You are presumed to be honest and responsible without evidence to the contrary beyond a reasonable doubt… on the balance of probablilties you are justified by 51 % likelyhood.
Enterprising non profits seminar brought different groups to Merritt this week. File Photo KDG
New Gold and New Afton mines are sponsoring a weekend at the Kamloops Wildlife Park at Easter this year. Including rides on its scale train, chocolate egg hunt and Chris the Clown.
The mining company operates a mine 10 kilometers west of Kamloops, and is operating 5 mines around the world. It’s New Afton project is an underground caving operation.
The Easter event requires an admission. 9:30 -4PM daily, wildlife park members are free.
Meet and interact with the resident critters of Kamloops Wildlife Park. Since its opening in 1966, the small zoo has cared for and rehabilitated native British Columbian animals who are injured or orphaned. See more than 65 species of animals and birds that inhabit the wildlife park, including predatory birds, cougars, deer, moose, grizzlies, and the elusive Kermode bear. Take a guided tour to learn interesting trivia about the wildlife and hear stories about the zoo’s residents. Quickly create a custom-made using our trip planner.
The 2018 budget was tabled yesterday and shows a deficit of 18.1 billion dollars. The document addresses a number of popular issues. The liberal government will present one more budget in their mandate.
Small Business Tax Rate
Reduction of the small business tax rate to 10 per cent, effective January 1, 2018, and to 9 per cent, effective January 1, 2019.
Cannabis Taxation
In December 2017, the federal government reached an agreement with most provincial and territorial governments to establish duties on cannabis as the higher of $1 per gram or 10 per cent of a product price, through a federally administrated coordinated framework.
This tax room will be shared on a 75/25 basis, with 75 per cent of duties going to provincial and territorial governments and the remaining 25 per cent to the federal government. The federal portion of cannabis excise duty revenue will be capped at $100 million annually for the first two years after legalization.
Any federal revenue in excess of $100 million will be provided to provinces and territories.
As part of this arrangement, it is the federal government’s expectation that a substantial portion of the revenues from this tax room provided to provinces and territories will be transferred to municipalities and local communities who are on the front lines of legalization.
Housing:
Rental Construction Financing Initiative
To encourage a stable supply of affordable rental housing across the country, the Government proposes increasing the amount of loans provided by the Rental Construction Financing Initiative from $2.5 billion to $3.75 billion over the next three years. This new funding is intended to support projects that address the needs of modest- and middle-income households struggling in expensive housing markets. In total, this measure alone is expected to spur the construction of more than 14,000 new rental units across Canada.
Beneficial Ownership
To improve the availability of beneficial ownership information, the Government proposes to introduce enhanced income tax reporting requirements for certain trusts to provide additional information on an annual basis, applicable for the 2021 and later taxation years.
Community Safety:
Opioid Crisis
Provide $231.4 million over five years, starting in 2018–19, for additional measures to help address the opioid crisis.
Cybercrime
Provide $116.0 million over five years, and $23.2 million per year ongoing, to the RCMP to support the creation of the National Cybercrime Coordination Unit. The National Cybercrime Coordination Unit will create a coordination hub for cybercrime investigations in Canada and will work with international partners on cybercrime.
Provide an additional $236.5 million over five years, and $41.2 million per year ongoing, to further support Canada’s new National Cyber Security Strategy.
Guns and Gangs
Provide $327.6 million over five years, starting in 2018–19, and $100 million per year ongoing, to Public Safety Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canada Border Services Agency. This initiative will support community-level crime prevention and enforcement efforts, build and leverage unique federal expertise and resources to advance intelligence related to the illegal trafficking of firearms, and invest in border security to interdict illicit goods including guns and drugs.
Environment
Land, Water and Species Protection
Contribute $500 million from the federal government to create a new $1 billion Nature Fund in partnership with corporate, not-for-profit, provincial, territorial and other partners. The Nature Fund will make it possible to secure private land, support provincial and territorial species protection efforts, and help build Indigenous capacity to conserve lands and species.
Indigenous Relations
Clean Drinking Water on Reserve
Provide an additional $172.6 million over three years, beginning in 2018–19, to improve access to clean and safe drinking water on reserve. Program objective is to have all boil water advisories lifted by March 2021.
Infrastructure
Small Craft Harbours
Provide $250 million on a cash basis over two years, starting in 2018–19, to Fisheries and Oceans Canada to renew its network of small craft harbours and work with local governments where investments and divestitures can enhance local communities.
Critical Infrastructure Security
Provide Public Safety Canada with $1.4 million in 2018–19 to continue operations of the Regional Resilience Assessment Program and the Virtual Risk Analysis Cell. These programs support assessments of critical infrastructure facilities, such as energy grids, information and communication technology networks, and hospitals.
Other:
Gender Equity
The Government will bring in a legislated proactive pay equity regime in federally regulated sectors, which would apply to approximately 1.2 million employed individuals.
EI Parental Sharing Benefit where two parent families who agree to share parental leave could receive an additional five weeks of leave.
The Canada Workers Benefit will allow low-income workers – many of whom are single parent women – to take home more money while they work.
The targeted Child Tax benefit was the remedy for Child Care after a universal plan died on the order paper in the senate when an election was called years ago. Licenced spaces are always a concern .The most progressive thing in the budget in our view is the water on Indian reserves. Perhaps it would inspire some of the people served to take up the challenge of clean potable water to the third world.
The 10 percent small business tax is progressive as well hopefully it will inspire some more payroll withholding taxes from more employees.
There is also of note something over 1 and half billon for preservation of waterways and nature.
What it means to be a brown person in the world today ” (to everyone)”, a book, is being presented by the author at the Merritt Civic Center on Friday September 29th 7-:30 pm.
The billing says that Kamal is an associate professor at Ryerson University after being a writer for the Globe and Mail.
The event is sponsored by the regional district and the Canada Council for the Arts. No registration is required, no admission charge. Contact the library system FMI
Editors Note: icon and stereotype are only different by six letters and an attitude. KDG
Dr.Eugene Atleos speaks to staff members and interested public at the , NVIT Speakers series He is now a former grand chief. File Photo KDG
June 21st National Aboriginal Day this year will be its last observance as sources say next year it will be National Indigenous Peoples Day.
What’s the difference besides a lot of printing changes.
Aboriginal, a group of first people’s Indigenous a collective term for first people’s, so you should not have to struggle with Metis, Indian , First Nations, Native should all apply without offence to Indigenous.
Canada according to Former PM John Diefenbaker was not to be hyphenated Irish Canadian etc however indigenous will go some way in relieving aboriginals PP
On this day: June 21st 1957
Canada gets its first female member of the Cabinet as Ellen Fairclough is sworn in.
The old court house on Nicola avenue , in Merritt. file Photo KDG
Leonard George has the arts council Old Courthouse Gallery show for June. Titled in the Siege of Roots , the grandson of first nations actor Dan George presents his aboriginal impressionist collection with two new additions. Featuring the eye George in his first new rendition shows the focal face of a large predator cat with compelling engaging eyes. A single eye centers the other painting in an impression of Cambodian elephants and temple tops “a retrospective”
Dorothy Spahan also has a first nations pine needle display as well as mini teepees.
On this Day: June 8th 793
Vikings raiding Northumbria starts the practice of Norse activity in the British isles.
Local
A conference at the Country Music Hall of Fame building on April 6-7 will feature Baskets of the Nicola Valley, with keynote speaker Dr. Marie Anderson. The show at the Hall of Fame is at 2025 Quichena Ave in Merritt. Registration required @ 250- 378-2771 PSA: cultural concern for those interested. PR
On this Day: March 31st 1949
The Dominion of Newfoundland becomes Canada’s 10th Province.
Mandy Jimmie a grad from the local secondary system in Merritt BC File Photo :KDG
Mandy Jimmie teaches First Nations language at NVIT, the local community college. Mandy on the right with hands folded is a product of Merritt Secondary School.
The friends are standing at the entrance of the college lecture theater.
The dome of the Coldwater Hotel in Merritt. Photo KDG
Dr. JJ Gillis had an office and a practice in this hotel for may of the years of the first half of the 20th century. The government long term care facility near the museum and archives in downtown Merritt, bears his name.
Gillis had the fortune or misfortune of being the member of the provincial legislature for two decades here. His time included the great depression and the second world war. Dealing with local Japanese citizens and coal mine s in the valley.
A graduate of Mcgill University in 1918 he was invited by a director of the Canadian Pacific Railway to Merritt as a Doctor. He was responsible for a work camp and he ran a nursing school at a Merritt Hospital .
A man in a wheel chair was covered head to toe by a blanket on the sidewalk during the December cold spell, when approached he said nothing a neighbor said his name is JJ and I some people left him there, ” I called the police” . The man then came alive and said ” leave me alone”. The police later were seen talking to him and it was resolved somehow.
Gillis was also the local coroner. He passed from this life in 1965: source
If the ghost of Dr. JJ Gillis visited and I was him I would say leave me alone.
RIP DR.Gillis
On this Day: January 24th 1972
Sgt .Shoichi Yokoi of the Imperial Japanese Army is found hiding in the Jungle since war end in 1945.
Despite hiding for twenty-eight years in an underground jungle cave, he had known since 1952 that World War II had ended.[5][6] He feared to come out of hiding, explaining, “We Japanese soldiers were told to prefer death to the disgrace of getting captured alive.”[1][5]
Yokoi was the third-to-last Japanese soldier to surrender after the war, preceding Second Lieutenant Hiroo Onoda (relieved from duty by his former commanding officer on 9 March 1974) and Private Teruo Nakamura (arrested 18 December 1974). source: Wikipedia
A Green Energy project has an address. This site is an” IPP” independent power producer. File: Photo KDG
Smart meters give the ability to monitor your power consumption on line. Rates are the same all day and the dream of off peak time is not here yet. However if an appliance is a big power user there are programs for better and more efficient ones, including are rebates for buying Hydro endorsed Energy Star brand appliances and a buy back program for working fridges.
Increased supply does not necessarily mean a possibility of better rates as the utility’s charges are commission regulated, but when efficiency is increased the benefit of better rates is to go to BC consumers.
There is also talk of breaks for industrial users. If this concerns you call or email your MLA and say you want the direct benefit of the non profit status of Hydro.
IPP’s ( Independent Power Producers) give an opportunity to sell at peak times at a higher rate. If this happens then it may be that the off peak rate may be perverted however if users use the smart meter to advantage it could be a benefit to us all.
We are a mixed economy meaning that capitalism is not the only player in the system and basic utilities, and water are monopolies to the benefit of the society and as well as the industrial base. Profit should be only a small part of that . Anyway you are empowered by technology to monitor your usage and adapt it by your smart meter.
Publishers notice: Found a fit bit device, email us at: Percypaschal@gmail.com…. with a description.
On this day: February 4rth 2004
Facebook is founded.
The Nicola Naturalists are having their January presentation meeting on the 21st of the month. Frank Ritcey of Wild Safe BC will talk about safety about wildlife and in particular bears.
Frank Ritcey is the Provincial Coordinator for WildSafeBC, based in Kamloops. Run by the BC Conservation Foundation this program focuses on how we can minimize our impact on the wildlife we observe and keep ourselves safe at the same time. Frank was raised in the wilds of Wells Gray Park by his pioneering mother, Clara Ritcey, and Park Biologist father Ralph Ritcey. Frank’s love of nature has been with him his whole life and he still spends much time filming and studying nature. Frank often contributes to CBC’s popular North by Northwest show.
The meeting starts at 7PM and is open to the public (membership or donation requested) , no food or drinks allowed in the NVIT lecture theater, however there is free parking. NVIT is a local community college founded in part by Grand Chief Gordon Antoine ( deceased) , Gordon was a member of the Coldwater Indian Band and promoted education for his people, he is survived by his wife Janice a principal of the Coldwater Indian Band K -12 school.
The Nicola Naturalists use the lecture theater at NVIT as a non profit and provide a bursary to natural resource students as a matter of consideration for its use.
Tom Sullivan (left) and Alan Burger ready for his presentation
Doctor Tom Sullivan presented at the Nicola Naturalists last week on the work he has done with wood debris from logging operations.The University of BC professor and resident of the interior Town of Summerland said that piles of wood waste can be habitat for weasels and small forest animals. The slide show gave images of wood debris used to in strategies to connect habitat to mandatory patch’s of left forest in clear-cut operations. He had brochures available taken from his published works in scientific journals.
Tom noted it is best used to do these piles in remote logged areas as human access lends its self to them being set on fire.
There was a class of natural resource teck students from the First Nations run community college NVIT in the audience and were introduced to the gathering by Nicola Naturalists President Alan Burger. They were said to be possible beneficiaries of the 600 dollar scholarship award just created by the group.
Pious Chong was also recognised by Burger for his award of “The best artist in Singapore” by the President of Singapore.
DR. Sullivan works through the Applied Mammal Research Institute In Summerland as well as UBC : http://www.appliedmammal.com
Today in history: November 25 th 1940
The De Havilland Mosquito Bomber has its first flight.
Kevin Griffiths
percypaschal
The Proprietor Review 