The Iowa Caucuses: The first real step on the road to choosing the Republican contender for president. What a Caucus anyway? Do violent video games actually make children violent? IGambling gets big boost from DOJ. Arsonist update. New Year’s resolutions: Do they work, does anyone keep them and what are yours this year?
The Iowa Caucuses: The first real step on the road to choosing the Republican contender for president
In a couple of hours voters in 1,774 precincts in Iowa will choose their favorite Republican candidate to run against President Barack Obama in November. The statewide caucuses have been the first vote since the early '70s, and this year is earlier than ever, as more and more states vied for political importance by pushing their caucuses and primaries closer and closer to the beginning of the year.
So, what's happening on the ground in Iowa? Are yesterday's frontrunners still leading the pack? What is local polling showing?
Guest:
Will Bunch, Senior Writer, Philadelphia Daily News
Lisa Lerer, Congressional Correspondent, Bloomberg News
What's a Caucus anyway?
Today’s Iowa caucuses have many of us thinking: What are these things? How do they work and what impact do they have on the rest of the political season?
The caucuses have been around in one form or another since the 19th century in the United States. They used to be a way for neighbors to convince one another that their candidate was the right man (or woman) for some political job. However, no national delegates are selected during caucuses; instead local delegates are elected who then go on to state and national conventions.
Also, the rules of caucuses appear to be in flux, with Republicans and Democrats each having their own set that’s subject to change depending on the election year. From the media attention you’d think caucuses were an important step to figuring out who the next candidates for president would be, but is that really the case? Just how important are the caucuses?
Guest:
David Redlawsk, Professor of Political Science at Rutgers University; also co-author of “Why Iowa? Sequential Elections, Reform and U.S. Presidential Nominations” a book about the Iowa caucuses.
Do violent video games actually make children violent?
Guest host David Lazarus asked this question on the program last year, when the Supreme Court was weighing whether or not to uphold California’s ban on selling or renting such games to children. In June the court ruled that it was unconstitutional and that governments do not have the power to "restrict the ideas to which children may be exposed" despite complaints about graphic violence.
At the time, Lazarus was skeptical that his own young son’s behavior could be affected by violent video games. But a year later, he’s not so sure. Could his son’s behavioral changes be attributable to the increasingly aggressive video games he plays – or simply to the natural tendencies of pre-adolescent boys?
WEIGH IN:
Is this a question you’ve asked yourself as a parent? Do you continue to restrict your child’s exposure to violent games, despite the Supreme Court’s ruling? Do your children seem more aggressive or violent after playing Resident Evil 4 or Grand Theft Auto?
Guest:
Christopher Ferguson, Department Chair & Professor of Clinical Forensic Psychology, Texas A & M International
IGambling gets big boost from DOJ
The U.S Department of Justice recently gave the online gaming world a big boost. In an opinion made public just before Christmas, the DOJ declared that almost every form of intra-state internet gambling is legal under federal law. In other words, legalized internet poker is coming to a state near you.
But is this a good thing? Proponents like New Jersey State Senator Raymond Lesniak contend it’s the wave of the future. Cash-strapped states like California argue that online gambling provides a much-needed source of revenue. Questions remain about what exactly will be legal and whether the feds or individual states will legislate the internet gambling explosion. Traditionally it has always been up to the states to determine their own policy towards gambling.
Now, the big players like Caesar’s want a federal law because they don’t want to compete against powerful players in states to get their licenses. Regardless of who will oversee the action, critics of legalized online gambling point to studies indicating that the instant gratification of Internet games, combined with the privacy they offer, may exacerbate problem gambling.
WEIGH IN:
Does it concern you that legalized online poker is coming your way? Who will be the winners and the losers?
Guest:
I. Nelson Rose, Professor at Whittier Law School; consultant and expert witness on gambling law for governments, industry and players; he writes regularly about gambling developments on his blog, Gambling and The Law
Arsonist update
More information is coming out about Harry Burkhart, the man arrested as a suspect in the arson spree in Los Angeles. Burkhart is a German national, who is a self-proclaimed "America-hater." Apparently it was the State Department that alerted officials in Los Angeles, as Burkhart's mother has been requested for a provisional arrest by Germany. How did authorities put the pieces together to track him down? Will charges be filed against the man? Is he the prime suspect?
Guest:
Frank Stoltze, KPCC reporter
Do resolutions work?
If you have made New Year’s resolutions what are the chances that you will actually be able to hold to them? In 2009 study from the European Journal of social psychology researcher looked at how long if took 96 people to adopt a new habit. It took on average 66 days for people to pick up a new habit but the range was anywhere from 18 to 254 days.
Most researchers conclude that taking little steps to behavior change and making small manageable resolutions works the best for most people. The same study indicated that erratic performers tended not to be very successful at forming new habits and that adopting time and place cues for behavior change acted as a good reminder and helped make new habits stick. Researcher also shows that resolve and willpower are not very effective ways to adopt new habits but rather that changing patterns of behavior work best.
WEIGH IN:
Do you make New Year’s resolution and are you successful at keeping them? How have you been successful at changing your own behavior?
Guest:
Jeannine Stein, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer for the Health Section
Dr. Daniel J. Siegel, neuropsychiatrist and author of the bestselling book Mindsight. Dr. Siegel is a clinical professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine and co-director of the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center. He is also the co-author of The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child’s Developing Mind, Survive Everyday Parenting Struggles, and Help Your Family Thrive with Tina Payne Bryson