Opinion

In most towns, the intent of a neighbourhood block watch is to make the neighbourhood safer. In Whistler, a neighbourhood block watch means making sure your neighbour hasn’t filed a rezoning application.

If they ever decide to rank the all-time greatest Olympians the IOC’s Marc Hodler should get a gold medal, in hypocrisy.

Merry Christmas. Happy New Year. Suck it up. That was the province’s message to municipalities exactly one week before Christmas when it announced another round of cuts in transfer payments to local governments.

The NDP government updated its plan for British Columbia’s struggling economy this week, but like so many previous governments’ plans for the provincial economy, there was no vision of the future.

As long-time locals — those who remember the garbage dump where the village now stands — can tell you, Whistler isn’t what it used to be. But what it used to be and what it is now is not so easy to define. T.S.

"Decades of following laissez-faire housing policies are catching up with Vail as about 2,500 jobs may go begging this winter." – New York Times, Nov. 5, 1998 The Whistler Housing Authority celebrated its first year in business last week.

It seemed like a good idea at the time. It’s what the business community of Whistler asked for several years ago. But a World Cup downhill in December doesn’t work here. And it’s not just because of the weather.

Many years from now, the people of Whistler, Squamish, Vancouver and other towns in B.C. may look back on this week as one of the critical points in the development of their communities.

"I strongly believe in sport and in the Olympic dream. Politics don’t have anything to do with sport." – Fernand Labrie, chairman of the Quebec 2010 bid society Of course not — except politics have everything to do with sport.

On Dec. 7 Whistler council will let everyone know what it thinks of David Strangway’s offer to build a private university in Whistler. For those who haven’t already guessed, the answer will be "thanks, but no thanks.