A4 - The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, April 12, 1995 TERRACE STANDARD ESTABLISHED APRIL 27, 1988 ‘ ADDRESS: 4647 Lazelle Ave., Terrace, B.C. * V8G 158 TELEPHONE: (604) 638-7283 * FAX: (604) 638-8432 MODEM: (604) 638-7247 Taxpayer alert WARNING! WARNING! Taxpayer alert! All of us worried about government deficits and debt, about politicians not connected with reality and with general silliness should take note of a fight brewing between Kitimat and Prince Rupert. Both communities are hungrily eying (more like salivating over) the proposal by a Canadian- Asian consortium to build a mega-dollar, mega- liquefied natural gas pipeline and plant. No wonder. This project is estimated at $2 bil- lion and will bring with it jobs, investment and diversification. Despite the general feeling that the era of the mega-project is over, big-buck proposals still send tingles up and down the spines of some of us. Pac Rim LNG is saying it’s interested in Prince Rupert and in Kitimat as the place where its pipeline will end and tanker loading begins. Both communities have port facilities and both rank their attractions as high.. And that makes the competition fierce. So much so, for instance, that one northwest politician is intrigued about the idea of using tax incentives. He’s Kitimat-Stikine regional district director Dave Brocklebank and he wants regional district administrators to look at the idea in regard to promoting the Kitimat port. To do so would be wrong. This kind of thing could spark a high cost dating game using tax- payers’ money. Have not politicians and govern- ments learned anything over the past few decades? | Even the most hard core business supporter realizes that, in the end, tax-financed government incentives are bad news —- plain and simple. They create an artificial environment where businesses learn to become dependent rather than independent. a Please, please, please. Let’s have none of that here. : Tel Overdue IT’S FUNNY how issues of extreme importance to northerners only become worrisome to politicians when they gain exposure down south. The recent dust up between Premier Mike Har- court and The Vancouver Sun over stories done by the latter on the amount of land claimed by native groups is such an example. The Sun pointed out something painfully obvious to the north for some years — natives are claiming more land than exists within the province’s boundaries. This is caused by overlapping claims, a matter that at times makes the north- west seem like Bosnia-Hercegovina. | Mr. Harcourt responded by saying the stories were ‘‘dreadful’’ inasmuch that natives have a different concept of land ownership than do the rest of us. Really, Mr. Harcourt. That’ll be in- triguing news indeed to northerners — native and non-native alike — who have borne witness to a baffling negotiations process for umpteen years now, | If there is any real news in this it’s that the provincial government — and probably the fed- . eral government, too — are simply unsure about how the land claims situation will work itself out. Gann'5) PUBLISHER/EDITOR: Rod Link ADVERTISING MANAGER: Mike L. Hamm PRODUCTION MANAGER: Edovard Credgeur NEWS Jeff Nagel: NEWS SPORTS: Malcolm Baxter COMMUNITY: Cris Leykauf ; OFFICE MANAGER: Rose Fisher, Terry Miller DARKROOM: Susan Credgeur TYPESETTER: Susie Anderton ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS: Sam Collier, Janet Viveiros, Tracey Tomas CIRCULATION SUPERVISOR: Karen Brunett : : MEMBER OF B.C. PRESS COUNCIL i a . Serving tha Tettace and Thomhil] area. Published on Wednesday of each week by Cariboo Press (1969) Lid, al 4647 Lazelle Ave., Terrace, Brilish Columbia. . . Stories, photographs, iilusitations, designs and typestyles in tha Terrace Standard ara tha property of the copyright holders, includiig Cariboo Press (1969) Ltd., its illustration rapro sarvices and advertising ances. Reproduction inwhole or in pert, withoul wriltan permission, is spacificaily prohibited. Authorized as sicond-clast inall pending tha Pasl Office Depastment, for payment of postage in cash, Special thanks to afl our contributors and cotrespondents . for their time and talents CRCULATRY, CONTAGLLEG TRUST ME... UST DIED, MR.HARCOURT.. THERE ISA LIGHT AT THEEND eon Joe Clark worth the $125 VICTORIA — About 120 people paid $125 a plate last Saturday to have dinner with Joe Clark and hear him speak at Victoria’s Union Club. I was one of them, not to en- rich the Progressive Conserva- _ tive Party’s coffers which, of course, I did, but because J like Joe Clark and because I might geta column out of it, which I did. You see, I’m a truce admirer of Joe’s, in a totally non- parlisan way. To this day, I be- lieve that he was one of Cana- da’s most decent and well- meaning prime ministers who, had it not been for the knives within his own party, would have achieved. far. greater status and recognition as prime minister than he did. As history and his own decency would have it, Joc continued to serve the party which treated him so shabbily and the country with a dignity and dedication that would as- sure him a place in Canadian -history, far above that of his assassins. I've always considered a pet- son’s ability to poke fun at himself or herself an admirable character trait, and Joe didn’t disappoint his audience, recounting one of his foibles which the press used to splash across the front pages with crucl abandon, FROM THE CAPITAL HUBERT BEYER When in charge of Foreign Affairs, Joe bad to introduce a group of Canadian enteriainers at some big diplomatic shindig in Europe. Not bothering to look at the stage, he read from the scripl prepared by some faceless public relations type, and proceeded to inform the assemblage that they would - now be entertained by a quartet, one of whom was from High River, Alberta, the town from which he hailed. ‘With great disregard for diplomacy, the French ambas- sador leaned over and asked me how come if that was a quartet, there were 12 of them, and they were all in uniform.” In a last-minute switch, a Ca- nadian Armed Forces band had taken the place of the quartet, . + and nobody bad bothered to tell Joe about it. On a more serious note, Clark looked back on his party’s history, maintaining that the Progressive Conserva- tive Party always has been and always will be ‘‘the only na- tional alternative’? to the Lib- erals which, he admitted, are currently riding a wave of popularity. “The media have been kind fo Mr. Chretien, but sooner or later, one must ask: what apart from popularity are the Chretien government’s accom- plishments? It has disbanded a historic regiment, arrested a Spanish trawler, and led some very successful trade mis- sions.”? And while he admitted to have been as disturbed by the excesses of the Airborne Regi- ment as most Canadians, he called the abandonment of the regiment ‘‘disgusting,”’ As for Chretien’s trade mis- sions, he reminded his audience, that they were made possible as a result of the pre- vious government’s determ ina- tion to bring Canada into the era of free trade, which the Liberals had steadfastly op- posed. But his strongest words of criticism were reserved for the Reform Party which, be said, lacked any vision for the fu- ture. , “The Reform Party looks forward in anger. [t is a protest parly fuelled by a wide-spread sense that something is wrong,’’ And alluding to the Reform Party’s stand on Quebec, Clark quoted Robert Stanfield: ‘'There is nothing easier than uniting most of Canada against part of Cana- da.” Not surprisingly, Clark recalled the vision of Canada’s future that marked the years of John Dicfenbaker, his professed hero and political mentor, Diefenbaker’s concept of Canada, he said, was. all- inclusive. For the first time, western Canada was truly part of the nation, not just an out- post. He spoke passionately of -: Canada, ‘‘a nalion worth saving.’ Other countries, he said, are formed by accident or by outside imposition. ‘We chose who we are. We are skilled at managing diversity in a world in which it is im- possible to escape diversity. We must keep together the country everybody else ad- imnires," If Canada had more Joe Clarks, it wouldn’t be in the shape it’s in today. Hell, just one to run the country would be enough. And that’s my non- partisan opinion forthe right of which to express I paid $125. Yikes. Where'd they go? SINCE THE library renova- lions have everything topsy turvy and moving oftener than a renter in arrears, a visit is « akin to walking barefoot through =a) dark, ~=—s untidy playroom. You never know what you'll encounter, or where, On a visit four weeks earlier, while roaming the childrens’ slacks I'd located Judith Viorst’s “The Tenth Good Thing About Barney,” which my kids had enjoyed. Sunday I expected to walk over and, iE the book was in, pluck it from the shelf. What did I find? Nothing. The entire childrens’ section had vanished, In its place were video shelves. Heaven only knows where Barney is. Nor hove [ discovered where the clipboard with the new book list hangs these days. I always carry a bookbag - sewn from sturdy upholstery tay books until I reach the checkout counter, My mule would be spaniel sized, quiet, patient, housebroken. It would have a tly platform for a saddle and would ground tether. Its ivy- covered flowerpot hat would make librarians mistake It fora law omament. 1 could use a tour puide ora Wal Mart greeter to help me locale reference, hand out shoe THROUGH BIFOCALS CLAUDETTE SANDECKi ‘horns for grazing the stacks, and photocopy an occasional page or two. I worry about hit- hardcovers or 52 pounds, my physical limit, Forklifts are verboten. These days I take so long to orient myself [ either run aut of time or quit because my book-heaped arm threatens to drop under the weight. Gone are the tables among the stacks where I collected my picks, leaving both hands free. In the absence of tables I ting the wrong button so the photocopier spews an avalan- che of paper or bungs up Ughler than a senior without a flax breakfast, To make the most of a li- brary visit, I take along a list of titles arranged numerically for non-fiction, alphabetically for fiction. I work my way through the list forwards or backwards, depending upon how many fabric, It can hold 30 dream ofa midget mule totote readers have set up camp in DID you SEE| /AgovT THE |" ) Yea: FROM \ \L'P BETTER BUY Tie Novice |/ HIGHWAY SOME PLACE \\SVEN'S CAT ANP IN THE FOST [( COMING _ CALLED —, \| WELD UP THE OFFICE. 2 TO TOWN - “INFORMATION! )\ LOADER | » SE LBB Aare 4 aN ga NE, y| a —_ —— —_—— 4 =p ‘ wt uP H/ yi GOVERNMENT GoY'S COMING TONMORROW WE CAN ASK HIM ABOUT CONTRACTS. front of the shelves I need. On a good day, most of my choices will be shelved, Between visits, I use reserve cards. My titles come from magazines and other baoks. Granted, it may take three months to borrow a book from * another branch, but I’m persis- tent. Popular books sometimes aren’t available for two years; the moment they’re returned another reader has them reserved. Each time ] make a trip to the library it’s closer to being fin-: ished. No doubt when it’s done, furnishings are in place, and things stay in one spot long enough for me to know where they are Ili forget my frustrations, I may never forgive the pricey circular staircase where a cheaper square one would serve, and the years of council dilly dallying that shot -costs into the stratosphere, THEN THEY'LL STRANGLE HiM WITH [+S Olu Mapem core!