Check out the first paragraph of this article:
FINALLY SOME GOOD NEWS—someone is going to help me play music with whales instead of warning me that it’s against the law. According to the U.S. Marine Mammal Protection Act, all “harassment” of marine mammals is illegal, including my idea of playing live music to them just to see what happens. But there are still places beyond the grip of the law.
Read it all here, and hear Marc interview the author, David Rothenberg, at about 1:30 today. For more of David's writing, check out this piece on www.terrain.org.
Before that, after the news at 1pm, join us to discuss genetically modified food. Seems like it was something that was really in the public eye, along with lots of outrage and uncertainty, a few years ago, but all of that has subsided a bit, here in the US, at least. It certainly didn't go away, though, as more genetically modified crops are being grown worldwide than ever, and the highest percentage of any country is right here in the States. Yes, if you're not sure, our food supply is flush with genetically modiefied ingredients. We'll discuss the details, focusing on the company at the center of it all, Monsanto, with Brian Hindo. He wrote the article Monsanto: Winning the Ground War in Business Week.
Every Thursday from 1-2pm for the past few weeks, we've been featuring interviews with the authors of articles that we've come upon and found particularly interesting. If you've caught any of these segments, what do you think? Would you like to see this continue as a regular, weekly feature on the show? Also, comment here with suggestions for articles that you've read and would like for us to consider featuring!
-Justin
Living in Baltimore, I can't help but notice a lot of distinctly unhappy looking people around town. I know this is not exactly some kind of utopia, so is it reasonable to assume that people are, in general, happier elsewhere?
NPR Correspondent Eric Weiner will be joining us at 1pm today to discuss what he learned travelling the world purposefully seeking out happiness. Check out his book The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the Happiest Places in the World.
-Justin
Then-Mayor Martin O'Malley at an Earth Day Planting at Gilmor Elementary in 2005
Before I came to work at WYPR, I worked at a documentary company called Soundprint. While I was there, they were working on a series of stories about urban forests that delved into the unique environmental issues that cities face. For the documentary Watershed 263, we attended an Earth Day planting ceremony at Gilmor Elementary in Baltimore. Gilmor was one of a dozen schools in Baltimore that had converted their parking lot into a garden. Things like parking lots and roads are terrible for the environment. When it rains, the rain gathers up all the oil and other pollutants that have been sitting on the pavement and then whooshes it all into a storm-water drain. That all ends up in the Chesapeake, of course, where it wreaks havoc. A garden, on the other hand, keeps that water right there, and puts it to good use. It's a lot of fun for the kids, too, to get a day out of class to get their hands dirty and have a beautiful spot to play. The purpose of that whole long story was to tell you that on that day, then-Mayor Martin O'Malley was at that school, and ceremoniously planted the first flower in the soil. I remember being impressed that he would find time in a busy schedule to visit a school, make a speech, plant a flower, and hang out with the kids for awhile. I left with the feeling that he cared about the environment. The impression I was left with would please the now Governor, and those who work to craft his image. He has very purposefully cast himself as a "Green Governer". But what does that term really mean? As the environmental crisis in the Bay and beyond seems to grow more urgent, how does the criteria for being an environmental politician change? What is the gold standard in environmentalism for a politician? What is the leading edge-and is O'Malley on it? We'll discuss this today with people who all care deeply and have devoted their lives to the environment. Join us, to share your thoughts on what you would like to see happen in Maryland. Poll: Do you think Governor Martin O'Malley is a Green Governor?-Jessica
Here are some pictures courtesy of one of our guests today, Gerry Winegrad. His descriptions are below:
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-Justin