KPFA - Letters and Politics

A look at burning political issues and debates and their historical context within the US and worldwide, hosted by Mitch Jeserich. The post Letters and Politics – January 14, 2025 appeared first on KPFA.

Guests: Sonali Kolhatkar is an award-winning multimedia journalist and Senior Editor at YES! Media.  She is also the host of Rising Up with Sonali, a nationally syndicated TV and radio program that airs on Pacifica Radio.  Books: Rising Up;  Bleeding Afghanistan; and her forthcoming Talking About Abolition will be released in 2025. Anthony LeRoy Westerling is Professor of Engineering, Natural Sciences, and Geography at the University of California, Merced.   Photo credit: John Perchlyn from the Esplanade area of Redondo Beach looking north towards Malibu. The post An Update on the LA Wildfires & What Can We Do About them appeared first on KPFA.

Guest: Cary Harrison is host of “Rethinking Heroes” Friday mornings on KPFK in Los Angeles. Cary received “Best Commentary” from the Associated Press, was honored by the UN for his Environmental and Peace work, and teaches critical thinking and media literacy to international students around the world.   Photo: The Palisades Fire consumes a beach front property in Malibu, California, on Wednesday. (AP pic) The post The L.A. Wildfires: People Tell Their Stories appeared first on KPFA.

Guest: Sonali Kolhatkar is an award-winning multimedia journalist and Senior Editor at YES! Media.  She is also the host of Rising Up with Sonali, a nationally syndicated TV and radio program that airs on Pacifica Radio. Then, extended portions of the L.A. Fire Department updating the situation.   Resources: Los Angeles Fire Department (Alerts) Palisades Fire: Evacuation Orders and Warnings (Click here) Palisades Fire UPDATE: January 8, 2025 TIME: 8:00AM STATUS: Size estimate remains 2,920 until an aerial survey can be conducted Cal-Fire is assuming Incident Management as of 8:00AM today There are several reported injuries to both civilians and firefighters The winds are forecasted to remain extreme today and all residents are asked to follow evacuation orders EVACUATION ORDERS: Remain In Effect EVACUATION/SHELTER CENTER: Westwood Recreation Center (1350 S Sepulveda Blvd 90025) is open for evacuees and accepts small animals.  It is now also serving as shelter, allowing residents to remain overnight. LARGE ANIMAL EVACUATION: Los Angeles Equestrian Center (480 Riverside Dr, Burbank) is open for evacuation of large animals ROAD CLOSURES: Pacific Coast Highway is closed from McClure Tunnel in Santa Monica to Topanga Canyon with LAPD managing traffic for evacuations READY, SET, GO!: If you are not in the evacuation area but are near to it, we ask you to please be prepared. Have a go bag and plan. Stay informed via LAFD Alerts and local news For more tips and resources: Ready, Set, Go! Air Quality: EPA AirNow The post The Fast Growing Moving Fires in L.A. & No Containment at the Palisades appeared first on KPFA.

Host Mitch Jeserich comments on Trump’s promises to reverse Biden’s Ban on offshore drilling and more.  The audience joins him for comments and questions.   Photo credit: Oil Drilling in Alaska. Wikimedia Commons The post Trump Promises to Revoke Biden’s Ban on Offshore Drilling appeared first on KPFA.

Host Mitch Jeserich opens the phones to listeners to talk about the certification of election results by the Electoral College and the responsibility of a peaceful transfer of power.     The post Congress Certifies the 2024 Presidential Election Results & a Peaceful Transfer of Power appeared first on KPFA.

Guest: Amitav Ghosh is the author of several bestselling books including, Ibis Trilogy; his latest is Smoke and Ashes: Opiums Hidden Histories. The post The Impact of the Opium Trade on Global History appeared first on KPFA.

Guest: Benjamin Balthaser is associate professor of multi-ethnic US literature at Indiana University, South Bend. He is the author of Anti-Imperialism Modernism: Race and Transnational Radical Culture from the Great Depression to the Cold War, and Dedication, a personal history of growing up in a Jewish “red diaper” family. His forthcoming book from Verso, Citizens of the Whole World:  The American Jewish Left and Cultures of Anti-Zionism, is due to be out this fall.   Photo: General Jewish Labour Bund hung in Kiev in 1917 The post A History of Jewish Anti-Zionism: From The Communist Party to The New Left appeared first on KPFA.

Guest: Susan J. Wolfson is a professor of English at Princeton University and author of On Mary Wollstonecrafts A Vindication of the Rights of Woman: The First of a New Genus. The post Mary Wollstonecraft, The French Revolution and The Tyranny of Men  appeared first on KPFA.

(Video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzeCOZfd7WM&t=3s Guest: Asaf Elia-Shalev is an Israeli-American journalist based in Los Angeles. He is a staff writer for the Jewish Telegraphic Agency and the author of Israel’s Black Panthers: The Radicals Who Punctured a Nation’s Founding Myth. The post The Mizrahi: From The Black Panthers to Likud appeared first on KPFA.