Opinion Columns

My grandmother never wanted me to grow up. She told me so every time I would visit her rural Apsley-area home.

Since 2018 when Premier Doug Ford and the Ontario PC Party took power at the provincial level, there has been no shortage of concern caused by the governments persistent shunning of environmental considerations in favour of economic ventures.

The other day I spent a couple of hours reading some recent federal Conservative party press releases and I am excited to say that I have since gained some valuable life coping skills.

When my mother was 96 she watched Al Gore’s second climate documentary, An Inconvenient Sequel. “Ginny,” she said, “I didn’t know things were so bad. What can I do?”

As I write this in mid-November the thermometer dips. Winter’s here, I realize, and the maple tree starts to shed its leaves outside my office window. I despise winter.

There’s not much that Education Minister Stephen Lecce says these days that is widely supported. But when he announced a return to normal semesters in time for Feb. 1 – the traditional time when a new semester would begin – students, parents, school boards, and even unions were largely happy with the idea.

As we enter what many call the last mile of our vaccination efforts to achieve herd immunity, and eagerly await vaccination for kids aged 5 to 12, the vocal minority of conspiracy theorists and selfish individualists is getting louder and more aggressive in its efforts to derail our progress.