Bit Rosnia [s a terrible place, Jets get out of This 3 isnt Bosna , hs ‘NEWS: VIEWPOINT Out with louts qHE NDP P government has taken a half hearted swing at the runaway welfare fraud that has long exasperated hard-. orking wage-earners in B.C. who pay the reight for conntless malingerers. ° Abuse of the system has reached unaccept-' able:proportions. According to West Van- - couver-Capilano MLA Jeremy Dalton, up to 20%,of B.C. welfare claims are fraudulent. -AS part of the socialist crackdown on wel- fare cheats, ‘Victoria has come up with a host of. empty new. measures aimed ostensibly at hounding layabouts and other louts from the province’s welfare‘ rolls: single mothers will -be..considered employable | when their. “youngest child reaches the. age of 12, rather “than the ‘previous 19; the government will ‘: recover damage deposits directly from the “landlords. of welfare recipients; B.C. and Alberta will exchange information on welfare claimants so that welfare payments are not paid to the same person in both provinces. - _The new measures are a tentative step in ‘the right direction, but they do nothing: to address the root problem of removing able-_ bodied employable people from welfare rolls. They also add more paperwork and ‘bureaucracy to a system already burdened with foo much of both. For example, single employable people and childless couples will now have to com- plete job search.cards. But how the system will process the tens of thousands of cards and how those searches will be verified remain mysteries. Welfare fraud is a serious drain on the province’s fiscal system; it requires equally serious measures to plug that drain. "LETTER OF THE DAY In praise of News Sunshine Girls “Dear Editor: women who make a worthwhile vapid,” why does she/he continue to read them “week after week?” ‘In response to J.U. Blumel’s snide attacks on the much- -maligned “, Sunshine Girls Gan. 5), 1 am sure t “~ speak for the majority, if not ali, of - the Sunshine Girls when I say we contribution to our community. We do not care to be treated as North Shore trash, who are one or two bricks short of a full toad. H.S.U. Blume! finds the copy beneath the pictures so “dumb and 1 suggest this reader use her/his valuable time worrying about something more important. Perry J. Scammell West Vancouver “are intélligent. hard-working young Peter Speck Timothy Renshaw Noel Wright Publisher ; : Managing Editor Associate Editor Sales & Marketing Director. Linda Stewart Comptroller . Doug Foot North Shore News, founded in 1969 as an independent suburban newspaper and qualitied sunder Schedule 111, Paragraph tlt of the Excise Tax Act, is published ‘each Wednesday, Friday and Sunday .by North Shore Free Prass Lid, and distriputed to every door on the Norih Shore, Canada Post Canadian Publicalions Mail Sales Product Agreement No, 0087238, Mailing rates available on request. Submissioris ate welcome but we cannot accept responsibility for unsolicited matetial including manusctipts and pictures which should be accompanied by a stamped, addressed envelope. Newsroom V7M 2H4 Display Advertising Real Estate Advertising 985-6982 Classilied Advertising 986-6222 1139 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver, Rea ue This newspaper contains # tecycled fibre North Shere managed 980-0511 Distribution 988-1337 Subscriptions 986-1337 Fax 985-3227 } Administration 985-2131 een pe 985-2131 SOA OIVISION B.C. 61,582 (average circulation, Wednesday, Friday & Sunday} Entire contents © 1994 North Shore Free Press Lid, All rights reserved. Allow Commons to get on with its real tasks DRAFT SPEECH prepared for Prime Minister Jean Chretien in response to the next outpouring of separatist drivel from Lucien Bouchard ... “The Honorable Member has mide itelear that he wishes to waste the time of this Parliament with demands for the independence of Quebec through its separation from Canada. That is nol at question for this Parliament to decide. Only the people of Quebec—if they so wish—can make such a decision. “Lean assure the Honorable Member that we on this side of the House—representing the rest of Canada and a significant proportion of Quebecers themselves—devout- ly wish Quebec to remain part of the Confederation to which its peo- ple have contributed so richly. “However, should a majority of Quebecers ever freely vote to leave Confederation and become an inde- pendent nation within Canadian ter- ritory, we feel it only fair to state. here and now, the basic terms on JEAN CHRETIEN... theoretical futures. which the government of Canada wouid be prepared to discuss such a separation. The following items are non-negotiable: “First, the Trans-Canada Highway and the railway link along - the southern shore of the St. Lawrence between Onturio and New Brunswick would remain sov- ercign Canadian territory. “Second, the St. Lawrence waterway, from its mouth to the Ontario border, would remain under Canadian jurisdiction. Ports along that stretch of the river would come under Quebec jurisdiction. “Third, non-military aircraft of each country would have the right to overfly the other's territory. “Fourth, Canada would reserve the right to take back Quebec's northern territories—~ceded to : Quebee AFTER Confederation by - acts of the Canadian Parliament, which remains enlitted to repeal them. “Fifth, the Bank of Canada would no longer supply Quebec with Canadian currency and Quebee residents would no longer be eligible for Canadian passports. Quebec would henceforth issue its own currency and passports. “Finally, Quebec would be required to assume 25% of the fed- eral debt and to renegotiate with the countries concemed all treaties hitherto signed by Canada on Noel HITHER AND YON Quebee's behalf, including a -Quebec- U.S. free trade agreement and Quebec membership i in the NAFTA, . “This having been said, Mr: Speaker, the government will have nothing further to add on the ques- tion of Quebec indepéndence: * unless or until Quebecers them-. selves vote in favor of it... “Therefore I now ask thie Honorable. Member. to squander no" “more of the House’s time on point- less oratory about Quebéc's theo- --Tetical future, but instead allow “ Honorable Members to’ concentrate ° -- all their energies on the tasks for- . Which we were elected — creating ‘jobs and eliminating the deficit.” You’ re very ‘Welcome, Prime Minister;—always happy to be of - help! _ POSTSCRIPTS: Clinibing -: feats of late North Shore residents - Phylis and Don Munday on their “ quest for Mount Waddington will : ‘ be recatied by historian Professor’ Angus Guna at the Thursday, Jan. 27, meeting of West Vancouver - ' Historical Society at 7 p.m. in Cedardale Centre, 595 Burley Dr. ... Also at Cedardale Centre all day ° « Saturday, Jan. 29, from 9:30.am 10 4 p.n., West Van-Capilano Liberals are sponsoring'a public. ~~ forum on “North Shore Transportation Issues” moderated, by former West Van councillor Don Griffiths. Morning session devoted to the Lions Gate Bridge issue with panelists Don Bridgeman (North Van City), - Derrick Humphreys (former B.C. Transit chairman) and Peter Hyslop (Technical Advisory Committee chairman) followed by lunch ($2). Afternoon session coy- ers transit issues and the Westview. interchange issue. For further details call 925-1611 or (evenings) - 925-0985 ... And finally a aie we note. After [8 years in every edi- ..° tion of The News your faithful scribe has decided to give his patient audience (not to mention 4. himself) a well-earned break.” Beginning this week, Wright's musings will appear here every Wednesday and Sunday~-but on Fridays, dear reader, you're hence- forth on your own! WRIGHT OR WRONG: The hardest thing for most people to give is in.