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External links: Ray Fisman's article in Slate: "Errors in Judgment: Were hundreds of criminals given the wrong sentences because lawyers messed up a basic work sheet?" Maryland State Commission on Criminal Sentencing Policy Across the Divide: "I think I was six or seven before I realized that the whole world wasn't Jewish"
Hear the
first part of our series here.
"Across the
Divide" is produced in conjunction with
The next
public event in the "Talking about Race" series is Monday at
A Prolific Photographer
External link: Wednesday,
October 28 WYPR's Hear This listening room with Windup
Space, Thursday,
October 29 B'more Job
Development Coalition job fair Thursday,
October 29 through Sunday November 1 danceRINK
Presents Dracula Theater
Project, Friday,
October 30 Phantom of the Opera with live soundtrack by organist
Larry Molinaro Historic
St. Anne's Episcopal Church, Friday,
October 30 and Saturday, October 31 Free Fall
Baltimore community art project Strand
Theater, Radio From
Downtown presents War of the Worlds Avalon
Theatre, Dracula is
Dead Reading Behnke Nurseries Co, Beltsville Sunday,
November 1 A
Celebration of the American Song with the Kraushaar
Auditorium  The New Face of Foreclosure (11:42)Maryland's foreclosure rate dipped in the second quarter but rose again in the third. That's according to recent data from the real estate analysis company, RealtyTrac. Across the country, foreclosure filings were up by five percent. Despite state and federal efforts to combat the problem, a new report from the National Consumer Law Center says that most homeowners who are in financial trouble aren't getting the loan modifications that they need to save their homes. Anne Balcer Norton, Director of Foreclosure Prevention at the St. Ambrose Housing Aid Center; and Raymond Skinner, Maryland's Secretary of Housing and Community Development, join us to talk about how foreclosure in Maryland is changing and how it's staying the same. External links: St. Ambrose Housing Aid Center Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development The Washington Post on the Home Affordable Mortgage Program (HAMP) Baltimore Does Baltimore (10:58)Zach Kaufmann, Associate Editor of the online magazine Splice Today, has curated another collaborative compilation album. His first, The Old Lonesome Sound, featured regional bands covering American folk songs. The second, Baltimore Does Baltimore, features Baltimore musicians covering songs of other Baltimore musicians. The first in what's expected to be a series of three albums built on the same idea, the album crosses genre lines and re-imagines the Charm City soundscape. Zach joins Tom in the studio to talk about the compilation craze. External link: Baltimore Does Baltimore on Splice Today Major League World Series, and a Smaller League One, Too (13:40)Mark Hyman writes about sports and the business of sports for Business Week and the Sports Business Journal; his new book looks at the impact of parents, coaches, and other adults on youth sports. He joins Tom to look at the former in the context of the MLB World Series, and the latter in the context of the recent Little League World Series. External link: Mark Hyman's website Monday, October 26, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show - MD-Rex (15:49)Prince George's County will soon have a new park: a dinosaur park. The Muirkirk clay pits near Laurel are one of the most fossil-rich spots in the state. Amateur paleontologist Butch Norden tells Nathan about his discovery of a four-foot dinosaur leg bone at the site, and about what Maryland looked like 125 million years ago. The dedication of Dinosaur Park takes place at 3 p.m. today in the 13200 block of Mid-Atlantic Boulevard in Laurel. Call 301-446-3300 for more information. Web extra: Butch Norden on the possibility of the Muirkirk clay pits revealing primitive mammals and bugs trapped in amber, which would give a better sense of what Maryland was like 125 million years ago. External link: "Give Me a Home Where the Dinosaurs Roamed," from the December 2007 MARC newsletter (pdf)  Still from Comptroller Peter Franchot's "E-Filer Knows Knows Best" video. See whole video here. Maryland by the Numbers II (3:54)Normally we try to explain Maryland stats and give them context. Here not so much. Maryland by the Numbers I Sources for Maryland by the Numbers II: Number of times Jon Stewart has called Baltimore a "sh*thole" on The Daily Show since September First: 1 http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-september-15-2009/the-audacity-of-hos Minimum number of news articles published during that time that lead by making the point "Baltimore is more than just the sh*thole you see on The Wire": 2 http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-10-04/americas-smartest-cities---from-first-to-worst/#gallery=787;page=10;item= http://travel.nytimes.com/2009/10/04/travel/04hours.html Estimated economic impact on Maryland of the filming of The Wire: $196 million From Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts and the Maryland Film Office Number of seasons in The Wire, according to a July, 2009 article in The Baltimore Sun: 6 http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/tv/bal-disconnecting-the-wire-0729,0,3590992.story Number of seasons The Wire actually had: 5 http://www.hbo.com/thewire/episode/ Wire season number that focused on the demise of The Baltimore Sun: 5 http://www.hbo.com/thewire/about/ Maryland's rank on a list of states with the highest median income: First http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/income_wealth/012528.html Percent of white children in poverty in Maryland: 6.1 http://www.childrensdefense.org/child-research-data-publications/data/state-of-americas-children-2008-report-child-poverty-race.pdf Percent of black children in poverty in Maryland: 18.6 http://www.childrensdefense.org/child-research-data-publications/data/state-of-americas-children-2008-report-child-poverty-race.pdf Maryland's rank on a list of states with the highest number of black people serving life without parole: First http://www.sentencingproject.org/doc/publications/publications/inc_noexitseptember2009.pdf Maryland has the 8th highest per-capita rate of spending on HIV/AIDS prevention programs. http://www.kff.org/hivaids/upload/7932.pdf Baltimore has the second-highest incidence of new cases of HIV/AIDS of any metropolitan area in the nation. http://www.dhmh.state.md.us/AIDS/Data&Statistics/prof0608city.pdf Approximate amount of money Maryland is receiving as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act: $4.1 Billion http://www.statestat.maryland.gov/recovery.asp Number of states, including Maryland, who don't have a "Stimulus czar" to oversee how this money is spent: 4 http://www.stateline.org/live/details/story?contentId=391122 Average Listing Price as of Friday, October 23rd, for homes in Bethesda, Maryland: $1,068,000 http://www.trulia.com/real_estate/Bethesda-Maryland/ Median Sale Price as of Friday, October 23rd, for homes in Accident, Maryland: $110,000 http://www.trulia.com/real_estate/Accident-Maryland/ Amount of spending approved at the June 3rd meeting of Maryland's Board of Public Works: $ 132 million http://www.bpw.state.md.us/static_files/meetings/6-3-2009.pdf Minimum number of times Board member Peter Franchot tweeted about the June 3rd meeting: 26 http://twitter.com/peterfranchot Amount of spending cut at the August 26th Board of Public Works meeting: $454 million http://baltimore.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2009/08/24/daily31.html Number of times Peter Franchot tweeted about the August 26th meeting: 1 http://twitter.com/peterfranchot Minimum number of times since April 28th that Peter Franchot has followed Maryland Morning on Twitter: Five Screenshot here Singer and Song in Song Yet Sung (14:06)The author and musician James McBride burst onto the literary scene in 1997 with the publication of his memoir, The Color of Water. Last year, he published his second novel, a gripping and elegantly told tale of runaway slaves, free blacks, slave catchers, watermen, and plantation owners on Maryland's Eastern Shore in the 1850s. It's called Song Yet Sung, and it's been chosen by the Maryland Humanities Council as this year's One Maryland, One Book selection. External links: Song Yet Sung One Maryland, One Book Friday, October 23, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Honey, I Shrunk the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund (10:05)Over the past year, Maryland's unemployment insurance trust fund has dropped from around $900 million to $312 million. The fund comes from a tax on employers, and the amount they have to pay per employee is about to be tripled to meet rising demand for benefits. The Joint Committee on Unemployment Insurance Oversight met Thursday morning in Annapolis. Sheilah talks to the committee's co-chair Sen. Thomas Middleton (D - Charles County). Web extra: Sen. Middleton addresses the possibility of borrowing from the federal government to replenish the fund. External links: State Unemployment Trust Fund reports at Treasurydirect.gov "Tweaking Maryland's Unemployment Insurance Fund Could Cost Up to $25M," Baltimore Business Journal "Maryland Could Alter Unemployment Fund," Baltimore Business Journal Women at War: Janette Arencibia (6:22)In the final story from our Women at War series, we meet Navy Lieutenant Janette Arencibia. She tells us the story of her year deployed with the Army in landlocked Afghanistan. External link: The Homefires Blog at the New York Times Minds Interrupted (5:48)About one in four adults in America suffers from diagnosable mental illnesses in any given year--this according to the National Institute of Mental Health. Monday evening at CenterStage in Baltimore, seven Marylanders will share monologues about their experiences living with mental illness--either their own or that of a family member. The event is called "Minds Interrupted: Stories of Lives Interrupted by Mental Illness." One of the participants, Maxine Cunningham, shares part of her story with us. External link: NAMI Baltimore  What Has Six Strings and One Great Blue Heron? (8:02)This guitar from the Chesapeake Bay Guitar Project does. Appalachian Bluegrass owner Emory Knode and local luthier Dave MacCubbin show Tom a new line of guitars with designs inspired by our treasured estuary...and proceeds that benefit the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Dave and Emory will host a "Meet and Greet" from noon until 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 31 at Appalachian Bluegrass. You can see the guitars and hear some great pickers play them. The store is at 643 Frederick Road in Catonsville. Call 443-564-2616 for more information. External links: Dave MacCubbin's Chespeake Bay Guitar Project page Appalachian Bluegrass The Tradition in Fiddler (5:57)Fiddler on the Roof is playing at the Hippodrome Theatre in Baltimore through November 1st. Maryland Morning's theatre mensch J. Wynn Rousuck has been to see it, and tells Tom about it. External link: Fiddler at the Hippodrome Wednesday, October 21, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show ARRrr Rated (9:24) Last spring the student union at the University of Maryland at College Park was offered a free screening of a movie. But--when the screening was announced it caused such uproar that the University's funding was threatened. The film was the hardcore porn Pirates Two: Stagnetti's Revenge. Campus officials canceled that screening, but excerpts were shown later at another spot on campus. The General Assembly responded by mandating that state university system devise and abide by a policy governing the showing of pornographic material. The Board of Regents, the university's governing board, will accept proposals starting this Friday; the state legislature set a deadline of December first. Maryland is the first state to require such a policy. The situation is fraught with questions of free speech and intellectual freedom on Maryland's campuses. With us to outline those questions is Garrett Epps, Professor of Law at the University of Baltimore's school of law. External Link: Washington Post on the development of new regulations They're Coming to Amreeka (13:02)An estimated 3.5 million people of Arab descent live in America. A new book, A Country Called Amreeka, gives names and stories to a few of them. It profiles 11 Arab-Americans living in different parts of the United States over the past 50 years. Its author, Alia Malek grew up in Baltimore, and she'll be back in town tomorrow talking about her book at the Ivy Bookshop. She joined us from New York to talk about her book. Alia Malek will speak about A Country Called Amreeka at the Ivy Bookshop in Baltimore tomorrow at 6:30. The Ivy Bookshop is located at 6080 Falls Road; their phone number is 410.377.2966 Web extras Alia Malek reads a passage about Baltimore resident Luba Sihwail. Alia Malek talks about how writing the book affected how she felt about the September 11th attacks. External link: A Country Called Amreeka In Memoriam: Rabbi Mark Loeb (13:52)Segment originally aired April 18, 2008 Rabbi Mark Loeb passed away October 7 at the age of 65 in Milan, Italy, not long after retiring from Baltimore's Beth El Congregation. Tom Hall spoke to Rabbi Loeb and Institute for Christian and Jewish Studies executive director Christopher Leighton on April 18, 2008, about the arts and religious intolerance. External links: Remembrances of Rabbi Loeb at the Baltimore Sun's "In Good Faith" blog Institute for Christian and Jewish Studies Maryland Morning Culture Calendar The calendar did not appear on the broadcast today. Thursday, October 22 Scottish singer Christina Harrison Cheaspeake Arts Center, Brooklyn Park Ignite Baltimore #4 Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore Friday, October 23 Harford County Poetry & Literary Society Reading Ukazoo Books, Towson Saturday, October 24 10th Great Halloween Lantern Parade Starts in Patterson Park at Eastern and Linwood avenues Sister ACT 5K Run, Walk & Talk Lake Montebello, Baltimore Sunday, October 25 Last Sundays, Last Rites reading and open mic HI Baltimore Hostel Monday, October 26 Lecture: Erik Van Ommeren, "Me the Media: Rise of the Conversation Society" Towson University Tuesday, October 20, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Who's Bailing Out Whom? (12:10)Was there a worse year for banks than 2008, when 25 banks were seized by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the U.S. Treasury authorized $250 billion in capital to shore up the rest of them? How about 2009? So far this year, 99 banks have failed, and there are more on the horizon. The bank failures are draining the federal fund that insures deposits, leading the F.D.I.C. to ask healthy banks to prepay their contributions to the fund through 2012. Sheilah talks about banking's perilous future with Ethan Cohen-Cole, assistant professor at the University of Maryland Robert H. Smith School of Business, and W. Moorhead Vermilye, president and CEO of Shore Bancshares, Inc. in Easton. External links: Ethan Cohen-Cole Shore Bancshares, Inc. "Failures of Small Banks Grow, Straining F.D.I.C.”, New York Times Baltimore Business Journal on Maryland banks and the F.D.I.C. Is the U.S. Treasury getting its money worth in the Troubled Asset Relief Program? What a Little Hysteria Can Do (4:05)Maryland Morning theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck reviews the production of Hysteria currently up at Rep Stage in Columbia. Performances are through November 1. External link: Hysteria at Rep Stage Li'l Brahms (8:23)This Sunday at St. John's Episcopal Church in Glyndon, The Monument Piano Trio will perform the second movement of Brahms's Symphony No. 2. That’s right: three musicians performing a symphony. Pianist Michael Sheppard tells Tom what went into transcribing Brahms' symphony for piano, cello, and violin. External links: Monument Piano Trio St. John's Episcopal Church Monday, October 19, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Unraveling Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (15:11)Obsessive-compulsive disorder affects about 2.2 million adults in America. It's an often-referenced but less often understood disorder that has perhaps gained most visibility in the TV series Monk, in which the main character--detective Adrian Monk, develops an extreme case of the disorder after the death of his wife. Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder program are gaining new insights into the disease--specifically insights into what part genetics might play in its development. Sheilah talks to Dr. Gerald Nestadt, director of the OCD program and professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Hopkins. Web extras: Dr. Nestadt on how he got involved in OCD research What the OCD Family study has shown about OCD similarity among family members External links: Hopkins OCD Program's Family and Genetic studies NIMH on OCD Article on Hoarding as part of OCD, featuring Dr. Nestadt The Puppet Master of Lodz (8:53)Samuel Finkelbaum lives in an attic apartment in Berlin. It's 1950 and, although World War Two has been over for five years, Finkelbaum still lives his days worried that he will be taken away to a concentration camp. This is the setting for Gilles Segal's play The Puppetmaster of Lodz. It's being performed at the Theater Project in Baltimore by the Performance Workshop Theatre. Marc Horwitz is the co-founder of the theatre. He plays the role of Samuel Finkelbaum in the production. He joined Tom in the studio to talk about the play and puppeteering. External links: The Theater Project Performance Workshop Theater Friday, October 16, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Kit and Kaboodle: Women at War: Iris Hernandez (8:26)Earlier this week, the-non profit group Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America released a study of the new challenges facing women who choose to fight in the American armed forces. During October, we're bringing you a personal look at those challenges through the stories of Maryland women who have served in the armed forces during the eight years of the conflict in Afghanistan. Today we meet Iris Hernandez. She has served in the army reserves for 20 years and spent a year as head nurse at the Bagram Airbase hospital. Back at home, she works for the Maryland VA hospital as the Associate Chief Nurse for Geriatrics at the Loch Raven Campus in Baltimore. She told our producer Katherine Gorman her story at her office there. External link: Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America report: Women Warriors (pdf) Where the Wilde Things Are (5:29)The writer Oscar Wilde said a lot of things; and a lot of the things he's remembered for saying are said in his play The Importance of Being Earnest. Maryland Morning theatre critic J. Wynn Rousuck reviews Center Stage's production of the play. External links: Center Stage Oscar Wilde quotes Poems of the Holocaust (8:31)Tom talks to storyteller Gail Rosen about carrying on the legacy of Holocaust survivor and poet Hilda Stern Cohen. Words That Burn Within Me: Faith, Values, Survival is a compilation of Hilda Stern Cohen's poetry and Gail's interviews with her. Gail Rosen and Werner Cohen, Hilda Stern Cohen's widower, will present a reading of Hilda Stern Cohen's work Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Writer's Center in Bethesda. Web extra: The rest of Tom's interview with Gail Rosen, including her reading of Hilda Stern Cohen's poem, "This is My Tongue." External links: Words That Burn Within Me: Faith, Values, Survival The Writer's Center Wednesday, October 14, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show All Wi Doin Is Defendin' (14:41)Today is the deadline to submit applications for the position of Maryland Public Defender. In August, the board of trustees that oversees the Office of the Public Defender voted two to one to fire Nancy Forster after she refused to make several operational changes that the board's chair, Baltimore-area attorney T. Wray McCurdy, had formally requested in July. Sheilah talks Nancy Forster and to Sen. Brian Frosh (D - Montgomery), whose committee is considering changes to the Office of the Public Defender and its Board of Trustees. Both of the trustees who voted to oust Nancy Forster were invited onto the show. Chairman T. Wray McCurdy initially told us he would like to appear on the show but then declined the offer, saying he couldn't talk about a personnel issue. Attorney Margaret Mead did not return our e-mails and calls. The Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee will hold a hearing on the Office of the Pubilic Defender at 1 p.m. on October 27. Web extra: Sheilah's full interview with Nancy Forster. External links: Maryland Office of the Public Defender T. Wray McCurdy's July 2 letter to Nancy Forster Forster's July 16 response Under the Sea (8:12)Jean-Michel Cousteau is an explorer, environmentalist, film producer and educator. He was executive VP of The Cousteau Society for two decades, and 10 years ago founded the Ocean Futures Society, of which he is president. He's coming to Maryland for the Baltimore Speakers Series on Tuesday Oct. 20; we caught up with him by phone last week. External links: Ocean Futures Society Maryland Morning story on UMBI's aquaculture program Cousteau at the Speakers Series Oceans of Song (13:45)Actress and singer Judy Kaye kicks off Center Stage's new Cabaret Series tomorrow; Tom Hall talks to her about how great American songs are like three-minute operas. External link: Judy Kaye at Center Stage Maryland Morning Culture Calendar Ethel Ennis Creative Alliance at the Patterson Friday, October 16 Liszt-Garrison Festival and International Piano Competition College of Notre Dame Wednesday, October 14 Our Common Bond: Mother, Daughter, Sister, Self Galerie Myrtis Saturday, October 17 - November 15 3X3 University of Maryland Baltimore County Saturday, October 17 Annapolis Bluegrass Coalition Chesapeake Arts Center Saturday, October 17 Tuesday, October 13, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Legal, Deadly Drugs (12:10)"Opioid Anelgesics" is the cumbersome term for a family of synthetic drugs that researchers say is largely responsible for a steady increase in the number of drug-related deaths in America. A new report from the CDC shows that poisoning deaths--mostly drug related--rank neck-and-neck with handgun and deaths in traffic accidents as the leading causes of injury death in America. In some places, including Maryland, drug poisonings are ahead of the other two. Sheilah talks to Dr. Donald Jasinski, Chief of the Center for Chemical Dependency at Johns Hopkins; and Dr. Len Paulozzi, Medical Epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. External links: CDC Opioid Anelgesic report Dr. Paulozzi Breathing the Fire (8:05)Segment originally aired Novemeber 11, 2008 President Obama is weighing how to proceed in Afghanistan and whether to send more troops there. Kimberly Dozier, CBS News foreign correspondent and daughter of Baltimore, has a unique insight into the stresses and dangers faced by U.S. soldiers abroad--she has covered them at war and she has recuperated with them from the ferocious wounds of a roadside bomb in Iraq. She wrote about it in her memoir Breathing the Fire: Fighting to Report--and Survive--the War in Iraq. She joins us from CBS' Washington bureau. External links: Breathing the Fire Dozier at CCBC Check out the Chops on this Tchaikovsky (12:27)Qing Li, Principal Second Violin for the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, and the Prince George's Philharmonic, present an evening of Tchaikovsky. External link: Prince George's Philharmonic Monday, October 12, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Shebang: Marylander in a Burmese Jail (12:26)On September 3rd, Kyaw Zaw Lwin, a Maryland resident and U.S. citizen born in Burma, was arrested and jailed Rangoon, Burma. Zaw Lwin has been active in efforts to raise awareness about the plight of jailed political prisoners in Burma. After his arrest, a Burmese state-run newspaper published claims that Zaw Lwin had confessed to terrorist acts. We talk to Zaw Lwin's Fiancee Wa Wa Kyaw, who lives in Maryland; and Elaine Pearson, deputy Asia director for the non-profit Human Rights Watch. External links: Elaine Pearson's Baltimore Sun op-ed Human Rights Watch's Burma page AP on Zaw Lwin Mr. Perez Goes to Washington (9:30)The Obama administration brain-drain of Maryland officials took another one this month--last week Tom Perez was confirmed to head of the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice. On Wednesday Perez wrapped up his service as Secretary of the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation where he's been since January, 2007 and headed to the Justice Department, where we reached him by phone. External links: Announcement of new DLLR Secretary Gazette on O'Malley considering mandatory mediation before foreclosures 2007 Gazette article on Perez taking the reins at DLLR Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice  Stanley Plumly "O Ease My Heart of Verse and Let Me Rest" (13:55)Maryland's new poet laureate, Stanley Plumly, talks to Tom Hall about poetry slams, why poetry should never be commissioned, and the long literary shadow cast by the short life of John Keats. Web extras: Tom asks Dr. Plumly whether he writes for the page or for the ear. Dr. Plumly praises Bright Star, Jane Campion's film about John Keats's love affair with Fanny Brawne. External links: Stanley Plumly Stanley Plumly reads his poetry at poets.org University of Maryland Department of English The history of Maryland's Poets Laureate Friday, October 9, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Women at War: Rebecca Montgomery (7:30)In the second installment of our series "Women at War," we meet Chaplain Rebecca Montgomery from Bethesda, Maryland. Married just before she deployed, both she and her husband served in Afghanistan for 18 months between the winter of 2005 and the summer of 2006. Now her husband is deployed again and for the first time she's experiencing life on the home front. External link: Homefires Blog at the New York Times Act II: Ira Glass on Beginnings (13:00)Baltimorean and host and executive producer of This American Life Ira Glass talks about the types of radio stories that made him want to start TAL, how he figured out what his radio show should be about, and what he learned from doing TV. More from Ira Glass interview On how TAL got funded On where TAL stories come from On the "Planet Money" series On potential future TAL TV projects External link: The first episode of the show that would become This American Life Scintillating Cinema (13:46)Jed Dietz of the Maryland Film Festival and Mike Sragow, film critic for the Baltimore Sun, take over our studios once again to talk with Tom about this month's smash hits and sleepers. External links: Jed Dietz Mike Sragow Wednesday, October 7, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show A New Strategy for Maryland's Foster Children (11:07)Maryland's child welfare system has been up against the ropes for over two decades. In 1984, a class-action lawsuit over Baltimore City's foster care conditions led to a consent decree for Maryland's Department of Human Resources. In 2005, a Baltimore Sun investigative report exposed poor oversight of Maryland's group homes, and two years later the plaintiffs in the original suit tried to have the state held in contempt for not complying with the consent decree. The plaintiff's lawyers have praised the new DHR Secretary, Brenda Donald, for the changes she's enacted since her arrival in early 2007. A June 2009 agreement between all parties could have ended court oversight by the beginning of 2010, but now the state is citing a recent U.S. Supreme Court to claim that they are free to back out of federal oversight altogether. Sheilah talks to Secretary Donald about her efforts to move children from group homes to family settings and the status of the lawsuit. External links: Place Matters in Maryland: A Report on Child Welfare, 2007 through 2009 (pdf) DHR's trove of documents related to the original lawsuit, L.J. v. Massinga Baltimore Sun series on group homes  Better Beer Through Science (10:07)Baltimore Beer week starts tomorrow! We talk with Mark Denny, author of Froth!: The Science of Beer, about the drink's origins, production, and future. External links: Baltimore Beer Week Froth! Rhea Feikin (13:43)Maryland Public Television celebrates its 40th anniversary on Saturday night with a gala hosted by John Waters. Rhea Feikin will be honored at that gala for her years of service to MPT, and Tom Hall takes a stroll down memory lane with her. External links: ArtWorks Chesapeake Life interviews Rhea Feikin Maryland Morning Culture Calendar Audio is at the end of the Rhea Feikin segment above. Treats for aesthetes. Emmanuel Church pipe organ special dedicatory Chesapeake Shakespeare Company's Julius Caesar Thelonious Monk's birthday at Micho's Stage Meg Page at Ladew Topiary Gardens Station North Arts Second Saturday Maryland Citizens for the Arts' "Arts Step Up" Tuesday, October 6, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show  A previously unseen view of the surface of Mercury taken by MESSENGER last week. (Photo: Applied Physics Laboratory) Mercury's Message (10:27)Last week, the MESSENGER spacecraft completed its third fly-by of Mercury. The new data and photos have expanded our understanding of the planet's surface, exosphere and magnetosphere. Ralph McNutt of the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory science team for the MESSENGER missions explains to us what this new information means and just what the heck a magnetosphere is. External link: MESSENGER Spacecraft The Crisis in Caring for our Parents (11:29)In the midst of the huge debate about health care in the U.S., not much is being said about long-term care, even though most of us--seven out of ten--will need long-term care as we age. Howard Gleckman, a Marylander who used to cover economics, personal finance, and health-care issues for Business Week and is now a senior researcher at the Urban Institute, writes that long-term care is a looming crisis. His new book is Caring for our Parents: Inspiring Stories of Families Seeking New Solutions to America's Most Urgent Health Crisis. Web extra: More from Howard Gleckman on long-term care insurance. External links: Howard Gleckman's website Senior Expo Boister Does Buster (8:39)The films of Buster Keaton have been an enduring inspiration for Maryland's beloved neo-burlesque musical ensemble Boister. They'll perform their score for Steamboat Bill, Jr. as the film screens at the Chesapeake Arts Center on Saturday. Boister leader Anne Watts tells Tom about the sounds she finds in Keaton's silent films. External links: Boister Chesapeake Arts Center The Signal Boister retrospective American Masters on Keaton This Ain't Your Mother's Eurydice (5:07)J. Wynn Rousuck reviews Single Carrot Theatre's modern reimagining of Eurydice. External link: Single Carrot Theatre Monday, October 5, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show High Water Everywhere (12:26)Segment originally aired June 12, 2009 On Thursday, a report by the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Rocky Mountain Climate Organization put Assateague Island National Seashore on a list of 25 National Parks that are most endangered by climate change. The report cited stronger storms and sea-level rise as the main threats climate change poses to Assateague. To examine why the mid-Atlantic cost is one of the most vulnerable places in the world when it comes to sea-level rise, we revisit a conversation we had a few months ago with David Fahrenthold, environmental reporter for the Washington Post; and James Titus, Program Director for Sea Level Rise at the Environmental Protection Agency. External links: Assateague Island "National Parks in Peril: The Threats of Climate Disruption" (pdf) David Fahrenthold's Washington Post article on sea-level rise on the East Coast Maryland sea level rise maps "Coastal Sensitivity to Sea-Level Rise: A Focus on the Mid-Atlantic Region" The Band That Wouldn't Die (9:50)No we don't mean one of those bands that's been on tour forever. The Band That Wouldn't Die is the title of Barry Levinson's new film about the saga of the Colts marching band, now the Marching Ravens, the band that refused to quit even after the Colts left Baltimore. We talks with John Ziemann, who led the band then and still leads it today. External Links: The Marching Ravens The Band That Wouldn't Die in the Sun Bygone Baseball (14:13)Before Jackie Robinson, when the color barrier in major league baseball was still intact, African-American players played in their own league, and Baltimore baseball fans hung their hopes on two teams: the Orioles and the Elite Giants. We talk with Bob Luke, author of The Baltimore Elite Giants: Sport and Society in the Age of Negro League Baseball. External Link: The Baltimore Elite Giants Friday, October 2, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Women at War: Kate Ennis (8:22)Four weeks after the attacks of 9-11, on October 7th, 2001, American troops invaded Afghanistan. In the eight years since, the role that women play in the U.S. armed services has grown. For example, two weeks ago, the army named a woman its top drill sergeant for the first time. What does this expanded role mean for the armed forces, and what does it mean for the women who serve? Every Friday this month, we'll bring you stories from Maryland women who have served in Afghanistan. We call the series "Women at War." This morning we hear Kate Ennis' story. She served as a Botswain's Mate in the Navy. Thanks to the Maryland VA Hospital for putting us in touch with Kate. External link: Coverage of Female Soldiers from the New York Times What Do We Really Know About Afghanistan? (8:57)The situation in Afghanistan is deteriorating. Or so it would seem from the comparatively meager coverage on the ground there. Sherry Ricchiardi, senior contributing writer for American Journalism Review, has been writing about Afghanistan coverage for eight years. She tells Sheilah about the effect of that coverage on our public discourse and foreign policy. Web extras: Sherry Ricchiardi says she believes newspapers' recent focus on "hyperlocal" issues has come directly at the expense of important foreign coverage. Sherry Ricchiardi says fixers in foreign countries can be both a blessing and a curse. External links: American Journalism Review at the University of Maryland's Philip Merrill College of Journalism "ASSIGNMENT: Afghanistan," November 2001 "The Forgotten War," August/September 2006 "Offscreen," October/November 2008 "Assignment AfPak," August/September 2009  Number of sleeves on Gov. Martin O'Malley's shirt: zero. (Image from Sam Sessa's Midnight Sun blog at baltimoresun.com.) Maryland by the Numbers (4:05)Our inboxes here at Maryland Morning are full of press releases, and those press releases are full of numbers. Research institutions and advocacy organizations have a particular weakness for rankings. Two rankings often cited in Maryland are #1 schools in the country and #1 median income. There's a lot more than that; dig it. Number of new Maryland statutes that took effect yesterday, October 1, in a list published by the state legislature: 428 http://mlis.state.md.us/2009RS/misc/effectivedates/2009_october.pdf According to George Mason University's Mercatus Center, Maryland's rank among all states on an index of "personal freedom": dead last http://www.mercatus.org/uploadedFiles/Mercatus/Publications/Freedom%20in%20the%2050%20States.pdf Maryland's ranking for fiscal policy in the George Mason study: 16 http://www.mercatus.org/uploadedFiles/Mercatus/Publications/Freedom%20in%20the%2050%20States.pdf Maryland's projected budget shortfall for 2010: $2 billion http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/bal-budget0917,0,6422786.story Maryland's pedestrian fatality rate: 6th in the nation http://www-fars.nhtsa.dot.gov/States/StatesPedestrians.aspx Baltimore's ranking in Allstate's "Best Drivers Report": #192 http://www.allstatenewsroom.com/releases/4529-fifth-annual-allstate-america Number of cities in that report: 193 http://www.allstatenewsroom.com/releases/4529-fifth-annual-allstate-america The 47th best place to live in America, according to Money Magazine: Eldersburg, MD http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bplive/2009/snapshots/PL2425575.html The 46th best place to live in America, according to Money Magazine: Hewitt, Texas http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bplive/2009/snapshots/PL4833428.html Number of websites that discuss the possibility that the movie "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" was set in Hewitt: 2 http://www.texaschainsawmassacre.net/WhereItHappened/index.htm http://timpanogos.wordpress.com/2007/03/14/strong-hints-that-texas-chainsaw-massacre-is-fiction/ Miles from Eldersburg to Burkittsville, Maryland, the setting for the Blair Witch Project: 50 http://maps.google.com/maps?q=eldersburg%20md%20to%20burkittsville%20md&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wl Approximate number of rats in Baltimore City: 48,000 http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/abs/10.1089/vbz.2005.5.296 Number of feral cats in Baltimore: 185,000 http://www.alleycat.org/NetCommunity/admin/Document.Doc?id=70 Percent of residents of low-income Baltimore neighborhoods who eat fast food, according to research from the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future: 77 http://www.jhsph.edu/clf/PDF_Files/baltimorehealthy_improving.pdf Percent of Americans with Restless Legs Syndrome: 5 percent, according to the Johns Hopkins Center for Restless Legs Syndrome http://www.neuro.jhmi.edu/rls/index.html Percent reduction in sightseeing helicopter crashes in Hawaii after an emergency FAA regulation: 47 percent, according to the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy http://www.jhsph.edu/injurycenter/_includes/whats_new_archive Number of Johns Hopkins "centers" found in a Google search of "Johns Hopkins" and "Center For": 46 http://www.google.com/search?q=%22johns+hopkins%22+%22center+for%22&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a Increase in Maryland's prison population since 1984: 70 percent http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/prisons.htm Decrease in Maryland's oyster harvest over that period: 85 percent http://www.dnr.state.md.us/dnrnews/infocus/032706hvalue.pdf http://www.nao.usace.army.mil/OysterEIS/PeerReviews/ResearchDocs/Cultural_Socioeconomic_Assessment_Report_Final.pdf Number of oyster cages that Maryland inmates will build for waterfront property owners who are raising oysters as part of an estuary restoration program: 5,000 http://www.herald-mail.com/?cmd=displaystory&story_id=227924&format=html Guns seized in Baltimore between January 1 and August 6, according to the Baltimore Police Department: over 1500 http://twitter.com/BaltimorePolice/status/3166991117 Square miles in Baltimore: 80 http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/24/2404000.html Guns seized per square mile per month: 2.68 Number of gigs Celtic rockers O'Malley's March have lined up before the end of the year, according to the Washington Post: two. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/29/AR2009092903862.html Sleeves on lead singer Martin O'Malley's t-shirt during a typical O'Malley's March concert: zero Bros Before Holst (8:35)From Tristan und Isolde to Tommy, never before has the opera world seen anything like the first production by the Baltimore Rock Opera Society, or BROS. Their operatic endeavor, Grundelhammer, opens tonight at the 2640 on St. Paul Street in Charles Village. Tom talks with two of the creative team behind BROS, Aaron Keating and John Decampos, about their process and their hopes for the performance. External links: BROS BROS in the City Paper BROS in the Sun Dusty and the Big Bad World (5:04)In 2005, an episode of a PBS children's show was pulled because it involved an animated character visiting a child whose parents were gay. Theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck reviews a production of Dusty and the Big Bad World, a play based on the incident. It's playing through October 10 at the Maryland Ensemble Theatre in Frederick. External link: Maryland Ensemble Theatre Wednesday, September 30, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Taking on the Beast of Breast Cancer (12:02)In Maryland this year, it's expected that more than 3,600 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer. 810 women are expected to die from the disease. Maryland ranks 5th in the nation in its rate of breast cancer mortality, according to the National Cancer Institute. The non-profit Komen Maryland analyzed the data and published a profile of what's going on in Maryland. Komen's director, Robin Prothro, and Dr. Kathy Helzlsouer, an epidemiologist and oncologist who heads the Prevention and Research center at Mercy Medical Center, join us to talk about the numbers and what can be done. External links: Komen Maryland Dr. Helzlsouer Phoebe Haddon Takes Local Law Global (8:46)Seventy-five years after Thurgood Marshall won a lawsuit to integrate the University of Maryland School of Law, the first African-American dean has taken the helm. Sheilah talks to Dean Phoebe Haddon about the role of a law school in its city and in the world. An event to celebrate Dean Haddon's appointment, "Justice and the Global Economy," will take place Saturday October 3 at the University of Maryland School of Law. This free event is sold out, but you can sign up for a waiting list. Web extra: Phoebe Haddon talks about meeting Justice Sonia Sotomayor at an Orioles game. External link: Phoebe A. Haddon The Everyman, Exit Stage West (13:48)The Everyman Theatre in Baltimore has begun its new season, the first full season for its new Managing Director, Ian Tresselt, and the 20th season for its founding Artistic Director, Vincent Lancisi. Everyman is currently housed on Charles Street, just up from the Charles Theater, but they'll soon break ground on a new theater that's part of Baltimore's West Side development, an area that includes the historic Hippodrome Theatre. Ian Tresselt and Vincent Lancisi join Tom in the studio to give us a status report on everything Everyman. External link: The Everyman Theatre Maryland Morning Culture Calendar Cylburn Chamber Music Series presents Ryan de Ryke (baritone) and Eva Mengelkoch (piano) Sunday, October 4, 3:30 p.m., Cylburn Arboretum, Baltimore E-mail chamber.music@cylburnassociation.org or call 410-367-2217 "Rive Gauche" October 3 - 24, reception with artists on October 10, Delaplaine Visual Arts Education Center, Frederick Heavy Metal: Big Truck Day Saturday, October 3, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Baltimore Public Works Museum Pastor Shirley Caesar Saturday October 3, 1:00 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., Fountains Wedding & Conference Center, Salisbury Sara Evans Saturday October 3, 8 p.m., Cordts Physical Education Center at Frostburg State University Johnny Staats Saturday October 3, 8 p.m., Palace Theater , Frostburg For tickets, call Allegany Arts Council (301-777-2787), The Book Center (301-722-2284), or Main Street Books (301-689-5605). For workshop reservations, call 301-777-ARTS (2787). Eric Kennedy Quartet Friday October 2, 7:30 p.m., Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture, Baltimore Tuesday, September 29, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Driving While Black (10:29)For more than 15 years, there have been court cases charging the Maryland State Police with racial profiling in traffic stops and searches. In 2003, a consent decree between the state police and the ACLU and the Maryland Conference of NAACP Branches created a new set of guidelines for police making traffic stops. But the consent decree was not the end. On Tuesday, the full Maryland Court of Special Appeals will hear arguments in a case stemming from a public-information request by the NAACP and the ACLU for complaints of racial profiling; the state contends the documents amount to personnel records and cannot be divulged. We talk to Robert Wilkins, an attorney with Venable LLP and one of three attorneys who will be in court for the ACLU and NAACP Tuesday. Attorney General Gansler's office and the Maryland State Police both declined to comment for this story. External links: ACLU documents on the racial profiling case 2000 Senate Hearing on Racial Profiling (pdf) 2007 Sun story on ACLU suing Maryland State Police to release profiling records (pdf) Documenting the Presidency (25:00)Taylor Branch, the Baltimore-based, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian has known Bill Clinton for nearly four decades. He has just published his highly anticipated chronicle of the Clinton White House, which he wrote after 79 private sessions with the President, spread over the eight years the Clintons lived in the White House. It's called The Clinton Tapes: Wrestling History with the President. Tom Hall talks to Branch about the wrestling in the conversations, and the struggle to write the book. Web extras Branch on whether Clinton yearned for a "Big Crisis" Chelsea Clinton on the phenomenon of College Grogginess External link: Branch's website Monday, September 28, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Meeting the Challenge of HIV (9:02)A symposium at Coppin State this morning focuses on the pervasive problem of HIV infection among African-Americans, and the growing awareness of the challenges facing older people newly-infected and living with the disease. We talk to Congressman Elijah Cummings, the host of the symposium; and Dr. Tshaka Cunningham, a microbiologist at Howard University and the Department of Veterans Affairs who will speak at the event. External links: Event at Coppin State Dr. Cunningham's page at the VA NIH on HIV/AIDS among older people CDC on HIV/AIDS Kaiser Family Foundation survey on HIV/AIDS Hey, Give Me a Little Credit Here (13:17)Credit card limits are dropping...and so are borrowers' credit scores. Loans are harder to come by...and so are the jobs that could help borrowers pay off their debt. So -- where to go besides the pawn shop or the corner check cashing store? Sheilah talks to two guests about alternative lending sources. University of Maryland graduate economics student Seth Freedman co-authored a working paper on peer-to-peer lending, and Neighborhood Housing Services executive director Felix Torres Colon recently announced an FDIC-sponsored program that gives small loans to low-income borrowers after they complete "financial fitness classes." Web extras: Seth Freedman describes the social networking on peer-to-peer lending sites. Seth Freedman talks about the SEC's increasing role in regulating peer-to-peer lending sites. Felix Torres Colon explains the role of the FDIC's Alliance for Economic Inclusion in the program. Felix explains how a financial education course brought a tattooed 6'2" construction worker to tears. External links: "Borrow and Save" Neighborhood Housing Services University of Maryland Department of Economics A working paper on peer-to-peer lending by Dr. Ginger Jin and Seth Freedman FDIC's Alliance for Economic Inclusion The Washington Post on peer-to-peer lending Do You Hear That? (13:47)Tom puts his ear to the ground of Baltimore's indie music scene with Zach Kaufmann, associate editor of Splice Today. They bring us a preview of who will be playing in Baltimore's clubs and the albums we can look forward to. External Link: Splice Today Friday, September 25, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show New Law for Violence Against the Homeless (13:11)Homelessness is on the rise, and so is violence against the homeless. On October 1, Maryland becomes the first state to subject attacks on the homeless to the stiffer penalties of its hate crimes law. Sheilah talks to Antonia Fasanelli, executive director of the Homeless Persons Representation Project; and Howard Ehrlich, director of The Prejudice Institute and author of Hate Crimes and Ethno-violence. External links: The Prejudice Institute Homeless Persons Representation Project Hate Crimes and Ethno-violence Singular Reading for Single Parents (8:34)There are nearly 400,000 families headed by a single parent in Maryland according to the National Association for Child Care Resources. A new magazine based in Chester, Maryland, offers resources and guidance to those running a family on their own. It's called Single Parent 101 Magazine. We talk to its vice-president for marketing Natalie Slater. External link: Single Parent 101 Magazine Ebullient Arias about Sucky Stepsisters (8:49)When the Baltimore Opera Company closed its doors last March, several new operatic doors opened, and opera lovers renewed their focus on the other companies in the area who produce opera in venues large and small throughout the state. One such company is Opera Vivente. Tom talks to John Bowen and Gran Wilson. Bowen founded Opera Vivente in 1997 and is directing their first show this season, Rossini's Cinderella, which opens tonight. Wilson stars in this production, singing the role of Cinderella's handsome beau, Prince Ramiro. External link: Opera Vivente Of Greek Tragedy and Debate Topics (6:03)Theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck reviews The Quality of Life at Arena Stage and Phedre at the Shakespeare Theatre Company. External links: The Quality of Life at Arena Stage Phedre at the Shakespeare Theatre Company Wednesday, September 23, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Mental Health and Fiscal Illness (13:15)In the hail of state budget cuts to things like roads, police aid and university and community college funding, one cut is causing particular angst in the northern part of the Eastern Shore. The Upper Shore Community Mental Health Center in Chestertown, Maryland is slated to be closed in February; a move the state says will save an estimated $8 million annually. Opponents of the planned closure argue that it will leave the counties of the Upper Shore incapable of meeting the needs of its mentally ill residents. One such opponent is state Senator E.J. Pipkin, he represents Caroline, Cecil, Kent, and Queen Anne's Counties and he joins us by phone. We are also joined by John Colmers, Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene. Full interview with Secretary Colmers: Full interview with Senator Pipkin: External links: Department of Health and Mental Hygiene Senator Pipkin Many posts about USCMHC on Delegate Mike Smigiel's blog US Health and Human Services on Medically Underserved Areas Getting Specific with the General (8:59)General Pervez Musharraf, that is. Sheilah and the former president of Pakistan talk about trade policy, Kashmir, and Pakistan's efforts to bring him to trial for detaining judges during a state of emergency in 2007. Pervez Musharraf will speak at the Meyerhoff at 8 p.m. on Tuesday as part of Stevenson University's Baltimore Speakers Series. External link: Baltimore Speakers Series Baltimore! Books Galore! (13:56)The Baltimore Book Festival, now in its 14th year, kick-off on Friday in the Mt. Vernon neighborhood of Charm City. More than 100 local and national authors will appear on panels that feature books in every subject area under the sun. There will be stages devoted to children's books, cook books, novels, poetry, and non-fiction, plus plenty to eat, and lots of music to enjoy as well. The City Lit Project will host one of the stages throughout the festival. One of the panels they'll be presenting is called "Getting it Written, Getting it Published: The Facts About Fiction." James Magruder, who will appear on that panel, and Gregg Wilhelm, the President and CEO of the CityLit Project, join us to talk about the Book Fest. External Links: Baltimore Book Festival CityLit Project Maryland Morning Culture Calendar Annapolis Symphony Orchestra's "Drum Roll" September 25, 26 Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, Annapolis Pumpkin Theater's Pinnocchio September 26 through October 4th, Baltimore Willie Blake Davis "Foundation Solid" September 26, 4:00 Easton High School, Easton Ana Hernandez, "Singing God's Shalom" Septmeber 27, All Saint's Episcopal Church, Frederick St. Francis Neighborhood Center, The Fall Fiesta Gala September 26, 7:00 Cafe Azafran, Baltimore Episcopal Refugee and Immigrant Center Alliance, Annapolis Chamber Players September 26, 5:00 Cathedral of the Incarnation, Baltimore Benefit for Maria Broom September 24, 5:30 the School 33 Arts Center in Baltimore VIVA ITALIA: Concours D'Elegance September 27, Harbor East, Baltimore Tuesday, September 22, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show W(h)ither the GOP? (10:36)The Maryland Republican Party owes Michael Steele's campaign about $75,000, and they've got about $1,000 to their own name. Party chairman Jim Pelura has resigned effective November 14. What happens for the Maryland GOP between now and the gubernatorial election in November 2010? The Baltimore Sun's David Nitkin and the Washington Post's John Wagner give us their best guesses. External links: Maryland Republican Party Washington Post Maryland Politics blog Baltimore Sun Maryland Politics blog Orchids from the Ashes (11:32)It turns out that sometimes, in order to restore a forest, you need to burn it down. That's the logic behind controlled burns that The Nature Conservancy of Maryland/DC has held recently at three of their properties in Maryland. To understand the science behind this program, and for news on some exciting finds made in the wake of these burns, we talk to Deborah Landau, conservation biologist for The Nature Conservancy of Maryland/DC; and Ron Wilson, a local botanist who has been doing surveys of the burned areas for The Nature Conservancy. External links: Q&A on burns with Deborah Landau Washington Post on orchid discovery at Nassawango Applause for Local Theaters (13:55)Maryland Morning theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck previews the season in theater. Theaters discussed: Center Stage Hippodrome Theatre Everyman Theatre Theatre Project Maryland Ensemble Theatre Phedre at Shakespeare Theatre Company A Streetcar Named Desire at the Kennedy Center Olney Theatre Monday, September 21, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Approaching the Pandemic (14:30) Flu season is upon us. This year it's especially worrisome with the H1N1 virus beginning to spread. The University of Maryland reports close to 600 suspected cases of swine flu since classes started three weeks ago. Elementary schools are coming up with plans for vaccinating pupils once a vaccine is available. What can we expect from this year's flu season and how can we prepare? We ask Dr. Wilbur Chen, Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Maryland, where he has been helping to run the H1N1 vaccine trials; and Dr. John Links, Director of the Center for Public Health Preparedness at Johns Hopkins University. External links: Center for Disease Control's page on swine flu Johns Hopkins' Family Guide on flu season preparedness U.S. Health Department website on flu Eid Mubarak! Muslims Celebrate the End of Ramadan Segment originally aired October 1, 2008 (7:34)The Muslim holiday of Eid ul-Fitr started yesterday; it marks the end of the month of Ramadan. We talk to members of the Muslim Student Association at the University of Maryland, College Park; and members of the Islamic Society of Baltimore. External links: Muslim Student Association at University of Maryland, College Park Islamic Society of Baltimore Information about Eid from Islamicity.com Baltimore's Bountiful Art Season Preview (13:31)The seasons are changing and so are Baltimore's gallery offerings. Arts bloggers Cara Ober of BMore Art and Alex Ebstein who writes for There Were Ten Tigers join Tom in the studio for a sneak peek at the latest in Baltimore's visual arts world. External links: There Were Ten Tigers B More Art Friday, September 18, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show - The World of Stem Cells (11:44)Next week, the 2009 World Stem Cell Summit takes place at the Baltimore Convention Center. More than 1,000 scientists and advocates will convene for three days of talks and lectures on how stem cell research is progressing and changing. Two of its organizers, Dr. Curt Civin, Director of the Center for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine at the University of Maryland, and Karen Rothenberg, Chair of the Maryland Stem Cell Commission and law professor at the University of Maryland School of Law, join us to talk about the conference. Then, to look inside one of the panels, we talk with Jeremy Sugarman of Johns Hopkins; he's Professor of Bioethics and Medicine and Deputy Director for Medicine at the Berman Institute of Bioethics. External link: World Stem Cell Summit Learning to Rebuild (11:27)One of the things required of the Iraqi students that the Iraqi Student Project brings to U.S. colleges is that they return to Iraq once they've completed their studies and help rebuild their country. We ask Ahmed, a student in the program who has just started his freshman year at Goucher College, how he feels about going back to Iraq. We also hear from Gabe Huck and Theresa Kubasak, the co-founders of the project; and Alessandra Manfre, a Goucher alum who is the director of the Baltimore branch of the project. Excerpt from The River, The Roof, The Palm Tree: Young Iraqi Refugees Remember Their Home, published by the Iraqi Student Project (pdf) TheExternal links: Iraqi Student Project Iraqi Student Project Baltimore From Foreign Dispatches to Spy Thrillers (7:01)Tom Hall talks to former Baltimore Sun foreign reporter Dan Fesperman his new novel The Arms Maker of Berlin. Web extra: Tom asks Dan Fesperman about the demise of daily papers' foreign bureaus. External link: Dan Fesperman From Tragedy to Infidelity, and Back (6:35)Theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck reviews to productions currently on in Baltimore's Station North Arts and Entertainment District. Everyman Theatre's Rabbit Hole is playing through October 11; the Strand Theater Company's The Mercy Seat is playing through October 4. External links: Everyman Theatre Strand Theater Company Wednesday, September 16, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show The Nuclear Option: Is It Really an Option? (13:24)Electricite de France wants to buy just under half of Constellation Energy Group's nuclear arm for $4.5 billion. Constellation hopes this will help them build a third nuclear reactor at Calvert Cliffs. Constellation wanted to complete the sale by tomorrow, but the Public Service Commission of Maryland stepped in to review it. Two reporters who have been following the complicated Constellation/EDF/PSC story, The Sun's Hanah Cho and The Daily Record's Danielle Ulman, explain it all to Nathan. The PSC will hold a public hearing regarding the deal tomorrow, September 17, from 7:00 to 9:30 p.m. at the War Memorial Building in Baltimore. More information here. External links: The Public Service Commission of Maryland Constellation Energy Group Electricite de France The Baltimore Sun The Daily Record Midday with Dan Rodricks takes on the pros and cons of nuclear power Across the Divide: "No, you got my job" (7:35)Eddie Bartee, Sr. worked at the steel factory at Sparrows Point for over 42 years. He was a union leader for many of those years and, as an African-American worker, was on the frontlines of the consent decree that integrated the factory on the heels of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In the first story in our series "Across the Divide: Stories of Race in Baltimore," Bartee tells a story about the first day the consent decree went into effect. The "Across the Divide" series is part of Open Society Institute-Baltimore's yearlong "Talking about Race" project. The next event in that series is Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. at the Enoch Pratt. More information here. The Stoop Storytelling Series is producing an evening of stories about race in Baltimore in February; more information on that here. External links: Sparrows Point Steelworkers Oral History Project Across the Divide: Stories about Race in Baltimore Classical Music: Season Preview! (13:24)Baltimore Sun classical music critic Tim Smith talks to Tom Hall about the classical music we can look forward to this season. External link: Tim Smith's classical music blog, Clef Notes Maryland Morning Culture Calendar This week Tom Hall is joined by Sheilah Kast. Fashion Week in Frederick Thursday, September 16 to Saturday, September 18 Frederick Muddy Creek Artists Guild's "A Harvest of Artists" Thursday, September 16 to Sunday, September 27 Deale Baltimore Clayworks' Clay Ball and on-line auction Friday, September 25 Engineer's Club, Baltimore Tuesday, September 15, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Ganging Up on Gangs (21:22) Someone shoots a 16-year-old boy in the arm at Harborplace. A defendant threatens a witness while she is still on the stand. Inmates smuggle champagne and salmon into prison. There's a lot of wrongdoing being attributed to gangs these days, and prosecutors would like to add years to criminals' sentences based solely on gang affiliation. We talk to U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein, whose office has indicted dozens of alleged gang members this year, about the use of federal racketeering laws for gang crimes. Then we talk to Baltimore State's Attorney Patricia Jessamy, who is asking the Maryland General Assembly to beef up the Maryland Gang Prosecution Act of 2007, and Harford County Public Defender Kelly Casper, who says the current law already abridges civil liberties. The House Judiciary Committee will hold a briefing, "The Gang Problem and Proposed Solutions," at 1:30 p.m. today in Room 101 at the House Office Building (6 Bladen Street) in Annapolis. It is open to the public. External links: Maryland Gang Prosecution Act of 2007 U.S. District Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland Maryland Office of the Public Defender Baltimore City State's Attorney's Office Beethoven: From Beginning to End (13:23) Few composers in the history of classical music were as ground breaking and precedent-shattering as Ludwig van Beethoven. In his hands, symphonies, concertos, chamber music, even opera, all morphed into different animals than they had been in the hands of his contemporaries. In a series of concerts over the course of the next several months at Howard Community College, the pianist Anne Koscielny will play all 32 piano sonatas by Beethoven, giving listeners a chance to hear them stacked-up next to each other. Anne Joins Tom in the studio to talk about Beethoven and his work. External Link: The Beethoven Sonata Series at Howard Community College September 14, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Running for Frederick (12:05)Mayoral and aldermanic candidates take it to the polls tomorrow in the Frederick primaries. We ask Adam Behsudi, a reporter for the Frederick News Post, and Len Latkovski, a professor at Hood College in Frederick, how the field looks, and how the race has changed since a leading candidate withdrew on Thursday. External links: Frederick News Post Election 2009 coverage City of Frederick election information The British are Coming (again) (7:45)It's September 14. Baltimoreans are growing increasingly nervous as a swarming tide of red menaces the waters of the Chesapeake Bay, moving slowly and steadily toward the city. Jack Trautwein, The Fell's Point Town Crier, brings us the news of this day, September 14, 1814--a pivotal moment in The War of 1812. Trautwein will be reading the news of the day from 1814 through Sunday at 2p.m. at Market Square in Fell's Point. In October, he's giving a lecture series about the history of Fell's Point. For more information contact him at 410-746-7494 or pjtowncrier@excite.com External links: Smithsonian Institution on Star-Spangled Banner Flag Fell's Point Fort McHenry Still Chasing the 'Trane (7:33)Segment originally aired September 19, 2008 Jazz saxophonist John Coltrane would have turned 83 next Wednesday. Baltimore musician Carl Grubbs grew up listening to Coltrane not just on albums and at clubs but also sitting with Coltrane at his home--Coltrane was married to Grubbs's first cousin. Grubbs will celebrate Coltrane's birthday with two concerts at An Die Musik on Saturday. Francis Davis, who won a Grammy this year for her liner notes to the 50th anniversary edition of Miles Davis's Kind of Blue, will give a talk before the first concert. More information here. External link: Carl Grubbs's homepage 700 Sundays (6:33)Theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck reviews 700 Sundays, Billy Crystal's one-man autobiographical play. It's playing through Thursday at the National Theatre in Washington, D.C. External links: 700 Sundays at the National Theatre Matt Lauer talks to Crystal about creating 700 Sundays Friday, September 11, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Josie's Story: Turning Tragedy to Triumph (21:05)Sorrel King has written about her daughter Josie, Josie's death, and all the grief, enlightenment and joy that has come from it. King's book, just published this week, is Josie's Story: A Mother's Inspiring Crusade to Make Medical Care Safe. Dr. Peter Pronovost, director of the Quality and Safety Research Group at Johns Hopkins University, and Sorrel join us in the studio to talk about the book and patient safety today. Sorrel King will be signing copies of her book Sunday at the Ivy Bookshop. Web Extra: Hear the full interview with Sorrel King and Dr. Pronovost External links: The Josie King Foundation Dr. Peter Pronovost The Poetry of the Personal (13:24)Stephen Dunn has written 16 books of poetry, including Different Hours, which won the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for poetry. He lives in Frostburg, Maryland, and he joins Tom Hall from the studios of WFWM to read some of his poems and talk about finding his way to poetry. External links: Stephen Dunn "If A Clown," a recent Dunn poem from The New Yorker Constitution Day and Community Health Center The free Constitution Day symposium on women's rights starts at 5 pm in the Brown center of the Maryland Insitute College of Art, 1301 Mount Royal Avenue. It's sponsored by MICA and the American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland. Civil-rights activist Angela Davis, political Journalist Amy Goodman of Democracy Now!, art curator Helen Molesowrth will discuss "How Soon is 'Equal Rights Now'? Women's Rights after Women's Lib." In addition to free tickets distributed in advance to the MICA community and ACLU constituents, a limited number of free tickets will be available to the general public on the day of the event. More information at 410-225-2300 or at MICA's website. RSVP to sachs@aclu-md.org The Ruscomb Mansion Community Health Center 25th anniversary Open House runs from 1 to 4 pm at the 4801 Yellowwood Ave., Baltimore 21207. Information at 410 367 7300 or on their website. Wednesday, September 9, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show The Free State is Expensive (12:26)Nationwide, states face a combined $142.6 billion in budget shortfalls in their 2010 budgets--that according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. And, as Governor O'Malley has been busy reminding everyone since the Board of Public Works cut $450 million dollars from Maryland's budget two weeks ago, Maryland is doing much better than many states. Better, but not that well. We talk to Marta Hummel Mossburg, columnist for the The Washington Examiner and a Senior Fellow at the Maryland Public Policy Institute, and Neil Bergsman, Director of the Maryland Budget and Tax Policy Institute, about what these budget cuts will mean for Maryland. External links: Proposed budget cuts (pdf) Maryland Budget and Tax Policy Institute on cuts (pdf) Mossburg: MD Budget is Still Flabby Happy Birthday, H.L. Mencken. You Big Jerk! (10:21)The Sage of Baltimore, H.L. Mencken, was very a great writer, very opinionated, and not very nice. This weekend marks his 129th birthday and there will be celebrations and explorations of all things Mencken at the Enoch Pratt Free Library on Saturday. Michael Kazin, Professor of American Political and Social history at Georgetown University will be delivering this year's Mencken Memorial Lecture entitled "Bryan Debates Mencken: The Confrontation We Missed" He joins us from his office in Georgetown to talk about Mencken. External links: Michael Kazin The Mencken Society William Jennings Bryan Enoch Pratt Free Library Mencken's Obituary of Bryan What to Make of High Zero (13:48)The High Zero Festival of Experimental Improvised Music returns to Baltimore for the 11th time Thursday night. Some people, like our producer Lawrence Lanahan, find the chaos of free improvisation thrilling. Others--like his girlfriend, freelance journalist Andrea Appleton--find it abrasive. We listen in as the couple revisits a conversation they've been having for years about what's really happening during a performance of experimental free improvisation. Web extras: Andrea and Lawrence react to a free improvisation by Han Bennink and Peter Brotzmann. Andrea talks about why she loves John Prine and symphonies. External link: High Zero Maryland Morning Culture Calendar Forget Me Not: An Evening at the Ritz Defender's Day Gallery 1448 Second Saturday in Station North Music in the Great Hall Community Concerts at Second Health Care Cryptography (9:13)Just what do all those buzzwords in the health care debate mean? To try and get some clarity, we again turn to Jack Meyer, a principle researcher with Health Management Associates, a research group in Washington DC, and a professor in the schools of public policy and public health at the University of Maryland. External links: Jack Meyer Kaiser Family Foundation information hub on health care reform Rewired (13:04)HBO's The Wire was praised for bringing Baltimore's streets to the screen. A new organization called Rewired for Change is now trying to bring The Wire back to the streets. Sonja Sohn, who played Det. Kima Greggs on the show, taught a violence prevention curriculum called "Rewired for Life" to at-risk Baltimore teens and young adults in July and August. The idea is that they'll see their own lives reflected back to them while watching episodes of The Wire and meeting the people involved with the show, and then they'll talk about how to make better decisions in the future. We visit a Rewired for Life classroom, and Sheilah talks to Sonja and one of her instructors, Greg Shamsuddin Carpenter, about the program. The Launch Celebration for Rewired for Change is Thursday night at 6:30 at the Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park and Museum in Fell's Point. Some of the students will give a poetry reading. To RSVP, go to rewiredforchange.com or call 410-340-0096. External links: Rewired for Change The Wire Cone Ed. (13:42)Nancy Hirschland Ramage is professor emeritus of humanities and arts at Ithaca College. She's also the great-great-niece of Claribel and Etta Cone. Now, along with her mother Ellen Hirschland, she's written a book about Baltimore's storied art-collecting duo that's part art history, part personal memory. It's called The Cone Sisters of Baltimore: Collecting at Full Tilt. She joins Tom Hall from Ithaca to talk about it. Dr. Ramage will discuss and sign The Cone Sisters of Baltimore Sunday, September 13 at 2:30p.m. at the Jewish Museum of Maryland. More information here. Web extra: Nancy Hirschland Ramage on how the Cones weathered the Depression, remembering the sisters' Baltimore apartment, and what she thinks of the current leadership at the BMA. WExternal links: The Cone Sisters of Baltimore: Collecting at Full Tilt Nancy Hirschland Ramage Monday, September 7, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: "Make Every Day Labor Day" (9:17)That's how Bill Barry signs off on his outgoing voicemail message. And he means it. Barry is Director of Labor Studies at the Community College of Baltimore County's Dundalk Campus. He brings us a commentary about the origins--and the future--of Labor Day and the labor movement. External links: Bill Barry's website The First Labor Day Parade by Theodore F. Watts of Silver Spring James Rouse's Vision for Columbia Segment originally aired October 15, 2008 (12:47)Developers are planning the first major renovation to downtown Columbia Maryland, 40 years after the city was first planned by urban designer James Rouse. We look back at the decisions that led to the birth of Columbia with Joshua Olsen, author of the James Rouse biography Better Places, Better Lives. Hear Maryland Morning's interview about the Downtown Columbia Plan with William Mackey of the Howard County Department of Planning and Zoning here. External link: Better Places, Better Lives: A Biography of James Rouse by Joshua Olsen Surviving Prostate Cancer Segment originally aired September 12, 2008 (14:29)September is Prostate Cancer Awareness month. Our culture editor Tom Hall was diagnosed with prostate cancer last spring. Last September, when he was just back from a successful surgery, Tom talked with his doctor, surgeon Patrick Walsh, about prostate cancer and how to survive it. External link: Dr. Patrick Walsh's Guide to Surviving Prostate Cancer Friday, September 4, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Taking the Crime out of Drugs (13:59) In the 1990s, when he was mayor of Baltimore, Kurt Schmoke floated the idea of legalizing and regulating drugs--"you can't prosecute your way out of this" he told the New York Times. Perennial Socialist candidate A. Robert Kaufman has run for various local offices on a platform of legalization. More recently, Baltimore City Councilman Bernard "Jack" Young has held hearings to examine the possibility of legalization. And, of course, Ed Burns and David Simon examined the idea in The Corner and The Wire. Now, two former Baltimore City police officers have renewed the conversation. In a recent op-ed published in the Washington Post, Peter Moskos and Neill Franklin write: "Drug distribution needs to be the combined responsibility of doctors, the government, and a legal and regulated free market. This simple step would quickly eliminate the greatest threat of violence: street-corner drug dealing". Sheilah talks to Moskos, who is now a professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and Neill Franklin, a 32-year veteran of local and state police forces. Web extra: Moskos on Franklin on the politics of legalizing drugs, and about local law enforcement and federal drug law. External links: Moskos and Franklin Post op-ed Law Enforcement Against Prohibition Peter Moskos website Post "Medical Marijuana Finds Mellow Audience in Md." You Don't Know Skipjack Segment originally aired April 22, 2009 (8:01) On Monday, the Deal Island Lions Club in Somerset County hosts the 50th annual Skipjack Races. Sheilah talks to Bill Sailer, secretary of the Deal Island Lions Club, and Captain Art Daniels, Jr., one of the few watermen who still dredges oysters on a skipjack. He'll race his skipjack, The City of Crisfield, on Monday. Back in April, Maryland Public Television aired Watermen, a rarely screened documentary shot on Deal Island in the 1960s. The film features a young Captain Art. One of the filmmakers, Holly Fisher, will shoot new footage this weekend, and she'll screen the original Watermen at St. John's United Methodist Church on Sunday at 2 p.m. Web extras: Captain Daniels recites--from memory--a poem about the sea that he wrote decades ago. Captain Daniels tells Sheilah about two of his most exciting moments on the Chesapeake: one treasured, and one treacherous. External links: Schedule for this weekends festivities on Deal Island Deal Island by Claudia Mouery (Arcadia Publishing) A detailed description of Maryland's skipjack fleet (pdf) History of the annual Deal Island skipjack races Somerset Herald on the 50th annual skipjack race and filmmaker Holly Fisher's return to Deal Island  Kinobe Kinobe and Soul Beat Africa Segment originally aired April 14, 2009 (16:03) Kinobe Herbert mastered the traditional music of his native Uganda and took it around the world, adding new sounds along the way. He tells Tom Hall about the folk stories behind his music and performs songs on the kora and kalimba with guitarist Ouma Michael. Kinobe and Soul Beat Africa will perform at the Institute of Musical Traditions in Silver Spring on Monday, September 28 at 7:30 p.m. External links: Kinobe Institute of Musical Traditions Wednesday, September 2, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Back to School, Part Three: PTA Plus (12:06)Continuing our "Back to School" series on education issues, Sheilah talks to Michael Sarbanes and Karen DeCamp about a Baltimore City Public Schools program that gives community organizations funding to boost parental involvement in local schools. Michael Sarbanes is the executive director of BCPS's Office of Partnerships, Communications, and Community Engagement, which has expanded the program from 63 schools last year to 85 schools this year. Karen DeCamp is director of neighborhood programs at Greater Homewood Community Corporation, which has received grants to do this work in several Baltimore schools. Web Extras: Michael Sarbanes on how, during a tour of the schools, he saw the effects of parental involvement: both tangible (pretty flowers) and intangible (community partners stepping in to find a truant student). Michael Sarbanes and Karen DeCamp describe how schools can meet the challenge of getting working parents involved in schools. External Links: BCPS Office of Partnerships, Communications, and Community Engagement Greater Homewood Community Corporation Research on parental involvement "Mom, this shirt is plaid with a butterfly collar!" Shoshana (10:14)Segment originally aired May 4, 2009 Shoshana Shoubin Cardin has held nearly every leadership position in every Jewish organization you can think of, both in Baltimore and nationally--sometimes holding several offices at once, often being the first woman in that office. She says the honor she holds most dear is that the pluralistic Jewish high school in Pikesville is named for her. Sheilah talks to Mrs. Cardin about her life and recently-released memoir, Shoshana: Memoirs of Shoshana Shoubin Cardin, published by the Jewish Museum of Maryland. Web Extra: Shoshana on a tense situation involving the first President Bush. External links: The Shoshana S. Cardin School Order form for Shoshana: Memoirs of Shoshana Shoubin Cardin (pdf) Jewish Museum of Maryland We Can Tell You How to Get to Sesame Street! (13:56)Segment originally aired January 6, 2009 When Sesame Street came on the scene in the 60's it changed children's television forever. Combining educational material with the spellbinding power of the tube, it's shaped countless minds ever since. Mike Davis, former editor for the Baltimore Sun and author of Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street, stops by to tell us about the revolution that was Sesame Street. External Links: Street Gang Johnny Cash on Sesame Street (They weren't kidding when they said everyone wanted to play their show. Of course he is teaching the kiddies about natural disasters.) Gordon, Elmo, and Swine Flu Tuesday, September 1, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show More Teachers, More Books (8:46)Lots of students in Maryland went back to school last week; more head back this week. And with them, of course, go the state's K-12 teachers. Over 62,000 of those teachers, principals, and support staff are members of the state teachers union--it represents every school district in the state except for Baltimore City. And, as of September 1, that union gets a new name--the Maryland State Education Association. We talk to MSEA's President Clara Floyd. This is the second part of Maryland Morning's back-to-school series. External links: Maryland State Education Association Flier for MSEA's Partnering to Close the Achievement Gap conference (pdf) Arne Duncan's July speech to the National Education Association High Water Everywhere Segment originally aired on May 26, 2009 (12:48)Just what do you do when you're shipwrecked at sea? Your options are limited and all of them unsavory. We talk with Evan Balkan, coordinator of the English program at the Community College of Baltimore County and author of Shipwrecked!: Deadly Adventures and Disasters at Sea, about how to survive (or not) on the high seas. External links: Shipwrecked!: Deadly Adventures and Disasters at Sea Balkan's Vanished!: Explorers Forever Lost Shipwreck Central National Geographic Adventure on finding Everett Ruess  Tom Sees Dead People (14:29)Wayne Schaumburg says that Greenmount Cemetery is "where Baltimore's best were laid to rest". And he knows whereof he speaks--he's been leading tours of Greenmount since 1985. He takes Tom Hall on a tour of some of the more noteworthy markers in the cemetery, and explains how the cemetery came to be there in the first place. Web extras: Wayne Schaumburg on the Hopkins family and their monument at Greenmount Cemetery Schaumburg on the Pratts at Greenmount External links: Wayne Schaumburg's website Greenmount Cemetery website (beware of creepy synth music) Monday, August 31, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show  Dr. Andres Alonso, CEO of Baltimore City Public Schools (photo from bcps.k12.md.us) Back to School, Part One: Andres Alonso (21:17)Baltimore City Public Schools open their doors today, and students in other Maryland districts have been back in for a week now. This week, Maryland Morning will focus on education issues. Tomorrow our guest will be Clara Floyd, president of the Maryland State Education Association (nee Maryland State Teachers Association.) Today, Sheilah talks to Baltimore City Public Schools CEO Andres Alonso about the progress the schools have made during his two years on the job, how much remains to be done, and why he believes Baltimore schools are at a "tipping point." Web extra: Dr. Alonso talks about the end-of-summer work that goes into getting schools ready for the return of students, and his spot checks of those schools. Web extra: Dr. Alonso addresses the $29,000 bonus he just received. External links: Baltimore City Public Schools Dr. Alonso's presentation from the State of the Schools address (pdf) Frankly, My Dear, I Don't Know Who You're Talking About Segment originally aired January 9, 2009 (11:56)Victor Fleming is probably the best director you've never heard of. He directed both The Wizard of Oz and Gone With the Wind...in the same year! Tom Hall, Jed Dietz and Mike Sragow talk about Fleming's films and Sragow's book about them: Victor Fleming: An American Movie Master. External links: Article about Fleming in The New Yorker Victor Fleming: An American Movie Master Friday, August 28, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Cancer Drugs: A Psychedelic Approach (11:13)This segment originally aired July 7, 2008 When you hear the phrase "cancer drugs," you're more likely to think of chemotherapy than magic mushrooms. But that's not what two researchers at Johns Hopkins University think. Roland Griffiths and Bill Richards are studying the effects of psilocybin, the psychoactive ingredient in hallucinogenic mushrooms. Their recent research shows that psilocybin can have long-term positive effects, creating feelings of well-being long after the drug is administered. Nathan talks to them about their newly published study and hopes for further research. Since this segment originally aired, Professor Griffiths and Dr. Richards have started a second study into the spirituality and psilocybin. You can read more about it here. External link: Volunteer for the cancer-psilocybin study Let Freedom Sing (8:50)This segment originally aired Febuary 25, 2009 The Freedom Singers weren't just the soundtrack to the civil rights movement--they helped it move forward. In the early 1960s, Rutha Harris and the other Singers toured through 48 states raising money for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. Forty-six years ago today they sang on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial at the March on Washington. Ms. Harris joins Maryland Morning to talk about how music can inspire change. External links: Rutha Harris: I am On the Battlefield Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee founding statement Official program for the 1963 March on Washington Tattoo You (13:42)This segment originally aired January 5th, 2009 Today, the subject of tattoos usually evokes associations with rock and roll, motorcycles, and hipsters. But long ago, tattoos had specific and very different meanings for various Pacific cultures. Tom Hall talks to Juniper Ellis, a professor of English at Loyola College in Maryland. She wrote a book about the history and meaning of tattoos in these Pacific cultures called Tattooing the World--Pacific Designs in Print & Skin. External links: Tattooing the World English Department at Loyola College in Maryland Wednesday, August 26, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Incarcerated Baltimore This segment originally aired April 7, 2009 (19:06)There are over 2 million people in prisons and jails in America--a Pew center report last year calculated that 1 out of every 100 adults in the country is incarcerated. Over 22 thousand people are currently in Maryland's prisons, with twice that number on parole or probation. We look at a new report that puts faces on some these numbers. "Bearing Witness", a report put together by the Justice Policy Institute, collects stories from people in Baltimore City affected by incarceration. We talk to the report's author, Shakti Belway; and to Alfreda Robinson, founder of the National Women's Prison Project and one of the people interviewed for the report. External links: "Bearing Witness" report National Women's Prison Project Putting more Correction in "Department of Corrections" This segment originally aired April 7, 2009 (8:13)Drug addiction is a main driver for rising prison populations nationwide. In the last four years Maryland has made strides in getting drug treatment into prisons. Maryland Morning producer Bruce Wallace visited one such treatment program at the Central Laundry Facility--a minimum-security, pre-release prison in Sykesville. External links: Abstract of JAMA study Pew reports on sentencing and corrections Robert Schwartz Greg Warren  Good design  Not-so-good design "Design is Thinking Materialized in Objects" (13:52)So writes Ellen Lupton in the new book she co-authored with her sister Julia Lupton. Ellen is a curator of contemporary design at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York and director of the graphic design masters program at the Maryland Institute College of Art here in Baltimore. The book is called Design Your Life: The Pleasures and Perils of Everyday Things, and she joins Tom in our studio to talk about it. Ellen and Julia Lupton read from and sign their book at the Ivy Bookstore Thursday at 7p.m. 6080 Falls Road, Baltimore 410.377.2966 Web extra:Ellen Lupton on why you should spend less time with your kids and why wheely luggage is b-a-d. External links: Design Your Life Ellen Lupton's homepage Julia Lupton's homepage Tuesday, August 25, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: The Beautiful Struggle (13:04) Originally aired February 11, 2009 The author and journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates was raised in Baltimore. His latest book, The Beautiful Struggle: A Father, Two Sons, and an Unlikely Road to Manhood, tells the story of growing up and his life with his mother, Father, and numerous brothers and sisters. Ta-Nehisi and Paul Coates (his father) joined us in the studio to talk about the book and their lives. External links: The Beautiful Struggle Ta-Nehisi Coates' Atlantic blog Paul Coates' Black Classic Press publishing The Beautiful Red Building (7:38)Originally aired April 2, 2008 Baltimore, April 1968. The eruption of civil unrest--frightening enough for anyone living in the city--was upsetting for new immigrants. During the riots, and the days and years that followed--newcomers not only had to cope with fear, but also the confusion of trying to understand race and class tensions in the United States. Maryland Morning's former producer Jennifer Chang shares a personal essay about the experience of one Chinese family. This essay won a first place award for Commentary in the 2008 Maryland Society of Professional Journalists. Here's what the citation said: This is everything a radio commentary should be. It's intimate, but spans a broad scope of the immigrant American experience. The delivery is touching and personal, but not sappy. It sounds almost improvised by the speaker, but is well structured and narrative. Once you hear the start, "My grandmother doesn't know what day she was born..." you're compelled to see where this is going, and the listener is rewarded with a literary, epic and relevant six minutes of radio. The story of the building is really the locus of a family's--and, to some degree, an immigrant population's--struggle through a defining, tumultuous time in American history, spoken in Chinese, but interpreted through the very astute and creative voice of a succeeding generation. This is the kind of piece that takes a local touchstone--in this case, a few thousand square feet of storefront--and fills in the tragedies and triumphs that explain why and how we all got to be here. When Games Aren't Fun (13:32)Originally Aired March 31, 2009 Author and journalist Mark Hyman knows firsthand America's preoccupation with youth sports--his son was badly injured as a result of playing them. Tom talks with Mark about youth sports today and his new book Until it Hurts: America's Obsession with Youth Sports and How It Harms our Kids. External link: Until it Hurts Monday, August 24, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Baltimore's Bikeability Segment Originally Aired May 13, 2009 (11:36)Biking your commute is better for you and for the environment, but just how easy is it to do in Baltimore? Our producers bring us along as they do their best to bike into work. Baltimore City's Bike Planner Nate Evans, and the president of One Less Car Greg Cantori also join us to talk about how bike-able Baltimore is. Baltimore's biking scene continues to grow! You can bike around Baltimore on the upcoming Tour Du Port Bike ride on October 4th. The Harford Road Beautification Project might be putting bike lanes in their community, you can find out more at their community meeting on August 26th. External Links: Tour Du Port Ride Harford Road Beautification Project meeting (PDF) Biking Baltimore One Less Car The Year in Hate Originally Aired March 30, 2009 (8:14)Baltimore is still recovering from last week's hate crime. A report from earlier this year says that the number of hate groups in Maryland and America are on the rise. We revisit a conversation we had in March about the report, the Southern Poverty Law Center's annual "The Year in Hate". We talked with the report's editor, Mark Potok. November 17, 2008 Maryland Morning conversation with Potok about extreme Black Hebrew Israelites External links: Sun Article on Last Week's Hate Crime Southern Poverty Law center's "Year in Hate" Religious Music and Intolerance Originally aired April 18, 2008 (12:34) In response to a recent classical music concert that offended some attendees, Tom is joined by Dr. Chris Leighton, Executive Director of the Institute for Christian and Jewish Studies, and Rabbi Mark Loeb, Senior Rabbi at Beth El Congregation in Baltimore, about the arts and religious intolerance. The book written by Tom Hall and Chris Leighton is "The Bach Passions in Our Time: Contending with the Legacy of Antisemitism." The Maryland chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists named Tom's interview one of the Best Commentaries of 2008. About the segment, they said: "This is a very thoughtful talk show connected to a choral concert by the Kings College Choir. The host and guests are exceptionally knowledgeable and they provide a good context for those times when beautiful and important music crosses into politically troubling territory." External link: Institute for Christian and Jewish Studies Friday, August 21, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Dis-Integration (19:57)Segment originally aired May 15, 2009 It's been 55 years since the United States Supreme Court took the bold step of ordering the racial integration of American public schools in Brown v. Board of Education. Maryland schools--Baltimore in particular--remain some of the most heavily segregated in the country. Sheilah speaks to Dr. Gary Orfield, a leading researcher on school segregation and the co-founder of the Civil Rights Project at UCLA, about why school systems continue to resegregate. Also joining the conversation is Michael Corbin, an occasional City Paper contributor who taught in Baltimore City public schools and now teaches in Maryland's correctional system at Baltimore's Metropolitan Transition Center. Web extras: Gary Orfield explains why his current education research presages what the 2010 Census will tell us about segregation in the suburbs. The rest of Sheilah's conversation with Gary Orfield and Michael Corbin. External links: Brown v. Board of Education Michael Corbin reviews Jonathan Kozol's The Shame of the Nation in City Paper School segregation research at the Civil Rights Project at UCLA May 18, 1954 New York Times article on Brown v. Board decision (pdf) Baltimore versus Brown V. Board Segment originally aired May 18, 2009 (The audio for this segment is combined with "Dis-integration" above) Baltimore might have one of the most segregated school systems in the nation, but northeast Baltimore has one of the most integrated schools in the city. City Neighbors Charter School is just about half white, half black. Sheilah talks to co-founder Bobbi Macdonald and fifth grade teacher Shane Bennett about how the school became so integrated and how the students benefit from the diversity. External links: City Neighbors Charter School Canary in the Music Mine (13:58)Segment originally aired June 23, 2009 Baltimorean Ian Nagoski recently started a new label, Canary Records, to resuscitate early 20th century foreign language music from around the world. He dropped into the studios to spin a few of his favorites, including a song by two Indian women that he swears are sisters, and a South African hit that was covered by Louis Armstrong, Bill Haley and the Comets, and Lawrence Welk. External links: A String of Pearls Canary Records Ian's blog at Arthur Magazine More on the Closing of the Carter Center A few weeks ago we talked to Dr. Brian Hepburn of the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene about his department's decision to close the Walter P. Carter Center, Baltimore's only public psychiatric center. Seventeen Carter Center employees signed a letter to us responding to the segment and taking issue with some of what Dr. Hepburn said. Here are PDFs of their letter: Page 1 Page 2 Signatures The original story the letter is a response to is here. Wednesday, August 19, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: The War at Home: From Baghdad to Baltimore (10:35)Segment originally aired March 17, 2009 Sawsan, an Iraqi pharmacist, remembers life in Baghdad before, during, and right after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, and talks about the pressures that made her leave Iraq and come to Baltimore. The International Rescue Committee helped Sawsan relocate to Baltimore, and she's working for them now. The IRC and the other organizations in the Baltimore Resettlement Center on Eastern Avenue will celebrate the Center's 10th anniversary on September 24th and 25th; More information about that here (pdf). External links: IRC Baltimore Maryland Morning interview about the IRC's "In Dire Straits" report about the struggles of Iraqis living in America Maryland Morning's series "The War at Home" Lawyers, Hons, and Money (10:14)Segment originally aired April 28, 2009 Imagine being destitute in Baltimore during the Great Depression and accidentally finding thousands of gold coins buried in your basement. Sounds fantastical, but that's exactly what happened to two boys playing in their Eden Street basement 75 years ago. Coin collector Leonard Augsberger heard about this story and had to find out more. Turns out it involves a lot of lawsuits--there was only one pot of gold, but lots of Baltimoreans remembered burying it. Sheilah talks with Leonard Augsberger about the book he wrote, Treasure in the Cellar: A Tale of Gold in Depression-Era Baltimore. External links: Treasure in the Cellar The Press at the Maryland Historical Society Short Essay on Treasure Trove Law  Where does he get such wonderful toys? The Meaning of "Bromst" (6:15)Segment originally aired March 24, 2009 Maryland musician Dan Deacon's latest album, Bromst, came out in March. It's a pretty big and brave departure from his previous work. He stopped by our studios to talk with Tom about the new album, composing, and just how you make minimalist music infectious. External links: Video of Dan Deacon Ensemble at Whartscape Dan Deacon on MySpace Calling all Animals (7:44)Segment originally aired February 24, 2009 The members of the indie/avant-garde/whatever band Animal Collective grew up in Maryland, and named their new album Merriweather Post Pavilion after the venue in Columbia, Maryland. Our show is about Maryland. We talk to Dave Portner and Brian Weitz, two members of Animal Collective, about the album and the venue. External links: Animal Collective at Domino Records "Summertime Clothes" video Tuesday, August 18, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Iraq War at Home: A View from Afar (10:50)Segment originally aired March 18, 2009 As part of our week of reflection on the war in Iraq, we've been talking to people who have been personally involved in the conflict. Today we're taking a step back and looking at the impact of the conflict on the region with Dr. Gilbert Burnham, co-director of the Center for Refugee and Disaster Response at Johns Hopkins. External links: Dr. Burnham's website "The Human Cost of the War in Iraq" from the Lancet (pdf) Maryland Morning's series "The War at Home" Full Frontal Gardening (9:37)Segment originally aired April 11, 2008 Los Angeles Artist Fritz Haeg wants to know what happens when you take a boring front lawn and turn it into a bounteous garden. His Edible Estates art project came through town in the spring of 2008 in partnership with Baltimore's Contemporary Museum, and former Maryland Morning producer John Notarianni followed Haeg on his quest for a prototypical American home to transform. Fritz Haeg is still looking for Edible Estates participants, but only in USDA Plant Hardiness Zones 3, 4, 5 and 9. That doesn't include Maryland, but you can figure out what states it does include at arborday.org. Haeg's latest Edible Estate is in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood. If you're in New York on September 14, stop by for the Harvest/Opening. External links: Contemporary Museum Fritz Haeg An Edible Estate in Baltimore WYe PR (8:59)Segment originally aired July 21, 2009 The Maryland band Wye Oak released their second album in July. The Knot is the follow up to their 2008 release If Children. Maryland Morning Producer Katherine Gorman talks to the duo, Jenn Wasner and Andy Stack, about the album. External links: Wye Oak on Merge Records Aural States likes Wye Oak a lot The Ape on the Church Steps (4:57)J. Wynn Rousuck reviews The Ape on the Church Steps, playing through August 30th on the campus of the College of Notre Dame as part of the Baltimore Playwrights Festival. We're intrigued by the play's title too. External links: The Ape on the Church Steps The Baltimore Playwrights Festival Theatrical Mining Company Monday, August 17, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Honorably Discharged...Into a Recession (9:11)Segment originally aired March 16, 2009 Retired Spc. Lawrence Towles, a 23-year-old Iraq veteran from the eastern shore, received an honorable discharge from the Army last August. He talks about trying to restart his civilian life in the midst of a recession. Web extra: "This is my K2500 1989 GMC Suburban" Web extra: "I've just compiled all the pictures from the time I was in Iraq" Web extra: "I love my AK" External links: Jobless rate hits 11.2% for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans Maryland's Commitment to Veterans Maryland's "Network of Care" for veterans "Vets Helping Vets" from the Navy Times Maryland Morning segment on Virtual Reality Therapy used to treat PTSD Maryland Morning's "The War at Home" series Who Decides if You Can't (10:31)Segment originally aired May 27, 2009 An advance directive is a document that explains a person's wishes regarding medical care, in preparation for the time when it's no longer possible make decisions or communicate those wishes. Many of us don't plan for this in advance, so the decisions often fall to health care providers, family members, or lawyers. We talk to two experts on Maryland's laws regarding advance directives: Howard Sollins, principal at Ober Kaler law firm and co-author of MarylandAdvanceDirectives.com; and Jason Frank, a partner at Frank, Frank, and Scherr, an elder law firm in Lutherville. The Maryland State Advisory Council on Quality Care at the End-of-Life meets October 23 at 10:00 a.m. at the Department of Aging, Room 1007, 301 West Preston St., Baltimore, Md. 21201. External links: Ober Kaler and Maryland Attorney General's healthcare decisions website Frank, Frank, and Scherr Maryland Attorney General's site on healthcare decisions  Katrina Ford of Celebration performing at Ottobar in 2005. "Why go through the machine if it's not working for you?" (13:58)Segment originally aired May 11, 2009 That quote is from Katrina Ford of Baltimore-based band Celebration. When it came time for the band to renegotiate their contract with indie label 4AD, they decided to break away and release music online--for free. Tom talks to Katrina about Celebration's bold leap into the future of music distribution, and about their latest web-only singles. External links: Free music from Celebration Record producer Steve Albini's classic essay on the record industry, from The Baffler Celebration and Beach House perform "Billie Jean" at Metro Gallery August 7 - mp3 Friday, August 14, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show $73 Billion? That's a lot of Money for a Six-Month-Old. (12:20)The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act--better known as the stimulus bill--turns 6 months old on Monday. Nationally so far, $73billion out of nearly $581 billion has been spent, according to the public interest news site Pro Publica (there's an additional $212 billion in estimated tax cuts). Some analysts contend the stimulus spending is part of why the recession seems to be ending; others say that's far from clear. Maryland is slated to receive about $4 billion all told, and we want to see how the state has been spending it. We're joined by Kelly Clifton, an associate professor of Urban Studies and Planning at the University of Maryland at College Park; and Neil Bergsman, director of the Maryland Budget and Tax Policy Institute. External links: Maryland Budget and Tax Policy Institute on ARRA Spending in Maryland Kelly Clifton's website Pro Publica on stimulus Stateline.org on stimulus Maryland's stimulus site The Olympics in the Backyard (9:41)The events that would become the Special Olympics started as summer camps in the yard of Eunice Shriver's house in Rockville, Maryland. We talk about those first camps, and about Shriver's legacy and inspiration, with Patricia Fegan, president and CEO of Special Olympics Maryland. External links: Eunice Kennedy Shriver's website Special Olympics Maryland The Kennedy-Krieger Institute The Lay of the Field (9:08)Tom Hall talks with Mark Hyman about the ins (the Ravens) and the outs (the Orioles) of Maryland sports. Mark Hyman writes about the business of sports for Business Week Magazine and the Sports Business Journal. His new book is called Until it Hurts: America's Obsession with Youth Sports and How it Harms Our Kids. External link: Mark Hyman Dancing to Seven Different Tunes (5:20)Maryland Morning's theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck reviews Dancing Without You, part of the Baltimore Playwrights Festival. It features seven actors portraying different aspects of a single character. It's up through August 16 at The Barn on the campus of the Community College of Baltimore County Catonsville. External links: Dancing Without You Baltimore Playwrights Festival Wednesday, August 12, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Bringing Town back Downtown (11:18)When Columbia, Maryland was born in 1967, it was heralded as a new kind of city. By the time it celebrated its 40th anniversary two years ago, though, many were saying that it was more suburban than urban or, as a noted architect said to a group of Columbia residents: "Columbia is a patchwork of disparate elements, and it's not greater than the sum of its parts". Over the past few years, Columbia has been having a broad conversation about how to regain the ideal of a new urban-ness, a conversation that's been outlined in what's called the Downtown Columbia Plan. We talk to William Mackey, Project Manager of the Downtown Columbia Plan for the Howard County Department of Planning and Zoning, about the place that this plan envisions. External links: Planning Department information on Downtown Columbia Plan Coalition for Columbia's Downtown Columbia 2.0 Turning Guns into Plowshares (10:47)The Baltimore Youth Apprenticeship Program has been teaching young people from the foster care system and from all over Baltimore how to farm, teach, and even juggle. They've also learned approaches for reducing violence in their neighborhoods. On Friday they'll attend a Transformation Ceremony to mark the completion of the program. Sheilah talks to Nzinga Oneferua-El, president and co-founder of one of the program's partners, SAFE Healing Foundation. Sheilah also talks to two participants. The public is invited to the Transformation Ceremony. It takes place from noon till 2 p.m. in the cafeteria on the Lake Clifton campus at 2801 Saint Lo Drive in Baltimore. External link: MICA Professor Hugh Pocock visits the Great Kids Farm  Sascha's Unholy Zucchini Turning Bounty into Banquet (10:04)Sascha Wolhandler of Sascha's 527 in Mount Vernon gives us some recommendations on what to do with all the bountiful summer produce. (Think zucchini sixteen ways.) Sascha's Summer Pesto 4 cups fresh basil 5 Tbsp crushed garlic 2 cups olive oil 2 1/2cups Parmesan 1 tbsp salt Blend garlic and basil in a food processor, slowly add olive oil. Add parmesan salt and pepper. Stuffed Provencal Vegetables 1 Pound Ground Chicken 6 Zucchini 6 Onions 4 Red Peppers 4 Tomatoes 2 Eggs 1 1/2 Cups Parmesan 2 Cups Breadcrumbs preheat oven to 350 Set aside 2 zucchini and 2 onions. Cut the remaining veggies in half. Take insides out of the Vegetables leaving a 1/4 shell. Put the shells on a sheet tray and rub with garlic oil. Put in oven for 10 minutes until softened. With the extra onions and zucchinis chop all the inner parts of the veggies. Saute with the ground chicken in some olive oil. Season all with thyme, oregano, salt, pepper. Add two eggs, the bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese. Combine well. Stuff vegetables with heaping mixture. Bake for 10 minutes until crisp and golden brown. External links: Sascha's 527 Maryland Morning Culture Calendar (3:36)This week Tom is joined by Mary Rose Madden, queen of WYPR's newsroom. Bettina Judd at Thursdays at the Lewis Thursday, Reginald F Lewis Museum, Baltimore Studio of the Arts: Social and Arts Exhibition Friday, 7:30, Studio of the Arts, Annapolis Baltimore Fashion Week Wednesday through Friday Frederick Fashion September 17th -19th, deadline for registering August 21 Maryland Ensemble Theater: The Great Improv Bender August 14th, 15th ,21st and 22nd Housing Workshop August 19th, 5-8:30 New Town High School, Owings Mills Duane "Tony" Baysmore, Office of Community Conservation, Western Sector Coordinator Phone 410-887-4040 The Girls' Guide to Rocking Reading August 23rd, The Zodiac, Baltimore Tuesday, August 11, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: That's Entertainment (10:20)Remember the Live Entertainment Bill? Neither do we, or at least we don't recognize the way that it looks now. It was introduced about this time in 2008 and it's been evolving ever since. It once was a matter of licensing venues, now it's legislation that focuses on zoning changes. We're going to figure out just what changes have been made and why. External links: Baltimore City Council page on the Entertainment Bill Ramblin' Man...atee (11:42)When a teenage manatee named Ilya was captured on video swimming around the Havre De Grace docks, Jennifer Dittmar was called in. She's the stranding coordinator for the National Aquarium in Baltimore's Marine Animal Rescue Program. Nathan talks to Jen about how she helps stranded seals, dolphins, and manatees get back on their...uh...fins. Web extra: Jen Dittmar talks about Cookie the seal, who was discovered stranded in Ocean City, rehabilitated, released off Long Island, NY, and tracked via satellite all around the Atlantic coast. Web extra: Jen Dittmar tells Nathan about the transmission of viruses and diseases between marine mammals and humans. (Yes, dolphins can catch colds.) External links: National Aquarium in Baltimore's Marine Animal Rescue Program Washington Post: "Miami-Based Manatee Is Spotted in Chesapeake Bay" The Sounds of Manatees, from the U.S. Geological Survey's Sirenia Project Oriole Magic, Read It Happen (13:51)Mike Gesker produced a 1991 Maryland Public Television documentary called Baseball, The Birds on 33rd, and then did a 10-year stint as a freelance writer for the ballpark program at Camden Yards. The next logical step, of course, was to compile the 900-page The Orioles Encyclopedia: A Half Century of History and Highlights. Tom Hall talks to Mike about The Oriole Way and all the games the Birds won before they lost their way. Web extra: The rest of Tom's interview with Mike Gesker. External link: The Orioles Encyclopedia Monday, August 10, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show A Story from Two Worlds: R. Dwayne Betts's A Question of Freedom (20:59)When he was 15, R. Dwayne Betts was an eleventh-grader at Suitland High School in Maryland; he was taking honors English and AP U.S. history. When he was 16, he began serving a nine-year term in prison. Today, he's a graduate of the University of Maryland-College Park, a published poet pursuing an MFA at Warren Wilson College in North Carolina, a husband, a father, and a national voice on juvenile justice issues. A few months ago he told the Baltimore Sun that he lives "with two worlds in my head." He talks to Sheilah about inhabiting those two worlds, and about his newly-published memoir, A Question of Freedom: A Memoir of Survival, Learning, and Coming of Age in Prison. He'll be reading from the book at the Borders in Largo, Maryland on Tuesday and at the Enoch Pratt Central Library on September 9. External links: R. Dwayne Betts Betts at Borders in Largo Betts at the Enoch Pratt Betts in The Sun Betts in The Afro Campaign for Youth Justice  Gil Jawetz's "About To Do Something" Voodoo in the Crescent City (7:11)Baltimore painter Gil Jawetz and his wife, writer Tracey Middlekauff, were married in New Orleans about a year ago, and the paintings in Gil's current show at the Yellow Dog Tavern in Canton are inspired by that experience. The show is called "Voodoo Wedding." Tom talks to Gil and Tracey about their voodoo wedding and the paintings it inspired. External links: Jawetz's voodoo wedding paintings Yellow Dog Tavern Miracle on the Deck (6:20)Kenlynn Schroeder owns the Lucinda Gallery in Federal Hill, and she is a painter herself. She's also legally blind. She tells Tom about the birth of two doves on her back deck that inspired the bright, colorful paintings in her current Lucinda exhibit, "The Miracle on the Deck: Mourning Doves Hatch Twins." The Miracle on the Deck runs through August. A new exhibit, Kittens, Gardens, & Dragonflies, opens September 3. External link: Lucinda Gallery Friday, August 7, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Let's All Go to the Lobby (10:00)We've been learning a lot recently about how different pieces of an economy behave during a recession--the housing sector, the automobile sector, the manufactured durable goods sector, the freegan sector. Now add to the picture this: The statehouse lobbying sector. It turns out that economic slowdowns don't slow this sector down much. That's the conclusion of an article John Wagner wrote this week after the Maryland State Ethics Commission released numbers on lobbying for November of last year through April of this one. Wagner is a reporter for the Washington Post. External links: Wagner's Washington Post article Baltimore Sun on lobbying disclosures State Ethics Commission filings Maryland Fights Malaria (10:11)Malaria is one of the world's deadliest diseases. Ten percent of the world's population gets sick with malaria each year, over one million of those infected die annually. Researchers in Maryland are on the forefront of creating a Malaria vaccine, and two of them join us to talk about their work. Nobel Laureate Dr. Peter Agre is Director of the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research institute; Dr. Stephen Hoffman is CEO and chief scientific officer for Sanaria, A Rockville based biotech research firm. External links: Sanaria Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute Are You There God? It's Me, Tom Hall (14:26)Author Lizzie Skurnick explains to Tom the intricacies of young adult novels. Lizzie's new book, Shelf Discovery, is an appreciation of the books she loved as a teenager. She explains to Tom how re-reading them as an adult revealed depth and nuances that she missed the first time around. Web extra: Lizzie Skurnick on why books that teach obvious lessons are no fun. Shelf Discovery: The Teen Classics We Never Stopped Reading at HarperCollins Skurnick's blog, Old Hag Fine Lines feature at Jezebel "Wilder Women: The Mother and Daughter Behind the Little House Stories" in The New Yorker Wednesday, August 5, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: What's Purple and Red and Not Quite All Over? (11:17)That would be MTA's proposed light rail transit lines. Governor O'Malley's announcement of the preferred routes for a Red Line through Baltimore and a Purple Line through the D.C. suburbs was a big step, but there's plenty left to do. Henry Kay, deputy administrator for planning and engineering for the Maryland Transit Administration, tells Sheilah what needs to happen before the first track is laid. Web extra: Henry Kay addresses the financial and safety concerns of putting a one-lane tunnel under Cooks Lane in West Baltimore. Web extra: Sheilah asks Henry Kay whether Obama's choice of former Maryland Transportation Secretary John Porcari as Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation helps Maryland's quest for federal funding. Web extra: Henry Kay explains how financial or in-kind contributions from local governments and private organizations can reduce the state's financial burden. Web extra: Henry Kay explains how Maryland's many transportation priorities can be shifted around to meet the funding needs of these latest mass transit projects. Web extra: Henry Kay explains MTA's plans to set the Purple Line along the same right-of-way as the Capital Crescent Trail. External links: MTA's site for the Red Line MTA's site for the Purple Line The "locally preferred alternative" Red Line route The "locally preferred alternative" Purple Line route Maryland Morning's earlier Red Line coverage, including full interviews with supporters and opponents CATS! Not the Musical! (10:13)Kitten season is upon us and Baltimore's feral feline population will soon see its annual increase. Nathan talks with volunteer cat trapper Erin Harty, and Elizabeth Parowski, a representative from Alley Cat Allies, a non profit based in Bethesda, about the Trap-Neuter-Return approach to keeping the cat population down. External links: Community Cats Maryland Alley Cat Allies BUGS! Not (all) Bad! (14:02)New York Times and Maryland Morning Garden Gal Anne Raver tells Tom about some bugs you don't want in your garden, and others you do. External links: University of Maryland Home and Garden Information Center Anne Raver's book Deep in the Green Maryland Morning Culture Calendar Diane Finlayson, afternoon host on WYPR, joins Tom this week. If there's a smoother pair of voices we ain't heard 'em. Events discussed: 49th Annual Wheat Threshing, Steam & Gas Engine Show, Friday through Sunday, August 7-9 Rte. 313 Between Denton and Federalsburg Shunpiker, Opens Friday August 7 School 33 Arts Center, Baltimore Dorchester County Peach Festival, Saturday August 8 Antioch United Methodist Church, Cambridge Baltimore Improv Group, Friday August 7 Creative Alliance, Baltimore Mambo Combo, Saturday August 8 Boordy Vineyards, Hydes Chromatics on the Penumbral Lunar Eclipse, Thursday August 6 Chesapeake Arts Center, Brooklyn Park More Than Skin Deep opening, Saturday August 8 Baltimore Clayworks, Baltimore Tuesday, August 4, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show:  The Business and Legal Straits at Sparrows Point (11:09)Fifty years ago, the piece of land called Sparrows Point, just beyond the Francis Scott Key Bridge heading out from Baltimore's Inner Harbor, held the greatest steel-making capacity in the world. In those years, Sparrows Point employed 30,000 workers. In January of this year, when Maryland Morning last talked about Sparrows Point, the worker rolls were about a tenth of that. Now, two legal challenges related to environmental degradation on the Point have been launched, further complicating the future of steel production there. We talk to Randy Leonard, a reporter for the Dundalk Eagle, and Mark Reutter, a former reporter for the Baltimore Sun and author of the book Making Steel: Sparrows Pont and the Rise and Ruin of American Might, about what the present and near future look like for Sparrows Point. External links: Reutter on chemical pollution near Sparrows Point Leonard on Bay Foundation intent to sue Leonard on class action suit Mark Reutter's Making Steel website Chesapeake Bay Foundation Sparrows Point Notice of Intent to Sue Sparrows Point Action class-action suit Pulaski, what's a Pulaski? (9:15)The name Pulaski is no doubt familiar to many Marylanders--Baltimore has a Pulaski Highway, a Pulaski monument, a Pulaski Industrial Area and, Google has just informed us, even a band named Pulaski. And we're probably missing some stuff. There's currently a resolution moving through the House to award honorary citizenship to Casimir Pulaski, the person behind all these Pulaskis. We talk to Rep. Dennis Kucinich, the sponsor of the legislation. And to find out about Pulaski's connection to Maryland, we hear from Thomas Hollowak, an Associate Director of Special Collections at the University of Baltimore's Langsdale Library who's written extensively about Maryland's Polish community. External links: Thomas Hollowak's publications Archives of Maryland Polonia at UB Polish Heritage Association of Maryland House resolution on honorary citizenship for Casimir Pulaski Senate resolution on same Dennis Kucinich website Holy Alliance! (13:26)The Afro Bop Alliance is based in Maryland, but it is full of musical influences from several continents. They're playing Strathmore Hall in Bethesda on Wednesday; Tom talks to their founder, leader, and percussionist Joe McCarthy. External links: Afro Bop Alliance Afro Bop at Strathmore Joe McCarthy Monday, August 3, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: More Than Bullets (20:05)Eighteen people were shot in one Baltimore day last week. Many more will feel the effects. Some research says that the rate of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder among children in violent neighborhoods is twice that of returning Iraq veterans. Sheilah talks to Pamela Willis, a social worker at a Baltimore public elementary school, about how to figure out which students are living with trauma and how to help them. Then Sheilah talks to Victor Carrion, a Stanford University child psychiatrist who is doing some of the pioneering research on community violence and youth PTSD. Web extra: Victor Carrion ponders whether PTSD is tied not just to the environment, but to genetic risk factors. Web extra: Victor Carrion says that one-size-fits-all interventions for PTSD don't provide the individualized treatments some children need. Web extra: Victor Carrion discusses PTSD and Hurricane Katrina. Web extra: Victor Carrion asks whether our country has collective PTSD. External links: San Francisco Chronicle on Victor Carrion's research Center for School Mental Health at University of Maryland School of Medicine Baltimore Sun: "18 shootings stem largely from drug feud, police say" Baltimore Sun: "Relatives of girl, 5, voice hope she'll live" More Than Words (13:49)For 28 years, the Baltimore Playwrights Festival has been nurturing area playwrights with readings, workshops, and a month of productions each summer. The festival is going on now in theaters around the city; it runs through September 6. Tom talks Rosemary Frisino Toohey, author of G-Man, receiving its premier this week as part of the festival, and Miriam Bazensky, G-Man's director and acting chair of this year's festival. External links: Baltimore Playwrights Festival G-Man Rosemary Frisino Toohey J. Wynn Rousuck reviews G-Man Playwrights Group of Baltimore Friday, July 31, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: The Problem with Portability (12:11)Cell phones make communication so much easier, and that's usually a good thing. However, problems arise when cell phones are smuggled into prisons and detention facilities and used to organize crimes outside the prison walls. Maryland's correction system is being used as a testing ground to try out technologies that can block, jam or detect cell phone signals. We talk with Gary Maynard, Maryland's Secretary of Public Safety and Correctional Services, and Chris Guttman-McCabe, vice president of regulatory affairs for CTIA - The Wireless Association, about the problems involved and their possible solutions. External links: CTIA - The Wireless Association Cell Phone Jamming in the Wall Street Journal The Problem with Mobility (10:19)According to Johns Hopkins, the average American moves 11.7 times. That's Johns W. Hopkins, by the way, not the university. He's the executive director of preservation organization Baltimore Heritage, and he's identified three Baltimore homes that have remained in the same families for 100 years. The Baltimore Centennial Homes project launches tonight in Little Italy, where 99-year-old John Pente and his family have kept a house for 104 years. Sheilah talks to Johns Hopkins and John Pente about how long-time residents can stabilize a neighborhood. The Baltimore Centennial Homes celebration starts at 8:45 tonight at Stiles and High streets in Baltimore before a screening of Over the Hedge. More information here. External links: Baltimore Centennial Homes Little Italy Let's Go to the Movies! (14:03)Baltimore Sun film critic Mike Sragow and Jed Dietz of the Maryland Film Festival visit with Tom Hall for our monthly movie rundown. From box office smash hits to sleepers, we'll talk about it all. External links: Jed Dietz Mike Sragow Wednesday, July 29, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Baltimore's Hi-Tech Present and Future (15:34)We ask Tom Sadowski, President and CEO of the Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore, why he's bullish about the IT industry around Baltimore. Then we hear from Deb Tillett, President of Kalypso Media USA, and Matt Firor, President of ZeniMax Online Studios, about why Hunt Valley is one of the most important centers for video game creation in the country. External links: Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore Alliance's IT Industry study (pdf) Kalypso Media's "Tropico 3: El Presidente is Back" ZeniMax Online Studios Dr. Ferrucci on Aging (6:28)We all age differently, that much is clear, but the differences in how men and women age are becoming much clearer in light of new research on how our hormones change over time. We talk about what we know about these hormonal changes with Dr. Luigi Ferrucci, the director of the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging at the National Institute on Aging. External links: Dr Ferrucci Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging Baltimore Jazzscapes (9:06)Jazz audiences are shrinking, and fewer young people are filling the seats. The Baltimore Jazz Alliance is trying to rebuild the audience for jazz, and in the process get gigs for its members. Tom talks to BJA president Mark Osteen about Baltimore Jazzscapes II, a CD compilation of local jazz talent. External links: Baltimore Jazz Alliance Baltimore Jazzscapes II Maryland Morning Culture Calendar This week, Tom is joined by Louisa Jonas, WYPR's New Media Producer. Events discussed: Aishu Venkataraman, Saturday August 1, sets at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. An Die Musik, Baltimore "Disconnecting the Wire...What's Next?" Thursday July 30, 5:30 p.m. Baltimore Museum of Industry The Diary of Anne Frank, Thursday July 30 through Saturday August 8 Maryland Ensemble Theatre, Frederick Move Music, Thursday, July 30, 7:30 p.m., and Friday, July 31, 8:00 p.m. Creative Alliance, Baltimore Mirror art workshop with Bob Benson, Monday August 3, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Chesapeake Arts Center, Brooklyn Park "What Happens Next?", Tuesdays at 1:30 p.m. Red Canoe Children's Books and Coffee House, Baltimore Felicia Morgenstern: "A Modern Day Mae West," Sunday August 2, 4 p.m. Minas Gallery and Boutique, Baltimore International Festival 2009, Saturday August 1 and Sunday August 2, noon to 9 p.m. Poly/Western High School Complex Tuesday, July 28, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Federal Law, Local Enforcement: Illegal Immigration in Frederick County (13:08)Frederick County is the only Maryland jurisdiction participating in a controversial Department of Homeland Security program that trains local law enforcement agencies to enforce federal immigration law. DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano is making some changes to the program--called "287(g)" after the section of immigration law in which it appears--in reaction to criticism that it enabled racial profiling and deprived illegal immigrants of their day in court before being deported. Sheilah gets a primer on 287(g) from Frederick News Post reporter Nicholas Stern, then talks to Sheriff Charles Jenkins and CASA de Maryland lawyer Michelle Mendez about what the DHS changes mean for Frederick County. Web extra: Sheilah's interview with Sheriff Jenkins and Michelle Mendez in its entirety. (17:18)External links: Frederick County Sheriff's Office CASA de Maryland Nicholas Stern writes about 287(g) for Frederick News Post An overview of 287(g) at ice.gov New changes to 287(g)  A Merce Cunningham Dance event at Dia:Beacon (photo New York Times) Memories of Merce (9:06)Choreographer Merce Cunningham passed away this weekend. Known best for his work separating dance from music and incorporating the element of chance into a performance, Cunningham's ideas forever changed the world of modern dance. We remember his innovations with University of Maryland professor of dance Alvin Mayes. Mayes studied at Cunningham's studio in the late seventies. External links: Alvin Mayes Merce Cunningham in the New York Times A Preoccupation with Space: The Paintings of Herman Maril (9:30)In his 60-year career of painting and teaching, the artist Herman Maril produced an acclaimed body of work that is displayed at some of the most prestigious museums in the United States, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney Museum, the National Academy of Design, the Corcoran Gallery and The Phillips Collection. He was born in Baltimore in 1908 and was a prominent member of the Maryland arts community. The Walters Art Museum is featuring Maril's work in an exhibition called "Herman Maril: An American Modernist". Tom talks about the exhibit and the artist work with David Maril, Herman Maril's son; and Gary Vikan, the director of the Walters. External links: "Herman Maril: An American Modernist" at the Walters Herman Maril website Baltimore Playwright-a-palooza (4:22) Theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck reviews G-Man and Turducken, two plays now on as part of the Baltimore Playwrights Festival. Turducken is being presented by the Theatrical Mining Company at Le Clerc Hall on the campus of the College of Notre Dame through August 2. More information here. G-Man is at the Fells Point Corner Theatre through August 9, call 410.318.8895 for more information. External link: Baltimore Playwrights Festival Monday, July 27, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Closing Down the Carter Center (13:36)By the end of September, all of the patients will be moved out of the Walter P. Carter Center, Baltimore's only public psychiatric hospital. We talk to Dr. Brian Hepburn, Executive Director of Mental Hygiene Administration for Maryland, about why the state decided to close the Carter Center, and how they play to make up for the care that will be lost. We also talk to Jill P. Carter, a Baltimore state delegate and daughter of Walter Carter, about why she fought to keep the center open. External links: City Paper on Carter Center closing Del. Carter on Facebook Mental Health Administration Walter P. Carter Center Opening Up Financial Regulation (6:59)Remember that other massive reform effort that Congress and the Obama administration are currently working through, the one that sprung directly from the near-collapse of the country's financial system? Joanna Smith-Ramani, director of the Baltimore CASH Campaign, brings us a commentary about her hopes for the re-regulation of the financial industry. External links: St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank's financial system reform timeline Baltimore CASH Campaign Putting the Fiction in Non-Fiction? (14:46)Tom ponders how the film rights to a book can be sold for a reported $1.9 million before said book is even written, and how the term "non-fiction" can be applied to a sensational book with imagined scenes and re-created dialogue. Ben Mezrich, author of Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook - A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius, and Betrayal, explains this to Tom by comparing himself to Tom Wolfe and Hunter Thompson. When we contacted Facebook about Mezrich's book, they sent the following statement: "Ben Mezrich clearly aspires to be the Jackie Collins or Danielle Steele of Silicon Valley. In fact his own publisher put it best: 'The book isn't reportage. It's big juicy fun.' We particularly agree with the first part of that and think any readers will concur." External links: Ben Mezrich The Accidental Billionaires Friday, July 24, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: So you had the individual mandate, and the insurance exchange, plus expanded Medicaid, so that's gonna be...let's see...$1.04 trillion NOTE: This segment is not available for download. It's still not clear when health care reform will become a reality, or which version or combination of versions of reform proposals will become reality. One thing is clear: it's going to cost money. A lot of money. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the price tag at north of a trillion dollars over the first 10 years. To consider how a reformed system might get paid for, and where in Maryland the costs could be felt, we talk to Julekha Dash, Senior Reporter for the Baltimore Business Journal; and Jay Hancock; business columnist for the Baltimore Sun. External links: Jay Hancock's latest column on health care reform Julekha Dash on Baltimore stakeholders' response to reform Congressional Budget Office's blog on H.R. 3200 analysis Kaiser Family Foundation comparison of Senate HELP and House Tri-Committee bills (pdf) Live, Local, and...Li'l (10:36)The Local Community Radio Act (H.R. 1147) could open up the airwaves to lots of tiny, locally-focused FM stations, if it ever gets out of committee. It didn't the last time it was introduced...or the time before. We talk about this year's prospects with Jason Loviglio, director of UMBC's media and communications studies department, and Michael Shay, founder of WRYR, a low-power FM station in the mid-Chesapeake Bay region. Web extra: Jason Loviglio says an FCC-commissioned report has settled the debate over whether low-powered stations would interfere with existing stations. (The National Association of Broadcasters would beg to differ.) Web extra: Jason Loviglio on the relationship between internet radio and low-powered FM. External links: H.R. 1147 Radio's Intimate Public: Network Broadcasting and Mass-Mediated Democracy by Jason Loviglio The Federal Communications Commission on Low-Power FM Radio WRYR Prometheus Radio Project "Each Note is a Universe" (14:45)That's a quote from Baltimore pedal steel guitarist Susan Alcorn. Saturday night at the Windup Space in Baltimore, she and Audrey Chen (voice and cello) share a bill with Brooklyn-based composers Mary Halvorson and Jessica Pavone. Susan Alcorn and Audrey Chen improvise in our studios and talk to Tom Hall about what's going through their minds as they play. External link: Susan Alcorn and Audrey Chen at the Windup Space with Mary Halvolsen and Jessica Pavone, Saturday, July 25, 8:30 p.m. Susan Alcorn Audrey Chen at MySpace Wednesday, July 22, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: First There Was a Mountain (12:44)Maryland stands with just one toe in the mountains. But that's enough to give it a stake in the debate over Appalachian mountaintop mining. Activists say removing the tops of mountains results in severe environmental degradation; proponents say the process creates jobs and spurs economic development. Only a few mountains in Western Maryland are mined in this manner, but power companies from Baltimore to the panhandle use coal mined this way to generate electricity for Maryland homes and businesses. Lawmakers in Annapolis considered a ban using mountaintop-mined coal this year. Congress is considering other approaches to limit the practice. We talk to Austin Hall, a field organizer for the non-profit "Appalachian Voices;" he has lobbied against mountaintop mining, and joins us by phone; and Carol Raulston, senior vice president for communications of the National Mining Association. External links: Appalachian Voices National Mining Association When Will Slots Payout? (9:36)State budgets are tight and getting tighter--just yesterday Governor O'Malley laid out part of an estimated 700 million dollars in cuts he'll have to make for the fiscal year that began this month. It seems like a good time to update ourselves on an activity whose supporters hoped would plump up state revenues: Slots. Remember them? We talk to James Karmel, an Associate Professor of History at Harford Community College, blogger on gambling, and a consultant for the Maryland Gaming Association, about where things stand with the four bids for slots parlors Marylanders set in motion when voters approved referendum in November. External links: James Karmel's Gaming Atlantic blog Daily Record on Court of Appeals ruling on Anne Arundel slots site Swinging and Selling (9:30)Baltimore resident M. Sigmund Shapiro chose a life of business over a life of jazz. But that didn't stop him from sitting in with Count Basie and Duke Ellington. He tells Tom Hall about his new memoir, So, I Chose the Piano: Growing Up with Jazz. Web extras: Sig Shapiro plays the blues on piano. Sig Shapiro tells the story of the time he sat in with Duke Ellington. Sig Shapiro on a bit of wisdom he received from Thelonious Monk's son. Web extra: Sig Shapiro on the Baltimore jazz scene then and now. External links: So, I Chose the Piano: Growing Up with Jazz at Amazon Maryland Morning Culture Calendar This week, Tom is joined by Jonathan Ehrens, director and engineer of Midday with Dan Rodricks and assistant producer in the WYPR news department. Events discussed: Insects and the Civil War, July 22, 7:30p.m. National Museum of Civil War Medicine, Frederick Maya Freelon Asante artist talk, July 23, 6:30p.m. Reginald F. Lewis Museum, Baltimore Maryland Jazz Festival Free Outdoor Concert, July 23, 6p.m. Rockville Town Square, Rockville Landscapes and Exteriors, through September 15th Thomas Segal Gallery, Baltimore SalsaPolkaPalooza, July 25, 2-7p.m. Creative Alliance, Baltimore Little Shop of Horrors, through August 1 Theatre Project, Baltimore Plein Air Competition and Arts Festival, through July 26 Easton Tuesday, July 21, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: AIDS Testing at Church (12:27)Today, eleven Baltimore-area churches will be opening their doors for AIDS testing. It's the launch of Project SHALEM, a program at the University of Maryland Medical School's Institute of Human Virology to encourage places of worship to provide AIDS testing and counseling. Sheilah talks to Bethel AME Pastor Dr. Frank M. Reid, III and Derek Spencer, executive director of IHV's JACQUES initiative, about why churches can help break the code of silence around HIV/AIDS in Baltimore City. A full list of today's testing sites can be found at www.ihv.org. Web extra: Derek Spencer on the program's roots in a nationwide event called City Uprising. Web extra: Frank Reid on the actual test people will be taking. Web extra: Derek Spencer on the training people in the faith-based community will receive before doing HIV testing and counseling. External links: Bethel AME Church IHV's JACQUES initiative Are We Asking Too Much of Our After-School Programs? (8:27)The conventional wisdom about after-school programs is that they're a good way to keep kids off the streets and out of trouble. But a new study by researchers at the University of Maryland says that our expectations of after-school programs may be too high. Sheilah talks to study co-author Dr. Denise Gottfredson, a professor in the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Maryland College Park. This segment generated two letters. We read excerpts on the air; below are the letters in full, and Dr. Gottfredson's response to them. Letter from Ellie Mitchell, director of the Maryland Out of School Time Network (pdf). Letter from John Hoey, President and CEO of the Y of Central Maryland (pdf). A response from Denise Gottfredson (pdf). External links: Article in The Crime Report about the study Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Maryland College Park Stimulus money available to after-school programs Maryland Out of School Time Network Y of Central Maryland  Jenn Wasner, a deer, Andy Stack WYe PR (8:17)The Maryland band Wye Oak releases their second album Tuesday. The Knot is the follow up to their 2008 release If Children. Maryland Morning Producer Katherine Gorman talks to the duo, Jenn Wasner and Andy Stack, about the album. Wye Oak has a CD release party at The Ottobar Tuesday evening; information on that here. External links: Wye Oak on Merge Records Aural States likes Wye Oak a lot Shepherding Contemporary Theater (6:43)Theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck brings us a report from the Contemporary American Theater Festival, happening in Shepherdstown, West Virginia through August 2. External link: Contemporary American Theater Festival Monday, July 20, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: How Welfare-to-Work Has Worked (11:14)Jobs are continuing to disappear, not quite as fast in Maryland as some other states, but the employment outlook is grim for months ahead. As economic hardship deepens, a new report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities looks at the strength of the safety net of services that's supposed to help Americans facing new or chronic financial difficulty. Sheilah talks to Arloc Sherman, the report's author, and Neil Bergsman, the Director of Maryland Budget and Tax Policy Institute. External links: Center on Budget's Safety Net report Maryland Budget and Tax Policy Institute  Look, we're in...Eldersburg (8:35)Eldersburg, Maryland was the only place in the state to crack the top 50 on Money magazine's 100 "Best Places to Live" list this year. And you're all like: Eldersburg? We pose that very question to Carroll County Commissioner Michael Zimmer, who lives in Eldersburg; send two of our producers out to find Eldersburg and see what's up; and then talk to Maryland Morning producer Lawrence Lanahan who worked on Money's "Best Places" list last year. External links: Money magazine's citation for Eldersburg Eldersburg website Michael Zimmer's website Hugh Pocock's Food, Hugh Pocock's Poop (13:33)The Contemporary Museum in Baltimore has a new exhibition by local artist and MICA faculty member Hugh Pocock, in which he explores the notion of energy. He does this in a stunningly personal way. While the exhibition itself is straight forward and actually pretty tame, the title of the exhibition is anything but. It's called "My Food, My Poop". Tom talks to Pocock and Irene Hoffman, the Executive Director of the Contemporary Museum. External links: Hugh Pocock Contemporary Museum Friday, July 17, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: The Changing Landscape of Child Care (13:24)We take a look at child care from the perspective of parents and child care workers. First, Sheilah reports on the controversial unionization of Maryland's family child care workers. Then she talks to Steve Rohde, deputy director of resources and referral services for Friends of the Family/Maryland Committee for Children, about the landscape of child care that parents can expect to find during this recession. LOCATE is a service of Friends of the Family/Maryland Committee for Children that helps parents find child care. Call 410-625-1111 or go to www.mdchildcare.org and click on the "for parents" icon. Web extras: Rohde explains how some family child care providers go beyond licensing requirements to achieve accreditation. Rohde explains some of the different programs his organization has to help parents find quality child care. External links: Maryland Committee for Children Child Care Demographics 2009, Trends in Child Care 2009, and other research reports SEIU Kids First Maryland Maryland State Family Child Care Association Sea Bass That Never See the Sea (8:32)Commercial fishing may eventually deplete the world of wild seafood, and even aquaculture (fish farming) as it's currently practiced has some environmental issues. Dr. Yonathan Zohar, Director and Professor of the Center of Marine Biotechnology at the University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute, thinks he has found an environmentally sound solution to our demand for seafood. Sheilah talks to him about a closed-loop, "biosecure" system that has already produced fish for local restaurants. Web extra: Dr. Zohar says you can come to the Columbus Center and get free fish. Seriously. Web extra: The rest of the interview, in which Dr. Zohar further explains how this project is commercially viable and ponders the end of commercial fishing. External links: Center of Marine Biotechnology Pictures and Video of COMB's self-contained aquaculture process Baltimore Sun article on COMB's system Washington Post article on the depletion of the world's fisheries  Poster for Multiple Maniacs, the first film Vincent Peranio and John Waters collaborated on. Setting the Scene (14:17)Vincent Peranio has been the production designer on countless John Waters films, as well as on Barry Levinson's Liberty Heights, Homicide: Life on the Streets, and The Wire. Now he's helped curate an exhibition that's part of Artscape, it will be on the Charles Street Bridge. External links: Artscape website Midway II at Artscape, which Peranio co-curated Peranio's IMDB page Peranio gives Gadi Dechter a tour of East Baltimore locations he used in The Wire The Day Lady Died (3:06)A tribute to Billie Holiday; today is the 50th anniversary of her death. Billie Holiday's statue will be re-dedicated this morning at 10a.m. It's at Billie Holiday Plaza at the corner of Pennsylvania and West Lafayette avenues. External links: Sun on re-dedication of Holiday statue Frank O'Hara's "The Day Lady Died" Wednesday, July 15, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: A Hard Refuge for Iraqis in Maryland (14:26)This summer U.S. forces met a major deadline for withdrawing from Iraqi cities. The legacy of the invasion the U.S. led six years ago continues to reverberate in countless ways. It echoes sharply in the lives of the more than 2 million Iraqis who left their country because their lives were threatened. A recent report from the International Rescue Committee--an international humanitarian organization that has helped many Iraqis resettle in the United States--details the hardships that many Iraqis face as they try to rebuild their lives here, while the U.S. is in a deep recession. The report is called "In Dire Straits." We talk to Robert Warwick, Executive Director of the International Rescue Committee's Baltimore Office; and Haider, an Iraqi who has resettled in Maryland. Haider asked that we not use his last name in order to protect family members of his who are still living in Iraq. Web extra: More from Sheilah's conversation with Robert and Haider (11:42)External link: IRC's "In Dire Straits" Report on Iraqi Refugees  "Iowa State" in corn. Photo taken east of Ames. Just the 11 Of Us (7:50)There are those friendships that you know even while you're in them that they'll be fleeting; there are others--more rare by far--that sustain for a lifetime. Rarer still is to find yourself in this second kind of relationship with 10 other people. The New York Times bestselling book The Girls from Ames chronicles just such a relationship--it's written by Jeffrey Zaslow, and it grew out of the column he writes for the Wall Street Journal. We talk to Zaslow and Jennifer Litchman, one of the 11 Girls from Ames. She lives in Annapolis now and works as Assistant Dean for Public Affairs at the University of Maryland School of Medicine here in Baltimore. External links: The Girls from Ames Girls from Ames at Barnes and Noble in Annapolis I've Got a Fever, and the Only Prescription is More Ritornello! (8:38)Classical ensemble Harmonious Blacksmith specializes in Renaissance and Baroque music of the 16th through 18th centuries. Harpsichordist Joseph Gascho and recorder player Justin Godoy talk to Tom about early music and tonight's "Vivaldi Fever" performance. Harmonious Blacksmith perform concerti by Bach, Telemann, and Vivaldi tonight at the Engineer's Club of Baltimore. The concert starts at 7:30, and tickets are available here. External links: Harmonious Blacksmith Maryland Morning Culture Calendar (5:09)This week, Tom is joined by Maryland Morning intern Matt Streib. Towson ARTS Collective Second Anniversary Exhibition, open now, closing reception July 24 at 6 p.m. Finkelstein Building, Towson 35th Annual Pow Wow of the Baltimore American Indian Festival, July 18 and 19 Maryland State Fairgrounds, Timonium Baltimore Jazz Alliance's Baltimore Jazzscapes II CD Release Party, July 21, 7 p.m. Eubie Blake Cultural Center, Baltimore Bone Marrow Drive for Jonathan Haupt, July 19, 3 p.m. till 9 p.m. Ryan's Daughter Irish Pub & Restaurant, Baltimore Author Connie Briscoe discusses Sisters & Husbands, July 18 at 1 p.m. Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture, Baltimore Port Tobacco Players present Sweeney Todd, July 18 and 19 Port Tobacco Players Theater, La Plata That's Crazy for You, through August 2 Community College of Baltimore, Essex campus Call the CCBC Box Office at 443-840-ARTS (2787) for tickets and information A Midsummer Night's Dream, July 18 and 19 Kussmaul Theater at Frederick Community College Hamlet, through August 9 Audrey Herman Spotlighters Theatre, Baltimore Tuesday, July 14, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: The Health of Nations (9:46)President Obama called congressional leaders to a meeting Monday afternoon to figure out where the health care reform effort is headed. We caught up with House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer right after the meeting to talk about what action on health care we can expect to see from the House in the next few days. External links: Kaiser Family Foundation health care reform page Rep. Hoyer's page of health care information Politico on Frank Luntz memo about language of health care reform Get Me Radiocarbon Dating on that Pot Sherd, Stat! (11:42)The new PBS series Time Team America gives archaeologists 72 hours to excavate a site and reveal its secrets. One of those archaeologists, Julie Schablitsky, is the head of the Cultural Resources Division of the Maryland State Highway Administration. The show's host, Colin Campbell, is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art, and some of his work is on display at the Windup Space in Baltimore as part of the "VS" exhibition. Tom talks to Colin and Julie about doing archaeology on deadline. Time Team America on PBS "VS" at the Windup Space Box Office Archaeology: Refining Hollywood's Portrayals of the Past, edited by Julie Schablitsky, at Left Coast Press Je T'aime, Buffalo Bill (13:52)Baltimore author Jill Jonnes's new book, Eiffel's Tower, chronicles the controversial construction of La Tour Eiffel for the 1889 World's Fair. She tells Tom Hall why Thomas Edison brought 50 phonographs across the Atlantic and why so many Parisians wanted to marry Buffalo Bill. Web extra: Jill Jonnes tells Tom about Gustav Eiffel's contribution to the Statue of Liberty. Web extra: Jill Jonnes tells Tom why Annie Oakley so mesmerized Parisians at the 1889 World's Fair. External link: Eiffel's Tower: And the World's Fair Where Buffalo Bill Beguiled Paris, the Artists Quarreled, and Thomas Edison Became a Count Monday, July 13, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Meteorite Man (8:30)When Arkansasan Steve Arnold heard about the fireball and sonic boom that startled northern Harford and Baltimore County residents at 1 a.m. last Monday, he hopped on a plane right away. Arnold is a professional meteorite hunter, and he had a good feeling that parts of this meteor may have reached the ground. Sheilah talks to Steve Arnold by cell phone, as he's out in the field searching for space rocks. External links: Steve Arnold "Meteorite Men" on Science channel Video of the meteor at The Baltimore Sun Photo of the meteor Dozens of Marylanders report sightings at Sun reporter Frank Roylance's blog Stimulating Websites (13:30)Having trouble figuring out what's happening to all the stimulus money? We are too. We called in Mario Armstrong and John Berndt, two of Baltimore's foremost web gurus to tell us about the stimulus tracking websites set up by the state and the federal government. External links: recovery.gov recovery.org State Stat The Berndt Group Mario Armstrong's Website Slam Rock: Single Carrot's Slampooned (13:25)Slampooned, the current production at Baltimore's Single Carrot Theatre, is at once an homage to and a send-up of slam poetry. Brendan Ragan, an actor in the show, and Aldo Pantoja, the show's director, join Tom Hall and drop word bombs. Or something. External link: Single Carrot Theatre Friday, July 10, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: Coming Home with the War (13:09)Segment originally aired February 25, 2008 At the beginning of 2008, the Baltimore VA Medical Center was exploring the use of Virtual Reality Therapy, an innovative treatment for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. They had ordered a simulator that creates virtual war scenes set in Iraq. Sheilah spoke with Dr. Sonja Batten, who was then Coordinator of the Trauma Recovery Programs for the VA Maryland Health Care System, and Dr. J. Raymond DePaulo, Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. This segment originally aired as part of Maryland Morning's mental health series Frames of Mind. External links: Dr. Sonja Batten, now at the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury Baltimore VA Medical Center Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Institute for Creative Technologies at USC "Virtual Iraq," from the May 19, 2008 issue of The New Yorker Very Puzzling (9:05)Will Shortz is NPR's Puzzle Master, editor of the New York Times crossword puzzle, and, since 1976, he's been Program Director for the National Puzzlers' League. Also, he majored in "enigmatology". The league has gathered this week in Baltimore for its annual convention--it wraps up on Sunday--and Shortz joins us to explain what all the words are about. An Evening of Puzzles and Games begins Friday at 8p.m. and is open to the public, as is Saturday's Afternoon of Pencil-And-Paper puzzles which begins at 2p.m. All events are at the Tremont Grand in downtown Baltimore. More information about the National Puzzlers' League convention here. External links: National Puzzlers' League Shortz profile from the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament Lyrics and a video for the song "If You Don't Come Across (I'm Gonna Be Down)" You Say Can of Corn, I Say Dying Quail (14:02)Segment originally aired April 6, 2009 When the players take the field for the All-Star Game in St. Louis on Tuesday, you'll hear specialized terms like "bunt," "blooper," "bases loaded," and "balk"--and that's just the B's. Fortunately, there's the Dickson Baseball Dictionary to help you translate. The third edition came out in March, and it has 10,000 entries. Author Paul Dickson tells Tom Hall how baseball slang became so rich and eventually invaded everyday English. (As a bonus, Tom Hall plays a clip from 1980 in which Earl Weaver uses his own slang to chew out an umpire.) External links: Paul Dickson Russell Baker: "Observer: The Keystone Sack" George Carlin: "Baseball vs. Football" John Updike on Ted Williams' last game Wednesday, July 8, 2009 - Listen to the Full Show: Here Lies Jim Crow--A Conversation with C. Fraser Smith Segment originally aired June 8, 2008 (11:01)Jim Crow Laws, which codified racial discrimination in the United States, were struck down long ago. Still, the legacies of the Marylanders who played a part in creating them and others who fought against them live on. C. Fraser Smith, WYPR's Senior News Analyst and Daily Record columnist, discusses the lives and times of these activists in his book Here Lies Jim Crow: Civil Rights in Maryland, published last year by Johns Hopkins University Press. We talk with him about his book and Maryland's history of equality activism. External link: Publisher's Web Page--Here Lies Jim Crow Here Lies Vishnu--Manil Suri's The Death of Vishnu Segment originally aired August 17, 2007 (8:58)Sheilah is joined by Manil Suri, to talk about his first novel, The Death of Vishnu. They explore the novel's premise: the approaching death of a man, Vishnu, who inhabits the ground floor of an apartment building in Mumbai. The novel weaves together the narratives of how Vishnu comes to envision his life as his neighbors argue over who should take responsibility over his death. Web extras: Manil Suri on curing math anxiety (5:44) Manil Suri on The Age of Shiva, the second part of the trilogy (13:30) External links: Manil Suri the novelist Manil Suri the prof The Autumn Leaves (8:23)Anne Raver, New York Times grande dame of gardens, germinates ideas about what to plan now so a beautiful vegetable and herb garden will sprout in the fall, and cuts up about cut flowers. External links: Deep in the Green by Anne Raver Anne's latest Times article  That Sleep of Death--Baltimore Shakespeare Festival's Hamlet (5:21)J. Wynn Rousuck reviews Hamlet, playing through July 26 out in The Meadow at Evergreen Museum and Library. External link: Baltimore Shakespeare Festival Tuesday, June 7, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show The Science of Smell Originally Aired 9/28/2007 (9:30)Nathan Sterner speaks to Professor Steven Munger, Associate Professor in the Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Together, they discuss how the sense of smell functions in the perception of flavor in humans, and the odorless compounds that affect human behavior and biology. They also talk about Dr. Munger’s recent discovery, of a third sense of smell, found in mice. External Link: Steven Munger's Research Interests The History of African-American Communities in Baltimore County originally aired on 2/29/2008 (10:19)The story of how African-Americans built homes and communities in Baltimore County went unnoticed and unchronicled for generations, before Louis S. Diggs started paying attention. He has traced the roots of 40 African-American communities in Baltimore County and has written eight books about them. He joins Sheilah in the studio to discuss his work and his inspiration. External Link: Louis Diggs Flavors of Old Bay and Galway Bay Originally aired 2/17/2009 (13:04)They say that Galway Bay flows all the way up to the Inner Harbor. Of, if they don’t, they should. Peter Brice, Jim Eagan, and Brendan Bell are three of the ten members of the Old Bay Ceili Band—a group that blends traditional Irish Music with Maryland flavors. They join Tom in the studio to talk about and play some of their music, and to preview the Traditional Folk Music Concert Series, which begins at the Chesapeake Performing Arts Center this Saturday with a performance by the full Old Bay Ceili Band. External Links: Old Bay Ceili Band at Chesapeake Arts Center Old Bay Ceili Band on YouTube Baltimore Irish Arts Website Traditional Irish Music Session at J. Patrick’s co-hosted by Jim Eagan Monday, July 6, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Can you Hear Me Now? Segment Originally Aired 8/1/2007 (8:29)In 1962 James E. West and a colleague working at Bell Labs figured out a new way to turn sound into an electric signal ...and now 90 percent of the microphones in telephones, hearings aids, toys - all kinds of devices - are based on their work. Since 2003 James West has been a research professor in the Whiting School of Engineering at Johns Hopkins. We talked with him when President Bush awarded him a National Medal of Technology in 2006. External Links: James West's Website at Johns Hopkins If You Don't Have Something Nice to Say, Say Your Multiplication Tables? Segment Originally aired 12/3/2008 (10:59)These days, as we communicate more through our computers and cell phones than face to face - it's easy to lose track of etiquette. "Etiquette" can sound stuffy and old-fashioned...although most of us will admit that at some point we're looking for guidance about how to treat the people around us, and how to expect that they'll treat us. Last year we talked about civility in our times and in times past with Johns Hopkins Professor PM Forni. He's co-founder of The Civility Project and author of several guidebooks on negotiating modern society And Laura Claridge author of Emily Post: Daughter of the Gilded Age, Mistress of American Manners. External Links: Dr. Forni's Civility Website Laura Claridge's Website Laura's Book on Emily Post: Emily Post: Daughter of the Gilded Age, Mistress of American Manners Tuvan Treasures Segment Originally Aired 3/3/2008 (12:30)Last year, the Tuvan throat singing group Huun Huur Tu, made its US debut. When they made a stop in Baltimore at Towson University, Tom spoke with N. Scott Robinson an Assistant Professor of Music at Towson, and Suewhei Shieh, the Director of the Asian Arts and Culture Center at Towson University. External Links: Huun Huur Tu on Myspace Huun Huur Tu's Website Friday, July 3, 2009 - Listen to the Full Show: I'm Your (Box) Huckleberry (13:43)Segment originally aired 3/25/09 Nathan Sterner treks through the woods of Maryland and Pennsylvania--and through the halls of a cloning operation at the National Arboretum--on the trail of what could be North America's oldest living thing. External links: Center for Plant Conservation on the Box Huckleberry National Heritage Program at Maryland's DNR National Arboretum The Town Crier Gets Possessive (4:01)Segment originally aired 04/15/09 Is it Fells Point, or Fell's Point? Jack Trautwein is the official Town Crier for the neighborhood founded by William Fell. He offers a (semi-)official declaration on the punctuation of the Point. The Preservation Society has three regular walking tours: Authentic Ghost Walk; The Secrets of the Seaport Walking Tour; and The Immigration Tour. In the fall Jack Trautwein teaches a "Secrets of a Seaport" Lecture Series on the history of Fell's Point. Beginning Oct 12th., taught by Jack Trautwein. Reservations for the Tours and lecture series; Call Barbara at 410-675-6750, Ext 16. Towne Crier reads news of the day from 1814: Ten minute presentations will be in Market Square, the foot of Broadway, in Fell's Point, at 2:00 P.M.. The schedule is as follows: June 13th - August 16th Every Saturday and Sunday, August 17th - September 18th Daily External link: Fell's Point Visitor Center The Art and Craft of Spontaneous Song (8:56)Segment originally aired 06/01/07 Tom talks to--and improvises with--legendary vocalist Bobby McFerrin. External links: Bobby McFerrin homepage McFerrin improvisation on YouTube In the Bloodlines (4:56)Theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck reviews Bloodlines, playing through Sunday at the Fells Point Corner Theatre. It's part of this year's Baltimore Playwrights Festival. External links: Bloodlines at Fells Point Corner Theatre Baltimore Playwrights Festival Wednesday, July 1, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Community Gardening (10:10)Originally aired June 11, 2007 Sheilah speaks with Jon Traunfeld, Director of the Home and Garden Information Center at the Maryland Cooperative Extension, and Kari Smith, Assistant Director of the Community Greening Stewardship Program at the Parks and People Foundation, about community gardening in urban and suburban spaces--and what residents should be aware of when harvesting their fruits and vegetables in the coming months. External links: The Home and Garden Information Center at the Maryland Cooperative Extension Parks and People Foundation Maryland's "Grow It Eat It" campaign hopes to have 1,000,000 Marylanders growing food by 2011 University of Massachusetts Soil Testing Laboratory Maryland Department of the Environment's list of pre-approved labs for lead testing Michael Kostroff (9:58)Originally aired October 8, 2007 Michael Kostroff, who played gang lawyer Maury Levy on HBO's The Wire, tells Sheilah about the lessons he's learned from his own acting career and the pitfalls of auditioning that he's experienced through the years. Kostroff teaches a workshop on mastering the audition called "Audition Psych 101," and he is the author of Letters from Backstage: The Adventures of a Touring Stage Actor. External Links: Letters from Backstage: The Adventures of a Touring Stage Actor at Allworth Press Actor Bio of Michael Kostroff "I got the shotgun, you got the briefcase" -- Classic Wire on YouTube Lafayette Gilchrist (14:32)Segment originally aired August 10. 2007 Tom talks to jazz pianist Lafayette Gilchrist about making music with his band, The New Volcanoes, and the difference between writing for that eight-piece group and a trio. Lafayette Gilchrist will perform solo as part of Artscape's "Exotic Hypnotic" at 2 p.m. on Sunday July 19. On Saturday July 25, he will headline the Hamilton Street Festival with the New Volcanoes. External Links: Lafayette Gilchrist at MySpace Hyena Records Hamilton Street Festival Exotic Hypnotic Tuesday, June 30, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Something Afoot, Underfoot -- Baltimore's Plants and Climate Change (7:56)Segment originally aired June 30, 2008 It's not just you, it's hot in here! Global warming may be changing the world slowly, but researchers say that downtown Baltimore has the climate they expect the whole world to have in the future. That's why United States Department of Agriculture scientist Lewis H. Ziska came to Baltimore to study the effects of global warming climate on weeds. We talk with Tom Christopher, author of a New York Times Magazine article on Dr. Sizka's research. External Links: Tom Christopher's article, "Can Weeds Help Solve the Climate Crisis?" Dr. Lewis H. Ziska's research King Lear: A Study in Aging (12:10)Segment originally aired September 7, 2007 Sheilah speaks with Dr. Bill Thomas, an international authority on geriatric medicine and a Professor in the Management of Aging Services at UMBC's Erickson School. They discuss the drama in Shakespeare's King Lear, and the modern day lessons that we can learn on the dramatic exchanges between parents and children in the transitions of retirement. External Link: The Erickson School at UMBC Reassessing King's Legacy (14:01)Segment originally aired January 21, 2008 Tom Hall is joined by Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and Martin Luther King, Jr. biographer Taylor Branch to examine the various phases of Dr. King's legacy since his death in 1968, and to discuss what needs to be done to reaffirm King's vision. External Links: Taylor Branch At Canaan's Edge: America in the King Years The Clinton Tapes: Wrestling History With the President Monday, June 29, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Living Legacy (10:51)Originally aired July 28, 2008 A few years ago Erica McCullogh started an unusual cleaning company. Living Legacy Development is an environmentally friendly cleaning company that only hires students from Baltimore. Erica and one of her employee's Samera Mickey visited our studios last year to tell us about how cleaning can change lives. Living Legacy is having a development event at Little Havana restaurant, Thursday July 2nd at 6:00. External Link: Living Legacy Development Medical Lessons from the Civil War (8:32)Originally aired June 30, 2007 We usually think of science and medicine as fields that are constantly marching forward that don't spend a lot of time looking at the past for guidance. But that’s not necessarily true! A while back we talked with George Wunderlich the executive director of the National Museum of Civil War Medicine, which is in Frederic Maryland. Not only are they a museum, but they train doctors in the lessons medicine can learn from the civil war. Recently, the Museum opened The Letterman Institute focused on teaching the medical lessons of the Battle of Antietam. External Links: National Museum of Civil War Medicine The Letterman Institute Ahoy Mr. Doctorow! (6:18)Originally aired April 13, 2006 E.L. Doctorow is one of our greatest story tellers. He came to the WYPR studios a few years ago when he received the lifetime literary achievement award from the Enoch Pratt Society. Tom talks with him about terrible writers, writing well and whaling. External Link: E.L. Doctorow A Fresh look at King Lear (6:03)J. Wynn Rousuck brings us a review of King Lear at DC’s Shakespeare Theatre Company. It’s playing there through July 22. External Link: King Lear at the Shakespeare Theater Company Friday, June 26, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show Securing Cyberspace (12:00)Earlier this week the Pentagon announced that they've named Lt. Gen. Keith Alexander, Cyber Security Commander. Based in Fort Meade, the creation of a Cyber Security Command is expected to be operational by the fall. Our resident technology and cyber issues expert, Mario Armstrong tells us what this means for the security of the internet and the future of war. External Links: Congressional testimony from Lt. Gen. Keith Alexander Mario Armstrong NOW, Now (8:03)Terry O'Neill finishes her job as Chief of Staff to Montgomery County Councilwoman Duchy Trachtenberg Thursday. In a few weeks she'll start her new job as President of the National Organization for Women. We talk to her about changes she's seen during her time in Montgomery County, and what changes she'll push for in her first months as the head of NOW. External links: NOW announces O'Neill's election Washington Post on O'Neill's election Judy Berman at Salon.com on O'Neill's election Mayhem! Madness! Movies! (14:05)Mike Sragow, film critic for the Sun, and Jed Dietz, Director of the Maryland Film Festival join us in the studio to talk about this month's recent releases, everything's fair game from the sleepers to blockbusters. It's another no holds barred critic fest! External Links: Mike Sragow, Sun Jed Dietz, Maryland Film Festival Movies Discussed: Away We Go The Hurt Locker The Hangover Lemontree Goodbye Solo Wednesday, June 24, 2009 - Listen to the Whole Show: When Chickens are Scary (11:46)If you work in medicine, or spend a lot of time in hospitals, or just have a soft spot for the TV show House M.D., you probably know what MRSA is. If you don't, MRSA's what they call a "superbug"--a kind of bacteria that's extremely resistant to antibiotics. You usually find superbugs in hospitals, but it turns out that's not the only place the dwell. You can also find superbugs on big farms. Industrialized agriculture uses antibiotics in the everyday feed of chickens, pigs, and cows, and that use means that superbugs are developing and growing on farms around the country. Nathan talks to Dr. Ellen Silbergeld, a professor in the Environmental Health Sciences department at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, about this phenomenon and the risks it poses. Web extras: Dr. Silbergeld on other policy changes she recommends (1:20) Dr. Silbergeld on other ways superbugs spread off chicken farms (1:47) External links: Johns Hopkins Magazine article about Dr. Silbergeld's research Dr. Silbergeld's faculty page Paper on antimicrobial resistance co-authored by Dr. Silbergeld (pdf) Health Care Hubbub (10:25)Just what is going on with health care up there on Capitol Hill? We get a little background and explanation of the situation from Jack Meyer, a principle researcher with Health Management Associates, a research group in Washington DC, and a professor in the schools of public policy and public health at the University of Maryland. Web Extra: Sheilah's full interview with Jack Meyer External links: Jack Meyer Kaiser Family foundation information hub on health care reform Summer Reading Selections (9:07)Maryland author and journalist Alice Steinbach gives us her suggestions on summer reading. Everything from fiction by Alice Munro to a memoir from Diana Athill. These reads are guaranteed to make summer a breeze. Authors discussed: Alice Munro Friend Of My Youth Diana Athill Somewhere Towards the End Per Peterson Out Stealing Horses Maryland Morning Culture Calendar (5:12)This week, Tom is joined by author and journalist Alice Steinbach. Events discussed: Interdisciplinary dance concert, June 26 and 27 Area 405 CIRCUIT, 405 E. Oliver Street, Baltimore Baltimore Shakespeare Festival's Hamlet, June 26, 8 p.m. Meadow at Evergreen Museum and Library, Baltimore Chesapeake Shakespeare Festival's Twelfth Night, June 26, 8 p.m. Patapsco Female Institute Historic Park, Ellicott City "Kitchen Stories" reception, June 26, 6 p.m. Library Project Art Gallery, Baltimore Latino Fest, June 27 and 28 Patterson Park, Baltimore Part of Baltimore's Showcase of Nations Ethnic Festivals Annapolis Chorale benefit aboard the Harbor Queen with the Erik Apland Quartet, June 26, 7:30 p.m. Annapolis City Dock Annapolis Symphony Orchestra Independence Day Spectacular, June 27, 4 p.m. Anne Arundel Community College Stadium, Arnold My Two Cents: A Maryland Video Competition Applications due by July 1 Baltimore Improv Group, June 27, 8 p.m. Mobtown Theater, Baltimore Tuesday, June 23, 2009 - Listen to the Full Show: Cities Fighting Foreclosure with Litigation (11:14)Last year, Baltimore City sued Wells Fargo, seeking damages to redress crime, lost tax revenue, and other problems that the city says resulted in part from Wells Fargo foreclosing on homes in majority African-American neighborhoods. The city claims that Wells Fargo violated the Fair Housing Act with lending practices that disproportionately targeted minorities for subprime loans--in other words, reverse redlining. On Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Benson Legg will hold a hearing to determine whether the case can go forward. We spoke to law professor Ray Brescia, who has written extensively about cities using litigation to fight foreclosures and supports such measures, and to Baltimore City Solicitor George Nilson. Wells Fargo spokesperson Kevin Waetke sent the following statements when we contacted the bank about joining this segment on the air: - We are deeply disturbed by the inaccurate and inflammatory information the City is using, and the attention it has received. - We absolutely do not tolerate team members treating our customers or others disrespectfully or unfairly, or who violate our ethics and lending policies. We have principles, systems and processes team members must follow that ensure race is not a factor in the pricing and products we offer. - Wells Fargo's lending practices did not cause foreclosures or the problems the City claims are impacting its housing market. As the City states in its complaint, only 1% of the 33,000 foreclosures filed are associated with Wells Fargo. - We have worked extremely hard to make homeownership possible for more African-American borrowers and all customers, and we have done so fairly and responsibly. That includes seeking guidance from leaders in diverse communities who provide advice on how to best reach, educate and help borrowers with homeownership. - We believe that, based on the facts and the law, the lawsuit lacks merit. When asked what part of the city's claims were inaccurate, Waetke wrote, "Specifically, the allegations of race as a factor in the loans we offer and how we price those loans. In addition, the city points to Wells Fargo contributing to the foreclosure issue in Baltimore when in fact approximately only 1 percent of the 33,000 foreclosures in the city have a tie to Wells Fargo." Web extra (:41): Baltimore City Solicitor George Nilson talks about the possibility of appealing should Judge Legg move to dismiss. Web extra (:42): Baltimore City claimed in its complaint against Wells Fargo that there have been 33,000 foreclosures in the city since 2000. Wells Fargo's statement claims that they are responsible for only about one percent of those foreclosures. In this web extra, Baltimore City Solicitor George Nilson says that in order to make that point, Wells Fargo is confounding bank foreclosures with city tax liens. (In this interview with the Charlotte Observer, however, Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf points out that his company's 300 foreclosures pale in comparison to Baltimore filing tax liens against 19,000 of its residents' homes.) External links: First Amended Complaint in Mayor and City Council of Baltimore v. Wells Fargo Bank N.A. et al. Ray Brescia's article in Albany Government Law Journal Ray Brescia's article on Slate Baltimore City Law Department Wells Fargo Financial U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland  Corals in the Red Sea (photo by A. Hagan) The World Under the Red Sea (11:26)Imagine diving down into a pristine coral reef that has hasn't really been given a good look since Jacques Cousteau saw it 50 years ago. That's just what a couple folks from Maryland did in April, when the Living Oceans Foundation in Landover sent an expedition out to study the Farasan Banks coral reef off the coast of Saudi Arabia. Nathan talks to retired Navy captain Philip Renaud, Executive Director of the Living Oceans Foundation. External links: Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation Expedition Log at Sustainametrix The Baltimore Sun's Bay and Environment blog on the Farasan Banks expedition Video of a Whale Shark from the Red Sea Expedition Summer (Sandwich) Lovin' (6:33)It's summer, the 4th is around the corner, and that means eating. A lot. Sascha Wolhandler, co-owner of Sascha's 527 restaurant in Baltimore, sings the praises of the summer sandwich--from favorites from abroad like banh mi and pain bagna, to ingredients to help you build your own classic |
