By Nicholas Heather One time, me and the kids had a fish hotel. It was my idea. My original idea. For some reason we’d acquired a 20-gallon fish tank. Of course, the kids wanted to get fish. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, you guys,” I said, as we were discussing what I was […]
Gay allies: Are you really on side?
By Dave Brindle We’re in the middle of Pride season. The biggest of the top 10 festivals – Toronto, New York and San Francisco – are over now, but that leaves Montreal and Vancouver still to come in Canada, and a host of smaller ones around the world. They’re everywhere these days. Port Alberni, BC, will […]
Afraid of the scaremongers
By Frank Moher Now that the Conservatives’ Bill C-51 is law, having been boosted over the wall by 44 compliant Senators, it’s time for the RCMP to get to work and start arresting people. They can begin with the Conservatives. Because if any organization has been instilling fear in Canadians lately, for blatantly political and ideological ends, it hasn’t been […]
Sophie chose
By Rod Mickleburgh One of the early things I did after ending my daily journalism career of 119 years, besides endless Googling of past Montreal Expo games, was take in the Vancouver public hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in September, 2013. The experience was overwhelming. It’s one thing to read about the unspeakable […]
Before the selfie was . . . the selfie
By Jim Henshaw Some social media memes utterly escape me. Taking pictures of your feet or whatever you’re about to eat are part of that list. But topping them is the Selfie. Surprising as it might be to Millennials and their overlapping generations, taking a picture of yourself with your own phone is not something […]
Rehtaeh: A father’s questions
By Glen Canning This morning I sat in a Halifax courtroom and listened as one of the young men involved with my daughter’s case changed his plea to guilty. He is guilty of producing child pornography. He is the person who clicked the button on that cellphone, and as simply as that, he ended her […]
B’s first day
By Frank Manfredi Today, my youngest started a junior disability program at Queen Victoria public school at Dufferin and King streets in downtown Toronto. I met him at the schoolbus drop off point to support him as he starts at a new school, unfamiliar teachers, and new kids to get to know, befriend, be wary […]
Remembrance Day for families
By Rod Mickleburgh It’s chilling, the thought that each workplace fatality starts with someone heading off to work on a normal day, having no idea their time on earth is about to end. Likely without a goodbye to the ones they love, or any sort of meaningful conversation at all before leaving the house. It’s […]
The Great Pumpkin Toss
By Rachelle Stein-Wotten I have a Halloween confession: I dislike carving pumpkins. The jack-o’-lantern does not cast its haunting glow at my place of residence, and it’s not because the seedy, sticky innards make a mess or because cutting into the top of a pumpkin is a pain in the ass. I abstain from the […]
Dad arrested for kid’s drawing gets apology
A BoB short: Police in Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario have apologized to a man they believed to be dangerous after his daughter drew a picture of him shooting a gun at bad guys. In February, Jessie Sansone, 26, was arrested at his four-year-old daughter Nevaeh’s school for possession of a firearm. A teacher believed there might be […]
