THE WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER 11 "TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE?" Who is Pierre Elliott Tru- deau? What about his capa- bilities; his persuasiveness; his dedication; his convic- tions; his administrative qual- ities; his sincerity? In short, would he make a good Prime Minister? I ask these questions be- cause, if the newspapers of this nation have their way, he might very well be the next Prime Minister. When the Liberal Party in April, chooses a successor to Mr. Pearson as the National Lead- er of the Liberals it will be choosing a Prime Minister. Our political system is such that the people of Canada do not elect a Prime Minister. The political party does this by choosing a leader who, if his party forms the govern- ment, becomes the Prime Minister. Therefore we are entitled to ask certain searching ques- tions about those who are running for this exalted and highly responsible post. All the while we must remember that the ‘cult of the personal- ity’ concept that has been in- jected into our politics in re- cent times has got us into deep and serious trouble. We accepted the personality in the form of the Right Hon- ourable John George Diefen- baker in 1958. We accepted, although not quite so strong- ly, the personality in the form of The Right Honourable Les- ter Bowles Pearson in 1963. And in each case we would have been better advised to look at the philosophy of the party. I think that the Honourable Pierre Elliott Trudeau is a re- markably brilliant person. To me he has a dazzling and scin- tillating intellect. He is a master with language, both English and French. His ex- planations or justifications of his position on any subject are precise works of the art of speaking and expression. He is the first Member of Parliament from Quebec who has made -any sense when speaking about the so-called national crisis that has been permitted to develop over the past few years. His approach to the so-called English- French controversy is care- fully phrased but to me it means that each Province in our Nation should be equal, one with the other, in terms of authority and powers. The Honourable Pierre El- liott Trudeau was afforded a welcome and reception at a recent meeting of Liberals in Montreal that, in a different sense, would be paralleled by the welcome some of the re- turning Roman conquerors received when they came back to Rome after a success- ful war. Yes, there is great stuff in this man. He is considered to be a progressive. His grasp of law, the constitution, the com- plexities of our economy, the matter of foreign ownership, diplomacy, military matters, criminology, the import- export question, balance of payments, tariffs, taxes, trade and commerce, the stock mar- ket, ARDA, federal-provincial relations, etc., etc. is reputed to be almost beyond human comprehension. We have been taken in be- fore by the personality in our national leaders. Perhaps this gentleman is just too good, too sparkling, too brilliant to be true. . CONTROL YOUR SPENDING WITH A CREDIT UNION CHEQUING ACCOUNT INTEREST COMPOUNDED MONTHLY CANCELLED CHEQUES AND STATEMENTS MAILED MONTHLY CHEQUES PERSONALIZED FREE ' DEPOSIT PERSONALLY, BY MAIL, OR BY PAYROLL DEDUCTION AT ALBERNI DISTRICT CREDIT UNION 6 OFFICES TO SERVE YOU PORT ALBERNI FROM PAGE ONE “UNION AGREES TO STUDY" more goods resulting in lower unit labour costs per 1,000 b.f. of lumber or 1,000 sq. ft. of plywood. The study should also analyze all elements of production costs such as ad- vertising, sales, political do- nations, FIR, B.C. Council of Forest Industries and other association fees. Income Tax Advantages Utilized to Minimize Profit Picture 3. Lucrative salaries, -bo- nuses, stock options and ex- pense accounts to top man- agement, sales, and similar personnel. 4, Understating current profits by writing off new pulp mill costs in order to pick up cutting rights and capture future markets. 5. Minimizing taxable pro- fits by charging accelerated rates of depreciation on new equipment against revenues. 6. The extent to which net worth is overstated by the current value of free land grants, thus understating the percentage of profits to net. worth. : Competitive Advantages Compared to U.S. North West 7. The extent to which the Jones Act benefits B.C. Coast waterborne shippers in their competition with U.S. oper- ators. 8. The extent to which B.C. coastal operators enjoy a competitive advantage over the U.S. North West in stum- page prices. half of Canada’s Centennial. PIERRE 1907 51 West Hastings Street Vancouver 3, B.C. Family Teamwork 9. The extent to which B.C. coast operators enjoy similar competitive advantages on wages and fringe benefits (recognizing that the Cana- dian dollar is worth less than the U.S. dollar). Industry’s Condition (Past Performance) 10. Profits per share for each company. 11. Profits as a percentage of net worth for each com- pany. 12. Profits for each com- pany by type of operation (plywood, sawmill, pulp, etc.). 13. A detailed report on value added (the worker’s contribution to the value of the product) in order to de- termine the potential for wage improvements. 14,Examination of the companies’ source and appli- cation of funds in order to de- termine expenditures on new _and used equipment. Industry’s Condition (Future Outlook) 15. The effect of mechaniza- tion upon profits through the replacing of hourly paid workers by salaried employ- ees who are not directly af- fected by negotiated settle- ments. 16. The probable impact upon housing starts and fur- ‘ther improvements in market prices caused by the popula- tion explosion, new family formations, slum clearance, low vacancy rates and the growing potential from the emerging nations. 17. Further improvements in the industry’s outlook due to the development of new uses for wood and its by- products. 18. Improved utilization of the log through salvage and elimination of wastage. NEW 1 - 424 BUS. AGENT The executive board of Local 1-424 IWA Prince George has appointed Bob Pitman, Local recording sec- retary, as the new business agent succeeding Howard Webb. Bob’s appointment was rati- fied by the members at the Local’s recent quarterly Council meeting. Bob, who attended the Labour College in Montreal LA Hae mM Craftsmanship A series from the Masters dedicated in Canada's Centennial Year to the men privileged to wear footwear created by the skilled hands of Paris craftsmen, working in living leather for over ALBRECH DRURER, pen and ink, heightened with white. Kunsthalle, Bremen, Germany. OUR PROUD BOAST: “WHEN BETTER BOOTS ARE MADE, PARIS WILL MAKE THEM” PARIS & SONS in Craftsmanship 1907 since BOB PITMAN last year, works for the Weld- wood of Canada plant in Quesnel. He is 34 years of age, married with three chil- dren.