California prisons begin inmate release. Greg Critser describes extreme anti-aging regimens. An update from Haiti. Then, are children "traumatized" by sexual abuse?
California prison reduction policy takes effect
California is implementing a plan to release about 6,500 inmates over the next year, under a state law that starts today. In an effort to reduce prison overcrowding and save money on the state budget, the plan calls for inmates deemed low-risk offenders to earn early release credits by completing rehabilitation and education programs. The state also will stop monitoring low-level offenders after release, meaning they are less likely to return to prison for minor parole violations. Opponents of the plan argue that it threatens public safety. How much money will this plan save the state? And is the approach sensible?
Guests:
Frank Stoltze, Reporter, KPCC
Paul Weber, President, Los Angeles Police Protective League
Clay Parker, Sheriff of Tehama County in Northern California and president of the California State Sheriff's Association
Secretary Matthew Kate, California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation
Joan Petersilia, Professor of Law, Co-Director, Stanford Criminal Justice Center
The quest to end aging
While immortality may always be out of reach, how far will anti-aging treatments go? In a multi-billion dollar industry, pharmaceutical giant Glaxo has paid $750 million for a single experimental anti-aging compound. But how does one separate dubious products from legitimate scientific research? In his book, “Eternity Soup: Inside the Quest to End Aging,” author and health commentator Greg Critser explores modern medical entrepreneurship and the desire to live forever. How much older can we—should we—get?
Guest:
Greg Critser, author of "Eternity Soup: Inside the Quest to End Aging" (Harmony Books).
What's next for Haiti?
It's been nearly two weeks since a 7.0 earthquake hit Haiti. Aid supplies are rolling in and the United States military has been there since the day after the quake, but are things getting any better? Are supplies reaching the people who need them most? As celebrity charities air on American television, what's happening on the ground in Haiti and what needs to happen next?
Guests:
Tamara Keith, reporter for NPR
Rachel Wolff, director for international news at WorldVision
Child sexual abuse -- trauma or myth?
It's widely accepted by psychotherapists that sexual abuse is a traumatic experience for children, causing emotional repercussions that last well into adulthood. But in her controversial new book, The Trauma Myth, memory and trauma expert Susan Clancy posits that children, with their limited understanding of sexual matters, aren't traumatized by these experiences. Clancy interviewed over 200 child abuse victims and was surprised to learn that in the majority of cases, subjects recalled feeling merely "confusion" – not shock, terror or pain. Reprocessing such events later in life, Clancy says, leads to an adult interpretation more damaging than the actual experience.
Guests:
Susan A. Clancy, Ph.D, author of The Trauma Myth: The Truth About the Sexual Abuse of Children- and Its Aftermath (Basic Books). She is Research Director of the Center for Women’s Advancement, Development and Leadership at INCAE, an international think tank founded by Harvard Business School and USAID.
Gail Wyatt, Professor of Psychiatry, PhD, director of the sexual health program at UCLA