In Bed with the Elephant

Alberta’s 2026 referendum saw more than 2 million voters cast ballots: The key question was whether their province should hold a second binding referendum on separation.

The vote is a setback for Alberta Separatist forces represented by the Alberta Prosperity Project.

Ryan Jespersen is one of Alberta’ s most prominent, popular and astute broadcasters.

Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor discuss how the religious fundamentalists, Silicon Valley technologists, and ethno-nationalists who make up an apocalyptic alliance share more than one might think: they are united in their belief that some kind of cleansing cataclysm

is coming, whether through the manifestation of messianic prophecy, the rampages of a resource- and job-consuming artificial intelligence, or the purported existential threat of immigration and cultural replacement. Rather than avoiding this conflagration, they welcome it, convinced they will be among the saved on the other side.

We explore the ideology of these actors who strive to make the world unlivable and then seek to shield themselves from the fallout - Custom built bunkers, rocketing off to Mars, or fortifying the nation to keep their enemies at bay.

Originally broadcast on April 13th 2025: Andrew Johnston, a professor of late 19th and 20th Century US History at Carleton University in Ottawa. He’s a specialist in imperialism and foreign relations, liberalism and pluralism in American social thought, and the history of international thought. 

Donald Trump’s second presidency has already been a game changer. His brazen public statements about his desire to annex Canada and slap tariffs on imports entering the US from Canada seems to have fundamentally altered the nature of the Canada – US relationship. Transforming perhaps for all time, the way Canadians see their American neighbors and possibly transforming the way Canadians understand themselves.

For most of the last century Canadians have imagined the United States as a friendly neighbour, a vital trading partner, a trusted ally. And yet in mere months the ground has shifted under Canadians’ feet. Join us for this episode of In Bed with the Elephant hosted by Adrian Harewood.

Québecers go to the polls on October 5th in one of the most wide open and unpredictable provincial elections in recent memory. The vote in Québec could result in something the province hasn’t seen in over 20 years – a Parti Québécois majority government.

The last time the sovereigntist party was in power was in 2014. A PQ government, whether a minority or majority, could pose a real challenge to the Canadian federation and Prime Minister Mark Carney’s “Canada Strong” agenda. 

Daniel Béland is the James McGill Professor and Director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada (MISC) and a keen observer of Quebec. He joins us to discuss the upcoming election.

Yafa Jarrar is a Palestinian human rights lawyer based in Ottawa, Canada. She and her family have lived most of their lives under Israeli occupation. Her parents Khalida and Ghassan are prominent activists from the West Bank- who have been detained on numerous occasions by Israeli authorities over the last 50 years. Yafa Jarrar recently returned from the West Bank.