Western Context

A couple by-elections show the challenges for BC United’s rebranding, Google is set to remove Canadian news links in search, and BC’s children’s minister faces calls to resign. Also, a senate report shows the underfunded Arctic region’s importance.

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“Canada’s armed forces are highly skilled and fiercely dedicated, but they remain below complement, under-resourced and stretched to the limit.” – Senator Tony Dean on the state of Canada’s military.

Duration: 1:00:47
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• What does BC United’s poor byelection showing mean for the party?
• Support us on Patreon
• Google set to remove news links in Canada
• First Nations in B.C. call on minister to resign over horrific child abuse case
• Lack of resources hurting Canada’s Arctic defence, says senate report
• Word of the Week: Incomprehensible

Half of small businesses can’t repay their CEBA loans, Danielle Smith negotiates climate targets with the federal government, and the amount paid by BC renters has reached a crisis level. Also, we see just how much McKinsey has affected the opioid crisis.

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“There is near panic on the part of close to half of Canada’s small businesses about the looming deadline that is approaching for CEBA loans. About 43 per cent of small businesses are telling us they just don’t have the money to repay their CEBA loans and they’re gonna have to take some pretty drastic action if they are required to repay them by the end of this year.” – Dan Kelly, president and CEO of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, on the looming deadline for small businesses to repay their pandemic CEBA loans.

Duration: 55:36
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• Government’s $50-billion loan program coming due, but many businesses can’t pay
• Support us on Patreon
• Smith unyielding on federal targets for climate, energy sector
• Crisis level’ of B.C. renters spending more than half their income on rent and utilities
• McKinsey pitched Purdue Pharma Canada on plan to boost opioid sales in 2014, memo reveals
• Word of the Week: Due

BC Hydro is looking for more energy sources, Supreme Court judge Russell Brown retires amid controversy, and a wildfire cuts off Vancouver Island’s west coast. Also, serial killer Paul Bernardo is moved from max to medium security.

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“It is very clear that I should have been briefed at the time, and that is something that I made abundantly clear to my staff. I’ve taken the corrective steps to ensure that that does not happen again. What’s important is that these issues are identified and they’re corrected and so that is what I have done with my team. It is important that I get those briefings in a timely manner.” – Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino

Duration: 1:06:06
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• B.C. Hydro set to start first hunt in 15 years for new electricity sources
• Support us on Patreon
• Supreme Court Justice Russell Brown retires, ending judicial review
• Transportation network fragile on Vancouver Island
• Staff in Mendicino’s office knew about Bernardo transfer months before minister did, his office says
• Word of the Week: Hardened

David Johnson resigns as special rapporteur, the Bank of Canada hikes interest rates again, and the Five Eyes countries have a meeting about UFOs. Also, a clash of culture during Pride month shows Canada’s increasing polarization.

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“When I undertook the task of independent special rapporteur on foreign interference, my objective was to help build trust in our democratic institutions. I have concluded that, given the highly partisan atmosphere around my appointment and work, my leadership has had the opposite effect.” – Former Governor General David Johnston on his resignation

Duration: 50:47
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• David Johnston resigning as special rapporteur on foreign interference
• Support us on Patreon
• Canadian economy loses 17,000 jobs + interest rates
• Canada attends first-of-its-kind UFO briefing at the Pentagon
• You don’t belong here’: Canadian teacher lambastes Muslim student for eschewing Pride
• Word of the Week: Resign

Danielle Smith’s UCP wins a majority government in Alberta, BC’s health care crisis gets overdramatized, and Erin O’Toole says CSIS warned him of China’s interference. Also, a tweet from Pierre Poilievre highlights the homeless problem in Canada.

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“Welcome to another miracle on the prairies!” – Premier Danielle Smith on the UCP winning the Alberta 2023 election.

Duration: 56:53
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• Alberta United Conservatives win majority government
• Support us on Patreon
• Fellow Canadians: Visit British Columbia at your own risk
• Erin O’Toole says CSIS has informed him he was target of voter suppression and misinformation campaign by China
• Kelowna encampment residents speak out after Poilievre compares designated sleeping area to 3rd world country
• Word of the Week: Risk

We discuss the findings of David Johnston’s report on Chinese influence, two more possible secret Chinese police stations are uncovered in Quebec, and we look at the Alberta NDP’s equity platform. Also, the village of Lytton BC has yet to be rebuilt.

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“If these organizations have a connection to the Chinese government, getting funding in Canada legitimizes the group, it provides it more of a foothold, it can obviously strengthen it and … give it more opportunities for influencing people. I wouldn’t be surprised if there are more organizations that might have connections to UFWD (United Front Work Department) or the Chinese government that are receiving [Canadian] government funds.” – Dennis Molinaro, an expert on Chinese foreign interference and former national security analyst on the two Quebec organizations named as possible Chinese police stations by the RCMP.

Duration: 57:30
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• Disturbing details about China’s interference that Johnston discovered — and downplayed
• Support us on Patreon
• Group suspected of hosting Chinese ‘police station’ received up to $200,000 in federal funding
• A Look at the NDP’s Anti-Racism and Equity Platform
• There’s nothing going on’: No rebuilding underway nearly 2 years after Lytton, B.C. fire
• Word of the Week:

Ethics issues in Alberta don’t get covered fairly, BC’s safe supply is getting sold on the streets, and coal plants will become illegal to run after 2030. Also, Trudeau’s new clean fuel standards will increase inflation and hit the poor the hardest.

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“If where we’ve come to, in this country, is when individuals in this province, or any other province, flick their lights on or the furnace fan kicks in that that’s deemed illegal and causes for someone to go to jail, come and get me.” – Premier Scott Moe on the federal government’s 2030 green electricity requirements.

Duration: 55:27
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• Alberta ethics probe says Smith didn’t contact prosecutors but did try to influence justice system
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• Safe supply: Are prescribed opioids being sold on B.C.’s streets, and if so, is it a problem?
• Saskatchewan running coal power later than 2030 would be illegal
• New fuel regulations will increase price of fuel and decrease GDP
• Word of the Week: Regulation

Canada’s passport redesign removes iconic historical images, the UCP makes a plan to reduce city crime, and BC’s old growth forests are still being logged. Also, the Alberta NDP spreads misinformation about healthcare.

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“I would advocate that [Terry Fox] should be on more things. He’s one of Canada’s greatest heroes. He was a young person in the early 80s who inspired a nation and a world to do better. And because of him, there’s been a lot of suffering that’s been alleviated because of the money raised for cancer (research). To remove such an iconic Canadian in place of what I’ll call such generic Canadiana imagery makes absolutely no sense.” – Dave Teixeira, the organizer of the Terry Fox Hometown Run, on the federal government’s removal of Terry Fox from the new passport design.

Duration: 55:06
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• Canada removes Terry Fox from passport, prompting backlash
• Support us on Patreon
• UCP announces Safe Streets Action Plan
• Images of felled ancient tree a ‘gut-punch’, old-growth experts say
• Deeply concerning’: Smith suggests privatizing major Alberta hospitals in 2021 video
• Word of the Week: Passport

Conservative MP Michael Chong gets targeted by China, David Eby’s actions don’t match his words, and many Alberta ridings could produce surprising results. Also, the single use plastics ban may have papered over our environmental problems.

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“I think everyone is aware of the saying that forests are the lungs of our planet and so this is a really critical moment and we need to take steps to keep forests standing, rather than increase the pressures on them to provide the fibre for bags, pizza boxes, cutlery and straws.” – Nicole Rycroft, founder and executive director of Canopy, an environmental non-profit.

Duration: 1:00:20
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• CSIS report on MP being targeted by China sent to PM’s national-security adviser, Chong says
• Support us on Patreon
• In the next 10 years, B.C. will need to fill 1M job openings’: Premier David Eby
• Riding Profile Edmonton-Decore
• Paper can’t be a solution to plastic waste’: Canadian environmentalists warn about the rise in single-use paper products
• Word of the Week: Straw

Danielle Smith promises to not raise taxes, the public service strike blocks key infrastructure, and Rachel Notley is silent on nuclear power. Also, the media decides that questioning immigration policy is no longer racist.

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“With a steady and low corporate tax rate that I can bank on, I can plan for the future and make long-term decisions to ensure my business can keep adding to Alberta’s economy, creating jobs, supporting my community, and keeping this province strong for the next generation.” – Ana Zagorac, owner of Sweet Rhapsody Bakery Cafe and Patisserie on the importance of a positive investment climate.

Duration: 49:51
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• Danielle Smith promises to not raise taxes if re-elected
• Support us on Patreon
• Striking public servants block access to government buildings and key infrastructure
• Notley’s NDP might want to pick a lane on energy policy. Right now it’s incoherent
• It’s OK to ask whether immigration is intensifying our housing crisis
• Word of the Week: Escalate