Editor,
Bravo Corinne, you write the truth.
The only turnaround this council has performed was it went from a fiduciary council to this mismanagement we have now. The example of the Adventure Centre is only the tip of the iceberg, there are a lot of problems under the surface that aren't evident yet, but they will.
Dave Colledge
Brackendale
12 inches from chaos?
Editor,
The television images of the chaos in New Orleans are truly terrifying, and our hearts go out to the suffering faced by the poor and the marginalized of that city. But such pictures also remind us how nearly we faced similar scenes in Brackendale and Squamish. Less than two years ago, water crested to within eighteen inches of our dyke tops and began to seep beneath these structures. And let us remember that we were experiencing not a major hurricane, but rather a heavy rainstorm! Silting of the riverbed has now likely reduced our safety margin from 18 to 12 inches.
During the emergency, some additional rock was tipped on the side of the dyke at the Easter Seal camp, and we were promised that when the immediate crisis had passed action would be taken to upgrade the dyke system. However, to date the only visible strengthening measure has been the application of a thin coat of grass seed!
Prior to the November elections, our local politicians should be strongly encouraged to reveal specific plans both for strengthening local dykes and also for dealing with a possible group of 10,000 homeless people.
Roy Shephard
Squamish
Children first in teachers' labour dispute
Editor,
RE: possible labour disruption by BC teachers: "We would rather not have to do so, but we have been working under increasingly difficult classroom conditions for many months and our students deserve better."
I couldn't agree more! I used to want to become a teacher. Boy am I glad I didn't. Teachers these days are responsible for so much more than the three R's. They have been handed the task of teaching manners, social skills, hygiene, conflict resolution, values and nutrition just to name a few. And without the benefit of having any authority to do so. Teachers risk practically being bullied themselves by students and parents alike. Today's children are obese, lazy, and overprotected. They are jammed into classrooms with too many peers, not enough resources (if any!) and then our teachers are criticized when test scores are low.
There are those (John French) who believe that the teachers should grin and bear it for the kid's sake do the right thing and not interrupt classes when they've had all summer to figure this out. What's to figure out? I know you can't get blood from a stone. But answer me this, would you spend your own money to put your child in a daycare that was obviously lacking in resources and where the workers were at their wits end? In this case the children should be the priority as they have a right to an education.
S Brown
Garibaldi Highlands
Managing long-term growth
Editor,
It is indeed a rare day that I can put pen to paper and say I agree with someone who signs their letter from the "Feminist Initiative of BC"!
However, Crystal Ocean's letter of Sept. 2 (Housing an Olympic concern) was bang on regarding affordable housing in this community. I doubt I am not the only Squamish resident who has noticed the increasing number of disadvantaged and or perhaps homeless people on the streets of Squamish, especially in the downtown core. This really begs the question of whether the current leadership offered by the No/New Direction Team is really up to the task of managing the long-term growth needs of this community?
Glenn Stainton, Squamish
