African Americans and Sen. Barack Obama

Sen. Barack Obama campaigns in Denver, CO.

Source: Getty Images

Last week we talked about women and the candidacy of Sen. Hillary Clinton. Today, we'll focus on African Americans and Sen. Barack Obama. There's no question that his campaign has already made history -- he's the first African American candidate to be included among the front-runners for a major party nomination. But his candidacy also stirs complex feelings within the black community. If you're an African American voter, how do you feel about the possibility that an African American may be elected president? Are you excited? Afraid? Do you feel an obligation to vote for him?

Scott Cameron

1:59 PM ET | 01-31-2008 | permalink | comments (78) | e-mail post

Shaky Ground

In the second hour, we're focusing on upward mobility, especially among African Americans. As Gwen wrote in her post, a new Pew survey from 2007 indicates that "45% of African Americans who were born into middle class families during the 1960s are currently doing worse economically than their parents."

The show centers on one question, which we're asking our audience at Morgan State University in Baltimore, and you, listening to the radio, reading this blog:

Will you do better than your parents?

If your parents scrimped and saved to pave the way for you to go to school, to get a good job, to go to grad. school, to get a better job, did it pay off? And parents, if you scrimped and saved to pave the way for your kids to go to school, to get a good job, to go to grad. school, to get a better job, was it worth it? What worked? And what didn't?

John Morton, Managing Director of Economic Policy at the Pew Charitable Trust, will join us, to take us through those numbers Gwen cited. Who is doing well? Who isn't? Why is that? And why is the "American Dream" so elusive for so many people? And we'll hear from Ellis Cose, a contributing editor and columnist for Newsweek.

David Gura

1:58 PM ET | 01-31-2008 | permalink | comments (18) | e-mail post

Singing Morgan State

The Morgan State University Choir is it. If you don't know about them already, prepare to be amazed. Their accomplishments are too numerous to count, but they've performed all over the world; sung at the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, and Lincoln Center; and won Emmy's for Maryland Public Television... and that's just the tip of the iceberg. What's more, our very own beloved director Gwen Outen sang there as a college student, under Dr. Nathan Carter, one of the most prestigious conductors, composers, and arrangers in choral music. Pretty great. Feel free to sing their praises in the comments section!

Sarah Handel

1:57 PM ET | 01-31-2008 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

January 31st Show

I'm happy to blog about our "coming up" show today, because, as I type this, I am sitting on the campus of my alma mater, where we are broadcasting Talk of the Nation today. Our show will be coming to you from the Carl Murphy Fine Arts Center at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. It's an incredible trip to be here and it's always a thrill to broadcast in front of a live audience, especially when your former professors are sprinkled throughout the crowd. Here's what we'll be discussing today:

For our entire first hour, we will talk about the effect Barack Obama's presidential candidacy has on the black community. We'll be hearing from students in the audience, and we want to hear from you as well. Remember back in the day when you "pshawed" the thought of ever seeing a black presidential candidate in your lifetime? Well, here we are. So now that the moment has arrived, how do you feel about it? What does your dinner table conversation sound like? Are you excited about his run? Downright scared? A little nervous that he may disappoint? What do you hear people of an older generation saying? And what if, after all this hoopla, he doesn't win? We want to hear your thoughts. And we'll try to explore this issue from as many angles as possible.

We recently got wind of a startling statistic. Last year, the Pew Charitable Trust reported that that 45% of African Americans who were born into middle class families during the 1960s are currently doing worse economically than their parents. Not only that, but if African Americans have reached middle class status, they're standing on shaky ground. In our second hour, we will ask you and the students here at Morgan what their hopes are of surpassing their parents... And we'll ask parents what their expectations for their children are. And at the end of the hour, we're going to hear from the Morgan State University Choir. Now, if you haven't heard this choir before, your ears are in for something good!!! And if you HAVE heard them before, you know exactly what I'm talking about. I used to be a member of the choir under the leadership of Dr. Nathan Carter, who passed away in 2004. I was the one standing in the back row with tears streaming down my face because, without fail, I couldn't believe what I was hearing. They are now under the direction of Dr. Eric Conway and they haven't lost a beat. The choir is usually around 150 strong, but today, we'll hear the voices of about 50 of them. Please enjoy what you hear. If I may say so myself, Morgan still sounds absolutely glorious!!!!

Gwen Outen

11:43 AM ET | 01-31-2008 | permalink | e-mail post

The Smoking Band*

Eastern Ave. in Baltimore.

Source: Bukutgirl

B-more! Charm City! The Greatest City In America! We're in Baltimore, Maryland, at Morgan State University today -- better known as my home for five years -- I'm an erstwhile WYPR producer, Towson and JHU alumna. There are a lot of connections today -- our fabulous director Gwen Outen is a Morgan alumna herself. I spent the night last night, enjoying old friends, and getting a good night's sleep, but I can promise you, tonight -- sleep is the last thing on my mind. It's the last night you can smoke at a bar in Baltimore. Now, I quit the nasty habit when I moved to D.C.; but I have very fond memories of nights spent over Maker's Mark at a series of wonderful Baltimore dive bars. I was in school for creative writing; there's nothing like a smoke and a bourbon to make you feel literary -- and of course, for making it impossible to actually be literate. A lot of novels were designed and never born in the Charles Village Pub. (Not just novels -- campaigns. Yeesh.) In any case, I'm going to fling myself off the wagon for one night only here in Bawlmor. It's the last night for that particular kind of nostalgia; and I'm gonna get some smoke in my eyes.**

*The last night of "The Smoking Band." One night only.
**It goes without saying -- don't try this at home. It'll kill ya.

Barrie Hardymon

10:01 AM ET | 01-31-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

Goodbye, John. Hello, Ken.

After a disappointing finish in Florida, a race that, as Dana Milbank pointed out, wasn't supposed to matter, former Sen. John Edwards (D-NC) announced that he is stepping aside.

"Today I am suspending my campaign for the Democratic nomination for the presidency," he said in New Orleans, where he began his campaign. Rudy Giuliani, who had banked on a strong showing in Florida, which he didn't get, is expected to drop out of the race for the Republican nomination soon.

With fewer candidates, there are more questions, of course. Chief among them: Which candidates will Edwards and Giuliani endorse?

In the first hour, Ken Rudin will be here, as he is every week. If you were a Sen. Edwards supporter, will you support Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) or Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL)? What did you like about his platform?

If you stood behind Giuliani, to which candidate will you pledge your allegiance? Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), former Gov. Mitt Romney (MA), former Gov. Mike Huckabee (AR), or Congressman Ron Paul? If you live a Super Tuesday state, are you volunteering for a campaign?

David Gura

1:59 PM ET | 01-30-2008 | permalink | comments (35) | e-mail post

It's the Economy... And I Feel Stupid

It's true -- the famous quote may go, "It's the economy, stupid*," but these days, I feel like I'm the stupid, and don't worry if you're right there with me! It's just incredibly volatile right now, so much so that good advice yesterday may be dead wrong today, and day-old economic news is as irrelevant as yesterday's Britney report. What I've found, though, is that all this change, all these ups and downs, make right now a really good time to learn. For example, yesterday I learned about where the money for the rebates Congress is proposing comes from (nowhere?), and all the housing news combined with the Fed's rate cuts mean I have a new key phrase in my vocabulary: the ten-year treasury note (or T-note -- it affects mortgage rates!). Often I pick up bits here and there that only leave me with more questions, like "the dollar is falling." Ok, but if that's true, won't folks from other countries want to vacation in the States, and then won't that help the economy? How? If you have answers for me, leave them here, but also leave all your questions about housing news, APR's, rebates, the dollar, and all things American money.

*Although that's oft-repeated today, the slightly different original belongs to James Carville

Sarah Handel

1:58 PM ET | 01-30-2008 | permalink | comments (5) | e-mail post

The "Daniel Pearl Standard of Responsible Journalism"

Daniel Pearl, the journalist who was murdered in 2002.

Source: Getty Images

Almost six years to the day after Daniel Pearl was killed, brutally, by terrorists in Pakistan I was a bit surprised to see his father writing in the Wall Street Journal this morning (the same paper his son reported for). More than a memorial for the son he calls, "Danny," Judea Pearl explains just how much really changed that day, and not just for the Pearls:

This new twist of killing journalists for what they represent has changed the course of journalism as well as the rest of society.... His murder proved that 9/11 was not an isolated event, and helped resurrect the age-old ideas of right and wrong, good and evil. Moral relativism died with Daniel Pearl in January 2002.

And Mr. Pearl honors his son with what he calls the "Daniel Pearl Standard of Responsible Journalism:"

To distinguish true from false journalism, just choose any newspaper or TV channel and ask yourself when was the last time it ran a picture of a child, a grandmother or any empathy-evoking scene from the "other side" of a conflict.

Read his full column in today's Wall Street Journal. We'll talk with Judea Pearl today about the standard he's proposing, about the role of journalists today, and about the memory of his son, Daniel.

Scott Cameron

1:57 PM ET | 01-30-2008 | permalink | comments (5) | e-mail post

January 30th Show

Hello, BotNers! Sarah here, back to bring you what's coming up in Gwen's absence... she's working hard putting together our special show at Morgan State University tomorrow -- definitely tune in for that! In the meantime, we've got a great lineup today:

In our first hour, we're super-sizing Junkie. The political news is just too much to fit in a regular segment, so we're maximizing our time to talk about it all: At this time, Edwards and Giuliani are both expected to bow out; McCain won big in Florida; Clinton wants delegates for her Florida win... and that's just the last 24 hours! It's an exciting time in politics and we want to have enough air time to take as many of your questions as possible.

In our second hour, another buzzy topic: the economy. It's a similar grab-bag of hot issues: if the Fed drops rates for the second time this month, what the heck does that mean for Joe and Jane American? What does it mean for those of us with balances on our credit cards, or mortgages? How does it affect the American economy overall, at home and abroad? And what about the rebates Congress is working on? We'll try to cover it all. Following that, we'll switch gears and talk to Judea Pearl, father of slain journalist Daniel Pearl. Judea feels that journalists must take responsibility for the effects of their reporting, and cover "both sides." He'll tell us about what he calls, the "Daniel Pearl standard of responsible journalism."

Sarah Handel

11:49 AM ET | 01-30-2008 | permalink | e-mail post

Bucket Bonham

A DC bucket drummer in Dupont Circle.

Source: ceciliaflyer

It's been mild the last couple days here in DC. Unexpected thaws like this always make my step lighter, and as I alight the escalator to the street here in Chinatown, my ears strain for one of my favorite sounds: bucket drumming. I'll probably have to wait till spring's truly here to hear the drummers again, and then I'll know the warm weather's here to stay. In this part of DC, buskers ring the perimeter of our sports arena, pounding empty five-gallon buckets with drumsticks, creating entire kits out of scavenged grocery carts, traffic cones, hubcaps, and whatever else they can find. I'm sure some people consider their art noise, but while the sounds are neither melodious nor pretty, there's something about that pounding rhythm filling the air (and DC's pretty quiet, so the sound carries for blocks) that lifts my spirits. Paste magazine's got a short feature on bucket drumming this month (sorry, no link), and I have to say, I was suprised to see the article start -- and finish -- in Toronto (with short detours to NYC and Chicago). Toronto? I'm no bucket drumming expert, but to ignore DC completely just doesn't sit right with me. While I couldn't claim DC founded bucket drumming (that credit goes to Larry Wright in NYC), the go-go music scene incorporated bucket drumming when the Junk Yard Band formed. As kids, they couldn't afford a traditional set, so they used the buckets, cones, and cans we see the street performers using. Maybe you've heard their hit, "Sardines," but even if you haven't, around here, that go-go rhythm is the one you hear on the streets too. They're so inextricable I can't imagine the kinds of drumming Paste details -- Wright cites Tito Puente and Max Roach as influences, and Toronto's Gus Weinkauf has a punk rock background. They're undeniably talented, but for me, without that go-go beat bucket drumming just doesn't do it for me. So here's to all the DC street drummers, without whom warm weather just isn't the same.

Sarah Handel

8:38 AM ET | 01-30-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

Searching for Hope in Afghanistan

Afghan children play on the ice after a day of work.

Source: AFP/Getty Images

The tone of news stories coming out of Afghanistan changed in the last year or so. 2007 was the country's most violent year since 2001, when the U.S. overthrew the Taliban. Over the weekend an American woman was kidnapped in Kandahar. And we hear more reports of infighting among the NATO allies who are ultimately responsible for securing Afghanistan. J. Malcolm Garcia reported from Afghanistan in 2002, and detailed what he saw in the Virginia Quarterly Review. Recently, he returned, and went looking for six war orphans he met on his first trip:

I left Kabul in October 2004, when Hamid Karzai became Afghanistan's first democratically elected president, when what most of us hoped would be a successful democratic regime was launched in the wake of the Taliban's defeat. As a journalist, I had turned my attention to Iraq, the next immediate disaster and career-making opportunity. Afghanistan, I reasoned, could do without me. There would be much less violence, much less poverty, and my boys, I thought, could do without me, too. Judging by the state of things today, I was wrong. This spring I watched an evening report on CNN about the inroads the Taliban had made around Kabul, and I decided to come back, to see if my optimism had been misplaced. Mostly, I felt guilty. I needed to find those boys.

We'll talk with Garcia about what he found, and his reaction to Afghanistan now, four years after he left... and talk about why several NATO countries are questioning their troop deployments in Afghanistan.

Scott Cameron

1:59 PM ET | 01-29-2008 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

La La La

Campaign songs may not do much in the way of swaying my vote, but they can imbue campaigns with a little flava flava.* Like those catchy classic rock songs they play over car commercials, a good campaign song will make people pay attention. Often times candidates pick their songs based on the message they're hoping to convey. The interesting times are when they neglect to read the lyrics and take the full meaning of the song into account.** What's your favorite campaign song you've heard this year, or in years past? Of if you're not a fan of any of them, what are your suggestions for the candidates' campaigns?

* Except if your campaign song is "You and I" by Celine Dion.
** Bachman-Turner Overdrive's "Takin' Care of Business" is not about takin' care of business: "We love to work at nothing all day." Whoops.

Ashley Grashaw

1:58 PM ET | 01-29-2008 | permalink | comments (9) | e-mail post

Fitting in at Work

Do you ever get the feeling you don't quite fit in at work? We spent so much time talking about Dov Charney and his defense for wearing underwear -- only -- around the office the other day that we realized we hit on something. Although some things -- true sexual harassment -- are clearly beyond the pale, there are some more grey areas of workplace culture. I started to think about whether there's anything about me that I don't divulge here at NPR, or that makes me feel uncomfortable. And you know what? The answer's yes. For instance, NPR works very hard to be unbiased and respectful in its reporting, and that's reflected in the culture. I personally wonder about the name of my favorite NFL team -- I think it's potentially offensive, and could be changed to something more innocuous -- and because of my own hesitations, I worry that the folks I work with might be offended, so I rarely wear my Redskins hoodie to work. That's probably excessive caution, but the fact is, it affects me even though no one has ever even looked askance at me when I have worn it. What about you? What are the more subtle ways workplace culture has influenced you? Have you ever quit -- or lost -- a job because you didn't fit in?

Sarah Handel

1:57 PM ET | 01-29-2008 | permalink | comments (18) | e-mail post

The Little Uniforms Look So Cute and Sharp!

Got TV envy?

Source: Matt Stratton

I just got a new television -- a post-holiday, pre-March-Madness, I- worked- Christmas- and- New-Years- and- feel- sorry- for- myself, present. It's the biggest TV I've ever owned -- thirty-two inches of LCD deliciousness. It meets with my interior designer's approval, it's great for my favorite old movies (black and white looks awesome), and sports look amazing in HD. I can honestly say, it's the first time in my life I would not be embarrassed to have friends over to watch the big game (though I haven't got a lot of cash left over for the nachos). Which brings me to my next point: 'tis the season for wanting a better, sharper, cooler TV, as the Patriots (insert cheer/and or curse here) and the Giants (ditto) march to Superbowl LVII. It's also Rob Manker's point -- we've got him on today, talking about TV envy. Have you got it? Are you a plasma/LCD/widescreen coveter?

Barrie Hardymon

1:56 PM ET | 01-29-2008 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

January 29th Show

In our first hour today, reporter and author J. Malcolm Garcia will talk about his experiences reporting in Afghanistan. Four years ago, while reporting there, Garcia befriended some young orphans. He left Afghanistan to report on the war in Iraq, and recently returned to the region to find the young friends he left behind. In a piece written for The Virginia Quarterly Review entitled, "All the Country Will Be Shaking," Garcia talks about his search, and describes his anger in discovering that many Afghans aren't receiving aid. After that discussion, songwriter, guitarist and NPR music blogger Carrie Brownstein talks about the campaign music underscoring each of the presidential candidates. At the end of the hour, we'll read from your emails and blog comments.

In our second hour, we will talk about fitting into the culture of your place of employment. Not all work environments are created equal. Is your workplace a perfect fit for you... or are you having a hard time fitting in and conforming to its policies and procedures? Call in and share you story. Then we've gotta talk about the upcoming Super Bowl. I, like millions of people across the nation, am scrambling to figure out which friend or sports bar boasts the largest, widest, highest def TV screen. Finding the perfect seat in front of the perfect television is almost as stressful as watching the actual game. Rob Manker feels my pain... and has a name for it. "Zenith Envy." Is your TV big enough for the Super Bowl? We'll ask him.

Gwen Outen

12:20 PM ET | 01-29-2008 | permalink | e-mail post

Rocking The Vote

In 2000, one of the presidential debates took place at Wake Forest University, in Winston-Salem, N.C., some 80 miles west of Chapel Hill, N.C., where I grew up. Although we didn't have tickets to the event itself, two friends and I scored invitations to Al Gore's post-debate party at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum Theater. If I remember correctly, we used our press credentials, as reporters and editors for the East Chapel Hill Observer, our [venerable] high-school newspaper. (I think we laminated them ourselves).

Although my memory of the debate, which we watched on a giant screen, is hazy, I do recall -- with real fondness -- the Saturday Night Live parody that followed:

I digress. When the debate ended, we waited an eternity for Al Gore to appear. "You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet," Gore's campaign theme song, played over and over again. The crowd grew restless -- and tired of Bachman-Turner Overdrive. Indeed, we hadn't seen nothin' -- or anyone. And c'mon, the band is Canadian!

As my colleague, Sarah Handel, pointed out, repetition is the hallmark of the campaign mix tape. On the show today, Carrie Brownstein, of Sleater-Kinney and NPR Music, will talk to us about campaign theme songs. (She mused on them here). Do you have a favorite? Or a suggestion? No BTO! We'll pull the best ones, to play on the show.

David Gura

11:00 AM ET | 01-29-2008 | permalink | comments (4) | e-mail post

Deciphering the Delegates

The closer this race for president gets, the more the details matter. Unfortunately, the more I read about those details the more confused I get. There are delegates and superdelegates and somehow Hillary Clinton won more support in Nevada, but in the end Barack Obama might actually win more delegates. But we don't know yet. Rudy Giuliani skipped most of the early states, and put almost everything on Florida's primary tomorrow... Again, due to their delegates. But, the Democrats aren't campaigning (not officially, anyway) in the Sunshine State, because they were stripped of their delegates... But now there's a push to give them back, along with Michigan's Democratic delegates.

Huh?

Exactly.

We've got questions, you've got questions... We've also got a good Rolodex. We'll talk with campaign strategists (Republican and Democratic) about how to make sense of all of this. Send us your questions here.

Scott Cameron

1:59 PM ET | 01-28-2008 | permalink | comments (20) | e-mail post

Rejuvenile Redux

A lady doesn't tell her age, but I'll admit to being close to thirty (I won't tell which side I'm on -- that's why I moisturize). When my parents were my age, they had two children. TWO CHILDREN. Now, my dad was not only in his mid-twenties with kids, but he had hit a lot of other adult milestones as well -- mortgage, wife, graduate degrees, etc. Nowadays, you're much more likely to see a guy playing X-box, than buying one for his kids. (We've done a lot of sides of this issue -- see our Rejuvenile show.) This is, needless to say, frustrating for my single girlfriends -- many of whom would like to find a mate to hit those milestones with -- and according to Kay Hymowitz, it's not great for the man-child(s), either. We'll hear why from her -- but in the meantime, are you a man who can't grow up? Or a woman stuck buying a man-child drinks?

Barrie Hardymon

1:58 PM ET | 01-28-2008 | permalink | comments (220) | e-mail post

Pinker, On Morality

Steven Pinker.

Source: Henry Leutwyler

In "The Moral Instinct," Steven Pinker, a professor of psychology at Harvard University, describes a new sixth sense. "The moral sense," he calls it. It's the way we, as human beings, determine what issues are moral or amoral. Take smoking, for instance. Years ago, it was widely considered to be a health issue. Many non-smokers didn't smoke because they worried about how cigarettes could affect their lungs and heart. When scientists determined that second-hand smoke was unhealthy too, smoking became a moral issue.

By Pinker's estimation, there is a new science of morality. Scientists study how we decide what we think is moral, and why and how our interpretation of morality changes. In our second hour, Pinker will join us to talk about our moral instinct. How have you decided what is right and wrong? Has your sense of what is right and wrong changed?

David Gura

1:57 PM ET | 01-28-2008 | permalink | comments (33) | e-mail post

Mormon Rock Star

Gordon Hinckley in Salt Lake City in 2005.

Source: George Frey/Getty Images

When the newswire announcing the death of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints president and prophet Gordon B. Hinckley buzzed into my blackberry, I mentioned it to my boyfriend, who grew up in the Mormon church, and wondered who the new head would be. His immediate response? "Thomas Monson." He's right. According to tradition, the former leader's second-in-command assumes the church presidency, but only after the leadership gathers to pray on it. NPR's Howard Berkes will help us remember Hinckley, a man who changed the church dramatically during his tenure, and look ahead to Monson.

Sarah Handel

1:56 PM ET | 01-28-2008 | permalink | comments (9) | e-mail post

Banking on Barack Obama

Ted Kennedy endorses Barack Obama.

Source: Alex Wong/Getty Images

Usually when I watch political happenings I'm here at work, or in my living room. As it happened, I was stuck at O'Hare airport in Chicago on Saturday night as the results came in from the Democratic primary in South Carolina, and it was a fascinating thing to watch. Not the results themselves so much, but how the crowd responded to the candidates' speeches.
You had the usual low-level murmur of any crowd of about 50 people at an airport gate... white people, black people, hispanic people, asian people, young, old, etc. CNN Airport droned in the background. Until Barack Obama took the stage. People stopped talking, they put down their books and newspapers, and just listened. Some shouted encouragement. And 17 minutes later, when Obama finished talking, a handful broke into applause. Complete strangers at an airport, waiting on a delayed flight, clapping after a political speech. I haven't seen anything like it outside of political events. (I confess for a moment I suspected maybe this was just an extraordinarily civic-minded group of people. But, when John Edwards took the stage several minutes after Obama, most people went right on talking, or reading.)
I won't read more into this than it warrants, but as an outside observer it's clear that for at least one night at one gate in Chicago, Barack Obama owned the room.
Today in Washington, Ted and Caroline Kennedy both came out and endorsed Obama. Have any of the events in the last few days changed your mind, or helped you make a decision about any of the candidates?

Scott Cameron

1:55 PM ET | 01-28-2008 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post

January 28th Show

In our first hour today, we will talk about how the delegation system works in presidential campaigns. When you try to find answers to how exactly the system works, most are met with blank stares. So today we'll ask two people to explain the whole process and why the delegate count is so vital in campaigns. At the end of that hour, author Kay Hymowitz takes the Peter Pan syndrome a step further and looks at the dude who has happily plopped down in the center of the abyss that lies between adolescence and adulthood. She explains why he's not good for society in her op-ed entitled "The Child Man" that appears in The Dallas Morning News.

In our second hour, we will explore the science of morality... according to author Steven Pinker. In his new book The Moral Instinct, Pinker examines how moral dilemmas play into human behavior. How do YOU decide what is a moral issue...and what is not? Following that discussion, NPR's Howard Berkes will talk about the life and legacy of Gordon B. Hinckley, the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who died yesterday. We'll finish up with some tape from Sen. Edward Kennedy's endorsement of Sen. Barack Obama for president.

Gwen Outen

12:10 PM ET | 01-28-2008 | permalink | e-mail post

If You Love Me, Read to Me

Embarrassing confession # 278: sometimes when I think no one is paying attention, I talk to myself -- about everything from the day's goings-on to more general meaning-of-life musings. I've even been known, on occasion, to practice a conversation I'm hoping to have with someone (my boss, a friend, etc.) before I actually have the conversation. But perhaps even more embarrassing, every now and then I read passages from my favorite books and plays aloud to myself in my apartment. Whether it's Fitzgerald's opening to Gatsby, or Wilde's paradoxes in Earnest, there's just something magical about hearing the words and clever turns of phrase spoken aloud. It's really no different than bringing Shakespeare alive in the theatre, except in these scenarios, I'm the actor and the audience. Thankfully, I'm not alone in this odd habit: a recent article in The Christian Science Monitor has couples reading out loud to each other, and loving it. So I'm curious, what are your favorite books and passages to read aloud to yourself or others? Come on, don't be shy...

Ashley Grashaw

10:23 AM ET | 01-28-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

Manhunt

FBI photo of fugitive Marine Cpl. Cesar Laurean.

Source: FBI photo

If you haven't turned on your television lately, Marine Cpl. Cesar Laurean, who is wanted by the FBI, has likely fled to Mexico. A grand jury in North Carolina brought five indictments against him this morning. Laurean is a suspect in the murder of Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach, a pregnant Marine who was killed, burned, and buried last month.

According to Fox News, the "hunt" for Laurean is on. Law enforcement officers -- and America's Most Wanted -- are trying to find the Marine. So far, there have been sightings.

We wondered, "How are they going to find this guy? How long can a fugitive live on the lam? And what techniques do investigators use to find criminals on the run? In the first hour, we'll try to answer all those questions. And whatever ones you have. Guests include law enforcement agents, professional trackers, and a forensic artist.

David Gura

1:59 PM ET | 01-24-2008 | permalink | comments (6) | e-mail post

Play for Packer

George Packer, playwright.

Source: Getty Images for Meet the Press

It is eminently possible to become so engrossed in an article that you murmur to yourself "this should be a play!" It is even more possible when that article is written by George Packer -- he of the perfect prose, and riveting research. When I read this article about Iraqis working with the U.S. in Baghdad (by Packer) in the New Yorker, I had that reaction, and voila! He did. We're talking to him about the play today -- and the translation from print to proscenium.

Barrie Hardymon

1:58 PM ET | 01-24-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

UN and Iraq

Staffan de Mistura, UN Special Representative to Iraq

Source: Getty Images

On yesterday's program, a writer, a reporter, and a Senator gave us a progress report on Iraq. Today, in the second hour, we'll check in with Staffan de Mistura, who heads the United Nations Assistance Mission there, and is the UN Secretary General's Special Representative for Iraq. On Monday, de Mistura briefed the UN Security Council on what progress he has observed.

In 2003, Sergio Vieira de Mello, a United Nations envoy to Iraq, and 21 of his colleagues died when a suicide bomber killed himself outside of the UN mission in Baghdad. After that explosion, the UN reduced its presence in Iraq by one third. With de Mistura's appointment, the international organization signaled its eagerness -- once again -- to help with the reconstruction effort there. What questions do you have for him?

David Gura

1:57 PM ET | 01-24-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

How You See Hillary

I see a vision in yellow.

Source: AFP/Getty Images

Sen. Hillary Clinton is an incredibly polarizing figure... when I was helping cover the campaigns on the road earlier this month, I heard basically the same thing from two cabbies, one in Des Moines and one in Manchester: "I'm ready for a woman president, just not that woman." When I asked why, they responded mostly with gut reactions instead of facts from her platform -- much more "I just don't like her" than "I don't like her stance on X." That said, I also covered her caucus/election night events in both cities, and though I was working, I overheard, of course, nothing but praise for her for her strength and her passion. When she won in New Hampshire, some members of the crowd were literally shedding tears of joy and jumping up and down as she approached the podium. While I won't get into how I feel about her as a candidate, I will admit I too am guilty of judging her on qualities other than her ability to lead and her platform: when I saw her (on TV) at the debate in South Carolina in this outfit (love that orange collar) and then in the yellow blazer yesterday, I thought to myself, "Wow, she's really been making some exciting apparel choices lately..." It seems like everyone's got a slightly different take on the candidate, what's yours? Especially women: Do you find yourself thinking more about Hillary than the other candidates? How do you see Hillary Clinton?

Sarah Handel

1:56 PM ET | 01-24-2008 | permalink | comments (96) | e-mail post

January 24th Show

How do you track down a fugitive? U.S. Marine Corporal Cesar Laurean, the primary suspect in the murder of twenty-year-old pregnant Lance Corporal Maria Lauterbach, is missing and believed to be on the run in Mexico. In our first hour, we'll talk to a former FBI profiler, a forensic sketch artist, and a wilderness tracker about what is involved in a massive manhunt for finding a fugitive on the run. Then we'll talk to New Yorker magazine writer George Packer about the upcoming premiere of his debut play Betrayed. The production is adapted from his piece written last year for the New Yorker entitled, Betrayed: The Iraqis who Trusted America The Most. George Packer is our guest at the end of the first hour.

We'll begin our second hour with Steffan de Mistura, the U.N. Special Representative to Iraq, who will outline the military and political progress in Iraq. Then we will switch gears and talk to the editor and two contributing writers of a new book entitled, Thirty Ways of Looking at Hillary, a collection of essays written by female writers and journalists who reflect on Hillary Clinton and her presidential candidacy.

Gwen Outen

11:52 AM ET | 01-24-2008 | permalink | e-mail post

Something There Is That Doesn't Love A Wall...

The Gaza breach.

Source: Khaled Desouki/Getty Images

Poetry may seem pretty useless -- it barely even passes the time on the Metro, and who can stand scansion in a moving vehicle? I often get the feeling that I'm doing a puzzle that I can't possibly solve when I'm reading it -- particularly when I'm mired in a language poet (that sounds dirty, but you know what I mean). Today, however, when I saw the pictures of the border breach in Gaza, I was reminded of one of my favorite Robert Frost poems. I'm not taking a position here -- the situation between Israel/Palestine/Egypt/The World is so deeply complex that we often can't get anywhere with an hour show and three experts -- but the experience of walls, fences, borders, is a uniquely human one, and always prompts strong emotion in me whether the wall belonged to Hadrian or East Berlin. And it makes a pretty strong argument for the reading of poetry -- if you don't believe me, here's Robert Frost's Mending Wall in its entirety. Enjoy.

     Something there is that doesn't love a wall,
     That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it
     And spills the upper boulders in the sun,
     And makes gaps even two can pass abreast.
     The work of hunters is another thing:
     I have come after them and made repair
     Where they have left not one stone on a stone,
     But they would have the rabbit out of hiding,
     To please the yelping dogs. The gaps I mean,
     No one has seen them made or heard them made,
     But at spring mending-time we find them there.
     I let my neighbor know beyond the hill;
     And on a day we meet to walk the line
     And set the wall between us once again.
     We keep the wall between us as we go.
     To each the boulders that have fallen to each.
     And some are loaves and some so nearly balls
     We have to use a spell to make them balance:
     "Stay where you are until our backs are turned!"
     We wear our fingers rough with handling them.
     Oh, just another kind of outdoor game,
     One on a side. It comes to little more:
     There where it is we do not need the wall:
     He is all pine and I am apple orchard.
     My apple trees will never get across
     And eat the cones under his pines, I tell him.
     He only says, "Good fences make good neighbors."
     Spring is the mischief in me, and I wonder
     If I could put a notion in his head:
     "Why do they make good neighbors? Isn't it
     Where there are cows? But here there are no cows.
     Before I built a wall I'd ask to know
     What I was walling in or walling out,
     And to whom I was like to give offense.
     Something there is that doesn't love a wall,
     That wants it down." I could say "Elves" to him,
     But it's not elves exactly, and I'd rather
     He said it for himself. I see him there,
     Bringing a stone grasped firmly by the top
     In each hand, like an old-stone savage armed.
     He moves in darkness as it seems to me,
     Not of woods only and the shade of trees.
     He will not go behind his father's saying,
     And he likes having thought of it so well
     He says again, "Good fences make good neighbors."

Barrie Hardymon

10:28 AM ET | 01-24-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

Sunshine State, Here We Come!

Fred Thompson, before he decided to quit the campaign.

Source: bmcvey

On Saturday night I was at election HQ here at NPR, ready for the concessions, and thank yous, the exit polls, and final counts... But, very little actually happened. Most of the speeches we did hear came after our deadline*, when the final (and very close) tally came in from South Carolina. I suspect that will be a common theme in the states still to caucus or vote... Races on both sides too close to call until late in the night. The exit polls told one clear story, though: That the economy is the most important thing for many voters right now. And given the mess on Wall Street yesterday, that's likely to continue. Is the economy the most important issue for you in this election? Is it driving you to a different candidate than you expected?

*NPR's Super Tuesday special will be live till 3am Eastern, though, so tune in for all the excitement!

Scott Cameron

1:59 PM ET | 01-23-2008 | permalink | comments (11) | e-mail post

Snubbed By Oscar

Behind the scenes of Oscar.

Source: grebo guru

There was no red carpet, no flashy dresses yesterday morning, but the Oscar nominees were announced in California. Of course Johnny Depp is in there, Cate Blanchett, Sweeney Todd, and No Country for Old Men. What caught some people's eye, though, is who was left out. No Sean Penn, or Keira Knightley, no Tim Burton, or Enchanted, and the list goes on. We'll have to wait till next month to find out who wins Oscar in the end, but today we'll talk with Matt Singer, from the Independent Film Channel. And we want to know: What or who do you think got snubbed by Oscar this year?

Scott Cameron

1:58 PM ET | 01-23-2008 | permalink | comments (34) | e-mail post

Beyond Baghdad

Earlier this week, I mentioned an article about Ramadi, published in The Virginia Quarterly Review. I also should have drawn your attention to "Trophy Town," a complementary piece. Its author, David J. Morris, a former Marine, reflects on how much the city has changed.

In the second hour, we'll talk to Morris about his reporting trips to Ramadi, and to Stephen Farrell, a correspondent for The New York Times, based in Iraq. In recent months, he has traveled to Kirkuk and Diyala Province. Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) will join us, too. He just got back from his eleventh trip to Iraq.

We're trying to get more insight into how Iraq has changed, and we're turning our attention away from Baghdad. If you have questions for our three guests, leave them here. If you've been to Ramadi, Kirkuk, or Diyala, tell us what they're like -- and how they've changed.

David Gura

1:57 PM ET | 01-23-2008 | permalink | comments (5) | e-mail post

Beyonce Told Me So

Hearing the right song at the right time can mean the world to me. Usually, the bits of lyrics I've held close in times of need are of the romantic variety -- the Postal Service's "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight" hardly needs clarification (Sarah... long distance relationships are not for you), and I remember a much more recent incident when Beyonce assured me I was "Irreplaceable," and I could have another him "in a minute..." Turns out I had nothing to fear, but her words shored up my reserves. One of the best things about songs is how little it matters, at the time, what the songwriter meant by the words -- what matters is how you hear them, and how you use them. A friend of mine from college heard "there's a bathroom on the right" when John Fogerty sang "there's a pale bad moon on the rise," and you can see just how instructive that is! Have you ever gotten sound advice from a song lyric? Did you have the lyric right... and did it matter? And have you ever found out that what the artist intended was different from how you heard it? Did you care?

Sarah Handel

1:55 PM ET | 01-23-2008 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

January 23rd Show

Hi all. I'm back... a year older and trying desperately not to let it show. Thank you, Sarah, for being a much taller (and younger) me and for holding down the "Coming Up" fort! And speaking of coming up, here's what's coming up on the show today:

So much is going on politically, it's a good thing the Political Junkie is mega-sized. Fred Thompson drops out, the race between Clinton and Obama heats up, and the Republicans are heading to Florida. NPR's Ken Rudin talks about South Carolina with Andy Gobeil, the host of South Carolina's weekly news and public affairs program, The Big Picture. Then we travel further south and talk politics with Lance deHaven-Smith, professor of public administration and policy at Florida State University. Following that, we'll talk with Matt Singer, the host of Independent Film Channel News, about the movies that didn't get an Oscar nod this year but you think should have. And we'll look back on the career of Australian actor Heath Ledger (see today's post entitled, A Sad Day for Tinseltown).

In our second hour, we'll talk with three people how have gone to Iraq to find out if the lives of the Iraqis have improved. They will discuss what they saw and whether or not security has improved a year after President Bush ordered additional troops into the region. And does this sound familiar:

Don't push me, cause I'm close to the edge
I'm trying not to lose my head
It's like a jungle, sometimes it makes me wonder
How I keep from going under.

That's the chorus from Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five's hip-hop classic The Message. I remember the first time I heard and entirely memorized that song. Once I had choreographed my dance moves to match the song's back beat, I realized the lyrics were giving me a view of a grittier side of life. Author Felicia Pride talks about how hip-hop music has educated and informed the way she views money, loss of innocence, newfound independence and heartbreak (just to name a few) in her new book, The Message: 100 Life Lessons from Hip-Hop's Greatest Songs.

Gwen Outen

11:46 AM ET | 01-23-2008 | permalink | e-mail post

A Sad Day for Tinseltown

Heath Ledger at the Venice Film Festival in 2007.

Source: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

When I heard the news of Heath Ledger's death yesterday I was shocked. It was the got-sucker-punched-in-the- gut-and-can't-breathe variety of shock -- the same kind I'm sure people felt when they first found out about James Dean and River Phoenix. The disbelief was quickly followed by a deep sadness: my thoughts immediately went to his two-year-old daughter, Matilda, who will never get to know her dad. And then I thought about all the great performances he still had left in him. After all, he was only 28. I feel like we were just beginning to see what he was capable of, with his Oscar-nominated performance in Brokeback Mountain and his dark, disturbing portrayal of the Joker in the upcoming The Dark Knight. Some people might think it's ridiculous to mourn the death of a celebrity. But there are some actors you just feel like you know -- or, rather, you feel like if you did know them, you'd be really good friends. Heath was one of those actors. His performances were multifaceted, and he brought a refreshing honesty and depth to the screen that is normally the purview of more veteran thespians. You can read more about Hollywood's reaction to Heath's death here, and about the cause of death here.

Ashley Grashaw

10:32 AM ET | 01-23-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

One More Taboo

In the Sex and the City episode "Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda," Carrie Bradshaw tackled one of the subjects most familiar and least handled in popular culture -- Abortion. In it, Carrie admits that she got an abortion herself after a drunk one night stand over a decade ago. This, for the show that regularly did competely unprintable things with say, wheatgrass, doesn't seem to be taboo, right? Except, abortion is one of those things that women rarely talk about after they've had them -- whatever the reason. It doesn't matter if you're pro-choice or pro-life or in-between -- many women don't talk about past abortions -- even with their dearest friends or family. So today, we're going to do it -- and we're asking you to tell your stories -- whatever they are. If you had an abortion, tell us about it, and how you felt at the time. And why, if this is your experience, you do or do not talk about it now.

Barrie Hardymon

1:59 PM ET | 01-22-2008 | permalink | comments (169) | e-mail post

Got Recession?

Nervous about a bull on Wall Street?

Source: Spencer Platt/Getty Images

I'm not sure whether to stash my cash (or what's left of it) in a mattress today, or start buying up pummeled stocks.... The markets in Asia all but crashed overnight, and the doom and gloom hit Wall Street first thing this morning. Then, the Dow went right back up. Rinse. Repeat. Just don't use that other R-word. To try to avoid/shorten/pick-your-own-verb a recession the Fed dropped interest rates by 3/4 of a point this morning, and congress is all atwitter with talk of tax rebates. Buy? Sell? Refinance? Show of hands now: Who's totally confused? Stephanie AuWerter, with SmartMoney, helped us out last week with some tips on recession-proofing your finances. Given the drama in the Dow today, we've called her back to help answer some more questions about the market swings, and what it all means for you. Send us your questions, and we'll try to get you some answers.

Scott Cameron

1:58 PM ET | 01-22-2008 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post

The Facts on Suicide Bombers

The aftermath of a suicide bomber in Iraq.

Source: AFP/Getty Images

Most people have some preconceived notion of a suicide bomber... As a religious extremist, or a young man, or maybe a very poor person. While we may never know why someone would decide to blow himself up in a suicide attack, we are starting to see more details about who becomes a suicide bomber. Karen DeYoung wrote about some of the new facts released on insurgents in Iraq for The Washington Post. We'll talk with her about those profiles. And with Professor Robert Pape, who literally wrote the book (or at least a book) on suicide bombers. We'll also look specifically at attacks by women. At least four women have blown themselves up in Iraq since November. Mia Bloom studies female bombers and will explain what at the very least appears to be a growing number of attacks by women.

Scott Cameron

1:57 PM ET | 01-22-2008 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post