A6 - Wednesday, February 10, 1982 - North Shore News GEE editorial page A rising tide There's a saying that you can tell a man’s character by his garbage. If that is true, the characters of modern North Americans — including the citizens of the North Shore — leave a good deal to be desired. The crisis that has developed over recent months at North Vancouver's Premier Street landfill challenges us to mend our ways or face even more unpleasant con- sequences by the later 1980s. The landfill — which serves all three North Shore municipalities — will be full in about five years. And there’s no future in the idea of then dumping our garbage on our neighbors, even if they'd take it. Landfills in Coquitlam, Surrey, Richmond and Maple Ridge will also have to close their gates at various points between 1983 and 1989. In short, time is rapidly running out for the whole archaic concept of landfill waste disposal. There is only one practical solution for to- day’s society, with its high consumption, elaborately packaged goods and love of “disposables” (everything from diapers to janked automobiles): incinerations accom- panied by maximum recycling. Incineration plants cost millions to build and three to four times as much to operate as landfill disposal. Inevitably, they mean increased taxation.. Recycling has its costs, too — including the cost in time to in- dividual householders who have {o sort their garbage prior to collection. 4 The harsh truth, however, is that we real- ly have no alternative. Within a decade the landfills simply won't be available. We shall have to either pay up or drown in the rising tide of our consumer excesses. Folk hero Sir Freddie Laker, whose airline crashed financially last weekend, is a rare blend of tycoon and dreamer. The dream of cut-rate Atlantic air fares which he realized brought pleasure to thousands, as shown by the out- pouring of public support and money in an effort to keep him flying. For the moment ft hasn't been enough — but folk heroes like Sir Freddie don't vanish from the scene that easily. cunday news narth shore news 1139 Lonsdale Ave North Vancouver. BC V7M 2H4 (604) 985-2131 ADVE RTISING NEWS 980-0511 965-2131 Cl ASSIFIED 986-6222 CIRCULATION 986-1337 Publisher Peter preach Associate Publisher Fobert Graham Managing Editor Andy Fraser Editor in-C hiet Noel Wright Advertising Dt oc tor bi Cardwell Nowe Editor Cotes t doy Genera! Manage Creative Administration Director Berni bth Toon boas Production Director Photography Hck Stonehouse t Assweor th (ie Roce Accounting Supervison Circulation Director Barbara Keen Hier) AE Maes Pur. fiom co me Faye Me Cra North Shore MNows fondo CO as a eet oie ity Cer we ng pengpere careed cpusentefeernd carve dere one ties deogbe TE Bape tr bene emgge eng et UG thie bee Ta Aa tN prado tsered exene Festa din, cured CO pcatredayy boy Noe FP “re Bese een bred ated de tet ete tt sae, bon CA Seber e Sper ceed C das Maal Plengiatontie Saaredtees VPath? — Shaskome ctgrttarcre 320 per yor Enitre contents THAT North Shore froe Preoe tid All rigitts -oserved Ne eg eat emt, veep ate i Peeters Cpe are gee topes whet te ee nes soe slaw Dedede eee cvere dl bree Orbe og ve VE PAR EL RMU AT HON 93 340 Westway (Fs FOO Direee bay cm OS SN’. THIS PAPEMIS HEC YC LAKE ork barrel politics WORK ONE OF the Tory members of Parliament from the Maritimes was chatting over coffee the other day and offered one more example of why his party has trouble getting into power, and then staying there. In the small Mantime parts there’s a system of patronage for harbor opera- tion which is practically as old as Canada. Each port has a harbor master, and a whar- finger. These two gentlemen are appointed at the federal government's pleasure, and they collect $2,000 or $3,000 each a year in part duties, commissions, etc., for very little work. An appointment as harbor master or wharfinger is regarded as_ straight patronage. When the government changes, the ap- pointment changes, so that those of the same political stripe as the winning party get the fruits of victory. “e The Maritime Tory MP in question had watched the system work for years. In his town, one retired individual of the Liberal persuasion had worked himself into a posi- tion where he was doth har- bor master and wharfinger — not just for one small port, but for two. Even some of his political alles regard- ed such patronage pigginess as being too greedy. Well, the election of 1979, February, took place, throw- ing out the Liberals and br- inging in the Tories. The vic- torious Tory MP had a few words with the Liberal har- bor master-wharfinger and told him to expect a replace- Canadian Comment BY PETER WARD ment in the job fairly rapid- ly. The Liberal patronage recipient allowed as how he wasn't worried. “You Tories may be in of- fice,” said the Liberal, “but we Grits are still in power,” Well, the Tory moved heaven and earth back in Ot- tawa to have that perk of of- fice switch. He wanted to split the lucrative posts that had been consolidated under one man into four separate jobs, thus making four Tories happy with re- directed patronage. He couldn't do it. The Tories wanted to centralize their appointments channell- ing them through Joe Clark's office, and there were delays in selecting names. There were also delays in deciding who would be fired, and there was a certain amount of bureaucratic obstruction, too. Result? The man who was wharfinger-harbor master in two Maritime ports, and a vocally partisan Liberal, still held his four jobs when the Liberals came back into power. He made a point of telling the frustrated Tory MP about it, too. Cost of saving the innocent WHAT MUST BE DONE to protect innocent citizens — and, above all, children — from sexual and violent offenders turned lovse on the streets after serving time in jail? And how much would it cost? In the wake of the Olson case the first question is br inging some strong reactions from a concerned public But it’s the dollars-and-cents question that seems likely to determine the answer for the foreseeable future On tnal for public safety activists is Canada’s present parole system, even though Olson himself was not) on parole at the time he com mitted his” first murder There are plenty of other grounds, however, for anxic ty about the system as it presently operates Many of the them are con tained tn a five year federal survey released last March under the ttle | Solheater Gsenerals Study of Condi thonal Release It shows that in the five years studied no less (han ") people dhed at the hands of prisoners SCT ving the balanc ¢ of Utes Sete esS ctaide yarl Phe toll taken ty the parole system: during that porod was 40 murders Ww) manslaugbters and two. ayes of Crimonal oeghgpenee caus ting death To addition these were TI attempted murders 0b had Happ uags MO tapes and al tempted rapes and various other crimes About hadf of the JO O00 Comditronual tclease eases Caomine sd were hauled back into jail before completing — their “street time”, as it’s known in the parole trade AUTOMATIC RELEASE There are actually two types of conditional release A prisoner may apply for parole after completing onc third of his) sentence Whether or not its granted depends on his behavior in jail and the parole board's estimate of his schabilitation potential Parole as cntirely discretionary “Mandatory supervision however. is not tent Under ou Canadian law all prisoners cacept those guilty of “a mayor act of violence! must be released trom jail after serving two thirds of thei sentence and allowed fo complete the remaining one third outside under the cye of a parole offices Vlnless of until they Comantt a farther offemee which half of them de ac. crt dinng tee the seolte thor goocral s stuchy This is the prsoteat Lepore which oa receath toaaned Kroup oof pubblac safety ac tivists om Vaneouser The Citiseas Island 1s fon ustiag Duane an based Ulatted fon Satety and Justsec thew beginning to make otsedin waves Mer ONS Canada Noel Wright demands that the safety of children and innocent cltrsens must take precedence over the rights of criminals Specific alby the © USS 4s we VCE grotnnrt Ptoyram secks a beehiay upoof the Dangerous Offenders Act twhich can baal oa Creve tt for oan otn definite sentence! berry feran poyechwater treatment for all Sonvie ted sea and stobent of lenders and seatemecsy om vouch offenders to tre scrsecd tee thete full Gera wiltlreout any foorsny of release A registered youolety Vescrittig itacdt as bon peohit non political and mon pads al the etsy vs presently lobbying MPs and MLAs throughout the coun- try. It claims endorsement to date from numerous municipal councils, at least two trade unions and sup- porters in seven provinces coast to Coast. (Incidentally, the group has its eye on a North Shore branch, among others. Anyone interested should contact chairman Dan Hughes at P.O. Box 779, Duncan, BC V9L 3YI1) $23,000 CHEAPER The price tag for cracking down on paroles and man- datory supervision 1s another thing again In fact, it’s almost certainly the im- mediate key to the whole issuc of carly release Supervising a prisoner on parole costs around $2,000 a year Keeping him in jail averages $25 000 a year So in 1980 the $7,000 in mates oul on parole or man datory supervision saved the taxpayer around a cool $13 billion Meanwhile. Canada’s prisons today have almost full occupancy and new the carth to bral Ihe Otson case and others ones cost mo dess Unagi raise the ques thon oof how bom owe can morally afford to impernl che tanocent because we cannot financially afford to keep dangerous unrchataltated offenders off the streets As oso offen the chore bowls down (oO gronecy mn this instance money in huge sums) Butits a chore soce ty cannotevnade indefinitely