Porch Views, editorials and more
Editorial The setback to the future of the Paul J. Yakabuski Community Centre (PJYCC) caused by the recent rejection of a grant application to help pay for much needed repairs has once again brought into the forefront the issue of the cost/benefit of what has been described as a “White …
The publishers of The Current asked me to be part of their back-to-school series, and I am pleased to have my writing published alongside Hayden Smith and James Di Fiore. I enjoyed Hayden’s positive piece, and I appreciate his desire to return to routine and socialization with peers. I also …
Editor’s note: In the second of our series on schools reopening, James di Fiore explains why his family will be home schooling this fall. We didn’t think we had much of a choice. That was the main thought my wife and I had when we finally decided to keep …
We are all familiar with the phrase “unprecedented times” used in reference to the social, economic and lifestyle changes that the COVID-19 pandemic has generated. The most unprecedented thing in my world since March’s lockdown, however, wasn’t COVID-19-related at all. It was the appearance, about a month ago, of a …
OPINION Earlier in my career, I ran a hardware store in Barry’s Bay in the Ottawa Valley — a community of 1,200 people founded as a lumber town more than a century ago. My family has lived there for more than 150 years. Good jobs in forestry have kept …
OPINION As the last long weekend of the summer approaches, many of us will flock to a lakeside retreat to embrace the best of what the remaining days of summer offers. COVID-19 has created an especially difficult and challenging year for us all to find enjoyment within the restrictions of …
Opinion Mediation has been used as a method of dispute resolution in a variety of different cultures for more than 3,000 years. “Blessed are the peacemakers” — this scripture inspired me to become a mediator as a child. Now a Chartered Mediator in Canada with well over one thousand …
Editorial Regular readers know that The Current operates on a not-for-profit basis relying on the support of volunteers and local advertisers to cover costs of production. As such, we are part of a growing movement collectively known as “Nonprofit News.” This has resulted in the formation of an organization, the …
Editor’s note: Welcome back, Mark Woermke! We’re grateful that Mark found time for this Porch Views during his summer “holiday” as we know that between gardening and historical research there aren’t any real holidays at his house. His views on eye care in the province – particularly in rural Ontario – …
Opinion Editor’s Note: Barry’s Bay lawyer Robert Howe provides this analysis of the implications stemming from the County’s new Official Plan. Renfrew County mayors were united in their anger at the County Council meeting on May 27. The reason was the contents of Ontario’s amendment to the County’s Official …
Opinion Yesterday the international media had a field day with yet another Trudeau/Trump video “moment” that has gone viral. This follows two notorious instances of our Prime Minister filmed acting in ways that were interpreted as ridiculing the American president. The first was in August 2019 when he was filmed …
Editorial For the benefit of readers who missed it at the time, last August Mayor Kim Love led an attack on The Current, its owners and one of its reporters. It arose because earlier on August 27, the day of a Council meeting, the Mayor was provided with ammunition she …
Primum non nocere is Latin for “first, do no harm” Another equivalent phrase is found in Epidemics, Book I, of the Hippocratic school: “Practice two things in your dealings with disease: either help or do not harm the patient.” The exact phrase is believed to have originated with the 19th-century …
Ontario’s COVID-19 model projections were sobering. The most surprising thing to me wasn’t that Ontarians have already managed to avert a staggering number of needless deaths through physical distancing and conscientious hand washing, nor that we must continue these measures to ensure that we and others don’t become ill and …
Editorial This weekend’s weather is as mixed as the feelings many of us experience on a holiday weekend like none we have ever seen before. Whether you celebrate Easter, Passover or just like to enjoy an extra day off work, everything is different these days. The usual trips and family …
