MTA Fare Hike Controversy; Drug Testing In High Schools; Protecting Soldiers Names; David Henry Hwang
MTA Fare Hike Controversy
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is proposing sharp fare increases, raising the $3 daily pass to $5 and then $8 while the $52 monthly pass would go up to $75 and later to $120. Mayor Villaraigosa has written a letter to the MTA board calling the rate hike proposal "extreme," arguing that they "would have a fundamentally negative impact on ridership on the most vulnerable customers." Larry Mantle talks with MTA spokesman Mark Littman about the proposal and with Damon Azali, Senior Organizer for the Bus Riders Union.
Drug Testing In High Schools
Mantle talks to Kevin Reed, General Counsel for the Los Angeles Unified School District, about the growing trend of drug testing in middle schools and high schools. Does it make sense to test students, voluntarily or not, for possible drug use?
Protecting Soldiers Names
In Arizona it could soon be a crime to use a deceased soldier's name or likeness for commercial purposes without family permission. The legislation passed the Arizona legislature and is now awaiting the Governor's signature. Similar laws were enacted last year in Oklahoma and Louisiana while bills in Texas and Florida are awaiting action from their Governors. Larry discusses the legislation with Jonathon Kirsch, intellectual property attorney, author, and Contributing Writer to the L.A. Times Book Review and with Paul Bender, Professor of Law at Arizona State University.
David Henry Hwang
Larry talks with Tony Award winner and Pulitzer Prize nominated playwright David Henry Hwang, about his newest work, Yellow Face, a comedy about race and identity in America, which is having its World premiere at the Mark Taper Forum. Hwang's many previous works for the stage include: M. Butterfly, Golden Child, and a new version of the book of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song.