DMONTON (OP). — fhen Douglas Christie, the Vitoria’ “criminal: lawyer. “twho-'runs a separatist movement that calls itself _:Edmonton . ‘Western. Canada Concept, arrived last October in ‘on an - organizational trip, he was wiaccompanied and had. . provided his own. funding. _ He ‘was interviewed on . several open-line shows ~ and a TY program, then * galled a public meeting for . the following week. Ap- _ Wp for the meeting, a good proximately 2,500 showed. *exowd for a major political * that ‘repeatedly pulling “declared figure — and Christie was Jargelyunknown, = - ’ About two weeks later Carl Nickle, a Calgary olf. man and philanthropist, a director of the Council for Canadian Unity and former member of Parliament, ke himself a separatist and announced be was holding a $10-a- plate luncheon to explain why, the proceeds going to West Fed, another separatist _ organization. ‘The 1,000 available seats were sold within 43 hours. West Fed itself drew about 1,-300 to a Calgary rally about two weeks after and has been anywhere from 50 to 250 people te meetings throughout rural Alberta ever since, Its president, ‘Edmonton tractor dealer Elmer Knutson, attracted about 1,200 to a Vancouver ‘rally in January and geveral days later anyw- here from 609° to 1,400 (depending on whom you talked to) showed up at another Knitson rally at ‘Weyburn, Sask. - - The three westernmost | Canadian premiers have | ’ warned of the dangers of western separatism to Canada and polls have placed its strength - variously at from five per cent..to 241 per’ cent,)‘the s” highest ' being’ repartéds thee: Alberta, the lowest in © Manitoba, with British Columbja and Saskat- chewan somewhere in be- tween, West Fed, biggest and moat active of about four separatist § ‘or - semi- separatist orgafiizations, reporta a membership of more than 30,000. Its ac- tivity seemed to peak in the - late fall and now has somewhat subsided. ‘if renewed Ottawa- Alberta energy negotiations . slated for March and April fail to resolve the current stand- off between Alberia and the federal goveronient, however, West Fed: will - doubiless burst forth again, more robust and militant than ever. Similarly, if the dispute: is resolved, much - of the impetus behind the” ° AUTO FOR SALE 1976 Bulck LaSabre 2 door hardtop. 14,000 original miles. Phone .- 638-8342 It is this current conflic between Otiawa’ and the ~ West, of course). : brought the movement into. being. Four immediate causes are discernible: | : 1. Last February’s federal. election: shocked. westerners because. ‘they: suddenly discerned ‘what they considered their po- litical insignificance. Many say Prime Minista Pierre Trudeau won by promising‘ Ontario consumers Alberta’ oil at Jess than half the "world price, giving’ them the lowest gasoline: and _fuel-oil prices in the in- dustrialized world. (“What has Ontario ever sold us at 45 per cent of world price ” demands en: Edmonton - bumper sticker.). . The first result Saskatchewan and Alberta TV. viewers heard on. election night was the ari nouncement ‘that the election already had been decided in the Maritimes, Ontario and Quebec. Without a single vote being ‘counted in the West, the - Liberals already had a majority. ° “If nobody in the West. had voted at all,” says West Fed's Knutson; ‘it wouldn't have made the West united “movement will dine fe ‘het rude and, at the’ ‘same time, ing mew taxes cn pe oe ee ~ guppoted tobe a provincial ‘resource. In addition, the “NEP introduced measures — to ‘‘Canadianize” the oil industry,. a’ device many - westerners saw as a means . of cutting the West off from its highly developed capital sources -in the United | ‘States. This way, they. reasoned, the West. would : once again be compelled to. depend ‘upon ‘ Toronte. for * capital. Bitter contrasts . solicitouz' concern for © were drawn ‘Between Ot- tawa's get-tough policy oo U.S. participation in the Canadian oil-patch and its — Chrysler's participation in the aufo industry. ‘Finally, the NEP was viewed not merely as a means. of Canadianizing ‘tut also of socializing the highly free-enterprise oil © . industry, © government- owned Petro-Canada being " the principal instrument of the policy. Angry oll men _ looked up the doctoral least difference to the - ultimate Moreover, the government that had promised cheap oil had not won a single seat west or north of Winnipeg. For the first: time in history, the party in power was almost totally unrepresented in & geo- graphical two-thirds of the ’ ‘Prudeau government been, , Glected than it set about constitutional reforms which it had not mentioned in the election campaign, and for which it therefore , had no electoral mandate. When the western result,’*. provinces ob ected that?” osihatinip their ° “resources WEE safeguarded in the pro- constitution, the Trudeau = edministration decided it would impose it upon them without provincial. assent. When western MPs objected in the Commons, closure was _ invoked upon the debste. Ontario supported the reform, a fact which helped abe oroe or” “not. . thesls written by Ed Clark, senior ‘federal assistant deputy minister of energy and chief author of the NEP, and noted his obvious ‘commitment to socialism.” Reactions to the NEP have been swift. Sixty ofl rigs have left Canada and | ‘more than 100 are idle, | badly penalizing towns in the exploration areas. - q hile British - and: . Sas." production in thre five: per-cent stages, the first on‘ March 1. Boycotts are’ urged against Ontario industry and work has been © halted on two synthetic oil plants. All these measures ‘will hit Alberta’s economy hard . and the federal treasury ‘harder still, More crude will have to be Hing double" thie 3 NEP ‘'a calamity,” and . West Fed warns the far- Ines: “lf they can grab " extra’ revenues from cil persuade westerners of a central Canadian plot to grab iheir resources. - 3. This,fear was rapidly reinforced by the national - energy program (NEP) introduced with the budget on Oct, 28 afler Ottawa and the oihand gas-producing ' provinces failed to reach "an agreement on prices. Under the NEP Ottawa set the prices unilaterally, . continuing to pay less than half the world price for (ps-11F) ' —Undercever Parking * Elevator. —Leundry facilities. —Carpeting * the COACHMAN | APARTMENT | 4204 SPARKS ST. TERRACE, Rental Applications ; are now being taken for the Coachman Apartments, scheduled for oc- “-eupaney-March aya, THE ADULTORIENTATED - APARTMENT features: “"Ohe and two bédroom suites —Cableviaion hook-up available ‘ Pressurized hallways throughout , Every sulte complete with fridge, stove, and For further information call an 638-1097 be Privice George (Collect) | 562-4943 B.C, c r when the oil price rises, they'll do the same to you i pice.“ § Saskatchewan's energy when. ‘the’ ‘grain: price. _ rises. * Tn short, the NEP ok "The fal cause is the” - ‘Philoeophy and personality of the prime.~ minister himself and of several of . the ministers around him... Though it is by no means shared universally, | an incipient racism resides in the separatist movement, aimed principally at three key por- tfolios Prin with: the => m West — ‘energy, tran- | sportation and the con- stitution — are all héld by’. ” French-Canadian: announced was a brief and’ calamitous visit io Regina in’ which he - called westerners~. “hysterical” and “paranoid.” His assertion that separatism was a problem in-Quebec, though it had “nil”. chance in the West was. worth about 10,000 new mem- berships, West Fed spokesmen say. Some skeptics see Trudeau's occasional observations as deliberately incendiary, calculated to spur the separatist movement because it would draw its -Fireplace In every and. angry. by it ‘ strength “from the western a Tory vote; thereby splitting produced «within: : Canad an economic’ civil: HS wes these four im- mediate causes, however, Hie other problems, rooted © in .the political and: ~ . economic basis of Canada - "INTRODUCING 7 WOODGREEN APART MENTS - 4832. Larele Ave. 2 Rental Applications are.now ‘being _ taken for occupancy March a, | FEATURING: One - and two bedroom ‘Carer unit. . . ~Dishewashver, Fridge & Shove Included. ‘sg Brig pe Bay Wiadews wil olor corded = itself. Despite the: rising’ new towers of Calgary at. many ‘other wealernere, see themselves. as a railways; ciutometive, _ chartered accountancy, ~ eddvertising, . néwspa| 4. s -belevision, even the major, ministers, Prime Minister Trudeau's first trip ‘to- “the” West: after the NEP was”. oll and gai Companies — is° headquartered in Montreal or soulhern Ontario, nearly always Toronto. Westerners contrast this - with. the situation in the United States . where ~ economic -power is Giversified — finance in New York, automobiles in Detroit, textiles in New England and Atlanta, oil in Houston and Dallas, meat packing inChicago, Omaha and St. Louis, entertain- ment im Hollywood, air- craft and heavy engineering on the Wes Coast. Canada, they aay,” - has. been- intentionally developed ta maintain the “,-| 2 @ try ain angst rarest oy. : hi Recor it al 2 -Grand stalfcase snd bright halls. . 4Ground floor apartments with Private Gardens. Ceramic tiled kitchen floors & bathrooms. Cablevision hook-up availabe. For further Information cali _Mr. .. B Erickson > 635-2921 wie som ‘ | TRO a.m. Worsh ip: Wed. 7:30: p.m.” Adult | Bible Study. | _ CHRISTIAN ' REFORMED “.GHURCH Reverend 5, Vari Daalen Sperks Street and ‘Straume Avenue 10:00 a.m. ~ 11:00 a.m. 10:0 am. - Sunday School Reverend R.L. White Morning Worship 7:0 p.m." . : Evening Worship . Wednesday 7:30 p.m. Prayer Service ; . CHRIST ' -LUTHERAN * CHURCH Rev. Herman Hagen 8.A., M. Div. 15-3485 3720 SparksStreet (corner of Sparks & Park) 9:45 a.m. - Sunday | Church $cheol {Kin- dergarten through adult) 11:00 a.m. Regular Worship Service {Hoty Communion first Sunday of each month) Conlirmation, - Youth & adult classes 3404 Eby Street 5-015 O5-ME7:. Sunday School - Terrace wewem Eundoy Schoo! - R . H ¥ emo re ae oe Education. & Instruction soem iad _ Aclassforaltages Worship Service UPLANDS - JHE BAPTIST . ‘ SALVATION CHURCH. 4637 Walsh Ave. Paar . 64-N&or Corner of Hattiwell © - ; 638-5446 and N. Thomas - Ham SUNDAY SERVICES Bilblé Teaching - 4 9:30 am. - Sunday achool F-- Sunday School : for ali ages 11:00 ah. ° 5 11:00 o. m. + Femily » Marning Worship Service worship 7:0 p. 57:0 pm. - Evangalistle Singing t and Bible Study f Salvation Mtg. ynraday igs Home Bi tudies ‘ A WEONESDAY . ‘. “You AreWelame - % 7:30 p.m. - Ladies’ Home 1 aUplands’* — League Fellowship KNOX UNITED CHURCH #7 Lauille Ave: 5-014 - Rev. David Martyn, SA. MDW, ‘Sunday Worship 1: 700 ani Hymn Sing, 10:50 . m.. Sunday Sthoo! Gr. é+ 10:00 om. Nursery. Gr : ‘ed ST. MATTHEW'S ANGLICAN . CHURCH 474 Larele Avenve 425-9019 Sunday Services 9:30 am Holy Communion W a.m, Adult Discussion & Church School 31 am Family Service - Holy Conimunion except Sunday 7:30 pm Informal Service Wednesday — CE EEE AEE EE EEN IEEE ICRI IIE IESE EINECS SESE SCIEN Sera er eens reece reer eee ere ees 7:38 pm Holy. Communion ah gtip “ot. “the central, 7 Producing hinterland, .» interests of ‘what now is “units. § ee: ee . - - gy - . o Boy . Boe : tH 2 ‘ ee * . . -_ ' sity tel nm _ i Te) a - > == - ome -—_— on + ae _ Ce ae.) —~ - * separatiite, was “tereby . populous,.- comsuniing established. centre upon the resource: * ‘Again and ‘again they: say, the same fundam tal - They. point: out. as significant the. first in-. stance of settlement in the - ‘West, the ‘Selkirk colony.” :, Almost’ immediately it ran afoul of: the : commercial Central Canada; »Tephecented by the North | “West Company: in Mon- - tredl, “The colonists ‘sup- ~ jpligd the company with the ‘tmotor’ fuel of the” -day, pemmican for the canoe brigades. -Like Premier “Lougheed -164 years later, _. the, governor. of the tine, . Robert Semple. retatiated 1970 Musthng Mach | In excellent condition, only 56,000.‘ WUE ha gygencqe? . against what he considered » original miles, completely rebuilt for show purposes - J unfaig treatment by - the has never. seen winter. 251 Cleveland, ayto, front and:.2-" Montreal company and cut rear spoilers, metal window lowvers, dual California 2 ff the of rear-talHighis plus many more extras too umerous: TE. supply .of pem- mention on body and power train. oa) _ ii meN recon (plist be seen to be appreciated . over ‘12000 ini _ Semple and 19 of his men in: “only serious a inquires. the Seven Oaks massacre May consider trade. of. 1616, The. central. Caradon attitde, say the 7 —- 1980 ‘Capel 3 nook area 6 cyl. auto. Low mileege é cyl, auto, low mileage “4974 FORD a Camper Special ve automatic os 1979 MERCURY Manus *Aidoor, VE auto., alr cond, stereo, Loaded with extrad.: we Nes fav 135%, TEREST uns saa a. SELECTED Foe OF cou CAR UES...