_ Page 6, July 12, 1978-North ShoreNews

Canada’ s next prime minister: the. news" ‘media
often give the i impression of indulging i ina kind of
7 political death wish ... of. having. given up on-

parliamentary democracy

~- Certainly in this particular :
neck of the woods the media, |
by and large, have few good -
words: to. say about Prime’
Minister Pierre Trudeau and:
the unholy mess in which his.
10-year. stewardship | of our:

affairs has landed the coun-
~ try.
him undoubtedly reflects the

views of a sizeable. majority

of the: B. Cc. electorate.

Even the Liberals. them:

selves doubt whether they.

‘And their treatment’ of:

can win more than three or...

four of B. C.’s 28 seats when ©
the election trumpets finally .

. ‘Sound.

As was ‘to be expected,
therefore; © Mr.

couver last week brought

little of. solid .cheer for the
local Grits. _The -PM’'s~ ‘key-

note speech on constitutional
reform —

lunchtime gathering in the
-. Hotel Vancouver was re-
_ warded by questions .about
bilingual beer labels: and his
own. ‘socialist past --
interest in his new: constitu-

_tion itself well down: on the

list.” en

His evening walk along the
False Creek seawall drew a
mixed bag of polite appiause,
demonstrations and. insults.
_ Probably his happiest mem-
ory of the visit. -- generally
interpreted as the start of the
-. campaign trail leading. to a

fall election -- was the short _

afternoon break © he spent
diving into the Bayshore’ Ss
_ swimming pool.

UNANSWERED
QUESTIONS

Then it was on to Calgary
to lead the Stampede parade
on a black horse, wearing a
ten-gallon hat -- with all
those gut questions about
massive unemployment, the
runaway- inflation threat,
Canada’s staggering $11,
billion deficit and a mon-
strous federal bureaucracy
running. completely out of
control still unanswered. _

Most of the media and an
increasing number of British
Columbians are resigned to
the fact that the questions
will remain unanswered as
long as Mr. Trudeau and his
burned-out henchmen in.
Ottawa are running the show

-- for the simple reason that’

they clearly have no answers.

But some of the media and [
electorate are also beginning .

to cotton on to a more
ominous theory.

They have’ a growing
suspicion that in the kind of

state the Prime Minister °

ultimately wants to create --
and head -- the government

would be under no compul- |
answer —

sion at all to
questions from the rabble
about a million jobless

Canadians, the prospect of .

double-digit inflation or the

_ country’s crushing load of

debt and taxation.

The idea is getting around
that Mr. Trudeau’s planned
solution to all these picayune
problems is simply bilingual-
ism coast to coast and a new
constitution that eliminates

‘Trudeau’s — -
flying 30-hour visit to Van-—

~1,000° or so-
Canadian “Club members ata.

with |

‘mind . --
. frequently i in print and on the |
air as well -- you’d think that.

the Queen and concentrates
ultimate power in. his own |
hands. ---
rabble
ignored.

after which ‘the |
could — be.

“REPUBLIC or CAN ADA?

Just - one. “more. Liberal

election ® “victory under. the
old-fashioned ‘democratic |

‘system, : bringing a further .
four-year breathing: space,
-and the single-party. Repub- —
lic of Canada could conceiv- .

ably be established...

With all these » thoughts in
‘nowadays

and ..

the anti-Liberal media would
be’ throwing... themselves

_wholeheartedly behind the

one democratic alternative to
Mr. Trudeau that still, for.
the moment, exists: namely,

~ Joe Clark. and his Progres-

sive Conservatives.
Instead,
often

the media most
seem hell-bent on

deliberately belittling Mr.

Clark’s potential as the
alternative leader of the
country. They consistently
denict him as immature,
untried, platform-léss.and a
fumbler. Even last week;

while many. of the ‘media 7

were tearing vigorously into
Trudeau as usual, they still
took time out to show Clark
falling into the mud at a

children’s outing (a warm —

and human sort of mishap in
the circumstances, with no
political significance of any
kind).

We all know that Mr. Clark
is untried as yet, because we

Monday : M Saturday
‘Thurs. & Fri. till rf

985035.

| att me! 0 will. compete - 7.
(most. likely in October) for. ‘the: position of

ponder the steady decline of
_, Canada’s -
; : during: the 70s.-- one~ ~would :
-. think they at least owed it to - {
's themselves: to consider test-.

- ing the only. available option.
- While they: still have. an
. option. 7

= tion has been cautious so far:
: about ‘tying himself and his
“party. down to” too . many —

“safely

away,
Trudeau or take a calculated |

"matter than some of his
- fewspaper columnists.

C SAVINGS ARE

OTIS Ly Ye
give’ him his. chance: es Until or’. Le Lee
unless we do, we'll, never ZZ
“know. whether | he’s. mature | yD
~ enough to run Canada better YZ
than it has been run for the. Ze Z
past 10. years. But. if voters. 2

’ believe. all the: ‘media ‘tell
» them: about: ‘Trudeau -- and

quality-" of | life

; ‘SLASH THE
" BUREAUCRATS.

The leader of. the. opposi- g

KEEPING. FINGERS
FIRMLY CROSSED,
Prime Miinister . “Trudeau
chats last week with editors
of B.C. community and-
ethnic newspapers. at an.
informal reception.

Specific promises -- remem-'
- bering how his predece ssor,
Robert. Stanfield, : fell .-into-
‘that trap in the 1974 election.
‘But there is just one promise
that ‘Mr. Clark: might well
“consider here and now. A
He could pledge, when ff
elected, to reduce the federal
‘civil service by a minimum of }
10 per cent a year throughout —
his term ‘of office. This alone § .
‘could. win. him. tens of [>
thousands © ‘of votes" from |
‘citizens who. know at first |
hand that Ottawa’s mon-. [-—
“'strously- overblown. buréau- >|
cracy is the chief cause of |
most of the country’ 's Present |
problems. Pe, a
“Aside from that, ‘the basic oe
‘issue is very, simple. At the |]
election,:. which. is; now |
possibly a bare three months
we -cither re-elect

risk on Clark for three or four. -
“years. .

If the -media’s- condem-
nation of Trudeau is right, |
their equally. scornful treat-
ment. of Clark would almost
-seem to smack ofa death-
wish for. parliamentary
democracy in Canada. If the
voter believes the media, his
only logicai option is to voie .
for a splinter group --or for
nobody. -

According to the latest
poll, however, 32 per cent of
the — electorate | currently
remain ‘undecided. Which
may mean that John Citizen,
for once, is’ thinking more
seriously about the whole

a nd Re-upholstering

on all fabricsi in Vancouver stock.

Many fabrics to choose from..
Free sample Van to your ‘door.

Euan mioall

_ spect Sale on a
Drapery Lining - 23% OFF

‘Econo Lining - 100% Cotton reg. $2. 00 | now w $i. 50
~ Weatherguard rain no stairi-50:% Cotton, 50% Polyester reg.’ $3.00 now $2.25
—“Ducksback”’ acrylic | insulated lining-100 % Cotton. reg. $4.00 now $3.00
Thermalsuede insulated lining-50% Polyester, 50% Cotton reg. $4. 00 now $3.00

For Canada’s sake let's _ Until July 15/78

hope so. -

DRAPERY TRACKS - 252% OF

Tracks for the whole house. Wood
Poles, Conventional & Decorative
Rods such as Traverse rods, Cafe
rods, Vintage rods, Atavio rods,
Brass rods and Sherwood rods.
Custom. ‘cut to order or pre-
packaged’ in many ‘Sizes. In-
stallaticts gvoilable, |

Hair Styling
1550 LONSDALE

cyt

. Fashion home irate 2RIORS Lto
Lynn Valley Rd & Mountain Hwy: N. Van —
988-12200r988-1525 |