Jim Wattenburger

Who Should Control Rural Growth, Corporations or Citizens?  

Should a shopping mall and a large residential development occur adjacent to the city of Ukiah, California? The city and many people fear this develoment will result in the loss of a unique, rural small town in northern California. Mendocino County Supervisor Jim Wattenburger discusses his position in support of these projects, and the legalization of marijuana in two programs recorded September 23, 2007.

Jim Wattenburger recommends "Undaunted Courage," by Stephen A. Ambrose.

Originally Broadcast: September 26, 2007 and October 3, 2007

Click here to begin listening to Part One.

Click here to begin listening to Part Two.  

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Ira Flatow

Science Changes

Present at the Future: From Evolution to Nanotechnology, Candid and Controversial Conversations on Science and Nature.

The chance to interview another interviewer is an opportunity I like to take.  A chance came on September 4, 2007, when I was able to visit with Ira Flatow, the host of “Science Friday,” a part of "Talk of the Nation," on NPR.   We talked about some of the ideas and concepts  in his book, “Present at the Future: From Evolution to Nanotechnology, Candid and Controversial Conversations on Science and Nature.”  I think that after thirty-five years as a science journalist, Ira Flatow has seen enough to expect unexpected changes.  He refers to that at the close of the introduction to his book and writes:  “After watching science do its thing for a while, you realize knowledge is really a moving target. What we know today will probably be wrong tomorrow.  And science is that tool for discovery. When science tells us something, chances are that it will tell us something different a few years from now.”  And that’s where Ira Flatow and I began our conversation.  

www.iraflatow.com

Ira Flatow recommends "The World Without Us," by Alan Weisman.

Originally Broadcast: September 5, 2007

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Richard Shoemaker

Barry Vogel, Esq.

Citizen Effort to Combat Big Box Takeover of a Small, Rural Community.

Contrary to the five to zero decision of the Ukiah City Council recommending a No Vote, Mendocino County Supervisor Jim Wattenburger, whose district solely comprises the City of Ukiah, voted yes creating a board majority to further investigate the development of a major shopping center adjacent to Ukiah, a small, tranquil, rural community. In this conversation Richard Shoemaker, a former member of the Board of Supervisors from the Ukiah district, and attorney and veteran board watcher Barry Vogel (host and producer of Radio Curious) discuss the unusual anomalies of this event.

Richard Shoemaker recommends "Ripples From the Zambezi," Ernesto Sirolli.

Barry Vogel recommends "Big Box Swindle," Stacy Mitchell.

Originally Broadcast: August 22, 2007

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John Pinches

All Politics is Local Including Marijuana

The concept that all politics is local is shown in this interview with Mendocino County Supervisor John Pinches in our August 7, 2007 interview on growing, use and "legalization" of marijuana.

Originally Broadcast: August 7, 2007

Click here to begin listening.

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Charles Ferguson

Will This War Ever End?

The Endless War

“The Endless War,” a movie released in late July 2007, written, directed and produced by Charles Ferguson, depicts the blunders and ill-prepared manner in which the United States initiated and carried out the war against Iraq. This full-length feature film juxtaposes the statements and actions of the Washington leadership of the war, which at the outset failed to include President Bush, the Commander-in-Chief, with the leadership’s actions and grievous consequences that followed.  Charles Ferguson holds a Ph.D. in political science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has extensive experience in foreign policy analysis and lives and works in the San Francisco Bay area. When I spoke with him on July 20, 2007 we began with his explanation how the war and the occupation of Iraq were shaped by an extremely small group of people IN Washington D.C., with limited foreign policy and post war occupation experience.

Charles Ferguson recommends "The Lives of Others," a movie about life in East German under the communist regiem.

Originally Broadcast: July 25, 2007

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Bruce Anderson

The Reporter Interviewed

The Anderson Valley Advertiser is an iconoclastic newspaper originating weekly from Boonville, Mendocino County, California, edited and published by Bruce Anderson, whose name is merely coincidental with the name of the Anderson Valley.  The masthead of the AVA, as it is sometimes called, says, “Newspapers should have no friends,” and “Fan the Flames of Discontent.”  After a three-year hiatus, beginning when Anderson sold the AVA and attempted to establish a newspaper elsewhere, he repurchased the AVA and returned to Boonville on July 1, 2007 to write again.  We met in the studios of Radio Curious on July 13, 2007 and talked about why he left Mendocino County, what he did while he was gone, how he reckons with the aggravated relationships he created with some people in years past, and what the readers can expect now that he again buys ink by the barrel.

Bruce Anderson recommends books by Rebecca Solnit.

Originally Broadcast: July 17, 2007

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Joseph Marshall III

The End of a Nation: the Lakota Tribe

The Day the World Ended at Little Bighorn; a Lakota History

Independence unfortunately comes and goes, frequently under the guise of independence for other people.  And independence is today’s topic.  In this two-part Radio Curious interview, recorded on June 29, and broadcasted on July 4 and July 11, 2007, we visit the concept of independence as seen from the Lakota point of view.  The Lakota nation was made up of the largest known group of North American native people and encompassed a large portion of the northern plains in what is now Montana, Wyoming, North and South Dakota.  Our guest is Joseph M. Marshall, III, author if “The Day The World Ended at Little Bighorn, a Lakota History.” Growing up on the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation, where his first language was Lakota, Marshall is an historian, storyteller and author whose work shares the history of his people.  I spoke with Joseph Marshall when he visited San Francisco, California.  We began our discussion when I asked him to describe what turned out to be the largest and last gathering of the Lakota people when they met at Little Bighorn in July of 1876.

Joseph Marshall III recommends "The World We Used to Live in: Remembering the Powers of the Medicine Men," by Vine Deloria.

Originally Broadcast: July 4, 2007 and July 11, 2007

Click here to begin listening to Part One.

Click here to begin listening to Part Two.

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Tom Allman

The Sheriff and Marijuana

Marijuana, some say, is on the lips of many people here in Mendocino County, California, and likely many other places throughout the world, to some with pleasure and to others with distaste.  Nonetheless it doesn’t seem that marijuana will go away.  Not withstanding federal laws prohibiting use and possession of marijuana, the people of the state of California adopted the Compassionate Use Act in 1996 and in November 2000, the voters of Mendocino County approved a resolution by a vote of 58% to 42% to decriminalize the personal use of marijuana.  In this edition of Radio Curious we visit with Tom Allman the Sheriff of Mendocino County to discuss the enforcement of the many conflicting marijuana laws.  Estimates of the value of the crop produced in Mendocino County vary from five to ten billion dollars.  We began when I asked the Sheriff to comment on this estimate.

Tom Allman recommends "The Hunt For Red Octobor," by Tom Clancy.

Originally Broadcast: June 19, 2007

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Jerome Waldie

Fair Play For Frogs, Part 2

As a lawyer and a student of political science, I have come to appreciate the anomalies and humor of politics.  One story that fits both of those categories well is the relationship between Nestle J. Frobish, the Chair-creature of World-Wide Fair Play for Frogs Committee and his former nemesis and the former Congressional Representative from the region just east of San Francisco, California, Jerome R. Waldie.  Their dissension arose in 1961 when Waldie was a freshman member of the California State Assembly and chose to introduce what came to be known as the “Frog Murder Bill,” resulting in Frobish organizing what turned out to be a 45 year campaign to get Waldie to renounce, what Frobish called his “vestigial impurities” visited upon him as the “mad butcher of the swamp.”  Waldie finally acceded in 2006 and in this interview recorded in mid June 2007 tells us why.

Jerome Waldie recommends "It Can't Happen Here" by Sinclair Lewis.

Originally Broadcast: June 11, 2007

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Nestle J. Frobish

Fair Play For Frogs, Part 1

Frogs play an important role in ecology of the world 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 through out his political career in the California Legislature, in the 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 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 former Congressman Jerome R. Waldie was published as political spoof in 1977. Around that time some misinformed people, including Congressman Waldie accused me of being Nestle J. Frobish, something I am not now, nor ever have been.   I spoke with Nestle J. Frobish by phone while he was lurking near a pond at Frog Central in northern Vermont on May 21, 2007, so this rather preposterous story could be told.  Jerome Waldie is also a guest and his interview may be found on this web-site.

Nestle J. Frobish recommends "State of Denial" by Bob Woodward.

Originally Broadcast: May 21, 2007

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Benjamin Barber

Don't Buy It!

Consumed: How Markets Corrupt Children, Infantilize Adults, and Swallow Citizens Whole

When we purchase and consume what we believe is necessary for our individual lives, do we obtain what we need or do we end up with what the forces of 21st century capitalism tell us we need?  In this edition of Radio Curious we visit with Benjamin Barber, author of “Consumed, How Markets Corrupt Children, Infantilize Adults, and Swallow Citizens Whole.”  The concepts of dumbing down the consumer and the development of brand devotion in the early years of a person’s life are, among many other considerations, explored in this book.  I spoke with Benjamin Barber from his home in New York City in early April 2007 and began our conversation by asking him to discuss how consumers are infantilized and targeted in way that there will never be enough shoppers.

Benjamin Barber recommends “The March,” by E.L. Doctorow..

Originally Broadcast: April 11, 2007

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Gregory Hartley

Maryann Karinch

Reading Body Language

I Can Read You Like a Book

Have you ever wondered what some body movements mean when people hear certain words or see certain images?  Many of these body movements are involuntary reactions inherent to the individual or culturally based. “I Can Read You Like A Book:  How to Spot the Messages and Emotions People are Really Sending with their Body Language,” a book by Gregory Hartley and Maryann Karinch, described methods of understanding what people really mean and how to gain insight to their background by watching their physical behavior.  Hartley, a former Army interrogator details how to review with an open mind what you see, evaluate to know what is relevant, analyze to identify involuntary versus involuntary movements and then decide or draw a conclusion based on what you observe.

Gregory Hartley recommends “Without Conscience:  The Disturbing World of the Psychopaths Among Us,” by Dr. Robert D. Hare..

Originally Broadcast: April 4, 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 after his name could not removed from the ballot, Keith Faulder, the interim DA appointed by the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors, sued Mendocino 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. Daniel J. Levitin

Music On The Brian

This Is Your Brain On Music:  The Science of a Human Obsession

The understanding of how we humans experience music and why it plays a unique role in our lives is this topic of two interviews with Dr. Daniel Levitin, author of “This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession,” recorded from his home in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in late October 2006.  Professor Levitin runs the Laboratory for Musical Perception, Cognition and Expertise at McGill University in Montreal, Canada.  He asserts that our brains are hardwired for music and therefore we are all more musically equipped than we think and that music is an obsession at the heart of human nature, perhaps even more fundamental to our species than language.  Professor Levitin believes that the music we end up liking meets our expectations of what we anticipate hearing just enough of the time that we feel rewarded, and the music that we like also violates those expectations just enough of the time that we’re intrigued. In the first interview Dr. Levitin begins by describing how the human brain learns to distinguish between music and language.  The second interview begins with a discussion of what happens when people listen to music they like.

www.yourbrainonmusic.com

Dr. Daniel J. Levitin recommends "Another Day in the Frontal Lobe," by Katrina Firlik, and "The Human Stain," by Philip Roth.

Originally Broadcast: November 1, 2006 November 8, 2006

Click here to begin listening to Part One.

Click here to begin listening to Part Two.

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Michael Gurian

A Look at The Wonder of Boys, Ten Years Later

The Wonder of Boys, 10th Anniversary Edition

We explored the difficulties that boys have growing in American society ten years in a two part interview with Michael Gurian, author of “The Wonder of Boys: What Parents, Mentors and Educators can do to Shape Boys into Exceptional Men.”  A tenth anniversary edition of “The Wonder of Boys” was released in 2006, and I spoke with Michael Gurian about his ideas and thoughts of what has occurred in the past ten years in relation to boys.  The trend setting pressures of commercial advertising control the content distributed to boys and often are able to overwhelm the job of the parents to nurture to social development of children.  In this interview with Michael Gurian who lives in Spokane Washington and recorded in mid-October 2006, we discuss the effects of media on the developing boy; content of what boys listen to when they have earphones on; the substitution of what comes from the earphones for what a boy would get in a relationship with parents, grandparents, or other meaningful people in a boys life.

www.gurianinstitute.com

Michael Gurian recommends “The Collected Poems of Mary Oliver” by Mary Oliver..

Originally Broadcast: October 10, 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 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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Paul Goldstein

The Artist's Right of Ownership

Errors and Omissions

Who owns the rights to a play, a song, or a work of art?  How important and fragile is the authorship?  These and other issues of intellectual property rights begin to be revealed in “Errors and Omissions,” a novel by Stanford Law Professor Paul Goldstein.  “Errors and Omissions” follows the story of Michael Seeley as he locates a World War Two era Polish refugee who is the author of a screenplay that has the potential to make a huge amount of money not only from the movie rights, but also from the sale of associated paraphernalia.  Goldstein, who began writing fiction at the age of twelve, hopes now, fifty years later that readers of his first full length novel will carry away the sense of the fragility of authorship, when an artist creates a work out of thin air.  I spoke with Paul Goldstein from his office at Stanford University and began when by asking him to define intellectual property.

Paul Goldstein recommends "Aspects of the Novel," by E.M. Forster.

Originally Broadcast: August 9, 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 is the 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 justify 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 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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Dr. Clotaire Rapaille

Understanding Our Collective Unconscious

The Culture Code, An Ingenious Way to Understand Why People Around The World Live and Buy As They Do

The collective unconscious may be defined as a cultural code, a set of imprinted concepts that control how members of different societies live. Dr. Clotaire Rapaille, a French born psychologist brings together the concepts of Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud in his development of the collective unconscious in the book, “The Culture Code, An Ingenious Way to Understand Why People Around The World Live and Buy As They Do.”  Dr. Rapaille thrives on new ideas, which is part of the reason he chose to become American.  We visited by phone from his home in New York State the last week of June 2006, and asked him to describe the development of his ideas.

www.archetypediscoveriesworldwide.com

Dr. Clotaire Rapaille recommends "The DiVinci Code," by Dan Brown and "Straight From The Gut," by Jack Welsh.

Originally Broadcast: June 28, 2006 and July 5, 2006

Click here to begin listening to part one.

Click here to begin listening to part two.

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Ken Rockwell

A View Through the Lens:  Photography and the Internet

With the help of a camera, especially a digital camera, and the internet we may now see portions of what other people have seen and sent our way or perhaps have made public.  Sometime soon I hope to present some visual images I think special in addition to the sound images you can hear here on the Radio Curious website.  In preparation for creating those images I found my way to an intriguing photography website called www.kenrockwell.com.  This website has many references about cameras, how to choose and use them, and it also tells the story of a man who freely shares his knowledge and skills about photography.  After reading his website I invited Ken Rockwell to join us for a conversation about photography, cameras, websites and the use of the internet.  Ken Rockwell and I visited by phone in early May, 2006, from his home near San Diego, California.  For him, good photography narrows down to seeing better which he describes to be more of a feeling than an actual momentary vision.

www.kenrockwell.com

Ken Rockwell recommends "Ten-Thousand Miles of America," by Richard A. Suleski, Jr..

Originally Broadcast: May 9, 2006

Click here to begin listening.  

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Dr. Gene D. Cohen

Do We Get Smarter As We Age

The Mature Mind:  The Positive Power of the Aging Brain

Do people over a certain age necessarily loose mental acuity?  According to Dr. Gene Cohen, the answer is “no.” Dr. Cohen, a psychiatrist and gerontologist has determined that certain genes are activated by experience as we age, allowing our personalities to grow and change.  The brain has reserves of strength and agility that compensate for the effects of aging on its other parts.  Dr. Cohen has found that the information processing justify in the 60 to 80 year old brain achieves it's greatest density and reach.   He explains these and other developing concepts in brain research in his book “The Mature Mind: The Positive Power of the Aging Brain.”   I spoke with Dr. Cohen in March 2006 from his office in the justify on Aging, Health & Humanities, in Washington D.C., where he is the director.  We began our conversation with his description of the importance of the role of creativity.

Gene Cohen recommends "Tuesdays with Morrie: A Young Man, An Old Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson," by Mitch Albom.

Originally Broadcast: April 18, 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, the heart of language. Story moves us to love and hate and can motivate us to change the whole course of our life. 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." This is being done in Ukiah, California, with the idea of capturing "what is the story of Ukiah," as a part of "what is the story of Mendocino County, California," to be used in the development of the Ukiah Area Plan that 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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Sanford Elberg, Ph.D.

Microbiology and What It Does for Us

Microbiology, what it is and how it benefits society is the topic of this edition of Radio Curious.  Our guest is Dr. Sanford Elberg, a retired professor of microbiology and bacteriology and later the Dean of the Graduate School at the University of California at Berkeley.   One of his scientific successes was the development of a vaccine for brucellosis, a disease in farm animals causing the female to abort early in pregnancy.  This interview with Professor Elberg, who received a Ph.D. in microbiology from the University of California at Berkeley in 1930 was recorded at his home in Mendocino County, California in March 1998.  Dr. Elberg begins with a definition of microbiology and bacteriology.

Sanford Elberg recommends “The Plague Tales,” by Ann Benson.

Originally Broadcast: March 30, 2006

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Temple Grandin, Ph.D.

What Autism Can Tell Us About Animals

Animals in Translation:  Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior

Do animals think?  The book, “Animals in Translation:  Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior,” by Professor Temple Grandin gives us some clues.  Temple Grandin is a person with autism who teaches animal science at Colorado State University in Ft. Collins, Colorado.  Autistic people can often think the way animals think, putting autistic people in the perfect position to translate “animal talk.”  Grandin explores the world of animals; their pain, fear, aggression, relationships and communication.  When I spoke with Professor Grandin from her office in Ft. Collins, Colorado, we began with her definition of autism.

Temple Grandin recommends “Our Inner Ape,” by Frans De Waal.

Recorded March 21, 2006

Click here to begin listening.

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David Wexler, Ph.D.

Depression in Men

Is He Depressed or What?  What to Do When the Man You Love is Irritable, Moody, and Withdrawn

Depression often sets off different behaviors, sometimes recognized by others and not by the depressed person. Depression in men is the topic of this edition of Radio Curious, as we talk with David B. Wexler, Ph.D, who is the author of “Is He Depressed or What? What to Do When the Man you Love is Irritable, Moody and Withdrawn.” Dr. Wexler, a clinical psychologist, discusses how to recognize when you or someone you love is depressed, how to talk about in respectful and successful ways, while taking care of yourself.  When I spoke with Dr. Wexler from his home in San Diego, California, we began by discussing different categories of depression and how the symptoms of depression in men are different from depression in women.

David Wexler, Ph.D. recommends "Dharma Punx," by Noah Levine.

Originally Broadcast: March 14, 2006

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Suzanne Braun Levine

What Will She Do Next?

Inventing the Rest of Our Lives: Women in Second Adulthood

Recent research of how the human brain works seems to indicate that at midlife women start to see the world differently.  Approximately 37 million American women now entering their fifties and sixties having fulfilled the prescribed roles of daughter, wife, mother, employee and are not ready to retire.   They want to experience more.  Suzanne Braun Levine, our guest in this edition of Radio Curious has been reporting on the lives of women like herself and is the author of “Inventing the Rest of Our Lives:  Women in Second Adulthood." She begins by discussing recent brain research and anthropological findings relative to women in their fifties and sixties.      

Suzanne Braun Levine recommends "Never Have Your Dog Stuffed: And Other Things I’ve Learned," by Alan Alda.

Originally Broadcast: March 7, 2006

www.suzannebraunlevine.com    

Click here to begin listening.

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Mike Tidwell

Destruction of Louisiana

Bayou Farewell, The Rich Life and Tragic Death of Louisiana's Cajun Coast

It is now known that the destruction to southern Louisiana that occurred as a result of hurricane Katrina in August 2005 was anticipated by some and should have been anticipated by others. In this interview recorded in April 2003, and first broadcast in February 2006, our guest Mike Tidwell, is the author of "Bayou Farewell:  The Rich Life and Tragic Death of Coastal Louisiana."  Tidwell describes how that vast marshland of coastal Louisiana, home to millions of migratory birds and the source of one-third of America’s seafood, is literally washing out to sea.  The bayou region, 6000 square miles in size, remains the fastest disappearing landmass on earth. An acre of solid ground turns to water every 20 minutes.  An area the size of Manhattan Island washes away every ten months.

Mike Tidwell recommends "Oil Notes," by Rick Bass.

Originally Broadcast: February 28, 2006

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Neil Proto

Law As A Tool For Social Change

To A High Court: The Tumult and Choices that Led to United States v. SCRAP

Law a tool for social change is the subject of this edition of Radio Curious, and it’s also reason why I decided to be an attorney.  Neil Proto, now a veteran Washington D.C. attorney, was a law student in the early 1970s in Washington D.C. and one of several law students in a group called SCRAP (Student’s Challenging Regulatory Agency Procedures) which sued the Interstate Commerce Commission of the United States and the nation’s railroads for what they believed was a violation of the NEPA, the National Environmental Protection Act.   The regulations, which they successfully challenged, discouraged the movement of materials that could be recycled and encouraged the movement of raw materials.  The Federal court issued an injunction, ordered an environmental impact report be prepared and in the end the regulations were overturned.  The story is told in Neil Proto’s book, “To A High Court: The Tumult and Choices that Led to United States v. SCRAP.”  For the past 35 years, Neil Proto has been practicing and teaching law in the Nation’s capital.   In this conversation, recorded in early February, 2006, we discuss the SCRPA lawsuit, importance of citizen involvement in the use of the law as a tool for social change and how court rulings in recent decades have made this involvement more difficult.

  Neil Proto recommends “The Prince of Our Disorder:  The Life of T.E. Lawrence,” by John E. Mack..

Originally Broadcast: February 14, 2006

Click here to begin listening.

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Jack Cassell, M.D.

Urology, Good and Bad

Better Living Through Urology

Urinary tract diseases and their symptoms can affect all of us, men and women alike, whether we know it or not.  Sometimes we don’t know it until it is too late.  More people die each year from prostate cancer than from breast cancer or colon cancer.  So education and prevention is perhaps our best medicine.  Dr. Jack Cassell, a Florida urologist, and author of “Better Living Through Urology:  21st Century Solutions to Age-Old Problems,” discusses care of the urinary tract for men and women and how to avoid discomfort and disease that could be fatal.  In this interview we visit with Dr. Cassell from his office Florida and begin with his description of what urine is.

www.blturology.com

Jack Cassell recommends "Human Sexual Response," by William H. Masters and Virginia E. Johnson.

Originally Broadcast: February 7, 2006

Click here to begin listening.

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Mel Fiske

Radical Reporter

Radical: A Memoir of Wars, Communists & Work

Political philosophy and one’s education, both formal and informal, can lead a person on unimagined paths that are woven into stories in that person’s life.  The book, “Radical: A Memoir of Wars, Communists & Work,” was written by Mel Fiske, our guest in this edition of Radio Curious.  Mel was radicalized after a 15,000 mile journey across America during the Depression.  That trip opened his eyes to a life he never knew existed growing up in New York City.

Mel Fiske recommends “Bayou Farewell,” by Mike Tidwell.

Originally Broadcast: January 17, 2006

Click here to begin listening.

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Evan Schwartz

The Inventor's Juice

Juice, The Creative Fuel That Drives World-class Inventors

Albert Einstein suggests:  “To raise new questions, new possibilities, to regard old questions from anew angle, requires creative imagination and marks real advance.” 

Thomas Edison suggests:  “The inventor has a logical mind that sees analogies.”

And Winston Churchill comments:  “Success consists of going from one failure to another without loss of enthusiasm.”

The mind of an inventor works differently than the mind of a non-inventor.  What inspires the inventive mind?  What is different in the way an inventive mind perceives the world that is different from other minds?  What is the role of the role of invention in our society?  In this interview, recorded in January 2005, Evan Schwartz, author of “Juice, The Creative Fuel That Drives World-Class Inventors” discusses inventing and inventions.  According to Evan Schwartz, the creative energy of inventors, their “juice” gets applied to problems, products, companies and markers through the use of creativity patterns.  Invention is a set of strategic thinking strategies that can be learned, taught and practiced, just as with other skills, like cooking, acting or sailing.  He began our conversation by describing what differentiates an inventive mind from other types of minds.

  www.gotjuice.org

Evan Schwartz recommends "Chronicles Volume One," by Bob Dyland.

Originally Broadcast: January 3, 2006

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