Imus Controversy; Tenant Relocation Assistance; Salonen Stepping Down; The Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act; Religious Literacy
Imus Controversy
Radio host Don Imus has been suspended for two weeks for comments he made on the air about the Rutgers University Women's Basketball team. Imus calls the punishment appropriate for having called the players "nappy-headed hos" and says that he is not a racist. On his show this Tuesday morning he added, "What I did was make a stupid, idiotic mistake in a comedy context." Larry opens the phones for our listeners to weigh in on the controversy.
Tenant Relocation Assistance
Last week the LA City Council tentatively approved a plan which calls for developers and property owners to provide increased relocation assistance to tenants who have been evicted to make way for condominium conversions. The two-tier plan will be voted on again this Wednesday with 10 votes needed in order to send the bill to Mayor Villaraigosa for approval. Larry talks with City Councilman Herb Wesson, who proposed the plan, and Mercedes Marquez, General Manager of the Los Angeles Housing Department.
Salonen Stepping Down
Los Angeles Philharmonic's music director, Esa-Pekka Salonen, announced Sunday that he will step down at the end of the 2008-2009 season to concentrate on composing. The future conductor of the L.A. Phil will be Gustavo Dudamel, now 26, who made his North American debut conducting the orchestra at the Hollywood Bowl in 2005. Larry discusses Salonen's announcement with Deborah Borda, L.A. Philharmonic President, and Ian Krause, Professor and Chair of the Department of Music at UCLA.
The Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act
Two separate bills that would subsidize stem cell research are in senate debate this week. The White House says President Bush will veto a bill supporting research that destroys viable human embryos. An alternative bill, one supported by the White House, would fund stem cell research on fertilized embryos that are no longer capable of full development. Larry discusses the issue with Arnold Kriegstein of the UCSF Institute for Regeneration Medicine and Nikolas T. Nikas of the Bioethics Defense Fund.
Religious Literacy
In his new book, Religious Literacy (HarperSanFrancisco), Stephen Prothero addresses the tenets of the world's major religions and the real differences among them. Larry talks with Prothero about what he believes every American needs to know about the world's major religions in order to confront the domestic and foreign challenges facing this country today.