Trail man dies after incident above hospital Wednesday
The BC Coroner’s Service is investigating the death of a Trail man after a climbing incident above the Trail Regional Hospital yesterday afternoon. “I can confirm we are in the early stages of our investigation involving a male in his 30s from Trail,” said Communications Manager Andy Watson in a phone interview Thursday. “Due...
Kootenay RCMP dancing the Top Cop Shuffle
Residents may find themselves confusedly trying to understand who’s at the helm of our local police detachments, as RCMP work to manage staff shortages and attrition while still providing optimal service delivery. In Castlegar, Top Cop Sgt. Laurel Mathew retired June 6, leaving now-Acting Sgt. Brett Turner at the helm for the...
Opinion: Is it ever right for political leaders to defy court orders?
Former Supreme Court of Canada Justice Ian Binnie said, “I think the recent popularity amongst political leaders denouncing judicial outcomes is extremely dangerous.” He was referring to the fact that Green Party Member of Parliament (and party leader) Elizabeth May and NDP Member of Parliament Kennedy Stewart defied a court...
A Mind in Movement Across Space and Time
“Travel broadens the mind.” “Einstein said Time isn’t really Real.” -- James Taylor, Secret of Life A Traveller’s Chaos, A Writer’s Coherence This month’s column is about travel, time, and identity. I have just returned from a four-week trip by car across the nation to Ontario and back. It is not the first such trip of my ...
Letter to the Editor: My personal fact check
Electoral Reform : My Personal Fact Check #1 Having read through the selection of ‘news and reports’ on the nobcprorep website, there are a few claims that lack support: one is that proportional representation will lead to a string of minority governments along with economic instability. I also just skimmed through the World...
COLUMN: AstroTurfing -- fake grassroots campaigns should be uprooted
AstroTurf looks and feels like grass — in an all-too-perfect way. But it’s not grass. Now the well-known artificial turf’s brand name has taken on a new meaning, referring to purported “grassroots” efforts that are actually funded and supported by industry and political entities. Some people, organizations and campaigns around...
Editorial: Our Choice of Voting Systems -- Part Six
Life is never simple, and one decision is generally followed by more decisions. If a majority of voters choose a change to a proportional representation system for BC, more decisions must be made. Here, we explain how the referendum will be held and what decisions may follow – depending on the outcome – and who will make them....
Rossland's Museum and the community -- the next phase
A new feature is in the works to replace the old mine tunnel tour at the Rossland Museum and Discovery Centre. Fundraising has begun with a major donation. Teck, the company that forms the basis of much of the economic life in our area, has donated a large portion of the amount needed to build Phase II of the Rossland Museum’s...
Category 2 Burns Prohibited Throughout Southeast Fire Centre Area
Please pay attention -- help prevent wildfires. Here's a press release from the Southeast Fire Centre: Effective at noon (Pacific time) on Friday, July 6, 2018, Category 2 open burning will be prohibited throughout the Southeast Fire Centre's jurisdiction. This is in addition to the Category 3 open burning prohibition that ...
Editorial: Our Choice of Voting Systems -- Part Five
Last week, I promised to summarize in this part the differences between our current voting system, called First-Past-the-Post (FPTP) and Proportional Representation systems. Most people understand how we vote now, with FPTP: We put a check or an X on the ballot beside the name of the person we’d most like to see...
