On air with Calgary community radio station 90.9 FM CJSW, a non-profit based in the University of Calgary // Photo by Bryce Krynski

THE CHEERY BANTER between a cartoon moose and flying squirrel has rung out over Calgary airwaves every Friday afternoon at 2 p.m. for the past 14 years. Dedicated listeners know what the goofy bit signals: it’s time for radio magic.

“And now…”

“Hey, Rocky!” Bullwinkle interrupts. “Watch me pull a rabbit out of this hat.”

“But that trick never works.”

“This time for sure.” Bullwinkle is undaunted. “Presto!”

In drops a charging drum beat and bass line by Juno-winning band Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet. Then, we’re off on another two-hour radio-making experiment on CJSW 90.9 FM, Calgary’s campus and community station. A crowd has assembled in the on-air booth on the third floor of MacEwan Hall at the University of Calgary to hear that storied show intro for the last time. After kicking off the weekend for countless Calgarians over the past decade and a half, Chad Saunders has just kicked off his final show.

“Well hi, everybody. Welcome to My Allergy to the Fans here on Friday, January 8th. So exciting—2016! I hope everyone got their calendars all in order, preferably from their favourite restaurant or mechanic shop and you’re just ready to go. This is the last My Allergy to Fans …”

Saunders stands in front of the microphone, chair pushed back, arms akimbo. CDs and records are strewn in piles to his right. A laptop is flipped open to his left. The sound board, a wide flat console with dozens of knobs, lights, and buttons, concentrates the room’s myriad audio devices at his fingertips.

CJSW’s on-air booth resembles the bridge of some sort of steam-punk spaceship. Cassette decks and turntables rub shoulders with sound mixers and a fleet of monitors. The station’s Twitter feed streams on a screen fixed to the wall while another provides access to the digital library— a growing collection of 7,600 albums. Saunders, however, prefers the frenzy of analogue, manually mixing from vinyl, CDs, cassettes, and his laptop. He manages this flurry of activity while taking calls from listeners and zipping out the door and past an illustrated skateboard deck that reads “The Chad Saunders Music Library” to find the perfect gem among 100,000 meticulously filed albums.

Voted Calgary’s favourite radio personality for six consecutive years, from 2008–2013, Saunders’ inimitable brand of slapdash radio has been incubating since he first walked through CJSW’s doors back in 1990. Over the past 25 years, the lanky 43-year-old has been a volunteer, board member, program director, and served an 11-year tenure as station manager. But now with his full-time gig as the director of operations and special projects for the National Music Centre ramping up with the opening of a new 160,000 sq. ft. facility, Saunders has made the tough call to retire the show. We’ve gathered in the booth to witness him try and pull a rabbit from his hat one last time.

“I see my pals from Blist and Matt Masters,” Saunders looks through the glass at the band setting up in the performance studio. Masters is an alt-country musician who ran as the NDP candidate against Stephen Harper in the last federal election. Sabo Forte and Andy Sparacino, who played the character Tron in the Fubar movies, comprise hip hop duo Blist. The unlikely collaborators, who dub themselves Blasters for the next two hours, are here to mark the end of an era. “They’re getting all warmed up and ready to go,” says Saunders.

With unruly brown hair, a runaway metabolism and goofball sense of humour, Saunders is a charismatic host. But his popularity also speaks to the power and potential of community radio. On CJSW’s airwaves, Saunders had the latitude to take chances. Listeners never knew what was going to happen next. In December, I heard a song in which Fabio, the Italian fashion model, softly intonated about his favourite ways to surprise his girlfriend. That same show included an excerpt from the Baby Pac-Man Read-Along Story Book, as well as vintage soul, garage rock, and plenty of local bands. The freedom Saunders had to speak his mind and play what he wanted allowed for a level of originality not possible on the more regimented mediums of public and commercial radio.

The appeal of community radio’s one-of-a-kind content is enhanced by how listeners are part of the action. Stations rely on their audience for funding, but also to become volunteers and to produce shows. Community radio is participatory from the moment you tune in; listening is a form of self expression. Whenever I see CJSW’s green-andwhite sticker on the back of someone’s car, I feel an instant kinship—an ally in an ongoing effort to realize a weirder, more progressive version of Calgary. The sense of belonging fostered by community radio offers another dimension to listening, one that goes far beyond the passive consumption of entertainment.

All these elements—local focus, crowdfunding, active listeners, and originality—that helped build such a loyal following for My Allergy to the Fans also positions community radio to flourish in the 21st-century media landscape. The relentless tide of free content on the internet has upended the economic model for broadcast television and print publications. Commercial radio is still profitable in Canada, but new online competitors materialize regularly. Community radio’s grassroots, guerilla-style approach to broadcasting presents a resilient media model for the digital age. Examples are starting to emerge of community stations like CJSW stepping up to fill widening gaps in local media coverage.

CJSW’s Donation Wall, designed and illustrated by Silas Kaufman // Photo by Bryce Krynski

CANADA’S BROADCASTING ACT recognizes three sectors—public, private, and community—that make use of the nation’s radio frequencies, which belong to citizens as part of the public domain. The Canadian Radio and Television Commission, which regulates the broadcasting and telecommunications spheres, defines community radio’s role in terms of creating content “rich in local information and reflection.” The medium must also meet the needs of the community not addressed by CBC and private commercial stations. Volunteers are involved in every aspect of running a community station (the main difference for a campus station is that students must also participate).

In 2014, 165 campus and community stations were included in the CRTC’s annual Communications Monitoring Report. Together, they make up 16.3 percent of all the radio and audio services authorized to broadcast in Canada. Barry Rooke, the executive director of the National Campus and Community Radio Association (NCRA), says the number of stations operating today is around 185. He estimates the community radio sector adds between five to 10 stations annually, although the growth of campus stations has flat-lined. The NCRA also has several member stations that don’t require a CRTC license because they broadcast solely with an online stream.

Community radio’s mandate to reflect the richness and diversity of local communities is becoming increasingly important as traditional media outlets continue to disappear. Twenty-two Canadian daily newspapers have closed down over the past five years. For example, Nanaimo’s Daily News and the Guelph Mercury shut down in early 2016. Each paper had served their community for over 140 years. The alternative weekly, FFWD, which ran the popular Best of Calgary survey that crowned Chad Saunders the city’s favourite deejay, published its last issue  in March 2015. And this past January, Postmedia downsized and merged the newsrooms of Calgary’s two major dailies; now one team covers local news for both papers in a city of 1.1 million. Parliament’s Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage formed a panel in late February to study the national crisis of local news coverage in print, broadcast, and digital media.

“People are starting to recognize that there is a gap,” says Rooke, “and they are looking for solutions to find content that suits their street and their neighbourhood.” For example, he adds, when Picton, Ont. station County FM launched in October 2014, it attracted 80 dedicated volunteers within a year. The local programming includes music shows, hourly news updates, and regularly-covered community events. Local stores have turned their dials away from stations in nearby towns and now blast their homegrown one, says Rooke. Having filled the void of local coverage, it’s been embraced by the community.

In addition to practical information about events and local issues, stations like CJSW offer organic and personal connections to manifold communities. At 30 years and counting, Megawatt Mayhem, a weekly two-hour show on CJSW, is Canada’s longest-running heavy metal program and a lifeline for that community in Calgary. The station is also home to several multicultural programs that broadcast in 10 different languages. Community radio is indissoluble from the spot where it’s created. People from a place engage others about that place. This rootedness—which includes old fashioned conversations replete with “ums”, “uhs,” and meandering digressions—keeps the medium relevant.

Ivan Emke, an associate professor in social and cultural studies at Memorial University’s Corner Brook campus in Newfoundland, has seen the transformative effects of community radio first hand. Emke volunteers with Ryakuga, a non-profit communications company that encourages rural communities to experiment with grassroots media projects. Ryakuga has helped several small towns in Newfoundland set up their own community stations. Emke defines humans as meaning-seeking creatures. We continuously process new information in an effort to make the world intelligible. A big part of how we create that meaning is through conversation.

“For isolated communities, including communities that are in the middle of huge urban areas that are themselves an entity or ecosystem,” says Emke, “they need to maintain some sort of control over the story about themselves.” The hosts of Megawatt Mayhem, Kevin Woron and JP Wood, have helped connect Calgary’s heavy metal community over decades of interviews with musicians, information about upcoming shows, and discussions about local bands. Community radio provides the forum for the kind of dialogue and exchange of ideas that allows individuals to rally around a common identity.

Maintaining a volunteer-run radio station, however, is no small feat. Rooke estimates that up to 40 percent of the NCRA’s 95 members are losing money or just managing to stay afloat. Revenues fluctuate wildly from station to station with about a quarter running on less than $12,000 annually. CJSW’s annual budget, by contrast, is $700,000. It supports seven full-time staff members and 300 volunteers, making it a flagship community station in Canada. As a community and campus station, CJSW raises 39 percent of its budget from a student levy. Some of CJSW’s financial stability can also be attributed to its location in a young and affluent city, but the station is also a fundraising superstar—by necessity. Every October, CJSW asks listeners for a significant chunk of its operating expenses. This past October, in the middle of a severe economic downturn, it raised a whopping $255,689 in under eight days, which is a national record for the sector.

Community stations depend on listeners, not advertisers, for survival—but investing during a funding drive also gives listeners a stake in the station. In this way, community radio offers a continuum of belonging versus passive entertainment. At CJSW, you can phone, tweet and, as of February, text the deejay in the booth. All these points of contact encourage people to ramp up their involvement: from listening, texting, and phoning to pledging money, volunteering, and hosting a radio show.

Certainly, something sturdy has taken root on the third floor of MacEwan Hall. This capacity to attract fresh ears while staying relevant to longer lobes is a big part of CJSW’s success. Volunteers range from ages 12–70. New people are attracted to the station while veteran members remain committed. Many Calgary bands, artists, and arts organizations have connections to CJSW. Kerry Clarke has been doing her Thursday afternoon show, Alternative to What, since she moved to Calgary in 1987 to work as CJSW’s program director. She put Saunders on the air for the first time back in 1991. Clarke works as the artistic director for the Calgary Folk Music Festival. Both Reggae Fest and Afrikadey!, big summer cultural festivals, were started by former CJSW deejays. “CJSW has really shaped the community,” says Clarke. “You talk about somebody who is doing something awesome in Calgary and quite often there is a route back to CJSW.”

“HAVE THE BEST TIME,” says Saunders. We’re almost at the show’s halfway mark and he’s chatting on-air with Hayley Muir, whose soul and rockabilly program, Dixie Fried, is moving into the 2 p.m. slot next Friday to take over after My Allergy to the Fans.

“I’m so excited. It’s like, I’m a little nervous,” answers Muir, who is also the singer for local punk band The Shiverettes. Muir and band mate Kaely Cormack founded Femme Wave, a multidisciplinary feminist arts festival, this past November. She started volunteering with CJSW in 2009 and has been doing a radio show almost ever since. Despite all the experience, she’s intimidated by the expectations around her new time slot.

“Why?”

“I don’t know. Well, one of the callers this morning was like, ‘Oh, those are some big goofy shoes to fill,’ and I was like, ‘I know, right!’”

“They’re clown boots and they’re canoe-sized and we just float down the river in the summer in them.”

“Cool. I can do that.”

“That’s how you get to Folk Fest—just hide in the clown shoe,” says Saunders. He dedicates the next song,

“The Name Game” by soul singer Shirley Ellis, to Muir.

The exchange with Muir is classic Saunders. Leapfrog adlibbing is his thing: an off-hand remark expanded into a joke, which sparks into a running theme. He never planned a show the night before because he wanted to react to what was happening that day, whether it was a big news story or a gnarly bout of Calgary weather. In many ways, My Allergy to the Fans was a front row seat to the inner workings of a wild imagination.

One of his jokes is still going strong after 11 years. It began as an April Fool’s prank in 2005. Saunders, along with a few others, hosted the morning show as if the station had been taken over by The Cobra, a commercial station with the tagline “All Metal! All the Time!” The three hosts impersonated over-the-top characters reminiscent of the 1984 rock-music mockumentary This is Spinal Tap. Saunders, clad in a blonde mullet wig, aviator sunglasses, and a skin tight leopard print t-shirt, became Jett Thunders (the costume later added a pair of shimmering pink pants). And then Thunders somehow survived the prank. His trademark blonde mullet and pink pants still haunt Calgary’s music scene. He emcees concerts and music festivals and is the mascot for the Calgary Underground Film Festival. An ’80s-era, classic-rock super fan, Thunders gave a PechaKucha (a TED-style talk that uses slides) lecture in 2013 and regularly chimes in on local issues through his own Twitter and Facebook accounts.

Creative freedom—the ability to take risks, face-plant, and wear mullets—gives community radio an edge on its commercial counterparts in the digital age. And CJSW station manager Myke Atkinson believes it’s only a matter of time before commercial radio falters big. “It’s like a stack of Jenga bricks,” he says, “and they keep pulling one out and, at some point, there are no more things you can take out before the whole thing just falls apart.” Commercial radio’s increasing homogeneity, he argues, will be its downfall. Digital streaming services such as Spotify or Google Play already provide instant access to a greater volume and variety of music. And now Beats 1, Apple’s new 24/7 internet radio station, has live hosts curating shows from New York, Los Angeles, and London. Then, there are our cars: Once they’re manufactured to make listening through a smartphone as seamless as it is to press the button for radio, commercial radio, says Atkinson, is dead.

It’s been decades since commercial radio hosts have chosen what music to play. Letting anyone—never mind a whirling dervish like Saunders—play and chat about the music they love is too big an economic risk. Instead, program directors use software to calibrate each hour so that something appeals to everyone. It’s hard to see how this algorithmic one-size-fits-all approach can survive the rise of online music streaming. While community radio can be messy, it’s always fresh. This past October, CJSW started podcasting—every broadcast is available online to playback on demand. Web traffic has increased fivefold. It would be pointless to time shift commercial radio because it’s too similar from one show to another, from one week to the next.

Community radio’s inherent flexibility has also allowed CJSW to cover events and topics in original ways. In 2010, in the months leading up to the surprise election of Naheed Nenshi, CJSW launched an ambitious municipal election coverage project. Joe Burima, the station’s first full-time news and spoken word director, with the help of an intern and a team of 10 volunteers, interviewed all 88 mayoral and aldermanic candidates. “We felt that an ongoing issue with municipal elections—hell, all elections—is that the public did not have digestible information on candidates and their platforms,” says Burima.

The project put every candidate on an equal footing. Everyone from frontrunners to low-profile candidates were asked the same set of questions. Podcasts of the interviews with aldermanic candidates were posted online as part of an interactive map of the city. Interviews with mayoral candidates were broadcast during morning programs in the last two weeks before the election. Calgary’s 2010 municipal election had the highest voter turnout in over three decades. Fifty-three percent of eligible voters cast a ballot— a 20 percent jump from 2007. A bunch of factors contributed to the higher turnout, but CJSW’s coverage also developed its own momentum and became a respected source of information during the election.

“I WAS ALWAYS A QUITTER,” says Saunders as he brings up the levels on his microphone. The band is performing an ode to My Allergy to the Fans to the tune of Grease’s “Beauty School Drop Out.” Masters, Andy Sparacino, and Sabo Forte harmonize and diverge as they sing the farewell tune. Sparacino hits some surprisingly high notes for a burly guy with a red beard and penchant for trucker hats and flannel shirts. The song is funny, but also poignant.

“I quit that beauty school and for 14 years I just spent some time doing this radio show, but imagine all the perms that I saved the world from,” says Saunders. He drops the levels on the band to talk and then raises them again. “We’re going to do this for hours until you fade us out,” says Masters.

The Blasters pick up extra members as more musicians stop by to bid Saunders adieu. The performance studio is packed with instruments and crisscrossing wires, but the audio quality is excellent. In 2009, CJSW expanded from a dank hodgepodge of subterranean corridors to the airy environs of MacEwan Hall’s third floor. State-of-the-art equipment and bright open spaces give the station a more modern atmosphere. After moving into the new space, staff and volunteers set to work increasing the power of the broadcast signal from 4,000 to 18,000 watts, developing online podcasting, digitizing the library, and allowing listeners to text deejays in the booth.

Recently, CJSW launched Coming Up Calgary, an online event listing, including details for everything from Flames games to spoken word open mics. It’s a direct response to the shuttering of FFWD Weekly, whose listings CJSW hosts relied on to discuss local events. Coming Up Calgary is an extension of the station’s mandate, but it’s also a new frontier—a move beyond radio. Many volunteers also create their own podcasts, some of which quickly find traction and get thousands of downloads through iTunes.

Community radio remains beset by obstacles: fundraising, developing an audience, finding resources—it goes on and on. But the medium also has remarkable potential. Community radio is proving its resilience during a paradigm shift in how we learn and communicate about the places that we live. Calgary is a much richer place to call home because a ragtag collection of 300 amateurs have access to a broadcasting signal that reaches the city limits and beyond.

“Matt Masters and Blist, everybody. You guys are my Bruce Springsteen moment, that’s all I can say. Alright, gang. Signing off—My Allergy to the Fans. Blist, Matt Masters—thank you for joining me. Not enough words,” Saunders’ voice cracks. He hits play on his last song and The Beach Boys’ “Wouldn’t it be Nice” floods through thousands of speakers and eardrums across Calgary. Radio magic.

Photo: TXTILEcity

I take my hat off to the Textile Museum of Canada’s cool new project, TXTILEcity. Besides giving Torontonians a legit reason to walk down the street stuck to their smartphones, this interactive project uses Google map technology, and video and audio clips to relay the social, cultural, economic and artistic history behind Toronto’s textile and clothing industries.

The museum partnered with the digital arts non-profit Year Zero One and murmur Toronto for this self-directed walking tour of the city. If you’ve experienced murmur’s audio tours before, TXTILEcity works in a similar fashion. There are TXTILEcity signs posted throughout the city’s downtown core. When you see one, call the number and listen to an audio history of that location, its significance to the city and the textile industry. Or, if you are carrying a smart phone, there is an Apple- and Android-friendly app that provides the audio, plus video interviews and archival footage (or you can stay home in air conditioning and access everything from the website or YouTube, but that’s not as much fun as standing on Spadina listening to your own private history lesson).

The content ranges from discussions about Urban Outfitters and the gentrification of Queen Street West to Joe Mimran recalling the first Club Monaco, to the history of the Hudson Bay blanket. At the AGO, curator Michelle Jacques talks about the relationship between contemporary art and textiles through Germaine Koh’s Knitwork. The artist has been unraveling knitwear and re-knitting the yarn into a long, continuously growing worm-like entity since 1992.

But the history of workers rights and activism in the textile industry is the main thread of the tour. For instance, 483 Bay Street (by the Eaton’s Centre) is where the Eaton’s factory used to stand. The conditions were so deplorable that in 1912, 1,000 workers went on a three-month strike. Afterward, some of the organizers opened their own factories on Spadina, marking the beginning of the garment district as we know it today.

Just like the physical Textile Museum of Canada (if you haven’t been there in person, go!), TXTILEcity is an unsung gem, sharing stories and artifacts that otherwise would remain forgotten or ignored.

Looking for answers: Alex Colville, "To Prince Edward Island" (1965). Copyright National Gallery of Canada.

Their jobs sound like an oxymoron in Canada’s present political climate; arts professionals earn about half the average national income per year, a large chunk of which comes from grants. That public funding is in danger since Stephen Harper made it perfectly clear he doesn’t consider the arts a priority. Given that the main agenda of his Conservative majority is to balance the budget, the Canada Council Canadian Conference of the Arts recently predicted cuts of “at least $175 million” to arts, culture and heritage. And two weeks ago, adding insult to the threat of injury, Sun TV attacked interpretive dancer Margie Gillis by distorting grant tallies in a ham-fisted effort to devalue the arts. In this state of worry and frustration, what can bring some sanity back to Canadian arts policy?

Jeff Melanson, currently co-CEO the National Ballet School, and soon to be president of The Banff Centre, made a provocative suggestion at a talk in late May hosted by the Literary Review of Canada: a new Massey Commission.

Canada’s “Magna Carta of arts and culture,” as the commission’s report was nicknamed, was released in 1951. The detailed document gave advice on the state of Canada’s arts, sciences, humanities, and media based on three premises:

1. Canadians should know as much as possible about their country’s culture, history and traditions
2. We have a national interest to encourage institutions that add to the richness of Canadian life
3. Federal agencies that promote these ends should be supported

With then University of Toronto Chancellor Vincent Massey at the reins, the commissioners were poised to spur government spending in the arts. But before I let you in on their recommendations, let’s set the stage with some juicy historical context.

History of the Massey Commission

Rewind 67 years. Canada was nearing the end of the Second World War, a key part of which was fought using propaganda. Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia needed to keep their populations confused and complacent; the U.S. and Canada wanted their citizens to buy liberty bonds and join the army. Information and creative expression were deployed against the masses.

Before the war, Canada’s government had no real investment in the arts. The turning point came when arts groups began calling on their government to support culture as a way of protecting democracy.

As a negative argument, stifling creativity is censorship’s equal. As a positive argument, the arts play a role in driving democracy through freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression. (Thank you section 2(b) of the Charter.) Citizens who think critically and express their ideas creatively are a basic part of any healthy democracy — they hold government accountable.

After the war was over, Canada’s government created the Royal Commission on National Development in the Arts. Two years later, the commission produced a body of research and advice that blossomed into an independent institution by 1957. To this day, many artists still fiercely protect the Canada Council for the Arts as if their lives depended on it—which for some is pretty close to the truth.

The report’s key recommendation

Please direct your gaze to section 15 (XV) of the Massey report: “The Artist and The Writer.” Here you will find a time capsule detailing the state of such creative endeavors as music, theatre, ballet, painting, architecture, literature, and Aboriginal arts. It is, I think, a must-read for all artists — and any naysayers. It will remind them that Canada indeed has written policy that places high value in artistic work.

This section begins with the suggestion that the extent to which a nation supports its artists is a measure of how civilized it is. Just how civilized was Canada back then? The report quotes the Arts Council:

“No novelist, poet, short story writer, historian, biographer, or other writer of non-technical books can make even a modestly comfortable living by selling his [or her] work in Canada. No composer of music can live at all on what Canada pays him[/her] for his[/her] compositions. Apart from radio drama, no playwright, and only a few actors and producers, can live by working in the theatre in Canada. Few painters and sculptors, outside the fields of commercial art and teaching, can live by sale of their work in Canada.”

This raised a vital question for the commissioners: if artists were so undervalued that they could barely sustain themselves, how could they gain funding? It only made sense for taxpayers to chip in — to protect Canada’s democracy and “civilize” our apparent philistinism.

The commission urged the resurrection of the Canada Council as an arms-length body. It would boost not-for-profits, promote artists abroad, and dish out scholarships. The independence of this body was key. As Margie Gillis calmly pointed out in the midst of Sun TV’s sensationalism, the government does not fund Canadian artists directly; instead it endows funds to the Canada Council. The Council consists of no more than 11 respected artists and educators who hold their positions for no more than four years each. Grant recipients are selected through a fair and open process.

A new commission on the arts

Today many of the report’s recommendations are dated. For example, Massey’s posse tagged radio as a “new technology.” While it remains an important medium, radio has been swallowed alive by the web and social media. Artists have harnessed these newer mediums for creative projects, including this fabulous example.

But technology is far from the report’s only concern. As Tom Perlmutter, chair of the National Film Board of Canada, told the Toronto Star:

“What we need now is not one particular policy patchwork fix but the new Massey-Levesque for the 21st century. We need to rethink the fundamental conceptual framework that can give rise to the cultural policies that will serve us for the next 60 years.”

Whether it is updated or started again from scratch, this not-yet-conceived report should be the brainchild of Canadian artists. They should review those ever-important premises about promoting the historical and cultural richness of our country. They should reassess how creative minds are using technology. They should research how Canada’s cultural policies compare to those abroad. And, most importantly, they must underline the fundamental reason that Canadians support the arts financially: the health and vibrancy of our democracy.

Compiled by Dylan C. Robertson & Victoria Salvas

This election means death. Not only have Ottawa scrums, filibusters, and drawn-out committees been killed, pieces of legislation making their way through parliament have all met a harsh end as politicians take to the campaign trail.

Before a bill becomes law, it is introduced in either the House of Commons or the Senate. Subsequently the bill goes through readings where it is introduced, given a number code and debated. It can be read again, amended then passed, from the House to the Senate but only becomes law if it is given Royal Assent by the Governor General.

But bills are stopped in their tracks when an election is called. We tracked down the people who pioneered five of the most important bills that died on the order paper when the writ dropped. We asked what they thought of the abrupt death of their projects and if they’ll attempt rebooting them.

While government bills (titled C- with a number under 201) can be reintroduced at an advanced phase with the consent of the House, private members’s bills and motions are entered in a lottery to determine their Order of Precedence, meaning the order in which they can be re-introduced. Only 30 members per session have their motions considered, although the list is replenished if all motions are dealt with.

Here’s a look at the five bills that may or may not rise again:

1. Cheaper HIV Drugs:

Bill C-393, An Act to amend the Patent Act (drugs for international humanitarian purposes), was introduced by then NDP MP Judy Wasylycia-Leis in May 2009. After she left to run for mayor of Winnipeg, the bill was adopted by another NDP MP, Paul Dewar.

The bill, which came to be known as “the AIDS drug bill” would’ve allowed generic drug makers to supply their products to developing countries, so they could fight diseases like tuberculosis and malaria, and help the world’s 15 million AIDS victims. Apotex Inc. had promised to make much-needed antiretrovirals for children, should the legislaiton pass. The bill, which was passed earlier this month by the House of Commons, was sabotaged by its review committee and then by the Conservatives’s attempt to effectively whip the senate, feeling it would hinder Big Pharma.

“It’s pretty outrageous,” said Richard Elliott, executive director of the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network. “This bill had a lot of potential, and we pushed really hard to get it to pass. We had a lot of support from MPs in all parties.”

Dewar said he plans to reintroduce the bill. “We have to abolish the senate though, first,” he laughed. “That’s my plan. Well I’m just joking… but not really.” Dewar noted the bill was lucky to be successfully transferred after Wasylycia-Leis’s leave, as it is not an automatic process. “It was revived when actual co-operation broke out in the House of Commons,” he said. “Through unanimous consent, I was able to pick the bill up. “I’m ready, able, and willing to carry it forward after the election,” said Dewar, who hopes it ranks high in the order or precedence. “There’s so much public support for it. I don’t think they could get away with this again.”

2. Civilizing parliament:

Private Member’s Motion M-517 proposed a reform of Question Period. Conservative MP Michael Chong’s pet project aimed to civilize parliament’s most savage — and ironically unproductive — 45 minutes each sitting day.

The motion sought to strengthen how much discipline a speaker can give, lengthen the alloted time for each question and answer, and aimed at “examining the convention that the minister questioned need not respond.”

“Parliament needs to be reformed and I think the reform of parliament should begin with the reform of Question Period,” said Chong. If passed, the motion would have also stipulated who should be asked questions, most notably dedicating Wednesday exclusively for questions to the Prime Minister, and requiring ministers be present for two of the other four days. Chong noted that he was listed in the Order of Precedence for the first time in six years, and said he would re-table his motion in the rare chance he was listed for the next session. “I’m disappointed that the committee didn’t have a chance to deal with it before the election.”

Chong explained that while many members add motions and bills to the order paper solely to generate publicity for an issue, he fully intends to enact this reform. “I’ll continue to work on this issue through whatever mechanisms are available to me after the election,” said Chong. “Because this problem isn’t going away and I think Canadians want it to be addressed.”

3. Protecting trans rights:

Bill C-389, An Act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code (gender identity and gender expression), was a private member’s bill sponsored by NDP MP Bill Siksay. Introduced in early 2009, the legislation would have make it illegal to discriminate based on gender identity, and aimed to protect transgender individuals by amending the Human Rights Act.

These amendments would have also been made to the Criminal Code, rendering these acts of discrimination hate crimes. The House passed the bill in February, against Stephen Harper’s wishes. However, the fact that it received “unanimous support from the Bloc, several Conservatives, and the Liberals bodes well for the next parliament” says Siksay. The MP is confident in the future of the bill; passing it again will demonstrate the governments’ “commitment to human rights.”

4. Improving First Nations’ water:

Bill S-11 Safe Drinking Water for First Nations Act, was introduced in May 2010 and would have developed federal regulations for governing water provision, disposal and quality standards in First Nations communities.

An issue that has received much attention recently is the issue of providing First Nations reserves with safe drinking water. An assessment from 2001-2001 found that three quarters of the drinking water systems in First Nations communities were at risk.

Despite the dire situation on many reserves, many First Nations leaders criticized the bill, feeling they were left out of the creating of the legislation and not offered funding to get it off the ground. The Assembly of First Nations felt that the bill presented lofty goals but sparse plans for financial investment and support, which in the long run, could leave reserves in worse condition.

5. Copyright reform:

Bill C-32, An Act to amend the Copyright Act, was the third attempt at copyright reform killed by an election call, dragging on a 14-year effort.

The bill sparked controversy for attempting to criminalize the use and promotion of software that circumvents digital locks, generating high-profile criticism, a minister’s comment that critics were “radical extremists,” and an indutry-led astroturfing campaign. But the bill also aimed at tackling online piracy, and making it legal to transfer music from CDs to iPods.

MP Tony Clement, who introduced the bill as Minister of Industry, told us he plans to reintroduce the bill if re-elected. “It’s just another example of important legislation that has now been discontinued because of the opposition parties passing a motion of non-confidence,” said Clement. “This is a very necessary piece of legislation to help regularize certain habits of consumers and also protect artists from wealth-destroying pirates. “I’m hoping that if we get a majority government, we can actually concentrate on the issues like C-32 and privacy protection and other aspects of the digital economy.”

Today’s the day! Heritage Minister James Moore will apparently introduce new legislation to update Canada’s copyright laws this afternoon. Michael Geist, the usual go-to guy for all discussion on this topic, has a quick introduction on his site. Basically, fair dealing will remain pretty strict; Geist has complimentary things to say about how internet intermediaries like ISPs will be treated; and then we get to the mess that is digital locks and DRM:

Third, the bill will include digital lock provisions, known as anti-circumvention rules.  These rules, which will allow Canada to implement international copyright treaties it signed over ten years ago, was the most-discussed issue during the consultation.  Thousands of Canadians argued that Canada should adopt a flexible implementation that renders it illegal to “pick a digital lock” for the purposes of copyright infringement, but preserves the right to do so for legal purposes.

Sources say the government has rejected the flexible approach in favour of the U.S.-style ban on circumvention (subject to a handful of limited exceptions).  If true, the problem with the approach is that it undermines both the new and existing exceptions.  For millions of Canadians, that means that their user rights will be lost whenever a digital lock is present including for CDs, DVDs, electronic books, and many other devices.  In the process, the balance will tilt strongly away from consumers and their property rights over their own purchases.

In other words, any fair dealing privileges that you could have enjoyed previously can be revoked if publishers include some  lame, already-cracked DRM junk in their products.

The Trotsky resembles any number of previous high school comedies. Kid pisses off father, kid is sent to a new school as punishment, kid wins his way into the hearts of a new group of friends, kid unites school against a common enemy and becomes the hero of the day. Modify the formula slightly and you get Mean Girls, or Rushmore, or a host of other U.S. teen comedies.

Leon Bronstein (Jay Baruchel) speaks to E-Talk Daily in The Trotsky. Copyright Alliance Films.

There’s no doubt The Trotsky has big potential for mass appeal, but sneaking a little Canada (or a lot) into the film hasn’t seemed to hurt it. And Canada isn’t just present in the form of its Montreal backdrop. Colm Feore, who’s had his fair share of acclaim north and south of the border and who plays the villainous Principal Berkoff in the The Trotsky, muses that “The Canadian-ness of this film is our genius for subversion while playing it straight…The gags are layered in. There are political statements under the political statements.”

Mainstream and underground films produced in both English and French Canada seem to be moving away from the brand of canned Canadiana that marked the industry for decades, instead embracing a more self-assured tone—but one that, being Canadian, whispers rather than shouts.

Back in July of 2009, the Canadian government launched an eight week public consultation on copyright reform.  Members of the public were invited to let their will be known surrounding issues such as fair use, copyright terms, ISP neutrality and a host of other issues. With over 8,300 respondents in total an astounding 6183 people made it known that they opposed another bill C-61 (a meager 54 respondents favoured the bill)

Bill C-61, of course, was the draconian U.S. DMCA-style copyright reform bill that former Industry Minister Jim Prentice introduced to parliament in June of 2008. The bill was ultimately abandoned when an election was called that fall, but has remained on the periphery since. The Conservatives have attempted to pass copyright reform three times without public consultation, bending to the will of industry lobbyists.

So, finally, the public has spoken and in near unison oppose the claustrophobic sanctions of bill C-61. Canadians, in fact, are a much more generous and trusting population than we could have guessed. The overwhelming majority support stronger fair use/fair dealing protection, shorter copyright terms, and believe individuals should be protected from liability for non-commercial use. Moreover, as popular as lightening copyright restrictions was, the opposite is equally equally true: only 153 respondents favour limiting or halting unauthorized filesharing and only one, one single respondent, supported fining those for copyright violation.

So what does this mean?  Essentially, Canadians are asking for the very opposite of what the government has been trying to pass for years. The question now is whether current Industry Minister Tony Clement is listening.

After the jump, the full results of the questionnaire, courtesy Michael Geist:

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