A look at the Senate jobs bill. Some final additions to the International Space Station. How conspiracy theories have shaped modern history. Then, it's FilmWeek on AirTalk. Larry and the critics discuss the week's new releases, including Valentine's Day, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, and The Wolfman. Later, do romantic comedies hurt or help our views on love? Plus the latest news.
Senate jobs bill on hold
Voting on the Senate jobs bill was postponed today, as Majority leader Harry Reid whittles it from $85 billion to $15 billion. The bipartisan collaboration between Max Baucus of Montana and Chuck Grassley of Iowa included tax breaks unrelated to job creation, causing it to lose support among Dems while bringing few Republicans to the table. Will Senators cross the aisle to combat joblessness? How soon must lawmakers act to reduce unemployment?
Guests:
Chris Thornberg, Principal, Beacon Economics
Dean Baker, Co-director, Center for Economic Policy and Research
Home improvements at the International Space Station
Astronauts installed the last major addition on the International Space Station today, attaching a new room and a 10-foot wide dome window offering 360-degree views of Earth and the station’s surroundings. The room, named Tranquility, will hold life-support equipment, exercise machines, and a toilet. Friday’s mission was the first of three spacewalks to complete the addition.
Guest:
Miles O'Brien, broadcast news journalist specializing in space, aviation and technology
How to fake a moon landing
Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin never left Earth. The U.S. government blew up the World Trade Center as an excuse to wage war in the Middle East. Barack Obama is not an American citizen. Why do sensible people sometimes prefer to believe outlandish or unlikely explanations of historical events? What makes conspiracy theories so compelling? And how can a skeptic argue with a believer? David Aaronovitch explores our fascination with the bewitching, the conspiratorial and the improbable in his book, Voodoo Histories.
Guest:
David Aaronovitch, author of Voodoo Histories: The Role of the Conspiracy Theory in Shaping Modern History (Riverhead)
FilmWeek
Larry Mantle and KPCC film critics Lael Loewenstein of Variety and Henry Sheehan of henrysheehan.com discuss the week’s new film releases including Valentine’s Day, Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Lightning Thief, The Wolfman, North Face, Red Riding Trilogy and Terribly Happy. Larry will also discuss the Santa Barbara Film Festival that runs through this weekend.
Guests:
Lael Loewenstein, Variety
Henry Sheehan, henrysheehan.com
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor
Claudia Puig, USA Today
Are romantic comedies one big set up?
Skeptics say Valentine’s Day was invented to make us miserable. What about movies? Whether we like it or not, many of us get our ideas about love from Hollywood. In most romantic comedies, boy meets girl, and a few silly events later, wedding bells chime happily ever after. If we look beyond the cinematic surface, what’s often revealed are a host of crazy characters whose actions would never fly in real life—or would result in a restraining order (High Fidelity). Have your favorite romantic comedies (Princess Bride, Pretty Woman) raised unrealistic expectations about “soul mates” and “destiny"? Do films of this genre hurt or help in our quest for love?