Again, politics is all optics

If you read this paper regularly that may have a familiar ring, and it should. I say that all the time.

Basically, if it seems fishy, it most likely is. If it looks cheesy – it’s not because you are cynical and overtly judgmental – it sure-as-Mitt Romney-is cheesy. If a politician comes across genuine and concerned, and there is no fishy smell or obvious glob of greasy cheese oozing down the side of his or her mouth, it’s because they are genuinely concerned.

Politics is all optics.

Which is why my eyes are all scratchy and itchy and squinty right now.

No, it’s not the grandiose passion and morality play called Deer Cull 2012. And it’s not Stephen Harper ‘lowercase P’ preaching to the Chinese about human rights.

It’s galldarned Jumbo. What else, right?

I am referring to the Jumbo Junket, where a collection of Columbia Valley business people, Village of Radium Hot Springs Mayor Dee Conklin and Kootenay East MLA Bill Bennett have joined (Jumbo) Glacier Resort’s Oberto Oberti and Grant Costello for a week-long schmooze fest with a French company regarding, apparently only in part, the ski resort proposal that is old enough to drink in the United States.

Now, I am not opposed to business people and elected officials doing what they can to bolster our economy. Not at all. Call it a junket if you want. I do. Because it fits. But such ventures abroad often result in some investment, jobs are created and long-running business contacts can be established.

To some on the venture to France, in their heart of hearts, they believe that.  That’s fine. It’s not their fault they don’t really truly understand what is needed in this region as opposed to what is needed in their immediate futures.

This zeal has led them to a place where, roughly 140 years ago, Superintendant Sam Steele and twice as many North West Mounted Police as accompanied him to Galbraith’s Ferry, wouldn’t be enough to stop a fierce Aboriginal uprising.

Because you see, what this junket to France has done is stick a meaty finger into the collective eye of the Ktunaxa Nation, which remains in treaty negotiations with the province. The Ktunaxa Nation Council has made it abundantly and repeatedly clear that it is not amused with irrational governmental exuberance in inflating ‘look at the jobs we’ve created’ figures by approving a project on Crown land that the vast majority of people view as either unwanted, unnecessary or absolute fiscal folly. Let’s not even mention the environmental arguments right now, for the sake of not piling on. Kootenay Crust can be gentle sometimes.

Think about it. The ‘junketeers’ are meeting with a French company that is akin to one of our Crown Corporations, to discuss them forking over the Euros to build Jumbo Resort, in an area the Ktunaxa consider sacred. And they didn’t even take a representative of the Ktunaxa Nation with them!

The Americans built Mount Rushmore – sporting four stone heads of their political antiquity, in the heart of the Plains Indians’ holy land, when Aboriginals were considered akin to buffalo – in the way of progress. Nice gesture. Then they punted them out of the Black Hills and forced them to live on the bald ass badland prairies to the east, out of the shelter. Then they did horrible things at Wounded Knee but I am seriously digressing while trying to make a point. Big breath. Point being, it’s like that. A complete screaming insult. Dimbulb, clown footed whitey steps in it again with his greedy egoism and ignorant guile.

Canada also has its many shames when it comes to the First Nations people. The mere fact we shackled Aboriginals to Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, addicting them in so many ways and on so many levels, stands alone as an example.

And now, apparently, the Ktunaxa have to take this on the chin, despite claims by elected officials that relations have dramatically improved over the years. Sure enough they have, but apparently it doesn’t matter because: ‘here Ktunaxa people, have another big meaty finger in the eye. We’re gonna go to France and see if the French people want to build a resort on B.C. Crown land, which is also held dear by the longest tenured residents of this region – the Ktunaxa and they don’t want anything to do with the development idea. Yeah, that won’t ruffle any feathers. Oh no. Uh uh. Oh, and have a blanket.’

How do you suppose Chief Isadore would have interpreted such a move?

Now I am not speaking on behalf of the Ktunaxa Nation. Wouldn’t dare. I am just offering my take on the optics of this junket.

There is no question that we need to pump some air into the tires of our local economies but not at the cost of our social fabric, culture, heritage and base intellectual mores. This bloody issue has done enough damage these past couple of decades.

Take the show to Valemount folks. Those folks up there could damned well use something like this – much more than we need it. Let’s trade them Jumbo for future considerations (nudge nudge wink wink). Besides, we have excellent ski resorts in Fernie, Kimberley, Panorama and some nice wee hills too, not to mention the world’s finest helicopter and cat-ski operations, which would all be impacted in the negative with a Johnny Come Lately added to the mix.

What we need here is industry that pays wages where people can afford the ridiculously overpriced homes and properties in this region. Tourism wages, sans the high end managers, don’t cut the mustard. They don’t bring enough young families here to add to our school enrolments and to inject life into our communities, like industry does.

Tourism jobs are awesome, supplementary jobs that fill in the gaps. No doubt they’re vital – but we’ve got so many in this region already that hundreds of them must be staffed by Aussies, Kiwis, Asians and folks from all over Canada. Reliance on tourism is a flimsy house of cards when wonky economic winds blow.

Our junketeers should be jetting to Silicon Valley or Ontario or Vancouver to try and coerce clean (relatively speaking) industry with our amenity migration possibilities. Head to Fort Mac and lure back cash fat oil workers to live in our warmer, more beautiful splendor, so their families can take root and, maybe down the road, invest in the tourism industry – such as a really sexy boutique operation that boggles the imaginations of wilderness starved Europeans and Americans.

This region’s strengths are its people – all of them. If we work together and use our heads collectively, we can continue to accomplish things that will serve us into the future.

And before I have to respond to a quick-to-anger-knee-jerker, I am in no way opposed to tourism. I think it’s the complete frigging bee’s knees because if you have a strong tourism industry, which we do have thanks to our operators and organizations such as Tourism Rockies, it means you are living in a place a great many people spend large sums of cash to visit. That’s pretty cool. And I’d like to think we will do the best we can to keep it that way.

We don’t need no stinkin’ pie in the sky that is 15 years past its ‘best before’ date.

Ian Cobb/e-KNOW

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