A6 - Wednesday, August 25, 1982 - North Shore News The Bell legacy The sudden resignation of North Van- couver District Mayor Don Bell lends added importance. to the coming November's municipal elections -- and especially to the mayoralty race opened up by his retirement. The present District council has earned the reputation of being one of the most fractious and polarized local governments in the Lower Mainland. Noisy confrontations between its left and right wing components have tended to be regular weekly fare. While they make interesting newspaper reading, these shenanigans have often contributed little or nothing to the interests of the citizens. With the left-leaning North Vancouver Voters Association and the right-leaning Taxpayers Association for Good Govern- ment both gearing to run “block vote” candidates for the four upcoming council vacancies, the prospect could be even more of the same when the new council meets in December: a continuing clash of ideologies rather than objective and pragmatic in- dividual judgements of each issue on its merits. It’s to the lasting credit of Mayor Bell, as chairman of council, that he succeeded as well as he did in maintaining reason and decorum in a frequently unruly chamber, and in encouraging rational debate in place of ideological conflict. The same qualities will be urgently needed in his successor. Ald. Marilyn Baker, the only other middle-of-the-road voice on council, gives evidence of possessing those qualities. She has already announced she'll run for mayor. Come November, hers could be the name to remember for those who prefer the Bell legacy of consensus to the sound and fury of partisan politicking. Tell us, Hyman... A Montreal businessman, Hyman Brock, 58, is the first Canadian ever elected chairman of the Mensa Society, a worldwide club for people with IQs in the top 2%. A company president at 22, Hyman recalls that, when given a problem, “I would come up with the answer right away.” What a pity he’s too smart to become a politician. \ FOR YOFTR OF PeOHT TM Al WERT VaseCORVER sunday news north shore news Display Advertising Claasitied Advertising Newsroom 980-0511 986-6222 985-2131 Circulation 986-1337 1139 Lonsdale Ave . North Vancouver. BC V7M 2H4 Publisher Peter Speck Associate Publisher Robert Graham Editor -in-Chiet Noel Wright Advertising Director Torre Frain as General Manager Administration & Personnel Mes Bern HMihard Circutation Director Baan A Fils Production Director Ph fete rertrose North Shore Newe (founded TVA as an independent oonmuncetty CVer ww caperpren atrec) cqusatifeescd carrer Coe Prechale I Rant I Rar agyeapt: MM of the frcise Tan Act in puttinhed oat Wornonday and Sunday ty North YsShore Free Prose tiled and cintributed lo every door thre Naoett Shore Second Clann Mad Heyistishon Numtie: to Entire contents 1962 North Shore Froe Prose Ltd All rights raserved Saatome Cations North and Went Varcniver Bo per yea Matto ember ay cmibeal bes ons Fema quser nt Ne arog oc ant ssa abet y oo eagebe CARTS CR Re CM) cs Le FCP ees trace) ecto vents ag re VERE IE GC UMC Lat A HON 43 80S Wednesday 3 484 Sunday THIS PAPER IS RECYCLABLE The Canadian labor movement sure doesn’t think much of what the Finance Minister, Allan MacEachen, has prescribed as tonic for the staggering Canadian economy. Rank and (file union members don’t like the idea of wage curbs in the Federal Civil Service and most provincial jurisdictions, tad Aol ath. ko . which limit wage hikes to 6 per cent this year and 5 per cent next year. Industrial unions working for private industry are concerned that ¥ gl ae Ore” Per = 4 ew ee Government fat hard to chop the wage restraint routine will slop over into the private sector. Neither are the in- dustrial unions terribly sympathetic towards the public service unions, which are getting better raises and magnificent job security. The atmophere is there for a major split between the Public Service Unions and the Industrial Unions, each of which consist of about half the membership of the Canadian Labor Congress. Dennis McDermott, head of the CLC, is thus placed in an extremely awkward situation. Union members are not stupid, and they know well that the restraint being forced upon them is not being shared by the federal government. . The other day I picked up a federal govenrment telephone book and began counting the number of boards, commissions and tribunals which are more often a hindrance than help in Canadian society. I got to a count of 24 such bodies before even reaching the G section of the alphabetical index. Each board, com- mission or tribunal has a director and a staff, many at ™ Canadian Comment BY PETER WARD His first move after the release of the MacEachen budget of June 28th was to talk in terms of a general strike. That position was moderated considerably once the implications of a potential split in the CLC became clear, McDermott had to have time to think. It appears likely that his answer to the puzzle will be loud and militant opposition to the government scheme on behalf of both pubic service unions and industrial unions. Things could get nasty in the fall. very fancy salaries and most of the directors’ jobs filled by political appointment. And this is the govern- ment which says it is practicing restraint. The other day Joe Clark asked Prime Minister Trudeau in Parliament if Parliament could be given the authority to chop some of the fat away from the gross body of government bureaucracy. The PM said _ that authority was already there, but it isn’t you know. The cabinet-executive has the clout. Parliament has been virtually stripped of power. A case for an eye specialist? THE BLIND EYE tumed by special interest groups to what's happening out there in the real world of the 1982 recession-depression has to be a source of wonder to the citizen foot soldiers in the front line of the battle. This week it's the blind- eyed teachers. Or, aft any rate, their official spokesmen BC's new Education Mimster Bill Vander Zalm 1s insisting on a further school boards budget cul of $600 million — the second slash this) year — and has in formed school boards they must submit revised budgcts to fit by September 15 He's) also told school boards they are welcome to fire staff without his written permission if thats what it takes to come up with the mght numbers) This could mean as many as 2,700 teachers and 1,500) non teaching staff, load off by October | Predictably, the B ¢ Teachers FPedcration is screaming murder and preparing to mane the barnecades in protest Ihe BC School Trustees Association, caught between so rock and «a hard place ts also protesting polttely with the caception of the Vancouver School Board which ts taking Vander 7 alm to court over the cut CNet that at will do any good Hf Mr Vander Zatm loses the case he Waimply have a new law passed to enforce the teancdpet recuse thom | Meanwhile, the minister has suggesed the threatened 3,000 or more jobs could be saved if teachers would agree to roll back part of their recent 17 per cent pay hike — an idea roundly rejected so far by the BCTF The teacher's union has also turned thumbs down on BCSTA proposals for job- sharing or taking days off without pay The big argument against the cul put forward by BCTF president’ Larry Kuchn 1s that it wouldn't be necessary uf the wicked Socreds would only agree to borrow the moncy needed — like the infinitely vaster sums Uncy borrow for BC Hydro. BOC Rall, BC Place and Nor theast Coal The analogy. of course. is false Moncy borrowed for capital propects has as tts purpose the carning of even more moncy tn the future as well as the creation of yobs nghtaway On the contrary Mmoncy borrowed for year lo year housekeeping needs lhe cducahon is money spent and gone forever In per sonal terms the difference as between taking oul B loan th. hoy a resenue property ane! going into debt to buy the groceries. Already facing a billion- dollar deficit on its housekeeping bill next year, Noel Wright Pe eine a este ee i | Victoria is now saying that the = grocery bill must be reduced NO MORE MONEY Mr Kucho presumably grewoup with the gencration that beheved in The Moncy Tree the more you pruncd it the (hacker tts leaves Kiew Today. alan The Money Tree a withered and Thats suc boa mess dead why were on With the piggy bank empty and the province in the glue to the tune of ten digits, there is simply no more money. Period. All the hindsight and fingerpointing in the world isn't going to change that unarguable fact. IC's a fact, also, with which tens of thousands of ordingry British Columbians = are already forced to live day by day, thankful if they can still afford groceries at all. They don't have to be Socreds to understand what the government is saying. The apparent inability of the teachers to understand could have’ regrettable results for those they profess to care about the most — the school kids. Many school programs are obviously going to suffer or disappear altogether if 3.000 or so teachers are laid off this fall, The alternatives offered to the layoffs - moderate salary rollbacks. job-sharing and/or unpaid days off — could save a lot of those programs They could) = manrntatin educauional standards, over which BCTF spokesmen arc wont to agonize in thes union press releases They could also keep roofs over the heads of affected teachers, and food in thea Cupboards That would seem a sen sible way of handhag a problem that tant gomg lo Bo awoy tor quite a while But then as the old saying Koes there are none so blrad as those who refuse bo see