Weekend America for Saturday, February 11, 2006


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How did your life collide with the headlines in 2007?
Iraq, the subprime crisis, Facebook, immigration, oil prices - 2007 had no shortage of hefty headlines. We'd like to hear about how these and other major news events of the past year affected you. Where did your life collide with the news in 2007?

What's your holiday performance story?
The office talent show, the neighborhood caroling posse, the school pageant ... At holiday time we often sing, dance, and dress as shepherds. Did you bloom in the warmth of your audience's adulation, or freeze up like the snowman you'd rather be building? Did your holiday performance change your life or that of someone close to you?

Broadcast Date: February 11, 2006 | Map these stories

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Why Do They Hate Us?
Cartoons of the prophet Mohammed aren't the first drawings to ever stir up outrage. The United States has long been lampooned in illustrated satire. Currently, there is a cartoon exhibit in San Francisco called, Why Do They Hate Us?," which explores how cartoonists around the world view the United States. As reporter Rachel Dornhelm discovered, "disappointment" is perhaps a better description than "hate."

Online resources:

» Cartoon Art Museum
» See the cartoon: "In Denmark and beyond, Muslims ask: 'What's so funny?'" (SFGate.com)
» "Muslim cartoon row timeline" (BBC)

Music Bridge: An Ear Out - Artist: Bright
CD: Bells Break Their Towers (Strange Attractors Audio House)

The Evolution of Morality
Robert Wright is the author of several books about the evolutionary underpinnings of competition, morality and making the world a safer place. He tells host Barbara Bogaev that there's a good reason the recent riots in the Muslim world over a Danish cartoon look so scary: anger is becoming increasingly lethal in the age of globalization.

Online resources:

» More about Robert Wright
» Wright's book, The Moral Animal : Why We Are, the Way We Are: The New Science of Evolutionary Psychology, is available at the Public Radio BookSource.

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Life Inside Enron
As the trial of former Enron executives Ken Lay and Jeffrey Skilling wraps up its second week, host Bill Radke talks with one of the last employees of the troubled company, Joe Lippeatt. Lippeatt recently left Enron after working there for more than five years. After the company went belly-up, he was one of the few employees who stayed on to help sort out what went wrong. He talks about life during the first few weeks after the company's "Black Monday."

Online resources:

» Joe Lippeatt's Blog: Enron Offline

Music Bridge: Broken Monitors - Artist: B. Fleischmann
CD: The Humbucking Coil (Morr)

World Music: Los de Abajo
There's a band out of Mexico City that's been getting a lot of attention recently on the world music scene. They're called Los De Abajo. Host Barbara Bogaev sits down with music critic Tom Pryor to learn about their influences and why their fans are drawn to them.

Online resources:

» Los de Abajo | Cumbia del Castor, Los Lunaticos | From the album, LDA v. Los Lunaticos (Real World)

Song and Memory: "I'll Take Manhattan"
The song "I'll Take Manhattan" is upbeat and jaunty song to most people. But to writer Julia Slavin, the song elicits some darker, more unsettling thoughts about her childhood pets.

Online resources:

Listen to the full version of Julia Slavin singing "I'll Take Manhattan."
» More about this series

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Man of Style
Fashion Week has just come to a close in New York City. And while you might not recall the "in" styles this year, it's hard to forget a formidable figure at the event: Andre Leon Talley. He's editor-at-large for Vogue magazine. How did this man from North Carolina develop such a strong voice in fashion? Host Barbara Bogaev sat down with him to find out.

Online resources:

» Marc Jacob collection at Style.com

Music Bridge: Peninsula - Artist: Flanger
CD: Spirituals (Nonplace)

Weekend Weather
Weekend America's John Moe takes a look at the weather and Saturday happenings all across the country.

» Event information

Music Bridge: Beat Connection (Disco Dub Version) - Artist: lcd soundsystem
CD: DFA compilation #2 (DFA)

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Exploding Memories
Writer Ian Chillag's mom is a big fan of explosions. So when he learned that a building near his mother's home was to be blown up, Chillag decided to pay her a visit. He tells Weekend America that he was also intrigued to learn that people in the community were invited to place meaningful objects in the building to be blasted along with the structure.

Online resources:

» Video of the Carolina Plaza implosion

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The Perfect Match
Does it make any difference whom you pick for your soul mate? Host Bill Radke tells the story of how he found his perfect match, only after he was told that his choice didn't really matter.

Music Bridge: Can't Take My Eyes off of You - Artist: Lauryn Hill
CD: The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (Ruffhouse)

Olympics Update
The Winter Olympics are underway in Turin, Italy. Self-proclaimed Olympics' fanatic Chris Spurgeon vows not to miss a minute of the excitement. Hosts Bill Radke and Barbara Bogaev will check in with him throughout the Games to see what he deems medal-worthy.

Online resources:

» Olympic.org - Official Web site of the Olympic Movement
» NBC Olympics: Torino 2006
» Official Torino 20006 Web site

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Ice Sculpting
The Olympics have adopted some unusual events in recent years. Perhaps one of the most unusual is an activity that actually started in a kitchen: ice sculpting. Producer Albert Stumm profiles this unique contest and two of its American competitors.

Online resources:

» Ice Concepts of Philadelphia -- Kevin Gregory's Ice Sculpting Web site

Music Bridge: Sun Drums and Soil - Artist: Four Tet
CD: Everything Ecstatic (Domino)

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Breathing Easier with Music
One in ten children in the U.S. struggle with asthma daily. In urban areas, the rate is often higher. With the help of medication, it's possible to keep the condition mostly under control. But as Pamela Renner reports, some hospitals are trying a more innovative approach.

Online resources:

» The Louis and Lucille Armstrong Music Therapy Program
» Asthma Initiative Project

Music Bridge: wood and Flowers - Artist: TG Mauss
CD: Mechanical Eye (Quatermass)

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Wolf Talk
The Federal government plans to take Rocky Mountain gray wolves off the endangered species list. Area ranchers are excited about the change. They view them simply as predators to their livestock. But wolf experts Jim and Jamie Dutcher see a more social and complex side to the animals. They talk to producer Tom Banse about how wolves communicate.

Music Bridge: A New Day - Artist: Dawn Smithson
CD: Safer Here (Kranky)

Church Burning in America
Investigations continue into the several recent fires at churches in Alabama. Rose Johnson-Mackey is founder and co-director of the National Coalition for Burned Churches and Community Empowerment in Charleston, South Carolina. Host Bill Radke talks with her about the recent spate of arson attacks and the wider problem of church burning in America.

Music Bridge: Niedrige Decken - Artist: Burnt Friedman & Jaki Liebezeit
CD: Secret Rhythms 2 (Nonplace)

World Music: Ikhwani Safaa Musical Club
The Ikhwani Safaa Musical Club is Zanzibar's oldest band, with roots dating back more than 100 years. They have a new compilation of Swahili music and Tom Pryor joins host Barbara Bogaev to talk about it.

Online resources:

» Ikhwani Safaa Musical Club | Vingaravyo Vyote Si Dhahabu | From the album, Zanzibara, Vol. 1: A Hundred Years of Tarab in Zanzibar (Buda Musique)

Weekend Weather
Weekend America's John Moe takes a look at the weather and Saturday happenings all across the country.

» Event information

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The Invisible Dog
Adopting a pet can be a contentious topic within some families. How do you know if a pet is right for your home? Writer Leila Gerstein tells us about the unusual scheme to convince her boyfriend that they should get a dog.