Ald. Rick McIver, Ward 12

2008 was an eventful year for City Council, dominated by controversy over the 2009 budget.  Ald. Ric McIver says the budget will an important issue for him again in the New Year.  He feels the City’s budget process is broken and the three year process adopted by Council is not working.  Listen to Ald. McIver discuss the budget and other issues in SECN’s exclusive podcast.

Ald. Joe Ceci, Ward 9

Ald. Joe Ceci says great things are coming for SE Calgary in 2009.  Top of his wish list for the New Year will be a commitment by the federal and provincial governments to invest infrastructure dollars in the SE leg of the C-Train. Ald. Ceci says that, with luck, the LRT could be extended all the way to the South Hospital within seven years.  Continue Reading

To function well parliamentary democracies require that governments have strong oppositions.  Alas, Alberta hasn’t had such a thing for a very long time.  The province has been a one-party state for so long it is beginning to resemble a Central Asian dictatorship. Continue Reading

By Markham Hislop

Click here  to listen to a 13 minute podcast of my discussion with Deepak Obhrai.

Deepak Obhrai, Calgary East

2008 has been an eventful year for Canadians in general and Calgarians in particular.  We started the year full of optimism, in one of the hottest economies in Canada – or anywhere else for that matter.  By year end those happy memories had faded.  Continue Reading

By Markham Hislop

Jeff Neil, Streetheart guitarist

Kenny Shields and Streetheart, one of the best known Canadian bands of the late sevenites and early eighties is back in Calgary Saturday with a show at the Deerfoot Inn and Casino.  Mick Jagger once famously said that Streetheart played the best version of “Under My Thumb” he had ever heard.  Listen to an 11 minute podcast discussion with Jeff Neill, guitarist for Kenny Shields and Streetheart.  Continue Reading

Typical CO monitor

Friday evening shortly after 10:00 p.m. Calgary Paramedics responded to a residence in the 2000 block of 33 St SE for complaints of a resident feeling short of breath.  When emergency crews arrived, it was quickly determined that the cause of the breathing difficulty was carbon monoxide (CO) gas. Continue Reading

By Markham Hislop

Dogsville's motto is "We love dogs!"

Every month or so I plunk down $20 and have one of the boys at McKenzie Towne Barbershop trim my locks (given that most men my age are bald or getting there in a hurry, this is a point of some pride on my part).  Given how little it costs to adjust my bush, I could never understand $50-plus to groom a dog.  That is, until I watched Patti, the owner of Dogville, work her magic with a little bundle of white fluff. Continue Reading

Markham Hislop

I’ve taken some heat the past few weeks over my criticism of the Flames for their poor defensive play.  Their play as a five-man unit in their own zone is still the team’s Achilles heel, in my humble opinion.  That and the tendency for big-time defensive lapses, like give-aways and missed checks.  In the spirit of Christmas, however, it’s time to say some nice things about the Flames and defense, especially since the team has been winning of late.  Continue Reading

No need to clog City landfills with old Christmas trees this year

Calgarians can recycle their real Christmas trees free at one of the 31 drop-off locations, including the three City landfills.  All decorations including tinsel, plastic and string must be removed.  Continue Reading

Monday evening members of the Southern Alberta Integrated Gang Enforcement Team (SAIGET), with the RCMP Emergency Response Team, RCMP members from Okotoks Detachment, CPS District 8 officers and the Targeted Enforcement Unit (TEU), executed a search warrant at a residence located at Heritage Lake Mews, in Heritage Pointe, immediately south of the Calgary city limits. Continue Reading