On AirTalk today we'll discuss Mitt Romney's controversial remarks in Jerusalem, look into a growing rift surrounding California's state parks, recap the London Olympics thus far, dive into the City of Commerce's new aquatic center and introduce you to author James Mann's take on the changes to American foreign policy under President Barack Obama.
Romney continues to ruffle feathers around the world with comments about Jewish culture
At a campaign breakfast this morning for wealthy Republican donors in Jerusalem, GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney weighed in on the economic disparity between Israel and Palestine.
Romney said that Israel’s per capita GDP was $21,000 compared to Palestine’s $10,000 (according to the World Bank, the figures are actually $31,000 for Israel and $1,500 for the West Bank and Gaza). In his talk, Romney praised Israel’s success and attributed its economic vitality to “the power of culture,” citing some books he’d read and his own business experience.
His comments angered Palestinians, who were swift to react. A senior aide to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called Romney’s statements “racist,” and added that Romney “lacks information, knowledge, vision and understanding of this region and its people.”
The candidate’s comments clearly ignored the fact that Israel has retained control over the West Bank since 1967, limiting border crossings and restricting Palestinian trade. But scholars have cited differences, such as an emphasis on education and community support, as factors in the economic growth of some cultures over others.
Were Romney’s comments racist, or does he have a point? Has Romney stepped over the line in an attempt to court the Jewish vote? Does this and other so-called “gaffes” overseas show a lack of potential as a statesman?
Missing state parks money turns up in off-road fund
The storm swirling around California’s state parks system has now moved off-road. Why? Because last week, a little more than half of the $54 million in missing state parks money mysteriously showed up in a special fund set aside to manage land designated for off-road vehicle use.
So far, nobody in the state parks department can explain how the money got there, and its director has resigned. But the discovery has caused a flare-up in the long-standing battle between off-roaders and conservationists.
Devotees of the off-road vehicle experience say the money is necessary to maintain trails and enforce conservation guidelines, and without it, off-road areas would deteriorate. Hikers, birdwatchers and others who prefer their wildlife experience sans gas-powered vehicles maintain that ORV users present a threat to pristine parklands and that not enough of the Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Fund is being put towards conservation.
Minus the surplus, the OHMV fund, which comes from registration fees, park admission and a portion of the gasoline tax, amounts to about $100 million.
Should some of that money be allocated to other state park departments? Is the off-road community doing enough to maintain stewardship of their parks? Now that the missing millions have been found, will California’s state parks stay open?
Guests:
Amy Granat, managing director of the California Off-Road Vehicle Association
Karen Schambach, Field Director of California Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER)
London Olympics 2012: Weekend recap
This is part of KPCC’s "L.A. To London” series, which will be exploring local connections to the 2012 Summer Olympics. View the series and follow the series on Twitter at
The 2012 summer Olympics kicked off last Friday with the “Isles of Wonder” themed Opening Ceremony in London. On Saturday, the actual medal competitions began.
American swimmers Michael Phelps, the 14-time gold medalist, went head-to-head with Ryan Lochte in the 400 individual medley. Lochte came out on top in that race, but both he and Phelps fell to France’s swimmers in the coveted 4X100 meter freestyle relay. On the women’s side, Missy Franklin, who goes to high school in Aurora, CO, and her team walked away with bronze in the same event.
The U.S. women’s gymnastics team sprung into action on Sunday with its qualification round, which produced a big upset when Jordyn Wieber, the reigning world champion, finished third behind Aly Raisman and Gabby Douglas in qualifying for the all-around final. No matter what the individual scores, each country is only allowed to send two contestants to compete in that particular event, thus shutting out the world champion. Wieber will still be a part of the overall gymnastics team final on Tuesday.
The athletes aren’t the only subject of conversation either, as NBC itself is coming under fire for some of its coverage so far. From swimming and gymnastics to basketball and boxing, we’ll recap the highs and the lows from this past weekend and look forward at the next big matches to watch.
Guests:
Robert Kovacik, Reporter, NBC4 News, in London covering the Olympics
Robert Lloyd, television critic, Los Angeles Times
If swimming is the only sport that can save your life, why are pools closing?
The height of summer conjures images of long lazy days lying by the pool or ocean, dipping in and having fun when the heat gets too much. But the water can be one of the most dangerous places to be – if you don’t know how to swim.
According to a 2012 report from the Center for Disease Control, drowning is the fifth leading cause of accidental death in the United States. Ten people lose their lives to the water every day and one in five drownings are children aged 14 and under. When it comes to minorities, African American children aged 5-14 drown at three times the rate of whites, with a similar statistic for Latino youth.
Access to local pools, swimming lessons and a lack of interest and knowledge of water based sports all add to the rising drowning rates.
Southern California isn’t immune to this problem; the recession, budget cuts and costs associated with maintaining aquatic facilities has led to reduced hours in some areas and the closure of swim teams and pools in others.
However, the City of Commerce has bucked the trend — investing millions in a state of the art aquatic center, which has produced Olympic athletes in water polo.
"If you look around the City of Commerce, unlike most cities that have a residence of 13,000, you'll see that we have a lot of recreation facilities here," said Scott Wasserman of City of Commerce Parks & Recreation. "We have four parks, four community centers, senior center, teen center, we have a year-round camp up in Lake Arrowhead, and of course we have a well-known $20 million aquatic facility."
Brenda Villa is one such Olympian who was bred from Commerce's aquatic program.
Swimming lessons and access to aquatic sports are offered to local residents in the City of Commerce for no and low cost, to promote water safety, fitness and overall health. Other cities struggle to keep facilities open for more than a few weeks a year.
"I think that that commitment to offer swim lessons in a low-income community to residents that perhaps might otherwise would find it difficult finding this service, we feel very, very good about that," said Wasserman.
Weigh In
What access do you have to swimming facilities in your local area? As a parent are you concerned about your child’s ability to swim? Should local government officials make swimming safety and access to pools a priority?
Guests:
Lilia Leon, Mayor of the City of Commerce
Pamela Wasserman, Director of Recreation and Community Services, City of Bell Gardens
Jeff Wiltse, Author of Contested Waters and Assistant Professor of History, University of Montana
In Obama’s White House, the times, they are a-changin’
Barack Obama was elected in part due to the fact that his message of hope and change struck a chord with the idealistic side of voters. However, as it quickly became apparent that a hyper-partisan Washington and a flagging economy were here to stay, the President has been forced to engage in more grounded pragmatism.
In one area where this is most apparent is that of foreign affairs. In James Mann’s new book “The Obamians,” the author details how different Obama is as a world leader than his predecessors. This is attributed to the fact that the United States is limited by both money and resources, and that the world is changing at a rapid pace. China is quickly gaining more and more influence on a global scale, technology is evolving at lightning speed, and citizens in several different countries are calling for more democratic freedoms and principles.
The aides who Barack Obama leans on for advice (the “Obamians” from which the book took its title) are aware of the fact that America is a different country and the world is a different place than it was even just four years ago.
How exactly does this perspective alter the President’s policies? Will America ever regain the global status it once had? Should it even try? Are you impressed by Obama’s handling of foreign affairs? Why or why not?
Guest:
James Mann, Author of The Obamians: The Struggle Inside the White House to Redefine American Power (Viking Adult)