Guelph Politicast

End Credits - September 2, 2020 (Spielberg Ranking)

This week on End Credits, we're going on vacation. In this last week of summer, we're going to take a break, and play you a little something special. We love him, you love him, and sometimes he lets us down, but most of the time he hits it out of the park. Whatever your flavour of Spielberg, this week we've got them all.
This Wednesday, September 2, at 3 pm, Adam A. Donaldson will discuss:
Uneven Stevens (The Whole List). Earlier this summer, we produced a multi-part list where we organized all 33 films of Steven Spielberg films from worst to best. It's no mean feat covering nearly 50 years of one of the most successful and influential filmmakers of all time, and all that work deserves to be heard. Again. So for this week's special edition of the show, we're going to cover the whole story and put every Spielberg film, from Duel to Ready Player One, in its proper place.
End Credits is on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca Wednesday at 3 pm.

GUELPH POLITICAST #236 - What Will School Look Like?

This is the last week of summer, and it’s typically a time of great excitement for kids and parents alike. This year though, there is also more than a little amount of trepidation because going back to school means something very different in the era of COVID-19. Perhaps this will help. We're going to look at what your school might look like when you, or your child, are heading back to it in the next couple of weeks.
As we’ve seen in the news over the last few days, the details around back to school plans are changing regularly. On a different week, we might make some time on this pod to plunge into the political and legal concerns and their effect on school board plans, but for now, we will assume that despite minor variations, school will still proceed next week as planned. So what will that look like? 
To learn that, we’re joined this week by Michael Glazier, the Director of Education of the Wellington Catholic District School Board, and Heather Loney, the Communications and Community Engagement Officer for the Upper Grand District School Board.
From the perspective of both boards, we will dedicate this episode of the show to a basic examination of what students and parents can expect when school starts whether your child is going to their physical school in masks, or if they’re remaining at home to do virtual learning. We will talk about what the school day will look like, the new rules for riding the bus, how the classroom will look, what things kids need to bring, and how lunch and recess will work.
Before we begin, these are separate interviews so you can stop the podcast after Glazier, or you can fast forward things about 30 minutes to get to Loney. Or, if you like, you can listen to the whole darn thing so that you can compare and contrast the back to school plans like the political wonk you are.
So let's talk about what to expect when you're going Back to School on this week's Guelph Politicast!
For all the latest updates about the Back to School plans of both school boards, you can visit their websites. For the Wellington Catholic District School Board here, and for the Upper Grand District School Board go here.
The host for the Guelph Politicast is Podbean. Find more episodes of the Politicast here, or download them on your favourite podcast app at Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Google Play, and Spotify.
Also, when you subscribe to the Guelph Politicast channel and you will also get an episode of Open Sources Guelph every Monday, and an episode of End Credits every Friday.

Open Sources Guelph - August 27, 2020

Welcome to the black parade! That My Chemical Romance tune is front of mind on this week's Open Sources Guelph as we watch the Republican Party at their convention tell a horror story that's supposed to make Joe Biden look like a Stephen King villain in clown make-up. We'll discuss that, and we'll talk about our own new Conservative Party leader here in Canada. and then, in the back half, we'll talk to one of the councillors from Guelph's south end.
This Thursday, August 27, at 5 pm, Scotty Hertz and Adam A. Donaldson will discuss:
Hatch Game. The Republican National Convention started one week after its Democratic counterpart, and if you're a fan of U.S. President Donald Trump it's the greatest show on Earth. On the other hand, there was lies, more lies, multiple violations of the Hatch Act - which outlaws the use of government property in campaigning - and it took almost two whole nights for some one to offer condolences for the 177,000 who have died from COVID-19. So, that's awesome right?
O'Toole Time. After months of speculation, it was finally announced that that Durham MP Erin O'Toole was the new Conservative leader, and the new leader of the Official Opposition. The announcement came late on Sunday night after a lot of technical issues with counting the vote, but unlike 2017 the O'Toole victory was decisive and overwhelming. So what was the secret to his success, and how can he hopes to keep his coalition together while expanding the base.
The Other 6ix. Guelph city council just wrapped up their August schedule, which is weird because there's not usually any council meetings in August. In these unusual times, we could use a little insight, and this week Ward 6 Councillor Mark MacKinnon will return to the show in order to provide it. With MacKinnon, we will cover the City's COVID-19 response, the currently underway ward boundary review, and the omnipresent controversy about the fate of the new main library.
Open Sources is live on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca at 5 pm on Thursday.

End Credits - August 26, 2020 (First Cow)

Coming up this week on End Credits, it's the end of summer! Well, almost. To mark the occasion, we will look at the ultimate summer movie, a introspective slow west movie about the first cow in Oregon in the 19th century! Hold on, you may actually want to hear about this movie, and you will also want to hear the second part of our ultimate summer movie list.
This Wednesday, August 26, at 3 pm, Adam A. Donaldson and Peter Salmon will discuss:
A Farewell to Summer Blockbusters Part 2 of 2. Summer was once Hollywood’s harvest season, where it made most of its bank, but COVID-19 changed all that. So as we wind down this unusual summer, we’re going to talk about the Top 20 summer blockbusters since that became a things in 1975. The movies that are fun, action-packed, but not necessarily Oscar-worthy.
REVIEW: First Cow (2020). Kelly Reichardt's famed minimalism is on grand display in First Cow, a movie that takes place in the Oregon frontier in the 1820s, and is about two men that steal milk from the area's only cow to find their fortune in selling cakes. It sounds bizarre, but the earnestness and deliberate pace of First Cow, not to mention some world-class performances, have been this film a rare critical darling in 2020. But what do we think of this tale of friendship and dairy theft?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRUWVT87mt8&t=3s
End Credits is on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca Wednesday at 3 pm.

GUELPH POLITICAST #235 - The Council Year So Far

Normally there are no August city council meetings, but as we all know in 2020 what's normal got up, walked out of the room, and threw itself down the stairs. Having three city council meetings in August is unusual, but it's hardly the most unusual thing about this political year, and to make sense of everything that's happened at council so far in 2020, we're going to do a recap.
Looking back at the council year so far, there are a lot of interesting developments. It's not just the variety of issues that have come before council, but it's watching the council process having to change suddenly, and radically, as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak. The best laid plans came to a sudden halt in March, but it seems like city council was able to rally quickly and get things back on track at least in terms of council process.
In terms of the specific issues, COVID cleared a lot of priorities off the table in the short-term, but we've also seen a lot of the regular business of council find its way back to the top of the agenda. Planning and bylaw updates, multiyear budgeting, the Clair-Maltby Secondary Plan, and the council composition and ward boundary review are all part of that bigger picture, and have been address at council since the pandemic started. 
Along the way, there was a great big debate about dog parks that's yet to really go away. There have been planning projects presented, and some of them were greeted with optimism, while others looked to be rejected before planners got a chance to make their case. Speaking of cases, the City discussed updates to road safety, and new regulations for accessory apartments, and that's only scratching the surface about what's happened at council so far in 2020.
So let's review two-thirds of the 2020 year at council on this week's Guelph Politicast! The next meeting of city council is Committee of the Whole on Tuesday September 8 at 2 pm. In the meantime, City staff are getting feedback about the council composition and ward boundary review, and you can offer your input on the subject on the City's website here.
The host for the Guelph Politicast is Podbean. Find more episodes of the Politicast here, or download them on your favourite podcast app at iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, and Spotify.
Also, when you subscribe to the Guelph Politicast channel and you will also get an episode of Open Sources Guelph every Monday, and an episode of End Credits every Friday.

Open Sources Guelph - August 20, 2020

This week there's a surprising amount of news for the middle of August on Open Sources Guelph. There's election news out of the United States, but more surprisingly, there's election news out of Canada as one of the Atlantic provinces is going to polls. Will there be a Federal election in Canada? Not for a month thanks to some shadiness by Justin Trudeau, which might be the name of a book published by Rebel Media, which we will also talk about.
This Thursday, August 20, at 5 pm, Scotty Hertz and Adam A. Donaldson will discuss:
Going Prorogue. The heat finally got too much for Justin Trudeau this week as we reached into Stephen Harper's old playbook and prorogued Parliament for a month, at which point we will hopefully have forgotten about the ethical lapses that lead to the PM's third ethics investigation in five years. In the meantime, Chrystia Freeland has been made the new Finance Minister, which makes us wonder if a) Is there anything Freeland can't solve? and b) Does Trudeau really think this is old news now?
Run DNC. In a first, the Democratic National Convention has been happening this week remotely, with the entire affair taking place via Zoom from locations across the United States. Along with formally nominating Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as candidates for President and Vice-President, the goal of the DNC is to make the case against Donald Trump, while rallying the Democrats' bigger than ever tent. So how are they doing, and what does Biden have to do now to win?
A Blaine on Resources. The United States is not the only place in North America looking to hold a fall election. New Brunswickers will be going to the polls on September 14 as Premier Blaine Higgs formally had the writ drawn up this week, but what does a pandemic election look like in Canada? How will New Brunswick overcome many of the same challenges as the U.S? And will this election set the tone for future elections across Canada going forward?
Rebel Alliance. When the Alberta Legislature decided to bar Rebel Media from the press gallery, Postmedia, of their own volition, announced that they would boycott the press gallery in solidarity with Rebel Media. Apparently, the reporters in Edmonton were not pleased about the move, especially since Alberta's four biggest papers are all Postmedia papers, but the order came down from HQ in Toronto, which begs the question, is this an important hill that Postmedia wants to die on?
Open Sources is live on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca at 5 pm on Thursday.

End Credits - August 19, 2020 (Nobody Knows I'm Here)

This week on End Credits, we're getting ready to say goodbye to summer. This week's movie review takes us to the cold, drab island off the coast of Chile where nothing ever good happens, which is a solid message for the end of August in a pandemic. We're talking about Nobody Knows I'm Here, and we're looking back at the best summer blockbusters of yester-year.
This Wednesday, August 19, at 3 pm, Adam A. Donaldson and Tim Phillips will discuss:
A Farewell to Summer Blockbusters Part 1 of 2. Summer was once Hollywood's harvest season, where it made most of its bank, but COVID-19 changed all that. So as we wind down this unusual summer, we're going to talk about the Top 20 summer blockbusters since that became a things in 1975. The movies that are fun, action-packed, but not necessarily Oscar-worthy.
REVIEW: Nobody Knows I'm Here (2020). Fame is a double-edged sword. Movies have told us that for years,  but rarely so darkly than in the case of Nobody Knows I'm Here. A first for Netflix, this original film from Chile stars Jorge Garcia of Lost fame as a man driven to being a recluse on a small sheep farm with his uncle after his brief brush with childhood fame in Miami, but what happens when fame and notoriety finds him again?
End Credits is on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca Wednesday at 3 pm.

GUELPH POLITICAST #234 - WE: A Personal Story

WE has turned into something of a national scandal, but the truth is that there have been a lot of questions about the way WE does business for a long time, and only some of it's been recently exposed. The little non-profit that could, fighting child labour and promoting sustainability around the world, is now at the centre of the biggest political story in Canada in 2020, but what about the personal story?
This week on the podcast, Eli Ridder will take over hosting duties and talk to Humber grad and Guelphite Abi Dube, who, like hundreds of thousands of young people across Canada, was encouraged to get involved with WE and volunteer to support international development projects in developing countries around the world.
While at Rickson Ridge Public School, Abi volunteered for two WE trips, one to Kenya and one to India. These experiences were eye-opening in more ways than one because while she volunteered abroad, Abi did not see a charity that was leading by its best, most idealistic aspirations. In the wake of the new level of scrutiny brought to WE Charities, its affiliates and partners, Abi reached out to Guelph Politico to tell her story, and this it.
On this week's edition of the podcast, Abi Dube will walk through her WE experiences, from helping to build schools in Kenya where it seemed like not all children there were treated equally, and India where a hotel used by WE Charities to house volunteers seemed to use child labour. Abi will also talk about how she tried to bring her concerns to the attention of the people running those programs, and how she believes that her concerns were never really addressed. Also, Abi will discuss her concern that some of the real issues with WE are getting lost among the louder political scandal. 
So let's talk about one volunteer's experience with WE on this week's Guelph Politicast!
There is a companion piece to this podcast, which includes Abi’s trip diary entries and a response from WE Charities, and you can find all that by clicking here.
The host for the Guelph Politicast is Podbean. Find more episodes of the Politicast here, or download them on your favourite podcast app at iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, and Spotify.
Also, when you subscribe to the Guelph Politicast channel and you will also get an episode of Open Sources Guelph every Monday, and an episode of End Credits every Friday.

Open Sources Guelph - August 13, 2020

This week on Open Sources Guelph, we've got protests. In Lebanon, people are protesting the incompetency and corruption of their government that lead to disaster. In Canada, people are protesting [checks notes] the best advice of public health to protect them from a deadly pandemic (?). And, in Guelph, people are protesting the potential alteration of a major public park. These week, we'll try and shed some light on all these issues.
This Thursday, August 13, at 5 pm, Scotty Hertz and Adam A. Donaldson will discuss:
Into the Blast. Last week, about 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate confiscated from a cargo ship six years ago exploded in the port city of Beirut, killing over 200 people, injuring 7,000, and leaving about 300,000 people homeless. While it was not an attack, it was not an accident either, and the blame fell immediately on the corrupt Lebanese government who aren't even being trusted by the international community to manage the funds raised to fight the devastation. We'll talk about the politics that led to this terrible event.
Son of the Mask Debate. Last weekend in Kitchener, there was a "Hugs Over Masks" protest in Victoria Park, one of a series of nation-wide protests by people who supposedly think that mask orders infringe on their freedom, but have also attracted all kinds of conspiracy-minded people. We'll talk about how the media should be covering these kinds of protests, how seriously we should take them, and how they're a sign of encroaching QAnon-like movements.
Mike on Margaret. There's a disturbance in the west end, and it has everything to do with Metrolinx plan to electrify the Kitchener GO Train line with the placement of a traction power substation in Margaret Greene Park, and the neighbours are furious. This week, we will be joined by Ward 4 City Councillor Mike Salisbury, who will talk about how he heard about the issue, and what he's doing to make his constituents' concerns front and centre, plus the latest on City Hall's COVID fiscal crunch, and more.
Open Sources is live on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca at 5 pm on Thursday.

End Credits - August 12, 2020 (Almost Love)

This week on End Credits, we're in the mood for love. For our review this week, we've got a New York flavoured rom-com the makes you forget that there's a pandemic outside and that living in Manhattan is expensive, and it's called Almost Love. In the first half of the show though we will deal with the harsh realities of living in a pandemic and its effects on pop culture.
This Wednesday, August 12, at 3 pm, Adam A. Donaldson and Candice Lepage will discuss:
Re-opening News. Are we getting closer to seeing new movies in the multiplex again? Some people think so! Cineplex is opening more theatres across Canada, and while Tenet seems to be finally ready to open at the end of the month, Mulan is going direct to Disney+ for an extra $30 (?). We'll talk about all the latest movie news, including something called "The Schumacher Cut."
REVIEW: Almost Love (2020). Remember just hanging out with friends, and the only concern you had was your love life? Of course, no one does. Pre-COVID bliss is explored in Almost Love, an ensemble romantic comedy about two New York couples on the cusp of having to make or affirm their commitments with their respective partners by answering the question: Is this really the person I want to spend the rest of my life with? Hint: There's a happy ending!
End Credits is on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca Wednesday at 3 pm.