Big issues calling

Following a lengthy recess Parliament reconvened this
week, to face the urgency of a lengthy docket of unfin-
ished business.

With Canada’s new flag now fluttering gaily from the
nation’s flagstaffs, there is no reason why a number of
long-overdue pressing issues cannot be resolved. MP’s have
the responsibility of seeing to it that Liberal cabinet scan-
dals and Tory leadership rifts do not serve as an obstacle,
as did the flag debate for getting in the way of the nation’s
business.

Among the most pressing issues is the immediate en-
actment of the Canada Pension Plan as recommended by
the Hall Royal Commission. Further delays,on this urgent
need will only enable those powerful financial and medical
interests to continue their efforts to strip the Plan of all
beneficial content to the people!

_ Then there is the long-delayed national Labor Code, -

vitally important in this age of rapidly developing automa-
tion; a code in which the inherent rights of organized labor
_ are fully protected from the extra-legality of court injunc-
tion and police intimidation.

Without doubt the most momentous issue awaiting
Parliament’s decision is the need of a new Constitution for
Canada; not a “repatriated”’ amended or refurbished Brit-
ish North America Act (BNA), but a brand new made-in-
Canada Constitution, guaranteeing the sovereign indepen-
dence of Canada and the sovereign rights and equality of
its bi-national French and English founding peoples.

Big issues—requiring big minds! :

The unsung donor

ee Columbia’s top timber tycoon H. R. MacMillan
* has done it again; this time with a really big gift to
UBC, an $8.2 million package.

From numerous select sources congratulations and

fullsome praises are being heaped upon HRM, with

lengthy press homilies on his generosity, philanthropy, etc.
many beautifully rounded-out with a touch of the old
Horatio Alger romance.

We do not begrudge HRM his moment of purchased
glory, but it must be said that if monopoly tycoons of the
MacMillan vintage were taxed on a parity with ordinary
John Q. Public, our educational and other public institu-
tions would not be left to rely on philanthropic or charit-
able handouts in order to operate effeciently.

Moreover, while the thousands of

IWA men and

Tom
McEWEN

ast week we had a new ad-
dition to the Newsletters
coming to our desk, this one from
the “Office of AssistantSecretary
of Defense, Washington, D.C,”

nel from general MaxwellTaylor
down to the thousands of GI Joes
are presented to the world as
“advisers” it may also be assum-
ed that Rover will also serve in
an advisory capacity, i.e, by sink-

President Johnson last week asked Congress to make the
United States a nation of charm and beauty.

women who make up the working force of the giant Mac-
Millan-Bloedel-Powell River empire received no credit
whatsoever for HRM’s fine gift of $8.2 million to UBC, it

‘was their labor and sweat alone which produced it. It

would therefore be most fitting that in the paens of praise
for HRM’s generosity, just a hint of who really made it
possible should be added.

Should any care to dispute this sharing of kudos for a
fine gift, two cardinal factors should be kept in mind: that
HRM’s philanthropy has never been known to show
through during wage negotiations. Secondly, that if his
working people are compelled to withhold their labor
power to get a fair shake, as at Port Alberni recently, the
machinery of wealth production grinds to a halt — and the
source of all “gifts” dries up.

So, along with the spate of praises for HRM’s $8.2-
million gift, lets tip our hats to the IWA workers who
created it. There are exceptions to the rule “never look a
gift horse in the mouth.” This is one of them.

belts below which to hit,? “big stick,”

It struck us that the Prime
Minister’s list could be consider-

Then again we have another
specie of politician, overlooked

ably extended, There are also
those who can give away the coun-
try’s rich natural resources to
Yankee monopoly, the while pre-
tending that such give-aways are
good for Canada, Then we have
the type who can juggle figures
with all the skill of an old-
time shell-game artist, and do it
with a most charming and dis-
arming smile — or is it a grin?

by the PM, the kind that is be~
devilling him and his minority
Liberal government no end at
the moment; those old-line parti-
san politicians who regard their
elevation to parliament or gov-
ernment circles as their golden
opportunity to “get it while the
getting is good,” an art some-
times referred to in more polite
language as “the emoluments of

With things going badly for
Uncle Sam’s “advisers” in South
Vietnam, one item in this U.S,
Defense Newsletter somewhat in-
trigued’ us, It stated: “The Serv-
ices are recruiting five hundred
dogs from “civilian life” for duty
at military bases in the U,S, and

overseas, Two hundred are need-.

ed immediately and an additional
300 must be entered into training
by next August to maintain an ade-
quate sentry force, The Airforce
is the procurement agency for
the dogs and will accept dona-
tions or will purchase animals
- meeting prescribed stand-
ards,,.”, etc, and so forth, .

Since all U.S, military person-

ing his fangs into any or all
Vietnamese or others, who may
appear reluctant to accept his

“advice,”
ok * +

In an address before the Tor-
onto and District Liberal Asso-
ciation dinner at the Royal York
Hotel on February 4, Prime Min-
ister Lester B, Pearson listed
four kinds of partisan politicians
peculiar to Canada, These includ-
ed “those who hit hard or not
so hard, but above the belt;”
“those who, when in the heat of
debate or by accident hit below
the belt, genuinely regret the low
blow;” “those who normally and
cheerfully hit below the belt,” and

“those who go around looking for

office,”

Worth
Quoting
*

The Third Battalion, the Royal Ang-
lican Regiment, at present stationed in
West Berlin, wants to buy a mobile
fish-and-chip shop anywhere in East
Anglia. It is prepared to pay up to 350
pounds for a good runner in first-class
“frying order.”’

The soldiers miss British fish and
chips, and some of them are not too —
happy with German sausage.

—BRITISH DAILY WORKER, —

Feb. 13. '65

AFL-CIO president George Meany —
challenged American free enterprise |
to refuse economic concessions to —
Communist regimes whose basic aim
is ‘‘the destruction of democracy and —

the free enterprise system throughout
the world.”’ :

Lauded by President Lyndon John-
son as ‘‘America’s No. One Freedom ~
Fighter," Meany asked those favoring —
economic ‘concessions in the Soviet —
bloc  ‘‘Why provide the Communist —
rulers with skills to forge new chains —
of tyranny .. .?”

—AFL-CIO NEWS, Jan. 30, 65 —

Meany didn’t mean it that way, but —
it could be interpreted to mean that |
Meany means he would like to xeep :
that monopoly in America. Ed).

*

Fullerton, California: A recent item |
reported here by the press showed —
that a group of workers quit after oné —
week at a citrus growing farm — and
showed a newsman a check stub indi- —
cating that one man had earned 9 |
take-home-pay of only eight cents for —
his week’s work.

It broke down as follows: Total
wages $16.35; withholding tax $2.15; —
board $11.67; gloves, $2 45; balance ~
due: $0.08. ;

—THE DISPATCHER, Feb 5, ’65 '

*

The union was discussing finance |
raising to help finance publicity dut- —
ing their mass strike meetings last —
week in Newcastle, Australia. '

“What about raffling off a couple ~
of our officials,” an ironworxer called a
out. “Break that off,’’ yelled anothet
‘‘we want to sell some tickets.”’

—AUSTRALIAN TRIBUNE,
Nov. 18, '64.

We can sympathize with the PM
on his necessity to quoteShakes= |
peare about the “times being out |
of joint in a peculiarly Canadial —
way,” and his very obvious dif- —
ficulty in creating “the image” |
so devoutly desired, |

But with such a wide variety
of partisan political cooks in the
Canadian kitchen, aside from thé
four listed by the PM, he cert=
ainly shouldn’t complain whel
the “rain” of public oprobriu™
“falls upon the just as well a°
the unjust,”

We are also well stocked with ©

the specie who can talk “peace”
until the cows come home, and
yet manage to load the country
and the people they are presumed
to represent with large stock-
piles of U.S, nuclear weapons, In
this somebody is getting badly
“hit below the belt,” and it isn’t
the politico on the Prime Min-

ister’s list,

' Then we have another type,
also not included in the PM’s

listing, but rapidly coming to the

fore in ever greater numbers;
the type whose style is some-

what crimped by the democratic

process, and who would dearly
like to see it exchanged for a

ri aa i

a

Editor — TOM McEWEN
Associate Editor — MAURICE RUSH
Circulation Manager — JERRY SHACK
Published weekly at
Ford Bldg., Mezzanine No. 3, 193 E. Hastings St.
Vancouver 4, B.C. Phone MUtual 5-5288
Subscription Rates:
Canada, $4.00 one year. North and South America and
Commonwealth countries, $5.00 one year. All other
countries, $6.00 one year. Authorized as second class mail
by the Post Office Department, Ottawa and for payment
of postage in cash.

February 19, 1965—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Page 4