Western Context

Trudeau announces a high speed rail network right before he resigns, Carney’s financial policies get lambasted by economists, and BC’s throne speech says very little on the future. Also, the Liberals want to double CBC funding.

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“The changes at the CBC should be part of a package of measures to protect Canadians from foreign interference, from threats from the Trump administration, and the hegemony and the place that the richest men on the planet occupy in the public space of discussion, debate and information.” – Pascale St-Onge on a blueprint of changes for the CBC.

Duration: 1:04:21
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• High-speed rail line with 300 km/h trains will run between Toronto and Quebec City, Trudeau announces
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• Carney’s budgeting proposal was a ‘disaster’ when Alberta tried it, economists say
• BC throne speech cites war against Nazis to portray province in historic battle
• Liberals want to nearly double CBC funding, as an investment in ‘national security’
• Word of the Week: Lame duck

The CBC pays out huge bonuses while cutting jobs, a Victoria firefighter gets suspended for a letter to the BC Premier, and the Alberta NDP broke leadership election financing rules. Also the UN likens Canada’s TFW program to modern slavery.

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“While Canadians struggle to afford basic necessities like food and rent, CBC executives are rewarding themselves with massive bonuses despite their failing performance. End the madness. Recall the committee. Defund the CBC.” – Conservative MP Rachael Thomas on the increasing bonuses of CBC executives.

Duration: 56:15
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• CBC paid more than $18-million in bonuses in 2024 after eliminating hundreds of jobs, documents show
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• Victoria firefighter suspended for letter to B.C. premier criticizing homeless facility plan
• NDP broke election finance rules during leadership race
• ‘Chickens have come home to roost’: Mounting criticism over Canada’s low-wage temporary foreign worker program
• Word of the Week: Bonus

The federal government wants to battle over provincial resource rights, BC seizes Hells Angels clubhouses, and Danielle Smith limits media questions ahead of the May election. Also, an unnamed MP casts aspersions on CSIS’s credibility.

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“As we’ve known for a long time, the Hells Angels is a criminal organization. It doesn’t matter if it’s a clubhouse or other asset – a high-value car or high-value boat – if it’s been obtained through organized crime, they’re going to lose it.” – BC Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth on the forfeiture of three Hells Angels clubhouses.

Duration: 50:24
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• Sask. premier calls out federal minister following comments on natural resource rights
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• B.C. moves to seize Hells Angels clubhouses in Nanaimo, Vancouver, Kelowna
• Alberta Premier Smith, with election looming, announces new limits on media questions
• Canadian MP felt ‘shadow of doubt’ after spy agency warned him about diplomat
• Word of the Week: Forfeiture

BC decides to warehouse 1.3M unused rapid tests, Trudeau is still undecided on the F-35s, and BC’s 2021 disasters unveil a gap in infrastructure and emergency planning. Also, a former CBC journalist details the problems with the mainstream media.

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“B.C. has a lot of these [rapid] tests in storage. They do have a shelf life, they eventually expire. So we have to make sure we get to use them.” – Mike Klassen with the B.C. Care Providers Association.

Duration: 1:01:25
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• B.C. has 1.3M rapid tests in a warehouse, officials confirm after top doctor called it an ‘urban myth’
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• A tale of two fighter jets — and what it means for Canada’s defence and place in the world
• Cracks in B.C.’s infrastructure revealed by extreme weather events of past 6 months
• Tara Henley: Why I quit the CBC
• Word of the Week: Cognitive Dissonance

Trudeau has yet to account for $600b in spending, more needs to be done to end boil water advisories, and Alberta’s deficit drops much faster than expected. Also, the CBC tells us words we shouldn’t use, while we give context on the history of those words.

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“Being an English speaker doesn’t entail that you necessarily know the racist etymology automatically. The fact that you said it, oblivious to the etymology, doesn’t automatically make you a bad person. As language users, we have the social responsibility to monitor the impact our utterances have on others, especially when it involves a marginalized group.” – Ai Taniguchi, a linguist and an associate language studies professor with University of Toronto Mississauga.

Duration: 50:54
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• Liberals yet to account for $600-billion in public spending
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• Not enough money coming from federal government to maintain Indigenous water treatment systems: PBO report
• Alberta’s projected deficit drops to $5.8 billion, buoyed largely by global energy price spike
• CBC’s 18 words you can’t say is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard
• Word of the Week: Etymology

Alberta wraps up a successful spring session, CBC is turning off Facebook comments, and Trudeau paid more for less in buying vaccines. Also, our Public Health Agency is held in contempt of Parliament as the Trudeau government covers up more and more.

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Duration: 48:31
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

“It’s one thing for our journalists to deal with toxicity on these platforms. It’s another for our audience members who try to engage with and discuss our journalism to encounter it on platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, where they are almost guaranteed to be confronted by hate, racism and abuse.” – CBC editor in Chief Brodie Fenlon on the fabricated dangers of free speech

• Alberta legislature wraps tumultuous spring sitting, likely to call new session in the fall
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• Why CBC is turning off Facebook comments on news posts for a month
• Canada paid a premium to get doses from Pfizer earlier than planned
• Handing over Winnipeg lab documents has ‘national security’ implications
• Word of the Week: Contempt

Trudeau’s government spends millions fighting veterans in court, a panel calls for more Canadian content on streaming services, and stigma surrounds the coronavirus outbreak in Canada. Also, Trudeau gives $50m to Mastercard amid a household debt crisis.

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Duration: 45:53
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• Ottawa spent more than $180,000 on defamation case involving Seamus O’Regan
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• Independent panel report calls for more Canadian streaming content and an ad-free CBC
• Canada’s top doctor calls out ‘racism and stigmatizing comments’ over coronavirus
• Trudeau hands MasterCard a gift of your money
• Word of the Week: Stigma

Political ads are banned on social media, the CBC tries to discredit The Post Millennial, and tax audits in the BC housing market uncover criminal elements. Also, China bans meat imports from Canada and journalists don’t connect the dots with Huawei.

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Duration: 44:21
Hosts: Shane and Patrick

• 2015 redux: Scheer’s Conservatives are sticking with the Harper policy book
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• The Fight Against The CBC and Press Progress
• Potential cases of tax evasion in B.C. real estate rising
• China to stop all imports of ‘meat products’ from Canada starting Wednesday
• Word of the Week: Weak