Frobish, Nestle J. — Fair Play For Frogs, Part 1

Frogs play an important role in the world’s ecology and are their occasional demise is sometimes noted as an impending ecological disaster. In 1961, a newly elected member of the California State Assembly, Jerome R. Waldie, introduced a bill that read in full:  “Frogs may be taken using slingshot.” Little did he know that this bill would plague him throughout his political career, in the California Legislature, United States Congress, and as a candidate for Governor of California. Our guest is Nestle J. Frobish, the Chair-Creature of the World Wide Fair Play for Frogs Committee, an organization founded in Berkeley, California soon after Waldie introduced what became to be known as the “Frog Murder Bill.” 

“Fair Play for Frogs, The Waldie – Frobish Papers,” the collected correspondence between Nestle J. Frobish and Congressman Jerome R. Waldie was published as political spoof in 1977.  Around that time some misguided people, including Congressman Waldie accused me of being Nestle J. Frobish.  Let me make it clear, here and now:  I Barry Vogel am not now, nor ever have been Nestle J. Frobish. However I did speak the with Chair-Creature Frobish by phone as he lurked near a pond at Frog Central in northern Vermont on May 21, 2007, so this rather preposterous story could be told from at least his perspective. My interview with Jerome R. Waldie, humbly presents his perspective and may be found on this web-site.  The interview with Frobish was originally broadcast May 21, 2007.

The book Nestle J. Frobish recommends is “State of Denial,” by Bob Woodward.

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Golden, Kevin Z. — Lawsuit to Ban Genetically Modified Alfalfa

The consequences of growing genetically modified alfalfa were deteremined by the United States District Court in San Francisco, California to be so uncertain and so potentially dangerous that they were outlawed nation-wide in litigation brought by the Center for Food Safety based in San Francisco. In this edition of Radio Curious we visit with Attorney Kevin Zelig Golden, who, along with others from the Center for Food Safety, litigated this landmark case which banned the planting of genetically modified alfalfa as of May 3, 2007.  This program was originally broadcast May 7, 2007.

The book that Kevin Z. Golden recommends is “Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals,” by Michael Pollan.

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Stephen Most – The Klamath River

River of Renewal, Myth & History in the Klamath Basin

Since the last Ice Age ended about 12,000 years ago, human beings have traveled along the Klamath River and it tributaries in the northwest corner of California and the coast of southern Oregon.  Many people finding an abundance of food, have stayed. The main source of their food was salmon. The power of the myth of the salmon may derive from the fact that wild salmon spread out across the Pacific Northwest about the same time that human beings did, at the end of the last Ice Age. In this edition of Radio Curious we visit with Steve Most, author of “River of Renewal, Myth & History in the Klamath Basin,” a book that tells the story of the history of the Klamath River and the people who have continuously lived there for the past 12,000 years. Steve Most is a playwright and documentary storyteller. Among many other works, he wrote the texts of the audio voices and videos for the permanent exhibit of the Washington State History Museum. In this interview recorded in mid-March 2007, I spoke with Steve Most from his home in Berkeley, California. We began our conversation when I asked him to give a perspective of the geological and human aspects of the Klamath River and its place in history.

Stephen Most recommends the “Essays and Letters of Ralph Waldo Emerson.”

Originally Broadcast: March 21, 2007

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Zana Briski, Ross Kauffman – Brothels of Calcutta, India

Born Into Brothels

“Born into Brothels” received the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2005.  A tribute to the resiliency of childhood and the restorative power of art, “Born into Brothels” is a portrait of several unforgettable children who live in the red light district of Calcutta, where their mothers work as prostitutes.  The most stigmatized people in Calcutta’s red light district however are not the prostitutes, but their children.  In the face of abject poverty, abuse, and despair, these kids have little possibility of escaping their mother’s fate or for creating another type of life. In “Born into Brothels,” directors Zana Briski and Ross Kauffman chronicle the amazing transformation of the children they come to know in the red light district.  Briski, a professional photographer, gives them lessons and cameras, igniting latent sparks of artistic genius that reside in these children who live in the most sordid and seemingly hopeless world. The photographs taken by the children are not merely examples of remarkable observation and talent; they reflect something much larger, morally encouraging, and even politically volatile: art as an immensely liberating and empowering force. Devoid of sentimentality, “Born into Brothels” defies the typical tear-stained tourist snapshot of the global underbelly.  Briski spends years with these kids and becomes part of their lives.  Their photographs are prisms into their souls, rather than anthropological curiosities or primitive imagery, and a true testimony of the power of the indelible creative spirit. You can learn about this film and Kids with Cameras at www.kids-with-cameras.org. I spoke with Zana Briski and Ross Kauffman in February 2005. Beginning the conversation first with Zana Briski, I asked her to explain what drew her to India before the concept of “Kids With Cameras” was even a dream.

www.kids-with-cameras.org

Zana Briski recommends “Secret Life of Bees,” by Sue Monk Kidd.

Originally Broadcast: March 15, 2007

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Keith Faulder and Steven Antler – A Lawsuit To Be District Attorney

After District Attorney Norm Vroman died in September, 2006, and his name could not removed from the ballot, Keith Faulder, the interim DA appointed by the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors, sued the County seeking to void the November 8, 2006 general election for DA and to require that a special election be held. Former Deputy District Attorney Meredith Lintott received the most votes in the June primary election and was also on the November, 2006, ballot along with Vroman. The California Court of Appeals upheld Faulder’s claim which Lintott and the County appealed to the California Supreme Court. This edition of Radio Curious discusses the history and status of this unique case in interviews with Faulder and Steve Antler, Lintott’s attorney.

Keith Faulder recommends, “Theodore Rex,” by Edmund Morris.

Steven Antler recommends, “October 1964,” by David Halberstram.

Originally Broadcast: November 29, 2006

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Dr. Eva Etzioni-Halevy – Israel: The 11th Century B.C. and Now

The Song of Hannah, A Biblical Novel of Love, Temptation, and the Making of A Prophet

Eva Etzioni-Halevy, a retired professor of sociology at Bar-Ilan University in Tel Aviv, Israel, is the author of, “The Song of Hannah, A Biblical Novel of Love, Temptation, and the Making of A Prophet,” and the guest in this edition of Radio Curious. The story takes place in Judea in the eleventh century B.C. when few people were literate. In this interview with Eva Etzioni-Halevy, recorded from her home in Tel Aviv, Israel, in late September 2006, she describes her interpretation of Hannah’s life, loves and leadership, and her impressions of Israel several weeks after the summer 2006 war with Lebanon. We began when I asked her to describe who Hannah was.

www.evaetzioni-halevy.com

Dr. Eva Etzioni-Halevy recommends, “Walking the Bible,” by Bruce Feiler.

Originally Broadcast: September 27, 2006

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Anthony Arthur – Changing America: Upton Sinclair Style

Radical Innocent: Upton Sinclair

Since I was young, I have been intrigued by the work of Upton Sinclair. I remember as a boy hearing about Sinclair’s books and efforts to change the world. A close friend of my family was the writer for Sinclair’s campaign newspaper, when he ran for governor of California in 1934 and, although that was long before I was born, the stories rolled during his later visits. Sinclair is perhaps best know for, “The Jungle,” published in 1906, which openly revealed the inhumane conditions of the Chicago stockyards and how the meatpacking industry operated, resulting in the passage of the pure food and drug laws within months after the books publication.

“Radical Innocent: Upton Sinclair,” is a biography written by retired professor Anthony Arthur, released in June 2006, 100 years after the publication of, “The Jungle,” and tells the story of Upton Sinclair’s life and work. Arthur weaves the strands of Sinclair’s contentious public career and his often-troubled private life, which Sinclair at times willingly revealed, into a compelling personal narrative.  Anthony Arthur rates integrity as Sinclair’s greatest strength, and claims his eloquence in writing and speech, along with his reputation for selflessness as the basis of a ground swell of support for Sinclair and his ideas. When I spoke with Professor Anthony Arthur at the end of August 2006, from his home near Los Angeles, California, he began by describing what attracted him to study and write about Upton Sinclair.

Anthony Arthur recommends, “Seven Pillars of Wisdom: A Triumph,” by T.E. Lawrence.

Originally Broadcast: September 6, 2006

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Martha McCabe – Culture and Racism

Praise At Midnight

Life, culture and racism are the topics of this edition of Radio Curious, in conversation with attorney/novelist Martha McCabe, author of, “Praise at Midnight.”  Martha McCabe worked as a civil rights and criminal trial lawyer in deep east Texas from 1974 to 1985.  Her goal was to pour the raw material from her personal experiences as a lawyer into her story.  The deeper level into which she fell during the ten year period it took her to complete, “Praise at Midnight,” was the importance of consciousness and self awareness in avoiding the projection of one’s own dark side on to other people and then killing them.  She applies this to both local and international levels in her considerations.  She and I have been associates, good friends and colleagues since 1969 when we met at the University of Santa Clara where I was a law student.  When I spoke with Martha McCabe from her home in San Antonio, Texas on July 29, 2006, we began with her description of the culture of deep east Texas at the time she was living there, 1974 to 1985.

Martha McCabe recommends, “Reading Lolita in Teheran,” by Azar Nafisi and, “Caballero: A Historical Novel,” by Jovita Gonzalez and Eve Raleigh.

Originally Broadcast: August 2, 2006

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Dr. Steven Miles – A Blind Eye to Torture

Oath Betrayed: Torture, Medical Complicity, and the War on Terror

The silence of doctors, nurses and medics during the physical abuse of prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan and the information provided by physicians and psychologists to determine how much and what kind of mistreatment could be delivered to prisoners during interrogation is the topic of this edition of Radio Curious. Our guest is Dr. Steven Miles, author of, “Oath Betrayed: Torture, Medical Complicity and the War On Terror,” a book based in-part on eyewitness accounts of actual victims of prison abuse and more than thirty-five thousand pages of documents, autopsy reports and medical records. Dr. Miles is a professor at the University of Minnesota Medical School and its Center for Bioethics. He is a recognized expert in medical ethics, human rights and international health care. This interview with Dr. Steven Miles was recorded in mid-July 2006, from his office in Minneapolis, Minnesota. We begin when I asked him about his motivation to write a book about the treatment of people who are disarmed and imprisoned.

Steven Dr. Miles recommends, “Bury The Chains: Profits and Rebels in the Fight to Free an Empire’s Slaves,” by Adam Hochchild.

Originally Broadcast: July 20, 2006

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Christina Baldwin – Creating Community through Stories

Storycatcher: Making Sense of Our Lives though the Power and Practice of Story

Story is the heart of language.  Story moves us to love and hate and can motivate us to change the whole course of our lives.  Story can lift us beyond the borders of our individuality to imagine realities of other people, times and places, to empathize with other beings, and to extend our supposing far into the universe. Storytelling, both oral and written is the foundation of being human.  In this edition of Radio Curious we visit with Christina Baldwin, author of,  “Storycatcher: Making Sense of Our Lives though the Power and Practice of Story.”  In Ukiah, California, the idea of capturing, “the story of Ukiah and Mendocino County,” is part of  defining our community’s future and is what will be used in the development of the Ukiah Area Plan, which is now under consideration by the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors.

Christina Baldwin recommends, “Turning To One Another: Simple Conversations to Restore Our Hope for the Future,” by Margaret J. Wheatley.

Originally Broadcast: April 17, 2006

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