- BI The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, April 18, 2001 — TERRACE STANDARD — INSIDE SECTION B COMMUNITY JENNIFER LANG EVENTS B2 638-7283 ‘MY POINT. OF VIEW ARON STRUMECKI So Canadian HEN I HEAR about all the troubles we're having, whether it’s signing the softwood lumber agreement, Quebec seperation, or negotiating against a nursing strike, I wonder how we've managed to survive as long as we have. Everyone seems insistent al going at each others throats. The whole world’s a stage, but instead of a play, we're all playing a big game of Survivor. It just goes to show you, we really haven’t evolved much further than a bunch of gibber- ing chimps. Somewhere, somehow, the voice of the many became drowned out in favor of the few. People to forget that our civilization was made tearing each other down. Politicians want to be seen as tough to get much as possible to make more money. Unions wart to get as much money as possible so the people paying theirs dues don’t tell them to kiss off. Everyone’s got theit-own angle. No-one wants to work together. The only catch is, just like Survivor, in order to win, you’ve got to wark together. It’s a simple lesson that we seem to have forgotten. In the beginning, humanity was nothing more than a collection of naked apes huddling together in their dark, unlight caves. Life was hard. Life was tough. Since humans weren't blessed with fur, looth, and claw like some of their fellow mammials, the world around them - was full of potential.threats, and threatened a quick and brutal death. The game of life back then, like naw, was ' simple, adapt or die. Individually no-one stood a chance, in order to survive, you had to work with others. Hu- mans, individually compared to the animals all around them, were weak, defenseless bags of flesh. But viewed as a group, as one big animal, humans became a significant threat. It’s our primary evolutionary advantage. One guy with a sharp stick isn’t going to frighten much at all, but 10 would be able scare off even the most determined predator. After the caves came the first farms. Instead of hunting for meat and gathering nuts, humans decided it would be a good idea to settle down, cultivate plants, and raise animals. Of course this wasn’t an enterprise that could be accomplished alone, and required extensive co-operation to accomplish daring endeavors dance, and not tong after, the first cities star- ted popping up. The cities, quite the marvel all in them- selves, also brought with them some other extravagant inventions of their awn such as wiiling and law. The abundance brought by the lowed people to pursue other things. OF course ‘the first thing that people did with their spare lime was to go out and conquer their neigh- bours or colonize new land in pursuit of the hext great human invention, the empire. first, they quickly became models of co-opera- tion and efficiency. They had to, otherwise they’d quickly fall apart. Well, that and the king would chop off your head. But even the most callous king realized he was only one person, all his greatness was really subject to the co-operation of others. If he didn’t figure ‘this out quickly enough, he was the one who to lose his head. Consequently, many of civiliza- tions important discoveries, such as plumbing, running water, and roads, benefited the people as much as the ruler. After the empire, came the nation-state. Rather more stable by means of considerable social reform, more power was indeed handed to the people, little by little, and populations soon blossomed out of control. Even more co- operation was needed io keep the trains run- ning on time. Coincidentally, both were major inventions around this time, along with handy things like the newspaper and the dictionary. Today, we're facing a time when these na- tion-states are getting together to form global trading blocks. The latest rage are handy tittle things like the TV, the telephone, and the In- .ternet. These have all proven quite helpful in helping us understand each other, and help us get along. As you can see, it was co-operation, not fighting like cats and dogs, that got us here together, but it certainly didn’t keep us that way. Maybe that’s something we need to keep in mind, Maybe it’s just the Canadian way. Email coniments (0 astrumecki@hotmail com by working to build something together, not by: more votes. Businessmen want to cut costs as! such as irrigation. Co-operation led to abun-* increasingly efficient work of the farmers al- , While the first few empires were small at. today, Fighting and strife may have brought us’ Memorial will commemorate the lives of those who died on the job Workers observe a minute of silence A WORKER'S memorial and a moment of silence are two ways Terrace residents will mark the Day of Mourning in remembrance of workers who have been killed or injured on the job. Labour and business represen- tatives have been invited to take part in the dedication of a memor- ial at George Little Park near the arena to honour the memory of workers who have lost their lives to occupational accidents or dis- ease, The dedication ceremony takes place at 11 a.m. April 28. If you can’t attend, the Kiti- mat-Terrace and District Labour Council asks workers to observe a minute of silence at the same lime. Terrace is one of 39 communi- ties where the Workers’ Compen- sation Board, the B.C. Federation of Labour and the Business Coun- cil of B.C. are establishing perma- ALL EYES are on 4-year-old Tori (Victoria) Bright as she moves {ike a Killerwhale, one of four Nisga’a clans in her dance group. Hundreds will run Sunday | WHEN YOU consider 279 women and 180 children found refuge at the Terrace Transition House last year, you start to understand why it takes a whole com- munity to support it, says Debbie Scarborough. On Sunday, Searbar- ough expects one-quarter of Terrace’s population to turn out for the Run Peace, a 4-km walk, run or jog thal will kick-start the fun- draising drive to build a new iransition house, “Truthfully? I think we'll get 5,000,” smiles Scarborough, executive director of the Terrace Transition House, a Ksan House Society facility that can’t be renovated to make it wheelchair ac- cessible. Narrow doorways and several flights of stairs at the transition house means some women fleeing abuse are forced to go some- where else for help when they’re in crisis. The run, starting and ending at Northwest Com- munity College, also kicks off a host of free public workshops presented by Northwest Community College aimed at raising awareness about violence against women. Scarborough is buoyed READY TO RUN: Shelly Haynes- -Marrell (et) and Debbie Scarborough of Terrace's Transition House. Dancers ‘Hats off’ IT’S WONDERFUL to see people helping others, says a group of young Nisga’a dancers who col- lected hundreds of non-perishable items for the food bank. Terrace’s Youth. of the Dance group is part of the 120-strong Nisga’a Unified in Terrace dance group, or Gillaxdax Sayt K’ilim Gooth! Nisga’a. The dancers, young and old, will represent Terrace on the in- ternational stage this August at this year’s First People’s Festival in Victoria. Meanwhile, the group’s busily raising money in preparation for their summer travels. The First People’s Festival draws aboriginal cultural groups from as far away as Australia and New Zealand, dance leader Keane Tait says. The Youth of the Dance group have been out door-to-door can- vassing, in support ‘of their bottle and loonie/toonie drives, asking for donations to the food bank nent memorials with the assis- tance of local governments. The memorial will remind the public about occupational health and safety issues, says Steve Scott, the city’s director of parks and recreation. _ The memorial will consist of a bronze plaque on a large boulder placed in the park. declare: to you along the way, says Cindy Tait. Individuals and local busines- ses alike have also been generous to the group's various fundraising activities. “Our hats off to the people of Terrace,” Tait says. The group donated four huge crates crammed full of non perish~ able food items to the food bank last week. The Gitlaxdax Sayt K’ilim Goothl Nisga’a Cultural Dancers celebrated their fourth anniversary in February. That makes them the youngest Nisga’a cultural dance prowp and the third Nisga’a dance group in Terrace. Look for the group at a number of upcoming local events, includ- ing the National Aboriginal Day celebrations in June, Prince Ru- pert’s Sea Fest, and Riverboat Days here in Terrace. They're also performing at the Terrace Trade Show, taking place at the arena April 27, 28 and 29. by the wellspring of sup- port for the Run for Peace. Community associates include the city of Ter- race, the callege, the Ministry for Children and Families, loca) merchants ~ and the RCMP, who have already collected a stack of pledges for the run, and are even selling T-shirts promoting the event. While plans for a. school run for children have not panned out (school board approval came too late), some schools will include a run, walk, or jog component in gym classes (hat same week to raise awareness. There’s still time to participate in the Run For Peace or show your sup- port. Pledge forms are avail- able by calling Lana at 635-6447, T-shirts are also being sold to raise money for the cause. Registration is by dana- tion. The run starts at 3 p.m. CHRIS HANSEN and Tyler Carriere in front of a tree planted by distance education staff in 1997 in memory of teachers June Smit and Jo Falconer. Garbage duty April 22 at the college. There will be short cuts for those who can’t com- plete the full 4-km route. Participants meet back al the college for a barbe- eile starting at 3:30 p.m. Health and safety are top priorities in 30-hour famine THIS MONTH teens in Terrace will vo- luntarily go without solid food for 30 hours in a bid to raise awareness to fight hunger in developing countries around the globe as part of World Vision’s 30 Hour Famine. Last weck, Flo Sheppard, a commun- ity nutritionist, outlined a number of ser- ious health concerns related to fasting (April 11, page B1, “Not So Fast”). This week, World Vision Canada responds, World Vision says the events are over- - seert and designed by a team of nutrition- ists and doctors. “When the 30 Hour Famine guidelines ate followed, there is no nutritional risk for healthy well-nourished individuals,” says Dr, Carelyn MacDonald, nutrition, team leader for World Vision Canada, pants," “Adult supervision, attention to health and safety, and an emphasis on the en- joyment of food to celebrate the end of the “famine” ail contribute to a positive, entiching. experience for event partici- ‘says World Vision’s Toronto- based spokesperson Kimberly Suderman. TYLER CARRIERE thinks the Terrace Beautification Society is pretty neat. At 9 years of age, the Grade 4 home-schooled student is probably the youngest fan and supporter the society has earned. “T just kinda like the work they do,” the two- time veteran of the socie- ty’s annual spring clean- up, the Garbathon, ex- plained. On Sunday, April 22, Carrierre will participate in the Garbathon along with hundreds of other people who will be taking time oul of their weekend ‘to help clean tp Terrace, The event, now in its 17th year, gets underway at 1 p.m. al the McDo- nald's parking jot, and continues until 3 p.m. That week, sehools in Terrace will be vying for the Beautification Soce- ity’s cleanest school yard award. Carrierre recently wrote the society asking how he can become a member. “My mom and I really enjoy the work your group does to keep Terrace clean and beautiful,” he writes. “tam interested in find- ing out more about your group and wonder how old you need to be to join.” Society president Chris Hanson is delighted to see someone so young interes- ted in the beautification society. Hhe’s welcome to at- tend the group's monthly meetings, held the third Thursday of the month at city hall between 7 and 9 p.m. Anyone who wants to take part can call 638- 1049 for more information.