Obama Reverses Federal Funding Ban On Stem Cell Research; Does The Stock Market Matter?; The Godfather Of Ecstacy
Obama Reverses Federal Funding Ban On Stem Cell Research
Today President Obama signed an order allowing federal taxpayer dollars to fund embryonic stem cell research. His decision is a reversal of George W. Bush's order that limited federal research to 21 stem cell lines that were created before August 9, 2001. The order leaves the decision of using federal money for research up to Congress. Since 1996, the Dickey-Wicker amendment has banned using tax dollars on embryonic stem cell research. Supporters of the decision hope it will lead to advances in treating conditions like Parkinson's and paralysis. Opponents maintain that it is morally wrong. Larry Mantle talks with guests on both sides of the issue inclding Dr. Arnold Kriegstein of UCSF, Dr. Hans Keirstead of UCI, Robert Klein, Chairman of the Independent Citizens Oversight Committee for the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine, and Carrie Gordon Earll of Focus On The Family.
Does The Stock Market Matter?
President Obama has a lot of things to worry about related to the economy, but should the stock market's gyrations be one of them? Larry's guests debate the importance of the Dow Jones Industrial Average as a driver or indicator of the country's overall economic health. Guests include Jerry Seib of The Wall Street Journal and Christopher Thornberg of Beacon Economics.
The Godfather Of Ecstacy
Ever wonder how the drug "ecstasy" came out of nowhere to become the hippest nightclub drug of the 1990's? Much of the credit goes to a violent Israeli drug kingpin, "Oded Tuito," whose strippers and teen foot soldiers moved millions of pills from Europe to the "party triangle" of Los Angeles, New York and Miami. Lisa Sweetingham's new book "Chemical Cowboys," explains how he did it, and about how a federal drug enforcement agent was able to hunt down the mob boss and topple his billion-dollar trafficking network. Larry talks with her about the story.