The Evan Bray Show

You’re quick & clever! And for some weird reason you’ve carried the right answer in your head for years. Or maybe you just trust Uncle Google. It's time for Saskatchewan’s Smartest Radio Listener for Little Town Apparel -- your chance for fame and acclaim and to prove just how smart you are. Not only do you get bragging rights, you’ll win prizes too! Call 1-877-332-8255 to play!

Cold and flu season is here, and Saskatchewan's annual influenza and COVID-19 vaccination campaign is getting underway. Dr. Joseph Blondeau, Saskatoon clinical microbiologist and Head of Clinical Microbiology at RUH and the University of Saskatchewan, joins Evan with advice on staying healthy this fall and to discuss the troubling reports surrounding a suspected plague-related laboratory incident in Russia.

After more than 40 years with SGI, Penny McCune is getting ready to retire as the company’s President and CEO. She joins Evan to reflect on her career, her time leading SGI and what comes next.

Last time we invited Todd McIntyre, owner of McIntyre Ranch in the RM of Caron, SK, to the show, he was preparing for a trip to Arkansas, volunteering on a ranch there. He has since returned and joins us for a quick follow-up!

A botched execution in Tennessee left death row inmate Christa Pike alive, while Donald Trump is pushing ahead with the first U.S. military execution in more than 60 years, reportedly by firing squad with plans to livestream it. Austin Sarat, Legal scholar and death penalty expert, Amherst College, joins Evan to discuss these developments.

Evan goes to the phones to chat with listeners about what's on their minds today. Call 1-877-332-8255.

Over the weekend, Prime Minister Mark Carney criticized Donald Trump's decision to lift sanctions on Russian diesel, warning the deal could help finance Russia's war in Ukraine. Maria Popova, Hiram Mills professor of political science at McGill University, joins Evan to explain why she believes the agreement is a gift to Vladimir Putin and what Trump hopes to gain.

Fall is one of those seasons people seem to have very strong feelings about. Some people love everything about it — the changing leaves, the cozy sweaters, the pumpkin spice everything. But what if you think pumpkin spice is overrated? Maybe you can't stand Halloween, or you think fall is just a depressing reminder that a Saskatchewan winter is around the corner.

A new Fraser Institute report finds that inflation-adjusted spending per public school student in Saskatchewan has declined over the past decade, even as enrolment has grown. Paige MacPherson, Senior Fellow in Education Policy at the Fraser Institute, joins Evan to discuss the findings and weigh in on Saskatchewan's latest student test scores and the debate over standardized testing.

New wastewater data is giving police and communities another look at the level of drug use across Saskatchewan. The testing found particularly high levels of methamphetamine and cocaine in Prince Albert. Patrick Nogier, Prince Albert Chief of Police and President of the Saskatchewan Association of Chiefs of Police, joins the show to talk about what this data tells police and how they're responding.