Ad - The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, Octeber 19, 1994

TERRACE

STANDARD

ESTABLISHED APRIL 27, 1988

ADDRESS: 4647 Lazelle Ave., Terrace, B.C. « V8G 188
TELEPHONE: (604) 638-7283 * FAX: (604) 638-8432
MODEM: 638-7247

On guard

REMEMBRANCE DAY is barely three weeks
away. November 11 signifies the time when we
reflect on the sacrifice and commitment of Cana-
dians in past wars and conflicts.

But it should also be a time when we think of

the current state of the Canadian Armed Forces. .

In peace time, the armed forces are more or less
neglected on the part of many. That’s a shame
because the Canadian Armed Forces in the peri-
od since the Second World War stand alone in
the world when it comes to peacekeeping
through the United Nations.

More often than not, Canadians are first on the
ground in various inhospitable places around the
world when peacekeeping is required. They
served and are serving on practically every con-
tinent where there’s conflict and in practically
every capacity. Bosnia, Croatia, Rwanda and
Cambodia come to mind as recent examples.

There’s also a tremendous cost to all of this and
it’s often puzzling to consider how many soldiers
we have left on Canadian soil and their capabil-
ities given our United Nations commitments.

A recent publication put out by retired military
people called ‘‘Canada — Can “We Stand On
Guard For Thee?’’ raises the question of
domestic responsibilities versus our international
presence.

“If the future of this country is not properly
stewarded, then the Canada we turn over to our
children will not be as great as the one we our-
selves inherited,’’ it warns. That’s a vital ques-
tion for all of us to consider.

IT’S OFTEN said you shouldn’t put the cart be-
fore the horse.. But sometimes, the cart gets away
from.its owner and the. result-.is a serious:game of
catch up. or re

That’s what’s going on in Thornhill. Historical-
ly it was viewed as an alternate and cheaper
place to live than Terrace. But the essential rural
character of the area has now changed and its be-
come just as urban and just as developed as any
other location in northern B.C.

Lots to ponder

As with Terrace in the past five years, there’s
been a development explosion. The number of
residential building sites is practically zilch. This
is creating pressure for more lots and along with
that, pressure for adequate water and sewer ar-
rangements.

A partial response to the pressure of growth is a
proposal by the provincial government for a sub-
division that could contain as many as 200 build-
ing lots. This kind of planned development is
more than welcome but it will also have a major
impact on Thornhill.

And that brings in the restructuring study now
underway. Restructuring is a fancy word for
three choices — leave Thornhill the way it is, in-
corporate it as its own municipality or merge it
with Terrace.

In this case consider the pressure for develop-
ment as the cart and the restructuring study as
the horse. We should all hope that horse is in
good shape, has on the proper shoes and is
guided by the right kind of owner. Runaway
carts can only cause major and unknown prob-
lems somewhere down the road.

7

SENG B) PUBLISHER/EDITOR: Rod Link

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NEWS COMMUNITY: Jeff Nagel * NEWS SPORTS: Malcolm Baxter
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ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS;

Sam Collier, Janét Viveiros, co
_ CIRCULATION SUPERVISOR: Charlene Matthew:

Serving the Tertecs atea Published on Wednesday of each week by Cariboo Press (1969) Ltd, al 464)
Lazelle Ave.,, Terrace, British Columbia. : oa

Slorles, photographs, illustealions, designs and typestyles in the Tevace Slandard ate tha property of the
copyright holders, including Cariboo Press (1969) Lld., a's illustralton: repto. services and advertising
Reproduction in whole of int part, without written parmission, is specifically prohibited,

Authorized as second-class mail panding the Pos! Office Department, for payment of pastage in cash,

Special thanks to all our contributors and correspondents
: for their time and talents

Cone pe

OH,NO! AND JUST
WHEN | WAS ABOUT
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REMORTGAGE THE HOUSE
S01 COULD TAKE THE KID.

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Boys get hung out to dry

VICTORIA — At long last,
Premier Harcourt has decided
to hang the “Boys from
Nanaimo’’ out to dry, albeit
not far enough. For months
now, the NDP has been under

_ Siege from both the opposition

and the media for sweeping the
Nanaimo Commonwealth
Holding Society scandal under
the rug.

Last week, Harcourt finally
caved in and ordered a
“forensic audit’? of the
society’s records.

The Nanaimo Com-
monwealth Holding Socicty is
that ignoble organization
which pleaded guilty earlier
this year to criminal charges of
having misappropriated
$200,000 worth of charity
money,

My favourite caper involves
the donation of $1,000 a month
by the Nanaimo Com-
monwealth Holding Society to
the Nanaimo Vocational Reha-
bilitation Workshop for the
Handicapped. Police investi-
gators found that the organiza-
tion had to “‘refund’’ $900 of
the donation to the society,
leaving an actual donation of
only $100.

The woman who revealed
that little scam to the investi-
gators was Sister Margaret
Rowe. Isn°t that a kicker? A

' front organization for the party

SEARS’ CHRISTMAS Wish
catalogue — though plotless
— is a popular book in most
families. Ours is no exception.

Before bedtime, our grand-
children sit side-by-side with
the catalogue spread over their
laps, poking fingers at colour-
ful photos of their dream toys.

We congregate on the sofa,
fantasizing, snacking on
Mom’s freshly baked choco-

late chip cookies and coffee. |

Grownups aren't the only ones
who appreciate a mid-shopping
break.

Instead of hurried, exhaust-
ing visits to a mall, we con-
template the catalogue displays
when time permits, some days
several times, comparing the
imagined joys of a spring horse
versus a racking horse, a Bar-
bie doll with bejewelled stock-
ings versus a white plastic
horse with red saddle.

By the time decision day ar-

“FROM THE CAPITAL
HUBERT BEYER

that claims a monopoly on
honesty and integrity, defraud-
ing a nun.

Ace Henderson, the special
prosecutor who had charged
the society and two associated
groups, told the court at the
time that no forensic audit was
conducted during the police in-
vestigation because of the cost
involved in such an audit, and
because the societics had such
strange bookkeeping methods
that it might be impossible to
trace the money.

The premier’s reluctance to
dig any deeper into the pile of
morass is understandable. The
Nanaimo Commonwealth
Holding Society isn't just any
old organization. It has been
joined in common-law mar-
riage to the NDP ever since it
was established — several

7 4
q '

THROUGH BIFOCALS
CLAUDETTE SANDECKI

(You Pon 'T
Know Agoul
HUMANS ?

tives, Santas have only to
Select an affordable, safe toy
from the- merchandise kids
have preselected. Drawing
straws avoids gift duplication.
Sears recycles catalogues
returned to its outlets, I'll bet,
though, few Wish catalogues
survive to be recycled. Long
before Santa hitches his team,
Wish catalogues wear out, es-

THAT THe? HAVE
CONQUERED THE
WORLD Ap FoLLuTeD| ExPER IMENTS
THE ENVIRONMENT?

AND WIPED
OUT LOTS oF
SPECIES ?

decades ago. Its stated goal
was, in fact, to further the aims
of the New Democratic Party.
But if the premier was
hoping that the conviction of
the societies would be the end
of the scandal, he was mis-

_ taken, The demand for a public

inquiry has been unrelenting,
because the court case and sub-
sequent conviction of the
societies had addressed only

‘their misappropriation of

charity money.

The big question remained
unanswered: did any of the
money the socicties skimmed
olf charitable bingos find its
way into the pockets of NDP
candidates, particularly those
who ran in Nanaimo?

The: --Liberal-« -opposition---
maintained, and-tighifully so;"":
that only a public inquiry could ©

answer that crucial question.
Harcourt, acutely uncomfert-
able by now, met them half
way by ordering a forensic
audil, which is. the most
detailed and far-reaching audit-
ing procedure possible.

Far from being satisfied by
the premier’s announcement,
the opposition continues to
clamor for a public inquiry. So
do I, because Harcourt has
limited the audit to the years
between 1988 and 1991. The
“good stuff,’? the opposition
says, is to be found before

pecially in litle hands. First to
go are the covers, followed by
pages which shed as kids scuf-
fle over who will turn the page,
when.

Today’s catalogues bulge
with traditional toys as well as
plastic replicas of everything

adult — cupboards, ranges,
tents, cash registers, sewing
machines, computers, deci-
sions ....

For the adult, picking and
choosing is regulated by price,
value for money, and safety.
The two-year-old has the
dilemma of wanting every-
thing.

Studying the catalogue and
telling her ‘‘I don’t think Santa
can afford that’? is a gentler
way of teaching her she can’t
have everything than carrying
her screaming from an aisle
display. ;

Catalogues have it all over
department stores when it

" 1988.

Harcourt’s decision to order
a forensic audit into the -
socicty’s books came shortly
before 75 boxes of evidence, —
gathered by the RCMP during
its invesligation, were to be
returned to the society. - ,

Saciety director and accoun- -.
tant Dave Stupich, a former. .
NDP MP and MLA, had. al-
ready stated that he would like-
ly destroy sosne of: the docu-
ments if and when he gets -
them back. Had he succeeded, -

he would have effectively :

erased any trail of who did ~
what with the money the ~
society stole from charities. °

But while the forensic audit :
ordered by the premier saved
the evidence from destruction, ~
it falls'short of-aying the issue” *’

to rest Only:a ‘full-scale: publici##i :
inquiry can do that. "0° 08 et

It’s time the premier admits =
that the NDP is not exempt
from human folly. It’s-time he
stands up and takes his lumps, ~~
just like the Socreds had to. ~

We already know that a so- °
called charitable organization « -
to which the NDP was in-
timalely linked did crooked ——
things to oblain money, Now’
let's find out whether any of ©
that money ended up helping’: -
elect NDP candidates, Order | .
the inquiry now, premier.
You'll have to sooner or later.-

Doing it all from your sofa

comes to convenicnce, No
splashing across muddy park-
ing lots dodging daffy drivers;
rushing past enticing displays;
roasting in outdoor clothing;
craning the neck to squint at
toys shelved out of reach. No |
trundling bundies to the car,

Sears understands marketing. |
Delivering their Christmas
catalogue in September gives
both parents and grandparents
time to observe which toys at-
tract and hold kids’ interest.
No need to lean on the Toy
Council’s ratings.

Beyond Christmas and child.
hood, there’s a mail order_
calalogue to fill every whim or
need. Few offer Scars’ money-

back guarantee, and their illus-’ bo,

trations and brief descriptions —
don’t always prepare you for’ —
what you'll get, But you can |

order gourmet foods and office | :
supplics, needlework and shop |

tools. Maybe even architects, - . .

\ /ANe USE.
ANIMALS FOR

ANP TEAR UP
THE LANDSCAPE?

Sorry!
THEY DON'T