SHE SAID: New impaired laws a thinly-veiled cash grab
By Kyra Hoggan on Thursday May 06 2010
When I saw B.C. was taking a hard-line stance against impaired driving, I wanted to cheer ...I was delighted.
Turns out, I should've reserved judgment until I had more of the facts.
I'm all for throwing the book at recidivistic drunk drivers – in fact, I think it should've been done years ago. Why wait until someone dies – why not punish these folks before their actions result in vehicular manslaughter? It's a no-brainer, right?
Maybe so, but that's not what these new laws are about, now is it?
Ensuring Your Emails Get Read
By Donovan Hoggan on Wednesday May 05 2010
How many times have you sent email and never heard a reply? If the person at the other end is ducking you, there's nothing I can do. Sometimes, though, it's just a case of too many emails and yours getting deleted.
There are a few things you can do to reduce the chances of your message getting lost.
Step 1: Is it getting through? Try sending to someone outside of your company to ensure that there aren't technological problems blocking your messages.
OP/ED: School closure blame lies with provincial government not local boards
By Mona Mattei on Thursday Apr 29 2010
As I drove home from the emotionally charged public meeting about the possible closure of the Beaverdell Elementary School, CBC radio was my company. The program was about the shift in our historical culture when the responsibility for caring for the population shifted from church to state. For a large part of history, churches provided education, as well as spiritual, physical and emotional care. At some a point in time that focus shifted and people turned to the state to provide some of these important institutions.
OP/ED: Ignatieff blunders compounded
By Rob Leggett on Wednesday Apr 28 2010
Iggy…Iggy…Iggy… What are you thinking?
Hurt by condemnation that his party had deserted the gun control measures it initially put in place, and still stinging from an abortion gaffe that saw Liberal MPs break ranks and divulge that his party is less pro-choice than it acts, Michael Ignatieff has decided he won't make the same mistake again.
ATAMANENKO: House of Commons limits power of PM to prorogue
By Alex Atamanenko on Tuesday Apr 27 2010
On Mar. 17, a milestone was reached in Parliament which puts power back in the hands of our elected officials, and by extension, back in the hands of the Canadians who elect them.
An opposition motion, tabled by New Democratic Party (NDP) leader Jack Layton and supported by all opposition parties, limits the Prime Minister's ability to prorogue parliament to just seven days without the permission of the House of Commons.
RCMP: Harassment charges for local man; home reno gets explosive
By Kyra Hoggan on Wednesday Apr 21 2010
A local homeowner got a potentially explosive surprise when she found what appears to be an ancient bomb hidden within her wall.
Castlegar Sgt. Laurel Mathew said the woman was renovating a very old home, removing drywall, and found several items apparently left there a very long time ago.
"One of the items was a carboard, tube-like device containing yellow sticks marked 'danger' and 'explosive'," Mathew said. "The device was turned over to the RCMP and, in turn, we have contacted our Explosive Device Unit to consult on what this may be."
Conroy speaks out over Castlegar Forestry Office Closure
By Contributor on Thursday Apr 15 2010
Fifteen Ministry of Forest staff from the Castlegar office have been laid off in the latest round of job cuts by the provincial government. This type of closure proves that the Campbell government has given up on forestry, says Katrine Conroy, MLA for Kootenay West. These 15 job losses were a part of a total of 204 forestry jobs that were cut over the entire province yesterday.
Castlegar Forestry Office downsized: 15 job losses
The Castlegar branch of the B.C. Ministry of Forests and Range (known as the Arrow-Boundary Forest District Office), is being downsized to a field office, with fully a quarter of the jobs there being lost.
A spokeswoman for the Ministry told The Source today that, of the 60 positions currently filled in Castlegar, 15 were eliminated in what is being labelled a "workforce adjustment".
Positions cut include management, as well as clerical and technical staff.
A release from the ministry added:
OP/ED: Abortion policy all wrong
I cannot believe that the Conservative government is refusing to include access to contraceptives and safe abortions as part of their pledge of working towards improving maternal health worldwide at this year's G8 summit in June.
It's beyond my comprehension how it is possible to improve maternal health unless you are willing to include the full range of reproductive health services for women.
OP/ED: Confessions of a hopeless technophobe
Since when did 'Facebook-ing' become a verb?
It's amazing how quickly we can change or shift our societal lexicon – I was genuinely creeped out and, frankly, slightly offended the first time someone told me he had 'Googled' me – now I think nothing of being Googled, Facebooked or Tweeted...or of doing same to others (my Grandma's going to read this and think I've joined a cult or am sniffing my son's felt pens or something).
It's a brave new world, indeed.