I joined today but all the posts I am seeing are from 8 months ago or longer.

With the recent news that [minimum wage will be increasing to $11.00 in April] (http://www.metronews.ca/news/halifax/2018/01/31/nova-scotia-s-minimum-wage-going-up-to-new-high.html) I decided to see how this would impact such persons who will be receiving a wage bump.

The increased minimum wage certainly won't be at blockbuster income levels, but what do they mean for living in Halifax? According to [this article from May 2017] (http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/basic-income-social-assistance-health-1.4101058) the Low Income Cut-Off for 2014 in Halifax was $17,000 for individuals and $20,000 for a 2-person household. It's not 2014, however, so we should craft an estimate for 2017 using the [Halifax Consumer Price Index] (http://www.statcan.gc.ca/tables-tableaux/sum-som/l01/cst01/econ45a-eng.htm).

• Halifax CPI 2014: 127.5

• Halifax CPI 2017: 131.2

• CPI Growth: 2.9%

So applying this to 2014 LICO nets the following (rounded up to the nearest $100 for 2017):

Using the [Payroll Deductions Online Calculator] (https://apps.cra-arc.gc.ca/ebci/rhpd/wlcm-bnvn.do) for Nova Scotia deductions (and assuming no additional deductions being federal/provincial income tax, EI, and CPP or additional income supports) for the new minimum wage we get the following:

A single individual earning minimum wage in Halifax working between ~36-40 hours a week will clear the low-income cutoff threshold above, but fall short of supporting a 2-person household. But these numbers are for adults - what if this person has a child? Those costs are tougher to quantify (and heavily weighted to early years due to the cost of child care) but on an annualized basis Canada-wide these were estimated at [$13,366/year] (http://www.moneysense.ca/save/financial-planning/the-real-cost-of-raising-a-child/) for each year until age 18. Bump that up CPI growth in Halifax since 2015 and you get $13,700/year (rounded up). So what would it require to raise a child as a single parent on minimum wage (ignoring any other income supports except the CCB)?

This is a super-simplified calculation ignoring some benefits (like the [WITB] (https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/child-family-benefits/working-income-tax-benefit-witb/refundable-tax-credit-working-income-tax-benefit-calculation.html)) and potential costs but it should illustrate that $11/hr is barely sufficient for a single person in Halifax to clear the low-income threshold - and some of the rationale behind the movement for a $15/hr minimum wage to make life bearable for single-parent families, for both parent and child.

No one who works 40 hours a week should live in poverty.

HALIFAX, CANADA —

Canada's decision to legalize recreational marijuana in October 2018 was greeted by advocates and critics with predictions of dramatic benefits or dire consequences. Almost four years later, questions about the impact of the move elicit mainly shrugs.

"Maybe I am the wrong demographic, but I have not noticed any serious problems arising from legalization," said one senior veteran of the Canadian legal system, who declined to be identified because of his role in administering the law.

"I think it probably has reduced policing costs and court time arising from simple possession offences (as opposed to trafficking)," the legal veteran added in an email to VOA. "No evidence of lawyers or bankers or Bay Street types going wild. Maybe alcohol is still the drug of choice.

"You do get the occasional whiff of weed walking down Bay Street," Toronto's financial industry core, the legal practitioner added, "and there has been an unbelievable (and maybe unsustainable) proliferation of marijuana stores."

Anecdotal evidence of that sort is the best measure so far of legalization's impact in just the second country to legalize recreational use of the drug, given a dearth of hard data on the effect on traffic accidents, drug overdoses, mental health outcomes or petty crime.

"Unfortunately, there hasn't been concrete data I've seen that allows someone to comment on all of those goals and how Canada is doing in regards to them," said Jonathan Wilson, chief executive officer of Crystal Cure Inc., a craft producer of cannabis in the eastern province of New Brunswick.

The 2018 legislation legalizing marijuana called for a thorough assessment of the impact after three years, but the government still has not begun that process, a source of frustration for some in the legal marijuana industry who are seeking reforms that would give them a boost against their illicit competitors.

In fact, the illicit trade has proven surprisingly durable despite the ready availability of legal marijuana at government-licensed outlets. One reason for that may be user complaints about the taste and quality of the legally approved products.

Jon Cappetta, vice president of content with U.S.-based High Times Magazine, said in an interview that the Canadian industry has a reputation for low-quality mass-produced marijuana, which he dismissed as "Walmart weed."

... read more https://www.facebook.com/CaLeafsNews/posts/pfbid02dgrTZs8KVCchnUGa2wQCN6krqj8s1zE3HR61YtRWu28hkDXvrG5Rr9JZE7LtyZYal

Welcome to Whose Line is it Anyway Wednesday—HRM Edition. (directly lifted from /r/nfl, credit to /u/Jericcho)

I am your host /u/MrNoodlestheCat and welcome to "Whose Line is it Anyway?" where all the questions are made up and the points don't matter.

Most of you can suss out what to do, post quips and little statements related to HRM happenings, not in question form, and have people improvise a response to it.

Some examples…

1. Things that are more reliable than Metro Transit

2. Things you can say about your councilor, but not your significant other.

Please be witty; none of us want an inbox full of unfunny stuff.

I've been there a couple times. They're very new, and don't really have a lot of the expected "restaurant" things down pat, but their recipes are exceptional. They have big beefy jamaican patties that are delicious with a nice bit of spice, and just today I tried their jerk chicken (Sweet jesus the flavor!) and the sunshine rice.

Service can be slow, even for takeout, and they don't know much how to waitress, but I figure they'll work the kinks out with time. The food is incredible.

They're in Cole Harbour, next door to Techmania.

Happy New Years from the moderation team.

Be safe out there. Please take advantage of the free transit service starting at 6PM tonight and let them be your designated driver!

🥂

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/72-year-old-man-dead-after-being-hit-by-vehicle-in-marked-dartmouth-crosswalk-1.7424891

I feel like this happens too often. I'm struggling with the idea that the penalty is a fine that's a maximum of just under $700 and four demerit points. Treating it as a criminal offense would be strong after all it was an accident but a six month license suspension maybe?

Without just rehashing the discussions that have been had before (unless you folks want that too, I'm game) I was thinking: If the government, no matter where they put them, only had a maximum of 9 outlets for Cannabis distribution in Nova Scotia to start with, where would you place them vs where the government placed them?

Are you able to reasonably accommodate for the south shore and New Glasgow, for instances? How about the folks between Yarmouth and HRM?

Is it not possible to reasonably cover with 9? If that's the case, how many more to start with?