The Beverly Hills Hotel faces protests after its owner, the Sultan of Brunei, planned to implement laws calling for extreme penalties for gay sex and adultery. Should local groups discontinue support and use of the Beverly Hills Hotel until the issues in Brunei are resolved? Should Los Angeles curb ‘mansionization’ with tighter restrictions?
Beverly Hills Hotel boycott fires up over Brunei laws, ownership
Boycotts and protests of L.A. institution the Beverly Hills Hotel are growing after its owner, the Sultan of Brunei, planned to implement laws calling for extreme penalties for gay sex and adultery.
The sultan’s Brunei Investment Group owns the Dorchester Collection, a group of hotels that includes both the Beverly Hills Hotel and the Hotel Bel-Air. Since Brunei announced the imposition of Islamic laws that allow gays and adulterers to be stoned or dismembered, among other punishments, local backlash has grown.
LGBT advocates began a boycott, joined by other celebrities. The Motion Picture and Television Fund has pulled their glitzy “Night Before” Oscars part from the hotel, and The Hollywood Reporter and other groups followed suit, finding other venues for major events and calling for a broader boycott of the hotel.
The Dorchester Collection’s CEO, Christopher Cowdray, says the boycott is unfairly directed at the hotels and their employees, and argues that local communities will suffer.
How should the Dorchester Collection handle the boycott? Should local groups discontinue support and use of the Beverly Hills Hotel until the issues in Brunei are resolved?
Guest:
Katherine Spillar, Executive Vice President, Feminist Majority Foundation
Steve Rapier, Assistant Professor of Marketing at Pepperdine University
Vatican will reexamine the Church’s teachings on 'intimate' issues
The Vatican will convene a meeting of church leaders later this year to discuss the church's policy on a variety of social issues, including gay marriage. The "extraordinary synod" will take place in October, followed by a second meeting next year to issue any official changes to the Church's stance.
Last year, Pope Francis asked Catholic bishops around the world to take a survey on their views on a variety of social issues. Besides same-sex marriage, they include cohabitation, remarriage, contraception, and divorce. Those findings will be the subject of deliberation at the synod.
No sweeping changes are expected to come out of these meetings, but the very fact that they were called represent a symbolic change that gives hope to many liberal church reformers.
Guest:
Jennifer Hughes, Associate Professor of History at UC Riverside. Her areas of specialty include the history of religions
Should Los Angeles curb ‘mansionization’ with tighter restrictions?
In 2008, LA politicians attempted to curb the practice of razing small homes, and replacing them with mansions by setting limits on building.
Now, six years later, construction appears to be on the rise and some residents are objecting to the “mansionization” of former bungalows on their street.
Some stakeholders are asking for more limits to be put into place, claiming the new homes are eyesores, destroying the character of the neighborhood.
Builders say they’re building within the limits, and people moving into the community have a right to own their dream home.
How important is it to preserve the look and feel of a street, lined with single family homes? When do limits impose too much on building - limiting the freedom to choose a house design?
Guests:
Dick Platkin, adjunct professor at USC's Price School of Social Policy, former City Planner for the City of Los Angeles, board member at the Beverly Wilshire Homes Association
Eran Gispan, a designer at N.E. Designs. - based in Sherman Oaks.
To hear this Airtalk segment, click on "Listen Now" in the upper left.
Should US corporate CEOs skip Russia economic forum?
The Obama administration has been exerting pressure on the chief executives of some of the country’s biggest corporations to withdraw from attending an international economic forum in Russia because of its involvement in Ukraine. The event, slated to take place later this month and is hosted by President Vladimir Putin, is seen as a showcase of Russia’s economic might on the global stage.
Alcoa, Goldman Sachs, PepsiCo, Morgan Stanley are among the corporate giants that will either skip the event, or plan to send lower-level executives to attend the forum. Despite their compliance, many industry leaders have expressed frustration in private about being unwittingly caught in the middle of a geopolitical situation. After all, Russia represents a large market for these American companies.
Meanwhile, the Obama administration has slapped new sanctions this week on an additional two dozen Russian companies. The EU said it’ll roll out related sanctions today.
Guest:
Roger Runningen, Bloomberg News reporter who’s been covering the story
China e-commerce giant Alibaba could file its IPO this week
Alibaba - arguably the world's biggest ecommerce company - is said to be close to an IPO (Initial Public Offering).
With transactions totalling $240 billion last year, the company is China's most popular online shopping site, but it also operates a search engine and a bank. This Wall Street Journal infographic helps explain.
The former CEO and co-founder, Jack Ma, reportedly wants to be listed on a U.S. exchange to ensure he and his co-founders retain a lot of control over the company (the Hong Kong exchange would not accept the corporate structure).
The other owners of Alibaba at present include Softbank (with 37% share) and Yahoo (with a 24% share). How do Alibaba's ventures compare to Amazon, eBay, Google, PayPal and the like? How will an IPO change the company?
Guest:
Praveen Menon, Senior Internet Analyst with Bloomberg Industries
'Cubed' delves into the history and 'Dilbertization' of modern workplaces
Does sitting in your cubicle make you feel claustrophobic or powerless? Nikil Saval’s new book “Cubed” takes a look at the evolution of the modern office and why cubicles are so prevalent. Beginning in the nineteenth century, Saval tries to sift through the development of early “counting-houses” to the modern cubicle.
Saval examines how workspaces impact employees by analyzing history, films, books, and ideologies that have contributed to ‘the office’ as we know it.
Do workspaces contribute to a significant change in employee’s mood? Should more offices drop the cubicle for a more open floor concept? Would you be happier leaving your cubicle and working in a more open floor plan?
Guest:
Nikil Saval, Author"Cubed: A Secret History of the Workplace;" Saval is also an editor of n+1 - print and digital magazine of literature, culture, and politics published three times yearly.