Commentary

From the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have regularly seen people choose to wear a variety of masks, from medical masks to cloth face coverings, in grocery stores and parks, on buses and sidewalks.

Thursday is a grim, gloomy day of data. But it’s a good day because the skies are clearing through the fog. On the day that Canada got the first glimpse of the economic toll, we also got the first glimpse of the human toll that COVID-19 portends.

Self-isolation in the era of Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp has had its ups and downs. Some of the memes have been hilarious. The chance to be in touch with family and friends has brought comfort to many.

Yes, at times, the truth hurts. But in this swirl of conflicting COVID-19 information, the truth from the federal government would help, even if it hurts, even if it carries uncertainty, even if it changes.

Here’s some irony. Just days before COVID-19 came on our radar, I was enrolling in a program at the Harvard School of Public Health called Applied Risk Communication for the 21st century.

By now it is clear the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic will be widespread and unusually painful. The shuttering of much of the provincial economy is unprecedented.

When an outbreak hits a community, one of the most urgent things people want is information. This is human nature, as information allows us to protect ourselves, our families and our loved ones.

The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority’s (VFPA) multibillion-dollar bet on its choice for expanded container cargo handling capacity for the Port of Vancouver cleared another hurdle last Monday with the release of the report from the federally appointed

Does anyone remember Huawei and the concerns over its involvement in Canada’s 5G infrastructure? In the country’s current COVID-19 war footing, it’s easy to forget about pretty much any subject that is not pandemic related.

It seems that every press briefing brings a new announcement about the plans from the federal government to assuage Canadians about the economic stability of the country during the COVID-19 outbreak.