A6 - Wednesday, December 10, 1980 - North Shore News Futile exercise Separatism In light of the sombre news from all three North Shore councils about next year's property tax increases, last week's “tax protest” meeting in West Vancouver takes on the appearance of a singularly childish exercise in futility. It failed completely to come to grips with reality. The meeting was sponsored by a small handful of unofficial ratepayer represen- tatives who called in the radical Vancouver- based group known as Human Action to Limit Taxes (HALT) for advice and in- struction in fighting an anticipated school tax increase. In a militant harangue the HALT spokesman urged his audience to launch petition drives and — if these failed — to stage a tax strike (i.e., refusal to pay) and pull their children out of school. Aside from the fact that two of the proposals are illegal, the “confrontation politics” advocated by HALT entirely ignore the harsh truths of inflation, wage demands and cutbacks in senior government funding with which local councils and school boards are struggling to cope. And HALT also turns a blind eye to the most important factor of all: the continuing demand of taxpayers themselves for services that become more expensive by the month. We are all caught in the inflation bind and taxpayers are right to demand the fullest measure of fiscal resonsibility from local government. But a hotheaded rush to the barricades obviously won't solve the basic dilemma. West Vancouverites themselves seem to have had the same sound instinct. Though the snow had not yet arrived, only 13 or 14 people even bothered to turn out to the meeting. Risky advice Prime Minister Trudeau has advised the poor, elderly and unemployed to avoid going hungry by spending more on food than other things. Remarkably similar advice was of- fered to the poor by Marie Antoinette, the last queen of France before the Revolution — “If they can’t afford bread, let them eat cakes.” And we all kmow where Marie Antoinette’s head wound up! 1908 VORCE OF HUSTTH AND WERT VANCOUVER sunday news|! 11399 Lonsdale Ave North Vane Ouver H VIM 2H44 (604) 985-2131 north shore news NEWS ADVERTISING CLASSIFIED CHREUL ATION 985-2131 980-0511 986-6222 986 1337 Publisher Peter Speck Associate Publisher Editor-in-Chiet Advertising Director Hobert Graham Noel Wright bik Cardwell Classified Manago: & Office Administrator Bern Hilbard Creative Director thm francis Production fttck Stonehouse Faye McCrae Managing Editor Anicty taser News Editor Photography Cobvwes bhoyd b isweor tts (te basco: Accounting Supervisor Barbara Keon North Shore News founded TOU an ar wide recdent Vy ter wy sop seng vere carved cpeseabitvesa) caercdese Soe Peete shee MOE baat UN ES aae eng pe thre bom ise Tere Aad comtie ae got Me sh poretabem bres) Coane Bo Wadernedany, ard Saad, te, North Sabore bree Mees Cle ind detetto ard toe lem y den on flee Natt “oP yer ad Cts Maat Mes gest ate o Noid nese yeyen? Sacto cageteess Bute peer vera ftw ca at CT. ire Cn ere) Pare Pan del AM igh bee ved te eg see, ee reals , hn Tea ate Faget a wt ' ' a ‘ age Lape bees d noe ether VERE FC REC LL AT ON 50.870 Wednesday 48 BE wo ha, x a Ss SIN » THIS PAPER IS RECYCLABLE OTTAWA (SF) - There is a considerable amount of pressure on the Federal government from Eskimos in the Northwest territories for a division of the Territories into two. sections. The Eskimos see this split of the NWT into western § and eastern portions as the first Canadian Comment BY PETER WARD step to the creation of NUNAVUT, their own land. It’s a concept which is being treated at long arms- length by the Federal government. They don't like to come right out and say, “It's no go,” but that ts certainly the feeling. Pressure was increased in November, when the territomal council passed a resolution favoring division of the vast area, but Cabinet was slow to even consider the request. These days Cabinet is preoccupied with things constitutional and economic. There is not one federal politician in 20 who has ever seen the Far North, let alone knows much about it. The Arctic simply does not figure in the Trudeau scheme of things. Yet, there is justification of the Northwest Eskimos’ demand for their own country, a country within Canada — despite the fact that they are pushing a good case too far. From their point of view there is little point in living in a land ruled by a distant territorial council in Yellowknife, and an even more distant federal government in Ottawa. Yellowknife is a bureau- cratic Arctic haven, but the Western Arctic, with A valley running out o Thousands of North Shore recreation-seekers know and chenish the Skagit Valley — that beauti- ful wilderness playground just southeast of Hope. If they and other British Columbians don’t scream loudly enough in the next few days, we may all too soon be wniting about the place in the past tense. The plan (in case youre sall a htthe hazy over the details) ts to destroy over 5.000 acres of a umiqgue Canadian valicy by flooding in order to provide Seattle with cheap clectne power Wednesday, December 17, as the final deadhne for the Internabonal Join Com mission the body that holds the tmmediate fate of the Skagit’ proyect in its hands to receive letter and bnefs) from ordinary British Columbians io suffhcacnt) volume to con vince it were in deadly carnest about saving = the valley Hf the DC as convineed by neat weeks deadhne of the seriousness aol position in B ¢ pubbhe oop it may stall the Hooding plan by calbag pubhe hearings Ifo Hleoocoching tint convinced the will finally Ke ahead bast The Skagit Valley hics within LOO males of half the populaton of HOO and is an outdoors lovers parading — i has cacelent arcays foos CAMP pres rude botany and biking plas some oof the finest fishing bunting and 6 MHOC tm the Grrr v tree plus abundant flora to naturalist wildlife and delight the 384M. for $35 000 The story of its planned rape stretches back over 38 years and, on that count alone, must be one of the most) extraordinary vironmental annals in cen lt began in 1942 when the [JC issued an order permit ting Scattle to raise the Ross Dam in Washington State thereby flooding the Cana dian valley Phe order was contingent upon BC and Scattle agrecing oon com pensabon B ¢ went slong in principle in the interests of Canoda US But hagghng over the Compensabon wartime solidarity fipure occupied the neat 25 years Hinally in 196" the B ¢ Kovernment agrecd to allow (tye Flame madbange tm cae hange for $34 S60 per year Loday you cant buy a modest home in TOO) Mile Howse with that inonmey {o return Seattle stands te gain $4 madi worth ol chloe true ity pet vear Show thy afterwards the pubbo outory began le 1a the feultecal government focus Noel Wright announced its offPosinion to the scheme Two years later the new NDP government tn B ¢ followed sunt Sance then the official Canadian position has been that "The onginal 194) UC order authorizing (be raising of the Ross Dam and the flooding of the valley should be rescinded ethe 196° agreement Compensation ahould be deo lared invahd As 8 make good B ¢ olfered to sell Scatite cyqurvalent power ata lower cost than the cast of power produced try The Phe ding the Skagit olfer was tefuned in the high Arctic population clustered along the MacKenzie River, has little in common with those in the settlement of the tundra, and those in the Eastern Arctic. The Federal bureaucracy in Yellowknife is far removed from the Eastern population of Frobisher Bay. But associate statehood or even provincial status of the Eastern Arctic? No way. There are Eskimos claiming all of the NWT above tree line, NUNAVUT. That is roughly a million square miles. with vast resources, rmches like the natural gas deposits in the high Arctic island, and the huge mineral deposits of Baffin. The Eastern Arctic settlers, with backing from northern settlements from Frobisher, see the revenues from those resources as being theirs. They also see development under local control — with hunting and fishing groups — having veto power on development. In areas where hunting and fishing are traditional, you can make a case for such veto power. There are, however, only Eskimo settle- ments in all of the Arctic islands north of the North- west Passage. They are small settlements. There is little historical right for certain Eskimo jurisdiction in the high Arctic islands. time While these fruttless B.C. efforts to obtains a settle- ment with Seattle dragged on during the “70s, the latjer raulroaded ahead via its own U.S. regulatory authonties. This year a US Appeals Court decision removed the last legal obstacle to the flooding as far as the US. was concerned The BC Seattle — settle- ment negotiations collapsed and B.C has appealed, as & last resort to the UC Which has led to the latter's call for public opinion input from Britush Columbians by December }7 Meanwhile, with all U.S. hurdles cleared, the intran- sigent Seattle Light and Power Company is now poised to start actual con- struction of the High Ross Dam Only a decision by the VC that pubhc outrage in BC ts sufficiently strong to warrant public hcanngs can hold the carth-mow 1 back. Por BC's treasured Skagit Valley the 59th minute of the 1th hour looms horribly close If you support the BC. gevernment’s opposilion to the rape, get your letter off today to DG. Chance, Canadian Secretary, Inter national Joint Commission, 100 Metcalfe Street, Ottawa, Ont. KIP SMI. And splurge a tew cents. catra by mailing 1 “Special Dehvery ~ You know what Christmas docs to the Post Offi!