In my Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF) column (Part I) I gave a general description of this Inter-Parliamentary Forum held in Vladivostok, Russian.  During the meeting, resolutions were adopted that will be presented to each of the countries represented at the APPF and it is possible that these statements will wind up...

Pope Benedict is retiring. Nelson is national news for its dog-ban bylaw. Tornadoes and blizzards have hit eastern regions of the continent. A fired L. A. cop commits suicide after a murder spree. BC’s Legislature is back in session. The Grammies have been awarded. The Canucks had a streak of wins but just lost it. This, if...

This might be hard to believe, but sometimes I get a bit full of myself. Get off on some track or other and before I know it, I'm preaching, proclaiming and other wise carrying on as if I had an inside scoop on the path to salvation. Frankly it can be a tad hard to take. So I've decided to give it up. At least for Lent....

The Brazeau affair — sad, repugnant and bizarre all at the same time — shines a light on two aspects of Canadian politics that desperately need some exposure. One is what it reveals about the state of “official” aboriginal politics and its relationship to the Canadian state. The other, the almost exclusive focus of the media,...

In light of the current fiscal crisis and resultant school closures and reconfigurations being contemplated by our Board of Education to balance its budget we believe it is appropriate to revisit some of Murray Dobbin’s thoughts in his article about School Closures and the “Cult of Efficiency” written in 2008 when he was the...

Twenty-five years ago, after consensus on the reality and impacts of manmade climate change led to the formation of the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change, western governments had two choices. They could either stop subsidising fossil fuel industries and invest the savings in promoting energy efficiency and renewable...

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, it’s gotten me thinking about love, and sex, and all sorts of gushy sweetheart stuff that you see in romantic comedies. You know, like, midnight phone calls, flowers, and how new couples just can’t keep their hands off each other … anyway, as I was reminiscing over all […]

When historians write the chapter on the current period of social democracy in Canada they might well conclude that the worst thing that happened to it was the 2011 election when the NDP got 103 seats it hadn’t really earned. It was such an unexpected event that the NDP could not cope with it. You could see it in the euphoria...

I had the opportunity in January to represent our country at the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF) in Vladivostok, Russia.  This was the 21st annual Forum which hosted over three hundred parliamentarians from 23 APPF member states as well as representatives from other countries, the UN and other world organizations. Our...

Humanity ascends from the realm of necessity to the realm of freedom– Friedrich Engels, in Socialism: Utopian and Scientific The meaning of Life is discovering our gift; the purpose is to give it away– chalkboard on Baker St. in Nelson My last column described the Baby Boomers at some length, so today I will sound off with ...