May 10th 2013
Why are we letting our B.C. Liberal Government and Big Oil plunder our Natural Resources?
Why are we letting our B.C. Liberal Government and Big Oil and Big Coal plunder our petroleum, coal,
and natural gas deposits as fast as they can? Are we worried that those resources will not be worth
anything as soon as alternative energy becomes common and cheap? Well that is wrong, wrong, wrong.
Our natural resources will be valuable forever. We should only extract our share and leave lots of
natural gas, coal, and oil for future generations. My dad was a chemical engineer. Her used to tell us
in the 1960s and 70s that fossil fuels were far too precious to be blown out a commuter's exhaust pipe.
Fossil fuels will be valuable forever as starter chemicals for industry. If we are going to participate in
the carbon-fiber economy of the future, having oil, natural gas, and coal left to sell as starter chemicals
makes good business sense. Let other countries sell off their resources fast and cheap. We should make
sure we are getting good value for our resources. The multinational companies should be paying us full
value for our coal, oil, and natural gas, instead of making hefty political donations to the party in power
to give them tax and royalty breaks.
We need to elect a government that is going to protect our children's and grandchildren's share of the
resources. The B.C. Liberals seem to be in a hurry to sell off our resources. Are you NDPer's willing to
protect our children's heritage?
Frank Hastings
Cranbrook
March 1st 2013
February 7th 2013
The Odd Couple fundraiser
December 18. 2012
In response to a locally, recently published article regarding the book 'Raising Kain' by Keith Powell.
To the Editor
The Conrad Kain Centennial Society is intimately familiar with Kain’s true life story. Some of us in the society read Keith Powell’s novel ‘Raising Kain’ when it first appeared, winced, and privately hoped it would die a quiet death. But Powell’s relentless self promotion of the book seems to be paying off, and it doesn’t look like it’s going away soon.
His attempt to ‘cheese-up’ Conrad Kain’s life story by introducing a bizarre and distasteful link to the Nazi era that developed in Europe years after Kain’s death have many Kain fans shaking their heads in disbelief.
There’s a bright light on the horizon for Kain fans. Climbing historian Zac Robinson, who is not only well-versed in Canadian climbing history, mountain culture and is an accomplished climber himself, will release his exhaustively researched nonfiction book, ‘Your Friend in the Western Woods, Conrad Kain: Letters from a Wandering Mountain Guide, 1906-1933’, to be published by the University of Alberta Press in 2013.
In the meantime, if anyone would care to read the unadulterated version of Kain’s life, J. Monroe Thorington’s book, ‘Where the Clouds Can Go’ is considered the gold standard of reference material on Canada’s most celebrated mountaineer. In fact, this book is the source material for much of Powell’s novel.
Pat Morrow, Chair of the CKCS, Wilmer, BC
October 21 2012
September 17, 2012
2. You state that the bear hunt is based on science. I am a really big fan of science and love it when decisions are made on the basis of evidence. Would you please provide the scientific source information that you are referring to here?
3. Who is Zeke Fantuz? Did someone get charged money for killing this bear (in the picture)? Did Zeke really kill the bear? When I google his name I get an outfitter - why is that?
July 30th 2012
To Readers of the Cranbrook Guardian,
April 11, 2012 Re The Armond Theatre Restoration,
Why are we letting our B.C. Liberal Government and Big Oil plunder our Natural Resources?
Why are we letting our B.C. Liberal Government and Big Oil and Big Coal plunder our petroleum, coal,
and natural gas deposits as fast as they can? Are we worried that those resources will not be worth
anything as soon as alternative energy becomes common and cheap? Well that is wrong, wrong, wrong.
Our natural resources will be valuable forever. We should only extract our share and leave lots of
natural gas, coal, and oil for future generations. My dad was a chemical engineer. Her used to tell us
in the 1960s and 70s that fossil fuels were far too precious to be blown out a commuter's exhaust pipe.
Fossil fuels will be valuable forever as starter chemicals for industry. If we are going to participate in
the carbon-fiber economy of the future, having oil, natural gas, and coal left to sell as starter chemicals
makes good business sense. Let other countries sell off their resources fast and cheap. We should make
sure we are getting good value for our resources. The multinational companies should be paying us full
value for our coal, oil, and natural gas, instead of making hefty political donations to the party in power
to give them tax and royalty breaks.
We need to elect a government that is going to protect our children's and grandchildren's share of the
resources. The B.C. Liberals seem to be in a hurry to sell off our resources. Are you NDPer's willing to
protect our children's heritage?
Frank Hastings
Cranbrook
March 21st 2013
No comparison
Tom Fletcher is wrong to say the Liberals
and the NDP are equally guilty of mishandling funds (“Both parties have
betrayed us,” March 19, 2013).
In fact the NDP caucus got the green light
from the Legislative Comptroller before it began pooling money from
constituency funds. Later, when the
Auditor General disagreed with that decision, the NDP discontinued the
practice. Obviously, two government
officials had two different opinions on this matter.
In the case of the Liberals, no prior approval
was sought, and their own investigation “confirmed allegations that public
officials committed serious breaches of their duties, mixed party and
government business, misused government funds and used private emails to try to
cover their tracks.” (Craig McInness, Vancouver
Sun, March 17, 2013). Cassidy
Olivier, in The Province (March 16, 2013),
described the Liberals’ actions as “a clear violation of the standards
of conduct as outlined in the B.C. Public Service Act.” As a result the party wrote a cheque for
$70,000 to cover the estimated cost of the improper use of taxpayer funds. Guilty as charged.
As Vaughn Palmer said on CBC radio (Almanac,
March 15), “There is no comparison” between the actions of the two parties.
Jean Samis
Cranbrook, BC
250-489-1108
March 1st 2013
City Council hides from accountability
Cranbrook City Council is sorely lacking in leadership when
it resorts to a secret meeting not only to have a debate but also to take a
vote. “Secret” is the word that explains
the obfuscation “in camera.”
How is the voter to know what he/she voted for in the last
election, when councilors refuse to be publicly recorded on a vote? So much for accountability and
transparency. Anyone wondering why we
get a 30% turnout for city elections?
City Hall has confused city governance with corporate
governance. The City is not a business;
it’s a government. And what qualifies a
city to go into a secret meeting was listed years ago: 1) personnel matters, 2) employee relations,
3) land, 4) litigation, 5) information prohibited under the Freedom of
Information & Privacy Act.
On the deer cull vote, the council abused the use of in camera by resorting to a private
discussion and vote, simply because the decision was difficult or uncomfortable
for some.
What could have been an easy decision was made much more
difficult by the fawning press, who spent pages virtually reprinting the
position of the out-of-town public relations.
Mayor Stetski’s constant equivocation and promising to go everywhere—in
search of what no credible scientific research has yet discovered—simply added
smoke.
As Council was out-of-line on procedural requirements
(Section 90 of the BC Community Charter), I urge them to voluntarily do what is
right and hold a vote on the matter in public, and to explore how Council went
off the rails.
I voted to change Stonewall Hall into City Hall, but so far
the Stonewall is still there.
William G. Hills
The Odd Couple fundraiser
Graham Thompson’s article in the Edmonton Journal (Jan. 17, 2013) said
that Alberta conservatives helping to raise cash for the beleaguered B.C.
Liberals was not so odd “because B.C. Liberals are not really liberals; they’re
conservatives in liberal clothing.”
The organizers of the $125-per-plate dinner
in a nice Calgary hotel, Andy Crooks and Rod Love, were hardly the Odd
Couple. The Odd Couple were two members
of the B.C. “Liberal” government—Deputy Premier and Minister of nearly
everything, Rich Coleman; and Bill Bennett, Kootenay East MLA and Minister of
Communities, Sport and Culture and a key player in Premier Clark’s re-election
campaign.
The Financial
Post reported that some funds raised will go to the B.C. Liberal Party and
“A portion of the funds will be used to support swing ridings where many
Albertans have vacation homes.”
Every democratic minded person, especially
in the East Kootenay, has to think about what kind of democracy they want to
live in and what they are willing to do to protect it. Ours is a representative democracy wherein
we vote for someone to represent us in Victoria. Age, citizenship and residence are among the requirements for
voting.
The views of some dinner attendees, as
reported by CBC news, give me pause:
“We have property out there and we’re taxpayers.” “We should be paying attention.” Many Canadians work or own property in other
provinces or even other countries; and while they pay taxes there, they do not
expect to vote there.
It’s the two B.C. ministers’ actions that
should worry us. B.C. Liberal Campaign
Director Mike McDonald, speaking with the Globe
& Mail on Jan. 16, 2013, said:
“It’s tough raising money. You
have to raise it where you think you can find it.” Hence, Bill Bennett and Rich Coleman in Calgary.
It raises the questions: Who is Bill
Bennett representing? What is Bennett’s
limit for Alberta funds? The Calgary
fundraiser sets a dangerous precedent.
In a Radio West interview, Kathryn Marlow asked the National Post’s western business columnist, Claudia Catteneo, if
this was a common practice. “No,” she
answered, “and they probably shouldn’t be doing this.”
Where goes our democracy when we fail to
speak up? How much is our democracy
worth? These are the questions facing
the voters in Kootenay East.
William
G. Hills, Ph.D.
Cranbrook, BC
December 18. 2012
In response to a locally, recently published article regarding the book 'Raising Kain' by Keith Powell.
To the Editor
The Conrad Kain Centennial Society is intimately familiar with Kain’s true life story. Some of us in the society read Keith Powell’s novel ‘Raising Kain’ when it first appeared, winced, and privately hoped it would die a quiet death. But Powell’s relentless self promotion of the book seems to be paying off, and it doesn’t look like it’s going away soon.
His attempt to ‘cheese-up’ Conrad Kain’s life story by introducing a bizarre and distasteful link to the Nazi era that developed in Europe years after Kain’s death have many Kain fans shaking their heads in disbelief.
There’s a bright light on the horizon for Kain fans. Climbing historian Zac Robinson, who is not only well-versed in Canadian climbing history, mountain culture and is an accomplished climber himself, will release his exhaustively researched nonfiction book, ‘Your Friend in the Western Woods, Conrad Kain: Letters from a Wandering Mountain Guide, 1906-1933’, to be published by the University of Alberta Press in 2013.
In the meantime, if anyone would care to read the unadulterated version of Kain’s life, J. Monroe Thorington’s book, ‘Where the Clouds Can Go’ is considered the gold standard of reference material on Canada’s most celebrated mountaineer. In fact, this book is the source material for much of Powell’s novel.
Pat Morrow, Chair of the CKCS, Wilmer, BC
Dr. Mitchell sent this letter to us for publication.
September 21st 2012
Dear Mayor
Stetski and Council, re: Fluoride issue
I am writing
as a concerned citizen of area C as I witness from the sidelines the pressure
on city council to remove fluoride from the Cranbrook city water supply. This internet
campaign has been ongoing for many years and sadly individuals are lead astray
by so called reputable internet articles, as many believe all internet sources
to be valid. This issue arose in Whitehorse Yukon in the early 1990’s and due
to population and Dental apathy was allowed to pass. The subsequent tooth decay
witnessed in the pediatric population has been a tragedy.
I have spent
much of my anesthesia career involved with Dental anesthesia and my most recent
8 years in the subarctic providing over 1200 pediatric dental anesthetics has
shown the extreme edge of the effects on the developing teeth of over use of
fruit juices, the sippy cup which allows constant bathing of the developing
teeth with carbohydrate rich fluids, lack of parental attention to brushing and
fluoride deficient water. I have hundreds of pictures which I am more than
happy to provide on a CD showing these poor children under anesthesia as they
have restorations, extractions and pus filed abscesses drained. I anesthetized
30 children a week and the average child had 7 procedures done. Certainly this
cross section is an extreme example, but I would also argue that the average
city dentist rarely sees the disenfranchised individuals who lack the resources
to visit a dentist. There also is minimal operating room time available to
local dentists to service these problem children. It is often expensive and
impossible to do a complicated pediatric mouth in the chair, and so a subset of
the population is not treated.
The average
individual family would have the where withal to ensure their child brushes
with fluoride toothpastes and may well not require the fluoride, but for
another subset of the population this is not the case. It is the individuals
without tooth decay issues who can afford to raise the fluoride issue. What is
also not appreciated is the fact that the primary teeth are responsible for
guiding the secondary dentition into place. If these primary teeth are rotted
out, as many are by age two, the secondary teeth erupt in any direction and
present an orthodontic nightmare for the developing child.
My generation,
(I am a 1948 model), had horrendous tooth issues with multiple cavities, my
children nary a one. In the 1950-1960’s, it was not uncommon for the teenage
daughter in the family to receive a full set of dentures prior to marriage as a
dowry of sorts, due to unmanageable tooth decay.
Today’s
society forgets how “bad” the “good old days” actually were when it comes to
health issues. The fluoride issue is promoted by many of the same people who
want to see chlorination of drinking water and vaccination removed from daily
life. I just wish many of these messianic individuals would travel to the third
world to witness the carnage created by lack of access to clean, chlorinated
drinking water, vaccination, and fluoride.
Will most of
Cranbrook notice the removal of Fluoride? Probably not! Will the marginalized
families who you represent notice? Yes
Is fluorosis
of the teeth...white staining of the teeth due to excess fluoride a common
problem? Your dentists can answer that better than I can, but after 35 years of
Family Practice and anesthesia, I can’t remember if I ever saw a case.
So please take
your time in this decision. The anti-fluoride campaigners in Yukon saw themselves
in a messianic light, saving the population. They never had the chance to
witness a general anesthetic administered to a 3 year old whose mouth consisted
of 20 small rotten nubbins of teeth which were imbedded in pockets of pus.
I am away
until October 5th but would be more than happy to present a power
point presentation to city council illustrating the ongoing “bad old days”
which currently exist in much of rural Canada.
Sincerely,
Roger Mitchell
MD CCFP
 |
| a small sample of extreme fluoride free tooth rot in 2-7 year old under anaesthesia |
Click to enlarge
OCP and the Subdivision of Wetlands at Jimsmith Lake
The Rockyview Official Community Plan (OCP) for Area C has fifteen references in
it expressing an intent to protect the environment. Protection of the
environment is policy of the RDEK Board and yet the wetlands at the west end of
Jimsmith Lake were allowed to be subdivided into lots smaller than the regular
rural residential lot size of 2 hectares. Houses will be built with septic
drain fields close to the wetlands and some wetlands have been filled in. Fortunately a number of these sensitive
areas, but not all, have been detailed on a plan and covered by a ‘no disturb’
covenant in an attempt to preserve their integrity over the years.
Board approvals for this went through with
little opposition and with no concessions made toward public input at the public
hearing. The public input was almost entirely concerning maintenance of the
wildlife habitat versus the density of human habitat. The Planning Department
staff provide technical advice to the
board that is based on their interpretation of the Rural Residential zoning
(R-Res) in the OCP as well as technical reports by professional consultants.
These professional consultants are paid for and directed by the developer;
there is no independent advice presented except at the public hearing. Plainly
no notice was taken when the consequences of the impact of high density
residential settlement on this sensitive ecosystem were pointed out at the
public hearing. If the consequences had been understood they would have applied
other clauses in the OCP that provide much better environmental protection and
allow a similar end product.
This is no reflection on the developer, he
went through the required hoops that the planning staff set up for him and the
work has proceeded in a professional manner. There are a small number of minor
deviations that might come to haunt us, but few of us are perfect.
The problem lies with the OCP zoning and
its interpretation. By designating this area as Rural Residential (R-Res) the
new OCP enables lot sizes from 1ha to 8 ha.
What developer in his right senses is going to make larger lots than he
has to? And yet an earlier (2010) subdivision in rough bush, upland from the
lake, had 10 - 2ha lots. The irony here
is that an area with 2ha lots that is suitable for smaller lots is right next
to the new area, now subdivided into smaller lots, less able to absorb a higher
density of humanity without damage, than the original lots by the same
developer. According to the planners
the developer mitigated the intrusion on the wetlands with a “no disturb”
covenant because it is described as a Development Permit Area in the OCP and
was rewarded with the incentive of 1ha lots because he made extra efforts. But the Development Permit enables the
smaller lot size. The covenant, which
will run with the land, is as effective as the RDEK compliance officer and for
as long as the owners respect it: The compliance officer covers the whole
region and looks after all reported bylaw contraventions.
The planning staff depended heavily on the
Environmental Assessment Report (EAR), paid for by the developer, which stated
that there would be only minor impact on the environment. But this report did not note the full extent
of existing wetlands; did not recognize the habitat value of a pond that used
to be wetland, until a previous owner dug it out; did not recognize a creek
that allegedly had been dug out and straightened but is now partially filled in
and needs protection as part of the wetland system. This is not to say that the EAR is not a valid document – it was
written by highly competent biologists and covers a number of technical details
such as establishing a safety zone around some of the wetlands themselves. But
there is no mention of the wildlife corridors that will be shut off by smaller
fenced lots or the impacts of higher housing density on water quality.
Interpretation of the OCP is critical. We
can expect more of the same as long as the planners do not feel that they must
represent the interest of the public rather than proposed inappropriate
economic activity. The planners need to be better informed on the environmental
impact of their actions. There are clauses in the OCP that enable more rigorous
procedures to deal with such highly sensitive property if they want to apply
them. The planners have the authority of Board policy to ensure the highest and
best protection is enabled but, despite having the authority, it was too
difficult for them to persuade the developer to accept a more expensive
mitigation plan. There is now a precedent set for future sensitive subdivision
proposals unless citizens express their disgust at this desecration of our
environment inthe Area C.
In order to make your concerns known and to
ensure that other areas of sensitive habitat is protected
in accordance with RDEK Board policy. Please be sure to write or e-mail Mr. Gay
at the RDEK office.
Brian Passey, Jimsmith Lake
September 17, 2012
Mr
Bennett,
As
mentioned in my email message of September 3, I saw your recent notice (or
campaign ad?) in the hunting pages of the Townsman. I thought you might answer my questions in an email reply but I
guess you prefer to exchange information with your constituents in the
newspapers. Anyway, here are the
questions I was asking:
1. You say that
you support (and are somewhat responsible for) the authorized grizzly bear hunt
and that the person pictured (Zeke Fantuz) ‘earned’ his grizzly bear kill. My dictionary offers these definitions for
the word “earned” and I wonder if you could tell me which one applies in Zeke’s
case?
·
to gain or get in return for
one's labor or service: to earn one's living.
·
to acquire
through merit:
to earn a reputation for honesty.
·
to gain as due return
or profit:
Savings accounts
earn interest
2. You state that the bear hunt is based on science. I am a really big fan of science and love it when decisions are made on the basis of evidence. Would you please provide the scientific source information that you are referring to here?
3. Who is Zeke Fantuz? Did someone get charged money for killing this bear (in the picture)? Did Zeke really kill the bear? When I google his name I get an outfitter - why is that?
Bill Goss
Cranbrook
September 5th 2012
Who’s the Shining Beacon?
After reading MLA Bill Bennett’s response, in the, Wednesday August 29th Townsman, to his concerned constituent, M.A. Mellor, I decided to take Mr. Bennett’s suggestion and look up relevant B.C. Government documents. Typing B.C. Liquor Distribution Branch income into the Google search engine led me to their, May 20 2011, Financial Report which stated that the net income for the B.C Liquor Distribution Branch was close to $900 million in 2010 and in 2011, which it transferred to the B.C. Government. Please tell me Mr. Bennett. How do you expect to save taxpayers money by getting rid of the Liquor Distribution Branch when it earns us in the neighbourhood of a billion dollars a year? Don’t you want B.C. taxpayers to benefit from that income?
I also checked out Mr. Bennett’s statement that his B.C Liberal government had made most of its budget targets in the last decade. Typing B.C. Auditor General into Google led me to his, July 25 2012, News Release. In the release, the B.C. Auditor General stated that the B.C. government had understated the “latest” deficit by 520 million dollars; and that there was a long-standing trend of shortcomings in the transparency of government finances. He also stated that the B.C. Government had not been following Canadian Generally Accepted Accounting Principles when preparing its financial statements.
Are you really sure your B.C. Liberal government has made 9 of 10 budget targets, Mr. Bennett? Because, the B.C. Auditor General doesn’t seem to approve of the way your government works with numbers.
Search on:
NEWS RELEASE For Immediate Release July 25, 2012 AUDITOR GENERAL REPORTS GOVERNMENT HAS UNDERSTATED ITS DEFICIT BY $520 MILLION
for the complete Auditor General Report document.
There is an unfortunate error in the above official news release - it should state 2.36billion, not million.
for media commentary:
July 30th 2012
Lame local governmentCranbrook City Councillor Angus Davis is correct when he states, “ I believe there is a direct relationship between the number of voters who vote in municipal elections and the importance those voters place in their local government.” (“Is local government really local?” Townsman, July 19, 2012)Davis is also correct that “today almost every aspect is controlled through Victoria.” Regional District directors from Cranbrook and the Elk Valley, after arm-twisting and phone calls from Victoria, voted to give up their elected duties in land use planning and cram the provincial take-over of Jumbo down the throats of the Columbia Valley directors, who were overwhelmingly opposed. It’s one thing to be a water boy for your MLA, but when local politicians drink the cool-aide, their room to complain is small.Campbell’s new Community Charter adds to alienation of the voter with its reverse onus which allows local governments to quickly push through whatever the land speculator or real estate agent wants, leaving the citizen to sit idly by or take up arms in the form of signatures on a petition to force a referendum—the Alternate Approval Process—with local governments spending citizens’ tax dollars to fight the citizens.The Union of B.C. Municipalities, as Davis correctly points out, is serving two masters. It tries to represent B.C. municipalities to the provincial government, but it’s becoming a gopher carrying the cool-aide to capitulating councillors. Why then do we have not 2 or 3 but 6 councillors (and some spouses) making the yearly trek to the UBCM convention?Finally, Davis is dead on when he speaks of the Health Tsar in Victoria deciding what we need. Locally elected health boards would be more accountable.William G. Hills, Ph.D.Cranbrook, BC489-1108
May 30th 2012
Three Facts with References
Norma
Blissett
May 8 2012
Three Facts with References
With
regard to “The bad old days”, MLA Bill Bennett’s letter to the editor of May
28.12 I thought I would cite three facts.
The B.C. Progress Board, established by
Gordon Campbell and now axed by Christie Clarke, produced reports that describe
the province’s economic performance and social well being (http://www.bcprogressboard.com/). The Progress Board ranked
the BC economy 4th in 2000, the end of the NDP tenure, and 5th
in 2010 after 10 years of the BC Liberals. We were ranked 3rd in the
country for personal income under the NDP government and now after the Liberals
we are 4th. With regard to jobs we were 5th
in 2000 and in 2010 7th.
I also
must mention our most sad statistic-
being ranked #1 for child poverty for the eight consecutive years of BC Liberal government (http://www.firstcallbc.org/pdfs/economicequality/3-reportcard2011.pdf).
May 8 2012
Unwanted Causes
As many of you
know St Jude is the patron saint of lost causes. It appears that our local MLA, the Honorable Bill Bennett, is vying to be the patron saint of unwanted causes. Why would he do this you
ask? I don’t really know, I can only base my opinion on the evidence of his actions-
championing the unwanted HST tax last summer and now the unpopular Jumbo
Glacier Resort.
Our MLA has gone to great lengths to promote
this unwanted development. Flying off to France at his own expense, criticizing
local hockey hero Scott Niedermayer and now putting democracy at risk by
granting resort municipality status to an area without residents (Townsman, May
7, 2012).
“Ignore the will
of the people, I know what’s best” seems to be his
rallying cry.
Norma Blissett
Cranbrook, B.C.
To Readers of the Cranbrook Guardian,
April 11, 2012 Re The Armond Theatre Restoration,
Thank You for the many encouraging phone calls and
interest in this exciting project.
To keep all the
curious informed, this is a list of our activity so far.
Since January there
have been several viewings of the Armond Theatre with interested parties
(members of Council have all been invited although not all have participated)
as well as meetings to discuss and brainstorm potential ideas. Funding sources have been investigated
including a meeting in Victoria with relevant departments. Two delegations to Council have been
made. The first delegation was in a
closed confidential meeting of all council members on March 19th, when we described parts of our suggested,
preliminary, business plan. No request
for money was made. A list of potential funding sources was provided. At Council’s
request we made a second delegation to the public meeting of Council on the same date where our
vision for the Armond Theatre was put forward. The only request of Council we had at that time is that if and when the Armond
Theatre is secured, it become a city asset.
Although we have
several anecdotal and informal structural observations, we are currently
obtaining cost estimates for a professional structural/engineering report. Once obtained, funding for this report will
be sought. We know the project will be
enormous but we also are confident this building, once restored can become a
self-sustaining valuable asset to the City.
At this time the
building is still for sale and no negotiations have been entered into.
The committee to
restore the Armond is optimistic, hopeful and excited about a project, which
could restore vitality to the downtown core and provide a valuable service to
both residents and non-residents alike.
We look forward to the
time when fundraising campaigns can begin.
If interested in
becoming an active member of the committee, please
contact Jenny Humphrey at 250-426-8739.
Some of our letters of support
to date are attached. Although these
letters and more were given to city administration at the time of our delegation to
Council on March 19th, it has come to our attention that to date(April 11) none of these letters have been provided to Mayor and Council.
Note
These letters were eventually delivered to members of Council.
Note
These letters were eventually delivered to members of Council.
March 15, 2012
To: Jenny Humphrey
Re:
Support for Armond Theatre Proposal
The
Columbia Basin Institute of Regional History is dedicated to the preservation
and public presentation of the history of the Columbia Basin. We maintain that a people and a community
grow by realizing and protecting their links with the past.
The
Armond Theatre sits on the property formerly occupied by the Cranbrook Opera
House/Auditorium. The property has been
the centre of culture and artistic endeavour since the City began. The Columbia Basin Institute cannot think of
a better place for the City of Cranbrook to manifest its links with the City’s
past. A rejuvenated Armond Theatre
would bring life and artistic growth to the City’s central core.
I
am pleased that Jenny and her committee have taken their project seriously
enough to prepare a business plan and to envision a community artistic centre
that will be vibrant, be available to the whole community, and will bring
suitable re-use to one of our older buildings.
In this day and time one cannot ask for better planning of the central
core and revitalization of the cityscape than this project proposes.
As
an active organization based within Cranbrook’s downtown core and continually
examining the history of this City, the Columbia Basin Institute of Regional
History is pleased to support the Armond Proposal.
Derryll White
Executive Director
March 22nd 2012
To the Editor:
Worlds Apart
After reading Gerry Warner’s article and Dean Chatterson’s lengthy rejoinder, I offer this quote:
“Little has been written about the conflict between provincial governments and the British Columbia Teachers’ Federation (BCTF), a conflict that has been, without question, the single most defining characteristic of public education in the province for the past four decades. It is time that the roots of this conflict were examined. It is also time for British Columbians--in and outside public education--to ask themselves if they would like a future better than this troubled past.”
Thus begins WORLDS APART: British Columbia Schools, Politics and Labour Relations Before and After 1972, by Thomas Fleming, emeritus professor of educational history and policy, University of Victoria; Bendall Books, 2011.
William G. Hills, Ph.D.
Cranbrook, BC
Tuesday March 13th, 2012
In response to Warner's Corner and the article titled, 'Education in BC; A Militant Union, an Incompetent Government; Both Ways Students Lose,' we received this from Dean Chatterson.
Gerry
I’d like to persuade you to take a second look at some of the perspectives you shared in your article.
I’m a retired teacher and I see things quite differently than you.
You begin with a “bigger plague on the house of the BCTF, which has to bear the brunt of the blame for the dysfunctional education system we have in the province now.”
Gerry, it’s not the BCTF who designed the system – it’s this government who has been systematically tearing down the very fabric of public education in this province. If you had been in a classroom for even a few of the last ten years you would have seen firsthand the devastating impacts on kids the of the Campbell government funding cuts. And those cuts occurred in the “good years”!
You describe kids as being the big losers as a result of job action. How can you not have noticed the cruel effects of the elimination of literally thousands of specialist teachers like Librarians, Special Ed teachers, and counsellors? Have you not heard the stories of no textbooks, school closures, large classes and no resources? Have you actually bought the government line about increasing per student funding when they cooked the figures by tossing into the general formula any funds for special ed that was previously accounted for under a separate designation? Ask any trustee who’s been around for a while and they will be able to outline the dreadful decline. Or better yet Gerry, talk to a teacher and ask them what it’s like to live the frustration of not having the time or resources to provide the service with the honourable intent that led you to enter the profession in the first place.
You go on to talk about the “rogue union” and claim that “what they want is always gussied up in talk about class size and composition, but it always boils down to the same thing – money.” Have you not heard the heart wrenching stories Gerry? Teachers telling about how it breaks their hearts not being able to meet the needs of the kids they love because of a system that has been so dramatically underfunded and diminished. “Gussied up” Gerry? What’s gussying about a class of 30 grade 7 kids including one with multiple handicaps in a wheelchair, one with severe behaviour issues, 3 more with attention deficit disorder, one with fetal alcohol syndrome and four who come to school not having eaten breakfast. Guess what – that’s not a farfetched situation at all and under Bill 22, any consultation with the teacher or parents about gussying up the class size and composition will be eliminated. Decisions will be made by administrators and superintendents based on – guess what – financial considerations. Is that about teacher salaries Gerry, or about adequate services for kids? Of course teachers are advocating to make their working conditions better Gerry, but that’s not a crime or a transgression against society. It’s only fair to expect teachers to work in an educational system where they get satisfaction through providing the best education experience they know they are capable of providing for their students. They are not advocating better learning conditions for kids so they can sit at the back of the class and do nothing, they are advocates so they can do more for kids. Another question – who else is advocating for better learning conditions? School boards – silent; administrators – silent; superintendents – silent except for the retaining the right to make things worse; Parent Advisory provincial group – government cheerleaders!
Gerry, did you really write, “And many of us would be damn glad to have a job that pays what teachers get.”? It sounds like you have bought the government spin designed to demonize teachers as lazy, greedy, self interested, and overpaid public servants. Any government can vilify public servants to gain popular support, but citizens should be wary of piling on as you seem to have done. The rush to diminish the value and salaries of people who work in public service gives us the results we are seeing now – lower wages for all people who actually do productive work, but a dreadful decline in the services that should be our top priorities – health education and the general welfare of all. I wonder if you, as a City councillor, will be advocating reductions in the salaries of Cranbrook civic employees. I bet taxpayers would love you for it.
I believe teachers deserve a fair, negotiated salary, not the rigid legislated less than zero that the government will be imposing. Paying my wife, who is a teacher $20,000 less than a teacher with the same qualifications and experience working just across the border in Blairmore sends a powerful message to all BC citizens about what we value. You might argue that we should move to Alberta but guess what – we’re staying here to fight for public education in BC. Gerry if you want to be outraged about salaries of public employees, consider the hefty raises MLA’s gave themselves along with annual costs of living allowances, or check out the gigantic increases paid to senior government (friends) bureaucrats here: http://northerninsights.blogspot.com/2012/03/adventures-in-not-net-zero-land.html
When you talk about kids “being shamelessly exploited by their teachers” I wonder why you have not been paying attention for the last 10 years as public education has been systematically dismantled by this government. You complain when teachers stand up for public education, but where were you for the last five years as administrators argued before arbitration panels that classes of 35 kids with special needs kids included were “acceptable learning situations” because of a shortage of resources and/or personnel. The effects of a three day strike are miniscule in comparison to ten years of government attacks.
Gerry – you speak of people “participating in illegal demonstrations against a stupid, incompetent and apparently somewhat leaderless government.” Isn’t that an honourable thing to do? I believe you campaigned for civic office claiming to be an independent thinker. Are you actually advocating that teachers should sit down, shut up, accept with gratitude whatever the government decrees, and not complain? What happened to the hard fought rights to free collective bargaining? I urge you to look closely at the harsh “essential service” designation – a term that has historically been used only for life and death situations. I urge you to look again at Bill 22 which can only be viewed as a ruthless attack on teachers and education. Also, check out a description of neoliberal attacks on public education here: http://www.ucalgary.ca/iejll/vol11/poole
I’m puzzled that you, as former journalist who I think prided himself on balanced journalism, haven’t taken a closer look at government actions in this dispute – far worse than being “leaderless” they have been nothing short of ruthlessly antagonistic. You also seem to have swallowed Kevin Falcon’s rhetoric when you say, “with most of the globe still in recession, the European economy collapsing and Israel and the U.S. engaging in ominous war rhetoric with Iran… most of us are just glad to hold onto the jobs we have.” He tries to tell us that BC is “the best place on earth” and that his government has made us one of the most prosperous. Have you not noticed how the Liberals have set priorities? Stadium roof – yes! Tax breaks for multinationals – yes! Claiming the whole HST repayment in one year when it will actually be paid in three – yes! Child poverty the highest in Canada for 10 years – yes. Raises for teachers – No! Oh – and don’t be fooled by the claimed $165 million they say they are putting into education – that’s about ½ of what the cut in each year by illegally eliminating class and composition language. Check out more on BC’s economy here:
I personally know at least couple of hundred teachers Gerry and as a former BCTF local leader, I know that it’s impossible to convince them or fool them into protesting publicly or gong to the extreme step of withdrawing services. Teachers didn’t go into the profession to become activists, they wanted to teach kids and it takes a lot (extreme government attacks) to get them to step outside their classrooms into the political arena. Far from being the evil instigator you portray it to be, the BCTF leadership can only follow the wishes of its members. Teachers know the importance of what they are standing up for now and they deserve credit for doing it. Public education, fair labour practices and yes – even a fairly negotiated salary agreement are at stake.
Dean Chatterson
Dean Chatterson
Waste Water Management
Jan 31, 2012
Dear Editor,
I am encouraged to see that this Council, unlike others in the past, is committed to reach out and engage communication with those residents of Cranbrook and Fort Steele who have had concerns with the Cranbrook Effluent Spray Program.
Last week I was invited, together with a small group of residents, to an information sharing session out at the City Spray Fields. Others in this group included Mayor Steski, City Councillors, Senior City Staff, the Spray Field Manager and representatives from Ministry of Environment.
We were taken through a brief history of the Cranbrook effluent disposal system since its beginnings in the late 1970’s and then we were shown what has already been accomplished with the present upgrades and what is still to be completed in the near future. The City was candid admitting that the operation and condition of the spray irrigation system was very deficient immediately prior to the Environmental Appeal Hearing. Little, to no, maintenance had been done and there had been little reinvestment in whole effluent disposal system. The relationship between the City and the authorizing agency of Ministry of Environment was extremely poor to non-existent at that time. This did not put the City in a good position at the Hearing. Since that time this relationship has been vastly improved as has the operation and the refurbishment of much of spray irrigation equipment.
The participants in the group were given ample opportunity to ask questions about concerns they still have about the system and its operation. The answers we received were honest and candid and appeared to be based on sound scientific fact and the research as it is presently understood. The City and Ministry of Environment made a commitment to get back to us with answers if it meant that they needed to do further research.
I came away from what I felt was a very positive meeting. We had been encouraged to become engaged in two-way communication and I believe this was achieved. While not all of us were 100% comfortable with what we were being told we had been given a very fair hearing. Another reason for my optimism is that we were left with both the City and the Ministry of Environment giving us the commitment to hold another meeting once the spray irrigation system begins operation again in the spring.
Sincerely
Dave Humphrey
426-8739
January 25th 2012
Survival of the Fittest?
I was fascinated by the juxtaposition of two articles in the Townsman on Friday, 20 January. One stated that Top Crop gave $519 to the Cranbrook Women’s Resource Center and the other, that the Ministry of Environment will allocate $750,000 of our taxes to transport 40 mountain caribou from the Dease Lake herd to the Southern Purcell herd in an attempt to prevent our herd of 15 from disappearing. For an interesting perspective on moving caribou, readers might wish to check out a relevant provocative website at (www.mountaincaribou.ca/news/105).
But wait. Also required for this move will be the necessity of killing wolves to protect the enlarged local herd. This will apparently be done by helicopter hunters cued by transmitted signals from the caribou’s collars when they are killed. It’s marvelous how these transmitters will differentiate death by wolf from other causes. However, as you may recall, this hunting technique made Sarah Palin famous. I can imagine the mighty hunters salivating to get on board for this mandated and funded “sport.”
There seems to be something wrong with this picture. I’m thinking, maybe move our herd to the northern healthy herd, where their habitat (old growth forests) has not yet been annihilated, as we have done here. That should not cost $19,000 per animal. Alternatively, funds for the Women’s Center could be provided from a huge cost savings on the caribou project by translocating the nearby 15 animals into Cranbrook. They would certainly be safe here, as the “cullers” could tell them apart from the deer, plus the caribou would have a fear of dogs, having long been hunted by wolves, and there seem to be many folks here who would love to feed and protect them like the deer, and incorporate them into family experiences and ceremonies.
But what about the Women’s Center? Would not our citizens and Environmental Ministry gain more by providing, say $100,000, for a safe habitat for battered and down-and-out women and children right here in town? The facility is in place, with competent staff and proven service. I would favor maintaining their habitat of a safe haven and moving the caribou to a better place. I sympathize with the wolves, as they are blameless in this bizarre scenario of trying to keep animals in a place where they are declining because of our encroachment on their habitat.
Jack Loeppky, Cranbrook
