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Page 4 — Halton Hills This Week, Saturday, ‘August 28, 1993 Opinion HIS WEEK Halton Hils This Week, Web Printing, Georgetown, Ont. L7G 481 Flying high over Canada You know election fever is Starting to work its way up the scale when the Ioonies (and not those of the monetary kind) start coming out of the woodwork and tossing their beanies into the political ring. Prime Minister-designate Kim Campbell is hedg- ing her bets about calling a federal election and fool- ing no one. The Progressive Conservative’s mandate to govern Tuns out in November, so no matter which way you Slice and dice, an election has to be called in the very near future for the writs to be issued. Similarly, to avoid saddling taxpayers with a need- less bill to compile an updated voters list, the list used. for last fall’s referendum-plebiscite can still legally be applied. But again, it can only be used Over a one-year time frame. It would be a public relations disaster for Campbell and the PCs if tax money was siphoned off to compile a new — and needless — voters list with one already on hand. The newest political party attempting to win the hearts and minds of the Canadian Voting public is the Natural Law Party. This party brings back visions of the now practi- cally moribund Rhinoceros Party which, among other things, pledged to repeal the Law of Gravity. One of its better-known members was erstwhile major league pitcher Bill Lee, who once passed around marijuana-laced cookies to his unsuspecting teammates. Lee, actually not a bad hurler, toiled for the Boston Red Sox and the Montreal Expos and was consid- ered by major league major domos a certified flake and airhead. Accusations he never attempted to deny. «Anyway, back to the Natural Law Party. 3 It plans on fielding candidates in all 295 federal tidings and proposes to invite ipwards of 100,000 unemployed youths to study the “supreme knowl- edge of natural law” at a cost of $12,500 a year. Party spokesperson Chris Wilson, explained the government would no doubt pay for these courses so there would be no cost to the unemployed youth. Talk about robbing Peter to pay Paul. But at least these fruitloops are up front about how they would gouge the taxpayer. The unemployed youth would study such things as meditation, massage techniques, yoga and yogic fly- ing. Definitely plusses, in today’s job market. Elections Canada claims the Natural Law Party completed a registration form in 1992 and that once it fields candidates in 50 ridings, will be recognized as a registered political party. Magician Doug Henning is Tteportedly a member of this party and says it will pay off the national debt, reduce taxes and eliminate PUB PRODUCTION MANAGER: Kathleen Topol: LISHER: Ken Bellamy EDITOR: Colin Gibson lsek__ CIRCULATION MANAGER: Marie Shadbolt EI FFICE MANAGER: Jean ell 5 HALTON HILLS THIS WEEK IS INDEPENDENTLY OWNED & OPERATED. INE: 873-2254 he People's Corner Candid comments from Halton-Peel candidates Editor’s notes: Several weeks. ago, Pat Smith, 25, a 13-year resident of Georgetown and a graduate of the University of Guelph with a BA in history and political studies, approached me about doing an infor- mal poll of the candidates who would be contesting the Halton-Peel riding in the upcoming federal election. He had read in HHTW how Adrienne Lilly, another local young university graduate, had been frustrated by what she perceived as a lack of coop- eration - to a point, even civility - ‘when she had attempted a similar project. I provided space for her on our Opinion page to write about her experience and from the feedback I got from our readers, her effort and story was both commended and appreciated. Pat had some prior writing experi- ence; including a story on last year’s referendum-plebiscite on the Charlottetown Accord. In his own words, “1 thought I was ready for whatever I’d encounter.” As with Adrianne, at the project’s conclusion, Pat was “...less than impressed” with the cooperation he received. He approached Garth Turner, incumbent Progressive Conservative party member, recently named national Revenue Minister; Dick MacDuffie of the Reform Party; Hilliard Cox of the Libertarian Party and Julian Reed, of the Liberals. To our knowledge, no one is run- ning in Halton Peel for either the National Party, the Green Party, the Family Coalition Party or any other fringe parties that crop up from time to time on the Canadian political landscape. Pat asked three questions: 1) What do you believe are the top concerns that Canadians have regarding politi- cal reformation? Are we ready to undertake major changes in the nature of federalism? 2) What new ideas will you be taking to office which will bring about improvements in the system of government? 3) What best qualifies you for this position? The replies are offered below for our readers’ perusal. Keep in mind, the questions were asked several weeks ago. Gloves off come election First, there is no federal election campaign under- way, nor has an election been called. Additionally, I am not officially a candi- date for that election, as the Progressive Conservative Association of Halton-Peel has not yet held its candi- date-selection meeting. That will not happen for several weeks. ._In the meantime, I am the Member of Parliament for this riding, and I wish to remain as non-partisan in that role as I can. I serve the people who elected me, not my political party, and that will be my preoccupation until the prime ministér announces that Parliament is dissolved and an election date has been called. This being the case, I feel it is improper for me to write a political response to your questions. I will do so happily, however, once an election has been called. If, prior to that call, you decide to publish the responses of other candidates, I would hope and expect that this “me - are all in the book I Garth Turner letter is included with those responses. In the meantime, the answers to your queries about how Garth Turner would like to sée politics reformed and improved; what ideas I bring to office; and the background experi- ences which have shaped published earlier this year. I challenge anyone else who Pragmatic government needed Of the large number of issues that concern Canadians, at least four emerge in the riding of Halton-Peel, at the top of the list. The continuing escalation Of taxation, the lack of sus- tained job creation, an inade- quate justice system and the threat to our local environ- ment by mega dump site cre- A nation cannot function ‘well: when taxes areprohibi~™ tive, when unemployment is over 11 per cent and when the economic engine, i.e., small business, is not able to func- tion freely whether from reg- ulatory red tape or limitations on the ability to finance: * The social fabric of our nation is put at risk when the ju system does not keep pace with a changing society. Citizens have a right to feel secure in their own homes, and in their own cities. Our system should not give more rights to the accused than to the victim. We should be say- ing through the justice sys- tem, if you commit a crime, be prepared to give up your tights, including the right to profit from the criminal act. The issue of environmental protection has been brought to the front lines by the Continued on page 5 wants this job to be more specific or issue-driven. I look forward to offering you a more complete response when the,gloves come off. Then again, how serious can you take Henning? Last year, he announced plans to build a $1.5 billion “transcendental meditation” theme park - to be called Maharishi Veda Land Canada — in Niagara Falls. Purportedly, the buildings would float in the air and a chariot trip into a molecule was to be one of the features. So far, the plans, as they say, are still up in the air. Party leader, Neil Paterson, was quoted in a party newsletter as saying: “Governments based on limited intelligence and outdated principles are unable to cope with....complex issues.” On this point, one would have to agree whole- heartedly. The party’s first initiative would be “to create large groups of yogic flyers...to bring the support of natur- al law to the entire nation.” Which begs a number of questions. Would these political yogic flyers get frequent flyer miles? And how many magic carpets would you need to trans- Port the federal cabinet across Canada? I can see the headline now. Canadian PM accused of being an airhead — claims it saves on expenses. Only in Canada, eh? Pity! i Colin Gibson There are no Canadians are very con- cerned about their economic future, and that of their chil- dren. For 25 years, they have listened to , and bought, the of Liberal and Conservative governments. Now they find the horrendous debt that has resulted is killing jobs, invest- ment and prospects for the future. I believe that Canadians now realize that there are no quick fixes and are ready to make the basic changes nec- essary to return the country to economic and fiscal responsi- lity. I am running for the Reform Party for three basic reasons: 1) The common sense poli- cies of Reform have been developed by thousands of adians across the country; 2) The policies are in writ- ing for all to see; My experience in quick fixes Dick MacDuffie municipal politics tells me that one or two individuals with reform ideas will make very little impact, but an entire party committed to basic reform can and will make the difficult decisions necessary to turn this country und. This experience which qualifies me for this position is simply that of having worked in the private sector Downsize government I believe Canadians have mixed emotions when it comes to significant changes in how they are governed. They like the social programs but realize they are falling apart. They know the old system is not Teally working for the ben- efit of the average citizen and has lost touch with those-who pay for it all. The referendum last fall told the old-line parties in no uncertain terms that the criminals dividing up the My party is in favor of getting rid of most of the government we now have because, simply put: we don’t need it at all, cannot afford it and cannot contin- ‘ue to have it ruling our lives and the economy. As a Libertarian, I have agreed to follow a signed Statement of principles Continued on page 5 rather than policies that oS Hilliard Cox change with the wind and opinion polls. The statement-I refer to is not one of allegiance to my party, but one that ensures my actions will treat everyone equally with no exceptions. It means no special deals for political friends, including the party that supports me. It means I believe in individuals not institutions and am com- mitted to protect individual * liberty from force and coercion by criminals or government. As a Canadian manufac- Continued on page 6