Hal 9000

Oh, and to add to this, it's not simply hiring of more teachers. Since most of the schools are at capacity, it also means paying for and maintaining (more) portable classrooms. It means more EA's because now the kids are more spread out, and it means higher custodial expenses.

if the teachers were offered their 8% increase and fewer days worked I think they'd take it and be back to work. Its the BCTF driving this increase of teachers. I think theTF is using the teachers. Teachers don't have a problem with the current class sizes and neither do the students. In Fact; Maybe the government should offer the teachers $3000 per student in their class, then we'd see just how many students the teachers can teach.

Another deflection! Few people question that they should have a raise, the issue is; class size and composition - remember?

Well, I don't know anything about translink except that they don't have 40,000 CEO's. Otherwise this is just a red herring...isn't it?

BC (along with Ont. and Alb.) has the highest ranked school system in Canada. I hardly think anyone is suffering under the current system. http://www.conferenceboard.ca/hcp/provincial/education.aspx British Columbia is the top-performing province, ranking third overall (behind Japan and Finland). B.C. earns an “A+” on high-school attainment, doing better than the top-ranked international peer on this indicator, the United States. Given that high-school attainment is a necessary precursor to post-secondary education, it is not surprising that the province is a strong performer on college attainment (“A”) and university attainment (“B”). B.C. also performs well on student skills, scoring an “A+” for its low share of students with inadequate reading, and “A”s for its low shares of students with inadequate math and science skills and for its large share of students with high-level science skills.

I guess i could go through $3000 quite quickly if that was the case.

Actually it is! Any doctor will sign off on a massage, it just has to someone registered

If we have 3 million legitimate tax payers, then $1.5Billion extra dollars is gonna cost each of us $6-700 per year. Now, the low income people won't pay as much - of course, So those of us working, fuel, drink a little beer, pay auto ins. and own homes can easily see this as topping $800 per year - easily.

You'll never see their side (from them), that should tell you something - a lot in fact. Don't you think that if that proposal was way off, would't the BCTF say so? No, it seems pretty legit to me. And being so, The BCTF is looking for Billions - not millions more - but Billions more. It's no wonder that they're way off on a settlement. 3k for massages, c'mon that's like 1 full massage per week. And, can't we all get a doctors prescription for that. Back to you original question, Yes, depending on where this money from, "taxpayers" will get stung for $3-500 per year for that cost. If it's homeowners, it'll be way more than that too. If it's just fuel, tobacco and alcohol, it'll be closer to the $300 mark.

Where have I disagreed with any of that? Guyser said they're valid, I said they're all valid - what the fuck aren't you getting?

Does this link work for you guys?

Their demands are on Facebook. I have a pdf, don't know if i can link it. My favourite is the $3,000 per year for massages. http://bit.ly/VWxRvE

Every abortion is valid according to some people here.

Depending on where the increased taxes came from, each "taxpayer" would be on the hook for another $3-500 per year if the BCTF gets their way. Those of us who work are now working well into August before making a dime for ourselves.

Sure, i'm pro-life, but my views about the issue at hand are more about "late term abortion". As I said, first trimester abortions are one thing, but anything after 5 or 6 months is a real live baby. My daughter was born at 7 months - and she wasn't a fetus, she was a little girl - now a teenager

Well, she's actually attacking me, but even at that she makes no sense because I didn't advocate those things either. It's just a red herring.

Argus, bcsapper, bubber, cybercoma,dre,big guy, remiel, overthere, mighty AC, WCR and OGfT all have suggested that it's an Ok idea or said that it's a woman's choice (which also means they're Ok with it). Shady, Wilbur, me and -1=eipi are the only ones here that have an issue with the concept. To abort during the first trimester is one thing, but generally tests for DS are carried out in the 14-20 weeks stage and to get an abortion, you are almost certainly late in the second or even into the third trimester. Third trimester abortions are horrifying...to me anyway.

The question was about aborting a Down Syndrome person and nearly everybody here (maybe all of you) is OK with the idea. Instead of addressing this Nazi idea of sorting and choosing who has the rights to live, it quickly becomes "all about the woman". And, lets face it, it has become easy to make the issue all about the woman's rights and zero rights for the baby.

I'm pro-life but admit the it's a woman's choice and that makes me a misogynist - OK. That's very tolerant of my left wing friends! If you don't want to be reminded what an abortion is, that's on you - not me.

$125M is about half of the signing bonus they're wanting - big whoop. BCTF is looking for adjustments that tally in the Billions.

Pro-life = Non-liberated? Pro-life = Misogynist?

If they get pregnant, they can get an abortion. No one can tell them they can't and no one can force them into any situation that they don't want to be in, It's their right, and it's an easy procedure. Please tell me where i'm wrong? I may not agree with crushing the skull of an infant baby, but then again, I'm not a liberated woman.

What? It's a woman's right to abort - what exactly do you disagree with?

The woman doesn't have to accountable if she so chooses. Go to the doctor, have the baby's head crushed and cut into pieces and sucked out - easy peasy! And... as others have pointed out, that's her right!

My kid came home last year and told me they spent 2 classes watching "The Last Samurai" as a historical feature on Japan...The Last Samurai! I couldn't believe my fucking ears when they told me.