First, the Center for Investigative Reporting looks at why long wait times mean some veterans die before receiving benefits. Then, we take a look at why Obama's Secure Communities immigration policy is falling out of favor across the U.S. Plus, Mexico's middle class continues to rise, Wall Street Journal columnist Jeff Yang's project to teach his sons about guns and much more.
Report shows many veterans die waiting for benefits claims
According to a report from the Center for Investigative Reporting, many veterans aren't receiving benefits for their service to this country until after they die.
Aaron Glantz has the story.
Interactive map of wait times for veterans around the country:
This story was produced by the Center for Investigative Reporting. Learn more at cironline.org. Contact the reporter at aglantz@cironline.org.
Secure Communities policy falling out of favor across the US
As the Obama Administration prepares to tackle immigration reform, a part of its current immigration policy is dividing Democrats across the country.
Last year, Democratic governors in Massachusetts, Illinois, and New York pulled out of "Secure Communities," even if Immigration and Customs Enforcement — or ICE — insists the program is not optional.
Governor Jerry Brown has not come out against the program but much of the rest of the state would rather not comply. Reporter Amy Isackson explains
Is training kids to fight back a safe idea?
The massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School has drawn attention to a program that trains teachers and student to fight back against armed madmen.
Advocates of the ALICE program — it stands for alert, lockdown, inform, counter and evacuate — say current procedures at most schools don't do enough to protect kids from school shooters.
Using comics to teach kids about the dangers of guns
Jeff Yang, a columnist for the Wall Street Journal, has a 9-year-old son named Hudson who is obsessed with guns. After the tragic events this summer in Aurora, Colo. and now Newtown, Conn., Yang wanted to have a frank conversation with Hudson about guns and what they can really do.
"We live in a society now where these stories can't be firewalled off from kids. Hudson has a younger brother, Skyler, who is 4, and he'd already heard about the shooting." said Yang. "I knew that they'd already talked about this briefly with the kids at school, I knew this was out there. So I decided last weekend to sit down with Hudson to have an honest conversation."
After the talk, Yang decided to collaboration on a comic with his son to help reinforce their discussion and to further educate his son in a fun and artistic way. The two sat down as they were talking with a pen and paper in hand.
"Having two boys in a culture like ours, its almost impossible not to have this feeling that guns are a saturated part of the popular culture in which they live," said Yang. "Whenever you talk about death with kids, its abstract… At the same time the larger issue around guns and how much of a force they are in terms of shaping our society is something that I thought needed a process to go through."
Yang asked Hudson to sketch out what he was feeling for each stage of their conversations, transforming their words into pictures. The result is "Cars & Guns & Common Sense," a story about why guns are so popular in America, and asking whether we should regulate guns similarly to how we regulate cars.
"In many states its legal for an 8-year-old to shoot when supervised by an adult, but there's not a single state in which you scan drive as an 8-year-old," said Yang.
Yang says that breaking down the complex and scary issue of gun violence with his son helped make talking about the issue much more comfortable for both of them. After posting the comic on social media, Yang found that hundreds of other people shared a similar feeling.
"We found that there were a lot of other people who also resonated not just with the message, but with the medium," said Yang. "We're just hoping that if there are other people who also have had trouble talking about this with their kids that something like this could be an idea on how they could maybe in a safer way discuss different issues."
Cars and Guns and Common Sense by Jeff and Hudson Yang
Commuting life sentences via Prop 36 proving difficult for inmates
Last month, California voters approved Proposition 36, the initiative overhauled the state's controversial three strikes law. From now on, only felons with a violent third strike will be sentenced to life.
Those previously sentenced can petition to have their sentences commuted, and over the past few weeks inmates throughout California have been working hard to make that happen. But many of them are finding it more difficult than they expected.
For more on this we're joined by Michael Montgomery, a reporter with Center for Investigative Reporting and California Watch.
New CA prisons chief described as nerdy, politically savvy
Gov. Jerry Brown plucked his new corrections chief from the birthplace of American prisons: Pennsylvania.
Jeffrey Beard spent nine years as head of the prisons system there before he retired in 2010. If the California State Senate confirms him, he'll lead one of the largest prison systems in the nation, rattled by transition and mired in politics.
Beard's predecessor, Matthew Cate, left the agency in November. He said his former mentor is up to the task. The two met nearly five years ago when Cate took the top job at the California Department of Corrections and Rehabiliation (CDCR) and Beard was still at the helm of Pennsylvania's prison system.
"He came to testify on behalf of the plaintiffs in the overcrowding lawsuit," Cate said. "In his opinion, it was impossible to run an effective corrections system at 200 percent capacity. He did that without pay, because he really believed California needed relief from overcrowding."
Beard impressed Cate. The two spoke often, and after Beard retired, Cate hired him as a consultant on mental health issues in California's prisons.
"Now he'll be leading the same system he criticized," Cate said. "I think the governor made the right choice."
Cate's parting advice?
"Try to learn the politics of California as quickly as possible," he said. "Get to know the stakeholders. But secondly, I'd tell him he has a great staff, and they'll be able to help him implement his vision."
Choice is praised
Don Specter, head of the nonprofit Prison Law Office and lead attorney on the prison overcrowding case, also praised the choice.
Specter told member station KQED in San Francisco that Beard's ability to launch a solid rehabilitation system in Pennsylvania's prisons impressed him . Mostly, he said, he's excited about change.
"I think it’s important to get new perspectives," Specter said. "That’s something that’s been lacking in California prisons for decades. I think it’s terrific that we will have somebody from the outside to bring in some new ideas and move California into the mainstream of what other systems in the country are doing.”
Cate and Specter said they hope reducing the use of lockdowns will be at the top of Beard's priority list. Lockdowns, largely linked to overcrowding, are a security tool. It restricts inmates to their cells for days without the ability to take recreation time or attend programs. Cate said he regrets not making more progress on that issue, and he hopes Beard will.
Beard has not consented to interviews since his appointment, but former colleagues back in Pennsylvania offer insights into his demeanor and philosophy.
The resulting portrait: a solid administrator, a political mediator and a bit of a nerd.
"He supported evidence-based programs for offenders, that was his big thing," said Doris MacKenzie, director of the Justice Center for Research at Penn State University, where Beard spent the last year-and-a-half as a professor. "The programs they initiated in the prisons were research-based and he kept in close contact with all the researchers so he knew what was going on."
He was also good at working with politicians in what MacKenzie described as a "conservative" state.
"He's worked with tight budget problems and has been able to get compromise," she said.
William DiMascio directs the Pennsylvania Prison Society, an inmate advocacy group in Philadelphia. He described Beard as "a very intelligent guy" and "highly ethical." DiMascio said that Beard was not liberal enough for most prison reformers, but that he was largely an administrator, bound by the decisions of policymakers.
DiMascio said Beard, a psychologist, was always particularly concerned with making sure families could visit with relatives on the inside. He intiated one of the first video conferencing visitation programs in the country.
Those who know him said Beard, now 65, is an energetic man who likely took the position to see whether he might put his expertise in management and evidence-based corrections to improving one of the most notoriously difficult-to-manage systems in the country.
Fracking may create oil boom in California
California...it's the Golden State, it's one of the greenest states, and, before you know it, it'll be the oil state.
Because of hydraulic fracking, California might actually be producing more oil than Texas in the next decade. But is fracking a panacea or an environmental threat? And how will it affect overall U.S. oil production?
Amy Myers Jaffe executive director for energy and sustainability at UC Davis.
The fiscal cliff and the art of negotiating
With the 11th hour fast approaching, negotiations to avoid the fiscal cliff appear to have stalled. President Obama and House Speaker John Boehner haven't talked since Monday.
But they are trading charges in public, and both accuse the other of not being ready to make a deal. Speaker Boehner has offered what he calls his Plan B, it's a scaled-down deficit reduction package that would stave off automatic tax increases for everyone with annual incomes of less than a million dollars.
The House has scheduled a vote on the measure for sometime today, but it remains unclear whether there are enough Republican votes to pass it. Even if it does, the vote is largely symbolic. It appears unlikely to pass in the Senate and the President has vowed to veto it.
So, after months of discussion and several weeks of face-to-face negotiations, the President and the Speaker seem unable to come to an agreement.
Joining us to throw a little light on what might be going on behind the scenes is Ed Brodow. He's the author of Negotiation Boot Camp, and teaches corporate executives the art of reaching an agreement. More importantly, he grew up in Brooklyn, so cutting a deal is in his blood.
Study: US gun policy felt In Mexico
The touchy debate over gun control — and specifically a new ban on assault weapons — is moving forward after President Obama said he would bring the issue before Congress in January. The National Rifle Association is expected to break its silence on the issue during a press conference tomorrow
As Peter O'Dowd reports from the Fronteras Desk in Phoenix, whatever policymakers decide — if anything — could affect Mexican drug violence.
Despite DA's protest, Lake Forest repeals sex offender law
Lake Forest was one of many cities in Orange County that in the past year overwhelmingly adopted a local version of a county ordinance banning registered sex offenders from parks and beaches.
Both versions of the law quickly ran into legal questions.
An appellate court overturned the conviction of a man arrested under the law last month, saying it conflicted with state laws. And an unnamed sex offender filed a federal suit challenging the law’s constitutionality, which named Lake Forest as a defendant.
“It became very clear to me that the law was not legally viable,” said Peter Herzog, one of three Lake Forest council members who voted to overturn the city’s ordinance that, only a year ago, passed unanimously.
A city report concluded the law didn’t protect residents from sex offenders in “any measurable way” and that the ordinance could end up costing taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars to defend.
But that’s no reason to get rid of a law needed to protect children, argues Orange County District Attorney Chief of Staff Susan Kang Schroeder.
Schroeder says cities shouldn’t be scared off by lawsuits filed by what she calls the “huge pro-sex offender lobby.”
“I understand the fiscal impact it has on cities and I certainly sympathize with that, but when they passed the law before they were told they were going to be sued, and that it's bad public policy to overturn a law just because you get sued, because then there’s going to be a suit or a threat of a suit on every law.”
Herzog disagrees.
“Unfortunately cities get sued all the time and you evaluate each issue individually,” Herzog said. “In this case there didn’t seem to be the real viability of the ordinance under state law.”
Lake Forest was the first city in Orange County to pass a local version of the sex offender ban.
Now that it’s the first to repeal it, Herzog says he’s getting calls from leaders at the many cities where the law is still on the books – cities that once again may follow Lake Forest’s lead.
Patt Morrison on how Saint Nicholas became Santa Claus
The image of the rosy cheeked and bearded Jolly Old Saint Nick is etched in our minds. But what about the real Saint Nick? Was his tummy really like a bowlful of jelly? Did he even exist?
Well, not sure about the belly, but some historians believe the legend of Santa grew out of a real man, Nicholas of Myra.
KPCC's Patt Morrison spoke with Adam C. English, author of "The Saint Who Would Be Santa Claus." He uncovered some old documents about the original Nick, a Greek who lived in what is now Turkey, during the third and fourth centuries.
Hear an extended interview and read more on Patt's Blog.
The Dinner Party: Grinch sheriff and a heavy metal spider
Every week we get your conversation topics for your weekend dinner parties with Brendan Francis Newnam and Rico Gagliano, the hosts of the Dinner Party podcast and radio show.
On tap this week is a Florida sheriff that moonlights as the Grinch:
and the spider named after heavy metal icon David Mustaine of Megadeth.
Christmas tree farms in Orange County giving way to development
Dawnelle Pagel brought home a little piece of Christmas. She cut away at a Monterey Pine more than seven feet tall, sawing the trunk back and forth until it fell.
“I did it!” Pagel cheered, exhilarated that she had cut down her very first Christmas tree at Peltzer Pines Christmas Tree Farms in Brea.
Such experiences are becoming rare in Orange County, as more apartments and homes are built to satisfy the area’s growing population. The development has made it tough on Christmas tree farmers, who need large plots of land to plant rows of trees that won’t get harvested until they’re four years old.
Charles Peltzer, 77, started his Christmas tree business nearly 50 years ago in East Anaheim. At its peak, Peltzer Pines Christmas Tree Farms had eight locations in Orange County, but that’s been whittled down to just three farms in Irvine, Brea and Silverado.
Increased competition and less open land have hurt his business, Peltzer said. This year, Peltzer will close his Irvine farm because he said his landlord, The Irvine Co., has plans to one day build housing there. Peltzer estimates he might have five or ten more years left on the Brea farm, depending on the economy.
“Land is very, very hard to find for what we do,” Peltzer said. “This farm here in Brea is owned by an oil company and when the economy returns, it will be developed into single family residences.”
Farming is in Peltzer’s blood. His grandparents came to Anaheim as farmers in 1913 and his parents later sold their farm to Walt Disney. The land is part of Disneyland, just about where the Pirates of the Caribbean ride is now.
Peltzer said he doesn’t have plans to leave Orange County and when he retires, his family will continue the business.
But his farm is up against significant challenges.
The cost of growing and maintaining the Christmas trees in Orange County isn't cheap. The farm starts with seeds of Monterey Pines and Leyland Cypress and lets them grow a few inches tall at their nursery, said staffer Andrew Miles. Then, Peltzer Pines clears the land at its farms in the spring and plants the saplings, Miles said. Four years later, the trees are ready to be cut down. The trees are trimmed four times a year, to make sure they have their Christmas tree shape.
Peltzer came up with the idea in 1963, when he visited a Christmas tree farm.
“People were standing in a line with a $10 bill in their hand and I (thought), ‘I can do that,’” Peltzer said.
But since then, the marketplace has changed, with big box retailers like Home Depot now selling freshly cut Christmas trees at a discount. Home Depot spokesman Stephen Holmes said the retailer expects to sell about 2.5 million trees this year.
A five to six foot tree at Home Depot can sell for $29, Holmes said. A six or seven-foot tree at Peltzer’s farm can cost customers at least double that price.
“Once the big box stores came in town, then people’s shopping habits changed accordingly, and then, here comes the artificial tree and the quality of the artificial tree is such that their popularity is without question,” Peltzer said.
Increased housing hasn’t helped either. Orange County has a long history of development driving away agriculture, said Chris Jepsen, president of the Orange County Historical Society.
Orange County once had a lot of citrus trees. But those groves faced a disease called “quick decline,” and one solution for farmers was to sell the land to developers, Jepsen said.
“I always joke that eventually Phoenix and Los Angeles is going to meet,” Jepsen said. “It’s all going to be paved between here and there.”
It’s no surprise that the number of farms designated for Christmas trees and other short-rotation woody crops have been in decline. In 2007, there were only 322 such farms in the state, a 20 percent decline from five years earlier, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The number of members in the National Christmas Tree Association has also fallen. There were 841 members last year, down 10 percent from 2010, the Chesterfield, Mo.-based association said. Spokesman Rick Dungey said there were a number of factors that could have caused the decline. Dungey said some members dropped out because the association no longer provided a liability insurance policy or they received services from other groups, but other reasons included farmers retiring or choosing to grow a different crop.
But Peltzer believes Orange County can support his business. He feels confident that he will be able to keep farming Christmas trees at his Silverado location, which is owned by OC Parks. His Irvine landlord, the Irvine Co., said it is also helping Peltzer look for another plot of land.
Peltzer expects sales will be equal to what he made last year, but he declined to give more detailed information. After the Irvine farm closes, he doesn’t have any plans to open a third location.
“Under the current (economic) situation, it would be a great risk,” Peltzer said.
Coming home to Newtown for the holidays
Millions of travelers will be heading home for the holidays this weekend. While it's usually a merry task, for writer Sean Beaudoin, there's a cloud of sadness associated with coming home this year.
Beaudoin grew up in Newtown, Conn., attended Sandy Hook Elementary School for kindergarten and he still have family and friends who live in Newtown. This weekend he'll journey back with his wife and 8-year-old daughter, to the town still reeling from last week's school shooting.
"As soon as I heard the news I wanted to fly back immediately, but there's nothing to be done, but call your family, sit back and watch and grieve in your own way," said Beudoin on Take Two. "It was easy to imagine getting that impossible phone call and driving up Route 25, which is the way I would have gone, envisioning myself in the car and arriving at the school and the first responders and the unimaginable thought of those parents gathered together. It was too easy to do."
Beaudoin describes his childhood in the picturesque, woodsy town as idyllic. Some of his earliest memories include leaving his house in the morning to play, sometimes not coming home until dinner time. He says the images of the town's flagpole, church spires, and dense woods accurately represent the quaint beauty of the town, but that there's a side people aren't seeing.
"Newtown also has a very working class element to it. It's not practical to commute to Manhattan though some people do it. It used to be a manufacturing town, rubber factories and I believe at one point it was the main producer of firehouse, so those two element clash," said Beaudoin. "There's a sense of wealth and people have been there a long time, and a real history there. It was a fantastic place to grow up. I'm not sure if that ideas coming across."
To prepare for traveling to Newtown and the inevitability that the subject would be brought up, he discussed the incident with his 8-year-old daughter. Though she didn't understand all the answers, he says she was particularly upset about the little girls' pictures she saw on television.
"It's really sad to me that just the name of Newtown or Sandy Hook School is going to carry a shorthand across the nation for a tragedy as opposed to the way I think of it in my head, and join the other single names that evoke those feelings, Columbine, Aurora," said Beaudoin. "It's really unfortunate for all the people of Newtown to be placed in that context now."
To read more from Sean Beaudoin, visit his website