WHITBY FREE PRESS. WEDNESDAY. FEBRUARY 27, 1985, PAGE 5 "I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man." - Thomas Jefferson THE CROW'S NEST by Michael Knell Standards of behaviour The national press has had a field day recently exploiting, on their front pages no less, the personal tragedies of Nova Scotia Premier Richard Hatfield and former Minister of Defense Robert Coates. While both of these gentlemen have suffered the slings and arrows and outrageous reporting, their misfortunes have given Canadians the opportunity to ask themselves how they believe public servants should behave. Let me state, right off the mark, that I have little sympathy for Coates. Whether or not he became a security risk is unimportant. After nearly 30 years of service in the House of Commons, Coates should have realized that Ministers of the Crown do not visit sleazy German night clubs where ladies of the evening (or morning or afternoon, whatever the case may be) are to be found with relative ease. In fact, no M.P. should be caught dead in such an establishment (and neither should M.P.P.'s, judges, local politicians or school trustees). But I do have some sympathy for Richard Hatfield. The most important thing we should remember is that a court of law ruled that he was not guilty of the crime he was accussed of - namely the illegal possession of marîjuane. As both a citizen and a journalist, I believe strongly enough in our system of justice to accept what the court rules. As far as I'm concerned, once Hatfield was found not guilty, the incident was closed. The subsequent story about the "party" with those four teenagers was something that no respectable editor should have touched without third party confirmation or another criminal charge. If these incidents have done anything, they have provided an opportunity for Canadians to ask themselves: "what standard of behaviour do we expect our leaders to follow?" But, when asking these questions, we should remember that politicians are hunan, they have their faults and weaknesses. We cannot expect them to live saintly lives. While we can expect them to be beyond the obvious influences of corruption we should not expect them to be lily white. Just as the average citizen can be expected to cheat on his wife or get himself drunk in a public place, we should not expect politicians not to do so. In a democracy, the elected politicians are, if nothing else, a reflection of their constituency. They mirror the faults and virtues of the people who elected them to office. For example, I don't think any sane and rational human being to believe that Adolf Hitler was or is typical of the average German. As an inside, it is for this reason that I think Premier Frank Miller's abrupt dismissal of Allan McLean as Minister without portfolio for southern resources was wrong. Anyone could have ticketed and fined as McLean was. It was a small thing - not a major criminal offense. If the conviction had been for gun running or an act of terrorism, then he should have been kicked out of the government. Not for something as trivial as traveling with an unincased firearm. Although we must recognize that politicians, be they backbenchers or cabinet members are human, we do have a right to expect that they conduct themselves with some degree of decorum and dignity. When Coates went to West Germany, he went representing Canada and the Canadian people. He should have behaved with considerable more decorum. Furthermore, Coates should have realized that when he became a Minister of the Crown, he was expected to behave in a certain manner. He was expected to conduct himself in such a way that his behaviour in publie, whether as a private citizen or as a cabinet minister, should be beyond repproach. That comes with the job. However, I also firmly believe that people in public life have a right to safeguard and enjoy their private life. As a journalist, I believe that anyone's private life should remain so as long as it does not interfere with their public responsibilities. For example, if it came to my attention that a member of Whitby Town Council was having an affair with a woman who was not his wife, I would not report the details in this newspaper. I am a journalist - not a gossip columnist. The only time I would report such a thing was if it impaired that councillor's ability to perform his public responsibilities. So long as he carries out his publie duties fairly, honestly and consistently, I really don't care that he is fooling around on his wife. In both the Hatfield and Coates incidents (I refuse to call them 'affairs'), I think the national press went a little overboard. That kind of sensationalism does no one any good. It may sell newspapers (I'm not convinced of that) but iL isn'L good journalism and i's not a public service. Canada has been fortunate. Except for Sir John A. Macdonald and the C.P.R. scandal late in the last century, we have been generally free of major scandal along the lines of Watergate. We have had 118 years of government by in- dividuals fairly above repproach. And that's not bad when one looks at gover- nments in other parts of the world during the same time period. However, that doesn't excuse what has happened in the last few weeks. Those who aspire to leadership or power should know how to behave and if they're not prepared to conduct themselves in a suitable manner then they should be kicked out. But, we still have to remember they are human and like us, they are subject to that old maxim: "To err is human" (please, no quips about forgiveness is contrary to company policy). So we must treat them as human beings despitetheir faults. SOLWAY Years and years ago when my hard-gotten gains went toward il-gotten gains (see footnote) I was given some very good advice by one of the then and stili today best money manipulators on Bay Street. The advice was: don't get emotional about your in- vestment! Meaning: it doesn't matter where you put your money, you must not develop anything but a detached financial attitude. It doesn't matter whether you deal in bananaswidgets or sub- divisions. It's ail the same. Free enterprise is dedicated to the unemotional process of doing business in order to make money. Some revisionist f inancial philosophers will dlaim that is not altogether true;athat the real joy is not in the making of money but that the money made is just a way of keeping score - keeping score of how "successful" you are, that is. Understand9 Trying to turn your passion into profit is a trap. Very simply you faîl in love with love, and like the suitor rebuffed you continue to pine for your love af- ter all hope is gone. Not good business. Ai after ail, business is the engine that makes the economy go. Never mind pride or passion or obligation. If it selis, make it. If it doesn't sell - forget it. I was very good at not being emotional. I could put my money into all kinds of schemes and delight myseif with the way capital could generate activity and produce money. I invested in everything from shell casings to sulphur deposits. Neither of them has ever caused me to mist over with ewotion. So I understand. I understand why we have right now, right here and now in this country, a whole new gang of what we lovingly call "entrepreneurs." That's the new word for "Robber Baron." Like the classic "Robber Barons" of history: the Mellons (steel) Carnegies (shipping and steel) Harrimans (railroads) and Morgans (banking) they simply dealt themselves into the best game going. They had no special attachment. They went where the action was. They could divest themselves of non-profitable elements with the flick of a stock market wrist and move into something else. Nothing personal. No emotion. Our own guys don't qualify as "Robber Barons" in the worst sense - riding roughshod over the economy, governments and labour - with bribe:ry, chicanery, subterfuge and even violence. Ours are different. What links them to the historie ones is that advise: don't get emotional about your money. That's why Conrad Black has no trouble divesting himself of Dominion Stores, because he has no in- terest in the food business - the grocery chain was just a milch cow for him toHuse while he went on juggling the Argus portfolio. He cares not aL ail about food, which, in financial terms, is what is needed. Profits are everything. Ken Thompson who took his father's dough, spent a little enshrining his name in the country's finest concert hall (where IIl bet Roy would not have been caught dead during his lifetime of money-making) has likewise branched out into other fields. Does anyone believe for a minute Thompson cares a hoot about department stores. So what if his portfolio in- cludes Simpson's, The Bay and Zellers. Department stores are being badly hurt. Most of their customers are older people with fixed habits. Ail the new business is going to speciality shops and boutiques. So Ken Thompson will perhaps unload them, unless he develops a passion for a great department store and turns Simpson's into Bloomingdale's North. Look, I think Ken and Conrad are great fellows. Maybe they'd like to buy a dinner playhouse. Great quality. Good location. Except wait a minute. They' be in here right away trying to maximize profits. They'd have pub nights with beer flowing in rivers. They'd bring in nude "plays" like "Let My People Went." They'd do anything to sell ticketý. And if I or Nuala complained they'd say: don't get emotional. What's the point if you can't make a buck? Sounds like a bank manager. But in a world struggling both for material survival and a sense of self-respect there have to be people who set them- selves aside and make a buck; and there have to be people who go on doing what they do. Trying to change them would be like telling Judy in Whitby to stop selling cut gift ideas and flowers (which she loves doing) or have Roy Forrester stop printing his weekly Orono Times. Most "suc- cessful" people do what they do for money - and the passion (if there is any) is portable. Most passionate people fight with their banks who don't understand. I'd rather be me, Conrad, FOOTNOTE: I made a good pile of money in broad- casting and commercial writing, and parlayed it in- to lots more on the market.