6 — Sunday, March 2, 1997 — North Share News north shore Ths Merth Shere Mews is published by Mecth Store Fros Press Ltd., Prblisher Peter Speck, trem 1138 Lonsdale Avenue Morth Vancewver, 8.C., V7M 284 LN\\F quotes of the “If he had ran upa vel lane I would have been dead.” -. North Vancouver City Coun. Darrell Mussatto, on chasing a sus- pected burglar in his stocking fect. on the shape of his feet. (From a Feb. 26 News story.) 9090 ‘ “Your life isn’t worth your ‘oh Vancouver RCMP Const. ‘Marc Sylvestre, acknowledging North Vancouver City Coun. ~ -. Darrell Mussatto’s efforts to catch a suspected burglar, but counselling citizens against trying to catch . criminals on their own. (From a Feb. 26 News story.) 0900 “When one person smokes in . an establishment, everyone smokes.” _ Lesley MacGregor of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of B.C. and Yukon, on the impact smokers have on non-smokers in restaurants and other public places. (From a Feb. 26 News story.) O00 “In our lifetime we will see marijuana legalized and tobacco out.” _ North Vancouver District Coun. Janice Harris, predicting future - public toleration of marijuana use versus tobacco use. (From a Feb. 26 News story.) . ATUL ONLY { _/ yeminy VOTERS OF OUR INFLATED PENSIONS Just AS WE'RE PEFLATING “THEIRS week 000 “There was a vibrancy in North Vancouver ... look at the people walking about. It was a real dynamic — the ferries, the railway, the trolleys. This was the crossroads of the Nortis Shore. It’s not really like that anymore ~ is it? People come into that bus: tunnel and it’s kind of depress- North Vancouver Museum and Archives director Robin Inglis, comparing an archival hotograph of Lower Lonsdale with the arca’s present personality. (From a Feb. 23 News story.) 000 “How many of the families, seniors, and peop!e with physical disabilities can ford to go to the arts? That’s where the clite mect to cat ... or where they mect to look at each other.” Lower Lonsdale resident Donald Currie, on the real cultural and social needs of the area. (From a Feb. 23 News story.) 200 “The recycling guys probably thought I T wanted a new blue box.” North Vancouver City Coun. | Darrell Mussatto, on trying to alurt recycling crews to the that hi: was chasing a suspected burglar : und wanted them to call the police. (From a Feb. 26 News story.) news viewpoint LUV Lit AEE Hetero PLT te EF oR ASG! 8 1 Reform a ball Reform should run hard with ONE wonders why Preston Manning isn’t concentrating more on a sure-fire vote-winner right under his nose — the word chosen as his party’s name? True, party policy nominally includes some parliamentary reforms — recall, referendums and more free votes in the House. But so far its main emphasis emerging via the media has been on cconomic goals: debt reduction, tax-cutting and stimulating pri- vate sector job creation. The trouble is that other non-socialist parties can all too easily hijack such “motherhood” policies — which, in the deficit-fighting area, is exactly what Liberal Finance’ M Minister Paul Martin has done. Even more urgently needed — judging by today’s unparalleled cynicism about politics and widespread public contempt for politicians of all stripes © — is basic reform of our whole archaic parliamentary procedure. Week after week on talk shows, in letters to the editor and casual con- versations the message, loud and clear, is the same: voters are fed up to the teeth with being allowed only 12 hours of democracy twice in every decade; with the 40%-60% of their ballots that are wasted cach time by o our primitive first-past-the-post election system; and with MPs who abaridon.: their constituents the moment they reach Ottawa and become, instead, docile performing seals of the prime minister or party leader. : Four fundamental reforms are vital to restore public confidence in gov- ernment — regardiess of how the fine details are worked out: 1. Fixed elections every four years, with a voting system containing an : element of proportional representation (which has fong Germany and was successfully adopted last year in New Zealand). . 2. All House votes to be free votes — with no disciplinary coercion _ powerful prime minister's or opposition leader's office. 3. Defeat of a government bill no longer to mean the resignation of th 7 government. lt would merely be sent back to the drawing 4, An elected Senate — its assent needed for all bills — with an ¢ peal number of members from cach province in order to counterbalance { numerical domination of the Commons by Ceatral Canada. : Canada’s present worn-out parliamentary set-up, producing a series ‘of - elected dictatorships thinly disguised as democracy, has served the old- -line ms Grits and Tories far too well for them ever to contemplate any radical changes. So if Preston’s party — literally truz to its name — grabbed arid ran : hard with a reform “ball” of the kind outlined above, one thing: is for sure: © it would have the field to itself in the upcoming election. Cheered on (according to all one constantly hears and reads) by a solid’. majority of the spectators! 000 ee POISED to pick up the Reform torch from retiring Capitaho-Howe : Sound MP Herb Grubel is longtime political pro John ids, back in West Van after a five-year “sabbetical” in private business. is credentials— 10 years as a federal MP followed by ci ing distinguished service as Speaker of the B.C. Legislature and subsequent pointment as environment minister ich him a head start in'seeking - the Reform nomination. In West Van itself his first information meeting is Wednesday, March 12, at 7:30 P .m. in the Masonic Hall. The nomination mecting follows Thursday, Ap WRIGHT GR WRONG: Not to know is bad, Not to want to know i is: worse (African, proverb). — The North Shore News believes srg in frectlom of spe ech and the right of all sides in a debate to be heard. The columnists prbls: shed 3 in the Newer pre- sent differing points of view, but those views are not necessarily those of the newspaper itself. worked well in mee a tt as a North Shore MLA, includ- -° 17, at 6:30 p.m. in Gleneagles Golf Club: ; ao . Share Nowe, fount! 180 as 30 hcp : Suburban newspaper and quallied under Schecude 111, Tragaph 111 of the Bese Te Ad, & published eat HE latest twist in the heated debate over tobacco use on the North Shore confirms that gov- ernment conviction has long since gone up in smoke. Readers will remember that North Vancouver District was set to lead the way in removing cigarette smoke from the interior of public places with its 100% Under that simple and effective propo- sition pubs, restaurants, clubs and bingo halls were all on the same level playing field. There was no percentile allowance for. pubs to offer the option of smoking 7 hile disallowing that option for restau- rants. Elsewhere, however, those percentages were being fudged to give preferential treatment to certain sectors of the service trade. The deciding factor in getting that preferential treatment became the volume of outcry, with pub owners leading the voluble charge. To tune into that owners’ outcry was to hear the sound of pub doors slamming shut permanently across the Lower Mainland as clientele opted en masse to patronize locales in distant regions where they could smoke to their hearts’ content. No matter that the logistics of such a mass consumer exodus crossed the bounds of reason — pubs would die a sudden fiscal death, owners wailed.. So North Vancouver District, being - hopelessly attuned to high-volume outcry ~. from special-interest groups, bas now ‘“ opted for a hodgepodge of non-smoking percentages so needlessly complicated . that they are virtually useless. Besides leadezship and _ conviction, oer teen pale ante what has been lost in this smoking debate is a simple reality for non-smokers every- where: there is no such thing as a non- smoking section in a 60-seat r restaurant. . a