Letters provide new revelations in the ongoing Mack Laing saga
Two documents have recently surfaced that indicate the Town of Comox had discussions with the Comox Valley Natural History Society about creating a natural history museum in the home of Hamilton Mack Laing. The letters also indicate the society’s interest to take on...
On electoral reform, Trudeau disappoints us, once again
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau scuffed his once-shiny political image again yesterday by discarding yet another campaign promise. In his first throne speech after the 2015 federal election, Trudeau boasted triumphantly that Canada had seen the last of its...
The mistrust of government begins at home
The strong undercurrent of government mistrust that shades the American landscape is something relatively new to Canadians. But the recent Comox Valley Regional District open house on the HMCS Quadra sewer line replacement shows how and why that mood is changing. The...
At the end of America, Trump
For as far back as I can remember, people have warned me about the certain implosion of America. They made comparisons to fall of the Roman Empire and Sodom and Gomorrah. The unmistakable signs were everywhere, they said. As a teenager coming of age in the midwest...
Readers: Comox fines too low for Garry Oak damages
From time to time, we get letters from our readers. Here are two we received questioning how the Town of Comox dealt with a homeowner who damaged a number of protected Garry Oak trees. Comox: The lowest tree vandalism fine on record in North America Not a week goes by...
Will Comox ignore Heritage B.C. plea to save Shakesides?
Let’s see if we understand this accurately: An independent and nationally recognized heritage consulting firm issued a Statement of Significance regarding the former home of naturalist Mack Laing -- known as “Shakesides.” They said the building is of national...
Pipeline approval shows Trudeau is no visionary
When Prime Minister Trudeau stepped in front of the media yesterday to announce the decision to approve the expansion of Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline, he personally owned it. Trudeau didn’t send out some sacrificial cabinet minister. Give him credit for...
Trump fact-less claims cause problems for journalists
In the era of modern journalism, reporters have operated on a few professional standards -- like detachment and objectivity -- and some ethical values -- like fairness and balance. But what’s a reporter to do when she’s assigned to cover a potentially dangerous...
Not as green as we think we are
Before Victorians and other west coast residents start congratulating ourselves for producing fewer greenhouse gases per household than most other Canadians, we should pause to acknowledge that this environmental fame may be fleeting. Because if Premier Christy Clark...
Shakesides: Comox erases lively murals
With the popular summer festivals coming up this weekend in Comox -- Filberg Festival and Nautical Days -- the town likes to get all gussied up. Plants watered and weeded. Streets swept and lines repainted. Lawns mowed, and so on. But this annual beautification...
The IRS won’t stop me from voting for Hillary
After watching the Republican and Democratic party conventions this week, I’m glad that I haven’t given up my right to vote in U.S. federal elections. This election is too important for the whole world. But, in the last six years, many American citizens living abroad...
Our hope for U.S. politics: Make America Think Again
The message of the Republican convention, repeated in a thousand ways over four days, was simple: be afraid; be very afraid. Here’s the executive summary of four days of fulmination: Our country is falling apart. The Black Lives Matter movement is destroying the...