Page A4 ~— Terrace Standard, Wednesday, April 8, 1992 0 ERRACE STANDAR Publisher/Edltor: a Rod Link : ” ESTAGLISHEO APRIL 27, 1988 . : Registration No. 7820 4647 Lazelle Ave., Terrace, B.C., VAG 188 ee ee ae eager , arlee Phone (604) 638-7283 Fax (604) 638-8432 Sy Serving the Terrace area. Published oo Wednesday of each week by Cariboo Press (1969) Ltd, at 4647 Lazelle Ave., Terrace, British Columbia, Ww * Stones, photographs, diustiations, designs and lypestyles in the Terrace Standard are ihe property of the copyright holders, including Cariboo Press (1969) Lie,, its w- Production Manager: Ss: CNA fustration repro seevicns and advertising agencies. , nts asl Reproduction In whole or in Parl, without written permissian, iS specificatly proaibited, Edouard Credgeur ts Ered tte t Authorized as sacond-class mail pending the Post Gllice Deparment, for payment of postage in cash. (ecna A/a Jatt Nagal —.News/Community, Malcolm Baxter — Nows/Sporis Rose Fisher — Front Office Manager, Carolyn Anderson ~~ Typesetter Arlene Watts — Typesatter, Susan Cradgeur ~ Composing/Darkroom. Janet Vivairos — Advertising Consultant, Sam Collier — Advertising Consultant, Charlene Matthews — Circulation Supervisor See a GONTROLLEO VERIFIED - - CIRCULATION Special thanks to all our contributors and correspondents for their time and talents. _ EDITORIAL, _ _ Miss Terrace © Miss Terrace has accidentally gathered more publicity than any of her predecessors — outstripping even that which would have been received if one of them became Miss PNE. The occasion was the refusal by a Liberal MLA to grant permission so that Skeena MLA Helmut Giesbrecht could introduce the city’s representative in the legislature. Of course the whole thing is silly. A reasonable person would think Liberal MLA Clive Tanner has more serious things on his mind — figuring out what to do about the massive public debt, native land claims and the like. But just consider the public relations value. The event became the stuff of newspaper stories and radio commentary. The name of the city was spread far and wide. And only in wacky B.C. could a politician have been responsible. There are some who want to hang Mr. Tanner from the highest rafter for what he did. Heis after all just some guy from Sidney on Vancouver Island who more by luck than anything else is now on the public payroll. But we say ‘no’ to attack- ing Mr. Tanner. He should be feted in- stead. The best publicity is free. And we ' got that in spades, Coastal blues There’s probably no better way to spend a sunny day than to wander down around the waterfront of Prince Rupert. That tangy smell of the sea combined with sights not repeated elsewhere in the northwest is refreshing and enjoyable. But underneath that visual feast is a troubled city. Put simply, it seems to have an inferiority complex. And the cause of that complex is Terrace judging from a recent article in a Prince Rupert newspaper, The-underlying theme to the complex ~~ is that-Terrace is growing and ‘Prince ' Rupert is not. Variations of the theme have businesses leaving Frince Rupert to move here and that city council here of- fers six-month tax breaks for new enter- prises. There’s a bit of reality behind every in- feriority complex. Prince Rupert is going through a tough time. Fishing isn’t what it used to be and, in truth, will never be again. The market for pulp is soft and that causes worries at the Port Edward mill, Land is expensive in Prince Rupert simply because the geography there does not lend itself to wide open spaces. But is all of that any different than what this city has gone through? Has Prince Rupert ever been hurt as much as Terrace was in the early 1980s? Does this city even come close to the size of and variety of industrial tax base enjoyed by Prince Rupert? Whait’s happening is nothing more and nothing less than a normal shift in the course of history. Prince Rupert for years enjoyed the status of being the nor- ’ thwest’s first and foremost city. It gain- . ed that distinction from fishing and from being a commercial and government ser- vice centre. But as the population grew in the in- terior and as the woods industry surpass- ed the fishing industry in economic strength and as Alcan built its smelter in Kitimat, new forces came into play. Those forces dictated a new location for the hub of the northwest. That location is Terrace, It’s hardly a reason for Prince Rupert to mope and worry.. Helping out Mom While local stores display acres of windproof jumpsuits for snowmobile enthusiasts, ai- sle upon aisle of neon Spandex for skiers, and rooms full of | hockey garb for puck pushers, not one caters to pregnant mothers in need of garments to grow along with them. It’s as if stores are bashful about admit- Through Bifocals by Claudette Sandecki ting where babies come from. Picture a sports store offering only two types of fishing lure; a car dealership exhibiting only two models in its showroom: or a furniture warehouse flaunting but two styles: of sofa. Unimaginable, you say. Well, that's the extent.of in- ventory available to’ would-be mothers looking to buy mater- nity clothing, though four hun- dred or more babies are delivered annually at Mills Memorial Hospital. Why is the selection of mater- nity clothing so limited as to be virtually non-existent in’ Ter- race? At the. moment, it’s limited to a couple of Made in Taiwan styles offered ‘in a department store, a random col- lection of hand-me-downs at a thrift shop, or to four pages in a mail order catalogue. The explanation for the scant selection usually. bolls down to, ‘We couldn't sell it, so weno. longer stock it.’’ #No wonder they couldn’t sell it, if their current crop of dresses is similar to what failed to sell. Colours are depressing. - Designs are lacklustre. Prices . range from expensive to cheap, with nothing in between. Cheap products appear poorly made, .. For most women, prenancy — at least, the first pregnancy is a special event deserving of a special wardrobe to grace the occasion, Few local women can afford to fly to Vancouver to .Shop. the elegant upscale retailers.” ‘Instead, they must make do. That's why many of them look like fitness fanatics or pre-diet Tommy Lasorda in their dropp- ing sweat shirts, and sweatpants ‘as bloused as harem trousers, .. Every. mother-to-be. dreams of. dressing becomingly. in. - tailored dresses. with. inverted pleats and crisp white collars, or in carefree frocks sewn from -sunny floral prints and elastic. _Tertace. mothers can dress that way, provided they've mastered the intricacies of pattern sewing or. can put the squeeze on a frietid who has, Enterprising’ entrepreneurs are. forever hunting for a lucrative’ market, Maternity wear could be it, Anyone own- “ing.a.sewing’machine, a “modicum: of. sewing knowhow, - and a'few.no-frill patterns could work up a viable home-based business stitching custom maternity garments. No inven- ‘tory beyond thread and findings. is required, The customer would choose a fabric and pattern size, Terrace, with one eatery or food -outlet per block, does its best to satisfy every eating whim of our Peg Bundys. The Fire Department stands ready with the Jaws of Life should she - wedge behind the steering wheel. But do our stores cheer her on by decking her out in sassy styles during her. nine month wait? No. i DWAYNE. I'S SHEENA..UH--OVER? “ AU SHEENA... IS ANYTHING- WRONG ?,.. OVER ; ASS NW LAX CANADA yest sey VENT DECIDED it gh cones —_ tes Ee Socreds outshine those other guys VICTORIA — If the B.C. Legislature in the first few weeks of the new session has born a strong resemblance to the annual deliberations of the B.C. Youth Parliament, there’s a good reason — lack of ex- perience, particularly by the Liberal opposition. The 17 Liberals who sudden- . ly found themselves thrown in- to an arena that is notorious for its acrimony and short ~~ tempers are still a bit confused by it all and have, so far, not provided effective opposition to the NDP government, many of whose members have been seasoned by years in opposi- tion. . The first to suffer from the slings and arrows of outrageous political fortune in the legislature was opposition leader Gordon Wilson. ‘Trying to nail the govern- ment to the wall for allegedly having laid on a special ferry trip for its friends, who went back to Vancouver after the Throne Speech, Wilson quickly had the tables turned on him. The government, said Finance Minister Glen Clark, had not ordered a special ferry run, B.C, Ferries, he said, orders special runs quite regularly it, in the opinion of management, there is a need. And then, Clark threw Wilson a curve ball, The only request for special considera- tion, he said, had come from Wilson, who had asked for free ferry passes for some pagaent contestants. When Wilson cried foul, calling Clark’s remarks cheap shots, an NDP member asked across the floor of the House whether Wilson thought the legislature was a boy scout camp. That stung, The Liberal inexperience continued to take its toll the following week when they in- advertently were the cause of a very late night sitting, Al about 2:45 Monday, March 30, the legislature began debating the Supply Act. That act sought the legislature's ap- DWAYNE I'M FReewanT! It'S NoT Eppy's BECAUSE LSPuT UP wiTH HiM ' SIK WEEKS AGO...OvER? “GEE SHEENA ...T...Don'T KNOW WHAT To SAY... CAN WE TALK WHEN L GET BACK To Town)... OVER > * 5 os .e Po weer wet . weer ' coer ae . : aoe PPR eee paren From the Capital by Hubert Beyer proval for the money that has already been spent without’ debate, by way of special war- rants. Determined to get their teeth into the government for not having called the legislature earlier, the Liberals laid into the NDP. When Finance Minister and Government ‘House Leader suggested the House give first reading to the act and proceed to debating the legislation in committee, the Liberals refused. They smelled a trap, which it wasn’t, The debate at the committee Stage allows the opposition to question ministers on every detail of an act, which they can’t do before first reading, Stubbornly refusing to do the obvious and smart, the Liberals blocked any attempt to get the legislation to the committee stage, Shortly after 10 p.m., ex- hausted and irritated, the Liberals moved adjournment, but the government said nay, and the debate went on till well after midnight. It took the Liberals until about 10:41 to finally get the message that it might be a good idea to give the bill first reading and get down to brass tacks. There’s nothing wrong with inexperience, Nobody can ex- pect the Liberals, none of whom have ever sat in the legislature before, to be seasoned politicians. What one - might expect them to do, however, is seek advice from experts, and that they have, so far, not done. Former Liberal MLA Barry Clark has offered to give some pointers to the rookie oppasi- “SURE DWAYNE... ITit Jusr BE ove SECRET OVER ” or tion, free of charge. They _. didn’t take him up on it. Former Liberal Leader David Anderson would, no doubt, be more than willing to share some of his expertise with the novice Liberals, He hasn’t been asked. The resuit is a highly disorganized opposition that can’t seem to get its act together. The Socreds are in better shape, Four of their members have legislative experience, and it shows, particularly in the case of interim leader Jack Weisgerber, Weisgerber provides the best opposition, by far, to the government. He knows how to use a scalpel and where to make the incisions. Already the government has the scars to prove it. Weisgerber launched repeated attacks, each one micre scathing than the previous, on Premier Harcourt for breaking numerous election promises, Weisgerber also made a good case against Harcourt for _ bringing the government’s socalled fair-wage policy through the back door by way of cabinet order, instead of in- troducing appropriate legisla- tion which could be fully debated by the legislature. Weisgerber’s questions dur- ing question period are short and hit the mark, while the Liberals still have to learn how to ask a question without em- barrassing themselves, True, the session is still young, but if the Liberals want - to establish themselves as an effective opposition, they must do so soon. : YEAH! AND THE B00 PEOPLE WHo MONITOR THIS CHANNEL I!