FOLLOWING a day which saw thousands of would-be air traveilers toting their bags and stumbling along Grant McConachie Way to vainly try to catch. flights, MLA and dis- graced former NDP cabinet minister Moe Sihota trotted out the race card to explain the reason for the dispute between the airport authority and the cab drivers servicing the terminal. All the while, the Richmond Mounties were unable to do little more than stand and watch the debacle. The brass gave the order ‘to wait until such time as a° court granted an injunction to clear the road for the trav- elling public. Were the police wrong in what they did, or didn’t do, as is more accurately the case? T suppose it depends on who you ask. “The RCMP in the guise of its own leaders were quite happy to let the cabbies tic “up traffic and force an incred- _ ible inconvenience on air ‘. trivellers. * -You'see, any move against the hacks would ailow the + )“ inevitable call of racism to be “the rallying cry of the drivers sand their supporters. ‘i The vast majority of Vancouver-arca cabbies aren’t locally born. Most are of East ndian extraction and are crime and punishment quite visible as such. Many others are from Nigeria, Iran, Uganda, Fiji and a host of other nations of the world. They were protesting against the airport authority’s decree that all taxis servicing the airport should be able to speak English and actually know their way around the city. Unspeakable demands apparently. To be fair, the authority was also demanding higher fees including a dollar-per- trip cariff. There’s no question this was a major stumbling block in the good relations berween the airport and the hackney drivers who service the air- port's users. Any clear-thinking person would heiteve this dispute should be solved by negotia- tion. The drivers certainly have the right to disagree and even protest against the authority’s demands. They do not have the right to seal up the airport and bring it to a virtual standstill. They do not have the right to block highways with impunity. The RCMP have a clear NOW OPEN ._ Just in time for Easter “¢ the opening n with duty to ensure the roads are free for the use of all citizens. Nothing else should have an effeet on that duty. The brass, on the other hand, feel their duty is to cover their backsides and per- haps nore importantly, the backsides of their political masters. Perish the thought they might be accused of racism by simply ordering their charges to do their duty and keep the roadway clear. Ifany person or group blocks traffic, preventing law- abiding citizens from using that road, it is the duty-of the police to clear the obstruc- tion. End of discussion. Any suggestion of racism is simply ridiculous. But then there’s Moc Sihota, Remember him. He is the former NDP cabinet min- ister, who had to twice resign from cabinet for various integrity issues. According to him, it’s racist for the police to enforce the law against the cab drivers. T suppose it was inevitable given his shameful involve- ment in the Kimber cab scan- dal, a case so disgusting in itself, ic should have forced the resignation of ar least nwo cabinet members involved in the matter. It’s much like the BC Teachers’ Federation and their “homophobia/hetero- sexism” debate. If I speak out against a particular issue central to the so-called “gay agenda,” ’'m not homophobic. This would imply I am afraid of gays. “Homo-disdainia” might be a more appropriate phrase. But certainly not homophobic. While P'm on this particu- lar tangent. There is no such thing as “heterosezism.” If I remember correctly discus- sions held at my father’s knee, basic survival of the human race requires an cle- ment of cross-gender pollina- tion, so to speak. Boy meets girl, ete. etc. is the inherent instinct of 97% of the population How, therefore, can the misguided aims of a mere 3% drive so much of the political agenda of the BCTF and the province as a whole? Perhaps I digress, but the issue is the same. When the cabdrivers blocked the access roads to the airport, they were break- ing the law. The Mounties were duty- micro x Wednesday, April 8, 1998 — North Shore News - 7 im involved in airport action bound to clear the road. The only reason they did not is because senior officers calling the shots were afraid of someone like Sihora screaming racism, which, as it happens, he did anyway. Ergo, they chose to wait until the airport authority had a court injunction in hand. Thus providing them with the ability to say they were enforcing the court order and their hands were tied. Part of the official argu- ment they try to hide behind, is thar the airport is federal land and therefore not sub- ject to provincial statutes like the Motor Vehicie Act or the Highway Act. Partly correct. But the RCMP are federal police and have jurisdiction in any part of Canada. Equally, if that argument held any water, they wouldn’r have the the authority to write speed- ing tickets on that same road, something, | might add, they do with regularity on the days the cabbies aren’t black-~ ing it. The police should not be subject co whatever politically correct whim the brass per- ceives. Their sworn duty is to uphold and enforce the laws of this land cqually, fairly, and without consideration of race, creed or position in society. It’s quite simple really. Itonly becomes conpli- cated because People like Sihora ery vacism or homo- . phobia every time someone © ~ docs something they don’t like adversely affecting the minority of the moment. ’ Still, the tail wags the dog and the dog scems to think that’s the way it should be. _ lknight@divect.co Ce ear ee a ea ea eee oes EO ag New garbage service trashed Dear Editor: Re: new garbage collection company i West Vancouver. It was no April Fool’s Day joke when a white garbage truck with a nicely uniformed man looked at my garbage this morning (April 1) and left it on my driveway because I recycle the small supermarket bags for garbage and put those in the garbage can and have done so for years. But don’t do that anymore! You have to put those plastic bags into a BIG plastic bag and then into your garbage can otherwise they don’t sake it. Mother Earth will juve that! I understand that we now have a new garbage company with different rules and they charge half of what Laidlaw cost us bur will we sce that reduction in our next year’s garbage : collection bill? And do we still get our spring and fall cleanup days and do we have to wrap up every- thing in plastic? With Laidlaw we never had to. Clemence Dekker West Vancouver TAX RETURNS Call Brian Watts for an appointment. * Self Employment Income ¢ Employment Income ¢ Retirement ¢ Capital Gains * Disability Credits ¢ Investment Income - © Rental Income. * Child Care 7 * Moving Expenses We also offer Financial Planning Services . 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