In 2012, the provincial electoral boundaries commission took 79% of Cape Breton Nova and 59% of Cape Breton South and created Sydney-Whitney Pier. The 2019 commission lopped off the Pier and added some Sydney River-Mira-Louisbourg territory and — voila! — Sydney-Membertou was born. I’m going to do some electoral genealogyRead More

I‘ve been learning about Appalachia (beginning with how to pronounce it) through a variety of means lately and what keeps jumping out at me are the similarities between that region and our own (by which I mean, variously, Cape Breton, the Maritimes and the Atlantic Provinces). These similarities include theRead More

If you follow CBRM politics, are on social media or hold local elected office, you probably know the name Rod Gale. The South Bar resident (who has written for this publication in the past) doesn’t hesitate to share his thoughts, especially on matters about which he’s passionate — like poverty.Read More

FOIPOP Update It’s been over two months — 71 days, to be exact — since Nova Scotia’s Information and Privacy Commissioner Tricia Ralph recommended the CBRM release 890 pages of documents to me in response to a 2015, port-related, access to information request. Of those pages, 28 had been previouslyRead More

Christmas is nigh and the good and the generous have been hard at work throughout our communities, making sure that each and every family awakens to everything it takes to make the day a joyful one. They’ll have food and toys and clothing and all will be fine — forRead More

Donald Campbell, Jr knows a thing or two about going hungry. The owner of That’s Right Roofing & Renovations, who recently placed third in the heavily contested District 12 race in the CBRM election, suffered physical hunger pains when he was a boy – and blames poverty, in his characteristicallyRead More

“It’s God will” is a statement so often heard that when one personally decides s/he no longer accepts it as reasonable, practical, or —  let’s face it — believable, a statement from a high-ranking clergyman in the Catholic Church endorsing such a view, especially with regard to COVID-19, has toRead More

This past week, I listened to a podcast from the Conference Board of Canada’s “Bright Future” series featuring my old friend (meaning, someone I quote frequently), Hugh Segal, who has for years (since he “had hair”) been a fierce proponent of guaranteed annual income (GAI). Asked by host Michael BassettRead More

“We need firstly some very basic things happening. We need access to portable toilets in our communities, so people can at least go to the bathroom, with wash stations so they can sanitize.” — Janet Bickerton, Ally Centre of Cape Breton, 30 March 2020, CBC interview   As noted above,Read More

I had started to write this column before I’d heard news of the horrendous shooting incident in our province. Nothing I could write would have any effect on those whose lives have been lost, those who were injured or those who are left to mourn. Least of all, would anyRead More