More on the 33,000 acre wildfire, how the air quality is affected following a large fire, five things we should know heading into the events of the week.
Do party conventions really matter anymore?
For the next four days, tune into this station, or any news outlet for that matter, and you are bound to hear a lot of coverage of the Democratic Convention in Philadelphia — just as the Republican Convention in Cleveland dominated most of the airwaves for much of last week.
But all this coverage leads one to wonder: who really cares?
For some time now, it's been little surprise who the two nominees are, so a skeptic might ask, do such political conventions even matter anymore?
Barbara Perry, director of Presidential Studies at the University of Virginia's Miller Center, says it depends on who you ask.
Press the blue play button above to hear more.
A house divided: Mother and daughter delegates to push for different candidates
Families disagree all the time, but when it comes to politics, it can make things a little tricky.
With this in mind, spare a thought for the Fowlers: they're Democratic supporters, but (and this is a big but) mom Carolyn is Team Hillary, while daughter Dallas loves to feel the Bern.
They're both at the Democratic National Convention this week as delegates, and they refuse to agree to disagree.
Take Two managed to talk them both into coming to the studio to make the case for their candidates.
Press the blue play button above to hear their conversation.
California view: 5 things to watch for at the Democratic National Convention
Last week it was the Republicans in Cleveland. This week, the Democrats will take Philly.
The convention comes a tense time for the party: a DNC email leak Friday on the website Wikileaks is likely to cast a shadow over the week’s proceedings.
Among the 20,000 leaked letters: correspondence that appears to show members of the party conspiring against Bernie Sanders. Bernie Sanders — who has already endorsed Clinton — has called the controversy “outrageous,” but he says he’s “not surprised.”
Party chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz resigned Sunday amid pressure brought on by those leaks.
The theme for this first day is "United Together," but how do you do that in the midst of yet another email scandal? And what can viewers in California expect this week?
KQED political reporter Marisa Lagos joined Take Two from the convention with the things she's watching.
1. Angry Bernie Sanders delegates
Lagos was at a breakfast for California delegates Monday morning. She said the anger in the room from Sanders supporters was palpable:
"It was kind of pandemonium... Every single speaker pretty much got booed and taunted when they mentioned Clinton and Kaine. California has 222 Bernie Sanders delegates, so it's a big part of the delegation. It was a lot more chaotic than a lot of us walked in there expecting."
2. Astrid Silva
Astrid Silva of Nevada was brought to the US from Mexico at a young age. She remains undocumented. Silva will address the convention Monday night. Her relationship with the Democratic Party started when she passed a note to Senator Harry Reid as he was campaigning in 2009. KQED's Marisa Lagos says she has since become the unofficial "face" of the immigration movement:
"She's been talked about by the president in the past and used as an example of why children and young people should be embraced instead of shunned by America. That's really the message that Democrats want to be putting forward this week."
3. Not a lot of worry about California
Marisa Lagos says the Democratic Party isn't concerned about losing California in November:
"I don't think they're worried about California. It's a blue state. I know that Trump's people have been talking about trying to flip it, but I have not talked to a single person who watches these things closely that thinks that is really going to be in play. But I do think that nationally, Clinton needs everyone she can get."
4. Jerry Brown
California Governor Jerry Brown has a history with former President Bill Clinton. For many years, their relationship might best be summed up by Taylor Swift. Marisa Lagos says the hatchet has been buried, however, and Brown is now a valuable asset to Hillary Clinton's campaign. He's slated to address the convention this week:
"I think we're going to see Brown in the role of elder statesman here. He is very well-liked. He has struck a really interesting balance between being a little bit more fiscally conservative than a lot of the Democrats in Sacremento are, but also really expanding immigrant rights and doing a lot of those things the Democrats are trying to draw a contrast with."
5. The ghost of Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
The recently — er — departed Schultz will likely perform in a very limited capacity this week. After a Wikileaks DNC data dump revealed that the former party chair favored Clinton during the primary race, Schultz might serve as more of a distraction this week, KQED's Lagos says:
"I think it's something we're going to be talking about a lot this week, and it certainly adds fuel to the fire for Bernie supporters who already came here already wanting to make a stand and were also very displeased by this weekend's choice of Tim Kaine as Hillary Clinton's running mate, who is seen as more of a moderate Democrat... I am hearing some definite anger from Bernie supporters."
Press the blue play button above to hear the full interview.
Heat, wind, and drones: The challenges in fighting the Sand Fire
A wildfire that started Friday in the canyons around Santa Clarita has now forced the evacuation of some 20,000 area residents. An army of firefighters have been hampered by hot, dry weather, and rough terrain covered with brush that's been turned into tinder by years of drought.
VIDEO: High temps, low humidity, & increased wind contributed to rapid fire growth yesterday on #SandFire pic.twitter.com/Kyt8y929yp
— LACoFireAirOps (@LACoFireAirOps) July 23, 2016
Gustavo Medina, inspector for LA County Fire, explained the main obstacles in battling the massive blaze.
Heat
Southern California has been smacked with extreme heat since the fire erupted on Friday. The brush is "primed" because most of it has not burned in about 30 years, Medina explained. California's ongoing drought isn't helping, either.
Winds
"The fact that the fire is continuously getting pushed by the winds doesn't help us," Medina said. The winds have been spreading embers across the area, and red flag warnings are expected to continue until 12 p.m. Monday.
Terrain
"There's areas where it's difficult or inaccessible to ground personnel to get in there," Medina said. Hence the two-pronged attack from the air and land.
Drones
A drone spotted in the area of the fire fight halted efforts at one point over the weekend. "When it comes to flying a drone in an emergency operational area, it really hinders our job, and it really prevents us from doing what we're here to do: fight fires," Medina said. Sometimes fire fighting aircraft can be grounded for hours because of the presence of a personal drone. "It's a huge back-breaker," he said.
To listen to the full interview, click on the blue audio player above.
'It was moving at such a high speed', Sand Fire evacuee recounts frightening experience
The fire burning in Santa Clarita had spread over 33,117 acres as of Sunday night. As fire personnel battled the blaze, mandatory evacuations were ordered for the surrounding areas, among the evacuees was Heather Gault.
Sand Fire: More evacuations ordered as wildfire grows over 33,000 acres
She had to flee at a moment's notice from her father-in-law's house on Saturday afternoon. He lives just off of Sand Canyon Road. Heather joined the show to talk about her frightening experience and the state of things now.
To hear the full interview, click the blue play button above.
When a wildfire burns, what happens to the air we breathe?
A blood red sun. Orange skies raining ash. Tweet after tweet referencing "Armageddon."
All over L.A., people reacted this weekend to the vast plumes of smoke wafting across town from the fire in Santa Clarita.
And a lot of folks decided it was a good time to stay inside, and avoid the bad air.
Take Two talks with Jeff Pierce, professor of atmospheric science at Colorado State University, who's leading a three-year NASA-funded study on wildfires and their effect on skies and air quality.
To hear the full interview, click the blue play button above.
What distinguishes a mass shooting from an act of terror?
Nine people were killed and dozens more injured in a shooting at a shopping mall in Munich on Friday.
On Saturday, Munich Police Chief Hubertus Andrä said that the killings, carried out by an 18-year-old German-Iranian man identified only as David S., appeared to be a "shooting rampage" rather than an act of terrorism.
But when asked about a possible link between the attack on Friday and the one carried out exactly five years prior by the far-right Norwegian terrorist Anders Breivik, Chief Andrä said the connection was "obvious."
“We must assume that he was aware of this attack,” Andrä said.
That raises the question of how a massacre could possibly be inspired by terrorism and yet not be an act of terrorism itself.
Linda Robinson, senior international policy analyst at RAND, joined Take Two to talk about the sometimes blurry line between mass shootings and terrorism.
Robinson says that although some nuances of the definition of terrorism are disputed, "the hallmark of it really is someone acting for a political or ideological cause. It's really about the objectives and therefore the motivations of the attacker. The other distinguishing trait of course is the targets are civilians or other targets intended to generate fear among a population or in a society."
While it can be difficult to distinguish an act of terror from what may be an equally heinous crime like a mass shooting, Robinson says that expanding the definition of terrorism can play into the aims of terrorist groups like the Islamic State.
Immediately assuming that an attack is an act of terrorism, Robinson says, "helps the Islamic State boast that it has this wide reach, global reach, and a higher profile than it otherwise would."
To hear the full interview, click the blue player above.
Susan Faludi tells the story of her father's gender transition
In 1991, writer Susan Faludi published the book "Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women."
The work is considered a classic feminist text.
Eight years later, Faludi turned her attention to the other sex with the book "Stiffed," which looked at the state of the American man.
But, for some, gender isn't necessarily as simple as just male or female. That's something Faludi learned first-hand when she received an email from her estranged father Stephen.
The message boldly declared that he had traveled to Thailand for a sex reassignment surgery.
It came with this signature "Love from your parent Stefánie."
Susan Faludi's exploration of her father's identity is the subject of her newest book, titled "In the Darkroom."
"We had been estranged for a quarter century because of the violence at the end of my parents' marriage. And for many years we barely exchanged a word. So when my father sent me this email in 2004 announcing that she was now Stefánie it was also an opening of a door. And in the phone conversation that followed the email I said, 'Can I come see you?' and my father invited me specifically to write her story. And I think in a way I reported and wrote my way back into a relationship with my father. It very much became a mutual, collaborative project in which my father wanted to be perceived and chose me to perceive her." -Susan Faludi
To hear the full interview, click the blue player above.
Dudamel on LA Phil's summer concert series: 'This is a place of inclusion'
The LA Philharmonic's summer season at the Hollywood Bowl has almost wrapped up, but there are still a few more opportunities to see them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMryjVS0wfI
At the baton will be musical director Gustavo Dudamel, currently in his seventh summer season.
For more on the shows, Take Two's A Martinez sat down with the maestro himself, Gustavo Dudamel.
You chose such a wide range of works this year: from the Italian opera "Tosca" to West Side Story and "Rhapsody in Blue." What was the thought process when you were putting together the catalog for this summer?
Well, look, I think we have a beautiful variety of what classical music, in the sense of music, can be combined.
For example, we started with Tchaikovsky and Korsakov. Let’s say that is a Russian program, but at the same time we are rehearsing and preparing West Side Story. And for this program especially Gershwin and Ravel, we had a wonderful soloist that is Yuja Wang. And it’s a beautiful history about Gershwin and Ravel. It’s a connection because Gershwin traveled to France to meet Ravel and asked Ravel to be his teacher. So Ravel told him ‘What I can teach you?’ It was kind of if you are great composer you are doing great, so it’s beautiful. And you see two composers from the same time; even you can feel in the Concerto In G by Ravel that this in a way has some jazzy elements.
These jazzy harmonies that combine perfectly with Rhapsody in Blue. So I think, of course. Also, it’s a very demanding program, but if you see then we do Tosca, then we do the Tchaikovsky spectacular so it’s a kind of combination of what all music can be.
Have you gotten used to the venue? You’ve been doing for so long already. Does it eventually become, ‘OK, this is where I work.’
You know what happened to me with the Bowl? Every year I became more in love with the venue, and it’s because of the atmosphere of the place. The open air, the people. I have been in two concerts as an audience this season. I came for the Star Trek movie with music live, and I also came for Brian Wilson’s Pet Sounds 50th anniversary. And it is a nice thing to sit there and to feel the atmosphere, the people. It’s not the normal concert hall - no, it’s this kind of atmosphere of air. You can drink, you can eat something. It’s magic. And I did my debut here, eleven years ago, and it was at the Hollywood Bowl.
In the beginning, I didn’t understand the place. I was kind of ‘Wow, it’s open air, how is the sound?’ But during the years we have been improving a lot of things, technical things here, it’s every time more interesting for me to be here in Summer.
For me, it seems the outdoor aspect grants it a level of accessibility that maybe an indoor place wouldn’t. Since coming to LA, you’ve been trying to make classical music more accessible. I’m wondering, did you keep that in mind when selecting the pieces that you were going to do?
Absolutely. You have to call the attention. We are an orchestra that takes modern music, for example, as an important part of our season. But when we do, we combine this entirely new music with a traditional one, and this is a beautiful way for the new audience to have something that they are used to listening and to be introduced to a new world. So these kind of things are very important. I’m talking about access. This is a place of inclusion. This is a place of work. Everybody can come with their families and connect with classical music.
How often do you see kids here?
A lot. A lot. I see a lot of little children coming with their families because you can bring your basket with some food and you can do you picnic and listen to beautiful music. I think it’s a beautiful environment.
One of the great things about art is that it can manage to thrive even under the roughest conditions. So I’m wondering when you go back to Venezuela, and you see these kids that are involved in music, is creativity still thriving despite the country around them?
Yes. It’s why I say to you it’s a symbol how things can work. Let’s put the analogy of an orchestra. An orchestra is a community. You have a hundred musicians there, sitting. First of all, they have different instruments, with different colors, with a different range of sound, but they have to create harmony. You have to listen to each other. You have to create an interpretation, so it's a beautiful symbol of creativity and teamwork that you can do. El Sistema is a symbol of that. It is working. And every day we have more children involved, so let’s say it’s a beautiful element of the country of our society of how things can work. And it keeps working even in the difficult situation that we are living.
We’re at the Hollywood Bowl. Right down the street from us is the Hollywood Walk of Fame. You are going to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame with Selena, the former Tejano music star, and Eva Longoria. Now you’re an LA-dude officially. Is it special for you to have a star?
Well, I’m very honored, first of all, and it’s beautiful. I don’t know what to say. Thank you, and I think, let’s say, it’s a recognition not only to Gustavo Dudamel, I feel part of a group — a beautiful group of a generation. And this generation of musicians that are dreaming, working hard to create true music. Being a musician or not being a musician, in that sense, I take this recognition. In the personal one, a conductor without an orchestra is nothing because it’s not sound if I stood in front of you and moved my hands. I need these people in front of me, so it’s recognition for them. For all my musical families. The Simon Bolivar Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and all the people that I work with. They are part of this and in that sense, it’s a star for all of us.
