Miramonte reopens after two-day shutdown. Oscar nominated documentary director goes to Hell and Back. California signs on to landmark settlement deal…but is it a windfall for homeowners? Pension reform ballot measure gets pulled. Why do we lie to ourselves?
Miramonte reopens after two-day shutdown
Students are returning to Miramonte Elementary School after a two-day shutdown amid sex abuse scandals that resulted in the firing of two teachers. The students, however, won’t recognize their teachers or administration officials, after the removal of the entire, original staff was ordered by the district’s Superintendant John Deasy. Deasy ordered the removal with the hope of ensuring the students' safety and gaining their parents' trust back.
The school came under intense scrutiny from parents after the arrests of former teachers Mark Berndt and Martin Bernard Springer. Berndt is charged with lewd acts against nearly two dozen children, while Springer faces three felony counts of lewd acts upon a child. Now investigative sources say a third arrest is likely.
WEIGH IN:
How do parents feel about returning their kids to school? Do they think their children are safe? Can the district regain their trust? What are the students’ sentiments? How will they react when they don’t recognize their teachers or administrators?
Guests:
Vanessa Romo, KPCC Education Reporter, is at Miramonte
Maria Ozuna, Parent of two Miramonte students
Oscar nominated documentary director goes to Hell and Back
The Oscar nominated documentary “Hell and Back Again” follows Sergeant Nathan Harris as he’s sent deep into enemy territory in Afghanistan in 2009, and is injured there by Taliban fighters. When he leaves the war-torn country, he tries to acclimate back to life in North Carolina.
Photojournalist-turned-documentary filmmaker Danfung Dennis’s film clearly illustrates the violence and horror of war, as well as the sadness and devastation the wars have wrought on the lives of the people who are fighting them.
When we see Harris back home in north Carolina he’s crippled by flashbacks, heavily medicated, battling addiction and his long-suffering wife is trying hard to figure out who her husband is after so many years fighting overseas. According to critics the film is human, dignified and stunningly shot with a photographer’s eye towards color and clarity.
Guest:
Danfung Dennis, Director of “Hell and Back Again”; Photojournalist who spent years chronicling the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan
California signs on to landmark settlement deal…but is it a windfall for homeowners?
As of two days ago California was one of the last states holding out against a national settlement with banks to pay back homeowners for mortgage abuses. California Attorney General Kamala Harris had originally supported the plan but last fall decided to pull out of the deal because the settlement agreement indemnified banks from further prosecution. But today she’s changed her tune.
Today she’s announcing that California has signed on to the settlement deal, and about $18 billion dollars would be coming to the states homeowners. According to Harris, that’s about $14 billion dollars MORE than they would have gotten if they’d settled for the original agreement back in September. There’s also a side deal just for California that says banks have enact principal reductions for homeowners and if they don’t they’ll see a sizable fine.
Many, including Harris, have called the original deal inadequate saying it would only net California homeowners a couple thousand dollars at best. We’ll talk to the experts about whether or not this new deal is any better and how much help homeowners can expect to get.
WEIGH IN:
Was Attorney General Harris’ holdout a windfall for California or just a little too little far too late?
Guests:
Richard Green, Director of the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate
Liz Ryan Murray, Policy Director, National People's Action (described as a network of grassroots organizations across the country that work to advance a national economic and racial justice agenda); Former Affordable Housing Business Manager, Fannie Mae
Pension reform ballot measure gets pulled
Yesterday, the California Pension Reform group suspended its efforts to put an overhaul measure of state pensions in front of voters. While 83% of people in December stated pensions are a problem, the group claims it’s still a tough sell.
Furthermore, they cite Attorney General Kamala Harris as one of the primary reasons for abandoning plans for a ballot initiative. The group feels Harris misrepresented several key particulars about the plan to potential voters, which made it basically impossible to raise the millions of dollars needed to fund a petition campaign. Also, the Legislative Analyst’s Office raised questions and concerns about how much money this plan would save, which set the group back as well.
The real victim here might be Governor Jerry Brown’s own pension proposals, which he will be presenting to the Democratic-controlled Legislature. California Pension Reform’s plan was much more severe in its handling of pensions than Brown’s, and the idea was that lawmakers would be more comfortable ushering in Brown’s modest reforms over letting the general public vote in a Draconian system.
WEIGH IN:
Why did California Pension Reform drop its plan? Will Governor Brown’s proposals be threatened as a result? What role did Kamala Harris play in all of this? Will we reach a proper compromise on an issue over which a strong majority of Californians view as problematic?
Guest:
Dan Pellessier, President of California Pension Reform and author of the pension reform measure the was intended for the November ballot
Why do we lie to ourselves?
Deceit and self-deception are universal aspects of everyday life. There are numerous examples of deception in nature, from birds that trick other species into raising their young, to fireflies, orchids and sunfish that use sexual mimicry and squids that camouflage themselves to hide from predators.
In humans, deceit and self-deception are more complex, amusing and sometimes dangerous. In his new book "The Folly of Fools," evolutionary biologist Robert Trivers examines the myriad of ways we deceive ourselves and others. Trivers contends that we all consciously or unconsciously routinely deceive ourselves by creating or suppressing memories, rationalizing immoral behavior or boosting our own self image.
The renowned biologist argues that self-deception evolved so we could better deceives others and we deceive others in order to thrive, survive and procreate. He takes us on a wide-ranging tour of the science of deceit and self-deception and illustrates how the behavior is favored by natural selection. “We make up false narratives about all the time, about our own behavior, about our relationships, about our larger groups,” writes Trivers. Ultimately, the author believes we would live better, healthier lives by being more honest with ourselves and each other.
WEIGH IN:
Do you believe that deception (and self-deception) is a survival mechanism? How do you deceive yourself and is this behavior without consequence or potentially harmful or dangerous for you and those around you?
Guest:
Robert Trivers, Author of "The Folly of Fools: The Logic of Deceit and Self-Deception in Human Life" (Basic Books); Professor of Anthropology and Biological Sciences at Rutgers University. He won the Crafoord Prize in Biosciences in 2007 for his fundamental analysis of social evolution, conflict, and cooperation.