Thursday marks one-year since the official end of the “Freedom Convoy”, a series of protests against COVID protection measures, vaccine mandates and lockdowns that paralyzed downtown Ottawa and border crossings at Windsor and Coutts for weeks. Yes, the Convoy flamed out, but the complex web of thoughts and ideas behind the Convoy are still out there. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #361 – The Convoy Was the End of the Beginning”
It hasn’t gotten any better. Last year about this time, the news was grim with stories about the banning of certain books, political influence on what’s being taught in schools, and rhetorical fist fights on whether library material is appropriate given the subject matter. What little difference a year makes because Freedom to Read Week rises again with more threats against Free Expression. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST – Freedom to Read Week Again”
The story is familiar at this point: A Code Red is called, and there are no ambulances available to respond to an emergency. It’s a piece of the healthcare puzzle that doesn’t get a lot of attention; we sit up when we hear the words “Code Red”, or when we see those line-ups of ambulances on social media, but the problems are ongoing, and in many ways they’re the same problems affecting other aspects of our healthcare system. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #360 – When Ambulances Are the Emergency”
For this first new podcast of 2023, let’s clear the air. In the process of going non-stop, 52 weeks a year on all the issues that come at us on a regular basis, how often do we just stop and take stock? How can we keep up with everything and not get caught in the undertow? How can we overcome that feeling that we’re not doing enough and stay hopeful in an ever changing world? Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #359 – Starting Fresh”
Every year, the Mayor of Guelph is invited to an event called the State of the City where he or she gives a speech to the members of the Chamber of Commerce about the current issues facing Guelph and how city council plans on addressing them. It once was said that to understand the future, you have to look to the past, so what was on the mayor’s mind last year when he talked to the Chamber? Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #358 – The State of the City, A Year Ago”
Next week, council will have their meeting to confirm the 2023 budget, which, on the surface, seems like a relatively ordinary and straightforward procedure, but it may be a pretty big hint at the challenges that are coming for the members of city council, old and new alike. In terms of the new, and the challenges they’ve already been facing, this seems like a good time to get to know a few more of the new council players. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #357 – The New Kids on the Block Part 2”
On Open Sources Guelph we talk to all members of city council regularly, so it seemed fitting to kick off this new council term last fall by talking first to the five new councillors. For the next couple of weeks on this podcast, we’re going to collect those initial interviews starting with the new reps from the odd number wards in Guelph as we get to know the new players at the council table. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #356 – The New Kids on the Block Part 1”
Here’s the first episode of the podcast for the year, and what are we talking about? Stuff that happened in the year that just ended! Before we let 2022 go for good, we’re going to go around the horseshoe, the one in the council chambers at 1 Carden Street, one more time. There weren’t that many council meetings between September and December, but that doesn’t mean nothing interesting happened. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #355 – …The Rest of the Year at City Council”
There were good news stories, bad news stories, and some very bad news stories. Progress was made in some quarters, and there was regression in others. It was the best of times, and it was the worst of times. It was a long 12 months in some ways, but they all seemed to pass by very, very quickly in the grand scheme of things, so what is there left to say about the year 2022? We’re going to find out! Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #354 – 2022 Year in Review”
For the last couple of years, we’ve used the Christmas week episode of the podcast to sit down with an influential Guelphite and talk a little more broadly about life and politics while looking back at some of the year’s highlights. This week’s podcast interview comes to you via a Zoom call from the hallways of Parliament Hill, which was the site of what the Canadian Press calls the Biggest Story of the Year. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #353 – Christmas With Lloyd”
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