News Views

The following excerpts from Alberta newspapers do not necessarily reflect the views of the ATA.

Privately built public schools must be halted 

"Public school trustees should not be put in these tough ethical boxes of deciding which neighbourhoods will get new schools based on where private funding is available rather than where the need is greatest. It especially should not happen where those who did make the rules—the provincial government—have both the authority and the financial resources to ensure that Alberta has all the schools it needs. Privately owned public schools are the thin edge of the wedge in a move towards two-tiered public education in Alberta.

—Joe McLaughlin, Red Deer Advocate, January 18, 2000

"But the fact the province is shirking its responsibility to build new schools is just a small part of the problem. What's most frightening about this method of school building—which will soon be repeated in Edmonton and probably in other areas of the province—is how unjust it is. With the developer picking up the tab for school construction, the cost of the building will likely be tied to the cost of the homes on the development, since the homeowners are the ones actually paying for the building. Areas with higher concentrations of rental housing and lower-cost housing will not be as likely to get money for school buildings, especially if the homeowners rent their properties and therefore would not directly benefit from having a school there."

—Ted Davis, Medicine Hat News, January 18, 2000

Pam Barrett will be missed

The Edmonton Highland MLA was unique even among strong and successful female politicians. She was loud, witty, brash, fearless, aggressive, tenacious and unrelenting in her political attacks, yet she somehow won not only the respect and admiration of colleagues and foes alike, but their friendship as well. Even those who might have considered her shrill at times couldn't help but like her. Her genuine warmth and sympathy for the underdog was evident beneath her snappy soundbites and sharp rhetoric.

—Editorial, Edmonton Journal, February 4, 2000

Legislation would protect public from threatening Websites 

". . .we believe the time has come for the province to step in and enact a law that requires all parents, teachers or other adults to immediately contact police if they are aware of such threats. We don't normally advocate for governments to write more laws, but if we cannot rely on the common sense of those entrusted with the wellbeing of our children, then we must rely on legislation."

—Editorial, Calgary Sun, January 27, 2000