(This
column was published in the North
Shore News on
June 10, 1998)
Government
crime stories
By Leo Knight
CRIME
comes in many different forms.
Certainly,
in my 20-odd years as a police officer, private investigator and
a journalist, I have seen so much criminal behavior I have been
left somewhat cynical.
But,
as I lazily prowled through the weekend papers, I was left
shaking my head at a particularly insidious crime. Not
perpetrated by a street junkie or gun-wielding madman, but a
crime against all of us committed by no less a person than the
premier of the province.
The
government placed three separate advertisements in the weekend
papers. One was an announcement of a gun amnesty by the attorney
general. The second was by the commission of inquiry into the
NCHS charity ripoffs, announcing the times the sittings will
occur.
No
problem. I see no difficulty whatsoever with the expenditure of
public funds on these types of advertising. But it was the
third, and by far the largest and most costly of the three ads
which raised the ire of yours truly.
The
advertisement carried on page A8 of the Weekend Sun
was a full quarter of a page. "Location" blared the
headline. On the right side of the ad, running the full length,
was a photo of our very own boy premier, Glen Clark.
The
sub-head said, "Glen Clark has a great idea for your next
film." It was all about a new tax credit for film-makers.
Considering
the tax credit has already been flogged to the small number of
people who actually make films here in Hollywood North, I fail
to see how the NDP spending tax dollars on an ad of that size in
the Sun is anything more than self-aggrandizement for
Clark and his morally challenged band.
They
can't find money for northern doctors. The queues for so-called
elective surgery is growing beyond the ability for the naked eye
to see. The government lied directly in their budget by saying
the deficit is only $95 million when the auditor general is
pegging it at over one billion dollars. That's billion with a
capital B.
And
this premier is spending our money on a self-serving piece of
crap like that ad in the Sun. Now that's a crime.
*
* *
Then
there's Attorney General Ujjal Dosanjh. Here's a man I think is
perhaps the most competent and moral of the provincial cabinet.
I realize that's akin to saying something like Dopey is the
tallest of the Seven Dwarfs.
But
there he was last week saying B.C. citizens have been asking him
to lobby the federal government for changes in the hate
provisions of the Criminal Code to include gays.
Yeah,
I'll bet that's paramount on the minds of most people as they
clean up after the latest time their house was broken into or as
they continually call the police reporting line to get yet
another case number for their car windows smashed into by the
scumbags who just won't live by the rule of law.
I'll
bet his phone has been ringing off the hook with all those
British Columbians who think that's an important issue for the
attorney general.
I'm
really getting sick of the "gay agenda," which is all
this latest bit of tripe is. They represent approximately 3% of
the populace nationwide, yet get more attention than any other
single group. Bar none.
We've
already got more pieces of legislation specifically protecting
the rights of gay and lesbian persons than Carter has little
liver pills. Including the over-the-top Human Rights Code with
its kangaroo court provisions.
They,
as a group, have permeated our government and education system.
There
is an organization called the Gay & Lesbian Educators. We
have "same sex couples" rights in government pensions
and disability insurance. All this despite the overtly
promiscuous nature of homosexuality which, in itself, seems to
argue against the provision of these types of benefits.
Our
children are being spoon-fed words and theories like
"homophobia" and "heterosexism." Any attempt
to define those terms with any degree of rational logic is
ridiculous in the extreme. Sorry, teachers, but that's reality.
Yeah,
I can see the letters of complaint now.
No,
I'm not suggesting we shouldn't have tolerance of this or any
other group. We all share this planet equally. But there's the
operative word; equally.
This
attorney general has much more pressing problems than this
issue. Frankly, on the list of priorities, getting a gay element
added to federal hate crimes legislation has to rank somewhere
behind housing code improvements for igloos.
Unfortunately,
I believe the AG carries no weight at the cabinet table. Despite
his personal credibility, he appears to be nothing more than a
toady for Glen Clark and the power brokers behind this absurd
little man. A disproportionate number, I might add, are gay. It
is from that office, I'd wager, this push is coming from. Not,
as the AG would have us believe, from ordinary British
Columbians calling his office.
Gays
and lesbians are entitled to every protection the law provides.
Every bit as much as me and thee.
The
AG should be concentrating on the lack of resources for the
justice system to deal with the chronic criminal offenders. Not
to mention the myriad of other problems associated with the
perpetual lack of justice so prevalent in our little corner of
the world.
The
federal and provincial human rights acts are more than
sufficient to cope with victims of hatred or prejudice, from
whatever group they belong. Not to mention the already existing
hate crime sections of the Criminal Code.
The AG had best focus on the more urgent and important issues on his already full plate. The sooner the better.