More job losses not the cure ‘Liberal apologists’ wrong Dear Sir: Where people make their purchases is an in- dividual choice. Many factors influence that choice and they aren’t just related to price or service, but having Lorne Sexton accuse some- “one of ‘bullying by exercising that choice, on whatever basis, is just a little too much to take. Then there is the letter from the Terrace Chamber of Commerce, who are suddenly con- cerned about dividing the community. - They claim that they feel your pain and then spend the most of the letter justifying the suffer- ing the Campbell cuts are inflicting on citizens. " That justification is so bogus, Small business, which is what most of the Terrace Chamber members are, had the second lowest tax rate in the country before all this. ' B,C.’s audited books showed a budget surplus for 1999/2000 of $40 million and a surplus for 2000/2001 of $1.498 billion. (Source: B.C. Public .Accounts, released by finance minister Gary Col- ‘lins on July.30, 2001) and prior to Liberals taking office and changing the revenue picture for 2001/2002 that budget had a surplus. Repeating the myth that spending in B.C. was out of control when the facts are the opposite - shows that neither Sexton nor the Chamber are anything but Liberal apologists. -- In 2000/2001 British Columbia spent $5,842 per. capita on government programs; Alberta spent $6,513 per capita. (Source: Comparative Provincial Program Spending 1989-2001, by Ca- nadian Taxpayers Federation.) ' -They also keep repeating that the government -has:no choice. Unless your income was more _ than $80,000 per year you were paying the sec- ond lowest taxes in the country. But the government decided to give all those - in the upper income bracket a whopping tax cut. - That is what created the financial crunch along with the world economic decline after . September 11th and the sofiwood lumber dispute. “You can’t blame the government for the latter _ two, but if they had not taken ihe reckless step of -piving tax cuts they might have had some op- tions to deal with September 11th and the pain resulting from the softwocd lumber dispute. . The Liberals had other options — options other than causing more layoffs and service cuts and freezing the budgets in health and education. Worrying about dividing a community rings a little hollow when for months you are silent on regressive steps taken that economically affect - the community and your businesses. “Both: letters use the argument that because the »ptivate ‘sector is hurting; ‘more unemployment is the solution. From a business perspective, that is insane. " Repardless of what one thinks of the tactic of using purchasing pressure, the Chamber aeceds to - -consider the inconsistency of some of their ac- _. tions or inactions. - ¥ou want local workers, students, retirees to spend their hard-earned dollars in your shops, but you will publicly support a government that ensures that those citizens are un- employed and have no money, or less money to spend in those shops. The fact is that all low-in- come dollars are spent locally; those with six figure incomes get more to spend on another trip to the Baha- mas. Ef I was in business, I would have the good sense to keep my politics out of the public domain. I learned that from a local businessman years ago who doesn’t vote NDP, but he keeps his po- _litics to himself. That way when I] spend money in his shop, | don’t have to feel like he is using my hard- earned money to shaft me. That alone deserves -. ‘Fespect and that is what jt means to have a sense of community. Helmut Glesbrecht Helmut Giesbrecht Terrace B.C. | Boycott idea a bad one ‘Dear Sir: - -/« | write in response to Jeff Nagel’s Feb 6, 2002 “article in which Don Philpott advocates boycott ‘of. local merchants who supported the Liberal Party, I strongly urge them not to pursue this boycott . _ policy as the merchants should have every right - to- support: the political party of their choice - ‘without being punished economically. . Tam sure that Don Philpott would agree that no employee should be fired for political activity. “Political freedom should be one of the rights ofall. citizens — without undue pressure being - used in place of reason. [strongly disagree with the current B.C. Lib- ~ oral policy. of cutbacks to education, health and - social services. If the province is going to prosper and maintain the welfare of ils citizens it begins with education. Where are the doctors, the nurses, teachers and entrepreneurs going to come from if our children are denied basic education and the uni- — versities are reserved for only the rich? -I€ we are ging to retain the teachers, nurses, doctors and experienced civil servants that we. have we must create a satisfactory work environ- “ment to show them that we want them to stay. The B.C. Liberal Party was not elected in the fast provincial election by just the business com- munity ‘but by a majority of the citizens of B.C. who: believed they would eet a better govern- ment. A political party commissions a poll to deter- mine. the imessage the public desires to hear and ‘of the BCGEU, [ do not The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, February 20, 2002 - AS CORRESPONDENCE FOR THE TERRACE STANDARD The Mail Bag DON PHILPOTT, vice-president of the Kitimat-Terrace and District Labour Council, has said he’s in favour of a survey to determine local businesses’ positions on government cutbacks and boycott ones that favour the cuts. The BCGEU has signs to show support for labour. the political party then feeds this message to the media as though it was the course that they in- tended to pursue, which may have no bearing on the policies which they embarked on being elec- ted. One has to look at the leader of each politi- cal party, if that political party forms the govern- ment, that leader has absolute power until the next election. As citizens of B.C. we must choose what type of a society in which we wish to live, balancing environment, education, health care, job oppor- tunities to the best advantage of the majority of us. My advice is if you don’t like the current si- tuation get involved in the political system be- cause this is a political issue and can only be solved at the ballot box. N.C. Read Terrace. B.C. The pain is real Dear Sir: Roger Harris doesn’t get it. Lorne Sexton doesn’t get it. People are being hurt, badly, by the antics of this government. Roger knows the Campbell team bloated the budget so they could justify their miserable agenda. Sexton’s “short-term pain” should end with “for political gain.” Until Mr. Harris sees the hurt that’s being caused, and publicly crosses the floor to sit as an ‘independent, he will very likely need to keep his door locked. M.A. Nelson Terrace B.C, ; ce Let’s work together Dear Sir: This is in response to the letter from the board of directors of the Terrace and District Chamber of Commerce (The Terrace Standard, Feb. 13, 2002). It is heartening ta see that the Chamber of Commerce values government employees and that there is a confirmation of Terrace’s reliance on government employees and their contribution to our community. The BCGEU has always advocated a consul- tative approach to any chal- lenges we have been faced with. Like forestry workers and small business owners, we are concerned about the fu- ture of our community and of the northwest in general. As a staff representative agree with the Premier's throne speech of Feb. 12, - and found it to be extremely Shelley confrontational and deliber- Anderson ately provocative. Premier Campbell does have choices, but so far has not listened to the people of this province. The BCGEU would welcome the opportunity to meet with the Chamber of Commerce and enter into meaningful and positive discussions regarding the cuts to services and restoration of economic health té our province. _ Labour and the Chamber of Commerce board should sit down together as equal partners and and work towards a better future. . Shelley Anderson Terrace B.C. Long knives strike Dear Sir: I remember ten years ago visiting somebody at the hospital. While tatking to him, he asked me to go to the foot of the bed and crank him up so he could see me at a comfortable angle. Since then things changed [ hear now a $7,000 button replaces that crank and notably the $25 per hour nurse. I still have a problem figuring out the new $1,000 a night hospital fee. Well, somebody has to pay for those $7,000 beds. Last year British Columbians voted in the “New Era” how this province is being governed. . However, there are people who whine because they lost the ability to think positive, This province is in a financial mess, a bal- anced budget has turned into an inflated $3 to $4 billion dollar black hole, or is it a red hole? To stop that trend something has to be done. Out came the “long knives” and the fat was trimmed off. There are too many high-paid union workers. In order to plug that nasty black hole lay off everybody, Shut dowa the pulp and sawmills and let the E.L pay for those lost wages. , Remember the E.I. fund was created in case of a lay-off and not to pay down the national debt. While I am at it let’s increase health care ser- ‘vices 100 per cent, besides, close down a dozen courthouses because crime is on a decline. - Then shut down that new once self-sustaining firewood-culting community jail that used to sup- ply those camp sites. Then hire a private compa- ny to send those young offenders away. So, people quit whining. The “New Era of the Long Knives” is here. The question comes to mind: is there a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow? Manfred Bader Thornhill B.C. Editorial missed real owners of the forests Dear Sir: Actually, the answer to the question “Who owns the trees in B.C.?” posed in your editorial of Feb. 13 (“Our birthright”) is not the people. If you ask a local First Nations person that question, the answer would more than likely be “we dal” This question is still an issue with respect to treaties in the province, so I think the answer that the people own the trees is presumptuous to say the least. get the point that the new policies that the government is imposing are quite extreme. The First Nations people of the area, as well as province wide, have been dealing with poli- cies that limit their rights on an on-going basis, and this has been going on for the past hundred years or so. They have been facing. this problem for so long that it seems like the treatment of First Na- lions people will not change to their advantage. The problems that this editorial outlines is an on-going problem for First Nations people, in that decisions are made that affect their everyday lives, but they do not have any say in the matter. The usual response of the government is to have consultations, but this is usually only a gne- sided affair, where they want to send a message but they do not want to hear what the First Na- tions groups have to say. They may hear it physically, but their policies do not reflect true consultations. This is similar to what is happening in the province right now, with all the cutbacks that the government is imposing. They know that the average person will suffer for their decisions, but it does not change the way they will deal with their so-called “problems.” I] hope that this may shed some light on the plight of First Nations people and that wide- spread support for First Nations issues results from these daunting issues raised. it seems that one does not truly understand the plight of others until they are faced with similar problems. Allen Benson Vancouver B.C, Health reform plans will lead to disaster Dear Sir: There seems to be a lack of understanding on the part of Canadians regarding a two tier health care system combining private and public deliv- ery. The mass of Canadians seem intent on com- mitting hari-kiri on this issue. Private ownership will require mortgages and 30-year operating loans from banks. This works fine for the first few years when equipment is new but not after it needs to be replaced. Ser- vices are shut down. A recent study in Western Europe proves that cost of loans become the priority and delivery of health care drops. In the meantime public health care is under funded because government as- sumes the private sector is taking care of itself. But it isn’t. This has nothing to do with left-wing or right- 7 . wing politics; or labour unions ‘or:anti-poverty de- monstrations, or what kind of car you drive when you go to the emergency. It is purety economic. And it’s a fact. The kind of two tier system proposed by Klein and Campbell is a fraud. In about 10 years of this new mess the govern- meat will have to step in and bail out private health care. By then no one will be accountable for its delivery. Everyone will pass the buck and the public will be left worse than before. You have been warned. Brian Gregg Terrace B.C. Regs hammer airports Dear Sir: Lam very concerned over pending federal le- gislation that could close many community air- ports across the country. Such legislation isthe latest example of a federai transportation policy that has the poten- tial of undermining the national network of air- ports established over the past 50 years. Transport Canada privatized or downloaded dozens of airports since the mid-1900s onto the communities serviced by these airports. With the exception of a few major airports, most are marginally viable, able to cover their operating casts but unable to save for the future. The communities serviced by these airports lack the tax bases necessary to finance major capital projects when runways and buildings wear out. Existing programs to help airports defray the costs of major capital projects are inadequate. Another disturbing trend is the willingness of the federal government to pass: legislation that increases the cost of operating community air- ports and expecting local communities to pick up the bil]. Recent examples include the pending emergency response and security legislation. New emergency response regulations will dra- matically increase the cost of operating com- munity airports, in many cases to the paint where communities will have no choice but to shut them down, While improving the emergency response ca- pabilities of focal airports is hard to dispute, someone has to pay the bills. The cost is particu- larly high for the Prince.Rupert Airport as it is located on an island with access only by ferry. The planned new security fees is another case in point. Once again, improving security proce- dures at Canadian airports is a good thing. However the result could be discontinued air service to smaller, remote communities. I am opposed to federal legislation that down- loads the costs of improved security and emer- gency response procedures on lecal airports and consumers. Canada clearly benefits as a country from affordable and accessible air travel. The federal government can take a leadership role by covering the costs of enhanced security and emergency response services and by budget- ing the hundreds of millions necessary to ade- quately fund capital projects for small airports across s the country. . =. "4 John Shepherd, director Prince Rupert Airport Authority