Don’t let hooligans scare the culture out of us MANY YEARS ago in New Brunswick there was a cer- tain RCMP sergeant known to and beloved by the media. He shall! be iden- tified here only as Set. Goodfellow. He was remarkable for two things: everyone liked him, despite (or perhaps because of) his most obvious attribute, a single digit 1Q. Goodfellow was about as dumb as they come. An illustration of this came one night during a party ata legislature reporter’s apartment. A number of the university types and the more liberated were chew- ing on hash brownies or puffing on joints. Because it was -20°F outdoors, not a window was open. The air was thick with the unmis- takable cannabis aroma. A sharp knock came to the door. Our host answered and nearly dropped dead in shock at the sight of his visitor. Goodfellow, in full uniform, stood in the doorway with a stupid grin on his face. He had a file folder under his arm. The sergeant peered past our dumbstruck host and he spotted half of the provincial press gallery in various states of dishevelment. “This is a lucky break,”’ Goodfellow said. ‘‘I got all of you here together.” As we all envisioned a parade into the back of a paddy wagon, the RCMP officer sat down ona chesterfield. He moved the filthy ashtrays — full of tinfoil and marijuana debris — to one side to clear room for his papers. He then announced: “The Musical Ride is coming in May and I have to get Icts of publicity for the force. I got press kits right here...” As he shuffled through the papers, we eyed each other with an incredulous sensc of relief. A beer was thrust into the po- liceman’s hand. “Our big band is coming too. They say the leader’s a queer, but he’s very good ... plays the trumpet. He has several records. | got one right here. Taught music at a U.S. college. He's not really a Mountie: he’s an officer.’’ Two or three years later, when stories could be told, I related this incident to two chief superintend- ents, one of whom had been in command of New Brunswick. The one without local know!- Gary Bannerman OPEN LINES edge suggested that Set. Goodfellow deliberately ignored the activity in the apartment. His former commanding officer was quick to reply: “‘Nope. He would have been oblivious. That’s why we put him in public relaticns. His mistakes were never life threatening. But he was a good guy and the press lov- ‘ed him. We got lots of ink. Now I know why. ” eee If you have ever been in the middle of a panicked mob or a riot, you will understand the meaning of the word terror. Decent and meek civilians panic at soccer games. Multiple death is often the result. It is equally true of prison riots and summer carnivals that turn ugly. The first casualty this sum- mer has been the Penticton Peach Festival. i spoke this week with Mayor Jack Kimberley, whose voice cracked with emotion when he described the terrifying moment when he was carried by police to read the Riot Act. As the cruiser approached the appropriate site, projectiles start- ing bouncing off it. Other rioters began rocking the vehicle. Many were as young as !2 years old. Quiet, orderly Penticton had never seen anything like it. For a brief period, it was like a Guatemalan election. There are only two successful approaches to solving these demonstrations: you either have to cancel the event or prevent the riot from starting. Too many communities — White Rock with the sandcastles, Kelowna with the Regatta, Van- SHOP ON MONDAY August 5th B.C. DAY NOON to 5:00 pm PAR mee PARK ROYAL sH OP PItM G centre Somuch. Soclose. couver with the Sea Festival — have taken the cowardly escape. They have cancelled or curtailed events. All that has been achieved by this so-called *‘pragmatic’’ think- ing has been complete victory for the organized hoodlums and the most disruptive elements in socie- ty. Failure to control past parties and the failure to properly punish offenders has doomed future events to warfare. A rallying cry resounds around the province: “Party in Penticton: July 27.°" It is painted in graffitti everywhere. The North Vancouvers and West Vancouver have a perfect solution to this. No parties. No significant civic events. No culture. We can smugly look at the Okanagan and feel superior. Governments must provide tough penalties, including the power to confiscate vehicles. Which is why my friend Goodfellow came back to mind. During his tenure in New Brunswick there was a massive labor march on the provincial legislature. Over 20,000 angry workers assembled to burn Premier Louis Robichaud in effigy. When I walked close to this vulgar, chanting mob, J was puzzled by the number of familiar faces. | spotted Goodfellow, in bluejeans and a lumberjack’s shirt. He was holding a placard that rgad: ‘‘Hang Louis!"’ Without thinking, I sidled over. “‘What are you doing here?,"’ I stupidly asked. The sergeant grul- fly whispered to me, ‘Screw off!”’ The familiar faces suddenly made sense. There seemed to be as many plain clothed RCMP of- ficers in the crowd as there were protest ringleaders. Quietly and effectively, agitators were steered out of the mob and out of view. I saw a chap near Set. Goodfellow reach for a rock. And I saw my friend mangle the pro- testor’s arm. This drunk winced in agony as he was pushed from the scene. I later learned that hun- dreds of these chaps were driven 25 miles and more down the backroads and then let loose for a lengthy walk. It was the last violent protest at the New Brunswick Icgistature. Sgt. Goodfellow was a Mountie, not a paper pusher in uniform. 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