Chelsea Nash looks back at the top stories covered on rabble radio in 2021

Program Title: Best of rabble radio 2021
Description: This week on rabble radio we’re reflecting back on our year, highlighting 2021’s most newsworthy stories – and let me just say, there were plenty of stories to choose from! 2021 presented a plethora of newsworthy moments for us here at rabble to dive into – from environmental news to Indigenous justice, to politics, rabble was there keeping you up-to-date on all the current news as it happened this year.

In case you missed it:

This week at rabble, the Omicron variant appears to be taking hold around the globe. Have we actually learned anything from the last two years? Are our governments capable of providing support for society's most vulnerable to the virus? Are we making any progress on improving indoor air quality in communal spaces like schools? Are travel restrictions making any sort of difference? 

As Nora Loreto, author of the newly released book Spin Doctors: How Media and Politicians Misdiagnosed the COVID-19 Pandemic says, "it feels like Groundhog Day." You know, the Bill Murray kind. Here we go again. 

I reviewed Nora's book this week on the site. It's an insightful, compelling and -- you've been warned -- depressing read about the government and media failure that in many ways paved the way for COVID-19 to wreak the havoc it has. Nora takes readers through the first 18 months of this pandemic: from January 2020 through the end of June 2021. As we well know by now, the pandemic didn't end then, and we are still grappling with many of the same challenges we faced one year ago. However, as Nora proves, at this point, we ought to know better. 

That's why in Karl Nrenberg's analysis of Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland's fall economic update, he wonders why there isn't more money being dedicated to improving indoor air quality for Canadians. There is indeed a section of the update most overlooked on Clean and Healthy Indoor Air. 

The finance minister’s update includes a Small Business Refundable Tax Credit of up to $10,000 per location and $50,000 per business organization, which businesses can receive for “eligible air quality improvement expenses.”

There is, in addition, $100 million for provinces and territories for “improvements to ventilation” in schools, and an additional $70 million to the $100 million the government announced a year ago “to support ventilation projects in public and community buildings such as hospitals, libraries and community centres.”

It’s something, but it’s not much, considering the degree to which stopping the spread of this virus entails getting it out of the air we breathe.

Speaking of lessons unlearned, over in Alberta, where Premier Jason Kenney infamously declared the pandemic "over" last summer, the government is restricting COVID-19 restrictions for the holiday season, David Climenhaga reports. Groundhog Day, indeed. 

Also this week on rabble.ca: 

In case you missed it, 34 people's names were commemorated at this month's Toronto monthly Homeless Memorial on December 14. Of those 34 names, 19 people died inside city shelters in the month of October, writes street nurse Cathy Crowe. In response, the Shelter Housing Justice Network demands that Toronto City Council must immediately strike a task force charged with taking all reasonable steps to reduce such deaths but also take measures to ensure safe shelter, an expansion of housing allowances, harm reduction measures and to stop encampment evictions. 

In case you missed it, Stephen Wentzell spoke to activists about the federal government's new bill to remove some mandatory minimum sentences from the Criminal Code. Toronto journalist, activist and author Desmond Cole panned the bill as "deeply cynical” and an “incomplete policy" as he calls for all mandatory minimum sentences to be dropped -- including those for crimes involving gangs -- and for life sentences to end. 

“I just think the government needs to spare us all of the rhetoric about race, when the sentences that they are keeping up will also continue to disproportionately put Black and Indigenous people in jail,” Cole said.

Justice Minister David Lametti said the government “will continue to address the social determinants of crime" and marked the bill as an important step.

And with that, that is our show this week – and for this year. Rabble radio is taking a few weeks off for the holiday season, although the writers and contributors at rabble.ca will continue to bring you the up-to-date news throughout the month, so look out for that. As for rabble radio, you can tune into our next episode on January 14, 2021.

I'm your host, Chelsea Nash. On behalf of everyone here at rabble, we want to thank you for tuning in and supporting our show – and we also want to wish you a safe and happy new year!

Photo by Erwan Hesry at Unsplash

Host(s): Chelsea Nash
Featured Speakers/Guests: Chelsea Nash - host Breanne Doyle - producer Interviews: Dr. Michael Geist, Stephen Wentzell, Eve Saint, Rita Wong, Karl Nerenberg, MP Leah Gazan.

Credits: Chelsea Nash - host
Breanne Doyle - producer/editor

Guests: Karl Nerenberg, Stephen Wentzell, Dr. Michael Geist, Eve Saint, MP Leah Gazan, Rita Wong

Music: Karl Nerenberg

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