Patt Morrison for Friday, December 23, 2011

PATT MORRISON SCHEDULE

Friday, December 23, 2011

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 – 1:18: OPEN

 

1:23 – 1:39

"Victory Day" 2.0—the new face of homecoming?

A modern twist on an old tradition played out this week in Virginia Beach, Virginia when two female sailors kissed to celebrate the homecoming of the U.S. Navy ship Oak Hill, which returned after eighty days at sea. The coveted “first kiss” is part of a Navy custom inspired by the famous photograph “V-J Day in Times Square,” of a sailor kissing a nurse on “Victory over Japan Day” in 1945. According to convention, sailors on ships buy raffle tickets with the hope of winning the chance to be the first one off the ship to kiss their loved one. This week, the winners of the drawing happened to be 23-year-old Petty Officer 2nd Class Marissa Gaeta. When she kissed her girlfriend, 22-year-old Citlalic Snell, the crowd of on-lookers cheered. Navy officials said it was the first time on record that a same-sex couple was chosen for the first kiss upon a ship's return. The two women reportedly met at a Naval training school and have been dating for two years, which they said was difficult under the "don't ask, don't tell" policy. Regarding the historical implication of the kiss, Gaeta acknowledged, "It's a big deal. It's been a long time coming." What is the significance of this kiss in the context of the U.S. military and society in general? How far has the LGBT community come in terms of gaining acceptance in mainstream society? 

Guests: TBD

 

 

1:41:30 – 1:58:30

‘Tis the season for giving…layaway payoffs and others random acts of goodwill

At a time when people have less, they seem to be giving more. We’ve seen reports of “layaway angels” popping up and paying off layaway accounts at Kmart and Wal-Mart stores across the country; a woman in Winston-Salem dropped her emerald and diamond bracelet in a Salvation Army kettle and for the fourth year in a row a couple gave out $12,000 in $100 dollar bills to total strangers in Lincoln Park and Detroit.  David Wilson, the owner of several car dealerships in Orange County, was so inspired by the “layaway angels” he wrote a $15,919.61 check to pay off the layaway accounts of lucky customers at a Kmart store in Costa Mesa. What’s inspiring the acts of goodwill and generous giving?  Have you given money to a total stranger just for the sake of helping someone in need?

Guest: TBD

 

2:06 – 2:39

Dear Prudence, how should I navigate the holidays?

Happy holidays! Whether you’re choosing to spend this time with friends, by yourself, or with family, the winter holidays bring out the best and worst in us.  We give and receive, compliment and complain, and carry with us the same expectations and concerns as always. If you’re worried about exploding at the dining room table, missing whomever it is you had a falling out with last year, or feeling trepidatious about reaching out and reconnecting, we’ve got the perfect guest for you: Slate’s “Dear Prudence” columnist Emily Yoffe is here to listen to your woes and to tell you to stop being such a scrooge.

 

Guest: Emily Yoffe, aka Dear Prudence, Slate’s advice columnist

 

2:41:30-2:48:00

Astronomers discover stars multiplying at shockingly high rate

It is difficult to imagine a galaxy in which the equivalent of about 100 of our suns per year are materializing, but that is exactly what astronomers have discovered in a blob-shaped galaxy called GN-108036. Stars are being created in this galaxy more than three times the rate than in our own Milky Way, which consequently renders GN-108036 the brightest extremely distant galaxy found to date. Researchers, including University of California, Riverside’s, Bahram Mobasher and his graduate student Hooshang Nayyeri, made the discovery using NASA's Spitzer and Hubble space telescopes. Because light from the distant galaxy has taken 12.9 billion years to reach us, scientists say that it lies near the beginning of time itself, which is thought to have originated about 13.7 billion years ago when the “Big Bang” occurred. This development indicates that events now being observed in this galaxy happened when the universe was only about five percent of its current age and may exemplify how most galaxies originally evolved. What implications might this amazing discovery have for future space exploration?

 

Guest:

Bahram Mobasher  (BAH-rahm moh-BAH-sher), professor of physics and astronomy, University of California, Riverside

 

2:48:00 –2:58:30

John Henry Faulk’s Christmas Story

It was more than forty years ago that story-teller and radio host John Henry Faulk first recorded his “Christmas Story.” Since then it’s become a Christmas tradition.  But Faulk was more than a story teller. Among other things, he was an activist, author, playwright, and husband. Faulk was branded a communist in the late fifties, but won a libel suit that helped to bring an end to the Hollywood blacklist. He was known for his work as a proponent of civil rights and made speeches at universities on the First Amendment.  But, let's hear that wonderful story he told so many years ago.

 

 

 

 

 

Lauren Osen

Southern California Public Radio - 89.3 KPCC

626-583-5173 / 626-483-5278

losen@scpr.org @Patt_Morrison