OPINION WEDNESDAY, Mi editorial co nt If you play you you should pay Something’s happening in Castlegar that doesn’t bode well. Fourteen fires in just over two , 11 fires a week for 52 $72 When petty politics threaten a united front ‘The more things change, the more they stay pyr At least that’s the way it must appear to the after ties im the riding and MLA Ed Conroy. Rossland and Trail, two land and Trail think they are forcing the govern- ment’s hand ‘in coming through with the promise by their letter campaigns, they're wrong. The need for excess power is not yet that and the government just doesn’t need the headache of dealing with a riding that can't agree among its own. Perhaps Rossland and Trail would do well to have benefited from the recent cominco deal, have stated in writing that before any devel- cost of one person’s foolhardinéss? city council enforced the going on in this far cofner of the province. The letters from Rossland and Trail, which =Talb ¢, Spicurrently nothing more than a flood control voiced a squeak of opposition when the mega deal 4 pe efame, of Trail’s Cominco plant was announced, even though all three dams in question— including Keenleyside—were part of the business equa- tion. In a city where the people are now fooling ge 7 BC hydro pay taxes is not something new, it’s been done since 1976. And while almost every- one, even Mike Harcourt, has stated publicly that the crown corporation must pay taxes, if Ross- only th Trail had the most to gain from the deal. Yet everyone, including Castle- gar, Rossland and Nelson, supported them . After all, Comii is a large ry and its irali was having a negative affect on all of us. For Trail Mayor Sandy Santori and his council to come on against Lower Columbia River We tse hows ke grt io sddcale pave petty politics, or is very comfused on the very deal that saved their town. With this area proud- ly claiming to be the union hub of the Koote- nays, perhaps both Mr. Santori and Mr. Profili should have looked further into a second deal that was recently signed, called the Allied Hydro Agreement. With signatures from various union officials, representing workers who live in Castlegar, Trail, Rossland and the surround- ing areas, the agreement states specifically that any work on the Columbia Develop. ment Project t would be unionized—thereby \g that their own ties will have increase spending power over a of time. Bill Profili speaks passionately for what he believes could be a further rip-off to this area if the 20-year development goes ahead, and that taxes, not construction, needs to be the main- ‘stay—after all, that's long term, he says. He’s partially right: taxes are long term. But so is a 20-year construction job. So are the econom- ic benefits that would hit this area successively. So is the growth of this province and eventually, the need for greater power producing capabilities. Besides, when taxation of Hydro does happen, the money collected would be that much on dams that actually do something besides block large masses of water. There is something else that has been tradi- tionally long term, but needs to end—the games Kootenay communities have played against each other in their efforts to scratch their way to the front line of the government trough. The result, traditionally, is that we end up with nothing except self-inflicted war-wounds. If this riding truly wants to succeed, it must stand up collectively. We have to show a united A great empire and little minds go ill together pay for it?” If the answer is no, DON’T BURN! choice, but the premier has an obli- gation to answer Lasers people of British Columbia.” You'll notice that, so oe hasn’t asked a question. The NDP fund-raising and money-laundering arm” refers to the Nanaimo Com- monwealth Holding Society scan- dal and is a clean check, although it has nothing to do with the Island One.last question bum is “If this fire gets out of hand can I afford to 1h retin gram at pte ha te aia At this point, Speaker Emery Bames Campbell lion is available to his friends under section 21(1) of the Island Highway agreement. My question to the premier is simply this: how can the premier assure British Columbians that not one cent of make it clear that this clause hasn't administered by trustees of the employers and the employees, and the funds are used to promote the industry, train workers and upgrade workers’ skills. It is no slush fund, and the money isn’t going into any party's pockets. Now, it’s no secret that unions tend to support the NDP. It's also no secret that some unions To start with, the unidns agreed to a wage reduction of $3 an hour, They also agreed to work 40 hours a week instead of the 37-and-a-half hours provided for in their regular contract. The unions further agreed to a no-strike, no-lockout clause for the duration of the project, which is expected to take. about four years to complete. In addition to that, the to the NDP coffers at election time. But let's be clear: those contribo- tions don’t come out of the advancement fands. Let's also be clear that big con- get those kind of concessions in any of its agreements with unions for big government contracts. To sum it up, for Campbell to call the union advancement fund a somehow, find its way into NDP party coffers is sleazy in the extreme. To help Camptell over his rough spots as a politician, I'd like to quote the Irish philosopher and 1 Wednesday, May 18, 1994 Oe 8 ee ee ee ee rr me FF The Castlegar Sun Letters to the Editor Dear Editor: One is left with no alternative but to suspect hypocrisy when the school board states publicly that they would prefer to have a con- sultative process in place than to “air their dirty laundry in public” and then proceed to make con- frontational media releases and letters instead of meeting with the parties involved. The pie graph accompanying the front page article quoting John Dascher, Secretary Treasur- er of School District No. 9 is an obvious manipulation of facts to aides (TAs) and child care work- ers (CCWs)” before pulling his punch only slightly in his next paragraph. The damage done, the statement made, I suspect that a trained newsperson such as Mr. Nonman is acutely aware that the villains have now been exposed and his conciliatory statement that he doesn't “mean to imply that these workers aré unneces- sary” makes little or no impact on the impression given in the initial statement. group who. to freeze their taxable income over the last couple of years (but whose hidden, and mainly tax to the naive but well-intentioned 1 Min- Mr. N also omits the fact that the students P y & message. The fact that ap it Wl ng the support required to successfully be integrated into the also gr directive of the P istry of Education to cut top end administrative costs, These cuts were “down-loaded” onto CUPE, per cent of the budget i is designat- ed for “supplies and operations” is, sadly, true; the implication that it is greedy teachers and support staff that eat up the budget is fos- tered by not showing the actual proportions that go to those groups, and significantly, what proportion of these dreaded “wages and benefits” go directly to administration. As an employee feeling the ee of drastic budget cuts, I to the misrepresen- tation of facts published over the last few weeks. Ron Norman's let- al funds for the district budget. Mr. Norman continues in this myopic vein to focus on some imaccurate for CUPE’s cuts in this budget only ($18,000 rather than the $60,000 we were quoted by Mr. Dascher, District Secretary Treasurer) and ignores (not for the first time) lary items and teachers (through hidden means like increased class sizes) although the intention of Mr. Charbonneau was clear—School Districts were to look at top-heavy administra tion. (Le. does a District the size of No. 9, Castlegar, need an assis- tant to the Supocineiar ae and to the to the massive cuts in dollars and hours that support staff suffered in the last budget. He also inaccurately refers to a “seven percent wage and benefit increase that comes into effect on July 1st” which is in fact, the ter of May 11 (implication of rect) is inflammatory. Mr, Norman's limited vision total i over a three- -year to have been a “catch-up “agree- ment” following several years of generally falling behind and growing gender-based inequities. At the same time as focussing Wages iéceptable Dear Editor: Regarding the article “Wages ” Wednesday, Ma’ Given the fact that education is a “people” business I find it pereectly acceptable that the teaching staff is paid a wage that is conducive to them maintaining a livelihood. In this day of soaring housing Come in and browse among. Greasures of the past 301 - 11th Ave. (Tulips Building) 365-5191 cantante ae a nance Supervisor; all full-time Top © lass HALLMARK OFitt CARL'S PLAZA DRUGS “Your Friendly with full-time perks?) Mr. Charbonneau was pretty clear that funds were to be redi- rected “into the classrooms” for the students. Secretaries, bus drivers, custodians and support staff all CARE FOR THE KIDS, and are not as “low impact” as you may think, Mr. Norman. With the job-erosion tactics (reduced hours and one-day lay- offs) one member of CUPE 1298 (support staff) who continues to work as near full-time as in District No. 9 has calculated personal reductions over the last two years and has realized an actu- al five per cent reduction in income rather than the touted seven per cent increase. Other support staff have been hit more heavily with jobs being reduced to five and a half hours per day or less. “Did one group take the fall” Mr. Norman? If you can't sec it, perhaps you need to look down! Norm Wolfe, CCW, School District No. 9 Gue s, Writing Pharmacy” ” CARL'S PLAZA DRUGS Castieaird Plaza - a costs and living exp a wage of up to $62,000 a year . disagree with aces a cials earning a higher wage than teaching staff. Who says their efforts are more valuable than those of the educators of our children, the future of Canada. Education of our children should be based on stability and if ows educators must seck at other McJobs in order to make their livelihoods we will have neither stable chil- dren or future of our country. No, I am not an educator, or part of the education conveyor belt, and I do think educational Now on sale » *3.00 Air Cadets are selling buttons at Super Valu and Safeway. The D ynasty LL HOME-BASED BUSINESSES IF YOU HAVE A HOME-BASED BUSINESS THIS IS THE PLACE TO ADVERTISE NELLIE'S MOBILE HAIR SERVICE Specializing in:cuts, perms, colours, streaks, shampoo sets for the whole —— Reasonable R For Home @ Nursing Home ¢ rosea © Office Just Call 365-5153 (leave your message please} Panasonic. 4799" CT-81XF21 Continues A New Ruling Class in Television Technology, Performance and Value. 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