An update on the Navy Yard shooting investigation; How will California's health care exchange work?; Estes Park, Colorado begins recovery from the floods; How the dwindling status of handwriting is changing our brains, plus much more.
An update on the Navy Yard shooting investigation
Yesterday, 34-year-old Aaron Alexis stormed the Navy Yard in DC just miles from the White House, killing 12 people before being shot and killed by authorities. Investigators are still looking into his background and motive.
Joining us with the latest is Carol Leonnig, national reporter for the Washington Post.
How to destroy a cache of chemical weapons
Now that the Syrian government has agreed to turn over its chemical weapons to UN inspectors, plans are underway to figure out how to destroy the weapons stockpile.
It's not going to be an easy task. Destroying conventional weapons can be dangerous. Disposing of munitions containing agents like the deadly nerve gas Sarin is considerably more complex.
Megan Garber of The Atlantic has been researching the process for chemical weapons disposal.
She says the munitions must be broken down, and the chemical agents removed and collected. Robots are often used to perform this task.
The toxic chemicals may be incinerated. Other agents may be used to neutralize them. Technicians even use certain forms of bacteria that can break the toxins down into harmless substances.
And it's not just the weapons that must be destroyed. Crates and containers used to store them and even the pallets they were stacked on must be carefully disposed of.
It's all complicated, and very expensive. And, because it will likely have to take place in Syria, and at or near the sites where the weapons were stored, it's even more challenging. Especially if the civil war in that country continues to rage on.
Estes Park, Colorado begins recovery from flooding
The clear, sunny skies shining over Colorado this morning are a welcome change from the relentless rains that hit parts of the state last week.
Roads turned into rivers and thousands of homes were damaged or destroyed. State officials say as many as eight people died with rescuers continuing to search for anyone who might still be stranded.
The small mountain town of Estes Park was hit hard by the rains. It sits in a valley at the east entrance of Rocky Mountain National Park and we turn now to its mayor to see how the town is starting to recover.
Mayor Bill Pinkham joins the show.
Five years after the housing market crash, the Inland Empire sees a construction boom
Five years ago Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, the U.S. economy plunged, and the national housing market tanked
There were few areas of the country harder hit than the Inland Empire, but now housing prices are going up and more homes are being built. Could this mean an end to the Inland Empire's reign as foreclosure capitol of the U.S.?
Air Force hopes to stick California city with radioactive waste dump
The Air Force is trying to get rid of tons of radioactive dirt on a defunct military base outside Sacramento. Trouble is, no facility in California is licensed to dispose of it. So the Air Force is planning to build a radioactive waste dump on the base.
Katharine Mieszkowski of The Center for Investigative Reporting has the story.
Tuesday Reviewsday: Sweet Relief, Carly Ritter, Vijay Iyer & Mike Ladd
Now it's time for Tuesday Reviewsday, our weekly new music segment. Joining the show this week is critic Steve Hochman.
We have a theme this week, which coming right after the 9/11 anniversary and the Jewish High Holidays, is fitting: Healing.
Artist: Various
Album: Sweet Relief III Pennies from Heaven
Songs: "A Change is Gonna Come" by Victoria Williams, "Don't Let Us Be Sick" by Jackson Browne
Sweet Relief was founded in 1993 by Victoria Williams, after a bunch of musicians — Eddie Vedder, Lou Reed, Neil Young among them -- did an album of songs to help her after she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The organization grew out of that, helping musicians in need with medical costs. A second album for paraplegic singer-songwriter Vic Chesnutt came out in 1996. This, 17 years later, is the third. Rather than helping a specific artist, the theme of this one is support and assistance. Brought together by producer Sheldon Gomberg, cover art by Peter Max.
Artist: Vijay Iyer & Mike Ladd
Album: Holding It Down: The Veterans’ Dreams Project
Songs: "Dream of an Ex-Ranger," "Dreams in Color"
Jazz pianist-composer Vijay Iyer teamed with poet-performer Mike Ladd, creating pieces from actual dreams collected from Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans. Iyer, Indian-American born and raised in Rochester NY, is one of the most wide-ranging, innovative young figures in jazz and well beyond, Ladd is equally innovative in his fields. The two have collaborated on two earlier projects addressing issues of post-9/11 America, questions of color and the 24-four-hour news culture. This piece, commissioned by and premiered at the Harlem Stage in New York, is essentially an oratorio — not really jazz or any other genre per se, but something unto itself and completely true to the source material.
Artist: Carly Ritter
Album: Carly Ritter
Songs: "It is Love"
Wrapping up our theme is a song from the debut album by Carly Ritter, who is the daughter of John Ritter, the beloved actor who died unexpectedly a few years ago, and granddaughter of country and western great Tex Ritter. The connection to her grandfather is there a little in some of the songs, more hints of country than full on. Rather she echoes more the ‘70s women singer-songwriters who drew on country, Linda Ronstand and such.
The wistful cover photo even looks like it could be a Ronstadt or maybe Crystal Gayle album. But under the wings of producers Joachim Cooder, son of Ry Cooder, and Julliette Comager, the songs cut across genres and eras, from dreamy romantic pop of the early ‘60s to colorful ambiences of such current figures of Neko Case. It’s Ritter’s personality, winsome, earthy, unaffected, that boosts carries both the writing and performances, though, even more so in person as at a recent Hotel Cafe record release performance.
Grand Theft Auto V brings mayhem to a virtual Southern California
Gamers throughout the world are buzzing about Tuesday's release of "Grand Theft Auto V."
Here in LA we're especially psyched about it because the mayhem takes place on our very streets....as if we didn't have enough of that.
Stephen Totilo, editor-in-chief of the gaming website Kotaku, joins the show to talk about the latest installment of GTA.
RELATED: Grand Theft Auto V: Show us your LA screen shots
How will California's health care exchange work?
In just two weeks, residents of California will be able to begin shopping for health care coverage, and find out about subsidies and credits, at the state's new health care exchange.
It's part of the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare. Officials have been working hard to get out the word about the program, known as Covered California.
RELATED: FAQ: Is Obamacare a good thing for California's small businesses?
But as the launch approaches, there's still a lot of confusion about what the exchange will do, and who can benefit from it. Joining us for some help, KPCCs health care reporter, Stephanie O'Neill.
An overview of the change
In two weeks, individuals can go on the Covered California website, a state-run marketplace for health insurance.
"This is the open enrollment period, and it lasts through March. It's during this time you can get on to the marketplace and shop for different plans, and see what works for you," said O'Neill.
The plans will then take effect Jan. 1.
"Beginning Jan. 1, nearly every American must have health insurance or face an annual fine," she said.
The fine starts out around $95, and then it climbs to $700 in a few years.
There will be subsidies as well
Individuals who buy their insurance through the state-run exchange and make a certain income can qualify for these subsidies, which are basically upfront discounts.
Examples of people who qualify:
· Individual who makes $46,000 a year
· A family of four who makes $94,000 a year
What if you still can't afford it?
California is one of the states that has agreed to expand MediCal. So, if you make about $16,000 or less, you won't be required to purchase health insurance.
Who gets to buy insurance through Covered California?
Uninsured individuals and businesses will be eligible to buy health insurance through this new program. Also important to note: Small business, which are 50 or fewer full-time employees, will not be required to purchase health insurance.
Is it better than what's available?
It's not exactly clear. All the plans must have essential benefits, like free preventive care. Also, insurances can't turn you away or raise your rates if you have a preexisting condition. They also can't place annual or lifetime caps on the coverage they provide.
Flipside: One way that the insurance companies keep prices down is by narrowing the provider network in the plans offered by the state-run marketplace. BlueShield, for instance, has announced that Covered California customers will not have access to its full, robust physician network that you would have otherwise.
"So, you want to make sure to find out, before you buy insurance, whether your doctor and your hospital are on the plan you're looking at," said O'Neill.
With contributions from Nuran Alteir
The origin of National Hispanic Heritage Month
National Hispanic Heritage Month got underway this past Sunday. The celebration recognizes the contributions and culture of Hispanics in the United States. For more on the history of the month and how it came to be we're joined by Robert J. Lopez, multimedia investigative reporter with the Los Angeles Times.
How cross-border trucking companies stay ahead of drug smugglers
More than five million trucks crossed into the U.S. from Mexico last year. For drug smugglers, getting a truckload of illegal narcotics past border authorities means potentially huge profits.
But they're often up against two levels of security: that of U.S. law enforcement, and that of private export and shipping companies. Reporter Jill Replogle from the Fronteras Desk explores how authorities and trucking companies are trying to stay ahead of smugglers.
Why California lawmakers are failing to pass environmental bills
Over the last week we've been talking about the slew of bills the California state legislature passed before the end of its session last Thursday. Everything from tighter gun control to raising the minimum wage to allowing undocumented immigrants to obtain drivers licenses.
But notably absent from the discussion are environmental laws. In fact, a significant number of green measures wilted in the state legislature last year.
Here to tell us more is Paul Rogers, environmental reporter for the San Jose Mercury News and a managing editor for science and the environment at KQED in San Francisco.
Blue-footed Booby causes a flutter in LA (PHOTOS)
Celebrity sightings are no big deal in Los Angeles. Unless that celebrity is a bird. A warm water species called the blue-footed booby, is being spotted all over Los Angeles County.
The bird is usually found farther south, off the coast of Mexico or near the Galapagos Islands. This rare chance to see the famed creature here has inspired hundreds of bird enthusiasts to set out, binoculars in hand. KPCC's Sanden Totten joined them.
Shasta Dam: same water war, new battle
After a fairly dry year, California's fire watchers, including farmers fisherman and the folks who fight wild fires have to all be hoping for more rainfall this winter.
Meanwhile debate continues over California's biggest reservoir and whether it should be even bigger to stave off water shortages.
The idea to raise the height of Shasta dam has been bandied about for a decade and it's getting to decision time. But as KQED science editor Craig Miller reports, the controversy has not dried up.
Gov. Brown seeks 3-year delay for prison population cap
Governor Jerry Brown and how he will meet a court-ordered mandate to ease over-crowding in California prisons. Following a compromise with lawmakers last week, the governor said he'll seek a three-year delay in meeting the population cap set by the judge.
For more we turn to Paige St. John of the LA Times.
Picture This: The eerie auto graveyard below Mulholland Drive's 'Dead Man's Curve'
Now it's time for another installment of Picture This, our continuing series with photographers about their work.
L.A.-based photographer Jason Knight has a knack for capturing the beauty in abandoned and decaying places. In a series called Dead Man's Curve, he risked life and limb to take shots of a car crash graveyard just below a dangerous section of Mulholland Drive near Laurel Canyon.
Dubbed Dead Man's Curve, the hairpin turn has claimed a number of casualties over the years, and the skeletons of cars dating as far back as the 1950s sit overturned and rusted through. They've been there for decades, but Jason was one of the first to capture them on film.
"It took me three attempts to start to find the cars," said Knight on Take Two. "I almost gave up, but on my way back from one trail I saw a color that didn't quite match in the hillside. It was the rust color of the Phantom Dodge. "
Knight says that he tries to honor the identity of the car or its former owners by naming his images after any text left on the car's shell. The Phantom Dodge got its name from a faded stencil located in the rear of car.
"The entire car is rusted out. Rubber, leather, all organic materials are totally disintegrated at this point," said Knight. "It kind of reminds me of a skeleton that is returning back to the earth."
Though he managed to find the cars, it took some careful maneuvering to pinpoint exactly where they are.
"The first time I went there I was hoping to find the cars and shoot them at sunset. I couldn't find any, I overstayed my welcome and I got lost off trail," said Knight. "I was crawling up the shale, the shale crumbling underneath my hands, trying to get out of the canyon. It was a little sketchy and I learned my lesson."
To capture the eerie quality of the scene, Knight shot his images on slide film then cross-processed the film to enhance the natural colors and blow out the highlights in the image.
"One of the ways that I try to bring out the beauty is I saturate colors, so I'm really looking for nature coming back...even if there was tragedy, these cars now serve as a coral reef above water for shrubs growing," said Knight. "I'm really trying to highlight that this is a cycle of life. It's not the end. There is tragedy, but there's hope as well."
In addition to his series on Dead Man's Curve, Knight also seeks out abandoned buildings, gymnasiums, theatres and amusement parks. You can check out more of his images at his website.