Take Two speaks with UCLA professor Donald Shoup about his new book, "Parking and the City," which advocates for fewer parking spots in L.A. to improve traffic. Also, we check in with CalMatters environment reporter Julie Cart for an update on California's groundbreaking Cap and Trade program and how the numbers just aren't adding up.
What CA Dems can learn from Stacey Abrams' Georgia win
Stacey Abrams just became the first black woman to be nominated as Georgia's Democratic candidate for governor. She had an unusual campaign strategy, to focus only on Dems who would likely vote for her, then concentrate on getting them to the polls. Should Democratic candidates in California be doing the same?
Guest:
- Jack Pitney, Claremont McKenna College government professor
- Charles Bullock III, political science professor at the University of Georgia
Can we make Al care (again) about voting?
Al Gordon, the good sport who let us follow him around as he got up to speed on elections two years ago, is back with us as the midterm elections approach. Turns out he didn't know another election was upcoming, which illustrates a fundamental problem with elections: how do we sustain interest among voters, especially in midterm years when turnout plummets?
Guest:
- Al Gordon
https://twitter.com/meghamama/status/999670340480466945
Crackdown on Mexican Mafia's influence in LA County Jail
Thirty-two people were taken into custody and around three dozen more were charged with federal indictments. This follows a long investigation into the Mexican Mafia's control over criminal activity in L.A. jails, which house around 15-thousand inmates. The Mexican Mafia has long been a major presence in California prisons.
Guest:
Rick Serrato, Law enforcement veteran, who's spent much of his career investigating gang activity and narcotics trafficking.
California: Land of earthquakes, fires and... volcanos?
103 years ago this week, California's Lassen Volcano erupted. The Shasta County cone sent debris thousands of feet into the sky and hundreds of miles away. It's an anniversary with new meaning, as daily images from Hawaii's Kilauea volcano fill us with both shock and awe. Though our last blast was decades ago, one fact remains: California — home to 10 eruptions in the past 1000 years — is volcano country. And Margaret Mangan at the California Volcano Observatory in Menlo Park is always keeping an eye out for the next flare up.
Guest:
- Margaret Mangan, the scientist in charge of the U.S. Geological Survey California Volcano Observatory in Menlo Park.
LA would be better off with less parking
When Angelenos head out in their cars, they're usually concerned with two things: traffic and parking. Sometimes it may seem like there isn't enough parking, but L.A. actually has a lot of it. As of 2010, the county had almost 19 million parking spaces. So could having fewer off-street lots actually improve our city?
Guest:
- Donald Shoup, professor of urban planning at UCLA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Akm7ik-H_7U
USC Academic Senate calls on Nikias to resign
University of Southern California president Max Nikias received another blow late Wednesday. The University's Academic Senate — the body that represents the faculty — voted for Nikias to resign. The vote came after several hundred women reported abuse and inappropriate conduct by a campus gynecologist when they were students. Doctor George Tyndall left the school in 2016 after an investigation, but the main criticism is that he was allowed to stay in his job for way too long and that school administrators did not report it.
Guest:
- Adolfo Guzman Lopez, KPCC Higher education reporter
This post has been updated.