Republican presidential candidates double down in Vegas debate, while dispute over GOP primary calendar heats up. Hiding your age to dodge over-the-hill discrimination? Revving up the foreclosure machine again. Los Angeles art world explosion: Pacific Standard Time is happening now! The Mighty Brothers Klitschko.
Republican presidential candidates double down in Vegas debate, while dispute over GOP primary calendar heats up
Republican presidential contenders gathered last night in Sin City for the eighth GOP debate this year, and this one was bruising. Texas Governor Rick Perry came out fighting, targeting frontrunner Mitt Romney over the inadvertent hiring of illegal immigrants as lawn care workers at his former home.
“You stood here in front of the American people and did not tell the truth, that you had illegals working on your property,” Perry said. Romney shot back that he’d fired the lawn company, saying, “Look, you can’t have any illegals working on our property. That’s – I'm running for office, for Pete’s sake, I can’t have illegals.” Romney vowed that as president, he’d crack down on illegal immigration and put in place an E-Verify system, which Perry opposed. CNN moderator Anderson Cooper let the two go at it – inspiring boos and cheers from the audience.
Former pizza magnate Herman Cain had his work cut out for him, defending his 9-9-9 tax plan and his surprise standing atop opinion polls. Romney, Perry and Cain were joined by four others: Minnesota Representative Michelle Bachmann, Texas Representative Ron Paul, former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. One GOP contender made headlines by being a Vegas no-show. Former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman skipped out because he’s boycotting the Nevada caucuses in a skirmish over the GOP primary calendar.
It all began when Florida moved its primary date into January – in an attempt to gain relevance in the nominating fight. Then Nevada scheduled its caucuses for January 14. Now officials in New Hampshire, traditionally the “first in the nation” primary, fear they’ll have to move their contest into the month of December. Republican officials are pressuring Romney and others to join Huntsman’s boycott if New Hampshire refuses to hold their caucuses later in the month. So far, Romney has refused.
WEIGH IN:
Did Perry’s “kill Mitt” strategy hurt or help his candidacy? Did Romney come off strong or too thin-skinned? And is Nevada betting too much by trying to upstage the Granite State? When will the primary battle end – or should we say, begin?
Guest:
Dan Schnur, director of the Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics at USC and adjunct faculty at USC Annenberg School
Jonathan Wilcox, republican strategist and former speech writer for Gov. Pete Wilson
Hiding your age to dodge over-the-hill discrimination?
Everyone who's anyone in Hollywood has a profile page on the Internet Movie Database (IMDb). It is crucial exposure to get new gigs. But what if your IMDb profile causes you to lose work opportunities?
That's what an unnamed 40-year-old actress is claiming. She is suing the site for revealing her date of birth – something she had kept secret her entire career. The complaint states: "In the entertainment industry, youth is king. If one is perceived to be 'over-the-hill,' i.e., approaching 40, it is nearly impossible for an up-and-coming actress, such as the Plaintiff, to get work as she is thought to have less of an 'upside,' therefore, casting directors, producers, directors, agents/managers, etc. do not give her the same opportunities, regardless of her appearance or talent." She says IMDb refuses to remove her true birth date.
To make matters worse, she says while she can no longer get many younger roles, she has been rejected for 40-year old parts too, because she "cannot physically portray the [age]." The actress might have a case, especially if her accusation is true that IMDb unlawfully obtained her date of birth. Regardless of how they get the info, IMDb has been confronted over this issue before. The Writers Guild of America lobbied for all ages to be scrubbed from the site.
WEIGH IN:
What about other industries? Is ageism still alive and kicking across corporate America? Do you hide your age as if it were a classified nuclear code? Has it magically and tragically appeared on the Internet? Have you been the victim or perpetrator of ageism? Does this actress have a case? With an aging population, will we respect age more? How is age perceived in your industry – does it help or hurt?
California's foreclosure machine revving up again
In the third quarter of the fiscal year, California homeowners received nearly 26 percent more default notices than in the previous three months. DataQuick, a real estate information service reported Tuesday that 71,275 first-time notices of default were issued in July, August and September compared to 56,633 in the second quarter of the fiscal year.
For nearly a year, there was a lull in foreclosures when banks were found to be improperly processing them, using abusive practices such as "robo-signing," approving foreclosure paperwork without actually reading it. Now the banks must deal with the backlog of foreclosures.
This increase comes at a time when talks with State Attorney General Kamala Harris over a broad foreclosure settlement have broken down. Notices of default are the first formal step in the foreclosure process and La Jolla-based DataQuick reported that most of the mortgages, home equity loans and lines of credit going into default are from 2005 to 2007.
Chris Thornberg, founding principal of Beacon Economics told Larry Mantle that he’s not sure whether the negotiations between Harris and the banks will spark notable changes. While the pace of overall foreclosures picked up in the third quarter, the number of homes substantially behind on mortgage payments continues to fall in California.
“The primary reason people get foreclosed on is because they’re not paying their mortgage, simple as that. And whatever sort of contractual gimmicks you want to play — ‘Well this wasn’t signed, that’s not here, or this piece of information is missing’ — doesn’t take away from that fact that these folks simply aren’t paying their debt,” he said.
Thornberg went on to say that refinancing mortgages is “probably one of the best policy proposals that have been put forward by the administration on the housing market” for those with minor financial problems. However, he suggested a more controversial move for those significantly underwater with payments: Walk away.
“I would almost argue that not allowing those folks to refinance, that hastening the foreclosure process, might ultimately be in the best financial interest of that particular household. I mean, if you’re 25 percent underwater in the state of California, you’re probably in a $50,000 to $100,000 hole. Frankly, your credit score is going to heal a lot faster than your equity,” he said.
Thornberg said though it would be traumatic in the short run, people should stay hopeful.
“I think you’d be surprised by how rapidly people can get back into the housing market,” he said. “If you’ve kept your nose clean in other parts of your financial life, that is to say you’ve kept up-to-date on your credit cards, your auto loans, things like that — why not have Fannie [Mae] and Freddie [Mac] be willing to extend a new loan to those folks despite the recent foreclosure?”
WEIGH IN:
Are you headed toward default and are you looking to the state for help? What are the latest terms of a settlement deal? Are those new terms a push to get California back to the table? What would it take for Kamala Harris to change her position?
Guest:
Andrew LePage, analyst with DataQuick Information Systems
Chris Thornberg, Principal, Beacon Economics
Los Angeles art world explosion: 'Pacific Standard Time' is happening now!
This month marks the start of 'Pacific Standard Time' (PST), a southern California-wide exhibition featuring works of art created in the region from 1945 to 1980. More than 130 cultural institutions from San Diego to Palm Springs will participate in this first-ever effort, with the goal of showing that southern California has as much to offer the art world as other cultural centers do.
Los Angeles has long been maligned as a backwater in the art world, paling in comparison to London, Paris and of course New York. Some art critics are scornful of PST, like critic David Hickey who told the New York Times that that the ambitious 6-month event was “corny,” “boosterish” and “largely unnecessary.”
SoCal art world luminaries beg to differ, saying there is no shortage of incredible and important works being created right here and it’s about time L.A got it’s due. Regardless of how the rest of the world takes it, the fact is Southern California is about to be awash in everything from sculpture and installations to performance art and architectural exhibits.
WEIGH IN:
Will you attend Pacific Standard Time? Does California deserve to be one of the world’s cultural centers? And, how does our unique culture, environment and history influence the works of art that are created here?
Guest:
Deborah Marrow, director of the Getty Foundation
The Mighty Brothers Klitschko
The world of boxing had never before known a pair of brothers the likes of Vitali and Wladimir Klitschko. Together, the young men – still in their 30s – share five boxing heavyweight titles between them, plus Wladimir's Olympic gold medal.
Their hard-fought victories at every global boxing competition are famous already. What's lesser known is how these fighters succeed outside of the ring. Vitali is a political leader in their home country, Ukraine, and an ambassador to UNESCO along with Wladimir. They’ve both done good works to build schools and hospitals in Africa and South America and work with the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation for underprivileged children. When you add that they both hold doctorates in sport science, it should make you shrink further in their muscle-bound shadows.
A new documentary by Sebastian Denhardt shows what built these two kind-hearted fighters – from their childhood in Ukraine, their first KOs, to the sweat and blood poured into their training. AirTalk welcomes the Klitschko brothers for a studio interview.
Guests:
Vitali Klitschko, Heavyweight boxing champion of the world
Wladimir Klitschko, Heavyweight boxing champion of the world