KPFA - Talkies

The cultural, the intellectual, the political, the spiritual—and the silly. Life as we know it, fear it, love it, question it, live it. Hosted by Kris Welch.

The post Talkies – July 11, 2019 appeared first on KPFA.

The cultural, the intellectual, the political, the spiritual—and the silly. Life as we know it, fear it, love it, question it, live it. Hosted by Kris Welch.

The post Talkies – July 10, 2019 appeared first on KPFA.

Dave Zirin tells us who really won the women’s world cup.  PLUS: more and more evidence of climate crisis—and resistance! PLUS:  major earthquakes in SoCal just missed Armageddon—we talk with Harvey Wasserman. Hosted by Kris Welch.

The post Zirin on women’s soccer! Climate Crisis! Earthquakes! appeared first on KPFA.

The cultural, the intellectual, the political, the spiritual—and the silly. Life as we know it, fear it, love it, question it, live it. Hosted by Kris Welch.

The post Talkies – July 4, 2019 appeared first on KPFA.

The cultural, the intellectual, the political, the spiritual—and the silly. Life as we know it, fear it, love it, question it, live it. Hosted by Kris Welch.

The post Talkies – July 3, 2019 appeared first on KPFA.

The cultural, the intellectual, the political, the spiritual—and the silly. Life as we know it, fear it, love it, question it, live it. Hosted by Kris Welch.

The post Talkies – July 2, 2019 appeared first on KPFA.

On today’s episode of the Talkies: Recent accounts of squalid and unhealthy conditions for migrant children at the US/Mexico border and the deaths of migrants attempting the perilous border crossing have created shock and concern. The Trump administration and Republican backers have pointed fingers at Congressional Democrats and vice-versa. But what effect have immigration enforcement policies had on conditions at the border? Guest host Max Pringle spoke with Layla Razavi of the California Immigrant Policy Center.

Then, Council on Foreign Relations Senior Fellow Shannon O’Neil joins us to talk about the economic and political crisis in Venezuela.

In the second half of the program, author and journalist Anna Merlan discusses her new book “Republic of Lies: American Conspiracy Theorists and their Surprising Rise to Power.” It’s a fascinating account of the rise in the influence of conspiracy theories and the effect that’s having on our politics and our science.

Wrapping up the show, the After Mindfulness Urban Retreat and Global Conference on Buddhism comes to Berkeley Saturday June 29. It’s a two-day event including, meditation, talks, yoga and a musical and cultural festival. Event organizer Diana Chen is our guest.

The post Talkies – June 27, 2019 appeared first on KPFA.

ON THIS EPISODE OF THE TALKIES: RUNAWAY HOUSING COSTS IN THE BAY AREA AND BEYOND HAVE MANY PEOPLE LOOKING FOR AFFORDABLE ALTERNATIVES. THE GROWING TINY HOUSE MOVEMENT IS QUICKLY EMERGING AS AN ALTERNATIVE FOR SOME. JOINING GUEST HOST MAX PRINGLE TO TALK ABOUT THE MOVEMENT IS TRACEY HARRIS. SHE’S AN ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF SOCIOLOGY AT CAPE BRETON UNIVERSITY IN NOVA SCOTIA, CANADA AND AUTHOR OF “THE TINY HOUSE MOVEMENT: CHALLENGING OUR CONSUMER CULTURE.” HARRIS SAYS TINY HOUSES CHALLENGE US TO RETHINK WHAT’S ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY TO LIVE A FULFILLING LIFE, ONE THAT’S MORE AFFORDABLE AND HELPS LESSEN OUR ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT.

THEN, OPEN SPACE HAS BECOME A PREMIUM IN OUR REGION AS EXPENSIVE REAL ESTATE CONTINUES TO DRAW WOULD BE DEVELOPERS TO THE AREA. A GROUP OF VOLUNTEERS HAS CONVERTED A PORTION OF THE OLD MARE ISLAND NAVAL SHIPYARD IN VALLEJO INTO THE MARE ISLAND SHORELINE HERITAGE PRESERVE. IT’S ENJOYED BY THOUSANDS OF HIKERS, BIKERS AND NATURE LOVERS FROM AROUND THE WORLD. VOLUNTEER MYRNA HAYES SPOKE WITH MAX ABOUT THE REWARDS AND CHALLENGES OF KEEPING A PIECE OF CALIFORNIA HISTORY AND NATURAL BEAUTY AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC.

AND, FINALLY. IT’S SUMMER AND THAT MEANS WILD FIRE SEASON HAS RETURNED. THE UNUSUALLY WET WINTER HAS CREATED A LOT OF POTENTIAL WILDFIRE FUEL.  STANTON FLOREA IS OUR GUEST. HE’S A RANGER WITH THE U.S. FOREST SERVICE’S PACIFIC SOUTHWEST REGION AND AN EXPERT ON WILDFIRES AND WILDFIRE PREVENTION.

The post Talkies – June 26, 2019 appeared first on KPFA.

On this episode of the Talkies. It’s summer time and a great summer time ritual is, of course, baseball. We’ve got a good show today for baseball fans and casual observers alike.

In our first segment, longtime Oakalnd A’s announcer Ken Korach joins guest host Max Pringle to talk about his new book with SF Chronicle Beat writer Susan Slusser: “If these walls could talk: Stories from teh Oakland A’s dugout, locker room and Pressbox. It’s a fun insider’s peek into a big league organization.

Then baseball as philosophy. UC Berkeley Philosophy professor Alva Noe speaks with Max Pringle about his new book “Infinite Baseball.” Noe says the game’s slower tempo allows its fans time to get deep into the strategy and deep thinking involved in the game, much more so than faster paced games like basketball and ice hockey.

Then, in the second half of the show. The Art of Peace exhibit is coming to San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Centre for the Arts in July. It’s a remarkable show with anti-gun violence-themed art pieces, many created with melted down and re-purposed firearms. Pati Navalta, head of the Robbie Poblete foundation, is on the show. The foundation is an Art of Peace co-sponsor. The foundation, named for her slain son, helps with gun buyback programs and works to transition troubled youth away from violence and into job training programs.

Then the Reel Stories film festival is coming up at the Albany Theatre. It will showcase the films of young women and girls. That kicks off June 29 at Landmark’s Albany Twin. We’ll here from Esther Pearl, Executive Director of Reel Stories.

The post Talkies – June 25, 2019 appeared first on KPFA.

On this episode of the Talkies:

High Speed Rail. It’s been a part of the transportation infrastructure of much of Europe and Asia for decades, but has never really had much support in the US. That is until Californians voted in 2008 to authorize nearly $10 billion in bonds to link the Bay Area to Los Angeles via high speed rail. However, since then the project has hit all sorts of road blocks. And earlier this year Governor Newsom announced California is scaling back its efforts to focus on just the central valley portion of the network. Guest host Max Pringle speaks with transportation expert Ethan Elkind today about High Speed Rail. He’s Director of the Climate Program at the Centre for Law, Energy & the Environment at the UC Berkeley Law School.

Then, it’s that time of year again. The San Francisco Mime Troupe is set to kick off its summer season of performances with a new production Treasure Island. It’s a modern take on the classic Robert Luis Stevenson adventure tale. Max Pringle chats with the SF Mime Troupe’s head writer Michael Sullivan.

Then we’ll end the show with a pre-recorded conversation host Kris Welch had with performers Naomi Newman and Susanne DiVincenzo. They’ll be discussing their new show “World on Fire.” It’s a mix of poetry and music all about the Climate Change challenge.

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