ARMCHAIR MAYOR
ROTHENBURGER: What this province needs is another left-wing party
WHEN BC CONSERVATIVE candidates Ward Stamer and Dennis Giesbrecht held their introductory news conference last weekend, the first question they were asked was if they felt they would split the free-enterprise vote between themselves and BC United. Not at all, they replied. There are "significant differences" ...
Mar 20, 2024
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Armchair Mayor
ROTHENBURGER: A low-key start with high hopes of changing the face of local politics
THERE WERE NO BALLOONS, banners, placards or cheering crowds at Friday's official announcement of the BC Conservative candidates for the two Kamloops ridings. Just the candidates themselves, a couple of supporters from the party, some reporters and a homeless guy who happened by on his rounds.Never mind, it was a pleas...
Mar 16, 2024
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ARMCHAIR MAYOR
ROTHENBURGER: We should get rid of governors-general and their free-spending ways
GOVERNOR-GENERAL Mary Simon has been awarded a salary boost of $11,200 for 2024, bringing her annual paycheque to $362,800. She doesn't need it and, sorry, she doesn't deserve it.Simon came into office with high hopes as a governor-general who could bring people together, partly because she has indigenous roots.While s...
Mar 14, 2024
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ARMCHAIR MAYOR
ROTHENBURGER: It was a good day around the City council table for a change
IT WAS A GOOD DAY at Kamloops City council yesterday. It's hard to know where to begin but let's start with the plan for a cleanup of beaches.It's a great idea, one that will generate some new pride in River City. Similar to the Adopt-A-Road program, the Clean-The-Beach program will result in a cleanup of the river sho...
Mar 13, 2024
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Armchair Mayor
ROTHENBURGER: Battle for new Kamloops Centre riding bound to be contentious
THE MAN WHO THINKS non-profit agencies that criticize City council should be barred from receiving grant funding wants to be the next MLA for Kamloops Centre.Bill Sarai announced his intention this week to seek the NDP nomination for the Oct. 19 provincial election in the newly configured urban riding. With his name re...
Mar 09, 2024
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ARMCHAIR MAYOR
ROTHENBURGER: Sending KFR medical response issue to committee is no answer
ASSUMING COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE recommendations are confirmed when Kamloops City council sits in regular session, taxpayers will be on the hook for a slightly lower increase than originally predicted.Tuesday was the day to deal with so-called "supplementary" budget items, a wish list generated from City Hall ...
Mar 07, 2024
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ARMCHAIR MAYOR
ROTHENBURGER: Caputo's melodramatic video aside, prison system needs review
MP FRANK CAPUTO'S video on killer Paul Bernardo's living conditions is dramatic, even theatrical, but it turns out it might not be totally accurate.With thumping background music, file footage and a declaration that "I came face to face with Paul Bernardo," the seven-minute production has gone viral on social...
Mar 06, 2024
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ARMCHAIR MAYOR
ROTHENBURGER: Wokeism reigns with banning of classics from school library shelves
SHADES OF FAHRENHEIT 451. That's the Ray Bradbury novel from 1953, later made into a couple of movies, about a future in which books have been outlawed and firemen (i.e. firefighters) burn them.It's about censorship and the destruction of knowledge so the state can more easily control the populace. The Surrey school bo...
Mar 05, 2024
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ARMCHAIR MAYOR
ROTHENBURGER: Oregon recriminalizes while B.C. doubles down on public drug use
THE B.C. COURT OF APPEAL has rejected a bid by the provincial government to let its Restricting Public Consumption of Illegal Substances Act go into force. So an injunction against enforcing the Act remains in effect, at least for now. Those who believe drug use should be allowed in most public places are celebrating t...
Mar 04, 2024
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Armchair Mayor
ROTHENBURGER: The turbulent era that led to an apology to the Sons of Freedom
THE SONS OF FREEDOM Doukhobor community received an official apology and $10 million this week for the removal of children from their homes in the 1950s.Without question, it was a traumatic experience for those kids, a heavy-handed response to a social problem rooted in religious radicalism. At the time, though, attitu...
Mar 02, 2024
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