A4 - The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, January 9, 2002 “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: standard@kermode.net Send it back HOMEOWNERS are supposed to be delighted that their natural gas rates went down again on Jan. 1. They should be outraged. Not because rates went down, but because they may not fall far enough. Pacific Northern Gas’ proposed new rates seek to embed major increases in delivery costs to be passed along to gas users in the northwest. Some of these are unavoidable — some people have stopped using natural gas, others have left the region and some businesses have failed. In each case, the remaining customers on the system have to take on the operating costs pre- viously supported by those who depart. PNG also predicts Skeena Cellulose won’t run at all this year. That’s a convenient way to shift more costs onto other customers, but regulators should have a better idea of SCI’s future before it holds hearings on the new rates in March. The most objectionable “cost” PNG seeks to increase is not a service to its customers at all. PNG wants to boost its regulated return on equity from 10 per cent to 10.63 per cent to put more profits in the hands of its shareholders. This would add $1.4 million to the gas bills of all other users. It’s justified on the basis that the utility is a riskier investment than it previously was and must therefore deliver shareholders a higher return to compensate. We disagree. PNG has been risky for some time, but that’s : a risk its founders took and not one homeow- ' ners should bear at a time of economic distress. PNG’s largest and only voting shareholder, Westcoast Energy, would be the main benefi- ciary of an.increase.in.the.return. Westcoast has just been piircHaséd by U.S.- based giant Duke Energy. As the newest” in- vestor, Duke clearly has bought Westcoast and its holdings, including PNG, with its eyes open, Regulators should say no to this Trojan Horse of a rate decrease and adjust it appropriately. Neighbourly? HIS NAME was Filippo Falcone. And for nine long months no one even realized the 81-year- old Prince Rupert resident was gone, until a pair of burglars broke into his house early New Year’s Eve day and discovered his body crum- pled behind a doorway. They called the cops. In doing so, the thieves restored a measure of dignity to a man who’d had it so cruelly stolen from him in death. In a final irony, it turns out the reclusive Mr. Falcone bequeathed his estate to the city. That he sought to repay the community in which he lived through such a gesture upon his death is something of a reproach to us all. As this sad New Year's story proves, we need . one another. Let’s show it by being better neighbours, 200) WINNER CCNA BETTER NEWSPAPERS PUBLISHER/EDITOR: Rod Link ADVERTISING MANAGER: Brian Lindenbach PRODUCTION MANAGER: Edouard Credgeur NEWS: Jeff Nagel | NEWS/SPORTS Sarah Zimmerman NEWS/COMMUNITY: Jennifer Lang FRONT OFFICE: Darlene Keeping & Carol McKay CIRCULATION SUPERVISOR: Terri Gordon ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS: Mark Beaupre & Stacy Swetlikoff TELEMARKETER: Stacy Swetlikoff DARKROOM/COMPOSING: Susan Credgeur AD ASSISTANT: Sandra Stefanik SUBSCRIPTION RATES BY MAIL: $55.15(+$3.86 GST) per year; Seniors $48.85 (+$3.42 GST); Out of Province $61.98 (+$4.34 GST) Outside of Canada (6 months) $152.34 (+$10.66 GST) COMPETITION MEMBER OF B.C. AND YUKON COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS ASSOCIATION, Ce CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS ASSOCIATION * . . AND CNA conser tereers B.C, PRESS COUNCIL (www.bepresscouncil.org) “Foea Eevenn oad Te Sening tha Terrace and Thomhill area, Published on Wednesday of each weak al 3210 Clinton Street, Tenaca, British Columbla, V6G 5A2, Storfas, pholographs, illustrations, designs and typestyles in the Terraca Standard are the property of the copyright heldars, including Cariboo Press (1969) Ltd, ils iiustralion repro servicas and advertising agencias, Reproduction in whele or in part, without writtan permission, is specifically prohibited. Authorized as second-class mall pending tha Pest Offica Dapartment, for payment of postaga In cash, Speclal thanks to all our contributors and correspondents for their tlme and tatents ACTIVITIES. VICTORIA - In no Canadian province is politics as polar- ized as in British Columbia. Here you lose friends aver po- litical differences. Some 10 years ago, I wan- ted to write a series of articles about placer mining. Placer mining is the extraction of precious metals from the bo- wels of the earth, mainly gold, by small operators, often mom and pop outfits. I asked editors in interior and northern towns where pla- cer mining was occurring to put me in touch with someone who could take me around and show me what placer mining was all about. Somehow the name Jim Gunn came up. I didn’t know Jim Gunn from Adam, but what’s a city slicker ta do? Jim appeared to be an expert on placer mining, and who wes I to argue? Jim picked me up at the Prince George airport. He was your regular kind of guy Bill -oBennett-used! to describe: asa -Hreal: British. Columbian.” As J found out during my time ahead with Jim, he had a number of active claims in the area we were poing to visit. Our first stop was a placer mining operation near Ques- nel. [t belonged to Norm Olar- son, an oldtimer in the area. “Who's there?” a loud voice greeted us, as we ap- Whenever someone chooses to ski or snow board out of bounds, you and I foot his rescue bill. I resent charges foisted on me by others. Finally, the B.C. gov- ernment is weighing whether rescue costs should be charged to those rescued, Rescue volunteers, for the most part, are against char- ging the rescued or their fa- milies for even a token share of expenses when helicopters and boats are called in for backup. They argue to charge family might make them delay reporting missing members, or attempt to effect - arescue by themselves, put-, ting more lives at risk. If rescue costs aren't shouldered by those who cre- ate them, how will we end— . or at least break — these un- warranted rescue casts? Some years are more ex- pensive than others. Last year was a particularly busy win- ter season for the North Shore rescue volunteers who serve the ski slopes near TEACHERS MUST BE FEELING OVERWORKEDP. THEIR TOB ACTION iS A BAN ON EXTRA- CURRICULAR dar YoU BUILT INTHE WRONG SPOT !! PHASE TL OF -FROM THE CAPITAL . HUBERT BEYER proached his camp. There was an old coot holding a gun, aimed at our direction. “It’s Jim Gunn, Hubert,” Jim said, “You got any beer?” Sud- denly, I understood why Jim had told me that we had better buy a few cases of beer before we ventured into any placer mining camp. . Norm, Jim and 1 consumed with that ‘night In ithe process,. Norm showed me just about everything there is to know about placer mining. Norm had one backhoe dig- ging up the dirt on his claim and feeding it into a machine that washed the dirt, constant- ly fed by water, moving the dirt back and forth, separating heavy metal, speak gold, from THROUGH BIFOGALS: CLAUDETTE SANDECKI Vancouver including Grouse Grind, Mount Seymour, and Suicide Gully. Scarcely a 24-hour period went by that they weren’t called out to slog up a moun- tain waist-deep in snow or cling to some windswept ridge dodging avalanches in search of someone who took off hiking at sunset in tee shirt and sneakers unencum- bered by emergency supplies ar outdoor savvy. How North Shore rescue TVE BEEN HERE T] vey! wueee FOR 250 YEARS'|] ARE You GOING 7! WHEN po ie THEIR Two-WEE THEY STARY CHRISTMAS VACATION, the lighter gravel and sand. While we were polishing off the second I2-pack, Norm was doing the “cleanup.” That's when the goid dust and small - nuggets are poured into a form and later emerge as a beautiful gold bar, Norm threw the bar at me. “Catch it,” he said. 1 promptly dropped it. The bar was far heavier that anything I expect that size to be. Norm, Jim and I got glor- iously drunk that night. ] can’t remember how I got to Norm’s home, but that’s where I woke up next morning, We spent a few days with Norm. He showed me his nug- get traps, adding that he would put out a contract on my life if I ever revealed his secret. The last evening, Jim, Norm, his wife and I sat in the Olarsons, living room. Norm threw something at me. “That’s yours,” he said, It was a beautiful gold nugget, the only gift, present, bribe or respectable -amountwléf" beer. “whatever-you want to call it, 1 _ ever accepted, Somehow, it seemed wrong to refuse this gesture from a man [ had gotten drunk with, a man who had shared his nug- get-trap secrets with me and whe had put down his pun only when he was sure that we had a good supply of beer. In the week that followed, Jim would take me to a half- Out of bounds skiers should oay attracts new members and maintains their roster baffles me, A candid help wanted ad would read something like this; Wanted: Physically fit adults willing to forsake sleep and holidays to trudge rugged back country every blizzardy, rain-drenched weekend bear- ing a 60-pound pack and nylon rope for the applause of public criticism. Candidates should possess the tracking ability of an Apache scout, the patience of an abused na- tive school survivor awaiting compensation, and an aver- sion to food and rest. Clairvoyants welcome. Fluorescent red uniforms supplied. Hours of Work: Sunset to dawn, weekends and holidays primarily. You will labour alongside like- minded selfless individuals who voluntarily abandon their own families and marriages to save the lives of undeserv- ing strangers. Duties: comb hazardous, uncharted terrain sifting for free spirits suffering poor f JusT AS SOON AS THEY GET BACK FROM rriends lost over political differences dozen other placer mining camps, some equally small as Norm’s, others sizable opera- tions. Jim introduced me to a Brit- ish Columbia that city folks cannot begin to imagine. And it” was always Jim who made sure the people | met would accept me. During that assignment, Jim became what I would call a friend. Since then, Jim and ] have been in touch off and on. He used to get my columns, which I make available to anyone who might not be able to read them in their local newspaper. Jim stayed with me when I lambasted the NDP. The odd time, he would e-mail me that [ was right on the money. Last week, I received a terse message from Jim: “Please remove me from your list. Thank you.” It appears Jim could not accept my criticism of Gordon Campbell’s Liberal government. Pity, Jim. You once told.me_ you thought I was;your friend. Now I am, saying I thought you were my friend. Is politics in British Columbia that power- ful? In closing, Norm Olarson died a few years ago. I remem- ber him fondly. Beyer can be reached at: E- mail: hubert@coolcom.com; Tel (250) 381-6900; Web http://www. hubertbeyer.com eyesight, defiant attitudes, and blatant disregard for their own and rescuers’ safety. Training: Free instruction four hours, one evening per week. Extra two or three day course throughout the year. Salary: You must be kidding! Volunteers who survive their missions without crip- pling mishaps, fractured limbs concussions or divorce can look forward to years of dona- ting their time and skills to the rescue of individuals, many of whom deserve to be left to get themselves out of their own self-imposed predicaments. Through all of this, the va- lunteer is expected to be opti- mistic, enthusiastic, even tem- pered, and dedicated. And when he shucks his soggy gear at the end of them mission, he may be greeted by criticism that he didn’t do en- . ough, was too slow, didn’t leap into the swirling water of a canyon while everyone else __ peeked over the rim. Send out-of-bounders a bill.