JULY 10, 2026
The Father of Medicare
On this day in history – July 10, 1944 – a Baptist minister became premier of Saskatchewan, an event that would reshape the future of health care in Canada. Born in Scotland in 1904, Thomas “Tommy” Douglas immigrated with his family to Winnipeg at age seven, before moving to the province where he made his name. As a preacher, he believed faith should inspire political action, delivering fiery sermons about “building a society that would uplift mankind,” a conviction he carried into politics as the leader of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF). During five terms as premier, Douglas transformed Saskatchewan into a laboratory for social reform, introducing North America’s first universal, publicly funded medicare system. In 1961, as the founding leader of the New Democratic Party, he helped push the governing the federal Liberal government toward landmark social programs, including medicare and expanded old-age pensions. Universally revered, Douglas was named the winner CBC’s 2004 contest, The Greatest Canadian, edging out Pierre Elliott Trudeau and Terry Fox. At the 2010 unveiling of a statue in Weyburn, Sask., his grandson, actor Kiefer Sutherland, reflected: “My grandpa never wanted a monument. His work was going to be his legacy.”
JULY 8, 2026
Ghost Ship
The first haunting images of explorer Ernest Shackleton’s legendary ship Quest, which lies 390 metres beneath the Labrador Sea, were released Tuesday, revealing the vessel’s pronounced bow and shattered mast cloaked in coral after more than six decades on the ocean floor. Shackleton, an Anglo-Irish explorer, became a worldwide sensation in 1916 after his ship Endurance, on a voyage to Antarctica, became trapped in pack ice; he led a legendary, 1,300-kilometre journey to South Georgia island to summon help and eventually rescue the entire crew – one of exploration’s greatest feats. Determined to return to the South Pole, Shackleton bought the Quest in 1922, but died of a heart attack shortly after setting sail from London, marking the end of the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. The ship later served as a whaler before sinking off Labrador in 1962. On Tuesday, a Canadian Royal Geographical Society sent a submersible down to the Quest’s watery grave to capture images of the wreck. “Suddenly, you see the bow of the ship emerging from the darkness,” said John Geiger, who led the expedition. “You start to think about Shackleton, where that ship has been. It’s very moving.”
JULY 6, 2026
Salad Daze
While headlines often focus on the soaring cost of steak (up 182 percent since 2020) and ground beef (up 73 percent), they’re hardly the only culprits causing grocery-store sticker shock. Statistics Canada says that food prices have climbed 4.3 percent over the past year, outpacing the national inflation rate of 3.2 percent. Even healthy basics are taking a bigger bite out of household budgets with cucumbers now costing 28 percent more than they did a year ago, tomatoes up a shocking 45 percent, and carrots (carrots!) up 16 percent – the once affordable produce aisle now seems like a luxury shopping outing. As nearly one in four Canadians – 9.8 million people, including many seniors – experience food insecurity (according to Right to Food Canada), beginning this month, the federal government has begun issuing Canadian Groceries and Essential Benefits cheques (formerly the GST/HST Credit). Available to eligible low-income Canadians, the yearly benefit provides a 25 percent boost, up to $679 for singles and $890 for couples, offering some relief in a time when “just picking up a few things for salad” too often leaves one feeling green.
