Will backers of Proposition 8 have their day in court? OC Journalists’ round table. Sexual harassment by the numbers. Who cares what people say about us? We do.
Backers of Proposition 8 will get their day in court
The California Supreme Court says sponsors of Proposition 8, banning same-sex marriage, can defend its constitutionality even without the backing of the governor or attorney general.
The controversial California Marriage Protection Act, which amends California's constitution to prohibit same-sex marriage, was passed by voters in 2008. It was subsequently overturned by U.S. district court judge Vaughn Walker, who declared it violated Due Process and Equal Protection clauses of the U.S. constitution; his ruling was upheld by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
ProtectMarriage.com, the sponsors of Prop 8, haven't given up; they've continued to petition the court to uphold the same-sex marriage ban.
WEIGH IN:
What do you think of the ruling? Should sponsors of an initiative be entitled to defend their measures in state court when the governor and attorney general refuse to do so? What does this decision mean for the future of same-sex marriage in California?
Guests:
Eugene Volokh, the Gary T. Schwartz Professor of Law at the UCLA School of Law
Christopher D. Dusseault, co-partner in charge of the Los Angeles office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher; Mr. Dusseault served as trial counsel in Perry v. Schwarzenegger, the federal constitutional challenge to the California ballot initiative that stripped gay and lesbian individuals of the right to marry.
OC Journalists' round table
The bidding war over the Crystal Cathedral continues between Chapman University and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange.
This week the Diocese upped the ante, increasing their bid to nearly $58 million. Chapman is maintaining their $57.5 million offer, but countered with a proposal to lease portions of the Cathedral's campus to its congregation for $1 a year if they are chosen as buyer.
Today Judge Robert Kwan is slated to rule on who will get the property.
Is Garden Grove the pot capital of California? The city recently overturned its ban on medical marijuana dispensaries – we'll find out why. And Orange County Supervisors take a nervy approach to Sacramento's sticky fingers, after seeing nearly $50 million in vehicle license fees whisked out of their coffers to help balance the state budget.
Larry and our talented trio of Orange County journalists dig into these stories and other latest news from Orange County.
Guests:
Gustavo Arellano, managing editor of the OC Weekly; Author of “Ask a Mexican” (Scribner)
Norberto Santana, editor-in-chief of the Voice of OC, a non-profit investigative news agency that covers Orange County government and politics online
Teri Sforza, staff writer for the Orange County Register
Sexual harassment by the numbers
A new poll by ABC News/Washington Post says 24 percent of women respondents have experienced sexual harassment from co-workers or supervisors. On the flip side, 25 percent of men respondents say they worry about being falsely accused of sexual harassment, while just 10 percent of men said they've said or done things that might be construed as harassing.
The poll comes after allegations against GOP presidential contender Herman Cain that led the news for days on end. A majority of Americans polled said sexual harassment in the workplace is a problem in this country, but the numbers split along political and gender lines.
More Democrats think it's a problem than Republicans. 69 percent of women say it is an issue, compared with 59 percent of men. Interestingly, the number of women who say they've been sexually harassed fell from 32 percent in 1994.
WEIGH IN:
Is sexual harassment at work declining? Are people more conscious of it? Are women reporting it less? Have you ever experienced it? How do you handle a co-worker who crosses the line? What defines that line?
Guest:
Thema Bryant-Davis, Associate Professor of Psychology, Pepperdine University
Who cares what people say about us? We do
Why do we care about what others think? In "People Will Talk: The Surprising Science of Reputation," author John Whitfield answers that question. Whitfield explores a topic in his new book that's very close to the human condition: reputation and gossip.
According to Whitfield, gossip and the impact it has on our reputations is a human evolutionary adaption, used to categorize one another. The threat of destroying one's reputation is what keeps many of us from acting inappropriately because – truth be told – there’s very little wiggle room. Humans have what’s known as a negativity bias, meaning we pay more attention to negative events than positive ones. And since studies have shown that it takes many good deeds to balance a single bad, we are all ultimately defined by the absolute worst thing that we do.
That’s why we guard our reputation so closely. But obviously there is more to a good reputation than being upstanding, moral and successful. A good rep, says Whitfield, depends on having a strong social network, both to spread the good word about you and to defend you from nasty rumors. Notwithstanding, reputation is a source of discomfort because it gives others power over us, and can’t be controlled on our own.
WEIGH IN:
Why isn’t it always the most successful or most moral people who end up with spotless reputations? If our image is tarnished, how do we polish it up? Did you ever check yourself from doing something solely out of fear for your reputation? Why do we love gossip so much?
Guest:
John Whitfield, author of “People Will Talk: The Surprising Science of Reputation.” Also a science writer who’s written for Nature, Discover, and Scientific American among others. He has a PhD in evolutionary biology from the University of Cambridge.