™ Special events planned Bob Hunter @ strictly personal @ I REMEMBER, the night of the last federal election, shaking my head as 1 watched Mila and Brian Mulroney mincing about a stage in Montreal, trying to keep their grins firmly fixed in cheered them interminably. ft must have been an awful ordeal, | thought, like being a queen or pope or star. Savor it, Mulroneys, | thought. A few years from now you'll be muck. People will jeer, not cheer, when they hear your name. This, indeed, has come to pass, which doesn’t surprise me. Ht is part of a sea-change in the way we relate to our politicians. it has a lot to do with media saturation, of course, but it is also a side-effect. of Canada becoming a de facto television republic. As we adopt American TV- oriented electioneering habits, such as the mass party conven- tion with its hoopla, it is in- evitable that Canadian voters will be reprogrammed to behave more like American voters. In some ways, this is good. Certainly, the American system is far more easily accessed by the average citizen than ours. 11's not just that Americans vote for their dog-catchers and judyes, either. They have an enormous capacity for cynicism about their lead- ers—at worst, a terrible hatred. Most Americans sooner or later come to hate their presi- dents, for the good healthy reason that the top man almost invariably goes mad with power, and has to be deposed. The genius of the American constitution, as opposed to ours, is that it sets a limit of two terms on the presidency. In Russia, they’re talking about this very thing—limited terms of office. We would do well to think about it for Canada, too, just as a counterweight to the crushing weight the highest office in the land has acquired. Psychologically, among most of us, it has already happened. We have adjusted to the presence of super-prime ministers by reac- ting to them like Americans in- evitably do co their presidents. I'm talking about a state of mind, rather than anything in the rules, but as the prime minister- ship becomes more imperial in style, the higher the office is built to elevate the man, the more like a president he becomes—the more inevitable it is that we will come to loathe him. The Americans substituted president for king, while we never rebelled against the crown. Except now, through television, the prime minister has become king-like as well as presidential. place while Tory worshippers Regicide becomes a part of the popular urgings of the time. So, back after the last election, I was pretty sure Amazin’ Brian would be Barf-Bag Brian before Jong. What surprises me now isn’t his fall from grace, but the extent to which the nose-dive in popu- larity has splattered Mila as well. } thought she would remain immune and thus become the rallying. point for the Tories, just as Margaret Trudeau briefly did for the Liberals. Instead, Mila’s been compared to Imelda Marcos, which is awfully far down there, just because they both have a shoe fetish—a lot of women do. Men 100. The point is, the relentless, multi-faceted eye of the media can create almost any image it wants, since everyone under its scrutiny has warts. 1f Mila seem- ed Jovely and innocent a few years ago,that was really ne more true than the current impression of a Dragon 'vady. Mila’s image held together longer than her husband's, but now that it has come apart at the seams, it has done so every bit as thoroughly. With revelations about her in- terfering with the immigration department to protect her kids’ teacher, rumors of Mounties hav- ing to salute her, with a com- mand centre of her own set up across the street from Parlia- ment, the media picture of sweet Mila Mulroney has changed as surely as the picture of Dorian Gry. Until the ‘Trudeau era, the wives of Canadian prime ministers knew their place, and, moreover, the media—then known just as the press—knew her place, which was out of the spotlight. Jt was the prime minister himself—in fact, not even really him but his office—that counted. Television did more damage than we think. It is not just that it forced the exchanging of substance for style, it scrambled the power-sharing arrangements within the parties themselves. The leader was exalted to media godhood. Bur the political body which was supposed to wag the head shrivelled as the head swell- ed. President Mulroney is bringing on very un-Canadian reactions. Mila being First Lady hasn’t helped. LYNN CANYON Park is 75 years old this year and the ecology centre there has set a number of special events for the park's birthday celebrations on Sept. 13, Land for the park was originally given to the community of Lynn Valley in 1912 by the MeTavis brothers, two residents involved in the real estate business. North Vancouver [istrict added further fand to create what is now the park. Music, slide shows, nature walks and a rescue demonstration are among the many activities planned for the day of Lynn Canyon Park birthday celebrations. History slide shows are to be held at 1:30 p.m. and 4 p.m., hosted by Kevin Bell, the manager of the Lynn Canyon Ecology Cen- tre. The musical group Sixuvus will play during the day; fire crews will perform a mock rescue at 2:30 p.m. “There will be the regular wildlife films all day,*’ said Athena George of the ccology centre. “And the Girl Guides will be there doing face painting."* At 3 p.m., park visitors can learn the history of the park in a guided walk. For more information on the birthday events, call the centre at 987-5922. Getting Married? “Wekome Min. & 97 KISS FRA “3a Sec tesu Invites you to a BRIDAL PARTY! WEDHESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 1987 at 7:00 pm NORTH SHORE WINTER CLUB 1325 £. 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