PAGE 4, THE HERALD, Wednesday, September 14, 1977 {the herald) Published by Sterling Publishers General Office - 635-6357 Circulation (Terrace) - 635-6357 (Kitimat) - 632-6209 PUBLISHER... W.R. (BILL) LOISELLE MANAGING EDITOR... STU DUCKLOW Published every weekday a¢ 3212 Kalum St. Terrace 8.C. A member of Varified Circulation. Authorized +s second class mail. Registration number 1201, Postage pal. «cash, return Postage guaranteed. NOTE OF COPYRIGHT The Herald retains full, complete and sole copyright In any advertisement produced and-or any: editorial or photographic content published In the Herald. Reproduction Is not permitted without ihe written permission of the Pubtisher. Curbstone communities Kitimat council's willingness to consider allowing people to live in the service centre is a progressive move. The town itself, a planning disaster no matter which way you look at it, needs leaders whorealize the value of curbstone communities - the lively meeting places that spring up in areas where commercial and residential uses are combined. Allowing restaurant employees to live in the commercially-zoned service centre isn’t going to create the Kensington Market of Kitimat, but it may help create a second gathering centre for residents of the town, and this is a town that needs them badly. Mixing commercial and residential uses works both ways. The advisory planning commission, in con- sidering residential uses in commercial areas should also consider the reverse - light commercial uses in residentially-zoned areas. . Amixture of these two activities could build a sense of community from block to block and breathe life and spirit into the town. Guest editorial Burn slash _Any day now-- and for short periods-- smoke will rise from various logging areas in our province. It will come from an operation generally known as ‘‘slash burning". We prefer to call it “prescirbed burning’’~ as for the good reason it is a “'prescription” designed to serve two vital functions in our forest management program. Most people know the expressions, but may, I feel, probably don’t know how it is done, and more important, why it is done. Prescirbed burning is the act of purposely setting fire to debris left in the forest after a logging operation. It is.a to be done at precisely the right time, with wind, humidity, and other weather conditions in mind. And the job has to be done by hight trained and well qualified men. Some people link prescirbed burn smoked with the air pollution problem-- usually just because it can be seen. The contribution of such smoke to the overall problem is almost infinitesimal when compared to the invisible fumes coming from exhaust pipes of vehicular traffic. Let’s look at the “‘why’’ question. Prescribed burning can be controlled-- in both intensity and in area covered. Such operations are conduced by highly qualified personnel or either the Forest Service and-or in- stry, ; If logged-over regiions are not subject to controlled bur- ning, inevitable lightning, human carelessness or other causes will ignite the accumulated slash. This, in turn, often results in far larger fires endangering surronding areas and creating tremendously greater smoke problems. The debris burnig action pave the way for faster, more efficient and more productive reforestation measures. Seedlings can be planted easier and faster. They will grow faster and straighter not having to fight their wat thrugh tangles of snage, branches and other suffocating debris. There are other significant values: the burning process practically eliminates insect hazards which could be ex- tremely harmful to adjacent timber. And debris-clear patches, once growth resumes, are of value to many wildlife species. I suggest we be realistic in this matter. One controversial aspect of prescribed burning, namely the mere creation of smoke, is far outweighed by its benefits. Research has proved this. It is hoped, of course, the day will come when it will be economically feasible to use all material now classified as slash. Significant strides are already being made in this direction, as more and more material formerly regarded as “wate” is now being utilized. Let’s remember that if such fires are not started and controlled by man, sooner or alter they invariably will be started by some other means. To paraphrase an old proverb; An ounce of smoke today is better than a ton of smoke, trouble and expense tomorrow. B.C, FOREST SERVICE RERAAN CUE? gue! Bag tre eale 1 sae you finally sewed on my button! Interpreting the News Unemployment may prevent balanced budget WASHINGTON CP-President Carter may face the difficult choice of delaying his goal of a balanced budget if he is to fight back unem- ployment ‘effectively, Describing the 4)-per-cent unemployment rat among black teen-agers as the most important domestice issue in the United States, Carter recently ordered key economic and labor adivisers to study progpects for a new em- ployment bill which would provide more government-sponsored job opportunities. The president also acknowledged at a meeting with black lack of a comprehensive policy for urban areas-wjere 6 per cent of the young blacks live-has worsened the unemployment situation. The president’s comments ahd the effect of blunting., at least tem- porarily, criticism by black leaders that Carter is more interested in balancing the U.S, budget by 198ithan in keeping campaign to black supporters. ~ “™ Soak Black leaders maintained that Cater received the overwhelming majority of black voles in the Novemeber election because of promises to promote black em- ployment, revitalize the cities and put and end to poverty and discrimination. During the meeting with the black caucus, the presidentsaid he is putting a higher priority on job- creation programs and development of a comprehesive policy to improve urban life. -But such programs, while. they likely would restore much of Car- ter’s. dwindling black support, do require immense federal spending and might hamper the president’s attempt to balance the budget by 81. Job creation and training progrmans in the U.S. cost billlons of dollars this year. But after a slight decline early in theyear, the over-all unemployment rate is on the rise again, reaching 7.1 per cent in veges - pected to ing up the last rays of summer Government officials estimate that hiring an additional 100,000 young people at minimum pay scales for one year would cost $460 million. Although no details of Carter’s plan to improve the cities have been released, it also is ex- costly. Government job plans tends to fall into three categories: Subsidies for private-sector jobs; training programs to provide skills to the unskilled, and creating new jobs . with the governments as the firest employer. But only the first two ideas appear practical on a large scale since direct employment on a long-term -basis is extremely costly. Economists note that the eventual success of short-term subsides for private industry and training _ programs depends on continued growth of the economy with prople involved in the programs eventually being absorbed into the general labor force. Voice of the readers Thanks for the fairy tale I would like to express my appreciation to the Terrace Little Theatre Society for their production of “Little Red Riding Hood” on Saturday, September 10. The children present par- ticipated and were obviously delighted with the per- formance. I can’t think of a better way to interest children in drama and theatre! enthusiastically . extensive, and the staging and costuming were ex- tremely effective, but minimal. Perhaps the Little Theatre could produce fairy tales on a more regular much expense or tedious preparation. If cost of production is a prohibiting factor, I am certain ‘that many parents would pay to take their children to such performances. Congratulations on a very successful performance! The children I accompanied to the production hurried home to re-enact the play, costumes and props! Sincerely, Kathy Jones I would like to suggest .that this type of theatre for children become a_ bi- monthly or monthly oc- curence. It appeared that the preparation for the performance was not too Bill attacks non- union workers The Social Credit government is launching an all-out assault on the unorganized workers of the province with their proposed amendments to the labor code which make it more difficult for unions to organize workers. First, and clearly the most astounding action proposed by this Bill, is the move to strengthen the employers’ position in into trade unions. Sections 2 and 3 of the bill give employers virtual carte blanche to propagandize and intimidate em- ployees. against union organization. Even under existing legislation the employers’ position is much too powerful in this regard. Furthermore it should be remembered that these sections are aimed against unorganized workers who are one of the groups who are least able to defend themselves from employer exploitation. ; ; Second, the bill is designed to deny the right of union representation to thousands of B.C. workers who have ™) already chosen to become union members. Amendments to the definition of employee can be expected to lead to a sub- stantial number of employer applications to have workers who exercise even the smallest amount of supervisory functions excluded from the bargaining unit. And third, section 6 of the bill is an obvious attempt to undermine. the efforts of the labour relations board to ‘| promote healthy industria] relations in the province. By . destroying the board's ability to set policy precedents and < ? of Jabour fiver the. obvious “fundamental Ottawa Offbeat We all suffer in strikes Public servants were “simply too responsible’ to strike, the late Prime Minister Lester Pearson told an ingenuous House of Commons 10 years ago. And the Honorable Memebhers - believed him. A former life-time federal public servant himself, the Prime Minister could scarcely be considered un- prejudiced, Recruited from the public service by the Liberals, he went straight into the Cabinet of Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent. Elected in what then was Algoma East, there was none of that back- bench training experience for Pearsom. It was striaght from the top of the public service, up there in the high altitudes of the super-elite deputies, and then up, up, up into the Cabinet as good as successor-designate, as it turned out, to St. Laurent. So Pearson, off in his private world of External Affairs, the United Nations and the Cabinet, had absolutely no clue to the thinking of How naive could a_ politically inexperienced Prime Minister be? Forget about how Pearson’s widly wrong and ruincusly expensive~ in terms both of money and national unity— theory of bilingualism and biculturalism has been. Just consider with which he conned the unsuspecting and trusting. parliamentarians into buying his “guarantee” that public servants were just too “‘responsible”’ ever to strike: “We are confident, we know it in minds that in bargaining the Public Service will recognize that they have obligations rooted in the essential character. of service to the com- munity. “We believe the awareness of these. obligations will confirm a . relationship (between government, the public service and the taxpayer ¢ marked by mutual confidence and repect, resting on the values that finds their best expression in the time-honored phrase ‘good faith’. “From this will flow a continuing stream of understanding and the public service, the government and the Canadian community at ge,’ To nail it all down, Pearson all but promised that the “‘too responsible” public service, given the right to strike, would never use it; but in- stead in the spirit af ‘good faith” would go to arbitration. How wrong could a diplomat- turned-Prime Minister be? ; Pearson's record would be dif- ficult to beat. Now strike-after-strike-after- mononous-strike _later, the “responsible” public service has refined its timing to hit the public when it hurts monst, The Postal Workers before Christmas, The Air Controllers at the height of the holiday season. The Postal Workers injure everyone from helpless pensioners waiting for their cheques to the most powerful coroporative enteprise of them all, the government, forced to resort to costly private courlers. changing those policies to guidelines the government will be in the future to appoint Board members who can completely ignore and undermine past LRB policy. ; _ We also find the sections of Bill 89 which increase the percentages necessary for automatic certification and for _ applications for a representation vote to be unnecessary and : unwarranted. In the past, the B.C. Federation of Labor has tried to develop a responsible working relationship with the minister : ifferences in ! political-philosophy. tis now painfully clear, however, that Allan Williams is just as out of touch with reality in industrial relations as are his colleagues McGeer and Vander Zalin.: Bill 89 is an employer-oriented bill that tips the scales even further .in their favour. It must therefore lead to further industrial unrest and confrontation in the long run. We should also point out that in times of high unem- ployment, history has shown that organizing the unorganized increases consumer spending and therefore stimulates the economy and provides jobs - that is what is needed now in British Columbia and that is precisely what this bill seems designed to prevent. ; public interest. [t is an all-out assault on unorganized workers. It should never have been introduced.” B.C. Federation of Labor Cheaper charters OTTAWA (CP) A new, cheap air charter plan should be set up for travel within Canada to help reduce unemployment and the steady flow of Canadian tourist dollars out. of the courntyr, travel industry executives said at a Canadian transport com- mission hearing Monday. F.G. Brander, president of the Travel Industry Association of Canada, said new discoiunt fare plans such. as the advanced booking chareter (ABC) system are important steps toward getting Canadians to country rather than abroad. Brander said the ‘“‘longer term is frightening’ for tourism and the economy if Canadians continue to spend more tourist money abroad than in Canada. The. international - tourist deficit for Canada was approaching $2 billion this year and was. expected to rise to $2.8 billion next year. Brander and GeraldHeifetz of the Alliance of Canadian Travel Associations listed several advantages they see from increased travel within the country, including the tax-paying public. agreement that will be beneficial to ti TB Everybody loses, - AND ¥OUD BETTER PAY ON TIME | Loan-sharking the backbone of organized crime TORONTO CP-Loan sharking the legal lending of money by private persons, nas become the backbone of organized crime, police say. Insp. Gordon Lennox, intellizence chief: of the Metropolitian Toronte police, said in an interview, ‘In North America, there’ve been thousand. of murders, broken legs, beating, broken nomes and lost businesses due to loansharking-yet no legislation exists against it.” Police estimate the volume of business from loansharking at $5 billion a year in Canada, They say it is the largest criminal source of income in Canada, siphoning $360 million from the economy of Toronto and $70 million from that of Montreal each year. The only federal law relating to loan- sharking is the Small Loans Act, which limits interest to an everage of 18 per cent. annually on loans of $1,500 or less. Loans of more than $1,500 can be made at any interest rate, ‘ Police say the act is toothless. To be conviceted,a shark must be proven to have committed some other crime such as extortion, assault, blackmail or murder. “Tt’s hard to catch the big sharks if they don’t pay taxes and we can’t find their money,” Lennos said. “Many of them launder ir their money through Swiss banks accounts of off-shore banks in the Bahamas, then re-invest it legally back home," Last October, Tony Abbott, federal minisfer of consumer and corporate af- fairs, introduced the Borrowers and Depodtiers PROTECTION Bill to bring loanstarking under control, But it was allowed to die on the order paper after businesses objected to having to discl all charges involved in loans and bank protested against having to -calculated interest rates more frequently than monthly and quarterly, The bill would have established a maximum interest rate for all loans and set penalties for exceeding it. A revised bill is expected to be introduced in the next session of Parliament, . Lennos said legislation would have to identify illegal practices to be effective. “Firat of all, loansharking must be defined and declared a crime, which js obviously is. It's a criminal] conspiracy from the top man down the street lender.” Staff Sgt. Jim Sterritt of the Metropolitan Toronto police said loan- sharking operations range from those conducted by individuals to those con- trolled. by huge enterprises. The larger operations are as highly structured as banks, with more than $1 million in cir- culation at any given time. Such organizations are set up as a pyrmid, fom the chief distributor down to the dozens of street pushers, or runners. The top man could be chief of a gambling syndicate, head of an organized crime - group, or a rich, and to all appearances respectable businessman, Payments’ are strictlyenforced. Vic- tims and their families are threatened, travel more in their own ‘eatch the strengthening _ national unity. assualted, and inthe last resort, mur- dered. So are runners and enforcers who get behind in their collections, Many desperate victimes turn to crime to finance their payments. Loanshark victims have been caught engaging in shoplifting, burglary, embezzlement, armed robbery, and the distribution of drugs and counterfeit money, . **You See a young person or a women or businessman who's caught stealing to pay their damn shark and you have sympathy Lennox said, . “They go to jail and there’s no law to ; real criminal.” Sterritt added: “If we could cut ous loansharking, we could cut out 50 percen@ of all organized crime, . _ “Every major criminal in Canada: is tied into loansharking, But the only people we can get are the guys putting out small loans on the street, And they can be replaced the same day, We can’t get the big bankers putting out millions.’’ ;