A6 - Friday, August 17, 1984 - North Shore News Flacks or facts? remier Bennett apparently feels the media are giving him a raw deal. But it’s hard to see what he hopes to gain by trying to bypass them. His Socred government, he hints, will henceforth concentrate on communicating directly with the public in order to cut out what he calls the ‘‘media filter’’. Presumably this means stepping up the heavy flow of of- ficial hand-outs, print ads, broadcast com- mercials and householder mailings like B.C. Government News, which already cost the taxpayer millions of dollars a year. All such material, which obviously paints the government in the most favorable colors, is available to the media now and will con- tinue to be. Up to that point the only change will be more of the same. Of greater concern is the possibility that the government and its bureaucrats may also Start to clam up on questioning and probing by reporters -- attempting, like a banana republic, to eliminate information to the public from any sources except itself. If that’s the aim, it will inevitably backfire. Government is entitled, of course, to pres- ent itself in the best light. But in a free socie- ty it’s virtually impossible to hide truth in- definitely. Uncovering the truth, whatever obstacles are thrown in the way, is the job of the media as guaranteed by the Charter of Rights. Ultimately, any democratic government must stand or fall on facts, not on the fan- tasies of its flacks. If Mr. Bennett yearns for a good press, his first need may be some bet- ter advisers on the subject. Sorry, ladies! here were no winners in Wednesday’s ‘‘preat debate’’ for women — but one clear loser: the National Action Com- mittee on the Status of Women. Technically, the production was inept in the extreme, with poor sound, over-lengthy French segments and constant applause and booing from the studio audience. The panel asked motherhood questions on which there’s already a wide favorable consensus among both sexes, then complained about the motherhood answers. Sorry, ladies, but you blew your big opportunity! FUR VENLE OF ORTH arsed WEST VANCOUVER Display Advertising 980-0511 aCe iiealele-Beee Classified Advertising 986-6222 a | ews Newsroom 985-2131 Circulation 966-1337 ouenay wrowssnay-vmoavy Subscriptions 980-2707 1139 Lonsdale Ave , North Vancouver, BC V7M 2H4 Publisher Pete: Sper k Associate Publisher bdcotoes Catatiarr Editor in Chiet Nuoest Wrigh? Advertising Director Miers boc egeae as, Personnel Director Classified Manager Circulation Director baerreue bined View Solerpatiernsscor tart Me Soper Production Director Photography Manager (Peres pao vea scot te vy Peete Normnh Shore Newa bodes | Meas 1 edeog ees dere vg Vee MVP ARB ey epee pe sen bi teercd sender beer dh te Yoa ee et SO | 9 tome eme Tee Aa t tm prea obissb re) eee fo Web ee oe Fd beet sorb t Necrett ‘otiepee Forever bt erss ee, Cn a Cn) res toe Ine LY gee Pe fash Mac Hegget ate tg oe arse Syhrc pee ere conned trttre Contonts 19084 North Shore Free Preoas Lid All rights reserved “peal ore stg ron pees. Nao ve eee perer Wet Wet cae ew Vs sey tee Aas ty eee avaiable Ne Cre veama Figen evel gree tegeers wl ot Fertig car cred ebety he ate Woe ae oa acbiteerstend oevvert ap rer Member of the BC Press Council BH TTO be ye Wee he oy HA DR IROR , . THIS PAPER (S RECYCLABLE D Ly ny) “a yu yy Z Vd A Ly iy YWy.Y. Ye DC00000R; *OAle nim elem a ee ’ ‘ ‘ ™ fer hy = Yeti: — ina lama [ nol han UO LEGISLATURE ne a = a2 e. _ 2 - * > of ry a Why can’t women be women? E HAD OUR OWN ‘‘women’s great debate’’ with local female candidates the other evening. Pat and lona and Pauline came to dinner at the Denman Inn, responding to an invitation from a Vancouver association of business women. They were there to cam- paign, of course, and when dinner was over each spoke in turn, each spoke out of turn, too, occasionally, and ques- tions of a predictable nature were asked by members of the audience. They are three admirable women, all articulate, all with a less-than-ordinary background, afl having per- sonal strength lona, cooly tegal, put her Party on the spot regarding the 1985 removal of nuclear weapons from our coast Pat, also cool, bul) perhaps itois the cook of frerce self control, spoke clearly and lucidly about the problems of small business persons Pauline, freed, as all her Party, by the improbabihty of actually assuming power, spoke straight from the hip, with an unaccustomed coquettish By ELEANOR GODLEY ness. Then why was 1! disappointed? It is plain we should have more women in our Houses, our daily hives are built on the contributions of both sexes and our government should naturally reflect that) co mingling But ! couldn't help but feel that they were not running as women, they were running as imitahon men They were presenting themselves as reNections of ther leaders, and of course you could make a case for party loyalty, to be applaud ed But why can’t they run as women, who are the civiluzers, the peace makers, the nurturers? bor the whole life of our parliamentary system, omen have taken charge. Perhaps we should thank God that they have had such occupa- tion, for, had they been managing the rest of the areas of our lives, we could have expected more wars, more famines, more hostility and misunderstanding and deceit and sheer pigheaded- ness, to say nothing of bad air. They have made plain that, unsupported, they are not equal to the exercise of power Women, who simultaneously care, share, teach, learn, grow. and balance the household economy, are capable ot assuming a good part of this extra burden of running the country So let them in, by all means, in fag, urge them to bring then mluple assets to the ald of the Qountry Kut as women, recOenisinyg and capitalizing 0 theirs real strengths, to cease flattering men by aping them, to come out front capable, great hearted, resourceful, wary, peaceable and loving LETTER OF THE DAY Emphasize the peace issue Dear bediteor As the clection campaign swings nto ats final month, | wonder whether Canadians will get there priorities straight: There has been a gecal uproar overt patronage and posterior patting but lit the talk oom othe suc that touch othe hearts of case people We are taccd with the Cact that 1 4 mpc cml oof boo) 000 ved dncone CO aruancdbaaays woth and abverat famiibes tive below the poverty line Mast peophe would probably agree that unemployment as the number one issue Yet, we must look at the facus a hitthe closer While sctvice budgets have been cut or limited by the 6 and $ pro gram, and while unemploy ment has soared, the military budget has risen at an annual rate Of between 13 and 20 per cent In total dollars, ( anada ranks closer to the top LO per cent of workd mailitary spenders when measured on a per capita basis: Military pro duction as capital Research has soctal intensive demonstrated that for the same moncy up lop twice as many yobs can be produccd ino such areas as housing, health care, cduca fon and socal services We cannot separate the issuc of unemployment and development and ment that of disarma In order that our North Shore residents became more aware of what the candidates think about nssucs. oa Don parlisan committee on peace and development wall be interviewing cach can diddate with a survey of thir teen key questions these This pro Jools happening throughout As for the ‘‘twomen’s issues’’ that they are con- stantly questioned about, the pressures of technology, the care, héusing and education of our children, the money we earn and the benefits we hope to share are the whole world’s issues. Population control, food control and distribution, the preservation of our environment and the proliferation of the elderly are common to both sexes, and will be solved more swift- ly and more equitably if the talents of both men and women can be shared. Women are not gentlemen. They are realists. They bear the children, govern their nes, juggle the available money They deal with the threats the world holds to their famihes and themselves, and they sacrifice tame to im provements that range from school lunches to art gallenes to physical fitness They are, frankly, wonder tul They do it all, and they do it all at once If they could just declare themselves (Canada The results of the survey will be published so that we can take a critical look at our politicians’ thoughts on arms trade con trols. nuclear weapons (rec sooes and Conversion to aon mihtary production schemes Hopefully, che dectsion we all make on Sept 4th wall be made through carctul judg ment We must remind ourselves Chat without peace there will be no other world inmowhich te problems solve our Maureen €¢ larke North Vancouver