‘YAU CPL Ce
THAT DONT (hae
THANG OT

4

| You CANT
GEL THERE
| FROM HERE.

$0 LONG OND THANKS

FOR Al THe GREAT

SS
an ane

SS

NEWS vara =

ecall reco

ECALL. RECENT recommendations

on ‘recall, MLAs.

« Your report on recalling — . firing
for. the less couth — MLAs by members of
the : public : ‘during. an MLA’s elected term

_ has some serious shortcomings. : ;
The shortest of which is the proposed
formula of 50% plus one of eligible voters
‘initiate an MLA’s. dismissal.
- That’s over, 50% of all voters’ signatures
“" needed in a given’ riding to Sign recall peti-

i meeded. to

Hons to fire an MLA. .

And those signatures. heed to be collected
.. dita recall campaign limited to.60 days, ac-
-leording to another. recommendation by the
“ponderously titled Select Standing Commit-
Reform,
‘Standing - Orders. and Private

- tee on Parliamentary .
oa Conduct,

Consider that the: preceding two. recom’
‘mendations’ would require almost 14,000:
‘signatures “to. be “collected : in

B.C..

Schreck’s North Vancouver Lonsdale riding

_ alone in 60 days and the magnitude of the
undertaking becomes apparent.

- Consider also that in California the for-

mula in similar recall legislation requires

the collection of | less

signatures in almost triple the time than is
alloted ‘under the formula proposed for

than half the

Perhaps a better: solution would be to
require 50% plus One of constituents who

. actually voted in the provincial clection as

Ethical

_, David .

basis for the recall formula. :

The issue of recalling MLAs is not. a
simple one. Restrictions should not be so
loose as to render: politicians: iweffective
and incapable of making strong’ ‘stands on
emotional and unpopular, issues; but. mak-
ing those restrictions too tight throttles any
~ real chance of recall being cffective in:

: making : politicians listen more  carefiliy to
their constituents, —

NEWS QUOTES OF THE WEEK —

eewyith: 50% plus ene I don't even”

think’ you could recall a‘ criminal,

- considering you do not get: 100%

we voter turnout in elections,”’ :
rs West Vancouver-Garibaldi
“MLA David Mitchell, on the pro-
posed . 50%-plus-one . formula of
: registered voters needed to recali
MLAs from office.:(From a Nov.
.26 News story. )

“41 think they're (crities) whistling.

in the wind, Unfortunately, these
_ kinds. of , statements illustrate’.op-

“position | ifor the’ sake of -Opposi--

tion.”

Publisher we
Managing Editor |
Associate Editor

North Vancouver- Lonsdale |

Peter Speck
Timothy Renshaw

MLA David Schreck, on opposi-
tion to a proposed "60- day time

‘limit for collecting the signatures

needed to fire MLAs. rom a

‘Nov. 26 News story.)

“4 ant not against education which

feeds the human spirit and ex-
pands the mind. As a. civilized

.- Society we must provide for that,
' But we. need to ensure that as a

first priority we provide education
and training which will allow us to
feed the human hody and expand
the economy.’ i
-BCIT president John Watson,
on the need for practical ‘educa-

Display Advertising 980-0511
Real Estate Advertising $85-6982

Distribution
Subscriptions 986-1337

tion training. in today’s rapidly
changing world. (From 2 t Nov. 28
News story.) -

“ie the 20,060 plus people who
rolled over and went to bed on
Sunday. morning were fined $50
cach, we would have money for a
new police administration build-
ing.’

North Vancouver City Coun.
Rod Clark, who was defeated in
his bid for election as the city’s
mayor, on fining people who
don’t vote in municipal elections.
(From a Nov, 24 News story.)

&

This nevsoape:

986-1337 &

A new

Trenc!

revolution to
cut joblessness

EVER SINCE 1789 France has had a patent on revolutions.
And once the French wholeheartedly embrace a cause —
liberiy, equality, fraternity or whatever - - “they” re quite apt

to change the world as well.
Will it happen again with the

‘latest obsession suddenly sweeping

the country — the revolutionary
concept of a universal four-day
work week?

This is now seen by numerous
leading French policy-makers as
the only logical solution to stub-
born and rising unemployment
throughout the European Com-
munity, in which France is a key
partner.

Average unemployment in EC
countries is now around 12% and

heading toward a total of 20 mil--

lion.

The basic proposal — being
touted at top government levels
and in TV talk shows — is to
switch to a four-day, 33-hour
week from the present five-day,
39-hour week by 1996.

As with all goodies, there’s nat-

urally a price tag. Wages and

salaries would be cut by 5%.
Companies would have to hire
10%' more staff. And tax cuts-and

incentives would be needed to -
compensate them for higher costs
— thereby reducing government .
revenues. /
But these negatives — propo- .
nents argue — would be move
than offset by the creation of two
million new jobs, lower
absenteeism, higher productivity,

‘improved family life and new

hope for a disenchanted society

‘that otherwise. faces “creeping

despair.’’

It seems these new French rev-
olutionaries (they include — Ca~
nadian union leaders please 1 note!
— the Socialist presidential can-
didate for 1995) are on the same

- wavelength as your humble scribe.
I’ve long maintained that tradi-

tional ‘‘full employment” for.
everyone seeking it is as dead as
the dodo. ,

Computers, robots and
automation, plus’ bargain-base-
ment labor in Asia and Latin
America, have seen to that.

The age of leisure we once
yearned for has suddenly arrived.
Yet instead of delighting us, it’s
savaging us until we learn how to
cope with it. '

Obviously, the only sane way to
spread the diminishing amount of
work around. But eventually a

four-day week won't go nearly far -

enough. ;
Ultimately, a one-day, eight-
hour work week per employee

HITHER AND. YON

uf

may be ali that’: 5 needed’ to pro- .
duce virtually everything society
needs. -

By then we'll need to fig igure out.
how to distribute the wealth
created by machines during the |
remaining timé.to workers relaxing
before the tube,-in the pool or on.
the golf’ course six days out of -
every seven. / :
~ No kidding! Check in ‘the his- ., Lo
tory books what 19th century °
workers and bosses said about the

: : impossible dream of a 40-hour :
'. work week,’

Meanwhile; salute the Ieadeis fs)
the latest French revolution.’
They’ve still a long way to go, but: .

_ they’ve made a great start.’

SCRATCHPAD: History hi has s been’

made by award-winning composer.” m
Michael Conway Baker of North: :.-
Van, who has created the first~..
ever original. musical score to ac-"
company an ice ballet: The’ 99>
soutidtrack of his’ “Cinderella ... °
Frozen In Time,” recorded by the .
famed Sinfonia of London Or- * ’
chestra, will be heard when
Dorothy Hamiil’s Ice Capades *
perform in Vancoiver Jan.-5-9:°
-.. Renowned war correspondent _-
Peter Stursberg discusses his new’:

‘book The Sound of War from 10

a.m. to noon Tuesday, Nov. 30,
at West Van Memorial Library.:
Meanwhile, contact Miche! . -
Poutiot, 983-6538, if you're in-
terested in rewarding work as‘a_
needed volunteer at t Capilano
Youth Centre. me

-Noel Wright Fax 985-3227

Administration 985-2131 8
MEMBER

Classitied Advertising 986-6222
Newsroom 985-2131

‘ . > . contains
Sales & Marketing Director. Linda Stewart {cy fiore

Comptroiler . Doug Foot

North Shore News, founded in 1969 as an
Independent suburban newspaper and qualiliéd
under Schedule 111, Paragraph itl of the Excise
‘Tax Act, is published ‘each Wednesday, Friday and
Sunday by North Shore Free Press Ltd. and
distributed to every door on the North Shore.
Canada Post Canadian Publications Mail Sales
Product Agreement No. 0087238, Mailing rates
available on request. Submissions are welcome but
we cannct accept responsibility for unsolicited
material including manuscripts and pictures which
_ Should’ .be accompanied by a stamped, ‘seif-
addrassed envelope.

[et SCC OF MOH TH atat) ESS Wem OUOE

1139 Lonsdale Avenue, ‘ ‘ : NEWS photo Cindy Goodman
North Vancouver, B.C. WATCHES. IN the sun... a bright fall day tempts Albert Tsumura

V7M 2H4 . 61,582 (average circulation, Wednesday, Friday & Sunday). |) tg display his wareg outdoors at Pier 96 Flea amarket, at East
? .
Entire contents © 1993 North Shore Free Press Ltd. All rights reserved. Esplanade and Lonsdale. me

SOA DIVISION