Open Sources Guelph - October 15, 2020

This week on Open Sources Guelph, we've got some leftovers to dig through on our post-Thanksgiving show. COVID is back, not that it ever really left, but things are getting more dangerous as the colder weather arrives. In other leftovers, we're got "Blue Lives Matter" making a comeback, more news about the American election, and a surprising update about the battle against online hate.

This Thursday, October 15, at 5 pm, Scotty Hertz and Adam A. Donaldson will discuss:

COVID Strikes Back. Last weekend, the Province of Ontario rolled back three COVID hotspots to Stage 2, closing up indoor dining, gyms and entertainment venues in the name of slowing a flare up of the virus before we get deeper into the fall. At the same time, those newly closed businesses are asking for more help, long-term care homes are feeling the strain of staffing issues, and the Ontario government is sending out mixed messages. So what is the state of COVID?

Symbol Freeze. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police has been under justifiable scrutiny after several Indigenous people were killed in police shootings this year, and getting caught up in the whirlwind of Black Lives Matter, so the RCMP banned all "Thin Blue Line" and other pro-police ephemera. Having said that, the National Police Federation, a police union, are telling the officers they represent to ignore the order. Why do police unions insist on doing themselves harm with these measures?

Do We Care Package. You may have heard that there's a presidential election going on in America right now, but why do we care? It's not unreasonable to say that what happens in the United States politically has an effect on Canada, and American political decisions have  a visceral impact on Canada when you consider relations with China, pipeline construction, and international trade. So why does this election matter to Canada in the short and long term?

Death on Denial. Facebook took a step it has long hesitated to do for some reason: ban Holocaust deniers. The social media site has formally banned posts and groups that deny or distort the fact that the Nazis killed six million Jewish people in World War II, and just in time for the 75th anniversary of the end of the war. Facebook has been hesitant banning anyone because an active user is money in the bank, so what finally convinced Mark Zuckerberg to ban the original truthers?

Open Sources is live on CFRU 93.3 fm and cfru.ca at 5 pm on Thursday.