Once dominant at CBS News before a bitter departure, Dan Rather makes his first return in 18 years

Since moving to Winnipeg earlier this year, I have come to know the city through its small businesses. As a new Exchange District resident, grabbing coffee at Little Sister, walking through The Forks Market and stopping at Pho Hoang for lunch have become part of my routine. These are the places that give Winnipeg’s neighbourhoods their character and have helped make a new city feel like home.

That is why an empty storefront never feels like just vacant real estate. It represents someone’s investment and hope. When a small business disappears, the community loses a piece of itself.

On Oct. 28, Manitobans in most municipalities will choose their next mayors, reeves and councillors. While city councils may not set interest rates or negotiate global trade agreements, they do have some control over many of the barriers entrepreneurs encounter day to day, from property tax bills and permit applications to public safety and construction disruptions.

Ahead of the upcoming elections, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) surveyed Manitoba small business owners to get a sense of their municipal priorities and concerns.

Are clinical psychologists next?

Re: Province hires 17 psychiatrists to work in Winnipeg, Selkirk (Sept. 25)

Manitoba’s government has shown that it knows how to solve a specialist staffing crisis in health care. Clinical psychologists are still left to wonder when it will be their turn.

The Manitoba Psychological Society (MPS) welcomes the recent announcement of 17 new psychiatrists in the public system. Any investment in mental health deserves to be celebrated, especially in light of the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health’s report card that was released in August 2026. Manitoba received overall grades of F and D for mental health and substance use health, respectively. Although disappointing, this is not surprising given that Manitoba spends five to six per cent of its health budget on mental health and addictions, about half the recommended rate of 12 per cent.

DEAR MISS LONELYHEARTS: My ex-wife just moved back to town and looks like a changed woman. She spent years married to me, and our kids just graduated in a city where we once lived together. That was without help from me, other than minor financial stuff.

She has found a great new job back in Winnipeg and she’ll do very well. I admire her more than any other woman I ever met, but she’s not interested in me at all.

I once had a solid, responsible job and then got into drinking, and I cheated on her. That’s why she left town. Now I’ve been sober and sorry for many years.

I asked her last weekend if I could take her out to dinner and she said no and changed the subject.

DEAR MISS LONELYHEARTS: I ran into my sister’s husband at the bar recently. He was drinking with a bunch of people from his work. I noticed he was sitting close to a young woman, with his arm around her.

I just nodded without a smile as I slowly passed them. I kept on going, but he knew I saw them together. A few minutes later he came over — obviously drunk — and said, “You’re a good girl! You won’t say anything to your sister, will you?” Ha! I looked at him and said, “Of course I’m going to say something!”

My loyalty will always be to my sister. I phoned my sis in my car and blabbed. She tried to laugh it off, but she’s gone silent since — not answering my calls or messages. So apparently now I’m the troublemaker? That’d be just her style! What should I do?

— Worried About Us, North Kildonan