By Lois Beckett in ProPublica.By the end of this year, the State Department will decide whether to give a Canadian company permission to construct a 1,700-mile, $7 billion pipeline that would transport crude oil from Canada to refineries in Texas.  The project has sparked major environmental concerns, particularly in Nebraska,...

A confidential report on BC Hydro Smart Meter Business Case by Horizon Technologies Inc. states that "BC Hydro will maintain the same rate structures when Smart Meters are first put in, and implement new rate structures afterwards; so that Smart Meters aren't blamed for higher rates."Read the full confidential report here.Rich...

After the terribly sad departure of Steve Jobs this week I find myself articulating the undeniable impact of the man. On a marketing level alone I’ve often said he and Apple are far and away the best on the planet and while I’m surprised how much I’m affected by his passing, I am also surprised […]

Since early July my riding office has been flooded with calls and letters from worried Canadians across the country seeking information and advice on the new enforcement Initiatives for filing US tax returns and reporting foreign bank accounts (FBARs).   Frequently the first question asked is, "Will I be affected by this?" ...

Occupy Wall Street – and now Bay Street? The 99 per cent? Conservatives losing elections all over the country? A Red Tory elected head of the Alberta Conservatives? American billionaires demanding to be taxed at higher rates? Is something happening here? Perhaps the first indication was the totally unexpected reaction to Jack Layton’s death. It […]

This fall British Columbia’s Missing Women Commission will finally begin its work. It does so in under a cloud of suspicion: an inadequate mandate, a potentially compromised commissioner, and a refusal to financially support affected native communities, families, and Vancouver Downtown Eastside community groups to participate...

By: Jordan Bateman, B.C. Director, Canadian Taxpayers Federation As hundreds of municipal politicians gathered in Vancouver last week for the Union of BC Municipalities conference, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) released the contract with taxpayers they will be challenging B.C. candidates to sign ahead of the Nov. 19 municipal elections. “Taxpayers are stretched thin and […]

For some he's a watchdog, for others he's a pain in the you-know-what, and for those of us in the media he's a darn good story. We can always count on Coun. Laurie Charlton to pull off some obstreperous stunt that people want to read about.This grand-standing politician just loves attention. Perhaps, Mr. Charlton, you'll even...

It seems that the Conference Board of Canada (CBC), the voice of the big business community, is beginning to realize what progressive economists have argued for years – that income inequality is bad for everyone, not just the poor.”High inequality can diminish economic growth if it means that the country is not fully using ...

On a cloudy Monday night, hundreds of Vancouver residents gathered at the ‘Vancouver Club’ to protest the visit of former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney. This was Cheney's first trip outside of the United States on his book tour.The protestors came from a plethora of different backgrounds including anti-war, 9/11 conspiracy,...