Another day, another government surveillance secret leaked by Edward Snowden. Does Snowden's latest leak reveal anything about his motivations? Then, we'll talk to Covered California's Peter Lee, who can answer your questions about the Affordable Care Act. Later, how does restaurant tip-pooling affect service, and will Iran's new president be a catalyst for change in the country? And we'll talk to the author of "The Spectacular Few," a book that looks into whether prison overcrowding leads to prisoner radicalization.
Snowden leaks include international spying during G20 summit
The G8 summit began today and Edward Snowden’s leaks have many world leaders concerned. According to The Guardian, Snowden has documents that show international spying during the 2009 G20 summit in London. During the summit, Britain’s GCHQ is accused of monitoring emails and phone calls of world leaders through internet cafes and key-logging programs. The NSA is also accused of spying on the then-Russian president Dmitry Medvedev. The Guardian reports that Britain spying on its allies was solely for “the more mundane purpose of securing an advantage in meetings.”
Who was targeted and why? What will happen at the G8 summit? How are British and American allies responding? What is Snowden’s motivation for disclosing this information?
Guests:
Michael C. Moynihan, Cultural News Editor at the Daily Beast
Jesselyn Radack, National Security & Human Rights Director, Government Accountability Project (GAP) - Founded in 1977, GAP is the nation’s leading whistleblower protection and advocacy organization; Radack has represented high-profile whistleblowers, including former NSA official Thomas Drake in an espionage case
Obamacare and California: You have questions, we'll get the answers
Key parts of the Affordable Care Act — popularly known as Obamacare — take effect in 2014, but by October this year, Californians will be able to shop for health insurance and compare plans through Covered California, the state's health insurance exchange.
Peter Lee, executive director of Covered California, joins Larry for a discussion about how his team plans to implement the healthcare exchange in our state.
What would you like to know? Do you have any questions about how the exchange works? What about the possible impact it will have on California's finances? Will your healthcare costs go up?
Covered California customer service representatives are available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at 1-(888) 975-1142.
Guest:
Stephanie O'Neill, KPCC Health Care Reporter
Peter Lee, director of Covered California
Q & A Highlights:
How many companies will operate in LA?:
"Southern California will be split into two regions, North and South and the same six companies will represent both areas, they're Anthem Blue Cross, Blue Shield, HealthNet, Kaiser Permanente, LA Care and Molina."
On whether the plans will be affordable to most people:
"There was a lot of concern of rate shock. That we were going to have a massive rate shock when these health plans joined the exchange. Covered California officials are very pleased about this and President Obama talked about it when he came to California, saying we were kind of the leader and holding us up as an example of how this law is working. The concern about that though is there are a lot of things that will dictate how these prices will remain."
On how the rates will increase over time:
"The way the Affordable Care Act works, this is a super bare-bones description of it, but come January 1, 2014, every American is going to be required to have insurance. Most Americans get it through their employers, but those that don't get it through their employers are going to be required to purchase it. So you either purchase it or pay a penalty. Initially the penalty is really low, it's only $95 a year or 1% of income. Then it steps up in 2016 where its $695 a year or 2.5% of income and then that's indexed with inflation as the years progress."
What is the deadline limit for Covered California?
This year it will start Oct 1, 2013, and it will extend to March 31, 2014, but after that you're out of luck. You have to have insurance if you're buying it on the exchange, Covered California.
What are some of the biggest challenges?
"There's a couple of key challenges, one of them is just educating everybody of all different ages. About 2/3 of those who make less than $40,000 a year, those are predominantly the people who will be helped by this law, they really don't know enough about it to understand how it's going to help them. Educating the masses is going to be a gigantic task. The secondary task is letting the young invincibles, the 19-34-year-olds know that they're super important to the risk pool, so getting them to buy into this program and to buy insurance will be key to keeping it.
"There's about 2 million uninsured in California who range in age between 19 and 34, and those are the ones we want to get on there, They just need to know, the marketing is going to have to tell them that disease happens, and accidents happen."
Court ruling on tip pooling affects restaurant workers and customers
It's a fight that pits waitstaff against other restaurant workers and proprietors. This month, a federal appeals court ruled that the Labor Department went beyond its authority when it issued regulations prohibiting the use of tips by an employer even when the employer does not take a tip credit.
If the Labor Department does not appeal, it means tip pooling can be used by restaurants to redistribute some of its servers' tips. Front-of-house staff will have to share with back-of-house staff - cooks and the like.
Some servers argue table service will decline if there is less incentive. Other advocates for workers say tip pools enable illegal wage theft by owners. Restaurateurs say overall dining experience is improved when everyone shares in gratuities. There are many more implications of tip pooling including paid sick days, minimum wage and even racial disparities at restaurants.
If you work in the service industry, how has this affected you? What are the ulterior consequences of tip pooling in this important industry?
Guests:
Paul DeCamp, Lead counsel on this case for Oakland businesses in support of tip pooling; Previously, DeCamp ran the Wage & Hour Division of the Department of Labor; Partner with Jackson Lewis law firm based in Washington, D.C.
Teofilo "Teo" Reyes, Program Director, Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC-United) - founded in 2001, ROC United advocates to improve wages and working conditions for the nation's restaurant workforce.
Iranian election: Moment of change or more of the same?
The election of Hassan Rouhani as the new president of Iran, replacing Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has journalists and Iran watchers the world over wondering which direction the new leader will steer his country in. The nation of 70-million plus plays a crucial role in world politics, and Rouhani will be required to grapple with wars on Iran’s borders, the country’s nuclear aspirations, and an economy in near meltdown, with over 40 percent of young people currently unemployed.
Rouhani has been described as “moderate and conservative,” but are those traits that will lead Iran into an era of peace and economic prosperity? Was this a referendum on Ahmadinejad, or were other factors at play? Will a new leader mean a new relationship with the region and the U.S.? Or will Rouhani support the status quo?
Guests:
Patrick McDonnell, the Los Angeles Times; Beirut Bureau Chief, joining us from Beirut
Siamak Kalhor, hosts a technology show on 670 AM Radio Iran in the San Gabriel Valley
Does prison overcrowding lead to prisoner radicalization?
How have terrorist attacks been carried out by men behind bars? In “The Spectacular Few: Prisoner Radicalization and the Evolving Terrorist Threat,” criminology professor and former prison warden Mark S. Hamm examines why prisoners can be radicalized.
Hamm’s book includes the story of Kevin James who was indicted for plotting to attack American military facilities. James began as a gang member on the street in South Central Los Angeles. While in prison, he joined the Nation of Islam, but he eventually founded an extremist group known as the Assembly of Authentic Islam (JIS). While in prison, he recruited several other inmates and planned an attack on a U.S. Army recruiting office four years after the September 11 attacks.
Although cases like Kevin James are rare, why are prisoners susceptible to being part of extremist groups? What is the current state of prison gangs? Does prison overcrowding mean less supervision and more potential for radicalization? What can be done to stop the “evolving terrorist threat”?
Guest:
Mark Hamm, author of “The Spectacular Few: Prisoner Radicalization and the Evolving Terrorist Threat”; professor of Criminology at Indiana State University and a senior research fellow at the Terrorism Center at John Jay College of Criminal Justice; Hamm is also a former prison warden from Arizona