Halifax, Nova Scotia | THE COAST: Editorial

Making a Rotten Bet

editor@thecoast.ca (Bruce Wark) — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 04:00:00 -0300

Nova Scotia�s desire to get into the online poker business is misguided and cruel. by Bruce Wark When Don Connolly sat down last Wednesday to play on-air poker with NS Finance Minister Graham Steele, the veteran CBC Information Morning host was holding a royal flush. That winning hand had been dealt to him two days earlier by gambling expert John McMullan.…

We are poor

editor@thecoast.ca (Tim Bousquet) — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 04:00:00 -0300

Nova Scotia should give up its fantasies about importing wealth and instead build social capital. by Tim Bousquet Nova Scotia is poor. That's a reality that we don't seem to want to come to terms with.…

Churchill fails

editor@thecoast.ca (Bruce Wark) — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 04:00:00 -0300

Nova Scotia is pegging its renewable power hopes on a gigantic, destructive hydro project in Labrador. by Bruce Wark Darrell Dexter was playing politics when he huffed and puffed this week about Quebec's objections to federal subsidies for an undersea power line between Newfoundland and Cape Breton. "The reality is that when good things happen for Quebec, it is seen as a triumph of federalism," the NS premier complained to the Herald.…

"Appalling" democracy

editor@thecoast.ca (Tim Bousquet) — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 04:00:00 -0300

Decreasing the number of Halifax councillors would decrease representation and hurt voter turnout. by Tim Bousquet Bucking a relentless PR campaign from the Chamber of Commerce, last week Halifax council voted not to reduce the number of councillors from the present 23. But we haven't heard the last of the issue.…

A hermit�s tale

editor@thecoast.ca (Tim Bousquet) — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 04:00:00 -0300

Jon Tattrie's new book on Africville can help Halifax come to recognize itself honestly. by Tim Bousquet There are a lot of reasons to read Jon Tattrie's new book about Eddie Carvery, The Hermit of Africville (jontattrie.ca/africville/index.html). First, it's a damn good read.…

Drunken deliberations

editor@thecoast.ca (Tim Bousquet) — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 04:00:00 -0300

A campaign of innuendo and whispers is confusing Halifax councillors' public and private lives. by Tim Bousquet Last week, someone walked into the Chronicle-Herald offices and gave the paper a memo from mayor Peter Kelly, which castigated municipal councillors for being drunk in public and warned of the dangers of driving while intoxicated. True to non-committing form, Kelly didn't actually name any councillors.…

Suburban monsters

editor@thecoast.ca (Tim Bousquet) — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 04:00:00 -0300

While downtown businesses shill for a convention centre, they ignore much larger threats to their livelihood. by Tim Bousquet It's only July and already summer seems a little hotter, a little muggier, a little longer than usual. There's a sense of impending doom hanging in the air, as if just around the next corner is a catalogue of cataclysm: disastrous changes in climate, resource depletion and wars, a breakdown in the social order.…

Peace works

editor@thecoast.ca (Bruce Wark) — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 04:00:00 -0300

Our reliance on war and weaponry accomplishes nothing; it�s time to find an alternative. by Bruce Wark Building a culture of peace may seem like an impossible dream when rich nations are spending billions in Afghanistan waging war on the world's poorest people, all in the name of self-defence. Yet participants at a conference this week at Mount Saint Vincent University know full well that discussing ways of building a culture of peace is not only an urgent priority, it also makes sense.…

Charter duplicity

editor@thecoast.ca (Tim Bousquet) — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 04:00:00 -0300

Darrell Dexter contradicts himself by trying to derail Metro Transit's Bridge Terminal plans. by Tim Bousquet On November 24, 2008, the Nova Scotia legislature debated Bill 179, which, if passed, would give the Halifax Regional Municipality its own charter, giving HRM powers that other cities and towns in the province don't have. No longer would the city have to ask the province for permission every time the city needed to undertake large projects.…

Old age blues

editor@thecoast.ca (Bruce Wark) — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 04:00:00 -0300

As stock market meltdowns gut our RSSPs and threaten company pension plans, it’s time to better fund the Canada Pension Plan. by Bruce Wark As Canada's finance ministers discussed pension reform at a seaside resort on Prince Edward Island last week, about 125 union members marched outside the gates chanting, "Hey-ho! Hey-ho!…

Oil fantasies

editor@thecoast.ca (Tim Bousquet) — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 04:00:00 -0300

Nova Scotia has staked its future on offshore exports, at the expense of building local economies. by Tim Bousquet As the planet continues to bleed oil in the Gulf of Mexico, this is a good time to take stock of our local energy strategies. Unfortunately, the province seems stuck in a permanent quest for elusive offshore riches, the idea being we'll build our economy on exporting oil and natural gas.…

NDP's unchallenged anniversary

editor@thecoast.ca (Bruce Wark) — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 04:00:00 -0300

One year after being elected, Darrell Dexter's NDP government needs less help from the missing media and weak opposition. by Bruce Wark Our new NDP government has turned its back on its dearest friends. At the party convention last weekend, Darrell Dexter made a point of not thanking the opposition parties and the media for helping his government weather its first year in office.…