Nae NA IN Tes sCoiumn’s method missing 8 Dear Editor: A Filip Palda’s call for a demo- cratic system with more @ opportunities for mass partici- § pation is long overduc (Nov. 7 News article “How to enjoy ying your. taxes”). His article jowever is quite lacking in the method by which a more par- M@ ticipatory society would be brought about, especially in the delivery of information neces- | sary for citizens to make ratio- A) nal and accurate decisions. Palda asserts that a more participatory sociery would Bam bring about an “explosion of 4 information,” and that “infor- information,” and that “infor ma. What mm gained # mation is what citizens need if they are to get the best govern- A ment tax dollars can buy.” Palda falls short in explain- ing how this information would be disseminated, and whether its content would be @ well-balanced to all sides of the argument at hand, a condition . Mm that is critical if we are to flunc- - i Accident story upsetting a Dear Editor: om pmnting the a extremely detailed article that oe appeared on the front pages of m the Sun day, Nov. 24, News, about the tragic accident that resulted in the deaths of Marilyn, Kelly and Chris im Tsogas? : To reiterate the story of that dreadful event certainly M does little to relieve the - heartbreak of the loved ones a left to deal with the tragedy. ible good can be - tion under a more participatory system with any legitimacy. 1 would argue that the transfer of information in our society is inherently biased towards the interests of a small elite. Those groups who have either the financial capabilities to buy a medium for their mes- sage or those who have the economic or political influence to have consistent access to the media ulimately dominate the informational agenda and have a disproportionate influence on public opinion. Considering the levels of media concentration in our society, can we really rely on traditonal media outlets to provide unbiased and balanced information necessary to make the educated decisions required in a participatory system? In his article, Palda states. “Citizens could decide it is time to stop paying for students While we must emphasize to our community the extreme danger of drinking and driving, why is it neces- sary to publicize so explicitly the intimate personal cir- cumstances in the offending driver's life that contributed to that terrible occurrence? Surely this does nothing but cause pain for the remaining members of her family? To print the details of Ms. Kelly’s medical history, her ROLEX destined for good jobs,” a completely loaded statement which excels in its naive and inaccurate assumption thar a university education guarantees a decent job. Perhaps this was the case back in Mr. Palda’s day, but cer- tainty not in the 2]st century where the only “sure thing” to come from a university degree is a minimum $15,000 debt load. Palda goes on to state, “It would be up to student soci- etics then to make their case to the Canadian people — to explain to them why higher education deserves public sup- port.” This is exactly what has been attempted over the past few years to combat the cuts to public education brought on by the Liberal government in Ottawa. Two of the largest stu- dent protests in Canadian nis- tory were held in January 1995 and in February 1996. Media personal and intimate family problems scems at best unnecessary, at worst inap- propriate and unkind, not only to her, but to her par- ents and child. It certain! does nothing to case the suf- fering of the Tsogas family. Where docs the responsi- bility of printing the news overstep responsible report- ing and become sickening voyeurism? M.E. Baker West Vancouver Q©xcellence withstands the passage of time. Moment by moment, it is defined by craftsmanship, reliability and service. Rolex guarantees excellence. Swedish Jeweler also guecantees excellence. We honour our custumers with the world's finest merchandise and outstanding service. We are proud to be your authorized Rolex Jeweller. ee OYSTER PERPETUAL SUBMARINER Park Royal South 922-2255 OYSTER PERPETUAL LADY-DATE Pacific Centre Atrium/Upper Level 682-6711 “coverage” of these events was virtually non-existent. Palda also holds up the long-standing North Shore News tradition of denouncing so-called “special interest groups” as a threat to a “true” democratic society. What is -srong with groups of ordinary citizens coming together to voice an opinion? It would be nice if we were all privileged enough to belong, to insatutions with the abilisy to regularly access the mass Media and influence public opinion (such as the Fraser Institute}. Participatory democracy? An excellent idea, but not the type that Mr. Palda advocates, where an elite segment of soci- ety controls the agenda and dis- semination of information. We would simply be trading onc type of “tyranny” for another. I. Hodges North Vancouver The Grand Tour by fF Poto hy Raven Lauren SEMI - ANNUAL SALE 207% - 40% OFF SELECTED Mgn’s & WOMEN’S APPAREL FOOTWEAR & ACCESSORIES THE POLO STORE VANCOUVER - THE LANDING 375 WATER St. (60-4) 682-7656 Victoria - 1200 GOVERNMENT St. (664) 381-7656 = ~ 4 Hummer-to celebrate’ Fountain Tire’s 40th Anniversary !s OVEr". ~ “Look who wont. 2 HASYOUR VEHICLE . BEEN GOOD THIS YEAR? Put a Winterization Service Package in it’s Stocking... 1. Change engine ol*, replace 2. Belt adjusting for improved driving performance, os required. 3. Top up oll fluids including brake, windshield, differential, fronsmission and power steering. 4 Inspect cad clean front and tear brokes as required. 5. Top up radiator with antifreeze and fest strength 6. 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