Fight Back With Libby Znaimer

Today on Free For All Friday: listeners called in about the cost of groceries at large retail grocery chains like Loblaws, the encampments taking place on North American university campuses, including here in Ontario at the University of Toronto, and more. 

TUNE INTO THE TOWN: MOST CAFETO PATIOS IN TORONTO WILL BE OPENED BY VICTORIA WEEKEND Libby Znaimer is joined by David Crombie, Former Mayor of Toronto, Councillor Paula Fletcher, Ward 14 Toronto-Danforth, and Councillor James Pasternak, Ward 6 York Centre. It’s Thursday - time to talk about all things municipal. The encampment at U of T is apparently growing despite the university saying it would not tolerate encampments - but they do not appear to be doing anything about it. Why should these protesters, who may or may not be students, take them at their word? OZEMPIC ALTERNATIVE TO BE MADE AVAILABLE IN CANADA STARTING MAY 6 Libby Znaimer is joined by Dr. Sean Wharton, the Medical Director of the Wharton Medical Clinic in Burlington, Ontario, a community-based internal medicine weight management clinic. We’ve all heard a lot about Ozempic, a drug that has been all over the headlines amid amazing results as well as shortages and controversies. The makers of Ozempic say their new weight-loss drug Wegovy wi

THE MEDICAL RECORD: BC SHIFTS ITS DRUG POLICY Libby Znaimer is joined by Dr. Malcolm Moore, Medical Oncologist at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and a former head of the BC Cancer Agency, Dr. Fahad Razak, Canada Research Chair in Data Informed Healthcare Improvement at the University of Toronto and Dr. Alisa Naiman, Family Physician and Medical Director of The Medical Station in Toronto. We get the doctors’ take on BC’s move to roll back decriminalization of drug use at least when it comes to using in public places. WHAT POLICE ARE AND ARE NOT LEGALLY ALLOWED TO DO DURING A HIGH-SPEED CHASE Libby is now joined by Joseph Neuberger, a Criminal Defence Lawyer with Neuberger and Partners LLP. Why were police on that dangerous and ultimately deadly high- speed chase on the 401 that killed an infant and his grandparents as well as the suspect? It was apparently the result of an armed robbery. An investigation is underway into this horrific tragedy. What are police legally and not legally allowed to do during a

RECOVERING POLITICIANS PANEL: SOME ONTARIO UNIVERSITIES SAY ENCAMPMENTS WILL NOT BE TOLERATED Libby Znaimer is joined by George Smitherman, a former Ontario Liberal Health minister and Deputy Premier, Cheri DiNovo,  a former NDP MPP, and Lisa Raitt, a former Deputy Leader of the federal Conservatives.  It’s Tuesday, time to talk politics: some Ontario universities have said they will not tolerate any encampments on their campuses. And, BC shifts its policy towards the use of drugs in public settings. ARRESTS MADE IN MAJOR FRAUD SCHEME Libby is joined by Detective David Coffey with the Toronto Police Service's Financial Crimes Unit. It’s called synthetic fraud - as if we needed yet another type of scam to watch out for. It involves identity theft and the creation of fake identities. Yesterday, Toronto Police announced 12 arrests and charges against 102 individuals. So what do we have to know about this? THE GROWING CAMPAIGN OF HATE AGAINST LOBLAW (NOW THERE'S A MUSIC VIDEO) Libby is joined by Emil

THE ZOOMER SQUAD: CANADA'S NATIONAL DENTAL COVERAGE PROGRAM STARTING THIS WEEK Libby Znaimer is joined by Rudy Buttignol, President of CARP, Anthony Quinn, Chief Community Officer of CARP and Lorne Bozinoff, President, Forum Research Group. The dental plan is once again at the top of the agenda. It is supposed to start this week and 1.7 million Canadians are signed up but where are the dentists? Also starting this week, those warnings on individual cigarettes-- 12% of the population still smokes. Will this get them to quit? And on a really positive note, the Rolling Stones have embarked on their latest tour - they’re in their 80's! We’ll talk  about that. AN UPDATE ON KING CHARLES'S CANCER DIAGNOSIS FROM THE PALACE Libby Znaimer is joined by Patricia Treble, a veteran royal watcher who has the Write Royalty newsletter on Substack. We just learned that King Charles is set to resume some of his public duties in the midst of his cancer treatment. The palace made the announcement saying that his medical team

Best of Fight Back Sunday April 28 Edition Our Medical Record Panelist joined to discuss a new U.S. study which concludes people are less likely to die or be readmitted to hospital if they are treated by women doctors. Sylvain Charlebois, the senior director of the agri food analytics lab at Dalhousie University joined us to talk about a planned boycott of Loblaws that is expected to start on May 1st Then on the program, The Tune Into the Town Municipal Panel react to Mayor Chow reiterating what she said last week about moving toward 24-7 construction on the Gardiner between Dufferin and Straun.

Best of Fight Back Saturday April 27 Edition Tasha Kherridan was joined by our Zoomer Squad to discuss free dental care being provided by Toronto Public Health for residents of city operated long term care homes. City of Toronto staff launched the third pothole blitz of the year involving 133 workers on repair patrol. Barbara Gray, General Manager Transportation Services, at the City of Toronto joined us to discuss. On Tuesday we heard reaction from our Recovering Politicians Panel about Umar Zameer being found not guilty of 1st degree murder in the death of Detective Constable Jeffrey Northrup

Today on Free For All Friday: our listeners phoned in to pay tribute to the late Bob Cole, and to talk about parking in High Park, the shingles vaccine, and more.

TUNE INTO THE TOWN: AN ASSESSMENT OF OLIVIA CHOW'S FIRST 10 MONTHS AS MAYOR Jane Brown is now joined by Alex Blumenstein, Co-Founder of The Peak, Karen Stintz, CEO, Variety Village, and David Crombie, a former Mayor of Toronto. What a new poll tells us about how Torontonians feel regarding the job that Olivia Chow is doing as mayor. And, the City of Toronto has made car access and parking in High Park off limits for visitors looking to get a glimpse of the Cherry Blossoms in peak bloom. Then on the panel, we discuss the next steps that the City is taking in terms of addressing dangerous dogs. City staff will be visiting owners of dogs who are listed as dangerous and will require them to post a visible sign indicating as such on their property. Currently, there are 373 dangerous dog orders across Toronto. DOSE4DOSE CAMPAIGN: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW Jane Brown is joined by Dr. Molly Yang, a pharmacist who is the Director of Pharmacy Innovation and Professional Affairs at Wholehealth Pharmacy Partners, a natio

THE MEDICAL RECORD:THE POTENTIAL RISK OF MICROPLASTICS ON CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH Jane Brown is filling in for Libby Znaimer today. She is joined by Dr. Malcolm Moore, Medical Oncologist, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Dr. Fahad Razak, Canada Research Chair in Data Informed Healthcare Improvement at the University of Toronto and Dr. Nadia Alam, family doctor and anesthetist in Georgetown, Ontario. What a study says about the care provided by female doctors compared to male doctors, and what medical schools in Ontario want to see happen so that more students pursue family medicine. WHAT AND WHO IS BEHIND THE "STEAL FROM LOBLAWS DAY" CAMPAIGN Jane Brown is joined by Sylvain Charlebois,  Senior Director, Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University. Sylvain reacts to the ongoing issue that consumers have with grocery giant Loblaws and revisits the discussion about "Shrinkflation". WHAT MAKES A TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS FAN...A TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS FAN? Jane Brown is now joined by Wally Rigobon, Co-host

RECOVERING POLITICIANS: FUTURE OF TORONTO POLICE AFTER UMAR ZAMEER TRIAL ENDS WITH QUESTIONS ABOUT THE FORCE Tasha Kheiriddin filled in for Libby Znaimer today. She was joined by George Smitherman, former Ontario Liberal Cabinet Minister, Cheri DiNovo, former Ontario NDP MPP and Andrea Mandel-Campbell, former Conservative candidate in Don Valley West. The panel discussed all things politics! From Umar Zameer's lawyer calling out politicians and policemen for "demonizing" his client, to Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles' attempt to reverse the ban of keffiyeh at Queen's Park failing to pass a unanimous vote. Tasha also touched on the multi-billion dollar deal with Honda to assemble electric vehicles in Ontario. HEALTH EXPERTS EXPRESS DISAPPOINTMENT ABOUT FEDERAL GOVERNMENT'S DECISION TO END FUNDING FOR HIV SELF-TESTING KITS  Tasha Kheiriddin was joined by Khaled Salam, Executive Director, AIDS Committee of Ottawa, and Dr. Sean B. Rourke, PhD, Scientist with MAP Centre of Urban Health Solutions at St. Micha

ZOOMER SQUAD: TORONTO TO PROVIDE FREE DENTAL CARE SERVICE TO CITY-OPERATED LTC HOME RESIDENTS   Tasha Kheiriddin filled in for Libby Znaimer today. She was joined by Bill VanGorder, Chief Advocacy and Education Officer at CARP, Anthony Quinn, Chief Community & Benefits Officer at CARP and Lorne Bozinoff, President at Forum Research. The panel discussed Mayor Olivia Chow's announcement on the free mobile dental care program for the more than 2,600 residents of the 10 long-term care homes operated by the City of Toronto and more. TORONTO CONDUCTED THE CITY’S THIRD POTHOLE BLITZ OF THE YEAR OVER THE WEEKEND Tasha Kheiriddin was joined by Barbara Gray, General Manager of Transportation Services and Teresa Di Felice, Assistant Vice President, Government and Community Relations for CAA SCO. Kheiriddin and guests talk about the third pothole blitz conducted by the city of Toronto. Gray revealed the city will soon add "Patch Masters" to their equipment inventory. The patch is described online to be an all

Best of Fight Back Sunday April 21 Edition Libby and a panel of political strategists reacted to Ottawa's budget and whether it is good enough for Canadians. Plus The Medical Record panel discussed the latest cancer screening controversy. And Speaker Ted Arnott put a ban on wearing a Keffiyeh at Queen's Park.

Best of Fight Back Saturday April 20 Edition On Monday the Zoomer Squad talked about how foreign trained nurses play an important role in the healthcare system. Next Libby had guests on to discuss National Volunteer Week. On Tuesday, The Recovering Politicians panel reacted to an agreement between Ottawa and the province in which the former decided to drop an environmental assessment pertaining to the development of Highway 413. Then on the show Dr. Vivian Stamatopolous discussed staffing shortages in Long Term Care.

Today on Free For All Friday: listeners called in to talk about the trial of Umar Zameer, lack of care in LTC homes and much more.  

TUNE INTO THE TOWN: TORONTO’S SHARE OF THE FEDERAL BUDGET It’s a busy week at Toronto City Hall as Mayor Olivia Chow and councillors react to what was in and not in the federal Liberal budget delivered on Tuesday. And the mayor and councillors today and yesterday have also been taking care of city business which includes the debacle around the rollout of the vacant home tax and how to improve it. Jane Brown is filling in for Libby Znaimer today. She is joined by Karen Stintz, CEO of Variety Village, Alex Blumenstein, Co-Founder of The Peak and David Crombie, a former Toronto Mayor. PREMIER DOUG FORD CALLS TO REVERSE THE BAN ON KEFFIYEHS AT QUEEN'S PARK A call by all of Ontario’s party leaders, including Premier Doug Ford to reverse a ban on wearing a keffiyeh in the legislature has failed to pass in a unanimous vote this morning. The speaker, Ted Arnott, who originally imposed the ban acknowledged the request to have the ban reversed and when it was put to a unanimous vote, he said he could hear some

THE MEDICAL RECORD: CANCER SCREENING GUIDELINES  Libby Znaimer today is joined by Dr. Malcolm Moore, Medical Oncologist, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Dr. Fahad Razak, Canada Research Chair in Data Informed Healthcare Improvement at the University of Toronto, and Dr. Alisa Naiman, Family Physician and Founder and Medical Director of The Medical Station in Toronto. It’s Wednesday, time to talk about your health. We’ll begin with the latest cancer screening controversy: a federally appointed body called The Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health issues the guidelines that another group of medical experts are now calling dangerous and outdated.   REACTION TO THE FEDERAL BUDGET RELEASED IN OTTAWA THIS WEEK Libby Znaimer today is joined by Taylor Scollon, Co-Founder of The Peak, Muhammad Ali, Liberal Strategist and Senior Consultant at Crestview Strategy in Ottawa, John Mykytyshyn, Conservative Activist, Political Consultant and President of Bradgate Research Group. Canadian Deputy Prime Minister and

RECOVERING POLITICIANS PANEL: A LOOK AHEAD TO THE FEDERAL BUDGET Jane Brown is filling in for Libby Znaimer today. She is joined by Lisa Raitt, Former Deputy Leader of Conservative Party of Canada, Cheri DiNovo, Former Ontario NDP MPP, and John Milloy, Former Ontario Liberal MPP who served as a cabinet minister under the Dalton McGuinty and Kathleen Wynne governments. Today, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland delivers the federal budget to Canadians. STAFFING SHORTAGES IN LONG-TERM CARE  Jane Brown is joined by Dr. Vivian Stamatopolous, a professor at Ontario Tech University who conducts research on long-term care issues and is an advocate for residents. What we know about staffing shortages in long-term care and how that may be impacting the province's ability to meet the required number of hours of hands-on care for residents. A MEMORIAL RIDE FOR CYCLIST KILLED IN TORONTO Jane Brown is joined by Albert Koehl, cycling and pedestrian advocate and an environmental lawyer

THE ZOOMER SQUAD:  CAN FOREIGN-TRAINED NURSES SOLVE OUR NURSING SHORTAGES? Libby Znaimer is joined by Rudy Buttignol, President of CARP, Peter Muggeridge, Senior Editor of Zoomer Magazine, and Lorne Bozinoff, President, Forum Research Group. Today: the panel discussed what you need to know about the carbon rebate, the challenges that foreign-trained nurses face when it comes to practicing here in Canada and more. ISRAEL'S RESPONSE TO IRAN'S DRONE ATTACK OVER THE WEEKEND Libby Znaimer is now joined by Dr. Amos Guiora, Professor of Law at the University of Utah and a former Legal advisor to the IDF in Gaza, Martin Himmel, Award-Winning Investigative Documentary Filmmaker, and Vivian Bercovici, a former Ambassador of Canada to Israel. Over the weekend, Iran launched hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel. In turn, Israel alongside a coalition of countries managed to intercept 99 per cent of the fire marking an unprecedented shift in the conflict between the two countries. IT'S NATIONAL VOLUNTEER W

Best of Fight Back Sunday April 14 Edition On Wednesday, The Medical Record panel kicked things off with a discussion about whether Alcohol should have warning labels and also about updated guidelines to the health condition Atrial Fibrillation. Then on the Show, primary care physician Dr. Jia Hu on the importance of getting vaccinated for Pneumonia. On Thursday, our Tune into the Town panel weighed in on the cost of redeveloping Ontario Place. Finally, we hosted a panel to react to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's testimony in Ottawa over foreign interference.