It all started with a sentence in a story about one of the men charged in the Cape Breton Regional Police’s “John Be Gone” undercover sting operation. You remember John Be Gone — initiated after complaints from downtown Sydney businesses about sex workers on Charlotte Street, it saw two femaleRead More

Back in March of this year, the United Way of Cape Breton, together with the Cape Breton Regional Municipality, sponsored the Community Impact Summit at Centre 200, a coming together of “business, government and non-profit sector leaders…to commit to specific, positive actions to help citizens living in poverty,” or asRead More

On May 22, Ambassador Elayne White of Costa Rica, president of a UN disarmament panel, released a ‘Draft Convention on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.’ The draft treaty, while certain to be subject to scrutiny and revision, faithfully reflects the determination of the 130 states attending the panel’s March sessionRead More

Not all political parties are equal, but it appears that candidates from each of the three main provincial parties are equal in their use of social media. The Liberal party dropped a candidate over inappropriate Twitter comments. An NDP candidate was forced to resign because of inappropriate online statements, andRead More

What to do this week Soon we will be getting very itchy to plant, but how do you tell for sure that your soil is ready? One of the most common questions I get this time of year is if it is time to plant yet, and I always say,Read More

Confessions of a bad reporter I forgot about Ports Day — Port Days? Ports Days? — whatever it is, I forgot about it. I know, right? How does that happen? How does the most port-obsessed person in Sydney forget Port-a-palooza? I can only plead temporary sanity. This week, I was apparentlyRead More

Scratch any problem in almost any municipality in Nova Scotia and you will likely uncover the same root cause: the province’s underfunded equalization program. I see you over there, covering your ears and singing. And you, pretending you’re engrossed in that hardware store flyer you just fished out of aRead More

What are your plans for the celebration of Canada’s 150th Birthday? Do you even have any plans? Well, here’s a wonderful idea. Why not attend the Cape Breton Chorale’s Salute to Canada Concert on Sunday, May 28th at Sydney’s Highland Arts Theatre? Directed by Rosemary McGhee with Paula Jane Francis asRead More

Elections are dangerous times. Don’t sit on your front yard or you may get skewered by a campaign sign. Don’t let your family pets near the street, lest they be spray-painted or asphalted over by zealous provincial road workers.  Fortunately for you, you are not alone during this perilous period: Dr. StrangeJobRead More

Inspiration Village Great news, guys! Sydney is finally going to ship a sea container to Central Canada! Okay, strictly speaking, we’re not “shipping” it. According to its press release, Destination Cape Breton Association will “transform” a sea container “into a life-size depiction of the many unforgettable experiences Cape Breton Island has toRead More