Porch Views, editorials and more
Perhaps you have noticed that views from my porch are not appearing as regularly in the online and print versions of The Madawaska Valley Current these days. The publishers tell me that a number of readers have been inquiring, and I am well aware of folks’ proclivity to, in the …
In my review of The Current’s 2019 contribution to local news coverage, two events stand out as being especially revealing. I refer to the bland response by members of council to one of their own swearing at and threatening me during a Madawaska Valley council meeting, followed by the manufactured …
Do you remember the smells of your childhood? Yeah, me too. Specifically, my sense of recall for the fragrances of the cottage in Quebec where my family visited as a child is instant. It’s also intoxicating. It’s a mix between general cottage mustiness, the lingering aroma of my grandmother’s cooking, …
OPINION Even as President Trump was being impeached yesterday, his enabler-in-chief, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, was providing yet more evidence that reveals why the Republican Party has sold its soul to the Devil. On Wednesday afternoon while Republicans in the House of Representatives were collectively scraping the bottom of …
PUBLISHER’S NOTE: The Current believes that the issues raised in this editorial originally published just over a year ago remain relevant, particularly given the apparent lack of activity and progress on economic development during the new Council’s first year. We re-publish it now ahead of tomorrow evening’s public meeting at …
“If liberty means anything at all it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.” — George Orwell. These performers remind us of something paramount; comedians don’t provide the example of what they can get away with saying, they provide us with the blueprint of what everyone can say.
OPINION What’s the adage? Polite people should never talk about sex, politics or religion. Well, in the Valley if we couldn’t talk about who’s new to Splitsville, who’s running around, what’s going on at the town hall, our MP’s latest outburst, who’s become a holy roller, or the bishop’s …
Opinion In late August, Ontario’s Ministry of the Solicitor General announced that an inquest will be held into the deaths of Anastasia Kuzyk , Nathalie Warmerdam and Carol Culleton. (Shown above) The three local women were murdered by Basil Borutski in what has been described as one of the worst cases …
Joan Kitts was buried on a rainy afternoon in the St. Lawrence O’Toole graveyard in Barry’s Bay beside her beloved husband Charlie. Her nine children and many members of their families, some cousins and friends accompanied her on that final journey. Her daughter Julie said that when they drove into …
EDITORIAL On Sept. 4 The Current reported on Councillor Ernie Peplinski’s demand made at the Aug. 27 Council meeting that The Current’s owners apologize to taxpayers and write them a cheque for $60,000. The report confirmed that The Current’s publisher had requested the opportunity to attend the next Council meeting …
Editor’s note: The following is self-evidently satire, but … Following President Donald Trump’s hissy-fit after his failed attempt to purchase Greenland from Denmark, he has now trained his sights on real estate he covets that is closer to home. In so doing, it appears that he took seriously the …
Summer is almost over and I haven’t spent much time on the porch watching the goings-on in the Bay. July’s heat made me retreat to the shadier summer kitchen for writing and relaxation, and gardening has taken up a lot of my time. Just the other day though, my garden …
EDITORIAL Following the Council meeting of June 18, The Current wrote to Councillor Ernie Peplinski seeking clarification of comments he made during the meeting in relation to the distribution of Canada Day grant funding. Those statements seemed calculated to leave the impression that Combermere had been unfairly bypassed. His statements …
OPINION On Wednesday the Ontario government released details of the next phase in the licensing of cannabis retail stores. The result is that the door has now been opened for local entrepreneurs to apply to set up shop in the Valley. This is because of the 42 new licences that …
OPINION As announced at the June 4 Council in Committee meeting, in an effort to reduce the high cost of investigations conducted by controversial Integrity Commissioner, Guy Giorno, Madawaska Valley Township has hired Sudbury consulting firm, Expertise for Municipalities (E4M), to oversee the validity of complaints made by citizens against …
