Sometimes, when I stand in front of others and relate my journey, I begin with my family and the communities I've lived in, and I recount a partial history of the jobs I've held. Sometimes I relive relationships I've had. Once in a long while I'll tell the story of the time I was buried alive up in Pass Creek in '98. Despite...

MP Alex Atamanenko and his wife Ann joined more than 20 Rosslanders for a potluck on Tuesday evening to discuss Canada under the current Conservative leadership and the strategies concerned Canadians can use to turn our nation in a different (i.e. better, brighter) direction. Andy Morel's house was abuzz with moose burgers,...

After a potluck dinner at Andy Morel's house in Rossland on Tuesday—and after the diners had each expressed their concerns about the current Conservative leadership in Ottawa and Canada's lurch to the right—MP Alex Atamanenko offered some of his observations and experiences. "Thanks for all the food!" Atamanenko began, before...

Our report last week on “Li’l Cinnamon”—the black bear runt who’d learned to forage in human property and so was caught and killed by conservation officers—generated a lot of interesting discussion. Les Anderson’s comments struck a particularly harmonious chord for me: “Humans have no understanding of wild animals whatsoever,” he wrote, “so they turn to […]

The House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance has launched its annual pre-budget consultation process, which will result in a report to be tabled in the House of Commons prior to the December 2012 parliamentary break. This year, the pre-budget consultation process will take a slightly different form: online submission of answers to specific questions […]

Do you feel Canadians are being led down the proverbial garden path by our federal government? Do you wish there were some way you could have more influence on Ottawa's decisions? And what's all this about moving our riding boundaries? Rossland politicos, mark down July 31, 6 p.m., for a "food for thought" potluck with our ...

The quadrennial Spirit of Innovation Awards are on again and KAST—the Kootenay Association for Science and Technology, the award organizers—want nominations for individuals, organizations, and businesses whose hard work exemplifies West Kootenay innovation and entrepreneurship.“The innovation, intellectual capital, and...

The times they are a-changing and housing in the Lower Columbia region needs to meet new demands on several levels, Attainable Housing Committee (AHC) chairperson Janet Morton told Rossland's council on July 16. Last year the AHC—a committee of the LCCDT (Lower Columbia Community Development Team)—hired consultant Matt Thomson...

One of my infantile leftist ex-friends recently referred to the Free Syrian Army as a ‘sectarian gang’. The phrase may well come from Asa’ad Abu Khalil, who seems to have a depressingly large audience, but it could come from any of a large number of blanket thinkers in the ranks of the Western left. I admit that I sometimes...

A new provincial regulation aimed at stopping copper thieves in their tracks has scrap metal dealers doubtful. The new law came into effect yesterday, Monday, July 23, requiring the more than 60 BC scrap metal dealers to ask for and record the identification of anyone selling high-value metals like copper to them. That...