The Big Story

Early in the pandemic, nothing had to be perfect, governments just needed solutions. And Canada's developed the ArriveCAN app to help process returning Canadians and incoming foreigners, to ensure their compliance with what were then very strict Covid protocols. It might have been messy, but it sure seemed necessary.

Today, most of those protocols no longer exist. But ArriveCAN is still going strong. In fact, the government recently expanded the app to help modernize the border process. Which is fine...for those who want to use it. But why is it still mandatory? What do we know about the data it collects and what is done with it? And what's the danger of a government requiring citizens to use a piece of digital technology?

GUEST: Bianca Wylie, technology expert, partner at Digital Public, co-founder of Tech Reset Canada

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The former US President once said he could shoot somebody on Fifth Avenue and his supporters would never waver. After a week in which it was revealed that his Florida property was searched by the FBI in an ongoing investigation related to classified documents—including some pertaining to nuclear weapons—that statement looks prophetic. Trump's base and the Republican party have rallied around him, with escalating threats of violence against the departments conducting the investigation.

But it does seem like the FBI and DOJ may be closing in. So what happens now? How far are we from an indictment, if one ever comes? Could a former president actually find himself under arrest? And if it does happen, what mayhem will it spark in a country that feels like a political powder keg?

GUEST: Aaron Rupar, independent political and policy journalist, author of Public Notice

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It's tempting to see Romana Didulo and her followers as a big joke. No, she's not the "Queen of Canada", or the world, so have a laugh. Why not?

The answer to that question was on display in Peterborough, Ontario this weekend, when her followers attempted to perform citizens' arrests on members of the police force. Of course it didn't work, but things very nearly got out of hand. And if there were more people there, it might have.

In the meantime, her followers have lost money, homes and freedom following her various directives, and it's proving difficult to help them find reality once again.

GUEST: Kurt Phillips, founder of and former lead writer for Anti-Racist Canada, board member at the Canadian anti-hate network

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It seems like a problem half a world away that doesn't concern us. But it's not. Strict new targets for fertilizer emissions have Dutch farmers fighting back, saying they will be forced to close. Canada's targets are not nearly as aggressive, but they have been poorly explained and may be badly implemented, causing a lot of fear among Canadian farmers worried they won't be able to care for their crops.

This fear is being preyed upon by some people, who would like to stoke anger against the government, and radicalize Canadians towards their ideology. Here's what you need to understand about the difference between the emissions targets, the fear of fertilizer restrictions and the bad actors taking advantage of it.

GUEST: Kelvin Heppner, field editor for RealAgriculture, family farmer in Manitoba

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Kitsault was a mining town of 1,200 or so people in one of the most remote areas of British Columbia. It opened in 1981. It was empty by 1982. That was its first lifetime.

Since then, however, something has happened to Kitsault. Unlike other abandoned towns, Kitsault has been maintained. First by the mining company, later by a private owner. So today it sits, almost perfectly preserved, ready for a small town's worth of people to show up and move in. Will they?

GUEST: Justin McElroy, CBC reporter, personal Kitsault investigator

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There's a lot of money in creating and patenting new drugs. Like, tens of billions of dollars. But the field is crowded, competitive and dominated by large pharmaceutical companies. So some new startups are looking elsewhere.

For decades psychedelics have been illegal, taboo and largely considered the drugs of hippies. The past decade, though, has changed that, as psilocybin, ketamine and others have been increasingly used therapeutically. So now the race is on to create brand new psychedelics, that can be approved, patented and ... yup, marketed to you. Welcome to the psychedelic arms race.

GUEST: John Semley, writer and researcher (Read John's piece in WIRED, right here.)

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Ontario's health minister wants regulators to figure out a way to expedite the licensing of internationally trained doctors and nurses to help staff the province's ICUs, ERs and long-term care facilities. She hasn't said much about how, but it's a first step.

There are thousands of people who would like to work in the province's hospitals, but can't. It takes money, patience and years to become licensed. Why? Why have other countries figured this out but we can't?

GUEST: Dr. Shafi Bhuiyan, assistant professor at the Dalla Lana school of Public Health, founder and board member of the Canadian Association of Global Health

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The World Junior Championships begin today in Edmonton. And the summer date is not the reason they'll be different this year. The past few months have seen disturbing accusations of sexual assault against several members of two team Canadas — 2003 and 2018. 

Hockey Canada has spent decades of time and energy turning its world juniors into a Canadian myth, and lots of people have profited from that. These accusations, and revelations from Hockey Canada itself to a government committee have shattered that. Can it ever be put back together? And finally, why did it take so long to get here? It's not as though there haven't been plenty of warning signs ignored along the way...

GUEST: Michael Grange, Sportsnet

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When 40-year-old Amber Manthorne fails to show up to work on Friday, July 8th, 2022, her friends immediately believe something is wrong. At first, it is thought that Amber is with her boyfriend, Justin Hall, but then Justin surfaces days later, without Amber, leaving more questions than answers.

In this episode, host Laura Palmer outlines the timeline of events surrounding Amber's disappearance and sits down with Amber's friend, and family spokesperson, Kristie St. Claire.

Listen to the rest of the series here. 

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We've known about fast radio bursts (or FRBs) for 15 years now. But nobody had seen one quite like this. A Canadian telescope detected an FRB that not only was much longer than usual, it had a distinct repeating pattern.

We learn more and more about the universe every year, and we're finding more and more things we can't quite understand. What are FRBs? Why was this one so special? And what's at the end of the discovery trail?

GUEST Marina Koren science writer, The Atlantic

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