Picking through the online assessments in the days that followed Budget 25 gives you many different options, so go to whom you trust, go to where you have found common sense in the past.
For all those reasons, I chose to read this piece by Aaron Wherry:
Are Canadians going to get behind Mark Carney's 'generational' budget?
Part of the budget story got blurred on Tuesday, even before it was released.
Rumours started spreading that anywhere from three to six members of the Conservative caucus were ready to bolt, cross the floor, and join the Liberals, getting the governing party closer to a majority position. In the end, one Tory did in fact switch sides, and another said he was quitting.
Conservative MP says he’s resigning next spring, denies ‘coercion’ involved in decision
More on all this in our two Bridge political podcasts this week. Yesterday’s Good Talk with Chantal Hebert and Bruce Anderson can be found in its YouTube version here. Reporter’s Notebook with Althia Raj and Rob Russo was recorded just before the budget, and it can be listened to here.
Jean Chretien, at 91 no less, is like the Energizer Bunny.
The former PM just never stops outdoing even his youngest counterparts. He books for speeches, interviews, ribbon cuttings, you name it. And he was at it again this week with a headline-making interview with Lisa LaFlamme about a topic that’s very close to his heart: the “notwithstanding clause”. Here’s how the Canadian Press reported his comments:
Canadian premiers are too quick to override rights, former PM Jean Chretien warns
Yet another study in the U.S. into why the trust factor and the watch factor for the news media is down, and in some cases, way down.
This study is a real eye opener for those wondering about how young people feel about the news business. Check it out:
“Biased,” “Boring” and “Bad”
Your favourite Gordon Lightfoot song? Mine is “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” which still haunts me every time I hear it.
I was lucky enough to know Gordon and shared more than a few conversations with him about that ballad. But one thing we never knew for sure is what caused the sinking. The Detroit Free Press decided to take a new look:
What caused the Edmund Fitzgerald to sink 50 years ago is still a mystery
So just when you think you’ve settled on your airfare for that trip to some exciting destination…
They ask you if you want to check in a bag, then if you want a seat with extra leg room, and then if you might want something to eat or drink on that ten-hour flight? Answer yes and listen to the ka-chings ring out. Now we may not like that, but the airlines love it; it means significant extra revenue for them and less spending money for us.
Well, guess who’s been watching? Hotels. Check this out from NBC News:
Airline-style a la carte pricing is landing at hotels
Here’s one of my favourite reads from this week.
As someone who went through a renovation and restoration of a 200-year-old stone, sheep barn (steading) in Scotland a few years ago, I loved this piece in the Financial Times:
The modern homes hidden inside ancient ruins
There have been some great legal shows on TV ever since I was a kid, starting with Perry Mason.
But the Raymond Burr character, like so many other legal dramas, was focused on the exploits of a defense attorney. It was all about getting someone off, not putting someone behind bars. In other words, it was not about the prosecutor.
That’s what makes this interview so fascinating. Jack Smith was the government-appointed prosecutor trying to put Donald Trump in jail, until Trump won the election. Now the tables may be about to be turned, as Mr. Retribution signals he wants Smith prosecuted. Smith gave no interviews during the two-year period he was investigating Trump, but now it is different.
This is a YouTube video, and it takes an endless 10-12 minute introduction before things get started, so FF through that. But I found this fascinating because it taught me more about how prosecutors think and work than anything I’ve seen or read before. Set some time aside in your weekend for this – it’s worth it:
