The Hamilton Today Podcast with Scott Thompson:

Canada's inflation rate has fallen back to the country's target range for the first time in more than two years, but economists say the fight against high inflation is far from over. Nike’s decision to permanently end its sponsorship with Hockey Canada’s men’s program in the wake of several sexual assault scandals within the organization is a necessary part of the rebuilding process, says a Brock University expert. Burlington is preparing for its 150th anniversary celebration, Heritage Week, coming up in August. As the War in Ukraine reached its 500th day, some express their worry that the West is losing interests or succumbing to war fatigue. The International Gas Union’s annual LNG report, released last week, says that Canada has the planet’s second-largest pipeline of LNG projects at the “pre-final investment decision” phase. One-quarter of all new liquification capacity on the drawing board is in Canada. Canada's inflation rate has fallen back to the country's target range for the first time in more than two years, but economists say the fight against high inflation is far from over. Jagmeet Singh is in the city to lay out the NDP’s strategy for handling rent prices and those who are concerned about losing their homes. Canada has a long history of its Prime Ministers ignoring National Defence, according to a new piece in the National Post written by Carson Jerema.

Guests:

Dr. Eric Kam, Professor of macroeconomics, Monetary Economics, International Monetary Economics, Implications of Monetary Growth, with Toronto Metropolitan University

Taylor McKee, Assistant Professor of Sport Management, Brock University

Marsha Paley, Chair of the Heritage Week subcommittee

Jeffrey Dvorkin, Senior Fellow at Massey College, Former Director of Journalism at the University of Toronto-Scarborough and author of Trusting the News in a Digital Age

Atif Kubursi, Professor Emeritus of Economics, McMaster University; President of Econometric Research Ltd.; former Undersecretary of The United Nations

Dr. Sylvain Charlebois, Professor of Food Distribution and Policy, and the Director of the Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University

Jagmeet Singh, Leader of the Federal NDP

Carson Jerema, Comment Editor with the National Post

Host – Scott Thompson

Content Producer – William Erskine

Technical/Podcast Producer – Ben Straughan

News Anchor – Dave Woodard & Jen McQueen

Want to keep up with what happened in Hamilton Today? Subscribe to the podcast! https://megaphone.link/CORU8835115919

The Hamilton Today Podcast with Scott Thompson:

The original host of CHCH TV’s Tiny Talent Time, Bill Lawrence, passed away from a heart attack at the age of 91 while in the hospital on Friday night. From basketball and video game tournaments to employment workshops and paint nights, Hamilton is hosting its biggest Youth Rec Week yet, kicking off today! Nike has permanently ended its sponsorship of Hockey Canada, finalizing an earlier pause of its marketing support and dealing a financial blow to the organization as it continues to experience the fallout from a sexual assault scandal last year. At a time when skeptics are questioning Canada's plan to ramp up immigration, a new report argues the country needs to welcome a lot more newcomers to counter-balance its aging demographic. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police could one day transform into a federal police agency that operates more like the FBI under an ambitious but controversial concept that has gained new traction in the nation’s capital, the Star has learned. It is all coming up on the Hamilton Today Podcast!

Guests:

Bill Brioux, television critic and author.

Elissa Freeman, PR and Pop Culture Expert.

Victoria Kerekesch, Recreation Manager with the City of Hamilton.

Marvin Ryder, Professor with the DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University.

Bruce Newbold, Professor in the School of Earth, Environment and Society, McMaster Universitat McMaster University.

Christian Leuprecht, Professor at both the Royal Military College of Canada and Queen's University, and a Fellow at the Macdonald Laurier Institute.

Michael Veall, Professor Economics at McMaster University, Academic Director, Statistics Canada Research Data Centre.

Duff Conacher, Co-Founder of Democracy Watch.

Host – Scott Thompson

Content Producer – William Erskine

Technical/Podcast Producer – Tom McKay

Podcast Co-Producer – Ben Straughan

News Anchor – Dave Woodard & Jen McQueen

Want to keep up with what happened in Hamilton Today? Subscribe to the podcast! https://megaphone.link/CORU8835115919

The Hamilton Today Podcast with Scott Thompson:

Leaders of a Hollywood's actors union voted Thursday to join screenwriters in the first joint strike in more than six decades, shutting down production across the entertainment industry after talks for a new contract with the studios and streaming services broke down. Our friend Professor Steve Joordens has been on an adventure this summer: he and his wife are undertaking a Canadian Motorcycle Odyssey. They are at the halfway point, back in Toronto to rest for the weekend before taking off. The Liberal Party of Canada launched more than a dozen ads on Facebook to promote the government’s messaging just days after the Trudeau government announced it would stop advertising on Meta-owned platforms because of the ongoing conflict over the Online News Act. The CEO of Hamilton Food Share has said that Hamilton is at a crisis level, with food banks registering 40 per cent more visits this past June compared with the same month in 2022. Many more Canadians will begin receiving Ottawa’s climate action incentive payment starting Friday. There continues to be developments around Wagner Group in Russia, even with the surprisingly more diplomatic approach that Putin has taken with them. Now, the Russian leader had announced that Wagner “simply” does not exist as a “legal entity” in Russia. It is all coming up on the Hamilton Today Podcast!

Guests:

Robert Thompson, Trustee Professor of television, radio and film; Director of the Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture at Syracuse University.

Jeff Atkinson, President of Honda Indy Toronto.

Steve Joordens, Professor of Psychology at the University of Toronto.

Elissa Freeman, PR and Pop Culture Expert.

Karen Randell, CEO of Hamilton Food Share. 

Marvin Ryder, Professor with the DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University.

Michael Veall, Professor Economics at McMaster University, Academic Director, Statistics Canada Research Data Centre.

Aurel Braun (PRONOUNCED "brown"), Professor of International Relations and a Senior Member of the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto.

Scott Radley, host of the Scott Radley show and columnist with the Hamilton Spectator.

Host – Scott Thompson

Content Producer – William Erskine

Technical/Podcast Producer – Tom McKay

Podcast Co-Producer – Ben Straughan

News Anchor – Dave Woodard & Jen McQueen

Want to keep up with what happened in Hamilton Today? Subscribe to the podcast! https://megaphone.link/CORU8835115919

There continues to be developments around Wagner Group in Russia, even with the surprisingly more diplomatic approach that Putin has taken with them. Now, the Russian leader had announced that Wagner “simply” does not exist as a “legal entity” in Russia.

GUEST: Aurel Braun, Professor of International Relations and a Senior Member of the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto. 

The Hamilton Today Podcast with Scott Thompson:

According to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, documents they obtained show that The Bank of Canada handed out $20 million in bonuses last year as inflation reached a 40-year high. A tentative deal has been struck, potentially bringing an end to the B.C. Port Strike. Public transit in Burlington, Ontario, will be free for seniors all the time and free for young people on evenings and weekends starting in August. On Tuesday, City staff outlined where and how the Ford government will meet the goal to build 1.5 million homes over 10 years across Ontario, which will include a big chunk of the Book Road area in Hamilton’s southwest. Premier Doug Ford says a controversial push to mine a mineral-rich area of northern Ontario is being carefully watched around the world. Google is rolling out its new artificial intelligence chatbot, named “Bard,” across Europe and in Brazil, expanding its availability to hundreds of millions more users. It is all coming up on the Hamilton Today Podcast!

Guests:

Franco Terrazzano, Canadian Taxpayer Federation Federal Director.

Keith Baldrey, Global News Legislative Bureau Chief based in Victoria, B.C.

Catherine Baldelli, Director of Transit with the City of Burlington.

Don Fox, Executive Financial Consultant, with The Fox Group, IG Private Wealth Management.

Jeff Beattie, Ward 10 Councillor with the City of Hamilton.

Keith Mackey, Mackey International.

Colin D’Mello, Queen’s Park Bureau Chief, Global News.

Carmi Levy Technology Analyst & Journalist.

Scott Radley, Host of the Scott Radley Show and Columnist with the Hamilton Spectator.

Host – Scott Thompson

Content Producer – William Erskine

Technical/Podcast Producer – Tom McKay

Podcast Co-Producer – Ben Straughan

News Anchor – Dave Woodard & Jen McQueen

Want to keep up with what happened in Hamilton Today? Subscribe to the podcast! https://megaphone.link/CORU8835115919

Public transit in Burlington, Ontario, will be free for seniors all the time and free for young people on evenings and weekends starting in August.

GUEST: Catherine Baldelli, Director of Transit with the City of Burlington. 

The Hamilton Today Podcast with Scott Thompson:

A legendary moment in music history, as well as the history of the city of London, Ontario, is being memorialized with a brand-new mural on the north wall of Budweiser Gardens. The founder of Giant Tiger, Gordon Reid, has died at the age of 89. The store may be popular and ever-present now but that was not always the case. If you have been delaying on your plans to get to the gym and pump iron, because you wanted to make heads and tails of the different strategies, researchers at McMaster University have some good news for you. The United States and global allies unveiled new security assurances for Ukraine at a NATO summit on Wednesday, designed to bolster the country’s defences against Russia over the long haul while Kyiv strives for membership in the alliance. The meeting of provincial and territorial premiers has wound down in Winnipeg, we look at what took place and what is expected to come next from their gathering. It is all coming up on the Hamilton Today Podcast!

Guests:

Natalie Wakabayashi, Director of Culture & Entertainment Tourism with the City of London, Ontario.

Nicolas von Bredow, President of the REALTORS® Association of Hamilton-Burlington (RAHB), Broker of Record with Royal LePage Macro Realty.

Marvin Ryder, Professor with the DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University.

Brad Currier, PhD candidate at McMaster University and co-researcher on a new paper on the ‘great weight debate.’

Dr. Jack Cunningham, Ph.D., Program Coordinator at the Bill Graham Centre for Contemporary International History, in Trinity College and the Munk School. Specializing in British foreign policy, Canadian foreign policy and politics, International history, U.S. foreign policy and relations with Russia; University of Toronto.

Bill Brioux, television critic and author.

Peter Graefe, Professor of Political Science with McMaster University.

Eric Kam, Professor of Macroeconomics, Monetary Economics, International Monetary Economics, Implications of Monetary Growth, with Toronto Metropolitan University.

Scott Radley, Host of the Scott Radley Show and Columnist with the Hamilton Spectator.

Host – Scott Thompson

Content Producer – William Erskine

Technical/Podcast Producer – Tom McKay

Podcast Co-Producer – Ben Straughan

News Anchor – Dave Woodard & Jen McQueen

Want to keep up with what happened in Hamilton Today? Subscribe to the podcast! https://megaphone.link/CORU8835115919

The Hamilton Today Podcast with Scott Thompson:

Pickleball is a sport that has picked up steam in recent years, with people of all ages getting involved. What is the appeal, what is the Pickleball scene like in Hamilton, and what are the risks? Housing in Hamilton is an ongoing concern. A recent report from the Smart Prosperity Institute shows that we are losing skilled homebuilders in our region. As the weeks drag on since Paul Bernardo’s transfer to medium security prison, more information pours out on who sent a note to whom without it being passed along and more. Wagner Group’s chief Yevgeny Prigozhin pledged loyalty to the Russian government in a Kremlin meeting with President Vladimir Putin five days after the commander led a short-lived rebellion, a senior government spokesperson said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday blasted as "absurd" the absence of a timetable for his country's membership in NATO, injecting harsh criticism into a gathering of the alliance's leaders that was intended to showcase solidarity in the face of Russian aggression. Proposed Bail Reforms and public safety are among the top priorities at the Premiers’ Meeting, reportedly. But there are concerns about some of the bail reforms proposed by the federal government. A growing number of Canadians are worried that interest rates are rising faster than they can keep up, new polling suggests, just as many economists expect the Bank of Canada will deliver another rate hike this week. Hamilton’s hunt for land to buy for affordable housing on Hamilton’s LRT corridor has so far found no “suitable” properties more than a year after the review started.

Guests:

Carolyn Buck, President of Pickleball Hamilton

Mike Collins-Williams, CEO, West End Home Builders Association

Daniel Perry, Consultant, Summa Strategies

Elliot Tepper, Emeritus Professor of Political Science with Carleton University

Aurel Braun, Professor of International Relations and a Senior Member of the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto

Ari Goldkind, Toronto criminal lawyer, legal expert, media commentator

Sanyam Sethi, Vice-President of Public Affairs with Ipsos Canada

Brad Clark, Ward 9, City of Hamilton

Scott Radley, Host of the Scott Radley Show and Columnist with the Hamilton Spectator

Host – Scott Thompson

Content Producer – William Erskine

Technical/Podcast Producer – Tom McKay

Podcast Co-Producer – Ben Straughan

News Anchor – Dave Woodard & Jen McQueen

Want to keep up with what happened in Hamilton Today? Subscribe to the podcast! https://megaphone.link/CORU8835115919

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday blasted as "absurd" the absence of a timetable for his country's membership in NATO, injecting harsh criticism into a gathering of the alliance's leaders that was intended to showcase solidarity in the face of Russian aggression.

GUEST: Aurel Braun, Professor of International Relations and a Senior Member of the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto.