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The AIH Transcript for January 24, 2017

Hosts: Helen Mann and Chris Howden

STORIES FROM THIS EPISODE

Prologue

HELEN MANN: Hello, I'm Helen Mann.

CHRIS HOWDEN: Good evening, I'm Chris Howden. This is As It Happens.

[Music: Theme]

CH: Tonight:

HM: He was left alone with children. He didn't leave them alone. Now, the city of Westmount, Quebec is paying a settlement to victims of a man who coached children's hockey there for thirty years – and sexually abused his players.

CH: Keystone OK. The new U.S. President turns the controversial pipeline project around – and despite campaigning against it, the Alberta government now says it's happy with the White House's reversal.

HM: Access un-denied. President Trump also signs an executive order allowing construction on the Dakota Access Pipeline – and while the Standing Rock Sioux saw that coming, they didn't expect it to come so quickly.

CH: Maxime overdrive. Until the loud guy from TV joined the Conservative leadership race, Maxime Bernier was the front-runner – and tonight, he'll explain why he's best-equipped to slay the Dragon.

HM: The red carpet treatment. What seemed like a simple human-interest story about a shipment of crimson Skittles that spilled all over a Wisconsin road has turned out to be a mystery that's disturbing and unsavoury.

CH: And...it's got to know when to hold 'em. Know when to fold 'em. But the dominant player at a poker tournament in Pittsburgh doesn't know how to walk away, and someone else has to get it to run – because it's an artificially intelligent machine.
As It Happens, the Tuesday edition. Radio that puts on its best poker interface.

Part 1: Westmount abuse settlement, Maxime Bernier, AI poker player

Westmount Abuse Settlement

Guest: Matthew Bissonnette

CHRIS HOWDEN: For three decades in the Montreal enclave of Westmount, John Garland worked for the parks and recreation department, coached Peewee hockey, and sexually abused children in his care.
Today, Westmount reached a tentative settlement with some of John Garland's victims, agreeing to pay 100,000 dollars to each of the five people who have come forward so far.
Matthew Bissonnette was the lead plaintiff in the case. We reached him in Montreal.

HELEN MANN: Mr. Bissonette, how are you feeling now that you've had this settlement reached with Westmount.

MATTHEW BISSONNETTE: I feel good. I mean I feel good on a personal level that we were sort of able to accomplish what we set out to accomplish. I feel good that this city did the right thing and acknowledged what had happened and moved in a positive and proactive manner to get help to folks that need it. And I think they should be commended for that. And then just sort of on a bigger, a bigger front just generally, I think that any time you have allegations of child sexual abuse that are taken seriously, and which are almost always tragically turn out to be correct, whenever those are investigated properly, and then people do the right thing, I think we're just one step further down the road to ending this incredibly serious and unfortunately systemic problem in our society.

HM: How was John Garland viewed in the community when you were growing up?

MB: The tragedy of it is he ran the parks, was the director of the Parks and Rec department in Westmount and was there for 20 or 30 years I believe. The league was actually called Johnny's League and he was, you know well-respected, and to be honest, beloved.

HM: As much as you are comfortable, would you describe some of what you experienced when John Garland was your hockey coach?

MB: He uh… whatever you want to call it… groomed me, took me under his wing, befriended me. As a kid with, you know, a single mother [unintelligible], and I have a wonderful mother who has been a fantastic mother to me my entire life but raised two kids by herself. And that's the kind of kids of these pedophiles look for. And he, in the manner of this, it begins with sort of perhaps attention, gifts, and some inappropriate touching, and then leads on to full on sexual abuse. And I think that's something that happens in most of these cases. It's horrific.

HM: What impact then did that have on your life over the years?

MB: Yeah I mean I think there's you know common predicament or traits or circumstances that people that suffer, you know traumatic childhood sexual abuse, are prone to and it's, you know, problems with drugs and alcohol, struggles with mental illness, particularly depression, anxiety, those kinds of things. Difficulty in relationships, perhaps and difficulty in careers. That's kind of stuff that I’ve struggled with my entire life. You know, I was lucky enough to have a certain success in my career, to have great friends and family around me. And you know, lucky enough to become a father about 10 years ago, and in that process get sober and really kind of put all that kind of stuff at least in my past. And yeah, things were great actually.

HM: You first came forward in 1993. What happened?

MB: Yeah I brought the matter to the local Montreal Police in Westmount, the Montreal police. We've made a report. We went to the Crown attorney. The Crown Attorney decided to move forward, the police in Westmount began to investigate. Three months later I received a call from them and they basically picked up John Garland, my abuser, and he had denied it and threatened to sue me. And they had then come to the conclusion that he was telling the truth and I was lying. The police then would no longer investigate the matter. I think phoned the Crown Attorney. He said we have reluctant police, I believe is the word he used. And I can't go any further with it so the matter is dropped and there's nothing you can do.

HM: And later you found there was no record of that complaint.

MB: That's correct. We’ve searched for two years on each side of my complaint. And apparently there is no record.

HM: So given that you'd had that terrible disappointment, what did it take for you to decide to come forward again?

MB: Well you know, it was becoming a father, and getting sober, and kind of getting my life… not back on track but sane again. And I think as you start to get sane, you start to realize that some things just aren't acceptable. And it's just not acceptable to have a pedophile operating for 20 or 30 years, you know, and not have that brought to light. So as I kind of got more cognizant of that, I moved forward with it with a friend of mine who I grew up with who is, at that point, a lawyer. We crafted another police complaint, and then on the day there we were going to submit that to what you would call the Special Victims Unit in Montreal, John Garland died.

HM: Wow. And yet you've proceeded with this class action suit. Have you spoken with others who joined the suit?

MB: Yeah I have. Some guys that I knew when I was growing up when I grew up have reached out to me. Also who were victims. And I've had conversations with them. It's incredibly difficult. You know, you carry with you for the rest of your life.

HM: Do you think the people around John Garland should have known and should have done something?

MB: I think that we are coming out of a period of what I would term as a collective insanity. And I think this is not particular to Westmount. I think the abuse that went on in Westmount went on and is going on in communities across the island of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. You know the whole world, North America. And there is some kind of insane reluctance or inability to talk in any kind of rational or meaningful way about childhood sexual abuse. And that's a climate that was particularly prevalent in you know in the 80s and 90s when I grew up. And I think that everyone who was around them were victims of that climate. What I think where we need to get to is that, you know if a kid, someone steals a kid's bike, they're going to go and tell their mom, going to tell their dad know, tell their friends, to tell everybody. Well we were we need to get is that if a person interacts inappropriately, in a sexual manner with a child, that child is going to tell their parents just as easily if that person tried to steal their bike. And until we get there, until people can discuss childhood sexual abuse as easily as they can discuss, you know a stolen bike, or to be honest with you, last night's hockey game, we are going to continue to have this problem.

HM: Mr. Bissonette, I'm really grateful for you, your willingness to talk to us. Thank you.

MB: Thank you very much for taking the time. I really appreciate it.

HM: Bye bye.

MB: Bye.

CH: That was Matthew Bissonnette, the lead plaintiff in a class-action suit against the Montreal enclave of Westmount, where hockey coach and city employee John Garland sexually abused children for years. Today, Westmount reached a tentative settlement with the five who have come forward so far, agreeing to pay each 100,000 dollars for the abuse they suffered.
The city's statement says that any additional survivors are still permitted to join the suit and submit a settlement claim. Communications with the lawyers on the case is confidential, and the settlement process is set up to be non-adversarial.

[Music]

Maxime Bernier

Guest: Maxime Bernier

JD: Maxime Bernier had already embraced the nickname "Mad Max". At the time, the Conservative leadership contender looked to be leading the race.
Now, a small poll has put TV pitchman and political neophyte Kevin O'Leary in front – less than a week after he declared his candidacy. And Kellie Leitch – a fellow-candidate and long-time caucus-colleague – has taken to calling Mr. Bernier a liar on the campaign trail. We reached Maxime Bernier in Montreal.

HM: Mr. Bernier, you've been hard at work for many months now, and here Kevin O'Leary jumps into the campaign in the first poll puts him way out in front. What does that say to you?

MAXIME BERNIER: But first of all, as you know, yes I started a campaign couple of months ago, I was one of the first candidates in April. But you know it's only a poll. And as you know it's the members of the Conservative Party of Canada, that will be the one who will vote for the next leader. And if I look at that poll, it's a very small group. I think it is more mostly a name recognition survey that they did. So I'm very optimistic, it's going very well, we are able to raise money all across the country. And I think people appreciate our platform.

HM: Now Mr. O’Leary isn't the only one who's been dominating headlines, of course. We’ve have Kelly Leitch and her Canadian values test for some time now. She's lately though, taken to calling you a fraud and a liar on social media, and even to your face at the most recent of the debates. What do you say to her?

BERNIER: Well, what I'm saying is because you know, actually I’m front runner right now with the members and I'm very proud with that. So is she is desperate. And I don't play that kind of game. People like what we're doing and we're speaking about our ideas for a smaller government, more freedom, and more prosperity. And it is not a slogan for us, it is a reality. We have a strong platform. If you want to have a smaller government, we must have reform at the federal level. And yes, in our platform, we have a lot of the reform privatization, to be assured that we'll have a smaller government in Ottawa.

HM: This devotion to smaller government, I mean you've been very clear that you are an unabashed libertarian. But it's coming at a time of uncertainty I think for Canadians, given what's happening with Donald Trump's presidency, as we learn day to day whether he plans to follow through on his commitments. What makes you think that Canadians are ready for you to create even more potentially drastic change here at home?

BERNIER: But first of all it's reasonable changes, and I think we have the best platform to be sure that the Canadian economy will be competitive with the U.S. And actually, what the President Trump wants to do. And as you know he wants to lower taxes at the corporate level in the U.S. It is 35 percent, and he wants to lower down to 16 percent. If he's doing that, and I think he will, we’ll be in a big disadvantage in Canada. And I think some entrepreneur will like to invest in U.S. They will have a better return on their investment. So it is why we have a platform that is for lower tax to businesses, and to all Canadians will take the corporate income tax from 15 percent to 10 percent. And at the same time, we'll lower taxes to every Canadian.

HM: You've talked though about an end to what you call corporate welfare, when you you’ve talked about allowing companies to thrive. That would be reducing government backing for corporations like Bombardier and GM. At the same time, Trump is promising to use the lever's he has available to him to put American companies first. So do you think it's really a good time to leave Canadian companies without government support?

Bernier: Yeah I think for sure it is the best time to do that right now, because it is not fair for the small entrepreneur in Toronto who… these entrepreneurs aren't forced to pay taxes, and to give that to a big corporation like you said, to Bombardier or GM. So if their policy is to abolish, that that's five billion dollars over there that the federal government is giving to big corporations. I want to use that money toward our taxes to every business, but also for being competitive. In my platform, we want to abolish capital gains tax in Canada. Like that, our economy and our entrepreneur will be very competitive. I didn't get that the best answer to the new government in the US.

HM: You have vowed to cut taxes but also balance the budget in two years. How is that possible?

BERNIER: It’s a good question. You're right. I want to balance the budget. I want to balance the budget in two years. But yes the tax cut, the cost for the federal government will be 30 billion dollars. So it’s a lot of money. So I want to cut taxes but will use the surplus. So maybe the tax cut will come that the 30 or the 40 of the mandate–

HM: So what programs do you cut?

BERNIER: I will give you an example. There’s five billion dollars that the federal government is giving to foreign aid in other countries and I think we must have a look to that. Our foreign policy must be based on the security for Canadians and the prosperity for Canadians. Yes we must be generous and we must give humanitarian aid to other countries. But you know, the economic development aid is a question mark there, and we'll look at all the spending to be sure that we'll be able to have a balanced budget in two years and after that, with the surplus, we'll use a surplus to give the tax break to Canadians.

HM: It sounds rather inward looking, rather like Mr. Trump's “Make America Great Again”.

BERNIER: It must be the policy that foreign policy must be for Canadians. But yes we are part of the global community and we want to participate in the U.N. and all the international organizations. But you know, we have to do that respecting our means. And I think that's what Canadians want.

HM: What about privatization? You mentioned privatizing existing public institutions. What's up on the block?

BERNIER: I want to privatize, I'm very clear about that. I want to privatize Canada Post, you know. It is not an essential service anymore and I think we must do that. Unlike in other countries, in Europe, it's all privatized. I want to privatize the airport. I want to turn the airline industry to foreign investment. Like that, we’ll have more competition and more choices. So it's a reform that it's time to do. We have bold reform like that and that's why I think the members of our party and I think the Canadians at the end will vote for us. But for me, we will need more than a month to explain to Canadians our platform. If I'm the leader of that party, I hope that the members will vote for that platform and will have at least two years and a half to speak to Canadians, telling them why we want to do these bolder changes in Canada for more freedom and less government.

HM: Your 2015 Votez Bernier was a big hit here on As It Happens. You planning a sequel for this campaign? Are we going to have a jingle?

BERNIER: That was very popular as you know. I'm working on a jingle. I don't know if we'll have one but it's a good… it's a good idea. Maybe.

HM: All right, Mr. Bernier, I appreciate you talking to us. Thank you very much.

BERNIER: Merci beaucoup. Thank you. Have a nice day.

JD: Maxime Bernier is a Conservative MP and leadership candidate. He was in Montreal.

[Music]

Assange on TV

CH: Before U.S. President Barack Obama left office, before he commuted the sentence of Chelsea Manning, Wikileaks founder Julian Assange made a bold promise. He promised he would allow himself to be extradited to the United States, if the President gave Chelsea Manning clemency.
That offer was complicated slightly by the fact that there is no U.S. extradition order for Mr. Assange. There is one, however, from Sweden, where he is embroiled in a rape investigation.
As I said, President Obama did indeed grant Chelsea Manning clemency. But Mr. Assange remains in the Ecuadorian embassy in London. In an interview with the Australian TV program The Project, he said any extradition to the United States would be contingent on negotiations with the Department of Justice. He also speculated on why the sentence was commuted:

SOUNDCLIP

JULIAN ASSANGE: Well I was willing to do anything possible to try and encourage Barack Obama to do the right thing and to give Chelsea Manning clemency, which he did in the end for variety of reasons. Part of that encouragement was preventing Democrats, who were still upset that we exposed what Hillary Clinton said behind the scenes during the election campaign. So let's look at it from that perspective. If we give Chelsea Manning clemency, what's the result? That seems like it's a favor to WikiLeaks. We don’t want to do WikiLeaks a favor because they really kicked us in the teeth during the election. OK. But it's going to make life hard for Assange. Because either he’s going to get extradited to the United States, or we're going to show he's a liar. And both of those things are going to make life hard for Assange. And therefore it's OK to pardon Charles Manning and that's what happened.

CH: That was WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in an interview on the Australian TV program The Project.

[Music]

AI Poker Player

Guest: Tuomas Sandholm

CH: When it comes to competitive poker, there may be a new champion emerging. And it doesn't even care that it's champion.
"Libratus" is no ordinary poker player. It is an artificial intelligence program. Now the big no-limit Texas Hold‘Em tournament currently unfolding at the Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh, it's doing very well against some top poker players who are, unfortunately for them, human.
Libratus is the creation of Carnegie Mellon University computer scientist Tuomas Sandholm. We reached him in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

HM: Professors Sandholm, you were at the casino with Libratus earlier today. How is Libratus doing?

TUOMAS SANDHOLM: Yes. Libratus is doing very well. The game has been very exciting. This is possibly the best quality heads up nolimit Texas Hold'em the world has ever seen, because we are playing against the best humans in that game, with the best AI, and Libratus specifically is doing very well. We have amassed a very large lead and we have stayed in the lead since the outset. But we just passed the halfway mark, so it is far from done.

HM: So how do these best humans react to playing with Libratus?

TS: Very well, I think. They are used to playing this game online, so they are used to playing on a computer terminal, and they are playing in the same mode here as well. So they are doing what they are pros at.

HM: So no one has complained Libratus is a distraction.

TS: No, nobody's complained that Libratus is a distraction. Of course, it's frustrating to lose sometimes. And on the losing sessions, the losing players are feeling worse, and when they win in sessions they feel better. Just like in normal poker.

HM: So what is the difference for humans to be playing against an artificial intelligence opponent? What's the challenge for them?

TS: Well one of the things is that the artificial intelligence plays somewhat differently than humans play the game. So humans have evolved to play the game in a certain way based on their experience, and reading books that have been written by humans in turn. In contrast to algorithms in Libratus have figured out how to play the game by just looking at the rules of the game. So before this event, they had not seen a single hand of human poker ever. So the algorithms are these general purpose algorithms, not algorithms for poker, but they take the rules of the game as input, and output a good strategy. And they have figured out some moves that humans never play, or that humans consider to be bad moves. So they kind of play like it… sometimes they play like a Martian.

HM: Can you describe maybe some of those moves?

TS: Yes, I'd be happy to. So one is Libratus makes huge over-bets into small pots, which is considered a bad move. It makes tiny bets, like 10 percent of the pot, which is also considered a bad move. It sometimes limps which is considered a bad move. It sometimes don't bets, which is considered a bad move, et cetera. These are all things that the folk wisdom and the poker books say, are bad ideas and Libratus has figured out the algorithms, have automatically figured out that hey, these are good ideas.

HM: So strategically, they're smart moves.

TS: Yes, exactly.

HM: OK. So how do you create an algorithm that allows AI to play poker. How does it compare to teaching it to say play chess?

TS: Oh OK. So the short answer is that it takes a long time. I have been working on solving imperfect information game since 2004 and the difference here is that in complete information games like chess or checkers or Othello or Go, when it is the player’s tend to move, they know exactly what the state of the world is. In contrast, in games like poker, or negotiation you know cyber security, or military settings, or options, when it is a player’s turn to move, they don't really know the state because they don't know the private information that the other player or other players are holding. So that makes the game much more difficult to solve for a given size of game.

HM: Now part of the game of poker is figuring out your opponent's habits and weaknesses, looking for those tells that we hear about all the time. So how does Libratus process that kind of information.

TS: So the ttell is more of an issue when you play poker live, face to face, while in online poker it's much less of an issue because you don't see the other players. And this is much more like online poker because you are playing through user interface.

HM: But can it anticipate by the way a player is playing certain weaknesses or strategic problems?

TS: That is a great question, and we are keeping those details secret until the end of the competition and until we have published our scientific papers on these algorithms. But we plan to publish them.

HM: You're worried that the other players might catch on to what Libratus is up to?

TS: Exactly. And they are also hiding their changes, how they change their strategies every night.

HM: Do you think they're reading Libratus and what the moves are that the AI is offering up.

TS: Absolutely they're trying to, yes.

HM: Do you think they're succeeding?

TS: At times. At times they're succeeding. So there are clearly days when that humans have found some holes in Libratus. But the good news is that one third of Libratus’ architecture is algorithms that keep patching its own holes that the humans are exploiting. So every night, on a supercomputer Libratus is using algorithms to improve its own strategy.

HM: So given how Libratus has been performing so far, what's your prediction. You think it's going to win?

TS: We are nervously optimistic in that we are just already in the second half of the competition, and we have a very large lead. But we are definitely not popping any champagne yet in that every day, the humans are changing their strategy and Libratus’ algorithms are changing Libratus’ strategy. So every day is a new kind of clash between different strategies and anything can happen.

HM: So are you nervous that Libratus might not keep up?

TS: Of course I'm nervous. I don't expect that to happen but yes we are nervous until the very last hand.

HM: Professor Sandholm, thank you very much for talking to us.

TS: Thank you. My pleasure.

HM: And pass on our good luck to Libratus.

TS: OK. Thank you.

HM: Bye bye

TS: Bye bye.

CH: Helen, you’re a traitor. Tuomas Sandholm of Carnegie Mellon University is the creator of "Libratus," an artificial intelligence program that is currently in the lead in a competition against human poker players at Pittsburgh's Rivers Casino. We reached Mr. Sandholm in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

[Music]

Part 2: Keystone: Alberta/Standing Rock

Keystone: Alberta

Guest: Deron Bilous

CHRIS HOWDEN: With a stroke of the pen U.S. president Donald Trump breathe new life into the controversial Keystone XL pipeline project. In an executive order, he reversed his predecessor's stance against the megaproject, which is slated to carry hundreds of thousands of barrels of Alberta oil a year to the Gulf Coast. But the new president also vowed to renegotiate some of the terms of the project. Deron Bilous is Alberta’s Minister of Economic Development and trade. We reached him on Highway 2 near Red Deer.

HELEN MANN: Minister Bilous, asked what does President Trump's decision on Keystone mean for Alberta?

DERON BILOUS: Well first of all, this is definitely good news. It means that we've got increased capacity, so this is good for energy producers, that they're going to be able to ship more of our of our bitumen down to the States ,which means we're going to get a better price for our product and this means jobs. And again market access for us, which is of paramount importance.

HM: But until now your government's consistently opposed Keystone, wanting to see the refining done closer to home. Why the change of heart?

DB: Well you know again a couple of years ago, I think we were in a much different position when oil was at about $110 a barrel. You know shipping a refined product means you get a better price for it. But again, you know in today's economy right now, is in excess of Alberta bitumen, which does need to get to market, and so Keystone is an opportunity for us to get our products to the market and get a better price, which means you know more royalties for the government and jobs for Albertans.

HM: But those market challenges are hardly new. A year and a half ago, the Premier was saying “I'm not convinced that getting our product out of the Gulf where there’s a whole bunch of cheap refining is absolutely the best strategy for an industry in Alberta.” Today, Premier Notley was saying this project is going to create good jobs here in Alberta and that is my focus. So which is it, where are the jobs?

DB: Well I mean, there are going to be jobs obviously in the construction of Keystone. But what it also does is provides confidence and opportunities for producers in Western Canada to get more product to markets, which means obviously there's going to be benefits for small businesses that are involved in the oil and gas sector.
But the other piece of this puzzle and the reason our focus over the past couple of years has been getting a pipeline into Canadian Tidewater is that opens up new markets. So Keystone is positive for us but it's another pipeline to the same buyer that we currently have.

HM: But it sounds like you're almost competing with yourself and in this case when it comes to Keystone, the added value is going to go to the Americans.

DB: Well you know, again, ideally, you know if the economics were there, then you know companies would be exploring more refineries in the province. At the moment, there is an access of bitumen in the west. And so part of where that differential is coming from is, is because there's an oversupply. So you know, Keystone approval means we get more of our product down to down to the Gulf Coast, which will have a positive impact by reducing the differential, and again means that companies are going to get a higher price for their products, and we're going to have more of our product getting to market.

HM: So President Trump also said today that he wouldn't renegotiate some of the terms of the project. What do you think that might mean and what kind of impact might it have on your province?

DB: Well you know, I mean at the moment I don't want to speculate as to as to what President Trump means. We know, first of all, we have we have boots on the ground in Washington. Alberta has a very very senior career diplomat Gitane De Silva, who is down there, but we also work very closely with the federal government. And we will continue to work closely with them to ensure that that Alberta in Canada is going to benefit from our trade with the U.S.

HM: Well as you know environmentalists are still very much opposed to Keystone XL. NASA's former leading climate scientist Dr. James Hansen has called the pipeline a fuse to the largest carbon bomb on the planet. What do you say to those who continue to oppose this on environmental grounds?

DB: Well I think there will always be critics of, you know, regardless of what the issue is. There are always going to be critics on all sides. The fact of the matter is, pipelines are the safest way to get products to market. There is a demand worldwide for energy for, whether it's electricity or gas, or oil for our petrochemical–

HM: But as you know, Hansen and his fellow environmentalists are complaining specifically about Alberta’s oil sands.

DB: Well, they, I hope they also recognize and acknowledge the incredible climate leadership plan that the Premier announced and that we've been implementing. And so Alberta is being very aggressive by putting a cap on our overall emissions, reducing our methane, putting a price on carbon. And so we've signalled to the world that that we are serious about our environmental responsibilities, and have shown that the environment and the economy can go hand in hand, and we don't have to choose one or the other.

HM: A pipeline now has spilled 200,000 liters of crude oil on a First Nations land in Saskatchewan just in the last couple of days. And as you know, there are many landowners in the United States worried about the impact this is going to have on them. They're really worried about the ground water and their land values as well. What do you say to people who are worried about the damage this might cause in their communities?

DB: Well we also are very concerned about you know the land, the earth, the air and water, and want to ensure that all of the proper steps and processes are followed, and that you know we're building these pipelines with the utmost integrity and that we have you know 21st century monitoring that exists to be able to detect spills should they occur.

HM: But that didn't stop the spill on the weekend, and that's a lot of oil before it was discovered.

DB: Yes. That that that may be the case. And believe me, I mean we take all pipelines and potential spills or spills, very very seriously. You know there are improvements to be made. Absolutely. But again there is there, there's a balance between needing to get our products to markets and trying to identify the safest way to do so. And we know that pipelines overall are safer than than shipping crude by rail.

HM: Minister Bilous, thank you for taking the time to talk to us.

DB: Thank you very much. Anytime.

HM: All right, bye bye.

DB: Bye bye.

CH: Darin Billis is Alberta’s Minister of Economic Development and Trade. We reached him on the road near Red Deer.

Keystone Alberta

Guest: Dave Archambault II

CH: The Keystone XL is not the only pipeline President Trump wants to move forward. Today he signed a second executive order to allow the remaining construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline to continue. Just last month, protesters against that pipeline won a victory. They pressured the U.S. Department of the Army to halt construction near Standing Rock Sioux Tribe territory. There was going to be an environmental review, and new routes were being considered. The executive order signed today could put that process in jeopardy. Dave Archambault II is the Chairman of Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. We reached him at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.

HM: Mr. Archambault we have always known President Donald Trump supported the Dakota Access Pipeline. So how prepared were you for this news today?

DAVE ARCHEMBAULT: Well you know, I was hopeful last week because we got the notice of intent and the [unintelligible] of an environmental impact statement. And once we got that in there, I wanted to move forward on that process because I felt that it gives us an opportunity to present the risks that it has to our tribe. And so I wasn't really focused on the action of President Trump, and I didn't think it would come too soon. I don't understand why there's a expedited presence for this.
We try to just take each day by day, because we knew this was a long battle, but we were hopeful from last week. Now this week is devastating to us because we see now see a President who didn't reach out to us, didn't want to hear our concerns. Why is there resistance from all over the world standing up against this pipeline? And I think, before you make a hasty decision, you would want to learn the reasons. And I was trying to reach out to him so that we can express why things happened the way they did and the right decision was made by the Corps of Engineers to pursue an environmental impact statement.

HM: Will you still try to reach out to him?

DA: Yeah. I think it's important to reach out to him and try to help him understand you know what's going on. He's not making America Great Again. What he's doing is abusing American Indians again. And I don't think he really truly understand the ramifications of his actions. And I think it's important to try to learn about what the issues are before you decide we want to challenge the validity of his action.

HM: What kind of legal avenues are you going to explore?

DA: We’re going to challenge whether or not the president has the authority to circumvent laws. We feel that this executive order violates our treaty, right? It violates the Winters Doctrine, water rights, NEPA and other federal statutes, and does the President of the United States have the authority to circumvent statutes and laws? That’s our question, that our stance on this, is we've got to check the validity of this.

HM: Do you think that environmental review you are counting on will go ahead at this point?

DA: That depends on whether or not an easement is granted for this project.

HM: President Trump has said he supports projects like this one because they promote energy independence, create construction jobs in the U.S. What do you say to that?

DA: The construction jobs are done. You know the only piece left on this project is crossing Missouri River and the 15 permanent jobs to monitor this is not creating jobs for people.

HM: This month, your tribe had asked protesters who are still in the camps, some of them have stuck through in some terrible conditions. They were asked to vacate the land. Does that order still stand at this point?

DA: What we do at the tribe is we try to take a look at what the federal government is doing and what the company is doing, and if it's wrong, we want to address it through a legal battle. And we also want to address it through a political battle, and that is to inform the decision makers of this nation how something like this project was devastating to our people. Now the reason why the tribe passed the resolution is because the community of Cannon Ball, where the three camps are located, are negatively impacted by the presence of campers, and the community is the one who expressed their concern and demanded that the tribal council do something about this. So it was our membership and the people of the Cannon Ball community who said something's not right. It's not healthy us, it’s not healthy for the campers to be there. And it's impacting our communities.

HM: I understand there were also some concerns potentially about potential environmental damage if the protesters’ materials were left there, that's a potential for some flooding. Knowing that, I'm just wondering whether you think this executive order might actually embolden those protesters to stay where they are and more to show up.

DA: If our membership says, you know what we need to rescind the action that we asked the tribal council to do, then I'm sure our tribal council would do it let. I’m letting the people of Cannon Ball and our membership determine whether or not they want to move forward with the camps. The tribe has never participated or planned or was a part of the direct actions, or protesting or protesters. We always approach this through the legal fight and and through the political fight. And we will continue to do that. It's the individuals themselves who are going to have to decide what or whether or not they're going to be there or are they going to leave, and who are they going to respect.

HM: All right, Mr. Archambault, thank you very much for speaking with us. I appreciate your time.

DA: OK. Bye.

CH: Dave Archambault II is the Chairman of Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. We reached him at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.

[Music]

Scottish beachcomber

CH: Martin Gray lives more than 4000 kilometres from Nova Scotia. But the hobby he's pursuing in Scotland's Orkney Islands has brought him much closer to that province than the distance suggests.
As a beachcomber, Mr. Gray has collected all kinds of Nova Scotian treasures that have washed ashore from across the ocean. He now also documents his discoveries online and people have been sharing information about what he's found.
The CBC's Richard Woodbury reached Martin Gray at his home on the Orkney Islands, in Scotland, where beachcombing is a way of life.

SOUNDCLIP

MARTIN GRAY: For a small island community like this, with no trees, none at all, beachcombing was a big part of our lives. it was not just tradition but it was. It was a way of life. And people garnered useful things from the shore. So you go around, a lot of the old houses here in the west of Orkney, and you look around in the sheds and in their roof spaces, and you'll see that the wood is from the beach. It’s ship wood, like tinder from an old ship. So beachcombing was important, very very important to the lifestyle of Orkney. And so I suppose I'm doggedly trying to maintain that tradition and keep it alive.

RICHARD WOODBURY: I understand that you've… over the years found some things from Nova Scotia. Tell me about those things.

MG: This winter I found a few things. I found a float from a Nova Scotia vessel called the Nova Blue, tracked her down just the other day. She was… the story came full circle when I got details of the owner and you know where it was from, and that’s all through Facebook. And it's tracing the back story. I have a find on my beach and I'm curious what it's all about, but finding out about it is something that social media has heaven sent for. So the Nova Blue float came from Woods Harbour. A couple of years ago, I found a float from Shag Harbour, from a guy called Gary Banks [unintelligible] nine angels and, you know again I traced that really quickly through Facebook. And just beside me right now is a milk crate from the Scotsburn Dairy, which I gather is quite a famous dairy products outlet in Nova Scotia. I found that, let them know about that through Twitter, the very graciously allowed me to keep it. So that will find a use somewhere about the house. What else? Lobster tags. So every lobster pot that's used on the Atlantic coast there is tagged because of the regulated nature of the fishing industry there. And when those tags are done, they sometimes find a way into the sea and the currents of Nova Scotia starts flowing cold water from the arctic, goes down the eastern seaboard, and mixes with warm Caribbean water coming up in the Gulf Stream and piles all across the Atlantic to here.

RW: What's your hope?

MG: My hope is to find a waterproof briefcase full of money. But failing that, I just want to engage as many people as I can with our coastal environments. The sea’s a wonderful thing and that it connects all the best places in the world, for me anyway.

CH: That's Martin Gray speaking earlier today with CBC Nova Scotia’s Richard Woodbury. Mr. Grey is a beachcomber on Scotland's Orkney Islands. And if you want to follow his findings on Facebook just look up Orkney Beachcombing.

[Music]

Skittles Mystery

SOUNDCLIP

KENT WAINSCOTT: The red stained road in front of his home was a mystery to Merlin Peeper.

MERLIN PEEPER : You see this mess out here on the road.

MAN 2: Probably hit a deer, probably what it was.

CH: With all due respect, Merlin Peeper, you're wrong. No one hit a deer. Someone hit...a mystery. Moments later, in this report on Milwaukee TV station WISN-12, reporter Kent Wainscott told Merlin Peeper what had really turned the road outside his house red.

SOUNDCLIP

KENT WAINSCOTT: He saw the sheriff's squads and highway crews respond but he didn't know that it was all for… well Skittles.

MERLIN PEEPER: [laughter] Oh for crying out loud.

CH: Yes, Merlin Peeper. "For crying out loud" indeed. For crying out loud...for the truth. We know that hundreds of thousands of red Skittles were dumped on a road in Dodge County, Wisconsin. But every answer we've received since last week's spill has raised more questions. And unlike Merlin Peeper, we don't find these question-raising answers amusing.
Why didn't the Skittles have that trademark "S" on them? The Skittles slogan is "Taste the Rainbow" – so why were they only red, when rainbows almost always have other colours in them? Why was someone transporting only-red S-less Skittles – and how did they wind up on the road?
WISN-12 reporter Kent Wainscott tried to look at the bright side.

SOUNDCLIP

KENT WAINSCOTT: And not only is all of this sugar possibly a good de-icer here on the roads, there may be another benefit. Every time a car goes by, there's a strong sense of candy in the air.

CH: That's nice. But does it actually smell like candy, Mr. Wainscott? Or does it actually smell fishy? Consider this addendum to that report, from WISN-12 anchor Joyce Garbaciak.

SOUNDCLIP

JOYCE GASRBACIAK: The mystery may be solved. We have this update just in. The Sheriff reports he located the flatbed truck that spilled the Skittles. They were product seconds not intended for retail, but instead to be used as cattle feed.

CH: Come on, Joyce Garbaciak. In the words of Merlin Peeper, "For crying out loud." That doesn't solve the mystery, at all. A subsequent report in the Washington Post solved part of it: because corn prices are high, farmers are feeding their animals cheaper stuff – including flawed or discarded candy. In the article, a professor of animal nutrition explained why that was okay. But just like the Mars, Incorporated, makers of Skittles, it seems like he's candy-coating it.
That company, Mars, by the way, is also mystified. It knows how the Skittles ended up S-less: there was a power outage at the plant where they were made. But that plant does not market its rejected candy as cattle feed. So how did the box of only red Skittles wind up on that truck – and then, all over the road in front of Merlin Peeper's house? Mars is investigating. But it should be careful what it finds. Because something not-so-sweet is happening in the world of Skittles, and, like Merlin Peeper, we should all be seeing red.

Part 3: Winter refugees, Mark Baumer obit, 'Blind Vaysha'

Winter refugees

Guest: Gemma Parkin

CHRIS HOWDEN: Outside Belgrade's train station, the situation is being called "worse than the jungle in Calais."
Refugees are sleeping in an abandoned warehouse. Others are camping out along the railroad tracks. And the weather in Serbia's capital has dipped to lows of minus-15 degrees Celsius.
Currently, thousands of refugees are stuck in Serbia, unable to cross the border in Hungary. Now, aid groups in the country are calling on the European Union and Serbian politicians to step up.
Gemma Parkin works with Save the Children UK. She just returned from Belgrade. We reached her in London.

HELEN MANN: Ms. Parkin, these refugees stranded outside Belgrade's train station. They sound as if they are essentially fending for themselves in extremely cold weather. How are they getting by?

GEMMA PARKIN: Well it's -15 in Belgrade. There’s snow on the ground, there’s ice underfoot and they're sleeping in an abandoned warehouse which has got no windows and has no beds. They've got a few wet blankets between them. And they're actually surviving by eating one hot meal a day that's been distributed by a local charity.

HM: Tell us what it's like when you walk into that warehouse, this makeshift camp. What do you see? What's the experience like?

GP: The warehouse is probably one of the most shocking things I've ever seen on the refugee work that I've done over the last few years. The warehouse, when you walk inside, it's full of really toxic smoke because people are keeping warm by lighting fires of rubbish, and it really hurts your eyes within kind of 20 minutes. And then I was speaking to children as young as 12 that have been sleeping in that for three or four months. There's no sewage system and there's no running water. It's extremely cold and wet and damp and dangerous for children.

HM: How many of these people are getting sick?

GP: We are seeing lots of cases of respiratory illnesses, of things like scabies, from kind of close proximity of people staying in one space but not having any kind of sanitation. We're seeing cases of frostbite, especially with children who are the most vulnerable. You know, there’s children as young as eight sleeping in this abandoned warehouse, and they're completely alone, you know, without parents.

HM: And in terms of the meals, they are getting, you say, they're getting essentially one meal a day. I mean how are people getting by on that?

GP: Exactly. It's essentially a carton of lentils. That's the only thing that sustaining them. We did meet one Afghan boy who is 12 years old, sleeping in this warehouse on his own. He got out and he’d bought a potato and he was kind of peeling this potato in front of us and two hours would cook it later on over a fire made of rubbish. But it's an incredibly dangerous position for a child to be in, because you know there's lots of men, you don't know who's likely to prey on a vulnerable child. There's all sorts of great violations of children that occurred in Calais which is probably the only other place that I've ever seen children quite so vulnerable as I saw in Serbia.

HM: Why is it that we're seeing these thousands of refugees stranded in Serbia right now?

GP: The Serbian government actually put a cap on the amount of refugees and migrants that it said that it had capacity for, and so it said, at the time that Europe made a deal with with Greece and Turkey that, the EU-Turkey deal, where you know money was given to Greece to kind of keep refugees that arrived in Greece in refugee camps with a view to them being sent back in Turkey. When that deal was made, the other countries affected by the refugee crisis in the Balkans basically said, this is how much we've got capacity for. Serbia said that it had capacity for 6000 refugees, it's now reached that, even though an additional 100 refugees and migrants are still arriving every day. The authorities have basically said we've reached capacity. And presumably the reason is that they're hoping that the European Commission would actually turn around and offer some more funding more support or at least a longer term solution.

HM: What happens to them when they try to leave Serbia and head on the rest of their way?

GP: When refugees and migrants try to leave Serbia, they’re generally crossing into Hungary or Croatia, but mainly they're trying to get across the Hungarian border. Now Hungary has a rule where 20 refugees or migrants are allowed to cross every working day, legally, so what people try to do is get onto that list. And then the rest of the people that want to do the crossing will try and cross it irregularly. So what that means is they tend to try and circumvent the author. They put their lives back into the hands of the smugglers. They pay more money. They're also having to resort to more extreme and dangerous and deadly routes. So people arrive at our center in Belgrade where Save the Children is working and they have been on foot for five, six, seven days in the snow. You know we met an Iraqi family who had carried their 8 year old the night through the snow through the mountains in the forest on the border areas. You know, because they're trying to avoid the authorities, because they honestly feel like the smugglers are the only option that they have because there are no safe and legal routes for which they could claim asylum. You know this Iraqi family had fled ISIS. That's why they left and it's little wonder that they are just looking for any country that will take them where they can have a normal life and that children can go to school.

HM: What happens if they get caught illegally leaving Serbia and going to Hungary or Croatia?

GP: Well what we are hearing at Save the Children is that there is a lot of illegal pushbacks, so that's children that are found, you know in the forest, five kilometers into Hungary. And instead of them being taken to an asylum center in Hungary to claim asylum which would be the correct process, they report that they're either beaten, bitten by police dogs, or have their clothes or shoes stolen and then they're basically dumped back over the border in Serbia, so they make their way back to Belgrade. They come to Save the Children’s our area in the aid hub in Belgrade. They get warm. They spend the night. They get fed, and then they set off again for the border. And they do that up to 10 times until they manage to cross.

HM: Serbian authorities have said that they have just added additional temporary asylum space. Will that help with the immediate challenge facing these refugees who are stranded at this camp?

GP: Absolutely. However there are only 450 spaces available in that new temporary emergency shelter that was opened last weekend and there still are 1000 people sleeping in this warehouse, including many children as young as kind of 8, 9, 10 years old. So we need a short term solution from the Serbian authorities which is more temporary accommodation. And we also need a long term solution from Europe which is support for countries that are bearing the brunt of the responsibility for the refugee crisis. And essentially, every European member state needs to offer a solution which might be you know resettlement quotas, relocation, and opportunity for people fleeing war zones like Syria, like Afghanistan, like Iraq. An opportunity for them to reach sanctuary safely, so that their children can grow up and have an education, and they just want to lead normal life. People just keep telling me that they just want to be treated like a human.

HM: Ms. Parkin, thank you very much.

GP: Thank you very much. Appreciate your time.

HM: All right. Good bye.

GP: Cheers, bye.

CH: Gemma Parkin works with Save the Children UK. She just returned from Belgrade, Serbia. We reached her in London via Skype, and you can find more on that story on our website, cbc.ca/aih.

[Music]

Obit Mark Baumer

Guest: William Keller

CH: The first time Mark Baumer walked across America, he was wearing shoes.
That was back in 2010. He walked from Georgia to Los Angeles, just because he could. It took him 81 days.
In October, he set out to cross the country again. But this time, he was doing it to raise money to fight climate change. And he was doing it shoeless.
All along his route, he posted daily video blogs to YouTube.

SOUNDCLIP

MARK BAUMER: Well, oh the flash is on… Anyway, well today is a big day. Day 100 of barefoot across America. I'm in deFuniak Springs, Florida. Yeah, I was going to do something big for the Day 100, but I don't know.
Well this is where I slept last night on this piece of Astroturf, or this green carpet. Pretty good night's sleep.
Welcome to Taco City. Oh they’re closed. Taco City, Taco City is closed today. Oh no.

CH: That was from the last video that Mark Baumer posted. On Saturday, his 100th day of crossing the country, he was killed by a passing SUV. He was 33.
William Keller was Mark Baumer’s friend and roommate. We reached him in Providence, Rhode Island.

HM: Mr. Keller, first of all let me just say I am very sorry for the loss of your friend.

WILLIAM KELLER: Oh, thank you so much.

HM: Who was the Mark Baumer that you knew? What was he to you?

WK: I knew a lot of different versions of Mark Baumer. Of course, many people may be more familiar with the vision of himself that was presented through social media but he was really someone with a lot of depth and so many different traits about him. But there was also a much softer and gentle and compassionate part of him. And he was very empathetic and a wonderful listener and very perceptive, often taken thoughtful pauses.
It always felt that he was so present, a very present person, and I considered him one of my greatest friends. He just had so much compassion and so much fire within him and that part of him would come out in his videos. It was his real core that he was sharing with people through sharing his message.

HM: This was his second time crossing the country on foot. I mean it's almost unimaginable to think somebody doing that once, never mind twice. This time he was doing it to raise money to fight climate change. Why was that so important to him?

WK: He just knew that the way the humans had been treating the world was not sustainable. That really upset him. The motives of the harm being inflicted on the environment which is often related to money and capitalism and greed.

HM: Why was he doing this latest walk without shoes?

WK: Well he wanted to challenge himself. He had done it the first time with shoes. Of course he wanted to see what he was capable of. And walking barefoot for him was symbolic of his hope to decrease his footprint on the environment and to raise as much awareness as he could. He wanted to stand out in that way. It's much more difficult. And so if he could do it without shoes, he knew that more people would hear about it.

HM: What did you think when he first told you this idea?

WK: I thought it was crazy, but you know, I was excited. And I really wanted him to do it what he thought the best.

HM: It was pretty hard on him too right. I mean he did find it difficult.

WK: That’s right. It wasn’t always easy but I think each day who was able to find the beauty in it.

HM: He had a fundraising goal of $10,000 that he’s now more than doubled. How do you think he'd feel about that?

WK: Incredibly, incredibly, tremendously proud of himself. And I have so many mixed emotions now. Of course I’m sad for Mark’s loss, and for so many people’s loss. But when I heard that, I couldn’t be more proud of him, because he succeeded so much more, and in so many ways than he’d ever hoped for I think.

HM: When did you last speak with him.

WK: It was the day before I believe. We talked for… I want to say almost 40 minutes or so. And just bouncing from different ideas and thoughts, you know. I would ask him how his day more. I wish I could remember more, but we were talking almost every day so it didn’t seem like I would have to hold on to it when I was experiencing it.

HM: All right. We played that clip of one of the videos that he had posted. He did that almost every day. He sounded like he had such incredible energy and humor. What do you want us to think about when we think of him?

WK: Oh he’s usually one of the one the most authentic people that I’d ever met. He had such radiance, and such energy within him. And so much fun. He would have so much fun just experiencing life and observing his surrounding and sharing that so much of his experiences have been shared to different outlets. And I think he wanted to just spread positive thoughts to everyone, because he knew that these [unintelligible].

HM: Well, once again, our condolences to you, and your loss, and thank you for speaking to us at this time.

WK: Thank you.

CH: William Keller was the late Mark Baumer’s friend and roommate. We reached him in Providence, Rhode Island. If you want to see some pictures and videos that Mark took along his journey, we've posted some on our website, cbc.ca/aih.

[Music]

SK Oil Spill

CH: Today, on the Ocean Man First Nation in southern Saskatchewan, a crew is cleaning up 200,000 thousand litres of oil.
There are a number of pipelines in the area, operated by at least three different companies. It is not yet clear which company's pipeline is responsible for the spill, but Tundra Energy Marketing Limited has taken the lead in the clean-up.
Connie Big Eagle is the Chief of the Ocean Man First Nation.

SOUNDCLIP

CONNIE BIG EAGLE: We were alerted about the spill on Friday and immediately contacted Tundra, the company. And I was home within two hours and they had things under way to address the spill. It was found on Friday, but the reason one of my band members went looking for it is because he's worked in the oil industry most of his adult life and he recognized the odour and so he took it upon himself to go see what the heck is causing that smell in the air. Because every time they drove by, they could smell it. Thankfully there’s no residences in the area. But just driving by and stuff people could smell it. So he says. They said that that smell was going on for about a week. Tundra, the company says that a plane flew over the area as recently as Tuesday of last week and didn't see anything. So that kind of is a difference… and like I don't know how they didn't see it, when it is in a slew that is surrounded by trees but it's… there's nothing like covering the view of it above like from straight above. So I don't know how that would have happened.

CH: That was Connie Big Eagle, the Chief of the Ocean Man First Nation, speaking this morning. People there are dealing with a spill of 200-thousand litres of crude oil. The clean-up continued today, with the help of vacuum trucks and tomorrow, crews plan to start excavating the land.

[Music]

Blind Vaysha Nomination

Guest: Theodore Ushev

CH: The Oscar nominations were announced today, and to no one's surprise, the Academy fell for the unusual song and dance.
La La Land got fourteen nominations – including one for "Best Actor", for Canadian star Ryan Gosling. And he's not the only Canadian on the list – Montreal animator Theodore Ushev was nominated in the animated short film category "Blind Vaysha". And perhaps unlike Mr. Gosling, whose name was circulated in Oscar-buzz headlines for months, he was taken completely by surprise. We reached Theodore Ushev in Montreal.

HM: Mr. Ushev, take us back to that moment when you learned your film Blind Vaysha, had been nominated for an Oscar.

THEODORE USHEV: Well, I got all the emotions at the same time. First, I cried. After that I laughed, and after that I just freaked out. And after that it's just all excitement. I think that, even I faint, even probably I lost conscience. And I’m absolutely honest about this when I say I don't remember seeing the other nominees up thee. It's just total black out.

HM: How did you find out?

TU: I was watching the nominations. I think if someone sent me a link to Facebook.

HM: You sound like you were pretty taken aback. Did it occur to you that it was even possible that you might get a nomination?

TU: No. Not at all. I didn’t think that it's possible because this year it was extremely fierce and severe competition you know. There were four or five films that are coming from companies connected with Disney. Huge budgets. And I thought that the best that you can do is to find yourself onto the shortlist. And when they announced that I was completely shocked.

HM: Now you have, as I understand it, been on the Academy's radar before, but not gotten to the point of actually being nominated.

TU: Exactly yeah.

HM: So have you been dreaming of this day for a really long time?

TU: I don't dream about that. Everything that I want is to make films and to make good and to send my message to the spectators and the people who watch my film. I prefer that the people are like emotionally touched by what I do, not to be famous if I can say it like this.

HM: Blind Vaysha is a metaphorical tale. It's about a girl who is born with a particular trait or issue. I'm just going to play a quick clip from the trailer.

SOUNDCLIP

[Sound: Thunderclap, organ, drum beat]

One day, a little girl was born. She was called Vaysha. Little Vaysha had been born with a left eye that only saw the past, and a right eye that only saw the future. Vaysha the Blind Girl, this was how everyone came to call her.

HM: It's such an incredible concept. What inspired you to come up with this idea of this girl who has this split vision?

TU: It's a story, a story written by a friend of mine. He's also Bulgarian. I’m Bulgarian by origin. I came to live in Montreal in ‘99 and he wrote that little short story that when I read it I saw it immediately as a film. And we worked together and developed the script. And yeah, that's how it came out.

HM: So what are you trying to say in the film?

TU: The moral of the story is that we don't have to get nostalgia to the past, or fear from the future to spoil our pleasure to live now, to enjoy the day. Seize the day or carpe diem is the message of the film, maybe.

HM: Because there are moments in seeing into the future where the images are pretty dark.

TU: Especially now. Especially now, in those times. I think we have to act now to prevent what can happen into the future.

HM: You mentioned being Bulgarian. How has your heritage influenced your films?

TU: My heritage is like, I got my education there and probably it's mostly into the way how the film looks. The iconography of the film, the action. What I wanted to do was a film that looks like a good old book, because the story that I wanted to make is for kids, from nine to 99 years. So I wanted to look like a book, full, children’s book, kid’s book.

HM: Right. And the visuals are quite interesting. They're scratchy and chiseled looking there. There's really quite timeless. How did you achieve that?

TU: I invented a technique that imitates perfectly a very old technique which is called a linocut. So I was imitating by computer inventing. Like with the software, the way it could look very analogue, look very printed, very handmade. And this is probably that's… this is what makes film more different than the other films that are nominated. And the Academy probably saw in the film that the film is completely different from the trends now. You know all of the major film now are 3D, like quite polished or even plastic. So I assume it's really analog looking. Very handmade.

HM: Canadians always like to embrace the people who are nominated who are Canadian of course. What's it feel like to be in the company that you're in this year?

TU: It's amazing. You know I'm really proud to represent Canada in the Oscars because actually Canada made me a filmmaker. I was not even dreaming to make films before I came here as a graphic designer and illustrator and the National Film Board of Canada enormously. My producer Marc Betrand Julie Roy also basically because of them I'm here. And the company is amazing. You know, we are friends, we came, and we saw each other many many times. He also worked with National Film Board of Canada from sometime. So I'm really proud to represent Canada on the red carpet.

HM: Who's going to be going to the Oscars with you?

TU: For sure my producers and probably my daughter because she craves to be there. She just wants to be there. We'll see. We still have the time yet to think about this. It's all new for us. And I still think that like a dream and I'm afraid someone is going to wake me up.

HM: Mr. Ushev. thank you again for speaking to us and congratulations.

TU: Thank you very much.

HM: Bye.

TU: Bye.

CH: That was Montreal animator Theodore Ushev, who, as of today, can add Oscar-nominated to his title. His short animated film Blind Vaysha is up for a golden statue at this year's Academy Awards.

[Music]

George Krimsky Obit

JD: George Krimsky didn't just cover the world. He worked to make sure the world could cover itself.
Mr. Krimsky was an American journalist who spent his long career reporting on international affairs, and working to support press freedom everywhere. He died on the weekend, at the age of 75.
In February of 1977, Mr. Krimsky spoke with former As It Happens host Barbara Frum. At the time, he had just been expelled as the correspondent for the Associated Press – or AP – in the Soviet Union, after being declared a spy. This is from our archives:

SOUNDCLIP

GEORGE KRIMSKY: I am not a U.S. intelligence agent and I was not involved in currency violation.

BARBARA FRUM: There's a story around today that other American correspondents have been hassled recently and in one case, the correspondent's wife. Do you know about that kind of thing?

GK: Yes I don't know personally of other correspondents being harassed in one way or the other. The UPI correspondent in Leningrad is all alone up there and he’s had a number of problems. His tires have been punctured, a tire from one of his, from his car was stolen and replaced with an old tire and just loosely put on which could cause a serious accident. This kind of thing. There is an increased pressure on correspondents in Moscow.

BF: Well what kind of things were you reporting that they would be so angry about?

GK: Well they don't like the coverage of the Human Rights Movement. In public, they accuse human rights activists, dissidents in the Soviet Union to be anti-Soviet criminals. And they feel that much too much attention is given to this in the West and by Western correspondents in Moscow.

BF: The Soviets just this past weekend have issued some major story suggesting that the entire dissident movement is a fiction and that it's only being generated by Westerners who are trying to make trouble and so on. Were you going to meetings where people could be getting into trouble for meeting with you? Were you involved in kind of message carrying and so on? How much risk is there in doing this kind of thing?

GK: It’s not a question of message carrying. I and other correspondents there conducted perfectly openly. We would, for instance, if there was to be a meeting, you’d drive to the apartment and park right outside the apartment building, go inside, talk with a dissident such as Andrei Sakharov, Yuri Orloff, or Alexander Ginzburg. This is our work anywhere else. Of course, one assumes there was heavy surveillance of these conversations etcetera.

BF: Well those last two in fact are arrested now.

GK: Yes, I know. I know. That’s true.

BF: That's what I mean it's a dangerous activity, at least on the Russian end.

GK: Yes and they know the risks and they're going to take them. They feel that their link with the West is their only hope. As journalists, we can’t regard ourselves as helping the movement or not helping it. That’s not our role. It's a question of news and when we consider a dissident’s story newsworthy, we cover it.

CH: From our archives, that’s American journalist George Krimsky, speaking with former As It Happens host Barbara Frum in February of 1977 after being expelled from the Soviet Union. Mr. Krimsky was assigned to the Middle East where among other things, he covered the bloody civil war in Lebanon. He later went on to establish what became the International Center for Journalists. George Krimsky died on the weekend. He was 75 years old.

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