S PUBLISHER: ROD LINK EMAIL: standard@kermode.net government in previous years of debt reducfton _NDP philosophy that a government has a central of the overall debt to do so, then let ’er rip. ADDRESS: 3210 Clinton Street Terrace, B.C. * V8G 5R2 Let ‘er rip and debt management. tole to play in the economy and in society. And All budgets are as much of a political statement _A4- The Terrace Standard, Wesnesdcy, a 7, 4999 ESTABLISHED APRIL 27, 1988 TELEPHONE: (250) 638-7283 * FAX: (250) 638-8432 FORGET ALL that bumpf from the NIP Last week’s provincial budget is true to the if it takes a huge deficit which then becomes part as they are a financial document and this one is even more so. This should at least be a comfort. to those preparing for the next provincia] elec- tion for it clearly outlines the ground on which. Premier Glen Clark will stand and fight. The key to this rests within the increases for ed- ucation and health care spending. Once again the NDP has frozen higher education tuition fees. So for the opposition Mr. Clark has presented a choice — keep the fees frozen to allow more people to gain a higher education at the cost of a higher deficit, or cut that deficit by raising fees and risk alienating students. It’s the same with health care. That bill will be nearly $8 billion this coming year, more than one-third of the provincial budget. The health care system seems to be in a perpetual crisis no matter how much money is spent, painting the picture that any cuts here to trim the deficit puts the system at risk. Again, that’s a powerful chal- lenge for the opposition to face. But Mr. Clark is often too clever by half. He’s dancing as fast as he can in the hopes that by the time he has to call an election, the overall provincial financial picture will have changed and that there will be an increase in tax revenue which in turn will reduce the deficit. So in some ways it will work to the opposi-. sacred cows of education and: health. caré ¢an’t be milked forever in the face of a mounting debt: load, A scoop THERE’S A certain smell that heralds each ‘spring. The air on an early, fresh morning? Nope. Dog poop. Mounds of it. Broppings on sidewalks, beside power poles, on footpaths — the scent of which wafts upward as the weather warns. This year there seems to be more of than ever, a direct correlation perhaps to the amount of snow which fell over the winter. All that white stuff served to hide the offerings of man’s best friend, making it all that more visible as the snow receded. Tt isn’t that the poop presents a health hazard. It’s just plain unsightly. A walk outside resem- bles a fancy Maritime two-step in the vain at- tempt to dodge what has been deposited. Dog owners have little to fear from a city by- Jaw requiring them to stoop and scoop. After being on the books for three years, only one per- son has been fined. But it can’t be that difficult, for owners of dogs to stoop and scoop. At the’ very least, consider it a minor courtesy. PUBLISHER/EDITOR: Rod Link ADVERTISING MANAGER: Brian Lindenbach PRODUCTION MANAGER: Edouard Credgeur NEWS Jeff Nagel « NEWS/SPORTS: Christiana Wiens NEWS/COMMUNITY: Alex Hamilton OFFICE MANAGER: Sheila Sandover-Sly CIRCULATION MANAGER: Karen Brunette ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS: : Sam Bedford, Bunnie Cote FELEMARKETER: Tabatha Orange AD ASSISTANT: Kelly Jean COMPOSING: Susan Credgeur AD ASSISTANT/TYPESETTING: Julie Davidson SUBSCRIPTION RATES BY MAIL: $57.30 per year; Seniors $50.75; Out of Province $64.39 Outside of Canada (6 months) $158.25 (ALL PRICES INCLUDE GST) MEMBER OF B.C. AND YUKON COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS ASSOCIATION. CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS ASSOCIATION AND B.C. PRESS COUNCIL Serving the Terrace and Thornhill area. Published on Wednesday of each waek at 9210 Clinton Street, Terrace, British Columbia, VAG 5R2. Storias, photographs, illustrations, designs and typestyles in ihe Terrace Standard are the property of tha copyright holders, Including Cariboo Press (1969) Lid., its llfustration repro services and advertising enicies. Flopreducion inwhelo arin par, ‘witout writlen permission, ip specifically prohibited. : Authorized as second-class mail pending the Post Office Department, for payment atpostage In cash, Speclai thanks to all our contributors and correspondents for their time and talents CAMA ING NM ANE . VICTORIA - It’s only money, folks, but then again, it’s your money and mine. And the tightening grip on your wallet is that of Finance Minister Jay MacPhail and the 1999 budget she brought down Tuesday. The absolutely worst news is: British Columbia's accumu- lated debt will increase to $34.7 billion in this fiscal year, up from $32 billion last year. Since 1995, the province’s total indebtedness has risen by $5.5 billion. That’s the stuff we pay inter- est on without getting anything in return. This fiscal year’s interest to be paid on total debt budget, brought down by the "new premier and finance minis- ter Dave Barrett, was the first ever budget in British Colum- -bia to crash the $2 billion mark, not for interest but total expen- ditures. Ah, the good old days. The really bad news is that the 1999 budget anticipates a deficit of $890 million, up from last year’s “revised forecast” of $544 million, ; What that bad news buys you is increased spending in Here’s VANDALS RULE. Don’t think so? Attend any mecting -- school board, regional district, city, parks advisory board, neigh- bours planning a tot lot. Before every decision, consideration has to be given to outsmarting vandals, Want to plant a row of trees to beautify a downtown street? Think lighting, traffic, tree guards... Want to place a park bench outside the library? Use lumber too thick to carve through, too cumbersome to move without a jeep, then anchor the bench to the concrete. ; You still won't outwit the vandals. Vandals have plenty of free time, devote long houts to their “work”, and enlist their buddies. They lack only brains - - and-upbringing. . They never lack targets, As |. fast as the community adds a civilizing touch, vandals gather like yultures to rip it apart. I Wow! THREE f GAME TRAILS I MERGED IN TO GAME TRAIL ! .y is estimated at $4. 6 billion, up | tion’s favour for the economy to stay soft.: ‘Those |) imo from’ FROM. THE CAPITAL. HUBERT BEYER health care and education, the mantra of Glen Clark’s NDP government. In the absence of a Throne hy we have. not, the slight ) ‘where* this“govern mentplans to lead.us in, the'nex 12 months. No new initiatives to speak of, no grand vision of the future. Just cold, hard, financial projections that could make a grown man cry. Even Ontario’s Mike Harris and his slash-and-burn policies came with a promise of a better future. British Columbians can only stare at'a deficit that edges close to the billion-dollar mark, lost on a sea of red ink, with no safe harbour in sight, Speaking of Mike Harris, a red cloth for every self-respect- THROUGH BIFOCALS. CLAUDETTE SANDECKI g ONE. HUMUNGOUS For instance, last July two heavy wooden benches, built by the Terrace Correctional Centre at a cost of $225 each, were installed along the Terrace Public Library’s concrete walk- way. ‘These benches were built to last for decades. Well, guess what. Loiterers have scarred the. benches with sharp nalts and graffiti, and VWI Ye 7 E DON'T GET IT? ing NDP finance minister, MacPhail made sure British Columbians understands her loathing of the Ontario pre- mier’s policies. “Unlike other provinces, we intend to grow our way out (of the red ink, I suppose), and not cut our way out,” she said. But the growing may have to wait for a while, because the minis- ter predicted that “our fiscal sit- uation is probably going to get worse before it gets better.” Thanks for that bit depressing speculation, Mind you, there’s some uplifting rhetoric: “We believe health care is a fundamental right that must be protected,” ; How about: “We believe. every! ‘child. deserves a qliality'~: of parents’ income,” This ‘is ‘what British Columbians have told us they want. We’ve listened, and we're delivering.” I particularly like this one: “Let’s work together to ensure that opportunity is shared by all British Columbians, for a healthy and prosperous future,” Running up higher and higher deficits isn’t going to contribute a lot to those lofty goals, One aspect of the budget is to be welcomed, For the first time, B.C. Ferries is regarded as wrenched off one arm rest fiom each bench, When the library realized he benches drew loiterers — maybe even drug dealers — they shortened some of the library’s shrubbery to make the benches more visible. — But wasting costly plantings improved nothing. Now the library wants the benches taken away. Also, late last fall graffiti appeared on the library's entrance wall, Only a small patch, but an eyesore. I men- tioned it to the librarian at that time. I expected a city employee would hasten along with a pail of matching paint to brush out the offending handi- work. I also expected the city’s hotline would sizzle with calls from incensed citizens. Silly me. My expectations grew from living near Copper Mountain . School where the principal © instantly obliterated any graffili THIS MUST AGAME TRAIL \ /AGuY WOULD LEAD Te THAT LEADS ., DRoP RIGHT SOMETHING. OVERA CLIFFS {I OFF IF HE cation, Tegardless. ‘of ‘their WASNT CAREFUL. Padaling ina sea of red ink © part of British Columbia’ $ high-’ ways system rather than a ser-. vice operated largely on 2 user- pay basis. Under a new financing for: mula, one per cent of the gaso- line tax, traditionally earmarked for highways construction. and | maintenance, will be diverted ta B.C. Ferries’ operating budget. That will amount to a $64 million subsidy this year and $71 million next year, com- pared to last year’s subsidy of, only $24 million. This policy change carries - the unmistakable imprint .of Gerdon Wilson, the recent NDP convert and minister responsi- ble for B.C. Ferries. The ferry system is more ‘than just a convenience-for Van-' couver- “islanders to get to the “Mainland. [tis a’ vital compo-" nent of the island’s economy, not only bringing tourists by the: millions, but serving as the major transportation syste for all goods to Vancouver Island. On the whole, considering the good news and the bad news, there’s not a lot of com- fort in it for British Columbians in this budget. Beyer can be reached at — Tel: (250) 920-9300; e-mail: hubert@coolcom.com; web: http/Avwwhubertbeyercom/ something for tourists - ‘as it appeared on the schoal’s outer walls, Like New ‘York City’s mayor, he believed any graffiti attracted more graffiti. » Except for discouragement felt by the Terrace Beautifica- tion Society, many ‘seem resigned ta vandalism. They . don’t even bother to report van-- dalism in progress. No wonder So long as courts treat vandals as having -more Charter rights than the rest of us; probation officers fail to enforce community ser- vice; our laws don’t force the “dears to da what they don’t want to do. . So let’s allow vandals to turn - our-communily inte a concrete wasteland, When cruise ship tourists arrive in a few days, let’s ‘show of the tree stubs on Park Avenue, the flowerless concrete planters around town, the one-armed spray-painted benches by the library window. They'll get the picture. AT'S THe Me" STORD.