editorial page Secretive gods North Vancouver District Alderman Ernie Crist didn’t mince his words when he accused Mayor Don Bell of “playing God” over the still secret 16-month-old Beak Report which - ‘predicted a possible “disaster of major pro- portions” from a chlorine accident at the Hooker Chemicals plant. But so far Mayor Bell hasn't done much to rebut the charge. The mayor says in one breath that details of the report have been kept under wraps for nearly a year and a half because the public simply wouldn’t be able to understand its highly technical language. But in another breath he describes it frankly as “confi- dential” and questions the right of the public to know its contents under any cir- cumstances. Anyway, the mayor continues, council has already acted on the report (though he refuses to say how). Also, he adds, Beak is preparing an updated report in simpler language — but even this may not be released to the general public. Mayor Bell and his tight-lipped colleagues can’t have it both ways. If the dangers allegedly indicated in the report are real, the public has a right to know about them. As well, it has a right to know what action its other hand, there's nothing to worry about, why the secrecy? The report was paid for by the taxpayers. Since parts of it were leaked to the press in the fall of 1978, we have had Three Mile Island and Mississauga. If there's any chance of a similar disaster on the North Shore, its citizens are quite mature enough to be told -- IN ADVANCE. On the cheap First it was B.C. Hydro _ enclosing Canadian unity petition forms with its customers’ bills. Now, B.C. municipalities have been ordered to print a plug for the Bennett governmment's financial wizardry on their property tax statements. All paid for, of course, in one way or another with our own money. If this form of political direct mail on the cheap spreads, the Post Office may be out of business even sooner than we thought. sunday news north shore news NEWS - ADVERTISING 980-0511 1139 Lonsdale Ave . North Vancouver, B C V7M 2H4 (604) 980-0511 CLASSIFIED 986-6222 CIRCULATION 986-1337 Publisher Peter Speck Associate Publisher Editorin-Chief Advertising Director Robert Graham Noel Wright Eric Cardwell Classified Manager & Office Administrator Berni Hiliard Production Tim Francis Faye McCrae News Editor Chris Uoyd Managing Editor An as Photography ly Fraser Eftsworth Dickson Accounting Supervisor . Barbara Keen North Shore News, founded in 1968 as an independent communi ty newspaper and qualified under Schedule fll Part Il! Paragraph Ill of the Excise Tax Act. ts published each Wednesday and Sunday by North Shore Free Preas Lid and distributed to every door on the North Shore Second Class Mail Aegistration Number 3885 Subscriptions $20 per year Entire contents ©) 1979 North Shore Free Preas Ltd All rights reserved No responsibility accepted for unsolicited matenat including manuscripts and pictures, which should be accompanied Dy 4 stamped. addressed return envetope VERIFIED CIRCULATION EEN 49,603 48,478 Gg oN’ h Wednesday Sunday ‘tent? THIS PAPER IS RECYCLABLE elected representatives are taking. If, on the | Maybe it’s courage we need By VIC HODSON The Great Escape from the Canadian Embassy in Tehran, with the full backing of the Clark government, can be likened in some ways to the rescue of Isracli nationals held captive in Uganda and saved by a commando-style force which skilfully captured Entebbe Airport for long enough to get them out. But there is a major difference between the two episodes. The Entebbe rescue was a_ brilliant example of armed courage in an appropriate situation. The Tehran plot was a supreme instance of moral courage in circumstances that made armed force impossible. With a critical election facing us in a few days and our world already con- fronted by dangerous new tests, the moral courage exhibited by Canada’s contending leaders becomes vitally important. Measured by that yardstick, it seems to this observer that Joe Clark and his colleagues stand tall. It was the Clark govern- ment's December budget, for example, which brought about this election. It was 1,468 DAYS LEFT (or there well could be) to the next-but-one federal election. An awfully long time to suffer if we put our chips on the wrong number a week tomorrow. Just to prove to questioning reader John Enright how politically neutral your reporter is at heart, did you’ know Capilano Liberal candidate Gerry Salberg was a school- mate of our Scarlet Pim- pernel ambassador in Tehran, Ken Taylor, at Crescent Heights High School, Calgary, back in the mid-fifties? At that time Taylor was apparently nick- named “Tex” because of his soft Southern-type manner of speech and was also an all-star athlete, says Gerry, especially in football and basketball — “you could tell even at school he was destined for big things ” Then (to keep on being neutral for a moment) there's North Van-Burnaby Liberal hopeful, Gordon Gibson, whose door-to-door canvassers, [ hear, are now telling door-openers that “a vote for Gibson ts a vote for the next prime minister ” At the same time Gordon. 1n his introductions at) mectings, has mystenously eliminated all reference to his stint as a top aide to Plerre Trudeaa at last May’s election As the Bard said, “we are such stuff as dreams are made on Meanwhile. a refreshing new angie on how to choose your party comes from News travel columnist Barbara McCreadie. Her 13-year-old not the sort of budget people wanted to hear, even though if offered the most realistic example to date of the steps that must be taken by whichever party forms the next government, if it truly wants to lead Canada out of the economic doldrums into which former Liberal governments under Pierre Trudeau have allowed the ship of state to drift. It took high moral courage — a knowledge of what is needed and a denial of what was merely expected — to put such a budget forward and to stick by it. The Tehran affair exhibited the same strong sense of duty before politics by Clark, Flora MacDonald and others — knowing as they did that if anything went wrong they were politically doomed. It was this same inner “And cut out the starches.” sunday brunch by Noel Wright daughter Suzy and friend in Grade 7 at Plymouth Elementary came home ail agog about a school election game — the class was divided into three groups, each assigned the task of designing a poster for one of the three major parties. Suzy and fnend had chosen the NDP group. “Why on earth the NDP?” asked horrified Mum. “Coz they have the shortest name,” replied Suzy. And just before we leave the election scene, I hope Christiana Hampson of West Van and hubby had a most enjoyable free dinner last night on The News. Mrs. Hampson was the winner of our recent “Election Quiz contest and chose to have her prize served to her at the Park Royal Hotel. Proceeding to happrer themes than the 1980 election, it's nice to pass ona big plug for North Van's gallant Mounties from reader Stephen Hewson who moved here recently) from Calgary. He says he was impressed mght away with the manner in which our local RCMP handie bad traffic) situahons and the number of patrol cars roaming the streets at night but the Dig test Came when Mr Hewson’s apartment was robbed “Within minutes a constable arnved He was one of the most courteous and proficient: officers Ive ever met Within two days everything was recovered ] just thought it was time somcone wrote a good word for a well trained police force that North Vancouver should be proud of.” Take a big bow, Supt. Wilson, for yourself and your horsemen! For music lovers on a budget who yearn for some fresh records to play, two enterprising young North Vancouverites may have just the answer. Les and Karen Skiba (he from Carson Graham, she from Argyle) have recently launched their own business, Unicorn Records, just over the bridge at 3535 East Hastings (phone 299-1612). They buy and sell (at reduced retail prices) new and used records — and if you have any of the latter in saleable condition, they'll be glad to make you an offer on them. They also handle books on the same basis. Karen presently doubles as an accountant with Den-tal- ez of Canada in North Van. which must be a nice firm because they're enthusias- tically backing this extra- curricular venture by their employee and her mate eee And while | forget about Transit, remember. light) Rapid please Zoltan Kuun, chairman of the North Van Chamber of Com- merce 's transportation committee says LRT actually stands for Light Rall Transu Thaks, Zoltan, for putting us on the right track eee If you're old esough (in years or spint) to belong to the = black -tte-Blue- Danube set. call Paul Pazdera (294 2212) to see af there are any strength of moral courage which made both Clark and Capilano's Ron Huntington say “no” in the Trident Aircraft’s plea for a further handout, even though it would have been politically expedient for them to commit another chunk of the taxpayers’ funds to a project they didn’t feel was set up on a proper basis. Chuck Cook has been accused by Liberal Gordon Gibson in North Vancouver- Burnaby of not even having made his first speech in Parliament. The truth, again, is that Cook had the courage to put his con- Stituents ahead of personal grandstanding. During his few short months as an MP he was too busy solving some 400 urgent constituency problems to bother about getting his name _ into Hansard. He was also working hard on parliamen- tary committees and making his voice heard in the Tory caucus. Maybe what this country now needs, above ail else, is less political expediency and more good oldfashioned moral courage. February 18 may be our last chance for a long time to make that choice. tickets left for next Satur- day's elegant Viennese Ball at the Leonardo Da Vinci Centre, 3075 Slocan, sponsored by the Austria Vancouver Club. The $25-a- head tab includes dinner. Strauss and Lehar dominate until 11:25 p.m., after which modern rhythms take over until 1:30 a.m., and _ the guests of honor you'll hobnob with form a short list of the B.C. establishment. Fillmore? Where's that? Saskatchewan, silly, postal code SOG INO. Should you just happen to be a former Fillmonian, they're holding a big 75th anniversary bash there next June 29 to July ! and you're invited. Write for further details to the 75th Anniversary Committee at the foregoing address. eee BACK AT THE BARN: The North Van_ Legion Branch 118 celebrated the 40th anniversary of its Ladies Auxiliary last week with long service pins awarded to Winnie Pike (40 ycars), Jean Homphreys and_ Alice Travers (30 years), and Lovella Bancks (25 years) ... And another salute to West Van municipal employees Lorne Haaland, Bob Cross, Lawrence Dewell, Bill Jones, Lorne Booth, Don Grant, Wally Galpin, Gerry Mc- Dowell, Les Butler and Joc Callegari — all of whom received their 25-year gold cuff) inks from Mayor Derrick Humphreys, assisted by Alderman Don Lanskail. at an cconomical city hall ceremony recently WRIGHT OR WRONG: If you let them get away with the thin end of the wedge. you may cventually wind up on the thick end of the suck