FASHION FAUX PAS

Anyone in Maine who knows anything about our long and constructive relationship with New Brunswick knows Elsie Wayne. Her resume defines public service and accomplishment: two terms on the Saint John Common Council, four as mayor, now midway through her third as member of Parliament; awards and honors that would fill this page (including an honorary doctorate from Husson College); tireless work for charity and the arts, an internationally recognized expert in transportation, defense and good government; an architect of the sister-city relationship between Saint John and Bangor. It is no surprise that her 1999 authorized biography “Elsie” was a No. 1 Canadian best seller.

Anyone who knows the remarkable Mrs. Wayne knows two other things about her. She dresses, shall we say, with flair. She does not suffer fools.

Those two traits combined in a most unfortunate way for Defense Minister John McCallum in a debate in Parliament Tuesday. The serious topic was what role Canada might take should there be military action against Iraq. The very serious question from the Conservative MP from Saint John – one given added weight by her position as her party’s leader on defense issues – was what had been done to prevent a reoccurrence of the friendly-fire tragedy that killed four Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan.

The answer from Mr. McCallum was not serious. With a gesture intended to draw attention to the Hon. Mrs. Wayne’s sweater (black with gold and silver sparkles in an argyle pattern), he joked that such attire might be just the thing to identify Canadian troops in the field.

Parliament was not amused, nor is the Canadian public – opinion seems split between whether their defense minister is a sexist dolt or just an ill-prepared clown. Mrs. Wayne, in her inimitable – shall we say – fashion, accepted Mr. McCallum’s half-hearted apology with the half-hearted conciliation it deserved and looks forward to the time when he will be able to answer her question intelligently.

To Mrs. Wayne, we in Maine offer this encouragement: keep serving your nation, your province and our region, keep asking serious questions, by all means, keep dressing with flair. To Mr. McCallum, who has made a very poor choice in whom to fool with, we can only offer our sympathy.