Scab ash ahead neat ene —s t the end of every strike or other work stoppage our economic ‘‘experts’’, government heads and sundry other weisenheimers, tell us often and anon, how many work days have been lost, how many thousands or millions of dollars have been ‘‘lost”’ in wages, etc. In this subtle effort at strike- breaking, and/or banning all strikes, they tellus a lot more on the same theme which just isn’t true. But then truth, has a very remote relationship with government-monopoly exploitation of the labor or idealogy of working people. Hence their current avalanche of lying bilge on the high incidence of unemployment. and their “‘readiness” to do anything for the unemployed— except get off their backs — or provide jobs for them. It is strange, however, that while these pundits rant and rave and calculate the ‘days lost’’ because workers have to strike to win meagre wage increases. no one hears these political adding machines reckoning up the work days, the time lost and the productive labor deliberately squandered. all, because a monopoly big business plunderbund, together with their subservient Liberal and Tory administrations have agreed long ago, that a millioh-strong or more jobless army is essential to their continued exploitation and maximum rate of rofit. : Back in the middle of the Hungry Thirties, whena million- fold army of jobless workers compelled a cheese-paring Liberal regime and a belly-robbing Tory ditto. to enact a system of unemployment insurance, it was a victory for unity and progress against the planned starvation of capitalist administrations. It was also a recognition of the fact that unemployment was one of the most vicious evils of capitalist society — which would not end or be obliterated short of Socialism. Hence a system of unemployed insurance was also an admission that those solely responsible for its existence was not the working people, but those who own and control the means, resources and machinery of production and distribution. In short, the responsibility for unemploymentin its overall entirety, was and is solely that of capitalism and its political ‘yes men’. From the 30's and before to the 70’s the numerical strength of the unemployed has fluctuated, but rarely ever got below the quarter-of-a-million mark. Now it is scoring another all-time high, well nigh the one-million mark, despite all the deliberately falsified ‘figuring’ to reduce its actual totals— which by the way provide specious *‘excuses”’ for the political apologista of big business. But more than that. these administrative apologists and their lackies have added *‘something new ‘—a noisy attempt to blame the jobless worker for’being out of a job.andtosmear his integrity by accusing him of *‘dishonest” practices in his claims for unemployment insurance benefits. While an infinitely small percentage of the whole (not over one half of one percent) may attempt to collect more in UIC benefits than they are entitled to. the apologists of and for Big Business smear the whole — with new legislation on the way in an effort to make that contemptable smear stick — much like Nixon's napalm bombs on the bodies of Vietnamese children. Not content with merely blaming the jobless worker for his own joblessness. the Trudeaus et al are now getting set to deprive him and his family of its half-ration benefits. Will the “cost” to Canada be less if this slander gains credence? Don't make us laugh. All that will happen is that the cost of “welfare” will skyrocket. so will the ranks of the unemployed ‘even the “bad” ones) and so will the “inflation” which we sought to “cure” by upping unem ployment. Asforthe unemploved victims themselvesand their allies in the million-fold trade union movement: they have the solution in their own hands— in their united strength. To begin to establish responsibility and ownership of their own job— to reverse an old adage. popular when labor was born. permitted’ to fallinto disuse, but now more imperative than ever before. viz, ‘‘he who owns the means whereby I live, owns me’’. The moral bankruptcy of UIC and its political bell-hops. again proclaim it. FOR ALL YOUR TRAVEL NEEDS Contact: GLOBE TOURS 2679 E. Hastings St., Vancouver 6, B.C. 253-1221 254-2313 ¢ PACIFIC TRIBUNE—ERIDAY, JANUARY: 26;)1.973—PAGE 2 Higher welfare rates top priority — Rankin By ALD. HARRY RANKIN On the recommendation of Mayor Art Phillips, City Council has appointed me as chairman of the Social Services Committee. The other members are Alder- man Darlene Marzari, Vice Chairman, and Aldermen Walter Hardwick and Marianne Linnell. The main work of this com- mittee deals with welfare and that is hardly new to me. Iwasa member of the welfare com- mittee in the old Council and during the course of each year I receive many hundreds of calls for assistance from people on welfare. Our committee has held several meetings, we have met with provincial Rehabilitation Minister Norm Leviand welfare issues have been brought before City Council. Already differ- ences of opinion are evident among us, at least on the ques- tion of priorities. My views could be briefly summed up as follows: Welfare is here to stay, at least under our _ present economic and political system. The number of people on welfare will be increasing each year. This is inevitable in a social system that has‘no other way of taking care of people who have become incapacitated, that “maintains a high level of unemployment, that fosters alcoholism, that leads to family break-up and an _ increasing number of deserted mothers, that breeds crime and delin- quency. The people on welfare are the victims of our social system. They areno less human for that. Government has the moral and legislative responsibility to provide those unfortunate enough to be on welfare witha standard of living that enables them to live in dignity and health. é : Number one priority. ther- fore. as far as I am concerned, is an increase in welfare rates. This is demanded by welfare reci- pients, it was recommended by the city’s welfare director Walter Boyd, and the old City Council endorsed the propo- sition over a year ago. Yet nothing has been done. In the meantime the cost of living con- -tinues to spiral upward which means that for those on welfare living standards are going down rapidly. I have asked our new Council to approve the increase but they have deferred action. When we met with Provincial Rehabili- tation Minister Norm Levi, he talked about everything except welfare rates and when I pressed him for action he replied that this matter would be taken up at a later date. The problems of more social workers, homemaker and day care aid, speeding up welfare cheques, etc. are all important. But none of them take the place of enough money for adequate standard of living, so that those on welfare have enough food on the table, a decent place in which to live, proper clothes, with some money left over for trans- portation. In the long run this saves the city money—inhealth, in police and court costs, ete. Of course these sort of problems, including retraining for those able to work, cannot be neglected. One on which I am taking action right now is the clean up of rooming houses in Skid Road that are not fit for human habitation. We have closed one down already on Alex- ander Street and more will be closed if they don’t upgrade standards. We have no need for rat and bug-infested premises, lacking even the minimum sanitary facilities in many cases, in our city. City health inspectors will have my full support in any actions they take to enforce city . health standards. This then, willbe my approach to welfare — to step up the fight for higher rates as the number one priority while not letting downon the battle toimproveall other aspects of welfare services. Tenants urge amended Landlord, Tenant Act If the indications given in a meeting between Attorney-Gen- eral Alex MacDonaldand adele: gation from the B.C. Tenants Organization. are correct. tenants canexpectlegislationto be introduced- possibly in the next session of the Legislature, to set up municipal rental review boards as well as limit- ing the power of landlords in eviction proceedings. The eight-man delegation led by President Bruce Yorke met with MacDonald last week and submitted a brief outlining the demands of the tenant organi- zation and pointing to the election platform of the NDP which promised favorable tenant legislation. The brief urged the manda- torv establishment in all munici- palities of rental review boards to take the adjudication and enforcement of the Landlord and Tenant Act out of the hands - of the Small Claims Court and the Prosecutor's Office. In the organization’s proposals. the - board would have equal representation from both land- lord and tenant organizations as well as a chairman mutually agreed upon. Also included in the brief was the demand for collective bargaining rights for tenants in an apartment with more than Six tenants, and a reiteration of the earlier demand for an immed. late rent freeze to protect the recent pension increase enacted by the provincial government. Yorke said that MacDonald fave a very ‘definite impres- Sion” that the government would move to amend the Land- lord and Tenant Act to require landlords to give just cause in the case of evictions. Under present legislation all that is required is for the landlord to ‘give adequate notice that the tenant must vacate. No reason need be given. Mourn passif of Annie Bullel Nigel Morgan, B.C. leat! of the Communist Parl} sent the following telegi® to the Party’s Central Col mittee in Toronto express) deep sorrow at the passing Communist veteran lea Annie Buller: ‘| “Qn behalf of the B.C-By vincial committee nl membership of the munist Party in : we join many thousands it" coast to coast in express. deep sympathy to her’ Jimmy and veterans 0 movement in the loss 0~ dear comrade Annie Bulle to the service of her fe! man, fighting for 4 things that mean hol security, freedom and p@ for the class which gave birth and to which she tributed so much. ‘Her steadfast devotiot! the working class and rev", tionary socialism will ner ben forgotten by those 9” who had the good fortuile knowing her.”’ Ja COPE calls for unity The Committee of Pa ressive Electors (COPE ES again appealed to the ND F unity of the two groups in © elections. . The resolutions unanime, passed at the general meh ship meeting on January 2 at 600 Campbell AY&, attended by 100 mem declared that ‘Unity inD® ber 13th civic elections be COPE, the NDP and trade? movement around a ©? af program and one slate of fy dates could have resulte , election of a strong em { genuine reform candida® City Council, the School ? and the Parks Board.” The resolution recogninel fi COPE and NDP ‘‘do not 8% to eye on all issues but ag! many,’’ and expressed thé, that ‘‘a paramount cons! tion should not be whatany> can gain for itself but W an can do together on behalf®, people of Vancouver 10 |; about genuine change !# government.” - () COPE proposed that ita” NDP eachselectacomm! three and meet togell explore the possibility oii action in the period imme ahead on issues as they and also on unity in the 197” elections. — 4 ‘ot! In other business the me adopted a plan of action! it that included the publicé a new type of paper "@ hitting publication thal) expose the schemes developers, provide aa ground of in-depth infor 5 on civic issues and list the” record of aldermen. _ ey Plans were also laid | membership drive. taining a year-round office campaign in favor of a system. A number of co" tional changes will be prot ‘tothe annual meeting 09 © 28. 1973. ;