We're joined by PressProgress reporter Stephen Magusiak and independent journalist Jeremy Appel to discuss the story about Alberta Premier Danielle Smith's office allegedly contacting Crown prosecutors to challenge its direction on cases involving members of last year's Coutts border blockade. 

We talk about the problems with the internal investigation that turned up no evidence of wrongdoing, and whether this story is likely to harm the UCP's election chances in May.

Follow Jeremy on Twitter: @JeremyAppel1025

Follow Stephen on Twitter: @Magusiak

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We recap two recent stories from The Maple revealing that despite internal warnings about the dangerous behaviour and extremist views of newly appointed Israeli ministers,  Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly warmly welcomed Benjamin Netanyahu's new government.

Read the articles:

• https://www.readthemaple.com/canada-welcomes-israels-new-government-despite-internal-warnings-of-far-right-extremism/
• https://www.readthemaple.com/canadian-diplomats-warned-about-israeli-politician-who-provoked-violence-against-civilians-then-trudeau-welcomed-his-government/

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We're joined by Ottawa Citizen reporter David Pugliese to discuss Canada's deal with Lockheed Martin to purchase the F-35 fighter jet. We talk about the broken promises, about turns, ballooning costs and technical hiccups that led to the deal, and the lack of accountability in Canadian military procurement.

Follow David on Twitter: @davidpugliese

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We're joined by PressProgress editor Luke LeBrun to reflect on last year's 'Freedom Convoy' that occupied downtown Ottawa for a month last year, and whether or not there is going to be a second Convoy in 2023.

Follow PressProgress' reporting: https://pressprogress.ca/

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We bid farewell to 2022. To support our work in 2023, you can become a paid subscriber for just $7 per month: https://www.readthemaple.com/subscribe-options/

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This week, we spoke with Alberta politics writer and commentator David Climenhaga about why Premier Danielle Smith pushed ahead with the so-called Sovereignty Act, despite legal experts tearing it to shreds and predicting it will die in the courts.

We talk about the bill's likely unconstitutionality, Smith's political calculation in ramming it through the legislature anyway, and whether it will cost the United Conservative Party the next election.

Read David's blog: https://albertapolitics.ca/

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We spoke with Maple contributor Jeremy Appel about his reporting on the Halifax International Security Forum (HFX) that took place last month. We talked about what HFX is and why it was founded, went over some of the more eyebrow-raising comments made by attendees at this year's event, and critiqued some of the corporate media coverage that came out of it.

Read Jeremy's two-part coverage:

https://www.readthemaple.com/peace-a-distant-prospect-at-the-halifax-security-forum/

https://www.readthemaple.com/panelists-extol-virtues-of-western-military-power-at-halifax-forum-lament-too-much-critical-thinking/

Subscribe to Jeremy's newsletter: https://theorchard.substack.com/

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Alberta Premier Danielle Smith introduced Bill 1, the much anticipated "Alberta Sovereignty Act," Tuesday, prompting a stream of intense criticism from experts and analysts who say the bill is unconstitutional and undermines democracy.

https://www.readthemaple.com/alberta-sovreignty-a/

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We spoke to Michael Bueckert, vice president of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East, about his recent trip to the occupied Palestinian territories, what he heard from Palestinians, and why Canada decided that an Amnesty International report on Israel's system of apartheid would not change its relationship with Israel.

Follow Michael on Twitter: @mbueckert

Follow CJPME: @CJPME

Check out Advocating for Palestine in Canada.

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A Canadian parliamentary committee report examining the international situation of human rights defenders and journalists is being criticized for not mentioning Israel’s killing of Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh and giving scant attention to Israel’s other abuses. We provide the full update.

Read the full story: https://www.readthemaple.com/parliamentary-human-rights-report-excludes-mention-of-shireen-abu-akleh/

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We spoke to labour researcher Adam D.K. King about the standoff between Ontario education workers and the Doug Ford government. We discussed the roots of the dispute, why Adam thinks CUPE was right to call off strikes in exchange for Ford promising to repeal Bill 28, and the lessons learned for future struggles.

Subscribe to Class Struggle: https://readpassage.com/category/class-struggle/

Follow Adam on Twitter: @AdamDKKing1

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We spoke to writer Ibnul Chowdhury about the NDP's virtual lockstep with the Liberal government on the war in Ukraine, and its abandonment of calls to push for a diplomatic solution to the conflict.

Read Ibnul's recent piece for Passage here: https://readpassage.com/a-cowardly-ndp-has-abandoned-anti-war-politics-to-the-far-right/

Follow Ibnul on Twitter: @ibnulfc

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This week, we spoke to Jafrikayiti (aka Jean Saint-Vil), an activist and co-founder of the Canada-Haiti Action Network, about the reasons behind the current protests in Haiti against the US-backed government, and why the protesters strongly oppose the government's request for foreign military intervention.

Jafrikayiti's website: https://jafrikayiti.com/

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We interview BC NDP leadership candidate Anjali Appadurai about her plan to address the intersecting crises impacting British Columbia's public health system.

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This week, we read out an article written by Jeremy Appel about Canada's ongoing arms sales to Saudi Arabia, a theocratic monarchy and notorious human rights abuser.

The most recent data from Statistics Canada shows that in August 2022 alone, Canadian firms sold $132,445,056 worth of tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles to Saudi Arabia.

Read the original article: https://www.readthemaple.com/its-time-to-rethink-canadas-arms-sales-to-saudi-arabia/

Support The Maple by subscribing to our daily newsletter for as little as $7 per month.

Check out Jeremy's newsletter, The Orchard.

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This week, we recap some of our reporting on Israel's killing of Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh back in May, and Canada's subsequent refusal to condemn Israel or demand real accountability.

The articles we read out in this episode:
1.  https://readpassage.com/will-canada-ever-blame-israel-for-killing-shireen-abu-akleh/
2. https://www.readthemaple.com/new-investigation-shows-israeli-shooter-deliberately-killed-journalist-shireen-abu-akleh/
3. https://readpassage.com/i-asked-mps-why-theyve-ignored-reports-on-shireen-abu-aklehs-killing/

Support The Maple by subscribing to our daily newsletter for as little as $7 per month.

Subscribe to Passage: https://readpassage.com/subscribe/ 

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This week, we spoke to PressProgress labour reporting intern Ashlynn Chand about her work covering the challenges faced by sex workers, and what advocacy groups are doing to fight for their rights and protections.

Follow Ashlynn on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ashlynnashc

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A read out of one of our recent articles, titled 'The Truth About Canada’s Involvement in Afghanistan,' written by Mitchell Thompson.

The piece explains: "2022 marks 21 years since Canada joined the U.S.-led War on Terror, and one year since the last U.S. troops exited Afghanistan. Today, a review of first-hand accounts authored by those involved in the operation dispels myths about the “humanitarian” nature of the war and occupation."

The article was read out by The Maple's managing editor, Alex Cosh.

Read the original article here.

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In the wake of Queen Elizabeth II's passing, we spoke to policy analyst and writer Chuka Ejeckam about the bloody imperialist legacy that the monarchy represents. We also discuss some of the bizarre reactions to the queen's death in the UK and Canada, the case for why the monarchy should be replaced with a democratic alternative, and some of the obstacles that stand in the way of advancing such a project.

Follow Chuka on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ChukaEjeckam

Support The Maple by subscribing to our daily newsletter for as little as $7 per month.

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We spoke to labour researcher Adam D.K. King about the causes behind the so-called "quiet quitting" phenomenon, what it means, the responses from the managerial class, and what this apparent trend could mean for advancing worker solidarity and labour rights in the long term.

Read Adam's recent piece for Passage on "quiet quitting" here: https://readpassage.com/dont-write-off-the-quiet-quitting-trend-just-yet/

Sign up for Adam's newsletter, Class Struggle, here: https://readpassage.com/newsletter/class-struggle/

Support The Maple by subscribing to our daily newsletter for as little as $7 per month.

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Support The Maple by subscribing to our daily newsletter for as little as $7 per month.

In this week's early-release episode, we spoke to Maple contributor Jeremy Appel and PressProgress reporter Stephen Magusiak in Calgary, Alberta about the UCP leadership race, whether any candidate can beat frontrunner Danielle Smith, and how the Alberta NDP might respond to a Smith premiership. We also talk about Smith's political history, and some of the policies she might try to implement if she wins the leadership.

Follow Jeremy on Twitter: @JeremyAppel1025

Follow Stephen on Twitter: @Magusiak

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This week, we spoke to Sean Orr, who is running for Vancouver City Council with Vote Socialist, a new organization that commits to restitution for Indigenous nations, promoting safe and affordable housing as a human right, making the rich pay their fair share for public services, and to defunding and disarming the police. We talk about why this new group was launched, how Sean's personal experiences inspired him to run for office, and how he would implement change as a lone Vote Socialist councillor.

Follow Sean on Twitter: @seanorr

Read Sean's column, "Tea and Two Slices": https://scoutmagazine.ca/column/tea-and-two-slices/

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This week, we spoke to Dr. Amit Arya - a palliative care physician, board member of Canadian Doctors for Medicare, and advocate for those who live and work in the long-term care sector - about the Doug Ford government's plans to further privatize Ontario's public health system, and how this will impact health workers and patients. We also talk about better solutions to the provincial health system's current crisis.

Follow Amit on Twitter: @AmitAryaMD

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This week, we spoke to Michael Bueckert, vice president of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East about Israel's recent attack on Gaza, and the Canadian government's non-response. We also talk about the roots of the current situation in Palestine, and how Canada helps Israel act with impunity.

Follow Michael on Twitter: @mbueckert

Follow CJPME: @CJPME

Check out Advocating for Palestine in Canada.

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In this week's episode, we spoke to journalist Mitchell Thompson about his recent articles exploring the complex history of Canadian peacekeeping and examples of bloody interventions that are far out of step with rhetoric that pitches peacekeeping as a benign alternative to war.

Read Mitchell's articles:

https://www.readthemaple.com/the-bloody-history-of-canadian-peacekeeping/

https://www.readthemaple.com/canadas-modern-day-peacekeeping-is-war-making-by-another-name/

 Follow Mitchell on Twitter: @thompsonian_m

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