Page 4, The Herald, Wednesday, November 4, 1978

TERRACE/KITIMAT daily herald

General Office - 635-4357 Published by Circulation - 635-6357 Sterling Publishers PUBLISHER - Laurie Mallett ‘ GEN. MANAGER - Knox Coupland EDITOR - Greg Middleton CIRCULATION - TERRACE - Andy Wightman 635-6357 KITIMAT - Pat Zelinski 632-2747 KITIMAT OF FICE - 632-2747 Published every weekday at 3212 Kalum Street, Terrace, B.C. A member of Varifled Circulation. Authorized as second class mall, Registration number 1201. Postage paid in cash, return postage guaranteed.

NOTE OF COPYRIGHT

The Herald retains full, complete and sole copyright In any advertisement produced and-or any editorlal or photographic content published in the Herald. Reproduction Is not permitted without the written permission of the Publisher.

Government commended

The provincial government is to be com- mended for making the necessary moves to see to it that aid is made available to those who suffered losses in the deluge which hit this area.

We recognize that such a move will prove costly, however, there is no question but that it is

. We realize that time was required to evaluate the situation and determine if there was a need and what that need would be, but the government should have been a little quicker to reassure those who were already suffering personal loss that aid would be forthcoming.

We hope the government will be quick to establish a process for evaluating and processing claims. We accept the fact that ad- ministering such a compensation fund will require a bureaucracy but we hope that cries for assistance won't be lost in the shuffle of paper.

We urge the government to be as swift and generous as possible. After all, the people who sufferred these losses are this province’s greatest resource. The resiliance and deter- mination of the Northerner is what keeps this province and the country going. It should not be allowed to be dampened by the red tape involved in offering the very aid to comperisate for losses.

Yourehance to help out

The Herald has taken the required steps to set up a fund to help those that will, for one reason or another, not be able to find assistance from either the existing agencies or the federal- provincial disaster fund.

We recognize that there will be special cases and special needs. It is impossible to specify what the requirements will be to receive add from this fund because the fund is designed to help those who don’t meet whatever the requirements are for other kinds of assistance.

This is the contingency fund, the court of last resort. The people that will be applying to this fund for assistance will be those who would otherwise be left out in the cold. They may be your friends or neighbors. They may be strangers. It doesn’t matter. They will be the ones whose needs aren’t being met other ways.

This is a chance for you to demonstrate your community spirit. An opportunity to show that small town helpfulness and friendliness that we all say is lacking in the world today.

We appeal to you to give generously. If you are fortunate enough not to be affected by the disaster show your gratefulness for your good fortune by a donation.

CURT Unveil Fren Sendecte

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‘To THROW THAT «| aw

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... We are foilowing false gods.

Don‘t be alarmed, thinking that | zm about to attack your religion; | am not. | refer to ovr increasing reliance upon governments, to do our thinking, planning and, in many cases, to provide us with an income. Every day we see more evidence of the public’s demand that government take over and provide solutions to today’s problems. We have even reached the point where our ‘media’ suggests that govern- ment will make jobs, increase production and reduce inflation. At the present time, our greatest newsmaker is government.

! am a free-enterpriser. | believe that government was conceived and set up by the people for a specific and limited pur- pose; to make and uphold the rules by which we all live. {believe that government should not Interfere in the free-market system, except to prevent actual abuses and distortions of that system. Governments should administer those social benefits that

«THOMAS ATRILE THINKS Government is a false god

we, collectively, authorize. Also, govern- ment has responsibility in international agreements and a system of defence. | do not believe that the state should set iiself up in business or form marketing boards and other restrictive bodies, all of which distort the free market system. Furthermore, | do not believe that Keynes, Galbraith and their kind, could manage the affairs of a cor- poration, let alane a government.

Our economy is like a garden plant. It grows. Read that again. It grows! We do not grow it; we water, weed, fertilize, prune, and care for it. And it grows. Try pulling on it. Try making a potato into a carrot. Push it inta the qround (taxes, controls), See what happens. It is about time that we haul the government off and let our economy grow.

No, | am not an anarchist; | simply want to see government perform its proper function, leaving everything else to the’ people who do things best, the public. ~ We may find that we have a green thumb.

HiS WEEK

from Ottawa

PLAYED LAST CA

Shah may be losing out

WASHINGTON (CP) —

law, went on strike last Shah Mohammad Reza

week, severely damaging

The depth of U.S. concern

was underscored, however, plan of turning ‘Iran into a

power to carry out his grand

Pahlavi has played what some observers say may be his last trump card in his struggle to retain control of riot-torn Iran,

By appointing a four-star general as prime minister, the shah has conceded thal despite the imposition of martial law he cannot maintain order with a civilian government.

The appointment of Gen. Gholan Reza Azhari came as little surprise to experts on the affairs of the oil-rich country, who has predicted weeks ago that such action might be necessary if the latest civilian government was unable to stop the months of violence.

Since then, the situation has degenerated, About 37,000 oil refinery workers, demanding an end to martial

LONDON (CP) — Britain, which has lined up firmly be- hind the shah, has two major considerations at stake during the current civil upheaval in Lran—oll im- poris and arams exports.

Iran, along with Saudi Arabia, imports about 60 per cent of all British arms sales abroad.

Total exports from Britain to Iran in 1977 were worth &655 million (about $1.5 billion).

This is an increase from &5i1 million ($1.2 billion) in 1976 and estimates for 1978 go as high as &900 million ($2.1 billionj—most of the {otal representing military hardware.

the country’s most impor- tant economic aclivily, And a new round of rioting during the weekend signalled the end of the civilian govern- ment under Jaafar Sharif- Emami.

The question now is whelher the military rule will be abie to accomplish what the civilian govern- ments could not—reconcile both conservative and leftist opposition to the shah’'s pol- icies.

The U.S. moved quickly to announce its support of the shah’s establishment of a military governmentand said it does not believe the latest round of violence and turmoil poses a threat to his

e

To suggest otherwise, one official said, might further weaken the shah’s position.

by the formation during the weekend of a_ special working group at the state department, which is

monitoring the lranian situ-:

ation on a 24-hour basis,

At the heart of U.S. con- cern is the fact that Iran provides about five per cent of total U.S. oil consumption. And if the shah falls, the security of that supply would be threalened.

The opposition to the shah comes from an odd alliance of leftists, mainly young Tranians and students, and the traditional Moslem mullahs, prayer leaders of the Shiite sect to which 90 per cent of Iranians belong,

The two groups are united on only one point; Their hatred of the shah, who allegedly has used jail, torture and death lo retain

IN IRAN British vested interest

On the other hand, British imports from [ran--mostly oil— have been dropping, to &767 million ($1.8 billion) in 1977 from &1 billion ($2.4 bililon) in i976.

Despite the decrease, oil purCHASES FROM Iran remain critical te the British economy.

British government spokesmen stress, however, that the sale of arms and the purchase of oil do nol exercise the greatest in- fluence on its policy along the Persian Gulf.

Rather, they say, British support for the shah is based on his promises of wider liberalization for fran and for what they see as the

shah's stabilizing influence in a sensitive zone.

Nevertheless, experts appear worrled ahtat— should Britain have backed the shah too heavily—the result might be the loss of a lucrative and expanding market,

Even if Britain has guessed right in its support, the question remains whether Iran will ever again be able to devote 11 per cent of its gross national product to military spending as that country did iast year.

The figure is more than twice the proportion Britain itself spent during the same period and could be too great a burden for Iran to bear in

western-style country.

If the shah is ousted, ob- servers fear a power struggle would develo between the two groups an regardless af who won, the US. would lose.

U.S. officials, stressing the support of the shah, defended his imposition of a military government, saying the shah still plans to hold free elections for a new

government when, the current crisis is over, And they note that the shah

has survived other crises in the past, including on in 1953 when he fled the country after a militant government tried to nationalize the oll industry. He returned after the government was ousted. How he will survive the current crisis, however, remains to be seen.

the light of costly promised reforms.

Breakdown of such a huge market could have severe repercussions on unem- ployment in Britain,

Order have been received for Chieftain and Scorpion tanks and Rapier anti- aircraft missiles and Fox and Ferret armored cars. The shah also has confirmed an order for about 1,-300 super-Chieftains with deliv- ery stretching into the mid- 1980s.

A spinning mill in Yorkshire returned to full production on the basis of a single order froo Iran for two million yards of cloth for uniforms.

The strike by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) has been ended, but because of the ongoing hard feelings and the possibitity of further disruptive actions, | feel that this is an appropriate time to review the events which led up to this strike.

On October 18, for only the second time since the federal government gave the public service the right to strike In 1967, It was necessary for Parliament to order a group of public servanis back to work. The legislation passed provides for a combined mediation-arbitration of the items in dispute, and until a new agreement is reached, the 1977 CUPW contract remains in full force and effect. The workers do have a ‘continuing contract. .

The union leadership’s action in defying legistation passed by Parliament, and in defying court injunctions, forced the government to take more drastic actions, including the laying of criminal charges against a number leaders.

l regret very much that the CUPW ieadership has forced this action through their disregard for the law of the land, the desire of many of their workers to go back to the job, and the needs of the Canadian people. —

The recent events are the culmination of many months of effort by the Treasury Board, the Post Office, the Public Service Staff Relations Board, the Labour Department, and a Conciliation Board to reach a settlement with the Postal

* Workers Union — a settlement fair to both post

office employees and the Canadian public. Negotiations beqan in January 1977.

By November of that year, little progress had been made, and the government sought the appointment of a conciliation board. This proposal was Initially rejected by CUPW, but was agreed to in February, and Mr. Louls Courtemanche, whose name was put forward by the union, was appointed as conciliator.

Canciliation hearings began in April, and went on for 50 days, the longest such hearings in Canadian labour relations history. In August the

union gave notice that It wished the conciliation process to end and, as péi"ffie Public Service”

Staff Relations Act, it was in legal strike position seven days after the concillation officers report had been filed. This happened on Oct. 5.

Throughout this long and protracted

bargaining, CUPW has at no time moderated its -

original demand, a demand for an increase in compensation of over 400 per cent.

During this same period of time 100 collective agreement contracts have been concluded with other public service bargaining agents, in- rans two agreements with the Letier Carriers

inion.

The importance of prompt and efficient postal service is paramount in a country as geographically diverse as Canada. Many small businesses are totally dependent on the maii, and every month the federal government mails over five million cheques to reciplenis of veterans

pensions, old age pensions, family allowances, and other social services.

Canadians rely on the services provided by the Post Office and it would be an irresponsible act for the government to stand idly by and allow CUPW's continuing intransigence to subject the public toanother crippling postal strike. The cost to our economy. and to the social security of many Canadians is simply too great to permit the leaders of this union to defy the law and hold the country up fer ransom.

The strike has now been ended, and | sincerely hope that the Post Office will be allowed to operate on a normal basis. The government is firm in its commitment to transfer the Post Office to Crown corporation status, and this move should greatly improve labour relations. In addition to the benefits of a “fresh start”, there will also be a simpler and more efficient system of labour-management relations. (At present, the Post Office is the union's employer, but they must negoflate-their contracts with the Treasury Board).

lf CUPW agrees to co-operate during this changeover period, an efficient postal system will be restored; If not, it is the Canadian people who will suffer, and the public service unions who will feel the pressure to revoke the right jo strike granted them eleven years ago,

Letters welcome

The Herald welcomes its readers comments. All letters to the editor of general public interest will be printed. We do, however, retain the right to refuse to print letters on grounds of possible libel or bad taste. We may also edit letters for style and length. All letters to be considered for publication must be signed. We ask. that letters be typed and double spaced.

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