Guelph Politicast

End Credits - April 15, 2020 (Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool)

This week on End Credits, it's all about the music. And real life. We're going to get into some smooth jazz with a biography of the late, great Miles Davis in Birth of the Cool, and before that we're going to talk about 10 documentaries with scary themes, you know, because there's not enough to worry about in these coronavirus afflicted days. 
This Wednesday, April 15, at 2 pm, Adam A. Donaldson and Tim Phillips will discuss:
Shock-umentaries. April is usually Hot Docs month in Toronto, the world's largest celebration of documentary films. And hey, this week we're reviewing a documentary, right in the middle of these scary times. Scary? Documentary? This week we're going to combine the two by talking about 10 great horror-based documentaries you can find easily, and not so easily.
REVIEW: Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool (2019). In the 1940s, a young trumpet player came out of East St. Louis and changed everything about popular music. In his five-decade career, Davis reinvented jazz, and he reinvented himself, on almost a regular basis. It would be a wonder if any filmmaker could stuff all that life and music into a single two-hour documentary, but some how they did it with this one. This film is part of the PBS American Masters series and is available on Netflix.
End Credits is on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca Wednesday at 2 pm.

GUELPH POLITICAST #217 - Missing the Movies

It would be unfair to say that independent art house movie theatres like the Bookshelf Cinema are feeling the biggest impact from the COVID-19 lockdown, but things weren’t exactly easy for them before the outbreak. From the fewer number of films being released theatrically, to big monopolies at the studios and national theatre chains, to the growing number of streaming options, indie cinemas had a lot to deal with before a global pandemic. But is it a lost cause?
Consider the near unlimited amount of content you can access in your home from Netflix, Crave, Amazon Prime, Disney Plus and so many more. Then consider the big cinema chains who have the advantage of first dibs on big movies from big studios, not to mention the leverage of being able to negotiate across dozens of locations, and hundreds of screens versus one-at-a-time. When you take into account these massive challenges, it’s a wonder that so many indie theatres are still standing at all.
Perhaps in Guelph that idea is not so strange because of the incredibly strong and dedicated community that the Bookshelf has fostered for over 30 years in the downtown core. COVID-19 came just after the Bookshelf had finished an elevator to the second floor, as well as the new front-of-house at the cinema that offers a variety of new treats through the Greenroom including beer and spirits. Things were on an upswing, but with even the largest cinema chain in the U.S. possibly hemorrhaging on bankruptcy, how can the small guys be expected to survive the pandemic?
It's pretty concerning for those us who enjoying seeing movies in a crowd on the big screen, and this week, Bookshelf Cinema manager Peter Henderson will talk about life at the his theatre before and (hopefully) after the pandemic. He also talks about the concerns of his fellow managers of art house cinemas, and how these theatres are only as strong as the communities they’ve built. He also discusses the regular-sized issues facing art house theatres, and whether being in quarantine for months will make people more likely to visit the Cinema once restrictions are lifted.
So let's talk about going to the movies on this week's edition of the Guelph Politicast!
Yes, the Bookshelf is still closed, and the Ontario government announced Saturday that the state of emergency will continue until April 23. Of course, you can still order books from the Bookshelf, and you can place those orders at the store’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 - April 9, 2020

This week on Open Sources Guelph, we're going to break quarantine. Not really, but we're going to open the show again and make it about more than just what Adam and Scotty think of the news. This week, our special guest will be fan favourite and Guelph MPP Mike Schreiner, who will talk about his favourite recipes the Ontario government's response to COVID-19. Before that, we'll try and cram the rest of the day's pandemic news in the first half of the show.
This Thursday, April 9, at 5 pm, Scotty Hertz and Adam A. Donaldson will discuss:
Speaking Moistly About COVID. The country's new most famous Freudian slip was spoken at one of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's daily press conferences, which are still going better than the daily rake outs down at the White House, even as J.T. faces pressure to do more financially. Also facing pressure is Premier Doug Ford who declared that the Easter Bunny is an essential worker, but people are more interested to know if the Province is shorting on the number of tests. We'll talk about the latest pandemic news.
Quarantined Mike. Guelph MPP Mike Schreiner was last on the show on January 23, and a lot has changed since that time when we talked about the teachers strike, and the Ontario's lack of commitment to the environment. In April though, it's all about COVID-19, and we'll talk to Schreiner about the government response, what they still need to do, some of the initiatives he's working on, and how his constituency office is trying to help people in Guelph navigate the government response.
Open Sources is live on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca at 5 pm on Thursday.

End Credits - April 8, 2020 (All the Bright Places)

This week on End Credits, we're going to fire up the Netflix machine and press play on a movie that might have missed our attention if the movie theatres were still open. This week, we're going to get into the teen drama (and COVID-free) All the Bright Places, and we're going to do a run down of where all your most-anticipated movies have moved on the release calendar.
This Wednesday, April 8, at 2 pm, Adam A. Donaldson and Candice Lepage will discuss:
Release Date Moves. It was going to be a beautiful year at the movies, but then COVID-19 happened and nobody was going to the cinema for a while. How do you run a global movie market when no one is supposed to leave their homes for the time being? You back load the second half of the year with all the anticipated blockbusters! We'll talk about the changes, and where you can find your favourite upcoming films.
REVIEW: All the Bright Places (2020). She's a normally bright teenage girl racked with grief and survivor's guilt from the death of her sister; he's a teenage boy trying to find the bright side as he battles some complex mental health issues of his own. Some how, they manage to fall in love as they try to overcome their specific struggles, and how could they not in the beautifully captured vistas of [checks notes] Indiana! Still, is this movie, and the personal struggles and small victories it chronicles, a nice break from our pandemic times?
End Credits is on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca Wednesday at 2 pm.

GUELPH POLITICAST #216 - Seriously, Keep Your Rent

One week ago was rent day for people everywhere, and many of those people were not able to submit those rent cheques because the COVID-19 quarantine has meant no money in the bank. April 1 was the first hurdle in what might be a months long dilemma for Canada’s renters. We could be on lockdown for the foreseeable future, so what happens when the rent cheques stop entirely?
We're already thinking about it. An article in the Globe and Mail Tuesday by Moira Warburton and Denise Paglinawan warns that landlords need to brace for rent strikes as we get closer to May, and that the government might have to step in with rent subsidies. According to a CIBC economist, about 70 per cent of the rent that was due on April 1 was paid, which is good, but after one full month without wages, how many more people are going to start being left behind?
That’s why activists have begun to take action. Starting in Toronto’s Parkdale neighbourhood and spreading around Ontario, renters are organizing with a simple message: Keep your rent. In the short-term, what they're arguing is the very practical consideration that a lot of renters live paycheque-to-paycheque, but there's also the broader social justice message that our housing needs in this country are inadequate and expensive even at the best of times.
In other words, the COVID-19 pandemic is exposing long gaping holes in our housing system, but are people now finally in a position to listen and understand the need?
So this week on the podcast, we're joined by Moon Richards, Danny Drew, and Dustin Brown of the Guelph Renters Union as they talk about how there’s still different levels of privilege when it comes to renters, and how it’s psychologically hard to take that first step to not pay the rent. They will also talk about their thoughts on why we can’t depend on government to come to the rescue, and how the quarantine has exacerbated the pre-existing conditions in our less-than-egalitarian housing market.
So let's talk about the economics of keeping your rent on this week's Guelph Politicast!
To find resources on renters' rights, or to learn how you can get involved with the Guelph Renters' Union, you can visit their website here. There are also resources for renters on the Government of Ontario website, which you can find 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 - April 2, 2020

Welcome back to Open Sources Guelph COVID! Yes, it's still the number one story in the world, and in many places, the circumstances are getting worse, not better. Looking to the United Kingdom, and portions of the United States, it's hard not to be worried, and for everyone else, the biggest concern might be cabin fever. We will beat our cabin fever by talking about all the stuff happening outside.
This Thursday, April 2, at 5 pm, Scotty Hertz and Adam A. Donaldson will discuss:
Is it Normal Yet? No, it's not. Now you don't have to listen to the show today. On the other hand, if you still want to listen to the show today, we will do another round up of the week's Coronavirus news. From the local reaction and our new state of emergency in Guelph, to Ontario closing schools for a year, to the enhanced support for businesses from the Feds, and the White House now calling 200,000 deaths a "win." So we'll talk about all that, plus how COVID-19 has seemingly killed democracy in Hungary.
Open Sources is live on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca at 5 pm on Thursday.

End Credits - April 1, 2020 (What We've Been Watching)

Welcome back, everyone! We know that you haven't gone anywhere, but we sure did. After a self-imposed self-isolation, End Credits is back on the air with a brand new episode in our pre-post-pandemic era. In a rare appearance by all the panelists on the same show, we're going to recap our own independent watchlists in our own private theatres at home.
This Wednesday, April 1, at 2 pm, Adam A. Donaldson, Candice Lepage, Tim Phillips, and Peter Salmon will discuss:
What We've Been Watching! It's been two weeks since our last episode, and with movie theatres closed around the country, that means there's nothing to watch... Wrong! That's fake news!! There are so many streaming sites now, you can't possibly run out of things to watch, and we're going to talk about some of the things we've been binging since the world went on lockdown.
 
End Credits is on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca Wednesday at 2 pm.

GUELPH POLITICAST #215 - The Future, and Present, for Workers

What a difference a pandemic makes, huh? For years now, there’s been a grand debate about whether service industry workers deserve a living wage, whether or not they should be able to access employer benefits, and if we need to change our assumptions about the quality of work provided by mostly minimum wage employees at our retailers, grocery stores, and restaurants. Now, these are the people who are keeping our economy a float.
On this week's podcast, we will consider the new reality for the workers we've always thought on the bottom rung of the economy. In fact, local Walmart and Zehrs stores are practically begging for people to come and work for them on a temporary basis to cope with the high demand, and these famously stingy outlets are now paying a premium for labour with higher wages, more safety, and even, in a few cases, childcare.
It’s quite the turnaround from the outrage heard when the previous Ontario government increased the minimum wage to $15, a move that was later undone by the current government. It took a pandemic, but many of those workers are now making a living wage, and if you’ve visited an essential grocery store in the last three weeks, then you probably talked to someone represented by the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW). Getting a living wage for all their workers has been a long-term goal.
But will it last? After COVID-19 has passed, will the businesses in question try to repeal the gains given to their employees in this time of crisis, or has the paradigm changed forever? Debora De Angelis, the Ontario Regional Director of UFCW, will answer those questions, and talk about how she’s been working with employers and different levels of government to make sure that workers are protected in these extraordinary circumstances. She also discusses her concerns for workers right now, and the important message she wants workers and employers to hear in these difficult, unprecedented times.
So let's talk about the current state of affairs for our newly essential work force on this week's edition of the Guelph Politicast!
You can visit the UFCW website to learn more about their advocacy, and to find resources about your rights as a worker. Remember that you have the right to feel safe and secure at work, and if you have a complaint that you can’t resolve with your employer, and you aren’t represented by a union, you can always talk to the Ministry of Labour online, or by calling the Health and Safety Contact Centre at 1-877-202-0008.
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 - March 26, 2020

This week on Open Sources Guelph, there's only one story, and it's the same story we had last week. Once again, we will do a wrap up of all the latest COVID-19 news from all corners of the globe. From the micro to the macro, we will try and get you up-to-date on all the latest doings and wrongdoings from our pandemic world.
This Thursday, March 26, at 5 pm, Scotty Hertz and Adam A. Donaldson will discuss:
COVIDeodrome. It's week two of our pandemic times, and things seem to be getting dicier. Once again, we'll do a round robin of all the latest COVID-19 news from the local to the international. We'll talk about Guelph's emergency council meeting, Ontario's shutting down of all non-essential services, sweeping new powers proposed for the Federal government, and Donald Trump's idea that the cure is starting to be worse than the actual disease. All that, and the Olympics are postponed, on this week's edition of "Too Much News!"
Open Sources is live on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca at 5 pm on Thursday.

End Credits - March 25, 2020 (Repeat - Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker)

This week, as we continue our COVID-19 lockdown, we will once again play an End Credits classic, this one from January, and our review of the last of the Skywalker sage, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is now available of VOD, and will be available on Blu-ray this coming Tuesday!