On Hand

The federal trial of four defendants accused of a plot to kidnap Governor Whitmer began this week in Grand Rapids. Some of the defendants originally charged in what’s become known as “the plot” took plea deals. One has already been sentenced. We talked to Michigan Radio reporter Dustin Dwyer about what happened in court. 

GUEST: 

Dustin Dwyer, reporter at Michigan Radio 

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If it was your family, your friends under a hail of Russian shelling, what would you do? Ukrainian Michiganders are living on edge right now, thinking of loved ones in the grip of the invasion. One Ukrainian American in Ann Arbor says since all this happened, she feels like everything in her life has changed.

GUEST:

Irina Bondarenko, ceramic artist and lead statistician at the University of Michigan School of Public Health

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Let’s get this straight: Liquor stores can't sell marijuana, dispensaries can't sell alcohol, you can’t consume cannabis in a dispensary, and cannabis lounges can't sell weed. But you can consume marijuana in a lounge if you bring your own? Michiganders are finding workarounds, and a cannabis industry reporter is here to tell us how.

GUEST:

Annalise Frank, cannabis industry reporter for Crain’s Detroit Business

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You’ve probably noticed a coating of salt on your car or truck. But undercarriages aren’t the only place road salt accumulates during the winter. University of Wisconsin researchers are seeing more and more salt in the Great Lakes, so much that their ecosystems are starting to change. 

GUEST: 

Rob Mooney, postdoctoral researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Limnology 

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For Black University of Michigan students, finding everyday hair care products is not easy. Two students sought to change that with the Youniversity Beauty Supply Machine, the first and only vending machine on campus that dispenses Black hair care products. 

GUESTS: 

Mia Wilson, co-founder, Youniversity Beauty Supply Machine

Rico Ozuna-Harrison, co-founder, Youniversity Beauty Supply Machine

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The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services has issued some new guidance around the COVID-19 pandemic. The new guidelines are meant to help folks make personal health decisions around masking and social distancing during this apparent break in the pandemic. Today, we talk to Michigan's chief medical executive about the new guidelines and how the state is changing its pandemic response, two years in. 

GUEST:

Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, chief medical executive for the state of Michigan

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More than 1,500 people in Michigan who sustained life-changing injuries in car crashes are losing home care services. That's after the state Legislature passed no-fault auto insurance reforms that allowed insurance companies to cut reimbursements to the agencies providing home care services. On today's episode, we're going to hear about how the effort to lower auto insurance costs in Michigan has had devastating consequences for crash survivors. 

GUEST: 

Tracy Samilton, energy and transportation reporter for Michigan Radio

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There’s not a lot you can get Democrats and Republicans to agree on these days. The response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine seems to be the exception. Today on the podcast, a view on Ukraine from two Michigan congressional members on opposite sides of the aisle.

GUESTS: 

U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI 12)

U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-MI 2)

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Stateside’s theme music is by 14KT.

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It can be hard to know how to support people in a warzone on the other side of the world. One local business is coming at it through food. Today, we talk with the editorial director at Frame in Hazel Park about the restaurant's upcoming Ukrainian dinner event and fundraiser.

GUEST: 

Mark Kurlyandchik, editorial director at Frame in Hazel Park

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Stateside’s theme music is by 14KT.

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During the pandemic, when state and federal governments decline to act, local public health officials have the hard job of writing the road rules for their communities. Add to that harassment from the public and lack of support from health boards and departments. Today, we hear from a Northwest Michigan health director who recently decided enough is enough.  

GUEST:

Lisa Peacock, health officer in the Benzie-Leelenau District Health Department and the Health Department of Northwest Michigan (HDNW)

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Stateside’s theme music is by 14KT.

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