Dear Sir:
I really enjoyed the article of yours about the nomination of Robin Austin as the NDP candidate to run in the next election. Robin is an excellent choice and I was glad to support him during that nomination meeting.
Your comments about him being a fine husband and a good father were correct. The description of him being a hard worker for his riding was appropriate.
The history of his varied career up until now shows that he is a man of much experience. The statements about his honesty were certainly correct: all in all an excellent article about an excellent man. One fit to represent our riding in the future.
This was all going well until I hit page two and ran smack into Rich Coleman.
Rich Coleman. A long-time member of the Liberal government's cabinet, with both Campbell and Clark.
How did he get into this piece about Robin's nomination? Is he double dipping? Did he sneak in or did he pay to get in? A reread of this page two, one finds out that he is being quoted from some undated press release for some obscure reason.
Apparently Rich is responding to comments made by Robin about B.C. Hydro. Rich is trying to enforce the need for the hydro line north to Iskut. In his press release, Rich plagiarizes my words from all the five times we (the regional district) met with his cabinet imploring them to build the line. Five years, we were turned down.
The line would be built by now if they had done as they were told. His explanation is “the line needs to be built. Jobs, jobs, mines and mines. Power to the people for now and the future.”
My words, rejected then, now repeated back to us.
I started out reading about Robin's nomination, ended up reading Rich Coleman defending a project he repeatedly turned down.
Who let Rich into this conversation? He is as wanted as an ex-husband at his ex-wife's new wedding.
It would have been nice to read some good words about Robin without Rich showing up like a horse fly at a rodeo.
The next time Coleman wants some column inches in a paper, let him use his own byline, not tag along like a bug in a potato salad.
Les Watmough, Terrace, B.C.