A4 - The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, January 15, 2003. TERRACE STANDARD ESTABLISHED APRIL 27, 1988 PUBLISHER: ROD LINK ADDRESS: 3210 Clinton Street Terrace, B.C. * V8G 5R2 TELEPHONE: (250) 638-7283 * FAX: (250) 638-8432 WEB: www.terracestandard.com EMAIL: newsroom@terracestandard.com Wood ways | NEW SKEENA president Dan Veniez’s goal of contracting out every possible item of how his company does business could very well place him in the forefront of the future of forestry policy in this province. But it may not be a position in which he wants to find himself. Here’s why. Contracting out reduces Mr. Veniez’s opera- ting costs. Getting a lean and mean cost struc- ture in place makes it more attractive to secur- ing the $100 million-plus in financing Mr. Ve- niez needs in order to re-open his mills again. Mr. Veniez has taken this concept to the point where he’s willing to contract out practically every facet of control over and administration of the various forest licences New Skeena now controls. He believes it will make the contractors who cut the wood on his company’s behalf more ef- ficient and more productive. It will also open the door, he says, to those companies finding other markets for the wood they cut over and above what his mills need. It’s an intriguing concept, very much in line with the idea of promoting the kind of entre- preneurship the provincial government says B.C, needs. Yet it also leads to wondering why New Skee- na needs those licences in the first place if it is now willing to turn over responsibility for them to those who will provide wood for its mills. For years now the central position of forest companies is that-they need assurances of wood ‘supply and control to feed their mills: It'is' the — wood that determines the health of forest com- panies in providing collateral for capital and operating financing. Without wood, a compa- ny’s mills are just so much iron. Without wood, no company can hope to find a banker’s willing ear. No doubt Mr. Veniez — and his prospective investors and bankers — follow along this line of thought. ’ But given Mr. Veniez’s desire for a new way of doing business not only for himself but for everybody and anybody connected with New Skeena, his need for collateral might just be met by signed purchase agreements for wood. _ Removing those licences would do a number of things. Many have argued that placing a re- gion’s financial health in the hands of one large player is dangerous. Ironically, Skeena Cellu- lose is cited as an example. More importantly, creating a true open mar- ket for the harvesting and selling of wood would spark ideas, opportunity and investment. Mr. Veniez wants us to think and act differ- ently. Taking away those licences is a natural extension of this. It would, as Mr. Veniez loves to say, “end a culture of entitlement.” PUBLISHER/EDITOR: Rod Link ADVERTISING MANAGER: Brian Lindenbach PRODUCTION MANAGER: Edouard Credgeur NEWS: Jeff Nagel NEWS/SPORTS Sarah Zimmerman 2002 WINNER NEWS/COMMUNITY: Jennifer Lang CCNA BETTER FRONT OFFICE: Darlene Keeping & Carol McKay NEWSPAPERS CIRCULATION SUPERVISOR: Terri Gordon COMPETITION ADVEATISING CONSULTANTS: Bert Husband & Stacy Gyger TELEMARKETER: Stacy Gyger COMPOSING: Susin Credgeur AD ASSISTANT: Sandra Stefanik SUBSCRIPTION RATES BY MAIL: $56.25(+$3.94 GST)=60.19 per year; Seniors $49.50 (+$3.47 GST)=52.97; Out of Province $63.22 (+$4.43 GST)=67.65 Outside of Canada (6 months) $152.34 (+$10.66 GST)=163.00 MEMBER OF , : B.C. AND YUKON COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS ASSOCIATION, i CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS ASSOCIATION AND G CNA. es 6,C, PRESS COUNCIL (ynww.bcpresstouncll.org) oa Serving the Terrace and Thornhill area. Published on Wednesday of each week at 3210 Clinton Skeat, Terrace, British Columbia, VaG 5A2. Stories, photographs, itustiations, dasigns and typastyles fn the Terrace Standard ara the property of the copyright holders, including Cariboo Press (1969) Lid., ils illustrallon repro services and adveriising agencies. Reproduction in whole or in part, without wrilten permission, 's specilically prohibiled, Authorized ag second-class mall periding the Post Oflica Dapartment, for payment o! postage in cash. Special thanks to all our contributors and correspondents for thelr time and talents. . We live in one very weird country | VICTORIA — The other night, I slipped out of a restaurant to have a smoke. Yes, I still haven’t quit. The weather was typical for Victoria this time of year. A cold wind was blowing from the west, whip- ping sheets of rain in front of it. Another elderly man was also outside, smoking a cigar- ette. “Remember,” I said, “when restaurants had smok- ing sections? Now we're banished.” “] don’t really mind,” he replied. And: that, in a nut- shell, defined the quintessen- tial, law-abiding Canadian. No matter what politicians and bureaucrats, in search of missions, threw at us, we tend to meekly submit to their whims. In what other country would a government survive that de- vises a goofy gun registry pro- gram, claiming it would cost... $2 million, give or take, ,only:’. to have to admit a couple: of years later that,’ gee, folks, we seem to have forgotten a bunch of zeroes? The cost now stands at $1 billion and climb- ing. Do we.take to the streets to express our disgust over such a blatant waste of our money? Not a chance. Sure, the opposition MPs taise a bit of a ruckus. A few editorial writers and foolhardy columnist, like me, still under NOT ENOUGH | have to worry about thinning hair, thinning bones and failing eyesight, now fashion demands I keep daily tabs on the youthfulness of my tummy button. Fashion and Jennifer Lopez have made belly buttons the sexiest part of the body, shown off by narrow-hipped, flat-be- lied young things like Nellie Furtado and Shania Twain wearing low-rider hip-hugging jeans and rib length tops. Two news items in recent dailies give navels further pro- minence. First, a San Francis- co plastic surgeon, Dr. Roma- no, says he’s getting up to eight inquiries a week for an umbilicoplasty surgery to re- configure or reconstruct de- formed, undesirable or aging belly buttons. It seems after comparing their belly buttons to those pictured in movies and maga- zines, these people ask the doctor. to alter the shape, size, or protrusion of their umbilical connector, The second news item warns of a medical condition, meralgia paresthetic, or tingly ag DAD! L CAN'T Meee GET THEGIRLS ae 0 TALK 10 Me! Sover up “FROM: THE.CAPITAL. HUBERT BEYER the misguided impression that they can make a difference, express their disdain. But that’s about it. ; Canadian Alliance MP Garry Breitkreuz said the other day that the federal gov- ernment is inviting a “full- scale rebellion” among gun owners by increasing the fee for. registering firearms to.$25 . for each’ rifle or shotgun, as of’ “this‘month, oo So what are they going to do? What does a made-~in-Ca- nada full-scale rebellion look like? Writing letters to the editor? Telling your pals you’re never going to vote for those Liberals again? Canadians have long lost their capacity for rebellion. Most of us live a relatively good life, so what’s a little government interference? The government-knows-best ‘THROUGH BIFOCALS CLAUDETTE SANDECKI thighs, cause by wearing too tight hip-hugger jeans and low belts that hit close to the spine. Patients complain to their doctors about tenderness near the front of their. hip bone where a sensory nerve passes just beneath the hip. When the nerve gels compressed, a ting- ling sensation results similar to carpal tunnel syndrome, that painful wrist condition keyboarders ease by wearing a splint. I’m not surprised at reports of meralgia paresthetic. Fe- belly ERE'GoBuY EA ee COTAKE THIS PUP wiTA You ! mentality is firmly entrenched in Canadian society. We talk ‘ about the “True North, strong and free,” but don’t say a peep as big government and, yes, big unions, treat us as chattel to do with as they please. . Business supports the so called free enterprise parties, often coercing its employees to do likewise, while unions make generous contributions to ihe NDP, regardless of whether or not their members support such largess. At least I’ve never made a personal contribution to any party and am not likely to do so, unless one comes along, the platform of which FE agree with 100 per cent. - And that’s not going to hap- pen. Mind you, | have bought the occasional lunch for B.C. pre- miers, if only to prevent them from buying me lunch. And while [?’m in a rant de, why., have..we, allowed > Our: prime “ministers, éver since ‘Pierré Trodeau, to let our — armed forces fall into their present-day decay? Retired General Lewis MacKenzie recently mused tongue-in-cheek that the rea- son may be to make sure the military can’t topple the gav- ernment. The remark came in a e- mail message to his friends, telling them thal he has deci-_ ded against entering the race males have always risked health for fashion. Remember corns and bunions from wear- ing high heels? Now women wear Nikes, even on the job. I only wish clerks where I shop would dress a little less hip. My lowest experience is still etched in my memory. The young clerk's hip-huggers were barely visible behind her checkout counter. Each time . She stooped for a plastic bag from under the counter, I was afraid to look for fear her blue jeans had failed to rise with her. ] couldn’t check out fast enough. My unease is hard even for me to understand. -But it’s the same anxiety I’ve felt when a paunchy plumber worked under my kitchen sink and his butt crack was far. too visible. His nerve of making me uncom- fortable in my own home both- ered me as much as his disre- spect. If I had walked past his dri- veway and seen his butt crack under his truck hood, it wouldn’t have registered with me. But my kitchen was the CHICK MAGNET! for the Tory leadership. Too bad because here is man without the baggage that comes with politicians) who have managed to claw their way to the top. ; Maybe the government. is still waiting for the peace: divi-. dends that were to accrue after. the Soviet empire collapsed. Maybe they haven’t heard yet that the threat of terrorism’ is far greater than that ever posed by the Soviets during the cold war, In any case, lo paraphrase Jean Chrétien, our esteemed Prime Minister, the terrorist:at- .. tacks on New York and Wash- ington were probably the Amcricans, own fault, It’s en- ough to make one gag. Vin particularly incensed about the shabby way in which our government treats the armed forces because one of my granddaughters starts basic training in March. She’s one great “kid'and I) wonder iftthe - povernment deserves her. 8! ‘There was a’ great ‘movie’ back in the 70s, I believe, in- which a slightly gone - mad’ news anchor incited his view- ers to open their windows and shout: “I’m not taking it anymore.” That’s about the way I feel right now. Beyer can be reached at: E-mail: hubert(@coolcom.com; Tel (250) 381-6900; Web hitp:{twww.Jubertbeyer.com button, eh Wrong place. And so it is with tummy buttons. On the street, at concerts, even next in line at the check- out, ] have no problem with bare midriffs. But if a person is hired to serve me, please cover. up. If I were shopping in a fash- ionable- boutique (that would. be the day!), selecting a skate-" board, or buying ice cream cones at the beach, tev.’ fine - too. There’s a place fur every- thing. . I’m not alone in my fuddy duddy thinking. A restaurant patron told me how disgusting she found it when her meal was: . served by a bare midriffed waitress. And Oprah did a “streeter”” asking pedestrians how they felt about women wearing hip. hugger. jeans. One chagrined. mother said she walked behind: her teenager, pulling the girl’s . low-riders up and her cropped. top down. i also recall a judge admo-— nishing a defendant to yank her lee shirt down until it met-the waistband of her jeans.