6 — Sunday, February 28, 1999 — North Shore News

north shore news

VIEWPOINT

Cut of hounds

ST Vancouver Coun. Russ

Fraser says rescued skiers and

snowboarders should have

their equipment confiscated as punish- ment for their out-of-bounds activity.

But the only thing that should be confiscated is Fraser’s microphone in council chambers.

His proposed solution smacks of an impatient parent’s last-straw threat to an impertinent child. If the councillor really believes that taking skis and snowboards from rescued people would act as some kind of deterrent, Mr. Fraser has been out in the back- country too long.

Aside from the obvious legal pitfalls associated with such a policy — the old innocent until proven guilty rule for starters — Fraser’s patriarchal senti- ment is more concerned with punish- ment than solving the problem itself.

If Fraser truly wants to reduce the number of times volunteer search and rescue patrols must strap on their gear and head into the dangerous North Shore backcountry, he'd be better off taking a proactive approach.

Educating people would be a good start — specifically, teaching children, the skiers and snowboarders of tomor- row to respect the great outdoors.

Considering the North Shore sits on the deorstep of dangerous backcountry B.C. wilderness, outdoor education on everything from avalanches, weather patterns and surviving in the outdoors should be mandatory curriculum for every child in North and West Vancouver.

A precious few schools have inde- pendently taken this step themselves, but a program that includes all local schools is needed.

“Strictly speaking this is not in the district, but it’s right next door to district property and, historically speaking, the city has always supported more parks and recreation facilities in the district.”

North Vancouver District Coun. Ernie Crist, using a debate over a possible provincial campground to reter to his theory that the district subsidizes the city’s recreation. ( Fram a Feb. 26 News story.)

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“The sheer density ... with a mausoleum you could pack a lot more bodies in them.”

Peter Kwok, on the efficiencies of burying the dead. Kwok is one of a group of investors in a nine-storey mau- soleum slated for land near Capilano College and placed on hold by North Vancouver District council. (From a Feb, 26 News story.)

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“Everybody has secrets and lies.”

West Vancouver actor/playwright Frannie Sheridan, on the positive response she has had to her play, based on her life, about a family that denies its Jewish identity. (From a Feb. 26 News This Week story.)

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“So many people just don’t care about boundaries any :.10re and it's going to get worse next year.”

Skier Vincenzo Lanci, commenting on the trend of ski- ing. ouc of bounds and the need for a provincially-cquipped Noru. Shure Search and Rescue Team. (From a Feb. 26 News Inquiring Reporter feature.)

000

“Parents should have the right, if we get the training and volunteer our time, to protect our children. I don’t see that as a negative.”

Windie Jcider, a parent of wo boys attending Maplewood clementary school, expressing frustration over the lack of crossing guards for her children who must cross a busy intersection at Dollarton Highway and Seymour River, Place on their way to school. (From a Feb. 21 News story. ,

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Total Recall is ne

WELL-MEANING as it is, the Total Recall drive to oust Glen Clark’s NDP government is a classic case of putting the cart before the horse —

with the same pre-

dictable result.

Uitimately it will get us nowhere.

[ hate to pour cold Water on any move to topple the most disas- trous government in B.C, history before it wreaks further havoc.

But mass recall of NDP

MLAs, even if successful,

would do nothing — and at huge cost — to fix the REAL problem: our archaic 18th century parliamentary system.

The recall legislation is clearly intend- ed for MLAs who disgrace themselves through some personal misdemeanour or short-change their constituents. But few MLAs embezzle riding funds, bounce cheques or bed the mayor’s wife. And short-changing constituents is a rough charge to make stick.

Most government MLAs bend over backwards to help individual riding voters with such personal problems as taxes, licensing, weifare, etc. Saving individual constituents’ oxen from being gored by heartless bureaucrats and bringing the community occasional financial goodies from Victoria is their main method of keeping our support (the same applies, of course, to government MPs and Ottawa).

But making government keep election promises and stop lying to the electorate

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Entire contents © 1997 North Shore Free Press Lid. All rights reserved.

BEFORE EGGLETON SENDS 800 TROOPS TO KOSOVO, HE'S GOT A BIG PROBLEM To SOLVE.

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is far beyond the capability of individual backbenchers, as both they and their con- stituents are fully aware. So if your MLA is a nice guy or gal with a reputation for helping foiks at the personal level, you don’t rush to hound them out of office between elections merely for the sins of their political bosses. Such sentimental think- ing is blamed for the failure of three recall efforts since the 1996 election. So this time Total Recall’s business plan — targeting all 40 NDP-held constituen- cies — calls for the campaign to be presented to the public as a referendum on the Clark government, not as an attack on their own MLA, And therein fies the whole fallacy of the pre- sent “recall” concept.

First, what we have instead of individ- ual recall for cause is a half-baked general election midway between two constitu- tionally defined general election dates. If thar were the true purpose of recall — which it isn't — the act would obviously need to be completely rewritten as part of the Election Act.

Second, Total Recall aims to prema- turely punish up to 40 MLAs simply for belonging to a party thar those sclfsame voters freely and democratically clected just under three years ago. Does this mean voters bear no responsibility for their own mistakes?

Third, if Toral Recall succeeds, at a cost of hundreds of thousands to cam-__ paigners and taxpayers, an equally costly

hither and yon

YES, (T'S GONNA NG

BE TOUGH FINDING BOO AXE HANDLES ON SUCH SHORT NOTICE. J

NU MQ

t the answer

general election will still be needed in 12 to 18 months — with the next govern- ment, once safely elected, just as free as its predecessor to ignore the voters and do exactly what it wants.

Recall of individual members FOR CAUSE — ves. But the only way for the electorate to control government policy is to separate the executive (premier and cabinet) from the legislature, as in the U.S. This means MLAs belonging to the same party as the premier and cadiner would not be bound to support them on measures that an MLA’s constituents opposed. Nor would the government have zo resign if defeated on such mea- sures. It would simply be sent back to the drawing board.

As long as the 18th century tyranny of the premier’s (or prime minister's) office persists — reducing its party’s MLAs/MPs to mere trained seals — the only say voters have in how they are gov- erned is a few minutes at the ballot box every four or five years. Recall in itself can never change that.

Only elected legislators independent of the government can bring true power to the people.

n00 MANY HAPPY RETURNS of today, Feb. 28, to West Van’s Val Stephenson ... And say that again — cither today or tomorrow! — to Feb. 29 West Van birth- day girl Irene Little. : :

000g ; WRIGHT OR WRONG — this Sam * Goldwyn gem: “We’re overpaying him, but he’s worth it.” .

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