Orange County proposes new sex offender law. Drill baby, drill? Maybe not so fast. The United States of takers not makers? CA Senate proposes a 'Do Not Track' bill. Teen pregnancy rates are down in the U.S. The fine line between fame and madness.
O.C. cracks down on sex offenders
Starting next month, registered sex offenders will no longer be permitted in some parks, beaches and harbors in Orange County. The ordinance, proposed by Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas and Supervisor Shawn Nelson, was unanimously passed by the board Tuesday. Violators of the law, which takes effect May 5, could face up to six months in jail or a $500 fine. Will this help keep sex offenders away from children and families? Or is it, as critics suggest, impossible to enforce?
Guest:
Kimberly Edds, Staff Writer for the O.C. Register
Drill, Whittier, drill? Conservationists say not so fast
Whittier City Councilman Bob Henderson is credited with turning the Whittier Hills into a nature preserve in 1994, so why is he now advocating drilling for oil on this property? It’s one thing to green your city, quite another to make green from your city. Henderson purchased the Puente Hills Landfill Native habitat Preservation for Whittier using countywide tax revenues under a 1992 ballot measure that funds preservation of open space. Now the Whittier City Council is proposing to drill for oil on 7 acres of the preserve. The non-profit Open Space Legal Defense Fund is claiming that drilling constitutes a misappropriation of county funds since county taxpayers paid for the land but the proceeds from any oil found there will only go to the city of Whittier. For the time being the issue rests on the city planning commission’s response to an upcoming Environmental Impact Report. Is there a conflict of interest here? In these tough economic why shouldn’t a city exploit its own natural resources?
Guests:
Bob Henderson, City Councilman, Whittier
Eddie Diaz, President, Open Space Legal Defense Fund
The United States of takers not makers?
Steven Moore, senior economics writer for the Wall Street Journal contends in a recent column that the reason California and other states are “teetering on the brink of bankruptcy” is because twice as many Californians are working in government than in manufacturing. He explains this trend, in part, by sighting greater productivity in manufacturing and farming. Farmers produce three times what they produced in 1950 and the same can probably be said for manufacturing but Moore decries the lack of increased productivity in government jobs like teaching. Teacher pay, he claims, has doubled over the last 35 years while student test scores have flattened. Comparing teachers to farmers may be a false comparison and Moore doesn’t mention how much the American economy has grown by adding jobs in the service sector, but even President Obama says we can’t return to prosperity until we start “making stuff.” Does our economic success depend on becoming a nation that makes things again and if so, how do we bring back manufacturing jobs that have gone overseas?
Guest:
Steven Moore, senior economics writer for the Wall Street Journal editorial page
Don’t track me, dude
California was at the forefront of creating the do not call law to protect consumers from telemarketers. Now the state is set to lead the way for increased internet privacy. State Senator Alan Lowenthal of Long Beach is proposing the nation’s first “do-not-track” legislation that would allow internet users to opt out of having their online habits monitored and used in marketing. Industry watchers are saying that protecting online privacy seems more likely to be addressed first on a local basis, before federal legislation will be considered. Through what kind of mechanism will online users be able to opt out of being monitored? Is this technologically realistic? How are online advertisers fighting back?
Guest:
Senator Alan Lowenthal (D-Long Beach)
The teens are all right, really
Parents, it’s time to stop worrying about your kids and the rest of America’s youth. A recent study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that teenagers are exhibiting heightened responsibility and common sense in a variety of areas. This is especially noteworthy, as teenagers have also become more diverse and grown in sheer numbers. One of the most important pieces of data in the study is that the number of teenage girls who get pregnant and give birth is at an all-time low; only 39 out of every 1,000 girls between the ages of 15 and 19 gave birth in 2009. This fact is attributed to the rise in information about and accessibility of contraception and a slight decrease in sexual activity amongst teenagers. Additionally, declines have been seen in other areas since 1990; smoking and drinking, driving in general (and subsequently, drunk driving or riding with a drunk driver), deaths caused by guns, the carrying of weapons, teenage fighting, and suicide have all fallen off. With all of this progress, however, the typical American older than 40 would most likely say that teenagers are going to hell in a hand basket. Why is there such a big disconnect between fact and perception? Is this an argument for letting up a little or is it because teenagers have traditionally been kept on such short leashes? Is this a simple case of “parents just don’t understand?”
The fine line between fame and madness
Rolling Stone journalist Neil Strauss has been called the Mike Tyson of interviewers. He does indeed have a way of wrestling with his subjects darkest sides. He made Lady Gaga cry, goes to the Church of Scientology with Tom Cruise, and gets kidnapped by Courtney Love. He has gathered highlights from some 3,000 interviews he’s done and weaves them into an analysis of pop culture today. He joins guest host David Lazarus to discuss how he got Ike Turner to talk about his father’s gruesome death at the hands of a white mob and how Hugh Hefner didn't get enough hugs from his mom.
Guest:
Neil Strauss, author of Everyone Loves You When You’re Dead (Harper Collins)