ ‘Mother of Battles’ was a affair, but is miraculous. called it ‘ Tous’ and I differ only in his use of the word ‘near’, Even the most optimistic’ were ing casual- forces General not in the way that he meant. It was not the coalition forces which were cut to pieces. As less than twelve hours has passed since the cease-fire at this writing, it may be too early to declare the war over, as many newspapers are doing. The military outcome is indisputable of course, but until allied prisoners of war have been retumed, together with the 40,000 Kuwaiti men who were taken Hannaford Z| Syndicated hostage to Baghdad, it will be neces- sary to keep our forces ready to resume hostilities at a moment's notice. It may also be too early to draw conclusions about the entire affair, yet id ty figures in the thousands and any- body who had predicted this outcome six weeks ago would have been laughed at. And quite properly so. It was a miracle. And you know Who you should thank for miracles. Parenthetically, friendly fire killed almost as many of our men as the Iraqis did; if you take out the 28 who died in the unaimed Scud attack on Dharan, the truly miniscule effect of enemy fire is apparent. Secondly - and the anti-war people won't like this, but it is ue - this war will give us (the west) ten years during which we shall not have to worry much about global war. Nothing suc- ceeds like success and neither the Soviet Union nor other ‘regional’ powers will want to tangle with Amer- ica. The technology was awesome in its efficiency; all the things they said would never work, from the Patriot to the Apache helicopter to the night- sights, worked very well indeed. (Even the Bradleys with their supposedly 4 issions) some things now seem so self- that ope may risk committing them to Paper. In the first place, the utter rout of half a million men from the world’s fourth largest army at the cost of less than a hundred lives to the coalition Even more though, was that critical factor, will. The coalition forces believed in their mission. The Iraqi sol- diers, for the most part, did not. The US forces are volunteers and the unhappi- est people in the Gulf right now (Mr Hussein excepted) are not the Iraqis who were taken prisoner’ and are now enjoying their first hot meals in weeks, ‘but those US marines who have spent six months on assault ships offshore and never got to assault the enemy. The British also like to fight; whether in the football stadium, a South Adantic island or somebody else’s desert makes no difference to them and as their mighty Challenger tanks ripped into the Republican Guard, it showed. Schwarzkopf described them as ‘magnificent’. All in all, it was a salutary lesson to the ascendant hard-liners in Moscow that any plans they might have to restore their influence in eastem Europe or elsewhere will have to be shelved. While it is perfectly true that the eR killed 20,000 of its citizens then bull-., 4; dozed ‘itflat. People like Assad, Hus- 1; Gaddafi don't understand our :, condi of wats fi ad deen, bt they do understand a total rout. ‘The final point is that America has now brought its military machine back... from the dog days of the post-Vietnam ., era. The worst thing that could happen ;; now is that they become complacent. ; Trouble starts when an aggressor .. thinks that be can get away with some- to us in 1939, again thing. It in 1950, in 1982 and in 1990. War is ;; unfortunately part of the human condi- tion. Only a humanist would believe’? that man’s basic nature is so amenable.’ to change that war will ever be extin- guished. I certainly cannot share that belief and point to 6,000 years of sians are more Arabs and are better able to operate their own equipment, it is also true that their military is beset by its own morale problems and that its equipment is infe- rior to that of the west. A Russian Scid is still just a Scud. As for Iran or Syria, either of which history as that the '' more things change, the more they stay { ‘That being so, our best guarantee of * Peace is the maintenance and steady" improvement of westem armed forces,» most particularly the American ones and ‘1 a readiness to demonstrate our resolve: might aspire to regional they will not quickly forget the ham- mering delivered to Iraq. There is a different attitude to life in the middle east. We tend to respect life, deplore cruelty and place some constraints upon our leaders. By contrast, they respect leaders who dominate. Con- fronted by rebellion in a small Syrian city recently, President Hafez Assad ingly when and challenged, as we inevitably will be. No doubt the ink to be spilled by : Pundits in the wake of this war will © much exceed the blood spilt, at least on our side and we shall all be thor- oughly sick of reading about it by June. But after all is said and done. lesson one will remain the same... ‘We've bought ourselves ten years, “Lucky 7” bad omen for Mr.Wilson - Its a job that's been held by some of the most prominent names in Canadi- an politics. Crosbie, Chretien, Sharp, MacEachean, Lalonde, Turner, Mac- donald, the list goes on and on, And thus we reach “Lucky 7” as some are calling Wilson’s seventh budget address. If Ottawa insiders have it right, this budget is probably also his last. It comes as Wilson marks his sev- enth year as, Minister - the sixth longest serving Finance Minister in Canadian history. Seventy-seven months in the job, Wilson is ready, even eager for a change. The only question is, will Prime - Minister Brian Mutlroncy allow him to leave Finance and take another non- financial portfolio? One that would also true that no minister deserves more than Wilson to have his career desires met. ‘Consider his record: Income Tax reform. Wilson low- ered personal and corporate tax rates and simplified them. Loopholes, Wilson plugged loop- holes in the tax law, cutting everything from business Junches Mby 20) to write- offs for boats. He imposed a i tax” on large Sales Tax Reform. He eliminated the anti-Canadian Manufacturers Sales Tax, and brought in the GST. Canadi- The War on Inflation. “Parca a0 against inflation. high interest rates, Wilson's greatest legacy is his ‘atest anger business and consumers, but 2 they are producing the intended result. e Canada this year will have one of - the lowest inflation rates of all OBCD” > nations, An non-inflationary, sustain- able growth is what bright economic, a futures are made of. * Bee True the deficit has hung in at around $30 billion. Much more than. most fiscal Conservatives, Wilson included, would like. But when Western | farmers were, by the deep, resonant voice of the late Lorne Green, At that tender, age we were sad ‘anid depressed to bear of the little chil- dren being burt and killed in far off England - too young to know that the hurting and dying of German . children was no less real. We were innocent, naive, trusting creatures then. What does a child of six iow about “double talk” or cen- sorship or war propaganda? The German surrender same six years later in the spring of 1945 and the Japanese gave up in August - We shouid To the Editor: very suddenly! Though in our early teens then how could we compre- hend the i nuclear inclined to be hesitant and afraid - ever fretful of the dreaded “nuclear No wonder we tended genocide done to those many thou- sand of innocent civilians in Hiroshima and Nagasaki - by the terrible power of the atomic bomb? How could we know, for example, that three orders of Catholic nuns were “vaporized” in Hiroshima. Even the joyful VE-Day celebra- tions themselves took an ominous turn when one of the generals : “Now is the time to go after the Russians. We have been fighting the wrong people.” ; Despite numerous assurances. . that this was “the war to end all was" only five years later the next “military adventure” - the Korean ‘War - was underway, Atom bombs were not used in this case but - now approaching high school to live just one day at a time and made no serious plans for the future. We didn’t expect to live out our lives. Now that the Russians had curtain was “rent in twain” and the cold war ended. But our new found hope was not to last for long. Dur- ing the winter - much to our dismay - we have just witnessed a disas- trous, one-sided war in the Middle East - a super modern military trouncing of a third world power by the é developed their own of both the atom bomb and the even more devastating hydrogen bomb the age of “nuclear terror” had begun - the age of threats and pos- turing between the two military giants, culminating with the spine- ... chilling Cuban Missile Crisis of +1962, in which we thought the end. . had come for sure; the long demor- alizing “war games” in both Viet- nam and Afghanistan; the frightful talk of “nuclear winter” and “mid- night” and “mutually assured - we were well aware of the omi- nous reality of Einstein's E = mc2. Instead of being bold and confident in those days of youth - as we should have been - we were ion". We got involved then - and lobbied hard for disarmament. The 1980's ended - much to our Surprise - on a more hopeful note because of President Gorbachev. Largely through his efforts the iron facilitate discussion all laws Prowecting the right of toa pro- moting the event, the Spirit of the Earth Festival demonstrates that “Selkirk College instructors, stu- dents, and local teachers are work- ing together along with members of other community groups to pro- mote the themes of intemationalism and protection of the environment.” ‘The scheduled keynote address will be “exploring the idea of achieving sustainable growth by enlisting all people in a program of development”. Imagine a festival promoting feminism that had a keynote address “how.to restrict female access to abortion and employ- ment”, or a pulp industry confer- ence that had a keynote address on “bow to end Jogging and process- ing of wood in Canada”, or a con- ference p the i of . At some tation from a floor microphone, I received the largest applause of any- one ing from the floor in that point I pais ing Sten oe eens speak- ers who will oppose growth, while inviting speakers who will support growth at a conference ostensibly promoting protection of the envi- Fonment, is to take a political stand as stark as these examples. Organizers of this event may think politics is not involved. When: they rejected my name as a speaker they may have just thought they were ing clear of a local pariah who many declare to be “too radi- ot Canada’ 's UN. A room, and the star environmental speaker, Amory Lovins, came down from the podium to present me a copy of his book. New Directions published an article stating what I was doing for some people was tbe high point of the entire conference. i live close by and would come even ifno honorarium was offered. As far as my politics being “too radical”, or likely to min everything local environmentalists have ever worked for in te entire lives, the most i envi- my wt ny call os om profosly of buman history, by introducing me to the historic final plenary session. Globe 9 in Vancouver was the and b labour t bat bad a address on “strategies for the elimination of largest conference ever held, and at one point after commenting on a presen- Ferry importance overlooked To the Editor: Castlegar Sun Re: Robson ferry ‘After reading carefully Simon Birch’s interview with the Hon- ourable William Vander Zalm. (Castlegar News - Feb. 23) I believe that our premier has said that when, our Robson ferry was so abruptly ae down almost three years ago he its But I see reason for renewed hope. Our premier - and I use his own words - is now “sympathetic to what it is the people say when they * argue the closeness of those commu- nities. So call it a moral obligation, : call it what. you will, I think there's a an obligation to do something.” _A bridge is most certainly a Sate ii thing. A bridge‘is the day to day affairs of Robson and also three years in the future, maybe: in roman David Suzuki,.said recently on C.B.C. radio that I have had a “tremendous influence on his thinking”, and “we need the political leadership of id Lewis", . ‘What is the goal of environmen- tal conferences: to serve up what organizers think most in the com-~ munity want to bear, or to evidence and facilitate discussion involving all points of view? David Lewis Crescent Valley that’s [a bridge] not even that big a Project in terms of dollars given the overall highways budget. . . “ So, w have a ready-made site with slips and anchors for a ferry. We have the need. Money is not a problem. The efforts of three major world powers and twenty-seven minor ones! Though truly grateful that the war is over we know that both sides are guilty in the complex, long-term chain of events leading up to it. ...Many. thousand of innocent civilians .. . ~ beautiful, intelligent, cultured peo- ple - were killed both in Iraq and Kuwait. Up to one hundred thousand young Iraqi soldiers died because of stubbom, incompetent, sadistic Sad- dam Hussein who forced them to fight on against impossible odds without food, water or any sem- blance of unified command. Need I say any more? We-are UNIQUE PARTY SHOPPE 50% off selected items 47-292 Cotumbia Ave. City Centre Square 365 - 6932 cynical now as we approach the twilight years of life. When they asked us'to support this war our answer was NO. We called for a civilized solution - to no avail. Now that the balance of East-West detente is gone and the United Nations bas been hijacked by the “westem camp” who knows what will happen next? Harry F. Killough it on videos or st CORRECTION KENTON'S AUTO BODY & HULL PAINTING Telephone number in Women In Business & Business Directory ads should have read 365-2505 We apologize for any inconvenience years to: linDENBER SEEDS LIMITED {1991 SEED CATALOGUE | = 80 pages ‘devoted to the gardener ‘““~* *~ a dependable LINDENBERG garden seeds at sensible prices - for 1991 most seed packets are STILL only 50 and 60 cents = large economy - sized packages = seed varieties selected for the prairie climate = perennial roots, flower bulbs, lawn seed, gardening accessories, and much more.. = BONUS COUPONS in every catalogue 2 all this plus the LINDENBERG name that has meant quality, service, and value for over 50 For your FREE 1991 Spring Catalouge, write 803 Princess Avenue Brandon, Man. R7A OPS J “My doctor approves of my losing 87 Ibs. He also approves of how | lost it— "My doctor felt [ had to lose weight. He agrecd that going to NutriSystem made sense. So | tried it. It was the best dacision | ever made. The program really works, And it's completely safe, Now I'm at a weight | can live with. And I'm 100% healthier and Qaphie hentl” :*Nutritional supervision © Nutri/System.” weight loss will help over cllants this year! Our client, Itincludes: Cathie Flaming, *Safe and effective weight toss, lost 87 Ibs. Nutritionally balanced meal plans *No calorie counting OVER 1800 CENTRES WORLDWIDE 7 ans hate it, but as Wilson predicted, But sine World War Two, no-one . the provinces are slowly coming has been Canada’s Minister of Finance allow him to jump right back into hurt by the US-Europe trade war, Wil- business should he decide not to run ir. son set ideology aside and gave:our four or even five, When we look at only other thing we require is the will longer than the incumbent, Michael Holcombe Wilson. Like a dealing with a rebel- lious teenager, Wilson has given the economy “tough love.” No-one in my memory has been as immune as Wilson to his critics and the faint-bearted in his own party. In the process he’s succeeded in doing what his only di the next election? (Conflict of interest rules prevent a minister of Finance from retuming to workin the financial community until around to a single national sales tax. Financial Institutions. ‘Wilson has eres hard to bring real“ farmers a billion dollars Tne, vation been Pain, and the the financial services market-place. i would two years after he’s left the portfolio.) ‘There are lots of reasons for MP to keep Wilson where he is, The economy is still in recession, the GST has just gone into fperitiog, (and. we're best: nin; aimed Mea still before P increase that competition furtber. Fee Trade. Wilson was akey player of, i the bitter “needed to'cure the ailing Canadian the Free ‘Trade Agreement w with the United States to include Mexi But while all ofa that is tre, it is Crown corporations have been sold off, and the size OF the Public service setoces we "ré on the right track. ayear, g isn’t over. But, that will guarantee’ our kids’ futures. “he deserves the ‘chatice'to choose his,” next Portfolio. nm Mike’ Duffy hous Sundey Edition “on CTV. Castlegar. This can be only because his fel- low members of the cabinet have | been remiss in keeping their chicf informed on representations being made to their ministries. The ferry ; issue is much broader than many realize and has many ’ ramifications. I Panyeelt have: weitien to and received letters from eight, cabinet’ * ministers since this sorry matter, ‘\ Others have done even more arose. than I have to have our ferry. service 3 the already rapidly increasing traffic on‘the road from Castlegar to the pulp mill and onto the Keenleyside Dam it is clear. that wee need a Columbia River crossing at the old ‘. ferry site right now, and will need it even more when the new mill con. struction is at its height, and while the bridge is being built. The ferry slips are already in place. Our shipyards are crying for work. We have a balanced budget. Our premier tells us’* . to do Something, With the premier ow on our side and given the exper- tise we have at getting things done quickly - and bave demonstrated in the past - we can very well have a . temporary ferry operating by Labour Day, a ferry that can be used in the future in the maintenance of the cable ferries in use in the Arrow Reservoir. »,.But we do need the will, the commitment, Fred G. Marsh Aes Bay Avenue, Trail es otter consists of 3 vicok of Nutr/System services. Does not include cost of Srcluave, hunisruent food, Over 19 years of “weight | loss success. program, Offer valid at