Debating the strengths and weaknesses of city laws meant to shield immigrants from ICE; A new Chapman University study claims the autism rate isn't dramatically increasing - it attributes the big rise to changes in how it's diagnosed; The FDA retools "healthy;" & Ferris Bueller took a day off from high school 30 years ago - we hear about your fondest ditch days.
Debate over ‘Sanctuary Cities’ continues in turn to strengthen San Francisco’s law
San Francisco Board of Supervisors and the new sheriff are at odds over renewing the city's so-called sanctuary law.
The law prohibits local law enforcement cooperation with US Immigration and Customs, except when it's the release of someone recently convicted a violent felony.
That policy's been heavily criticized since last summer. Last July 1st, a San Francisco woman walking with her father along the Embarcadero was shot and killed by a man in the country illegally. He was recently released from jail.
ICE had wanted him held for deportation. He'd been deported five times and convicted of seven felonies over the years. Most were drug related. He had no recent violent offenses. Last night, the SF Board of Supervisors put off voting on Supervisor John Avalos' sanctuary measure. He's hoping to get the support of Sheriff Vicki Hennessy.
Guests:
Saira Hussain, a Staff Attorney with the Criminal Justice Reform program with Advancing Justice / Asian Law Caucus, based in San Francisco
Ira Mehlman, Media Director, Federation for American Immigration Reform
Jennie Pasquarella, director of immigrants’ rights for the ACLU of California and staff attorney at the ACLU of Southern California.
Debating what is driving high autism rates in Orange County
Disability researchers from Chapman University argue the sharp rise of autism cases in Orange County - which saw an eightfold increase since 2000 - could be attributed to how psychologists are diagnosing the condition.
To clarify, the researchers suggest children who once were categorized as having one type of developmental disability are being now being shifted into the autism or ADHD category as a result of better diagnosis. Amy-Jane Griffiths, Ph.D., and Professor Donald Cardinal, Ph.D., point to “diagnostic migration” as being the leading cause of what some see as an alarming rise of autism.
However, the advocacy group Autism Speaks says diagnosis alone does not account for a higher prevalence and more work must be done to uncover causes of the condition.
Inaugural Disability Summit Report
Guest:
Dr. Amy-Jane Griffiths, Ph.D., Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Study co-author of Chapman University’s Disability Summit’s Report; Co-founding Director, Thomson Policy Institute at Chapman University
Nutrition experts debate FDA’s move to redefine 'healthy' as a marketing label
The public comment period has opened for what the Food And Drug Administration should label as “healthy,” sparked by a letter the FDA sent to the maker of Kind bars last year demanding Kind stop using the term to market its product.
Kind bars, which contain nuts that contribute to the high amount of saturated fat in some of their bars, do not fit the FDA’s current definition of “healthy.” Food can only be marketed as healthy if it meets five criteria: fat, saturated fat, sodium, cholesterol and beneficial nutrients, such as vitamin C or Calcium.
The levels differ by food category, but snacks generally can’t have more than 3 grams of fat. By those standards, a pop tart is currently considered more healthy than a snack of almonds.
It remains to be seen what the new guidelines will detail, but they’re sure to leave some people upset, whether it’s industry members who can no longer use the “healthy” label to market their product, or people concerned that the guidelines don’t do far enough in regulating how products are labeled and marketed to consumers.
Guests:
Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University
Kathleen Keller, Phd, Assistant Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences and Food Science at Penn State University
Legal, moral, and ethical issues of serving pregnant women alcohol at bars
Stop us if you’ve heard this one: a pregnant woman and a child walk into a dive bar in Brooklyn. Which of them does the bartender serve? If you answered neither, you’d be wrong.
New York City’s Commission on Human Rights has ruled that bartenders may not refuse to serve a pregnant woman alcohol because it would violate the city’s Human Rights Law. This guidance also applies to foods like raw fish or soft cheese, which are also considered risky.
A ProPublica study shows that at least 18 states have legislation that addresses substance abuse during pregnancy. California is not one of them, though ProPublica’s survey says the first known indictment of an American woman for using drugs during pregnancy happened in California in 1977. Tennessee is the only state in the U.S. that has a law allowing women who abuse substances during pregnancy to be charged criminally, if the baby is born dependent, but that law was only designed to last for a short period of time, and lawmakers there have voted to kill the law.
How much alcohol is safe during pregnancy? That depends who you ask.
Some medical organizations are on record as saying that even one drop of alcohol is too much during pregnancy. Yet many women say they enjoy an occasional glass of wine during pregnancy with no harmful outcomes to their babies.
Should bartenders be banned from refusing to serve pregnant women? What do you think about drinking during pregnancy? Should more cities and states adopt laws like the one in New York City?
Guest:
Nina Martin, reporter at ProPublica covering gender and sexuality issues; she tweets
Making like Ferris Bueller: Your best stories on playing hooky
Thirty years ago, Chicago high-schooler Ferris Bueller turned playing hooky into an epic adventure.
The 1986 film ended up grossing over $70 million domestically, made a star out of a baby-faced Matthew Broderick, and became a cultural touchstone of movie references, like this one featuring real-life pundit Ben Stein playing a teacher taking class attendance:
In observance of the 30th anniversary of the John Hughes film, AirTalk wants to hear your funniest, most outrageous stories involving ditching school or work. Call us at 866-893-5722.