Canada, but not at any cost

Dear Editor:

With respect, 1 should like to
address several of the points rais-
ed by Noel Wright in his Sunday,
Aug. 30 editorial, ‘Manning
muils the next move for
- Reformers.”

Mr. Wright suggests that the
Reform Party has had the rug
pulled from under. %:. because ‘‘the
enemy” has’“s:cien and/or van-
dalized”’ two key party planks —
Senate reform and referenda.

In reply, | would suggest that
.even this partial imitation is a
form of flattery, albeit an in-
sincere one.

AH three traditional federal par-
ties have had ample opportunity
to offer equality to all Canadians,
including Quebecers.

Mr... Trudeaw’s attitude to that
desire for western Canadians: at
least, can’ be summed up in his
never~to-be-forgetten one-finger
salute in Salmon Arm.

“: Mr. Mulroney, having achieved
“fan”: overwhelming mandate in
”.. 1984, -also was given. the chance to

do the right ‘thing but, instead,

* opted to-continue the imbalanced

: previous 16 years.

“ec is. it. any wonder, sensing the

/warelenting. and vote-threatening

anger of millions of other Cana-

»dians, coast to coast, that Messrs.

Clark and Mulroney cast about
‘for a way to appear to appease
that anger, without actually taking
anything away from Quebec.

“1, would: suggest to Mr. Wright
_ $hat (1) the Conservatives think

they’ve found the way in the cur-
vrent deal which appears to incor-
« .porate Reform policies (but really:
does not), and (2) they’ve reckon-

, ed: without another of the key

tenets.of the Reform Party of

Canada “regarding the common
Sense of the common people!

7 m:being ‘‘deafeningiy
nthe. issues, Mr. Mann-

everal ‘media .inter-.

; views; : made ‘it’ quite clear that he
--(1) wished to know the exact wor-
: ding: of the deal befere making a
major statement on the issue, and
(2) :-wished, not -to pre-judge the

consensus of the 130,000-plus
membership of the party prior to
issuing a reaction statement.

Personally, 1 welcome a_politi-
cian who actually wishes to find
out the true facts before ‘‘going
off half-cocked.”’ Also, when it
appears 10 premiers and native
leaders have reached a com-
promise which they feel comfort-
able presenting to their constitu-
ents, surely the package deserves a
respectful analysis by Reform
Party members, no matter how
cynical we may be about the pro-
cess.

Iv’s too bad that Mr. Chretien
and Ms. McLaughlin did aot offer
the constituents whom they repre-
sent the same courtesy offered to
Reformers by Mr. Manning.

Instead, their self-serving reac-
tion to the proposed constitutional
deal should serve to remind Ca-
nadians that there really is no dif-
ference between any of the big-
three federal parties.

Now to address the specifics of
Triple-E referenda, Mr. Wright
suggests that Mr. Manning, and
Reformers have made the mistake

_of thinking that Equal and Elected

= Effective and that holding a
referendum, regardless of wor-
ding, will automatically ensure
‘that the will of the people be
done.

If Mr. Wright truly believes
this, he sadly underestimates the
intelligence of both Mr. Manning
and the Reform membership.

Mr. Manning has, from_ the
very beginnings of the Reform
Party, made it quite plain that it
is required not only to implement
a Triple-E Senate and referenda,
but to implement them properly.

Again, the common sense of the
common people is already telling
(Western and Atlantic) Canadians
they are being sold a Senate biil-
of-goods.

One only has to have fieided the
telephone calls which have beseig-
ed me this’ past week, or to read
(of all people) Brian Kierans in

- The Province or Mel Smith (8C

Report, Aug. 25) to know that

Article contrary to consensus
concerning first monotheist -

‘Dear Editor: |
~ While: reading . the article on

Zoroastrianism in a recent News, I |

was : ‘surprised. to come across the
claim that Zoroaster. was the
world?s first monotheist.

This: is contrary to historical
consensus. and to the wunder-
standing of hundreds of millions
of ‘Jews;-Christians and Muslims
who revere Abraham as the first man

> compreheid the unity of God.

Historical. deduction places

Abraham’s birth, and subsequent
enlightenment, around the 16th
century BC ‘(very possibly, as
related in Genesis, in the city of
Ur, in Southern Mesopotamia).
This is, at. the very least, ap-
proximately 500 years previous to

_ the tune of Zoroaster.

Apart from this shipshod schol-
arship, the article wes interesting
and informative.

John Young
North Vancouver

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Canadian citizens are not falling
for the scam.

Preston Manning has also made
it plain that the wording and
background information of any
referendum, be it one a proposed
golf course or on the Canadian
Constitution, is critical to achiev-
ing the unbiased expression of the
will of the people.

Should the wording of the Qc-
tober referendum be similar to
that which Mr. Wright puts fcr-
ward in his editorial, then | would
suggest that the only appropriate
response from the millions. of
fair-minded Canadians would be
to force their provincial premiers
to rescind any support so far
given to the proposed package un-
til the wording is changed.

Like more Reformers, as Mr.
Manning has emphasized, I would
prefer to see one united Canada,
including Quebec, but not at any
cost.

So, when Mr. Manning asks for
my reaction to the current
constitutional package, I will ask
him not to have anything to do
with it — even if that docs mean
more interminable discussion.

We have come too far, at too
much personal and financial cost,
to give up at this stage.

Eijizabeth James, area ceordinator
Reform Party of Canada

CORRECTION
| NOTICE
§ The Expiry Date of Oct.
21/192 was inadvertently
ieft out of an ad that ran §
gon Sept. 23/92.
Sorry for any inconven-

fience this. may have }
caused.

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