“The strong do what they will, the weak do as they must.”  - Thucydides, c. 405 BCE, viewing Greek wars. I teach a history course entitled “Chosen Peoples”: ancient Israelites, pagans and Christians are the topic. With synchronistic wonder, a crisis has come upon us in the Middle East involving Iran/Persia and Israel/Judah....

Reading letters to the editor and speaking with individuals here and there in our communities has led me to understand that convincing some people that humans have a part in climate change is about as likely as convincing others that our current MP is doing a good job, or that our MLA belongs to the right party. I've had the...

Greenwood residents are being warned not to use their tap water for anything but flushing their toilets until Interior Health Authority (IHA) has ruled out a possible contamination. Today, Monday Sept. 17, a City of Greenwood crew member discovered the lock on the access hatch to the community's reservoir had been removed by...

Nicolas Peissel is a self-described “methodical” person. The 35-year-old Montrealer inherited his sea-faring skills honestly, having grown up on a farm where his parents spent the better part of 10 years building a sailboat to live out their dreams. A decade of work as a shipwright gave Nicolas the opportunity to sail all sorts of […]

A court date and driving prohibition was not enough for a 38-year-old man from Cranbrook, B.C. to stay off the road. On Sunday, Sept. 9, at about 4:00 p.m. Midway RCMP stopped a vehicle on Highway 33 in Rock Creek, B.C.  The male driver, on probation with conditions not to be driving, was known to police as already banned...

With Parliament back in full swing I would like to reflect a bit on the 2011 general election which for several reasons was quite historic. The 41st Parliament obviously changed our party by thrusting us into the role of Official Opposition for the first time, but it also changed the face of the House of Commons, by making ...

Are you a commercial cook with 1,000 hours of industry experience but no credentials? Training makes all the difference in terms of employability, job security and earnings power. Nowhere is this more true than in the burgeoning area of commercial cooking. Currently, in B.C., thousands of trained cook positions are open at resorts, hotels, restaurants, […]

I read three things on the back of a vehicle in Victoria last week: “Free Tibet!”  and the Sanskrit symbol “Om.” Then, on the licence plate, “the Best Place on Earth.” I like how these concepts relate. We live in BC, a long way from China, but it feels good to stand in solidarity with colonized Tibetans ruled by China. Things...

Smoky skies in the Kootenay-Boundary region are due to wildfires burning in Washington and the Okanagan. The fires in Washington are approximately 100 kilometres southwest of Grand Forks and pose no threat to any Canadian forests or communities. There are currently no fires in the Southeast Fire Centre that threaten any...

The Mir Centre for Peace at Selkirk College is pleased to host Justice Murray Sinclair, Chair of the Truth and Reconciliation of Commission of Canada.  The first speaker of the 2012-13 lecture series, Justice Sinclair will speak at the Brilliant Cultural Centre in Castlegar on September 21, about his role in educating all...