Sidebar/callout:
Hey boys and girls, heres another Democracy In Action exercise. Clip this out, sign it and send it to the faxes listed. Or for your techies, copy it from the Web site to your e-mail and send it to these cyber addresses.Ujjal.Dosanjh.Office@leg.bc.ca (250) 387-0087
Gerard.Janssen.Office@leg.bc.ca (250) 387-4348
Graeme.Bowbrick.Office@leg.bc.ca (250) 387-6411
Paul.Ramsey.Office@leg.bc.ca (250) 387-5594
ted.nebbeling.mla@leg.bc.ca (250) 387-2731
Write on
Hon. Ujjal Dosanjh, Premier of all British Columbia
Hon. Gerard Janssen, Minister of Small Business, Tourism and Culture
Hon. Graeme Bowbrick, Attorney General and Minister Responsible for Human Rights
Paul Ramsey, Minister of Finance & a Bunch of Other Stuff
Ted Nebbeling, Homeboy
Dear Honis:
May I take this opportunity to wish you all a very happy and prosperous New Year? Oh, I forgot; at least four of you are biting your nails wondering whether 2001 may be you own personal space odyssey back to the obscurity of the private sector, what with elections looming, the provincial economy still in the toilet, scandals past and present and fickle voters who always seem to be itching for a change. But take heart, the Liberals are still led by Mr. Campbell whose personal score on the Trust-O-Meter is solidly lodged between Coiled Snake with Rattling Tail and Crazed Psychotic with Loaded Gun. Anything could happen.
But since were at least several months from election time, Ill go out on a limb and assume you gentlemen are still interested in running the province as opposed to splashing around with the rest of the lame ducks.
Were having a little problem up here in Whistler. You may have heard of Whistler. If not, ask Ted; he has at least a passing familiarity with the place.
Whistler is a town conceived and built to invite the world here to have a good time. In that regard, we have been a tremendous, unprecedented success. Think about it, 40 years ago, this place was nothing a couple of homes and a few rundown fishing lodges. Thirty-five years ago, it was a pipedream. In the span of many of our lifetimes, Whistler has gone from being nothing to being the wormhole where millions of tourists dollars fly out of their pockets and magically appear in yours, metaphorically speaking, of course.
Ironically in that uniquely Canadian, destroy the successful, way now that were so adept at drawing a couple million people here each year and slickly separating them from their money, the Miss Grundys of the province want to tone things down, throw up the revival tents and hold temperance meetings lest someone start to have too much of a good time. Hallelujah, Brother.
Lets face one simple, yet profound, fact. Whistler isnt like other towns. Aside from tourism, Whistler doesnt have any reason to exist. Without the skiing there wouldnt be the other tourist-based commerce, there wouldnt be the eight or nine thousand of us who live here year round, there wouldnt be anything. Whistler would be another Cache Creek, a wide spot on the road north where people stop for gas and a bag of chips. Hell, we dont even have a Tim Hortons here.
If youre anything like me and trust me, Im no more comfortable with that thought than you are you act differently when youre on vacation than you act at home. I mean, why bother going on vacation if youre going to act just like you do at home? Stay home. When were on vacation, we play a little harder, we shop a little more, we drink maybe a lot more. Its okay; thats what were supposed to do on vacation.
Remember the first time you maybe went down to the Caribbean and how you couldnt shake the feeling the locals viewed you as some kind of First World fat cat who lived a full-time life of hedonism and pleasure work with me on this one Uji. Remember thinking "Hey, I saved up for this and worked hard all year and dammit, Im going to have a good time," as you ordered your sixth Cuba Libra sitting around the pool, redolent of coconut suntan oil?
Thats not the way you live the rest of the year but youd have been some pissed off if you couldnt cut loose a bit while you were playing out your Gauguinesque fantasies.
Well, boys, thats life in Whistler all the time. Whether the marks come from the UK, the US or Burnaby, they come to Whistler to have a good time. Sometimes the locals join in; sometimes we even choose to lead.
Thats what happened last April 2 nd . After a couple of years on death-watch, Dustys the original bar at Whistler Mountains Creekside base was finally closing and going under the wrecking ball. One final party, one last celebration. It was something to behold. What was usually a mildly-crowded après ski bar became a scene of happy bedlam. It seems most of the town turned out for the party and about half of Vancouver.
On a bright, sunny, hot Sunday, people lined up to contribute a few bucks to charity to buy a branded piece of cedar with Dusty the Horse on it. The patio was awash with beer and memories. People fondly recalled how they met their partners, fell in love, lost their virginity, partied until their brains ran out their ears and generally created memories over Dustys 35 years.
Way too many people came. They crowded the patio, they lounged on the surrounding hills, they milled in the parking lot, they had a great time. There were a couple of assaults, one arrest, a few miscreants pissing against the side of buildings scheduled to be torn down the next day, a bit of skin flashed, and a whole lot of beer consumed.
I dont know how many people the liquor license said should have been there but Im certain there was a substantial multiple of that. What choice was there? Trying to turn people away would have resulted in a riot. Theyd come to pay homage to a bar that held a special place in their hearts.
The people of Whistler werent bent out of shape about it. Heck, most of us were there. The people who came up from Van werent angry, their morals werent outraged. Nope, the only people who got their knickers in a knot were the RCMP. Staff Sgt. Frank Shedden was morally outraged. Of course, he was about to leave town and maybe felt some frustration about having been posted to Party Central when his disposition seemed more suited to the tastes of Temperance, Manitoba. Who knows?
Anyway, Dustys got slapped with a closure which is looming this month. Ten days during the height of the ski season. And theres other, petty charges against the bar. But more fundamentally, the liquor control inspector seems to have this grudge against Whistler. All the bars are now seen as renegades that need to be reined in, bullied, threatened, intimidated. Understandably, bar owners arent eager to talk about this on the record, but its happening.
So do your job fellows. Bring a little sanity to this nonsense before your minions run amok and kill the goose thats going to pay your golden pensions. All of your ministries have a hand in this one. Maybe you should talk amongst yourselves before its too late.
Sincerely,