© News in its lepal "Mr. Collins in the lead-uy 6 — Wednesday, April 18, 1997 — North Shere News north shore news NEWS VIEWPOINT No apathy ELLO out there, North Vancouver tax-paying prop- owners. On Saturday North Vancouver School District will hold a referen- dum held to coliect $2 million from you to pay for computers, software and technical support and training. If last week’s public meeting on the issue at Carson Graham secondary is any indication of the general level of interest cut there on the subject, chances are quite good that this ini- tiative will pass easily. Those who back the expenditure ‘have a natural audience to play to: parents with children in the public . education system. ' There arc ready buttons to be pushed. The big red one is called fear. Some parents fear that «without tic ‘digital package in school, their chil- dren will be without and behind. ‘free speech defence “THE Noxth Shore News F “Speech Defence fund has bro- ken the $26,000 mark. “To press time Tuesday, donations from News reader’ and free speech sup- - porters to the find, which was initiated on March 26, hit $22,688. 2) All funds received will help defray “the mounting legal costs faced by. the : ttle with the Human _. :Rights- Tribunal over a complaint laid - against the newspaper and its columnist ,, Doug Collins by the Canadian Jewish . . Congress. A hearing into the matter has ~ beein ser. for May 12 of this year. .. The News maintains that section 2 of the’ NDP-authored Human Rights “Code. violates Canada’s Charter of There is a system in place — parent advisory councils, through which a yes vote may be efficiently mar- shalled. Taxpayers without children in the system must educate themselves about the issue and determine what it will mean to them. aS THe SeaSN PROGRESSES, THE CANUCKS END UP Ne Ue ote, The raw tax consequences for property owners are $1.76 per $10,000 of assessed value. The News has published articles on the subject. The school district has published information ads. Now it’s up to those who are directly affected to get out and cast votes on Saturday, April 19. Voting takes place at North Vancouver secondary schools from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. We have a history of apathy when it comes to voting. Let’s vote this time. s . _Rights and Freedoms by infri ging upon the newspaper's right of free ression and by extension in ges upon the right of free expression’ | ofall British Columbians. ‘Thus far the News’ legal costs to defend it and to the Human Ri ts Tribunal hearing have been substantial: almost $70,000. A case challenging the constitutional- ._ ity of che Human Rights Code before the Supreme Court could cost up “to $200,000. Donations to the North Shore. News Free Speech Defence “Fund can be sent to the News offices, 1139 Lonsdale Ave., North .... Vancouver, V7M 2H4. Cneques should be made out to the North shore | News Free Speech Defence Fund. — trenshaw@direct.ca [north shore. Rh Shore New, bund 1a an Téeperdet sbuteneseaps agai unr Schechfe 111, Paragraph 111 ofthe Grise Ta Aa. is published ead: Wechescta Frey ard Surety by ‘Nosh Shore Free Press Ut anddatrhued ne-ary dog onthe Noth Sure Cred Post Cretan Publics Mal Sass Prucknt Agnerrevit No. CPZ Maling as act onrequest, we Dee Obsitwe 1 7 Human Resources Marager Sales & Markuting Duecter 985-2131 (177) 880-0511 (319) Good guys who work for zilch A spry, retired 76-year-old - North Van gent spends three days every week driving patients over town to the Cancer Clinic for radiation. At West Van Kiwanis Club they're hard at work today preparing for their annual Mother’s Day Plant Sale, one of the year’s major fundrais- ers for the many deserving chari- ties the club supports, _Back in North Van, Highlands United Church, with one of the biggest congregations in B.C., fairly hums v%ih helpers for every kind of worthy cause ~~ from hospital visit- ing, food bank donations and fun events for children and teens to rummage sales and support groups for the newly bereaved, “blending” ~~ families and you-name-it. This cancer-patient driver, service club and church are far from being unique. They are merely single examples of the tens of thousands of individuals and hundreds of organi- zations, secular and religious, throughout B.C. and Canada bear- ing the proud name of VOLUN- TEERS. Today’s consumer-driven society is often accused of knowing the price of everything and the value of - Comptroller 805-2131 (133) nothing. So during this National Volunteer Week (April 13-19) it's interesting to contemplate the dul- lar price-tag of all that portion of society’s indispensable work that is performed free of charge. No remotely accurate figures exist. But the starting point in the guessing game is the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) — the total dollar value of all goods and services produced by a country ina given year. Canada’s GDP is cur- rently nudging $800 billion. It’s been sug- gested that if the true dollar value of all unpaid work — volunteer activity outside the home plus unpaid housework by wives or other partners (yes, they are volunteers, too!) —- were added, the GDP would double overnight. . In fact, that may well be under- stating the value of all the unpaid volunteer work. Just for fun, Iee's assume a mere one-third of Canada’s 30 million population spend a minimum seven hours per week on necessary out unpaid work — whether in the kitchen, helping others in need, or both. Over a 52- week period, cosced at the mini- mum wage of $7 an hour, that works out at $25.48 billion per year. Over the past 10 years the aver- age annual increase in the GDP has been around $24 billion. So it’s easy to see how assigning a.dollar *** value to unpaid end volunteer work from the start could. by now have doubled the GPP, or better. Happily for humanity — espe- : cially the old, the sick, the poor, the © disabled and the otherwise disad- vantaged — the volunteers and all who labor for love instead of bucks . are not interested in swelling the GDP. Their work has a value ior, =. them far beyond anything mere dol-- lars can ever buy. They are truly the. heartbeat of any civilized society. That’s why, this week — their- own special week — the good guys ~ who work for zilch deserve a special salute from all of us. 900 . BIRTHDAYS galore this week, starting with a 100-candle salute - tomorrow, April 17, to bright, active Fred Connett in Inglewood Lodge ... Many happy. returns of. today, April 16, to former W. Van alderman Don Griffiths ... Andon Saturday, April 19, more. of the same to W.-Van Kiwanians Alex. Brokenshire (also a former-alder- man), Frank ‘Wilson and Gerry McDowell, . = gag a WRIGHT OR WRONG: The best”: place for your vacation issome- . * _ where near your budget. © ate yee sn News believes strongly in freedom of speech and the © .- right of all sides in a debate to be heard. The columnisis published in the News present differing points of: view, but those views are not necessar- ily those of the newspaper itself. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters must inctude your name, full address & telephone number. oe VIA Internet: trenshaw @ direct.ca not COMPUTER BBS - 380-8027 Managing Editor 985-2131 (116) fort Display & Real Estate Fax 965-1425. Newsrcom Fax 85-2104 Classified, Accounting & Main Sifics Fax "8227 Michael decker - Hews Editor ice Manager 985-2131 (114) 8852131 (185) Andrew McCrodie - Sports/Commanty [iter 985-2141 (147) Horth Vancouver, 8.6., VIM 2 4 age Distt Crete Sevtes Nar ibion feative 905-1397 (120) 985-2131 {127) 61,582 ‘average circulation, wednesday, Friday & Sunday) Disp. itanager Classified Manager 966-0511 (163) 905-8222 (202) Entire contents @ t997 North Shore Free Press Ltd. All rights reserved, tory Pt Photography Manages 835-2131 (160)