the Howth shoe Nees is published by Wor Shore Free Press Ltd., Pebiisher Peter Sper.x, from 1136 Lonsdale Avenue Worth Vancouver, 8.C., V7M 214 PETER SPECK .. Publisher 685-2131 (101) Doug Foot. Dee Dhaliwal * Comptretler Human Resources Harager e621 fsa) $85-2131 Tia . * sae Maen De at (116 “ S80-S51i vewrzacalty 985-2131 (47) LETTERS T0 THE ELATOR | “Later must include your rame, full address number. ” ‘MIA intomat trenshaw @ direct.ca COMPUTER BRS - 580-8027 - siboten newspaper Paragraph H1t of the Excise, Tax Act, is published exch Wedhesulty, Fridey are$ Sundiy by North Shore Froe Press Lid, and desribatad to every door un the North Shure, Canada Poet Canadian Publeations Mail Sales Product Agroanent No: (087238. Maing rots vatab on repost ‘Entre contents f° © 1996 North Shore *—" Free Press Ltd: : All rights seserved. See TUT OF Blaze Ade | costs are ‘too high © Dear Editor: Re: True cest of Second Narrows Bridge work. There are about. 100,000 crossings per day of the Second Narrows, ° At 10 minutes delay and assuming only one person per: vehicle this works out to. 1,000,000 person-minutes per day! ; Let's say the. costs of these.’ delays are worth $5 per hour... (about minimum wage). This works out to $100,000 per: day. For the 60 days this is $6,000,000. 4 Now add about half that again for delays caused at ; First Narrows and we total $9,000,000 in loss of ‘quality “Ison sautl ebota!a Coincidentally, this wor ; Out to be about the price of the repair. Now some would: lo This would ring the “costs to $36,000,000." - EWARE the dog days of summer. Their . unplessanenes intensifies as. the days _ In West Vancouver, the’ same infraction . carries with it a paltry $25 fine. . Chump change west of the Capilano, be North Vancouver District levies 4 $50 fine. In North Vancouver City, violators face a 550 : fine. But that applies only to dog. indiscretions’ in city parks. Sidewalks and municipal boule-.- vards remain open ground for dogs and their. _ irresponsible owners. | ers face fines of over $100 if they 2 are nabbed’ The incentive on the’ North Shiore to clean. up after pets largely ‘rests: with ‘the con-, Sciences of dog owners. Largely a ‘hit and. miss | a proposition. Some are- better . ‘than’ others. More carry plastic bags for dog’ slean-up then’. ‘Steeper fines’ would add: the. almighty financial incentive to that of good neighborli-*: fess and. would’ help. dispatch the worst. ‘in past years. But the situation is still far from - -acceptable.. ||. ae million negative ‘impa ‘this for-2 $9,000,000 Project! - any reasonable accounting’ “there is no net im - in quality of life. ~ jove them — failing : to pick up after their pets. We’ re “talkin a about ~ Jean Chretien, the unity “campaign,” flags on _ post offices, mailings telling Quebecers we — and mail-, ings asking British’ "Columbians to stop " knocking Quebec. i That seems to be what Canada’s new “Canada Information Office,” due to premiere-in September, is all about. Why — given the huge resources Ottawa is already pour: ing into the unity issue — we need yet another $20- -million-a-year ] program and 50 more bureau- crats is a mystery. Especially when headed by Heritage Minister Sheila (Credibility Gap) Copps. What is clear are the PM’s ever-changing unity strategies, which wave to and fro as frequently as . the maple leaf flags with which the CIO promises to ~adomm every last federally, owned brick in Quebec. Since Canada’s near-death experience in last Octaber’s referendum those strategies have swung between the carrot and the stick—between feel- good messages to Quebecers about their importance “to Canada and other Canadians’ love for them, to , Stem warnings about the economic and social costs aspects of summer’s dog days, of splitting the court and pos i sibly Quebec itself. Now we're back to carrot packaged in the flag, but still tich in the one ingredient western Canada — firmly wedded to the 10-equal- provinces concept — resolute- ly refuses to swallow: Quebec's bottom-line demand for “distinct society” status as one of two founding nations. - From a strictly political - viewpoint (and what other does he have?) one can under- stand poor Jean Chretien’s confusion. In the federal election looming within 12 to 15 months he badly needs to win more than his present 20 of Quebec's 75 seats — including hanging on to his own. At the same time he also needs some sig- nificant addition to Liberal seats in the West if he is to hold the Reform party at bay. On the Quebec issue these two goals are clearly irreconcilable. What Canada, as opposed to Chretien, needs is to exercise a little simple tough love vis-a-vis Quebec. Guy Bertrand, the converted former separatist , featured in this space June 30, has shown the way. - by asking Quebec Superior Court to declare any ‘unilateral declaration of independence by Quebec illegal under the Canadian Constitution. Ottawa -should be right in there backing him up. - As Rafe Mair, supremo of the local hotliners, has noted, Quebecers are law-abiding people who don’t tightly flout judges and their rulings. As well, Ottawa should be continuously... spelling out the economic and social costs of sepa ~ ration, Never threateningly but simply as a helpfu! warning to a family member it doesn’t want to see hurt —- and for whom a warm welcome is always ’ waiting from the rest of the Canadian family. in short, all Canada lacks at this time is some prime ministerial backbone. In the unity stakes‘ Ms. Copps and her $20-million-worth of addition- al pen-pushers are strictly non-starters. 2 Q PLANT LOVERS — don't miss the B.C, Fuchsia & Begonia Show 1-6 p.m. Saturday, ‘Jul 27 and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday, July 28, at Van Dusen Gardens, with plant salc, door prizes and ; refreshments, Admission $2 (children free) ;..'A! 80-candle salute tomorrow, July 25, to Betty. Bray, widow of late Highlands minister Rev...” Wesley Bray — now living in Surrey .. And.» happy S2nd anniversary that same day to Woodcroft 's Bob and Barbara Miller OOD WRIGHT OR WRONG: Some folks dream of " worthy deeds. Others stay awake and do thei. | . <~ The North Shore News believes strongly i in freedom of speech and the right of all sides in'a debate tv be heard. The columnists published i in: the News present differing points of view, but - those views are not nec essarily those oth the news-" paper iself . :