To new beginnings ...

Salut!

As many of you might have heard, I'm now a free agent and out of the newspaper biz.

I have no regrets. Zero. I'm exceedingly proud of what I accomplished at the Yukon News with my talented team. But, after 22 years, I find myself in a strange position -- out in the wilds eking out Act II.

The support I've received literally from around the world has been simply amazing, and I'm incredibly grateful.

To be frank, this whole affair has personally felt a lot like the breakup of the Beatles.

But you know, it's actually going alright.

I'm working for the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society trying to preserve a decent chunk of the magnificent Peel Watershed for our kids and grandkids. And that's a pretty decent goal for someone to have.

I can live with that.

But I'm still very interested in this little community that I have grown to love. And, as good as it is, I want it to be better. There is plenty of room for improvement in education, in the environment, in business, in legislation, transportation, in energy ... this community can do better.

And you don't get there by standing still and accepting the status quo. Bettering yourself demands thorough examination, discussion and analysis.

And the occasional kick in the ass.

So here I am, with my boots on. What's it going to be?

Many of you have told me you missed my writing. And you know what, I've missed doing it.

So, gentle readers, I'm back.

Welcome to Yukon Dispatch, The Frontier Writ Large.

Here, as regularly as I can, I'm going to talk about the territory, politicians, technology, books, music, the UN, the odd raven, spaniels and journalists. (What the hell, turnabout is fair play, right?)

I'll even toss in some pics to make things pretty.

In short, I plan to present whatever the hell I feel like presenting ... because now I'm a blogger. It's a little different than my old role, but bigger and less constrained. And now my audience is global.

I figure we'll work out the details together. How about it?

Sometimes I'll be my prickly self. But I'm also going to tap my warm mushy side, which I've repressed for awhile.

So, crank up Radiohead, the Shins, Wyclef or whatever takes your fancy and let's renew old acquaintances.

We've got work to do ...

Richard Mostyn

Whitehorse, Yukon

February 2011