Opinion

FILE: Four-year-old Jonah Arbez holds a protest sign at a Friday’s Strike for Climate on the steps of Nanaimo City Hall in 2019. (Cole Schisler/Black Press)

Cole’s Notes: It’s hard to be young these days

It won’t be easy to solve our problems, but our futures are worth fighting for

FILE: Four-year-old Jonah Arbez holds a protest sign at a Friday’s Strike for Climate on the steps of Nanaimo City Hall in 2019. (Cole Schisler/Black Press)
A fan pays his respects in front of a bronze statue of Canadiens legend Guy Lafleur, Friday, April 22, 2022, in Montreal. Hockey Hall of Famer Guy Lafleur, who helped the Montreal Canadiens win five Stanley Cup titles in the 1970s, has died at age 70. (Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press via AP)

Legendary Lafleur was an inspiration for a generation of Canadians

COLUMN: Former Canadiens superstar leaves an indelible legacy

A fan pays his respects in front of a bronze statue of Canadiens legend Guy Lafleur, Friday, April 22, 2022, in Montreal. Hockey Hall of Famer Guy Lafleur, who helped the Montreal Canadiens win five Stanley Cup titles in the 1970s, has died at age 70. (Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press via AP)
Castlegar News editor Betsy Kline was visiting Union Square in New York City on the day of the April 12, 2022 subway shooting. Photo: Tom Kline

COLUMN: A few stops away: reflections on the New York subway shooting

Castlegar News editor Betsy Kline was on the subway in New York on the day of the recent shooting

Castlegar News editor Betsy Kline was visiting Union Square in New York City on the day of the April 12, 2022 subway shooting. Photo: Tom Kline
This image from the trailer of the 2021 Punjabi film <em>Honsla Rakh</em> was filmed in Surrey’s Brownsville Bar Park with New Westminster and the iconic Skybridge in the background. <em>Honsla Rakh</em> is a rom-com featuring superstar Diljit Dosanjh set in Vancouver and Surrey. Since its release, it has become one of the highest-grossing Punjabi films of all time. (Diljit Dosanjh/YouTube)

Cole’s Notes: B.C. could be the main star in films – but we can play any role

Film is a multi-billion dollar industry in B.C., but we rarely play ourselves on-screen

This image from the trailer of the 2021 Punjabi film <em>Honsla Rakh</em> was filmed in Surrey’s Brownsville Bar Park with New Westminster and the iconic Skybridge in the background. <em>Honsla Rakh</em> is a rom-com featuring superstar Diljit Dosanjh set in Vancouver and Surrey. Since its release, it has become one of the highest-grossing Punjabi films of all time. (Diljit Dosanjh/YouTube)
B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry speaks during a COVID-19 update news conference. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

LETTER: Relaxing of COVID measures ‘reckless,’ says doctors group

B.C. doctors says public health measures failing residents

  • Apr 4, 2022
B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry speaks during a COVID-19 update news conference. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, puts on her protective mask after releasing details about a COVID-19 vaccination card that will be needed by anyone wanting to eat in restaurants, visit theatres or go to other events. She made the announcement at a news conference at the B.C. legislature in Victoria on Monday, Aug. 23, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito

HENRY: The goal amid COVID is to never need a mask mandate or event limits again

‘We used masks in combination with our other layers to give us the protection we needed’

  • Apr 1, 2022
Provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, puts on her protective mask after releasing details about a COVID-19 vaccination card that will be needed by anyone wanting to eat in restaurants, visit theatres or go to other events. She made the announcement at a news conference at the B.C. legislature in Victoria on Monday, Aug. 23, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito
Bruce Cameron has been a pollster and strategist for over 35 years, working initially for Gallup Polls, Decima Research and the Angus Reid Group before founding his own consultancy, Return On Insight. (Black Press Media files)

CAMERON: Think local, act global

Will micro and macro changes to the world economy hurt or help B.C. in 2022?

  • Mar 30, 2022
Bruce Cameron has been a pollster and strategist for over 35 years, working initially for Gallup Polls, Decima Research and the Angus Reid Group before founding his own consultancy, Return On Insight. (Black Press Media files)
Letters

LETTER: A strong forest sector is essential to B.C.’s strong economy

B.C.’s jobs minister recently addressed the issue of pandemic recovery in northern…

  • Mar 22, 2022
Letters
A roundabout in Qualicum Beach. (PQB News file photo)

WOLF: Roundabouts and other pet peeves driving B.C. drivers crazy

Column: What habits do other drivers have that bother you on the road?

A roundabout in Qualicum Beach. (PQB News file photo)
Shirley Frost, left, and Gerda Faber, both members of the Wells Gray Lively Arts Society, pick up their feet during a blues song performed by Randy Hedlund and Linda MacKenzie. A Coffee House was held by the WGLAS on Saturday, March 5 in the lodge at the Clearwater ski hill. It was the first Coffee House to be held since COVID-19 restrictions were eased last month. (Stephanie Hagenaars/Clearwater Times)

Cole’s Notes: Re-opening will be awkward, so be kind

Use your COVID common sense and don’t be rude, Schisler says

Shirley Frost, left, and Gerda Faber, both members of the Wells Gray Lively Arts Society, pick up their feet during a blues song performed by Randy Hedlund and Linda MacKenzie. A Coffee House was held by the WGLAS on Saturday, March 5 in the lodge at the Clearwater ski hill. It was the first Coffee House to be held since COVID-19 restrictions were eased last month. (Stephanie Hagenaars/Clearwater Times)
Robert’s column

Robert Barron column: Fond memories of ‘Paddy’s Day’

By mid afternoon, the party started really taking off

Robert’s column
Andrey Goncharuk, 68, a member of the territorial defense stands in the backyard of a house damaged by a Russian airstrike, according to locals, in Gorenka, outside the capital Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 2, 2022. Russia renewed its assault on Ukraine's second-largest city in a pounding that lit up the skyline with balls of fire over populated areas, even as both sides said they were ready to resume talks aimed at stopping the new devastating war in Europe. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

CAMERON: What freedom truly looks like

Canadians are often portrayed as polite, decent, unassuming, and hard to anger.…

  • Mar 2, 2022
Andrey Goncharuk, 68, a member of the territorial defense stands in the backyard of a house damaged by a Russian airstrike, according to locals, in Gorenka, outside the capital Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 2, 2022. Russia renewed its assault on Ukraine's second-largest city in a pounding that lit up the skyline with balls of fire over populated areas, even as both sides said they were ready to resume talks aimed at stopping the new devastating war in Europe. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Bruce Cameron has been a pollster and strategist for over 35 years, working initially for Gallup Polls, Decima Research and the Angus Reid Group before founding his own consultancy, Return On Insight. (Black Press Media files)

CAMERON: Bleeding hearts, lawlessness and leadership: ‘Just Watch Me’

Scrolling through my social media feed last week, I came across a…

  • Feb 17, 2022
Bruce Cameron has been a pollster and strategist for over 35 years, working initially for Gallup Polls, Decima Research and the Angus Reid Group before founding his own consultancy, Return On Insight. (Black Press Media files)
(Nature Conservancy of Canada photo)

World Wetlands Day: Nature needs us to do more

Canada’s largest land conservation organization says there has never been a more important time for nature conservation

  • Feb 4, 2022
(Nature Conservancy of Canada photo)
Only about half of Grade 10 students in B.C. completed the latest “mandatory” student assessments, which revealed worryingly low levels of proficiency in literacy and numeracy. (Pixabay.com)

FRASER INSTITUTE: 60% of Grade 10 students in B.C. not proficient in math

‘Simply put, to know how to improve, you must know how you’re doing’

  • Feb 1, 2022
Only about half of Grade 10 students in B.C. completed the latest “mandatory” student assessments, which revealed worryingly low levels of proficiency in literacy and numeracy. (Pixabay.com)
Lantern decorations are hung on trees on the Olympic Green near the Olympic Tower at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022, in Beijing. Millions of people in China and beyond are celebrating the Lunar New Year holiday on Tuesday. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

CAMERON: Is it time to get tough with China?

When the torch is lit in Beijing National Stadium February 4, marking…

  • Feb 1, 2022
Lantern decorations are hung on trees on the Olympic Green near the Olympic Tower at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022, in Beijing. Millions of people in China and beyond are celebrating the Lunar New Year holiday on Tuesday. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
According to University of Toronto Global Journalism Fellow Anthony Fong, sexually aggressive online behaviours, affects 88 per cent of all Canadian university undergraduate women. THE CANADIAN PRESS

FONG: Legal reform needed to protect young women from growing online sexual violence

Liberals promised to rework online harms legislation within 100 days of Parliament’s Nov. 22 return

According to University of Toronto Global Journalism Fellow Anthony Fong, sexually aggressive online behaviours, affects 88 per cent of all Canadian university undergraduate women. THE CANADIAN PRESS
FILE – Smoke rises from the Babine Forest Products mill in Burns Lake, B.C. Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

BAINS: Worker protections remain key 10 years after fatal northern B.C. sawmill explosions

Four workers died in two separate explosions at sawmills near Burns Lake and Prince George in 2012

  • Jan 19, 2022
FILE – Smoke rises from the Babine Forest Products mill in Burns Lake, B.C. Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way we grieve. (File photo)

Hay: We can’t let the pandemic put grief on hold

‘I have learned the difference between fear and hope is focus’

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way we grieve. (File photo)
Fraser Health registered nurse Kai Kayibadi draws a dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine into a syringe at a walk-up vaccination clinic at Bear Creek Park, in Surrey, B.C., on Monday, May 17, 2021. The deadline for British Columbia health care workers to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 is today. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

Looking ahead to upheaval in 2022: The great reset in B.C.

By Bruce Cameron Decades ago, Bob Dylan sang, “You don’t need a…

  • Jan 10, 2022
Fraser Health registered nurse Kai Kayibadi draws a dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine into a syringe at a walk-up vaccination clinic at Bear Creek Park, in Surrey, B.C., on Monday, May 17, 2021. The deadline for British Columbia health care workers to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 is today. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck