On episode 127, investigative journalist Martin Lukacs (The Trudeau Formula: Seduction and Betrayal in an Age of Discontent) joins host Andre Goulet to discuss Justin’s new role as the nation’s camp-counsellor-in-chief, the lobbying leviathan and Liberal corporate cronyism, misplaced praise for an insufficient NDP response to the CERB bailout, new developments in the Wet'suwet'en fight for land title recognition and much more.

Read more about how the fax machine is a vital weapon in Montreal contract tracers' war against COVID-19 at:
https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/using-a-fax-machine-the-painstaking-work-of-contact-tracers/

See how the the impact of COVID-19 on Canadian media is playing out across the country at:
https://j-source.ca/article/we-mapped-all-the-media-impacts-of-covid-19-in-canada/

Support the show at patreon.com/unpackingthenews

This conversation was recorded on May 13th, 2020.

On episode 127 Kate Jacobson and Sean Willett of The Alberta Advantage join host Andre Goulet to discuss zero dollar oil, recognizing America as a failed state, fake country balkanization in an age of pandemic and more.

Plus: dismantling so-called "Canadian" values and a Marxist analysis of Dr. Panda's pseudo-fascism.

See the 'Canadian Values' poll at
http://angusreid.org/modern-morality/

Learn more about the coronavirus with Dr. Panda at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkUlCIFE45M&t=32s

Listen to The Alberta Advantage at
https://soundcloud.com/albertaadvantage

This conversation was recorded on April 24th, 2020.

On episode 125 Emily Leedham, James Wilt and host Andre Goulet talk COVID19 in Manitoba, call out the CERB for leaving undocumented workers behind and explore why the left’s response to the recent Winnipeg PD murders and to police killings everywhere should be to call for the abolition of the police.

Plus: releasing a major book on the future of public transit in the middle of a pandemic, Harvey's burgers as the ultimate form of quarantine self-care and: are cats the anti-Twitter?

You can buy 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Cars? Public Transit in the Age of Google, Uber and Elon Musk' directly from Behind the Lines Press at:
https://btlbooks.com/book/do-androids-dream-of-electric-cars

Subscribe to 'Rank and File: Prairie Edition' wherever you get your podcasts and read Emily's recent piece on the CERB and undocumented workers at
https://www.rankandfile.ca/undocumented-cerb-status/

Read James' argument for abolishing the police at https://canadiandimension.com/articles/view/abolishing-the-police-is-the-only-reasonable-response-to-winnipeg-police-killings

This conversation was recorded on April 19th, 2020.

Sequestered in the nation's capital, political commentator and academic David Moscrop (The Washington Post, Maclean's) joins host Andre Goulet to discuss the nationalization of the economy and the paradigm shifting CERB, the strength of Canadian political institutions in the face of an unprecedented crisis and what the Trudeau government can learn from the radical transparency and virus realpolitik of the South Korean government.

Plus: the Department of Global Affairs says that Saudi Arabia’s human rights record of unlawful killings, forced disappearances and torture is “problematic". So why has the ban on arms sales to Mohammed bin Salman’s thug regime been lifted? We explore why canceling the Saudi arms deal is Canada’s only ethical way forward.

This episode was recorded on April 12th, 2020.

Read David's latest at the Washington Post here:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/04/10/weapons-sales-saudi-arabia-reveal-that-canada-is-willing-trade-jobs-its-principles/

On episode 123 journalist Drew Brown (The Independent, VICE) joins host Andre Goulet to lament the loss of Newfoundland shed culture, analyze the gigantic hole in Trudeau’s Canada Emergency Response Benefit plan and explore why the global pandemic may be an extinction event for journalism.

This episode was recorded on April 5th, 2020.

Check out Tom Baird's COVID-19 math at
https://theindependent.ca/2020/03/31/crunching-the-numbers-on-covid-19/

Read the Canadian Center for Policy Alternative's breakdown of CERB aid at
http://behindthenumbers.ca/2020/03/18/what-to-make-of-the-federal-covid-19-aid-package/

Find out more about why the crisis may be an extinction event for journalism at
https://www.icfj.org/news/key-quotes-frontline-lessons-international-news-outlets-reporting-pandemic-maria-ressa-ritu

On episode 122 it's picnics, panics and positive energy as Vancouver comics Charlie Demers and David Harris join host Andre Goulet to talk rent freeze, economic collapse and what the coronavirus crisis looks like from a Pacific Rim perspective.

Hear multi-diagnosed comedian buds Charlie & David open up weekly (and weakly!) about mental illness and mental wellness with a range of guests on 'Fight or Flight Crew', available wherever you get your podcasts: https://www.spreaker.com/show/fight-or-flight-crew

This conversation was recorded on March 28th, 2020.

On episode 121 pundit and podcaster Rob Rousseau (49th Parahell, The Insurgents) and friend of the show Marla Williams join host Andre Goulet to discuss the escalation of the COVID-19 pandemic in Quebec, to flag the threat of increased surveillance and government overreach during the crisis and to provide some solace, support and solidarity in the midst of troubled times.

Plus: why it's more important than ever to lean into civic and democratic responsibilities and why hope and humour can be effective means for coping with the chaos.

Audio of Mayor Valerie Plante courtesy of the Montreal Gazette (video + edits: Pierre Obendrauf and Mahsa Radavi)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igoLPI8aJDo

These conversations were recorded on March 24th, 2020.

On episode 120 of Unpacking the News, host Andre Goulet welcomes comedian John Hanchar back to the show after a year abroad in China to try to make sense of a frightening and confusing week as Canada enters a new era of global health crisis.

Audio on this episode includes an excerpt from Stanley Kubrick's 'Dr. Strangelove' and this Tuesday's Justin Trudeau press conference.

This conversation was recorded on March 17th, 2020.

On episode 119, it's a trip down the memory hole to those heady, halcyon days of late February when occupations and blockades were sweeping the country. Join activist Ethan Dennett and host Andre Goulet for a conversation on the solidarity and celebration of the BC Legislature occupation.

Plus: hear Ethan and Andre explore why Canadian liberals and the Edmonton Eskimos both suck ass.

This conversation was recorded on March 9th, 2020.

Audio on this episode is courtesy of CBC Vancouver
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIZ6h9gjGb8

Support the show at https://patreon.com/unpackingthenews

On episode 118 of Unpacking the News ex-journalist and Comms Director at the BC-based public interest group Dogwood Kai Nagata joins host Andre Goulet to discuss the political fallout from the blockades and occupations, a federal government confused by its own hypocrisy and the RCMP’s historical pattern of violence against Indigenous communities.

This conversation was recorded on March 11th, 2020.

Follow us on Twitter at @kainagata @andremarrgoulet and @unpackingthene2

Audio courtesy of CBC's The National
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwf20Yie3tU

For more info on recent Dogwood campaigns go to https://dogwoodbc.ca/

Support this show at https://www.patreon.com/unpackingthenews