February 1, 1994, carnegie newsletter

On J a n u a r y 14, r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s o f about 28 member-groups o f t h e End Legi s l a t e d P o v e r t y c o a l i t i o n met w i t h J o y MacPhail, t h e M i n i s t e r of S o c i a l S e r v i c e s . ELP had a r r a n g e d f o r a twoday g a t h e r i n g , w i t h MacPhail coming on t h e f i r s t d a y ' s a f t e r n o o n and Joan Smallwood, M i n i s t e r o f Housing, comi n g i n t h e a f t e r n o o n o f t h e 2nd day.

ELP members asked MacPhail t o c r e a t e jobs, r a i s e wages and w e l f a r e r a t e s , and c o n f r o n t t h e p r e j u d i c e and d i s c r i mination a g a i n s t p e o p l e on w e l f a r e .

She was a s k e d . t o d e a l w i t h t h e s t r u c t u r e s t h a t c a u s e p o v e r t y , and n o t t o u s e t h e language o r c r e a t e programs t h a t blame v i c t i m s f a r t h e i r poverty.

I n s t e a d MacPhail and Premier Mike

Ilarcourt announced changes t h a t seem t o be based on t h e f a l s e t h e o r y t h a t people on w e l f a r e r e a l l y a r e " c h e a t s E deadbeats" t h a t Harcourt c a l l e d them l a s t September.

* Mandatory job s e a r c h r e p o r t c a r d s G childless f o r s i n g l e employables couples.. a f f e c t i n g about 82000 p e o p l e .

Comment: The g o v l t should c r e a t e jobs, n o t f o r c e people t o look f o r jobs t h a t d o n ' t e x i s t .

* New procedures t o r e c o v e r s e c u r i t y d e p o s i t s . Govlt w i l l now g e t deposi t s back d i r e c t l y from l a n d l o r d s .

Comment: I f t h i s w i l l r e q u i r e t e n a n t s t o r e v e a l t h a t t h e y a r e on welfare, many l a n d l o r d s w i l l r e f u s e t o r e n t t o them. Homelessness w i l l i n c r e a s e . The M i n i s t r y h a s a l r e a d y been warned of t h i s by a n t i - p o v e r t y groups.

* Picking up cheques i n person.

All employable s i n g l e s and c h i l d l e s s couples w i l l have t o do t h i s on Feb.23.

Comment: Food money, i f p e o p l e have any l e f t , w i l l have tlo bb used f o r transportation; line-ups a t office w i l l s w e l l , meaning w a i t i n g t i m e s w i l l i n c r e a s e and t h e s t r e s s f o r m i n i s t r y staff w i l l escalate.

* S i n g l e p a r e n t s a r e now "employable" when t h e i r vouneest c h i l d i s 12.

ELP fought f o r ' s y e a r s t o change t h e socred law t h a t "employability" was reached when t h e youngest c h i l d was 6 months o l d . That was p l a i n s t u p i d i n t h e absence of even c h i l d c a r e . T h i s i s s t i l l n o t d e a l i n g with t h e 2 b a s i c i s s u e s - 1) a woman's r i g h t t o choose t o work r a i s i n g h e r c h i l d r e n ; and 2) t h e r e a r e a l r e a d y thousands of s i n g l e p a r e n t s seeking work who c a n ' t f i n d it o r c a n l t provide f o r t h e i r f a m i l i e s a t t h e minimum wages a v a i l a b l e .

These changes a c t on t h e media c i r c u s a l l e g i n g massive w e l f a r e f r a u d . The myth i s t h a t a l l people on w e l f a r e a r e

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4.40 12.70 9.45 11.33 7.21

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l a z y and have t o b e f o r c e d t o look f o r work..and t h a t t h e r e a r e thousands of jobs j u s t waiting f o r people t o take them. B.C. h a s an o f f i c i a l unemployment r a t e of n e a r l y 10%. That means t e n s o f thousands o f p e o p l e a r e looki n g f o r j o b s and c a n ' t f i n d them.

What w i l l happen w i t h t h i s mandatory job s e a r c h r e p o r t c a r d i s t h a t o v e r 80,000 p e o p l e w i l l be c o n t a c t i n g thousands o f employers. I f an employer dec i d e s t o , he o r she can now r e f u s e t o i n c r e a s e wages of b e n e f i t s t o h i s empl o y e e s , s e e i n g he now has a "mustwork" l a b o u r pool who w i l l have t o t a k e j o b s a t minimum wage ( o r l e s s ) i n any condi t i o n s . T h i s i s r e a l i t y . T r a i n i n g programs a r e f i n e , b u t t h e r e must b e j o b s f o r t h e people who complete t h e training/ I f government r e a l l y wanted t o h e l p t h e poor, it should have announced it i s c r e a t i n g more j o b s E r a i s i n g t h e minimum wage. Those a r e two measures t h a t ' d reduce poverty. Forcing people t o look f o r work o r t r a i n i n g when t h e r e a r e n ' t enough jobs t o go around g i v e s employers t h c powcr t o r c d r ~ c c wages and make tlic working poor cvcn poorer. ~

1

1' L

End L e g i s l a t e d P o v e r t y f s JUSTICE PROGRAM TO R E D U C E POVERTY I N B . C .

1.

Income:

increase welfare r a t e s t o t h e poverty l i n e ; increase earnings exempt i o n s .

2.

~ o b s : Job c r e a t i o n programs l i k e low c o s t housing, r e f o r e s t a t i o n , s a l mon enhancement, merchant marine, municipal c a p i t a l works p r o grams, c h i l d c a r e , e l d e r c a r e , e d u c a t i o n .

Minimum wage: r a i s e it t o $9.05 an hour (June 1992 d o l l a r s ) .

C h i l d r e a r i n g : r e c o g n i z e t h i s a s l e g i t i m a t e work d e s e r v i n g of adequate income above t h e p o v e r t y l i n e .

3.

Services:

4.

Shelter:

Return r e n t c o n t r o l , i n c l u d i n g r e s i d e n t s o f h o t e l s and rooming houses; a b o l i s h d i s t i n c t i o n between s h e l t e r and s u p p o r t ; b u i l d p u b l i c and s o c i a l housing.

5.

Source of f u n d s :

F r e e medical, d e n t a l , phone, bus p a s s f o r a l l GAIN r e c i p i e n t s p u b l i c c h i l d c a r e a c c e s s i b l e f o r a l l low income people.

Canada A s s i s t a n c e P l a n ; r e i n s t i t u t e t a x e s on wealthy p e o p l e and c o r p o r a t i o n s who can a f f o r d l t h e m .

ELP s u p p o r t s a Time t o Stand Together, A Time f o r S o c i a l S o l i d a r i t y , a decl a r a t i o n on S o c i a l and Economic P o l i c y D i r e c t i o n s f o r Canada by members o f Popular S e c t o r Groups.

-----.

"..

Table 2: Growth of Profitable Corporations that Pay No Tax: 1980 to 1987

Year

Corporations

Total K ~ r kFalconer (1990'83)

Untaxed Profits

DearMs. Beaudin,

(Jan.20,

1994)

Thank you f o r your r e c e n t l e t t e r r e garding funding f o r t h e Vancouver Need l e Exchange Program managed by t h e Downtown E a s t s i d e Youth A c t i v i t i e s S o c i e t y (DEYAS) I , t o o , am concerned about t h e h e a l t h r i s k posed by used n e e d l e s . A s w e l l , I acknowledge t h e v a l u e of needl e exchange programs i n o r e v e n t i n g t h e t r a n s m i s s i o n of blood-borne d i s e a s e s such a s H e p a t i t i s B and H I V . With t h i s i n mind I can a d v i s e t h a t t h e a l l o c a t i o n of funding t o t h e AIDS community groups i s l a r g e l y determined by t h e community i t s e l f , through t h e i r r e p r e s e n t a t i o n on t h e newly formed B r i t i s h Columbia AIDS S e c r e t a r i a t .

I am p l e a s e d t o a d v i s e t h a t t h e Secr e t a r i a t h a s r e - a l l o c a t e d $50,000 t o t h e Vancouver Needle Exchange t o enabl e it t o m a i n t a i n s e r v i c e s . T h i s r a i s e s t h e Vancouver Needle Exchange's 1993/94 funding t o t a l t o $590,100, which i s 24 p e r c e n t of t h e t o t a l provi n c i a l budget f o r AIDS community groups. I am s u r e you w i l l a g r e e t h a t t h i s l e v e l of funding i l l u s t r a t e s t h e commitment of t h e M i n i s t r y o f H e a l t h t o t h e Vancouver Needle Exchange..

I appreciate t h e opportunity t o respond t o your concerns and t h e t i m e you have t a k e n t o b r i n g t h i s m a t t e r t o my a tt e n t ion.

S i n c e r e l y yours, Paul Ramsey, M i n i s t e r .

.

HELP WANTED

-

by a mother

A woman c a l l e d t h e N e w s l e t t e r a s k i n g f o r h e l p . She h a s a 3 year-old daughte r i n f o s t e r c a r e . She was t o l d F r i d a y ( y e s t e r d a y ) t h a t h e r d a u g h t e r had been molested by a 15 y e a r - o l d youth a l s o l i v i n g i n t h e f o s t e r home.

The young man had hccn t a h r n out of t h e home but t h e mother l e a r n e d t h a t he had n o t been charged o r a r r e s t e d .

She h a s no i d e a where he is o r under what c i r c u m s t a n c e s h e r d a u g h t e r i s bei n g k e p t . The mother c a l l e d t h e Matsq u i P o l i c e and was t o l d t h a t t h e youth would b e q u e s t i o n e d E c h a r g e s may b e l a i d n e x t week.

The f o s t e r mother h a s r e f u s e d t o a l low t h e d a u g h t e r t o r e t u r n t o h e r own mother, a s w e l l a s r e f u s i n g t h e b i r t h mother a c c e s s t o h e r d a u g h t e r by phone The n a t u r a l mother spoke t o t h e Depu t y S u p e r i n t e n d e n t of C h i l d Welfare, who agreed t h a t t h e d a u g h t e r should n o t even b e i n f o s t e r c a r e and e s p e c i a l l y should n o t be i n t h i s f o s t e r home.

The n a t u r a l mother t h e n r a n i n t o t h e b u r e a u c r a t i c mess - i t ' s t h e weekend, r e l e v a n t s o c i a l workers e i t h e r c a n ' t b e reached o r , when reached, s e e no reason f o r a l l t h e r e g u l a r s t e p s t o be t a k e n . The mother could n o t impress any of h e r u r g e n t f e e l i n g s t o g u a r a n t e e h e r d a u g h t e r ' s s a f e t y on e i t h e r t h e Matsqui P o l i c e o r on t h e a r e a s u p e r v i s o r she reached.

What can b e done i s t o w r i t e t o J o y Regaux, S u p e r i n t e n d e n t of C h i l d Welfa r e , R i t a Maybin, t h e Deputy, and J o y MacPhail, M i n i s t e r o f S o c i a l S e r v i c e s , and u r g e them t o make an immediate r e view of t h e i r emergency p r o c e d u r e s . . a s w e l l a s f o s t e r home c r i t e r i a .

The mother w i l l c o n t i n u e t o " s t e p on a s many t o e s a s p o s s i b l e E n e c e s s a r y r 1 . t o g e t h e r d a u g h t e r s a f e and, u l t i m a t e l y , home.

By PAULR TAYLOR

,

Medicine Pole

,

I

,

I would like t o b r i e f l y comment on t h e a r t i c l e "Vote Jobs" t h a t appeared i n your December 15 i s s u e . I t was i n t e r e s t i n g , amusing and thought provoking. If t h e a u t h o r r u n s f o r e l e c t i o n I w i l l c e r t a i n l y c o n s i d e r g i v i n g my v o t e t o t h e U-Need a Job p a r t y .

Beside t h e amusing p a r t t h e r e i s a sad r e a l i t y : i n o u r r o t t e n democracy t h e job s i t u a t i o n i s a modern slavery.

The money earned by t h e s l a v e s i s r e turned t o t h e l e a d i n g e s t a b l i s h m e n t p a r t l y by t a x e s and p a r t l y by a w e l l o r c h e s t r a t e d consumerism. T h i s "vici o u s c i r c l e " t y p e system i s s i m i l a r a l l around t h e world. I n t h e s o - c a l l ed " b o l c h e v i s t " o r o t h e r t y r a n n i c a l systems o n l y t h e method i s d i f f e r e n t and t h e r e is a n o t h e r kind of p r o f i t ing I'gang" In t h i s d i a b o l i c a l game t h e major p a r t of t h e p o p u l a t i o n r e p r e s e n t s t h e naive o r s t u p i d element. We a r e q u a s i o h 1 igcd t o look f o r j o b s and t o acct . p t ;i v o l ~ m t n r ys l n v c r y .

I l o k ~ <'I., . ~ ;I nrorr. c l c v c r p o p u l a t i o n O I I I r l \ t 1 1 1 ) t J1(* i8r(c-ibss i v c consumerism i l ~ r . t Il r ~ i : :i 1 I Ilrlriccclssnry cxpcnscs l l h c 1irlrlt.c'cssary shoppings o r t r a v e l .

1i n g s .

Such a c t i o n would p r o b a b l y change o u r p r e s e n t r o t t e n system.

.

11)

E t i e n n e Szekely, Rossland, B . C .

In t h e Anishinabe t r a d i t i o n t h e people knew t h a t a l l songs were n o t sung, and t h e y had a h e a l i n g r i t u a l f o r the s i l e n t singer.

If a person dreamed a dream, and t h e s t r e n g t h of t h i s dream was n e v e r c a l l ed f o r , and t h e r e f o r e n e v e r g i v e n o u t ward e x p r e s s i o n , t h a t person c a r r i e d an unsung song, an u n f u l f i l l e d dream.

The t r a d i t i o n of t h e people enabled t h e p e r s o n t o bestow a g i f t on t h e community. She/he was c o n s i d e r e d t o have s p e c i a l power t o c u r e t h e s i c k , and was allowed t o r a i s e a p o l e i n f r o n t of h e r / h i s home. T h i s p o l e was c a l l e d a medicine p o l e , and it s i g n i f i e d t h e h e a l i n g power of t h e dreamer whose dream was n o t e x p r e s s e d . Such was t h e power of a song t h a t was n o t sung.

Sandy Cameron

JUSTICE : Q u a l i t y of b e i n g j u s t ; m e r i t e d reward o r punishment.

JUSTIFICATION : Act o f j u s t i f y i n g ; r e m i s s i o n of s i n .

T h i s i s w r i t t e n i n Webster's Dictiona r y . I thought I should t a k e t i m e t o w r i t e down t h e meaning of t h e s e words.

My reasons a r e v e r y simple. I ' v e been f o l l o w i n g t h e Marshall i n v e s t i g a t i o n because a good f r i e n d of mine was beaten i n a p l a c e where o f f i c e r s a r e supposed t o d e t a i n p r i s o n e r s when t h e y have committed a crime.

When A l f r e d Mountain was picked up by t h e p o l i c e , f o r s l a s h i n g t i r e s , o r s o it was r e p o r t e d , h e was brought t o 310 Main. A l f r e d was s t r u c k by a p o l i c e o f f i c e r several times i n t h e chest w i t h a baton. The o f f i c e r a l l e g e d t h a t t h e p r i s o n e r was v i o l e n t l y k i c k i n g and t r y i n g t o b i t e him w h i l e i n an e l e v a t o r going t o bookings. According t o r e p o r t s A l f r e d ' s hands were handcuffed.

C o n f l i c t i n g r e p o r t s s a y t h e c u f f s were e i t h e r i n t h e back o r t h e f r o n t . E i t h e r way, he was d e f e n s e l e s s .

According t o p o l i c e p r o c e d u r e s t h e r e a r e supposed t o b e two o f f i c e r s p r e s e n t when booking a p r i s o n e r . Where was t h i s o t h e r o f f i c e r who c o u l d c l a r i f y t h i s whole i n c i d e n t t h a t o c c u r r e d i n t h e e l e v a t o r ? Why i s it t h a t t h i s c a s e has s o many g l i t c h e s ? Everyone i s claiming t o b e absentminded. Nobody r e c o l l e c t s why white-out was r e q u e s t e d by t h e o f f i c e r making t h e r e p o r t . A l l of a sudden r e p o r t s have gone missing.

A v i d e o o f t h e o f f i c e r s and p r i s o n e r h a s n o t been mentioned. Did t h i s i t e m a l s o disappear?

T h i s s t o r y h a s picked up a s c e n t t h a t o f a dead r a t c o v e r i n g up an o f f i c e r . When t h e s t o r y of A l f r e d Mounta i n came a b o u t , many p e r s o n s were a t f a u l t . Ten y e a r s of s i l e n c e k i l l e d A l f r e d Richard Mountain.

He d i d n ' t d i e i n 1992. He d i e d when he came h e r e t o Vancouver - t h e c i t y

-

w i t h b r i g h t l i g h t s , many b a r s and a l o t o f l i q u o r s t o r e s . Many a n g r y peopl e who walk t h e s t r e e t s come from a l a n d where t h e a i r i s c l e a n and t h e people c a r e f o r one a n o t h e r . A l f r e d ' s world was t a r n i s h e d by a l c o h o l which took him t o t h e wrong s i d e of t h e s t r e e t . ..crime.

H i s S p i r i t was nowhere t o b e found, and h i s p r i d e l e f t him when h e was m i s t r e a t e d by t h e law. A l f r e d and h i s b r o t h e r Richard were screwed by t h e e n f o r c e r s of t h e law. They became punching bags t o many an o f f i c e r E guard i n t h e p r i s o n s , as w e l l as t o some i n mates. The o n l y good t h i n g about t h i s c a s e is t h a t t h i s t i m e t h e p o l i c e have been caught.

The q u e s t i o n i s w i l l t h e o f f e n d e r s b e punished by t h e i r own law? Only time w i l l t e l l !

By MARGARET PREVOST

R e Mental Crock: The l e g a l l y p r e s c r i v e d "medicat i o n w (drug) which m e n t a l l y d i s t u r b e d i n d i v i d u a l s a r e expected t o t a k e f o r t h e r e s t of t h e i r l i v e s i s n o t c l a s s i f i e d a s an a d d i c t i o n . A person i s o n l y c a l l ed a "drug a d d i c t " i f he o r she has chosen t h e drug themselves. A l l d r u g s of p e r s o n a l c h o i c e have been made illegal. What h a s r e a l l y been made i l l e g a l by r i c h l e g i s l a t o r s , many o f whom have i n v e s t m e n t s i n p r e s c r i p t i o n drug companies, i s t h e freedom t o d e c i d e .

Usually t h e d r u g o f c h o i c e i s o r g a n i c , t h a t i s t o s a y i t grows o u t of t h e ground ( p a r t of Godvs p l a n ? ) such a s marijuana, opium poppies, mushrooms, khat, e t c .

Doctors i n Canada t o d a y can p r e s c r i b e b u t i n d i v i d u a l s cannot choose what s u b s t a n c e s t h e y w i l l p u t i n t o t h e i r bodys. T h i s i s , o f c o u r s e , compl e t e l y o p p o s i t e o f what it should be: i e . s t r i c t c o n t r o l s o f medical p r e s c r i p t i o n s , r e s e a r c h G commercial drug o p e r a t i o n s , combined w i t h a c o n s t i t u t i o n a l guarantee of t h e r i g h t of indi v i d u a l c i t i z e n s t o choose what d r u g s w i l l o r w i l l n o t e n t e r t h e i r system.

T h i s , along w i t h f r e e l y a v a i l a b l e s c i e n t i f i c E h i s t o r i c a l l y accurate drug i n f o r m a t i o n would s o l v e most o t t h e "problems" c o n f r o n t i n g u s . Natura l l y l e g i s l a t i o n cannot h e l p t h o s e who

Part Two

v o r a c i o u s l y s t u f f themselves w i t h chemicals. N e i t h e r can laws b e made t o f o r c e f a t people t o e a t l e s s .

North Americans seem t o b e extremists most o f them t e n d t o overdo eve r y t h i n g ( e a t t o o much, work t o o much, worry t o o much, smoke t o o much, d r i v e c a r s t o o much, t a l k t o o much, 6 s o on) I t ' s n o t s u r p r i s i n g t h a t when t h e y d i s cover a drug t h a t makes them happy i n an unhappy world, t h e y do t o o much.

Perhaps "successtt l e a d s t o "excess".

Maybe o u r s o c i a l problems i n North America a r e j u s t a n a t u r a l E l o g i c a l If t h e a f f l u e n t r e s u l t of affluence. s o c i e t y t r u n s o u t t o b e a drug-ofchoice sbciety, then t h e challenge i s not a r a c e t o punish i n d i v i d u a l s f o r t h e i r choices - the challenge i s t o f i n d a way t o a c c e p t drug-use E minimi z e , through e d u c a t i o n , n o t e n f o r c e ment, t h e a b u s i v e f a c t o r s i n v o l v e d .

Consider t h e f o l l o w i n g s t o r y (no names): a f r i e n d of mine who o f t e n s h o o t s up t h e "poor Ihan's h e r o i n " - a - I+& combination of R i t a l i n E %+ t e l l s me t h a t when she c a n ' t a f f o r d t o buy she j u s t s t i k k s t h e n e e d l e i n h e r arm anyway, because she g e t s a r u s h o f f i t . The reason f o r t h i s , s h e s a y s , i s because when she was a l i t t l e g i r l s h e was plagued by a l l e r g i e s E t h e doctors isolated her i n a hospital 6

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1

I

experimented w i t h i n j e c t i o n s of v a r i ous chemicals t o t r y t o f i n d out what would work on h e r .

We d o n ' t u s u a l l y t h i n k d o c t o r s c r e a t e addicts, but i n her case i t ' s c l e a r t h a t t h i s i s what happened. I t wouldn't s u r p r i s e me t o l e a r n t h a t o t h e r s have s i m i l a r s t o r j s . .

E now something from t h e American Journal of Psychiatry: a l e t t e r t o t h e e d i t o r concerning t h e r i g h t s of "paranoid" p a t i e n t s t o defend themselves i n court : "..I would l i k e t o c a l l a t t e n t i o n t o a n o t h e r index o f incompetence i n t h e paranoid p a t i e n t t h a t c l i n i c i a n s should c o n s i d e r : t h e d i a g n o s t i c c l u e o f whypercompetencylf (which was o r i g i n a l l y d e s c r i b e d i n t h e c o n t e x t of competency t o s t a n d t r i a l ) i s concept-

u a l i z e d a s a d e f e n s i v e ego f u n c t i o n whereby t h e p a r a n o i d p a t i e n t a t t e m p t s t o cope w i t h a s u s p e c t e d h o s t i l e environment, such a p a t i e n t e x h i b i t s an e x t e n s i v e knowledge of t h e l e g a l p r o c e s s G t h r i v e s on a d v e r s a r i a l c o n f l i c t (e.g. o v e r t h e i s s u e of r e f u s i n g medication) zealously attempting t o prev a i l o v e r t h o s e p e r c e i v e d t o b e "agit should b e i m a i n s t " him o r h e r . p r e s s e d on t h e c o u r t t h a t such p a t ' -.l e n t s a r e o n l y s u p e r f i c i a l l y c o k p e t e n t l 1 This i s i u s t one e x a m ~ l eo f how DSYc h i a t r i s t s c o n t i n u e t o t w i s t l e g a l def i n i t i o n s around t o s u p p o r t t h e i r s i d e of t h e i s s u e . .a d i s p l a y of competence i s t o h e j l ~ d g e d a s incompetence, i f t h e i n d i v i d u a l h a s been p r e v i o u s l y diagnosed as 'paranoid". Have a good day.

TORA

...

w

.

"STOP

THE

(media)

l a n d l o r d f r a u d t h a t goes on e v e r y day, t h e h i g h - t e c h scam o f p r i n t i n g g o v e r n ment cheques; t h e f a c t t h a t much o f t h e i n v e s t i g a t i o n s c a r r i e d o u t by t h e M i n i s t r y of J u s t i c e f o c u s on p e o p l e working "within t h e i n d u s t r y . l1 A t t h e end o f t h e P r o v i n c e ' s s t o r y on llHarcourt c a n c e l s e a s y w e l f a r e r i d e " t h e p a r t y t h a t ' s going t o g e t t h e b i g media push i n t h e n e x t p r o v i n c i a l e l e c t i o n - t h e Liberals - has t h e supposed ' l a s t wordt s a y i n g t h a t p e o p l e "within t h e system1' know f r a u d i s 20%. These same unimpeachable s o u r c e s were s a y i n g over 40% a few months ago...or was t h a t some cop i n t h e suburbs who was w i l l i n g t o specul a t e because he c o u l d n ' t b e sued and

i n g f o r a job and h e r c a r g e t s towed away. Welfare pays t h e towing charge.

SCAM!!! L i t t l e o r n o t h i n g about t h e r e a l i t y of t h e s i t u a t i o n - t h a t a s i n g l e mother w i t h two c h i l d r e n r e c e i v e s $1017 a month i n GAIN assistance, t h a t h e r r e n t i s s u r e t o t a k e a t l e a s t SO%, l e a v i n g h e r w i t h about $500support h e r s e l f and two k i d s each month, t h a t s h e s u r e l y had t h e c a r b e f o r e s h e went t o t h e M i n i s t r y of Social Services f o r financial aid, and t h a t s h e i s spending food money on g a s t o g e t around t o f i n d work almost anywhere. There i s no mention t h a t s h e has no money f o r c l o t h e s , well-done resumes, o r even c h i l d c a r e while looking f o r a job t h a t w i l l pay

I ?I

!

enough t h a t s h e can a f f o r d t o t a k e it ( f u l l - t i m e a t minimum wage d o e s n ' t q u i t e c u t it f o r a s i n g l e p e r s o n , l e t a l o n e t h e head of a s i n g l e p a r e n t family).

Unemployment is about 20%.

A l l t h i s h a s been s i d e l i n e d i n t h e face of using welfare r e c i p i e n t s , a l l 334,000 i n BC, a s t h e s c a p e g o a t s f o r t h e economic p l i g h t o f e v e r y n o n - r i c h c i t i z e n . T h i s i s p a r t of t h e n a t i o n a l build-up f o r c r i p p l i n g s o c i a l programs, f o r making a t w o - t i e r e d h e a l t h c a r e system, f o r e v e n t u a l l y c a n c e l l ing government p e n s i o n s ("welfare f o r s e n i o r s " ) and t e r m i n a t i n g a l l p o s t - ' secondary e d u c a t i o n f o r anyone u n a b l e t o pay up f r o n t .

The s t o r i e s being run i n t h e Prov i n c e and t h e Vancouver Sun and on UTV and on t h e CBC a r e narrow and biased, Give e q u a l coverage t o t h e t a x f r a u d going on i n s t e a d of burying inch-high r e p o r t s i n t h e c l a s s i f i e d s .

I hope you a l l f e e l proud---pride i s an enemy o f t h e mind..comes b e f o r e a f a l l . . w i l l l e a v e many p e o p l e now crowing a l o n g w i t h ;:the s p u r i o u s a u t h o r s and i n s t i g a t o r s o f t h i s w e l f a r e fraud smoke and m i r r o r s i n an u g l y s t a t e when t h e y a l s o have t o t u r n t o w e l f a r e . How many people r e a d i n g t h i s a r e one paycheque away from poverty?

How many p r a c t i c e being s t u p i d and make no connection between t h e l a c k of revenue t o pay f o r b e t t e r s o c i a l programs and t h e t a x b r e a k s and g i v e aways f o r t h e r i c h ?

COME ON.

By PAULR TAYLOR

The Old Woman

11.

She i s n o t a c l o s e f r i e n d o f mine, b u t I l i k e h e r manners. She i s v e r y kind. But i n h e r neighbourhood t h e o l d s i d e w a l k s a r e covered w i t h moss and g r e y c l o u d s c o v e r o v e r u s . In h e r neighbourhood t h e r a i l r o a d a r r i v e d a hundred y e a r s ago. The d i s t r i c t h a s s e e n f i s h c a n n e r i e s , dozens o f them, unionized a t t h e t u r n o f t h e c e n t u r y . Roosevelt took t h e panhandle t h e n and, nack i n London, t h e Queen d i d n ' t know what t o do. The new s t o c k marketing was a l l t h e r a g e and some of t h e b i g g e r men i n t h e a r e a were t a l k i n g of t h e ABC F i s h Co., and XYZ Consolidated. Names The r i v e r flowed t h e n a s now b u t t h e fishermen w e r e n ' t s o lucky. They rode t h e waves i n t h e S t r a i g h t i n b o a t s t h a t were b a t t e r e d E b i l g e s t a i n e d , b u t t h e y caught f i s h . ABC 6 XYZ n e t t e d hundreds of employees.

Townsfolk were happy, steaming o u t e v e r y day, and t h e Royal Hudson E h e r s i s t e r locomotives bowed t h e r a i l s with g r a i n E p o r k b e l l i e s coming west.

Sternwheelers c a r r i e d s e t t l e r s .

Everything was growing..the grand o l d Dominion b u i l d i n g was e r e c t e d t h e misty-eyed w h i t e people remarked t h a t t h e s p r a y i n t h e a i r was Poseidon s p i t t i n g no r e c o r d was made of what t h e Native people s a i d . maybe it d i d n ' t make any s e n s e t o t h e w h i t e people w r i t i n g it a l l down dreaming l i k e t h a t There was an Orange Lodge b u i l t b u t t h e o n l y oranges t o d a y a r e i n t h e map k e t , , t h e Knights of Labor d i d w e l l . . .

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LEARNING

On Monday, Feb. 1 4 t h a t 7:30 pm t h e P o r t megaproject f o r b e s i d e Crab Park goes t o Vancouver C i t y Council.

Speakers w i l l have 5 minutes each t o g i v e t h e i r views; f o r i n f o on t h i s you can c a l l t h e C i t y C l e r k a t 873-7269.

I t i s a wrong kind o f development t h e double-berthed c r u i s e s h i p (warship) p i e r should go t o t h e f o o t of Lonsdale i n North Van, as w e l l a s t h e 10,000person Trade and Convention C e n t r e .

The P o r t / C i t y p l a n n e r s a l s o propose a 33-foot'wide p u b l i c walkway going i n t o t h e birdmarsh G I c h i l d r e n ' s p l a y a r e a . These a r e a s would no l o n g e r b e useful.

Crab Park i s now t h e o n l y s a f e park f o r f a m i l i e s and i s a i m p o r t a n t " s a f e t y v a l v e f f f o r t h e Downtown E a s t s i d e .

Mixed-income housing o n - s i t e , more parkspace added on t o Crab Park, dayc a r e , a C u l t u r a l C e n t r e b u i l d i n g would b e a b e t t e r i d e a . The P o r t however i s t h i n k i n g o n l y o f t o u r i s t s , a n d n o t of l o c a l children,and families.

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Don Larson

CENTRE

NEWS

The w i n t e r s e s s i o n i s w e l l underway i n t h e Learning C e n t r e . There is s t i l l time t o r e g i s t e r f o r S o c i a l S t u d i e s 11 and E n g l i s h 11 ( t h e s e c l a s s e s count f o r c r e d i t towards your Grade 12 graduation) The drop-in i s booming with l o t s o f d i f f e r e n t and i n t e r e s t i n g a c t i v i t i e s going on. People u s e t h e d r o p - i n t o work a t t h e i r own pace and l e v e l , and t h e y choose t h e s u b j e c t and m a t e r i a l t h e y want t o l e a r n from. There a r e a l s o s e v e r a l s e l f - p a c e d academic c r e d i t c o u r s e s t o choose from. You can r e g i s t e r f o r self-paced courses a t any time.

Are you i n t e r e s t e d i n t u t o r i n g i n t h e Learning Centre? Drop by and t a l k h e ' l l show you t o E r n i e Ducharme around and g e t you s e t up i n a f r e e t r a i n i n g program.

.

...

FEBRUARY 4 - t h e Learning C e n t r e w i l l be closed f o r an all-day profe s s i o n a l development program.

Upcoming Events ---------------

-

Tutor Workshops - Check t h e t u t o r --------------b u l l e t i n board on t h e t h i r d f l o o r f o r t u t o r workshops and e v e n t s coming up i n February.

I

'Health and Welfare Canada is launching a preliminary study of possible mercury poisoning in people ,

who consume large

my land along withi ,'

. ,

a,

am.ounts of fish caught in Ootsa Lake, B.C. and Cheslatta Lake,

or what reason?

- .

I.

.

,

B.C. Many of the trees

-.

I

surrounding Ootsa %,.

Lake ... were flooded i n the 1950s when the level of the lake was I

raised significantly after Alcan completed construction of the Kenney Dam to create the huge Nechako reservoir i n what had been five lakes."

- Canadian Water Watch. Jan/Feb 1993.

"It i s estimated that only six permanent smelter jobs w i l l be created by this project."

- United Fishermen & Allied Workers Union.

The P r i c e of Power In a remote n o r t h w e s t e r n c o r n e r of BC, a massive s e l l - o u t of t h e environment i s underway. The d e s t r u c t i o n of

an ecosystem, t h e p o t e n t i a l d e v a s t a t i o n of salmon s t o c k s , t h e p r i v a t i z a t i o n of a r i v e r and t h e enormous corpo r a t e p r o f i t s t o b e reaped from e l e c t r i c i t y s a l e s d e s t i n e d f o r t h e U.S. can o n l y occur with t h e c o - o p e r a t i o n o f both t h e f e d e r a l and BC p r o v i n c i a l governments. So f a r , n e i t h e r g o v ' t has l i f t e d a f i n g e r t o s t o p it.

Alcan Aluminum's Kemano Completion P r o j e c t (KCP) - t h e f i n a l s t a g e i n t h e d i v e r s i o n of t h e Nechako River - w i l l b e a r s t a g g e r i n g environmental E s o c i a l c o s t s i f allowed t o proceed.

The once wild Nechako, a major t r i b u t a r y t o t h e F r a s e r River, w i l l b e r e duced t o a t r i c k l e - 12 p e r c e n t of t h e o r i g i n a l flow.

Twenty p e r c e n t of t h e F r a s e r R i v e r ' s p r i z e d sockeye salmon w i l l be under s e v e r e t h r e a t from lowered w a t e r l e v e l s and temperature v a r i a t i o n s t h a t can a f f e c t spawning. The Nechako c h i n ook and s t u r g e o n a r e t h r e a t e n e d and f r e s h w a t e r f i s h l o s s e s could r e a c h 50%.

The C h e s l a t t a t l e n n a t i v e n a t i o n , whose homes were burned and a n c e s t r a l graveyards flooded i n t h e f i r s t s t a g e of t h e Alcan p r o j e c t , w i l l s u f f e r f u r t h e r . Their e f f o r t s t o r e b u i l d l i v e s , r e c l a i m t r a d i t i o n a l l a n d s and r e h a b i l i t a t e h a b i t a t would b e r e n d e r e d v i r t u a l l y i m p o s s i b l e by KCP. Ranchers and f a r m e r s downstream w i l l f a c e reduced water t a b l e s i n t h e Nechako Valley and a l i k e l y ban on f u t u r e i r r i g a t i o n l i c e n s e s . The c o n c e n t r a t i o n of t o x i n s i n t h e Fraser w i l l r i s e with lowered water l e v e l s and flow r a t e s .

How can t h i s b e allowed t o happen?

I l l e g a l Acts In 1990, t h e f e d e r a l Conservative c a b i n e t chose t o exempt A l c a n ' s Kemano

Completion P r o j e c t from an Environment a l Assessment and Review Process. An a l l - p a r t y Commons-Senate S c r u t i n y Comm i t t e e l a b e l l e d t h i s exemption b o t h i l l e g a l and u n c o n s t i t u t i o n a l and t h e House o f Commons concurred with t h a t d e c i s i o n . Parliament has agreed t h a t t h e government a c t e d i l l e g a l l y - h u t Kemano c o n s t r u c t i o n may s t i l l p r o c c 4 .

The L i b e r a l g o v ' t h a s , t o d a t e , r c f u s ed t o i n t e r v e n e i n t h i s d e b a c l e .

1950s

Kenney Dam are flood-

Alcan builds Kemano 1.

The Nechako River is '

ed. Chinook salmon

dammed, the ~heslatta

between the dam and

people flooded out df

Cheslatta Falls are

their homes, 800

wiped out. Otter,

square kilometres of

beaver, Canada Qeese,

lakes,streams and

muskrat, ducks,

forests above the

Rainbow trout and numerous other species nearly vanish from the upper Nechako Valley.

The Province of B.C. signs an agreement giving Alcan legal rights to additional water in the fu'ture.

'I

i

! ,

The R i v e r s Defence C o a l i t i o n , t h e C a r r i e r - S e k a n i T r i b a l Council and t h e United Fishermen and A l l i e d Worker's Union, among o t h e r s , have been f i g h t ing t h e KCP through t t h e c o u r t s , t h e parliament and t h e p r e s s f o r y e a r s . 'lhc Suprcmc Court o f Canada r e f u s e d t o hc..lr an .1~)pc.,11 f o r an impact a s s r - . - . m c . r ~ tk, l t - . p ~ t t st h r f a c t th;lt t h e ~ u v ' t t 1 . 1 ~ 1 ~ t , n ~ r n tl c.J t p11t11i c l y t o holdi n g f u l l crlt~rurtrnc~r~t,ll assessment r e v i e ~ sof ally p r o j c c t i n which i t i s a major p a r t i c i p a n t . The g o v ' t of Canada i s one o f t h e s i g n a t o r i e s of t h e 1987 Kemano d e a l . The o t h e r s a r e Alcan and t h e p r o v i n c i a l g o v ' t of B.C. The p r e v i o u s a d m i n i s t r a t i o n b l a t a n t l y v i o l a t e d i t s own r u l e s of procedure.

W i l l t h e L i b e r a l s a l l o w t h i s t o stand?

1970s

I I

,I

1980s

Drastically low water levels in the Nechako

Department of Fisheries and Oceans officers

result when Alcan

must ~ eatcourt injunc-

increases power gener-

tion in order to force Alcan to release enough water just to ensure

ation to sell "surplus" electricity to B.C. Hydro, which in turn, sells the power to the United

the survival of salmon in the rivkr. ~ l c a nchal-

States.

lenges the injunction.

l9gOs

'The B.C.U.C. Kemano hearing, under the present terms of reference, is not a credible forum.

In truth, it is a SHAM.' The P r o v i n c i a l NDP agreed t o h o l d l i m i t e d impact assessment h e a r i n g s i n n o r t h e r n BC, b u t t h e h e a r i n g s a r e s o r e s t r i c t e d by t h e i r narrow terms o f r e f e r e n c e t h a t t h e y have become l i t t l e more t h a n a p u b l i c r e l a t i o n s sham.

T h i s review w i l l n o t c o n s i d e r damage done t o t h e r i v e r p r i o r t o t h e 1987 agreement. The review w i l l n o t c o n s i d e r downstream impacts o f t h e massive d i v e r s i o n , n o r impacts on c o a s t a l f i s h i n g communities.

The c r i t i c a l p a r t i c i p a t i o n o f t h e f e d e r a l government i n t h e review h a s n o t m a t e r i a l i z e d . Nor have thousands of pages o f Department of F i s h e r i e s E Oceans (DFO) documents reviewing wat e r f l o w s and f i s h e r i e s impacts o f t h e KCP. D e s p i t e a s s u r a n c e s d u r i n g t h e F e d e r a l e l e c t i o n campaign t h a t t h e L i b e r a l s would r e l e a s e i n f o r m a t i o n E l i f t t h e "gag" o r d e r on DFO s c i e n t ists opposed t o t h e p r o j e c t , t h e gag o r d e r s t i l l s t a n d s and o n l y a few documents have been r e l e a s e d .

The Rivers Defence

and awards costs to

The Federal Conserva-

Coalition and the Carrier

Alcan, saddling a grass-

tive Government passes

Sekani ~ r i b aCouncil l win a court v i c t o j and

roots coalition with

a cabinet order exempt-

massive court costs.

ing the Kemano Completion Project from the

an environmental review is ordered. Alcan

~nvironmentalists and native'people

Environmental Assess-

appeals, and the Federal

appeal to be heard by

ment Review Process. .

Court of Appeal overturn3 the first verdict

the Supreme Court

,

of Canada: The appeal is denied.

The Province agrees to hold limited hearings but accepts the 1987 agreement as binding.

A leaked justice department memo says federal employees (ie: DFO.scientists) won't be allowed to testify even if subpoenaed.

The Kemano ~ o m ~ ~ e t i b n

What Can You Do?

Project must be stopped.

Write, fax or phone Prime Minister Minister Shiela Copps. As soon as ,

.

I

possible.

KIA 0A6

of the river is going change. The productivi-

Contact your own MP and ask what

change. The predator-

shehe is doing to stop Kemano.

prey relationships

your area.

.

- the Provincial government is one of

0 (613) 996-6740

'

Fax: (613) 941-6900 Hon. ~ h i e ' l aCopps Environment Minister

will change. The

509-S Centre Block parliament Buildings

impact of reducing the :flow i n the Nechako

Ottawa, Ontario

by 88 percent is so

Write to Premier Mike Harcourt of B.C

.

Ottawa, Ontario

"The whole character

ty of the river will

Write letters to the newspapers in

Centre Block

Parliament Buildings

/

Jean Chretien and Federal Environment

Rt. Hon. Jean Chretien

K1 A OA6

enormous that Alcan

S (613) 995-2772

simply cannot make

Fax: (613) 992-2727

up for it, and it's a

.

three signatories to the 1987 deal

fantasy to suggest that they can!'

Premier Mike Harcourt West Annex

giving Alcan the ,rights to the Nechako River and CAN reverse the previous

- Retired

Social-Credit government's position of

expert Dr. Gordon

V8V 1x4 .

support.

Hartman.

S (604) 387- 1715

Parliament Buildings

D.F.O.

biologist and salmon

-

Victoria, B.C.

Fax (604) 387-0087

(An e d i t o r i a l comment: What's h e r e i s t h e e s s e n t i a l f a c t , t h e p r o v a b l e item and r e f e r e n c e t o evidence t h a t could b e given i n a c o u r t of law. Not h e r e i s t h e web o f p o l i t i c a l manipulation, w i t h g r e e d , b r i b e s , infiluenae p e d d l i n g and d i s d a i n f o r democratic aceountabi l i t y t h a t l i e s j u s t under t h e s u r f ace. Not h e r e a r e r e a l f i g u r e s i n t h e money made f o r Alcan o v e r t h e y e a r s by j u s t such one-sided agreements a s and t h e connected Kemano r e p r e s e n t s interweavings among Alcan e x e c u t i v e s , owners, s e n i o r f e d e r a l E p r o v i n c i a l p o l i t i c i a n s and t h e c o r p n r a t i o n s i n v olved. Liken it t o Pandora's Box o r

...

even t o a monkey's f i s t . . . w h e n greed makes t h e monkey r e a c h t h r o u g h t h e narrow opening o f a j a r , g r a s p t h e p r i z e i n s i d e , t h e n f i n d s i t s e l f unabl e t o withdraw i t s f i s t w i t h o u t dropp i n g t h e p r i z e . A l l common s e n s e , a l l appeals t o s o c i a l consciousness o r even an . h . t z r n a t % v e t o w h a t ' s planned f a l l on deaf e a r s - we a r e ignored.

We a l s o pay t h e p r i c e .

The Kemano Completion P r o j e c t i s a f l a s h - i n - t h e - p a n f o r work; i t ' l l g i v e a few hundred l a r g e l y s p e c i a l i s e d men negative effects work f o r a y e a r w i l l be f e l t f o r generations.

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YOUR INCOME TAX RETURN Revenue Canada Taxation requires that the Province of British Columbia provide a T5007 tax slip to all persons w h o received $500 or more in Income Assistance benefits or Seniors Supplement during 1993. Day care providers will not receive a

b6filed with your income tax return.

If you have not received a tax slip by February 28, 1994, or if you believe the amount reported on the T5007 tax slip is incorrect, please call:

P r r n w r e of

British Columbia

Vancouver, Lower Mainland Area;

Mlnlstryof

or, toll-free

Social Services

1=800=665=2928

8

IVRINIE[I C ~ to( N L E OP41'ER

for other areas in British Columbia.

This telephone line w i l l operate 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday from February 1, 1994 till M a y 13, 1994.

NOW WE KNOW

(I1S t u d i e s have shown t h a t unemployed p e o p l e d o n ' t have enough money t o u s e p u b l i c t r a n s p o r t , have d i f f i c u l t i e s buying shoes and c l o t h i n g and c u t down on food." - Guardian r e p o r t . ) S c i e n t i s t s p r a i s e Galileo, Who observed o u r e a r t h l y p a t h , O r g i v e t h a n k s t h a t Archimedes Cried i n h i s bath; But t h e r e ' s none so r a t e s o u r homage, No one we should honour more Than t h e team who've j u s t d i s c o v e r e d That t h e unemployed a r e poor.

What a s t a r t l i n g r e v e l a t i o n !

God, t h e y must have s t u d i e d h a r d , Working madly w i t h computers, Scanning p r i n t o u t s by t h e y e a r , T i l l a t l a s t t h e f i n a l breakthrough Caused t h e i r bloodshot e y e s t o g l i n t , A s r e s e a r c h e r s c r i e d i n triumph, " I t ' s t h e j o b l e s s who a r e s k i n t ! I 1 Thus have b r i l l i a n t b r a i n s d e c i p h e r e d What was b a r e l y understood, Shedding l i g h t on what was hidden, And advancing human good.

Glory t o o u r team o f dickheads!

No one could have s u s s e d b e f o r e Unemployment i s t h e reason M i l l i o n s i n o u r midst a r e poor.

Roger Waddis

nfound, confound I ' 11 run you o u t o f town.

Good c o u n s e l l o r You've your d o l l a r !

A d u l l day b r i n g you down The b e s t made schemes have sundry themes

A.A.

1

GROUPE FRANCAIS "TEL QUE TU ES" 236 P r i n c e s s Ave. Vancouver, BC.

REUNION AA CHAQUE Lundi Mercredi Samedi T e l a:

253-4680 m .

/

QUALITY R E C O V E R Y HOUSE Located i n S u r r e y , t h i s i s a 10-bed s u p p o r t i v e r e c o v e r y home f o r a d u l t males r e c o v e r i n g from an a l c o h o l o r drug problem.

"Under group and i n d i v i d u a l c o u n s e l 1ing, we w i l l p r o v i d e you w i t h informat i o n about a d d i c t i o n and h e l p you make c h o i c e s around your active::recovery. Through t h e u s e o f l e c t u r e s , v i d eos, d i s c u s s i o n s and workshops your focus w i l l b e c e n t r e d around a d d i c t i o n r e l a t e d i s s u e s . e.g. maintaining abstinence - l i f e s k i l l s development - socialization - communication s k i l l s - self-esteem - assertiveness - value 6 goal c l a r i f i c a t i o n - a n g e r management Q u a l i t y Recovery House i s n o t a t r e a t m e n t c e n t r e and t h e r e f o r e does not engage i n t r e a t m e n t b u t r a t h e r i n s u p p o r t and p r e p a r a t i o n f o r it.

We b e l i e v e t h a t you w i l l b e n e f i t most from o u r program i f you u s e it as a preparation f o r entry i n t o a r e s i d e n t i a l treatment centre.

572-9494.

For more i n f o r m a t i o n

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THE HARBOUR LIGHT ( S a l v a t i o n Army) SOUP LINE I have been an u n f o r t u n a t e s o u l , having t o e a t i n t h e S a l l y Ann soup l i n e . My beef i s n o t s o much t h a t I had t o do it b u t t h e f a c t t h a t t h e food t h e y s e r v e i s u s u a l l y n o t even f i t f o r animal consumption ( i . e . your p e t c a t o r dog).

Many y e a r s ago, t h e S a l l y Ann Soup Line was l o c a t e d d i r e c t l y a c r o s s t h e s t r e e t i n a r u n down b u i l d i n g and you had t o s t a n d a t t h e t a b l e s . The "f&odtt they served then is i d e n t i c a l t o t h e food s e r v e d now.

A l l of t h e i r food i s donated. Even now. Yet t h e y have a b e a u t i f u l chapel, a l o v e l y d i n i n g h a l l and a gorgedus k i t c h e n . They s t i l l s e r v e f i s h s l o p donated by t h e f i s h e r i e s . T h i s t t f i s h ' t i s swept up o f f t h e f l o o r i n t h e canneries.

Why d o n ' t t h e y u s e some o f t h e $$ s p e n t on t h e b e a u t i f u l b u i l d i n g f o r food? They a r e more concerned about s a v i n g s o u l s t h a n f e e d i n g them.

Mind you, t h e y do s e r v e one (1) l o v e l y meal a y e a r a t X-mas time.

Big f u c k i n deal.Sincerely,

L a r r y Mousscau

For t h e l i f e of b o t h ' F r e e ' Trade d e a l s , b o t h t h e US-Canada one (FTA) and t h e new one t o gobble Mexico up (NAFTA), t h e Carnegie N e w s l e t t e r h a s had c r i t i c a l t h i n g s t o say.

The power t o have an e f f e c t i v e r o l e i n our c o l l e c t i v e f u t u r e is not gone; it h a s been t r a n s f e r r e d t o t h e p r i v a t e , c o r p o r a t e s e c t o r f o r now.

For a w h i l e t h e M a a s t r i c h t T r e a t y w a s r e p o r t e d l y what NAFTA "should" b e i n terms o f what it would do. The M a a s t r i c h t T r e a t y i s what c o u n t r i e s i n Europe have t o b i n d them i n t o one s u p e r economic b l o c . I t h a s been r e p o r t e d h e r e t h a t it c o n t a i n s a "Socia l Charter" t h a t g u a r a n t e e s r t i g h t s , p r o v i d e s ways f o r p o o r e r c o u n t r i e s t o b e t t e r t h e i r wages and working conditZons toward t h e same a s t h o s e i n t h e w e a l t h i e r c o u n t r i e s o f Europe.

T h i s h a s always been s t a t e d i n cont r a s t t o t h e FTA and NAFTA, which g u a r a n t e e t h e a b i l i t y of c a p i t a l (money, i n v e s t m e n t s , p l a n t s , business) t o go wherever it wanted whenever it wanted..to g e t t h e c h e a p e s t wages i n t h e l e a s t expensive l a b o u r c o n d i t i o n s with t h e fewest p o l l u t i o n r e g u l a t i o n s and t h e lowest t a x e s . . a n d t o l e a v e t h i s afternoon i f possible.

M a a s t r i c h t was t a l k e d about by a few people who a r e u s u a l l y p r e t t y good w i t h t h e i r a n a l y s i s , and on t h e s u r f a c e t h e y d i d g e t some of t h e good p o i n t s . They seem t o have missed a p o i n t o r two.

I t s u r e sounded s t r a n g e t o h e a r t h a t e l i t e c a p i t a l i s m i n Europe w a s enlightened while e l i t e capitalism h e r e i n North America i s s t i l l a t t h e s t a g e o f s t o n e c l u b s and bone a x e s i n relation t o t h e non-elite.

aware

;

Some kind s o u l dropped o f f s e v e r a l c o p i e s o f a B r i t i s h magazine c a l l e d "NewStatesmenW and an a r t i c l e g i v e s t h e 'why' behind d i s s e n t t h e r e . Seems Germany p l a y s much t h e same r o l e a s Japan i n t h e Far East and t h e US h e r e when it comes t o economic manipulat i o n , b u t t h a t ' s t h e fundamental n a t u r e of t r i l a t e r a l i s m . . . a s i n t h e T r i l a t e r a l Commission. (This i s t h e o l d man t o t h e p u l i n g i n f a n t of t h e Business Council on N a t i o n a l I s s u e s , Canada's most powerful lobby f o r t h e 150 r i c h e s t c o r p o r a t i o n s i n t h e country.) The a r t i c l e could b e r e a d a s a b l u e p r i n t o r even a photocopy of t h e m o t i v a t i o n s behind o u r d e a l s .

The bankers argue that these matters are too important to be left to politicians, who will always give in to democratic pressures and will accordingly "debauch the currency". The politicians say that money must be a servant and not a master and that the bankers will always put the interests of the financial establishment first, consequently ignoring the interests of ordinary people in jobs and living standards.

The Maastricht treaty is a totally overt, not to say shameless, statement of the bankers' view. Not only is economic policy to be handed over to an unelected central bank.

That bank is expressly instructed by the treaty to take no notice of anyone else-and that must be taken to include democratically elected politicians and, through them, those who elect them.

But that is not all. The treaty goes on to instruct the bankers-if they needed such instruction-that overriding priority must be given to price stability. No matter that in the depths of recession there may be some need for reflation, some concern for jobs, living standards, public services, people's homes. Only price stability, as a matter of immutable treaty law, is to count It did, of course, occur to the framers of the treaty that this arrangement would be subject to intolerable strain if there were not some degree of economic convergence among the constituent parts of the European economy. But the criteria for convergence that they specified were defined in exclusively monetary terms, rather than the real economy terms that really matter and that are unattainable in the short term.

Everyone has the righl to freedom of opinion and expression; this dgM Includes freedom to hold opinions without interference end to seek, receive and impart inlormation and ideas through any medla and regardless of frontiers.

Unmrsal Dsdaramn of Human Riphts. An, 19

Vyocheslnv Sysoyev I Rurria 1 0 1993 Cnnooniru & Writers Syndicate.

So, the treaty requires a convergence of inflation rates and interest rates, and a limit to the proportion that public sector borrowing can bear in relation to national output. If that condition were to be met in Britain today, perhaps â&#x20AC;˘â&#x20AC;&#x2122;15 billion would have to be lopped off public spending, even in the depth of the recession.

Any fool could, of course, meet these convergence criteria-at least in the short term-provided that no account was taken of the damage done to the real economy. In the long run, the damage done would ensure that the convergence could not be maintained. In other words, the treaty is, as a blueprint for economic policy, flawed in exactly the same way a s the ERM was flawed. It guarantees the failure to secure the very objectives it sets out to achieve.

These problems are now understood-at least in o u t l i n e b y a growing number of people in Europe. It is this that explains the rising tide of unease as to what it is that our political leaders have mapped out for us.

That is why the Danes and the French, the Germans and the British are so reluctant to endorse the Maastricht treaty.

Those who have committed themselves to the establishment of a unitary European super-state (talk of federalism is quite inade. quate to describe what is aimed at) did fore. see that any overt attempt to take power away from national parliaments and hand it over to a European government would meet strong resistance. Democracy is, after all

about more than elections. It is about being governed by those whom one chooses to be governed by, in a political framework to which one owes some allegiance.

The great attraction of the Maastricht treaty to the prevailing elite in European politics, however, is not only that it vested economic policy in the hands of a European central bank. It also has, as an important subtext, the obvious truth that such an arrangement would work only in the context of a full political union. Anything else would produce intolerable strains between the dictates of the central bankers at the European level and the democratic pressures on governments at the national level.

It is this vision of Europe's future-centralised, unitary, exclusive, committed to ftnancial orthodoxy-that is another of the great casualties of recent events. The irreversible nature of what was proposed in Maastricht should in any case dictate that no such step should be taken without consulting the people first, but it now seems unlikely that the attempt to foist all this on Europe will be seriously made. If we are wise, we can now see the way clear to a much more constructive and democratic course for Europe.

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SAMBA ONE NOTE one l i n e one time samba time c r e a t i v e genius s t a t e m e n t simple b u t s t a t i n g much one-legged song stepped r i g h t up t o show t h a t music on such a b a s i c mode

t o a s t a t e of o f swing t h e s o u l moved t o s i n g s i m p l i c i t y and beauty go hand i n hand odes r e w r i t t e n t o do

D i r e c t comparison h e r e s t a r t s t o l o s e i t s e l f i n t h e d i f f e r e n c e between a dozen c o u n t r i e s w i t h a t l e a s t two n e a r t h e t o p and a handful n e a r t h e bottom o f an economic l a d d e r , and t h e c o l o n i a l r e l a t i o n s h i p between t h e S t a t e s and Cangda, Mexico, C e n t r a l E South America. The goal of M a a s t r i c h t and NAFTA sound ominously similar g e t democracy and " t h e peoplett o u t 1 of t h e way; l e t money d i c t a t e and t h e market r u l e .

There i s a s e c r e t the r i s e i n ' social e v i l s is d i r e c t l y proportional t o t h e d i s p a r i t y i n wealth d i s t r i b u t i o n . Blame t h e v i c t i m indeed!

By PAULR TAYLOR

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DOUBLE STANDARD a t t h e Sun speculation o r a l l e g a t i o n . In f a c t , (The f o l l o w i n g l e t t e r was s e n t t o t h e t Vancouver Sun on J a n . 7 . Most of it was h e i r t r i a l h a s been going on f o r 3 months. Why a r e we s u b j e c t e d t o huge p r i n t e d on J a n . 13. The p a r t t h a t was h ' 1 e a d l i n e s about s p e c u l a t i o n 6 a l l e g a l e f t out i n t h e Sun's version: ' t i o n s o f w e l f a r e f r a u d by poor people, I ' m w r i t i n g t o p r o t e s t about a doub- and blink-and-you-miss-it coverage of l e s t a n d a r d i n your coverage of f r a u d . proven t a x f r a u d i n v o l v i n g middle On Dec.29 you had a page 3 s t o r y c l a s s ' o r r i c h people?' h e a d l i n e d , "MLA e x p e c t s f i g u r e s to.

T h i s t y p e o f coverage i s c r e a t i n g a show w e l f a r e f r a u d - a s h i g h a s 20 p e r dangerous s i t u a t i o n where working peoNo proof was provided. ~ a r i i e r p l e whose t a x e s a r e h i g h , blame 'and cent i n 1993 you had a f r o n t page w i t h huge even h a t e 1 t h e p o o r e s t o f t h e poor who headlines a l l e g i n g t h a t "Millions of h a v e n ' t even been found g u i l t y o f f r a u d d o l l a r s i n w e l f a r e money c o l l e c t e d An example o f t h i s i s your J a n . 7 t h f r a u d u l e n t l y by Somali r e f u g e e s a c r o s s l e t t e r from Gary Tupper. Tupper t r a s h Canada a r e b e i n g used t o buy arms f o r e s government f o r doing n o t h i n g about Somali w a r l o r d s . f 1 'Even though n d t a a l l e g e d w e l f a r e f r a u d and goes on t o shred o f proof f o r t h i s a l l e g a t i o n s a y about w e l f a r e , "...we f r i t t e r away has been p r o v i d e d , t h e Sun has n o t b i l l i o n s nationwide on l a y a b o u t s and apologized.' t h i e v e s . " Yet when t a x f r a u d is commOn J a n . 6 t h we r e a d i n a small a r t i c - i t t e d by a n o t h e r c l a s s o f people, and l e on page 6 t h a t two men have been I a c t u a l l y does r o b government of money a c t u a l l y c o n v i c t e d o f Ifone of t h e l a r - it needs, few w i l l even become aware gest t a x f r a u d s i n Canada!', i n v o l v i n g of it because of t h e double s t a n d a r d more t h a n $15 m i l l i o n . T h i s item i s n o t i n your coverage.

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What i s the greatest?

Greatest Handicap . . . . . Fear Greatest Day . . . . . . . . %day Greatest Mistake . . Giving Up Greatest Sturnbhg Block . . . . . . . Ego Easiest Tb Do . . . . . . . . . .Fhd Fk~2:t Greatest Comfort . . . . Work Well Done Greatest Need . . . . . .Common Sense Greatest Gift. . . .Forgiveness = 4

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On J a n u a r y 19 I a t t e n d e d , a t Car g i e , what was a d v e r t i s e d a s a meet " t o begin t h e p r o c e s s of forming 'community h e a l t h c o u n c i l t o r e p r e A *fl of duplication. o u r neighbourhood".%There were about 20 people, i n c l u d - 2 . To make the hea , m g Carnegie s t a f f Fr v o l u n t e e r s , f , s t a f f a t Cordova House, t h e Lookout, a DERA board member, and r e p s from i t i e s have d i f f e r e n t i s s u + t h e Downtown E a s t s i d e J S t r a t h c o n a Coat h a n major urban centres, ' l i t i o n , Vancouver Native H e a l t h and The s t r u c t u r e o f t h e l o c a l and r e g i o n a l h e a l t h he Downtown E a s t s i d e Women's Centre. \councils Faye White community c o o r d i n a t from t h e p r o v i n c i a l M i n i s t r y of H t h , Health Regions Branch, began

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Faye White e x p l a i n e d t h a t t h e t h a t h e a l t h i s going t o r e g i o a r d s t o c o n t r o l t h e spending o i n t h e p r o v i n c e ( a d m i n i s t r a t i v e bur-

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---------_____ he neighbourhood is a t r a p . ~t s t l i k e a mousetra t h e o f f e r of r e n t a l b a r g a i n s . Rents average about two hundred 6 f i f t y .

A working man might expe q u i t e a h i g h p r o f i t by l i v i n g w i t h r e n t s such a s t h e s e . B U ~ , once r e s i d ent i n t h e n e i g h b o ~ r h o ~ done , discove r s t h e apartments a r e f i l t h y with cockroaches and mice. Once r e s i d e n t , such a working man d i s c o v e r s a l c o h o i ; i c s and o t l l e r uiszoui-aged, unenlployea,

t h i s neighbourhood. The d i s l o c a t i o n of c a r e e r . The sudden l o s s of u n i n s u r e d t o o l s can l a n d a man on unemployment i n s u r a n c e o r w e l f a r e . Such s e t b a c k s can b e d i s c o u r a g i n g .

There may even b e some men i n t h i s neighbourhood s o d i s c o u r a g e d t o t h i s day

By RON CARTEN

( E d i t o r ' s n o t e : Following i s a l e t t e r t h a t c o u l d b e s e n t a s i s o r used a s t h e b a s i s f o r your own l e t t e r . I t h a s t o r e a c h Harcourt G m i n i s t e r s a t t h e bottom b e f o r e 26 February. The "welfare fraud" hype on t h e news E p r e s s happens because t h e r e i s no law p r o t e c t i n g low-income p e o p l e from l i b e l , f e a r mongering o r h a t e l i t e r a t u r e . Racism i s i l l e g a l ; c l a s s i s m E economic t e r r o r i s m a r e not.)

Dear Premier Harcourt:

RE:

HUMAN RIGHTS ACT REVIEW

( f a x : 387-0087)

We understand t h a t t h e q u e s t i o n o f whether o r n o t t o proceed w i t h a f u l l r e view of t h e Human R i g h t s Act of B r i t i s h Columbia and i t s enforcement w i l l b e on t h e Agenda of your n e x t Cabinet meeting.

We a r e w r i t i n g t o u r g e you t o honour your government's commitment t o t h e people of B r i t i s h Columbia. Before and a f t e r t h e e l e c t i o n we were promised a f u l l and s u b s t a n t i v e Human R i g h t s Act and a Commission.

Although t h e Act h a s been amended t w i c e , it s t i l l c o n t a i n s s e v e r a l major flaws. There i s no p r o t e c t i o n f o r d i s c r i m i n a t i o n on t h e b a s i s o f s o u r c e of i n come. The c u r r e n t Act d o e s n o t c o v e r t h e f o r c e d s a l e of some condominiums and townhouses where t h e r e s i d e n t owners choose t o have c h i l d r e n . There i s no prot e c t i o n from age d i s c r i m i n a t i o n f o r t e n a n t s under t h e a g e of 19 o r o v e r t h e age of 65. C i t i z e n s a r e n o t p r o t e c t e d from s y s t e m i c d i s c r i m i n a t i o n .

I n October, met with many a process f o r contracted t o

1992 t h e t h e n M i n i s t e r r e s p o n s i b l e f o r human r i g h t s , A n i t a Hagan, community r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s o v e r a p e r i o d , o f t h r e e days t o d i s c u s s review of t h e Act. By June, 1993 P r o f e s s o r B i l l Black had been perform a review and t h e mandate i n c l u d e d p u b l i c c o n s u l t a t i o n .

The community h a s w a i t e d p a t i e n t l y s i n c e t h a t t i m e f o r t h i s review t o t a k e p l a c e . Now we d i s c o v e r t h a t it i s back b e f o r e Cabinet f o r d i s c u s s i o n .

We know t h i s government i s committed t o s t r o n g human r i g h t s p r o t e c t i o n i n B.C., a s w e l l a s p u b l i c i n p u t i n t o d e c i s i o n s t h a t a f f e c t u s a l l . We u r g e you t o proceed w i t h t h e review a s soon a s p o s s i b l e w i t h f u l l c o n f i d e n c e t h a t t h e m a j o r i t y of people w 5 l l i e n d o r s e much ndeded law reform i n human r i g h t s .

Sincerely, c c : John Cashore, C o l i n Gablemann, Moe S i h o t a , Joan Smallwood, J o y MacPhail. f a x : 356-1124 387-6411 387-1356 356-5588 387-5720 Mailing a d d r e s s f o r a l l : c / o Parliament B u i l d i n g s , V i c t o r i a , B.C.

V8V 1x4

ME, V I R G I L , AND THE I N D l A N S

Virgil Lane was about 20 years my senior, and in 1960's terminology a Negro.

I quit school for the first of many times to play rhythm guitar in his band at the Smilin' Buddha for $40 a week.

Virgil had 5 kids and a wife to support, so when our gig at the Buddha ended we headed up the coast to a place called Woodfibre where Virgil had arranged temporary employment in a manufacturing plant.

I was given the job of scraping the inside walls of giant oval tanks that had a two foot hole at each end to crawl in and out of.

After the third day's work was over, Virgil I said, "Let's go for a beer."

We walked through the eternal acid rain drizzle that fell on Woodfibre to the only drinking establishment which happened to be a Royal Canadian Legion.

Being in my mid teens I had snuck successfully into taverns before, but this was my first time in a Legion.

After signing the guest book, a buzzer sounded and we'entered. The place was half full of men quietly sitting at their tables minding their own business, until , one at a time they looked up and started pointing at their respective heads.

Virgil nudged me in the ribs and said, "Better take off your hard hat .I' The waiter came over, and eyeing my youthful fzice with forgiving suspicion, he explained that hats weren't allowed in the Legion.

Virgil just sat there with his famous 'so ya think you know it all' snile, and ordered four draft.

I

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A 20 year old nostalgic remembrance of Woodfibre caused me to smile as I edged my way through the crowd looking for my friends' table... What ever happened to Virgil Lane, anyway ?

...

Remembrance Day 1993 Just when you think that you've lived long enough to overcome those petty things that troubled your.younger years, some mysterious force winds up and smacks you in the face, sending your mind spinning and wondering 'What the Godfrey Danial is gcing on here!'

...

7or weeks the nightly newscasters on TV lave taken up the cause of an East Indian:anadian war veteran who was denied mtrance to a Royal Canadian Legion because le wouldn't remove his head gear. He was ltterly convinced that he was the victim of racism, or worse.

1 I, on the other hand, was convinced that I

was the victim of a deeper suffering of losing a well entrenched tradition that I had freely accepted all those years ago so f could sit down and have a beer in the Flash-forward to Oct. 1980. confines of a hallowed place.

It's Halloween night and I'm meeting some My white-hot mental voice shouted back at friends at the Port Moody Legion. the newscasters: WHAT ABOUT WOODFlBRE...

WHAT ABOUT PORT MOODY? For a lark I decide to take out my old taxi drivers uniform that I was forced to Fearing for my sanity, I stopped watching buy when I drove cab in Edmonton during the the nightly news for a time.

'78 Commonwealth games.

I smoldered into a sad pile of ashes and It wasn't much of a Halloween costume, but tried to put my shattered status quo with its Yellow Cab emblems on the hat and puzzle back together again. jacket shoulders; I was quite convincing It was during those news hour hiatuses to the bartender, who, after buzzing me that my pain was rationally appreciated through the door, said, "Yeah, who called and then overcome by the mentalized you?" chanting of the words Potlatch and After I explained I was merely in costume Sun Dance. he replied, ''Yeah, well take off your hat!"

Garry Gust

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DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE YOUTH ACTIVITIES SOCIETY

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STD C l i n i c Monday through F r i d a y , 9am 5pm.

FREE MEDICAL CLINIC Mon, Wed, F r i d a y , 5:30-7 :30 pm.

NEEDLE EXCHANGE 2 2 1 Main; every day. 9am 5pm.

Needle Exchange Van on t h e s t r e e t evenings, Mon-Sat. N.A. meets every Monday n i g h t a t 223 Main S t r e e t .

Out-To-Lunch

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Bunch meets d a i l y a t 59 Powell, loam

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2:30pin.

A r t i c l e s represent the views of indiv contrlbutors and not of the Associat

~ e l phi -the buntom Eastride ( f u n d i o ~ ) S o c i a l S e r v i c e s -$lo00 Vancouver Health Dept. -$I1 Employment 6 Immigration -$8 OO P .L.U.R.A. -$I000

NEED HELP

0 Submission Deadline NEXT ISSUE 10 February .Thursday

The Downtown Eastside Residents' Association can help you with: +

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any welfare problem information on legal rights disputes with landlords unsafe living conditions income tax UIC problem finding housing opening a bank account

Come into the DERA office at 9 East Hastings St. or phone us at 682-0931.

DERA HAS BEEN SERVING THE DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE FOR 20 YEARS.