Armchair Mayor

ARMCHAIR MAYOR – Running twice, running in place and not running at all

September 22, 2018 // 0 Comments

SOME CIVIC ELECTION odds and ends to catch up on this week. I’ve recently written about a couple of quirks of our civic election system. One is that people are allowed to [Continue]

ROTHENBURGER – Why it’s okay, and even necessary, to grieve for our dogs

September 1, 2018 // 3 Comments

(Video: Courtesy Kent Simmonds, CFJC-TV) His dog up and died He up and died After twenty years he still grieves — Lyrics, Mr. Bojangles. I’VE ALWAYS MARVELLED at the ease [Continue]

ROTHENBURGER – A nostalgia tour up Goose Lake Road, post-Ajax mine

August 25, 2018 // 1 Comment

TOOK A NOSTALGIA TOUR this week, driving up Goose Lake Road. It’s different now than when KGHM was busy with pre-development on the Ajax project, but there are relics all [Continue]

ROTHENBURGER – Warning to candidates: prepare for crap and abuse

August 18, 2018 // 2 Comments

IT’S COMMON SPECULATION that at least 30 people will put their names forward for councillor positions plus several for mayor in the upcoming Kamloops civic election. [Continue]

ROTHENBURGER – How about we tell drop-in politicians to stay home?

August 11, 2018 // 4 Comments

AS LONG AS WE’RE TALKING about electoral reform, how about we do something about drop-in politicians? Federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh has announced he’ll run in a [Continue]

ROTHENBURGER – New Hydro levy one more thing to raise our blood pressure

August 4, 2018 // 1 Comment

And why must cats walk in front of us, and why can’t stores put dates on receipts where can see them? OUR FIRST HYDRO bills with the new tax have arrived. The Customer [Continue]

ROTHENBURGER – Food-truck lineup a good way to reconnect with humans

July 28, 2018 // 1 Comment

“I DON’T EVEN KNOW what they’ve got,” said the man behind me in the food-truck lineup. “Neither do I,” I said. “I’m just hoping for hot dogs and fries.” [Continue]

ROTHENBURGER – ‘The Shore’ will always be the North Shore to me

July 21, 2018 // 0 Comments

Rebranding is a good exercise in self examination but it’s the fundamentals that count MY VERSION OF what I like to call “the North Shore lifestyle” consists [Continue]

ROTHENBURGER – Letter signed by five City councillors raises questions

July 14, 2018 // 4 Comments

SEVERAL WORDS COME TO MIND with respect to the open letter signed by five City councillors in support of proportional representation. Courageous. Creative. Strange. Setting [Continue]

ROTHENBURGER – Why can’t we walk the talk on freedom of speech?

July 7, 2018 // 5 Comments

WE TALK A GOOD GAME when it comes to freedom of speech. We salute the concept but what we really mean is, “I defend your right to speak your mind, as long as you agree with [Continue]

ROTHENBURGER – Flags, torching the White House & other Canada Day stuff

June 30, 2018 // 0 Comments

Let’s clear up a few things that make us different from our friends down south, and make us who we are IT’S IMPOSSIBLE to talk about Canada and Canada Day this year [Continue]

ROTHENBURGER – When is one more bylaw one bylaw too many?

June 23, 2018 // 1 Comment

Was a time when bylaws were enforced to change behaviour. Now, it seems, they’re for informational purposes THERE USED TO BE a bylaw in Vancouver that prohibited [Continue]

ROTHENBURGER – Why civic politics is actually a step up from provincial

June 16, 2018 // 0 Comments

We often think of provincial or federal politics as being a step up from serving on a local council, but think again IS BEING AN MLA really a step up from civic politics? [Continue]

ROTHENBURGER – Why we fear rattlesnakes more than clowns

June 9, 2018 // 0 Comments

THERE WAS A GUY who lived in our home town when I was growing up who made the local paper every year. He was a minor celebrity, a bit of a folk hero, even, because he killed [Continue]