It's amazing what we gradually accept as normal -- even admirable -- in how we treat each other in Canada. Practices that were once seen as a repugnant surrender to government indifference, like food banks, are now virtually celebrated as a high point of citizen engagement and promoted as such by our public broadcaster once...

Today's news that Premier Christy Clark has fired the democratically elected Vancouver School Board shows that her education agenda is more about closing schools than providing quality public education, CUPE BC President Paul Faoro said today. "The Vancouver School Board trustees who stood up to this government's efforts to...

I’ve often thought politicians inhabit a parallel universe. Maybe it’s just widespread cognitive dissonance, coupled with a lack of imagination, that compels them to engage in so much contradictory behaviour. Trying to appease so many varying interests isn’t easy. Rather than focusing on short-term economic and corporate...

Last weekend, we were reminded to be thankful.  Now, as winter looms and days grow shorter, darker, and colder, perhaps we could use a few reminders of the things we already know, really, about being happier and healthier -- mentally healthier, too.   Thanksgiving day -- Monday, October 10 -- was also World Mental Health day. ...

Last weekend, we were reminded to be thankful.  Now, as winter looms and days grow shorter, darker, and colder, perhaps we could use a few reminders of the things we already know, really, about being happier and healthier -- mentally healthier, too.   Thanksgiving day -- Monday, October 10 -- was also World Mental Health day. ...

Last week I was the NDP representative at the House of Commons Finance Committee’s pre-budget consultation hearings in British Columbia and Alberta.  We heard from about a dozen witnesses each day, all with good ideas on how the federal government could help Canadians, their businesses and their communities through the 2017...

To The Editor: The Vancouver Sun article: “Scarce Moose” is hardly surprising to that small percent of hunters, outfitters and concerned citizens who are fully aware of the sorry state of wildlife management in BC. Weak wildlife management started to go downhill in 1996 when Premier Glen Clark facing a sea of red ink demanded...

Here is Part II of this lengthy article.  To review Part I, click on this link. The 60’s Generation and political change: No revolution The question again puts my focus on the effects of the ‘60’s on culture. We heard then about a Generation Gap. Parents and their boomer children were divided by age, and age determined one’s...

There will many announcements and pronouncements for and against the federal government’s approval of the Petronas LNG project if, in view of the 190 pre-conditions, approval is the appropriate term. What aroused my curiosity was the identity of developer: who is Petronas? Petronasis an oil and gas giant created a little over...

To The Editor: October 1st is the United Nations-declared “International Day of the Older Person.” The theme this year is ageism, a prejudice that the UN describes as the most socially-normalized form of discrimination worldwide. The term was coined in 1969 to describe a form of discrimination based on age. Since this time,...