Opinions
MLA Report: Continued confidence in local economy
By Medicine Hat News Opinon on November 23rd, 2018
The Medicine Hat job numbers continue to see a drop in the unemployment rate, according to Statistics Canada, reflecting a continued confidence in the local economy. A drop of nearly a percentage point combined with 400 fewer unemployed in our city year over year should be seen as a positive development as Medicine Hat continues ... Read More »
Be the first to comment!Council conundrum: Redevelopment or protection of old neighbourhoods
By Medicine Hat News Opinon on November 22nd, 2018
Two issues that are heading to the city council table and public hearings next month are the latest in a long series of development tension in Medicine Hat, where a spiderweb of civic priorities has turned more into a tug-of-war and inaction. The city’s guiding planning principles have long stated that infill development is a ... Read More »
Be the first to comment!Tribute to the power of one
By Medicine Hat News Opinon on November 21st, 2018
The launch of of the new $10 bill Tuesday is a double tribute to the power of one determined person. The banknote carries a portrait of Viola Desmond, the first Canadian woman to be featured alone on our nation’s currency. The black businesswoman from New Glasgow, N.S., was arrested in 1946 after choosing to sit ... Read More »
Be the first to comment!Governments shouldn’t let e-cigarettes be targeted at kids
By Medicine Hat News Opinon on November 20th, 2018
Tobacco manufacturers have long known the recipe for luring kids into smoking cigarettes: add fruit or candy flavours to the products, then spend a fortune on “cool” advertising. So it’s no surprise that as the cigarette market was tanking because of vigorous anti-smoking campaigns, bans and taxes, the tobacco giants aimed their marketing guns on ... Read More »
Be the first to comment!In this deal, the NHL wins and players lose
By Medicine Hat News Opinon on November 19th, 2018
A tentative settlement in a lawsuit over concussions would pay hundreds of former NHL players just a few million dollars more than John Tavares of the Toronto Maple Leafs (the league’s highest-paid player) will earn in a single season. And once lawyers’ fees and costs are deducted from the $19-million (U.S.) deal, the players would ... Read More »
Be the first to comment!National Affairs: Bernier still looking for a vein to tap into
By Medicine Hat News Opinon on November 17th, 2018
As he travels west in search of support for his breakaway conservative party, Maxime Bernier has taken to introducing himself as “the Albertan from Quebec.” Albertans will have to decide from themselves whether a leader who reflects their values would, among other things, have Canada turn its back on the global fight against climate change ... Read More »
Be the first to comment!Kenney must take right-wing extremism more seriously
By Medicine Hat News Opinon on November 17th, 2018
A mere week after pledging to create a database to screen extremists out of the UCP, leader Jason Kenney has another headache on his hands. John Carpay, leader of the right-wing Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms and a UCP member in good standing, compared the rainbow LGBTQ flag to the Nazi swastika and Soviet hammer ... Read More »
1 responseMLA Report: This economy needs a new mechanic
By Medicine Hat News Opinon on November 16th, 2018
“Ignore it, and it will go away.” You wouldn’t take this advice from your vehicle’s mechanic. So, why would you take it from your province’s finance minister? Coming out of the steepest recession in a generation, there are plenty of warning lights indicating that Alberta’s economy is not functioning properly. More than 180,000 Albertans are ... Read More »
Be the first to comment!Winter Olympics are in trouble when even Calgary says no
By Medicine Hat News Opinon on November 16th, 2018
Calgary has already had more snow this winter than Beijing, host of the next Winter Olympics, will get all year. It has plenty of existing sport infrastructure and the winter culture to benefit from getting even more of it. And its residents have fond memories of hosting the 1988 Games. So the International Olympic Committee ... Read More »
Be the first to comment!Alberta’s oil sector has the pain with no gain
By Medicine Hat News Opinon on November 15th, 2018
Such is the state of the Alberta oil patch that this week a major industry player has called on the provincial government to mandate lower production levels. The goal, to stabilize prices earned in the face of a transportation glut that discounts prices, seems straightforward enough, though entirely contradictory to how many view the industry. ... Read More »
1 responseStatCan pokes into Canadians’ bank accounts
By Medicine Hat News Opinon on November 14th, 2018
We learned recently that Statistics Canada wants to compel the country’s nine largest banks to hand over the financial transaction data of 500,000 Canadians. That information might include statements of account balances, deposits, ATM withdrawals, cheques written or received, and credit-card use. Social Insurance numbers will also be collected. All of this was organized without ... Read More »
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