6 — Sunday, September 19, 1999 ~ North Shore News north shore news VIEWPOINT __ fuards needed ONDAY’S accident near a school crosswalk on ountain Highway near Lynn Valley elementary school was a wake-up call. This time a 10-year-old boy who was struck by acar escaped the encounter with a severely broken leg. Had luck been less with him, he may have died. An investigating police officer said that a crossing guard at the scene would have made a differ- ence. While politicians, unions and bureaucrats point fingers at each other about responsibility for providing crossing guards, the upshot remains this: our kids are not as safe-as they could be as they travel to and from - school.. North Vancouver School District 44 1996 after the Ministry of Education off-loaded the responsibility to the dis- trict. In 1998 North Vancouver District went without crossing guards for six months until the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) kicked in temporary funding for crossing guards in six high risk areas of North Vancouver district. But that money ran out in July. North Vancouver City continues to pay for unionized crossing guards. Whether they be police-trained stu- dent volunteers, CUPE members or parents, crossing guards are needed for all of our schools, Pedestrian con- trolled lights are needed to ceinforce pedestrian safety in the more danger- ous high-traffic volume areas. It’s long past time for cohesive action on this front. PRESTON AND ~ JOE ARE RlUKT: 17S TIME WE PUT AN END To COUNTERPRODUCTIVE Vote SPLITTING. A LITTLE WHILE LATER: cut funding for crossing guards in you said it “It’s been absolute chaos.” Blucridge. elementary principal Phil Marshall, on the opening days of school after he reccived an extra and unex- pected teacher and was forced to rearrange classes. (From a . Sept. 12 News story.) Q00 “Just because you're on assistance doesn’t mean your » kids have to be vegetables. He takes piano lessons too.” Lynn Valley parent Shannyn Poster, on her eight-year-old son and straight A student, Jayde. (From the same Sept. 12 News story.) ; . QoaQ . “If the government said, ‘Here’s half a dozen com- ’ puters; you supply the classroom and the teacher, but it’s only tor white kids or Iranian kids,’ would that be _all right? I don’t think so. It’s segregation. It’s unac- >» eeptable.”. . : . : _.. Janet Gee, who has daughters in Grade 3 and Grade 6 at * Queen Mary elementary, on her shock on discovering that * 1 First Nations children had been given their own class- ' room, teacher and computers. (From a Sept. 17 News story.) . o0g vest Vancouver council has come out of hibernation in time to ‘discover’ the very serious problem sding the width of the lanes in the Stanley Park causeway.” ~~ poe “oS John. Clark, -former. West. Vancouver Chamber of * Commerce chairman and a member of the Lions Gate ~ Praject. Task Force, on the fact that recent political protests :. about the.width of lanes on the Staniey Park Causeway may ~. be. too. late. (From a Sept. 17 News story.) vo. \ “He was a trooper. The only thing he asked me was .. when the ambulance guy said he’d have to straighten out his leg was if it was going to be big hurt or little hurt.” ~ ” Kimberley Tyls, on the. bravery shown by 10-year-old: a Lynn Valley student Elias D’Artagnen Brunt after being hit by a car and suffering a severely broken leg. (From a Sept. 15 _- News story) North Shore News. founded in 1965 a5 an independent suburban sewspaper and qualified ‘under Schedule 111, Paragraph 115 of the Excise Tax Act, is polished each Wednesday, ~ Friday and Sunday by HON Publicatrons: Company and distabuted fo every deor on the North Shore. Canada Post Canadian Publicabons Mail Sales Product Agreement No. 0087238. ‘Mailing rates avaiable on request. pd ‘eae ——aet Soe aaa a rs ee =? NEWSPAPERS TSPANTE CGS. - COMPETIION © yous ie et iia Barbzza Emo Distribution Manager S86-1337 (124) Creative Services Ditector 888-2131 {127) 61.582 (average circulatipn, Wednesday, Friday & Sunday) Look south to battle ‘dictators’ THE U.S. form of government _—— like all others — has many flaws. But if we’re ever to improve Canada’s own flawed system, eventually we must look southward for an answer. Canadian parliamen- ’ tary government was imported from 19th cen- tury Britain. What it lacks today, compared to its counterpart in Westminster, is the rugged independence of many individual British MPs. In contrast, government caucus members in Canada tend to be much more dacile. Something to do, maybe, with that mythical Canadian who says “thank you” to automated banking machines. The result is that between elections our prime ministers and premiers, given any workable majority, rule as virtual dic- tators. True democracy in Canada is limit- ed to 12 hours every four years or so. The Reform party has several solu- tions. They include referendums on gov- ernment proposals, legislative initiatives launched by voters, and the recall of - unsatisfactory MPs/MLAs. Admirable theories, all of them. But in practice alrhost as flawed as the abuses they seck to eliminate. This is primarily because — aside trom wife-beating and child abuse — most issues put to a popular vote tend to pro- duce a result uncomfortably close to half- PETER SPECK Publisher 985-2131 1101) onry Photograph: Manager 985-2131 (169) . The North Shore News is published by HCR Publications Company, Valerie Classified Manager 985-6222 (202) Entire contants © 1999 HCN Publications Company, Ali rights reserved. and-half. Should a popularly elected gov- ernment have to obey such a mid-term “mandate” against its own possibly better judgment? MPs and MLAs, after all, are supposed to be a cut above mere messen- gers for 55%-or-less opinions. _ Moreover, referendums, ‘voter initiatives and recalls ston’t come cheap. In addition to putting government “on hold” for extended neriods, they can devour many millions of tax dollars urgently needed for causes equaily pressing, if not more so. But all of the above aside, there’s an even more down: to-carth reason why Reform's version of “participatory” demacracy is imypractical. Under our present system no elected government, once in office, can reatistical- ly countenance such time-wasting restric- tions on its constitutional powers. { chal- ’ lenge Preston Manning and Reform ta promise that, if elected with a majority, they would be the exception. But I frankly doubt it. So what to do about our four-year dic- tators? They now hold all the patronage cards. They alone appoint to cabinet and committecs. They alone dispense or with- hold the many other possible rewards of your political career. Obey thei: and you're IN. Oppose them and you're polit- ica] toast. . ; The only solution is to separate the executive (read cabinet) from the-legisla- ture (i.¢., Parliament). Thus, you have a PM and cabinet no longer able to bully caucus members into obedience, because all-:ne latters’ perks are determined by the Speaker of Parliament and their party leader in that body. Moreover, if government has a mea- sure defeated in that Parliament, it no longer has to resign (one of the biggest. - threats by which it keeps its caucus at heel under our own system). The cabinet ; merely goes back to the drawing board and tries to do better next time. In short, the vorers have their say on every issue via their elected representatives, completely independent of the government itself. : hile chere’s no need to copy every fine detail of this American system, its sep- aration of powers does require three other: changes. First, a prime minister elected by.” scparate personal ballot. Second, fixed». -' four-yearly clections for Parliament and: the PM, Third, a non-clected cabinet picked by the PM from the brightest i the land — in happy contrast to so muc:: mediocre cabinet material today..." Quite a d-amatic switch, agreed. Bur if. you know «./any better way to save B.C... from futuz. clones of Glen Clark — Canada frem perpetual Liberal dictato: ship — please tell me. And let me kno’ too (hi there, Preston!) of any. politi¢ian®:- truly cnough dedicated to Canada to fight for that switch. . wb ; - O00 = MANY HAPPY RETURNS tomo: Sept. 20, to North Van birthday gal Joan: LeBlonde ... And birthday greetings th same day to North Van’s Pam ie : : QOO00.-* WRIGHT OR WRONG: Convincing yourself a bad idea is a good idea is the worst idea of all. wa ‘ | = nwrigh LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters must include your name, (ull address & telephone number. : VA e-maik treinshaw @ direct.ca Managing Editor 985-2131 (116) __ Display Advertising Manager 980-0511 (317) Gall Sneigrave General Office Manager 885-2131 (105) Internat: http://eune.nsneces.com