Week of Feb. 11 - 18, 2002
A barometer of successful budgeting...With health care workers still reeling from ripped up contracts and public servants recovering from layoffs, many British Columbians are awaiting the provincial budget with baited breath. Saddled with a $3.4 billion deficit, the province’s Liberal government is expected to announce more cuts in its budget next week. SFU business professor John Richards says the cuts and layoffs will have been worth it if the government succeeds in balancing its budget at tax rates close to the average among provinces. Richards also sees the government’s ability "to somewhat weaken the power of public sector unions" as a barometer of success. "The government will then have contributed to improved quality of public services and to the overall efficiency of the provincial economy." Richards believes public sector unions are too powerful in B.C. and "it’s worth incurring some short term social unrest if, at the end of it, we achieve a greater autonomy for professional public sector managers to exercise their skills." However, Richards cautions, "the restoration of managerial authority in the public sector must be done with care and with respect for the public sector workers involved."
John Richards, 604-291-4568, john_richards@sfu.ca
Government urged to ‘rethink’ cuts...In response to the government’s approach to reducing costs, a group of 40 financial and political economists has sent an open letter to Premier Gordon Campbell, urging him to rethink the cuts before budget day. The letter, coordinated by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, suggests that in a climate of serious economic downturn, the government should extend help to those in need, "not aggravate the recession through fiscal drag." The group, which includes SFU political science professor Marjorie Griffin Cohen, says the government’s emphasis should be on restoring confidence in B.C. while protecting jobs and defending economic and social security. Meanwhile, colleague Patrick Smith can assess the Premier’s state of B.C. address on Wednesday, Feb. 13.
Marjorie Griffin Cohen, 604-291-5838 (until Friday, Feb. 15)
Patrick Smith, 604-291-3088/291-1544(h); psmith@sfu.ca
A serial killing of unlikely proportions...Ever since a Port Coquitlam pig farm became the focus of a police investigation into the fate of 50 women missing from Vancouver’s downtown eastside, stories and rumours have abounded about its role. SFU criminologist Neil Boyd says if there is any truth to allegations about events at the pig farm, police are dealing with one of the most disturbing serial killings of the past century. Boyd says, "it would be extremely unusual to have any one person responsible for so many victims." He adds it’s not unusual for serial killers to bury victims on their property.
Neil Boyd, 808-565-7700 (Feb. 8-13), 808-826-9855 (Feb. 13-20)
Romance lives on...It may be a new century, led by a fast and changing information highway, but there are some things that may never change. One of them is romance, says SFU’s Charles Crawford, an evolutionary psychologist who for decades has studied relationships between men and women. Valentine’s Day is an occasion that doesn’t seem to be losing any ground. "People the world over, especially young people, are still romantic. This is true even in societies where marriages are arranged," he says. "I expect Valentine’s day to be around for a long time."
Charles Crawford, 604-291-3660
You can’t get there from here...Is this the future of Vancouver’s transportation system? An international conference, Cities and Transportation: Choices and Consequences, February 17-19 at SFU’s Wosk Centre for Dialogue, 580 West Hastings St., will bring together leading transportation and urban planners and public policy makers from Europe, the U.S., and Canada. Michael Harcourt, former mayor of Vancouver and former provincial premier, chairs the organizing committee.
Susan Jamieson-McLarnon, media/pr, 604-291-5151
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