Citizen Smith

Is the banning of assault rifles the solution to America's mass shootings? Weapons in the hands of mentally ill people is an issue that also must be addressed. Portland protests once again take to the streets, but the city is starting to crack down. Summer learning programs are available to Oregonians courtesy of a $250 million spending plan.

Discovering a new city like Portland is full of surprises, especially for food lovers like the Citizen, who randomly found 82nd Avenue, a one-mile stretch of Asian restaurants and markets. Covid vaccines are growing by the millions every week as herd immunity is getting closer for Americans. 

The Weatherly Building in Portland was defaced with graffiti, a high risk endeavor by the perpetrators. Asian-American racism is on the rise in America, and the mass murder of 8 people in Atlanta, 6 who were Asian women, fuels more fear in the Asian communities. China and the US get into a heated discussion during a photo op at their high-level talks in Alaska.

The most courteous drivers in America are right here in Portland, Oregon

They stop for pedestrians to cross streets; they don't honk their horns, and they abide by the driving laws -- Portland automobile drivers are the best. China is illegally fishing in international waters, but the U.S. Coast Guard is increasingly watching and enforcing international protection. 

Teaching students online rather than in a classroom setting is preferred by some parents -- is that a good thing? Covid vaccinations are over 100 million in the U.S. as herd immunity gets closer. And the stimulus packages need to be paid back, and it looks like the wealthiest citizens will likely be the ones shouldering the tax burden.

Schools are slowly reopening in Portland with elementary students expected to finally be in the classroom at the end of March. Restaurants and other social gathering places for Oregon and Washington allowing 50 percent capacity -- it's a start!

Citizen Smith goes live for the first time in the talkcastPDX studios. His introduction to Portland and the first impression of the Rose City.

An interview with Morgen McLaughlin, Executive Director of the Willamette Valley Wineries Association, and an interview with Kellie Cook, Athletic Director of Cleveland High School in Portland, Oregon

Daily deaths from the coronavirus are drastically down, but the country nears 500,000 who have died from it. Half the schools in U.S. remain closed as teachers' unions refuse to return to the classroom. China's military has been conducting animal experiments with coronavirus, says Ex-deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger. And remembering Dianna Ortiz, a nun who survived torture in Guatamala and fought for the truth to be revealed of human rights abuses there and U.S. complicity.

A riveting landing is captured by NASA of the Perseverance Rover landing on Mars. The diversity of people of color and women and men, is also historic. Rush Limbaugh died. Love him or hate him, he broke new ground in the talk radio world. And WHO looks for the animal or animals that may have carried the coronavirus in China's Wuhan market.