Patt Morrison for Monday, 3/29/10

PATT MORRISON SCHEDULE

Monday, March 29, 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

 

**NICK ROMAN IS SUBSTITUTE HOSTING FOR PATT**

 

1:06 – 1:39

Mayor Villaraigosa has his hands full—DWP, budget crisis, census, and you!

After the Los Angeles City Council voted to reject a proposed “carbon surcharge” that would have increased the average DWP electrical bill for most Los Angelinos, Mayor Villaraigosa’s statement perfectly sums up his disappointment:  “Today the majority of the City Council, led by the council president and president pro tempore, took a major step backwards in our efforts to move away from the City’s over-dependence on dirty fossil fuels.  Instead of taking an historic opportunity to put the city on a permanent path to a sustainable, cleaner, greener future, the Council voted to perpetuate the status quo at the Department of Water and Power.”  And so the Mayor’s commitment to generating 20% of L.A.’s electricity from renewable power sources may be dead, and so may cordial working relations between the Mayor and the City Council after a nasty debate over the surcharge.  What’s the future of green energy; what’s the future of L.A.’s seriously compromised budget; and can L.A.’s politicians get along to solve these colossal problems?

 

Guests:

Antonio Villaraigosa, Mayor of Los Angeles

 

 

@ 1:30

Eric Garcetti, City Council President representing the 13^th District

HE CALLS US: 

 

 

1:41 – 1:58:30

OPEN

 

 

2:06 – 2:30

States say “NO!” – sue Uncle Sam over healthcare reform bill

New battles are erupting over the healthcare reform bill passed last week, this time within the states, where leaders from both parties are clashing on whether to sue the federal government. Only hours after President Barack Obama signed the healthcare plan into law week, more than a dozen Republican state attorneys general - and one Democrat -- filed lawsuits saying it violates state and individual rights. And one’s being threatened with recall because he won’t take the feds to court. Many experts say this is just a political ploy and it will do nothing but wrack up litigation fees. Others say the states have a credible case, but even if they lose, the controversy signals a larger schism over core political values. We’re sizing up the suits, and their effects, as the lawyers start filing their briefs. 

 

Guests:

Lawrence Friedman, professor of law at the New England School of Law

CALL HIM:

 

• On the constitutionality of healthcare provisions being challenged by the states.

He feels the federal laws trump the states’ claims.

 

Samuel Staley, Director of urban growth at Reason Foundation, a libertarian think tank here in Los Angeles that has advised Gov. Schwarzenegger and the previous four presidential administrations. They also publish Reason magazine

CALL HIM: 

 

 

2:30 – 2:39

OPEN

 

 

2:41 – 2:58:30

Trigger for food addiction and drug addiction the same

Lab rats were fed some especially delicious food so Scripps Research Institute scientists could find out what caused them to overeat and become obese.  It turns out the same biochemical mechanism that controls the compulsion to overeat also controls the compulsion that drives people into drug addiction. This means that junk food binging is very difficult to stop, but the finding may shed light on treating obesity. In the meantime, just say “NO” to that Twinkie! 

 

Guest:

Paul J. Kenny, associate professor of molecular therapeutics at the Scripps Research Institute

CALL HIM:

• Research in Kenny’s laboratory is focused on understanding the neurobiological mechanisms underlying psychiatric disorders such as drug addiction, depression and anxiety, with a particular emphasis on the role of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) in these processes.

 

 

Jonathan Serviss

Producer, Patt Morrison Program

Southern California Public Radio

NPR Affiliate for Los Angeles

89.3 KPCC-FM | 89.1 KUOR-FM | 90.3 KPCV-FM

626.583.5171, office

415.497.2131, mobile

jserviss@kpcc.org / jserviss@scpr.org

www.scpr.org