Should there be a national ban on using cell phones while driving? Lowe’s under fire for pulling ads from TLC’s All-American Muslim. Axis of confusion on Iran developments. How does particle physics play a role in our lives? Gov. Brown announces triggered budget cuts.
NTSB recommends ban on driver cell phone use
New research has found a 40 percent increase in cell phone use among drivers despite laws banning it in several states. The National Transportation Safety Board has just recommended that states ban cell phone use by all drivers with the exception of emergencies.
Federal accident investigators suggested the new policy following a finding that the initial collision in a fatal Missouri highway pileup last year was caused by a distracted teenage pickup driver who sent or received nearly a dozen texts in about 11 minutes right before the accident. The driver and a 15-year-old student on one of the school buses were both killed, and over three dozen other people injured.
The board's recommendations hold heavy weight with lawmakers, and could significantly change policy over cell phone use while driving. This proposal also comes in the wake of an annual study conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which found that texting and talking while driving increased by more than half over the past year. The study concludes that distraction-related car accidents now account for about 9 percent of traffic-related fatalities.
WEIGH IN:
Do you still text on the highway? Have you abandoned your Bluetooth and reverted to holding your cell phone on the road? Did you get into an accident because of it? Should there be a national ban on cell phone use while driving?
Lowe's under fire for pulling ads from TLC's All-American Muslim
A recent decision by Lowe's Home Improvement to remove commercials from future episodes of TLC's "All-American Muslims" has sparked a boycott and criticism against the national chain. The move came at the behest of a right-wing group called the Florida Family Association, which waged a campaign that targeted over 60 companies urging them to remove advertisements during the program.
TLC's newest reality show, which debuted last month, chronicles the lives of five Muslim families in Dearborn, Michigan. According to the Tampa Bay group, however, the show only profiles ordinary Muslims and “is propaganda clearly designed to counter legitimate and present-day concerns about many Muslims who are advancing Islamic fundamentalism and Sharia law.”
The group alleges that other companies have pulled out advertisements as well, including Amazon, Bank of America and Home Depot, but Lowe’s is the only one that verified it in their Facebook post: “Individuals and groups have strong political and societal views on this topic, and this program became a lightning rod for many of those views. As a result we did pull our advertising on this program.”
Muslims and non-Muslims across the spectrum have criticized the chain’s move. Senator Ted Lieu issued an open letter to Lowe's CEO condemning the company’s actions, calling them bigoted and shameful. Russell Simmons tweeted about buying TLC’s remaining ad time on “All-American Muslims.”
WEIGH IN:
Was pulling the ads warranted? Will Lowe’s end up losing more customers in an effort to please a right wing Christian group? How bad of a public relations move is this? How much of a dent will this make in Lowe's business?
Guests:
Mike Mosallam, Co-executive producer, All American Muslim, also related to most of the people on All American Muslim.
Sam Theilman, Television Reporter, Variety
Axis of confusion on Iran developments
President Obama made a formal and unusual request to Iran yesterday. He asked for the return of a U.S. spy drone recently downed on Iranian soil now in the hands of its government.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran's president, told an interviewer last night, "The Americans have perhaps decided to give us this spy plane.... There are people here who have been able to control this spy plane who can surely analyze this plane's system."
This development is just the latest in a series of escalating tensions between Iran and the United States. Today, the U.S. Treasury Department ordered travel and financial sanctions against two top Iranian military officials for alleged human rights abuses.
In November, there were two unexplained explosions in Iran. One on November 12, killed 17 soldiers. Another on November 28, caused extensive damage at a military base near Tehran. Officials in the United States and Israel continue to suspect Iran of developing nuclear weapons. Tehran insists it’s for energy resources.
WEIGH IN:
Are the war drums beating for Iran – out-right or even low-level? What are the risks associated with a nuclear program for the country? What are the risks in destabilizing the Ahmadinejad government?
Guests:
Robert Kaufman, Professor of Public Policy, Pepperdine University; Author, “In Defense of the Bush Doctrine.”
Reza Marashi, Research Director, National Iranian American Council (NIAC); formerly with the Office of Iranian Affairs at the U.S. Department of State and the Institute for National Strategic Studies (INSS)
Harvard physicist illuminates the role science plays in our lives
Most of us probably haven’t thought about physics on a daily basis since taking classes in high school or college. Even back then, the subject can be so mentally taxing that information is processed for tests and quickly forgotten. Still, understanding physics and the scientific approach can shed a great deal of light on how our universe works.
But there’s no need to dust off the old textbooks (besides, they’re probably outdated). Instead, look toward Harvard Professor of Physics Lisa Randall’s new book, “Knocking on Heaven's Door: How Physics and Scientific Thinking Illuminate the Universe and the Modern World.”
Randall’s book, while written with the highest technical acumen, puts the most recondite aspects of physics into terms that are comprehensible to the typical layperson. And this is no dry, academic lecture; Randall employs her wry humor throughout the book and jumps from physics to her enthusiastic defense of science’s role in our lives.
WEIGH IN:
Are there any topics in physics you wish someone could better explain? Do you want to know how the Large Hadron Collider will reveal to scientists the nature of fundamental particles? Or maybe you want to understand application theory, or at least find out what it is? What can modern physics tell us about the way the world works today? What about how it will work tomorrow?
Guest:
Lisa Randall, Physicist and Author of “Knocking on Heaven’s Door: How Physics and Scientific Thinking Illuminate the Universe and the Modern World” (HarperCollins); Professor of Science at Harvard University; one of Time Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People” (2007)
Gov. Brown announces triggered budget cuts
California Governor Jerry Brown has announced the triggered cuts to the state's budget. What departments and sectors are most affected? What is revenue projected to be by the end of the year? Is the school year going to be shortened?
Guest:
Ben Adler, State Government Reporter, Capital Public Radio