How Do We Fix It?

The massive wave of protests in hundreds of towns and cities across America and in many other countries were sparked by outrage, pain and grief over the killing of George Floyd, and countless incidents of racism against African-Americans.We've all been surprised by the events of the past few weeks. They've forced many of us to question our core beliefs about the political system, public morality, and the distribution of power. For this episode, we looked for someone who could talk about race from a personal, practical, and original viewpoint Our guest is writer and podcaster, Coleman Hughes, a recent graduate of Columbia University, who has testified before Congress, and written articles for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Quillette, and other outlets. Coleman was recently named as a Manhattan Institute fellow."If we are just going to live in what's comfortable you might as well not think at all", says Coleman, in response to chants, demands and slogans at Black Lives Matter demonstrations."When your pride becomes tied up in identity the temptation becomes irresistible to lie about any fact that doesn't paint your group in a positive light, and then we lose touch with enormous issues."In this episode, we discuss police corruption, crime and punishment, and racist attacks in communities of color.Recommendation: Richard is following The Fulcrum, a digital news organization, focused on efforts to reverse dysfunctions in American democracy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The nation is again facing the deep pain of racial injustice. The recent killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor reverberated across the country, sparking widespread protests in many cities. These cases were only the latest on a very long list of attacks and murders of African-American men and women. They resulted in public outrage, some violent incidents, and many calls for police reforms.In this special episode, we share the latest podcast of "Let's Find Common Ground," a new series of episodes with public leaders that explore points of agreement in this divided time.  To gain some insight on what can be done to address discrimination and tensions between races, we speak with R&B and blues musician Daryl Davis, a black man who has spent the past 35 years on a remarkable quest of speaking with, and at times befriending, members of white supremacist groups. He has helped more than 200 KKK members to renounce their racist ideology."We have to ask ourselves the question: do I want to sit back and see what my country becomes, or do I want to stand up and make my country become what I want to see," Daryl tells us. "I've chosen the latter. And so you have to get into the thick of it."As a race conciliator and lecturer, Davis has received numerous awards and is often sought by CNN, MSNBC, NPR and other media outlets as a consultant on race relations and white supremacy. For more information, visit www.DarylDavis.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The coronavirus crisis has reminded everyone that major reforms are needed to fix the flaws of the U.S. healthcare system. Beyond the huge expense and vast amount of waste, the quality of care varies wildly, and millions of Americans can't get care when they need it.  Physician and health care CEO Dr. Vivian Lee draws on her deep experience of the public and private sector to call for a pragmatic and sweeping set of reforms. They include ending the current fee-for-service model and improving price transparency.We discuss the findings of her new book, "The Long Fix: Solving America's Health Care Crisis with Strategies that Work for Everyone.""The silver lining of the COVID 19 is that we've seen a rapid shift to alternative ways of caring for people," says Dr. Lee. Tele-medicine and technology can help lead to better access and healthcare for everyone.Recommendations: Richard gives his thumbs up toTV series: "State of Happiness" and "Halt and Catch Fire" Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We look at scientists who learned to manipulate common materials such as steel, glass and silicon, and how their inventions shaped the human experience. Our guest is scientist, storyteller and science writer, Ainissa Ramirez, author of the new book, "The Alchemy of Us, How Humans and Matter Transformed One Another."We discuss the wonder of science, especially material science: What it is and why it’s a crucial part of all that is in us and around us.Ainissa shares her love of science and tells us stories of the woman who sold time, why the brevity of the telegram influenced newspapers and the writing of Ernest Hemingway, and how a woman chemist exposed the use of Polaroid cameras to track black citizens in apartheid South Africa. We also discuss the teaching of science and technology. "STEM education right now is in the business of making people who can code, says Ainissa. "I think we should be in the business of making good people."Recommendation: "The Alchemy of Us", by Ainissa Ramirez is a warm and engaging book about the innovations that have a profound influence on our everyday lives. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Coronavirus pandemic is the 21st century's biggest crisis to date: Worse than either 9/11 or the great recession. Jim and Richard discuss seven surprising things that we didn't know when the lockdowns began in March:1. Early assessments about coronavirus turned out to be wrong. We now have a much better idea of how COVID-19 is spread and who's at greatest risk.2. Re-opening the economy is going to be much more difficult than expected.3. Cars and suburbs are here to stay: how the pandemic may change the way we live and work.4. Get ready for sweeping changes in higher education.5. The need for efficient government is much greater than we imagined.6. The military will play a vital role in recovery and prevention of future pandemics.7. Our notion of citizenship and sacrifice will fundamentally change.From the economy, politics and education to the deeply uneven impacts on people in different jobs and regions, we discuss the rapidly changing nature of the pandemic and its vast disruption to our world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How will the COVID-19 pandemic change our democracy? Will we become more less divided? We discuss the challenges and opportunities of the current crisis with four podcasters who are all our colleagues in The Democracy Group podcast network.Juleyka Lantigua-Williams, Cara Ong Whaley, Mila Atmos and Lee Drutman join Richard to talk about barriers to voting, civic engagement and equal access to the democratic system. They look at what the current crisis means for advocates of democracy reform.Juleyka is the creator and executive producer of the Peabody-nominated 70 Million, a documentary podcast about criminal justice reform.Cara is Associate Director of James Madison University's Center for Civic Engagement and co-host of "Democracy Matters".Mila is executive producer and host of the civic engagement podcast, "Future Hindsight".Lee is co-host of "Politics In Question", a podcast about how our institutions are failing us and ideas for fixing them. A senior fellow at New America, Lee is an author, researcher and political commentator.Jim and Richard also discuss findings of this bonus episode produced for the Democracy Works network that deals with the response to the pandemic.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tens of millions of Americans have filed for unemployment benefits since the coronavirus outbreak began. Well over one-in-four people have suffered a moderate or severe financial setback in recent weeks. Consumer confidence is plunging. In this episode we look at the best ways to cope with a sudden drop in income. Beverly Harzog, the personal finance and credit card expert at US News and World Report, is our guest. She's the author of five bestselling personal finance books. From keeping your credit score intact to claiming all the benefits you're entitled to; we look at urgent ways to weather the storm at a time of unprecedented economic crisis.  "The safest thing to do with a stimulus check is to put it in your emergency fund just in case you need it for groceries or monthly essentials," says Beverly. We also discuss debt consolidation, controlling impulse buying, and negotiating with credit card companies. Recommendation: Jim has been watching the new remote episodes of Saturday Night Live. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Much of what we took for granted, including daily routines, have been upended during the coronavirus pandemic. At a time when many have new questions about our personal values, traditions and lifestyles, this could be a teachable moment.Social media may have been helpful in convincing people about the need for social distancing, wearing masks and other recent changes. "It really did allow norms to be transmitted very very quickly," says our guest, Amherst College psychology professor Catherine Sanderson.In this episode we also discuss Catherine's research into the psychology of inaction and the themes of her new book, "Why We Act. Turning Bystanders Into Moral Rebels." Why is bad behavior, from sexual harassment to political corruption frequently tolerated? Why do many of us fail to intervene when we're needed? "Moral rebels seem to be comfortable with standing up and calling out bad behavior, even if they're in a group setting in which other people are staying silent. And even when it may be terribly hard to do so for the rest of us," Catherine tells us.Fix It recommendation: Richard is watching "Firing Line With Margaret Hoover" on PBS TV. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Everybody is asking, how did the U.S. and most other nations get the coronavirus pandemic so wrong? Taiwan was a rare exception. Health officials and the democratic government of this island state sprang into action in the final days of 2019, and tried to warn the world of COVID danger.Despite being just 80 miles from the coast of China and with a huge amount of travel back and forth to the mainland, Taiwan was remarkably well prepared. The outbreak was kept to a minimum. "Taiwan knows that it is on its own," says our guest, Samson Ellis, Taipei Bureau Chief at Bloomberg News. "It does not have the backup of the World Health Organization or the World Bank... and that's why Taiwan backs itself up and is very cautious when it comes to issues like this."This episode looks at how technology, contract tracing, advance planning, and buy in by citizens all contributed to Taiwan's success. Taiwan's exclusion from the WHO, and a bizarre controversy over the agency's leader is also discussed.Recommendation: Jim is reading the 1971 Annie Dillard Pulitzer-Prize winning novel, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The great Alaskan earthquake on Good Friday, March 27th, 1964, was surprising, and the lessons from the response are helpful in understanding how we respond to the COVID pandemic today."The earthquake overwhelmed people the way the strongest emotions do," wrote our guest, Jon Mooallem recently in The New York Times. "It was pure sensation, coming on faster than the intellect's ability to register it." A big theme of Jon's new book, "This Is Chance!" is how the citizens of Anchorage almost instantly became "a wave of unofficial first responders." Despite officials' fears of panic, looting and violence, many people rose to the occasion, with countless acts of kindness. The crime rate plummeted, just as it has in recent weeks in New York.The story also includes a riveting account of the role played by local KENI radio reporter Genie Chance. The personal messages that she passed on from the local police and fire station spread vital information and helped local citizens make sense of the disaster they were living through. Recommendations: Jim is listening to the music of singer-songwriter, Jon Prine, who died recently of COVID-19. He also recommends the TV miniseries, "Devs", on FX, written and directed by Alex Garland. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.