What 1919 (The Year That Changed America) Tells Us About 2019 (0:36)

Guest: Martin Sandler, historian, Emmy-winning TV writer, author of “1919: The Year That Changed America” (2019 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature)

As 2019 winds down, maybe you’re feeling a little winded. A lot has happened –is happening –in America. At moments like these, a little perspective is useful. A hundred years ago, America was turning the page on a year that changed the nation in fundamental ways. Some have called 1919 “the year our world began.” Historian Martin Sandler’s book about the parallels between 1919 and 2019 just won the National Book Award for Young People’s Literature. 

How the Siege of Mecca Shaped America’s Complicated Relationship with Saudi Arabia (30:36)

Guest: Yaroslav Trofimov, Chief Foreign-Affairs Correspondent, The Wall Street Journal and Author of “The Siege of Mecca: The Forgotten Uprising in Islam’s Holiest Shrine and the Birth of Al Qaeda”

The exact motive behind a shooting at the Naval Air Station in Pensacola, Florida two weeks ago is still unclear. But officials are treating it as an act of terror. The shooter was a member of the Saudi Air Force receiving flight training from the US military. He killed three people and injured eight others. There’s some evidence he held extremist views. If you’re surprised that a Saudi pilot would be in the US for military training, there are actually hundreds of such students here right now. Saudi Arabia has been a close military ally of the United States in the global war on terror. But it’s a tricky relationship, because Al Qaeda and ISIS can both trace the inspiration for their extreme views back to Saudi Arabia. Fifteen of the nineteen 9-11 hi-jackers were Saudi. These terrorists trace their inspiration, in particular, to a siege that happened 40 years ago in the Holy City of Mecca.

The Apple Seed (50:38)

Guest: Sam Payne, The Apple Seed, BYUradio

Sam Payne from The Apple Seed looks back at Y2K. 

Return Ancestral Lands to Native Americans. Eureka, California Leads Out. (59:28)

Guest: Cutcha Risling Baldy-Assistant Professor and Department Chair of Native American Studies at Humboldt State University

Through centuries of America’s history, indigenous people were murdered and forced off their ancestral land with the approval of federal, state and local governments. How do we right those wrongs? Perhaps a formal apology like California Governor Gavin Newsom gave this year. What about giving back the land that was taken? That’s what the city of Eureka in Northern California just did. Tuluwat Island, in Humboldt Bay, once again belongs to the Wiyat people, who consider it the spiritual and physical center of the universe. It’s a highly unusual move and one Cutcha Risling Baldy hopes to see more of.

Family Stories Are Powerful. Make Time to Tell Some This Holiday. (1:16:58)

Guest: Robyn Fivush, Professor of Psychology and Director of Emory University’s Institute for Liberal Arts

When the feasting is done, does your family linger around the table and reminisce? Eavesdropping on the stories my parents and grandparents shared after holiday meals is where I learned that my grandpa barely missed getting sent into combat during World War II. And where I learned my grandma had on a pink sweater that caught grandpa’s eye the day they met. I also heard stories about some of the childhood experiences that shaped my mom. In turn, those stories shaped my idea of what it means to be a part of this particular family –who we are, what we care about. The Family Narratives Lab at Emory University has actually measured the power of this kind of family storytelling.

Kristen Chenoweth Urges Suffers of Chronic Pain (Like Her) to Speak Out (1:30:41)

Guest: Kristen Chenoweth, Tony and Emmy-winning actress and singer; Mandy Francis, DNP, Pain Specialist

In her Tony winning stage performances and Emmy-winning screen performances Kristen Chenoweth is known for that voice and magnetic energy. Few fans would suspect that Chenoweth lives with chronic pain. She’s a spokesperson for a new campaign to dispel the stigma around pain.