Ideas

Marcell Wilson knows how to game the criminal justice system. He's been charged upwards of 30 times for what he says were “mostly violent crimes" and yet to this day he doesn't have a criminal record. Why? He has money to pay the high fees for a good lawyer. Many scholars and legal commentators agree it’s easier for people with wealth to secure favourable legal outcomes — not just in criminal court but in custody disputes, civil litigation, and child protection matters. In a two-part series, IDEAS contributor Mitchell Stuart asks: is a system like that still capable of administering justice? *This episode originally aired on April 19, 2023.

It depends on who you ask. Until recently empathy was generally considered a positive thing. But a growing number of mostly conservative voices believe empathy can be extremely dangerous — even toxic. Their argument is that empathy can drive irrational thinking and behaviour in public life. The result is a growing battle over empathy in a world that has never seemed to need it more.

If you like this podcast, you may want to listen to this: Why practicing empathy is far from simple.

Guests in this podcast:

Matt Richins – neuroscientist and psychologist, who did research on empathy at Exeter University, UK.
Susan Lanzoni – author, historian of psychology, psychiatry, and neuroscience and professor at Harvard’s School of Continuing Education
Mary Gordon – founder of Roots of Empathy program, Toronto
Michael Slote – author, philosopher and professor of ethics at the University of Miami
Margaret Davidson – Roots of Empathy classroom facilitator, Chiganois Elementary
Kourtney Simms – Chiganois Elementary teacher
Ellie – Grade 1 student, Chiganois Elementary

"You're awakening a dragon. Public anger is stirring." A warning from Rutger Bregman to Silicon Valley. The historian is sounding the alarm over the existential risks posed by unrestrained technology and artificial intelligence in his final BBC Reith Lecture. He calls on those in power to assume responsibility, and help shape a future worthy of hope. Bregman envisions 'moral revolutions' as the path forward and urges us all to come together to take on this task. "Small groups of committed citizens have bent the arc of history towards justice. And whatever the outcome, there is beauty in trying, beauty in every act of courage, in every spark of truth."

Jacques Picotte used to drive 16 hours straight, with only water and a bag of chips in the cab before resting at a pit stop. That was 20 years ago. He pushed his limits then, but now he's known as the toughest truck driving instructor — a reputation he's proud of. He believes it's vital schools take pride in putting highly-skilled truck drivers on the road. An Ontario trucking union predicts a shortage of 30,000 truckers in Canada as old hands retire faster than new ones take on the job. IDEAS producer Tom Howell visits Jacques Picotte at his trucking school in northern Ontario, where recruits consider living a trucker's life and the road ahead.*This episode originally aired on March 4, 2024.

The potato and the Irish Famine of 1845 will forever be linked. But what's often overlooked is how deeply connected the potato was to British colonial policies during that time. To Britain it was a symbol of Irish backwardness. In the book Rot, a new history of Ireland's Great Famine is revealed, showing how the British Empire caused the infamous disaster. Author and historian Padraic X Scanlan paints a complex and compelling picture of the Irish Famine of 1845, in which the potato — and the blight — played but a part in a broader story of colonialism, capitalism, and collapse.