This is becoming silly. How much more evidence is required to prove that the teachers aren't doing this for the lame "class sizes" excuse? It's about a) money and b) teachers disliking the governing party. Nothing more.

Canar I can’t believe you really think that it is only for the money. I used to teach in PG. I moved out of BC just after the liberals imposed the last contract. I thought then as I do now, it is a dictatorship not a government. What would you say if Government told you what job you should do and for how much. Why stop there? How about where you should live, what you should drive, Or even what you should think? This is a prime example of dictatorship. How dare you say we teach only for money!! I can only think of you as one of the parents who think of school as day-care. What is it? Can’t you afford the cost of a babysitter now that there is no school? BC should have tossed this government out on its ear when Gordon was arrested for drunk driving. He broke the law and should have been made an example of as would any resident of BC would have. This strike is all about how unfair the liberal government is not about the money. I think it is time for all of BC to stand up to this guy. A general strike is exactly what BC needs to correct the unjust way of the government. Until that day comes, you all are in for one heck of a surprise. He won’t give up until he sells off everything important to BC.

Reasonable people don't hold illegal strikes just because they 'dislike' their employer. Money is a factor, but the bigger issues are respect and the basic rights of students and teachers. The government forced this situation, not the teachers.

Resonable people dont have illegal strikes. Reasonable governments dont tare up union agreements.Any union member that thinks this government is OK needs to take a second look at who they work for.
Every corporate body in this province belong to a union although it may have a differnt name its still a union to protect their interests.

Here's a concept,let's pay them what they are worth.We are not talking about people making $28 bucks an hour to sweep a floor,we are talking about people who have 6 years of post secondary education invested.If the goverment of the day doesn't think they are worth it,then they should import teachers from Ontario and Alberta(won't happen,they would have to take a cut in pay to come to B.C.)The other thing they could do is import a bunch of teachers from India and China to do their jobs.Then you could really have fun watching BCTV.Hey Shirley,why not take the Canadian average teachers wage and add 10% and give them the Canadian average classroom size and have them sign the deal and get this stupid thing over with end of story.This political chess match is becoming a joke.
ROCK

Well if they decide to get a degree in something stupid,then they deserve not to be employed.
ROCK

I find in the real world the PEOPLE WITH THE MOST EDUCATION..ARE STUPID PEOPLE,IN DAY TO DAY LIVING.

Teacher, your comments are a laugh.

A dictatorship is a government. This one is democratically elected, which makes it a republic. Just because you don't like the current government does *NOT* make it a dictatorship.

"How dare you say we teach only for money!!" I left high school about four years ago. I'd say that roughly half of my teachers couldn't care less about me as a student. The unionization of teachers creates an environment where it's difficult to get rid of poor teachers, and there are far too many of these in the current system. We're talking people who are there for money, not the students.

It is clear from your comment that you're much more interested in anti-Liberal posturing than anything having to do with students. Please admit as much.

The government did not force anything. The government has repeatedly acted to keep the schools open and the children learning. If the teachers were honestly concerned about the students, they would use the available channels to solve the problem. However, it appears as though the employers think that the employees are asking for too much, as in the Telus labour dispute. Does this make the government evil? No. Does this automatically make the teachers evil? No. It's a work dispute, pure and simple. However, it's showing where the priorities of the two parties lie.

The BC government is aware that it has the upper-hand in their democratically elected position, so it is for the most part unconcerned.

The teachers, on the other hand, have shown that they dislike the current government and are trying to push political motives. It is really too bad for the students that their school year is ruined by the teachers' selfish actions. My grade 12 debate year was terminated abruptly by a teacher strike, and for whatever political reason, never was resurrected. About the students? Hardly.

Actually Canar, Canada, including BC is a Constitutional Monarchy. The Head of State is Queen Elizabeth, represented by The Governor General. A Republic is something else entirely, may have no connection to elected democracy. Perhaps you should have paid more attention to those stupid teachers while you had the chance then you're ignorance about the most fundamental constitution of your own country wouldn't come through quite so clearly.

Whether you like it or not, this situation was caused directly by the heavy handed approach of the Campbell government, so yes it is political, because the government for bigoted political reasons has decided to remove all bargaining rights from teachers. Not, I might add, because it is in the public interest because it clearly is not. Rather, because no one is going to tell him what he can and can't do. He has the power, and by God, he's going to use it, and damn the students! Common sense and good will from him would have avoided this.

To Don: I didn't know all the doctors in Prince George were stupid! They are certainly the most educated group.

I wonder what the "real" world is? Is anything real? Or is it all just MEMOREX?

ALl those who think that we can do without people who have an education, please get off the internet and the computer you are on, stop driving your cars, stop flying, stop watching TV, start using an outhouse and living in a log cabin somewhere.

Life would be much simpler and you would be in much more control of that life.

What a lot of "hogwash!"
Give those teachers more money and they will smile all the way to the bank to cash their cheques.
In the meantime, fine the hell out of the union for every day they do not obey a court order. The government now has the opportunity to help themselves to some of those union dues!!!! Take it all-and where did this Jinny who??? come from. I notice every head of every so called union seems to be from some other country.
Finally when it appears maybe the economy can be on an upswing, everybody will figure they are immediately worth s potfull more money.
Remember, every extra dollar paid out to government employees means more bucks have to come in from taxpayers.
I really could care less-but I am a tad tired of hearing how these devoted, dedicated teachers are doing such an exemplary job.
If they are, why are the stats so low in the north when it comes to actual grades the students achieve.
Is it just the kids in the north are not as intelligent as those in other areas???
Or is it possible the teachers in the north are not up to par???

Maybe they should be paid according to the marks their students receive on exams.
Poor marks-less pay.
Will they become better teachers in a hurry???
Wonder if they would like to try that on for size???
Give your heads a shake!!!!

According to Wikipedia, "in political theory and political science, the term "republic" is generally applied to a state where the government's political power depends solely on the consent, however nominal, of the people governed." Therefore, Canada is, at least by political theory, a republic.

If you'd like to nitpick, how about researching the proper use of "your" versus "you're" for your next response? That shows substantially more stupidity than inserting a generic term instead of a highly-specific one.

So, let's clarify: Is this issue about Campbell or students?

Remember now, Liberal supporters had to sit through two terms of absolutely atrocious NDP mismanagement. I think that it would be appropriate for the government to force and end to this dispute to show some equalization after the NDP's utter capitulation to the unions in years past.

In short, this entire labour dispute boils down to teachers, who are largely strongly pro-NDP, whining about the fact that they lost this election. It has nothing to do with the students (with the exception of some class-size garbage they threw into advertising to attempt to rally public support) and everything to do with politics. Let's call a spade a spade here.

gypsy, you make great points.

Another interesting note: The BCTF is paying teachers $50/day as strike pay, thereby supporting the teachers in their illegal strike. I hope big fines come as a result of this, so unions won't think they have greater power than the government.

Strange though, that NDP mismanagement left the province with a $1.5 billion surplus. I wish I could mismanage my bank account like that. Strange too, that the Liberals, in their highly competent fashion, fritted it away in tax cuts to corporate friends, then borrowed more money in a shorter time than any previous government in BC's history so that our total debt now is larger than it ever has been before, but hey, their buddy boys in the corporate world are rolling in it, aren't they?

If you want to call a spade a spade then consider this. The Liberal party led by our gin-sotted premier has targeted the teachers in this province for years, and the citizens of this province, including students, are now reaping the "benefits" of that. As it goes, "Sow the wind, reap the whirwind." Interestingly, the commonest charge laid by Campbellites is that teachers are motivated primarily by political aims. All this proves to me is that it is the Campbellites' aims that are purely political, since the charge was invented in their minds. Judging from your and other Campbellite comments, that aim is union-busting. That is what this dispute is about.

The term is Liberal, not Campbellite. Please use less slanted terms if you'd care for your arguments to be taken seriously. FWIW, I voted for the Marijuana Party.

Also worth noting is the reaction by actual businesspeople to the change in government from NDP to Liberal. According to the people in charge of businesses, the Liberal government is much more concerned with keeping business coming to our province. We are now in a better economic position than we were with the NDP at the helm, according to people who actually create employment.

Whateveer the term should be it most definitely is not Liberal. Many of them are recycled Van der Zalm supporters. The so called-Liberals merely too over the old right wing Socred party and renamed it Liberal.

How very surprising that those who were, and are, the recipients of the "Liberal" billions of dollars largesse are in favour of the "Liberals". You do surprise me. Opinions bought and paid for.

The campbell government is the best thing to happen to this province since I moved here in 1992. It's now run by elected officials and not the labour goons, just as it should be. I read the teachers haven't had a negotiated settlement in 15 years. We can't be held hostage by an entity like that. As for the tired bleating of ammonra about tax cuts for big corporations who somehow control all aspects of government, blah,blah....can't you socialists handel reality? I'm not a corporation, but I know my tax bill is substantially lower. I know this town is better off. I know my family is better off.I know BC went from first to worst in this country under the big labour government of the 1990's. These are the facts. we elect governments, we don't elect teachers or the BCTF. To think that teachers or any employee has a right to dictate what they will and will not do for their employer is a socialist utopia that exists only in outdated union brainwashed minds. If you don't like teaching, quit. If you don't like logging, quit. Spare the rest of us your self serving sniviling.