No need for bridge work Dear Editor: Re: Cover story April 5 edition: “Bridge Pain Drives Home.” “Jones said the work on the Second Narrows will include deck repairs, moving the lighting from the middie to the outside of the bridge. erecting a new concrete medi- an, and constructing a 1.4 metre (5 it.) high protective barrier and railing for the inside of the sidewalk on both sides. “The barrier, she said, will protect cyclists and pedestri- ans.” What utter bunk: in 25 years of travelling twice daily over the Second Narrows | ‘Dear Editor: Ym writing in regard to the many dog owners who walk ‘their pets along Bellevue Avenue in West - Vancouver. We live on Bellevue, and the -west side of our yard “along 27th Street is not fenced. We also have a cat. “Frequently,. unieashed dogs tear into‘our yard and‘up on “Sto! our,,porch ‘trying to. get. “this poor cat, while the-own- ‘ers'stand on the street or-cir- cle: ‘around’ in. ‘the yard call- n ‘ . INSTALLATIONS} Burns, Squeaks, Loose Carpet Ken. McKenzie . 986-6924 ¥ In Stock ov Brand Names q eo Immediate Deliver LOW, LOW | WAREHOUSE | PRICES 5 Ask about our FREE delivery, f setup & mattress removal service f ia COLORY| HOME FURNISHINGS § 1075 Roosevelt Crescent} North Vancouver (2 blocks behing Avalon Hotel) popee Daily Fri. a , Sun 12-6 ’ recall that | might have seen one pedestrian a month and perhaps a half dozen cyclists. Since your Apri! 5 article my colleagues and { phy “spot a pedestrian.” Anyone who sces one, just one, wins (suicide jumpers not counted but there haven*t been any recently). So far no one has claimed the prize. This is not a moth- erhood issue — there aren't many pedestrians or cyclists to worry over. One of the many pleasures of living on the North Shore has been the view of the inlet from the bridge while driving home — putting a five-foot- high barrier to protect the ing to their dogs with absolutely no effect. cat was injured recently while diving off the porch to escape from a large dog whose owner, leash dan- gling usclessly from his hand, was unable to get his dog to heel. We've been patient about these incidents over the years, but as our cat ages his - agility ‘decreases, and it’s begun to seem like just a : matter of time before he really. gets hurt. [find this very frustrating because he occasional bi-ped will elimi- nate this view for everyone except those in semi-trailers or the bus passengers. The lighting is adequate as it is, the metal median needs a paint job or some of the char- acter dents banged out. Is this an incredibly mis- guided waste of money, or what? I know — these ideas are brought to you by the same bright wits who sold off the Lynn Valley water reserve because of a perceived over- abundance of water supply, or the same fellows — who released the water in April a few years ago from = the Capilano water reserve and those canines is, after all, minding his own business on our property. Please, dog owners, if you know your dogs don't recognize you as “pack Jeader” and won't obey you, keep them on the leash. Quite apart from simple con- sideration for others, it is the law. like dogs very much, but your dog has no right to be in our yard unless invited and no right to cause injury there. Nancy Spratt West Vancouver contributed greatly to the drought in this rain-soaked city. Ms. Jones has come up with an ideal proposat to waste (ax dollars and make travel to and from the North Shore an absolute farce. I hope she is paying for this transparent muke-work project out of her own pocket. The Lions Gate bridge deck needs repair and the Second Narrows needs tidy- ing up. However, if 1 was in the concrete median or light- ing biz f would be very happy and probably take Ms. Jones out for lunch. Gene Ramsbottom North Vancouver The wrong Bell wrung Dear Editor: There was a mistake in my letter which you pub- lished in your April 14 issue under the headline: “More grapes, less whine.” It is North Van City Coun. Bill Bell who is a spokesman for the B.C. wine industry, and not. North Van District Coun. Don Bell. My apolo- gies to Don. Jon Turpin North Vancouver advertorial, I, April 2 24/96 COUNT ME 7 A CANADIAN in my North. Shore News Report of October, 25, 1995 | described a question in ‘the’ 1998 Census which will ask respon- dants to identity themselves by race. Back ‘In October the subject was atiracting very little media attention, but In the past few weeke there has been & significant upsurge in-pubtle literest right acress Canada as more and more people have recognized the divisive nature of ths question. Statistics Canada has indicated that the answers to the question will be used to assist with: ‘implementation of the Liberal Government's Employment Equity Bill, despite the fact that poll after poll has shown massive public oppesition to enforced omptoyment equi- ty programs. During his recent election cam- paign, Cntarlo Premier, Mike Harris, even included a promise to rid Ontario of employ- ment equity legislation because its elimination had.been identified as such a “hot button” for public support. How much effect the promise had on voting patterns is anyone's guess, but Mike has since followed through on his promise and disbanded the Ontario pragram. THE QUESTION Census day is May 14, 1896, so you will soon have to decide how to respond. You can choose to be White, Chinese, South Asian, Black, Arab/West Asian, Filipino, South East Asian,. Latin American, Japanese, Korean, or Other. Conspicuous by its absence from the list is the category "CANADIAN". This has so upset one group of people in Ontario that they have produced sticky labsis, bumper stickers, and postcards to mail to the Prime Minister carrying the mee- sage "Census by Race? What a Disgrace! On the 1996 Census MARK ME CANADIAN." Printing deadlines pre- vented me from investigating whether a politi- cal, or special interest, group is organizing the Voice of Canadians Committee, but if you would like to contact them regarding thsir cen- sus campaign, you can cail Tel (416) 766-0895, Fax: (416) 766-2270, o7 write to Box 88512, Swansea Postal Outlet, 34 Southport St., Toronto, Ontario, MBS 4Z8. WHAT WILL YOU DO? It is compulsory to answer the questions in the Census, although, as | mentioned in my report fast October, some North Shore resi- dents have told me that they intend to write “Martian” or “Unknown" on the line marked “Other*, No doubt some equally. creative responses will turn up in other parts of the country, ut even if there had not been growing public opposition to the question, it is unlikely | that any meaningful statistics could result from a Census question on race. A recent report on employment equity in the ‘Public Service, for example, found widespread | reluctance amongst employees to "self- identify" their ethnic backgrounds, Asa j consequence, the report concluded that | only 4.1% of federal pubtic servants are | visible minorities. There is every reason to | believe that the same reluctance to “self-identi- fy" exists in the general population, and that equally unreliable statistics will result from the Census question on race. The plain fact is that vast numbers of respon- dents will simply want to be identified as | "Canadian", regardless of their race, and those of mixed ethnic origin, finding na category to § describe themselves, are going to be lumped | together as “Other”. along with everyone else who decides the question is inappropriate. it is my personal opinion that a lot of taxpayers’ money is going to be wasted processing, and acting upon, the profoundly flawed dala that will be gathered, and it bothars me that our Federal Government is going to, use the data to treat us differently in the workplace based on race. If we want to foster racial tolerance and understand- § ing, this is NOT the way to do it. CENSUS BY RACE? 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