Friday. Nov. 6, 1992 -

Never trust a Chilcotin squirrel

TATLA LAKE — This is going to be a loap, hard and
bitter winter in British Columbia because the squirrels say
so, and if you believe that then maybe you should try liv-
ing up a pine tree instead of in a house.

Surely it’s time, isn't it, for this
old folk story to be put away with
Little Bo Peep stories in the kid-
dies’ room?

Maybe it’s true that squirrels
this year are making exceptionally
large mounds in which to cache
their winter's supply of pine
cones.

Well, all right, no maybe about
it. It is true. The squirrels are put-
ting away enough for two winters.
You don’t move many metres in
the forest without some squirrel!
sassing you because you're stepp-
ing on his grocery store.

The -¢ are rational explanations,
you k..ow.

Maybe hawks are fewer and
squirrels more plentiful, therefore
more squirrel caches to be made.

Maybe the trees produced more
cones,

Maybe there has been a longer
gathering season.

What is least believable is that
this little creature can forecast
weather half a year ahead of time.

Remember those investigations
by the sciertists that showed that
women’s brains were smaller?

Weil squirrels’ brains aze
smaller than women’s. They are
only about the size of a nastur-
tium seed.

Do you believe that tucked in
there is a capacity to forecast
weather, something all our scien-
tists haven't been able to attain?

The scientists have offered a
guess or two.

The ash from the Philippines

N. Shore mayors meet

Paul
St. Pierre

PAULITICS & PERSPECTIVES

volcano may reduce the amount
of sunlight reaching earth enough
to make this winter colder. But
with all their computers, they
can’t be sure.

Squirrels do not have com-
puters. Squirrels cannot even spell
or pronounce Pinantaubo. Sce, |
can’t spell it either.

Squirrels have never heard of
the El Nino Pacific current, and if
you told them about its effect on
global climate a squirrel wouldn't
even listen to you.

In Canada, we elected Brian
Mulroney ... well, we didn’t here
in Alexis Creek because, after all,
there are too few of us to elect
anybody important ... but the
great urban population of Canada

THE CONDITION of the Low Level Road and aboriginal
affairs were two of several issues the three North Shore
mayors discussed with five B.C. cabinet ministers in Vic-

_ toria last week.

West Vancouver Mayor Mark
Sager talked to Transportation
and Highways Minister Art Char-
bonneau about replacing the
Capilano River bridge.

“We have three lanes funnelling
into two end then opening into
five, creating a really big bot-
tleneck,"' said Sager.

Meanwhile, North Vancouver
City Mayor Jack Loucks told
Charbonneau that the Low Level
Road in North Vancouver City is
a concern to all three North Shore
mayors.

“We wanted their staff to talk
to our staff to address the issue.

. We don’t think (improvements to)

e Low Level Road will go ahead
‘immediately. He said his staff will
meet with ours,’’ said Loucks.

Loucks and Sager also met with

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Feustedanvesinent atece tne 1901

By Surj Rattan
News Reporter

Municipal Affairs Minister Robin
Blencoe over the issues of devel-
opment cost charges and improv-
ing social housing.

“Each year the number of
(social housing) units permitted
for the Lower Mainland is not as
large as it should be, and the
other concern is funding,” said

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voted for Mr. Mulroney because
they shared his sense of shame
and horror at the size of our fed-
cral budget deficit.

Ever since, Mr. Mulroney has
heaped up bigger deficits, using
both hands, ably assisted by fi-
nance ministers who deplore it
jus¢ as much as he did.

Are these the people who, com-
ing fresh from their referendum
triumphs, we should ask to give
particular and close attention to
the nation’s economy?

It must be what the majority
want.

All the big city papers we read
agree that government must now
repair and renew the nation’s
economy.

We're out of step.

To us, that seems like sending
the weasel back into the chicken
house and telling him to revive the
Rhode Island Reds whom he has
slain.

He will gu back into the chicken
house. We may depend on that.
But the outcome may not be ex-
actly what was desired.

If there is anything that the un-
complicated, unsophisticated peo-
ple of Chilcotin want less than
government action to repair the
economy it is vigorous, concerted
actioa by government to repair the
economy.

Dear Governors, pray, Ieave the
economy Jay where fate has Nang
it. We, the people, will pick it up
and revive it somehow, if only by
feeding it moosemeat and
huckleberries,

Whenever you talk about resto-
ration of economic vigor in this
land we have learned to all rur
out into the woods and bury the
family silver under a fir stump.

For as long as the memory of
maa runneth in these hills, gov-
ernments have invariably misjudg-
ed economic trends.

When governments decide that
the econciny is lagging and needs
the stimulus of more borrowed
money, you may be certain that
the economy fas already turned
the corner and is reviving on its
own.

When governments decide that
the cconomy is overheated and
fiscal restraint is needed, such
economy is already well into
decline and is going to be driven
further and harder into the cold
ground by tight money policies.

Perhaps we should turn to that
dreadfully tired old, overworked
story about the Indian who
forecast a cold winter because he
saw the white men were laying in
so much firewood. What does the
record of 1992 say?

The firewood reports are not
yet all in but ranchers are selling
cattle curtier this year.

So many came into the Williams
Lake Auction the other day that
they couldn't all be moved ina
normal day’s trading hours.

Also, in spite of one of the best
local hay crops in years, some
ranchers are in fear of the short
dark days and are frantically
stripping the Vanderhoof region
of hay supplies.

This is because they believe in
squirrels, or else because they
share some animal instinct about
climate,

it is all absurd.

Remember please, when this
winter turns out to be about the
same as last winter, that this col-
umn first predicted it.

with cabinet ministers

Loucks.

Sager said he told Blencoe that
the three North Shore
municipalities would like to see
greater tlexibility in development
cost charges.

**New developments in a com-
munity can affect more than just
soads and sewer systems,” said
Sager.

In a meeting with Health
Minister Elizabeth Cull, Sager said
he told Cull he wants the province
to contribute to the cost of train-
ing municipal fire departments in
their capacity as the first arrivals
at accident scenes.

He said if the province con-

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tributes to funding first-responder
training, it would move fire
departments closer to a paramedic
role.

The three mayors also met with
Finance Minister Glen Clark and
Aboriginal Affairs Minister An-
drew Petter.

North Vancouver District
Mayor Murray Dykeman said the
North Shore mayors want to de-
velop a negotiation program with
the Squamish and Burrard Indian
Bands without having to go
through the courts.

“‘We want (9 avoid some of the
confrontations going on in other
communities,’? Dykeman said.

Sunday

North Snore News - 9

LONDON DRUGS
PARK ROYAL
APPOINTMENT

DENISE GRANT,
DEPARTHENT MANAGER — 1 HOUR PHOTO
LONDON DRUGS FARK ROYAL

London Drugs is very pleased to an-
founce the appointment of Denise
Grant to the position of Department
Manager — 1 Hour Photo of their
largest store ever: the new London
Drugs Park Royal (Grand Opening: Tues-
day, Nov. 17th).

Now in her fifth year with London Drugs,
Denise comes '0 Patk Roya! from Lon
don Drugs’ North Vancouver photo tab.
She has heen trained to the company’s
highest standards in order to offer
customers the bes! quality
photofinishing anywhere.

Denise is tooking forward to getting to
know her new customers in West Van-
couver and to taking care of all their
photofinishing needs.

London Drugs, widely recognized as an
industry leader, is a 100% Western
Canadian owned and operated chain.

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