Old King Coal I was so puzzled today when I reached into my mailbox and pulled out a 1720 edition of The Cape Breton Post. “King coal” screamed the headline on the front page. Hallelujah, a coal mine has opened on the island! I searched excitedly to see what otherRead...
What is this PowerSchool of which Nova Scotian teachers speak? The datafication (a word I thought I’d made up but which turns out to be real) of P-12 education happened after my time in the Nova Scotia public system, so I had to do some reading (a little skill I pickedRead More
The Nova Scotia New Democratic Party made a freedom of information application to the Nova Scotia government last December requesting: All communication (including emails, letter and other electronic messages) briefing notes and other documents related to An Act Respecting a Teacher’s [sic] Professional Agreement. The request referred to legislation that Education MinisterRead More
Transparency is so rare in Nova Scotia that most people recognize it only by its absence. Our region is home to a number of organizations that rely largely (if not entirely) on public money and yet are not in the least accountable to the public. To me, they’re like bigRead More
Some organizations are like cats, not in the sense that they hunt and kill mice (although with the level of transparency we have in the CBRM, who knows?) but in the sense that they have nine lives — end one and they start another. Business Cape Breton Association (BCB) isRead More
Charter? What Charter? I was perusing the list of recently completed Nova Scotia Freedom of Information Protection of Privacy (FOIPOP) requests, as one does, and discovered this one: All briefing notes, analysis and correspondence regarding the development of a municipal charter for Cape Breton Regional Municipality. Oh boy, oh boy,Read More
Monday’s second coming berth announcement was a star-studded affair. Everyone who is anyone in Nova Scotia politics wanted to be there in person to see the CBRM’s $20 million concrete dream come true. Cape Breton-Canso MP (and Master of Ceremonies) Rodger Cuzner got laughs by warning those in attendance fromRead More
I received a copy of Due Diligence Assessment of Plans for Second Berth at the Sydney Marine Terminal! Thanks, ACOA! I thought I’d have to wait for the movie. It’s the assessment prepared by management and consulting firm CPCS for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and the Nova Scotia DepartmentRead More
The Cape Breton Regional Municipality has more police officers than it can afford. Don’t look at me, I’m not the one who said it—it’s the considered opinion of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality Task Force, or The Mayor’s Task Force, a group formed in 2013 to “make recommendations regarding theRead More
The Port of Sydney Development Corporation (PSDC) REALLY wants you to turn out on Saturday to stamp your little feet and demand the federal government come through with its share of the funding for our $20 million second cruise berth (which, this week, we’re talking about solely in terms ofRead More
