Zoomer Week in Review

Next week, Kamala Harris will be sworn in as the first female, first Black, and first South Asian Vice-President of the United States. She will also grace the February cover of the iconic Vogue magazine. But there’s growing backlash over the casual styling of the cover shot, which you can see here , and which critics say is disrespectful. Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour says there was no disres...

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has delivered a blunt message for Canadians wanting to head south - If you get stuck in the US or elsewhere, Canada won't help you get home. But a growing number of Zoomers are ignoring his advice now that they can get vaccinations in Florida. Travel Insurance broker Marty Firestone’s phone has been ringing off the hook with Snowbirds changing their minds about making...

What are your resolutions for 2021? Do they include the usual ones? Eating better, exercising more, or keeping up your physical fitness regime? A lot of Canadians walked more than they probably ever have in the past year but if you’re stuck in making resolutions Bob Komsic spoke to University of Regina psychology professor Katherine Arbuthnott and began by asking just how difficult is it to make f...

There’s less than a week left to make a tax deductible charitable donation for 2020. Normally nearly two thirds of Canadians would be scrambling to get those contributions in before the deadline. But pandemic financial pressure means fewer people will be donating and those who are able to give will give less. Libby talked with Bruce Macdonald, CEO of Imagine Canada, about a survey on the state of...

Are you still debating your holiday plans even though most of the authorities are recommending that we celebrate with our own households only? There’s an online questionnaire to assess your risk depending on your answers to a whole raft of questions. Leading gerontologist, Dr. Samir Sinha, designed the tool called "My Covid Visit Risk" for Ryerson University's National Institute on Ageing. AND Thi...

A quarter of Canadians over 65 are caregivers and it's no surprise that the pandemic has been especially hard on them. With less outside help, they are spending more time and money on their loved ones, making it much more difficult to manage. Libby talked with Amy Coupal of the Ontario Caregiver Association about the group’s latest spotlight survey. AND Have you ever heard of Pitseolak Asuna or Ro...

This week, the Trudeau government announced a 1.5-billion dollar Safe LTC Fund. Advocates worry that there aren’t enough strings attached to the money to ensure that the provinces will do the right things to protect vulnerable residents now. Libby Znaimer talked with Minister of Seniors Deb Schulte. AND The stress of the pandemic is making things worse for many people suffering from conditions lik...

For more than a year, Toronto City Councillor Jaye Robinson has been sidelined by a gruelling and lengthy treatment for a complicated case of breast cancer. She went through most of it at the height of the pandemic. Libby Znaimer talked with Jaye about her experience after she returned to her first council meeting this week. AND There’s no question that the pandemic has disrupted the spectrum of c...

"What About Black Lives?" is the the new single from Dan Hill's first album in 11 years. It's been about 4 years since we talked to the award-winning singer-songwriter, as he took time out to deal with personal and mental health issues. It was a pleasure to chat with him again. AND This week there was great news about the promising results of two potential Covid-19 vaccines. The federal government...

This week began with the good news that Pfizer and its partner, the German company, BioNTech, have a vaccine that is 90% effective, at least according to preliminary results. How good is that news and what will it take to vaccinate Canadians. Libby Znaimer reached Dr. Jillian Kohler, professor at the University of Toronto's Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy. AND This year's Scotiabank Giller Prize wi...

Either the 74-year old Donald Trump, or Joe Biden, who turns 78 on Nov. 20, will break the record for oldest president ever inaugurated. There have been questions about both their mental states, but both have come through grueling campaigns. Will this change society's view of aging? Libby Znaimer reached Brent Green, an American expert in demographics and generational marketing. AND This holiday g...

What is Q'Anon? People around the world are asking that question now that this extreme American conspiracy theory keeps gaining followers and heading closer to the mainstream. It centres on the belief that the US is run by a Liberal cabal of child sex traffickers who can only be stopped by Donald Trump. Libby Znaimer talked with Josh Pasek, a University of Michigan professor and expert on politica...

Zoomers are a demographic that is key to success at the polls in America - as well as other countries including ours.  Even though younger generations have surpassed baby boomers in sheer numbers, an overwhelming proportion of the older generation votes. In 2016, they were regarded as the most pro-Trump demographic and they were instrumental to his victory. Where do they stand now? Libby Znaimer c...

It's an unintended consequence of the pandemic's devastating toll in long-term care. A majority of Canadians are reevaluating their plans, hoping to avoid ever moving into nursing or retirement homes. That's the conclusion of a poll From The National Institute on Ageing at Ryerson University. Libby Znaimer reached executive Director Michael Nicin. AND It's the scourge of humanity, but war also dri...

Her election to lead the Green party of Canada marks a series of firsts. Annemie Paul is the first Black, Jewish woman to lead a federal party in this country. We had a chat to get to know her earlier this week. AND Here's something to be thankful for and lift our spirits in the midst of the pandemic. Fall colours are at their peak and it's easy to enjoy the majestic reds and glorious golds safely...

As we head into the second wave of the coronavirus, it's instructive to remember that Canada went through this a hundred years ago. The death toll was staggering - pegged at between 50 and 100 million worldwide. But many, like Edward G.R. Ardagh of Toronto, survived and he wrote his experiences down in his diary for us to be able to read today. S ome of his symptoms are eerily similar to today, as...

It's more fallout from the pandemic. At a time when the need is greater than ever, Canadians are giving less to charity. According to the Angus Reid Institute, 37% of donors who have to given to at least one charity in the last two years have decreased their donations because of COVID-19. It adds up to a loss of hundreds of millions of dollars for the country's 86,000 charities. Libby reached Angu...

VisionTV has a new documentary called "Blasphemy." And if you think it's an outdated concept, you'd be mistaken. Blasphemy laws are still on the books in about a quarter of the world's countries with devastating results. And not all blasphemy relates to conventional religion. Libby talked with filmmaker Martin Himel. AND The idea has been around for decades and it spawned two major experiments ove...

COVID-19 has hit Canadians and their families hard, none harder than those in long-term care and assisted living facilities. In B.C., older residents and their family members are being asked to take part in a survey examining their experiences. Seniors advocate Isobel Mackenzie told Libby Znaimer why she feels it's important to gather such information. AND Late last year the airline industry forec...

There will be a confidence vote when parliament resumes later this month and that means the government may fall. Would we be ready for a pandemic election? In addition to an exponential increase in mailed in ballots, we'd need bigger polling places for social distancing, more workers and even single use pencils. Libby reached Natasha Gauthier of Elections Canada. AND The woman behind the song "I A...

Next week a new book will mark the 40th anniversary of Terry Fox's iconic Marathon of Hope with 40 letters from 40 contributors ranging from Margaret Atwood to Bobby Orr. Terry's younger brother Darrell Fox edited Forever Terry: A Legacy in Letters,and Libby reached him in Vancouver. AND The newly launched Institute for Pandemics at the University of Toronto has a very ambitious mandate to help th...

It's being called a new era in the treatment of Alzheimer's, a disabling and deadly disease of the brain that affects up to 50 million around the world, with 10 million new cases each year. Current approved treatments do not slow its progression but Dr. Sharon Cohen, director of the Toronto Memory Program, says that could soon change. AND As children prepare to return to school, the children aren'...

For years, it was a source of irritation for millions of loyal Air Canada customers collecting Aeroplan points. Now the airline is revamping its loyalty program to make it easier to book seats. It’s part of an effort to boost membership while the global travel industry is devastated by COVID-19. Libby speaks with columnist and consumer advocate Ellen Roseman. AND There’s a new medical clinic in th...

There are new guidelines for both treating and defining obesity. The focus is on whether a person’s body fat impairs their health, rather than on their weight and size. Libby talked with the lead author, Dr. Sean Wharton-medical director of the Wharton Medical Clinic, a weight management clinic in Burlington. AND The loneliness of the pandemic has made us crave companionship of the canine variety....

(3:58) This week the province released details of the the independent commission to look into the devastating impact on COVID-19 on our LTC sector, which saw 80% of the deaths from the coronavirus. It will be led by Associate Chief Justice Frank Marrocco who was lead counsel for the province in the Walkerton inquiry and lead prosecutor in the Bre-X securities prosecution. At the same time the prov...