Category: Opinion

I had the good fortune several years ago of attending the International Association of Public Participation conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia. At one of the sessions, at the Canadian Museum of Immigration, I heard something that I thought was crazy at the time but, over time, I have begun to consider as quite insightful. That is…

Welcome to Silly Season — it’s an election year. The term “silly season” was coined to describe the uneventful media days of late summer when the kids were out of school, everybody was at the beach, and politicians were in recess along with everyone else. Reporters were reduced to covering the weather, somebody’s 29 hand…

Concerns about increasing rec fees Dear Editor, It was with some interest that I read of the possibility of higher rec fees for those living outside Kamloops. This idea was discussed by city council over 20 years ago & set aside. Why would the city attempt to “tax” non residents who spend money on gas…

Driving from Sahali to Brocklehurst this past week, just by TRU, I heard on the radio that Oxford University Press has declared “rage-baiting” as the word of the year for 2025. This is defined as online content “deliberately designed to elicit anger or outrage by being frustrating, provocative, or offensive, typically posted in order to…

I’m going to get slam dunked for writing this. I was one of those women who burned her bra, shunned frills and lace and made pink a dirty word. I read books about goddesses and heroine journeys, banned words like doll, babe, and gal, and he became s/he. “You can have it all,” I chanted…

Going not-so-green Dear Editor, Given Prime Minister Carney’s knowledge regarding the dangers of climate change and his experience in climate finance, it’s hard to understand his government’s recommendation to have two LNG projects in BC identified for possible fast-tracking at the Major Projects Office. LNG, or liquefied natural gas, is mostly methane, a more powerful…

For the sake of my sanity I’ve been trying my best to stay disconnected from most political discussions lately, especially those that occur south of the border. As amusing as it can be to watch the … well, whatever it is you want to call it that’s going on with our closest neighbours, it can…

I sometimes get calls from people frustrated with city hall. I try to give them my best advice.  As a former city councillor, I understand the multi-directional pressures city council members and city staffers face. I also know that ultimately the citizens need to be in the drivers’ seat — all of them, together, not a…

O’Reilly’s mayorship may mean more “pies in the sky” Dear Editor, Now that Mike O’Reilly has announced his candidature for the post of Mayor of Kamloops in next year’s election, he has made it a bit easier for me to decide who NOT to vote for. Mike has been extravagant with his Build campaigns, promising…

According to The Democracy Project, a joint initiative led by the Public Policy Forum and the Max Bell School of Public Policy at McGill University, more than 340 communities have lost local news providers since 2008. The report also talks about 11 recent new starts in Canadian community news providers — and one of those…