By Brian Dobbin Publisher, The Independent Dear faithful reader, Thank-you for the support you have shown The Independent over the last five years. I believe the newspaper has been a touchstone for a certain perspective for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians and at the very ... » read more

The future of the Canadian sealing industry will be determined by the answers to two questions: Will European parliamentarians be swayed by truth rather than public opinion? And will the Government of Canada take a strong stand to support the sealing industry if the ... » read more

On the eve of a European Union debate on whether to ban seal products, Canadian fisheries ambassador Loyola Sullivan says a European cardiac surgeon has indicated new surgical techniques may create a demand for 300,000 harp seal heart valves a year. According to Sullivan, Dr. ... » read more

When Noel and Phil Dinn played what would be their very first Figgy Duff gig at an exhibition opening for Gerry Squires at Memorial University’s gallery, they were so green they had yet to choose an official band name. Phil Dinn can’t recall exactly who it was, but a faceless ... » read more

The scourge of my generation was unemployment. Not to compare our struggles with the generation that fought world wars, or promoted free love, but coming of age in Newfoundland in the late 1970s, what faced many of us was the lack of work. Hard to imagine in today’s booming St. John’s, but back then, fresh from university with a liberal arts degree, and with no stomach to work for government, the working world was there to meet me, and others, with closed doors. We even had a ... » read more