In this column I would like to share part of the speech I gave to those attending the “Open Forum” on a culture of peace and Department of Peace in Canada which took place in Ottawa early in November of 2012. Arms trade is big business – in 2010 total military spending in the world was around $1.6 Trillion.  According to the...

If the term 'fiscal cliff' became part of the daily lexicon over the holidays, perhaps a new term should come into vogue in B.C. before the May election. Call it the 'fiscal tsunami' and it could hit B.C.'s shores sooner than most think.   It's the hangover that comes from creative accounting, financial wizardry and a little...

The City of Rossland’s response to a public clamouring to learn who did what, with which, and to whom in a matter concerning arena renovations was a reassurance from the mayor that, notwithstanding a few unfortunate and regrettable miscues, all is well, on time, and on budget. Vague references to a Constitution Bylaw were...

Suddenly everyone seems to be clamoring about the fact that one Jason George Ward of Port Alberni pleaded guilty to having a grow-op on his property. It seems to me that before a lynch mob is formed, several questions ought to be asked, and if possible, answered. The first is whether that Jason George Ward is "our" Jason Ward;...

When Josh Fox received a letter offering him nearly $100,000 for the natural gas extraction rights on his Pennsylvania property, his first reaction was: nice chunk of change. Then he started wondering what was involved in the hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) process proposed.  Looking for the answer took him on a road trip...

What's in a light? The readings on the first Sunday of the new year focus on Epiphany. An epiphany being one of those moments in life when the light comes on. A comic book illustration light bulb radiating lines over the head of the character concerned. The time a concept in physics or math finally came clear. Or understanding...

“Being determines consciousness, not consciousness, being.” “Philosophers have until now merely interpreted the world; the point is to change it.”                                                        - Charles Henry Marx “The crisis is not material, physical, or scientific, the crisis is spiritual.” “No one is transformed...

Historians, archaeologists, and palaeontologists focus on pivotal moments around which separate eras seem to hinge. It is no different in other disciplines as ecologists define community edges and philosophers erect words around meaning. Meanwhile, down on Planet Earth, climbers, bikers, skiers, and boaters flow over their ...

Calls to cut taxes should not come as a surprise. Individuals, business establishments, and corporations have been singing this tune for years. Resistance to taxes goes hand in hand with government at all levels. “No Tax Payments!”screamed a headline in Germany’s Neue Rheinische Zeitungon November 16, 1848. The article’s...

The Government of BC has been on a borrowing and spending spree for about eight years. A lot of this is being done using the “Public-Private Partnership” model (P3) of which the former Premier Campbell was exceedingly fond. In fact, he was such a leading proponent in Canada that the commercial interests behind the...