4 - Friday, October 16, 1992 - North Shore News Chuck is one tough C CHUCK COOK is being praised for his courage. So of course [ threw him the high, hard one. First, though, a stow slider to the Conservative member of Parliament who has uniquely broken ranks with his party and Jeader, who just happens to be the prime minister, by saying ‘‘No”’ to the accord his government is submitting to the citizenry on Oct. 2 Surely, I said, a man who defies his party and PM is asking to be cast into the political wilderness. Cook, a supposed redneck (more of that later) and maverick and anti-intellectual (but in fact intellectual enough to provide the fascinating etymology of the word “*maverick’’), laughed drily. “Well, let us put it this way: . that is a distinct possibility.’’ But he’s not fearful. “Some things one cannot put up with,”’ said the man who drew national attention a while ago when he didn’t show the proper public reverence for the CanLit book industry. **In everyone’s life they run into circumstances where this they must do, period, regardless of what the personal cost may be.’’ That’s when J threw the tough one. “But if you’re in a solid, hap- py, don't-give-a-damn position, when you’ve made your money, you're 66 years old, you’ve done everything that you wanted to do, you're really OK — then maybe you can afford to do that.’”’ Pretty rude question, when even many people who oppose him on the referendum issue have praised him for his courage in being the only. MP in the country to buck party discipline. To Cook's credit, he calmly replied: ‘‘There’s a certain element of truth in that too.”’ ; But “in this case, certainly, it’s cost me. Let’s put it this way: it’s most unlikely, shall we say, for me to be the beneficiary of any patronage from this particular government.”’ He chuckled again. “So you do give up quite a lot. I'm not likely, for example, to be the next chairman of the board of the CNR. Trevor Lautens GARDEN OF BIASES “*Fo put it on a more realistic level, I sincerely doubt that I will be one of those people, once I’m finished with the House of Com- mons, that is selected to be an immigration court judge, as an example ..."” He reflected: ‘‘I’d make a fine prospect for the CRTC’’ — the Canadian Radio-television and Communications Commission — “but ... they live in Ottawa, and I just wouldn't want to do it.” Cook is a long-time broadcaster with stops all over the place in his career: Regina, Winnipeg, Saska- toon, Edmonton, Calgary, Van- couver, Toronto, Montreal, Buf- falo, Los Angeles, and would you believe Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and Silver City, New Mexico? The next election is too far ahead, he thinks, for speculation about whether he'd run again, or for what party. He's been ‘‘unofficially"’ ap- proached to run for the Reform party. He laughed about that. Why? He treats the offer lightly first, because of the informatity of the approach; second, because an election isn’t imminent; third, “because it highly amuses me, that’s all.*’ Not that Cook won't talk seciously about his practical, polit- ical and philosophical objections to the accord reached Aug. 28 in Charlottetown. But he throws in his own man-in-the-street (or pub) idiom. For instance, on the reformed 441 don’t want any ‘may bes,’ (in constitutional agreement) I want to know ... 99 Senate: “Ottawa is about power ... the (proposed) Senate has no power whatsoever. ... To talk about its persuasive influence, to talk about how it can have joint sittings ... when you come to have tough leg- islation that a government wants, it has considerably less power than the present one."’ In order to get the famous or infamous Goods and Services Tax approved by the balky Senate a couple of years ago, for instance, “Mr. Mulroncy had to stack the Senate. He had to use provisions that have never been used in the history of the Senate."’ Oops, there goes Cook's fast chance to be made an immigration court judge, I imagine. Brian Mulroney might not like that kind of talk from one of his backben- chers. And Robert Bourassa might not be wild about this either: Quebec's insistence on appointing rather than electing its senators ‘‘means the premier of Quebec appoints six yo-yos to go to the Senate to do his bidding.”’ Other provinces might follow, if they feel ‘*those patronage jobs are too good to pass up. ... Our own case in B.C., for example: three appointed, salid NDP mates and three solid NDP females — does that strike you as ... a fair Senate? It doesn’t me.”” Cook scoffs at the many ‘tmay be’* provisions of the accord as “theoretical guff. | don’t want any ‘may bes,’ I want to know.”’ Then, ever the maverick, Cook gallops against his supposed tedneck reputation by praising Quebec and sympathizing strongly with the Indians. “Hey, IE like Quebecers! [ ad- NV MP Chuck Cook mire and respect all I’ve had to work with over the years in the House of Commons, and I think I understand Quebec to this extent: that they want to run their own affairs. “And I see no reason why they shouldn’t ... provided B.C. has the same privilege to run its own affairs. ... “| don't blame them a bit. I think they may turn out to be B.C.’s best friends in the long run.”’ Cook also slipped the cinch on the Indian self-government issue — even though, just a couple of weeks ago, he’G raised the pro- spect of all manner of nefarious activities going on under Indian self-government. Like growing marijuana, gambling, or selling cigarettes without the taxes ap- plying in non-aboriginal lands. Instead, Cook scorned the idea that the accord gives away the ook to lasso store to the Indians. “If you read the proposals, ‘this must be discussed’ or ‘we have agreement in principle on this’ goes through practically every paragraph. The aborigines get nothing out of that agreement outside of an agreement to con- tinue discussion, and, by golly, we're going to do right by you. . I think the Indians are right who are saying ‘no,’ because there’s nothing there. . “We've got good Indians! Gee, the Burrard band — they’re just great people!’’ Cook said warmly. ‘*The Indian militants ... can’t expect to have everything they: want, and haveit fairto - everybody else. ... That doesn’t mean you sell out to them, and it doesn’t mean you stiff-arm them, as we have for 125 years. Dam- mit, they’ve got some rights, they’ve got some grievances to be adjusted. ...”” Then, just as you think the maverick has been corralled, Cook spurts off with a deliberately out- rageous line: “That doesn’t mean you swing the pendulum so far the other way that you've got whorehouses going up on Indian lands ...”" Somebody else try to lasso him, my arm’s sore. C) DISCOUNT DIAPERS 10400 BRIDGEPORT ROAD RICHMOND - 278-5223 INDEPENDENTLY OWNED & OPERATED SINCE 1996 ° FACTORY SECONDS ULTRAS- LIMIT 5 CASES PER CUSTOMER 1ST QUALITY DIAPERS 5 $29.99/easo ¢ CRIBS FROM $113, BUMMIS DIAPER COVERS $6.50 » CLOTH DIAPERS $9.99/doz FACTORY OUTLET FOR BABYKINS DIAPERS & ACCESSORIES Join Joe Clark for a West Vancouver Walkabout Saturday, October 17, 1992 A TRIPLE ’C’ MORNING CONSTITUTION, CLARK & COFFEE The Rt. Hon. Joe Clark will drop by the following restaurants and coffee shops on Saturday morning. Beginning at Dundarave, be will walk along the Seawall to Ambleside. Come and join Joe Clark and bring your questions on the Charlottetown Referendum. 9:00 16:30 11:00 11:30 Peppi’s Restaurant, 150 - 25th Street Jerry’s Take Away, 281 - 17th Street Bean Around the World, 1522 Marine Drive Maggie’s Muffins, 1425 Marine Drive The North Shore YES Committee, 1705 Marine Drive North Vancouver, Telephone 980-7338 YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES ‘