A4 - The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, November 19, 2003 TERRACE STANDARD ESTABLISHED APRIL 27, 1988 PUBLISHER: ROD LINK ADDRESS: 3210 Clinton Street Terrace, B.C. « V8G 5R2 TELEPHONE: (250) 638-7283 * FAX: (250) 638-8432 WEB: www.terracestandard.com EMAIL: newsroom@terracestandard.com Fishy facts AN INCIDENT at an anti-aquaculture protest in Campbell River renews concern about the quality of information used by environmentalists. At a Joey’s Only seafood restaurant, activist Stacie Harder waved a bottle containing what she said were young Pacific salmon. They were, she explained, infected by parasites. She used them to illustrate what can happen to wild salmon coming too close to fish farms. Fish farm workers supporting Joey’s Only and their right to cultivate Atlantic salmon along the B.C. coast informed Harder that her “salmon” were actually halibut, . An admittedly isolated incident, it helps confirm the image of well-intentioned but misguided ac- tivists eager to save the planet and not overly concerned about the facts they use to make their case. It underscores a fear that environmentalists begin with a belief that fish farms are responsible for much of what goes wrong in the ocean and then look for evidence to support their theory. Organizers said their protest was not against Joey’s Only, only the restaurant’s inclusion of farmed salmon on its menu. Yeah, right. Activists know that most people know less about environmental issues than they do. Confronted by protestors and/or information that seems to be legitimate, many consumers will take the path of least resistance and avoid Joey’s Only, certainly during a protest. The goal is undoubtedly to eliminate B.C. coastal fish farms. But activists, especially ones who do not live in areas that rely on the jobs aquaculture provide, are not concerned about the loss of customers or employment.. Fish farm workers as well as MLAs Rod Visser and Bill Belsey did the right thing by attending protests to support aquaculture and to counter the campaign against it. If there’s one thing that will scare away custo- . mers from a quiet seafood lunch faster than any- thing, though, it’s a noisy argument by pro- and antj-aquaculture forces. That plays right into the hands of activists. — The North Island Gazette Dumb A CONSULTANT’s report suggests eliminating posted speed limits on some rural, paved high- ways that see 500 cars a day or less. Instead, there should be a “basic speed law” that allows drivers to travel at “a reasonable and prudent speed” based on road conditions. Given the government is already complaining about the court costs associated with disputed tickets, it would be insanity to adopt something that open-ended. — The Northern Sentinel PUBLISHER/EDITOR: Rod Link ADVERTISING MANAGER: Brian Lindenbach PRODUCTION MANAGER: Edouard Credgeur NEWS: Jetf Nagel NEWS/SPORTS Sarah A. Zimmerman —_—_——__ NEWS/COMMUNITY: Jennifer Lang 2002 WINNER eRONT OFFICE: Darlenc Keeping & Carol McKay CCNA BETTER cipcULATION SUPERVISOR: Tummy Donovan NEWSPAPERS ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS: COMPETITION Bert Husband & Debbie Simons COMPOSING: Susan Credgeur AD ASSISTANT: Sandra Stefanik SUBSCRIPTION RATES BY MAIL: $57.94 (+$4.06 GST)=62.00 per year; ‘Seniors $50.98 (+93,.57 GST)=54.55; Out of Province $65.17 (+$4.56 GST)=69.73 Outside of Canada (6 months) $156,91(+10.98 GST)=167.89 MEMBER OF B.C. AND YUKON COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS ASSOCIATION, CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS ASSOCIATION * CN A... AND B.C, PRESS COUNCIL (www.bepresscouncll.org) aq See eee “Wintel Golawdir and Veber Serving the Terrace and Thomhill area. Published on Wednosday of each week at 3210 Clinton Street, Terrace, British Columbla, VAG 5R2. Stories, photographs, illustrations, designs and typastyles in the Terrace Standard are tha proparty of the copy- right holders, including Cariboo Press (1969) Ltc,, Its illustration repro sarvices and advartising agencies. Reproduction in whole or In part, without watten permission, is specifically prohibited, Authorized as second-class mail pending the Post Oltice Department, for payment ol postage in cash, Special thanks to all our contributors and correspondents for their time and talents DID You HEAR CANADA'S PLANNING To SUPPLY THE THIRD WORLD ——\ WITH CHEAP DRUGS? aan HOW SOON CAN You PACK? x tha & CA ? \ _s J : 3 es OAC « a le 4 - iw . | 1 Boros TAL 2 o\f Propose = 04 parmace’e | seh CANAAN SUNDER SIEGES 4 i S DRUG Bid = Ee q FROM FD A hs = 270 Alb INS BeE=a Se ey aS Da eee S ea a | ze ae — =. y #! @uRveeo3 It’s Time fe get tough with the mob VICTORIA - Mike Harcourt, former premier of British Co- lumbia, gave a barn burner of a speech last week at the annual Canadian Congress on Criminal Justice in Vancouver, It was a speech that would have prompted most British Columbians to give him a stand- ing ovation. The only ones who might have sat silent would have been the ones he was talking about: the kingpins of organized crime. Harcourt told his audience that as a former criminal defence law- yer and chairman of the Vancou- ver Police Board during his time as mayor of that city, he knows police need more resources to arrest up to 400 big crooks oper- ating in Vancouver as members of Hells Angels, Russian and Vietnamese gangs, the Mafia and drug tings. Vancouver's roughly 6,000 drug addicts, who he. said are to blame for 80 per cent of the © burglaries, auto thefts and other crimes committed to feed expen- sive habits, should be treated, not jailed, To that end, Harcourt had high praise for former Vancouver mayor Philip Owen for having the courage to advocate harm- reduction measures, such us the supervised drug-injection centre that. opened this year near Hast- There’s got to be a bet RECENT flooding north of Ter- race focused attention on a bridge. which has never been accorded the recognition it deserves as part of the Nass highway system. No Name bridge spans the No Name river, a vital fink to the communi- ties of Greenville and Kincolith. How is it we've not labelled this river and bridge to suit its regional importance? Did we: squander the names of all the local dignitaries on other land- marks? Have all the native chiefs’ and politicians’ names been as- signed to mountains? Certainly native ancestry can't be depleted nicknaming modern treaties. No Name lacks pizzazz un- less it refers to the manufactur- ing giant responsible for filling shelves of a local box store with products such as No Name flour, sugar, plastic baggies and spices, If locals couldn't agree on a tailor made specific name, we could have organized a name contest. Contests have resulted in catchy names for aquariums, sports sta- A NO SALARY». EACH DAY T\ | NO SICK LEAVE, me AWAKE an No PAID HoLipay) AWOLF WITH WORK TODAY ,, FROM THE CAPITAL HUBERT BEYER ings and Main. Harcourt said the former mayor's leadership on drug is- sues led to Owen being kicked out of the mayor’s chair by his political party, the Non-Partisan Association. The ones police must go after relentlessly, Harcourt said, are the 300 to 400 “big crooks” in Vancouver alone. . “Get them thrown in jail, 1 don't care if you need to build three new prisons on Baffin Island or put them in a high- unemployment part of the prov- ‘ince.” He also said their assets should be seized, their businesses closed, and they should be treated “like the scumbags they are.” The justice system, he said, must ensure that “life means life,” and that 25-year life sen- THROUGH BIFOCALS CLAUDETTE SANDECKI diums and even a local seniors care home. And this summer a contest resulted in a scrumptious . name for B.C.’s, newest apple, Aurora Galden Gala, .From several standpoints, No Name does have meril, Its failsafe spelling reduces anxiety of the highways sign painter, countering tricky terms such as Zymacord or Exchamsiks. No Name also cancels any risk DONT EAT tences are served. “If you let police have the resources they need —the surveil- lance, .the wiretaps, the stings — they'll deal with those people. There are a lot more big crooks we need to catch, convict and put in penitentiary for a long period of time.” Right on, Mikey. I have only one question: Why didn’t you talk like that when you were the premier and had some clout, and then do something about it? There is no question, Harcourt is right and ex pressed the feelings of all of us. We are sick and tired of criminal gang members roam- ing our cities with impunity, ply- ing their dirty trades and getting off with a slap on the wrist when they get caught, which isn’t very often. We are sick and tired of the ‘jax immigration laws that seem to let criminals into the country, while making it difficult for hon- est people to join the Canadian . family. But wasn’t he in a far better position to turn the tables on the big crooks when he was in power? Well, let's turn to the people who are in power now. Surely they must see that Harcourt and the rest of us are rightfully de- manding action to put the crimi- nal kingpins behind bars. of attack by terrorists; what could possibly be valuable where we couldn't be bothered to assign a dignified title? . ‘The nondescript designa- tion points to a lack of pride, a ho-hum attitude toward the area and its potential. The name offers nothing about the terrain through which ‘the river flows, its his- tory or the nearby inhabitants. It stirs no excitement or interest in Sunday drivers or tourists — those saviours of faltering economies such as ours. Settling for such a mediocre name tells me we lack imagina- tion, We’re lazy. We're indeci- sive. | Why else adopt so bland a moniker? Are there no mineral or animals along this river to prompt a perfect label? If British Columbia were younger, we could use a Depart- ment of Names (why does this make me think of Monty Python's Department of Crooked Walks?) staffed by creative young people, TIN THE REAL WORLD WE'RE EMPLOYED.. I'm afraid there’s not much help coming from that quarter, Solicitor General Rich Cole- man says the provincial justice system is properly balanced to deal with criminal kingpins, and small-time street criminals and addicts. He ‘says the federal govern- ment does not give law-enforce- ment authorities the tools to deal with organized crime and does not prescribe stiffer penalties and changes in legislation to track the proceeds of crime through the tax system. ; Properly balanced? It’s Ottawa’s fault? Suddenly, he talks just like Harcourt used to talk when he was premier, It's so much easier to say our house is in order, it’s the other guy’s faull. If all the premiers screamed blue murder and demanded ac- tion from Ottawa, the federal government would start to listen, _ particularly - prime-minister-in- waiting Paul Martin, who says he will seek better relations with the provinces. So, while we are grateful fo Harcourt for having put the is- sue of crime-fighting on the front burner, it is those in, power to whom we must turn for action, Where is Elliot Ness when we need him? ; Beyer can be reached at: E- mail: hbeyer@coolcom.cam. er name “tasked” to decide such titles. _ Such a department is: unnec- essary now. B.C. is unlikely to sprout any new rivers, though from time to time floods’ may teroute an existing stream by 50 feet or more. In fact, highways follows precedent, using the colloquial names for bridges. Except now the ministry consults with First Nations who often have names-in their own language. Such is the case with No Name, soon to have a Nisga’a designation as part of the treaty process. Highways strives for names with a geographical reference to help drivers find their. piace on a map. Peoples’ names are avoided, unless the person served the province in a major way, and is now deceased, Possible names are checked to avoid repetition which might confuse an emergency vehicle, And all names are approved by the regional director, TAINK L'LL KEEP Sinn