Editorial

Dull, dull, dull. That was the media consensus after last week’s NS leaders’ debate. Call me crazy, but I found the debate infuriating. I even watched it twice, stopping the tape often the second time to take notes—and to groan and curse at the leaders’ leaden words. Rudyard Kipling called words “the most powerful drug […]

Atlantic Superstores lobbed a stink bomb into the provincial election campaign last week when the giant retailer announced that part of its Barrington Street outlet would soon be open on Sunday. Starting on June 11, two days before the provincial election, the Barrington emporium will be peddling turnips and tangerines, dead flesh and fish, face […]

Rodney MacDonald spent the first week of the election campaign stumping the province in a recreational vehicle sporting an Alberta licence plate. Sharp-eyed Dave Rodenhiser of the Daily News unearthed “plate-gate” the day Rodney called the election. “Why do you have an Albertan RV?” Rodenhiser asked. He reports that the Tory leader tried to dodge […]

I was chowing down on green chili curry the Friday night before Rodney MacDonald pulled the fuse to detonate the provincial election, when I spied a note on the spice packet. It announced that the curry company donates money to help save the endangered Asian elephant. “But what about the poor mainland moose?” I cried, […]

The veteran peace activist Richard Sanders calls it “The War Fighters’ Eye in the Sky.” The eye in question is a sophisticated Canadian satellite called RADARSAT-1. It’s capable of peering through clouds and darkness to produce detailed images of the earth’s surface. “RADARSAT is, in fact, a major Canadian contribution to US-led wars that have […]

There’s a banking boom of sorts happening on Gottingen Street. For years the Pharmasave had the street’s only ATM, but now cash machines abound. Near the Gerrish intersection, Joe’s Market, Kit Kat Pizza and the Gottingen Food Market each have one. Further north around Almon, both Needs and Israel Convenience host machines. They’re in a […]

Rachel Carson changed the world with a magazine article. Her “Silent Spring,” published over three consecutive issues of The New Yorker in 1962—and, later, as a book—opened eyes to the dangers of chemical pesticide use. People got worried and angry, governments took steps to control the problem, industry complied or faced consequences. By showing the […]

The Holocaust happened, right? We know it did, even though a few purported experts are in denial. Same goes for smoking. Despite the cadre of persistent doubters, there’s widespread understanding: You’re not doing your lungs a favour by inhaling fumes from a burning mix of tobacco and chemicals. So what’s the problem with global warming? […]

The sky should be ambivalent. Fog, maybe, or that rainy green from the pre-suck Matrix. But driving across the bridge on a clear, bright Friday afternoon, the view is fantastic. And traffic is minimal the whole way to the airport, so there’s no looming anxiety about being late. This could be the start of a […]

In societies based on Judeo-Christian values, sex is a dark demon that keeps rearing its ugly head. Money is filthy lucre. Mate money with sex and you come up with the world’s oldest profession. “For by means of a harlot, a man is reduced to a crust of bread,” the Good Book warns. “A 54-year-old […]

Halifax is tidying up for Juno weekend, fussing around like a nervous granny who keeps squawking that “company’s coming!” It’s one thing to empty the litter box and make the bed when you’re expecting guests, but the city’s cleaning smacks of desperation: People are coming who are better than us, so we’ve got to look […]

“So, what did you learn in school today?” I asked little Johnny as we lounged in the rec room munching popcorn and quaffing Moose. “Well, I learned that Tommy Douglas is the Greatest Canadian because he brought us universal medicare,” said Johnny as he cracked another brewski. “And I learned that Stephen Harper is the […]