a THE NEWS services of the Christian world gear up each Easter for a quiet, boring weekend in which the highest art of journalism is simply filling the damned paper. Anything that can be squashed between the brave advertisers who tisk the rites of spring is suitable fodder. Hopefully, a glorious color photo of an Easter bunny on the cover will distract the reader from discovering that there isn’t much else to be found. The Pulitzer Prize can wait. It never works out that way. Easter is always an exciting time of year. Rather than limp through the weekend, news services usually find themselves hauling reporters back from golf courses, picnics and family gatherings to cover the events exploding around them. To demonstrate this reality, I dispatched Ms. Rudkin, my determined researcher to the bowels of the Vancouver Library to scan the microfiche of newspa- per files. Hers was the assignment of Easters Past. She discovered, among other things, that research can’t take place on a Monday (library clos- ed). Armed with many requests for photocopies, her aching feet were forced to bear the burden for two hours while the librarians tried to kick start their aging money machine (photocopier). But Ms. Rudkin returned with her stack of clippings. eee © Easter, 1976: The new premier of British Columbia, W.R. Ben- nett, fresh off a never to be repeated $5,450 cocktail party at the Empress after opening the Legislature, promised that his government would cut waste, balance budgets and set British Columbia on the road to ‘‘the greatest surge of prosperity this province has ever seen.”’ © Easter, 1977: While the Amer- icans under President Jimmy Carter were boasting about the versatility of the $500,000 cruise missile, the still hostile Soviet Union was protesting impending US arms sales to China. In B.C., more provincial con- Gary Bannerman OPEN LINES erns dominated: after 17 years of federal provincial debates, the federal government finally ac- knowledged that BC Ferries was part of the Trans-Canada High- way system and therefore entitled to a subsidy. © Easter, 1978: The world’s longest aircraft hijack came to an end after 10 days. When the Arab gunmen were allowed to leave the Philippines Air Lines plane in Libya, they fell to their knees and wept. The hostages returned safely to Manila. Both federal Liberals and Con- servatives in Delta were complain- ing that anti-abortionists had stacked their nomination meetings. © Easter, 1979: The BC Law Society launched a court case to try to prevent lawyers from adver- tising. City police showed reporters their ‘‘Berlin Wall,’’ an unused underground tunnel between the city jail and the provincial court- house. Since neither the city nor the province would accept jurisdiction over the tunnel, it had remained unused for years. National civil liberties groups earned screaming headlines by complaining about cost cuts in the legal arena: Justice System in Peril, warned The Province. © Easter, 1980: A five-member international commission an- nounced secret talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Ghotbzadeh aimed at winning release of the hostages. This was the beginning of a multi-month ordeal, but, at Easter, the Shah of Iran was recuperating after cancer surgery in a Cairo hospital. ¢ Easter, 1981: Liquor stores were closed by a strike just as Port Coquitlam municipal workers reluctantly settled for a two-year contract providing a 31 per cent wage increase over two years. The recession was locking its teeth into the province and many observers wondered why. © Easter, 1982: Beirut was brac- ing itself for an invasion of 40,000 Israeli troops poised on its borders. Meanwhile, an embattled ICBC president Tommy Holmes conceded to the press that the corporation had a serious image problem. ¢ Easter, 1983: Municipal Af- fairs Minister Bill Vander Ze!m startled everyone by announcing he was taking a sabbatical from politics. A Province columnist wrote at the time: ‘When Vander Zalm pulled the plug, he did it on his own on a very public talk show. Instead of going quietly he pointed out that he would only be gone for six months or a year. And if there was a leadership race, he would be in there pit- ching.” This ‘‘very public host’’ can add that prior to air, Vander Zalm advised us that he would have something interesting to say that Gocd Friday morning. ¢ Easter, 1984: The Sun and Province were on strike. Ms. Rudkin was unable to conjure up images of newspaper clippings. © Easter, 1985: Steve Fonyo had his artificial leg repaired in Calgary; the cerebral Harry Neale was fired by the Vancouver Council investigating encroachment charge A WEST Vancouver resident has waited more than a year for the municipality to investigate what he maintains is an encroachment of foreshore by a homeowner living adjacent 10 the beach. During a West Vancouver District Council meeting Monday, Derrick Hawkins told council he had spoken to municipal staff about the issue on Nov. 23, 1989 and Jan. 10, 1990 but the municipality still hadn’t responded to his concerns. Hawkins said he believes the owner of 2842 Bellevue Ave. may have encroached on the public’s fcreshore on one side of the property and possibly affected the depth of fish-bearing Rodgers Creek. “I am interested in protecting the foreshore for public use,** said Hawkins. ‘‘l believe the municipality should take action.”’ Acting-mayor Andy Danyliu said it was a_ difficult issue A Place To Go When you're Pregnant And Need Support: BIRTHRIGHT N 987-7313 © Free Pregnancy Test « 228 Lonsdale In Vancouver Call North Vancouver 687-7223 because it involved resolving indi- vidual versus public rights. ‘This is a classic case,’’ said Danyliu. Ald. Patricia Boname acknowl- edged Hawkins’ frustration about the length of time that had passed since he first talked to muncipal staff. **Some things move so slowly, it is almost like a soap opera,’’ said Boname. She added that the municipality usually deals with: foreshore en- croachments ‘‘as they come along."’ Hawkins said more lengthy delays would make it difficult to tell. exactly where the original public foreshore was situated. Councillors voted to ask the muncipal manager to investigate the situation, it’s you who counts the most SHARE IN SUCCESS If you are licensed or soon to be licensed with a sincere desire for early success and would like an opportunity to be part of our North or West Vancouver Sales Team. We invite you to investigate the TRAINING, REWARDS and SUPPORT offered by Royal LePage. CALL: Ron Bailey, Manager, West Van. 925-1441 Satnam Sidhu, Manager, North Van. 988-2022 Sunday, March 31, 1991 - North Shore News - 9 Canucks; a Monashee Mountains avalanche killed six snowmobilers; and the UN’s reincarnation of Don Quixote, Perez de Cueller, was told that Iran refused to ac- cept his plan tu stop the Persian Gulf War with Iraq. Iran told de Cueller: ‘‘We are sure that as long as the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein re- mains in power, our conditions (for peace) will not be realized.”’ My able associate thought she had eliminated the non-Pulitzer stories from her photocepy win- dow, but this experienced eye cap- tured the obligatory pictures of little girls and big Easter eggs, a story about ‘‘Alien Bones’” found in Duncan; a photo of a Burnaby mom painting her 71st Ukrainian Easter egg of the season; Pat McGeer’s fantasy tunnel to Vic- toria and an item about a North Carolina nurse who had invented a massive smock with huge pockets to carry up to six babies in an evacuation situation. Prince Charles was quoted dur- ing Easter 1978 as saying, “*Women’s libbers are idiotic.”’ Happy Easter. PRICES YOU N@> CAN'T WALK AWAY FROM 128 £. 14TH ST. 1696 ROBSON N.VANCOUVER VANCOUVER 988-1990 \_TOAM-6PM FAX 685-0289 11AM-6PM WEST VAN DENTAL =. Canucks teams sets score Bruce Gow Motorola. 000M 685-2290 | Dr. Clive Jones has joined our practice at Park Royal Shopping Centre 755 Park Royal North West Vancouver, B.C. Mon. — Sat. 8:00 a.m For your family’s dental needs, call 922-3232 Introduces... | Ceil City. to the. North Shore! Must be activated by Cell City on BC Cellular The Preferred Network gy. Upper Deck Baseball to ‘#5 ‘91 Topps, Donruss 1 & tt Score, Fleer Baseball _ 90/91 Hoops 1 & U “. *90N91 Skybox 1 $31.99 box” ; $31.99 box |: $64.99 box © "Sale prices end April 7th, while quantities fast, — Door Crasher Specials — Trevor Linden rookies 2 price $1.99 each Monday, April Ist 11:00-Noon only : Spring Break Hours “Céad Friday, Sat.& Sun. Monday to Friday *. SELL _AAA SPORTS CARDS “+e BUY “4:00-5:00 | 1:00-7:00" “% TRADE Delbrook Piaza 3737 Deibrook Ave., North Vancouver 987-9810 Our prices include G.ST.