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December 6 - 10, 2004
Monday, Dec. 6
LAX Vote
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The L.A. Airport Commission votes today on a $500 million agreement to help communities surrounding LAX. The deal would set a national precedent that will allow the city to pay for improvements to airport area schools and homes. In return, neighbors agree not to sue over modernization plans. Kitty talks with Danny Tabor, an Inglewood resident and lead negotiator for the LAX Coalition for Economic, Environmental and Educational Justice.
Racial Tensions at School
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A series of confrontations over the last few weeks between black and Latino students at three public schools have taken the community by surprise and caused an increase in patrols in and around Manual Arts, Crenshaw and Jordan High Schools. Kitty takes a look at the situation with Dr. Sylvia Rousseau, Supervisor of Local District 7 (which includes two of the three schools, Manual Arts and Jordan High) and Quentin Drew, Chairman of the Watts Neighborhood Council, who is involved in gang intervention work, economic development, social services programs with Watts-area schools. Also joining the program are students, Erika Alvarez, a 12th grader at Manual Arts, and Elizabeth Zambrano, a 12th grader at Jordan High School.
Our Weekly Begins Publication
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Racial tensions between black and Latinos on our school campuses will be one of the topics addressed in the new publication, Our Weekly, that will directly address issues facing African Americans and their communities. Kitty sits down with Natalie Cole, Publisher and CEO of the publication.
December Dilemma –Intercultural Families Celebrate the Holidays
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Often in inter-cultural families, one member feels obligated to disregard his or her ethnic heritage out of respect for family unity or because they may feel that honoring a different custom is disrespectful to one’s own. But inter-cultural families can celebrate and rejoice in all of the customs, traditions, and holidays of their heritage, including Christmas and Hanukkah. Drawing from their own experience as a dual culture family, Alan Blumenfeld and Katherine James discuss how extended families deal with these questions during the winter solstice holidays.
Farewell to former Los Angeles police Chief Tom Reddin
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Reddin, who headed the LAPD from 1967-69, died in his sleep this weekend. He was
Police chief when Sen. Robert Kennedy was assassinated at the Ambassador Hotel in 1967 when Los Angeles police clashed violently with thousands of anti-war demonstrators who had gathered outside the Century Plaza Hotel, where President Johnson was being honored. Kitty talks with longtime KTLA reporter Stan Chambers.
Tuesday, Dec. 7
The State of Homeland Security
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Talk of the City broadcasts from UCLA's Covel Commons to assess local, state, and national homeland security preparedness. Host Kitty Felde will be joined by guests: Sandra Hutchens, Chief of the Department of Homeland Security for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department; John Miller, Chief of the LAPD Critical Incident Management Bureau; and Erroll Southers, Deputy Director for the California Office of Homeland Security.
The Economic Costs of Terrorism
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Randolph Hall is Professor and Co-Director of the USC Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events (CREATE). He joins Kitty to discuss the economic costs of terrorism.
RAND's Pocket Edition Survival Guide is available for download,"What You Should Do to Prepare for and Respond to Chemical, Radiological, Nuclear, and Biological Terrorist Attacks".
Wednesday, Dec. 8
Funding Public Pensions
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On Monday, Assemblyman Keith Richman proposed converting public employee retirements from a traditional defined-benefit system to the 401(k)-style plan which could – according to Richman - make payments more predictable and potentially lower cost. Kitty talks to Assemblyman Richman about his plan and about the reaction from public employee unions and Democrats.
WTO Woes
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On January 1, 2005, the World Trade Organization terminates the 1974 Multifiber Arrangement's quotas that have been in effect for 30 years, stabilizing the global clothing industry. The effects on LA's fashion industry promise to be complex and far-reaching. Since 1990, the number of American garment and textile workers has declined more than 50 percent; many believe that garment workers will bear the brunt of the effects of this upcoming global shift in apparel production with respect to wage decreases, working conditions, and job security. Kitty speaks with Jack Keyser, Chief Economist Los Angeles Development Corporation; Kent Smith, Executive Director of the Los Angeles Fashion District Improvement District; and Alejandra Domenzain, Associate Director of Sweatshop Watch.
L.A. Department of Animal Services
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Guerdon Stuckey is the newly-appointed General Manager of LA's Department of Animal Services. The Department's staff numbers nearly 300, has a 14 million dollar annual budget, and currently operates six shelters in the city of LA.
Thursday, Dec. 9
County Sups Respond to LA Times Expose
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Today's LA Times carries the last in a five part series documenting specific cases of gross negligence and medical malpractice at King Drew Medical Center. Kitty speaks with two of the five county supervisor's to get their reaction to the less than flattering portrayal of the center and of the board's efforts to address the errors the articles investigate.
Harvey Cox
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Harvard theologian and civil rights activist Harvey Cox sits down with Kitty to discuss Jesus’ teachings within a contemporary context, considering the problems society faces today. His latest book is When Jesus Came to Harvard: Making Moral Choices Today (Houghton Mifflin).
Prof. Cox has a book signing and reading at the Aloud Lecture series, Los Angeles Public Central Library tonight at 7 pm. Call (213) 228-7025 for reservations.
Hal Landon, Jr., A Christmas Carol
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Hal Landon, Jr. created the role of Ebenezer Scrooge in South Coast Rep's production of A Christmas Carol in 1980 and has performed it every year since then. A founding member of SCR, Hal has also performed at the Mark Taper Forum and San Diego's Old Globe as well as in numerous films.
SCR’s 25th Anniversary production of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, runs through Sunday, December 26th.
Roger Kahn on Doping
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As players and league management work toward an agreement on tougher testing for steroids, Kitty gets reaction to doping allegations from longtime baseball writer Roger Kahn, author of the upcoming, Beyond the Boys of Summer (McGraw-Hill), a collection of 50 years of his work.
The Loh Life
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Adjusting to life in a red/blue nation.
Friday, Dec. 10
Flu Update—How bad is it? The Avian flu outbreak – what does it mean for Southern Californians?
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The flu season tends to peak at this time of year. Kitty speaks with Dr. Laurene Mascola, Chief of the Acute Communicable Disease Control Program for the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services about this week's announcement of more flu vaccines, as well as the impending threat of the avian flu and the likelihood of it affecting Southern California. Dr. Stephen Corber, Director of communicable diseases, Pan American Health Organization also joins the discussion.
Lawsuit over State Borrowing
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According to a lawsuit from the Pacific Legal Foundation, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's plan to cover the state's pension obligation this year by selling millions in bonds violates the state constitution's debt clause since the borrowing was not approved by voters. The lead attorney with the case, Harold Johnson, gives Kitty the details and H. D. Palmer, Deputy Director of the California State Department of Finance, reacts.
Queer Eye’s Fashionista: Carson Kressley
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Styles and patterns come and go--perhaps you're a man who wants to dress more fashionably but don't know what's tasteful versus what's trendy. Or, you're a woman who's trying to get her man to wear something other than tennis shoes and khakis and need some authoritative backup. Here it is in a fun and colorfully illustrated way: Off the Cuff: The Essential Style Guide for Men—And the Women Who Love Them (Dutton), written by the "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" fashion maven himself, Carson Kressley.
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