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The AIH Transcript for September 18, 2019

Hosts: Carol Off and Lucy van Oldenbarneveld

CAROL OFF: Hello, I’m Carol Off.

LUCY VAN OLDENBARNEVELD: Good evening, I'm Lucy van Oldenbarneveld. This is As It Happens.

[Music: Theme]

Prologue

LvO: Tonight:

CO: Anti-smoke signals. With a rise in vaping-related illnesses, there's a new focus on banning e-cigarettes — but a Boston doctor says that overlooks their value in helping smokers quit.

LvO: Throwing the Facebook at her. A Saskatchewan nurse was found guilty of professional misconduct for her social media post — and now, she's waiting to see if the province's top court will offer a second opinion.

CO: Sympathy for the devil. The Number two guy at Canada's top labour group denounces the sanctions imposed on Syrian dictator Bashar al Assad — which leaves us with some questions for the union boss.

LvO: Fit to be tied. There's uncertainty in Israel tonight, after the second election in six months gives the two major parties an equal number of seats — an inconclusive ending that may mean the end for Benjamin Netanyahu.

CO: "Perpetual Motion" wasn't just a Graeme Gibson book. It was also the way the late author lived. And tonight, former Governor General Adrienne Clarkson tells us what moved her longtime friend the most.

LvO: And...a defining moment. Merriam-Webster Dictionary recognizes the word "they" as a singular, non-binary pronoun — and to anyone griping about political correctness, our guest counters that it's actually grammatically correct.

LvO: As It Happens, the Wednesday edition. Radio that hopes "they" will live happily ever after.

[Music: Theme]

Part one: Vaping doctor, Canadian Labour Congress: Syria, “they” dictionary

Vaping doctor

Guest: Michael Siegel

LvO: For the first time in Canada, there's a case linking severe lung disease to vaping. Public health officials in London, Ontario said today that a high school-aged student recently fell ill, and was put on life support after using a vaping device. It comes at a time when respiratory illnesses related to e-cigarette products are sharply on the rise — and as various jurisdictions are struggling to get a handle on the problem. In the U.S., seven people have died from vaping-related Illnesses — not to mention the 450 reported cases of lung illnesses that have been linked to vaping. That has prompted two states to ban flavoured e-cigarette products. And today, India announced it would be banning e-cigarettes altogether. But some doctors say authorities are snuffing out the wrong culprit. Dr. Michael Siegel is a professor of community health sciences at Boston University. He runs a blog called "Tobacco Analysis." We reached him in Boston.

CO: Dr. Siegel, as you know, authorities around the world are feeling the pressure to ban or to limit vaping. Do you think that's a good idea?

MICHAEL SIEGEL: I think that there has been a tremendous overreaction to what's going on in the United States. We've seen about 400 cases of severe respiratory illness, and about seven deaths. And what authorities are not telling people is that in the overwhelming majority of these cases, what is associated with the illness is not vaping electronic cigarettes, but actually vaping illicit marijuana vape cartridges. So these are THC oils that people are vaping that are getting into the lungs and causing these diseases.

CO: But do we know that for a fact? Are you saying these were vaping THC, and they weren't vaping tobacco?

MS: So in about 80 per cent of cases the CDC itself has acknowledged that the individual patients were vaping cannabis — THC oils. Some of those patients were also using nicotine e-liquids as well. But the one thing that ties together the overwhelming majority of these cases is the use of THC. And we know that there was a contaminant called vitamin E acetate oil that was found in all of the New York cartridges — THC cartridges — that were tested. And we know that vaping oil is extremely dangerous to the lung.

CO: What you’re hearing in the United States and in Canada and other places is that there are warnings now for people not to use e-cigarettes. The Center for Disease Control in your country has warned users against it. What is that based on the way of data or information?

MS: Really I think what it's based on is that the CDC has shown a consistent bias against the idea of vaping. They've shown demonization of electronic cigarettes for many years now. And I think they're using this as an opportunity to kind of say I told you so. I think the CDC is conflating two different problems. One is the problem of youth e-cigarette use, which is certainly a problem. And the other is these respiratory diseases. And the problem when you conflate the two is that it really confuses the public. And if the CDC were just to simply say hey, don't vape marijuana. I think it would do a lot more to protect people's lives.

CO: But if we don't know, if there is so little data and so few studies and tests, and this this phenomenon of people becoming sick and even dying from this is going on isn't it incumbent on the authorities to say let's just step back from this — especially given the number of young people who are vaping at this point?

MS: Well, I think that in an outbreak like this, you don't want to generalize. You want to be as specific as possible. In public health we have what's called the precautionary principle, and that basically says you don't wait until you have definitive evidence before you warn people. When you have reasonable evidence to suspect that something is causing a disease, you warn people. And so I think right now the CDC has reasonable evidence to conclude that there's definitely something wrong with these THC cartridges that are being blamed on the black market.

CO: What are the consequences if people who are smoking e-cigarettes now decide that they're not going to do that anymore? They're going to heed this warning and figure they shouldn't be vaping tobacco. Does that mean that they stop smoking?

MS: No, I mean unfortunately smoking and nicotine are very, very highly addictive. And so we know that the overwhelming majority of smokers, or ex-smokers who are who are now vaping if they stop vaping, they're most likely going to go back to cigarette smoking. And that's the last thing that we should be doing in public health.

CO: We know that the vaping industry or the e-cigarettes industry has targeted young people much the same way as the tobacco cigarette tobacco industry did in the last decades. And there's so many young people, even high school kids, even grade school kids who are into to vaping. What happens if now they are now hooked on tobacco through e-cigarettes? What happens to them if they stop vaping?

MS: I think that kids use whatever's in their network. I don't think that they're particularly picky about what they're vaping. So what's going to happen is if we ban flavored e-liquids, then they're just going to start using other types of e-liquids — namely the THC e-liquids that are just incredibly easy to obtain. You can just order them over the Internet. And so that's what we're going to see spreading even more so than it is now, And I think that might actually make this outbreak even worse than it is right now.

CO: You mentioned the flavored e-cigarettes. These look like confections, they are candy-flavoured products. Some have suggested it might be what’s ever in the flavours itself that is the problem, is that possible?

MS: It's very unlikely because there are many, many different flavours on the market. And they've been used for many years, and we haven't seen a problem. So when you see an outbreak like this, what it tells you is that something must have changed. Why are we seeing these cases this year rather than any of the past nine years? And one thing that has changed is that a new type of thickening agent is being used to dilute THC distillates from cannabis. And that is vitamin E acetate oil. It's found its way into hundreds of thousands of vape cartridges over the past few months. You know it seems too coincidental that we're seeing this outbreak just after this major change was made. Many of these patients have something called lipoid pneumonia, which is essentially the lungs just fill with oil. It makes sense that if they're vaping largely an oil-based product, that that could cause lipoid pneumonia. Pretty much all nicotine liquids are not oil-based, they're water based. And so we know for sure that those products can't cause lipoid pneumonia. So the pieces of the puzzle are fitting together, and they're you know they're all pointing in one direction.

CO: Dr. Siegel, there's a lot more we want to know about this. But you've really laid out some good information for us here. Thank you.

MS: Thank you so much.

LvO: Dr. Michael Siegel is a professor of community health sciences at Boston University. We reached him in Boston. For more on this story, go to our website: www.cbc.ca/aih.

[Music: World music]

Canadian Labour Congress: Syria

Guest: Hassan Yussuff

LvO: A top Canadian labour leader appears to have come to the aid of Bashar al Assad. Mr. Assad is the President of Syria. He's overseen a brutal civil war that has killed hundreds of thousands of his own citizens, and forced millions of Syrians to flee their country. Donald Lafleur is the executive vice-president of the Canadian Labour Congress, Canada's largest labour organization. Earlier this month, Mr. Lafleur attended something called the Third International Trade Union Forum. It was held in Damascus and was hosted by President Assad. A Venezuelan TV report from the forum included these comments from Mr Lafleur.

SOUNDCLIP

DONALD LAFLEUR: Sanctions, as I mentioned before on Syria, are taking place in so many other parts of the world. It's completely unacceptable. And the Canadian labour movement does support the people in Syria. And we're here to put pressure to take the sanctions away.

LvO: Hassan Yussuff is the President of the Canadian Labour Congress. We reached him in Houston, Texas.

CO: Mr. Yussuff, what did you think when you heard the tape of your executive vice-president making those statements about sanctions in Syria?

HASSAN YUSSUFF: I couldn't be more disappointed. First of all, it's not his place to be speaking about what the situation in Syria. And to be actually making these remarks from Damascus, it's really disturbing because Donald’s presence in Syria does not represent the Canadian views, nor was he attending a conference on behalf of the Canadian Labour Congress. So to say my disappointment is beyond expression of words at this point in time. I hope to meet with him tomorrow to discuss this further, and to try to understand as to why he was there, and why he would make a statement on behalf of our organization without my permission or my agreements.

CO: Well, and he was it appears, well he claims, to have been representing the Canadian labour movement when he attended this conference in Damascus with these other players who all agreed that they have to put pressure on governments to remove the sanctions. Is that a position the CLC accepts? Are you putting pressure on the Canadian government to remove sanctions?

HY: No, as matter of fact, we've been working with the Canadian government and thousands of Canadians across the country to resettle Syrian refugees in our country because of the crisis in Syria and the atrocities by the Assad regime. And for Donald to be making these statements the CLC have no such campaign, have never made such statements in our organization. Nor do we intend to. So as to why he would say that is beyond me. Secondly, he was on his vacation, as my staff is checking, he was on vacation for that period he was in Syria. But I intend to get to the bottom of it when I speak to him tomorrow and get to understand — in addition to his presence there — who paid for him to attend the conference in Syria in the first place.

CO: So you're saying that you're sure that the Canadian Labour Congress did not pay his way to Damascus?

HY: We did not pay for his flight to Damascus. We did not ask him to attend on our behalf to this conference. Nor did we ask him to make statements on behalf of the Canadian Labour Congress. None of the things that he has said or he's been involved in in regard to this trip has anything to do with the Canadian Labour Congress in any position we hold publicly or privately.

CO: This World Federation of Trade Unions, who was organizing convening this meeting in Damascus to support Bashar al-Assad, other players, North Korea, Russia Venezuela, Nicaragua. Is that something that the Canadian Labour Congress is part of?

HY: We are not affiliated to that organization, and never have been affiliated that organization. We are affiliated to the International Confederation of Trade Unions — the ITC. And then the regional organization is called TUCA, which I am the president of the reorganization in the Americas. So for Donald to be attending a conference that is sponsored by a rival organization, again, is beyond my understanding — much less, of course, to accept — if he did accept support from them — to attend this conference and to be speaking on behalf of our organization.

CO: Despite all the atrocities in Syria, despite the millions of refugees, the Assad regime is now holding events like this and junkets like this to help normalize its international reputation. Does the Canadian Labour Congress have a position on that situation in Syria?

HY: We have been actively involved in the resettlement of refugees in the country. We certainly have denounced the Assad regime as part of our collective effort as part of the ITC. Of course, we are highly supportive, of course, the international community hold Mr. Assad for the atrocities he's committed against his people. And, of course, other counties around the world began working collectively to bring him to trial for those responsibilities. And his continued, of course, atrocities he continues to create. And for Donald not to understand and not to appreciate the hard work we have done as an organization and more importantly the entire movement, we raised over 360,000 dollars that, of course, we had directed to the Canadian Council of Refugees to help with the work that many organizations have been doing to resettle refugees. A trade union organization within our own family of the CLC have individually sponsored refugees and resettled them. For him not taking all of this — in addition to the ongoing deaths and atrocity by the Assad regime — and simply to give legitimacy to this regime, and somehow associate with the Canadian Labour Congress, I can't tell you how angry and frustrated I am to learn this. And more importantly, of course, what I will do tomorrow after I speak with Donald remains to be seen. But, first of all, I want to give him the benefit of the doubt to explain to me what he was doing there. And more importantly, why he would make such a statement on behalf of our organization.

CO: the Canadian Media Guild, which is the union that represents many journalists the CBC and elsewhere, are part of the Canadian Labour Congress. These are reporters who are covering this situation in Syria, lots of other members, lots of other unions within your umbrella. What would you say to your members?

HY: Well, first of all, I will apologize on behalf of the organization, first of all, for this, of course, to be associated with our organization. And secondly, of course, recognizing the important work my journalist friends and colleagues are doing to try and cover, and more importantly, hold the Assad regime responsible for what they've been doing to journalists in that country. TAs I say, it’s unfortunate this has happened. But fundamentally, they should understand this is not the Canadian Labour Congress that’s speaking at this conference, nor did we ask Donald Lafleur to attend on our behalf. But ultimately, I think Donald bears full responsibility for what he has done. And tomorrow, when I meet with him, I will hold him at account for that, and take whatever steps I think is appropriate. Because it's not for him to embarrass organization, nor to represent the organization in this fashion in the first place.

CO: Will you be firing your executive vice-president tomorrow?

HY: Well, I am not sure what my action is going to be. But I think it's going to be far-reaching. I don't have the authority to fire him, but under the Constitution it is very clear. The vice-president’s role and responsibility is to assist me in in my duties. None of the actions that Donald has been involved here in regard to this conference is assisting me in my duties in any form, shape, or way. As a matter of fact, it's cost me more grief and more disturbances to this ability and leadership, and of course, I intend to discuss that with him tomorrow.

CO: Mr. Yussuf, I appreciate speaking with you. Thank you.

HY: Thank you kindly for having me on.

LvO: Hassan Yussuff is the President of the Canadian Labour Congress. We reached him in Houston, Texas.

[Music: Ambient]

“They” dictionary

Guest: Emily Brewster

LvO: This week, Merriam-Webster Dictionary announced the addition of hundreds of new words. Among the newcomers are "dad joke", "escape room", "fatberg" and "coulrophobia" — which refers to an "abnormal fear of clowns." But they've also made some pretty big changes to "they". And "them". Along with being a plural pronoun, the dictionary will now define "they" as a single person whose gender identity is nonbinary. And editors say that isn't just culturally relevant — but grammatically relevant as well. Emily Brewster is a senior editor at Merriam-Webster. We reached her in Springfield, Massachusetts.

CO: Emily, why did you want to add this particular use of “they” to the dictionary?

EMILY BREWSTER: Well, as a lexicographer, it's my job to help make sure that the established members of the English language enter into the dictionary, and there is no doubt that this non-binary use of “they” is a fully established member of the language. It's a term that people have been talking about for a long time.

CO: Okay. And they talk about it not just grammatically but politically. But let's stick with the grammatical part first. Why are you including it is as a pronoun that can be used in a singular way? Just tell us a bit about that?

EB: Well, because that is the function that it has in the evidence that we've collected. And use of “they” as a singular pronoun dates, in fact, the late 13 hundreds. So that’s you know more than 600 years. But in the course of that time, it has mostly been used in constructions where it's not really noticeable. So, for example, no one has to use it if they don't want to. In that case, “they” is referring back to no one. No one takes a singular verb. No one has to. But the plural pronoun they is being used. that use Chaucer used. It’s in the King James version of the Bible. That use is very old and established. Grammatical sticklers have tended to object to it for about the past 200 years, but it's more and more frequently accepted. But this non-binary “they” in a sentence like here is my friend J, they are coming to dinner. Is a relatively new use. It's only been around for a couple decades. Well, we're not really sure how long it's been around. But it's certainly been increasing in frequency over the past couple decades.

CO: Can you give us some other examples of how they, them, they’re is used as a singular pronoun?

EB: Sure, it's least noticeable in examples like the one I gave you. No one has to use it if they don't want to. Each person should do their own work, for example. And those are used by native speakers all the time without even really thinking about it. And that is, in fact, the singular they in operation.

CO: Another example you find a cell phone lying on the table, you say oh, they left their phone here.

EB: That's right. That’s right.

CO: So you use they and their. Even though it belongs to one person, they left their phone because you don't know who it is — he or she.

EB: That's right.

CO: We use that all the time and language. But at the same time, you point out that the use of “you”, we use that as singular and plural, which is people say well you can't say you is like the way you say he is. You say you are.

EB: That's right. That's right. Because “you” was originally only used in the plural. And so hundreds of years ago, English speakers had to adapt. Also, “you” went from being a plural pronoun that took plural verbs to being a singular pronoun that continued to take its plural verb. So no one claims that me saying to you you are speaking right now is ungrammatical.

CO: Okay, So how then do we use this pronoun “they” and “them” in a non-gendered way? Do we say they is coming, or they are coming?

EB: They are coming. It takes the plural verb, which is you know happily the most natural verb to follow.

CO: The same way we say you are coming meaning just you individually?

EB: That's right.

CO: So you're saying people who say this isn’t grammatical, they're wrong. It's been used since forever. But on the political side of this, we are seeing — and we've had it on this program — the discussion about people saying no, we can't have these non-gendered pronouns. Last week, the singer Sam Smith tweeted about adopting these gender neutral pronouns, “they” and “them”. They had significant pushback to those tweets. So are you getting the same kind of response to suggesting that this is an acceptable use of the language?

EB: People are always uncomfortable with language change. If we hadn't mentioned this inclusion of this non-binary “they”, people may have been up in arms about the shortened form of “vacay” for vacation. In 1961, when our Unabridged Dictionary was released, it contained the word “finalize” — which was deeply scandalous at the time. So language changes, and people are uncomfortable with change.

CO: But, of course, I mean things like “finalize” are not the same as using language in a non-gendered way — which is a lot of pushback from those who believe that that's some kind of slippery slope, that they're afraid that the world is changing in a way that they don't want it to change. So you're ready to take on those arguments then?

EB: Well, you really have no choice but to. We are more biologists than anything else in this kind of work. Our duty is to record the established members of the language as they exist according to our evidence. I think that maybe a better example than “finalized” would be the full adoption of “Ms” as an honorific.

CO: I'm old enough to remember when “Ms” came in, and they weren't just uncomfortable, they were apoplectic [CO and EB laugh]. And so people thought that was the end of the world as we know it when “Ms” came in. And people use it quite comfortably now. So I guess it's headed for the same evolution then — these non-binary pronouns?

EB: It's very possible. I'm sure it will not be an instant acceptance by all the speakers of the language. But what we see over and over again in the history of the English language — which is a thousand years long — change occurs. And sometimes, it is a structural change that gets very marrow of the language. And eventually, the speakers adopt it, and it becomes at some point this kind of unremarkable feature that the language has.

CO: Well, Ms. Brewster, it's good to talk to you.

EB: Thank you, Carol [CO laughs]. Thanks for having me.

CO: Bye-bye.

EB: Bye-bye

LvO: Emily Brewster is a senior editor at Merriam-Webster. We reached her in Springfield, Massachusetts. And we've posted more on that story on the As It Happens website: www.cbc.ca/aih.

[Music: Ambient]

Part two: Saskatchewan nurse appeal, Graeme Gibson obit

Saskatchewan nurse appeal

Guest: Carolyn Strom

LvO: When Carolyn Strom was grieving the death of her grandfather in 2015, she wrote a Facebook post. In that post, she criticized the end-of-life care her grandfather had received at a Saskatchewan health centre. It was personal. But it blew up — in more ways than one. Ms. Strom is a registered nurse in Saskatchewan. The province's Registered Nurses Association would eventually end up finding her guilty of professional misconduct for that Facebook post — which came with a fine of 26,000 dollars. Last year, Ms. Strom appealed that decision, and lost. Now she has taken her case to Saskatchewan's top court. Yesterday, judges heard arguments — and Ms. Strom is waiting on a ruling. We reached Carolyn Strom in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan.

CO: Ms. Strom, you wrote this Facebook post in 2015, and you're still dealing with the fallout. What does that mean for you yesterday when you were at the courthouse?

CAROLYN STROM: Yeah, it's been a very long four-and-a-half years. It’s a very drawn out process when you get into legal proceedings. And so I'm glad to have yesterday's behind me.

CO: I understand it was a bit emotional for you?

CS: Yeah, well this entire process has been emotional just because it started because of you know after the death of a loved one — my grandpa. Just almost having to relive the events every time this comes up, it is really tough, and to realize like the SRNA still show no compassion towards me about what happened to him, evidenced by them calling my story about him fake news yesterday. And so it was emotional.

CO: The SRNA is the Saskatchewan Registered Nurses Association. Let’s go back to the Facebook post that you wrote in 2015, and I’ll just read part of it — the quote. It's evident that not everyone is up to speed on how to approach end-of-life care, you wrote. Or how to help maintain an aging senior’s dignity. To those who made Grandpa's last years less than desirable, please do better next time. What motivated you to write that Facebook post?

CS: There had been concerns about his care prior to his death. Family had been trying to get things done to no avail. And I had visited my parents a month after he died, and heard some very disturbing things about his week in palliative care. And I just I couldn't get it out of my head. I was just like that just it makes me still want to cry about it now. So anyways, we came home, and I'm on Facebook, and I noticed an article. And the columns was we have the right to die, but not to quality palliative care. And it really resonated with me. I was like this I can totally identify with this. And so I decided to write my feelings on Facebook, and knowing that my grandma was still in that facility, I was concerned about her care moving forward.

CO: This is the health centre in Mackin, Saskatchewan, is that right?

CS: Yeah. Yeah.

CO: The lawyers for the Saskatchewan Registered Nurses Association say that just because you're off duty doesn't mean that you hang up your professional hat. And they say that you've targeted a specific identifiable group of people because you talked about this one health centre. How have you defended yourself?

CS [long sigh] You know, it really bothers me that you know — apparently — and this is new to me, it was new to me after the Queen's Bench, and during these proceedings that the SNRA — through their lawyers — have said that the expectation is that we are on 24/7. I don't know where that's written anywhere in our code of ethics. In our code of ethics, it refers to in practice. That means you are practising nursing, you're at work. And so obviously we're interpreting the code of ethics differently. And yeah, there is absolutely nothing that specifically says what I did violated the code of ethics.

CO: But he’s also saying that because you have done this, Canadians could lose trust in the health care system, and lose trust in the interests of all nurses.

CS: Yeah, and I don't really believe that's true. I mean I think individuals who happen to be nurses can really provide a good perspective you know on what the realities of what patients and families go through in the health care system. We know the health care system isn't perfect. And so what is wrong with feedback that can help make it better? And they mentioned in my hearing that the Premier himself at the time knew long term care was insufficient, and he was allowed to say it. So mine was just my own personal experience sharing a story of like yeah, I get it. You know families find it hard, patients find it hard. And I mean even as a registered nurse, I understand what nurses go through as well. And long-term care is a very, very tough field to work in.

CO: Has the facility provided evidence or amount to the defence to say that you were wrong in your criticism or your assessment of the care your grandpa was getting?

CS: No. And, in fact, there was an investigation done. It was run by various organizations, and a report was made. And it's just never been made public. So yes, after all of this an investigation was done. They were given things they had to do, and a timeline of when they were expected to get them done. And insufficiencies were found. And I'm hoping that that did help improve care for people.

CO: If you could go back to 2015 and do it again, would you have written that Facebook post, given everything you've been through in these past four-and-a-half years?

CS: Oh, that's a really tough question because I mean I don't know how a person can — knowing what I know now — it's so hard to say because I still would have been hurt. I still would have wanted to defend my grandpa, and look out for my grandma. And I it's I don't know if I can really answer that, you know? It's a tough thing looking backwards.

CO: Well, Ms. Strom, we'll be following your case. I appreciate you speak with us. Thank you.

CS: All right.

CO: Bye.

CS: Bye.

LvO: That was Saskatchewnan nurse Carolyn Strom. We reached her in Prince Albert.

[Music: Instrumental]

Rick Mercer

LvO: Rick Mercer has been on a rant. And like most of the comedian's best rants, this one isn't just for fun. His issue is with a Conservative candidate named Heather Leung. Yesterday, it came to his attention that Ms. Leung's Burnaby riding association had posted a meme manipulating Mr. Mercer's own words. It made it look like he was urging young people to, quote, "scare the hell out of the people who run this country", unquote — by voting Conservative. Now Rick Mercer is all for scaring the powers-that-be. And he's big on young people using their votes. But the Conservative endorsement was a complete fabrication. The CBC's Chris O'Neill-Yates called Mr. Mercer to ask how he found out.

SOUNDCLIP

RICK MERCER: Well, I wasn't paying much attention to the Twitter or the Facebook today because I'm working with a buddy. But then my phone was vibrating a lot, and I looked, and people were saying is this true? Are you really saying vote Conservative? And I looked at the meme, and this meme has been around for quite a long time. And it's just my face and a quote that says you should vote — except they added vote Conservative at the end. So it's just a straight up lie. So I said no, I didn't say vote Conservative. And then I tweeted to Andrew Scheer, and the headquarters, just saying take it down. I guess that's what I want. It's completely bizarre.

CHRIS O’NEILL-YATES: So how did it end up being put out there as a you essentially encouraging people to vote Conservative? [laughing]

RM: Well, I guess that either the candidate or the person who runs the candidate's social media campaign sat back and said you know, why don't we just create this huge lie and put it on the Internet, and maybe people will think that this individual has endorsed our candidate. I mean it's so far-fetched. Like you could do it to anyone.

COY: is any of this the least flattering at all that they think that your name carries so much weight that it might help them get votes?

RM: Jeeze, it never crossed my mind to be flattered, but I maybe I should be. But you know this has happened before. I mean there was a there was a group, Ontario Proud, that operated in the last federal election and provincial election. And they took stuff of mine like a rant, and they re-edited it, and they put graphics in it that changed the message, and essentially turned it into an endorsement of the Conservative Party. And I got a hold of the guy on the phone, and I was like well you can't do that. He was like yes, I can. I was like no. Like it's mine, and you cut it up and recut it together and changed the intent. And he was like I don't care, sue me. So you know some people I guess they figure just damn the torpedoes and the hell with the consequences. Because I mean I didn't really consider what I wanted to do. But I mean I guess there's really no consequences. They're caught lying. If they don't care about that then that's the consequence, right? But if they don't care about it, once it's out there, that's the Internet, you know? I'm sure I'll be having this conversation in two years.

LvO: That was Rick Mercer speaking yesterday to CBC Nova Scotia's Chris O'Neill-Yates. As we go to air, the Conservative candidate Heather Leung has yet to comment. But, if we're to believe what we read, she seems to have a shot at unseating the Liberal in the BC riding of Burnaby North-Seymour.

[Music: Instrumental]

Graeme Gibson obit

Guest: Adrienne Clarkson

LvO: Graeme Gibson wasn't just a writer. He was a champion of writers, whole generations of them. And he was a devoted partner to one of Canada's most celebrated writers, Margaret Atwood. Graeme Gibson, the writer's writer, has died. He was 85 years old, and had been diagnosed with dementia. In 2011, he spoke with CBC Radio about his approach to writing — and about becoming a writer in the first place.

SOUNDCLIP

GRAEME GIBSON: For a long time, I thought I might be a mercenary, or I'd be a soldier or something. I failed out of military college [SR laughing]. I knew that I didn't like university. I didn't like school. It was a trial for me, and I was a trial for the school. It must have been just after I'd failed my M.A. at the University of Western Ontario that it occurred to me that I that I had to set some records straight. I wanted my own point of view on what had been going on clarified about it. So I set out to write a novel. I'm an obsessive writer. I'm a very slow writer. “Five Legs” took me almost ten years. “Perpetual Motion” — my third novel — took eight years. “Gentleman” took six or seven. I think what I was doing I think that that each of my books was trying to come to terms with everything in my life at that particular time.

SOUNDCLIP

LvO: Graeme Gibson, speaking with Shelagh Rogers on “The Next Chapter” in 2011. Mr. Gibson has died at the age of 85 — after a lifetime of writing, and advocating for writers. Much of that advocacy happened alongside Canada's former governor general Adrienne Clarkson, a longtime friend. We reached Ms. Clarkson in Toronto.

CO: Adrienne, first of all, I'm sorry for your loss of our mutual friend.

ADRIENNE CLARKSON: I'm very sorry too. But on the other hand, you know Graeme was a wonderful person, who had lived an incredibly interesting life. He had done what he wanted to do. He bird watched, he went to Madagascar, he went to Cuba, he wrote his novels, he helped to found the Writers’ Union.

CO: Graeme Gibson died doing what he loved to do, didn't he? He was travelling with Margaret. He was in London as she was launching “The Testaments”. He was surrounded by friends. Margaret Atwood wrote we are grateful for his wise, ethical, and committed life — which is what you've just described. Do you have a particular memory of Graeme Gibson today?

AC: I have a memory of him with his binoculars around his neck in his back garden — which is an interesting thing because [laughing], of course, they bird watched in all kinds of different countries, and he wrote that wonderful book on birds, which I keep by my bed. And I think of him always as alert and looking for things. And actually I thought of him on the weekend because I saw a cluster of monarch butterflies around my Joe-Pye-weed, and I thought how happy Graeme would be to know that you know we had a cluster of monarch butterflies because we've all been worried about the monarch butterfly for some time. And I just I feel him always around with his wonderful sense of humour, his ability to have a conversation about anything. He had a kind of bearing about him which was that you know real kind of manly quality. He was a very, very handsome man.

CO: And very tall.

AC: He was very, very tall.

CO: He had a presence when he was in a room. And just there was one thing that I know you've heard before, which is — and Margaret's confirmed that this did happen — that someone had said to her at once about Graeme is that every woman writer should be married to Graeme Gibson [AC laughs]. And she went out and had that printed on a T-shirt, and she gave it him.

AC: They were a wonderful couple. And I think they supported each other tremendously, and had a wonderful child together — who's Jess — and a grand grandson. And so he's together with his other sons, Graeme and Matthew, I think his life was pretty complete as a father, and as a grandfather. And he also did so much in the literary world. I mean there's not any writer who can have that kind of organizational ability, and that ethical standard of knowing what the writer's duty is. Because if you have the privilege of writing, you must be certain that others have the privilege of writing as well. And that's what he did for Canadian Pen, and that's what he did bringing Canadian Pen to the World Organization of Pen. In 1989, he brought the Pen World Congress to Toronto and Montreal. And organized with my husband, John Ralston Saul, they organized a writers’ train between Montreal and Toronto. And that was the most fun I think I've ever had on a train in my life because we had writers from all over the world, and we were showing them Canada, and we just had the most wonderful time.

CO: He was saying that in the clip with Shelagh Rogers, in that conversation, he was talking about writing novels. And he did at some point in his career, in his life, he abandoned writing fiction, and was writing about, and of course, investigating nature. He had these two gorgeous books — “ The Bedside Book of Birds” and “The bedside Book of Beasts”. What do you think it was about writing about nature, about connecting it with humans that was so important to him?

AC: Well, I think that he came you know in his blood he came from two countries where nature is terribly important. His mother was Australian, and his father Canadian. And so you know these places are places where nature, when you grow up in Canada or in Australia, you know that nature is bigger than anything [deep laugh]. I always say to Europeans you don't know what nature is. You know you have countryside. We have nature. And indeed, both Margaret Atwood and Graeme Gibson understood this profoundly, and showed it in their writings. And that's one of the things that links them terrifically as a couple. And I think that's you know that's why he always went back to that because he felt very rooted in it in his blood, in everything that he could feel.

CO: Margaret has said that she wrote part of “The Testaments” at sea. Graeme wanted to recreate a voyage from his youth, when he travelled by ship to Australia. And you know that they went to on Arctic adventures by boat.

AC: Yes, yeas, absolutely.

CO: I know you shared that. And he spoke of in other places how in awe he was of seeing the Arctic by ship. And also, the fear he had for the changes he was seeing. Did he ever speak to you about that?

AC: Yes, we talked about the Arctic quite a lot. And, of course, we were equally both a little bit gloom and doom about things that were happening so quickly in the Arctic. And I think he had very much on his mind. You know the thing is I think he understood what the pessimistic scenario was. While in his heart of hearts, he was an optimistic person. An optimistic person who can see what the pessimistic things are is you know one of your strongest supporters for anything. Because they know what the worst is, but they have the optimism and the strength to try and fight against it.

CO: He was — Graeme — was a longtime patron of the organization Dying With Dignity. We know he was suffering from dementia, and he was sliding. But he was still aware of things, and still enjoying his life.

AC: He was enjoying his life tremendously. I think when you know he came out and so on, if he was up to having a conversation, he had it. And if he didn't, you know he simply sort of listened in. But he was always Graeme. I mean he never lost his personality. That's what I think is so wonderful is that I can still remember him even though you know I knew that he wasn't the Graeme that I knew 55 years ago, he was still that person, and he would listen, and I knew he always knew me even if sometimes he you know hesitated over the name, he knew who I was, and I knew who he was, and he knew I knew. And so I think it's really great to think that you know he has died with dignity. It was a good death. And I think he'd say it was a good death too.

CO: Adrienne, again, I'm sorry for your loss, and our loss. And I really appreciate you talking to us about Graeme Gibson today.

AC: Well, I really will miss him. And you know we live on the same street in Toronto, so I’d see him quite frequently walking down the street. And I’s run out if I saw him from my office and chat with him. And I'll miss that.

CO: That big tall man as he would stride down the street.

AC: Absolutely, striding down the street, looking as marvellous as he always looked.

CO: Adrienne, thank you.

AC: Thank you, Carol.

LvO: The Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson is Canada's former governor general, and the founder of the Institute for Canadian Citizenship. We reached her in Toronto. Her friend, author Graeme Gibson, has died, at the age of 85.

[Music: Sombre]

Elk call

LvO: One of the many joys of live radio is learning a new skill on-air. Elyn Jones, host of "A New Day" in Whitehorse, and tech director Roch Shannon Fraser, got one of those on-the-fly lessons this morning. Ms. Jones was learning how to create the strange sound male elk make during the rut, by blowing into a type of wind instrument used by hunters. Carrie McLelland, a wildlife biologist with Environment Yukon, was teaching that sound — which is called a bugle.

SOUNDCLIP

ELYN JONES: Okay, I wonder how close I can get to the microphone.

CARRIE MCLELLAND: So yeah, lips inside. Inside, not over top, so if you were a brass instrument player, you kind of push as hard as possible. Ready, just go for it. You can do it.

[Sound: This sound is almost like a sick elk followed by a healthy elk]

CM: So I can't sustain it because I'm really tired and I’m laughing right now. But it's that high-pitched sound. So that sound comes from these big huge bull elk out there — this little squealing noise. And if you're out hiking, and you're like what on earth is that? And it's this big bull, and he’s kinda trying to attract some of the laddies.

LvO: That's Carrie McLelland, a wildlife biologist with Environment Yukon, teaching Elyn Jones, host of "A New Day" on CBC Whitehorse, how to make an elk call.

[Music: Ambient]

Part three Israel election, South Africa violence

Israel election

Guest: Aluf Benn

LV: The election in Israel yesterday was supposed to settle things. Instead, things are more unsettled than ever. The vote took place after a poll in April resulted in a stalemate — with no leader able to form a government. And today, the results look similiar — with incumbent prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his main rival, Benny Gantz, appearing to have tied for seats. Neither has a majority. And both are vowing to lead the next government. Aluf Benn is the editor-in-chief of the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. We reached him in Tel Aviv.

CO: Aluf, how much damage did this election do to Mr. Netanyahu?

ALUF BENN: Well, he suffered the blow, but he's still in power, having a kind of caretaker government. If he could not put together a coalition, and if his opponents cant, the chances are slimmer to begin with he cannot put together a coalition, then automatically, within several weeks, Israel might be going to a third election.

CO: And what are the chances though that Benny Gantz of the Blue and White will be able to put together a coalition?

AB: His chances are slimmer because unlike Netanyahu, who had a very cohesive ideological right-wing block parties of religious and secular parties. But these parties agree on a joint platform of a more West Bank settlements, annexation of parts of the West Bank into Israel proper, preventing any talk of a two-state solution, supporting the religious school system. Gantz heads kind of an assortment of parties that include a very right-wing party on one hand, and on the other hand, the party representing the Arab community in Israel that is on the far left, and includes a very anti-Zionist component and it's very hard to see how he could breach these gaps into a cohesive coalition that agrees on a similar platform beyond no Netanyahu. So Gantz doesn't have a majority either. Lieberman is trying to bring Gantz and Likud together into a unity government. But the boycott of Netanyahu by Gantz is now preventing it.

CO: Okay, I want to ask you about that boycott because Benny Gantz has said he will not be in a government in any kind of coalition with Likud if Benjamin Netanyahu is part of it. So what does that mean for Mr. Netanyahu?

AB: Well, that means that he will try to do several things if he's given the mandate to put together a new coalition government. He can try to weigh on Gantz or Lieberman, arguing that Israel is in grave security danger, because of some explosion of violence from Gaza, because of the rise of Iranian influence in the region, and lure them into the government as one of them a defence minister in order to stand up to this perceived danger. But you have to remember that Netanyahu's timetable is also a legal timetable. In two weeks, his lawyers are supposed to plead his innocence to the attorney general, and they will try to convince that Netanyahu is not guilty in the three corruption cases against him. And to try and close some of these cases, or at least reduce the charges from bribery to a smaller sort of minor charge. And then if as expected, the attorney general decides to indict Netanyahu for these charges or some of them, then it’s going to be a combined political and legal battle for Netanyahu to stay in office. It gives Netanyahu extra incentive not to give up his seat, and to remain as a caretaker government leader for as long as possible.

CO: And if he does give up his seat, he faces these corruption charges, is that right?

AB: Yes, unless he's able to cut a plea bargain, or to win the kind of pardon from President Rivlin in return for retirement.

CO: How far would he go to hold onto power then, given the consequences for him if he loses his position?

AB: You know judging by his behaviour so far, he’s very adamant in staying in power for as long as he can, arguing even today after the vote that he's the only force saving Israel from grave dangers. This is a political poker. If you wanted a good plea bargain, then the best way to do it is to hold on to your seat and negotiate from that position, rather than appear weaker or retire and then face charges like an ordinary citizen.

CO: Let’s just put Mr. Netanyahu aside for a moment and just say what actually changes between these two potential coalition governments? I mean from the point of view of the state, how different is it whether it's Benny Gantz or whether Likud and Netanyahu are leading the government?

AB: Well, a Gantz coalition would not turn to annexation of parts of the West Bank into Israel, and risk international crisis over that. And a Gantz governments, or any other combination of parties that reduces the force of the ultra-orthodox and religious parties would shift some of the resources that they are subsidizing the ultra-orthodox community into other more pressing social needs for the wider society. And I don't see much difference on security policy between Netanyahu and Gantz and others over Gaza or Iran or the Palestinians.

CO: But are you expecting that in order to determine who actually could do that or will do that you're expecting to go into another vote in the next few months?

AB: It's the default option. If no candidate is able to put together a working coalition, then the default is calling another election for next spring, and living under the caretaker government led by Netanyahu until then.

CO: And how much appetite is there in Israel for another election in a few months?

AB: Very little appetite, but is that little appetite enough to force one of the politicians to blink? Either Netanyahu to step aside, or Gantz, or Lieberman to agree to serve with Netanyahu in another leadership, it's too early to tell.

CO: All right, we will be watching. Aluf, thank you.

AB: Thank you.

LV: Aluf Benn is the editor-in-chief of the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. He was in Tel Aviv.

[Music: Indie rock]

FOA: Temple tigers

LvO: Tongue paralysis, respiratory problems, and seizures. Just some of the symptoms that have plagued dozens of rescued tigers in Thailand. In 2016, the tigers were relocated from a Buddhist temple, after it was accused of animal trafficking and abuse. Park officials say more than half of the 147 tigers that were rescued have now died. They blame genetic problems linked to inbreeding at the temple. From our archives, here's Carol speaking with animal rights activist Sybelle Foxcroft in 2016 — after authorities raided the temple and found 40 dead tiger cubs in a freezer.

SOUNDCLIP

SYBELLE FOXCROFT: Well, In Thailand, you're working with a number of different laws, and that was one of the problems over the years. You know you've got laws for monks, and a variety of other sort of obstacles to get around. So although we earlier had absolute evidence that they were trafficking tigers, and multiple witnesses who had seen that, it had to be absolutely undeniable evidence. So we just kept at it for now it’s nearly ten years. And you know we had a breakthrough last year, when one of the Tiger Temple insiders, who was a pro bono lawyer for the Tiger Temple, he contacted us after he had tried very hard to report what had happened.

CO: And what did the lawyer tell you?

SF: When I sat down with him, and I had to fly over to Thailand to view all the evidence, and he is a true Buddhist. And he was working pro bono because in the Buddhist culture, he was earning his merit by doing this work for a revered monastery. I started to view the evidence, which was the CCTV recordings of the tigers going missing from 2014. And I watched them go into the temple, take the tigers, and then you know they were gone the next morning. And all the staff knew. They said nothing about it. He then showed me an interview that he had carried out with the senior temple worker, who has been there for many years. He used to be a monk. And he admitted to opening the gates of Tiger Island where the tigers are actually kept. And the order was given to him by the abbot of the Tiger Temple. And then the third piece of evidence was audio recording between himself, the ex-Tiger Temple vet, who'd been there for 15 years, and the abbot of the Tiger Temple. It was terrible. It's extremely sensitive. The major parties — the abbot of the Tiger Temple — admitting that it is the policy of the Tiger Temple to kill the tigers and trade.

LvO: From June of 2016, that was activist Sybelle Foxcroft, speaking with Carol about animal trafficking at a Buddhist temple in Thailand. Officials say more than half of the 147 tigers rescued from the temple have since died, due to problems linked to inbreeding.

[Music: Ambient]

FOA: Gerard Dunn

LvO: It was Gerard Dunn's last birthday, but it was a very special one. In September of last year, his daughter, Miriam Dunn, tweeted to say that, since the death of her mother, her father waited for the mail every day. So, for his 92nd birthday, she asked people to mail him cards, pictures, or stories. The tweet had thousands of shares and responses from as far as Ghana, Scotland, and Australia. And day after day, there was an avalanche through Mr. Dunn's mail slot. He'd receive more than 4500 cards. And letters are still arriving. But he's no longer there there to read them. Gerard Dunn died on Monday — a month shy of his 93rd birthday. Last year, Carol Off spoke with Miriam Dunn, just after the tweet went viral. Here's part of that conversation.

SOUNDCLIP

MD: I think that people at this particular time really need and want something positive to take part in that's not complicated, that doesn't ask a lot of them, and that's spread some light.

CO: It was a simple tweet. It's not like you wrote some long piece that has got this reaction. You simply wrote, “Since Mom died this past spring. My 92-year-old dad waits for mail every day, and listens for the squeak of the mailbox slot opening. His birth in October, please send cards.” And then you had this deluge of response to that.

MD: Yes, it was a simple tweet. And I certainly didn't anticipate or expect the response that it got. And so I was curious to like wow! What's the recipe for this, right? How did this happen? So I went through all the comments. I tried to respond, it kind of got beyond me, but I've been trying to respond to everybody. And overwhelmingly, the majority of the comments are along the lines of this is so heartwarming. Or this restores my faith in humanity. And you know many, many schools are sending me pictures of their students at their desks writing to my father.

CO: Wonderful! The other touching part about this story is that while your dad's been a bit lonely since syour mom died I guess, eh?

MD: Yes, yes, of course, she was the centre of his world, the centre of our family's world. He cherished her. They had the kind of relationship that everybody wants, you know?

CO: What is your dad saying about this anticipation of all this mail?

MD: He is so excited about it. I don't think he really can fathom it. You know conceptualize really what this means to go viral on the internet. But I'm reading comments to him, and he looked through my Twitter feed two days ago and he got really emotional reading the comments, knowing that these were these were people talking to him.

LvO: Miriam Dunn is the daughter of 92-year-old Gerard Dunn, who received thousands of cards for his birthday last year. Mr. Dunn died on Monday.

[Music: Acoustic guitar]

South Africa violence

Guest: Ben Okoli

LvO: They've called the country home for years. But today, hundreds of Nigerians are leaving South Africa. They're fleeing in the wake of weeks of violent attacks on foreign-owned businesses, and foreign nationals living in South Africa. Earlier this week, a South African envoy visiting Nigeria apologized for the violence, which has killed 12 people of various nationalities so far. None of the dead are believed to be Nigerian. But Nigerians are leaving anyway -- because they're scared of what might happen if they stay. Ben Okoli is the President of the Nigerian Citizens Association South Africa. We reached him in Johannesburg.

CO: Ben, what do people tell you — Nigerians that are part of your citizens’ association that you're helping to evacuate? What are they telling you about the conditions?

BEN OKOLI: They are telling me that they want to go back to Nigeria. They no longer feel safe here. They want to go back to their families and loved ones in Nigeria, where they will be welcomed warmly, and where they can feel safe. Some of them have lost businesses. Some of them have lost properties and their homes. Some of them have you know been traumatized. So it is a case of people who are no longer feeling safe in a society or in an environment where they find themselves.

CO: We know that at least 12 people have been killed recently. We know that businesses have been targeted. What have been the experiences of Nigerians with whom you've spoken about how they how they are struggling to have to keep their shops open?

BO: We have Nigerian car dealers that have lost over 100 cars in the showrooms where they put their cars up for sale. We have them, and we are taking inventories of all the losses that are suffered by our community. That is because they suffered most of the attack.

CO: What do you think is behind this? Why so much violence against foreign nationals in these recent weeks?

BO: I think the reason could be that people feel you know the area or there are spaces where they we are supposed to operate has been saturated by foreigners, or taken by foreigners. And the service delivery, they are also protesting I guess lack of service delivery. And they think that the foreigners are equally making the service delivery more difficult for them. So they protested, and they took out the anger on the foreign nationals. That is a situation, but I think it is a misplaced anger. It is a misplaced violence, an attack which is totally unwarranted because the foreign nationals — especially the Nigerians that are living in South Africa — are self-employed. They have not taken any business from anybody. So the few Nigerians that are employed in the service sector are people with scarce skills. So Nigerians do not ordinarily take the jobs that belongs to the locals. We don't do that. We set up our own businesses, and by the grace of God, we are doing well.

CO: You have been in South Africa for about 20 years, is that right?

BO: Yes, yes.

CO: And have you seen before times when foreigners — when people from different countries — and there are many different African nations where people have come to South Africa to live and to work. Have you seen a time before when people from outside were blamed and attacked in this way?

BO: Yes, it has happened. This has become a reoccurring event. Attack it happen from time to time. It’s not the first time. It's not a second time. Neither is it the third time. It happened from time to time, and we've witnessed it. But this became you know very big in the news because the Nigerian community and very few other national suffered collateral damage to their properties are businesses. So that is why this became an issue because Nigeria was mostly targeted, their businesses were actually destroyed in a very big way.

CO: What more does the government play then? Do they do they tell people don't blame the outsiders, and do they take responsibility for the conditions of the unemployment rates, the poverty, the things that the foreigners are being blamed for? Does the government take any responsibility for it?

BO: Well, the government has said that they are looking into the agitation or into the demands of the community, I mean the locals. But then they have you know put efforts in place to ensure that this does not repeat itself again. So we are only holding the government by their own words to ensure that this does not happen again because this is not the first time, like I said, that this has happened. And each time it does happen, it claims a lot of lives, and it claims a lot of businesses, and it puts a lot of people out of businesses, and they became poor overnight. People have built these businesses over the years, and they are put in much effort. And overnight, the businesses will be destroyed. So yes, the government have to have responsibility to ensure that this does not happen again. They are also taking responsibility to talk to their people, and also to ensure that the police step up their game to ensure that there is adequate protection of life and property.

CO: And what about you? Will you stay, or will you go?

BO: I am staying because I feel safe. I have not been a target of any kind of attack. And I have a lot of good friends in South Africa. South Africa is a home. It’s a beautiful place. It’s beautiful people. Unfortunately, what has happened has happened, and we are taking the government by their word words that it will not happen again. We love the place. I love the place, and I hope to make my life here. It’s a beautiful country, like I said. It’s a beautiful people. But you know in a beautiful place, you’ll find very ugly people as well. So I hope to continue to meet the good people all the time.

CO: All right. Ben, we'll let you go. Thanks so much for speaking with us.

BO: Thank you so very much. And do have a wonderful evening, if it’s evening by your side, because it’s night here.

CO: It is. Goodnight. Thank you.

BO: Thank you, and bye.

LVvO: Ben Okoli is the President of the Nigerian Citizens Association South Africa, which has been helping to evacuate Nigerians from Johannesburg. That's where we reached him.

[Music: Ambient]

Brexit court argument

LvO: Aiden O'Neill thinks history is on his side. Today, the lawyer made arguments before Britain's Supreme Court, asking the judges to declare Boris Johnson's suspension of parliament unlawful. And Mr. O'Neill cited numerous figures and events dating back almost a millennium. According to Euronews, he referenced: Oliver Cromwell, Abraham Lincoln, Rudyard Kipling, Robbie Burns, Shakespeare, the Norman Conquest — and the 1966 World Cup. Finally, in his closing arguments on behalf of Scottish MPs fighting the prorogation, he recalled the 1857 Dred Scott case — where the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that black people could not be American citizens.

SOUNDCLIP

AIDEN O’NEILL: I say to this court, don't let this case be your Dred Scott movement. Instead, stand up for the truth. Stand up for reason. Stand up for unity and diversity. Stand up for Parliament. Stand up for democracy by dismissing this Government's appeal. And uphold the Constitution governed by laws, and not the passing whims of men. We’ve got here the mother of parliaments being shut down by the father of lies. Rather than allowing lies to triumph, listen to the angels of your better nature, and rule that this prorogation is unlawful — an abuse of power, which has been entrusted to the government. This government is showing itself unworthy of our trust, as it uses the powers of its office in a manner which is corrosive of the Constitution, and destructive of the system of parliamentary representative democracy upon which our union polity is founded. Enough is enough.

LvO: Lawyer Aiden O'Neill speaking before the British Supreme Court earlier today. The hearing continues tomorrow.

[Music: Industrial]

Cellphone battery

LvO: Your cellphone battery is at four per cent. I'm kidding. Obviously, I have no way of knowing that. But did you gasp? Did your heart stop for a second? And then, if you actually looked at your phone, did you feel a warm swell of joy and relief when you saw it was actually over 70 per cent? That's perfectly normal. Well, imperfectly normal. Because you have to admit it's weird. But a new study of London commuters shows that phone battery life has a major effect on our real life. Researchers from Cass Business School found that people now calculate distances by calculating how much battery will be left by the time they reach their destination. Furthermore, as Dr. Thomas Robinson explains, quote: "During interviews, respondents discussed how a full battery gauge made them feel positive, and as though they could go anywhere or do anything. Anything less than half-full, however, induced feelings of profound anxiety and discomfort." Unquote. Not just about ourselves, either. The study also concluded that we fear and loathe anyone who lets their phone battery run down. Dr. Robinson says we find such monsters to be, quote, "out of touch with the social norm of being connected and therefore unable to be competent members of society." Unquote. So: that's a little creepy. Our phone charge is a little too emotionally charged. And it shouldn't be so draining to see it drained.

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September 18, 2019 episode transcript

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