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Worth Shors News, founded i in 1969 as an
independent suburban newspaper and qualified
‘under. Schedule’ 111,’ Paragraph U1 of the

Excise Tax Act, is published cach Wednesday, .

Friday and Sunday by North Shore Free Press

Ltd. and distrihuted to every door on the North -
Shore. Canada Post Canadian Publications Mail ;

Sales”: Product. Agreement. No. : 0087238.
Mailing rates available on n request,

“Entire contents. ~
© 1995 North Shore.

Operations Manager

ISHERIES MINISTER Brian
Tobin is fumbling in the dark in
his specious .“‘compromise”. deci-
‘sion to destaff 18 of the country’s 70
staffed lightstations over the next year
and the rest when he is assured tnat
safety services are up to snuff, Ma!

Eight of the initial 18 staffed light-
houses to be automated are right here in
B.C.

The manpower chop at eight nets an
estimated $1 million in salary, mainte-
nance and operating cost savings for the
feds. It will cost about $2 million to
automate the eight.

- Out

Atkinson: — Lightstation . in’) West
Vancouver, a mariner’s beacon of safety
since 1875, are history next year.

Right now the station is staffed 24
hours a day.

The area served is very busy with

freighter traffic and pleasure craft. It's a_

complex territory to cover, ;

The lightkeepers and their families
monitor the light and foghorn, make
weather observations, maintain the site
and generaily provide the kind of addi-
tional service a'machine could not.

For example, they watch for ‘and put
fires in the thickly forested

lid on crime ina park that saw. ¥ 127 crim
inal incidents between 1992 and 1994:
alone.

Keeping the keepers is not a senti

mental decision.
Supply and Services Canada itsel
recommends that staff be retained a

sites where the station is of historica
value, is readily accessible to vandals -

and thieves or is a tourist draw.
Maintaining watchers for local
waters makes simple common sense...»

And while we’re on that tangent why:

not destaff a federal -in:titution, long
overdue for the trash bin of history. °
. Let’s automate the Senate.

IS THIS a scoop? The po

The two lightkeepers ‘at the Point

liti-
cal career of David Mitchell
“may be nearing ain end.

. Mitchell, the most-quoted, most-/
interviewed member of the legisla-.
» ture beyond the cabinet, and indecd
far better known (and far brainier; —
, hardly 4 compliment) than most of
- Premier Mike Harcourt’s numerous:
third-raters, may not run again. |:

The West Vancouver-Garibaldi -:

"MLA, who Vancouver Sun colum-."
* nist Denny Boyd once predicted

_ would be premier by the time he was
‘50, could be outta there at 41. :

That emerged in the wake of last

Saturday’s fundraiser on Brice and
Miriam Macdougall’s beautiful:
‘waterfront lawn where Mitchell —
once Liberal MLA, currently inde-'

' pendent, and now edging toward |
Reform — spoke and gave his
"strongest backing yet for B.C. .

Reform Party leader Jack :

/ Weisgerber.

7 Wve been trying three words on
“for: size in my head,” Mitchell told

the 108 happy Reform backers at the’

backyard affair. “I’ve tried them on’
and Like them. ... Premier Jack * ;
Weisgerber.”.°"

His listeners, members of the:
” West Vancouver-Garibaldi Reform ©.
_ Party association (host Brice.
“*Macdougall is provincial party trea-
surer), responded as wildly as the
manners of our elegant community

will permit.

Weisgerber beamed,

TESTING: ...
~ BUY... PAYe- BOOK. «
 KESTING:...
BUY... My... Book.

garden -

of biases

The irony is that if Mitchel! *

‘ doesn’t come on side with the paity

before the provincial gencral election

~expected this fall or next spring.”

those same cheering listeners could

* choose a Reform opponent to chal- °

lenge him. : os,
If in fact Mitchell runs. s
"To say that Reform is wooing ’

Mitchell is an understatement,
. As for Mitchell, whose move to

““\sany party would be highly signifi-*

cant, he has kept his ne a

_ while steadily moving Reform-ward.

But no marriage. The flower in :

his bottonhole has wilted, the crease

_ in his wedding-suit has lost its edge,
«the organist has tuned up for Here.’
Comes The Bride a dozen times —_...'
_ and still no wedding.

‘And, after his ‘speech Saturday, :

» Mitchel frankly told me why.

Lighthouse Park and they help to keep.a

Dear Editor: :
Re: need to regulate publication of
polls.
Recently, much has been made of. -
the NDP government's proposed reg-
:ulation of the publication of opinion
polls during ‘election ‘campaigns. 1
refer to Bill 28, the new Election Act,
which has a number of objectionable
features and that has been mightily
opposed in the legislature by the
combined opposition forces.
However, given the. continuing
publications of polls or surveys.in an

_incomplete form or without all details ©

being made available, it is fair to’ ask
why we don't require all opinion sur-
veys to: be fairly‘ and accurately
reported 365-days each year -— not
: only during election campaigns. -
This point was brought home. in
the June 30 issue of the North Shore

News ‘when a headline proclaimed: a
« “Survey predicts B.C. Liberal -win.”.
The accompanying story. was based .

-supon a Marktrend poll suggesting

that the Liberals. ‘were far. ‘ahead of :

Insiders and Mitchell-watchers
know. But it hasn’ t been widely or
deeply reported, ae a

i Itisn *t because of any policy dif... :

“ferences between him and the party:’
“Their policies” — such as free.
votes in the legislature and other ~

democracy-widening measures — ° a

“are my policies.” °°
It’s largely because of pressures,
Simply to get out of politics. From .
’ family. From within himself. From,
face it, financial considerations. ' :
Family includes two daughters 3 at”

Shawnigan Lake (private) school.’ :

That doesn't come cheap. Then

there's an MLA's salary. That does.
‘Mitchell could earn much more "

outside of politics, which can’t be

~ ‘said of many political duds, especial

ly among the governing New. ..
Democrats, some of whom haven't
_-eamed a dime in private enterprise in:
‘their lives. =. “

Mitchell has always had a lot
Boing for him. In recent months he’ s_
Served as an intelligent, stimulating --
if unspectacular broadcaster, filling
:in ably for talk-show pro Dave. -
Abbott on 1040,-(You’ve noticed.
that old pols Jim Nielsen and Kim,
Campbell are also now opening their
mouths for fun and profit on talk *

. shows. More fun than Question”

Period, right?) :

He’s also written the charming
book All Abourd!:. The Canadian ©
Rockies by Train, and reissued in

. paperback his superb W.A.C, Bennett

and the Rise of British Columbia, ~

\
i

‘mailbox:

Poll control wanted

other political parties in support. The

problem with this story is that readers. :

weren't given-the full details of the
“poll,” which ‘apparently included! a°

> very high percentage, of undecided .

respondents... 2
This ‘problem was somewhat ¢ cor.

‘rected i in the July 9 issue of the Nerth

Shore © News: when | Inquiring
Reporter. Kevin Gillies asked North,
Shore respondents,.“Which party will
You support.in the next Provincial
election?” :
Interestingly, | ‘it’: wasn ‘te “the .
Liberals who ‘were in the: ‘lead | this:
‘time, but the “Undecideds"-
» whopping 66%. © -. rene
Clearly we: need. all the: details
_ When opinion surveys are published.’
‘And before Gordon ,: Campbell's
_ Liberals ‘get too cacky, they | had bet.
ter look over their shoulders at..the
most powerful political force in’ ‘the
"province, and particularly here on ‘the
North Shore, the Undecideds.
David Mitchell, MLA
‘West Vancouver-Garibaldi

The harsh feality i is that crunch

* "time approaches, Elected“as a

Liberal, a still-independent Mitchell
would face, former allies anxious to:
even old scores‘on behalf of Liberal
leader Gordon Campbell, whom’
“Mitchell scoms'as much as he does
. Harcourt. Also scrambling for votes:
candidates for Gordon Wilson’
Progressive Democratic Alliance,”
Conservative, maybe Reform, and
~~ way down the line

“ ment party.

‘What is very clear is that
Mitchell is using his maximum ;

:- power while he can — as a vavet
outside of Reform; where he has the
perceived detachment of the inde-
pendent — to boost the fortunes of
Reform and especially | the worthy
Weisgerber Smart n politics

“They doi’ t need a plug. ord, .

: Spreads by word of mouth, and 1 most”.
“Of their,concerts;in their own Bowen ©,

Asland living-room, with up to 120'in
‘attendance, are selfouts. But [ salute,
With awe, tomorrow's concert (5:30..:
p.m.) given by Iain‘and Eleanor *
Benson with vocal and instrumental,
music of the Baroque, including -

* musicians from Paris’ and Los
oe Angeles. : a
I'm ashamed that I haven’ t heard - ‘

‘of these ambitious concerts, featur- -
cing artists of real standing, on nical: :
tured Bowen. by Sse

f