Full Program

Part 1

We begin with a shocking and shameful example of the priorities of the House Republicans who have slipped legislation into the National Defense Authorization Act at the behest of the banking lobby that would block protection for American servicemen and their families from predatory payday lenders. Robert Weissman, the President of Public Citizen joins us to discuss how efforts to shield military families from short-term high-interest loans where a yearlong $2,600 loan costs $3,967 to pay back and a six month $485 loan costs $1,428 to pay off, have been stalled before the House Armed Service Committee.

Part 2

Then following an impassioned speech today by Hillary Clinton in her first major policy address where she called for “an end to the era of mass incarceration” saying “from Ferguson to Staten Island to Baltimore, the patterns have become unmistakable and undeniable”, we will speak with Amy Dillard, a Professor of Law at the University of Baltimore School of Law. She recently served on a Baltimore commission to examine the death of a prisoner in police custody and we will discuss the payouts the cash-strapped city has made to more than 100 people in court judgments and settlements over the past four years for civil right violations and police brutality.

Part 3

Then finally we look into the case of the only person so far to be punished for the Bush/Cheney CIA torture regime, Obama’s nominee for the Army’s General Counsel, Alissa Starzak, whose nomination is being held up as payback for doing her job of oversight for the public as a lead investigator on the torture report. Ali Watkins, who covers national security and foreign policy for The Huffington Post joins us to discuss her latest article at The Huffington Post “Someone is Finally Paying the Price for the CIA Torture Report”.

Full Program

Part 1

We begin with the on-going tragedy in Nepal and speak with Alexander von Rospatt, a Professor of Buddhist and South Asian Studies at the University of California Berkeley who has over 20 years of field experience in the Kathmandu Valley which was devastated by Saturday’s earthquake that has claimed more than 5,000 lives.  We discuss rescue efforts underway and international help that already has the airport at Kathmandu unable to park any more planes. We additionally look into the most effective ways for people to offer assistance for efforts to restore the cultural heritage of the Kathmandu Valley.

Part 2

Then we look into the U.S. visit of Japan’s Prime Minister Abe who will address a joint session of Congress on Wednesday. Thomas Berger, Professor of International Relations at Boston University and author of “War, Guilt and World Politics After World War II” joins us to discuss Abe’s efforts to crack down on press freedom and his continual denial of World War II atrocities as well as the reversal underway in Japan’s post-war “pacifist” defense posture as the U.S. encouraged Japan to join it in containing China both militarily and economically with the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact.

Part 3

Then finally we speak with Houri Berberian a Professor of History and the Director of the Middle East Program at California State University Long Beach. She is just back from Turkey where she participated in demonstrations on the 100^th anniversary of the Armenian genocide, which in spite of Turkey’s growing international isolation, President Erdogan insists did not happen.