It’s not the first time I’ve waded through many hundreds of pages of correspondence released by a government under a FOIPOP (Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy) request, but it is the first time that reading the correspondence made me feel slightly queasy, like a voyeur witnessing unhealthy relationships developing between uncritical and subservient […]
Puppygate: After being arrested for animal cruelty and threatened with jail, a Dartmouth man wants his dogs back from the SPCA
Morning File, Wednesday, September 11, 2019
News 1. Glen Assoun compensation “One of the most recognizable wrongfully convicted Canadians is adding his voice to the chorus calling for early compensation for Glen Assoun, the Nova Scotia man who spent 17 years in prison for a murder he did not commit,” reports Michael Gorman for the CBC: Few people can understand what […]
The never-ending search for enlightenment and murderous Icelandic models
Morning File, Tuesday, September 10, 2019
News 1. Crane A fire department release from yesterday: Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency (HRFE) Chief Ken Stuebing this evening exercised his authority to execute an evacuation order on several properties in the vicinity of South Park Street. The evacuation order is necessary to protect the safety of residents living near a construction crane that […]
Despite government assurances to the contrary, no one knows what the abandoned tidal turbine is doing to the environment
Morning File, Friday, August 9, 2019
I’m having computer problems, and so this is a short version of Morning File. News 1. Who are we building bike lanes for, anyway? “After the announcement about $25 million in funding towards a minimum bike grid for central Halifax and Dartmouth, there was a lot of talk about who would benefit from such an investment,” […]
Here’s how much we paid in legal fees to get court documents in Glen Assoun’s wrongful conviction case unsealed
Morning File, Wednesday, July 31, 2019
News 1. Chickens and other fowl “Hesitant to settle for chickens, Halifax councillors decided to include all egg-laying fowl in the rules on backyard birds in residential areas,” reports Zane Woodford for Star Halifax: Council voted on Tuesday to tell planning staff to start drafting bylaw amendments, with only Councillor Russell Walker voting no, citing […]
The shameful and cowardly political non-response to the Assoun case
Morning File, Wednesday, July 17, 2019
News 1. The shameful and cowardly political non-response to the Assoun case “No one in authority wants to talk about the wrongful murder conviction of Glen Assoun,” reports Blair Rhodes for the CBC: On Tuesday, Mark Furey, Nova Scotia’s attorney general and minister of justice, said he cannot comment on the Assoun case at this time. […]
How to value 27 newspapers spread across three provinces: the Ford Falcon test
Morning File, Tuesday, April 16, 2019
News 1. Police Commission I have left this item for last to write about today, simply because it’s so dispiriting. I spent a couple of hours watching the police commission in action yesterday, and I could write at length about it here, but Margaret Anne McHugh summarized it perfectly with this tweet: Learned a lot […]
Horsing around with taxpayers’ money for some connected guy’s get-rich-quick scheme
Morning File, Monday, March 4, 2019
News 1. Glen Assoun In 1999, Glen Assoun was convicted of the murder of his former girlfriend, Brenda Way. He spent 16-and-a- half years in prison and four-and-a-half years under strict conditions of parole. Throughout, he maintained his innocence. The murder of Way and conviction of Assoun is the subject of the first three parts […]
Why would anyone seriously think that the Downtown Dartmouth plan would result in anything useful?
Morning File, Wednesday, October 24, 2018
News 1. Carbon plan “Nova Scotians will pay more for electricity, gasoline, and home-heating over the next four years as part of the province’s plan to reduce its carbon footprint and avoid a carbon tax Ottawa announced it will impose on four other provinces beginning this January,” reports Jennifer Henderson. “But Premier Stephen McNeil insists […]
Quackery and dog whistles: all in a day’s work for the Halifax Examiner
Morning File, Wednesday June 6, 2018
News 1. Cogswell Halifax council yesterday gave its OK to the process for the Cogswell interchange redevelopment project, but insisted that there be more public input as it proceeds. 2. Quack “medicines” “If you’re looking for a “natural” remedy for your cough or earache, you can cross Stone’s Drug Store in Baddeck off your list,” […]