Patt Morrison schedule for Wednesday, January 4, 2012

PATT MORRISON SCHEDULE

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

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 – 1:30: OPEN

 

1:30 – 1:58:30

Confused about the new health care law? Comic book explains all

If you can’t figure out what the health care overhaul is all about, there’s a comic book—er, graphic novel—to make it all clear. In a new approach for the masses, Jonathan Gruber, an MIT economics professor who was intimately involved in the crafting of Governor Mitt Romney’s universal health care plan in Massachusetts and again in President Obama’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), distills the seemingly complex changes to the health care system into basic comic strip form. Got a question about the health care phased-in mandates, prohibitions on screening for pre-conditions or which standard insurance coverage level to choose? Call and ask, but don't expect any superheroes or villains in this strip. Gruber hopes the straightforward book "Health Care Reform: What It Is, Why It's Necessary, How it Works," will better explain the law—even as repeal efforts continue in the Supreme Court. And who knows, maybe the justices will even read it as they sit in judgment?

Guests:

Jonathan Gruber, MIT Professor and paid consultant to both the Romney and Obama Administrations on health care reform; author of "Health Care Reform: What It Is, Why It's Necessary, How it Works"

 

 

2:06 – 2:30

Stalled economy fosters creative criminality and theft of some strange loot

Crafty criminals are casting a wider net: Farm league criminals may be partial to convenience stores, but the economic downturn has inspired some enterprising thieves to widen the scope of their illegal endeavors… in some cases to actual farms. Items now being targeted by thieves have recently included hogs, dogs, brass and coupons. With pork prices at an all-time high and designer dogs in a lot of backyards, maybe it shouldn’t be surprising that these items have turned up missing. Other criminals are casting an even wider net to make some cool cash. Brass rings from inside fire hydrants can fetch $15 a piece at the scrap yard, and thrifty thieves have even resorted to stealing coupon inserts right out of peoples’ mailboxes. Another peculiar item on the list of criminals’ top ten is human hair. (Yuck.) Human hair is frequently imported from Malaysia and India to be used for pricey weaves, wigs and extensions.  The market for hot locks is more lucrative than one would believe – one hair heist netted the perps around $70K to $90K of hair. Are Tony Soprano and Co. diversifying?

 

How do you target criminals when they’re stealing everything? Is anything safe? What can law enforcement about it?

 

Guest:

Brad Tuttle, covers personal finance, travel and parenting, among other topics for TIME’s Moneyland

2:30 – 2:58:30

A Safeway in Arizona: What the Gabrielle Giffords Shooting Tells Us About the Grand Canyon State and Life in America

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was sitting at a table greeting constituents in front of Safeway one year ago, when a man walked up, shot her in the head, and then killed six bystanders, including a federal judge and a little girl. What happened and what’s happened since that shooting at a Safeway? Award-winning author, investigative journalist, and former Giffords campaign staff member Tom Zoellner examines the terrible events that took place and the socio-economic factors that may have perpetuated  the twenty two-year-old shooter Jared Lee Loughner to commit mass murder. Zoellner, a fifth generation Arizonan, reflects on how the political climate and state of affairs in Arizona, including its immigration policies, economic problems, and the accessibility of guns are representative of the problems in greater America. How might the contentious socio-economic environment in Arizona have influenced Loughner’s violent actions? What other issues might have lead to the tragic incident in January of 2011? What more can be done to help people like Loughner before they become violent?

 

Guests:

Tom Zoellner, author of “A Safeway in Arizona: What the Gabrielle Giffords Shooting Tells Us About the Grand Canyon State and Life in America”

Via ISDN

THE ONE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY IS THIS SUNDAY, JANUARY 8

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lauren Osen

Southern California Public Radio - 89.3 KPCC

626-583-5173 / 626-483-5278

losen@scpr.org @Patt_Morrison