Porch Views, editorials and more
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 …
EDITORIAL Let’s begin with the reason I am writing this nearly a month after a controversial editorial appeared in the Valley Gazette. It’s because in last week’s Gazette (Apr.28), it published an apology for incorrectly identifying someone in an article published the previous week. In fact, the words “We apologize” …
Editorial It seems fitting that Earth Day fell during National Volunteer Week and thanks to community volunteers there’s been a lot of clean-up lately in the Valley. Above from left: Brian Moore, Frank Burchat, Grant Grzywniak with some of the litter they collected (Photo supplied). This year an early spring …
OPINION Bus Consortium to parents: ‘We regret that this will cause disruption to people’s lives.’ Full disclosure: I am a father of two children, 6 and 4 years old respectively, who are enrolled at Killaloe Public School. When I first found out about the newly proposed staggered bus system, an …
Editorial In a news release dated Mar.5, the Province announced that it is launching consultations with the municipal sector to strengthen accountability for council members. It noted that the Province wants to ensure that councillors and heads of council maintain a safe and respectful workplace, and carry out their duties …
OPINION At the August 4, 2020 MV Council in Committee Meeting, By-Law Enforcement Officer Corwin Quade reported that he had received a large number of complaints about the use of fireworks during 2020 and he was looking for direction from Council. His November 17, 2020 recommendation was to restrict the …
OPINION Hi. I met someone recently. Me. Listen, don’t worry, I’m not going to endlessly drone on about what sort of impact this pandemic is having on all of us. I’ve done that before, as have many others, and frankly the idea of dwelling on the virus and its impact …
OPINION Sunday afternoon’s walk took an unexpected turn, when I spotted a group of demonstrators at the intersection of Opeongo and Bay Streets in downtown Barry’s Bay. As I got closer, I was able to read their homemade signs which had slogans like “End Tyranny,” “End the Ontario Lockdown” and …
OPINION The Current has received the following comments from a Madawaska Valley reader who disagrees with Brenda Strack’s article entitled “Falling prey to deception.” Additional comments from other readers can be found below the original article. Image above: World Health Organization/Advice for Public/Myth-Busters Falling prey to deception indeed. This is …
OPINION One of the most controversial topics of discussion that has surfaced among our communities and news broadcasts for the past several months surrounds vaccination. While some are celebrating the fact that a COVID-19 vaccine has been created and made available in such a timely manner, in an anticipatory attempt …
In its last New Year message, The Current reviewed some of the highs and lows of the previous year. Because of the pandemic, unfortunately 2020 brought more of the latter than the former, so this time we will avoid depressing our readers with such a review. Instead, we would like …
Editorial Mayor Kim Love announced at the MV Council in Committee meeting on Dec.1 that Council intends to make a decision during its Dec.16 meeting about spending $1.5 million on rehabilitating the Paul J. Yakabuski Community Centre (PJYCC). The bulk of this money will be used to replace the ice …
EDITORIAL The Current has been given a copy of a document being distributed to local residents that attacks the wearing of face masks. The reader who provided it says she is aware that other Valley residents have also received it. Image above shows the document’s inflammatory headline attributing irreversible brain …
Editor’s Note: Contributor Kim Hanewich wrote this near the end of last month and we are pleased to share it with our readers now as the Valley enjoys typical summer temperatures in November. As the first ground covering snowfall of the season is underway, a pizza dough rises, and music …
