The 905er Podcast
The 905er is a news, politics and discussion podcast for the GTHA region focusing on the region outside central Toronto where 4 million people live, but where news coverage and discussion hardly exists. Presented by Roland Tanner and Joel MacLeod, long-time activists, volunteers and sometimes even wannabe-politicians, we aim to provide a lively weekly podcast featuring interviews with people in the news, round-table discussions, analysis and more. It aims to be intelligent, though-provoking, lively and entertaining. Get bonus content on Patreon
276
Crisis? What Crisis? Why Do Local and Provincia...
Joel and Roland roll up their pant legs and wade into a political mire of floods, climate emergencies, enfeebled and unambitious politicians and government staff and the absurd decision to halt delivery of the Astra-Zeneca vaccine and risk prolonging...
34 min
277
The 905er Checks on the State of Our Mental Health
A year into Covid-19 and our already-stretched mental health services in the 905 region are seeing unprecedented levels of demand. Adults and children alike are finding the uncertainty and isolation of life during pandemic to be a challenge, and as m...
46 min
278
Can't We Do Better Than NIMBY or YIMBY? With Sh...
Joel and Roland welcome back 905er regular, first ever '3rd time guest' and awesome Patreon supporter Shannon Gillies to discuss some of the problems with how debates on urban planning and intensification are discussed, how inevitable public resistan...
43 min
279
The 905er Returns to 1492 Landback Lane with Ka...
Today we are welcoming back Karl Dockstader and Sean Vanderklis to speak again about the latest developments that touch on the dispute at 1492 Land Back Lane on the edge of Caledonia and the Six Nations Reserve about 20 km south of Hamilton. Sean and...
55 min
280
Pride and Prejudice: The Aftermath of the HCDSB...
Joel gives a full account of the HCDSB meeting on Monday where the motion to fly the Pride Flag was 'compromised' out of existence among a campaign of obstructionism and delay and time-wasting by the anti-flag trustees.Later in the show, Joel shares...
40 min
281
The 905er asks: "What is the true cost of COVID...
A year into the Covid-19 pandemic, we wanted to take stock and remind ourselves why we locked down. Amidst the sound and fury of the political debates, the voices of those who have experienced Covid-19 have largely been drowned out.Ashley Comrie spe...
45 min
282
The 905er Tries To Figure Out What Happened at ...
We are joined today by Dr Alexandra Power, a GP who works extensively with young adults through her practice at York University. Dr Power was one of the people who delegated on Tuesday night to Halton Catholic District School Board in support of a mo...
35 min
283
A Question of Pride for the Halton Catholic Sch...
Tonight will be a momentous night for the Halton Catholic District School Board.For weeks, the board has been wrestling with itself over whether or not the Pride flag ought to be raised over its schools. A motion brought by Trustee Brenda Agnew unde...
33 min
284
Paradise Lost?
They didn't pave Paradise. Instead the City of Hamilton released 24 billion litres of untreated sewage into it.Thursday's episode covers three 905 stories: the latest changes of direction on our schools and an education minister with egg on his face...
36 min
285
"They Don't Know How The System Works" - Andrea...
"We should have approached [COVID-19] aggressively.""Now the scale has moved.""A target on our back.""Commodification and privatization.""A freight train that has already left the station.""They don't know how the system works."These quotes, taken f...
54 min
286
Parks and Vaccination: failures of logic and im...
Joel and Roland tackle the latest Covid news in the 905 - and there's plenty of it.Peel's Medical Officer of Health possibly signalled a breaking point this week where regional public health officials demonstrated their lack of faith in provincial p...
34 min
287
San Grewal of The Pointer talks about the polit...
San Grewal, award-winning journalist and founder of The Pointer (https://thepointer.com/) joined Joel and Roland to talk about legacy media's and politicians' lack of interest and knowledge about the 905 region, even while the stories that affect the...
57 min
288
50 Shades of Grey - Is Ontario Heading Into A T...
While Joel and Roland were recording this podcast, twice, due to technical problems, news was emerging of what appears to be a third lockdown starting this Easter Weekend.Our intrepid hosts give their reactions to the latest reports - which were yet...
27 min
289
Shawna Stolte: The Myths and Reality of Life as...
We pay attention to politics in inverse proportion to the extent it affects our lives. The political junkies among us religiously watch Power and Politics and have complex and well-informed opinions about what’s going on this week in Ottawa. But the...
54 min
290
Election Fever?
Media is talking elections, and, whether it makes sense or not, history suggests that someone will blink and force a federal election before long.The 905 region could well play 'kingmaker' again. But is our region getting the attention and credit it...
42 min
291
Mike Moffatt - A Moving Story of Ontario's Risi...
Where Ontarians are moving is moving. Mike Moffat joins us to explore how, as the seemingly never-ending upward spiral of housing costs in the GTHA continues, and the population increases rapidly, many Ontarians are looking further afield for housing...
45 min
292
Brick (Thick as A) - Who is Paying for Bad Opin...
MPP Sam Oosterhoff apparently found the provincial advice to cover his mouth with a piece of paper or cloth overly arduous last year, and was proudly photographed ignoring the rules the rest of us are expected to keep. But this week he has again show...
36 min
293
Briar Emond paints a picture of being an artist...
One of the reasons we began this podcast was to counter the perception of the 905 region as culturally irrelevant. We simply couldn’t accept that a region of 4 million people - larger than some small countries - should be routinely perceived as being...
45 min
294
What the fraternity can do about equality.
Like many subjects we've covered over the last six months, we're only too aware that other people are more informed on the subject of gender equality and an end to violence against women.But there's an important point. Men too often view 'women'...
38 min
295
The Hon. Paddy Torsney talks International Wome...
Every International Women's Day in the 905, Paddy Torsney organizes and host an IWD Breakfast Event. The event focuses on the highlights and accomplishments of women of note in the region. This year marks a significant milestone of 25 years. We wa...
47 min
296
Our 50th Episode!
It's taken almost six months to get here, but Roland and Joel reflect on the journey so far.Its been a winding path, but a lot the help comes down to our Patreon supporters. Their support has helped us grow this into what it's become so far. We ar...
32 min
297
Queen's Park Round-up - Three Stories About the...
Three stories, all relating to decisions and actions of the provincial government, and all directly affecting our region.Who said what, when with COVID-19? Did the politicians overrule the scientists? I the province trying to blame Dr Williams for t...
39 min
298
413 Reasons Why: A Vision For Vibrant Cities In...
Joel and Roland talk share their admiration for the Community Climate Council's webinar on Highway 413, get all misty eyed about the idea of after-work drinks in a pedestrian-friendly downtown, and then discuss a rare win for the City of Burlington a...
46 min
299
How Green Is My Greenbelt?
A roundup of news from around the 905 with Joel and Roland, including the province's surprise announcement that it's considering an expansion to the Greenbelt ... coincidentally announced in a week it was taking a lot of heat regarding its plans for ...
40 min
300
Racism in Our Schools (Part 2) - Students Speak...
In part two of our episode this week we continue our conversation with Abisola Asha and Malik Scott of Students Speak Up YCDSB, and Greg Dongen of Hamilton Students for Justice.Make sure you listen to this episode to hear Abisola, Malik and Greg sha...
36 min