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Opinion

STAHN: Tax payers should find another way

The City of Kamloops spent $45,000 this year on a temporary tax office just to help residents who insist on paying their tax bills in person avoid the construction taking place outside of City Hall.  Does that make sense in 2014? Only 2,600 people used the temporary office at McArthur Island working out to a cost...

HELSTON: When council calls the shots on local sports

Local government has had its mitts all over three newcomer sports over the past year: longboarding, pickleball and mixed martial arts. The sports have virtually nothing in common except for the fact they are relatively new, emerging activities that are gathering fierce followings and lots of reaction from local politicians. But what is the government’s...

ARCHER: Appreciate local history before it’s lost

There’s an old adage that says “You never know what you had until it’s gone.” Yes, it’s a bit tacky to use cliches but it may be worth taking a closer look at the people and places in your life and recognize them before they go up in smoke. Earlier this week, Keremeos lost one...

GOG: Well ain’t life just some beach

Last weekend I made a ghastly mistake, one that will affect my life forever. I went to the beach.  I should have known better, but it was stiflingly hot at home and I thought an afternoon at the beach would be one of pleasure and relaxation. My mistake began to become apparent when I tried to...

LOEWEN: Youth and that contrived conviviality called “Fun”

“Fun.” Is there possibly a more risible and contemptible three-letter noun in the contemporary lexicon? Fun: it’s everywhere these days. It’s there on the margins of whatever screen you happen to stare into. It’s calling you over the airwaves of whatever radio station you’re currently dialed into. And television, of course, is awash in Fun,...

PARKER: No more justifying the junk drawer

I met a woman once who told me every time she found a box in her home that hadn’t been opened in two years, she would throw it away without looking inside of it. The idea of this propelled me into a panic attack faster than discovering a new imaginary body part. What if it...

JONESIE: When it comes to fire, how do you fix stupid?

Oh, what I wanted to do to this guy. Waiting at a light in traffic, I watched him, waited to see if he’d do it and he didn’t disappoint. Smoke billowing out the windows of his SUV, he took one last drag of his cigarillo and casually dropped it, still smoking to the street. It...

STAHN: Penalties govern highway speed, not traffic signs

Last week the provincial government announced it was increasing the speed limit on more than 1,300 kilometres of highway. I’m sure the cry around the province was ‘Yay! I get to drive faster… legally.’ But how much does the posted speed limit really affect driver habits? Transportation Minister Todd Stone said more than 85 per...

HELSTON: Losing the Kin Race Track would be losing part of history

VERNON - While the Vernon courthouse recently celebrated its centennial this year, the even older Kin Race Track is fighting to remain a fixture of the community, despite the crowds that come galloping through the gates every summer. Both are historic facets of the town, yet the City of Vernon and the Regional District of...

PROSKIW: The perks of crime on parade

The Southeast Division of the RCMP unveiled for the press Thursday their latest salvo in the neverending war against gangs in our valley. The confiscated Nissan, complete with performance parts and eye-catching wheels, is being touted as a crime fighting tool, and was revealed to the crowd with a dramatic polish that made me feel I...

ARCHER: Holding government leaders accountable

Government bodies get a bad rap when it comes to spending money, and sometimes the facts prove our tax dollars are not being well spent. But when government officials show us what's in their pockets, it becomes easier for the public to trust their leaders and the decisions they make on behalf of the community....

GOG: Interrupted by the wart-like beauty of a baby

I do not pretend to understand persons of the opposite sex any more than I pretend to understand quantum physics or other equally impenetrable mysteries of the universe. And the one thing that baffles me every time is their bizarre behaviour around babies. To a rational observer there is nothing less attractive than a mewling,...

LOEWEN: Welcome home, Marc Emery, you’re just in time

“Marc” your calendar for tomorrow’s date, folks. It’s the day that cannabis-activist and agent provocateur Marc Emery is officially released from an American federal prison and begins a brief purgatory in detention until Canadian and American bureaucrats process the paperwork that will finally see the Canadian citizen returned to his home and native land. By...