Featured Local Perspectives
EDITORIAL: Teaching 'n' texting — a school cellphone ban needs to be accompanied by more education
The province of Ontario has just introduced the most restrictive ban on cellphone use in schools in the country. Yet, even that does not seem thorough enough to turn the tide on one of society’s greatest challenges in this age. Set to begin in ...
COMMENTARY: Cameron was thriving before his illness made him lose hope
Michele Haire Commentary My son is gone. This realization rips through my mind constantly and the pain takes my breath. Cameron, 26, died by suicide Aug. 11, 2023. Cameron was always sweet, sensitive, and cared about the state of the world. If ...
RALPH SURETTE: A Maritimer for prime minister? Are you kidding?
Is something peculiar going on in political circles upalong? The central Canadian media have been a twitter over the notion that Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc has his eye on his best buddy Justin Trudeau’s job. A while back some ...
GAIL LETHBRIDGE: The dark side of Halifax's population boom
A few years ago I was flying into Seoul, South Korea, after a long flight over the North Pole. Looking out the window, I saw a city covered by a forest of highrise buildings that stretched on and on. As the plane gradually lowered on its way to the ...
JOHN DeMONT: Are we doing enough for our most vulnerable newcomers?
Everything I know about the short life of Ahmad Maher Al Marrach is so crushingly sad. That eight years ago, he and his family somehow managed to flee war-torn Syria as refugees in search of “a better life” here in Canada. That in their new home ...
EDITORIAL: Privacy, mental health and saving young people's lives
Kelly Mitchell would have done anything to save her child’s life. So would Laureen Rushton, Carolyn Fox, Michele Haire, Nancy Saunders, Sheila Burke and Louann Link. These grieving mothers have written first-person accounts they are generously ...
COVID VIGNETTE: Car talk, part one
Among the issues of aging—and we're all living longer, on average, than our grandparents—is the loss of mobility. Not only physical mobility, as in climbing stairs, walking, etc.; but mobility as in driving a car. My first inkling of this came at age ...
COMMENTARY: Lucas' last words were 'I love you Mom. I don’t want to die.'
Laureen Rushton Commentary Love is messy and life is not always fair. Lucas was born and died in Halifax, the city he loved best. He surprised us three weeks early on Aug. 16, 2002. He was 11 lbs. 9.5 oz. On May 31, 2021, he peacefully moved on, ...
VOICE OF THE PEOPLE: Two sides to every story
There are always two sides to every story and the letter Phase out the CAP (Voice of the People, April 25) most eloquently describes only one side. What should be understood is that the majority of homes protected under the Capped Assessment Program ...
WALK IN THE WOODS: It's time to give the pollinators a break
Here we are with April winding down, the weather warming and the grass growing. Before going into autopilot and grabbing your lawnmower to mow the grass, let’s give it a second-thought for the benefit of valuable pollinators, because we are ...