Working in the post pandemic world......

There is always the question of what you can legally do work wise in Europe on a tourist visa…..

There are some countries actively seeking remote workers and providing the appropriate visas. I know for sure Estonia is doing this and also Bermuda or Barbados. There are a few others too; there was a news article a few months ago detailing all this

I know large US corporations would most likely disallow this due to the tax issues and liability and withholding nightmares

It would have been a great choice if I was in my 20s and 30s, but that wasn't "a thing" then. Now I'm in my 40s and more tied down. Most people are tied down with family, spouses, SOs, friends, pets, community ties, etc. Then there are the tax implications and other headaches.

People realize that the rose glasses of seeing a country as a tourist can change when staying put extends to several months, but I would certainly take rainy Italy in winter over Ottawa or Edmonton. Plenty of people are digital nomads now, so tapping into their knowledge of which countries have reciprocal tax agreements with Canada would be a start.

Covid can still impact however, as I know my work would not cover medical or disability coverage if you left Canada while it continues to have a no non-essential travel warning...whether illness was covid repated or not. It could get messy defining remote work as essential travel, so you may need to invest in private coverage, and that also may have definitions of coverage.
Ottawa is such a government town that I expect a good amount to do some sort of blend. I still was at my desk as I worked medical, but now that I am retired, I expect to see a lot of my neighbours during the day taking outside breaks 'between meetings'.

In Germany it is very common for people to work remotely and they will continue to do so..

Some thought they could up and leave their expensive cities and move elsewhere, not realizing that as soon as you access your corporate network, your employer knows where you are. (Yes, I know you can use a vpn to hide your location but any company that takes security seriously will have that blocked, too.)
In the US, there are potential tax liabilities and reporting obligations for employers. A large, global company likely has all this under control and can accommodate requests to work from other places, but smaller employers will likely not want to deal with the extra administrative costs of employees in other jurisdictions. So it's great to dream of working from somewhere exotic or romantic but there are technicalities to be considered beyond "beach or mountains?".

There is always the question of what you can legally do work wise in Europe on a tourist visa…..

There is not question, legally any type of work, with a small number of exceptions requires a work permit and that includes remote working. Furthermore, you as the tourist are responsible for justifying your presence within the Schengen area, not the other way.

Some will do it and get away some will not.... the choice is yours as are the consequences.

This has been discussed before, but yes, if you are working remotely, you have some options, and can legally "work", even in Europe, depending on your companies policies.

The key points are: (US for this example)
1. you are a US Citizen and resident of the US.
2. Employed by a US Company, doing work for your US location, and paid in US funds at a US Bank.
3. Are not seeking residency or a long stay visa for the country you will be in.

Contrary to public belief, the Schengen 90/180 day Visa Waiver and the UK "Up to 6 Month" entry allowance allows for business (work) activity to be done. This includes business meetings, seminars, audits, working with subsidiaries, customers, and suppliers; giving lectures and other educational activities, basically a whole host of activity that is "work" but short in term on a visiting basis and as an extension of your job in the US.

Same with remote work, you are simply doing your normal job, meeting the conditions above, and in the eyes of the government, doing no harm. Like living in another State, or spending a few months in another country, you are not resident, so you do not have tax liability or rights as a residence.

You should be able to find this information for about any country, but as an example, here is a link to the UK Government site that helps you determine the need for a Visa and allowable activities: https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa

By inputting pertinent information, you can get to an appendix that discusses allowable business related activities:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules/immigration-rules-appendix-visitor-permitted-activities

Same with remote work, you are simply doing your normal job, meeting
the conditions above, and in the eyes of the government, doing no
harm. Like living in another State, ... you are not resident, so you do not have tax
liability or rights as a residence.

This is absolutely not true. If you work from another State, that State can demand you pay taxes for the days you work in the State. You may be correct about different countries - I have no first hand experience with this - but you can't just up and work in another US state and not have a tax burden (both state tax and unemployment tax).

https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/compensation/pages/out-of-state-remote-work-creates-tax-headaches.aspx

I think the number of people who have jobs that are amenable to independent remote work indefinitely, is a lot smaller and more upper middle class than is worth all the discussion about the future of work.

This is absolutely not true. If you work from another State, that State can demand you pay taxes for the days you work in the State.

You are correct if you are a part time resident of the State in which you are remotely working. Incidental work by a non-resident of the State is not what the article is talking about. For example, if you live in New Jersey, but work in New York and are paid by the company in New York, your company works out the taxes, some things applying to New Jersey, some to New York. With Covid, that may have changed, you are living in New Jersey (or moved to Idaho) and working in that same State. Your company must adapt your taxes, and potentially apply for some status in the case of you moving to Idaho (register with Unemployment insurance office, workman's comp, etc....basically State run benefit programs) The key is you are a full or part time resident of where you are doing the work, as well as a US resident, as you said, a different situation from remotely working in Europe while visiting.