Like it or not, we are stuck online. Digital life is a reflection and extension of life offline–if we can even talk about life offline anymore. It’s not like the old days of logging on and logging off. We are constantly connected. Our social, political, and economic lives are bound up with the digital world. So is our public sphere. And much of that world is controlled by a handful of very wealthy, very powerful tech giants. Digital space presents several significant challenges to the public goo...
Mar 07, 2023•40 min•Season 2Ep. 81
In Ontario, Premier Doug Ford is trying to address the province’s healthcare crisis. With over 200,000 people waiting for surgeries, long emergency room wait times, too few family physicians, and nurses burning out and leaving the profession, something must be done. But Ford’s plan is to introduce more for-profit care into the system. He calls it “innovation.” It’s been done in other provinces. It won’t solve the crisis, but it might introduce new problems. Saving healthcare in Ontario, and Cana...
Feb 07, 2023•42 min•Season 2Ep. 80
Canadians can be forgiven for making a national pastime out of expressing anger at the state of competition in the country. Telecom, grocery, transportation, entertainment, and several other industries are an utter, anti-consumer disaster. As I like to put it, Canada is made up of three telecom companies in a trenchcoat. There may be some hope for change, however, as the country undertakes a review of its competition policy and the Competition Bureau pushes back a bit more than usual against mon...
Jan 24, 2023•45 min•Season 2Ep. 79
Reconciliation with Indigenous peoples in Canada requires structural transformation. One essential site of institutional reform is the country’s legal systems. In 2015, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada released 94 calls to action. In call to action #42, the TRC called upon “the federal, provincial, and territorial governments to commit to the recognition and implementation of Aboriginal justice systems in a manner consistent with the Treaty and Aboriginal rights of Aboriginal pe...
Jan 10, 2023•44 min•Season 2Ep. 78
This is the third and final episode in a three-part series on cities in Canada. So far, we’ve tackled how cities fit within the constitution and explored progressive visions for city life in the 21st century. We talk about cities all the time. Not that they get the critical, detailed coverage and attention they deserve; but talk about cities and life within them is common. Mostly complaining. But not always. But how do cities work? That is, how do they actually work? And how will they work now t...
Dec 20, 2022•43 min•Season 2Ep. 77
Around the world, more than 4 billion people live in cities. That’s just over 50 percent of the global population. The United Nations projects that by 2050, it will be 68 percent. In Canada, 82 percent of people live in urban areas and that number is on the rise, too. Alongside the growth in urbanization is growth in the number of problems cities and their residents face. The list is long and getting longer. Housing. Transit. Policing. Parks. Infrastructure. The drug poisoning crisis. Safe stree...
Dec 06, 2022•43 min•Season 2Ep. 76
This is the first in a three-episode series on cities in Canada. In 1911, 45 percent of people lived in cities in this country. By 2021, that number had risen to 82 percent–and growing. The growth of cities in Canada has been painful. Today, they face significant challenges including housing policy, policing, and public transit. And yet, they get far less attention than other orders of government and exist under the thumb of provinces. To try to understand what this means for residents, we ask: ...
Nov 22, 2022•41 min•Season 2Ep. 75
Anti-trans hate and violence is on the rise in Canada and the United States. Indeed, 2021 was the most violent year for trans people on record worldwide. Online and offline, trans people face growing threats driven in large part by right wing extremists and their enablers in the media and politics, as well as those who remain silent. Tackling this hate and violence requires a combination of community and government work across borders. Towards that end we ask: How should we fight anti-trans hate...
Nov 08, 2022•41 min•Season 2Ep. 74
The labour movement is having a moment. Both in the United States and in Canada, unions have won breakthroughs at workplaces including Amazon, Starbucks, Medieval Times, and Blizzard alongside union drives at Staples, Indigo, and WestJet. While union rates in both countries are low, particularly in the private sector, recent momentum offers an opportunity for a resurgence. And while management and owners are pushing back against workers, the terrain on which they do battle is changing. And so on...
Oct 25, 2022•41 min•Season 2Ep. 73
In a pluralist society, individuals and groups each have their own preferences, interests, and goals. Together they compete, cooperate, intersect, and diverge in public and private spaces, shaping the world and how we live together. Like it or not, industry plays a central role in that process – and can’t help but be drawn into the politics of the day in public and not-so-public ways. Beyond advocating for the interests of industry in public policy, businesses may also engage in political activi...
Oct 11, 2022•41 min•Season 2Ep. 72
Threats and harassment directed at journalists in Canada are on the rise. A vicious coordinated campaign of hate targeted at a handful of women, especially racialized women, in recent weeks stands out as particularly troubling. As the far-right continues to organize and grow in the country, and as cynical politicians and media elites fan the flames, the implications of these campaigns press beyond the borders of news media and into the territory of our democracy. Protecting journalists and uproo...
Sep 13, 2022•45 min•Season 2Ep. 71
The crisis in healthcare across the country has opened the door for "reform." In Ontario, Premier Doug Ford is pushing "innovation." In recent days, he’s taken that message to Atlantic Canada, too. But what does "innovation" mean? It could mean further starving the public system of the resources it needs. It could mean privatisation. It could mean introducing a two-track system. Supporters of a strong public system aren’t inclined to give conservative reformers the benefit of the doubt, nor shou...
Aug 30, 2022•42 min•Season 2Ep. 70
Artificial intelligence is embedded in our daily lives whether we notice it or not. It shapes how we live, work, and play. Shopping, gaming, healthcare, cybersecurity, travelling, social media, policing, war and plenty of other facets of contemporary life feature AI technology – and there’s more on the way. And while discussions of AI tend towards questions about sentience – and robot overlords throwing off the yoke of human rule and taking over – the more immediate and pressing concerns of use,...
Aug 16, 2022•40 min•Season 2Ep. 69
The agriculture sector is a significant global source of greenhouse gas emissions. In 2019, the United Nations suggested eating less meat was a key step in lowering such emissions – especially beef. But while the sector contributes to climate change, it is also an essential component of our food security, biodiversity, and meeting daily nutritional needs. Understanding how beef consumption fits into our fight against climate change requires us to dig into Canada’s cattle industry, how it operate...
Aug 02, 2022•41 min•Season 2Ep. 68
In February, 2021, we took a deep breath and mixed things up by checking in with one of our favourite comedians as we celebrated our 40th episode. At the time, we’d been in the pandemic for a year. Now, we’ve been at it for over two years and we’re approaching 70 episodes. So, what better time to check back in with one of our best-loved guests. Last time, we asked “How are you doing?” It would be lazy to ask the same question, so this time we ask: How are you doing-er? On this episode of Open to...
Jul 19, 2022•47 min•Season 2Ep. 67
The pandemic isn’t over. Someday, it will be. But we aren’t there yet. We are, however, at a critical juncture – a fork in the road at which we can choose another path forward. Today, we ought to be devoting much of our attention to an analysis of how we can rebuild or remake our social, political, and economic institutions in ways that serve us more effectively, sustainably, and equitably. Rebuilding or remaking our institutions requires us to think critically about what has worked in the past,...
Jun 28, 2022•50 min•Season 2Ep. 66
In the first year of the pandemic, police-reported hate crimes rose by 37 percent. That’s from a recent Statistics Canada report that recorded 2,669 incidents in 2020 – the highest number since such data became available in 2009. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. No one who has been paying attention to the rise in hateful rhetoric, threats, and the growing mobilization of white supremacists in Canada will be surprised by this data. But it’s shocking and troubling nonetheless. Rooting out h...
Jun 14, 2022•46 min•Season 2Ep. 65
In the United States, a leaked draft opinion on the constitutional right to abortion has put those who support choice on high-alert. The constitutional protection of that right is at risk, putting the well-being and lives of millions in the path of peril as the country tilts ever further towards Christian theocracy. As news of the U.S. leak circulated, many in Canada took notice and raised questions about the right to choose in this country, wondering whether it was secure and for how long. As i...
May 31, 2022•47 min•Season 2Ep. 64
Artificial intelligence is shaping healthcare in Canada and around the world. The role of AI in delivering care will evolve and, indeed, grow. As a series of tools, it offers opportunities for patients and practitioners; yet, as with any technology, it comes with risks. As with any tool, AI will only be as good as those who create and operate it. Given who we are – and our track record – that ought to give us pause. Understanding, interrogating, and mobilizing new technologies requires care, dil...
May 10, 2022•46 min•Season 2Ep. 63
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has produced a refugee crisis. Another one, that is. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reports over 80 million people have been displaced globally, including over 26 million who are refugees. According to the U.N. agency, “Syria, Venezuela, Afghanistan, South Sudan and Myanmar account for two-thirds of people displaced across borders.” The war in Ukraine has produced millions of additional refugees. Many are being welcomed around the world, as they...
Apr 27, 2022•Season 2Ep. 62
As Prince William and Kate Middleton wrap up their Jubilee tour of the Caribbean, Barbados and Jamaica are moving towards becoming republics, casting doubt on the future of the Commonwealth. Ahead of the royal visit to Jamaica, more than 100 prominent Jamaicans signed an open letter to the prince and duchess, calling for “an apology for British crimes against humanity” alongside reparations. The case for reparations in the Caribbean and beyond is bound up with the past and present of racial capi...
Mar 29, 2022•50 min•Season 2Ep. 61
As Canada and the world watched a convoy roll across the country to Ottawa, occupy the capital, and terrorize the city, those who have long warned about the risks of the far-right and white supremacists reminded us that this has been a long time coming. Canada has long ignored and neglected growing extremist movements while condemning, suppressing, and over policing morally just protest and state resistance. It’s cheap and easy to try to apply a one-size-fits-all analysis to all who push back ag...
Mar 15, 2022•41 min•Season 2Ep. 60
Globally, democracy is in recession. In the United States, it is in crisis. In Canada, it is, at best, plodding, complacent, and exclusionary. The social, political, and economic order that so many have taken for granted for so long now faces upheaval. Some believe that shift is long overdue, but alternatives driven by authoritarian populism and other toxic varieties of self-government threaten to usher in something far worse. Regardless, the status quo is untenable. Those who wish to preserve l...
Feb 01, 2022•43 min•Season 2Ep. 59
Canada is home to several active nuclear power plants and is the second largest uranium producer in the world. Nuclear energy accounts for roughly 15 percent of the country’s electricity production. In Ontario, it meets approximately 60 percent of the province’s energy needs. While the popular image of nuclear power is conditioned by infamous historical events, some climate activists and industry professionals advocate it becoming a larger part of our plan to address climate change. So, we ask: ...
Jan 18, 2022•41 min•Season 2Ep. 58
Everybody loves a trilogy. In March of 2020, host David Moscrop and guest Amanda Watson dug into how folks were managing their lives during the early days of the pandemic. In the spring of 2021, the two checked back to talk about managing anxiety in what was billed, optimistically, as the “late pandemic.” Now, just under two years into this whole thing, the two connect once more to ask: Are we coming undone during the pandemic? On this episode of Open to Debate, David Moscrop talks once more wit...
Dec 07, 2021•46 min•Season 2Ep. 57
Canada is home to structural racism. As much as some might wish to exempt our provinces, cities, political parties, laws, policies, and institutions from systematic exploitation and discrimination, such practices are routine. They are embedded in the fabric of our social, political, and economic lives. To better understand how these systems work, we look to the very processes by which we are governed and ask: How does structural racism shape our politics? On this episode of Open to Debate, David...
Nov 23, 2021•40 min•Season 2Ep. 56
Climate change is real, it is caused by human beings, and it is an existential threat to humankind. Politicians and industry leaders now claim to be taking it seriously. Their performances often fall short of their promises. Theoretical physicist and author Steven Koonin, however, extends climate critique to scientists and the media, arguing that while climate change is real, the consensus conclusions we have reached are overstated, the science is often miscommunicated or misinterpreted, and our...
Nov 09, 2021•44 min•Season 2Ep. 55
For decades, we’ve heard about the rise of China. A major historical and contemporary power, the country shapes domestic and global politics -- as Canada knows quite well. And yet, coverage of China, its affairs, and its international relations is often hyperbolic, skewed, and incomplete. A new book from a veteran reporter on China-Canada relations adds depth, rigour, and new perspectives to that coverage. So, how should we think about China’s place in the world? On this episode of Open to Debat...
Oct 26, 2021•49 min•Season 2Ep. 54
Managing the pandemic has required a delicate balance of expert guidance and government decision making. While experts provide knowledge essential for deciding what we should do and how we should do it, politicians are ultimately accountable to the public for the policies, laws, and programs they adopt. So, what is the role of experts during a pandemic? On this episode of Open to Debate, David Moscrop talks with David Fisman, professor of epidemiology at the University of Toronto's Dalla Lana Sc...
Oct 12, 2021•46 min•Season 2Ep. 53
Surveying the state of market competition in Canada, you might be forgiven for thinking the country is a handful of companies in a trench coat. One of the central critiques of capitalism is that it tends towards monopoly -- or at least oligopoly. Canada is a telling case study that supports the hypothesis. Market monopoly and oligopoly makes for a raw deal for consumers, leading us to ask: What is to be done about Canada’s competition problem? On this episode of Open to Debate, David Moscrop tal...
Sep 28, 2021•47 min•Season 2Ep. 52
