How Do We Fix It?

"The debt will be as large as our entire economy by the end of the decade", says Maya MacGuineas, President of the bipartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. "Every indicator that you could look for in terms of the numbers is on flashing red alert."The U.S. federal government debt is nearly $20 trillion and rising each year. Interest payments are the single fastest growing part of the federal budget, and higher interest rates in the near future will add to the enormous burden.A recent report from the International Monetary Fund predicts that the U.S. will be the only advanced economy in the world to see its debt burden grow significantly over the next five years.As seen recently with Italy's debt, a full-blown bond crisis can erupt at any time. But President Trump and both parties in Congress are barely focusing on the problem. Media coverage is usually confined to the business press.This episode looks at why the 2018 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expands projected annual deficits and is a huge gamble for the future of the economy.Maya MacGuineas also discusses ways to restore fiscal balance through reducing unproductive tax breaks and putting the brakes on spending. Here's a link to a new interactive debt fixer tool and Social Security calculator, showing how your retirement benefits will be cut unless Washington acts.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Far too often, politics and policy are portrayed as a battle between liberals and conservatives, or socialists vs. capitalists. But one of the most profound divides of modern times is between optimists and pessimists-- especially over how they view the environment.This episode looks at the debate between environmental optimists (wizards), who believe we can invent our way to a better, healthier future, and pessimists (prophets), who say we must impose limits on pollution, over-crowding other impacts of humans on the planet.Our guest, journalist, Charles C. Mann, author of new book, "The Wizard and The Prophet", is a correspondent for The Atlantic, Science and Wired. Two of his previous books, 1491 and 1493, were widely-acclaimed best sellers.We consider the dueling visions of two remarkable scientists. Norman Borlaug's research led to the Green Revolution, which saved hundreds of millions of lives, and boosted agricultural production. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work. William Vogt, who saw the world as bound by immutable biological limits, was the founder of modern environmentalism, perhaps the most successful ideology of the past century. His book, "Road to Survival", which inspired generations of environmental activists.Do apocalyptic environmentalists sometimes seem heartless about the lives of poor people? Are technological optimists are too optimistic about the future, with ideas that lead to global domination by massive, centralized corporations and economic systems? We unpack these and other challenging questions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From the streets of Chicago and Los Angeles, to indictments this month targeting criminal networks in Savannah, Georgia and white supremacists in Grand Prairie, Texas, tens of thousands of gangs are responsible for drug crimes, brutal killings and other forms of violence. According to one recent estimate, nearly one-and-a-half million people are members of gangs in the United States.In this episode, we look at the lessons learned from the successful police and federal crackdown against Sex Money Murder (SMM), New York City's most violent drug gang in the early 1990's. The Bronx had one the highest murder rates in the country. The notorious SMM was the most violent gang in the city.Our guest, Jonathan Green, is the author of the new book, "Sex Money Murder: A Story of Crack, Blood and Betrayal." He tells the hair-raising story of how SMM brutally dealt with rivals and anyone else who got in their way, as well as the economics of the crack epidemic, which brought great wealth to gang leaders.This episode looks at the work of Detective John O'Malley, housing cop Pete Forcelli. federal prosecutor Liz Glazer and others who risked their lives to take violent crews off the streets and win convictions against SMM'S leading members. Jonathan also tells the story of gang leader "Pistol" Pete Rollock and two his top lieutenants, Suge and Pipe. We look at what works today in the fight against gangs, including the use of federal RICO laws, and intervention by local communities.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

President Trump's rejection of the Iran nuclear agreement and Israeli military attacks on Iranian sites in Syria are among the latest signs of rising tensions in the Middle East. The threat of war is ever-present.Twenty five years after the signing of the Oslo Accords, relations between the Israeli government and Palestinian Authority are at a low point. There has been no significant peace process in many years.We speak with Israeli public opinion analyst, strategic consultant and peace researcher, Dahlia Scheindlin, who is hopeful that a new peace agreement will emerge. In addition to her work with Israelis and Palestinian, she has expertise conflict resolution in Eastern Europe and the Balkans. Dahlia is co-host of the podcast, The Tel Aviv Review.In this episode, we discuss the proposal for a confederation between Israel and Palestine. Unlike the hard borders in a traditional two-state solution, a two-state confederation would allow for greater movement of both peoples. While the idea has received little coverage in the international media, the confederation debate is gathering strength in Israel. The concept calls for a softer separation with more Palestinians living as non-citizens in Israel, while Jewish settlements with Israeli citizens may remain in Palestine.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The growing #MeToo movement has exposed many cases of sexual harassment and retaliation in the workplace.Among the latest examples is an upheaval at Nike. Female employees, fed up with years of gender discrimination, insensitive behavior and crude comments by male colleagues, took action. Covertly, they surveyed female peers, asking about their experiences. The findings led to changes, with at least six top male executives resigning or announcing plans to leave the company.Despite widespread media coverage and outrage over cases of sexual harassment and abuse, little focus has been given to what happens next. We look at specific steps employers can take to improve the workplace environment.In this repeat episode, New York Times journalist Claire Cain Miller, who writes about gender, families and the future of work for The Upshot, explains the challenges ahead in the fight for equality and respect. A recent survey found that nearly half of women said they had experienced some form of sexual harassment at work at least once in their careers. A 2015 study revealed that only one-quarter to a third of women who experience sexual harassment report it.For solutions visit our website howdowefixit.me Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When we focus on the future, we usually look at the big things: Will the current crisis with North Korea be resolved peacefully? Is President Trump likely to face a big setback in the midterm elections? When will the next recession hit?Our guest, political consultant Mark Penn, argues that the future is not shaped by broad forces, but by quiet changes-- Microtrends-- within narrow slices of the population.We hear about "Techno-Luddites", the rise of internet marriages, the huge increase in the number of Americans living into their nineties, and why these and many other trends will have a profound impact on the future of jobs, society and politics.Ten years ago, Mark showed how the behavior of one small group can exert a surprisingly large influence over the whole country. Now, in his latest book, Microtrends Squared, there are more fascinating  Mark Penn is a pollster and political consultant. He worked for Bill and Hillary Clinton, as well as for Microsoft. In the ‘90s he identified the rise of the “Soccer Moms” who helped elect Bill Clinton. In 2007, he wrote the book Microtrends, detailing many similar trends. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The National Week of Conversation is a bold attempt to reduce the yawning gap between Republicans and Democrats. More than 100 groups across the country are involved in online and in-person events from April 20th to April 28th. We look at how the project works and why it can make a difference. With American politics increasingly dominated by personal insults, name calling and dogma, a growing movement for greater civility is emerging. "The ever-widening gulf..is one of the most significant trends to emerge in U.S. society in the past two decades," says a Gallup polling analysis. Our guests in this episode, John Gable and Joan Blades, are leaders of a growing project to bring Americans together to talk it out, mending the bitter partisan divide "one conversation at a time." #ListenfFirst and #NWOC are the hashtags they use on social media. "When you only talk to people just like yourself, and we only get information that confirms what we already think, we become much more extreme in our beliefs and much less tolerant," says John.Living Room Conversations, the group Joan co-founded, is hosting five online events as part of the National Week of Conversation. AllSides, the website that features news reports from the left, right, and center, is also deeply involved. Big Tent Nation, Bridge Alliance Partners, NCDD, The National Coalition for Dialogue and Deliberation, and The National Institute for Civil Discourse are organizing partners.  Since we started our weekly news solutions show nearly three years ago, "How Do We Fix It?" has been committed to addressing the crisis of political paralysis. We are pleased to promote this cause.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From internet giants Facebook, Amazon and Google to telecom titans AT&T, Verizon and Comcast, American capitalism is increasingly dominated by huge and politically well-connected business behemoths.We look at the case for reform, including stronger anti-trust regulations, innovative use of the Interstate Commerce Clause, better pay for government regulators, and reform of the tax code.Our guest, finance professor, Luigi Zingales of the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, makes a crucial distinction between free markets and big business. Luigi is the author of two widely reviewed books: "Saving Capitalism from Capitalists (coauthored with Raghuram Rajan) and "A Capitalism for the People: Recapturing the Lost Genius of American Prosperity."  He is also the co-host of the popular podcast, "Capitalisnt."In this episode of "How Do We Fix It?" Luigi presents arguments to reduce the power of crony capitalism and restore competition at all levels as an engine for economic growth and fairness. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The facts are hard to deny. We live longer, infant mortality continues to fall, we are richer, less subject to violence-- and despite uneven progress, the world is more democratic than it was 50 years ago.And yet so many people are gripped by pessimism and fear.Donald Trump was elected President after repeatedly claiming "our country is going to hell." A recent poll found that just three-in-ten Americans think the country is headed in the right direction. The number of Americans who think the country has a strong national character declined sharply in the last two decades.Our guest, journalist Gregg Easterbrook is author of the new book, "It's Better Than It Looks: Reasons for Optimism in an Age of Fear.""If you're an optimist you think that problems can be fixed," says Gregg. "If you're a pessimist, you think the world is going to hell and there is nothing I can do about it."We look at why our pessimistic outlook has been blurred by the rise of social media, and is getting in the way of urgently needed reforms, from reducing climate change to fixing the national debt. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With turmoil and never-ending drama in the White House, and record numbers of departures from top levels of the Trump Administration, it is safe to say that America is facing a leadership crisis. According to recent polls, a solid majority of US voters disapproves of Trump's leadership.In corporate America, the once-celebrated Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, is facing growing criticism over his late and insufficient response to privacy concerns and the Cambridge Analytica data hijacking scandal.University administrators, media titans and the leaders of the US Gymnastics movement have all faced angry protests for mishandling cases of sexual abuse, assault and harassment.This episode looks at how leaders can avoid the mistakes and embarrassment that could ruin their reputation, lead to their downfall and cause their employees and associates great harm. Our guest is the highly respected crisis communications and leadership strategist, Davia Temin.She speaks from a place of deep experience and passion about the crucial importance of ethics, honesty and diversity, as well as the need for leaders to communicate quickly and clearly, especially in times of crisis. We learn about the do’s and don’ts of crisis communications as well as the benefits of coaching and training.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.