4 — Friday, September 17, 1993 - North Shore News ‘Two Views oO f the ‘new-look’ Liberals the morning after NORTH VANCOUVER Ci- ty Councillor Rod Clark suggests fining citizens who don’t cast s ballot. How much is a forced vote worth? - \t smacks of saying: ‘‘We have ways of making you democratic.” I'd say that such a vote wouldn't be worth the paper it’s printed on. What then is the value of a vote that isn’t even printed on paper? Possibly the Liberal Party of British Columbia is thinking about this. The Liberals boldly carved a -new path through the electoral ” forest last weekend. _ It’s called televoting — using a touch telephone instead of the - usual voting booth, ballot and pencil. Delegates had to pay $20 (or, if ‘Jate registering, $26) to be eligible to vote, using.a personal iden- - tification number (PIN) to guard against mischief. That set off a lot of grumbles, although $20 is a tiny drop ina -:farge bucket compared with the ‘cost of going to the convention in : Vancouver. “i. But something odd happened.- | Nearly €,000 members apparently didn’t care a PIN, ' ~ Even stranger, some 1,100 paid ' ‘their $20 and got their PIN but | didn't vote, unless their votes were somehow lost. '.: David Mitchell, independent . ;. Liberal for West Van- ; couver-Garibaldi joked that this ' was “‘one of the few decisive po- litical events in modern times that’s been run by the phone company.’ As of this writing, no one : _knows what happened to the . 1,100-odd votes, if they were cast. The party is investigating. Apart from that; Mitchell had LaAuWkens GARDEN OF BIASES some interesting comments on the leadership vote, won — as the world knows — by Vancouver Mayor Gordon Campbell. So has another West Van- couverite, Russell Brink. Mitchell and Brink are both exceptionally sharp and know- ledgeable about politics, and both backed runner-up Gordon Gib- son. So it was fascinating to see, the ‘next day, how differently they in- terpreted the results, Co About the voting process itscif ’ — universal ballot instead of the votes-by-riding method, plus the new wrinkle of televoting —- Mit- chell speculated that other ‘parties. would look at the Liberals’ expe-, rience ‘‘as a model of how not to do it.”’ Mitchell left the Liberal caucus last fall when he and then-party leader Gordon Wilson reached an impasse of principles and policies, to say nothing of preferences.: But party, press and public, to continue the alliteration, hold Mitchell in high regard even though he’s‘a renegade Liberal. NV man sentenced for thefts A’ 66-YEAR-OLD North Vancouver man was recently in court to face six charges of . theft.” _.Frank . Chranowski pleaded guilty.to charges stemming from .incidents in: North. Van- couver City. ‘He received two years’ pro- bation in connection with the charges. The charges included: @ stealing groceries belonging to’ Canada Safeway on Aug. 16; @ stealing fish batter mix from ‘the ‘Salmon Shop’ in’ Lonsdale Quay Market on March 7; ® stealing merchandise Extra Foods on Feb. 4; ® stealing merchandise from Canada Safeway on Nov. 24, 1992; © stealing merchandise from Save-On-Foods on Oct. 17, 1992; ® attempting to steal a battery belonging to a male on Sept. 23, 1992. Judge Doug Moss sentenced Chranowski .in North Van- couver provincial. court on Sept. 1. from On Oct. 2578 Mane Your Vore COUNT A Real Choice for Real Change Put up a lawn sign There's a watch on to see if Mitchell returns to the fold. He’s a very smart guy, maybe the brainiest and most intellectual in the legislature, and he knows how to pose the issue: ‘Whether or not I rejoin the caucus is really not up to me alone, “It would have to be by mutual agreement of other members of caucus, and of course the new leader.”’ Mitchell is also a sure-footed political broken-field runner, and he doesn’t hesitate to speak his mind. He’s got leverage. And he knows it. That allows him to be conscientiously analytical about the party and its fractiousness. Notably, he chided the party for gracelessness toward Wilson, who brilliantly and bravely ted the Liberals out of the wilderness and then stopped for some ruinous private rest and recreation. True, in his victory speech Campbell praised Wilson for his role. . Mitchell welcomed that. But he -described it as ‘‘too little, too Jate.”” | As’I said, that’s notable, because Mitchell himself had broken with Wilson without losing his civility. But ‘‘as a Liberal, I’ve - got to say that there’s an ap- propriate time to pay tribute to him for the trials and tribulations ... and the sacrifices he made.” Russell Brink’s view of the results, in contrast, was positive, upbeat, and — for different teasons — equally impressive. Brink is a widely experienced man in both private and public realms: project manager for the superb Granville Island develop- ment, B.C. chairman for the Lib- erals in the 1988 federal election, president of the provincial Liber- als away back in 1968. Though a Gibson backer, Brink — like a good party loyalist expe- rienced about the need for unity after such a battle, and that’s not meant demeaningly — praised Campbell emphatically in the cool light of morning. Campbell will attract Social Credit voters, Brink said: he ‘brought a whole new consti- tuency to the party.” But another Gordon-supporting West Vancouverite at the conven- tion was bitter. **You’ll see some of these same ‘new Liberals’ turn around and vote at the Socred convention,”’ she predicted. ~ ' & His Rack & Rell Musleal Friends Jim Parker - Lance Anderton & Bucky Berger MON. NOV. 8. SHOWS 5 PM & 7 PM CENTENNIAL THEATRE 9% (North Vancouver) Reserved Seats $9.00 ON SALE SAT. SEPT. 18 At Theatre Box Office & All Ticketmaster Outlets or Charge by phone: 80-4444 {Agency Fee in Effect) DESIGNER ORIGINALS! (and only in Steveston) &y to EWE at last...A Family Hat Shop! °F xclusive Special Occasion Hats: *Men's Casual & Dress Hats *Children's & Young Adult #140-12240 Znd Ave. Historic Steveston (in Richmond) Phone: 241-8889 Some suppers get you thinking about more than dessert. At St. David's, we're doing something new that’s been arouad for a” couple of thousand years--having people over for supper to talk about what's going on in the world. Family life. Cultural change. Ethics. ; Things that affect you, your children, your neighborhood. You can expect to have a good time..Our caterers are all set to serve up some great food. We've lined up some excellent guest speakers. And we've had musical animater Linnea Good put together amusic and -. arts program for your kids that wil] keep them coming back for more. At $5 per person or $15 per family, it won't cost you an arm anda leg...: But make sure you phone ahead for reservations, at 922-3961. The first - supper is on September 28th. We'd love tu have you come. Andif you: can't make it, don't worry. It won "tbe th the last. They'li be happening all | through the fall. Supper, at St, David's. , St. David's United Church 1525 23 Taylor Way. West Vancouver Come in for a chance to Win A Free Mounting! 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