Hey Russia! Can We Still Be Friends? Stem Cell News. Should Hipsters Die? And, You Call Those 'Federal Nominees'?
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"Morning Meeting" is a recap of our daily editorial meeting. If we had a show today, these are some of the stories you would probably hear.
Welcome to Thursday. The news gods seem to have taken an early weekend, but the BPP (Dan, Matt, Luke and Alison) were not thwarted. We found out there are strong feelings about Heelys (those sneakers with wheels), we hope there won't be any presidential shoulder rubs at the G8 meeting in Germany, and Mr. Bush has nominated a new Surgeon General and a new Federal Appeals Court Judge. Both nominations left us scratching our heads and wondering, "Does he want a lower approval rating? Is he just going for it?" Find out what we mean by reading on...
NEWSCAST -- Guiliani and McCain decide to skip August straw poll in Iowa, first time Stanley cup win for the Anaheim Ducks, a stem cell finding that could end political debate, CBS reinstates TV show "Jericho" after letter writing campaign, North Korea test fires missiles, one teen found dead in Kansas, another found alive in Connecticut, and Ms. Hilton is out of jail after three days.
THE G8 IN 8 -- Give us 480 seconds (eight minutes) and we'll give you an overview of the United States' relationship with Canada, France, Italy, Japan, The UK, Russia and Germany. Who in the group of eight is more frienemy than friend these days, and why? The leaders of these 8 industrialized nations have gathered to discuss issues including climate change and Sudan. We're working on getting a guest for this segment, which will likely come tomorrow.
THE SKINNY ON SKIN/STEM CELLS -- Scientists may have found a way to reprogram skin cells to an embryonic state, mimicking the much sought after, life changing, Parkinsons-helping, diabetes-aiding embryonic stem cells. It worked on a mouse anyway. Scientists hope human skin cells can do the same thing, which means transplantable organs could be self-generated, and the a person's body might accept them. We wouldn't ask you to take our word for it--instead we'd haul in one of NPR's crackerjack science correspondents to explain the details. And also to help us figure out how significant this is, considering it seems every week there's some new study saying we are closer to some other breakthrough of some other kind.
BUT IT'S GAY PRIDE MONTH, MR. SURGEON GENERAL NOMINEE -- It's unlikely President Bush's nominee will be waving a rainbow flag anytime soon. Cardiologist Dr. James Holsinger is up for the job of the top doc in the U.S., but some choices he made personally and professionally have come to light. As a member of a Methodist church council, he supported a local pastor who kept a gay man from joining a congregation, and he voted to expel a lesbian from the clergy. As for his medical opinion of homosexuality, according to the Chicago Tribune. Dr. Holsinger wrote that he thought homosexuality was unhealthy and could lead to injury and disease. Will he make it through Senate confirmation?
HOLSINGER MAY HAVE COMPANY -- Another of President Bush's nominees, this one for the Federal Appeals Court of Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana, is being asked about a decision he made which seems to uphold the use of the 'N' word. Leslie Southwick he has defenders, including the WSJ editorial board, but things may get sticky for him.
SERVE IN IRAQ, LOSE YOUR JOB AT HOME -- Thirty-seven year old Michael Wells served for 18 months in Iraq as a member of the Georgia National Guard. Once he returned to Holly Springs, Wells says he was fired from his job, after a series of demotions, because his bosses didn't like him taking off time to take care of his Guard duty. The kicker--Wells was a police officer. We wanted to talk to someone about how big this problem is, and whether returning Vets have any recourse. Wells has filed a federal lawsuit, but the local police chief isn't talking.
DAY 2: NEW VOTE LIMITS GUEST WORKERS -- As we said early on in this process, we don't have News ADD, which means we won't just forget a story we spent some time working through. On Tuesday we spoke to a conservative blogger about the current immigration bill's guest worker provision, which is supported by President Bush. Last night the Senate voted (49-48) to put a five-year limit on the program. The amendment was proposed by Democrat Byron Dorgan of North Dakota. We'd fill you in on who voted which way and why Dorgan wanted to (and was able to) change the bill.
THE RAMBLE -- NBA finals preview (Luke believes that the whole country, outside the San Antontio area, is rooting for the Cleveland Cavaliers), a teacher who showed porn to students is granted a new trial, Heelys going on a PR defensive after the Academy of Pediatrics said they were unsafe, students invent alcohol powder that can be sold to minors and: Should hipsters die? It's a simple question and a simple quiz will help you find out if you're a self-involved, too cool for school, trendoid who maybe deserves extinction.
9:56 AM ET | 06- 7-2007 | permalink
