Podcasts about WestJet

An aircraft dispatcher describes how weather, war, space launches, and other disruptions can throw airline operations into chaos. In the news, Rolls-Royce on the open-rotor engine design, pilots petition SpaceX Starlink over a price increase, an NTSB board member is fired, Lufthansa changes the carry-on policy for violins, and Barbados controllers stage an unexpected strike. Guest Mike Karrels is an aircraft dispatcher and air traffic manager for the Southeast U.S. with a major U.S. carrier, and he's also a pilot. That combination gives him a unique view of how decisions get made when things don't go as planned. Mike describes the aircraft dispatcher as the captain's partner on the ground. The two share responsibility for operational control of the flight, which means they work together to decide if a flight should continue, divert, or turn back. When an unplanned event hits, the dispatcher is often the first one building the big-picture view: what's happening, who it affects, and what options are actually realistic. Sometimes the disruption is regional. An airport closes, weather rolls in, military operations pop up, or a space launch creates airspace that suddenly can't be used. In those cases, it's not just about one flight. Crews and aircraft can end up scattered in the wrong places, the passengers need to be taken care of, and the operation has to be reassembled. Aircraft dispatchers and other teams work together to untangle that mess and put airplanes and people back where they need to be. Other times, it's just one airplane with a problem. Maybe a mechanical issue, a medical situation, or conditions deteriorating at the destination. The aircraft dispatcher has to make a decision. Divert to another airport? Return to the origin? Each choice has tradeoffs. Mike walks through the kinds of factors that come into play. Beyond passenger impact and safety, aircraft dispatchers look at things like whether there's ground staff at the diversion airport, what kind of ground transportation is available, and how quickly the airplane can be turned around and put back into service. Crew duty and rest rules are another major piece: a decision that solves the immediate problem might leave a crew out of legal flying time later, stranding passengers or aircraft. On top of government regulations, airlines often layer on their own rules. For example, there may be company policies about diverting into an uncontrolled field, even if it's technically legal. Dispatchers have to navigate both sets of requirements while still making timely decisions in a dynamic situation. Getting to that level of responsibility takes serious training and certification. Aircraft dispatchers are required to understand aircraft performance, weather, navigation, regulations, and company procedures. They also need to stay aware of the geopolitical environment. Overflight restrictions, conflict zones, and international rules all shape where a flight can and should go on a given day. Spaceflight adds yet another wrinkle. Mike talks about the Aircraft Hazard Area, or AHA, around space launches: the region where debris might fall if something goes wrong. Those areas can close significant chunks of airspace and affect routes and alternates, even for flights that seem far from the launch site. Mike owns a share of a vintage 1963 Beechcraft Musketeer. He produced the Flying and Life podcast, where he shared stories and perspectives from both sides of the cockpit door. The back catalog of those episodes is still available for anyone who wants to dive deeper into the world of flight dispatch and everyday aviation life. See: FAA: Airplanes should stay far away from SpaceX's next Starship launch Environmental Impact Statement, SpaceX Starship-Heavy Launch Vehicle at Launch Complex 39A [PDF] New Glenn AHA Aviation News Rolls-Royce remains unconvinced that open-rotor benefit outweighs integration risk What type of engine (or engines) will be offered on next-generation single-aisle aircraft? Will it be an open-rotor (an unducted fan) or a conventional ducted fan engine? What will the airframers want and what will the engine OEMs offer? All those questions are unanswered. In wind tunnel tests ten years ago, RR looked at open-rotor noise and high-speed performance. More recently, the company validated its previous work and sees propulsion efficiency advantages. RR sees two areas of concern: risk and integration issues. Integration issues include: engine noise entering the cabin that would have to be attenuated, protecting against a blade-out event, aerodynamic interaction with the wing, and the effect on overall aerodynamics. Rolls-Royce director of research and technology Alan Newby says the company is unconvinced the open-rotor is the way to go, saying, “I can do windtunnel work. I can do simulations, if you like, and I can go and fly on an A380. But the time you realise whether it works or not is when you run that first engine on your production aircraft. That's a long way down the road. That discovery of risk is a long time in the process.” After considering performance and risk, Newby says Rolls-Royce favours the ducted fan configuration: “We've gone into it with our eyes open. We've looked at the previous data. And, on balance, we're sticking with what we've got. We think it's the right solution.” Rolls-Royce makes a play for narrowbody aircraft engines with £3bn UltraFan 30 programme In February 2026, Rolls-Royce revealed a mock-up of the ducted UltraFan 30 concept with a geared turbofan. The company is looking for up to £200 million in UK government support to help fund development and testing of a scaled demonstrator. More than £500 million has already been invested. The overall program could cost around £3 billion. The Rolls-Royce UltraFan 30 narrowbody engine is a 30,000 lb thrust-class geared turbofan derived from Rolls-Royce's UltraFan architecture. It features a 90-inch fan and targets up to 20% better fuel burn than current engines. Ground testing is from 2028, with entry into service targeting 2035. Pilots Petition Starlink Following Shift to New Speed Tiers Airlines are switching to SpaceX Starlink service on their airplanes. Many GA pilots use the compact Mini dish and a Roam plan because it gives them the ability to use phone and tablet applications for real-time weather access, flight planning updates, and communications. SpaceX has changed its Starlink in-motion service offerings, which moves many GA pilots into a higher-priced plan. A change.org petition, Request reinstatement of Starlink roaming plans for pilots has been created and signed by thousands of pilots: “For those of us in general aviation, Starlink has been nothing short of a revolution. As a general aviation pilot, having Starlink service on board has dramatically enhanced my flying experience, improving not only my situational awareness but also my ability to access up-to-date weather and airport safety information while airborne. These capabilities are critical to ensuring the safety and efficiency of our flights, and allow us to maintain communication with others while traveling, providing peace of mind to both pilots and our loved ones.” “However, Starlink has recently made the disappointing decision to raise the cost of the plans serving general aviation by 5 times, while providing less than half of the data of the previous plans simply based on the speed that our planes travel.  Many of us are not commercial operations nor traveling near the speeds that these plans are targeting.” “We urge Starlink to reconsider their decision and reinstate the roaming plans with a speed that accommodates general aviation…” The Current in-motion speed limits for Roam, Local Priority, and Global Priority (land/sea use) are up to 100 mph in motion. Above that, Starlink expects you to move to an aviation plan. The new Aviation 300MPH plan is $250 per month and includes 20 GB of data, with overage billed at $10 per GB. The new Aviation 450MPH plan is $1,000 per month and includes 20 GB of data, with additional data billed at $50 per GB. Includes land and ocean coverage. NTSB board member Inman says he was fired by White House A Republican member of the U.S. National ​Transportation Safety Board said on Sunday he was fired on Friday ‌by the White House without any explanation. Todd Inman, a former chief of staff to Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, was fired ‌by the White House, at the time without any explanation. Inman had served on the ​NTSB since April 2024. White House says NTSB member was fired for inappropriate alcohol use, harassment After the firing, a White House statement said, “The White House lawfully removed Todd Inman from the NTSB after receiving highly concerning reports of inappropriate alcohol use on the job, harassment of staff, misuse of government resources, and failure to attend at least half of NTSB meetings. Inman told Politico, “I categorically deny the allegations made in the White House statement. It has become increasingly obvious this action was a political hit job. While not my original intent, I look forward to defending my reputation through all legal means possible.” Lufthansa Softens Violin Policy After Backlash Over “Naked Violin” Incident Lufthansa strictly limits carry-on baggage item dimensions to 55 x 40 x 23 cm. At the same time, the airline allows violins and other small musical instruments to travel in the cabin free of charge. However, many standard violin cases are greater than 55 cm in length. That means the options are to check the instrument or purchase a second seat. The classical music community exploded after a viral video of a musician carrying a violin onboard without the case. Lufthansa now says airline staff can exercise more flexibility to allow small instruments in the cabin. The combined dimensions of the hand luggage cannot exceed 125 centimeters. In the United States, federal law requires airlines to allow small instruments such as violins onboard if they can be safely stowed in the cabin. Europe has no equivalent rule, leaving each airline to develop its own policy. See: Tom Paxton – Thank You, Republic Airlines (1985) Dave Carrol & Sons of Maxwell (2009) – United Breaks Guitars Carlton Cases Multiple Planes Performed ‘Flights to Nowhere' After Air Traffic Controllers Stage Shock Walkout After an unsanctioned strike by air traffic controllers, the Barbados Ministry of Tourism and International Transport said that the airspace over the country was shut down for about seven and a half hours. The March 7, 2026, job action left passengers at the island's Grantley Adams International Airport stranded. The controllers were protesting a number of grievances, including staff shortages. These have caused controllers to assume additional responsibilities without extra compensation. An emergency meeting was held with the Barbados Workers' Union and the National Union of Public Workers, which represent air traffic controllers. They returned to work, and another meeting is scheduled for March 11, 2026. Delta, United, Air Canada, JetBlue, and WestJet flights to Barbados were impacted. Hosts this Episode Max Flight, our Main(e) Man Micah, and Rob Mark.

Send a textWelcome to the What's Up in Business Travel  podcast for Week 8 of 2026.  This weekly podcast is great for those who need to know what's happening in the world of business travel - in under 15 minutes.On this week's podcast, we cover the following stories:United & JetBlue expand Blue Sky partnershipNorth American On-Time performance reboundsAir Canada reports record Q4 and strong year resultsExpedia Group leans into AI and direct booking growthUnited to acquire O'Hare Gates from SpiritEurope's Entry/Exit System causes airport delaysAir Transat exits U.S. market due to demand dropNavan Study highlights transparency challengesIxigo launches airport cab serviceSouthwest rolls out Starlink WiFi Uber expands Autonomous Vehicle rolloutAmadeus to decommission self-service developer portalOTAs gain share in Tours and ActivitiesSabre and WestJet extend technology partnershipYou can subscribe to this podcast by searching 'BusinessTravel360' on your favorite podcast player or visiting BusinessTravel360.comThis podcast was created, edited and distributed by BusinessTravel360.  Be sure to sign up for regular updates at BusinessTravel360.com - Enjoy!Support the show

Plus: Ukraine marks four years since Russia's invasion, U.S. President Donald Trump's State of the Union address, and the U.S. Men's Hockey team is under fire. We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us: Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca  Or @thebigstory.bsky.social on Bluesky

This episode is available in audio format on the Let's Talk Loyalty podcast and in video format on www.Loyalty.TV.TELUS is one of Canada's largest telecommunications companies, serving millions of customers across mobile, internet, TV, and digital health services. What makes TELUS particularly interesting from a loyalty perspective is how they've evolved their interactions with TELUS Services customers (mobility, internet, security and TV) through a new national tiered program, TELUS Rewards, that combines points and perks with extension into some major leading category partnerships and their programs, including WestJet.Aaron Dauphinee sat down with Jacob Pullia, Director of Content, Strategy & Business Development is he leads the way in redefining how TELUS thinks about loyalty and their mandate of putting customers first. We also spend some time discussing partnership models and why the connection with WestJet makes sense for both organizations and their joint customers.Hosted by Aaron DauphineeShow notes:1) Jacob Pullia2) TELUS Rewards3) TELUS4) Book Recommendation: Personalized Customer Strategy in the Age of AI

Greg Brady spoke with Claire Newell, Travel Consultant with Travel Best Bets about Air Canada, WestJet, Air Transat to resume flights Tuesday as Canadians remain stranded in Puerto Vallarta in wake of cartel violence. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Greg Brady spoke with Claire Newell, Travel Consultant with Travel Best Bets about Air Canada, WestJet, Air Transat to resume flights Tuesday as Canadians remain stranded in Puerto Vallarta in wake of cartel violence. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In episode 33 of Miles Ahead: The Canadian Points Podcast, Daniel, Jeff, and Josh from FrugalFlyer.ca share practical ways to get strong value from small leftover points balances through unique flight and hotel redemptions. They cover Flying Blue Promo Rewards (often costing 18,750 miles to Europe in economy class), Virgin Atlantic's 6,000-mile East Coast–London option (with high fees), and Atmos Rewards partner sweet spots for short-haul Porter/American flights (costing 4,500–7,500 miles). They also discuss American Airlines and Aeroplan dynamic pricing (including occasional ~6,000-point deals), booking WestJet via SkyMiles or Flying Blue with favorable change and cancellation policies. Plus, Iberia's seasonal Toronto–Madrid service offers excellent value (available for 16,000 Avios economy or 34,000 points in business off-peak) in addition to several frequent flyer programs that offer free or almost free stopovers to help you visit additional destinations for minimal cost. For hotels, they recommend using Marriott points in cheaper regions like Southeast Asia/Middle East, topping up small balances via Amex-to-Marriott transfers, leveraging World of Hyatt's fixed award chart (from 3,500 points), transferring or sharing hotel loyalty program points with others, and niche Wyndham uses, including cash+points quirks and Wyndham Experiences.

Air Canada and West Jet are among the several airlines who've suspended travel to Cuba, as the country grapples with a Venezuelan oil blockade at the hands of US President Trump. As a result, the Island remains in critical condition, with the fuel shortage threatening electricity grids, and supply levels of basic necessities quickly dwindling. Host Caryn Ceolin speaks to Mark Entwistle, former Ambassador of Canada to Cuba and Senior Fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy. They discuss how the next few weeks could unfold if the US doesn't allow for oil shipments, and the potential of the Cuban regime crumbling. We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstory.bsky.social on Bluesky

In episode 125 we look at all the best cash back rewards credit cards in Canada for 2026. These are Rewards Canada's 10th annual Top Cash Back Credit Card rankings!

Elias Makos is joined by Paul Gott, Lead singer and guitarist for Montreal Punk Rock band the Ripcordz and a journalism professor at Concordia, and Dan Delmar, Co-founder of the content marketing firm TNKR Media and co-host of the podcast Inspiring Entrepreneurs Canada. U.S. President Donald Trump is threatening to “not allow” a new bridge between Windsor, Ontario, and Detroit, Michigan, to open unless the United States is “fully compensated for everything” it has given Canada. The Quebec government has no intention of reviewing its funding of concert giants Evenko and Live Nation, despite questions about how the companies favour English in concert bookings. Opening statements made yesterday in a landmark trial that claims Meta and YouTube created ‘Digital Casinos.’ Despite being told by several travel agencies that we should not be worried about going to Cuba, Air Canada, Air Transat and WestJet have all suspended flights to the Caribbean destination.

Après Air Canada, c'est au tour de WestJet et de Transat de suspendre leurs vols vers Cuba en raison de la pénurie de kérosène.

  Dans sa chronique, Yannick Marceau aborde le match de Super Bowl et la prestation de Bad Bunny. On parle aussi de pénurie de carburant à Cuba, qui force Air Canada et WestJet à annuler des vols vers la destination, et le décès du journaliste et chroniqueur Franco Nuovo. Dans le secteur du transport, des... The post 9 février 2026 Yannick Marceau, Jean Le Moignan et Steve Charest appeared first on Truck Stop Québec.

Trump menace encore le Canada. Le boycott des produits américains continue-t-il? Ça va mal à Cuba. Grosse journée pour les Québécois aux JO! Live Nation… les festivals chez nous en arrachent! Tout savoir en quelques minutes avec Alexandre Dubé, Isabelle Perron et Mario Dumont. Regardez aussi cette discussion en vidéo via https://www.qub.ca/videos ou en vous abonnant à QUB télé : https://www.tvaplus.ca/qub ou sur la chaîne YouTube QUB https://www.youtube.com/@qub_radioPour de l'information concernant l'utilisation de vos données personnelles - https://omnystudio.com/policies/listener/fr

In Episode 32 of Miles Ahead: The Canadian Points Podcast, Daniel, Jeff, and Josh from FrugalFlyer.ca discuss the most recent news in the world of miles and points, including WestJet rolling back an unfavourable seat configuration and the potential for new Air Transat co-branded credit cards. The team reviews new routes from WestJet, Air Canada, and Etihad Airways. They also cover BMO's rebranding of AIR MILES to Blue Rewards and updated welcome offers from RBC's line of Avion credit cards. The discussion wraps up with listener questions about maximizing hotel rewards, the Bilt card for Canadians, RBC Avion card strategies, and the benefits of Visa Infinite Privilege supplementary cards.

Recorded live at SocialEast 2025 at the Halifax Marriott Harbourfront Hotel, this episode of the Marketing News Canada podcast features guest host Odum Idika, Host of Unconventional Mindset and Founder of Piixel Studio, in conversation with Corey Evans, Director of Brand and Advertising at ATCO and former marketing leader at WestJet.Corey shares a behind-the-scenes look at one of Canada's most iconic marketing moments, the WestJet Christmas Miracle, and what it took to execute a high-risk experiential campaign that generated over 35 million organic views. From stepping in as Santa to navigating real-time uncertainty during a live activation, he explains why putting the audience experience first, and the brand second, was key to its success.The conversation explores what experiential marketing really means today, why authentic human moments outperform polished ads, and how marketers of any size can create meaningful connections by deeply understanding their audience. Corey also reflects on the rise of creator-led marketing, real-time brand participation, and the importance of adaptability in an increasingly noisy content landscape.This episode was recorded live on-site at the Halifax Marriott Harbourfront Hotel during SocialEast 2025, part of the SocialNext conference series, Canada's leading platform for marketing conferences, media, and community.

« Punch créole » : c’est la première de Richardson ce soir ! Hausse des plaintes contre Sunwing et WestJet. Des caméras corporelles à Minneapolis. Vers la fin de la paralysie budgétaire aux États-Unis? Tour de table entre Isabelle Perron, Alexandre Dubé et Mario Dumont. Regardez aussi cette discussion en vidéo via https://www.qub.ca/videos ou en vous abonnant à QUB télé : https://www.tvaplus.ca/qub ou sur la chaîne YouTube QUB https://www.youtube.com/@qub_radio Pour de l'information concernant l'utilisation de vos données personnelles - https://omnystudio.com/policies/listener/fr

Al Lewis, who writes Business Blunders on Substack, explains why big companies make big mistakes (Hint: it's money). We'll explore why your money problems may call for a financial therapist, and not just an adviser. Also, we ask Chris Sands of Johns Hopkins University what could happen if the U.S. Supreme Court rules that Trump's tariffs are illegal.

DAMIONMLK Day:Incoming Walmart CEO John Furner:Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy reminds us blahblahblah. During our annual MLK Day Celebration, we reflected on blahblahblah. We care for people. Blahblahblah We strive to be honest, fair, and courageous. And we put others first in the work we do to help people live better.When we lead with care, show respect and do what's right, we honor Dr. King's legacy through action and continue building a Walmart that reflects our purpose and values.Walmart: $27,408,854, the fiscal 2025 annual total compensation of our median associate was $29,469, and the ratio of these amounts was 930:1.By 11:14 AM: He has earned $29,469 (the median worker's entire year of labor).Total Earnings by MLK Day: ~$1,425,000That $1.4 million is equivalent to the lifetime earnings of 48 median Walmart associates (assuming each works for one year at $29,469)As of January 20, 2026, the combined net worth of the Walton family has reached a historic $513.4 billion, according to the latest Bloomberg and Forbes data.As of January 2026, the Walton family collectively receives approximately $3.4 billion per year in dividends from Walmart.Per Day: The family earns roughly $9.27 million every day just by owning the stock.Per Hour: They earn about $386,000 per hour, 24 hours a day.King was literally campaigning for a living wage in Memphis when he was shot by the FBI. your move, walmart CEO John Furner WHO DO YOU BLAME?WestJet reverses cramped seating layout after viral videos show passengers' knees pressed against seats.In the reconfigured layout, which rolled out in late October on select Boeing 737s, space between rows was reduced to 28 inches to accommodate an extra row of seats. WestJet also made economy class seats non-reclinable, offering passengers the option to pay extra for adjustable seats.In a news statement, the company said it will reverse what it called the "densified seating" by removing the additional row of seats.WHO DO YOU BLAME?Samantha (Sam) Taylor was appointed WestJet Group Executive Vice-President and Chief Experience Officer March 2025. Sam joined Sunwing in March 2020 as Chief Marketing Officer. Sam's portfolio is accountable for critical touch points in the guest journey and includes leading all Marketing, Guest Experience and Contact Centres for WestJet and Sunwing Vacations. MMStakeholders!Customers: WestJet's rollout of the reconfigured seats has sparked widespread outrage among travelers and even crew members.Employees: Reuters reported that pilots and flight attendants have raised concerns over the new configuration's comfort and safety, specifically whether passengers could safely evacuate the plane in an emergency due to the confined seating.Journalists: Reuters reported that pilots and flight attendants have raised concerns over the new configuration's comfort and safety, specifically whether passengers could safely evacuate the plane in an emergency due to the confined seating.Labor Unions: Alia Hussain, president of the union local representing WestJet cabin personnel, said: "It created a hostile working environment for us as cabin personnel."Onex Corporation, WestJet's publicly traded ownersWhich is really founder and board Chair Gerry Schwartz (annual Chair fee of $1 million), who maintains 100% control of the Multiple Voting Shares (MVS) of Onex Corporation, which effectively grants him 60% of the total voting power in the company.This control allows him to elect 60% of the members of Onex's Board of Directors. While he also personally holds a significant portion of the Subordinate Voting Shares (SVS)—roughly 11.3% as of late 2024—the primary mechanism of his control is the MVS class.All stupid U.S. dual class dictatorships who do not do this!!The "Sunset" Provision: In May 2023, Onex shareholders approved a plan to implement a "sunset" on these special voting rights. Under this agreement, Schwartz's multiple voting rights are scheduled to expire three years after the effective date of the amendment (roughly May 2026).Current Status: As we are currently in early 2026, Schwartz remains the controlling shareholder. Upon the "Event of Change" later this year, the Multiple Voting Shares will convert into Subordinate Voting Shares, and he will lose his absolute control, shifting the company toward a more traditional governance structure.Matt Damon says Netflix wants to make action movies differently to account for shorter attention spansHow the art of filmmaking is being subvertedThe "Say What You Do" Rule: Writers are frequently being told to eliminate subtext. In traditional filmmaking, if a character is sad, you show them staring at a cold cup of coffee. Now, streamers often request that the character explicitly say, "I'm just so sad right now," or have another character ask, "Why are you so sad?"The Reason: If you are looking at your phone during a silent, emotional shot, you miss the story. If the character says it out loud, you can follow the plot without looking at the screen.Heightened Audio Cues: If you've noticed that modern movies have very aggressive sound design—sudden loud bangs, dramatic musical stings, or high-pitched notification-like sounds—it's often intentional.The "Audio Hook": These sounds act like a "ping" to pull your eyes back from your phone to the TV. It's a literal alarm clock for your attention.The "First 10 Minutes" Mandate: In the past, a movie could have a "slow burn" opening (think 2001: A Space Odyssey). Today, Netflix and other streamers use data that shows exactly when a user hits the "Back" button.The Note: Writers are told that a "major event" (an explosion, a death, or a massive hook) must happen within the first 2 to 5 minutes. If the "inciting incident" happens at the 20-minute mark, the data shows they will lose 30% of the audience to TikTok.Centered Framing: Cinematographers are increasingly being told to keep the "important" action in the center of the frame.The Reason: This makes the content easier to view on a mobile device if the user decides to switch from the TV to their phone, or if they are watching a cropped "clip" of the movie on social media later.Increased "Recapping": Have you noticed characters summarizing what just happened more often?The "TikTok Brain" Fix: Because people are multitasking, they often lose the thread of the plot. Streamers now encourage dialogue like, "So, let me get this straight, we have to get the key from the vault before the guard returns in five minutes?" It's a recap for someone who tuned out for the last three minutes.WHO DO YOU BLAME?Netflix: Ted Sarandos & Greg Peters (Co-CEOs of Netflix), Reed Hastings, Jay HoagDrug CEOs (re: The Algorithm): Passive Viewing: Data shows that up to 94% of people use a phone while watching TV.TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew: TikTok is widely considered the pioneer of the "Short-Form Video" era. Its algorithm is specifically designed to provide "intermittent reinforcement" (like a slot machine), which studies suggest can reduce the ability to focus on long-term tasks.Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg: Zuckerberg pivoted Facebook and Instagram (Reels) to aggressively compete with TikTok. Critics argue this transition turned a platform for connection into one of "passive scrolling" that further erodes focus.YouTube CEO Neal Mohan: Under his leadership, YouTube Shorts was launched to capture the short-attention-span market. Even YouTube co-founder Steve Chen has recently warned that these short videos are "shrinking kids' attention spans."Smartphones: Former Apple CEO Steve Jobs MMStanford: The "Father of Persuasive Tech": B.J. FoggStanford's Persuasive Technology Lab, run by B.J. Fogg, taught many of the founders and early employees of Instagram and Facebook.The "Fogg Behavior Model" taught engineers how to use "triggers" and "rewards" to change human behavior through software. He provided the scientific framework that allowed tech companies to treat the human brain like hardware that could be "hacked" for maximum engagement.Trump calls NYSE Dallas expansion plans 'unbelievably bad' for New York: Trump says move poses 'big test' for newly inaugurated Mayor Zohran Mamdani. WHICH HYPOCRISY DO YOU BLAME?The Free Market BullshitTrump and Texas leaders have long championed the freedom of businesses to flee blue-state regulations. However, now that a prestigious icon like the NYSE is actually expanding to Dallas, Trump has pivoted to calling it "unbelievably bad" for New York.The Anti-Woke /Anti-ESG scaremongeringTexas frames itself as a "Sanctuary from Socialism," yet the Texas Stock Exchange (TXSE) is being used to bypass ESG transparency. While railing against woke mandates, these leaders are creating their own ideological silos—demanding a protected market where management isn't held accountable by shareholders for social or environmental impacts.Texas AG Ken Paxton described BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard as an "investment cartel" that was "illegally controlling national energy markets" and "squeezing more money out of hardworking Americans."Paxton sent a formal warning to Larry Fink and other CEOs, stating that their "radical environmental policies" and "race-based quotas" (DEI) would face severe enforcement actions if they prioritized "politics over consumers."Lead by example: Trump quits NYC and Musk's Dexit to Y'all StreetThroughout his 2024 campaign, Trump consistently compared New York unfavorably to states like Florida and Texas: as an example, he pointed to the lack of state income tax in Florida as a reason why "everyone is leaving New York." Elon Musk's Dexit from Delaware/California is sold as a strike for freedom, yet his empire is built on nearly $40 billion in government subsidies and contracts. He moved to Texas to escape over-regulation (re: his pay package and people being mad about nooses in his factories) while simultaneously heading the most over-regulatory body ever: Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).Leader name calling and scaremongeringTrump's pre-bromance attacks on New York's new mayor, Zohran Mamdani (communist lunatic" and a "Marxist"). Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson (UPenn, Harvard, Princeton): "un-American socialist impulse" and explicitly marketed Dallas as a "sanctuary from socialism" for businesses looking to Dexit New York. The Elite vs. Common Man NonsenseDespite bullshit Y'all Street populist framing, the Texas Stock Exchange is backed by the world's most powerful financial titans. There is no common man victory here; it is the CEO class moving the financial capital to a jurisdiction with fewer labor protections and less oversight.The Big Four Anchor InvestorsBlackRock: (managing ~$14 trillion), despite being the primary target of "anti-woke" and anti-ESG rhetoric from the same politicians who support the TXSE.Citadel Securities: Led by Ken Griffin, this firm executes roughly 1 in 4 of all stock trades in the U.S. Left Chicago for Miami.J.P. Morgan Chase: Jamie Dimon. Joined in 2025 during a $90 million funding round and holds an observer seat on the board.Charles Schwab: handles over 50% of U.S. retail stock orders.MATTWalmart International CEO Kath McLay to step down - WHO DO YOU BLAME?Half exiting CEO Doug McMillonMcLay was under McMillon her entire tenure at WalMart, raised to CEO of the international divisionClearly a protege - passed over for the new CEO?Incoming CEO John FurnerThe white guy who became CEO is such an interesting new story, but Furner started as a sales clerk and has been with the WALTONS a long time through Sam's Club as CEO, another Walton jointFurner/McMillon/Walton family named David Guggina CEO of Walmart US (passing McLay), Chris Nicholas replace McLay, Seth Dallaire was made chief growth officer… rounding out an all male promotion cycle of new execs - no women in major positionsMaybe McLay read the tea leaves - women got chief legal and chief of people, like everywhere else, but leave the big jobs to the swinging dicks.The compensation and management development committee, who according to the company charter, ir responsible to “periodically review and recommend to the full Board succession planning practices for the Company's CEO and other executive officers.”Carla Harris (chair) - black woman with “multicultural” in her job description at Morgan Stanley who apparently didn't apply “multiculturalism” to Walmart executive search?Marissa Mayer - yes, THAT Marissa Mayer, who is on the board of Starbucks with Brian Niccol and AT&T where Randall Stephenson was CEOBrian Niccol - CEO of Starbucks, with no conflict by having Marissa Mayer on the same boardRandall Stephenson - ex CEO of AT&T, with no conflict of interest by having Marissa Mayer on the board. Also on the board - Tom Horton, ex CEO of American Airlines who was… CFO of AT&T under StephensonShishir Mehrotra - who worked at Google via YouTube when… Marissa Mayer worked there (she was in search/maps)Kath McLay, who just couldn't cut it at Walmart anymoreAn SEC official has said (implied) you don't HAVE to vote your proxies as an investor - WHO DO YOU BLAME?Brian Daly, who gave a speech titled (Re)Empowering Fiduciaries in Proxy Voting on Jan 8 in which he argued that not voting doesn't necessarily violate fiduciary dutyGamblers: “Not voting makes sense in many situations. Look, for example, at quantitative and systematic managers, who often operate models that merely seek exposures to identified sources of alpha.”Index investors: “But it may be appropriate for these categories of investment advisers (and the Boards that exercise oversight over this function) to consider whether taking positions on fundamental corporate matters, or on precatory proposals, is consistent with their investment mandates.”Hedging himself: “So, there is no stock answer to the “Must I vote?” question... Instead, it is important that advisers and clients have a fair amount of latitude to decide what works in their individual cases.”Threatening using proxy advisors: “And if we are raising issues for consideration, I will also mention, because the President did, that there is real concern out there that habitual adherence to a proxy consultant's recommendations could pull an adviser into a Section 13(d) group.”Investors, because no matter what Brian Daly suggests, investors almost never vote against management and neither do proxy advisors, so what the fuck are we talking about?Cost, because Daly points out, “And in assessing proposed votes, investment advisers might utilize the Fiduciary Interpretation's concept of a “reasonable inquiry into the client's objectives.” If an investment adviser routinely follows a proxy advisor's stock recommendations without a tailored engagement or independent analysis, is this “reasonable inquiry?” Maybe, but it is certainly worth thinking about. And, to go back to the first question, if the voting process is so burdensome that it requires extensive external resources, why is the adviser voting at all?”John Chevedden, along with Jim McRitchie, without whom we have maybe half the shareholder rights as SP500 companies, and who the no-action data is now showing is disproportionately getting responses for exclusion from the SEC (as if to double down on the idea that we can ignore those commie socialists entirely, but we want to tell you explicitly you're totally legally cool and there's no threat if you exclude Chevedden). Chevedden might be the reason investors were voting at all - maybe now they won't have to?

Is Dylan finally going to move to Devon? We learn that Dylan wants to eventually retire in Thailand. Is travelling to Thailand longer than taking a rocket to the moon? Some feedback on the new condensed seating offered by WestJet. We discuss the possibility of a Billy Idol Biopic. Then, we name all the famous people named Billy we can think of. Dylan is very confused by a social media post on the KiSS Edmonton accounts. Why does everyone think Pepper & Dylan are dating. Some comparisons are made involving the show "Heated Rivalry". We play some Robbie The Intern throwback songs. A brief history of Robbie getting hiring. Then, we play the potty training song he made for his niece.

On this episode of the Wheeler and Tyler Podcast, the travel bug bites back as Tyler reveals where he was supposed to be today, leading to a breakdown of cancelled plans and travel woes. The guys dig into a controversial topic regarding WestJet and a listener email that dubs them "Ozempic Airlines"—is the "Fat Flight" a real thing? Dave recaps the emotional (and physically exhausting) return of Jonathan Toews to Chicago, questioning if the Hawks made the old man skate too much before the 2-0 shutout. The show also covers the "Glambot" cameraman drama, Lady Gaga's drag show guarantee, and why Samsung's AI refrigerator took home "Worst in Show." Plus, updates on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers' massive new video boards, the independent grocers vs. milk price freeze debate, and audio from "Short Circuit" and the SNL Stranger Things finale. @TylerCarrfm @Wheelerj28 @Energy106fm Tyler Carr on Tik Tok

In Keep Canada Weird Jordan and Aaron Airport explore the weird and offbeat Canadian news stories from the past week. In this episode your hosts discuss; Taco Bell's continued Newfoundland invasion Being fat-shamed by WestJet The WORST 911 calls of 2025 Two kids in court over a dinosaur Series Links Keep Canada Weird Series: https://www.thecanadiangothic.com/keep-canada-weird Send a voice memo: www.thecanadiangothic.com/contact Join the Keep Canada Weird Discussion Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/keepcanadaweird Provide feedback and comments on the episode: thecanadiangothic.com/contact Subscribe to the show: thecanadiangothic.com/subscribe Contact: Website: https://www.thecanadiangothic.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheCanadianGothic Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecanadiangothic/ Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/thecanadiangothic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Keep Canada Weird Jordan and Aaron Airport explore the weird and offbeat Canadian news stories from the past week. In this episode your hosts discuss; Taco Bell's continued Newfoundland invasion Being fat-shamed by WestJet The WORST 911 calls of 2025 Two kids in court over a dinosaur Series Links Keep Canada Weird Series: https://www.thecanadiangothic.com/keep-canada-weird Send a voice memo: www.thecanadiangothic.com/contact Join the Keep Canada Weird Discussion Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/keepcanadaweird Provide feedback and comments on the episode: thecanadiangothic.com/contact Subscribe to the show: thecanadiangothic.com/subscribe Contact: Website: https://www.thecanadiangothic.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheCanadianGothic Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecanadiangothic/ Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/thecanadiangothic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ending decriminalization won't lead to more arrests Guest: Fiona Wilson, Victoria Police Chief Constable WestJet's new seats mean people need doctors notes, and much more, to fly Guest: Jeremy Dias, Passenger on WestJet Flight More on trade deals, including BC Lumber! Guest: Juliet Lu, PhD, Assistant Professor,Department of Forest Resources Management | School of Public Policy & Global Affairs University of British Columbia We need more daycares, so why is it so hard to open them? Guest: William Azaroff, community housing leader and city builder. seeking OneCity's nomination to run for mayor of Vancouver this year Decriminalization is ending, did we learn anything? Guest: Dr. Julian Somers, clinical psychologist and professor of health sciences at SFU. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What Mark Carney's trip to China could mean for us? Guest: Margaret McCuaig-Johnston, Snr Fellow, Institute for Science, Society & Policy, at University of Ottawa Westjet Legroom and what it says about the air travel industry Guest: John Gradek, aviation expert at McGill University The history between the US and Greenland Guest: Paul Bierman, Geoscientist and author of “When the Ice is Gone”, a book about Greenland's history and future 2 in 3 Canadians are cutting back on spending in 2026 Guest: Jayme Martin, District Vice President, Greater Hamilton South Could the US actually invade Canada? Guest: Henry Giroux, chair for scholarship in the public interest at McMaster University Is there a growing Anti-South Asian Sentiment in BC? Guest: Dr. Hassan Javid, a professor of sociology at UFV Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We welcome Andrew H. - winner of the 2025 Cult of Ron & Brian Death Pool - to discuss his winning year, and we surprise him with his enshrinement in our new Death Pool Hall of Fame! We discuss the many ways in which ICE is horrible, rude Broadway patrons, and the lack of legroom on WestJet. We also talk about a hacktivist deleting racist websites, Oceania Cruises going adults-only, and Brian's inability to understand mailing addresses!

A traumatizing, air travel experience is no stranger to the everyday Canadian. But it seems the TikToks and online posts of complaints seem to do little in terms of garnering real and sustainable change from our aviation sector. The federal government recently granted more access to Middle Eastern airlines to fly into Canadian airports in hopes of creating competition. It comes in response to a 2025 Competition Bureau report that called for less restrictions on foreign investment. Host Maria Kestane speaks to John Gradek, aviation expert and professor at McGill University to discuss what changes Canada's aviation industry should implement to restore consumer trust in air travel, and what progress has been made since the 2023 federal commitment of improving the air passenger protection regulations. We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

Should Canada prepare for a US military coercion Guest: Thomas Homer-Dixon, author, social scientist, and Executive Director of the Cascade Institute Is strict online age verification coming to Canada? Guest: Michael Geist, Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law WestJet faces backlash over viral video of shorter legroom Guest: John Gradek, an aviation management professor with McGill University WestJet faces backlash over viral video of shorter legroom Guest: Jason Vaughn, Content Creator and Travel agent with Fat Tested Travel How to map out smells? Guest: Dr. Kate McLean-MacKenzie, University of Kent Lecturer, Artist, Designer, Researcher AND creator of the Atlas of smells  Does Canada need a new pipeline to deal with a potential Venezuela surge? Guest: Gary Mar, CEO of Canada West Foundation Former trade representative in Washington DC Gen Z are more likely to book a flight than save for a home Guest: Cindy Marques, Financial planner at FP Canada Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Westjet seats,Nick Shirley being censored by xIranian revolutionEurope positioning to send troops to ukraine, Eby backing off drug decriminalization? Why is it still happening in Ontario?#Cpd #lpc, #ppc, #ndp, #canadianpolitics, #humor, #funny, #republican, #maga, #mcga,Sign Up for the Full ShowLocals (daily video)Sample Showshttps://canadapoli2.locals.com/ Spotify https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/canadapoli/subscribePrivate Full podcast audio https://canadapoli.com/feed/canadapoliblue/Buy subscriptions here (daily video and audio podcast):https://canadapoli.cm/canadapoli-subscriptions/Youtubehttps://www.youtube.com/c/CanadaPoli/videosMe on Telegramhttps://t.me/realCanadaPoliMe on Rumblehttps://rumble.com/user/CanadaPoli Me on Odysseyhttps://odysee.com/@CanadaPoli:f Me on Bitchutehttps://www.bitchute.com/channel/l55JBxrgT3Hf/ Podcast RSShttps://anchor.fm/s/e57706d8/podcast/rsshttps://LinkRoll.co Submit a link. Discuss the link. No censorship. (reddit clone without the censorship)

US Lawmakers vow to scrutinize the Trump Administration's military action in the Caribbean Sea, and whether Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued an order to "kill everyone" on a small vessel in September. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says maintaining his country's sovereignty is key, as US officials travel to Russia to continue peace talks. Search continues for the suspect or suspects in a shooting in Stockton, California that left 4 people dead, including 3 children. At least 604 people have been killed by flooding and landslides in Indonesia. Advocates say the fight against HIV/AIDS has changed since the first World AIDS day in 1988. WestJet and Air Transat passengers fight back after airlines falsely claim they can't film disputes.

Send us a textLinking the Travel Industry is a business travel podcast where we review the top travel industry stories that are posted on LinkedIn by LinkedIn members.  We curate the top posts and discuss with them with travel industry veterans in a live session with audience members.  You can join the live recording session by visiting BusinessTravel360.comYour Hosts are Riaan van Schoor, Ann Cederhall and Aash ShravahStories covered on this podcast episode include:Eastern Airways (UK) Ltd goes into administration, with all flight operations cancelled.Air France-KLM buys a minority stake in WestJet.IndiGo (InterGlobe Aviation Ltd) launch their Delhi - Guangzhou and Mumbai–London routes.With Riyadh Air | طيران الرياض's inaugural London flights came some posts about how they are doing things differently. Me and some others asked more questions about the phrase "Delivery with Order" and Benjamin Waymark from INKdid a great job at explaining these in more detail. Two major incidents of bad behaviour on flights this week:

On this week's Walker Webcast, Willy was joined by aviation-industry trailblazer David Neeleman, the Founder and CEO of Breeze Airways. Over the past three decades, David has launched some of the most successful airlines in the world — including JetBlue, Azul Brazilian Airlines, and WestJet. He and Willy discussed David's entrepreneurial origin story, his entry into the aviation industry, his mission to “bring humanity back to air travel,” managing the growth of JetBlue, Breeze's unique business model, the importance of transparency, and the convergency of technology and innovation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

00:00:00 – Intro, missed “1337” leetspeak milestone; coffee sponsor; caller-art bit 00:04:54 – Trump fighter-jet poop meme sparks Kenny Loggins/Danger Zone backlash 00:09:53 – Variety piece read; “Freeway to the Problem Area” legal/AI riff 00:14:44 – Top Gun, Pentagon-Hollywood office, celeb “No Kings” reactions 00:19:30 – More on protests; tee-up to AI parody song bit 00:23:14 – Performing the AI parody: “Freeway to the Problem Area” lyric gag 00:27:40 – HBO developing David Chase MKULTRA series; Gottlieb & Manchurian-candidate talk 00:32:21 – “We're all living through MKULTRA” via social media; pivot to 3I/Atlas 00:36:44 – Avi Loeb TV clip: delayed NASA images; mothership/probes speculation 00:41:38 – NY Post write-up: NASA group watching 3I/Atlas; anti-tail, weird alloy, IAWN campaign 00:46:21 – Remote-viewing recap: thousands of probes, “sleepers,” super-intelligence controller 00:50:24 – Sleeper pods & humanoids; Star Trek “Nth Degree” tangent connects to AI ship 01:00:02 – 3I/Atlas tail reversal explained; CO₂ jet model; not a “simple comet” 01:04:21 – NASA/China rant: “look up, not down”; missed PR moment on comet 01:08:43 – Music bit redux; Battlefield-6 squad-up chatter; setting up calls 01:13:36 – Edgy “Jeopardy!” parody audio; open the phone lines 01:18:29 – Call-ins: new baby Oliver (G.I. Joe name), “Queen from beyond the grave,” Electric-Universe angle on 3I 01:22:24 – Drawbridge donations & Cave-of-Honor thanks; Discord shout-outs 01:27:10 – List: “most controversial Halloween costumes 2025” (Epstein list, ICE agent, etc.) 01:32:05 – Travel rant: WestJet to remove recline/charge for space; viewer reactions clip 01:43:48 – Ohio bill would ban AI personhood/marriages; liability stays with humans 01:48:18 – Halloween drinks & party trends; jello-syringe nostalgia; “candy economy” talk begins 01:53:08 – Candy searches: jello-syringe spikes; New Hampshire loves trick-or-treating 01:57:23 – Wrap-up: host's moon costume plan; thanks; “keep watching the skies” sign-off Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research ▀▄▀▄▀ CONTACT LINKS ▀▄▀▄▀ ► Website: http://obdmpod.com ► Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/obdmpod ► Full Videos at Odysee: https://odysee.com/@obdm:0 ► Twitter: https://twitter.com/obdmpod ► Instagram: obdmpod ► Email: ourbigdumbmouth at gmail ► RSS: http://ourbigdumbmouth.libsyn.com/rss ► iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/our-big-dumb-mouth/id261189509?mt=2  

INTRO (00:24): Kathleen opens the show drinking a Chilltown Crusher Pilsner from 902 Brewing Company, and reviews her weekend in Atlantic City at the Borgata.    TOUR NEWS: See Kathleen live on her “Day Drinking Tour.”   COURT NEWS (10:44): Kathleen shares news announcing that Stevie Nicks had a fantastic show in Atlantic City, Taylor Swift attended the Chiefs vs Raiders game, and Jelly Roll served as College Game Day's guest picker for the Georgia vs Ole Miss game.    TASTING MENU (2:26): Kathleen samples a Hershey's Zagnut Crunchy Peanut Butter bar, and Lay's Chesapeake Bay Crab Chips.    UPDATES (19:29): Kathleen shares updates on the Bill Belichick UNC drama, Sarah Ferguson is forced to relinquish her title, and Southwest Airlines unveils their new WILMA boarding process.    HOLY SHIT THEY FOUND IT (41:23): Kathleen reveals that an amateur treasure hunter discovered a 500-yr-old Royal pendant.    FRONT PAGE PUB NEWS (43:13): Kathleen shares articles on the last day of MTV, an 82-yr-old becomes the oldest to climb Everest, Canada's WestJet will charge passengers to recline, Prince Andrew gives up all his titles, the Eugenie crown jewels are stolen from the Louvre in Paris, a Picasso painting vanishes en route to an exhibition, Pope Leo is disbanding Opus Dei, and polar bears have taken over an abandoned research island in Russia.    SAINT OF THE WEEK (1:15:19): Kathleen reads about St. Cornelius, the patron saint of earaches, epilepsy, switching, cattle, and domestic animals.    WHAT ARE WE WATCHING (15:16): Kathleen recommends watching “Murdaugh: Death In The Family” on Hulu.    FEEL GOOD STORY (1:13:26): Kathleen shares a story about 2 beluga whales who finally found freedom in Iceland after being rescued from an aquarium in Shanghai. 

Shooting investigation underway at L.A. Academy Middle School in South L.A. The longest dinosaur tracks ever found were discovered in the U.K., while L.A. County residents are bracing for higher trash collection fees. Authorities say a high-tech Chinese crime ring was behind a fake toll-road text scam, and WestJet will now charge passengers extra if they want to recline their seats. 

Gary and Shannon pitch their new “vertical short” Space Wars before diving into #SWAMPWATCH, where they break down the latest out of D.C., including President Trump accusing TIME Magazine of digitally “disappearing” his hair. Shannon's directorial debut keeps the team distracted as #TerrorInTheSkies unfolds: an American Airlines flight forced to turn around after passengers reported a mysterious odor. Plus, WestJet plans to charge for reclining seats. Later, Parenting with Justin Worsham tackles whether we're creating struggles just to feel challenged, and why California might be forgetting its seniors.

The final inmate wanted after a brazen escape from a New Orleans jail in May has reportedly been arrested after a tense SWAT standoff in Atlanta. Canadian airline WestJet has introduced updated cabin interiors on select Boeing aircraft, adding three distinct seat classes and charging extra for seats that can recline. Florida man with thermos inserted in body caught sneaking it into Polk County Jail: ‘Put it up the exit ramp' In what is possibly the weirdest crossover between gaming, streaming, and the real world, Twitch streamer Fandy has taken “sharing everything with chat” to the absolute next level: she is live-streaming the birth process of her child. FOLLOW TNR ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/c-7759604 FOLLOW TNR ON SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/7zlofzLZht7dYxjNcBNpWN FOLLOW TNR ON APPLE PODCASTS: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-next-round/id1797862560 WEBSITE: https://nextroundlive.com/ MOBILE APP: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/the-next-round/id1580807480 SHOP THE NEXT ROUND STORE: https://nextround.store/ Like TNR on Facebook: / nextroundlive Follow TNR on Twitter: / nextroundlive Follow TNR on Instagram: / nextroundlive Follow everyone from the show on Twitter: Jim Dunaway: / jimdunaway Ryan Brown: / ryanbrownlive Lance Taylor: / thelancetaylor Scott Forester: / scottforestertv Tyler Johns: /TylerJohnsTNR Sponsor the show: sales@nextroundlive.com #SEC #Alabama #Auburn #secfootball #collegefootball #cfb #cfp #football #sports #alabamafootball #alabamabasketball #auburnbasketball #auburnfootball #rolltide #wareagle #alabamacrimsontide #auburntigers #nfl #sportsnews #footballnews Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Duji wants to know who Rover had a meeting with. Bankruptcy box has a finish date. Is Krystle balding? Passengers will now be charged to recline their seat on WestJet's new Boeing 737 flights. A man punched the back of B2's seat on a flight. Are you dumber than Duji? Taylor Swift's latest album. A throuple have adopted a child. Ovaltine. The man who sparked the fire in the Palisades has been arrested. Police officer and his wife are found dead in a bathtub from heatstroke. Gia's cellphone causes tension between Rover and Duji. Hallmark Channel has 24 new Christmas movies coming out this year. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Duji wants to know who Rover had a meeting with. Bankruptcy box has a finish date. Is Krystle balding? Passengers will now be charged to recline their seat on WestJet's new Boeing 737 flights. Man punches the back of B2's seat on a flight. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Duji wants to know who Rover had a meeting with. Bankruptcy box has a finish date. Is Krystle balding? Passengers will now be charged to recline their seat on WestJet's new Boeing 737 flights. Man punches the back of B2's seat on a flight. 

Duji wants to know who Rover had a meeting with. Bankruptcy box has a finish date. Is Krystle balding? Passengers will now be charged to recline their seat on WestJet's new Boeing 737 flights. A man punched the back of B2's seat on a flight. Are you dumber than Duji? Taylor Swift's latest album. A throuple have adopted a child. Ovaltine. The man who sparked the fire in the Palisades has been arrested. Police officer and his wife are found dead in a bathtub from heatstroke. Gia's cellphone causes tension between Rover and Duji. Hallmark Channel has 24 new Christmas movies coming out this year.

Today on the Woody and Wilcox Show: Dolly Parton is not dying; Man sues Lebron James; West Jet announces charging to recline seats; Couple divorces after 3 years due to sexual incompatibility; Stars of the Hallmark Channel come together to warn fans about scammers; Study says men go on more dates than women; Weird dating stories; And more!

Qatar Airways accused of killing 'strict vegetarian' passenger with meat-based meal, Canadian airline WestJet now charges passengers to recline seats on new Boeing 737 flights, Woman killed outside Dallas PetSmart after argument over not saying 'thank you'

WestJet budget airline will charge passengers for reclining in their seats. Oldest and most haunted Las Vegas hotel will pay you $5k to hunt for ghosts. Fed up single woman buys a billboard to find her future husband. // Weird AF News is the only daily weird news podcast in the world. Weird news 5 days/week and on Friday it's only Floridaman. SUPPORT by joining the Weird AF News Patreon http://patreon.com/weirdafnews - OR buy Jonesy a coffee at http://buymeacoffee.com/funnyjones Buy MERCH: https://weirdafnews.merchmake.com/ - Check out the official website https://WeirdAFnews.com and FOLLOW host Jonesy at http://instagram.com/funnyjones - wants Jonesy to come perform standup comedy in your city? Fill out the form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfvYbm8Wgz3Oc2KSDg0-C6EtSlx369bvi7xdUpx_7UNGA_fIw/viewform

Prime Minister Mark Carney expects some tariff relief from today's talks with US President Donald Trump. Carney government retooling border security Bill C-2 after opposition parties said they would not support it. Israelis mark 2 years since Hamas October 7 attacks, as Palestinians endure another round of shelling in parts of Gaza. Chris Barber and Tamara Lich, two leaders of the 2022 truckers convoy in Ottawa, to be sentenced today. Marineland warns it may be forced to euthanize beluga whales if federal government does not agree to request for financial aid. WestJet hikes checked bag fee for 2nd time in 2 years. Will Air Canada be next? Researcher and backcountry enthusiast Fred Ramsdell still may not know he won the Nobel Prize for medicine.

Canada Post is having an “existential crisis” (who isn't?) Westjet adds a new fee to flying but says it's all about “refreshing” our options. Teachers in Alberta are set to walk out. What do the teachers want? (When do they want it? Before Monday morning!) We've run out of ideas to end the tariffs so we're trying potato chip diplomacy. And there's a new way to track your kid and all you need is a screwdriver. Priyanka, Kris Siddiqi, and Alice Moran take this week's news quiz with host Gavin Crawford. We'd love to hear from you! Complete our listener survey here: https://cbc.ca/BecauseSurvey

On this episode, I cover the release of Windows 11 25H2, a cool new AVD feature enters preview, an update on a worrying data breach at West Jet and much more! Reference Links: https://www.rorymon.com/blog/windows-11-25h2-now-available-free-win10-extended-support-for-some-handy-new-avd-feature/

The Cybercrime Wire, hosted by Scott Schober, provides boardroom and C-suite executives, CIOs, CSOs, CISOs, IT executives and cybersecurity professionals with a breaking news story we're following. If there's a cyberattack, hack, or data breach you should know about, then we're on it. Listen to the podcast daily and hear it every hour on WCYB. The Cybercrime Wire is brought to you Cybercrime Magazine, Page ONE for Cybersecurity at https://cybercrimemagazine.com. • For more breaking news, visit https://cybercrimewire.com

AI-generated code used in phishing campaign blocked by Microsoft WestJet notifies American consumers of data breach Ukrainian cops spoofed in fileless phishing attacks on Kyiv Huge thanks to our sponsor, Nudge Security AI tools have spread to every corner of your tech stack, which is great for innovation, but not so great for data governance. That's where Nudge Security comes in. Nudge discovers shadow AI across your org - chatbots, MCP integrations, AI in the supply chain, and more. And, Nudge delivers guardrails to employees to help you stop data leakage before it even starts. The best part? You'll have a full inventory of AI assets on Day One of your free trial, even those introduced before you started using Nudge. No time machine required. Gain visibility and control of AI use. Get started at nudgesecurity.com/genai  

Send us a textDoug and Drew fight sleep deprivation after late night and overnight shifts, respectively.  Doug was on late night 767 simulator training flights and Drew was watching overnight airport ops in DC.  We stay awake to discuss:Remembering 9/11New cockpit barriers coming to an airline near you Spirit's second bankruptcyAnother big Boeing orderDelta settles a lawsuit A checked bag takes the long road Thrust settings on climb outA contributor's fun work project Join the network! https://www.nexttripnetwork.com/

This week we talk about surge pricing, Walmart, and the Robinson-Patman Act.We also discuss personal data, AC settings, and Delta's earnings call.Recommended Book: How the World Became Rich by Mark Koyama and Jared RubinTranscriptThe US Robinson-Patman Act of 1936 is also called the Anti-Price Discrimination Act, and it was passed to make it illegal for a product supplier to charge different prices to different customers.So a company that makes candy bars wouldn't be allowed to charge one price to most of their customers, all the smaller and mid-sized convenience stores and mom-and-pop grocery stores, for instance, and then a lower price to the big stores, the Walmarts and Amazons of the world.The concern was that these larger players, which at the time this law was passed were burgeoning grocery stores like A&P, would be able to achieve a monopolistic position in the market for these goods, these slightly lower prices giving them one more advantage over their smaller competitors.During the four decades or so of this Act's enforcement, small grocery stores has prices that were, on average, about 1% higher than those offered by their large competitors, and the eight largest grocery store chains only captured about 25% of all grocery sales in the US—essentially every city and town of any size had at least one small grocery store, and most had several of them, during this period. It was a very competitive market.During the Reagan administration in the 80s, though, enforcement was abandoned, as the folks in charge of that enforcement were convinced this Act was holding back growth; they saw it as a handout to small businesses at the expense of big business, so while it technically remained on the books, they just stopped enforcing it, and the big businesses in these spaces got the message pretty quickly.Walmart was the first big business to really lean into the new powers afforded them by this fresh governmental stance, and that led to it becoming the country's largest grocery store chain by 2001, and other big grocery brands, like Kroger and Safeway, began to do the same, consolidating all their buying so they could put in huge orders like Walmart was able to put in, and that allowed them to demand lower prices, which in turn allowed them to dramatically increase profits and gobble up their smaller competition.All of which led to the emergence of food deserts across the country, a term that was coined in 1995 to refer to areas where there are simply no grocery stores within a reasonable distance of relatively large populations of people, because smaller grocery stores can no longer compete, even when they're the only player in town; folks have to travel to the larger chain stores, and have no real options closer to home, which can result in food precariousness, and situations in which the only nearby food options are unhealthy ones—the snacks at gas stations, for instance.This same general pattern played out across all retail spaces, including pharmacies and bookstores and athletic supply stores, and between 1982 and 2017, the total market share of independent retailers in the US dropped from 53% to 22%.Which in some ways is great at the federal level, as—and this is what the Reagan administration seemed to want, back in the 80s—big businesses can grow a lot faster and bigger than small businesses, and that can lead to outsized GDP numbers, and other such macro-scale figures.Unfortunately, while independent retailers tend to keep nearly half of the revenue they pull in within their local community, major chains only keep something like 14% in the local community—so the shift from independent to chain retailers has had a deleterious impact on communities across the US, in the sense of having less competition, having food and other sorts of product deserts, and in terms of tax revenues and overall economic wealth being sapped from these areas and moved to other places, creating some relatively few winners and a whole lot of losers, in the process.What I'd like to talk about today is another type of variable pricing, this one more directly aimed at consumers, and enabled, at least in its modern incarnation, by big data and the devices we use every day.—Dynamic pricing refers to changing the price of goods or services based on all sorts of variables.Demand or surge pricing, for instance, might see the price of a bus ticket or rideshare ride with Uber cost more during rush-hour, the idea being that there are only so many bus seats and only so many available rideshare rides to go around, and when everyone's either trying to get to work or get home from work, there will be a lot more people wanting these finite number of seats and rides than there are seats and rides available.Upping the prices, then, is a means of determining who wants these things the most, because they're willing to pay at times massively inflated prices for something that would cost far less in an hour or two, once the rush has subsided.Similar price-inflation occurs during peak energy-use periods, and energy companies usually explain this price-bump by suggesting that it encourages their customers to use more energy when it's abundant and cheap, and to use less of it when it's scarce and expensive.On very hot days when everyone is using their air conditioners to stay cool, then, inflated energy prices might encourage them to be less aggressive with their AC settings, keeping their indoor temperatures at a more reasonable level, which in turn ensures there's more energy available for everyone and less risk of brownouts or blackouts.This pricing strategy is often seen by those on the receiving end of such price-bumps, as price gouging, which refers to companies taking advantage of temporary variables to massively inflate their prices, at times to abusive levels that they can justify by pointing at those variables and a desire to moderate supply and demand.So if there's a big convention in town, local hotels can argue that they're doubling or tripling their prices because there are not enough rooms for everyone who wants rooms on those days, but this could also be construed as a money-grab, these hotel companies knowing that some people won't be able to avoid paying for a place to stay during the convention they have to attend, so they're taking advantage of customers who have no choice but to pay up.We saw similar dynamics play out globally during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, when folks who had high-quality masks on hand were able to charge incredible sums for those masks because production hadn't yet scaled up, so they were relatively scarce and thus precious, and these people and companies with the right product at the right time knew they could get away with charging many times the actual sticker-price of that product, because some people would feel they had no choice but to pay it.Each situation of this kind will feel reasonable and suitable for the supply-demand situation to some, and completely unreasonable and abusive to others, and it's possible to have a bit of both in many such situations—the companies in question actually want to manage a scarce supply of something, but are also keen to make as much money as possible while doing it.Dynamic pricing has become even more common in online marketplaces like Amazon, where it's not just holidays or events or the sudden emergence of global pandemics that can impact demand and thus, the prices retailers can get away with charging would-be customers.Amazon has algorithms that keep track of what competitors are charging for the goods they offer, what sort of demand the market is seeing for said goods, what inventory looks like—if they have a lot or very few of something available to sell—and all sorts of other factors that might reasonably impact the price of a product, even a little bit.As of 2024, the price of a product listed on Amazon changes several times a day, in some cases every 10 minutes, and they make about 2.5 million prices changes every single day, adjusting for those aforementioned micro-scale variables, on a product-by-product basis, but also adjusting their entire catalog so that relatively uncommon goods have higher prices, but common goods have lower prices, which means customers shopping around will tend to see Amazon's lower-priced goods more often than the higher-priced ones, which in turn can adjust their perception of the company and its marketplace in a favorable, lower-price direction.Amazon also has access to just a silly amount of data about their customers, some of it scooped up while we surf their sites, and some bought from other data-aggregators. And this allows Amazon, just like most tech companies and retailers, these days to track our behavior, watching what we click on, how long we linger on different products or product types, noticing our searches and contextualizing all of it with where we live, what we've purchased in the past, and so on.The company isn't very transparent about how it uses all this personal data, but while it's been been speculated that they might adjust prices based on our individual profiles, most evidence suggests they mostly use it to determine what we're shown—what products are promoted to us, basically, as opposed to setting prices based on what it thinks we'll pay, as individuals.The same generally seems to be true of other retailers right now, though there are concerns that this might change at some point in the near-future, as new technologies, some based on AI, enable the more-rapid and sophisticated crunching of data, and the consequent individualization of prices, even in person.US airline Delta, for instance, recently announced that it would be using AI to help it boost profits by charging different customers different prices for the same airline seat.These prices would be based on their customer profile, which means all the data scooped up by Delta from various sources, including things like past purchases, regular flight schedules, and how much money their systems think each customer makes and has available to spend.The president of the company said on a recent earnings call that they've been running a pilot project for this approach that resulted in about 3% of ticket sales being sold based on this model over the past 6 months, and by the end of the year, their goal is to increase that to 20% of tickets.In theory, this sort of system could be good for some customers some of the time, because it could drop prices on tickets that customers wouldn't want to, or wouldn't be able to pay for, otherwise. If I'm considering a trip, but the tickets are more expensive than I want to pay, these systems could theoretically recognize this and offer them to me at a price they can afford to sell them at, and which I can afford. That could lead to more ticket sales, and thus, higher profits.The evidence on the ground with these sorts of systems usually points at price increases, not decreases, though: the companies using these models to see how much they can get per unit, not using them to sell more units at lower profit margins.In other words, usually it's wealthier consumers who get the better deals, as these companies want to keep them coming back, spending larger sums of money on glitzier products and services over time, while poorer consumers have fewer options, and will thus tend to pay whatever they're told they have to pay.Delta spent most of July 2025 trying to control the backlash that erupted following that earnings call, and they're now saying, to the press but also in formal letters to government watchdogs who expressed concerns about what they said they planned to do, that no no no, we misspoke, we're not using individualized data to set prices, it's all good, don't worry about it.That announcement from Delta came shortly after lawmakers announced they would be pushing to get a new act, the Stop AI Price Gouging and Wage Fixing Act, passed into law, and though some US Senators have said they'll block such efforts by Delta, other airlines, including Azul, WestJet, Virgin Atlantic, and VivaAerobus are also clients of the Israeli company, Fetcherr, that Delta has been working with to run their AI pricing pilot program—and representatives from Fetcherr have claimed that this pricing model is irresistible to those in charge of these companies, so it will probably take over the airline industry relatively quickly, and they plan to expand into other industries soon.These sorts of pricing models aren't typically very popular with customers, and efforts by Walmart and other big grocery chains to remove static in-store pricing labels and replace them with digital versions, or in some extreme cases to remove them entirely and rely on apps on customers' phone to show prices on goods, raised similar alarm bells, as dynamic pricing can allow the store to more rapidly change their prices based on demand, like Uber's surge pricing model, but maybe applied to flour or cough medicine instead of rideshare seats, and in-app pricing could allow them to show different prices to different people shopping for the same thing at the same time—again, based on income, buying patterns, and so on.Walmart and everyone else dabbling in this space has, like Delta, claimed they intend no such dynamism in their pricing, even as their CEOs in some cases continue to brag to investors about the possibilities. As a result, there seems to be a decent chance we'll see the large-scale deployment of these sorts of models in at least some customer-facing industries within the next year or two, some company deciding to more fully test the regulatory establishment's appetite for challenging this push into a new pricing paradigm that would, theoretically at least, allow big companies to earn still-higher profits and grow even larger.Show Noteshttps://drive.google.com/file/d/1HQoQhvfVv8p0XmOdDIiWTnmd2YM_za07/viewhttps://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-price-changes-2018-8https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algorithmic_pricinghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamic_pricinghttps://www.archeraffiliates.com/post/amazon-dynamic-pricinghttps://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/08/delta-denies-using-ai-to-come-up-with-inflated-personalized-prices/https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/07/will-ai-end-cheap-flights-critics-attack-deltas-predatory-ai-pricing/https://www.the-sun.com/money/14839597/walmart-kroger-electronic-labels-dynamic-pricing-demand-wendyshttps://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/23/business/kroger-walmart-facial-recognition-prices.htmlhttps://www.nerdwallet.com/article/finance/what-is-dynamic-pricinghttps://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/12/food-deserts-robinson-patman/680765/https://www.indieretailermonth.com/statisticshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robinson%E2%80%93Patman_Act This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe