LETTERS OF THE WEEK:

MEMORIAL ARENA?

On behalf of many former supporters, players, and staff of the Richmond Sockeyes Junior A hockey, I would like to ask for the public's support by dedicating a name change of the Minoru Arena, to the "Lorne Williams Memorial Arena" in honor of a hard-working family man who contributed to the betterment of many young hockey players in the early '70s to mid '80s.
Mr. Williams and his family "adopted" more than 500 players, coaches, and staff and provided all with a loving and caring atmosphere in the Richmond community. It is only fitting that the arena name change should happen.
Do you remember going to the arena Tuesday night to watch a very exciting brand of junior hockey? They won several pacific junior "A" championships, and then in 1979-80 they joined the BCJHL.
Please contact the mayor and council and ask that the arena name be changed to the Lorne Williams Memorial Arena. Mr. "Chips", as he was known, would have been very honored.
Chris Brereton,
former CISL sports hockey reporter
Surrey

LAW DISCRIMINATES

The controversy over foreign assets declaration will be a never-ending story in Canada.
This is the greatest circus of the year. We have the money people, economic astronauts, fortune-chasers and academics on one side, the common Canadian on the other, and politicians on the sidelines observing where the wind blows.
The opponents of the FAD law concluded that the owners of foreign assets are not tax-evaders and have reported every single cent of their foreign income to Revenue Canada. There is no educated reason for the government to require them to reveal their sources of overseas income. It is an encroachment of their right and an excessive intrusion of Canadians' tradition of freedom to own property.
Being shrewd and smart business persons, all immigrants who come to Canada as entrepreneurs or investors know beforehand that all Canadian residents are taxed on worldwide income and that Canada is one of the highest taxed countries in the world. After weighing the advantages and disadvantages of settling in Canada, they all came. These people with bank accounts compatible to that of the Sultan of Brunei and Bill Gates certainly know that Revenue Canada expected them to fork over a chunk of their worldwide earnings.
The adversaries of the FAD are well-financed and organized, while its advocates consist of Canadian owners of local real estate property and other domestic investments whose records and files are constantly monitored by the government. There are hearings and rallies financed by interest groups in a unified attempt to persuade federal Finance Minister Paul Martin to scrap this legislation. The supporters of the FAD consist of fragmented groups of average Canadians with no cash and a mere whimper is all this group can do.
Why is it that local asset-owners, whose detailed information of holdings is an open book to the public, do not enjoy the reporting threshold of $100,000, while owners of foreign assets have this special privilege? Now they are even trying to scrap the law or increase the threshold to $500,000 or $1,000,000. Is it that local asset-owners are tax cheaters and need constant prying by the government? No wonder the few interest dollars we earn in the bank is reported by the financial institution to Revenue Canada at the end of the year.
If the government will scrap its foreign assets declaration then it should, in fairness to all Canadians, abolish the requirement of T4 slips as well as the assessment authority, land title office, corporate and personal property registry and any other government agencies who keep track of our domestic assets.
Every Canadian should be treated equally before the law, and no single group of individuals should be given special privileges because they have deeper pockets. Canadians were able to survive the Great Depression of 1930s and we will certainly live to see the sun rise every morning long after the theatrical exodus of persons wanting royal treatment from the rest of Canada. No one person is bigger than Canada.
Shihrayl Hsu
Vancouver