“Those who do not know the past will repeat it.”       -- George Santayana “History does not repeat itself. People do.”               -- Voltaire “The chief practical use of history is to save us from plausible historical analogies.”                                                                                                ...

To the City of Castlegar, Thanks goes out to Deb McIntosh for bringing forward the idea of rainbow crosswalks downtown! Cheers to her and to the City Council for making the effort to make a symbolic gesture of tolerance and respect for diversity. Not only is it coming from a genuine place of good will, it's coming from the ...

"It's not easy being green," said Kermit the Frog. Turns out it's not so easy being anything involving more than one colour these days, if the crosswalk debate is any indication. How did Lifesavers ever get its rainbow coalition of colours into a single package without mass revolt about things with holes in the middle (gutter...

I've been doing this a fairly long time, and I've read lots of writing that has made me angry over the years, but few pieces have infuriated me to the same degree as a letter to the editor published in the Castlegar News last week. I believe when you put writing out into the public domain, be it as a trained journalist or as...

 There are some online stories that seem to have a life of their own. Several versions are making the rounds by email – some got their start well before I took office in 2006. Most seem to have a kernel of truth that has been distorted over time, just like the old game of telephone. After being passed along through a number...

Dear Editor. Colonial rule raises its ugly head again. The failure of the US government to continue to operate is yet another example of how screwed up our colonial style governments really are: While we have democratic elections, we do not have democratic governments. Our politicians do not want democracy and arrogantly...

Colonial rule raises its ugly head again. The failure of the US government to continue to operate is yet another example of how screwed up our colonial style governments really are: While we have democratic elections, we do not have democratic governments. Our politicians do not want democracy and arrogantly insist on forming...

In 2009, the Conservative government’s omnibus budget bill gutted the Environmental Assessment Act to reduce the number and types of development projects whose approvals would be subject to an environmental assessment.  Conservative budget bills C-38 and C-45 were a continuation of the dismantling of Canada’s long established...

By Ole Petter Ottersen. Anders Breivik's application to the University of Oslo for admission to the political science study programme created interest worldwide. Breivik did not qualify for the full programme, but will be able study specific topics. Here the university's rector explains the decision to grant him access to the...

War and Remembrance, Feeling and Reasoning A month ago I wrote about Canada’s war in Afghanistan and concluded with a note that on November 11, I will be at the Nelson cenotaph protesting war. My theme on the radio program I’ve hosted for the last four seasons has been the history of war. During research for the show, I came...