Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - August 30, 2008, Winnipeg, Manitoba C m y k Page a18 Mirror images r Republican John Mccain surprised just about everyone by selecting Alaska gov. Sarah Palin As his running mate in the u. S. Presidential election. Is. Palin has been governor for less than two years and has Zero foreign policy experience. At 44, Sheds on the Young Side and her resume shows Sheds had More exposure to fishing and Hunting than either state or National politics. In other words she May be precisely what or. Mccain needs to weaken the sting of critics who say he is an aging and tired male Warrior stuck in the past and disconnected from the plight of Ordinary americans. It also does not Hurt that Sheds a dynamic Young woman and Mother of five who May Appeal to supporters of Hillary Rodham Clinton who Are still smarting Over her failure to break the Glass ceiling and win the democratic nomination. Like Democrat Barack Obama who selected sen. Joe Biden to mitigate some of his perceived shortcomings or. Mccain has decided that is. Palin will help with his image problems including doubts about his conservative credentials. The Alaska governor is strongly anti abortion opposed to Gay marriage and a vocal supporter of family values which will Appeal to social conservatives and evangelical christians. Democrats were Quick to criticize the Choice on the grounds that she lacks experience and is unfit to assume the presidency in the event or. Mccain became incapacitated. Republicans say or. Obama Isnit fit to be president for the same reasons. In that sense the two campaigns have become Mirror images of one another. Each balances youth and idealism with experience and realism. Or. Obama played it Safe with his Choice of running mate while or. Mccain is taking a risk. In the end however its the person at the top of the ticket who must close the Deal with voters. History shows that vice presidential running mates can help win votes in individual states or geographic districts but they cannot compensate for the political currents of the Day or a flawed Campaign or candidate. Americans Are in the mood for change As would be expected after eight difficult years War coupled with a recent economic decline but the close race so far suggests that Many voters Are unsure about or. Obama and his Campaign of change. Even the appointment of or. Biden the time tested White senator from Delaware has failed to give him a surge in support. Americans were in the mood for change at the end of the Reagan Era too but the democrats under Michael Dukakis successfully branded a Liberal by republicans were unable to drive Home the Opportunity. It remains to be seen what kind of Bounce or non Bounce the republicans get from is. Palin but everything so far Points to a Tough slogging match that will be one of the most exciting presidential races in modern american history. Editorials Winnipeg free press saturday August 30, 2008 Freedom of Trade Liberty of religion Equality of civil rights a 18 comment editor Gerald flood 697 7269 Gerald. Flood free press. My. Ca Winnipeg repress. Com have your say the free press welcomes letters from readers. They must include the authors name address and Telephone number. Letters May be edited. Letters to the editor 1355 Mountain Avenue Winnipeg r2x 3b6. Fax 697 7412. E mail letters free press. My. Ca letters represent the opinions of their writers and do not reflect the opinions of the Winnipeg free press or its staff. Poll vote online at wow. Winnipeg repress. Com Well treated in Puk thank you for your Short article City canoeist found alive aug. 21. It was a Relief to friends and family to see that my Friend and i were of. We missed a Portage and had to paddle Back to Pukatawagan which is downstream on the Churchill River. Fortunately we had plenty of food. It took us two extra Days to paddle from where we were on Siripuk Lake to Pukatawagan. We wish to thank the staff in the health Centre who were so helpful in letting us Call our families and connect with the plane to get a ride Back to the car. Thanks also to the ramp who showed such help and concern. Pukatawagan seemed to us a very hospitable Community and id recommend it As a paddling destination. David Weller Winnipeg i agree with the Mother re what took them so Long a aug. 26. After Reading Carol Dedel Leys reaction about the police involvement in her songs murder Case i had to agree with her opinions 100 per cent. First of All if there was any Chance whatsoever of the victim being her son prior to her knowledge of i would it have been completely out of line for the police to fill her in on this even if it was unconfirmed i would rather be informed by the ramp than by a reporter. Second Why did the police not take action against the suspect while he was on the greyhound for three hours after they had arrived if i had been trained to become a police officer in a situation like this i probably fail to take action in what i was trained to do like tapering a suspect. All of this is not meant to offend any of the police Force because ism sure they work harder than a lot of us to keep our cities and towns in Good shape. I can Only imagine the thoughts racing through their brains during situations like this with communities watchful eyes on them constantly. But maybe they will be better trained to Deal with circumstances such As this in the future. Heather Becker Roblin detached from reality re Winnipeg is not a Cit aug. 19. Like most left Wing ideologues Nick Ternetti does not appear to know which end is up. His musings Are somewhat detached from reality. For the record st. James became a City in 1956. Most of the suburbs were experiencing substantial growth in the construction Industry fuelled by the demand for housing that followed the end of the second world War. Much of Winnipeg Cit yes housing Stock built cookie Cutter style on 25 foot lots was old and tired. St. James offered modern and reasonably priced Homes on 50 foot lots. When the Schreyer government forced the suburbs to unite under metro it confiscated the $ 13 million Reserve fund that st. James had built up Over the years. This was reminiscent of the takeovers of private business in Saskatchewan is Early Kcf Days. St. James people were furious. They took it out on their la al Mackling by ousting him from office in the following election. Ter netters contemplations bring to mind the Mother who when watching her Rookie son marching with his platoon of soldiers exclaimed they Are All out of step except my Johnny i suggest that Ternetti run for Public office on a platform promoting his concept of citywide Urban culture. I would wish him Luck. He would need it. Margaret Bjornson Winnipeg peace movement Strong re Canada needs a better peace movement aug. 26. J. L. Granat steins suggestion that Canadas peace movement was More effective 20 to 30 years ago goes counter to my experience having been involved in the peace movement in Canada since 1968. Granatstein suggests that to Days peace movement is a curious amalgam of left Wing groups. Well its always been an amalgam of left Wing groups. I can still remember the Winnipeg committee for peace in Vietnam organizing More than 1,000 people against the War in Vietnam in october of 1968. The committee was Active until 1975 when american imperialism was Defeated by the North vietnamese and Vietnam was United. In 1981, peace Alliance Winnipeg launched the anti nuclear peace movement which lasted until the late 1980s, culminating with up to 20,000 people marching when former Premier Howard Pawley declared Manitoba to be a nuclear free zone. In fact in 1983, the City of Winnipeg had a referendum on whether Winnipeg should be a nuclear free zone. In the Early 1990s, thousands of Winni Eggers marched against the first Gulf War which led to the rebuilding of the peace movement when nato bombed Yugoslavia Serbia. The latest surge of activity in the peace movement in Winnipeg was when 7,000 people marched following the u. S. Invasion of Iraq. The peace movement in Winnipeg has done a Good Job Over the past four decades in ensuring that the alternative to War peace has been brought to the Public cos attention. Nick Ternetti Winnipeg ploughshares harvests peace Jack Granat steins comments on the Canadian peace movement begin with incorrect references to the work of project ploughshares and Ernie Regehr from 20 or 30 years ago. Neither have disappeared. Project ploughshares work has grown and diversified. Today we Are a staff of 10 engaged in research and analysis including peace building in the Horn of Africa participating As Ngo representatives on Canadian government delegations on nuclear disarmament and Small arms control annually reporting on the state of Security in outer space and working with a omens organizations in the Caribbean to Stem Urban gun violence. Regehr continues with project ploughshares As senior adviser having recently completed and reported on trips to Afghanistan and Iran. Like Fine wine his contributions get better with age. Project ploughshares is proud to be a part of the wider peace movement in Canada and beyond and works closely with others including some of the Ngos mentioned by Granatstein to Advance shared peace and disarmament goals. We Trust that Granat steins complimentary characterization of project ploughshares As a careful and responsible critic on foreign and defence issues continues to be True and he is Welcome to join our 8,000 supporters in furthering the work. John Siebert executive director project ploughshares Waterloo ont. Winnipeg free press est 1872 / Winnipeg Tribune est 1890 vol 136 no 289 2008 Winnipeg free press a division of up Canadian newspapers limited partnership published seven Days a week at 1355 Mountain Avenue Winnipeg Manitoba r2x 3b6, pm 697 7000 a member of the Manitoba press Council Bob Cox / publisher Margo Goodhand / editor to Days question who is the better Choice for u. S. Vice president previous question has the Lister Osis outbreak shaken your Trust of the food Industry yes 68% no 32% total 1,364 letter of the Day an Ace in Gold eyes deck i was at the Gold eyes game last sunday afternoon. Ace Walker was the starting Pitcher. The Little league team came on the Field to meet the Gold eyes player who plays the same position As the wannabes do on their own team. From my seat it seemed that the Little Guys rushed onto the Field just to be ignored. This was not an isolated event in fact it is More the Norm. On sunday the autographs were Given but there did not seem to be any Effort made by Many of the Gold eyes players to interact with the Young team. As i looked around it looked like this game a snot going to be any different. Ism sure these Young players idolize the Gold eyes team and their excitement at having the honour of being on the Field with them was evident. But then i glanced Over to the pitchers Mound. Ace Walker was showing a genuine interest in his Little Pitcher Ace crouched Down so he could talk with the Little Guy at the Little Guys level. They conversed until the playing of the National anthems. And then i saw Ace gesturing towards the flags while still showing genuine interest in his Young lad. What Ace did touched my heart. That Little Guy will never forget his experience and is probably Ace walkers biggest fan. But what about the other Guys its Only five minutes of your time but it is a lifetime of memories for the kids. These kids look up to you. You Are their mentors. They want to be just like you when they grow up. Please consider talking with and encouraging these Little leagues who Are so proud to stand with you. You have the ability to make a huge Impact on their future. And if that Isnit enough cause to make you want to change then perhaps simple common Courtesy could prevail. Val Coulter Winnipeg Gold eyes Pitcher Ace Walker ban does not Wash hand washing particularly by toddlers and Little kids with goofy snoopy hands is a laudatory concept. Among archetypes of Good clean living soap and water sit right there Between motherhood and Apple pie but anyone who has experienced motherhood can attest that hand washing might be the Good habit that is hardest to impart. Most adults in All honesty would concur. That is Why alcohol based Antiseptic rubs Are Standard features in Many institutions. The fact they appeared first in the places where risk of infection is highest and population of children lowest hospitals and nursing Homes proves that the hand washing habit is hard to learn Young and hard to follow later in life. The Winnipeg school division has banned the dispensers fearing risk of injury to Little ones who ingest the Spray or gels and the Chance that it might become a favoured treat for some due to the High alcohol Content in the base. For Good results the gel or Spray must be More than 70 per cent alcohol. The fears Are overstated they Are described As hypothetical dangers and the benefits underrated. There have not been alerts issued around the country about the misuse of the antiseptics which Are available in some schools. Getting children Small and big to spend a full minute with a bar of soap is a time consuming frustrating exercise in the hectic Day of Nursery and kindergarten teachers whose classrooms typically have sinks and soap available. Teachers have no real control Over older students. That is Why classmates regularly Swap germs colds and other infections and substitutes get called in when teachers take sick Days. Soap has met the test of time and is the cheapest obvious Means of doing Battle with bugs but it has also proven to be inconvenient. It is not Superior to Antiseptic rubs in battling bacteria and it is useless if not used. In that sense the bugs Are winning and do so with evident consequences when flu season Rolls around. The Winnipeg school division will fight the Good fight but lose the War in trying to keep infections at Bay kids at their desks and teachers at the Helm. The better option is for the division to resist the temptation for a uniform Rule and Trust the teachers to know the risks and to assess compliance with hand washing rules. It May prove that promoting the hand rub turns disinfection into a routine habit. If the dispensers become a problem schools or classrooms can always take them away and revert Back to pressing the hard lessons of sink soap and water. A 18_ aug 30 08. Ind a18 8/ 29/ 08 8 58 28 pm ;