What’s in a name? Apparently plenty when it comes to sports teams and imaginary slights
Irving Berlin’s song White Christmas is a classic. But if the logic of a special interest group in Winnipeg prevails, the song’s name would have to be changed to something like Grey Christmas. Black Space Winnipeg, a non-profit organization that lobbies for safe spaces for Winnipeg's black community, argues that the popular Whiteout event put…
Bettman’s biggest legacy to hockey fans is all the seasons he’s blighted by denying fans the game they love in labour stoppages
One of these people recognized at the Hockey Hall of Fame on Monday is not like the others: Martin St. Louis, Martin Brodeur, Willie O’Ree, Jayna Hefford, Alexander Yakushev, Gary Bettman. Hmm, wonder who? Most hockey fans – and this is all about the fans, right? – think the institution is about what happens on…
Developmentally delayed children come into a failing welfare system due to irresponsible parents placing substance abuse ahead of their children
More than half of Winnipeg’s Indigenous homeless population are former wards of Child and Family Services (CFS). A former CFS ward explained on CBC recently that the 50 per cent figure was too low, not taking into account the significant number of former wards who “couch surf.” This group relies on the kindness of acquaintances…
We need to address contributing factors to homelessness, including mental illness, addictions and poverty
Tonight, an increasing number of Canadians face the prospect of sleeping in a tent – not to welcome the summer camping season but as a last resort. Unlike regulated campgrounds, tent cities are without electricity, water and often bathrooms. These makeshift encampments appear to be on the rise with Winnipeg and Nanaimo, B.C., being two…
The assertion that we are on treaty land should not allow anyone to impose expectations or rights beyond the societal standard
CBC Radio recently aired a story about an Indigenous woman who complained that a security officer, and then a City of Winnipeg police officer, treated her improperly while she was attending a Winnipeg Jets-related “Whiteout” event. The woman, who described herself as an elder and a grandmother, says she was standing in a place that…
Winnipeg's decision to go with new curbside collection providers ramps up unnecessary costs for taxpayers as the market for recyclables softens
The City of Winnipeg’s intended austerity budget predictably nickels and dimes ratepayers, with rate increases and service cuts in response to lower than expected provincial transfers. But city council has thrown away tens of millions of dollars in available savings on garbage collections and recycling. In September 2016, independent pollsters found that 93 per cent…