Ao - Wednesday, October 12, 1983 - North Shore News GEE editorial page Ends vs.means | Manon street shortchanged Editorially, The News supports the broad aims of the Bennett government. Restraint in spending tax dollars, less government interfer- ence in citizens’ lives and cutbacks in the over- blown public service are, we believe, the only path back to prosperity. We do NOT, however, condone the reckless disrespect, by Socreds and NDP alike, for the parliamentary system which has served B.C. well for most of the past 113 years. Since July the process has intensified, with interminable NDP filibusters and the Socreds’ use of closure on a scale unprecedented in any other democratic assembly. It culminated last week with the physical ejection from the chamber of opposition leader Dave Barrett. That disgraceful scene bears the marks of being engineered by Mr. Barrett himself in order to appear as a ‘‘martyr’’. But the ham- fisted reaction of the acting Speaker, rookie Socred MLA John Parks, was equally shameful. He could have called a vote of the house to endorse his authority. Instead, he chose the role of a nightclub bouncer throw- ing out a drunk. The parliamentary system, reflecting the values of civilized society, rests on a fine balance between ends and means. For too long both Socreds and NDP in our polarized legislature have followed the principle that ends are more important than means — the principle, incidentally, behind all totalitarian states. Last week the two parties hit a new low. Regardless of the merits of their causes, both need to do some deep soul-searching about the dangerous road down which their childish shenanigans are leading this province. Change beds Only tast June the landslide victory of Mrs. Thatcher’s Tories reduced the British Labor Party to a shambles. Now, with a bright new leader replacing discredited Michael Foot and helped by a Tory cabinet sex scandal, the Labor Party is back within three percentage points of the Tories in the latest poll. The political moral: never stay in bed too long with the same person. FUEE VRCLR GF EET TS Ase WER) VRTEUVE® sunday . news Display Advertising 980-0511 AUR Ula wee Classified Advertising 986-6222 news Newsroom 985-2131 m@ Circulation 986 1337 1139 Lonsdate Ave North Vancouve:s B¢ V/M 2H4 Publisher Peter Speck Associate Publishe: Robert Ca aham Editor in chiot Noel Wright Advertising Directo: Theva f rearve uss Personne! Director Mrs) Borru Milas J Classified Director Vaaabvertdes perry Circutation Or ector Baoan At its Production Direc tor Cons Gomis Office Manage: { oonvesaa Car aeicdy Photography Manage Peery Peters North Shore NMewa foumded FO an ae epee | Ontenaiby Hewagenper are riage) cede oo tre hate UE Part Fa ragge get Mt thee tracene Tas Actoin pubtiahed cach Weuthenday and Swday try Neoeth Shore trae Prone Lite and Uhoteitadedt to every, chor oe He Meoett Sworo encond (dass Mall Mogiatiatio Number 100% Entire contents 1983 North Shore free Presse itd Ail rights reserved SuDBCnpteuno North and Woot varwcniver 82% pre you Matting rates avatinattio on raquost Ne cengraneility acl opted ar + a wore tae Deng, rusete cated Capen mrved pres Vospes mn wba 6 ah nt bee ok DD eon ated ever verte ng rt Member of the BC Press Counctl bad 94 700 nee age MA OE SN’ THIS PAPER IS RECYCLABLE wonder y MAINSTREAM CANADA By W. ROGER WORTH FINALLY, Canadians and Canadian governments are waking up to the fact that their employees, the nation's public servants, are paid very well indeed (and may even be overpaid) for the functions they perform. What’s more, people in every walk of life understand only too well that few public sector workers were laid off during the last two reces- sionary years. At the same time, hundreds of thousands of ordinary tax-paying Cana- dians in non-government jobs were forced to accept ex- tensive layoffs, and a lot of workers are still in that category. In other cases, jobs simply disappeared as com- pahies faced bankruptcy or receivership. To make matters worse, public sector workers were vehement in their complaints about government policies that restrained their wages during the period. Never- theless, most of the civil ser- vants received salary in- creases of at least five per cent per year. Meanwhile, in the private sector, companies were forc- ed to hold salary increases well below that level and, at smaller firms attempting to survive the recession, salary increases were miniscule. Even unionized employees were accepting ‘‘givebacks”’ and other concessions that in fact reduced their pay packages but allowed them to keep their jobs. Many people, it seems, believe this coddling of public sector workers during the last two years was unfair. How else to explain a nation-wide poll where Cana- dians supported further restraints on federal and pro- vincial civil service wages by a margin of more than 64 per cent. Something has been amiss, and the man (or woman) in the street knows it. While some Canadian governments are even now making noises about con- trolling public sector salaries during the next year or more, when present restraint pro- grams are completed, they should perhaps be paying more attention to the issue. In Europe, for example, many countries have placed Onerous restraints on public sector employees, even to the point where salary increases are indeed less than the na- tional inflation rate. In Bri- tain, the government is allow- ing civil service salaries to rise only 3 per cent, while infla- tion is slightly more than 4 per cent. The powerful public sector unions, of course, can be ex- pected to put up stiff resistance to any such ideas in this country. Already, unions in British Columbia are demonstrating against that Province’s far-reaching restraint program, and unions in other jurisdictions are complaining and threatening similar activities if they don’t get what they want. Nevertheless, one simple fact remains. When postal walkers earn $23,000 to $24,000 per year and ex- perienced teachers get $30,000 to $40,000 or more for working ten months per year, the unemployed, under- employed and other tax- payers who consider themselves lucky to have jobs believe they are being short- changed. They are. (CFIB Feature Service) Why | prefer smoke signals A TWO-INCH TV SET that can be held in one hand like a pocket dictating machine 1s now on sale in Britain. Reportedly, i will soon be marketed in Canada, possibly (according to one source) for as little as $100. [ am Jess than thrilled Adimittedly, fin hardly an avidd tube gaver, even when tempted by a tube 10 times the save Barbara bium, Masterpiece Theatre and Love Boat are the full extent ot my addiction moose weeks Ruining my cyesight by squinting at) daytime soap Opec) as aon a sc becn only slightly bigger than my wrest watch doesn’t promise to add much to the pleasure of my datly walk round the park But there's a more sinistes aspect to thas video version of the “Walkman! pocket sterco with carpbones its one uncomfortable gadget hasteming the cormuption of humanity into what today’s clec tt oun Moec witehdoctors tlecfully hail as “the infos Mmahion socuety | Speaking for aryself tom already up tomy cyebrows on mnftormatvon from cvery cae ner of the ghobc) not to men Most of at unhappy and YY per cent of (hom Ouler space foe all practical purposes completely uscless C.ADGE ERY Ihe hardware of the valtearea ale rer bor rasan veo te ty was described recenthy woth oan cauberanece | toad soverve whats tentbesnge by faim od Ne le ths € weitct Acitvese Clarks abort treo ae SO OA ae ty a Omtyssey Avie ttre debi hes Bee jer e de ts * Telephones in every last village on the planet, Tibet to darkest utilizing cheap, powered transceivers trom Attica, solas linked to communications satellites © Attache case sized units providing travellers with two way voud, video and telex commuhicahon to anywhere on carth *Eventualtly, everyone cquipped with our old science ficuhon frrend, the wristwatch phonc All this mintaturized | low cost hardware, declares Mr Clarke, will be a powerful force for civilized behaviour by making travelicts totally independent of national Com mumications therefore, ship of unpossible “tt means the end of clos cd societies oo he prophesics “and will lead ultiumatcty systems and rendering censer roaformation to the unification of the world bo can't: help tecling Mr Clarke. tn has cnthusiasm for gadgetry, is overlooking onc or two characteristies of the nasty people who cun closed sovrehios Electroma magic is a two edged weapon Orwell foresaw Keg Brother using the same cic: tronk magi (by tncidentally') to wath and listen to you 24 hows Presumably MCN yous » a day thas would Noel Wright severely = lamit tunitics of your telling videcophone pals in Washington of tondon about all the coun things Bag oppor your Brouber ts dotag to you let alone surviving until they came to the rescuc MASOCHISM Would they come anyhow?) Mercly Anaowitny about someone clse's pro blem obviously isn't the same thing as solving i That's the underlying fallacy of the in formation cxaplosion which chmincecrs ate welcoming with such glee as the answer ote all cae troubles the sonal Just ask Ronnie Reagan, Pierre Trudeau or Bill Ben nett They, together with every other boss man/woman in the industmalhzed world, are already awash in computer- processed informa tron on every subject under the sun Alas, 1 doesn’t seem to be domg much for the probliems For us millions of unwash ed peasants the blessings of limitiess communication with our fellow creatures are even harder to figure out) Nine times out of ten, information presents us with situavions ours oF other people's that need to be fixed Without, however, explaining how Most of us, E suspect, have enough familtar untixed pro blems lined up right now to last aa hifetume Just keeping one’s pob, one's health, one’s bills paid and one’s personal telabonships tidy ts already a full day's work for the average Jack and Jill Adding unfamihar global problems to the list daily is verging on masochism When you get night down tos. the so called iunforma hon explosion’ ois really a problem caplosion’ Phat s why too for one am not yet teadty to buy Arthur © larke's chee tronmns utopia and cor tainty not a two un th has held DPN set as my comstant Companion Irn tana t Im often passes toes Alen Oy se tempted to Morse Bell world s gieatess villains Smoke cxenm Sain and Corahaim signals aogd toms at least give you time to thoik Vooene