Wednesday, November 28, 1990 - North Shore News - 9

New national Outgoing council
holds last meeting

holiday idea:

Grovel

CYNICS USED to say you
could always tell a Cana-
dian abroad. He'd be wear-
ing a turban. But that is no
longer a joke. Now, the
way to tell. a Canadian is
that hell be walking on his
knees. Grovelling.

That, at least, is the image pro-
vided by Ottawa, and especially
by our national joke of a prime
minister. You know — he who
puts on his undertaker’s voice to
make apologies for ancient Cana-
dian ‘‘offences.’’

lt offer you, in short, Brian
Mulroney, the Joe Louis of hy-
pocrisy. Our very own champion
of bosh, bunkum and guff. Mr.
Grovel in person.

First he grovelled to the Japa-
nese who were interned during the
war. Not that he gave a damn
about them. He was simply buy-
ing votes.

So out went the written apolo-
gies, couched in cringing terms.
Uriah Heep had nothing on him.
“*Oh, we are so very ’umble. So
very 'umble.”’

And out went the not-so-’umble
money — about $340 million.
Which you had the pleasure of
providing.

The deficit? What's that? He
even gave that $21,000 a head to
those who were babies at the time.
Get the mint working, Michael!
Wilson.

No sooner was the deed done
than the Chinese were on parade
with their hands out. Hadn’t they,
too, been done wrong? Didn’t
they — from 1885 to 1923 — have
to pay a head tax to get in?
Shame on us.

No problem. Mr. Grovel has
apologized to them, too, and be-
fore the next election they will get
some chow-and-chopsticks funds.
Depend upon it. These days, we
are all members of the Chinese
Benevolent Society, as has been
seen by our gift of the Expo lands
to Mr. Li Ka-shing.

Hard on the heels of the
Chinese came the Italians, of
whom 700 were interned during
the Second World War. And
never mind that most of them
were hot supporters of Mr. Benito
Mussolini. Once again the Great
Grovel trots on stage with a
**sincere apology.”

We're not through yet. Let’s go
back to 1914-1918, when some
Ukrainians were interned. The
Great Grovel says they should
have an apology, too.

The money will come later.

Will that be the end of it? Not
by a long shot. We are so very
*umbie.

The weasely Gerry Weiner,
minister of multicult and bum-
licking, is to begin talks with
*‘other aggrieved ethnocultural
groups,”’ including the Sikhs, on
account of how their grandfathers
and great-grandfathers were
shown the door in 1914.

Weiner has $250 million a year
to play with. Grovel inoney.

Day

Doug
Collins

8

Which could easily be doubled.
The printing presses await.

TL have some ideas for Mr.
Grovel and ali the other Grovels
we have sent to Ottawa, not one
of those True Northers having
come out against grovelling.

Let’s give Remembrance Day a
new name. Grovel Day would be a
good choice. Yes, that would
quite appropriate.

Consider: the Governor General
of Canada was absent from the
cenotaph ceremonies in Ottawa on
Nov. f1. Acting on the Great
Grovel’s instructions F< was over
in Tokyo, grovelling tc the new
Emperor of Japan.

Besides, who needs Remem-
brance Day? As the German say-
ing has it, ‘*The Mcor has done
his duty. The Moor can go.""

On Grovel Day we would all be
very ’umble while the prime
minister apologized for any in-
convenience caused by our oppo-
nents in the Second World War
and all other wars in which this
country was foolish enough to
engage.

For starters, we could apologize
to the late Mr. Hitler. Adolf, after
all, didn’t declare war on us. We
declared war on him. A gross er-
ror, no doubt. Almost as bad as
sending those Sikhs back to India.

We should also remember that
not even the Japanese declared
war on us first. They did bomb
Pearl Harbor, it is true. But
Hawaii was never ours, you know.
Obviously, a sincere apology is
due. Plus compensation to prove
we are sincere.

As for 1914-18 and all that, we
should apologize for not having
apologized sooner. We didn’t
declare war on the Kaiser, it is
true. Britain did that for us. But
an apology to the Germans might
be in order even at this late date
for not having stood up for our
rights.

Perhaps the Canadian Human
Rights Commission would con-
sider that, it being our official
Grovel Department. Meanwhile,
we may be sure that apologies will
go out to everyone except English
Canada, which has long been very
‘umble.

ARDAGH HUNTER TURNER

Barristers & Solicitors

IMPAIRED DRIVING

AFTER HOURS
Criminal Matters Only
645-8980

[986-4366 |

FAX
986-9286

300-1401 LONSDALE, NORTH VANCOUVER, B.C.

ON THE OTHER HAND

THERE WAS plenty of mutual
bach patting Monday night as
members of last term's West Van-
couver District Council made their
concluding remarks.

By Maureen Curtis
Conmtrinuting Writer

Members of the current council
who will not be returning include
West Vancouver Mayor Don Lan-
skail and Ald. Alex Brokenshire,
both of whom decided against
seeking re-election on Nov. 17,
and Ald. Carol Ann Reynolds,
who failed in her bid to become
West Vancouver’s mayor.

The three new aldermen on
council are Diana Hutchinson,
Ron Wood and Donald Griffiths.

Ald. Mark Sager was elected
West Vancouver's mayor and will
take over in that position next
week.

‘‘And that conciudes my 1,020
council meeting,’’ quipped Lan-
skail, who has served 24 years in
West Vancouver as a councilman,
alderman and mayor.

Lanskail said that politics, at all
levels of government, ‘‘is getting
pretty tough.’””

“This council has had its share
of difficulties, but I believe it has
acted fairly, objectively and cor-
rectly,”” he said.

Lanskail said council’s ‘‘im-
pressive record of achievement’’ is

WEST VANCOUVER
DISTRICT COUNCIL

the result of team effort.

“T have tried to delegate re-
sponsibility and encourage indi-
vidual and committee initiative,”
he said.

Lanskail complimented all
council members, adding that Ald.
Brokenshire had received a well-
deserved standing ovation for his
eight years of service on council at
the civic dinner held fast Saturday.

“Ald. Reynolds has made a
valued contribution in sharpening
our sense of the importance of
heritage issues,’’ Lanskail said.

And he said that Ald. Sager has
the “kind of leadership West
Vancouver requires."”

Lanskail thanked municipal
staff for their assistance, especial-
ly municipal manager Terry
Lester, who has announced his in-
tention to retire, and municipal
clerk Doug Allan.

Lanskail was honored at the
municipality’s civic dinner for his
contribution to West Vancouver,
and presented with a bicycle and
the copy of a brass plaque that
will commemorate his efforts in
developing the seawalk.

“I'm grateful to have had the
opportunity of holding public of-
fice in the finest municipality in
Canada,”* said Lanskail.

R-COr

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