The Callie Crossley Show Podcast

The Callie Crossley Show 6/29/12

Fri, 29 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

Week in Review
We look at the headlines that flew under the radar this week. Among the local headlines, a civic group gives a resounding no to an 80 foot tall eyesore and Boston Democrats show some love.

GUESTS:
Peter Kadzis: executive editor of The Boston Phoenix
Gintautas Dumicus: vice president and editorial page editor of The Providence Journal
Sue O'Connell: co-publisher of Bay Windows and The South End News

Let's Do the Time Warp (Never) Again!

The AMC Loews Harvard Square Theatre is closing. What does this mean for Rocky Horror fans and neighboring movie houses?

GUEST:
Garen Daly: film critic

The Callie Crossley Show 6/28/12

Thu, 28 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

The Gavel Comes Down on Government

It’s judgment day. The Supreme Court’s ruling on President Obama’s health care reform has huge implications for the presidential race. The legal challenge has highlighted two fundamentally different views of what the role of government should be: big or small. It’s an ideological divide that now definitively distinguishes Obama from Mitt Romney. Obama’s goal of insuring health care for all came by way of his controversial individual mandate—a mandate that has been a cornerstone of Romney’s attacks on Obama. We’ll look at how this ruling will play out on the campaign trail and in the voting booths this fall.

GUESTS:
Arnie Arnesen: political analyst, tv and radio commentator
Robert Whitcomb: vice president and editorial page editor of The Providence Journal

Code Red for Health Care

No matter how the U.S. Supreme Court Rules, there are still 50 million people in America who do not have health insurance. What is their fate? What is the fate of health care in Massachusetts?

GUESTS:
Brian Rosman: research director at Health Care for All

The Callie Crossley Show 6/27/12

Wed, 27 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

The Pru: A Love/Hate Story

Rising 52 floors into the sky, Boston's Prudential Tower stands as a 20th century symbol of... a life insurance company. It anchors the city's skyline, but it is derided as an architectural eyesore. In his new book, architectural historian Elihu Rubin has written the Prudential’s biography. Nearly 50 years-old, "the Pru" is hailed as the skyscraper that turned Boston into a modern city. From the spectacular view from the 52nd floor to the pulsating stream of workers and shoppers who cycle through its revolving doors, there’s no denying that this structure has forever changed Boston's form and function.

GUEST:
Elihu Rubin: author of Insuring the City: The Prudential Center and the Postwar Urban Landscape, assistant professor of architecture and urbanism at Yale. He'll be giving a lecture about Boston's skyscrapers at the Boston Society of Architects tomorrow at 6:30PM.

60 Feet Under

Could the next great frontier for urban dwellers could be underground? The federal government is researching how versatile our subterranean is to sustain life down under.

GUEST:
Leon Neyfakh, writer for the Ideas section of the Boston Globe.

The Callie Crossley Show 6/15/12

Fri, 15 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

Regional Week in Review
Today we hit the rewind button on the week’s news, looking at it through a regional lens, from the Bay State to the Ocean State. On the Cape the Mashpee Wampanoag are tentatively winning and in Rhode Island things are only getting worse for Curt Shilling's beleaguered 38 Studios.

GUESTS:
Paul Pronovost, editor, The Cape Cod Times
Arnie Arnesen, New Hampshire-based commentator
Robert Whitcomb, vice president, editorial page editor for The Providence Journal

Ragtime
We look at the latest in pop culture: From scandal in the prop room to celeb political endorsements.

GUEST:
Thomas Connolly, professor of English at Suffolk University
Rachel Rubin, chair of the Department of American Studies at UMass Boston

The Callie Crossley Show 6/14/12

Thu, 14 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

The History of Cheese

What do Homer’s Oddessy, slave labor, and European monasteries have in common? Cheese.

In his new book, Cheese and Culture: A History of Cheese and Its Place in Western Civilization, food scientist Paul Kindstedt traces cheese from ancient civilization to the 21st century. He not only tracks how cheese changed the arc of human history, he also examines the versatility of this dairy wonder. Turns out a pockmarked wedge of artisanal Swiss and the preternaturally shiny and smooth Kraft single are linked by milk curds that are part of cheesemaking’s 9,000 year-old history.

GUEST:
Paul Kindstedt, author, professor at the University of Vermont in the department of Nutrition and Food Sciences

Wine, Cheese's Age-Old Friend

Jonathon Alsop joins us to talk about why cheese and wine are such a winning duo. He'll also offer some great pairings, such as stilton and port, and reisling and smoked gouda.

GUEST:
Jonathan Alsop, founder of the Boston Wine School

The Callie Crossley Show 6/13/12

Wed, 13 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

The Boston Jazz Chronicles
Jazz. It’s African-American music. It's the music of the American experience. It's music that has some deep roots in Boston. Originating in New Orleans and proliferating in New York, the swinging snap, crackle, and pop of jazz has made an enduring mark in Beantown. From the Savoy to Storyville, its venues have been the stomping grounds for fans and the stopping grounds for jazz giants and homegrown heroes.

In his new book, The Boston Jazz Chronicles, Boston jazz historian Dick Vacca writes about Boston’s jazz scene between the late 1930s and early 1960s. It was an era where Prohibition was long forgotten, big bands were packing the dance halls, and local legends like George Wein and Father Norman O’Connor, also known as "Jazz Priest", were making an indelible mark on the way our city sounds.

GUESTS:
Eric Jackson, host of Jazz on WGBH with Eric Jackson
Dick Vacca, author of The Boston Jazz Chroniles: Faces, Places, Nightlife 1937-1962

The Callie Crossley Show 6/12/12

Tue, 12 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

Boston Aircheck
Boston rock station WFNX was sold off to Clear Channel for a cool $14.5 million on May 16. The station officially changes hands in July, but the impact of the sale has already sent shockwaves through its audience of faithful listeners, indie rock fans and supporters of local, independent radio.

Recent years have seen shifts on the radio dial as bigger operators scoop up small stations, pressure mounts to "unify" programming to attract advertisers, and media increasingly shift onto the web. The halcyon days of music sets curated by local DJs and spiced up by excitable callers may be coming to a close. The high cost of running a station may also be keeping the voices of people of color off the airwarves.

Today we talk to local Boston radio historian Donna Halper about the changing face of radio in the town. We're also joined by radio legend Bob Bittner, who runs two independent stations, including AM 740 WJIB in Cambridge.

GUESTS:
Bob Bittner, owns and operates two independent stations in New England - WJTO in Bath, ME, and WJIB in Cambridge, MA
Donna Halper, assistant professor of communications at Lesley University, author of Boston Radio: 1920 to 2010, former radio consultant

T: An MBTA Musical
Bostonians may curse the many troubles of the MBTA, but they love to hate it. Now there's a musical that many of us (well, those of us who ride the MBTA) can relate to- from the Boston sports fans who crowd the T after games, to the tourists trying to make sense of subway maps, to the college students out for a night of partying. Born out of ImprovBoston, "T: An MBTA Musical" has moved to the Club Oberon stage in Cambridge through July 13.

GUEST:
Melissa Carubia, lyricist and music director
Jeffrey Mosser, director

The Callie Crossley Show 6/11/12

Mon, 11 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

*Alicia Anstead guest hosts

Alex Katz
Whether you know it or not, you’ve seen the artwork of Alex Katz. His prints combine bold colors and in-your-face imagery. They can be as big as billboards and as intimate as a portrait. He was influenced by Abstract Expressionism, but has built a vocabulary that is distinctly his own and distinctly American. Landscapes of Maine, scenes from New York cocktail parties, and ongoing portraits of his muse and wife Ada, Katz’s flat and close-cropped style is influenced by movies and fashion, by urban and rural themes. It’s Mad Men meets an “unapologetic sense of beauty” – as Sebastian Smee wrote in the Boston Globe.

His work is now on view at the MFA through July 29. (Below, "The Green Cap" by Alex Katz.)

GUESTS:
Alex Katz, American artist known for his sculptures, painters, and prints
Sebastian Smee, Pulitzer Prize winning art critic for The Boston Globe

A Conversation with actor Barbara Tirrell
We talk to Massachusetts native, actor Barbara Tirrell about how acting derailed her plans of becoming an astronaut, the power that comes with putting on a costume, and what she's learned from Eulalie Mackecknie Shinn, the larger than life character that Tirrell is playing in the Arena Stage production of The Music Man.

Recommended reading: Barbara Tirrell's Eulalie, Awakening creativity in "The Music Man"

GUEST:
Barbara Tirrell, actor

The Callie Crossley Show 6/8/12

Fri, 08 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

Week in Review
Today we go over the local headlines. Election reform legislation and Roxbury's artistic approach to economic stimulus are among the stories we'll be discussing.

GUESTS:
Howard Manly, executive editor of the Bay State Banner
Marcela Garcia, journalist, media analyst

Ragtime
During our weekly roundup of pop culture news, we remember a literary giant and a king among game show hosts.

GUESTS:
Thomas Connolly, professor of English at Suffolk University
Rachel Rubin, Chair of the Department of American Studies at UMass Boston

The Callie Crossley Show 6/7/12

Thu, 07 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

The Honest Truth About Dishonesty
We’re talking about what makes us lie, and what keeps us honest. We’ve seen a Yahoo executive forced to resign for padding his resume. Closer to home, a New Hampshire legislator has stepped step down for fudging his way into a law degree. But, it’s not just politicians and high rolling CEOs who spin the truth. We’re all guilty- from cheating on diets, to cheating on the ones we love.

In his new book, The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty, behavioral economist Dan Ariely looks at our capacity for both honesty and dishonesty. He finds that dishonesty can be contagious. It can also be short-circuited. A minor white lie might not seem like a big deal, but Ariely says we need to discourage these daily dips into dishonesty. This bad behavior affects us all. And these seemingly small transgressions can pave the way to larger ones.

When is it ok to lie? Does our society reinforce lying? How do you feel when you lie? How do you feel when you are lied to? Leave a comment on our Facebook page, or Tweet us: @CallieCrossley.

GUEST:
Dan Ariely, James B. Duke professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University, author of The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty: How We Lie to Everyone---Especially Ourselves

The Callie Crossley Show 6/6/12

Wed, 06 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

Adults with Autism
O ne in 88 children are diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder by the age of 8. Children do not grow out of autism, so what becomes of them once they are adults? Many will never live on their own, and for parents this means their responsibilities can last a lifetime.

The documentary "Coming of Age" looks at the issue in Massachusetts, where whether or not an autistic child continues to receive state services once they graduate from high school can often come down to an IQ score. If the child scores under 70, he or she qualifies for services, but if the child scores more than 70 on an IQ test, he or she is ineligible for services. Advocates are working to change this requirement and legislation is currently under consideration in Massachusetts. If the state does change it's rules to be more inclusive of autistic adults who don't meet the IQ requirement, where would the money come from to care for autistic adults? How would the state manage their care?

We talk with intellectual disability advocates and parents of adults with autism today. Do you have a child with autism? Leave a comment on our Facebook page, or Tweet us: @CallieCrossley.

GUEST:
Fred Misilo, attorney who focuses on special needs planning and elder law, former Deputy Commissioner for the Massachusetts Department of Developmental Services, past president of the Arc of Massachusetts, Inc.- an organization the provides services and advocacy for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families
Sue Loring, director of the Autism Resource Center of Central Massachusetts, serves on the advisory board for a number of autism advocacy groups including Advocates for Autism in Massachusetts and the Governor's Special Commission on Autism, parent of a 27 year-old son with autism.
Karolyn Ryan, parent of an adult son with autism featured in "Coming of Age". Because her son tested slightly above a 70 on an IQ test when he came of age, he did not qualify for state services.
Betsy Roche, director of the Family Autism Center, which houses ALEC - the Autism and Law Enforcement Education Coalition.

The Callie Crossley Show 6/5/12

Tue, 05 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

America: The Land of Plenty, and Plenty of Nothing
We’re talking about the deepening class divide in America with Georgetown law professor Peter Edelman. Back in the sixties when he was an aid to Senator Robert F. Kennedy, he went to the deep South to see extreme poverty first hand. Fast forward to the 1990s, Edelman became a household name when he resigned from his position in the Clinton Administration in protest of the president’s welfare reform. Now Edelman is one of the most outspoken antipoverty advocates around. Today, the income-level disparity is wider than it’s been since the Great Depression. In his new book, So Rich, So Poor, Edelman looks at the forces that are driving this ever-growing wealth gap.

GUEST:
Peter Edelman, lawyer, policy maker, law professor at Georgetown University Law Center

The Callie Crossley Show 6/4/12

Mon, 04 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

New Hampshire Insiders
Elizabeth Warren's big win at the Massachusetts Democratic Convention, the presidential race, and the fallout from the resignation of New Hampshire's disgraced House majority leader, D.J. Bettencourt are some of the political stories we'll be discussing with our New Hampshire Insiders, Arnie Arnesen and Fergus Cullen.

GUESTS:
Arnie Arnesen, radio and television commentator based in Concord, NH
Fergus Cullen is a public affairs consultant and an editorial page columnist for the New Hampshire Union Leader

Blocking the Vote
It's been a year since Rhode Island passed Voter ID. The law will get its first big test this fall, but how did a blue state end up passing what's thought of as a GOP driven legislation? It’s a question that reporter David Scharfenberg has been trying to answer. His muckraking uncovers a political whodunnit that involves a quiet truce at a Providence restaurant, frantic phone calls from DC, and intrigue in the governor's office.

GUEST:
David Scharfenberg, writer for The Providence Phoenix, read his piece Who Passed Voter ID?

The Callie Crossley Show 6/1/12

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 00:00:00 EST

Week in Local News
The "greening" of Mission Hill and the particular importance of this year's AIDS walk are some of the local stories we'll be discussing.
GUESTS:
Seth Daniel, senior reporter for the Independent News Group, which includes the Revere Journal
Peter Kadzis, executive editor of The Boston Phoenix
John Ruch, editor of the Jamaica Plain Gazette and the Mission Hill Gazette

Ragtime
We look at the latest in pop culture, from John Waters' hitchhiker's guide through America, to a "Silence of the Lambs" spinoff.
GUESTS:
Rachel Rubin, chair of the Department of American Studies at UMass Boston
Thomas Connolly, professor of English at Suffolk University

The Callie Crossley Show 5/31/12

Thu, 31 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

Coriolanus and the Corner Office

We’re taking about Shakespeare’s political drama, Coriolanus. The Commonwealth Shakespeare Company is staging it for this season’s Shakespeare on the Common.

Last week, as a kind of preview, a handful of Boston’s CEOs gathered on stage for a reading of this work. Why Coriolanus? Why CEOs? Demonstrations in the street, politicians jockeying for the loyalty of the populace, consolidation of wealth, tension between the "have's" and the have not's"-- sounds like our times. But this was the world of Shakespeare's "Coriolanus". With our presidential election in full swing, with an incumbent facing a tough challenge from a former CEO, this play has particular resonance today. We’ll talk to some of the business leaders who participated in the reading of Coriolanus for their thoughts on leadership, the intersection of business and politics, and the lessons that Coriolanus has to offer.

GUEST:
Alicia Anstead, editor of Inside Arts magazine and Harvard Arts Beat blog
Steve Maler, founding artistic director at Commonwealth Shakespeare Company
Daniel Kelly, partner, McCarter and English, LLP
Paul Grogan, president of the Boston Foundation
James Roosevelt, president and CEO of Tufts Health Plan

The Callie Crossley Show 5/30/12

Wed, 30 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

Culinary Intelligence

We’re talking to food writer Peter Kaminsky about an occupational hazard: packing on the pounds. A longtime chef, food critic, and lover of great food, Kaminsky’s doctor told him that he was facing obesity and diabetes. Kaminsky had to make a choice: lose weight or deal with the consequences. In his new book, Culinary Intelligence: That Art of Eating Healthy (And Really Well), he writes about how he lost 35 pounds and kept them off by thinking more—not less—about food. If we cut out processed foods and maximize flavor per calorie, Kaminsky says eating can be both good for you and gratifying.

GUEST:
Peter Kaminsky, author, food critic

A Feast of Ice and Fire

Close to a year ago, two Allston roommates began a food blog with the idea of cooking the medieval recipes from author George R.R. Martin's "Game of Thrones" series. With the blessing of George R.R. Martin himself, the two turned their food blog into a cookbook: A Feast of Ice and Fire: The official Game of Thrones Companion Cookbook.

GUEST:
Chelsea Monroe-Cassel and Sarianne Lehrer, bloggers at Inn at the Crossroads, authors of A Feast of Ice and Fire

The Callie Crossley Show 5/29/12

Tue, 29 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

Uptight Boston?

A new video from the Future Boston Alliance takes shots at Boston's reputation for stodgy government and sleepy nightlife. The video has prompted support and skepticism, and It's put the city's entertainment options - everything from food trucks to T-accessible live music and art events - back under the microscope.

This is the time of year when newly-minted grads take a long, hard look at job prospects. When they choose to live depends on the vibrancy of city life, and it means the difference between retaining young minds eager for work and play, or in sustaining a mass exodus of some the city's home-grown talent. The debate has implications both for the young and those who have lived here much longer.

We want to hear from you. Leave a comment on our Facebook page or Tweet us. Does Boston deserve its reputation as a sleepy city? Has it gotten a bad rap? What can be changed – bar closing times, late-night T service, cheaper city events, more networking events, more city festivals, more food trucks?

GUESTS:
Colin Kingsbury, writer for Boston Magazine
Malia Lazu, executive director for the Future Boston Alliance
Jessica Martin, research manager for the Boston Indicators Project at the Boston Foundation

The Callie Crossley Show 5/24/12

Thu, 24 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

A Lot to Think About

We’re talking about the parking lot and the role that parking and parking lots play in our urban landscapes. It’s the subject of MIT professor Eran Ben-Joseph’s new book, Rethinking A Lot, a book that looks at the peculiar institution that is American parking. Today there are three non-residential parking spaces for every car. In cities like Orlando and L.A., parking lots are estimated to cover one third of the city’s space. As Joni Mitchell put it in her song "Big Yellow Taxi": "They paved paradise and put up a parking lot."

The design and function of parking lots- from the shopping mall, to the office park- have not been re-thought since the 1950’s. So is it time to push the parking lot into the 21st century? To turn these into beautiful public spaces that are also environmentally and architecturally responsible?

We want to hear from you. Leave a comment on our Facebook page, or Tweet us: @CallieCrossley

GUESTS:
Eran Ben-Joseph, professor of landscape architecture and urban planning at MIT, author of ReThinking A Lot
Jason Schrieber, pricipal at Nelson/Nygaard

The Callie Crossley Show 5/23/12

Wed, 23 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

Aging Behind Bars
How do we care for elderly prisoners? A Human Rights Watch report shows the number of prisoners older than 55 is growing at a rate six times that of the rest of the prison population. As prisoners age and need costly medical care, Massachusetts is scrambling to put plans in place to handle the strain on the system. Bay State policymakers have recommended the creation new assisted living facilities for up to 900 inmates- but is this the best way to handle the problem? What other solutions are out there? We discuss today at 1PM.

GUESTS:
Jamie Fellner, author of a Human Rights Watch report, Old Behind Bars
Beth Schwartzapfel, Boston-based freelance journalist who covers the criminal justice system
Kathleen Dennehy, former commissioner for the Massachusetts Department of Corrections.

The Cost of Democracy

We’re talking about the influence of money on politics. We’ve seen the mighty Super PAC at work in this presidential race, with Millionaires heaping money on heir candidate of choice. With all this money flying around, Harvard Law professor Lawrence Lessig said the best chance for campaign finance reform was Americans Elect, a platform that promised to get a candidate on the ballot - a candidate with no ties to major money. Last week, Americans Elect failed to deliver a candidate. We’ll ask Lessig what this says about dollars and democracy.

GUESTS:
Lawrence Lessig, director of the Edmond J. Safra Foundation Center for Ethics at Harvard University, and a professor of law at Harvard Law School

The Callie Crossley Show 5/22/12

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

Political Roundtable

We're talking politics today, from Beacon Hill to Capitol Hill. The House has passed a bill that would put an end to individually pricing goods at the grocery store. It’s an omission that could compromise comparison shopping. Consumer advocate Elizabeth Warren is still getting heat for putting her Cherokee ancestry to use. Will her tiny connection to Native Americans remain a mega problem on the campaign trail?

On the road to the White House, there’s a major obstacle for third party candidates: Americans Elect failed to get an alternative candidate on the ballot. And, Newark Mayor Corey Booker tells the Obama campaign, enough with the Bain game. Instead of smearing Mitt Romney’s corporate past, Booker says it’s time to focus on the issues that matter to voters.

GUESTS:
Dorie Clark, president of Clark Strategic Communications
Kevin Peterson, founder of the New Democracy Coalition
Marvin Venay, executive director of the Massachusetts Black and Latino Democratic Legislative Caucus

The Callie Crossley Show 5/21/12

Mon, 21 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

Six Months Out - How are Our Veterans?
It's been six months since President Obama declared the end of the Iraq War. We talk with Massachusetts Secretary of Veterans Affairs Coleman Nee and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America executive director Paul Rieckhoff about how our Iraq and Afghanistan veterans are doing, from getting a job to finding the medical support that they need.

GUESTS:
Coleman Nee, Massachusetts Secretary of Veterans Services
Paul Rieckhoff, founder/executive director of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America

Fahim Speaks
Fahim Fazli was born in Afghanistan and escaped to America in the 1980s during Soviet occupation. He moved to California to pursue his dreams of acting, and after years of hard work, he succeeded. He was cast in "24", "Iron Man", "The Day After the Earth Stood Still", and more. After being an advisor on the film "Charlie Wilson's War", Fahim was inspired to join the U.S. military in Afghanistan as an interpreter. We hear about his journey, which he wrote about in his memoir "Fahim Speaks: A Warrior-Actor's Odyssey from Afghanistan to Hollywood".

GUESTS:
Fahim Fazli, co-author and subject of Fahim Speaks: A Warrior-Actor's Odyssey from Afghanistan to Hollywood and Back
MIchael Moffett, retired marine corps lieutenant colonel and a professor at New Hampshire Technical Institute, co-author of "Faheem Speaks"

The Callie Crossley Show 5/18/12

Fri, 18 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

*Sue O'Connell, co-publisher of Bay Windows and the South End News, guest hosts

Week in Review
It’s our week in review. Among the local headlines we'll discuss are the fate of WFNX and look at how Elizabeth Warren missed a choice opportunity for a family reunion in Jamaica Plain.

GUESTS:
Peter Kadzes, executive editor of the Boston Phoenix
Seth Daniel, editor of the Revere Journal
John Ruch, editor of the Jamaica Plain Gazette

Ragtime
It's our weekly examination of pop culture. On tap this week: we remember the King of Late Night and the Queen of Disco.

GUESTS:
Thomas Connolly, English professor at Suffolk University
Rachel Rubin, Chair of the Department of American Studies at UMass Boston

The Callie Crossley Show 5/17/12

Thu, 17 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

Inner City Youth Baseball
The baseball season is off to a running start and the Red Sox are on a hot streak. With the baseball season in full swing, youth baseball leagues are also up and running. Though there's still interest in youth baseball, it now competes against video games and computers, friends and cars, and more popular sports such as lacrosse and football. Youth today are less likely to play on the sandlots or play catch on a lazy afternoon.

The problem is especially acute in the inner city, where greenspace is at a premium, sports are expensive, and kids are overbooked. For kids of color it's even worse: they may not see themselves represented in major league baseball like they do in sports like football and baseball. Today we talk about how baseball can grow again in the inner city and regain its title as the national pastime for a new generation.

GUESTS:
Harry Smith, president of Jamaica Plain Regan Youth Baseball League
Mike Kudisch, South End Baseball's Commissioner for ages 7 to 12

The Big Night on the Big Screen

Prom season is upon us. It's the big night of rented tuxes and bedazzled gowns where great expectations are either foiled or fulfilled. We mark this write of passage with a look at how tinsel town has portrayed this teenage tradition.

GUESTS:
Garen Daly, film critic

The Callie Crossley Show 5/16/12

Wed, 16 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

Poverty Among the Elderly
Within the next 10 years, the population of the elderly homeless is expected to go up by more than 30 percent. The reason behind this? The nation is getting older, we’re living older longer, and the elderly are facing poverty at rates that we haven’t seen in decades. In Massachusetts, our elders' income covers 60 percent of all living expenses. And a setback like the death of a spouse or unexpected medical expenses could force an elder onto the street. With projections that poverty and homelessness among the elderly will only go up, does the state have the resources it needs to handle this? With talk of cutting entitement programs like Medicare and Social Security, what could the fate of the elderly be?

GUESTS:
Judith Gonyea, professor and chair of social research at Boston University School of Social Work

Occupy Spring

We check in on the Occupy movement in Boston now that warmer weather has brought Occupy protesters back to the streets. We'll also discuss whether Occupy could gain the favor of (and traction with) organized labor. Could this help or hinder their cause?

GUESTS:
Chris Faraone, staff writer for The Boston Phoenix
Bob Forrant, professor of history and labor studies at UMass Lowell, co-director of the Center for Family, Work and Community

The Callie Crossley Show 5/15/12

Tue, 15 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

Tracking Stimulus Spending in Mass.
As the Great Recession hit the US, political leadership released trillions in funds in hopes of jump-starting the economy: they sent money to ailing banks, bailed out the auto industry, and infused states with waves of aid. Of the $840 billion sent directly to states, Massachusetts received $16.6 billion.

Tracking stimulus spending has been difficult. Money was plowed into existing programs, used to plug budget holes, and fast-tracked into construction projects, with priority given to anything that was "shovel-ready."

So far, we have only partial knowledge of what jobs were created from stimulus funds. What was spent in haste and maybe fear was also not well documented, in all cases. Today we take a preliminary look at what effect the stimulus may have had in Massachusetts.

GUESTS:
Jack Sullivan, Senior Investigative Reporter for Commonwealth Magazine. He writes about the stimulus in Massachusetts for their spring issue.

Cash Mobs
We meet locals who are taking economic stimulus into their own hands by way of cash mobs. The basic idea behind cash mobs is to encourage people to go into small, local businesses and spend their money, en masse, to give the business owner a little bit of an economic boost.

GUESTS:
Larry Marino, co-founder, Cash Mobs Dorchester
Carlos Vargas, co-founder, Cash Mobs Dorchester
Ron Cochran, director of online services and communication technology for the City of Malden. Malden has also launched cash mobs.

The Callie Crossley Show 5/14/12

Mon, 14 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

Playtime for Pachyderms

The Buttonwood Park Zoo in New Bedford, Mass. is home to two Asian elephants, Emily and Ruth. We all know that elephants have excellent memories, but who knew about their dedicated work ethic? This duo has been beta testing toys specifically designed and manufactured for elephants by students at Mass Art. We'll get the lowdown on the Toys for Elephants program and a primer on these magnificent mammals.

GUESTS:
Dr. William Langbauer, elephant specialist, director of the Buttonwood Park Zoo
Richard Brown, professor at Massachusetts College of Art

Whale Alert App
Just 400 right whales are left in the world. So named because whale hunters deemed them the "right" whales to hunt, right whales' migratory paths send them straight into the busy waters surrounding Cape Cod and Boston Harbor- and directly into busy shipping lanes. Just one boat collision with a right whale is enough to deeply impact the endangered species. A new app for iPhones and iPads helps mariners avoid collisions with right whales by using acoustic buoys, GPS, and other technology to track and map right whales.

GUESTS:
Patrick Ramage, whale program director at the International Fund for Animal Welfare

The Callie Crossley Show 5/11/12

Fri, 11 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

Regional Week in Review

We hit the rewind button on the week’s news, looking at it through a regional lens. From the Bay State, to the Ocean State, to the Granite State. On Cape Cod we look at what the free market means for eels, and in Rhode Island, the Senate approves a bill to modify the medical marijuana law.

GUESTS:
Paul Pronovost, editor of The Cape Cod Times
Arnie Arneson, New Hampshire-based commentator
Robert Whitcomb, vice president and editorial page editor of The Providence Journal

Ragtime

We look at the latest in pop culture: from the book store to the beauty salon, we'll remember the late, great men who shaped our heads and minds.

GUESTS:
Rachel Rubin, chair of the Department of American Studies at UMass Boston
Thomas Connolly, English professor at Suffolk University

The Callie Crossley Show 5/10/12

Thu, 10 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

3,000 Songs for the 99 Percent

This year marks the 100th birthday of Woody Guthrie. We pay tribute to his life and life's work by way of "Woody Sez", a musical production now onstage at the A.R.T. in Cambridge, Mass. It's an exploration of Woody Guthrie, and a celebration of his songs. Born in Okemah, Oklahoma he saw the devastation of the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression firsthand. Raw, gritty, and full of poetry, His songs were for the folks who suffered no end of indignities during these hard times. The successes he achieved in his own lifetime were often undermined by his politics and 'tell it like it is' way of taking on the world. To see Woody Sez, and to hear Guthrie's songs, one is struck by how familiar they are today given our current economic situation.

Watch the trailer for A.R.T.'s "Woody Sez."

GUESTS:
David Lutken, devisor/music director of "Woody Sez"
Alicia Anstead, editor of Inside Arts magazine and the Harvard Arts Beat Blog, where you can find her recent interview with David Lutken

The Callie Crossley Show 5/9/12

Wed, 09 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

Young America
We’re looking at Millennials and how they’ll affect the presidential race. In 2008, young voters were the mighty engine that helped carry President Barack Obama to the White House, voting for him two-to-one over John McCain. But over the past four years, the Millennials have been losing steam as they wade through hundreds of thousands of dollars of student loan debt, and slog through a stagnant job market. Mitt Romney and President Obama have been trying to appeal to these young voters, from parachuting into college campuses to slow jamming on late night TV. These well-heeled boomers can’t say they feel the millennials' pain, but they promise to stop it. It looks like Obama's tactics are working. A new poll finds Obama leading Romney among Millennials.

We’ll discuss what the candidates need to do to earn the millennial vote. We'll also gauge if Millennials have the momentum this time around to give a candidate that victorious bump. Millennials, we want to hear from you. Leave a comment on our Facebook page or Tweet us.

GUESTS:
Erin O'Brien, associate professor of political science at UMass Boston
John Della Volpe, director of polling at Harvard University's Institute of Politics, founder of SocialSphere
Alexa Scordato, director of social media and communications at 2tor, Inc.

The Callie Crossley Show 5/8/12

Tue, 08 May 2012 00:00:00 EST

The State of the Black Bay State

We’re looking at Governor Deval Patrick’s career through the lens of blacks in the Bay State. Gov. Patrick has successfully represented black interests on Beacon Hill without compromising his broad support across the state, a new report finds. From executive orders, to legislative initiatives, to appointing hundreds of blacks to high positions, the report says Patrick successfully governs by using a universal approach to frame black interests as interests that matter to all citizens. We’ll look at the specific initiatives that support this study. We’ll also ask how State House decisions like casinos, MBTA fare hikes, and sevice cuts square with this sunny scenario.

GUESTS:
Ravi Perry, assistant professor of political science at Clark University, author of the report: Governor Deval Patrick and the Representation of Black Interests in Massachusetts
Kelly Bates, executive director of the Access Strategies Fund

A Divergent Occupation

On May Day, the nationwide Occupy movement launched a day-long protest to raise awareness and re-establish the Occupy voice in ongoing political discussion. Occupy Boston had its own simpatico protest at the Bank of America building in Boston's Financial District. But, the proceedings were missing a core voice: the Boston chapter of Occupy the Hood. Occupy the Hood was established to more fully represent people of color in the Occupy movement. Jamarhl Crawford, the group's Boston leader, pulled out of Occupy Boston late last fall, citing a widening ideological chasm. Today he offers a critique of Occupy Boston, and updates us on Occupy the Hood's agenda.

You can hear our October interview with Jamarhl Crawford and Occupy Boston's Stephen Squibb here.

GUESTS:
Jamarhl Crawford, editor and publisher of Blackstonian, and the leader of Boston's Occupy the Hood movement.