2016 is almost a wrap and – safe to say – one for the books. In keeping with the spirit of the season, though, it's time for a few New Year's resolutions for B.C.'s political parties to consider in their on-going quest for self-improvement. 1.   Anticipate more, scramble less A line from Carly Simon's Anticipation sums this...

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) is Canada's national radio and television broadcaster -- loved by many, reviled by others.  Its exact date of origin may be open to interpretation; its predecessor, the Canadian Radio Broadcasting Commission, was established as a state-owned company  in 1932, following a  1929 report ...

To The Editor: A Christmas poem to all the Liberal MPs in Canada. Oh Liberal MP, oh Liberal dear Pull up a chair and lend me your ear. My tale is short, I won't keep you long Just a wee ask to fix a big wrong. Twas not long ago Trudeau made clear FPTP had had its last year. The people cheered and voted in trust that Trudeau's...

The House of Commons has risen for the Christmas break and I’m certainly happy to be home for the holidays.  This season will be especially eventful for my family as we are traveling to New Zealand for my son’s wedding—but we’ll also be taking part in the usual Christmas traditions that every family has. My wife’s family—part...

All for ourselves, and nothing for other people, seems, in every age of the world, to have been the vile maxim of the masters of mankind. -- Adam Smith, Wealth of Nations In these days of economic stagnation, misery and insecurity, housing bubbles and the growing precariate, it seems appropriate to speculate on what Shakespeare...

How much stuff will you give and receive this holiday season? Add it to the growing pile — the 30-trillion-tonne pile. That’s how much technology and goods humans have produced, according to a study by an international team led by England’s University of Leicester. It adds up to more than all living matter on the planet,...

To The Editor: The mydemocracy.ca survey that the government has invited all households to take part in, has been designed to confuse and ultimately dodge the vital issue of fair voting (proportional representation) in Canada. The postcard invites Canadians to take part in the national "conversation" on electoral reform however...

This is a busy time of year, but I find it’s also a time of reflection, particularly as January marks the end of my two-year term as Chair and my 10 years serving on the Board of Interior Health.   In an effort to decrease demand on hospital and residential services, we continue to shift our focus to integrated primary and ...

Thanks to the Seven Summits Centre for Learning (Seven Summits), Rossland still has Kindergarten to Grade 12  (K -12) education within its city limits.  When School District 20 decided to close Maclean Elementary School, sell that building and move its former students into the former Rossland Secondary School building, and ...

Our government established a special committee to consider the subject of proportional representation, and the committee noted that “it must be apparent to all that the present system of election in single-member constituencies meets fully the purpose intended only when not more than two candidates are nominated.” The committee...