Following a tradition started several years ago, The Tri-City News' Face to Face columnists Jim Nelson and Andy Radia are foregoing their usual format for this, their final column before Christmas, to write a combined piece about topics on which they agree.
Peace on Earth, goodwill towards (wo)men.
Yes, it's time for our annual Christmas truce, when we eschew our usual bellicose bickering and, instead, wassail our way to expository détente.
So, in an attempt to keep your bile and figgy pudding down, join us as we once again walk Arm in Arm instead of roistering Face to Face.
Touch my robe Ebenezer, and gaze upon some things we agree on from news stories past
Jim
Internationally, we agree that a two-state solution is the only basis for meaningful Middle East peace talks and that such a solution should be strengthened if not brokered by international discussion.
In Syria and Iraq, we agree that we should all pick one acronym - ISIS or ISIL - and stick with it.
But ISIS or ISIL, we decry their actions. The bastardization of a religion has led to the most barbaric and public acts that no end can justify.
And we both wish that neither side in these hostilities tolerated the collateral damage caused by indiscriminate attacks or drone strikes, both of which kill innocent women and children.
Andy
Unfortunately, this year, senseless violence made its way into Canada. In October, Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent in St-Jean-sur-Richelieu and Corporal Nathan Cirillo in Ottawa - were killed in acts that some are labelling terrorism.
While Jim and I disagree on what to call it, we hope that all the federal political parties abstain from politicizing the deaths.
Moreover, we're both of the mind that we don't want the Ottawa incident to affect Canadians' ability to frequent the hallowed halls of Parliament Hill. The openness and access to our elected officials is a symbol of our democracy and a Canadian value that we both hold near and dear to our hearts.
Closer to home, the teacher's dispute was probably the biggest news story of the year. What a mess that was!
In our letters to Santa, both Jim and I have encouraged the jolly old man to put coal in the stockings of all the negotiators. The teachers' strategy was ill-considered and the government's position was blunt and overbearing. As a result of their collective failings, B.C. schools have suffered.
And unfortunately, if history is an example, this is a dispute that will continue.
Jim
Thanks for talking about education Andy if I had to do it, I'd still be writing.
On oil tankers, we agree that neither "drill baby drill" nor "leave it all in the ground" is an acceptable strategy. We think there may be acceptable-risk oil options if the environment, not just dollars and "jobs," is our paramount concern.
And above all, we both wish that we invested as much to get off our oil dependency as we do trying to convince everyone that it's all good and that environmental activism is hypocritical if you drive a car or have ever been in a plane.
But we don't want to get off our dependency on local voters and we agree that it's great to see voter participation in recent municipal elections up from pathetic to unacceptably low (except in Anmore and Belcarra, where 52% and 61% of voters crossed their acres to vote).
And we agree that it was controversy that brought out voters this time: a strong mayoral challenge in Port Moody, the slate brouhaha in Coquitlam and the shocking travails of School District 43 trustees.
We both believe that the debate over slate politics in is a red-herring. Both of us - and we think most of you - vote for a civic candidate based on his or her character, experience and community service.
We're both euphoric about the Evergreen Line and favour almost any proposed expansion of the system (despite a few recent operational snafus). We both think that SkyTrain and light rail to the valley and White Rock might vault us all to environmental nirvana.
Andy
Speaking of euphoria, we're both Canuck fans again! The drama that submerged this team over the past several years has suddenly disappeared and a new-era - the Trevor Linden era - is upon us. They might be a few years away from being a contender again but they're so much fun to watch.
On that note, Jim, maybe we can get together over the holidays at one of our fine local establishments to cheer on the home team. Until then, Jim, Merry Christmas to you and yours.
JIM
Merry Christmas Andy and to The Tri-City News. And to our faithful readers, have a healthy, safe, non-partisan Christmas season.
A fa la la la la to all.
