News 1. Military ban on some tattoos Lee Berthiaume reports for the Canadian Press that the military has issued new guidelines on acceptable tattoos. This after photos of a Halifax-based sailor with an “Infidel” tattoo spread online and in the media. The new rules, which apply whether a tattoo is visible or not, lay out […]
A bad day for people on bikes
Morning File, Thursday, July 25, 2019
News 1. Two collisions send two cyclists to hospital A pick-up truck driver who hit a cyclist on Waverley Road Wednesday morning has been charged with “Vehicle Passing a Bicycle while Travelling on Right When There is Less than 1 Metre between the Vehicle and Cyclist” according to the RCMP. The cyclist was taken to […]
Who killed the electric bus? Halifax Transit turns down electric bus funding, opts to stick with diesel instead
City staff are “mothballing” an electric bus pilot project for which council had already approved $1 million in funding, in the process turning down another $2.25 million in federal funding secured to help fund the project, according to documents obtained under a Freedom of Information request. An electric bus generates about 62 fewer tonnes of...
The Assoun wrongful conviction: the McNeil connection
Morning File, Monday, July 8, 2019
News 1. Northern Pulp Mill’s missing environmental data “If Premier Stephen McNeil is wavering on the Northern Pulp / Paper Excellence file, entertaining notions on amending the Boat Harbour Act so that effluent from the Pictou County pulp mill can continue to flow into the lagoon after January 31, 2020, he would do well to […]
Ignorance is bliss, and other news of the day
Morning File, Thursday, July 4, 2019
News 1. Ignorance is bliss: city councillors still not briefed on potential malfeasance by Halifax police “We’re witnessing an astonishing display of cowardice from our elected officials,” writes Tim this morning, after looking for answers on why a city lawyer intervened to prevent the release of court documents that could shed light on what went […]
Climate change is killing the right whales
Morning File, Thursday, June 27, 2019
News 1. Why aren’t Cabot Links or Ben Cowan-Dewar registered as lobbyists? “You would have to be completely foolhardy to question the brain trust that has formed to support spending public money to build an airport in Inverness but foolhardy’s my middle name so — hold my beer,” writes Mary Campbell for the Cape Breton Spectator: […]
Afua Cooper: “We need to smash those [racist] stereotypes and see the humanity in each and every one of us”
Morning File, Wednesday, May 22, 2019
News 1. Bank of Canada acknowledges that climate change will impact the economy “For the first time ever, the Bank of Canada has released a report examining the threat climate change poses to the country’s financial system,” reports Karina Roman for the CBC. The report in question is the Bank’s annual Fiscal System Review, which […]
Treat your brain: get outdoors
News 1. Premier vs teachers, round 27 Premier Stephen McNeil returned from his latest trip to Europe and China yesterday, and pretty much immediately started in on the teachers’ union — this time, accusing them of spreading misinformation about cuts. A CP story in The Star Halifax says McNeil criticized the union Thursday for alleging […]
With increasing sea level rise, does it make sense to build a new Art Gallery of Nova Scotia on the waterfront?
In the last three months, it’s been reported that the Greenland ice sheet is melting faster than expected, which will mean a higher rise in sea-level than earlier projected; that temperatures in Canada are warming at approximately double the average global rate; and that more flooding is predicted for Atlantic Canada over the next 50...
A tale of two protests
While officials moved quickly to respond to student protests about the cancellation of high school rugby, they were quick to erect roadblocks when students wanted to protest climate change.
“In my view, kids should be in class.” Premier Stephen McNeil March 2019 “Something is happening here But you don’t know what it is, Do you, Mr. Jones?” Ballad of a Thin Man Bob Dylan (1965) One Friday. Two student protests. Two very different (immediate) results. On Friday at noon — less than 24 hours...