Canada gets lesson in superpower TEACAPAN, Sinaloa, Mexico — ihe “ifference between the Canadian and Mexican positions on the Gulf War isn’t much. Truc, Canada is in the war and Mexico is not. However, our con- tribution to the eventua! American victory will be about the same. In a fight as big as this one, there isn’t much difference between one squadron of fighter planes and no squadrons. The world is much more impressed by Israel not fighting than by Canada doing so. What the war may serve to re- mind Canadians as well as Mex- icans is that superpowers are not like small powers. They do not think the same. They do not act the same. They never have. They never will. Many years will pass before'we learn the truth about this war. We may surmise it is fought to protect oi! supplies, but we cannot know. If it originated in somebody’s miscalculation, as almost all wars do, who miscalculated, Mr. Bush or Mr. Saddam? Sooner or later government re- cords will be opened. Old politi- cians will tell new truths. Young bureaucrats will forswear their oaths of secrecy. Then the truth will out and his- torians of the stature of Trevor Roper of Britain or the late Bar- bara Tuchman of the United States will tell us or our children what we so badly needed to know today. In the here and now, ordinary men and women should pay little or no attention to what they are told by the U.S. defence depart- ment or the Iraq propaganda ministry. Yet, while soldiering on as they must, there are one or two truths about superpower behavior that - are available to us now. One is that Saddam Hussein was given a green light by the United States to seize Kuwait. In July the Iraqi president met U.S. ambassador April Glaspie and harangued her, at length, about Paul St. Pierre FAULITICS & PERSPECTIVES his country’s claim to Kuwait, the southern section of what we used to call Mesopotamia. Her reply is a matter of official U.S. government record and was produced at a congressional committee hearing recently. **We have no opinion on Arab-Arab conilicts, like your border dispute with Kuwait....The instruction we had during this period (a period when she was serving at the U.S. embassy in Kuwait) was that we should ex- press no opinion on the issue and that the issue was not associated with America. james Baker has directed our official spokesmen to emphasize this instruction.”’ The American state department has attempted to disown their ambassador’s statements, but that is hard to do. For a thousand years or so, it has been assumed that ambassadors speak for the governments they represent. There are other considerations on U.S. actions and policies in the Gulf area, not counting the Reagan administration’s attempt to smuggle arms to Iran. (The old president has Waldheim’s Disease now — say the words‘‘Ollie North” and he loses his memory.) In the early 1970s the U.S. joined the late, unlamented Shah politics of Iran in sending aid to the Kurds, who were trying to gain their independence from Baghdad. The congressional committce reports that U.S. policy was to keep the Kurds strong enough to “*sap the resources’’ of Iran, out not to win. Most shocking of al!, the fact that the Kurds were to be allowed to fight and die but not to win was ‘‘not imparted to our clients, who were encouraged to continue fighting.” Eventually, Saddam Hussein gassed the Kurds, a barbarity that did not arouse the American gov- ernment to utter the same protests it did when a small family of aristocrats lost ccntrol of Kuwait. Such is the way of superpowers. Later, when the Shah had been deposed and his successor took American diplomats hostage, the Americans supported Iraq’s war against Iran. Many machines of war were sold, at handsome prof- its. The other superpower, Russia, sold even more weapons to Iraq. The French and British were there also, all selling weapons that will now be used to kill Americans, French and Brits; perhaps also, if the war lasts long enough, some Russians too. The American actions may seem cynical, selfish and so::.stimes cruel. But America is 4 super- power and acts according to the nature of superpowers. In their days of empire, so did the Spanish, the French, the Tatars, the Turks, and the British. Small powers, such as Canada and Mexico, have to accommo- date themselves to that constant reality and try to do so with as lit- tle shouting and sloganeering as possible. The Canadians have not done too badly to date. One squadron of planes and a couple of old destroyers aren't much to spend, although Mexico, making no direct contribution, may claim to have done better. Friday, January 25, 1991 - North Shore News - 9 Co-dependency, intimacy discussed at lecture THE SERENITY Shop, which has outlets in North Vancouver and Vancouver, will host a lecture and workshop on co-dependency and intimacy today and Saturday. The lecture will be held tonight from 8 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., while the workshop will be held Satur- day froin 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Both events will be held at the Hotel Georgia, 801 West Georgia St., in Vancouver. The jiecture and workshop will be given by Terry Kellogg and Marvel Harrison. Kellogg is perhaps best known for his ap- pearances on John Bradshaw's series The Family. He is also a pioneer in the field of compulsive and addictive behaviors and family systems. Harrison specializes in eating disorders and relationship dysfunctions. Harrison and Kellogg have co-authored the cur- Mac Phee Workshop Creative clothing for the Canadian Climate! For class information call 682-7408 rent best seller Broken Toys, Broken Dreams, which is the most comprchensive book to appear on co-dependency. ““Co-dependency is the absence of relationship with self, the absence of self-identity,’’ said Kellogg. ‘‘Much of our self destructive behaviors are a response to childhood hurts." Tickets for the lecture and workshop can be purchased only at the Serenity Shop in North Vancouver, 228 Lonsdale Ave., or Vancouver. For more informa- tion, call 987-8726 or 872-7379. “A land to discover.” Free Slide Presentation at Scottish Cultural Centre, 8886 Hudson Street, Vancouver. Wednesday January 30th, 7:30 pm. Please RS.VP. the Fraser (604) 980-3227 Connection CLOSING OUT SALE EVERYTHING MUST GO! Playmobil Barbie Dolls Lego Battat = Shh. Games Tomy Gund Stelft Brio 30h. Mathbox Special thanks to all the Grandmas, Mums and our little kids. Hurry while selection is great! Credit notes will be honoured till Jan. 34/71 WINDSOR TOYS PARK ROYAL SOUTH Workshop to help teens find jobs preparation skills. The program is funded by Employment and Im- migration Canada and is made possible by the North Vancouver School District 44. 1t begins on Jan. 28 at the Lucas Centre for Continuing Education, 2132 Hamilton Ave., North Vancouver, Room 102. The program is free, but enrolment is limited. To apply call Paul Frost at 985-3695. ALL LEATHER SOFA, LOVESEATS & CHAIRS lf Price NORTH SHORE Continuing Education is sponsor- ing a Work Orientation Workshop Program for teens 15 to 18 years of age beginning on Jan. 28. The eight-week program is for young people who have dropped out o7 school and are unsure of their future. The workshop provides teens with an opportunity to gain paid work experience and valuable job You Are Invited To ... A complimentary seminar sponsored by the Canadian Home Income Plan. (C.H.1.P) LOCATION: North Vancouver Library (Capilano Branch) 3045 Highland Blvd. DATE: Tuesday, January 29 TIME: 10:30 a.m.-12:00 noon RSVP: 685-2447 Due to the popularity of chese seminars and the ited seating available, please call co reserve your seat today The Canadian Home Income Plan Corp. is the first company to have provided retired Canadians with the option to access the equity they have built in their home without having to sell. This secure program provides additional ‘‘tax-free”’ income to ensure a fulfilling and financially secure retirement. Many 8.C. and Ontario residents are now taking advantage of CHIP to: — Travel IMPORTED LEATHER FROM ITALY 25 190% oF ENTIRE STOCK Lamps, coffee tables, occasional chairs, dining room, hostess chairs Two weeks only - Purchase a new RN. or car — Aid children with a house purchase THE CANADIAN HOME INCOME PLAN CORPGRATION ~ Renovate The c stone of Home Equity — Or simply make ends meet. Conversion Please invite your friends, family and/or advisors to join you in learning more about this benefit. If you are unable to attend the meeting, please contact us for Vancouver, BC. additional information on the program and it will be mailed to V6E 3X1 you. _ I te : WEST. VAN Intetioré 1469 Marine Dr., West Van * + 922- 1207 2520-1066 West Hastings