John Williams

The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, multi-media journalist Brandon Pope, author of Brandon Pope’s Screening Room, and political pundit Marj Halperin! This week, the Rascals start things off by breaking down President Trump’s State of the Union. What were the big takeaways from the speech? Next, the Rascals discuss the new ad by U.S. Senate candidate Juliana Stratton that shows supporters (including Senator Tammy Duckworth) saying, ‘F Trump.’ Do the Rascals believe this ad will be effective? Speaking of local elections, Marj wrote an Op-ed in the Tribune today about why she favors Ranked Choice Voting. Are the other Rascals on board with RCV? Also this week, there has been some more news about the possibility of the Bears building a new stadium in Hammond, Indiana. The Rascals discuss the tax implications for Indiana residents if the Bears were to build a new stadium in the Hoosier state. Sticking to local elections, the Rascals talk about the Chicago Tribune’s non-endorsement endorsements. Or, as Eric calls it, ‘nondorsements.’ And finally, let’s not forget red light, yellow light, green light! What are the Rascals recommending (or not recommending) this week.

Elder law attorney Kerry Peck joins John Williams to answer all your questions about elder law, trusts, wills, and elder abuse. Kerry implores listeners to make sure to plan ahead because you never know what’s coming.

John Williams brings you another round of Speed Jokes. Keep sending yours to [email protected].

John Williams tells the (hilarious) tale of almost burning down the place where his elderly parents are living.

Dr. Sadiya Khan, Director, Center for Population Science and Aging, Northwestern Medicine, joins John Williams to talk about the public splash around weight loss medications and how they interact with the heart, the heart-related benefits of weight loss drugs, the risks or side-effects people should be aware of, who is the appropriate candidate for GLP-1 medications, and the importance of medical supervision when taking these drugs.

Dr. Priya Freaney, Medical Director, Women’s Heart Care Program, Northwestern Medicine, joins John to talk about women’s cardiovascular health, why heart disease doesn’t look the same in women as it does in men, the symptoms that are more common in women, the risk factors that are unique to women, and the most important steps women can take to protect their heart health.

Dr. Kannan Mutharasan, Medical Director, Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute South Region, Northwestern Medicine, joins John Williams to talk about heart health month, the most common form of heart disease, when someone should consider seeing a cardiologist, the importance of understanding risk factors, and what people can do to lower their risk of heart disease.

Dr. Rod Passman, Director, Center for Arrhythmia Research, Northwestern Medicine, joins John Williams to talk about how many people in the U.S. are living with atrial fibrillation, the most common symptoms of AFib, how AFib is sometimes asymptomatic, who is at most risk of Afib, the role wearables have in detecting AFib, what you can do to reduce your risk, and how atrial fibrillation is treated at Northwestern Medicine.

Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, joins John Williams to talk about the Chicago Tribune’s ‘non-endorsement endorsement’ of political candidates, why he’s not a fan of newspapers endorsing political candidates, his thoughts on Darren Bailey’s campaign for governor, Juliana Stratton’s new campaign ad featuring a number of people (including Sen. Tammy Duckworth) saying, ‘F-Trump,’ and his thoughts on some members of Congress boycotting the State of the Union.

Peter Greenberg, ‘Eye on Travel‘ host and CBS News travel editor, joins John Williams to talk about the latest on Global Entry and TSA PreCheck availability and what travelers should expect during the partial government shutdown. Peter also gives us an update on the situation in Mexico.