' the extra wear

Page A4 — Terrace Standard, Wednesday, September 5, 1990

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EDITORIAL

With summer over, a local politician’s thoughts turn to the November municipal elections. What could make this fall’s vote interesting is that for the first time, all six aldermanic: positions and the mayor’s chair are up for grabs.

That means there’ll be an exhaustive search by candidates for issues and a

multitude of measures taken by each to

give themselves an identity. It'll be a dif- ficult job for those on council who may want to run again. By and large, it’s been a fairly quiet, cautious and like-minded group.

In some ways it is to be expected for the end result of hours spent in commit- tee and council meetings more than not produces politicians who think along the same lines.

What could set out definable positions this time is what kind of community- convention centre should be built to serve the city into the next century. There is no such facility now and that’s regarded as a detriment for a municipali- ty that not only has the responsibility of providing for its residents but also one that sees itself as a service centre for nor- thern B,C,

The proposal of early this summer was

We need an issue |

greeted with caution due to the cost of more than $4 million. Drawing just as much caution is the position that the city can attract sufficient convention groups to justify that portion of the centre’s designed use. There is also the recent in- triguing possibility of adding a library wing to the centre concept.

Although there were suggestions earlier this year that a referendum asking for taxpayers’ approval of the centre was ‘possible this fall to coincide with municipal elections, the prospect now seems remote. Instead, the concept is undergoing a change and that means it’l] take longer to put together.

' It would be a mistake for voters to ‘take the natural path of letting the issue slide and council candidates off the hook until final plans are put together for review and discussion. Those people who want to run this fall and those subse- quently elected to council will ultimately be the ones primarily responsible for the final centre plans.

That means the candidates should be questioned on every turn as to their posi- tions on the proposed centre. It will result in a more responsible and respon- sive council when the centre issue finally reaches the ballot box.

Way off track —

Billy and Johnny live on the same street, Both are five years old. They lead what’s considered ordinary lives for young boys. Both go to kindergarten. Billy goes for half a day. Johnny for a full day. That’s because Billy’ s white and Johnny’s a native.

The reasoning behind this, say educa- tion officials, is that native children need more help than do others. Simple as that, they say. But it’s not so simple. The policy reveais a massive assumption that

because a person has a different skin col-.

our, he then is considered to be automatically behind whatever skills educators say is necessary for a sound and healthy education.

This policy has tinges.of bureaucrats dictating what they think is good for people. It also stands in complete con- trast to the Year 2000 education changes which will bring a more individually- tailored approach to a child’s education.

A loo-loo of a problem

Inviting guests without pro- viding for their comfort is bad manners. Nonetheless crowds

Through |

of several hundred are lured by Bifocals

Terrace’s bandshell to apen-air by Cl

concerts in Lower Little y Claudette Sandecki Memorial Park, which lacks ;

washrooms.

Consequently bandshell

Besides, - during July and

Homeowners

complain

listeners sit cross-legged on the ‘lawn, only half’ their attention focused on -the music, while they ponder what to do if nature signals an early pit stop. ‘Experienced Little Park visitors decide beforehand -whether to pile into the car and whiz to the nearest available john; risk exposure behind a clump of bushes; or tempt fate and arrive protected by the “unique Absorb-Loc System" of a Depend(R) adult diaper, Besides. the. many park visitors, dozens of farmer: gardeners spend Saturday mor- nings selling their homegrown produce at the farmers’ market, situated next, to the park ona paved parking lot. .. Sure, if caught short, farmers

can. duck into the library's”

single, unisex washroom, But is. one toilet. adequate to accom-__- modaie library patrons, park .

users and farmers, And what of and tear on the

’ library’s carpet?. and vandalism to library equipment by rowdies . punching computer keys as they _ pass ¢ hrough on their way to the

a

_peatances to fringé foliage. of

+ August the library is closed all

day Sundays and holidays. Where are bandshell listeners and park visitors expected to go then?

In this province, the Public Facilities Act, decrees that large

public parks be equipped with

comfort stations, -However, schco] playgrounds and ‘‘local’’ parks are exempt. That's why B.C, athletes can easily be singl-

ed out in national competitions.’ -

They run with their ankles, crossed, Victoria’s thinking seems to

be large parks draw genteel.- habitues who merit deluxe’.

amenities. On the other hand,

frequenters of “local”. parks: of

can make do with furtive disaj

any comouflage they have time. to reach.

Cities put in fire hydrants for ° the convenience of dogs”.

however, few home owners

‘Plant shrubbery for field-users, — Consequently, playing: fields ~ _ without biffys have been a bone

of contention to sports groups . — and playground neighbours

wy for years... ore

vociferously about their hedges.

being trampled, garden tools being swiped, and fences being

broken by bail players scrambl-

ing for concealment.

B.C,’s Public Facilities Act offers no interpretation of a “local” park.

So until it is defined by a test

court case, or until empathic”

local governments budget for ~

washrooms despite the jatitude |

of the Act, ‘users of “local” parks will -have to' keep both

— their fingers and their ankles _erossed — or cut back their

fluid intake for 12 hours before. ; ‘kickoff, ‘like airline pilots. |.

Pads

beeh kind ta’ AIDS victims, |

Go BACK PAST. tHe CHURCH AND TURN |: RIGHT AT THE LITLE 4.1. GREY HOUSE |.” <a

Kinder and gentler premiera must —

VICTORIA — Funny thing happened to Premier Vander Zalm on his way to the Queen Elizabeth Theatre.two weeks ago. He got a crash course in real-world issues.

When the premier and two bus-loads of Socreds, who had paid'as much as $2,500 a head

_ to. attend a performance of Les ‘Miserables as-part‘of a-fund=~

raising event, showed up at the theatre, they were greeted by | an angry mob.

Trying to make his way into the theatre, the premier got . yelled at and spat on. Someone clutched his leg, and his wife Lillian was knocked to the ground. It was not a pretty. sight. In fact, it-was one of the uglier manifestations of . disrespect for our politicians in recent years.

The premier seemed perplex- ed by the confrontation. ‘'] don’t know what points they were trying to make or what points they made, but it cer- tainly wasn't called for,’* the premier said afterwards.

Weli, perhaps the fact that some of the protesters were dy- ing from AIDS had something to do with their behaviour: When you know you won't see too many more suntises, your reaction to injustice, preceived or real, becomes more pro- nounced.

True, nol all the protesters were AIDS victims. Some were there to agitate for in- creases in welfare rates and the minimum wage. They confined their activity to carrying placards..‘TFhe physical abuse

_ came from a group called ". ACT-UP,’ an acronym for . -

Aids Coalition to Unleash’

Power. -

It is one of the tragedies of

the.current administration that. -

its feader has a propensity for’ removing himself from reality: If living in a semi-castle is bad enough, behaving as if there. are no blemishes‘ ‘on the wonderful world of his im- agination is worse.

«This government has not:

$o? ts THAT

(FOURTH. SrReET

From the.

Capital by Hubert Beyer

And even though David Parker

- was-the-only cabinet:minister -

to openly voice his opinion on AIDS sufferers, very few of his colleagues disagreed with him. AIDS, Parker said last year, was a self-inflicted wound.

What Parker was saying and his colleagues silently agreeing

with was, of course, that most —

AIDS sufferers are either homosexuals or drug abusers.

In the beautiful world of our premier’s imagination, there is” no room for such warts. Homosexuality is abnormal and against God’s wishes, ~ while drug abuse is.equally damnable and self-destructive.And if a few haemophiliacs slip into the same net,.well that’s regret- . table, but what can you do?

With such an attitude, small wonder the government runs into trouble with AIDS suf- ferers. ['m surprised it took so

‘long for outright hostilities to break out.

What AIDS victims need is understanding and assurance that people around them care. And I'm glad to say that a lot of people do care, even if the government doesn't, The story of Doug Hinkel last year was proof of that.

Hinkel is dying of AIDS, He

is a haemophiliac. He received

“tainted blood before the AIDS

‘scare prompted screening of

> blood and blood products,’

A. friend of Hinkel's told me at the time that Doug had one

“final wish! for himself and one

for his children. He wanted to see.the Atlantic Ocean just "once: and ‘wanted to take his children: to:a-Disney-like park - -in éastern.Canada. | -Both wishes came true

: than, to ithe generosity of

fe ¥

Hou would we

‘fund. Every time [ hear

readers who donated to 8 ru

disparaging remarks about | AIDS victims, every time I

' witness the actions or rather

inactions of an indifferent government, I think of Doug Hinkel, ; : Doug and all the other - . AIDS victims are living on. *. borrowed time, and you can’t

_ really blame them for not

observing the rules and niceties: society expects from protesters. lcan understand the =” premier’s indignation over the: incident. Nebody likes being. pushed around and spat on, 7 but for God’s sake, think ; about the provacation that — drives peole to such action, Think what it does to people... to know they will die, within a year or. two, The premier called. the pro-,. testers a bad lot. Maybe they: were a bad lot, but it would be incumbent upon the premier:to. give some thought to why they: behaved the way they did. ©: If Vander Zalm goes ahead: - with the election this fall, he

' has a great opportunity to -

assure what many of his sup” porters consider the dregs, the Outcast, the misfits of societs that. he cares just as much - about them as he does: about ¢: Sy Peter Taigo and David Poole. ° There is an awful lot of in-* justice, pain and suffering that has, so far, been met-with i difference and'lack of - understanding: ht’s time for- the premier to begin understanding. : To paraphrase.a passage | z from his revered Bible to the premier: ‘What you do tot least among us, you shall have done unto me.’* And

don’t just sit there and A rea, act on it. :

GUESS THAT MAKES SE TO NORTHERN ER