Porch Views, editorials and more
Editorial Yesterday The Current published an article reporting on misinformation being spread by one of the incumbent candidates for Madawaska Valley (MV) Council. His ability to mislead the public has been assisted by the inexcusable refusal on the part of the Valley Gazette and The Eganville Leader to report to …
With Labour Day delivering the inevitable farewell to summer, we at The Current are gearing up for a busy fall. As readers will have noticed, we have recently been operating on a reduced basis. This is largely because we have been enjoying an extended visit with our family in the …
Mountain top clearing in Killaloe feared by Madawaska Highland residents Note: This opinion piece was submitted for publication by Christopher Huggett, (Former) Independent Forest Research Associate and Auditor, Temagami District, Ontario now resident in Killaloe-Hagarty-Richards. The Wilno Hills, like the rest of the Madawaska Valley, is no stranger to logging. On …
Note: The following opinion piece which highlights the lack of availability of Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) to patients in Western Renfrew County was submitted by Dr. Lynsay Lane, on behalf of the Renfrew County MAiD Access Committee. In June 2016, the Parliament of Canada passed federal legislation that allows …
EDITORIAL On May 19th last year a Court hearing took place that had important implications for the residents of Madawaska Valley. Superior Court Justice Adriana Doyle had to decide whether it was in the public interest to strike out (i.e. apply a “gag order” to) the legal action commenced by …
Editor’s note: The following opinion piece from Fr. Brendan Hoban was originally published by Western People newspaper and appeared on the Association of Catholic Priests (ACP) website. It was suggested to The Current by reader Jack Madigan who says he regularly visits the ACP website “as it is a forum …
Editor’s note: This is the second in a series of columns ‘Cup of Jo’ by contributor Jodie Primeau (Above with daughter Penelope. Photo submitted.) OPINION For the first time yesterday, my one year old daughter looked up at someone who wasn’t me, reached out her hand and said “mama”. I …
OPINION It has been an incredibly hard year and a half. And it looks like we have at least another nine months of this … maybe more. There have been several vaccines – two of which were in the making for thirty years: Pfizer and Moderna – both mRNA vaccines. …
OPINION It is the height of understatement to say that no one seems satisfied with the outcome of the recent Federal election. With the re-election of Mrs Gallant, the electorate of Renfrew-Nippissing-Pembroke remained divided into two distinct solitudes: those very proud of the re-election of the local candidate but astonished …
OPINION One thing I’ve learned about journalism in my 20-or-so years in the business is that reporting real news, important news, is both exhausting and paramount. And try not to get too cosy with those you are tasked to write about. That’s the mission, if you choose to accept it. …
EDITORIAL Any investigative journalist searching for truth becomes used to stonewalling tactics aimed at hiding the facts. Individuals or companies who have potential negative reputational or financial consequences by sharing information will often decide that discretion is the better part of valour. Such self-interest is perhaps understandable so far as …
OPINION Canada’s flights out of Kabul have come to an end and with it our involvement in Afghanistan will recede from the front pages and, for most Canadians, from the collective consciousness. As a veteran of that campaign, I have been asked by a number of friends and family over …
Editorial Canada. According to a federal government website, the name likely comes from the Huron-Iroquois word “kanata,” meaning “village” or “settlement.” We like to think of Canada as a country that’s a mosaic – where everyone’s language, culture, skin colour, ethnicity, is celebrated and allowed to co-exist. Integration, not assimilation. …
Editor’s Note: Current writer James Di Fiore recently launched his new podcast Blackballed with James Di Fiore. Here he explains how Noam Chomsky came to be his first guest. Last year I emailed Noam Chomsky on a whim. I wanted to ask him if it felt strange to be stating …
OPINION Approximately two years ago our newly elected council introduced their first budget. But when they introduced their second budget, it was immediately affected by things outside the municipal scope: a global pandemic, and the introduction of the province’s Official Plan (OP). By March 2020 COVID-19 hit. Simultaneously, the OP …
