BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News Nov. 9 marked 80 years since Kristallnacht, loosely translated as “the Night of the Broken Glass.” On this […]
Viewpoints
424 posts
BY LANA POPHAM Minister of Agriculture VICTORIA – When it comes to protecting farmland, the choice is obvious and the rationale is simple: the best […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP After floating the idea of a handgun ban this past summer, in mid-October the Liberal government launched […]
Letter to the Editor Editor: RE – Could 7% of the voters carry the referendum? Bill Phillips gets it wrong when he says, “accepting a […]
Letter to the Editor Editor: The rules guiding democracy in Canada and British Columbia have not always been as fair and inclusive as they are […]
Premier John Horgan and the NDP caucus may have a tough decision coming up. As of Wednesday morning, only 215,187 of the 3,293,435 registered voters […]
Sometimes it’s the little things that give me hope in the younger generation. I was at Pine Centre a few days ago, and a young […]
BY PETER EWART Special to the News As someone who was born and raised in the Interior of British Columbia, I believe proportional representation (PR) […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News Former South African president Nelson Mandela said, “Sport has the power to change the world.” This may seem […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP As a parent of four I know what it’s like to worry for your children and their […]
John Horgan was right. People were probably switching over the Wheel of Fortune in droves last night as the premier and Liberal leader Andrew Wilkinson […]
I am not a night owl. If the Spruce Kings game we broadcast on Friday evenings on CFIS goes overtime and doesn’t finish until about […]
With apologies to Meghan Trainor: It’s all about that base, ‘bout that base, no one else; It’s all about that base, ‘bout that base, no […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP On November 11, Canadians come together to honour those who have sacrificed so much for the sake […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News In the early 1960s, Yale psychology professor Stanley Milgram performed an experiment that revealed some interesting observations about […]
BY DERMOD TRAVIS Integrity BC Having survived two referendums in Quebec – the 1992 Charlottetown Accord and the 1995 referendum on independence – I feel […]
Man, it’s tough to think of a topic for today’s column. It’s the end of October, we’re in between seasons, too early to talk about […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP The National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls held its final hearing in Winnipeg […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News Watching corporate-sponsored mainstream news can be confusing and frustrating. I have great difficulty sitting through report after report […]
I’m selfish. That’s pretty much why I’m voting for the rural-urban proportional option in the referendum on proportional representation. I’ve taken a good look at […]
BY PAUL STRICKLAND Special to the News RENO, NEV., and CENTRALIA, WASH.–By mid-week long lines had returned to the advance poll station in Old Town […]
BY DERMOD TRAVIS Integrity BC Istuary Innovations is back in the news this month and not for particularly good reasons. Founded by Sun Yian, Istuary […]
Let’s just say last week was pretty busy for me, and the weekend was spent sort of resting up, so what I have this week […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP I first heard the name Ernest Fenwick MacIntosh in 2011 shortly after I was first elected as […]
BY PAUL STRICKLAND Special to the News RENO, NEV. — Lines stretched back about 200 metres and even part-way up entrance steps Saturday for the […]
The biggest surprise to come out of Saturday’s election was that Willy Enns actually got more than 1,000 votes. Enns, who entered the mayor’s race […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News Religion can provide guiding principles for a meaningful life, yet few concepts have been more divisive in human […]
Moving the election date up a month was probably a good idea because I don’t know about you, but it seems like the campaign has […]
Suzanne Anton must live in some kind of parallel universe. I think I snorted out loud at her assertion Saturday, at a so-called debate on […]
The good news, for anyone who has tried to unravel the NHL’s tiebreaker system or (even worse) the one used in the World Cup of […]
BY PETER EWART Columnist As Wikipedia describes it, a fairy tale is a fanciful story that “typically features entities such as dwarfs, dragons, elves, fairies, […]
BY PETER CHRISTENSEN Special to the News I support the Westminster first-past-the-post electoral system because it is straight forward to understand, one knows who and […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP Our hearts, like many of yours, are with the residents of the Old Fort who have been […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News When we read the newspaper or watch our news feeds, we learn about people doing horrendous things to […]
It is a great time to be a sports fan, both at the local level and at the professional level. Locally, high school volleyball teams […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP After months of uncertainty and disappointment thanks to the Liberal government’s continued failure to champion Canada’s energy […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News “Do not be afraid of improving slowly. Be afraid of standing still,” popular Zen master Leo Babauta tells us. […]
I’ve lived in the Interior all my life. For as long as I can remember, we have bemoaned the fact that the more-populous Lower Mainland […]
Big news on the international front for Canada this week. The trade agreement between the three North American countries has gone from being an acronym […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News “Sometimes the medicine we need most comes from remembering who we were so we can reconcile it against […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP As Chair of the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics, I have been presiding […]
So how did you spend your Saturday afternoon? I spent a good portion of mine in a borrowed pair of mukluks, tramping through mud and […]
A few years ago when escort services were all the rage in town (literally and figuratively), the city council of the day searched its bag […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP One of the questions I get asked a lot is, “Why are our gas prices so high?” […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines compassion as “sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with the desire to alleviate it.” […]
The race for a seat on city council is getting interesting. The race for the mayor’s chair, however, not so much. The last minute entry […]
How do you know when the universe is working in your favour for a change? When you go to a Seattle Mariners baseball game at […]
An open letter to the College of New Caledonia regarding the new heavy duty mechanical trades facility I have recently been in contact with […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP In 2013 I was proud to vote for my friend and former colleague MP Rick Norlock’s Private […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News During my rebellious teen years, I listened to an incredible band from Detroit (the Motor City) called MC5. […]
BY DENISE TORGERSON Prince George Hospice We run the ‘Coffee for the Caregiver’ group once a week – every Thursday afternoon at the Solace Centre. […]
The big question in this year’s municipal election race is will anyone challenge Lyn Hall for the mayor’s chair? Conventional wisdom says anyone seriously considering […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP As we seem to be over the worst of this year’s wildfires, I think it is important […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News Nineteenth-century British writer Eliza Tabor said, “Disappointment to a noble soul is what cold water is to burning […]
BY DERMOD TRAVIS Integrity BC If you’re just tuning back in to B.C. politics, you may have missed a great political adaptation of West Side […]
I saw something Saturday that I hadn’t seen in a couple of years, and had hoped I would never see again. Then I saw it […]
News that the Federal Court of Appeal had ruled against the approval of the Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion Project sent shock waves throughout the region […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News In the song Sympathy for the Devil, the Rolling Stones repeat several times, “Pleased to meet you. Hope […]
Big week in the city last week. Premier John Horgan rolled through town, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau flew through town and, oh yeah, a little […]
“Labor day, shmabor day. What a dumb day. To hire some jerk, then send him away… To celebrate work by playing all day.” That’s from […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP As the wildfires in the province continue to burn and more evacuees are being forced from their […]
BY ROB FLEMINGMinister of Education VICTORIA – As we get our kids ready for the school year ahead – adjusting to changing schedules and new […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News In a recent address on proportional representation (PR), Guy Giorno, one of Stephen Harper’s former strategists, said, “The […]
The expression, “If you don’t like the weather in Prince George, wait five minutes,” is a common one, especially in spring and autumn. On Friday […]
City council has come under fire lately for wage increases to senior staff since 2015 and overtime paid to senior staff during last year’s influx […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP After a recent event in Prince George, I was travelling north along Hart Highway when the skies […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Special to the News American actor Alan Alda recently said, “I’m not really listening unless I’m willing to be changed by the […]
BY PETER EWART Special to the News It is an astounding settlement in California. $289 million was awarded in damages to a school groundskeeper, Dewayne […]
It’s been a very busy summer for the Exhibition Park in Prince George. And I’m not even talking about events held at the CN Centre […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP On August 11, the City of Victoria removed its statue of Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada’s first […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Columnist Mike Krzyzewski said, “When a leader takes responsibility for his own actions and mistakes, he not only sets a good example, […]
There are mysteries in life both big (what happened to the Roanoke settlement?) and small (what happened to my sock in last week’s laundry?). Some […]
UNBC political science professor Tracy Summerville gave an excellent talk on proportional representation last week. As likely only a university professor can do, she explained […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP Anyone who has gone to a Spruce Kings hockey game in Prince George will most likely recognize […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Columnist Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky wrote, “It’s the great mystery of human life that old grief passes gradually into quiet tender joy.” […]
There is a lot of misinformation, fearmongering, cheap shots, and just plain lies flying around the discussion about proportional representation in British Columbia. It’s coming […]
I don’t watch a lot of TV. That doesn’t stop me from watching a lot of the auditions for the various incarnations of The Voice […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP There are few residents who have made such a positive impact on their community as Baljit Sethi […]
BY DERMOD TRAVIS Integrity BC Echo chambers has been popular as a buzz phrase as of late, the idea that we post and share links […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Columnist When asked how important family has been on his life journey, motivational speaker Nick Vujicic replied: “It was the most important factor. I’m […]
So the parking lot at Studio 2880 became a bus route on Monday, much to my surprise. I was just getting ready to host After […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP “Without a doubt.” That is the answer Jim Balsillie, Chair of the Council for Canadian Innovators, gave […]
If you thought a nice early morning run or late evening walk on the track at the newly-refurbished Masich Place Stadium is in your future, […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Columnist Former Toronto Blue Jays all-star Jesse Barfield recently tweeted, “The only person I want to be better than is the person […]
BY DENISE TORGERSON Prince George Hospice I was happy to see him back at the group. I didn’t think he would come again. The week […]
The current city council has done a fair bit to make the roads of Prince George safer for cyclists. I hope the next one will […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP Earlier this month seven protesters suspended themselves from the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge in Vancouver to protest the […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Columnist “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” Though the origin […]
As many people know, I am a real baseball fan. Part of the attraction for me, also being a numbers nut, is the sheer volume […]
BY REBEKAH HENDERSON Prince George Hospice Six months ago I stepped through the doors of the Hospice House and automatically felt at home. It was […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP As your Member of Parliament, I always enjoy the opportunity to hear your thoughts and concerns. Last […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Columnist It’s fascinating how certain ideas can unite all people, yet we can be so unaware of their presence. According to the […]
My father always used to ask me who was mad at me that day. If I didn’t have a name right away, he would chide […]
There are a lot of things that make me go “Hmmmm”. Here are a few of them (some local, some more wide-ranging; some with possible […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP As many of you know, the game of rugby has always been an important part of my […]
I originally wrote this column 13 years ago but I still feel same today … Canada Day. I am Canadian This is not a beer […]
BY GERRY CHIDIAC Columnist Feminist writer Emma Goldman said, “No one has yet realized the wealth of sympathy, the kindness and generosity hidden in the […]
There are good things, and some not-so-good things, about city council’s decision this week to increase pay for their successors. Firstly, Prince George council handles […]
There’s a birthday party being thrown down at the park on Sunday, and everyone is invited. It’s Canada’s 151st birthday (where does the time go?) […]
BY BOB ZIMMER Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MLA During the last week before the House of Commons rose for the summer, I had the opportunity […]