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April 21 - 25, 2003
Monday, April 21
Keeping Production in LA
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Mayor Jim Hahn, along with Councilman Eric Garcetti, today hosted an entertainment industry summit that brought together union and industry leaders to find ways to keep production in Los Angeles. Kitty speaks with KPCC reporter Robin Urevich who attended the summit.
Miranda Warning
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The Supreme Court is taking another look at the Miranda warnings today, this time to determine whether or not physical evidence seized when police have not given a Miranda warning can be used at a trial. Host Kitty Felde speaks with Southwestern School of Law Professor Bob Pugsley.
Thomas Nussbaum, Chancellor of Community Colleges
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The chancellor has just announced that he will step down in January. He leaves the office at a time when the stateÕs 108 community colleges are facing a one billion dollar budget cut over the next two years. What does he foresee for the stateÕs historic and exemplary system of affordable higher education if the governorÕs proposed118% fee increaseÑfrom $11 a unit to $24 a unitÑis approved? Kitty asks this question and more.
Professor David PinaultÕs Trip to Pakistan
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Professor David Pinault shares stories of his recent trips to Pakistan, his travels through the Khyber Pass, his lectures in Peshawar and Islamabad, and more.
Tuesday, April 22
The Threat of Terrorism
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Some would argue that the U.S. show of determination in both wars against Iraq and Afghanistan would deter would-be terrorists from launching attacks on US interests. Others would argue that the surge of Anti-American sentiment in the Arab world and a lowering of the national terrorism threat level make the U.S. unusually vulnerable for attack. Kitty speaks with two guests with opposing views on the current threat of a terrorist attack: Jeffrey Simon, Head of the consulting firm Political Risk Assessment Co, Inc. and Joseph McNamara, retired police chief for San Jose, CA and a research fellow for the Hoover institute.
LAPD Reforms Suggested
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A Los Angeles County Bar Association task force today released a report with recommendations intended to prevent police corruption, such as occurred in the Rampart scandal. The reforms recommended by the report dwell on the need to protect the rights of criminal defendants and include a controversial proposal to track suspected misconduct by police officers. KPCC reporter Frank Stoltze was at the reportÕs release this morning and also heard DA Steve CooleyÕs response at a press conference later this morning. He joins Kitty for a wrap up.
Sexual Selection
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What can humans learn about sex from the mating habits of animals? Kitty Felde speaks with UC Riverside Biology Professor, Marlene Zuk, about her studies of the sex life of animals. Marlene ZukÕs book is Sexual Selections (University of California Press).
Wednesday, April 23
Restoring the Legal System in Iraq
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A 700-page report on setting up a judicial system in Iraq was prepared months ago by the Iraqi Transition Justice program, a group of about 40 Iraqi exiles with legal backgrounds working under the State Department. Sermid Dean Al-Sarraf, a Muslim American attorney with a private practice in Los Angeles is one of the 40. He is also a member of the Iraqi Jurists Association, the largest consortium of former Iraqi judges, lawyers, prosecutors and law professors outside of Iraq. He joins Kitty to talk about the report and about the process of holding former leaders of the regime accountable for their crimes against the Iraqi people.
Smaller Class Sizes
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Seven years ago, then California Governor Pete Wilson signed into law legislation that would guarantee smaller class sizes for kindergarten through third grade students. Currently, an assembly bill (AB 42) is under review by the state assembly Committee on Education that could change the strict mandates of the law. Proponents say it will add greater flexibility to the current law. Opponents say it will hurt students. Kitty hears both sides with California Teacher Association President, Wayne Johnson, and author of the bill Assemblywoman Lynn Daucher.
Titanic Exhibit
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Kitty Felde explores the ill-fated maiden Titanic voyage through the California Science CenterÕs artifact exhibit on display through September 1st. The Deputy Director for Exhibits at the California Science Center, Diane Perlov, joins Kitty in discussion.
Titanic: The Artifact Exhibit is on display through September 1st at the California Science Center. For more information, visit www.casciencectr.org, or call 323.SCIENCE.
Listen to Kitty piece on Titanic tourism at Savvy Traveler website.
Thursday, April 24
County-USC Overcrowding
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Earlier this year the LA County Board of Supervisors reluctantly voted to authorize the closure of the first 50 beds at County-USC as well as the closure of Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center in Downey. In a report filed earlier this week, emergency room researcher Dr. Brent Asplin describes County-USCÕs continued overcrowding as simply the worst heÕs ever seen. Dr. Asplin joins Kitty to put the hospitalÕs plans to close 50 more beds this year in perspective.
Reading Lolita in Tehran
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Professor of literature, Azar Nafisi, returned to her native Iran after an education abroad, staying for almost 2 decades before leaving for the United States in 1997. Nafisi recounts this journey in her memoir, Reading Lolita In Tehran (Random House). ItÕs an account of womenÕs lives in revolutionary Iran woven with the stories from beloved works of Western literature. The end result is a fresh perspective on these well-known stories as well as an inside look at life in Iran during the Iran-Iraq war.
Azar Nafisi will be speaking and reading from her book tonight at 7 p.m. at the Pacific Asia Museum, 46 North Los Robles Ave in Pasadena. For more information, call the Museum at 626-449-2742.
Singular Pilgrim
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As Shiite Muslims converge upon Karbala in Iraq in an ancient pilgrimage outlawed during the reign of Saddam Hussein, Kitty Felde explores the wider notion of pilgrimages with a woman who spent two years exploring different spiritual journeys, Rosemary Mahoney, author of The Singular Pilgrim (Houghton Mifflin).
Friday, April 25
Yosemite Valley Dispute
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The beauty of Yosemite has inspired and awed many. Some might say too many. Mass tourism has impacted the national park with increased pollution and wear. A plan known as the Yosemite Valley Floor Plan was adopted to address these issues. Does the plan go too far and make access unrealistic? Congressman George Radanovich has said as much in a congressional field hearing earlier this week at the park. Host Kitty Felde with Congressman RadanovichÕs chief of staff, John McCamman, about his concerns for Yosemite. Also joining the discussion is Yosemite park ranger and spokesman, Scott Gediman.
To learn more about Yosemite, visit www.nps.gov/yose.
The Garden ConservancyÕs Open Days
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Each year, the Garden Conservancy puts together a nationwide exhibit of public and private gardens. This Sunday, select gardens in the West Adams neighborhood and Los Angeles, including the MayorÕs mansion in Hancock Park will be open to the public.
The Garden ConservancyÕs Open Days: West Coast Edition (Abrams). It costs $5 to visit each garden. For more information, call 888.842.2442 or visit www.gardenconservancy.org. On April 27th, discount ticket booklets and directions to the gardens are available at the following Lead Gardens:
Hancock Park, Windsor Square, and Larchmont Village, at Getty House, 605 South Irving Blvd., Los Angeles, from 9:30AM until 3:30PM; (Four area gardens open 10:00AM until 4:00PM).
Queens in the Kingdom
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Many gays and lesbians flock to both Disneyland and Disney World for the annual Gay Day celebration at the parks, an event that draws over 100,000 people from around the world. Out magazine senior editor Jeffrey Epstein and Out contributing writer Eddie Shapiro joined forces to create a guide to Gay Day, called Queens in the Kingdom filled with maps, incisive reviews and even Ôfairy factsÓ. They both join Kitty for a discussion of gay fun at AmericaÕs first and second most visited tourist destinations.
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