Yesterday, I started writing a blog about all of the interesting things which political commentators have had to write about this past summer. I also began looking at why a merged NDP-Liberal Party would not appeal to the growing restlessness, found p…
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Sudbury Steve May: Restlessness with the Status Quo and Appealing to the Zeitgeist of Our Times
As summer draws to a close, it can’t now be said that this past August was a slow news month for Canadian political commentators. With the unexpected passing of Jack Layton, former Leader of the NDP, Canada’s political commentators have been in ov…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Jack Layton: Tireless Canadian Hero
I’m sure that Jack Layton had a special place in his heart for Sudbury. Although not from these parts, Layton connected with spirit of the community, and identified with our struggles and challenges. Over the past several years, he was a frequent …
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Exurban Development in Greater Sudbury: Fiscally Irresponsible, Environmentally Unsustainable
The following is a copy of a letter which I have submitted to members of Greater Sudbury’s municipal council:
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It was with interest that I read a recent article appearing in the Sudbury Star, “Council looks at priorities” (August 17, 2011). …
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Strange Days Indeed: Nycole Turmel and the NDP Oppose Necessary Democratic Reforms
There used to be a time that the NDP could be counted on to put the democratic interests of our nation ahead of partisan politics. Apparently, that’s no longer the case. Rather than endorsing the federal Conservative’s attempt to bring a little m…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Downtown Opportunities: Sudbury’s Market Square and the New School of Architecture
Greater Sudbury’s Market Square has been in the local news a lot lately, as speculation has been rife that the new School of Architecture has been eyeing the downtown location currently occupied by the Market. At today’s Policy Committee meeting, …
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Prioritising Public Transit in Greater Sudbury, Part II
(….continued from Part I)
High Occupancy Vehicle Lanes
We also need to start giving priority to transit vehicles at peak travel hours through the creation of High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes. We should have been taking a close look at the benefi…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Prioritising Public Transit in Greater Sudbury, Part II
With the release of the program audit of Greater Sudbury transit earlier this week by Greater Sudbury Auditor-General Brian Bigger, transit in this City seems to be at the top of everybody’s mind. While the media has tended to focus on reports on in…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Nuclear Waste to be Transported through Greater Sudbury?
An interesting article appeared in last Friday’s edition of the Sault Star. It seems that two northeastern Ontario communities are in the running to host Canada’s first underground permanent burial site for radioactive nuclear waste. Now, most pe…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Tough Questions for Sudbury MP Glenn Thibeault over Support of Former Bloc Member Nycole Turmel’s Ascension to NDP Leader
An article of minor interest appeared in my local newspaper last week, as part of the media’s follow-up related to the national news story that New Democratic Party Leader Jack Layton was stepping down as leader, in order to fight cancer. Layton, an…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Shaken Faith, Part II: Elizabeth May’s Recent Mis-steps on Green Party Democratic Processes and WiFi
(…continued from Part I)Coming hot on the heels of the July 25th endorsement blog issue, we have what has been a much more public mis-step by May. On Wednesday, July 27th, May touched off a national firestorm with a couple of tweets about the health…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Shaken Faith, Part I: Elizabeth May’s Recent Mis-steps on Green Party Democratic Processes and WiFi
Elizabeth May experienced a wonderfully inspirational month as Canada’s first elected Green Member of Parliament. She showed Canadians that one dedicated opposition MP in the House can have an impact far beyond expectations. In one episode, May sto…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Why Celebrating Gay Pride Continues to Matter
Some recent happenings throughout the world and here at home have shown that when it comes to gay rights, we’ve still got a long way to go. I’ve been thinking a lot about these issues over the past couple of weeks, as Pride Week in Greater Sudbury…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: May Right on Libya; NDP Fails Canadians Concerned About Civilian Casualties
“I deeply desire the removal of Colonel Gadhafi, but not by military means in what appears to be a civil war in which Canada has taken sides.” – Elizabeth May, Member of Parliament for Saanich-Gulf Islands, in a speech to Parliament, June 14 2011…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: By Special Request: My Favourite Canadian Beers
A mysterious request came in from a mysterious man: “Hey all. I’m looking to compile a little information (for reasons I won’t go into) about your tastes in beer. Your identities will never be revealed to anyone about this…it’s sort of a li…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Creating a Culture of Cycling in Greater Sudbury
I’m not at all surprised that the Greater Sudbury Police have issued a release reminding cyclists that they are not to be on the sidewalks (see: “No bikes on sidewalks, police say”, The Sudbury Star online, Monday June 20th, 2011)It seems to me, and th…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Reassessing Municipal By-laws and Practices: "Unsightly" May Be "Environmentally Friendly"
I received a registered letter in the mail today, from the City of Greater Sudbury. It wasn’t in fact a letter; it was a “Notice of Non-Conformity”, issued by a municipal by-law enforcement officer. Apparently, we’ve been contravening a munic…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Making the Shift Towards a Culture of Conservation
I’m going to start off today’s blogpost in a similar manner to the way in which I began the last one, although I will be taking this post in a different direction. In my last post, I discussed how moving forward to create a culture of conservation…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Creating a Culture of Conservation
Two important issues have been emerging over the past several decades which are going to inform the events of this century. The first has to do with the way in which greenhouse gas emissions from industrial processes are warming our planet, and the ch…
Continue readingSudbury Steve May: Stop Harper: The G8 Legacy Fund, Dishonesty, and the Danger of Conservative Values-Based Patriotism
Today, a series of long-awaited Reports were made to Parliament by now former Auditor-General Sheila Fraser. One of those reports, alluded to during the federal election campaign as a result of a draft version of the report being leaked, is making hea…
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