De, AER ane TL WRN Ta oe PAG)

Pere mare re

| Should cut military budget

The Canadian Government’s role of
helper in Reagan’s escalating plan for nu-
clear war is more than shameful — it is
suicidal. The people of Canada will have to
put severe pressure on that government,
not only sith regard to nuclear missile test-
ing in Canada, but in all the moves to mili-
tary “integration”.

Canada’s hawkish defence minister, Gil-
les Lamontagne, is bragging that he’s won
Liberal cabinet support for substantial in-
creases in so-called defence spending. Ob-
viously. the. Pentagon. and _ its agency,
NATO, have ordered stepped-up military

_ Spending, as the USA has ordered Japan to

do. On that basis Ottawa is lifting still more
dollars from the pockets of workers. Guns
fore butter.

Disregarding the plunging living stan-
dards and outright poverty in Canada to-
day, the well-paid “defence” minister plans
to bleed $7,840,000,000 out of the Cana-
dian people for war preparations in the
1983-84 fiscal year. That’s $7.8-billion for
war; crumbs for more than two million un-
employed; restraints for workers’ families,

EDITORIAL

indifference to the sick, indifference to the
children, pension tampering to deprive the
elderly.

While Canadian workers and their
families are being subjected to media lying,
and the obscenities of a smart-mouth,
imperialist prime minister, the chief war-
lord is forecasting for his masters abroad a
1984-85 military spending spree of $8.77-
billion!

Considering the broad interests ex-
pressed by the Canadian Labor Congress
on Canadian and international affairs, it
would be fitting for that body to make a
bold stand for peace, for Canadian in-
dependence by defending this country
against the U.S. drive for nuclear war.

The time is at hand when those who are
not in the fight with the working-class and
democratic forces — for disarmament and
a rising standard of living — will not be
taken seriously. It is urgent today that a
stand be taken opposing Ottawa’s reckless
plunge into the nuclear war strategy of the
USA.

CIA views Soviet economy

After years of being told by the media of
the “free world” that the Soviet economy is
In a state of collapse, the West is now in-
formed by the U.S. Central Intelligence
Agency that, in fact, the Soviet economy is
healthy in ways the USA’s economy is not.”
».. we do not consider an economic ‘col-
lapse’ — a sudden and sustained decline in
Gross National Product — even a remote
Possibility,” reported Henry Rowen,
chairman of the CIA’s National Intel-
ligence Council. The report was delivered
to the Joint Economic Committee of the
U.S. Congress on Dec. 1, 1982.

It is not as if the factual information was
not there all along, but apparently the
Propaganda needs of powerful circles in
the USA, change with circumstances.

While it is generally good, and standard
Practice, from the point of view of the most
Teactionary circles to paint socialism as a
failure, there comes a time when Reagan’s
hare-brained schemes, including various

ycotts, have to be counteracted. So, now
the word is that the West’s boycots, insti-
§ated by Washington, have hurt the boy-
Cotters more than the boycotted.

- And while Soviet authorities, including

Communist Party leader Yuri Andropov,
emphasize the need for improvements in
various facets of the economy, only the
reactionary circles of the West have spread
the fable of imminent ruin.

From utter dependence on the West in
previous propaganda barrages, the Soviet
Union now appears in the CIA report as
importing only 5% of its GNP from the vast
agricultural and industrial enterprises of
the West.

Says the CIA: “ ... overall Soviet Gross
National Product in real terms continues to
increase, and Soviet GNP is second in size
only to that of the United States,”

Besides that, the USA GNP declined by
1.8% in 1982. The Soviet GNP, had a re-
cord of annual increases of 4.6% over the
past three decades, with some levelling off
as needs are met.

One of the major contrasts between
socialist and capitalist economies is the full
employment in the former and mass
unemployment in the latter. The CIA sees
as a serious problem in the USSR the fact
that only nine million new workers are ex-
pected to join the work force this decade
compared to 19 million in the 70s.

Don’t want nuclear weapons

Countries which do not produce, trans-
Port or deploy nuclear weapons on their
territory are assured by a long-standing
Soviet pledge never to use nuclear weapons
against them. That came before the more
Tecent Soviet pledge not to be first to use
nuclear weapons.

Various countries of the Indian Ocean
area, the Mediterranean, Scandinavia, and

Central Europe have been working to have

these areas declared nuclear-free zones.
Canadians are campaigning to have this
country declare itself nuclear weapons free
and to demand recognition of that fact
from all nuclear powers.

A number of municipalities have
Successfully declared themselves nuclear
Weapons free, but probably the largest to

take up the matter is the City of Toronto.
City Council had not .voted on it at this
writing, but the executive committee on the
urging of Mayor Art Eggleton approved
the idea. The motion calls for the banning
of “production, testing, storage, transpor-
tation, processing, disposal or use of nu-

clear weapons and their components” :

within the city’s boundaries.

While the move may be largely symbolic,
in view of the city’s limited legal power, it is
an “indication of our support for dis-
armament,” the mayor said.

It’s a move that other municipalities
might well copy, and it reflects the 79%

Toronto vote in the November civic elec-

tion, favoring nuclear disarmament by all
nations.

Flashbacks

25 years 50 years

OTTAWA — Liberal and
Tory politicians are playing
political football with the
grievous issue of mass unem-
ployment now raging across
the land.

How else to explain the cyn-
ical disregard for the misery
of thousands while well-fed
MPs alternately jeer and
cheer as John Diefenbaker,
Prime Minister, clashed with
Lester Pearson, who wants to
be Prime Minister? Each
party is maneuvering at the
expense of the people in the
face of an up-coming election
as 796,371 persons are look-
ing for work.

The CLC will make rep-
resentations to the govern-
ment and propose public
works and other crash mea-
sures so badly needed. Mass
action is needed too.

Tribune,
January 27, 1958

PRINCETON, B.C. — In
desperation at their failure to
smash the Mine Workers’
Union of Canada here or
weaken the 100% militant
solidarity of the Tulameen
miners, the police are
conducting a veritable reign
of terror.

On Jan. 17 many homes
were broken into. All working
class literature and books
were confiscated. Even per-
sonal letters and photographs
were taken. Princeton is not
an incorporated town and is
run by a provincial represen-
tative, the provincial police
and the Ku Klux Klan.

That there is full coopera-
tion between them was shown
when street lights were put
out as workers were attacked
by Ku Klux Klan thugs.

The Worker,
January 28, 1933

Profiteer of the week

Canadian Western Natural Gas Co. Ltd., of Calgary had a nine-
month after-tax profit of $9,182,000 for the period ended Sept.
30/82. The same period a year earlier netted them $6,723,000. Just
one example of funds available to the Canadian people if re-

sources were nationalized.

Editor — SEAN GRIFFIN
Assistant Editor — DAN KEETON
Business and Circulation Manager — PAT O'CONNOR

Published weekly at Suite 101 — 1416 Commercial Drive,
Vancouver, B.C. V5L 3X9. Phone 251-1186

‘Subscription Rate: Canada $14 one year; $8 for six months.
All other countries: $15 one year.

Second class mail registration number 1560

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—JANUARY 28, 1983—Page 3

SAAN ANS