High security
Dear Editor,I agree with Bruce Wark’s editorial about the complete failure of the so called “war on drugs.” Drug addiction, like alcoholism or prescription drug abuse is a medical issue and cannot be solved by the criminal justice system. The “war on drugs” creates a market for brutal criminal gangs, destroys families and diverts justice…
Letters to the Editor
Bullying Within Capital Health In the hospital walking to the locker room in civilian clothes I always receive smiles, doors being held open for me, and friendly nods. Emerging from the locker room, clothes changed wearing that black and white striped shirt; the friendly exchanges also change.I was a housekeeper with Capital Health for about…
Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, Last week we learned of yet another innocent Afghani killed by Canadian soldiers. Through the Government of Canada’s misguidedmilitary aggression, support for insurgency is the only option formany Afghanis. Each incident results in a further erosion of thereputation of coalition forces and an increase in the strength of theTaliban. Prime Minister Harper’s approach…
Commonwealth shames
The good news is that Halifax is considered a serious contender for hosting the Commonwealth Games. The bad news, as reported yesterday in The Scotsman, Scotland’s national paper: “Glascow’s bid to win the Commonwealth Games in 2014 has been handed a massive boost by its main rival, whose campaign is on the brink of imploding……
Inside the square
You call yourself a reporter, you need to refer to yourself as a liar, I know these people you are quoting and I know that they did not say the things you have written or do you just lie on people when they are black, this article is a disgrace and you need to be…
Utne Reader falls in slow love
I was on the Utne Reader’s website trying to figure out how to renew my subscription when I came across an interesting little blurb and a link to my Valentine’s Day article about Slow Love (no, I was not Googling myself)! Here’s the link from Utne which will eventualy bring you back here. The best…
Letters to the Editor
“Facts 101” for the Anonymous Ranter;Hi there! Just HAD to give you my 2cents worth..heehee!First of all teenagers are not supposed to be getting pregnant,(Mom/Dad/Gaurdian(s) are responsible for enforcing this,) Personally I really do believe the whole ”You not having sex until you are 18 or moved out or whatever…” will NEVER work. Teens are…
Law & Order: Twisted Towers
Thanks to a 158-page court decision released yesterday, people who want to see a couple new skyscrapers in downtown Halifax can sleep a bit easier. Supreme Court justice Suzanne Hood heard arguments in December that the public hearings for United Gulf’s notorious Twisted Towers development were screwed up, and thus city council shouldn’t have approved…
Three fellows collaborate
A trio inspired by a concept first employed by Jerry Granelli during last year’s Atlantic Jazz Festival has wrapped up its first record with a similar notion in mind. TFC—made up of Jeff Torbert (guitar), Adam Fine (bass) and Doug Cameron (drums)—is releasing an album of original and improv jazz recorded in front of a…
The world’s most delayed no-brainer
On Tuesday, council finally agreed to stop parking their cars on the Grand Parade. And hey, it only took a few years! Council approved the recommendation, along with several others, as part of a sweeping land development plan put together by city staffers. The linchpin of the plan involves a land swap between the province…
Reels life
Halifax’s Reels might have to steal some wheels—as the band’s track record for cross-country touring isn’t so promising. Last time the trio of tested musicians packed up and headed west, they returned home with a new automobile in tow. Their well mapped-out route begins with a CD release show for their sophomore album Autumn Country…
High security
One of the most dangerous men in America zipped across the Canadian border last week to deliver a speech in Ottawa. John Walters, chief propagandist for the disastrous US war on drugs, praised Stephen Harper’s plan to put more drug offenders in jail. He also lauded George Bush for pushing random drug testing in American…
Inside the square
“Some?” he says, extending a small hand in my direction. No thanks, I answer. The boy shrugs, thrusts his other hand deep into his bag of freshly-popped microwave popcorn, hauls out what must be three hands-full in his one tiny but fully outstretched hand. “It’s extra buttery,” he tries again, gesturing toward the bag. “Says…
When Dove flies
Emil Sher describes himself as a “news junkie,” and it shows in his work. His stage and radio plays often start with subjects ripped from the headlines—the tainted blood scandal, a child’s right to refuse medical treatment, the ethics of profiting from criminal acts or, as in the case of Mourning Dove, wrapping up at…
Going for broke
It’s mid-September in Toronto and it’s unseasonably chilly. Many of assembled journalists, the ones based in LA and Europe, are grumbling about unexpectedly having to buy sweaters. But they don’t need them here in this cramped hotel conference room filled two-to- one with photographers and camerapeople trying to get pictures of Jude Law, a star…
Concrete jungle
Dynamite would be a lot of fun. But probably the demolition experts would insist on something less cathartic: wrecking balls and such. Still, that sucker has to come down. I’m talking about the Cogswell interchange: the tangle of concrete in the heart of downtown Halifax that serves no purpose save to remind us there was…
NED Devine
The North End Diner is housed in a building with an interesting history: The space was once the famous Camille’s and more recently served as the pool-table area for the adjacent North End Pub. The NEP is still referred to as “Joe Comeau’s” by long-time patrons, many of whom are or were sailors or other…
SAVAGE LOVE
Dan Savage gets back to basics.
Black Snake Moan
The advertising and opening titles of Black Snake Moan suggest a throwback to 1970s exploitation movies. That retro marketing hook defies this laidback Southern drama, which isn’t necessarily morally sound but is always unapologetically sincere. Craig Brewer’s follow-up to Hustle and Flow carries an indiscreet polemic righteousness. As blues musician Lazarus (Samuel L. Jackson) kidnaps…
FREE WILL ASTROLOGY
Less is more, Aquarius, says Rob Brezsny.
When goats fly
When 23-year-old Jacob Deng returned to Duk Padiet, the village in South Sudan where he was born, his older sister Abiol ran from him screaming. Eighteen years earlier, in 1987, the Sudanese government attacked and burned down his village. Jacob, the only male left in his family, escaped, but his family presumed him dead. Now,…
