Israel/Gaza Conflict Continues; Blagojevich Appoints Burris to Illinois Senate Seat; Suicide Hotlines See Rise in Calls; Discover Magazine's Top Science Stories Of 2008; Virginity Pledges
Israel/Gaza Conflict Continues
Is the Israeli response to the Hamas attacks on Southern Israel disproportionate and does the Israeli military response set the stage for a long term resolution to the conflict? Guest host David Lazarus gets the latest from Josh Mitnick, Correspondent for Christian Science Monitor in Tel Aviv and takes listener calls.
Blagojevich Appoints Burris to Illinois Senate Seat
Embattled Illinois Governor Rob Blagojevich has defied U.S. Senate leaders and his own state's lawmakers by appointing former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris to Obama's seat at a news conference scheduled this afternoon at 3:00 pm EST. Guest host David Lazarus checks in with Chicago Public Radio's political reporter Ben Calhoun.
Suicide Hotlines See Rise in Calls
Layoffs, foreclosures, lost savings - the economic news this holiday season has been very grim. On top of that, calls to Los Angeles' busiest suicide hotline, which is run by the Didi Hirsch Community Mental Health Center, have increased by as much as 60% over last year. Mental health experts say the economic downturn has turned seasonal blues into a full-blown crisis. Guest host David Lazarus talks with Sandri Kramer, program director, Didi Hirsch Community Mental Health Center and Robert Mendelsohn, clinical director, Southern California Counseling Center, about these alarming statistics and finds out where and how people can get help.
Discover Magazine's Top Science Stories Of 2008
Tainted drugs from China. Physicists search for what they call the "God Particle." And the "Post-Oil Ear Begins" are just a few of the top 100 stories in Discover Magazine's end-of-the-year round up. Guest-host David Lazarus talks with Corey Powell, Discover's Editor-in-Chief, about the science breakthroughs and conundrums of 2008.
Virginity Pledges
Teens who take pledges to remain virgins until marriage are just as likely to have sex as teens who don't make such promises. They're also less likely to practice safe sex to prevent disease or pregnancy, according to a recent study out of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Does that mean the abstinence movement is a complete washout? Well, no. Other research by the Rand Institute indicates that teenage pledgers do actually delay having sex longer than non-pledgers. Just how effective is the abstinence-only movement? What's the significance behind all the numbers? And why don't we just grow up about sex? Why not give teens good information and let them make informed decisions? Guest host David Lazarus talks with the Janet Rosenbaum, post doctoral fellow at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Steven Martino, psychologist at RAND Corporation, and takes listener calls.