Red scare: The demand for higher pay that mirrors a high cost of living hardly sounds ludicrous to those who work for minimum wage; In 2000, the proposed $8 minimum wage, an increase of $0.40, turned heads. In our October 15, 2000, we cover that while some praised the plan by the BC government, citing its potential positive effects to the economy and people by creating more disposable income for workers and reducing financial strain, others were not so warm to the idea, calling it an unrealistic goal for equality. “In a perfect world,” said Mark von Schellwitz from the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association, “everyone would be the same, but as we saw in the Soviet Union, it didn’t work.” Perhaps, for some, McCarthyism was never in decline.
Turning a profit: In the age of post-secondary multi-million dollar deficits, including here at Camosun, we may have a difficult time recalling a period without such troubles. However, only 25 years ago, we covered Camosun’s projected $2,000 surplus—a modest fortune for some but an exciting feat for a school struggling to keep the lights on. It would appear that Camosun got lucky that year, enrolling one extra full-time student whose tuition was pure profit.
Stood up: A humble spread of coffee, juice, muffins, pastries, and fruit sat unattended in October 2000; an anticipated visit by minister of advanced education Graeme Bowbrick turned out, much to many’s disappointment, to be a no-show. Scheduled for an entire morning, the meeting was to include a tour of the newly restored Young building, a guest lecture to a Political Science class, and an interview with Camosun’s now-long-terminated CKMO radio station. Like an overly giddy date, the college was stood up by the too-cool-for-school it boy in town. Rectifying the situation in support of the college—either by accident or on purpose remains to be seen—in this issue we misidentified the honourable as “Graham Bombick” during the entirety of our coverage. And just like any one-that-got-away, he got with our older sister, UVic, later that day instead.