How do you think these nurses should be compensated?


Adele McLean, a B.C. nurse, says their fight was about recognition, not money. (CBC) Canadian taxpayers are facing a huge, unexpected bill for as much as $200 million in back pay owed to hundreds of nurses, the nurses’ lawyer estimates. The nurses worked for the federal government doing medical assessments on Canadians who applied for disability payments under the Canada Pension Plan. After years of complaining and getting nowhere, they filed a complaint of discrimination in 2004 with the Canadian Human Rights Commission. Last month, they won their case. Their Victoria lawyer now estimates the settlement could cost hundreds of millions of dollars. Full Story What do you think? Do these nurses deserve years of back pay? How do you think the government should respond?

What do you think about the Victoria Police video?
Police surveillance tape shows Willow Kinloch, then 15, was tethered to the door. (CBC) A B.C. teenager alleges she was assaulted and unlawfully confined by Victoria police when she was just 15. Police surveillance videotape shows Willow Kinloch detained in a padded cell, where police officers are seen holding her down, handcuffing her, tying her feet and tethering her to the cell door for four hours. Kinloch’s family has filed a civil law suit against the City of Victoria and the four officers involved. The case is expected to go to trial this fall. Full Story| Raw Video What did you think of the video? Do you think the Victoria Police were justified in restraining Willow Kinloch the way they did? Should these restraints be used?

Yes or no to megacity?
At the start of January 1998, toronto‘s six municipal governments were amalgamated into one megacity, but a decade later financial problems still exist. The idea of amalgamation came with promises of huge cost savings, even cuts in property tax, but that never happened. Many blame the amalgamation for financial problems the city still faces today. The Conservative provincial government of Mike Harris promised amalgamation wouldn’t hurt the new city financially. But toronto‘s costs rose fast and revenue didn’t. The promised savings never materialized, nor did those property tax decreases. Harris later said that toronto failed to make the necessary cuts. But others say Harris failed to realize how expensive such a large government would become. Property tax revenue barely budged, yet the cost of wages, social services and other programs skyrocketed. Over the following years, toronto sunk deeper and deeper into a financial hole. toronto now has new tax revenue coming in and it is hoped that this spring the provincial government may once again start paying for the expensive social programs cities were handed at amalgamation. What’s your view? Did amalgamation help or hinder the development of the city? Do you like the new GTA, or would you prefer the old municipalities?

Do you think Laibar Singh should be deported?
Laibar Singh suffered a stroke last year that left him a quadriplegic. (CBC) Supporters of a paralyzed, failed refugee claimant who has taken sanctuary at a Sikh temple in Surrey say they have once again stopped his deportation. About 300 supporters gathered outside the Guru Nanak Sikh Temple on Wednesday in an attempt to prevent Canadian Border Services Agency officials from taking Laibar Singh into custody. The latest deportation order was scheduled to take place Wednesday at 4:30 a.m. PT, but the deportation was delayed as temple representatives met with border agents and police. Along with the crowd of supporters, a cube van was parked behind the temple’s large metal gate, which was locked with chains. Full Story Do you think Laibar Singh should be allowed to stay in Canada? If you want to see him deported, how do you think the government should accomplish that?

TSX closes with 250-point gain; Dow rises 108
The TSX jumped at the opening of trading Thursday and held those gains through the day as the market built on Wednesday’s late-day rally.

Is it fair to ban facial piercings in a school or workplace?
Former B.C. culinary student Niseema Emery was told by the school to take out her jewellery or leave. (CBC) A B.C. culinary school won’t allow one of its students to complete her studies because she refuses to follow a new dress code that requires the removal of her facial jewelry and large earrings, the student says. The International Culinary School at The Art Institute of Vancouver changed its dress code in 2006, banning students from having facial piercings. Former student Niseema Emery says that was not the rule when she enrolled and says the school’s policy is unfair. “It’s one of the ways that I express myself and I’m not willing to change that,” said Emery. “It makes me feel good. It’s like putting makeup on in the morning, getting ready to go. It’s exactly the same as any other kind of piercing or ear piercing, it’s just a little bit bigger.” Full Story What do you think? Is it fair to ban facial piercings in schools or workplaces? As a restaurant customer, what would you think about employees with facial piercings?

Quebec needs fund for pauper burials: funeral directors
Unclaimed bodies in Quebec are not getting buried properly because there’s not enough money to cover costs, says the province’s association of funeral directors.

Snowplow price war leaves Gatineau’s roads buried
The streets of Gatineau, Que., remained slippery and snow-covered for days or weeks after each storms this past December, and truck drivers are blaming to the low rates that the city offers its snowplow contractors compared to neighbouring Ottawa.

Do you ski out of bounds?
An avalanche that killed a skier and seriously injured a snowboarder was triggered by the men as they travelled through a permanently closed area at the ski resort in Whistler, B.C., according to police and resort staff. The RCMP said two local men entered a permanently closed area called Hanging Roll near the West Bowl of Whistler Mountain on Tuesday morning. Staff at Whistler Blackcomb Ski Resort told CBC News on Wednesday that the area is inside the boundaries of the ski resort, but is closed to the public. Full Story Do you ski out of bounds? What do you think should happen to people who do?