_— - - + : Page 4, The Harald, Monday, January 1, 1981 ; f ; f” — » TERR CE-RELIAT . oo ; TALKI NG. = daily herald | POLITICS ‘ vt , “This space offers your provincial and federal General Office - 635-4257 Published by | - elected officials a place to say thelr piece. | Circulation - 635-6357 Sterling Publithers Columns are selected on the basis of relevance, not party preference and are the Publisher — Garry Husak opinions of the author not the editor or this. Editor — Pete Nadeau CLASS. ADS. TERRACE . 635-4000 newspaper. CIRGTULATION . TERRACE - 635.4357 q - . / Published every weekday af 10 Kalum Street, ra Terrace, B.C. Authorized as second class miait.. By FRANK HOWARD ‘Registration number 120). Postage paid in cash, return postage guaranteed. MLA, Skeena On the opening day of a ew fegistative session there Isa necessary traditionat motion which government makes to establish various legistative committees. When the spring session of 1980 opened 1, as NDP House Leader, moved an amendment to set up an NOTICE OF COPYRIGHT _ The Herald retains full, complete and sole copyright in any advertisement produced and-or any editorial or : photographic content published in the Herald. Reproduction is not permitted without the written permission of the Publisher. _ _ The man in the middle WASHINGTON (AP) — In the climactic days of remarkable bargaining in Algiers, Warren Christopher became America's S3rd hero. Extrusted by President Carter, he was the man in the middle in the most delicate negotations. He labored for 11 days and nights to win freedom for the 52 American hostages in Iran before the clock struck noon Tuesday ‘and the Carter administration's thandate vanished. ’ Alternating an hour or two of sleep at the U.S. Embassy in Algiers with * meetings and phone calls to Washingion, Christopher, with his weary smile and stern determination, came to embody the final drive to settle the slandoff. “Chris is the kind of a gay you want to keep on the firing line," tis boss, U.S. State Secretary State Edmund Muskie, said last week. That tribute was mat- ched by this from Carter, who awarded Christopher the Medal of Freedom: “Warren Christopher has the tact of a true diplomat, the tactical skills of a great soldier, the analytical ability of a fine lawyer and the selfless dedication of a citizen-datesman.” Christopher's role in Algiers grew as the negotiations momentum. One top White House official said Sunday that Carter had ‘issued instructions to give Warren Christopher additional gained. authority to sign docu- ment." All this for a man Who had, only a few months ago, announced his’ in- ” tention {to quit the diplomatic service. When Christopher's mentor, Cyrus Vance, resigned as secretary after the unsuccessful military mission to rescue the “” American captives, many assumed the jot would fail over in favor of Muskie, the . Maine senator, and Christopher said he would “Jeave so it would be easy for (Muskie) Lo choose his own deputy.”” Carter, however, asked Christopher was born in Scranton, N.D., on Oct. 27, 1925. He went to school at. - University of California at Los Angeles and attended Stanford University Law School, 1n 194, be wasa clerk for Supreme Court Justice William Douglas, then took up private practice. Ie was as deputy at- torneygeneral (1967-1969) thal met Vance. And when Vance moved in as state secretary, he brought along Christopher. Now that Ronald Reagan is becoming president, Chrisiopher's plans are “uncertain. “I guess I'll go back to private life," he has said. “Im ready for a change.” Guinea pig no hero By Patrick Connelly SEATTLE (AP) — I'm 4 guinea pig for science, just like those heroes you read about in school Bat I'm nohero. I'm-not taking bis risks. Tm huky. For the first time in the 27 years I've had diabetes, I have something thal keeps my blood down. It’s called an insulin pump. It’s a bulky, brick- shaped blue box that I wouldn't wear for fun, even though it's a relief from daily shots. . But wear it because it’s dane something 19,000 insulin shots failed to — keep my blood sugar near normal. Instead of my sugar measuring a syrupy 400-plus on biood tests, which I perform myself at home, it's down between 100 and 200 since 1 got the pump last September. Normal is 70,to 115. : Probably fewer- than 100 diabetics in the U.S: are... om the pump for any length of time. Before 1 got it, doctors logged my vital signs, photographed my eyes, fired electricity through my arms and iegs and charted my body like excited cartographers discovering a new world, They'll compare what they found with how I look later and see what happened. Diabetes occurs when the pancreas gland doesn't produce enough insulin, a hormone that allows billions of cells in the body to turn food into energy. About 10 million Americans have diabetes, and two million of them need daily insulin shots. In Canada there are 600,-000 known diabetics, with 26 per cent on insulin. ' PUMP A CONTROL My insulin pump is just one of the new avenues bf diabetes control. University of Minnesota doctors recently implanted a hockey puck-size pump ina . diabetic's chest. Other doctors are working with moultipte daily Shots. Many doctors agree with Dr. Paul Fredlund of Seattle’s Mason Clinic — my doctor — that “the pump pls home blood tests are the most significant develypments in diabetes conirel since the discovery of insulin in 1921." ; Dr. Robert Sherwin, one of the men who tested the pum p for diabetic use at Yale University, says: “Ib future is pretty good and my guess is that this type of device or something like it will replace con- ventional diabetest treatment.” But he warns, “‘it's still in the experimental, developmental stage.” “] hesitate to be over-optimistic, to raise false hopes. It’s conceivable that improving blood sugar doesn’t necessarily mean that complications from diabetes — blindness, vascular problems — will be improved. We think they will, but we don't know.’* The me-pound pump hangs from my belt. Every few minutes, it sends a squirt of insulin through a slim tube into a small needle under the skin of my abdomen. Before meals, { twist a dial on the pump i :” and give myself an extra stream of insulin. ‘The almost constant squirt keeps fresh insulin in the body day and nighht, approximating the work of the normal pancreas. The pump has drawbacks. It's bulky, though a trimmer model is due out soon. And it has to be worn day and night. It’s subject to humas error and mechanical flubs. When 1 got the gadget, I balked at its clinical Jooks. For the first time, I felt like a “diabetic” instead of a person who happens to have diabetes, 1 didn't like its small, blinking red light that attracted queries in crowds. It banged against desks and tables. . At night, the contraption must be plugged ints a wall socket for recharging. The manoeuvre of jumping into bed, trailing an extension cord behind you like a toaster, requires understanding and a sense of humor {rom your spouse. But with all its drawbacks, the pump has dme that single, amazing thing -- lowered my bloow sugar. ; . “If keep hearing dripping.” * NEW DELHI (CP) ~ In @ country with hundreds of ethnic Gandhi recently told a huge public rally that she waa worried about ber cour- try’s future. “Where are we gang? Sometimes I wonder where India is heading for.” With religious and language fanatics causing troubles in various parts of this sprawling, problem- than 650-million people, Gandhi and other Indian lesders often sound pessimistic when dis- - q@ussing the future. , Opposition politicians agree with Gandhi that there is no immediate danger to India's unity, but they believe a major, con- certed effort should be made by all parties to contro! divisive forces. In some provinces like Uttar Pradesh, which has a population of more than 100 million, Hindu-Mosiem riots have chimed many 7 _ tives, In the eastern so province of Orissa, hoth- ‘Indians fram other additional committee called “A Commitee on Falr Election Practices.” At that time, the premier accepted my amendment and such a committee was struck and the members thereof named. A further tradition is that the first person so named 15 the convenor of the — committec. It’s that person’s duty to call 8 meeting of the committee in order that a chairperson and oiher officers may be | elected. The convenor of this Fair Elections Prac- tices Committee was James Nielsen, now minister of health: But he never carried out hls responsibilities to convene the committee so It never met. It never functioned, it never breathed, It never lived. In fact, If was killed by the premier, showing thereby that he falsely accepted my amendment and had no Intention of proceeding any further. At. the pre-Christmas session opening on December 4, | again moved such an amend- ment and challenged the premier this time at least to be honest with the public and declare that he wasn't interested In having a Fair Elections Practices Committee or, if he was Interested, to accept the amendment and let the committee meet.- This time the premier rejected my amend- ment and thus declared that he Isn't Interested in having a committee on fair election prac- tices. An unkind person would say the premier also isn’t interested In having fair election practices period. , At the same time as he rejected the fair election practices idea he also rejected two other proposals for additional committees. One was a committee onthe Investment, policies of BCRIC {specifically the BCRIC- Kalser deal) and the other was a committee on the insurance rates of ICBC (specifically as to why we are belng gouged by ICBC). if the premier wants to tell the public in B.C. what his government Is dolng | would suggest he send out Hansard for that opening day so we can all see that the premier and every Socred MLA voted against fair election practices — against examining the BCRIC- Kaiser deal, and against a full disclosure by ICBC about its Insurance rates. Mr. Bennett, | commend you for being honest in showing that you are negative towards the above mentioned positive proposals. Why don’t you extend that honesty by sending us Hansard for that day too? n ridden country of more. eas are demanding that | Fragile unity a problem provinces should not be allowed to run business enterprises. Students in Assam in the far northeast have mounted an “Assam for Assamese’> movement. Some political groups in the oil-producing provinces of Gujarat and Maharashtra are clamoring for - bigger royalties from the federal government for their crude oil. To help combat these dis- ruptive forces, the Gandhi government has set up a National Entegration Cotncil. Consisting of representatives of the major political parties, the council will monitor the activities of anti-natignal groups and advise the federal government on what positive steps to take to strengthen unity. Among other things, the council will try to find out why Hindus and Moslems in the north occasionally clash over trivial issues like pisying of music in ‘front of Moslem mosques. . Moslems invariably object to Hindu processions continuing to play music as they pass in front of their shrines. On the other hand, Hindus object to the killing of cows by Moslems which they consider sacred. But the real reason for HinduMoslem riots may be economic, some believe. Moslems have s grievance that Hisdus “dominate” economic activity. Gandhi told the first meeting of the National Integration Council: “Our concern is what kind of India we shall bequeath ta our future generations — a strong united and sellf- confident India or a weak, schizophrenic India.” Gandhi also warned that some “oquttide’ forces are trying to exploit the situation in India for their own DUrpowes. Former Indian prime minister Charan Singh’s party has rejected an in- vitation from Gandhi to join the National In- tegration Council. Singh says he is s¢cand to none in his concern for national unity but won- dered whether Gandhi is really shacere in aaking for the co-operation of op- position parties. “The prime minister must first withdraw her chargé that opposition