Archive 1997-2016
The grand promenade along Metcalfe Street would have been breathtaking, with a glorious view of Parliament as a backdrop to marching bands, fountains and monuments. But it’s hard to imagine how the mechanics of that plan were worked out, how it could ever have come to be considered as a viable proposal, until you understand the NCC’s central attitude.
The news is in: Thanks to a clever bit of millennial law-bending, local bars can now be expected to keep their doors open till the crack of dawn, Jan. 1, 2000.
The idea is that potentially chaos-causing street-wanderers will have something to keep them occupied — besides fist fights about whether the third sign of Apocalypse was the sea turning red or the sun turning black.
It’s always nice when the government decides to consult the people on important issues. We’re all in favour of responsive, accountable leadership.
But when the white knights of government go to all the trouble and expense to commission gaggles of tele-surveyers, reams of mail-outs and extensive public consultations, results aren’t just a desired effect — they’re an absolute necessity.
The proposed cuts to health care in the upcoming regional budget unfairly target senior citizens’ resources. Obviously, the region needs to make budget cuts, since the only other option it has is to implement an unpopular tax increase. But at a time when we are trying to shift the brunt of health care responsibility to the community, does it really make sense to cut funding to regional health care?