Interest rates are being raised and though it is a minor increase, will it yield a minor impact on Canada or should we be preparing for a major hit? Guest: Thie Convery, Financial Columnist, The Hamilton Spectator; Wealth Advisor, Convery Wealth, IPC Securities Corporation - Many people agree that a good piece of music sounds pleasing regardless of what genre you play it in but does that mean it would be as big of a hit now, as it was when it was released? Guest: Eric Alper, Publicist, Music Commentator & Shameless Idealist

The baseball world is still in a bit of a standstill as fans continue to wait on spring training or games of any kind to be played. Where do we stand in this battle and why does it seem like it's billionaires fighting with millionaires over not getting paid enough? Guest: Mike Wilner, Baseball Columnist, Toronto Star & Podcaster - Today's edition of Ben's Story of the Day features a child who was born with an extremely rare disease called Uncombable Hair Syndrome, two animals start getting it on with each other in plain view at one of Disney's parks & according to the Ukrainian National Agency on Corruption Prevention, Ukrainians won't need to worry about claiming any captured Russian military equipment and/or vehicles on their taxes so that T-80 Main Battle Tank that you happened to come into possession of is not just your T-80 Main Battle Tank, it's yourtax-free T-80 Main Battle Tank!

As the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues, an investigation into potential war crimes committed by Russia has begun. What might get found and if Putin is found to be guilty, is there any way to actually arrest and imprison him? Guest: Dr. George Fletcher, Cardozo Professor of Jurisprudence, Columbia Law School - As the Russian ruble collapses and banks get isolated from the world, how could we see the sanctions impact the Russian people and Vladimir Putin's plans as a whole? Guest: Marvin Ryder, Associate Professor of Marketing, DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University - The acts of aggression from Russia has prompted many sports organizations to not only ban Russian athletes and cancel events in the country but also strip Vladimir Putin of his belts and statuses. Will this strike a meaningful blow or is it more of a symbolic move against Putin? Guest: Mark Hebscher, Author; Podcaster; Former Host, CHCH-TV; Former Co-Host, Sportsline

A lot has been going on involving the federal government and that's certainly going to have an impact on how Canadians perceive the different parties. Nanos Research did some polling to find out how respondents feel about the parties and Scott welcomes Nik Nanos back onto the show to help analyze the results. Guest: Nik Nanos, Chief Data Scientist & Founder, Nanos Research - All throughout the Olympics, China has said that it doesn't want things to get political however it recently held a press conference in which they did exactly that, made things political! Guest: Dr. Charles Burton, Senior Fellow, Macdonald-Laurier Institute, Centre for Advancing Canada’s Interests Abroad - What's happening in Ukraine? We've heard warnings and seen support get sent off but what could go down and what's the likelihood of anything happening at all? Guest: Dr. David Marples, Distinguished University Professor, Russian and East European History, University of Alberta

Charles Juravinski, a true legend of Hamilton, has passed away at the age of 92. Scott replays an interview he did with Juravinski not too long after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic when Charles and his wife, Margaret, donated $3.3 million to help bolster COVID-19 related and brain health research here in Hamilton. - Canada's Olympic Men's Hockey Team has been eliminated from the competition. Should this come as a surprise? Also, Steve shares some words and a story or two about Charles Juravinski. Guest: Steve Foxcroft, Sports Broadcaster, NFL Chain Gang Member, NBA Court-side Administrator, Referee & Vice-President, Fluke Transport - The amount of money that's being spent on Olympic coverage by streaming services is immense and yet these Olympics aren't seeing a massive amount of viewership. To talk more about this, Scott welcomes Bill Brioux back to the show. Guest: Bill Brioux, TV blogger, brioux.tv

We found out today that there was a settlement in the case against Andrew York but is this sort of an admission of guilt? How will this settlement be perceived by the public? Guest: Jeff Manishen. Former prosecutor; Criminal Defence Counsel, Ross & McBride LLP - There's a pretty big gap between the pandemic's effect on public servants and its effect on private businesses. While one was struggling with lay offs and closures, the other seemed to be flourishing with pay raises and bonuses. Guest: Jay Goldberg, Ontario Director, Canadian Taxpayers Federation - We should be seeing baseball starting its spring training down south but instead we're seeing delays and bickering. Who's holding things up and why? Guest: Mike Wilner, Baseball Columnist, Toronto Star & Podcaster

Now that the federal government has invoked the Emergency Measures Act, what kind of weight does this bring with it? Guest: Dr. Christian Leuprecht, Professor at both the Royal Military College of Canada and Queen's University, and a Fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute - Why is an Olympic athlete who's been found to be using an illegal substance still being allowed to compete? Should we be cheering on an athlete who used to compete for Canada but is now competing for the United States? And not only did the golf world see two hole in ones get shot this past weekend, they were done on what can only be described as the craziest hole in golf. Guest: Don Robertson, Head Coach & Owner, Dundas Real McCoys & Broker of Record, ComChoice Realty

This week's edition of The Brightest Conversation in Hamilton features Mike Fortune who joins Scott to talk about the 2022 Winter Olympics, the potential for missing ballots, Whoopi Goldberg's Holocaust comments, house prices in Hamilton, what sports should be returned to the Winter Olympics and more. Guest: Mike Fortune, Co-host, The Hamilton Network, Cable 14

Now that Erin O'Toole has been removed from his role as leader of the Conservative Party of Canada and an interim leader has been put in place, who would the Liberals want to take the helm of the federal Conservatives? Guest: Stephen LeDrew, Political Commentator; Host, The LeDrew Three Minute Interview; Former President, Liberal Party of Canada - Brian Flores, former head coach of the Miami Dolphins, has had a lawsuit filed against the NFL and teams for what will certainly be a landmark case. What has happened so far and where can we expect to see things go? Guest: Will Russell, Lawyer, Sport Law - Award-winning musician Alan Frew will be performing at a benefits concert here in Hamilton and Scott caught up with him to talk about this event, his experience as a rock star, writing the hit song "I Believe" which was played all the time during the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and more. Guest: Alan Frew, Award-Winning Musician & Songwriter - The 2022 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominee list has been released and despite the fact that "rock & roll" is in its name, this year's list follows the trend of having some big snubs coupled with some people who play music that probably wouldn't be described as "rock & roll". Guest: Eric Alper, Publicist, Music Commentator & Shameless Idealist

How do you "follow the science" when there's science that contradicts other scientific findings? Guests: Dr. Victor Menaldo, Professor, Political Science, University of                     Washington               Dr. Mark Smith, Professor, Political Science & Adjunct Professor,                 Comparative Religion and Communication - Being locked down and isolated from others can be bad enough on its own however when you start factoring burn out's impact on a person, it starts to make sense why they might be a little more aggressive and unpleasant to be around. How common is this state becoming and how bad does it appear to be? Guest: Dr. Richard Cytowic, Neurologist, Speaker & Author - Erin O'Toole has been booted from his role as leader of the Conservative Party of Canada. There's a lot to unpack here so Scott made sure to bring some help. Guest: Kate Harrison, Vice Chair, Summa Strategies - The Winter Olympics have a very peculiar history and as we near the opening ceremony for the 2022 Olympics, Scott gets a feel for what it's like in Beijing with help from someone who's there on the ground while also revisiting some of the Winter Games from years past. Guest: Philip Barker, Writer, insidethegames.biz & Executive Committee Member, International Society of Olympic Historians

How transparent is the City of Hamilton when it comes to the budgetary process? Is it better than the way that other cities are doing theirs or possibly worse? Luckily there's a study that was done on this exact topic and it looks like Hamilton's marks are improving. Guest: Bill Robson, CEO, C.D. Howe Institute - Wintertime is easily the most dangerous time of the year to be homeless however there's a plan that might be able to help Hamilton's homeless population while keeping them out of shelters. How would tiny shelters be deployed and would they be a temporary solution or could they offer long-term support? Guest: Tom Cooper, Director, Hamilton Round Table for Poverty Reduction - The day has finally come, Tom Brady has announced his retirement. Many would argue that he's the greatest NFL quarterback of all time which prompted Scott to ask, who's the best player of all time in North America's biggest professional sports? Guest: Rick Zamperin, Host of Good Morning Hamilton & The 5th Quarter, News Director & Sports Director, Global News Radio 900 CHML

A new Angus Reid poll has released its results and one of the things it asked respondents was their thoughts on restrictions and how responsible people should be for their own health. You might be surprised by the results but at the same time maybe you share the opinions expressed. Guest: Dave Korzinski, Research Director, Angus Reid Institute - We are nearing the start of the 2022 Olympic Games as well as the 56th Super Bowl. What can we be expecting to see? Will the Arizona Coyotes ever find a home arena? And what could be added to spice up the discipline of bobsleigh? Guest: Don Robertson, Head Coach & Owner, Dundas Real McCoys & Broker of Record, ComChoice Realty

This week's edition of The Brightest Conversation in Hamilton features Dave Woodard who joins Scott to talk about whether or not Canada should be supporting Ukraine and to what degree, how kids are learning about the Holocaust, the upcoming Beijing Olympics and more. Guest: Dave Woodard, News Anchor, 900 CHML

Is Hamilton's LRT "shovel ready"? It turns out that the answer is a little more dependent on what your definition of "shovel ready" happens to be. Guest: Keanin Loomis, President & CEO, Hamilton Chamber of Commerce & Hamilton Mayoral Candidate - Transparency International's Corruptions Perception Index (CPI) has ranked Canada as 13th in the world where it's tied with Austria, Ireland, Estonia & Iceland (Ranked 1 means least corrupt). What has Canada done to earn it this spot on the list and are we trending towards a better rating or a worse one? Guest: James Cohen, Executive Director, Transparency International Canada - We're not too far out from the Olympics however you may have noticed that there hasn't be a huge push to promote the event on TV. How should the TV industry go about their coverage of the Olympics? How will these Games' coverage differ from Olympics past? Guest: Bill Brioux, TV blogger, brioux.tv

People keep moving to Hamilton which means we are always in need of housing and with the rate that people are coming, we're going to be needing a boost to the number of homes being built each year but just how drastic of an increase will be needed if we're to keep up? Guest: Mike Collins-Williams, CEO, West End Home Builders Association - The results of a survey conducted here in Canada found some worrying news about students and their knowledge of the Holocaust. What was found and what does it mean? Guest: Dr. Carson Phillips, Managing Director, Sarah and Chaim Neuberger Holocaust Education Centre - What's been going on in the NFL? Grievances with their overtime rules have already been addressed but what of the playoff season thus far? Is the player who we've been hearing is the best really the best or should someone else be given this praise? Also, is not making it into this year's Superbowl reason enough for Tom Brady to retire? Guest: Steve Foxcroft, Sports Broadcaster, NFL Chain Gang Member, NBA Court-side Administrator, Referee & Vice-President, Fluke Transport

The stock market has been an absolute roller coaster of ups and downs which has made many Canadians ask, "What's going on here?" Scott welcomes someone onto the show who'll be able to help provide some clarity on what's happening as well as provide some advice on navigating these seemingly turbulent waters. Guest: Don Fox, Executive Financial Consultant, Fox Group Private Wealth Management - While most of the world and its industries strive for innovation and the next best thing, television is looking to the past. Whether it's old shows that fans already know and love or news anchors that viewers have come to trust, it seems like everything old is being revamped and reintroduced to audiences. Why is this and what is it saying about TV viewership? Guest: Robert Thompson, Director, Bleier Center for Television & Popular Culture, Syracuse University

If you go to a grocery store and find barren shelves, is there cause for concern or is it a momentary blip that'll be fixed before you know it? Guest: Dr. Sylvain Charlebois a.k.a. The Food Professor, Senior Director, Agri-Food Analytics Lab, Dalhousie University - Playing in overtime is a horribly unbalanced mess in the NFL because all you've got to do is win the coin toss and score to win the game. That's right, no attempt is granted to the other team. Does this mean it's a dumber idea than having a robot call balls and strikes in baseball? Well, Scott and Don Robertson are here to discuss these questions and more on this week's edition of Sports Talk with Don Robertson. Guest: Don Robertson, Head Coach & Owner, Dundas Real McCoys & Broker of Record, ComChoice Realty

This week's edition of The Brightest Conversation in Hamilton features Nicole Martin who joins Scott to talk about the passing of Meat Loaf, Hamilton's bus network, the upcoming elections, the potential to be charged for breaking the real law while in virtual reality and more. Guest: Nicole Martin, News Anchor & Reporter, CHCH-TV

For a country that's generally known to be populated with nice people, there sure are a lot of angry Canadians but what exactly are they so upset about? Guest: John Wright, Executive Vice President, Maru Public Opinion - We all have things that we look back at and think about how we would have changed the way we did something and that includes celebrities. In a recent interview Bono, of U2 fame, talked about how he doesn't like the band's name nor most of the songs they've put out. Could this be him looking for a little bit of an ego stroke by fans? Also, U2 can't possibly be one of the worst names for a band... right? Guest: Eric Alper, Publicist, Music Commentator & Shameless Idealist

Inflation is continuing to grow but where can we see things go and what's causing this kind of growth? Guest: Marvin Ryder, Associate Professor of Marketing, DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University - There used to be a notion that if you can't afford to buy a house in Hamilton, Brantford will have what you're looking for however there's a chance that we may be over those days with a small house selling in the $800,000 range. Was this an anomaly or could it be a sign of things to come? Guest: Brendon Assla, Brantford Real Estate Agent, RE/MAX Twin City Realty Inc - There are always things to be upset and angry about but if you're looking for a place where people are perpetually upset, it's got to be the sports world. Scott welcomes Bubba O'Neil back to the show to discuss what's currently on sports fans' minds and more. Guest: Bubba O'Neil, Sports Anchor, CHCH-TV

Three local ladies have been chosen to be a part of Canada's Olympic Women's Hockey Team and Scott welcomes one of them to the show to talk all about it! Guest: Emma Maltais, #27 Forward, Canada's Olympic Women's Hockey Team

Two former Hamilton paramedics who failed to provide the necessaries of life to 19-year-old shooting victim Yosif Al-Hasnawi have been sentenced but should we have been surprised by what was handed down or was it expected? Guest: Jaime Stephenson, Criminal Lawyer; Former President, Hamilton Criminal Lawyers Association - You'll be paying off-peak rates for electricity for the next little while thanks to the provincial government but is any cynicism merited here? Guest: Donna Skelly, Conservative MPP for Flamborough/Glanbrook - Three local ladies have been chosen to be a part of Canada's Olympic Women's Hockey Team and Scott welcomes one of them to the show to talk all about it! Guest: Emma Maltais, #27 Forward, Canada's Olympic Women's Hockey Team

The government deals with massive amounts of money each year and each year, they spend more than the last while hiring more employees and outsourcing more work to contractors. Wouldn't hiring more employees mean that less outsourcing has to be done? What are all of these employees doing? Where is all of your hard earned, yet seemingly easily spent, tax money going? Guest: Bill Curry, The Globe and Mail’s Deputy Ottawa Bureau Chief - There's a never-ending supply of news coming out of the sports world and regardless of the form that news comes in be it football, fighting in hockey or the Olympic hockey roster, you can be sure that Scott and Don Robertson are going to talk about it. Guest: Don Robertson, Head Coach & Owner, Dundas Real McCoys & Broker of Record, ComChoice Realty

We live in a world that's seen Prince Andrew be stripped of his military titles & royal patronages, many travel plans get cancelled, tensions increase along Ukraine's eastern border, truckers' vaccine mandate & restrictions get reversed and Canada's Olympic hockey team rosters released (one's a little more real than the other) among many other things happen. This means that there's no shortage of things to talk about on this week's edition of The Brightest Conversation in Hamilton with this week's guest being none other than Mike Fortune. Guest: Mike Fortune, Co-host, The Hamilton Network, Cable 14

Tiger-Cats and Dane Evans fans rejoice! Scott chats with Dane about choosing the Ticats over free agency, returning to the Ticats for another 2 years, having glorious hair and more. Guest: Dane Evans, #9 Quarterback, Hamilton Tiger-Cats