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7

PAGE At, THE HERALD, Friday May 27, 1977

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the herald

7 Terrace - 635-6357
ESS” Kitimat - 632-5706
# Published by

Sterling Publishers Ltd.

fublished every weekday af 3212 Kalum St., Terrace, B.C. A

member of Varified Circulation. Authorized as second class

mail. Registration number 1201. Postage paid in cash, return
*pastage guaranteed.

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ADVERTISING MANAGER

KAYE EHSES

MANAGING EDITOR
ALLAN KRASNICK

PUBLISHER
GORDON W. HAMILTON.

KITIMAT MANAGER
W.S. ‘KIM! KIMBLE

NOTE OF COPYRIGHT
The Herald retains full, complete and sole copyright in any
advertisement produced and-or editorial er photographic
content published in the Herald. Reproduction is not
permitted without the written permission of the Publisher. -

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Your daily

When are you going to get a comic section?
There ought te be more sports. How about a stock
market report? At least the editorials are local.
Why Isn’t there more 4pgal news?

These are just a few of the question s and com-
ments we have received during our first month as a
daily newspaper. And although we've received our
share of knocks as well as kudos, the one thing that
is clear is that people are truly interested in the
paper and what is going on here.

Sometimes we people in the ‘‘newspaper biz” are
so busy nosing into other pecple’s affairs that we
neglect fo mention our own. So we thought we'd use
this space to let you know some of the things that
have been happening at the Herald, what we are
trying toda, and what we hope to accomplish In the
future.

First of all, the move fram a weekly to a daily
newspaper has not been an easy one. There have
been a myriad of technical problems, tie-ups,
breakdowns and the Ilke. .

Not all of these problems have been overcome,
but it is credit to the enthusiasm and determination
of our staff that most of them have.

Sure, we need more local coverage and we're

4
2

going to get it. Sure we want a comic section and:

we're going to get that too.

But the fact remains that we are now puiting out
an exciting, provocative newspaper every day — a
newspaper that cares about the Kitimat-Terrace
area and wants fo meet the needs of its readers.

We're never going to be the biggest. But we are
determined to mdke this the best community
newspaper In British Columbia.

Of course, we cannot doit alone. If we are going
to keep on top of sports events, we need people to
contact us, fo tell us the score. We need leads and
Ideas for good news stories, features and columns.

We also need direct input in the form of letters to
the editor. It’s a great way of letting off steam, of
sharing your concerns with your neighbours, or
simply of providing Information to the community, .

The daily Herald is truly something new and
exciting. With our own press, five writers, an
expanded advertising department, back shop and
front office staff we can do all sorts of things that
we could never do before.

But most of all, we want to be part of this com-
munity. So keep us on our toes. Don’t jet us forget
and event or a sports score. Don’t delay writing
that letter to the editor.

This Is your newspaper. Your opinions count
with us. Together we can make this paper work
better and better.

Budworms gnaw
Tom’s credibility

“Supported by outside authorities who are just as
concerned about health and the environment as we
are, the forest managers have prescribed spraying
as the most effective and efficlent way of arresting
the spruce budworm problem.” wrote Forests
Minister Tom Waterland in a recent column.

“We must perform this treatment on our heart,
our forest. If we allow this budworm disease to
progress, the pulse of British Columbia might
eventually stop.”

Dramatic words indeed.

In fact, the minister so firmly believed in the
budworm spraying program that he threatened to
bring in Pinkerton police to patrol the forests
against demonstrators.

But now Waterland finds himself in a rather
embarassing position. Having fought for months
with environmentalists and community groups,
over the spraying issue the provincial cabinet
Thursday decided to overrule him and place a one-
year moratorlum on the budworm spraying
program.

While applauding the sanity of the cabinet's
decision, we cannot help but wonder In what
position it places the forestry minister.

If Waterland felt so strongly about budworm
spraying that he was willing to bring in a private
police force to enforce it, how can he now accept
the humiliation accorded him by his own
colleagues? .

What kind of credibility will he now have with the
public?

This is something that only Waterland can ac-
curately determine. 1f Premier Bennett has not
already determined it for him.

| Interpreting the news

Italy’s baffling political situation -

LONDON (CP) — A
year after its last election,
Italy has again dived into a

olitical scrimmage that
a left most spectators
baffled.

Prime Minister Giullo An-
dreotti—head of a minority

overnment—has been

Iding talks with other
party leaders, trying to
secure commitments to a
limited program for the
economy, law enforcement,
education and regional
development. But he needs
support of the Communists,
who until now have Sup-
ported at least parts of his
program but who now are

MONTREAL (CF) - The

’ Quebec furniture industry,

facing varied problems
which include outmoded
design styles and un.
competitive prices on the
retail market, is trying to

plot a better future.
“This year is cautious for
manufacturers,’' says

Francine Jones, marketing
manager for the 175-
member Association of
Quebec Furniture
Manufacturers.

wondering if they really
want fuller participation in
government.

The eléction last June
was, as usual in Italy, in-
conclusive. The Communist
share of the vote jumped to
34.4 per cent from 27.2 per
cent, but they could not
overtake the 38,7 per cent
gained by Andreotti’s
Christian Democrats, the
party that has led all Italian
governments since the
republic was founded in
1948.

The Christian Democrais,.
their electoral support
weakened at the polls, have
been governing with parlia-

with

Bi

“Hatchet!”

mentary support from
Socialists and Social
Democrats, and have won
“benign abstention” from
the Communists.

Andreotti has decided this
fragile arrangement is not
enough for the tough
economic and _ social
programs that need un-

ertaking. and he wants a
firmer alliance, but exactly
what he is seeking has not
been made public.

The Christian Democrats
insisted during the election
campaign last year. they
would never share power
the Communists,

preferring, if necessary, to
sit in opposition.

7

pres

Business spotlight

Relatively high labor costs
hurt Canadian furniture firms

Furniture companies in.

Quebec suffer from high
transportation and
production costs, pushing up
prices for Quebec-made

iture compared with the
competition in the rest of
Canada and the United
States, Ms. Jones, said in a
recent interview,

Some companies were
forced to lay off workers
during the winter due to

rowing inventories, but

ve started to re-hire as

the inventories decline.

Although: many
manufacturers are working
on their own to improve the
situation, they also are
taking action thorugh the
non-profit manufacturers’
association.

“The problem with this
industry is that it’s a fashion
industry,’’ Ms. Jones said,
adding that many Quebec
firms make furniture styles
that don’t meet modern
needs and taste.

Opposition comment
High unemployment rates
give no time for holidays

By DAVE BARRETT

Leader of the Official Op-

position |
While unemployment
continues to grow, the
government of British
Columbia is taking a
holiday.

The Legislature ad-
journed for an Easter break
on April 6. ‘It's still ad-
journed. And the premier
refuses to let MLAs know if
or when they'll be called
bake to do their job to get
our economy back on the
rails.

Statistics Canada has just
reported that the number of
‘people without jobs — in the
rest of Canada — went down
slightly last month.

But in British Columbia,
the number of people
looking for work is higher
than ever, The actual
unemployment rate has
jumped to 9.5 per cent.
(Seasonally adusted, it's 9.1
per cent.)

Statistics Canada also
indicates that business
activity in other parts of the
country is slowly = in-
creasing.

In British Columbia, the
only increasing activity is
the number of bankruptcy

pers being filed — the
pankru tcy rate continues
to accelerate.

Soon students will start

looking for summer jobs to
help pay increased -tuition
fees and continue their
education. Their chances of
finding those jobs are
slimmer than ever before.

It's both tragic and

scandalous,

The Conference Board of
Canada stated in a report
lgst month that British
Columbia is the only
rovince in Canada whic

as the potential to
“generate sufficient new
jobs to absorb labour force
entrants’.

But the government is
taking a holiday. And while
the government takes its

vacation, additional
thousands of , British
Columians are thrown out of
work.

The finance minister says
everything is ‘‘rosy”
because the province’s
books are sure to balance
when he issues the fourth
quarter report, (That
report, by the way, won't be
ready until July or August
because the calculations are
apparently a little more
complicated than usual this
year.)

He says the government’s
number one priority is
“fiscal restraint’’, Not jobs.

This government didn’t
exercise much ‘‘fiscal
restraint’ when it slammed

the brakes on the economy

by increasing the amount -

you have to pay for in-
surance, ferry service,
medical care, electricity
and a host of other essential
services.

That’s not fiscal restraint.
That's an unnecessary and
punitive raid on your pocket

The only restraint that’s
been evident since this
government was elected has
been in what you get for
your tax dollars. You're not
only paying too much;
you’re getting less for your
money.

The economic indicators
show we’re in a tailspin.
The Construction Industry
Advisory Board has told the
government that 32 per cent
of the provence's skilled
construction workers are
without work.

And the finance minister

says everything is “'rosy'*

because he’s going to make
the books balance.

Instead of taking an ex-
tended holiday, the
government should be
implementing positive
programs to provide the
employment opportunities
which are so desperately
heeded. Vli be outlining to
you some of the options that
should be considered in my
fext report from the
Legislature.

‘This week, however,-a
senior Communist party
leader said the Christian
Democrats are proposing
privately far more than they
are admitting publicly, and
that the talks “are a sign of
something new and have a
precise
significance.”’

’ The Communists have
problems of their own in the
present jostling.

To many they have
become ij res table and
responsible political party
in Italy, one that already
holds power in numerous
cities and regional govern-
ments.

These manufacturers now
realize that they cannot
market furniture of similar
design but more expensive
than products made outside
Quebec, since retailers buy
the less expensive items,
she said,

EXPORTS
NUMBERED

Canada exported only
$71.8 million worth of fur-
niture to the U.S. in 1976, but
improted $176.9 million
worth.

In 1976, domestic sales for
Quebec-made household
furniture reached $834.6
million, compared with
$719.6 million in 1975.

The association now is
advising companies how to
update some lines and in-
troduce original designs
that people will want to buy
even if it is a bit more ex-
pensive. .

Quebec is Canada’s
second largest furniture
manufacturer after Ontario
with total shipments in 1976
estimated at $500.8 million
and 46,000 people employed.

But manufacturers
complain they have gained
litle from the increased
shipments because of higher
transportation and labor
costs,

Labor costs in Canada are
2 to 25 per cent higher than
in the U.S., and productivity
and volume is lower, Ms.
Jones said.

The association recently
hired a transportation of-
ficer to find ways to reduce
shipping costs, particularly
to western Canada where
the costs can be nearly twice
as high as U.S. rates,

. Where previously Quebec
manufacturers shipped
individually at high costs,
by next month a new system,

OUT-

will be introduced to allow —

several companies to co-
ordinate shipping and
reduce freight rates,

The provincial govern-
ment will cover the cost of
setting up a shipping
association under the
direction of the furniture
association. .

political.

Atthe same time, they are
losing their electoral glamor
as a new arid different force,
particularly with the labor
unions and the students.

Their leaders, once heroes
among the young, have be
ariticized and even attacked
in the recent spate of
student demonstrations,
particularly for their sup-
port of economic policies
that have done nothing to
ease unemployment.

By being drawn into the
swamp of middle-ground
Italian politics, says a
report in The Guardian of
London, the Communists
“sre shown to be no more
capable of producing na-

tional miracles than anyone
else.”

For well over a year,
Communist leader Enrico
Berlinguer has been
describing his strategy of
“historic compromise”—an
alliance of Communists,
Socialists and Christians
that eventually would lead
Italy to sociatism.

As the inter-party dealing

oes on, Berlinger's
ollowers are sensing the
dangers of becoming
directly involved in the
country's always-
unpredictable __ political
game; and of losing the
voter support they had
worked so hard to gain.

French editorials

CRIC

report

long overdue

Montreal Le Devoir: The
Canadian Radio-Television
and Telecoramunications
Commission (CRTC) has
not yet condescended to
publish the guidelines for its
“‘quasi-judiciary’’ in-
vestigation of alleged
‘separatist bias at Radio-
Canada.

Reports have it that the
population is upset by
Radio-Canada’s presumed
partiality. The most com-
mon -complaint is that
Radio-Canada has not the
interests of the country at
heart,

What is being presented
as an investigation of

rsonnel .., may actually

come an overhaul of the
federal government's laws
governing communications
.. Of the CRTC itself.

It is bizarre, not to say
discriminatory, that the
povernment and the CRTC

ve decided ta go-over
Radio-Canada ‘with a fine-
tooth comb to ensure that all

federal and private
organizations form part of a
“system” which serves and
reflects the unity and
identity of Canada.

An investigation of this
sort will be hard-pressed to

-unearth real or imagined

separatists. On the con-
trary, it has prompted
prievances concernin
third-rate coverage offere
in outlying areas even
though the remote regions
pay for the service in Caxes
and by their advertising.

According to the wit-
nesses who have already
appeared before: the in-
vestigating committee, the
federal government would
do well to open a more
general investigation into
the Canadian com-
munications system."

It would seem that the
federal government is less
interested in the CRTC than
it is in increasing its own
power. — Jean-Claude
Leclerc, May 5.

co rapist rudy

DOWN UNDER CHIEF

BRISBANE (CP) — A
retired accountant who
becomes leader of 750,000
Rotarians next year will be
the first Australian to hold
that position in 30 years.

The Rotary International
has chosen Clement William
Bailey Renouf, 55, president

the organization for the
year starting July1, 1978.

Renouf, currently on the
group's finance committee,

§$ spent most of his life at
Nambour, a pineapple-and
sugar cane-growing town 60

miles north of Brisbane, the.
capital of Queensland state.
He also is treasurer of a
home for the aged in
Nambour, a member of the

- foundation and investment

committee of the Methodist
Church in Queensland and
deputy chairman of the
board of International
House, a residential college
at University of Queensland,

As president, Renouf will
be based at Rotary In-
ternational headquarters at
Evanston, ill,

Voice of the readers,

Interest
a major

Dear Sir: ;

It was with some interest
that I read an editorial,
copied from the Terrace
Herald, in our Daily
Bulletin, on free enterprise.

In my humble opinion the
three greatest enemies of all
people are high interest
rates, the percentage
system, and credit cards.

A local example of. the
firat enemy, high interest
rates, was when a
referendum for a new
R.C.M.P. building was
passed. The money to be
spent on this building was
$265.000. In their efforts to
have this referendum

sses, an article appeared
in our local paper stating
that the city would have to
pay $31,000 a year for 20
years. This amounted to
$620,000, In other words
$355,000 was to be paid in
interest!!! >

The "percentage” enemy
is as bad, Workers
negotiating for higher
wages use this system which
is so unfair. A 6 per cent
raise to a $20,000-a-year
Wage-earner amounts to a
$1200 raise; to a $10,000-a-
year wage earner, it is $600.

Do prices in stores vary
according to salaries
received?The lower wage
earner who really needs the
raise is bing discriminated
against,

In two instances this year,
unions have bargained for
an “across the board’ in-

charges

expense

‘crease which is more just.
Surely the wage gap is wide
enough now to permit
“across the board raises.”

Credit cards are our third
enemy, Atleast 6 per cent is
added to the price of goods
to cover this service. Cash
customers as well as credit
card holders pay for this
service. Should not cash
customers be allowed a 6
per cent discount?

IE credit cards were not a
lucrative business there
would not be so many of
them in evidence. We, the
wage earners, are the dupes
of our own economic
system. Our only power lies

in our purchasing power.
Things wou. soon
straighten outif we withheld

our desire to have goods
instantly and waited until
we could purchase for cash.

The public has been
brainwashed into thinking
that to deprive themselves
.of unneeded goods is a
crime. I would rather live
by the adage of “saving a
little for a rainy day” as
past generations have

t us.

Our country would not
have the billions in debt
which is now strangling our
economy.

As for “free” enterprise,
nothing in this world is free-

not even competition. .
Thank you for allowing

me this space in your

newspaper. -
Helen M. Duncan