The Big Story Frequency Podcast Network

We've gained some new subscribers recently, and over the next few Sundays we want to help welcome them to the show by re-releasing some of our favourite episodes from the last few years. If you're new here, welcome! And if you've been with us for a while, we hope you enjoy this trip down memory lane.

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You probably heard about it when it happened. It was called Project Endgame and it was a massive police bust on what they alleged was an illegal casino operating out of a 53-room mansion in Markham, Ontario. But even as the charges were being laid and the evidence put on display, something was already going sideways. Now almost a year later, the case is in tatters and police face misconduct allegations. What happened here?

GUEST: Leah McLaren, reporting for Toronto Life

In 2017, the Ontario Liberal government instituted a basic income pilot where participants across the province would receive $1,400 a month for three years. That project has since been cancelled, but basic income, as an idea, continues to be brought up as a potential solution to our money problems. So, could it be? And how would it work in practice?

Jordan invites health economist Evelyn Forget from the School of Medicine at the University of Manitoba on to find out. Forget has been studying the effects and feasibility of basic income for many years. She's also written books on the subject, including "Basic income for Canadians, from the COVID-19 Emergency to Financial Security for All."

Do you have a money problem? Call us and leave a message at 416-935-5935. Or email us at hello@itepod.ca. You can also find us on Instagram and TikTok @InThisEconomyPod. Don't forget to leave a call-back number, so we can get in touch.

Tim Hortons. Coffee, donuts and Canadian identity. What more could you possibly want? Well, maybe quenchers? Chilli? Beef lasagna casserole? Pulled pork sandwiches? Pizza?! Please, just tell them so they can sell it.

In all seriousness, Tim Hortons offering new menu items isn't a bad thing, but it does let us ask an important question about what the chain has become: Is it a Canadian staple, that both aspiring politicians and savvy marketers use as a stand-in for what makes Canada great? Or is it one arm of a huge, soulless global food brand with no motivation other than to suck up as much market share as it possible? Could it be the answer is ... somehow, both those things?

GUEST: Tom Jokinen, writing in The Walrus

India was the first country to ban TikTok—and they did it years ago. The United States just passed a law that would see the popular app banned if it isn't sold in the coming months. Canada is conducting a security review of the app and is believed to be considering similar actions. All of this because the app's owner, ByteDance is a Chinese company based in Beijing.

What exactly are the security concerns here? How much do they matter to ordinary Canadians? What measures might Canada take, and when? And how would Canadians feel about the government deciding what apps they get to download?

GUEST: Anja Karadeglija, The Canadian Press

The crown corporation is losing a ton of money, and the volume of mail it's delivering is dropping rapidly. It's annual report, released last week, hinted that major changes could be in store. That could include paring back mail delivery to every second or third day, which the corporation confirmed yesterday it was looking into.

What would ending daily mail delivery mean for Canadians? How many would notice, or care? But what about those among us—people and small businesses alike—who rely on timely, every day delivery of letters and packages? What does the future hold for Canada Post in an increasingly paperless world?

GUEST: Cormac Mac Sweeney, Parliament Hill reporter, CityNews

The latest strain of H5N1 avian flu has been doing some ... unusual things. It's infecting a wide swath of mammals. It's spreading rapidly among cattle in the United States, many of them along Canada's border. And it's now been found in the milk supply of those cows, though FDA officials say that pasteurization means the milk is still safe to consume.

It's clear this strain is different from previous versions of the virus. And scientists are watching it very closely. But to a world that has recently suffered through a pandemic, any new virus doing unusual things may seem terrifying. So: What happens next? How worried should you be?

GUEST: Dr. Scott Weese, infectious disease veterinarian at the Ontario Vet College at the University of Guelph