Page A4- The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, January 13, 1993

ERRACE STANDAR

ESTABLISHED APRIL 27, 1988

Registration No. 7820 4647 Lazelle Ave., Terrace, B.C., V8G 188

Phone (604) 638-7283 Fax (604) 638-8432

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ve Ke Sh aecee 4 gs og  ceirien * talents,
Theta et i CIRCULATION,
¥SBapc As CO
CONTAOLLEO

DITORIA

ifs a gamble

Alderman Rick King’s plan for a city lat-
tery to finance local projects is penny ante
stuff compared, to what’ s being planned
just to the east of us.

In the Hazeltons it’s. not scratch and win,
it’s roll the. dice and. win. That's right.
Casino gambling, big time, The _ per-
petrators?. The .Gitksan who continually
look for ways to flex their burgeoning self
government muscles.

One Gitksan idea is to put a casino on

wheels, a mobile. Vegas travelling from

spot to spot and to occasions which draw a
fot of people. Gitksan spokesman Jack
Sebastian’says he’s invited several outfits
up from the States ta have a look around.

To most northwest residents the idea of
native gambling isn’t new, legal or other-
wise. Bingos — ‘some offering $30,000
pick up tricks: — have fueled the.con-
struction of schools and have financed so-
cial improvement projects.

On the surface there are good reasons to
allow . gambling, It doesn’ t cut trees,

deplete fish or take lead to acid drainage
when minerals from the ground. ‘The one
environmental setback is the cloud of
cigarette smoke hanging over any gaming
operation.

But the law hasn’t looked all that kindly
on native bingo without it being sanctioned.

through a provincial licence. The Gitksan

have spent a lot of time in court pleading
under the ‘N’ for not guilty. So far they
haven’t been successful.

This will not deter the Gitksan. Their take
no prisoners approach to self government
and land claims loves the action more
some times than any resolution. To them,
it’s just as important to state their case as it
is to walk away with an agreement or a

— deal,

That’s why the idea ofc casino gambling i is
so nifty. It automatically elevates the issue
of native self government because of the
aura surrounding high stake games of
chance. The Gitksan like to play with their
own cards.

“Taxing times

There must be a handbook someplace
that all governments use. It contains nifty
and devious. ways to say one thing but to
do another. -

Victoria. No sir. Iti is called a user. fee. But

a tax is a tax is a tax.

One large company won’t be affected by

. this increase, Alcan, which uses Nechako

The provincial: government is no excep-l River: water to provide hydro-electric

tion. Indeéd;
Deals

lowing the same path ye
The ‘atest example i is that some of us are

paying more for water.as of Jan. 1. This

list. includes’ small rural domestic ‘users;

rental: for-smail agricultural : use and con-

servation projects: (B.C. Hydro i is also get-

ting hit withan increase but it is small and

won't be passed ¢ On to its customers.)

The great thing. about this is that the

water rate is not called a tax by those in

‘it’is a fast learner. Where —

power for its Kitimat smelter, signed a

nce sa d against Sogred meth;, jou Separate deal with t the provincial govern-
it Ou her sex i Hone, | it is DOM Soke eet MED ‘way; back in ‘the, 1950s. “The. company,
sae does: ‘pay for water but the rate depends on:

the price of aluminum. The price goes up
‘or down depending upon the price of the
"metal.

This is not to begrudge. Alcan for striking
a canny business deal. It is a brutal world

out there. But it is ironic to note that one.
“ big’ ‘business gets a-break under the NDP

while smaller guys suffer the loss of yet
morte hard- earned. dollars.

Greek to her

AS parents, most of us have

enjoyed the: misery. of fitting
together a Santa toy on Christ-
mas Eve, inserting ‘Tab A in
Slit B, or ‘bolting wheels and
pedals: 10'a CCM frame. Now,

with = pre-cut ~~. teady-to-
assemble furniture accessories
sold in every K-Mart, Wool-
worths, and hardware, ‘couples
can experience the ‘same level

Through |
Bifocals — |
_by Claudette Sandecki 1%

packaged in Asia use Korean

place: Ban spectators,

Ihave Some good and
some bad news for you

you'll get ouite ate
breaks ang Some real .

of marital stress year round...

Pre-cut furniture: accessorics
come knocked “‘down’'in’ cor-.
tugated boxes that“.contain
everything you need 10 make a

TV. table, stereo cabinel, or

closet organizer, -Whatever.it’s

destined” to: become;. pulting it
together can, wreck: a happy
marriage. :.

Each: ‘box: - comains - pre-
drilled ‘shelves,. "telescoping
rods, or whatever: cise -thal’s

bags separate screws. of dif-

ferent lengths * “and ~ colors, -

corner braces,
catches, pins,

: imagnetic

flimsy. walls,” Plastic: pieces:
come molded together in'snap-
offsheets, -.

With no regard for truth in

advertising, the box: ‘boldly |
claims ‘Easy to assemble, Re- °

quires no special tools.”

Don’t. you: ‘bi ieve™ it, As-
sembly. cart be: as: ‘complicated .-

as packing: for a homesteading
wagontrain relaxing. as.
trekking through. enemy’ terri-.
tory, and take about.as long. ©

Those packaged in. Quebec.
have | instructions» written. in =

English: and” French.” “These”

' ciously present.

hinges, nails, .
even anchors for - gripping in”

or Japanese with . awkward
English translations, No mat-
ter. They’re all Greek to me.

Decide early who will
navigate, who will pilot. It’s
‘the navigator’s ditty to identify
components,” determine
sembly sequence, and gra-
the com:
ponents, one at a time, to the

‘Regardless of. the econom-
ical cost of the kit:.or the
physical dimensions of the end

product, make ready. Dress for.
demolition. -
Lower the thermostat twenty.

‘comfort = “and

degrees, Take the Phone. off

the. hook. Even: wrongs . num-.

bers don’t deserve a sharl.:
Read. ‘through - ‘the-instruc-
tions. ° Familiarize. yourself
with the components: Be sure
-You ‘have all of them... Then
line up bandaids, lissues, and
every shop tool you own.
‘Those with - supple joints

‘work’ on: the: floor.’ ‘Everyone |
else builds. ona stuidy table,
‘Clear - the. immediate work

area’ of rugs, shoes, or any-
thing that could intercept the
trajectory of misguided-.com-

"aS- >

ponent or conceal ‘its Tanding .

kibitizers, and kleptomianiac
pets from the room,

Strive for teamwork through-
out the ordeal. But whenever

discord threatens to scuttle the
. project, take a coffee . break
until strangulation: marks fade.

When the: project: is com-

plete, the pilot gets credit for

the perfect product. The

pilot who: then ‘Tevels, ‘ha m-. - navigator - takes the Tap for

» mers, and screws, .

needed, as- well as: ziplocked -
plastic bags. of fittings. The .

false starts and leftover pieces.

- Each’ time we tackle-a pre-
cut project. together, I vow.

anew to remain calm and civil.

‘And I succeed. “until we sit in,
a quandary amid a confusion
of pressboard,- ‘plastic, and:
. metal like flight investigators

identifying debris at a plane

: crashsite,

this year...

goodies...

election

Mews ©. year

. fot before.

= Politi
frorr

VICTORIA —

When I

‘recently wrote that our

politicians are overworked,
underpaid and get huge
amounts of abuse heaped on
them to boot, I hit a nerve with
readers.

The phone calls and- letters si
got pretty.well took.the Oppo: ;.
site stance. Politicians, they

said, are a lazy bunch, get aid

far too much and deserve
every bit of verbal manure op-
pressed and irate taxpayers
shovel their way. Some of
them went as far as to say the
whole damned lot belonged

behind bars.

Even Jan Verkerk, a gener-
ally quite tolerant engineer

: from White Rock who drops
me the occasional line, made it

clear that he didn’t see eye to
eye ‘with me on the relative

~ ‘merits of politicians.

- Ever since he came to Cana-
da in 1951, he said, he had
been under the distinct impres-

sion that politicians are right

up there with the {lu and debt

collectors for things to avoid.
The ‘‘plunder of the

forests, ”* he pointed out, had -

~ been going on [or décades;

fishing licences had been
taken away from small boat
owners and give to big com-
panies, and ‘‘now, in 1992, we
still have not obtained a
balanced exploitation of
renewable resources.”
' The conclusion, Verkerk
said, was that “the govern- .
ments of British Columbia
have been ‘inept or corrupt.’

If I took the trouble to doa
little research into crime, I, :
too, would soon find out that

cabinet ministers enjoy some-._.

what of a monopoly on all
sorts of WWegat activities, he

~ suggested,"

Instead of waxing com-
passionate’ about the work load.

of our MLAs and the abuse to”

which they are subjected, ‘‘it
would be much better, Hubert,
if you wrote atticles that Pro-

cians suffer
pubiic wrath.

From the -
' Capital
by Hubert Beyer

carter?

ty ey caer np ayeneepewep ee ure pye
SpE greet wore werner ay

mote us to be served with in-
tegrity.’’

Like I said, Verkerk is by all
measures a reasonable man,
albeit not when it comes to
politicians. That’s where he
‘and ‘many others, it seems,
draw the line.

Still, I beg to differ. While it
is true that some cabinet min-
isters of the distant and not so
distant past have been guilty
of conflicts of interest, the ma-
jority of politicians I have
known are honest and decent
people.

Namé one?.O.K., how about
Garde Gardom? For 20 years,
Gardom served the people of
British Columbia, first as a

Liberal MLA then as a Socred.
~ He was one of the best al--
lorneys general and an honest

and hard-working politician by
whatever yardstick you care to
use.

There was Dave Barrett, the
‘former NDP premier; with
whose politics you may have
disagreed, but whose integrity
was never, never in questicn.

There was Alex Fraser,
Cariboo legend and Socred
highways minister under Bill |
Bennett, Grace McCarthy, an-
other Socred legend, former

‘ NDP stalwarts Eileen Dailly

and Rosemary Brown yall
without a blemish, - .
[have covered politics at -

every level for more:than a’
quarter: ofa century, andI can -

tell you that for.ever rascal,
there have been: 100. |
‘politicians who have served —

with distinction, honour and

Fy

YOU'RE $0  PROOD oF
YOUR HOME MARTEN !
BUT IT REALLY IS
PRETTY RUN Down !!

/ARe You CRAZY? ‘THIS Is Jusr MY House! \
MY HOME iS THE MOUNTAINS LAKES, RIVERS -
TREES SAND wiut WILDUFE! AND TH

EY VE COST MEA
OPPORTUNITIES, HIGH Cost” oF

, Livi Ne AND LACK OF PUBLIC: SERVICES !!

ff
u
l

i

c_)

fl

integrity.

As with everything else in -
life, it is the few politicians ~~
who set a bad example that
have caused all politicians to.
fall into disrepute.

My sentiments are shared by 7

Ted Hughes, British Colum- +. - -

bia’s conflict-of-interest com-
missioner. B.C.’s conflict-of-
interest laws were first. © ~
adopted two yearsago and _
amended this past year, =.
making them the toughest.

such laws in Canada. rae

In fact, some people believe. -
the laws are so tough that they: ~
are discouraged from going
- into politics, a notion Hughes
wants to dispel.

He recalls that he was ap-
proached by potential candi- "i
"dates from all major parties: -
before the 1991 election and. -
found not one instance where.
the legislation would have
been a deciding factor against”
running for office. —

And while Hughes admits ~
that politicians have a way to .-
go before they regain the pub-" ~

lic’s trust, he is optimistic that oe oe

_ they will.
So am I. The purpose behind :
and the real benefit of tough: °
conflict-of-interest laws isn’t
“so much to catch the odd.”
crooked politician as to keep”
politicians from leaving the .
path of the straight and narrow. o
in the first place. . col
So, whatever you may think: a

_ of politicians, I stand by my,’

assessment, Most of them are:
honest. Most of them are. °..
hardworking, and unjustly a
abused. ~

THANK GoD THERE'S
A PIACE uP NORTH FoR

SocieTY's MISFITS |

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