Real Talk Ryan Jespersen

Ryan rolls out the best rants of the week, as submitted to [email protected]. Buckle up for another edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste.

On the one year anniversary of the tragic downing of flight PS752, Javad Soleimani, Daniel Ghods, and Peyman Parseyan share their grief, the details of their journey, and the reason for their continued advocacy for justice. After releasing an open letter to the provincial government, asking for a stop the plan to consolidate Alberta's 9-1-1 dispatch, Alberta mayors Naheed Nenshi, Tara Veer, Chris Spearman, and Don Scott explain why they're so concerned, and shine light on the strained relationship between the UCP and Alberta's municipalities. Sprawl editor-in-chief Jeremy Klaszus takes us into the relationship between Premier Jason Kenney's government and Westjet, and lays out what might be influencing provincial policy on things like travel and testing. Plus, wrap up the week with another boisterous edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste!

How are we to process what happened in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, January 6th? What do the next two weeks look like for our neighbours to the south? What are the implications for Canadians and the rest of the world? The morning after a monumental day in American history, an attempted coup in the nation's capital, former US Ambassador to Canada Bruce Heyman explains the significance of what happened, and what's to come. Researcher Frank Graves chimes in from Ottawa, political scientist and author Ian Bremmer joins from Washington, D.C., and Toronto Star journalist Alex McKeen reports from Victoria, B.C. Plus, Ryan reads an email from viewer "Lucas" in no-holds-barred fashion, leading to one of our more memorable show extros.

The Mayor and Councillors in Slave Lake, Alberta have called for the resignation of their absentee elected provincial representative, MLA Pat Rehn, who's refused to step down. Mayor Tyler Warman and Deputy Mayor Shawn Gramlich explain what led to their unprecedented (unanimous) demand. Grade Six teacher Alison Palmer and her student Zoe Cogger tell us how they landed the Prime Minister for a private Zoom call with their class, and what they talked about with Justin Trudeau. Black Lives Matter Edmonton organizer Shima Robinson addresses the troubling story of an Edmonton man celebrating the death of a Calgary police officer, and reports the man is connected to BLM in an official capacity. Activist Leah McRorie takes Ryan to task for something he said in a previous episode of Real Talk, as we tackle "ableist" language. And DJ Johnny Infamous takes us behind the curtain and tells a few stories about working in the bubble of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs and the World Junior Hockey Championship.

Political science professors Dr. Lisa Young and Dr. Laurie Adkin dig into the story leading national headlines this week - the scandal plaguing Alberta's UCP government, after more than ten MLAs and staffers travelled to the tropics over the holidays. Were yesterday's minor role reassignments and the Cabinet resignation of MLA Tracey Allard enough to satisfy an outraged public? Kristian Basaraba, an Edmonton-area teacher, takes us into his Governor General's Award-winning assignment that combines skateboarding, visual art, and Reconciliation. Former brothel owner Andrea Heinz gets personal, and explains how her personal journey led her toward her current activism around sex trade abolishment.

Albertans are furious at the tone-deaf, elite, entitled arrogance displayed by Premier Jason Kenney, at least one of his Ministers multiple MLAs, and political staffers who travelled to exotic holiday destinations in the midst of a pandemic. Ryan channels public opinion in an unprecedented nearly-hour-long opening statement. We hear from former Deputy Premier Thomas Lukaszuk, former PC Minister Richard Starke, and former PC MLA Jacquie Fenske (now interim Alberta Party leader) to fact check Premier Kenney's more dubious claims (most notably, that he didn't know Minister Tracey Allard and chief of staff Jamie Huckabay left Canada over the Christmas break). Psychiatrist Dr. Peter Silverstone and registered psychologist Kim Knull bring great advice around dealing with anger, and starting fresh in 2021.

Ryan rolls out the best rants of the week, as submitted to [email protected]. Buckle up for another edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste.

Journalist Andrew Nikiforuk lays out civilian concerns around coal strip mining in the Rockies. Conservationist and author Kevin Van Tighem, former superintendent of Banff National Park, helps us understand what's really going on with the UCP and ownership of Alberta's parks. Award-winning journalist Brandi Morin revisits Canada's top Indigenous news stories of 2020. Former Oilers captain and Stanley Cup champion Andrew Ference explains why he was so ticked off at an Edmonton outdoor rink, and what he's expecting with the upcoming, shortened NHL season.

Banff Mayor Karen Sorensen describes how the mountain town has weathered COVID-19, and its post-pandemic economic recovery plan. Famed Canadian entrepreneur Arlene Dickinson has a message for small business owners making a game plan for 2021. Harm reduction advocate Guy Felicella shares his survival story, and outlines what meaningful and effective response to Canada's opioid crisis needs to look like.

The Archdiocese of Edmonton has pulled a priest from duty after a “credible accusation of sexual assault of a minor” in Los Angeles. Sexual abuse survivor Irene Deschenes takes us into the Catholic church’s long history of protecting predators. Reverend Anna Greenwood-Lee joins us to explain why she takes issue with Alberta’s UCP government quoting scripture on Christmas Day.

Ryan rolls out the best rants of the week, as submitted to [email protected]. Buckle up for another edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste.

Cara Moffat has two very important jobs. She's a respiratory therapist helping COVID-19 patients at Edmonton's Royal Alexandra Hospital. She's also one of Santa's helpers. She tell us what it's been like in Santa's mailroom this year, and how messages from kids are different in 2020. Mohammad Hussain is celebrating his very first Christmas, after years and years of ignoring the holiday. He takes us into the experience, including what it was like to hear from Prime Minister Trudeau himself. And Brandon Rudics, a Real Talk audience member, recalls his very first Christmas after leaving his Jehovah's Witness faith community. Merry Christmas, friends!

What were the top food stories in Canada in 2020? What food trends should we be focusing on for 2021? Professor Sylvain Charlebois of Dalhousie University's Agri-Food Analytics Lab. Mayors Cathy Heron, Alanna Hnatiw, and Tara Veer join from St. Albert, Sturgeon County, and Red Deer. We get into the year that was, the impact of COVID-19 on their communities, where the biggest economic opportunities exist in the year to come, and whether or not women approach politics differently than men.

Ryan starts the show reading a letter from Freson Bros founder Frank Lovsin, OC. A member of the Alberta Business Hall of Fame, Mr. Lovsin takes issue with billion-dollar corporations accepting federal wage subsidies, then paying out millions in dividends to shareholders. MLA Rakhi Pancholi joins to discuss universal child care, and what the model might look like. Dr. Madhav Sarda, a medical education professor at the University of Saskatchewan, explains in laypersons' terms how the COVID-19 vaccine actually works, and what's so remarkable about its development.

Strategist Chris Henderson joins Ryan to discuss our "Get Real: Question of the Week" on how COVID is affecting your holiday shopping. Of course, as you might expect, there's a whole bunch of poli-talk too. Calgary City Councillor Jyoti Gondek discusses the high-profile arrest of Ocean Wiesblatt, a Calgary man who refused to cooperate with police after violating COVID-related restrictions at an outdoor ice rink. Councillor Gondek also shares her powerful perspective on racism, after another public demonstration by the group Soldiers of Odin. Political strategist Stephen Carter wraps up the show with an extended-length (and lively!) conversation around Wiesblatt's arrest, changes to the federal carbon tax, and Alberta Premier Jason Kenney's plan for a referendum around equalization in October 2021.

Ryan rolls out the best rants of the week, as submitted to [email protected]. Buckle up for another edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste.

Federal Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Hon. Jonathan Wilkinson, takes questions on the implications of Ottawa's climate policy on prairie producers. Our Anti-Racism Friday round table, featuring Dr. Farha Shariff, Adam North Peigan, and Rahma Mohamed, focus on taking meaningful individual and collective action to confront discrimination in our communities.

Robyn Strain, a respiratory therapist, was among the first Albertans to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. She joins us hours later to discuss the process, and how she and her colleagues are feeling as cases continue to rise. The politics of a pandemic are producing interesting polling results, including the rise of a right wing party that could take votes from the governing UCP. Dr. Jared Wesley helps us sort it all out. Momin Saeed and Trent Daley give us a sense of how Alberta's Muslim community is holding up in light of multiple targeted attacks in Edmonton. And April Prescott takes us inside her creative mind, and how she's dealing with the mental health impacts of COVID-19.

Dr. Stephen Duckett joins from Melbourne to discuss what's worked, and what work remains, with Australia's COVID-19 response. University of Toronto Law and Bioethics professor Trudo Lemmens explains why he's concerned with Bill C7 - Canada's Medical Assistance in Dying legislation. Legendary ice bather John Mark Earle (literally) takes us into Peace River on the one year anniversary of his first polar bear swim. And eight-time World Champion boxer Jelena Mrdjenovich checks in minutes before her weigh-in, ahead of her title defence against Paola Torres in Los Angeles.

Dr. Stephen Duckett, Director of the Health program at Grattan Institute, explains why Australians are already back to hosting dinner parties, their masks packed away in their sock drawers. Dr. Duckett also looks back on the famous "cookie incident" that led to his dismissal as CEO of Alberta Health Services in 2010.

Why should Canada roll out a universal child care, and what would it take to make it happen? Journalist Anne Casselman dives into her feature in The Walrus, "The Case for Affordable Childcare". Heidi Bergstrom's an accountant, a mom, and the engaged citizen behind a petition calling for national childcare. She gets into the dollars and cents of national childcare. And, after a sexist Wall Street Journal op/ed called Dr. Jill Biden "kiddo" and urged her to "drop the 'Dr'" before her name, we get the straight goods from Dr. Muna Saleh, an author and educator from Concordia University.

New York Times best-selling author and "Gaslit Nation" podcaster Sarah Kendzior joins us to talk about her book, "Hiding in Plain Sight - The Invention of Donald Trump and the Erosion of America." Fourth-generation Millwright and teacher Stephen Anderson, a Real Talk audience member, shares why he's so concerned about cuts to Alberta's education funding. Sportsnet NHL reporter Gene Principe looks ahead to the league's COVID-shortened season, including how he'll approach his bread and butter - the art of the pun. And palliative care physician Dr. Amy Tan tells her remarkable survival story, and how she and her loved ones approached and learned from a very "different" holiday season nearly twenty years ago.

Ryan rolls out the best rants of the week, as submitted to [email protected]. Buckle up for another edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste.

We take a twitter tiff and put it on the air, as Dr. Peter Silverstone, chair of Psychiatry at the University of Alberta takes on Postmedia columnist David Staples over the mental health impacts of a lockdown. Plus, perhaps our best segment yet, as Professor Joni Avram and Dr. Jody Carrington discuss finding middle ground, and the human need for connection. Buckle up and enjoy!

Former UCP staffer Natasha Kornak talks about navigating the landscape as a young woman pursuing a career in politics. Garth Mullins, host and producer of Crackdown Pod, gets into the nitty gritty of a safe supply, and legalized drugs in Canada.

Deputy PM and federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland joins Ryan to discuss Ottawa's ongoing response to COVID-19. She addresses Opposition allegations the Liberal government is eyeing personal savings accounts, and touches on The Great Reset. She answers audience inquiries around emergency wage and rent subsidies, and concerns around a lack of transparency. And, she explains how her Alberta roots influence her response to the grim economic outlook faced by Canada's prairie provinces.

Health researcher Dr. Sajjad Fazel assesses Alberta's updated pandemic measures, and takes on vaccine hesitancy. Vancouver public health nurse Jaclyn Robinson updates us on her recovery from COVID-19, seven months after she was in a medically-induced coma. Journalist Tristin Hopper chimes in from Victoria, touching on pandemic protocols, 2020 news headlines buried by COVID-19, and his storytelling project with 99-year-old Grandma Hopper.

Principal Ted Hutchings gives us an inside look at pandemic preparedness (and stress) in schools. Journalist Max Fawcett evaluates government responses to COVID-19, and maps out what Canada's middle class might look like post-pandemic. Conservative strategist Melissa Caouette outlines her research into the history (and future) of conservativism in Canada, the US, and the UK. And memorabilia expert Wayne Wagner explains why a 1979 Wayne Gretzky rookie card is expected to sell for $1M this week.

Jenny Adams pops in for a quick "Hey neighbour" chat about Santa visits during a pandemic. Artist Erin Ross details her recent fight with COVID-19. Former federal minister Amarjeet Sohi outlines the emotional toll of losing a loved one during a pandemic. And former Alberta deputy premier Thomas Lukaszuk provides an inside perspective on government standing in the way of an investigation into the 2017 UCP leadership race.

Ryan rolls out the best rants of the week, as submitted to [email protected]. Buckle up for another edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste.

Alberta's Opposition leader Rachel Notley chimes in on Alberta's rising COVID-19 cases, and the UCP government's plan to manage hospital capacity. Former Toronto talk host and lawyer Supriya Dwivedi, once a colleague of Ryan's, lays out why she resigned from one of Canada's most high-profile radio gigs.

We advance the conversation around drug legalization in Canada with "Maverick MP" Nathaniel Erskine-Smith. Dr. Tehseen Lada paints an unflinching picture of Alberta's COVID-crammed hospitals. And Dancing with the Stars champion Kaitlyn Bristowe, the pride of Leduc, AB, joins Ryan for an extended conversation about her exploding celebrity.

How do Edmonton, Portland, and Austin fit together? Catherine Warren, new CEO of Innovate Edmonton, lays out her take on the impact economy. Bitcoin Well CEO Adam O'Brien explains why cryptocurrency is seeing a big surge right now. Lawyer Kyla Lee and Families for Justice spokesperson Sheri Arsenault tackle Alberta's new drunk driving legislation.

Globe and Mail health journalist Andrea Woo outlines Vancouver's move to decriminalize drug possession. Drs. Elaine Hyshka and Hakique Virani broaden the conversation to include Canada's opioid crisis amid COVID-19, and the importance of keeping politics out of public health. Ryan's brother Kyle Jespersen wraps the conversation with an inside look at Vancouver's InSite supervised consumption site, where millions of visits (and zero deaths) have been recorded since 2003.

Dr. Ubaka Ogbogu and Corey Hogan debate the ethics of media leaks, and take on government bully tactics displayed by UCP staffers. World Sikh Organization VP Harman S. Kandola outlines the COVID impact on ethnic communities, and offers insight on farmer protests in India (and around the world).

Real Talk presents the inaugural edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste. Every Friday at 10am, we'll read your best rants (on whatever), as submitted to [email protected]. Buckle up and enjoy!

Senator Paula Simons on media leaks and federal COVID relief. Plus, our inaugural Real Talk Round Table featuring indie media voices Tomi Ajele, Jeremy Klaszus, and Derek Fildebrandt. And, the debut of Trash Talk!

Treaty Six Grand Chief Billy Morin talks COVID-19 in First Nations, and Indigenous sovereignty in health care. Dr. Shazma Mithani takes us inside one of Alberta's busiest ERs. And Julie Rohr describes her cancer journey, including navigating the health care system during a pandemic.

UCP MLA Drew Barnes, entrepreneurs Emma May, Katy Ingraham, and Mo Blayways, and Postmedia columnist Licia Corbella dig into the Alberta government's updated COVID-19 restrictions. Spoiler: not everybody agrees on everything!

ICU physician Dr. Darren Markland joins us for Real Talk about Alberta's COVID-19 explosion. Then, Prof.Timothy Caulfield talks vaccine hesitance, and digs into his new book, "Relax, Dammit! A User's Guide to the Age of Anxiety."

In our very first show, Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson joins for an exclusive one-on-one to discuss why he won't seek re-election next fall. Plus, Dr. Lynora Saxinger on Alberta's exploding COVID-19 cases.

Ryan Jespersen introduces you to Real Talk, a new daily show covering news, politics and pop culture. Subscribe, and join us for our first show on Monday November 23, 2020 at 08:30 am MT. More information at ryanjespersen.com.