Patt Morrison for Tuesday, 2/2/10

PATT MORRISON SCHEDULE

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

1-3 p.m.

 

CALL-IN @ 866-893-5722, 866-893-KPCC; OR JOIN THE CONVERSATION ONLINE ON THE PATT MORRISON BLOG AT KPCC-DOT-ORG

 

 

1:06 – 1:39

OPEN

 

 

1:41 – 1:58:30

Dear John: about those climate change commitments…..

Yesterday marked the deadline for nations to send their commitment letters to the U.N. and reaffirm the promises made at the Copenhagen Climate Conference. Perhaps surprisingly most of the nations turned their homework in on time. The letters outline various voluntary plans and pledges to cut carbon emissions but will these promises be enough to prevent the temperature from rising 2 degrees Celsius? Patt talks with the U.N.’s top climate adviser to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Janos Pasztor about who is keeping good on their promises and if those promises are good enough.

 

Janos Pasztor, climate advisor to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

CALL HIM

 

 

2:06 – 2:30

Can the NFL use your brain when you’re done with it?

For the longest time, the NFL had an interesting stance on head injuries: football head injuries and brain disorders had no link whatsoever. That was their story, and they stuck to it—even in front of Congress—but now the NFL is finding they could have a serious headache on their hands. Recently they’ve supported the work of independent researchers who are testing former NFL players’ brains to see just how traumatic football is, and to better define the links between concussions and dementia, depression and irrational emotional behavior. Critics are skeptical, but the NFL says they’re committed to making the game safer, but is America’s game just too violent?

Guests:

Dr. Ann McKee, professor of neurology & pathology at Boston University’s School of Medicine; director of BU’s Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy

SHE CALLS US:

 

Chris Nowinski, author of “Head Games:  Football’s Concussion Crisis” and founder of the Sports Legacy Institute; former pro wrestler “Chris Harvard” in the WWE

HE CALLS US:

·        The Sports Legacy Institute is an organization dedicated to furthering awareness of and research on sports-related head injuries, and increasing the safety of contact and collision sports worldwide.

 

Dr. Thom Mayer, medical director of the NFL Players Association

 

 

2:30 – 2:58:30

How big of a problem is the national deficit?

Perhaps in a foreshadowing of his $3.8 trillion budget proposal coming down the pike, President Obama last week proposed—and the Congress rejected—a bill to create a special commission to address the federal deficit. Yesterday (Monday), he effectively increased that deficit to $1.6 trillion for this fiscal year, leaving our national debt hovering somewhere around $13 trillion. And yet, Democrats generally seem too afraid to talk about cutting Social Security and the deficit remains one of Republicans’ favorite rhetorical weapons against the president; neither party really seems to want to talk about fixing it. President Obama said he’ll push through the commission by executive order, but last week’s antics still have many scratching their heads. Economist Dean Baker joins Patt with an alternative view on the debt.

 

Guest:

Dean Baker, co-founder of the Center for Economic and Policy Research and author of “Plunder and Blunder,” and “The Conservative Nanny State”

IN STUDIO

 

 

Jonathan Serviss

Producer, Patt Morrison Program

Southern California Public Radio

NPR Affiliate for Los Angeles

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626.585.7821, office

415.497.2131, mobile

jserviss@kpcc.org / jserviss@scpr.org

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