The Bridge with Peter Mansbridge - Your Turn and The Random Ranter -- The Year End

Episode Date: December 15, 2022

Its year-end time both for you through Your Turn and through the Random Ranter.   And this is a very different Ranter, so get ready!

And hello there, Peter Mansbridge here. You are just moments away from the latest episode of The Bridge. It's Thursday, on the final week before the holiday break. Thursday, your turn. Random Ranter, or the Ranter formerly known as Random. That's what we've got in store for you today. Looking forward to it. Stay with us. And welcome to the Your Day, Your Thursday, Your Turn. You know, one of the things we asked for this week was a sense of what you thought the story of the year was. And actually, after this year, that's a pretty easy question. There are a couple of things that come to the top right away.

And we'll see whether or not that's what you were thinking as well as we get into some of these letters. A reminder about letters, I get a lot of them every week, emails. They all come in by email. It shows how long I've been around, right? So when I started in the business, it was letters, it was snail mail that would come in and lots of them at that time too. But nothing like what we see now with the ease of communication through email get, I don't know, anywhere between 100 and 200 emails a week, sometimes more, sometimes a little less.

That's probably the average, somewhere around 150, 160. And it's always a treat for me to read them. And I read them all, a minority of which actually make it on the air. All right? And even then, I take a snippet out of each one, as most of you will know. So let's get at them for this week. And we'll start with this issue of Story of the Year. Dave McCauley writes from Toronto, I believe the story of the year has to be the exposure of all provinces as a redundant,

incompetent layer of government. The lack of cooperation during the convoy, abuse of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms by Quebec and Ontario and Alberta's Sovereignty Act are examples just from this year. Pointless friction exacerbate Canada's problems, such as interprovincial trade barriers and licensing of medical professionals. The granddaddy of them all has to be the ongoing disaster that is health care. If the country were a company, then the provinces are the middle managers that would be fired when new owners took over. All right, Dave.

Brent Waters from Winnipeg. I'm interested to hear, this kind of dovetails out of that, out of Dave's letter. I'm interested to hear what you, Chantelails out of that, out of Dave's letter. I'm interested to hear what you, Chantel, and Bruce have to say about the trend of provinces seeking increased power transfer from the federal government. Actually, we've touched on this a number of times, and I'm sure we're going to touch on it again. Does giving more authority to the provinces benefit Canadians, or are the premiers just trying to increase their personal power? Is a strong central government essential for the unity of Canada?

Gee, Brent, talk about zeroing in on the Canadian problem. That's been around for decades, right? But you got it. Tomek Niat, and I'm not sure, Tomek, if I'm pronouncing your name correctly, but you have a good letter here. Since healthcare is provincial jurisdiction, the provincial governments are accountable to their electorate, not to the federal government. We, the citizens, already paid our share of taxes to pay for the healthier care, and the federal government has no business in withholding funds until they are satisfied with the way provinces are spending this.

If we were to follow this same logic, the citizens of this country would have the right to withhold income tax payments until we are satisfied with the way our governments are spending it. I fully agree with the argument that the Ontario government should be more accountable, but it is up to us, not to another level of bureaucracy. Tomek writes from Scarborough, Ontario. Look, this opens up a whole issue about the way healthcare funding is distributed in Canada, how it's collected, first of all, through taxes, and how it's distributed by different layers of government. I mean, you could argue, and some will argue to you on your point, that citizens that you're talking about pay taxes to the provincial governments

for health care and education. So if the provincial government wants more money, they could raise taxes. Just saying. But I hear the point you're making, and maybe we'll discuss this some more. This whole issue of provincial governments and the way they determine decision-making came up on this Greenbelt issue that we raised last week, and as I said last week,

it was much more than just an Ontario issue. We're getting mail from across the country and here's another one um from trevor barry and sunny sanich in bc i'm a proud british columbian we have provincial land use legislation since the 1970s called the alr agricultural land reserve it was created to preserve and protect farmland, but what it accomplished in public policy was much more important and far-reaching. For city planning and regional growth, it created a de facto urban containment boundary, ensuring coastal and southern interior regions in BC did not sprawl too badly away from established civic infrastructure conditions, or sorry, corridors, and public services and amenities.

It saved us from a much worse version of exurban expansion and motordorn. Wow, those are some words I do not know. Exurban expansion and motordom. All right. Marjorie Ferguson writes, same issue. I wanted to thank you for discussing the Greenbelt last week. Doug Ford's turnaround on this issue is alarming. It's as if there's a pattern.

The conservative premier is all about promoting business, so when he and his business pals are businessing, well, it's automatically good for everyone. The people of Ontario benefit, or so the thinking goes. Never mind that Doug's pals are going to make way too much money. Never mind that we have a climate change catastrophe on our hands, never mind that bird populations are dropping at an alarming rate. Back to story of the year.

Simon Brooks from Caledon, Ontario. The bewildering lack of Russian air superiority in the Ukraine theater. Air superiority seems to be the precursor to most recent modern warfare, and yet Russia seems either unwilling or unable to take control of the skies. Something seems wrong, and I wonder if it could be assessed as a lack of support from the inner air leadership. Capability doesn't seem comparable to NATO or the USA anymore. The emperor has no clothes. Brian Stewart has mentioned this a couple of times, this air superiority question,

but it's an interesting way of looking at the Ukraine war, which many of you wrote in to say that's the story of the year, and that's an interesting angle to it. Neil Rankin. He's a snowbird currently living in Yuma, Arizona, but tunes in on the worldwide network that is the bridge. Neil writes, there's no doubt in my mind that inflation is the story of 2022

and potentially 2023, given the anticipated swath of layoffs across North America. Yeah, another kind of bleak look ahead by the Federal Reserve just yesterday in the United States about what next year may be like. Lauren Finlayson from Cumberland, British Columbia. I think the story of the year is the convoy, but that aspect where one faction of it brought forth the memorandum of understanding, a brazen attempt to overthrow the recently elected minority liberal government.

Whomever was behind that initiative showed an amazing misunderstanding of how our Canadian government system operates versus that in our neighbors to the south. Perhaps those sad individuals watch only Fox News, or perhaps our education system has failed to overcome their fascination with Donald Trump and his attempt to subvert the American democracy. Speaking of our friend Donald Trump, great friend of the bridge, I'm sure he sits there at Mar-a-Lago daily saying, wait a minute, I've got to listen to the bridge.

But I see he's trailing Ron DeSantis by not a point or two, but by a dozen or more points. I'm telling you, this guy, he's history. I think. Not that I haven't said that many times before. But I still have this image of Donald Trump in an orange jumpsuit behind bars. We'll see. Joe Henschel from Calgary.

Plenty to choose from in 2022 is the story of the year. But since you posed the question, a major new item has emerged. It has become my top event of the year. You know, Joe, you may have something here. It kind of came and went in a day, but it may change the lives, you know, not my life. I'm in my sunset years, as the saying goes. But it's going to change the lives of the next generations. And that is nuclear fusion.

I don't fully understand it, but basically it's created by using less energy than it produces. And it's a huge scientific discovery, just announced this week. And, you know, assuming it works, and the scientists claim it does, it now just has to be finessed. And it could take 10, 20, 30 years to do that. But assuming it does, it's going to mean the end of fossil fuels. It's going to change the climate, change debate and discussion. So, Joe, I think you got a point. I mean, it's been a big year.

War in Europe, death of the Queen, the convoy, the strategic pivot in Asia from China to India, which is sort of going on. Pierre Palliev's win in the CPC leadership. All these things. Joe mentions them all, but at the top of his list, nuclear fusion. Okay, moving on. A lot of mail this week continuing to come in on the gun legislation. You know, the amendments to the gun legislation that have caused much debate

and renewed debate on the whole meaning of guns in our life. So let me read some of these letters. And I'm going to read them. I will try to stay out of the discussion. And I'll just read your comments. And not surprisingly, they come from different areas of the debate. Trevor Seyfried in Calgary. Listening this week to Smoke Mirrors and the Truth,

and when asked if the inclusion of regular hunting rifles was a political trap laid by the Liberals in their gun legislation, Bruce indicated that it was okay for the Liberals to let people who don't pay attention as much to their stance on guns vis-à-vis the Conservatives. Is it? Yes. But in this fashion?

Seems like straight-up fear-mongering from a party that has campaigned on no more fear and division, but governed using a lot of fear and division. This is just another example. Penny Robertson. Penny writes from Greater Napanee, Ontario, and among her points, the first point is about the mantra I've heard many times from gun owners, including the random renter, that the vast majority of hunters are responsible gun owners.

Where actually is the evidence for that assertion, writes Penny? Are we to accept the word of hunters that they all behave responsibly with their weapons? I've heard many stories about local hunters and their use of guns that would curl your hair. Not intended as an insult to the follicly challenged. Not sure who she might have had in mind there. I've heard about hunters deliberately inflicting cruelty on animals, killing animals and birds, not for food, but for fun, and of killing animals outside of hunting season. I've also heard stories of abusive men using their weapons

to threaten and intimidate their partners, children, and neighbors. Carrie Stengel. Kerry writes from Ottawa. I was just listening with Bruce Anderson when you were talking about the new gun laws. Bruce keeps referring to guns used by hunters as weapons. As an ex-military, while in the military, I carried a weapon. As a hunter and sports shooter, I use a firearm while hunting. I've never had to use a weapon to protect myself from any animal.

Just to clarify with Bruce that as a hunter, we use firearms. As a military person, I carried a weapon. I found that interesting, so I looked up the definition of the two words, and Kerry's right. James M. writes from northwestern New Brunswick. I'm a veteran of the Canadian military and served in Somalia and Bosnia and was one of 55 Canadian peacekeepers detained by the Bosnian Serbs in the fall of 94. I now drive a truck and enjoy listening to your podcast on Sirius 167. Peter, I live in an area where if things are not nailed down, it's going missing.

There are also now an increase in home invasions and a number of businesses are continually broken into. There is a lot of crime here that can be tied to the drug trade in this area. So my question is, why can't I have firearms, including handguns, to protect my family and property? I'm all for background checks and registration. Also, I'm a huge supporter of our police services, but the fact is there are not enough police on the ground to protect our communities. I don't want to sound like I'm a far-right supporter because I'm not. However, the banning of handguns and even military-style weapons to me is just going to make things more dangerous

for the law-abiding people of our country. Albert Lynch writes from Suris, Manitoba. And if you're not sure where that is, about a half hour south of Brandon. The random ranter was as close to my view as I've heard on the gun debate, but I think there are some things that most city people haven't been told. Auto-loading guns are by far the most unsafe gun you could choose to hunt with, especially for your fellow hunters. As you fire an auto-loader, it instantly ejects the spent shell and loads another, only awaiting you to move your finger a quarter inch to fire again. Auto-loaders are an accident waiting to happen. They are notoriously

known to be the least accurate gun on the market. Unfortunately, this can mean you have a hunter who bought his autoloader because he values putting lead into the air at a really fast rate with less accuracy over a gun that is hugely safer and more accurate. You go hunting with them. I like hunters who pass up the shot because a good killing shot on vital organs wasn't there. After the first shot is taken, everything changes instantly and not usually in favor of a second shot. Things can have a tendency to flare or run

away from you instantly at adrenaline fuel speed. Sometimes there are no vital organs in sight, only their fast-disappearing rear end. I hope my comments help city people understand a little more about the ongoing gun debate. I would like to close with a statement to hunters who use autoloaders. If you have fired three times at an animal, stop shooting. Okay. Derek Forsyth from Edmonton. I listened to your Smoke Mayors and the Truth talk on guns yesterday regarding the expanded list of proposed banned firearms.

Is it possible the Liberal government is playing 3D chess with this, deliberately creating and releasing that expanded list so that after the current and predictable response from the Conservatives and the right, they can amend the list and introduce the list of firearms they knew was passable in the first place. This way, they can stand in front of cameras, state to the Canadian public that they listened to the opposition and made changes based on their input.

Spinning something about government working while getting what they want public that they listened to the opposition and made changes based on their input, spinning something about government working while getting what they want and taking guns off the political table. Could be. Diane Sabourin in Winnipeg. On the December 8th Your Turn program, the ranter formerly known as Random, people picking this up, right, presented an interesting rant on the proposed gun control legislation, Bill C-21. His rant was well balanced,

listing faults within the federal approach as it applies to hunters and hunting guns, and also why such control legislation is understandable and so desired in areas of the country where gun violence is rampant. The ranter presented a nuanced approach on how the conflicting views and demands might be practically met. To me, that was a wonderfully Canadian pragmatic thing to do. Actually, we need more positive rants like that. I would say to your listeners that we shouldn't ask the ranter to adopt an alter ego, a raver who presents empty niceties, when his

latest rant was a powerful example of what public debate on the gun legislation should be. I love that you're into the ranter, all of you. Either that you disagree with the ranter or you agree with the ranter, but that the ranter has forced you to think about it and come up with ideas on this. Now, Diane's last point about, you know, keep the ranter focused on major issues with his take, is a result of one of the letters that came in last week saying,

just once, just once can the ranter be positive. And the ranter, you know, say nice things about something. Well, you know, this is the holiday time, right? This is a time when we're thinking, or we're trying to think nice thoughts. You know, different religious groups have different holidays around this time of year. Generally, we talk about this as the holiday season. But there are different, you know, depending on your faith, there are different things that you are celebrating or marking at this time of year.

And we respect all of those. The ranter chose to do one on Christmas this week. I will say no more. Other than to say, here he is. The ranter, formerly known as Random. At the suggestion of a listener, at the urging of Mansbridge, and in the spirit of Christmas, I'm going to try something different. A positive rant. The listener suggested puppies. Well,

I love them. I have three dogs, two mini dash hounds, and one Dutch Shepherd. For those of you unfamiliar with the breed, Dutch Shepherds, in my experience, are like a more athletic, slightly feral German Shepherd. Our girl is very smart and absolutely fearless, but not so smart to recognize the futility in trying to herd wiener dogs. But she is fearless enough to try. It's an interesting dynamic. But I'm not going to rant about puppies today, because today is about Christmas baking. I love Christmas baking, and I'm lucky because I'm married to someone who loves to Christmas bake. Shortbread, fudge, those peanut butter marshmallow things, more things I don't know the names of, and my all-time favorite, butter tarts. My wife makes them from

scratch. The flaky crust, the caramelized top that upon biting through floods your mouth with brown sugary greatness, and best of all, the raisins. They're loaded with them, juicy and plump. I've always joked the first topic in any Middle East peace talk should be pork, because then at least you'd start with something everyone at the table could agree about. Well, there's no such luck with raisins. They're the ultimate divisive fruit. You either love them or you hate them, and it has nothing to do with race, religion, income, gender, or as far as I know, any discernible demographic. But me, I love them. I love them in bread. I love them in cookies.

I love them in apple strudel. I love them right out of the bag or box. They're great in rice. They're great with carrots, and they're fabulous in carrot cake. But they reach their absolute pinnacle in the most Canadian of delicacies, the butter tart. I know a lot of people prefer pecans or pecans, but raisins are so much better. First off, there's only one way to pronounce raisin. And look, if you like nothing more than a mouthful of salted sun-kissed nuts, I'm not judging you. And yeah, maybe I'm being a bit juvenile, but sun-kissed nuts are a real thing.

Just turn your safe search on and Google it. All right, it's time to get serious. I'm not a religious Christmas guy, or for that matter, a commercial Christmas guy. For me, Christmas is about two things. The first one is a personal tradition. I love having a good, cleansing cry while watching It's a Wonderful Life. I've got no shame about it. It's not a weepy cry. It's a spontaneous leaking of tears, and it goes on for a long time. And I gotta say, nothing beats those tears. They feel great. That movie straight up gives me the feels, and there's no shame in that. The second thing Christmas is about for me

is thankfulness. Now maybe I missed a meeting somewhere, but to me Thanksgiving is about turkey, and Christmas is about giving thanks. I'm very thankful for what I have, and not only that, I'm hopeful for the future. And not just my future, but the future. I know it looks like next year will be a tough one, but look at what we've just come through. I like to remind myself that for millennia, people have worried about the future and derided the current state of affairs, yet here we all are, still plugging along. And that gives me hope. As Mansbridge likes to point out, I'm just a guy. So from this guy to you, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and may the new year be full of pleasant surprises for you and yours. Oh, he's so cuddly.

Our random ranter. Formerly known as Random Ranter, now known simply as Ranter. After that one, we may need to come up with a different name for him. Anyway, we're marking the holiday season With this being the last Thursday show before the holiday break Which starts next Monday And a reminder that as of next Monday for two weeks We'll be doing the best of the bridge from the past six months So we'll still be there every day

But they'll be there every day, but they'll be on core editions. Okay, we're going to take a quick break. When we come back, more of your letters on your turn. But first, this. And welcome back. You're listening to The Bridge right here on Sirius XM, channel 167.

Canada Talks are on your favorite podcast platform. Tomorrow, like yesterday, the podcast will also be on our YouTube channel. You can find the link on my bio on Twitter or Instagram. And you'll see the show in production. And tomorrow, of course, Good Talk, special year-end edition with Chantal Hébert and Bruce Anderson. All right, back to your letters.

And this final segment is, you know, a collection, a potpourri of letters on different topics. Eli Stoiku in Stratford, Ontario, writes, something you never hear about is how rich Ukraine is in the valuable minerals required in the manufacture of electric vehicle batteries and how this may be Putin's real motivation for the invasion. With the future decline in demand for fossil fuel a certainty, this is likely a serious concern for Moscow.

Putin has stated in the past that he has a desire to be the world's second largest supplier of the essential EV battery mineral right behind China. The acquisition of Ukraine would put... Acquisition sounds so like... Okay, that's okay. They're just acquiring it. They've invaded it. Anyway, it would put Mother Russia well on this path to untold wealth and prosperity for decades to come

and cement Putin's desired legacy as one of Russia's great leaders. Don Robertson from Edmonton writes, why is it that some politicians like Danielle Smith, who try to do something good and positive and helpful for this country, get so bombarded with such hostile, unending criticism, and yet, on the other hand, there are a couple of certain groups of people who are actively tearing this country apart even writing their own constitution setting up their own

government departments but for some reason the news media and the federal government both seem to be completely okay with that i don't know don i'm not sure that's the case on either side of that. Mary Newcomb in Cumberland, B.C. At this time of year, I enjoy the year-in-review programs. Moore and Butts were interesting, even though I don't quite agree that Pierre Polyev is the Canadian political hero of 2022. I'm not sure either one of them called him a hero they called him the you know the politician who made the most gain in 2022 and they you know that may be debatable but it's certainly

he would rank on that list Rick Morrow Spruce Grove Alberta here's an interesting one for you stats can says there are 861,000 people in Canada over 85, and that is expected to triple to 2.4 million by 2046. It's one of the fastest growing age groups in Canada. Thanks, Rick. All I can say is I hope I get to join that group. Deborah Backer, or Baker, with two Ks, in Vancouver,

is particularly concerned about the health situation in Canada as it relates to young kids. The flu, RSV, COVID, you name it. She writes in a very long letter, I'm just reading one small part of it. I'm trying to do my bit. Kids are in school and daycare and my husband and I both work full time, but I wash hands, mask in public indoor spaces and try to get my kids to everyone in my family is vaccinated for flu and COVID. And I even gave my daughter's teacher a HEPA air purifier that she's using in the classroom. But I'm terrified that if my children need hospital care or a critical antibiotic, the system won't be there for them. And in my own circles, there is woefully little awareness of the problem, a resistance to masking, people enthusiastically resuming in-person parties,

and a thinking that children need to get exposed to multiple viruses in succession to develop robust immune systems. Yeah, I mean, we have slid back into the mindset that everything's going to be okay when clearly there are a lot of things that aren't okay about the current situation. So, Deborah, I hear you. Gus Livingston in Dunville, Ontario. I was listening this past Tuesday when your secretary, I don't have a secretary, but I know what you're getting at,

when your secretary rudely interrupted your broadcast with Brian Stewart. I know she was trying to do the right thing by giving you information on Russia and the autocracy, but perhaps I can suggest another way to communicate with her on air. I always thought that pneumatic tube transport was a fast and efficient way to communicate. I assume you used this a lot in the early days in broadcasting. Oh, yeah, that's what we did. Get that pneumatic tube transport thingy working there. That's funny, Gus.

Yeah, we never figured out who that was. Was it Siri or was it the Russian Secret Service who interrupted our broadcast? But it's funny. If you didn't hear it on Tuesday, you should listen to it. It's near the back end of the show. Kathy French writes from Barrie, Ontario. I just want you to know that I thoroughly enjoy your podcast and make it a point to listen every week to SMT and Good Talk

as well as any others I can make time for. It's a good way for me to become aware of current issues without having to watch daily newscasts and at the same time manage to keep our house clean my family gave me some wonderful bluetooth headphones a while ago and so i almost took look forward to doing my housework each week as i listen and catch up on whatever i've not yet heard, keep up the good work. I read that letter. I get a lot of letters like that, but I love it when there's an image of you listening.

And that image with the headset and doing the housework is one. I hear people write in bike riding, who write in walking, who write in running. I love it. There were more comments about the Moore Butts. Conversation number five, which ran on Monday, is great. I loved it, so listen to it if you can. We'll repeat it on one of the Encore editions coming up in the next two weeks.

Chris Moncadaada writing from toronto first time writer after enjoying a full year of the bridge i was initially turned on to the podcast by a tweet i saw from war butts number one and have not looked back anyhow my comment is in regards to the two questions you passed to our bipartisan pals on monday these were paraphrasing who was the 2022 MVP of the House and which leader came out on top. I was shocked that neither of our fearless heroes ever even mentioned the possibility that the answer might be Jagmeet Singh.

Pierre Palliev, really? For what? Preaching to the converted and ducking the press gallery? Come on, guys. If the purpose of government is to put the needs of the people first, how did anyone accomplish more than Singh has this year? By making the deal with the Liberals, he has stabilized Parliament. Also stabilized his own situation. Also applied the appropriate amount of pressure to get results,

like dental care for those unable to afford it, and a continued dialogue on more funding to the provinces for health care. Bipartisan means more than just respecting liberal or conservative politicians, right? I don't know whether you listen to all of Morabud's number five, but they ended up talking extensively and praising John Horgan, the former NDP Premier of British Columbia. But you're right, they didn't mention Jagmeet Singh, but they did mention John Horgan.

Debbie Prince from Squamish, BC. Sometimes I wonder if I'm not open-minded, as I agree with almost all your guests. Should I maybe watch Fox News to get the other side? I've tried, but just can't without throwing something at my television. I wait to hear from Brian to understand what's really happening in Ukraine, good for you, and just love hearing his voice. It's like you, you're both a part of my understanding of our world.

I'd like to know what the Russian people think about what's happening in Ukraine. At the beginning, they didn't seem to believe that Ukraine didn't need to be liberated, but so many have left their homes to escape the draft. So are they doing anything to help end this awful war and spread the truth? That's really not fair to the young men of Ukraine, and some not so young, who stayed behind while their families left to fight and to join the Ukraine army.

But, you know, I'll talk to Brian about that. Merry Christmas to all, says Debbie from Squamish, B.C. Peter Stasny from Sutton, Quebec. I'm writing in the hope that you and your team would explore and help raise awareness around the worrisome decline in the federal bureaucracy. Over the past many decades, Canada has been extremely well served by competent bureaucrats that manage both domestic and international dossiers. There is overwhelming evidence that this is no longer the case,

from passports to border services, payroll to assigning immigration cases to officers that have not been with the department since 2014. Well, Peter, you seem to have some inside knowledge on some stuff. But I know that you're not the only one with a concern about the state of the public service on a number of fronts. Some of it boils down to this issue of working from home. COVID's changed everything about how the public service operates and whether it's good or bad is still very much at issue. Derek Dillabo has some positive thoughts

about the potential for the future. For the first time in my lifetime, I feel truly encouraged about the future of the more than 600 member communities of the Assembly of First Nations across Canada. Many Canadians, myself included, never really understood the pain and trauma caused to so many of the First Nation communities in the past. However, there has been some sincere and meaningful educational progress over the last few years,

as well as tangible progress of many basic infrastructures across the First Nations, for example, in housing and schools and water treatment plants. That's true, and, you know, it's important that we do keep sight of some of the progress that's being made, although in many, you know, still in more than a few cases, we are still trying to catch up. Neskentaga First Nation hasn't had safe drinking water since the mid-1990s. That's just the worst example. In Canada, there are still, I don't know, somewhere between 25 and 50 communities that don't have safe drinking water, First Nations communities.

Jim Wernham is a physiotherapist in London, Ontario. My father was a municipal politician in London in the 80s and 90s. Often he would be met by reporters after meetings looking for a soundbite for the news. As I'm sure you can appreciate, editing recordings was far more cumbersome and time-consuming in those days. There was one reporter in particular that was known for his dislike of having to edit material. If a city councillor got going on a long or detailed response, this reporter would stop his recording and mid-answer, interrupt the politician, and demand they try their answer again,

but as a soundbite. He would repeat the process as necessary until he got what he wanted. His technique was shocking and somewhat offensive, especially to those newly elected councillors who felt they had very important things to say. His persistence led to most being trained in short order to give him what he was looking for. If you didn't give him a soundbite, you didn't likely make it on the broadcast. Thanks for that, Jim. I don't remember anything like that exactly happening in in my

past when i was a radio reporter in manitoba um but it doesn't surprise me i can see some of my old pals and colleagues getting into situations somewhat like that. I remember my friend Dave Jacobson. This is a little different. But in, was it centennial year? 1970, centennial in Manitoba, the 100th anniversary. He decided that what he'd do was he would, every news conference he would go to, he would stand up at some point in the news conference, no matter who it was.

It could be a Hollywood celebrity. It could be who it was. It could be a Hollywood celebrity. It could be a major politician. It could be a big business leader. It didn't matter who it was. He'd get up and he'd say, Hello, Mr. Stanfield. My name's Dave Jacobson. I'm sure you've heard of me.

It captured the reaction, right? And it got to the point where some of these people he was interviewing, I guess, had been warned because they were ready with, like, very funny answers. And by the end of the year, Dave put together a tape of all these people visiting comedians, politicians, sports figures, you name it. Hello there, I'm Dave Jacobson. I guess you've heard of me. He was a very funny guy.

Okay, just a couple more. Ray Purchase from London, Ontario. I've been a listener to your podcast for years from the very beginning, perhaps, long before the daily episodes and panels and guests. This is my first time writing with a question that has been on my mind for a few years now, and since it's the last year term before your holiday streak, there's no time like the present. You mean like today, Ray. Okay, what is your point today?

As a former broadcaster myself, I know that the words one chooses on the air are very deliberate and time is spent in air checks looking at how thoughts are conveyed to determine it is being done effectively and efficiently, which leads me to my question. Peter, you never say the word today. Never. I noticed this a few years ago and have been listening for it ever since. Quite often, it's on this day or for your Wednesday, but never today.

My question is why. That's your question today, you mean. P.S. This is not a critique i could just no longer contain my curiosity you know i didn't know this i didn't there was no ban on the word today i i guess i just for some reason i've never used it. The bridge is totally ad lib, okay? Nothing's written down except, obviously, your letters, which I read. But in terms of what I say, and I'm sure you can tell this from my thinking aloud on air, but I don't write anything down. Those days are gone.

That was television. That was news. And there was a reason for it. This is, you know, this in a way is kind of my rant every day. I'm going to just do my thing. I have a rough idea of what I want to talk about and who I want to talk to and what I want to ask. But I don't write stuff down today. But maybe tomorrow. Certainly wasn't yesterday. Thanks, Ray. I didn't know that.

I'll try to keep that in mind. Final letter of the day. Final letter of the year. Comes from Lindsay Sellers on Vancouver Island. Could there be a more beautiful place in the country than Vancouver Island? Well, of course there are. There's some spectacular spots. And I'm lucky enough to have been to almost all of them, from Newfoundland to Vancouver Island and to the High Arctic.

I've seen so many gorgeous things about this country anyway lindsey writes my name is lindsey i'm 38 years old i'm from vancouver island i started listening a couple of years ago during the pandemic and continue to five days a week i was never one to listen to the news and what's going on, as I just stayed in my bubble and hoped for the best in this weird world we are all living in. Since listening to you, I have gained a wealth of knowledge from you and the others who have joined you weekly. What a great group of friends you have. Thank you for doing this. It's much needed and appreciated. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and a very happy new year to all.

Thanks for that, Lindsay. You know, we are lucky. I'm lucky. I'm lucky to have the friends and acquaintances that I've met over the years and are still willing to sit down and talk to me about current events. And we have a good time doing it. And it's such a treat to receive letters like that, to tell me that you enjoy it too.

And also from those who write in to say, you know what, you guys were out to lunch on that. I listened, but I don't agree with you, and here's why. That's okay too. It's a conversation, and we're all having it. All right, that's it for your turn. For this day, today, this week, and this year. But your turn will be back in the first week of January.

So start thinking about what you want to talk about that week. Tomorrow, good talk. Chantelle Hebert, Bruce Anderson, kind of a year-ender. Look forward to that. I'm Peter Mansbridge. Thanks so much for listening. I'll talk to you again in 24 hours.