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The AIH Transcript For October 27, 2021

[hosts]Carol Off, Chris Howden[/hosts]

PETER ARMSTRONG: Hello, I'm Peter Armstrong, sitting in for Carol Off.

CHRIS HOWDEN: Good evening. I'm Chris Howden. This is As It Happens.

[music: theme]

Prologue

CH: Tonight:

CO: Long day's journey into night. The chief of a First Nation in northern B.C. says people in her community are dying "on a daily basis" because of opioids -- so she and other Indigenous leaders are declaring a state of emergency.

CH: Over a barrel. Gangs in Haiti are blocking fuel from getting to the people who need it. And they say shipments will only be released when the prime minister resigns.

CO: Propitious cycle. A 16-year-old British climate activist wants her voice heard at COP26, but she's not about to board a gas-guzzling vehicle. So she's cycling more than 900 kilometres to Glasgow.

CH: He ruled with an ironic fist. The late Mort Sahl was the king of stand-up satire -- setting a new course for comedy in the '50s and '60s with his biting brand of political and social commentary.

CO: A peek behind the leaf. A botanical garden in the Netherlands is offering a rare package deal -- so crowds are flocking to witness the rare bloom of the so-called "penis plant".

CH: And... heavy rotation. Tommy Lee is a master of the upside-down drum solo, and even he's blown away by the drummer for a high school marching band -- who played while she was spinning in all directions inside a gyroscope.

CH: As It Happens, the Wednesday edition. Radio that believes, no offence to Mr. Lee, that hers is the best of both whorls.

[music: theme]

Part 1: N BC Chiefs Emergency Drugs Overdose, COP26 Youth Activist, Rare Penis Plant Blooms

N BC Chiefs Emergency Drugs Overdose

Guest: Corrina Leween

CH: Last year, British Columbia recorded a record-high number of overdose deaths. This year, the province is on track to surpass that number. And a disproportionate number of those affected by the opioid crisis are Indigenous people. Now, eleven Nation Chiefs in northern British Columbia -- along with Carrier Sekani Family Services -- are declaring a state of emergency. Chief Corrina Leween is the board president of Carrier Sekani Family Services. We reached her in Prince George.

CO: Chief Leween, what are people in your community... what are they telling you about this opioid crisis and the effect it's having on them?

CORRINA LEWEEN: Well, I don't think it's so much about the people telling me what's going on. I'm seeing it. The opioid crisis is getting to a crucial stage right now. We're losing people on a daily basis actually that come from the community that I live in, and that is Burns Lake area. But the entire north is, you know, hit with this opioid crisis.

CO: How many overdose deaths have there been in the community in recent weeks then?

CL: Just in the last, well, the last week, you know, we've lost in our community of Burns Lake, probably four people, mostly in the urban setting. But they still, you know, they come from our community and, you know, move to the urban setting, and then they come home.

CO: How many people live in Burns Lake?

CL: Oh, we're about 3,000. A small community, but that's 3,000 with our surrounding communities because we have surrounding communities around us.

CO: But four deaths in one community in such a short period time. That... that must have a profound effect on people.

CL: Well, it does. Everybody knows the people that you know are coming home in a casket or, you know, for funeral arrangements. So, you know, it affects our people drastically because, you know, their friends, relatives, co-workers, whatever. You know, it's just... it's... it's... it's sort of... it's at a point of like I said, it's a critical stage right now.

CO: And that's why you've asked for... you've declared a state of emergency because of this opioid crisis.

CL: Yes, you know, in particular, too, we have a treatment and healing facility that Carrier Sekani Family Services, which I sit as president on, so we've done a whole lot of work to try to find a holistic solution to the epidemic and the needs of the people. So what we're looking for is federal and provincial funding to assist us in doing the work that we can do in our own communities, and create a treatment facility that is holistic to the culture of our people in the north. Because there really isn't anything here right now. We have to send our people down to, say, Vancouver or, you know, out of the community.

CO: And what kind of response have you had from those levels of government when your request for that funding?

CL: Well, we've had several negotiations. We've been at this for a couple of years now. So we've had several interactions with federal and provincial government. You know, the process is very slow for us. And, you know, as it's slow, people die. So what we're doing right now is trying to get the attention that, you know, give us the funding that we need to create this treatment facility up north. And it's going to help the province in general, you know, at the end of the day. So, you know, we can do the work. We just need the funding to enable us to do the work.

CO: What are the ages? Are they mostly young people, or what are you seeing in the... in the addictions and in the deaths that you're talking about?

CL: Lots of young people are affected with the addiction crisis right now, getting younger and younger. You know, we're... we're seeing all age groups. But in particular, it's the young people that, you know, we're seeing so much of a rise in, you know, the opioid crisis. And, you know, the tainted drugs all play a part of it.

CO: How young?

CL: You know, we've got kids on the street that are, you know, 15 to 25.

CO: Yikes!

CL: That are overdosing.

CO: You mentioned in the press release that you're dealing with two pandemics: COVID being one of them and these toxic drugs being the other. How are those pandemics feeding each other?

CL: Well, the COVID pandemic is feeding into the opioid crisis because of the mental illness that is going on with the COVID. Not having that connection with family. Some people do not want to, you know, bring the COVID into the rural communities. So there's that disconnect with families. And having the COVID isolate people is playing a big part of the mental distress that people are feeling with it.

CO: Over the summer and over these past months, when Canada, Canadians, have learned about the graves of so many young people at the residential schools, and it's been a wake-up call in Canada. But I wonder what... what that's doing in your community, and the sort of trauma it causes to have this knowledge out there to be talking about the intergenerational trauma? What effect is that having?

CL: It's really traumatizing for, first of all, the first-generation survivors. There's those that went to residential school. Then there's the first-generation survivors, which I am one of. And then second and third-generation survivors. And the education and the reality of it is hitting home with the younger people because they're realizing what, you know, historically happened to our people, and that has opened a lot of wounds. I know there's helplines, et cetera, that have been put forward for dealing with, you know, the mental stress that goes with knowing, you know, the history and understanding what had happened and the reality of, you know, the intergenerational effects that are happening right now with us as First Nations people. You know, that's, you know, even more reason to have a treatment facility so people can deal with that open wound and where they're going to go from here.

CO: And do you think that... that the sort of opening discussions about what happened in the schools and how graphic the stories have been, how... how awful the stories have been, is that contributing? Which is very important for Canada to know. But is that feeding into the opioid addiction issue as well? Is that feeding into that trauma?

CL: Well, knowing that, yeah, it does add to it. But colonization and the racism that people feel, you know, the addictions, everything, it's all intergenerational. And it's... the impact is starting to pile up now, and then it's starting to show its face in addictions. And that's what we're trying to, you know, alleviate for our people.

CO: If you had the treatment centre that you're trying to create there. If you had these kinds of healing and treatment centres, it's hard to know this for sure, but could you have prevented those deaths you just described, the four in the past few weeks?

CL: If we have our own treatment facility and we understand the dynamics of culture and, you know, where people are at because we know our people better than others, then I'm pretty guaranteed that we would have been able to prevent some lives if we had it in place.

CO: Chief Leween, we will leave it there. I really appreciate speaking with you today. Thank you. I'm sorry for what's going on in your community, though.

CL: Well, thank you for the exposure. That's what we need.

CO: For sure. Thank you.

CL: You're welcome. Thanks for the call.

CH: Corrina Leween is chief of the Cheslatta Carrier Nation and the board president of Carrier Sekani Family Services. We reached her in Prince George, British Columbia.

[Music: Uke!!!]

COP26 Youth Activist

Guest: Jessie Stevens

CH: It's a conundrum for climate activists and politicians around the world: how do you square going to a crucial climate change conference, as the world burns, on a fuel-guzzling plane? For 16-year-old British climate activist Jessie Stevens, planes, trains, and automobiles just weren't going to cut it. So she decided to rely on two wheels -- and cycle 917 kilometers from her home in Devon, England, to the UN Climate Change conference, COP26, in Glasgow. We reached Jessie Stevens on a rest day in Lancaster, England.

CO: Jessie, how are your legs feeling today?

JESSIE STEVENS: Um, they're not too bad, actually. I think we've been going quite slowly, so we've been going about 10 to 12 miles an hour, which kind of makes the days quite long, but it does help reduce tiredness. So, yeah, it's not been too bad, thank you.

CO: How far are you cycling each day?

JS: So between 50 and 70 miles a day.

CO: Yikes! [both chuckle] And so that is a... how did you prepare? Did you... did you train for that? Were you... I mean that... that is a lot of cycling.

JS: Yeah, it's a lot of cycling. So I am... I live near Dartmoor, which is a big national park, very hilly, in the south of the U.K. So that made for excellent training grounds to get all the hills in and get fit quite quickly. So the flatter areas of the U.K. have been a lot easier than expected.

CO: And what's your weather been like? I know it's raining today, but it's your down day. So have you had some good patches?

JS: Yeah, I have, actually. We've had some really lovely autumnal weather. We've had a few wet days, but not too bad. So I think the next few days are going to be a bit soggy. But it's only to be expected as we get near the winter.

CO: [both chuckle] Now, so how did you decide that you were going to cycle all the way to Glasgow? What went into that decision?

JS: Ah! So it was kind of as a way to try and get my message across because I'm a youth climate activist, and I really believe in the power of getting diverse voices in the political change-making. And I found that when I first wanted to get into COP, I found it really hard to get in. And that didn't seem right to me because I feel that, you know, climate change is such huge and diverse issue that we need a diverse range of voices to sort of take action. And then, I sort of... I found that that wasn't happening. And then, so that's kind of spurred me to try and get myself there and to take action. And I also found that it was really hard for me to get from my house to COP in a sustainable way. Where, you know, flying would have been much easier, much cheaper compared to public transport, and that just didn't seem... didn't seem right to me. And so I decided to cycle there to kind of highlight this point.

CO: Right. But you have good trains in the U.K., so why didn't you take the train?

JS: Well, I find that, actually, our trains are really quite expensive for the average person, and it would have cost me quite a lot of money to get there. And that just didn't seem right when flying would have been so much cheaper for me, despite being much more ecologically destructive. And so, that's... that's the reason I decided to.

CO: So you're not cycling on your own. You have people around you and on their bikes as well?

JS: Yeah, totally. So we have a cargo bike relay all up the country. So different people riding a cargo bike, which is like a large bike, which can carry a large amount of stuff. So all our equipment, all our things for the journey and COP is being transported that way by a relay of people. And also, we've got lots of people from different towns. And as we move up the route, joining us for a few miles, which has been lovely.

CO: And what about other teenagers like you? Are you... are you being joined by them as well?

JS: Yeah, we've had a few young people, and it's been amazing to share stories and talk to them about how the climate crisis impacts them. So there's been a real diverse range of people.

CO: Can you give an example, just something when you think about why this matters to you, why you think that young people like you have to do something to reverse climate change? What do you think about? What are the concrete things that come to mind?

JS: I think it's the lack of opportunities. I think it's beautiful green spaces that I'd love to visit or I'd love to live in that will be gone. And I think that all the sort of problems that the climate crisis will cause and exacerbate, such as like social justice issues and all these other things. And I think it's the fact that the future and all my future prospects could be damaged and could be changed. And I feel that's really unfair. As so many other generations that have had that steadfast belief in what their future would hold, I don't have that anymore. So that's something that really upsets me.

CO: We have a new minister of the environment here in Canada. We just talked to him yesterday, and he'll be in Glasgow as well. When he was a young fellow, he spent decades, really long before many people, trying to get the world aware of climate change. He even climbed the CN Tower in Toronto to put up a big banner that said, "climate killer". Now he's part of the government. And now he's part of the system. And so what would you like to say... if you could meet our Steven Guilbeault in Glasgow, what would you say to him about what he... what you think he should do in Canada?

JS: Uh, it's a really interesting question, actually. I think for me, it sometimes feels like politics gets in the way of climate change. And actually, I think we all need to remember that climate change has no borders; it has no barriers. It's something that will impact us all. Maybe not in the same ways, but actually is going to impact us all. So I think out of COP and speaking to certain ministers, I would really like to say that actually, we need to move above sort of bureaucracies between each country or those... those disagreements and actually just treat it as one big problem that we're all facing, and therefore, we should all work together on it despite our differences.

CO: How many more days are you going to be cycling?

JS: I've got four days left of cycling, and then I arrive in COP.

CO: [chuckling] In Glasgow.

JS: Yes!

CO: And what will you do when you get there?

JS: So I'm going to be spending a bit of time in COP for the first week. So in the Blue Zone and in the Green Zone. I'm working with some organizations and doing some interviewing and that kind of thing because I'm really passionate about getting the youth voice into the media. And I'm also then the next week, I'm going to be doing some more grassroots action and what other organizations on the ground.

CO: And then, eventually, you'll go home. And so what... what then? You'll just go back to school, and everything goes back to what it was after this extraordinary adventure you've been on?

JS: Um, I suppose. I'll definitely be going back to school and back to normal life, but I do plan to carry on with my activism and to use this experience to make my activism more meaningful and to find new ways to try and make change. So I think it's just been a springboard to try new things and work with new people and new ideas.

CO: And how do you think that this experience has changed you and will change you?

JS: I think from... I've met so many incredible people along the way and talked to them about how the climate crisis impacts them and how it impacts them differently to me. And I think hearing those stories is such an important thing which makes us a better... a better and more understanding person. So I think my activism has been made more deeper and more meaningful by talking to different people. And I also think I've learnt a lot about myself mentally and physically through the challenge itself.

CO: [chuckle] You've learned about your limits and your strength physically?

JS: Yeah, totally. Yes, definitely.

CO: OK, well, I'll let you go. You get a little bit of a break. You got a little sniff there, too. I'm kind of worried that you might be getting a cold. I hope that's not case.

JS: [chuckling] No, no. Don't worry. Thank you.

CO: All right, Jessie. Take care. Bye-bye.

JS: Thank you so much. Thank you. Bye.

CH: Jessie Stevens is riding her bike more than 900 kilometres from her home in Devon, England, to COP26 in Glasgow. She was in Lancaster, England. And you can find more on this story on our webpage at: www.cbc.ca/aih.

[Music: Ambient]

LR: Fruit Fly Guy

CH: It's the size of something that gets stuck in your teeth. But it's, you know, a lot more significant. Researchers say they've mapped the poppyseed-sized brain of the fruit fly like never before. And on last night's programs, neuro-scientist Vivek Jayaraman told us all about the complexities of the fruit fly mind. He wound up with a message for everyone out there listening in their kitchens about the tiny insects circling their fruit bowls.

SOUNDCLIP

VIVEK JAYARAMAN: At the end of the day, I mean, if an insect seems like a pest because it's competing with you for food, I understand why you may feel, you know, the need to do what you do. But that said, I hope you at least do it with greater appreciation for the creature, the marvel that is that fly.

CH: His words hit home to at least one listener -- who left a message on Talkback.

SOUNDCLIP

[Sound: A message machine beeps]

PATRICK KOSLOW: Patrick Koslow, Vancouver, B.C. Just love the fruit fly guy you had on. I've had a fruit fly in my kitchen, probably all summer. I think it's the same guy. They kind of evade you with a sideways move. But he really liked red wine. So when I would have dinner and open wine, he would come around the top of the bottle. And it got to the point where if I would sit and play guitar, he would... actually flew on my finger. And it's just, I think they're a lot smarter than we think they are. After this interview, I just heard you do, and he has just not been around. Either a spider got him... and I actually miss my fruit fly. He was like a kitchen companion. He loves his wine. He loves beer. He loves anything I was eating. So I just regarded him as a pet. Now he's not around and I kind of miss him. Maybe he took off to Florida. Anyway, thank you and keep it up.

[Sound: Patrick slams his phone down]

CH: Thanks for calling, Patrick. Our hearts go out to you, missing your kitchen companion. If you'd like to pay tribute to an absent fruit fly in your life, or anything else, we're here for you. Email us at: aih@cbc.ca. Or call Talkback at: 416-205-5687.

[Music: Indie rock cover of “Rubber Duckie”]

Rare Penis Plant Blooms

Guest: Rogier Van Vught

CH: The Amorphophallus decus-silvae suffers from serious performance anxiety. The rare tropical plant only blooms once every 20 years or so. So when the big event happened late last week at the botanical gardens in Leiden, the Netherlands -- it attracted crowds of gawkers. The informal name of the plant also tends to grow audiences. It's known as the "Penis Plant". Rogier Van Vught is the head of the botanical gardens. We reached him in Leiden, the Netherlands.

CO: Rogier, how hard was it to coax your Penis Plant into finally blooming?

ROGIER VAN VUGHT: Well, first of all, I have to say that even though I am the manager of the greenhouses, I did not, like, technically grew this plant myself, I just supervise it. But the great thing is is that we have a lot of volunteers in our botanical garden. And one of them, his name is Rudmer. He specializes on our Penis Plant. So he does nothing else but growing the Amorphophallus collection. So the credits really go to him. But, of course, we... we both were very excited when a flower bud was showing. So we knew already a few weeks in advance that it was going to bloom.

CO: And this is... you've been waiting for what, six years? For this Amorphophallus plant to do its thing?

RVV: Exactly, there are more... there are multiple species of... of Amorphophallus. The titanum is probably the most famous one. I think, on a yearly basis, you can find it in flower in several botanical gardens in the world. But this one is much rarer. It's... in Europe; it's the third time ever that it flowers. And for us, it's the second time, but the last time it flowered was 24 years ago.

CO: And just for our listeners, just so they know, we're not the ones calling this the Penis Plant. This is your name. So... but it's… what's the Latin? It’s Amorphophallus decus-silvae?

RVV: Yes. Exactly. That's the... that's the Latin name. And Amorphophallus means shapeless penis. If it's a shapeless penis. If it's a shapeless penis, why call it a penis in the first place? But the name was invented by, actually, a Dutch guy who... who worked very close to here. I found that out quite recently. You can say, OK, it's a shapeless penis plant, and a reporter from a newspaper turned it into the Penis Plant. And from that moment, people are really coming to the botanical garden to see that. And the name decus-silvae means the glory of the words.

CO: Now, when you say a shapeless penis plant, but this is not a flaccid phallus, is it? I mean, this is a fully-erect specimen. How big is your Penis Plant? How tall?

RVV: It is a decent two metres, so it's slightly above average. It's one of the giant Penis Plants. Actually, there are many species. Some Penis Plants are about the size of your pinky, even smaller. And then they range all the way from that to more than two metres tall. And this is one of the taller species. But the difference between this one and the titanum is that the titanum, the flower starts all the way from... from the ground level. And this one makes a very long, slender stem. And then, on top of it, it makes the penis flower.

CO: You have put up a ladder beside the plant so that people can climb to the top and get up close and personal with the penis plant, right?

RVV: It started as a bit of an accident because we put a ladder there for a few reporters to take a picture. But then, the visitors came, and we couldn't take the letter away because they saw the ladder and they all wanted to climb the ladder as well.

CO: I've seen photos, and it seems to be that large crowds of people who are waiting to climb the ladder are almost all women. Is that the case?

RVV: Um, I don't... we are a mother country. People of all genders and, actually, all ages, too. So we are quite liberal.

CO: Now, [chuckling] you... there are two stages of growth, I understand. When it's growing to its full majestic two metres, that's called the female stage of blooming. But at the male blooming stage, it takes on some other qualities. Can you tell us what happens then?

RVV: This is a complicated story. So the flower opens. And in this stage, it's flowering in the female stage, and it starts to smell really bad, like rotten fish. This is also the stage when the penis part starts to warm up, and insects, mostly flies, will fly into the flower. And there's... that's the thing, there is nothing happening right then. But then, afterwards, the male flowers will open, the female flowers will close, and then all the flies are covered with pollen. And then the flower actually stops stinking so that the flies are thinking, OK, what are we doing here? And they fly away, covered with pollen. And, hopefully, somewhere in the forest, another female stage flower will be blooming, and the flies will dive in... into that flower and pollinate that one.

CO: OK, I'm going to... I'm trying to take all of this in right now. [chuckle] OK. That's [both chuckle] quite a story. And so... but this is not going to happen --

RVV: Everything turns into a bad joke.

CO: No, no. It's... it's... it's... like there's quite a movie going on here. [RVV chuckles] So, because it's in your botanical gardens, that's not going to happen, right? There's no other female. I understand you do have other... other genitalia-related plants, including a Clitoris Plant, is that right?

RVV: Yes, we do. Actually, botanists were really... I don't know. I think they were kinky in the old days. We have a Nipple Cactus, and indeed, we do have a Clitoria. The Clitoria was flowering the same time when the Amorphophallus was blooming. People found out about that, and they asked me where the Clitoria was? And I turned them into a search for the Clitoria. And in some cases, they came back and with a straight face, surrounded by dozens of other people, they told me, we cannot find the Clitoria. And they were absolutely oblivious of the joke they were in, [CO laughs] which I found really funny. [laughing]

CO: OK.

RVV: So this... this... this turned a little bit into my theme because I said the story of the Amorphophallus like 10,000 times those days. So the Clitoria thing became a little bit of my personal joke.

CO: OK, I think we get it, though, Rogier. [Laughing] We... in Canada, we understand the joke. And this is a lot to absorb. And so, we'll leave it there. And thank you for speaking with us and telling us about your plans. [chuckling]

RVV: Thank you very much.

CO: Bye.

RVV: Thank you very much. You're welcome.

CH: Rogier Van Vught is the head of the botanical gardens in Leiden, the Netherlands. That's where we reached him. For more on this story and to see some pictures of the penis plant, which Carol described in such a painterly fashion, [CO chuckles] go to our website: www.cbc.ca/aih.

CO: OK, OK, I get the point. You know --

CH: I'm not sure... you evinced an interest in horticulture that I was not previously aware of.

CO: I… I want the movie rights to that one. [both laugh] Just... there is so much going on in that story. I just...

CH: Yeah.

CO: OK.

[Music: Waltz]

Part 2: Haiti Gangs Rule, Mort Sahl Obit

Haiti Gangs Rule

Guest: Ralph Chevry

CH: Fuel is scarce in Haiti right now. And whatever gas can be bought has skyrocketed in price -- because gangs are blocking the entrances to the country's ports. In a radio interview, one gang leader -- Jimmy "Barbeque" Cherizier -- said they would let the fuel start moving again. But only if the prime minister steps down. The fuel crisis comes as the country is also facing political and economic woes and gang kidnappings. Ralph Chevry is with the Haiti Centre for Socio-Economic Development. We reached him in Port-au-Prince.

CO: Ralph, just how badly are Haitians in need of fuel right now?

RALPH CHEVRY: [scoff] Fuel is oxygen to an economy. And the country is at a standstill; total lockdown. Nothing is working. The supermarkets are closed. You can't buy bread. It's... it's a ghost town. Nothing is working. So we need it badly. We won't be able to survive this for much longer.

CO: The fuel is not getting to people because a gang leader by the name of Jimmy Cherizier, also known as Barbeque. This gang leader is saying they're not... no one's going to get fuel until the prime minister resigns. How is that being received in Haiti?

RC: Well, it's at least to us, it's obvious, and I think it's been made public that the gangs are tied to politicians. Gangs are not just gangs. They're really institutionalized, and they have relationships with politicians. So should he share the interests of an opposition group that wants Ariel to leave power, then that's what's going to happen. As we speak right now, there's a lot of shooting in his area. The police apparently organized a squad to try to get him to stop the siege, which is actually a siege on the southern part of Port-au-Prince trying to get the trucks in. But we're just... we're just tired. It's really annoying and frustrating that this is going on. It's a public security issue to us that needs to be addressed. It needs to be resolved. We're really angry and not happy... not happy about the situation.

CO: Just, if you can, just describe this system of gangs and their relationship with politicians? I mean, you've... you have a president who has been assassinated. Now you have a prime minister who is the man that the gangs want to get rid of. So what is the relationship between these gangs and the political leaders?

RC: It's really... it's symbiotic. You have to understand that for anyone to aspire to any political seat, elected seat need to cater to the massively populated areas. And in those areas, the gangs control them. So by virtue of that, it kind of sets up the scenario where the politician will try to develop relationships, or if he does not, then he was not… he's not going to get any votes in that area. And he's unlikely to be able to control any of the voting booths. So what happens is it just happens that every politician who wants to run for anything needs to work with gang leaders because they run that area. And when they become whatever they do, if they win, then there's a relationship established where there needs to be payback. So it really is ingrained. It really is institutionalized. It's not just regular street gangs. It's really developed. And that's why it's become so dangerous.

CO: This gang leader, Barbeque, or Jimmy Cherizier, is the one that's preventing the fuel from getting to citizens. And so, who is he? What can you tell us about him?

RC: Jimmy Cherizier is an ex-police officer. And apparently, there was a squad of police, which he was part of, they were supposedly given a task where they were supposed to police intervention. And... and they killed quite a few people. And the United Nations put out a report, and they accuse him of being involved in the mass murder. Ever since then, he's... he left the police, whether he left or got fired, I don't know. And he started to create a gang. And because of his relationship with the police, because the police is so corrupt, so dysfunctional, it was very easy for him to move in and take over those small gangs and head them. And he kind of syndicated gangs. He organized a few gangs that are in the city. And that's what he calls them G9, which allegedly it's nine gangs that he runs, that he's the leader of.

CO: Is there no higher authority? Is there no other authority that can stop gangs from blocking fuel shipments?

RC: Well, we have…. we have military. The military's was disbanded, I think, in '91. And ever since then, they put a weapons embargo on them. The military was reactivated under President Jovenel. It is legal. It is functioning. But the problem is they don't have any guns because the United States itself is blocking them because there is an arms embargo. And the military, I believe, in this situation is certainly not only necessary, but it's an essential part of trying to run a country.

CO: All right. But the gangs have weapons, right?

RC: Oh yes, that's the whole thing. That's the real conundrum. Because the gangs have been able to bring in the weapons, most of them from the United States. And I've heard police say that they're outmanned and outgunned. They have massive reserves of ammunition. It's kind of ironic that there is an arms embargo on the military, but the gangs don't seem to suffer because they can get their guns. Whether it's illegal or not, most of them are coming from the United States.

CO: Is this gang-controlled system, this network in Haiti, is it actually getting worse? Because we know we've also just recently done the stories of... or read the stories of the... the hostage-takings, right? So are the gangs getting more powerful?

RC: Oh yes, of course, yes. The momentum is on their side. Because the government right now, it's pretty tenuous. It's... we have a prime minister who has not been able to show that he could have any control. The police are divided into five different factions. And, you know, there's a vacuum, and the gangs step in. They really control the city. At least Port-au-Prince. They can just about do whatever they want, and it's getting worse. It really is getting worse.

CO: So is it possible that Ariel Henry, the prime minister, will have to step down in order to get the fuel shipments moving into Haiti?

RC: I don't see that as an option. I hope it doesn't come to him leaving because of Barbeque. That would be a mistake. That would be a bad sign. But I think that Barbeque has weakened him. And many people are asking for his head, not just because of what Barbeque's doing, but because a lack of a show... a lack of leadership.

CO: All right. Ralph, I appreciate speaking with you. Please stay safe.

RC: Thank you. Thank you very much. We will.

CO: Take care. Bye-bye.

RC: Chow.

CH: Ralph Chevry is with the Haiti Centre for Socio-Economic Development. He was in Port-au-Prince.

[Music: Ambient]

Mort Sahl Obit

Guest: Robert Weide

CH: Mort Sahl sometimes referred to himself as a disrupter rather than a comedian. The Montreal-born stand-up comic would often close his act by asking the audience: "Are there any groups I haven't offended?" His style of biting social and political satire might seem commonplace or tame by today's standards. But when he started in the late '50s, it was almost unheard of. Mort Sahl died yesterday. He was 94. His signature style was on full display in 1997 when Mr. Sahl came on As It Happens to mark the 25th anniversary of the Watergate scandal and share his views on investigative journalism.

SOUNDCLIP

MORT SAHL: Well, I don't know what they marked that for? They didn't get any closer. And I haven't read anything in the paper. Investigative journalism… I mean, example. When Mobutu left us here in the last couple of weeks, the New York Times said he... he was a dictator put in office by the CIA 32 years ago. I'm glad they finally got the story right. It's remarkable! You know, investigative journalism. I guess, as personified by Redford and Dustin Hoffman. We're talking largely about entertainment, we're talking about gossip, and we're auditioning stories before we report them.

ELIZABETH GRAY: Mm-Hmm. Do you do a different kind of comedy now? Have you changed?

MS: I do the same kind. I've always done the same kind. It's... it's always the same. You know, whether it's me talking about Nixon, and I certainly did, or me getting up and saying, God bless Bill Clinton, long, may he waver. [both chuckle] It's the same kind of comedy, you know? Or somebody said that Hillary was going to re-emerge as a... as a rap singer, and her first album would be called Queen Subpoena. I mean, or... you know, it's... it's whatever comes along in the news.

EG: And what about your audiences? Have they changed?

MS: Only in the sense that what was initially my aberration has now happened to all of them. People are very sophisticated about the government. In fact, in... in the polls in this country, the only people that are valued less than politicians are journalists.

EG: Mm-Hmm.

MS: And that's as reported by the New York Times. You know, there's a great apocryphal story about the Times in the Washington Post that they report nuclear war in the following fashion. It says: "nuclear holocaust: world ends. Women and minorities hurt hardest." [EG chuckles] That really sums up their position, you know?

CH: Comedian Mort Sahl speaking with former As It Happens host Elizabeth Gray in 1997. Robert Weide is the executive producer of Curb Your Enthusiasm and the director of the documentary Mort Sahl: The Loyal Opposition. We reached him in Los Angeles.

CO: Robert, first of all, I'm sorry for your loss.

ROBERT WEIDE: Thank you. It is a loss. It's a huge loss, not just for me, but anybody who knew him and anybody who knew his work as a performer.

CO: When you hear that clip, when we just played, that he… [chuckle] whether it's journalists or politicians, he just takes no prisoners, does he? And so what goes through your mind when you hear him talking about Watergate and the view... his views on the press?

RW: My take listening to that clip just now is actually a personal one and an emotional one because I'm here on the phone in Los Angeles. Just hearing his voice, hearing his delivery, reminded me of any number of countless conversations we'd have on the phone. And, you know, I... I was fortunate enough to have a private audience with him whenever I wanted. He was a phone call away. And he was just so articulate. You hear that little interview piece with him, and you can pull out the jokes and realize that with or without the comedy, what he had to say was always so insightful and so valid. I mean, he could have been, you know, a college professor teaching political history, and you would be fascinated by everything that he said because he was just sort of organically captivating. But he also happened to be just very, very funny. It wasn't just a matter of his jokes being funny. There was a presentation, the way he could start off talking about one subject and from there digress into something else, digress into something else from there, digress again and then still find his way back to the core of whatever he was talking about. You know, the word genius is so overused, certainly in the entertainment industry. And he's one of the few people I ever met who I truly think was a genius in the same way that Charlie Parker was a genius, or Pablo Picasso was a genius. There are these artists who come along once in a generation, if that, who totally change everybody who comes after them, who totally reshapes the art form. And Mort Sahl was one of those kinds of geniuses.

CO: It's hard to even to trace back the influence he had because so many people did what he did afterwards. I mean, he did shake... he entered a comic... stand-up comic scene, which was kind of Bob Hope and Henny Youngman giving mother-in-law jokes and completely turned it on its head, didn't he? This was... I mean, now we know this from so many of the comedians, but what was he doing that was so different at the time?

RW: Well, you've got it exactly right. And he just… he came out of nowhere. Comedians at that time, you know, they were very polished, and they came out often wearing, you know, tuxedos. You think of sort of those nightclub comedians from the '50s. And the humour that they did, and by the way, this is not a knock on them because many of them are hysterically funny. But, you know, the humour was those very easy jokes about one's mother-in-law or lady drivers or your wife's cooking or whatever. So for Mort to come out, you know, while McCarthy was still wreaking havoc here in the United States and to do jokes about McCarthy, to do jokes about Eisenhower, to do jokes about Nixon, I mean, it... it really wasn't heard of. And, of course, Mort's signature line at the end of his act, he'd look out and say, OK, are there any groups here tonight that I have offended? [chuckle] He really did take no prisoners. And it was just a completely new way of working. Nobody thought of up comedy as being able to accomplish the kinds of things that he accomplished. And he just turned it all on his ears single-handedly.

CO: And as you point out, I mean, he was virulently anti-Soviet. But, at the same time, he would turn on Joe McCarthy. One of his great lines was: Joe McCarthy doesn't question what you say so much as you're right to say it. And just these cutting things.

RW: Yeah, some of his earliest jokes are about McCarthy at a time when you could really invite a lot of trouble on yourself personally and professionally by going after somebody like McCarthy. And, you know, looking back at these jokes now, again, they seem pretty innocuous. But at the time, it was quite startling.

CO: Well, they... I mean, we know from characters like Lenny Bruce or Joan Rivers or Richard Pryor, they all... they all took from him, didn't they? They all.. That... that was the springboard for them was what... was what Mort Sahl was doing. Is that the case?

RW: Yes. You know, people talk about what a groundbreaker Lenny Bruce was. And he truly was. And there are few bigger fans of Lenny Bruce than I. In fact, I did a documentary on Lenny in the late-'90s. I did one on Mort in the late-'80s, and I really admire Lenny Bruce. But Lenny Bruce, prior to Mort, was doing, you know, impressions of movie stars and doing that kind of… that shtick. You know, most of comedy at the time was... really, you know, had its roots in vaudeville and burlesque. And it was that kind of thing. So Mort saw... I'm sorry, Lenny Bruce saw Mort perform one night at the Hungry Eye. And Enrico Banducci, who owned The Hungry Eye, was there with him, and he told me, he said, that Lenny just watched Mort perform and said that's what I should be doing. I should be doing that. And so, the influence continues to this day. I would say that any comedian working today, even if they never saw a Mort Sahl performance or heard a Mort Sahl joke, owes much more to him than they probably even know.

CO: What was he like in-person?

RW: He could be a difficult friend to have. I read an obituary in the New York Times, and they were quoting somebody. I don't remember who they were quoting, but they said Mort makes ex-friends easily.

CO: [chuckle] Ouch!

RW: And most of us who are very close to him had on-and-off relationships with him. But he meant so much to us that even if there was some crazy spat, and you thought, OK, Mort just really got offended for no reason, or he's not talking to me. You... you would give it some time and then you'd come back to him because you had to take the whole package. And even though he could be a difficult person, you would always welcome him back because it was just too much of a treat to know him. Like I say, you took the whole package, but he had a very sweet side to him, a very sentimental side to him. He was an easy laugher. He didn't have that show business thing of looking over your shoulder to see if somebody more important had entered the room. When he was talking to you, you were always the most important person in the room. He was a great friend that way.

CO: Robert, you've given us a really good sense of [chuckle] Mort Sahl. And I really appreciate that. Thank you so much.

RW: Well, we appreciate Canada for sending him down here to us.

CO: [chuckling] All right.

RW: We love the imports.

CO: Thank you so much. Bye-bye.

RW: Thank you. Bye-bye.

CH: Robert Weide was a close friend of Montreal-born comedian Mort Sahl, and the director of the documentary Mort Sahl: The Loyal Opposition. We reached him in Los Angeles. Mort Sahl died yesterday. He was 94.

[Music: Banjo]

Spinning Drummer

[Music: Jack Valentine on the drums]

CH: The year is 1974. Jack Valentine -- drummer with the band WhiteHorse -- invents a drum riser that can turn upside-down while he's playing. That's him banging away right now, possibly the wrong way up. Fun fact: guitarist Mick Mars also played in WhiteHorse, which originally went by a different name: Mottley Croo -- spelled M-O-T-T-L-E-Y C-R-O-O.

[Music: Tommy Lee plays a huge drum solo]

CH: The year is 1987. Tommy Lee is playing a drum solo inside a cage that's rotating end-over-end above the stage in Tacoma, Washington. It's not his original idea, but now when people think "upside-down drum solo", they think Tommy Lee. Fun fact: he plays with guitarist Mick Mars in a band called Mötley Crüe, spelled M-O-T-L-E-Y C-R-U-E, with umlauts over the O and the U. Because that's less silly. But I digress.

[Music: Kenzie Conner drums along with the Westfield High School Marching Band]

CH: The year is 2021. The place is a football game at Westfield High School in Chantilly, Virginia. And the sound is everyone freaking out over drummer Kenzie Conner, who's playing drums for her marching band inside a huge gyroscope that's spinning upside-down and sideways at astonishing speed. Millions of people have now seen that TikTok video, including Tommy Lee -- who posted a comment. "Hahahahah!!! Yes." he wrote. "Another [person] refusing to play drums the way they were intended to be played!!!" Praise from a pioneer -- who, admittedly, Kenzie may never have heard of, since she's a teenager. And Mr. Lee is right to be impressed. Watching that gyroscope solo, he must be marveling at the way things turned out. And in. And upside-down.

[Music: Jazz]

Part 3: Chicago Blackhawks Sexual Assault, Swimmer Maggie MacNeil

Alec Baldwin Update

CH: For almost a week now, people who've never set foot on a film set have been learning terms like "cold gun" and "armorer". And everyone with or without film experience has wondered how exactly a prop gun fired by Alec Baldwin killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza. Today, we learned more about last week's fatal shooting on the set of the movie Rust, just outside Santa Fe, New Mexico. At a briefing, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza, along with the District Attorney, revealed that investigators found 500 rounds of ammunition on the set, including blanks, dummy rounds, and live rounds. Here's Sheriff Adan Mendoza.

SOUNDCLIP

ADAN MENDOZA: We believe that we have in our possession the firearm that was fired by Mr. Baldwin. This is the firearm we believe discharged the bullet. We also believe that we have the spent shell casing from the bullet that was fired from the gun. The actual lead projectile that was fired has been recovered from the shoulder of Mr. Souza. We regard this specific spent casing and recovered projectile to be the live round that was fired from the revolver by Mr. Baldwin. We have recovered what we believe to be possible additional live rounds on set. Um, I will... I will talk in reference to the calibre of the actual weapon that was fired by Mr. Baldwin. That... that firearm was an F.LLI Pietta Long Colt .45 calibre. There... there were other... there was other ammunition in the gun that we believe was fired by Mr. Baldwin. He's... he's obviously the person that fired the weapon. So we're going to continue interviewing and getting to... getting the facts of his statements and the evidence and the case and possible witnesses or anybody that has any information. So right now, he is an active part of this investigation. Everybody is cooperating with statements and interviews. Obviously, I think the industry has... has had a record recently of being safe. I think there was some complacency on this set. And I think there are some safety issues that need to be addressed by the industry and possibly by the state of New Mexico. But I'll leave that up to... to the industry and the state to determine what those need to be.

CH: That was Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza giving a briefing on the fatal shooting on the set of the movie Rust. The investigation continues, and someone may still be charged.

[Music: Sad piano and guitar]

Chicago Blackhawks Sexual Assault

Guest: Rick Westhead

CH: The 107-page report is graphic and disturbing -- and reveals the rot in the Chicago Blackhawks organization. Yesterday, the NHL team released the results of an independent investigation into allegations of sexual assault from May 2010, when the team was on its way to winning its first Stanley Cup in nearly five decades. Earlier this year, a former player filed a lawsuit alleging the team's then-video coach Brad Aldrich had assaulted him and another player during that playoff run. His claims that team leaders knew about the abuse allegations, and chose to sweep them under the rug, were confirmed by the investigation. TSN's Rick Westhead has been looking into this story for months. We reached him in Toronto.

CO: Rick, I know you have had contact with this former player who filed the suit, known as John Doe. How is he feeling about this report?

RICK WESTHEAD: I think he's in shock. And if you, you know, went off of what we have learned over the last month, there's been a real culture of silence here. The NHL has not wanted to talk. The corporate sponsors of the Chicago Blackhawks have not wanted to talk. The players have not wanted to talk. And so, you know, the expectation I think that this player had, and to be honest, me as well, going into the press briefing on Tuesday was not to have, you know, high expectations. And then, as every minute passes, Reid Schar, the former assistant U.S. attorney, is presenting his findings, and there is just more and more jaw-dropping and horrible detail that he's presenting. And we found out at the same time that he was going to make the report completely available without any redactions or anything held.

CO: People have described this report as absolutely shocking, jaw-dropping, as you just said. And so can you give us the gist? The report is 107 pages, and you have been doing this for months, and... and this story is 11 years old. So... so much has happened. But can you give us a sense of what was going on in May 2010? Blackhawks are in the middle of Stanley Cup playoffs. What happened?

RW: What happened is Brad Aldrich is someone who came with hockey pedigree. He was the video coach for the Blackhawks, which means that he would review game tape with players and kind of act as a confidant for them. You know, they would go to Brad, you know, what's the head coach think of me? How am I doing? Am I going to make it in the line-up in the next games? And so, in the playoffs in the NHL, every year, you see teams call up players from their minor league affiliate, and these players are known as "black aces". So they don't play in the games, but they're around the team, and they practice with the regular players so that if there's an injury, you know, they don't have to come from very far away to get into the line-up. And what the report has concluded is that in May of 2010, that Brad Aldrich said to John Doe, This former Blackhawks player, come over to my apartment. Let's review some game footage together. And the player did that. And when he arrived at Aldrich's apartment, he was sexually assaulted and threatened with a baseball bat and left completely traumatized. And he says that after he was assaulted, he and another teammate who was also allegedly assaulted, went to Paul Vincent, another assistant coach on that Chicago Blackhawks team. And they told Vincent what happened. And Paul Vincent says that he went to management, to the general manager of the team, Stan Bowman, and several other executives with the club, and said this is what happened. We need to go to the police. And Paul Vincent was told, well, we'll... we'll take care of it. The concern in that room was we don't want a distraction that's going to take the focus off the goal of winning the Stanley Cup.

CO: And they were so close to it at that point, right? They had just defeated the San Jose Sharks and were headed to the Stanley Cup, which they took. Eleven years later, the story that should have been dealt with immediately is now revealed. A lot of it came from the work you did and turning this over when no one else wanted to look at this anymore. So yesterday, the team fired its vice president of hockey operations, Stan Bowman. You just mentioned the general manager was allowed to step down. The NHL has fined the team two million dollars. So, what does that tell you about how seriously the team an the league are taking this now that the whole story is out?

RW: It's important for people to understand who haven't followed the story; the abuse did not end with these Blackhawks players. After Brad Aldrich was quietly allowed to leave in the summer of 2010, he went on to coach a university in Ohio, where he allegedly also assaulted others. And from there, after he had to leave after several months, he went to coach a high school team in Houghton, Michigan. And in 2013, he was convicted of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old boy. And I've also been in contact with that boy's family, which has been destroyed by this. The thing that's been hardest for them to grapple with is that this was completely avoidable. You know, if someone had stepped forward and reported this the way they're supposed to, their son would not be dealing with what he's dealing with now, and their family would not have been destroyed.

CO: Brad Aldrich, during that time in 2010, in May and June, he stayed on. He's accused of having assaulted another player during that time. It must be... not just for John Doe, but for... for the other young man who was there at that time. This has been life-altering for them as well, hasn't it?

RW: I think so, yes. Because they put up their hands and they tell their truth about what's happened. And the reaction is nothing. It's ignoring it and covering it up. And then, you know, these survivors are living with shame after that and thinking, well, maybe it was my fault if, you know, nothing was going to be done about this. I just can't imagine what it's been like for John Doe for the last 11 years. I've looked at some of the news clippings on his career, and it's interesting to see, Carol. Where later called a troublemaker, and kind of bounced between teams and, you know, couldn't be counted on as a reliable teammate. Well, no wonder. Here's a guy who comes to the Blackhawks management and reports that one of his coaches has sexually assaulted him. And for the next three weeks, through the playoffs, he sees the guy at the rink every single day like nothing happened.

CO: There are other people who were at that meeting, who know... knew the story, even though some of them deny that they knew it. They are still in prominent positions in the NHL. Joel Quenneville, who will be behind the bench for the Florida Panthers tonight being an example. Should there be more people who have to take the consequences for what happened?

RW: I think accountability is something that's a fair expectation for abuse survivors. And I'm still trying to get my head around how the NHL can allow Joel Quenneville to be coaching behind the bench tonight. What message does that send? When we know that he said, according to his colleagues again, that he didn't want to have a distraction on his team during the playoffs. Joel Quenneville, just again, so people understand. When he was asked about this over the past summer, he said he had no idea about it until media started asking questions, again, in the summer of 2021. Well, it looks like that's not true.

CO: Rick, I appreciate the reporting you've done on this. And I know there is more that you're digging, and we'll be following it closely. I appreciate you speaking with us. Thank you.

RW: Thank you, Carol.

CH: Rick Westhead is a senior correspondent with TSN. We reached him in Toronto. After we spoke with Rick, the player known as John Doe went public with his identity. His name is Kyle Beach -- a Canadian drafted by the Blackhawks in 2008. Who most recently played professional hockey in Slovakia. Speaking with Rick Westhead on TSN, he said he believes everyone on the team knew what had happened within weeks of the alleged assaults in 2010.

[Music: Acoustic guitar]

Iqaluit Water Update

CH: Iqaluit city officials say they finally know how fuel ended up in the water supply. Residents are still unable to drink the water from their taps, more than two weeks after a state of emergency was declared because the water smelled like fuel. Officials now say it's safe to shower and bathe babies in the water. And they've found the problem -- an underground oil spill. This morning, Iqaluit mayor Kenny Bell spoke about where the spill was found.

SOUNDCLIP

KENNY BELL: You know, there's old tunnels that were made at the same time as the power plant and the treatment centre that connect to each other. We're not exactly sure why or how that... you know, what that was supposed to be made for? But we've asked for plans from the government of Canada, who... who, ultimately, built them, you know, around 60 years ago. So, hopefully, we'll understand a little bit more soon. But, yeah, there was a tank down in one of those... those tunnels that, you know, I guess has, you know, failed. The fuel that's leaked is diesel. I'm pretty sure. You know, they're… they're going to take tests, but it looks like a diesel tank.

CINDY ALORUT: Are you aware of more buried tanks of fuel and other contamination around the city?

KB: Oh, absolutely. We've known that for a long time. Even in 2012, then-Councillor Dobbin wrote a letter to a Canadian minister of environment asking him to clean up a number of... a number of locations. And the ones that we know about, you know, shouldn't cause any kind of emergency like this, other than, you know, it's ruining our environment, which is obviously terrible. You know, we've been looking and have always been asking the government of Canada for help funding those... those cleanups because it is their mess. And it probably is an earlier mess than theirs. It's most likely the U.S. Army that it was here originally, their mess. But you know, either way, we need to get it cleaned up. You know, I don't know at what stage any of those are? But, hopefully, we'll know some more soon.

CH: That was Iqaluit mayor Kenny Bell speaking with Qulliq host Cindy Alorut about how a historic underground oil spill led to the water emergency. The city says it may still be up to two weeks before residents can drink water from the taps.

[Music: World music]

SK Doctor Looking For New Job

CHRIS HOWDEN: Carla Holinaty is doing something she never thought she would even contemplate. The Saskatchewan doctor is actively looking for a job elsewhere. She says she loves her province. But the government's handling of the COVID pandemic has made her feel she can no longer stay. Here's Dr. Holinaty explained that.

SOUNDCLIP

CARLA HOLINATY: You know, I am a sort of true Saskatchewan through and through person. I think that our people and the beauty of this province are unparalleled. But, you know, my... my thoughts of never, ever, ever even thinking about leaving are definitely changing these days.

STEFANI LANGENEGGER: How come?

CH: You know, I've watched over the last several months the smartest people I know around me in my profession, who are experts in their field, make really science-based and informed recommendations to our government and have them be completely ignored over and over again. And while that's happening, I've watched our... basically our entire system sort of collapse around us. And it's... it's really hard to... it's really hard to witness.

SL: What are you seeing at work?

CH: So I'm a family doctor. The biggest impacts for me are on my patients. So I have patients have their surgeries cancelled. I've had patients lose access to the therapies that they've really relied on. I have had kids who can't access speech anymore. And, you know, in family medicine, we sort of help people navigate that system. So, I mean, I know what resources will help people. And to go to work every day and know that I just can't get them anymore. It's really hard to know that you could be helping people under different circumstances.

SL: What would you say to your patients if you move?

CH: I think it would be an apology more than anything. I mean, family medicine, those patients become like a part of your extended family. [clears throat] We've known them for years and years. And we've seen them through, you know, some of the best and most of the worst parts of their lives. And so, it would be like saying goodbye to your family and I think feeling very, very sad to lose that connection with people that you care very deeply about.

CH: Dr. Carla Holinaty speaking to CBC Regina host Stefani Langenegger.

[Music: Ambient]

Swimmer Maggie MacNeil

Guest: Maggie MacNeil

SOUNDCLIP

ANNOUNCER: Maggie MacNeil certainly is in the hunt with 15 metres to go. She might have a slight edge. She's certainly got a chance at a medal. Here they come! There's the touch. She gets gold! Gold for Canada. Maggie MacNeil in 55:59. And she can't see it.

MAGGIE MACNEIL: Oh my God!

ANNOUNCER: Now she can. And they are whooping it up in Woodstock for that Canadian record and gold medal.

CH: Those kinds of Olympic moments are about as thrilling as you get. But the journey there is often not thrilling at all. This summer in Tokyo, Maggie MacNeil won Canada's first gold medal of the games. Pretty impressive for someone who trained in her parents' backyard pool. Ms. MacNeil went on to also win a silver and a bronze medal at the Olympics. And this week, her strokes of genius received special recognition -- when she was named the top female athlete of the Tokyo Games. As in: the top female athlete of the entire world. We reached Maggie MacNeil at school in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

CO: Maggie, first of all, big congratulations on this latest title.

MM: Thank you so much.

CO: We just heard some of the audio of you winning gold. Was it as exciting to learn that you are now named the top female athlete of those Games?

MM: Oh, for sure. I mean, it's such an honour with all the amazing athletes that competed this year, especially with everything we've gone through. It's definitely more special.

CO: You just... we just heard the audio of that. Can you take us back to that moment and what you were feeling when you reached the end of the… end of the pool?

MM: I don't really remember. It's kind of a blur. I couldn't see anyone or anything in the race, so I kind of just put my head down and tried to get to the wall as fast as I could.

CO: And then, of course, when he did look up, you still couldn't see your name up there in first, right?

MM: No, um, I can't really see far away without my glasses on.

CO: And when you... because it's really interesting to see how you're trying to see it. And then when you finally saw it, how did you feel?

MM: Um, I had to double-check. I mean, I squinted once, and then I had to squint again just to make sure I wasn't misreading it just because it was so unbelievable. And, I mean, that's something I've wanted to do since I started swimming, but I didn't think it was actually going to happen.

CO: So that alone, I would imagine that just the Olympics, having done that, succeeded at that would be enough of an accomplishment for... at this point, right?

MM: Oh, for sure. I mean, we won... we came second in the four-by-one freestyle relay the day before, so I already got a medal. So I was like, that's all my goal was to, hopefully, get like a bronze on a relay like they did in 2016. So I was like, OK, my goals have been achieved. So I didn't really think I was going to win a gold and a bronze and complete my set, but it was definitely incredible.

CO: How has your life changed since winning those medals?

MM: [chuckle] Life, I mean, I try to keep it as similar as possible. And I think going back to school in Michigan has really helped me to do that. So, since I've come back to school, though, it definitely has been normal. I'm not really recognized all the time or anything like that. So it's good.

CO: But when you're in London, Ontario, you're pretty well recognized, aren't you?

MM: Definitely more than I was after I won at Worlds in 2019. I mean, going into the mall, I mean, I get recognized a little bit more, but I'm enjoying the ride, and I'm hoping I'm inspiring people regardless of whether or not their athletes or not.

CO: What was the hardest part of training for the Olympics in the middle of the pandemic?

MM: [chuckle] Well, swimming, you kind of need a pool. You can't really transfer what you're doing on land as easily to the water as you can in running where you can, like, go and run... run around the block or something like that. So I think that was most challenging. I ended up swimming in my family's pool outside in the snow in March. So that was, of course, how it went. My mom was like... I was kind of like dwindling in motivation. So she's like, I think we need to open the backyard pool. And I kind of laughed at her, and I was like, that's ridiculous. Like, it's snowing outside! But, sure enough, we did it. And we cranked up the heat up to 85 degrees, and it wasn't too bad.

CO: [laughing] But... wow! And so you have to... you'd have to sort of head out in the snow and then go for your training there in the pool?

MM: Yeah, it was... it was cold walking out. I mean, we have stone on their deck, so my feet would kind of freeze, but it was warm once I got in.

CO: Well, so obviously, that paid off. I mean, you had access to a pool. I mean, not many people did, I guess, at that point?

MM: No. I mean, I'm definitely lucky. I mean, it was 13 metres and kidney bean-shaped. So far from the 50-metre pool, I need to train in to get ready for the Olympics, but I'm definitely fortunate to have a pool and have access to some water, that's for sure.

CO: [chuckle] OK, so you say you, you learned how to do very short laps and turn around pretty quickly then in your family's pool?

MM: Yes. And I actually had a couple of different methods of tethering, so I just tied myself to the fence and was able to swim in one place as opposed to constantly getting to the other end of the pool in like two strokes.

CO: How did you tie yourself to the fence?

MM: I have like a bungee cord that I brought back from school, and then we also got a power tower, which I can... it was like a bucket that I filled with... I tried filling it with water, but it wasn't heavy enough to keep me stationary, so I ended up putting some of my weights in... in the bucket, and that helped.

CO: And where… and the bucket was where?

MM: It was at the end of the pool. So I had to kind of attach myself to it and then swim across the pool with the goal of hopefully having enough weight to kind of stay in one place.

CO: [laughing] Well, so obviously, it paid off.

MM: Yeah, definitely. It was more just about keeping a feel for the water as opposed to actually getting training in. Because that's definitely the hardest part is getting the feel for the water again once you've been out of it for so long.

CO: Wow! And so your parents must be very happy for you. But we've also, you know, the course of the... of the Games, and also just this past year, a lot of discussion about how... what kind of a toll this kind of training, the intensity and this kind of elite athleticism takes on young people. A lot of parents worried about the effect they have on their kids. Do your parents worry about how much stress this is to train for an Olympics or to train for world games?

MM: I mean, my parents are pretty in-tune with kind of the amount of stress and pressure I put under like myself, not to mention kind of the outward pressure I'm starting to get from Swimming Canada. And just as I get more well-known, and just the pressure of kind of staying at the top. But they've never made swimming about them or about me, it's kind of just what I want. They have never really kind of pushed me. So I think that's really helped me get through the last year because an extra year is quite a long time. So I think that definitely helped.

CO: And what are the expectations of you now?

MM: I would just say trying to keep up with everything I've done and kind of thinking what's the next goal, what's the next thing I want to accomplish?

CO: And the next thing you're going to... going to accomplish, you are a student in Ann Arbour. You're studying psychology. So, how difficult is it to keep your head in that game?

MM: Yeah. I mean, academics is really important to me and both my parents. So I've grown up kind of in a house that's been emphasised. It was always school first, swimming second. So I knew that if I wanted to do well in the pool that I'd have to be able to succeed in the classroom and balance that. So that's also just motivated me even more.

CO: And does the university have a pool?

MM: Yeah. So I'm on the varsity team, which has been a really great experience for me. And I'm on my last year, so I'm hoping to make the best of it this year.

CO: [chuckling] And, hopefully, you'll always have a pool and not have to return to your family's pool [MM chuckles] in the middle of snow.

MM: Yeah.

CO: Well, Maggie, congratulations to you again. It's just a great honour, and you deserve it. And it's great to talk to you. Thank you.

MM: Thank you.

CO: Bye.

MM: Bye.

CH: Canadian swimmer and three-time Olympic medalist Maggie MacNeil has a huge new title: Best Female Athlete of Tokyo 2020. We reached her in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

[music: Upbeat pop]

NL Old Potholes

CH: There's a whole thing going on in Colinet, Newfoundland and Labrador, about a thing that's been full of holes for as long as anyone can remember. The thing is a road. And the road is chock full of potholes. Which makes for bone-rattling, vehicle-damaging travel. Residents have complained -- some have been complaining for decades. But the holes remain. So yesterday, they dug in. Not only to draw attention to their impassable impasse but to actually fill in as many potholes as possible. Volunteers showed up shovels in hand. And the CBC's St. John's Morning Show tagged along. The first voice you'll hear belongs to Stephanie Nash-Pearce, coordinator of the amateur road-repair crew.

SOUNDCLIP

[Sound: The satisfying clunk of a shovel meeting gravel and ground]

STEPHANIE NASH-PEARCE: This road is absolutely deplorable is the only term that I can use. M any of these potholes, I'm driving through and I actually just have to let my vehicle coast. You know, I've tried 10 kilometres. I've tried five. So now I'm actually at zero for many locations. I coast through the holes. I get momentum to maybe seven-eight kilometres an hour again, and then I coast through more. And it's fine for people to say, oh, but you have another way you could go through the highway. It's double the time, double the gas, double the mileage. And so when you have, like, a young family, you're trying to get ready in the mornings and things, like, this is the most convenient route for me. And I'm ruining a new vehicle, and I'm constantly nervous that I will get a flat because there's very limited cell phone service, especially with the shortage of doctors. Whitbourne is our closest. A lot of seniors live in our area, and they go there regularly for blood work and things. The dentist is there. And so this is the main road for so many people who choose to not travel the highway. Some of them won't drive on the highway. So this is their only route to get groceries and banking and things. And I'm just hoping that finally, someone will respond. I sent an email the other day and our MP didn't respond. The minister of transportation didn't respond. And not having any of my calls returned or answered at the depot is extremely frustrating.

[Sound: More shoveling]

WILLIAM DAVIS: I'm William Davis. I’ve lived here now for all my lifetime. I've lived here for 91 years. I'll be 92 on my birthday.

GAVIN SIMMS: You got a long history with this road.

WD: I got a very long history with this road, yes. And I've written letters. I got... I got truckloads of letters, [chuckle] copies down there. I've written and I've talked to all the ministers. I've talked to prime ministers. I’ve talked to premiers. I've talked to all the people who could do anything for us to give us good road, you know? And --

[Sound: The squawking car horn honks of approval]

MAN: Get the road fixed. Get the road fixed.

WD: And there [chuckle] they will go around and they will promise that they're going to do this and that and don't do anything. Why go to a community and ask people to vote for them? You know why... why bother?

[Sound: A loud truck goes by]

WD: Why bother? And if you contact them, they don't answer you. They don't seem to have time for you. You know, something got to change, something got to be different. Little community like this should not be forgotten, and that's what's happening. They’re forgetting us. But they don't realize how important small communities are to Newfoundland. That is Newfoundland. That’s what makes up Newfoundland, those little communities scattered everywhere. And if they got to build extra roads, so what? They got to build extra roads. They got to be prepared for that. That's... that's that's life. That's politics. It's embarrassing to see that... that our member, MHRA Sherry Gambin-Walsh, is not here today. If she thought anything worth while about the people, she would be right here today. She definitely would. And Ken Macdonald also. They would be here on this spot if they cared much about the people.

CH: From Colinet, Newfoundland and Labrador, those were residents William Davis and Stephanie Nash-Pearce. They were speaking with the CBC's Gavin Simms while filling in potholes on a road they say has been neglected for decades.

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October 27, 2021 Episode Transcript

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