main One kind of conspiracy How B.C.’s small cities are dominated by the establishment By BILL CAMPBELL We all know, or have heard of, the crooked mayor: the call-girl Tacket run by local City Fa- thers: the “fixed” consession awarded by a Council. Then there’s the slightly less crude ex- ample of a Council ‘‘granting”’ thousands of taxpayers’ dollars to the Chamber of Commerce for the latter’s promotional pur Poses. Shocking as these things may be they are only really fringe benefits compared with the whole bit. This is, the complete Control of the whole direction and end result of the way-of-life i each municipal community by the business sector. There is, Mm addition, a linking-up that is Neither public or official between the different municipal authorities. There is a similar two-way traffic with the Provincial government. The effects of this set-up are often more apparent in the Smaller cities and towns. The Tesults are much the same for all Wage earners, though young adults probably feel the blows first. , Suppose you are in your late teens or early twenties in a Small interior town. First off, you'll need a job, your own home if you’re going to get married, and all the time you must buy food and clothes. The Necessities, the bare ones. Then, too, as a human being, you'll Need recreation, entertain- ment, fun. Very definitely you'll find in the interior towns of Beautiful B.C.”, (and it is beautiful in the scenic sense), that in all these things you have very little choice at all. You'll find that you are expected to be Satisfied with what the Establish- ment decides is good for you. The ‘Establishment’? . . . Well, we usually think of this as 4 Collection of frontmen for the 18 Corporations and trusts who are in some kind of public office. nd so they are: ministers of a Parliament, senior civil ser- Vants, top brass in the armed forces. But when you get down to the smaller social units like these interior cities, towns and Villages, the local businessmen Comprise the bulk of their own Stablishment. The local representatives appointed by € federal and provincial 80vernments, having ‘“‘been to same school”, become their ‘AUXiliaries. So, don’t expect to necessarily receive the legal minimum wage, or the legal overtime rate, or enjoy minimum health standards on the job as laid down in the Provincial Health Act. Unless, of course, you’re one of the lucky few who is organized - in a union. Though, since women and youth represent the bulk of unorganized workers, the odds are lengthened for you here. (And, incidently, don’t put too much hope in being protected by the law. alone as regards minimum working conditions. Government officials take little notice of complaints unless reported by the. victims personally — which is one short- cut to getting laid off!) If you’re getting married you may proceed to make the biggest single purchase of a lifetime: you want to buy a house. Here you'll be given the opportunity to tangle with most of the vertebrae of the business back- bone. The real estate agent, the mortgage company, the insurance agent, a lawyer — they’re all there. At first it may seem a pleasant challenge to buy your own food, clothes, furniture. With loss- leaders in the stores and the ever- lasting ‘‘car-load lot’ gimmick it might look like you have some kind of a choice. After shopping around for a little while you'll soon find there is really none. And so it goes. Everything tied up tight in what amounts to a close-knit conspiracy. Even the traditional vehicles for public opinion are part of this structure. So it is usually only~ one daily newspaper, one TV and. radio station per com- munity; sometimes all three even owned by the same com- pany. (Only 17 cities in all Canada have more than one daily newspaper. Thomson News- papers Ltd. now control the whole of the Okanagan in this respect: Kelowna, Penticton, Vernon and Kamloops. ) * Naturally this whole public- gouging structure has to appear palatable. Consequently it’s larded over with a network of “service club’’ activities, recurring week-long visits of Christian Crusades which every local church enthusiastically supports, various main street business-supported parades and United Appeal campaigns. No need to guess who are the sponsors and leading figures in all these good works! It is a pretty dark picture for . wee GLO Seeking Sun Spots? We can get you fo: , HAWAII | MEXICO , CUBA BE TOURS 2679 E. Hastings St. 253-1221 Vancouver 6, B.C. (254-2414 anyone starting out into adult life in any of these small interior towns. It will continue to be so, too, until these same young people, having faced the reality of this total swindle in all its parts, decide that instead of trying to join it, to beat it. Which is easy to say, and very, very difficult to do. You'll be “storming the heavens” of the well entrenched powers that be who have never given up one cent of their well-heeled privileges voluntarily. One thing is sure. You can be as indignant and fearless as hell as an individual, which is a healthy start. But if you try to get anything altered on your own they’ll chop you up for cat-meat! _ Grape boycott supported by Communists Communist clubs in Vancouver and New West- minster organized demon- strations this week in support California grape workers striking for collective bar- gaining rights, and protection ‘against poisonous insecticides used in grape fields. Twenty-five pickets from Kingsway Club appearing outside Safeway’s store at 22nd Ave., and Slocan found leaflets well received, and noted few shoppers entering Safeway by comparison with Stong’s Shopping Centre across the street, which does not handle California grapes. After the picketing members gathered at the home of Mrs. May Taylor, where hot drinks and a bean supper were enjoyed. In Westminster a picket line of : 39, initiated by the new Fraser millworkers industrial club, found ready support outside the big Safeway store on Columbia. Soon after pickets appeared it was noted very few patrons entered the Safeway store. More and more solidarity actions are needed. We should see that there isn’t a store handling ‘‘hot grapes’’ that doesn’t get the message. eceorceveesecereeseeeveseseseser OVALTINE CAFE ‘ 1 EAST HASTINGS Vancouver, B.C. QUALITY SERVICE weoer ceeeSoeoeoseseoeeeeeere®D Workers Bonevolent Assn. - Of Canada P. >< ressive Fraternal Society Ca + sto all your needs in the Life Insurance field aeveseocosenscoet | ! | ! I I I I | I I I LIFE A SURANCE ENDOWMENTS PENSION PLANS - WEEKLY BENEFITS Aoply to: B.C. office at (05 East Pender St: or N ational Office at 5¢ 5 Pritchard Ave. ‘si nipeg 4, Manitoba —_a- SAEED i ae SS | [TED HARRIS | OIL CONCESSIONS IN NIGERIA AND BIAFRA _ Shell-BP Mining Leases. PROSPECTING LEASES ES shell: BP. Pet. Dev.of Nigeria. E53 nigerian Guit (I Nigerian acip American Overseas. Tennessee Nigeria. EEEEH] Mobil Exploration. Nigeria Safrap (Nigeria), HE Phittips. Map shows the oil conéessions which foreign monopolies, NORTHERN REGION BIAFRA formerly Eastern Region) a y/ AOILFIELDS —=OiL PIPELIN particularly French and U.S., had been granted in Biafra. The fall of Biafra has blocked French and U.S. hopes to seize and control these rich Nigerian oil fields. DIGEST Dwight L. Johnson, M.D. Gibsons, B.C. writes: The humanitarian poseurs at Ottawa — Trudeau, Sharpe et al., probably think that they improve their images, by their decision to extend air ($2,000,000 daily) to Biafra. This readiness to spend the taxpayer’s money, so gener- ously must raise questions. For example: o What assurance is given, — or can be given, that food sent to the starving in Biafra, will not be diverted to feed the army, thus prolonging both the war and the suffering? o Has the discovery of oil in Biafra, become the real cause of the war; with the opposing armies backed by different power blocks, a&fa%q.manu- facturers and oil interests — all callously indifferent to the human suffering involved by the struggle? This is not impossible. It would seem that until these questions are answered satis- factorily — no responsible government is justified in the present decisions. Too often blind charity supports both deception and fraud. 757 East Hastings St. Vancouver 4. B.C. Painters’ and Poperhangers' Supplies Sunworthy Wallpaper Reg. 45c—Now 19¢ a Roll cit .North Burnaby fights pollution Burnaby citizens are taking action to fight pollution, particularly the obnoxious smoke coming from the oil refinery stack flames. A meeting of concerned Burnaby citizens Sunday night set up a committee of six, named prominent trade unionist George Gee as its president, and decided to call a public meeting on February 18 at a place to be announced shortly. Mayor Robert Prittie and Alderman J. Dailly have been invited to speak. The rally will hear proposals to enlarge the present executive and to adopt by-laws for the anti- pollution organization. “AFTER RISING STEADILY OVER A RERIOD OF SEVERAL MONTHS MILK. PRICES CRASHED oun Hare a Cent” Classified advertising BUSINESS PERSONALS DRY CLEANING & LAUNDRY Also Coin-op LAUNDRETTE 2633 Commercial Dr. 879-9956 REGENT TAILORS LTD. — Custom Tailors and Ready- ‘to-Wear, 324 W. Hastings St. MU 1-8456 or 4441 E. Hastings — CY 8-2030. See Henry Ran- kin for personal service. JAN. 24 — LAST CALL! — ‘for the ANNUAL BURN’S SUPPER & DANCE — SAT. JAN. 24th at FISHERMAN’S HALL — 138 E. Cordova St. Dinner & Entertainment 7 to 9 P.M. Dancing — 9 to 12. Re- freshments. Adm. $3.00 each. ALL WELCOME. Ausp: Burnaby — Coquitlam Burn’s C’ttee. : PACIFIC TRIBUNE—JANUARY 23, 1970—Page 11 HALLS FOR RENT CLINTON HALL, 2605 East Pender. Available for ban- quets, meetings, weddings. etc. Phone 253-7414. UKRAINIAN CANADIAN CULTURAL CENTRE — 805 East Pender St.. Vancou- ver 4. Available for Banquets. Weddings, Meetings. Phone: 254-3436 or 876-9693 RUSSIAN PEOPLE'S HOME— Available for meetings. ban- quets and weddings at rea- sonable rates. 600 Campbell Ave. 254-3430. NOTICE The B.C. PEACE COUNCIL announces its NEW AD- DRESS is: Rm. 712, 207 WEST HASTINGS ST. (Dominion Bank Bldg.) PHONE 685- 9958. ;