What will it take to avoid a government shutdown?; The doctor is in, and lives down the road; 'Priority schools' plan is latest to remake failing L.A. Unified schools; John Parkinson: The man who made LA; Conn. court to decide whether horses are innately 'vicious' animals, plus much more.
What will it take to avoid a government shutdown?
Only seven days remain until the government runs out of money. Not only are the politics of reaching an agreement quite daunting, the process itself is quite Byzantine.
Paul Kane of the Washington Post speaks with host Alex Cohen about the delicate timetable of everything that needs to happen, and exactly by when, in order to forestall a shutdown.
California signs private prison deal to ease overcrowding
Governor Brown must meet a court order to decrease California's prison population by the end of the year. As of now he has asked the court for a three-year delay.
But in the meantime, the state signed a contract this week with private prison contractor to deal with overcrowding. Paige St. John of the LA Times joins the show with more.
The doctor is in, and lives down the road
Rural California has long faced a shortage of doctors. In the San Joaquin Valley alone, studies show the number of primary care physicians per person is about half the state's average. But here and there, you can find physicians who really commit to their communities.
Lisa Morehouse from the California Report has the story
Mexico becoming a new land of opportunity for immigrants
Mexico is transforming from a country where people immigrate from to one where people immigrate to as the economy continues to improve.
Immigrants from Central America and Asia are more and more frequently settling in Mexico. Host A Martinez speaks with Damien Cave, who wrote about this for the New York Times.
John Parkinson: The man behind some of LA's most iconic buildings (Photos)
Architect John Parkinson designed some of L.A.'s most iconic buildings: City Hall, Union Station and the L.A. Memorial Coliseum, to name a few. Still, the British expat has been largely forgotten in the shadow of more popular architects like Frank Gehry, Richard Neutra and Rudolph Schindler.
Author Stephen Gee's latest book, "Iconic Vision: John Parkinson, Architect of Los Angeles" takes a look at Parkinson's life and how he maintained a low profile despite being the creator of so many iconic L.A. structures.
Interview Highlights:
On how John Parkinson became an architect:
"Parkinson was the son of a mill worker from the industrial north of England, and became an architect almost by accident. He leaves school at 13, he has a bunch of different menial jobs, he becomes an apprentice to a local builder. He comes to North America, gets a job in Napa as a foreman in a sawmill. Its here, working on plans for his own house, that his landlord sees those plans and says, 'You can design an addition to the Bank of Napa.' Right there and then an architect is born.
On Parkinson's move to Los Angeles:
"He moves to the Los Angeles in 1894, and the population is just over 50,000 people. You've got a small downtown, you've got a number of two- or four-story structures in the business district. What's significant about Los Angeles is what it lacks in structure and what it lacks in population, it makes up for in ambition. LA has the ambition to become the greatest city on Earth, so Parkinson is really the right man in the right place at the right time."
On designing LA's first skyscraper in 1902:
"Just imagine, John Parkinson arrives here in 1894, in 1902 he begins work on the city's first skyscraper, over a million bricks go into this building, it's 12 stories tall, it literally stops traffic on 4th and Spring Street. Until the Los Angeles City Hall that we now know opens, it becomes really the defining structure in Los Angeles."
On designing the LA Memorial Coliseum:
"There's no bolder statement this period about where Los Angeles is headed than the Coliseum, because it's directly linked to as bid to bring the Olympic games to Los Angeles. If you imagine that 20 years earlier, LA has a population of just over 100,000 people. Here they are bidding for the biggest sporting event in the world. The Coliseum is so much more than just a sporting venue, its really a venue that says 'we're thinking big and we're prepared to back it up…"
On what characteristics are seen in all Parkinson projects:
"One of the things that really defines a Parkinson building is that it's neat. There's a real absence of gaudy decorations, it's classy, it's simple, but elegant. Later on in his career, especially when his son Donald joins the firm, you see structures like Bullocks Wilshire, which are incredible artistic expressions, but initially when Parkinson arrives in Los Angeles, they're almost about trying to build an East Coats city on the West Coast."
On why Parkinson's legacy is not more widely known:
"There was nobody really, at least from the family's side, to champion his legacy. Also I think a lot of academics are more interested in Neutra, Schindler, a lot of the other architects that have gotten all the attention. None of those other architects did more for Los Angeles than Parkinson did. I think it's partly also because Los Angeles has a peculiar relationship with its history. In any other city, he would be a household name. I would be writing the fourth or fifth book about Parkinson, but for some reason in Los Angeles, here I an writing the first book about the guy who is arguably the greatest architect in the history of the city, which to me is crazy."
On where in the city is the best spot to see examples of Parkinson's work:
"I stood on the corner of 4th and Spring street, and I turned around 360 degrees and I tried to count how many Parkinson buildings I could see. So if you want an immediate introduction to Parkinson you can see 12, maybe 14 just from that corner. The heart of the city really belongs to John Parkinson."
Tuesday Reviewsday: Mazzy Star, Chvrches, HAIM, Deer Tick and more
It's time for Tuesday Reviewsday our weekly new music segment. This week we're going to be talking about rock with Shirley Halperin from The Hollywood Reporter and Chris Martins from Spin Magazine.
Shirley's Picks
Artist: Icona Pop
Album: This is Icona Pop
Song: "All Night"
Icona Pop are a Swedish duo who were formed in 2009, with electro house, punk and indie pop music influences.
Artist: Mazzy Star
Album: Seasons of Your Day
Song: "California", "Lay Myself Down"
Mazzy Star is an American alternative rock band formed in Santa Monica, California, in 1989 from the group Opal, a collaboration of guitarist David Roback and bassist Kendra Smith.
Artist: HAIM
Album: Days Are All Gone
Song: "The Wire"
Haim is an Indie rock band from Los Angeles, California. The band comprises sisters Este, Danielle and Alana Haim, along with drummer Dash Hutton, previously a member of Los Angeles bands Wires on Fire and Slang Chicken.
Chris's Picks
Artist: Chvrches
Album: The Bones of What You Believe
Song: "Gun"
Chvrches are a Scottish synthpop band from Glasgow, formed in 2011. The group consists of Lauren Mayberry, Iain Cook, and Martin Doherty. Chvrches came fifth on the BBC's Sound of 2013 list of the most promising new music talent.
Artist: Deer Tick
Album: Negativity
Song: "Trash", "Dreams In The Ditch"
Deer Tick is an American alt-country band from Providence, Rhode Island led by guitarist and singer-songwriter John McCauley. Deer Tick's music has been described as a combination of folk, blues, and country.
Artist: Frankie Rose
Album: Herein Wild
Song: "Sorrow"
Frankie Rose is a vocalist, songwriter, and musician living in Brooklyn, NY. She was an original member of acclaimed garage rock acts Crystal Stilts, Dum Dum Girls, and the Vivian Girls.
Which notable bills are currently on Gov. Brown's desk?
Gov. Jerry Brown is signing several bills that have crossed his desk this week. We are going to take a look at three of them, including one that will allow teenagers to remove photographs or other potentially hurtful posts from social media sites.
Ben Adler of Sacramento Public Radio joins us now with more.
NRC finds SoCal Edison at fault for San Onofre design flaws
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has found Southern California Edison responsible for design flaws which led to the permanent shutdown of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating station earlier this year. For more on this decision and what's next for the power plant, we're joined by KPCC's ED Joyce.
'Priority schools' plan is latest to remake failing LA Unified schools
Last month, eight school districts in California — including LA Unified — vowed to follow new federal rules meant to turn around chronically failing schools. KPCC's Annie Gilbertson visited one of the LA's most troubled schools to find out how the changes will work.
Winter weather poses erosion threat in Rim Fire burn zone
The Rim Fire near Yosemite National Park has burned through about 260,000 acres of forest and likely won't be contained until early October. Winter rain and snow should help fully extinguish the fire, but that moisture comes with its own set of problems.
When the winter rains start falling, the burn areas become prone to erosion, and all that ash could end up choking the area's pristine rivers. Todd Ellsworth is heading up a Forest Service team to try to prevent such a scenario.
Yuma desalting plant could boost US water supply to Mexico during drought
The severe drought that hit the Southwest 14 years ago is expected to continue to bring down water levels on the Colorado River. Federal and state officials say a water shortage is possible for millions of people in Arizona and other states by 2016.
As KJZZ's Steve Shadley reports, a rarely used desalting plant in Yuma could start sending water to Mexico in an effort to keep U.S. reservoirs full.
What's behind the resurgence of whooping cough cases?
Whooping cough was once a disease which killed thousands of children every year. When a vaccine was introduced in the 1940s, and rates dropped significantly, but then about three years ago an outbreak of the disease hit California.
New research sheds light on what happened. For more on this we turn to Dr. James Cherry, a Pediatric Infectious Disease doctor at UCLA's medical school.
Conn. court to decide whether horses are innately 'vicious' animals
Connecticut's Supreme Court is currently tackling an unusual question: are horses an inherently vicious animal?
If the justices say "yes," Connecticut would become the first state in the nation to brand all horses with a "naturally vicious species" label. It could have big implications for the state's multi-million dollar horse industry, from breeding to boarding.
It all stems from a 2006 case in which a young boy was bitten in the face by a horse at Glendale Farms in Milford, Conn. He was trying to pet Scuppy the horse when it stuck its neck out of its pen and bit, "removing a large chunk of it."
In February 2012, a mid-level Appellate Court overturned a lower court's 2010 dismissal of the case, saying that farm owner Timothy Astriab's testimony demonstrated that Scuppy belongs to "a species naturally inclined to do mischief or be vicious."
Despite not having any knowledge of Scuppy biting anyone in the past, he said that it was common for horses to bite if provoked.
The judges ruled that the boy's injury was preventable and that Scuppy's owners did not do enough to prevent the horse from hurting someone. If the decision is allowed to stand, it could impact the state's sizable equestrian industry.
Horse farmers and equine enthusiasts, who cite 2005 statistics saying that the horse industry contributes about $221 million a year to the state's economy in boarding, training, lessons and breeding businesses, are asking the state Supreme Court to overturn the Appellate Court's decision.
The Connecticut Farm Bureau and Connecticut Horse Council filed a friend of the court brief saying that under common law viciousness generally is judged individually according to age, breed and gender, not as an entire species.
"They say it's like pit bulls. Some are very kind, sweet dogs, others have been known to maul people and other animals," said AP reporter Stephen Singer, on Take Two. "They argue that you can't just brand the entire species of horses vicious."
The Supreme Court's ruling is expected to come down in early 2014.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
Sacramento's Farm-To-Fork event shows off the city's culinary side
A herd of 50 longhorn cattle stampeded through downtown Sacramento on Monday. They were there to make a point: Sacramento is a cowtown and proud of it.
As part of the affair, chef Steve Toso of the restaurant BIBA will be whipping up several delicious dishes, all made from local ingredients.
The event was a kick off to the capital's first ever Farm-to-Fork week, a 10-day stretch intended to show off the local food scene. For more on Sacramento's Farm-to-Fork week, we're joined by Mike Testa of the Sacramento Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Chris's Collection: Pink Tonka Jeep model
Chris Nichols is an editor at Los Angeles magazine, but he's also a walking encyclopedia when it comes to Southern California's history. Every so often he comes by and he brings in one of his treasures.
Today he brings in a pink Tonka Jeep. It was made around 1962, and it's a model based on a short-lived Jeep called the Surrey. Henry Kaiser built the HIlton Hawaiian Village and he wanted a vehicle that people could drive around the complex so they don't have to walk.
When Elvis Presley made "Blue Hawaii" he drove one of these Jeep around the island.