Today on AirTalk, we discuss the new stay-at-home orders issued by the state as cases of the coronavirus continue to rise in California. Also on the show, we talk with Janet Napolitano on her tenure as UC president; discuss concerns of racial discrimination during the jury selection process; and more.
Gov. Newsom Orders Statewide Reclosures As Cases Continue To Surge. Will People Adhere?
As coronavirus cases continue to surge in many California counties, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that those areas are going back to modified stay-at-home orders.
All counties on the county monitoring list — 30 out of the state's 58 counties, which represent about 80% of the state's population — have to close indoor operations for additional sectors due to the risk of COVID-19 spread. And any additional openings based on county variances are no longer allowed. That includes L.A. (and other SoCal counties), and means salons, gyms, churches and more must shut their doors once again.
The governor’s order came at the same time that L.A. County announced nearly 2,600 new cases, and deaths topped 3,800. Newsom once again compared the state's stay-at-home order to a dimmer switch — not fully on with an open economy, but not fully off with a lockdown. Coronavirus hospitalizations and the positivity rate are continuing to rise, Newsom said. The number of intensive care unit patients is also moderately increasing, he said.
Today on AirTalk, we discuss the latest developments. We’d also love to hear from you. Do you think people will adhere to the restrictions? Do you think they’re justified or do you think they’re going too far? Tell us your thoughts by calling 866-893-5722.
With files from LAist. Read the full story here
Guests:
Joseph A. Ladapo, M.D., health policy researcher and associate professor of medicine at UCLA
Shruti Gohil, M.D., professor of medicine and associate medical director for epidemiology and infection prevention at UC Irvine’s School of Medicine
COVID-19: Are Hospitals Stocking Up On Coronavirus Drugs In Preparation For Second Wave?
In our continuing series looking at the latest medical research and news on COVID-19, Larry speaks with Dr. Shruti Gohil, professor of medicine and associate medical director for epidemiology and infection prevention at UC Irvine’s School of Medicine.
Today’s topics include:
Newsom orders statewide reclosures
Mayor Garcetti warns of another LA shutdown
Recovering from COVID-19
Testing updates in CA
Hospitals stock up on coronavirus drugs
Guest:
Shruti Gohil, M.D., professor of medicine and associate medical director for epidemiology and infection prevention at UC Irvine’s School of Medicine
Outgoing UC President Janet Napolitano On Future Of UC System And What’s Next For Her
Janet Napolitano will step down as president of the University of California on August 1, ending a seven year tenure as the first woman to be selected as president of the UC.
When she took the post in 2013, Napolitano seemed an unconventional choice to lead the prestigious public university system. She had no ties to UC and no experience in academic leadership in her career.
Napolitano has been governor of Arizona, secretary of U.S. Homeland Security, a federal prosecutor and a partner in a prominent Phoenix law firm. During her tenure at UC, Napolitano won praise for helping to boost enrollment to historic numbers and reforming sexual misconduct policies. She oversaw historic expansions at the 10-campus system and championed immigrant students. More recently, the UC Board of Regents approved her plan to drop the SAT and ACT as an admission requirement.
However, there were also bumps along the road. A state audit in 2016 found that Napolitano’s office not only amassed millions of dollars in reserve funds that weren't disclosed but that top aides also sought to suppress criticism of her office in surveys that were supposed to be confidential and sent directly to the state auditor. State Auditor Elaine Howle’s report said there was “insufficient evidence” to conclude Napolitano knew or approved of any interference. But the investigation and subsequent oversight prompted a rare public rebuke by the UC’s governing Board of Regents, and the university adopted measures to improve transparency.
The final months of her time as UC president have been marked by the coronavirus pandemic, which has forced the UC to have to address not only proposed cuts to state education funding but also how the UC plans to navigate its Fall 2021 semester amid the pandemic. Earlier this month, the UC announced that Michael V. Drake, former president of The Ohio State University, would become the next UC president and the first Black president in the UC’s history.
Today on AirTalk, Ms. Napolitano joins Larry Mantle to look back on her tenure as UC president, share some of the lessons she learned along the way, talk about how the pandemic has affected finances, enrollment and more at the UCs and shed some light on what her plans are after she officially steps down.
With files from the Associated Press
Guest:
Janet Napolitano, outgoing president of the University of California; she is a former governor of Arizona (2003-2009) and a former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security (2009-2013)
As Coronavirus Testing Nears Capacity, Listeners Share What It’s Like To Get A COVID-19 Test
In the past several months, Angelenos have become accustomed to a familiar set of images: dozens of cars idling in between traffic cones, waiting to get into Dodger Stadium.
The cars are not baseball spectators, of course, but people waiting to access COVID-19 tests. In recent months and weeks, residents across SoCal report a vast range of experiences in accessing coronavirus tests. Some Angelenos have had trouble qualifying for testing or found themselves waiting in hours-long lines. Others, however, have had relatively seamless experiences at testing sites. Limited testing capacity combined with California’s soaring coronavirus cases means that demand is outpacing availability. This poses a public health challenge to both individuals and officials trying to track the outbreak.
Today on AirTalk, we want to hear your experiences with getting tested in SoCal. Did you have a difficult experience, or was it relatively straightforward for you to access testing? Did you get tested more than once and, if so, did those experiences differ? Comment below or give us a call at 866-893-5722.
Guest:
Jackie Fortiér, health reporter for KPCC & LAist; she tweets
Why ‘Irregardless’ Is Both Linguistically Illogical And Still Technically A Word
Dictionary publisher Merriam-Webster drew the internet’s ire earlier last week when it included the word “irregardless” in its “Words of the Week” newsletter and explained that, despite the objections of literally thousands across the world wide web, “irregardless” is, in fact, a word and therefore deserves to be in the dictionary. “We do not make the English language, we merely record it,” the newsletter read in part. “If people use a word with consistent meaning, over a broad geographic range, and for an extended period of time chances are very high that it will go into our dictionary.”
The issue many have with the word is that it’s illogical. The word “regardless” already means “without regard,” so therefore irregardless would technically mean “without without regard.” This is where many grammarians and others for whom the word is like nails on a chalkboard tend to cringe. But in reality, the word has been in Merriam-Webster dictionaries since 1934, and its use dates back even farther than that.
Today on AirTalk, we’ll talk with the editor-at-large for Merriam-Webster about why “irregardless” is a word and why the discussion surrounding it sheds light on a larger question of what the role of the dictionary in determining whether and how it’s appropriate to use certain words in conversation.
Guest:
Peter Sokolowski, editor-at-large for Merriam-Webster; he tweets
CA To Look At Questions Of Racial Discrimination In Jury Selection: Peremptory Strikes, BLM Support And More
In the coming months, a California court of appeals will be examining whether a juror can be struck from a jury pool for supporting Black Lives Matter.
Other states have taken up this question as well, as BLM has gained larger prominence after the killing of George Floyd.
One of the issues at hand is whether striking a juror for supporting BLM amounts to racial discrimination. In 1986, the Supreme Court ruled in Batson v. Kentucky that attorneys can engage in peremptory strikes (meaning, they can remove jurors without explaining the reasoning), as long as they’re decisions are not racially motivated. If the opposing attorney thinks discrimination was at play they can mount a “Batson challenge,” and the other attorney will have to explain to the judge why their decision wasn’t based on race. Some have criticized this process, pointing to the fact that reasons such as juror’s demeanor are often used as justification. Is support for BLM a proxy for racial discrimination?
The California appeals court’s review is set against the backdrop of a recent study out of UC Berkeley, which found that prosecutors frequently strike people of color, especially Black prospective jurors, from juries.
We dive into the issue of jury discrimination and how they intersect with juror’s opinions of the Black Lives Matter movement.
Guests:
Jody Armour, professor of law at USC; he tweets
Kathy Kellermann, president of ComCon, a litigation, trial and jury consulting firm based in Los Angeles