November 2014

One rockin’ octogenarian MUSIC RISING by Bruce Mason • For 82-year-old guitarist/singer Leo “Bud” Welch, it’s been the biggest year of his life. The first real-deal, old-school Mississippi bluesman to be discovered and recorded in a long time made his first album in January, got his first passport and took his first flight from as far back in the...

November 2014

presenting the Great Bear Rainforest • In November, conservationist and photographer Ian McAllister launches a BC-wide tour of a deeply personal multimedia presentation on the spectacular, remote Great Bear Rainforest. As co-founder of the wildlife conservation organization Pacific Wild and a longtime Great Bear Rainforest resident, Ian McAllister is respected...

November 2014

by Penny Lyons • Seva Canada, an international development organization based in Vancouver, restores sight and prevents blindness in the developing world. Since 1982, Seva donors have given the power of sight to over 3.5 million people. Seva works with local partners to create sustainable eye care programs that achieve long-term change, are culturally...

by Bruce Mason • Remembrance Day, 2014, as wars rage, Canadians may want to consider reading the chapter, “Delay, Deny, and Die,” in the newly published book, Party of One: Stephen Harper and Canada’s Radical Makeover, by Michael Harris. It concludes, “Returning veterans with mental and physical wounds inhabit a harsh and ongoing reality: how to push...

November 2014

The beginning of the end? READ IT by Bruce Mason • Canada’s 42nd federal election – arguably the most pivotal in our history – is scheduled for October 2015. In the meantime, a book worthy of everyone’s attention, Party of One: Stephen Harper and Canada’s Radical Makeover, has just been published. Between now and then, it’s essential that as many...

November 2014

Canada to Afghanistan 1775 to 2014 by Dr. Rocky M. Mirza • After a career as an academic economist, I decided in 2004 that I would devote an increasing part of my time to write about American foreign policy. This choice of topic was inspired by the re-election of George W. Bush as president and commander-in-chief of the American Empire. The fact that the...

a open letter to the Minister of Health by Thierry Vrain • In October, Dr. Thierry Vrain requested a meeting in Ottawa with the Honourable Rona Ambrose, Canada’s Minister of Health, to discuss GMO labelling. The meeting was cancelled, then granted, then cancelled again. At press time, Dr. Vrain had still not met with the Minister, but he did provide her with...

November 2014

Stay tuned if you want democracy on November 15 by Elizabeth Murphy • The November 15, 2014 civic election is upon us, with advance polling in Vancouver starting on November 4. This election is more important than those in the past. The election cycle has now been extended from three to four years. This City of Vancouver election needs to be about restoring...

by Dr. Gordon Edwards • An article posted on CBC news on October 11 (cbc.ca) stated that the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission has published a new regulation requiring nuclear operators to pre-distribute potassium iodide pills to people and businesses in close proximity to nuclear power plants, such as the one in Chalk River, Ontario. In the article below,...

November 2014

Please don’t operate a missile battery while reading this article DRUG BUST by Alan Cassels • The people’s briefing note on prescription drugs In mid October, the US Food and Drug Administration convened a special meeting to look at whether or not varenicline, the controversial drug to stop smoking – called Champix in Canada and Chantix in the US –...

November 2014

by Elizabeth May • Elizabeth May is the leader of the Green Party of Canada and Canada’s first elected Green MP for Saanich-Gulf Islands. She is the author of eight books on environmental and political topics, including her latest work Who We Are: Reflections on My Life and Canada, which was published last month. November 12: Elizabeth May launches her...

November 2014

by Geoff Olson • One night recently, I slapped a disc into the DVD player, fell back onto the man-cave couch and pressed play. A half-hour into the 2009 Nova episode, What Darwin Never Knew, my patience was wearing thin. I wasn’t expecting or particularly wanting a long or complicated explanation of evolutionary theory, but I did expect more than just a...

November 2014

by Adam S. Sealey • On Wednesday, October 22nd, a deranged and disillusioned young man, with a record of criminal acts and a drug addiction, Michael Zehaf-Bibeau,  shot and killed Corporal Nathan Cirillo, a reservist standing guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier War Memorial in Ottawa. A very heart-breaking and senseless crime was committed. Bibeau then...