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The Leonard Lopate Show

Thursday, September 09, 2004
  • price of war

    Net Gains

    Guest host Chris Bannon fills in today for Leonard. This week our “Underreported” segment focuses on Georgia’s internal struggles, and its efforts to regain some of its lost territories. We’ll hear from Andrew Meier, author of Black Earth: A Journey through Russia after the Fall, and Sebastian Smith, journalist and author of Allah's Mountains: Politics and War in the Russian Caucasus. Then Joshua Goldstein argues that war is (and should be) expensive—he estimates that the average American household currently pays $500 each month in taxes to finance war. And these costs only increase the longer war lasts. In The Real Price of War, he argues that increasing war spending now will actually save money later. Bruce Schoenfeld has won two Emmy Awards for his coverage of the Olympics. In his latest book, The Match, he uncovers the historic significance of the friendship between tennis doubles partners Althea Gibson (the first black person to compete in the US Championships) and Angela Buxton (who, as the granddaughter of Russian Jews growing up in England, felt like an outsider herself) in the 1950s. We’ll talk with both Bruce Schoenfeld and Angela Buxton about this important partnership. Finally, director Bill Morrison and composer Michael Gordon discuss their current work, Decasia. The project—currently showing at St. Ann’s Warehouse—combines Morrison’s assemblage of deteriorated, damaged film clips with Gordon’s original score in order to examine the nature of decay.

Andrew Meier and Sebastian Smith

Andrew Meier and Sebastian Smith on the current challenges—from territorial disputes to economic struggles—faced by Georgia.

» More on our Underreported series

Music: Alilo: Ancient Georgian Chorales, Rustavi Choir: "Shen khar venakhi" / "Alilo" / "Da vitarza meupisa"

Joshua Goldstein

Joshua Goldstein explains how much war actually costs average Americans in The Real Price of War.

» Read an excerpt of The Real Price of War in the Reading Room
» More on the book
» Go to the book's website

Music: "Escalator," Bang on a Can All-Stars
"Betty’s Lament," Isan

Angela Buxton and Bruce Schoenfeld

Tennis player Angela Buxton and author Bruce Schoenfeld on The Match--the story of Buxton’s historic friendship with her doubles partner, Althea Gibson, in the 1950s.

» Read an excerpt of The Match in the Reading Room
» More on the book
» More on Bruce Schoenfeld

Music: Soundtrack for Talk Radio, music by Stewart Copeland: “Kent: Unpredictable” / “Trend: he Has Heart”

Bill Morrison and Michael Gordon

Bill Morrison and Michael Gordon explore the art of decay with their current project, Decasia, at St. Ann’s Warehouse.

» More on the show

Music: Decasia, Michael Gordon

Tributes: Jeanne-Claude

The Leonard Lopate Show

Jeanne-Claude created environmental works of art with her husband and fellow-conspirator/collaborator Christo. Together, they wrapped the Reichstag in Berlin, the Pont-Neuf in Paris, and created The Gates, with billowy orange drapes, in Central Park. Jeanne-Claude just died at the age of 74. You can hear Leonard Lopate’s last interview with them both, from July 19, 1999.

Let’s Go Swimming!

The Leonard Lopate Show

According to the Centers for Disease Control, bacterial, viral, and parasitic organisms found in recreational water in the United States sicken thousands of people every year, and even result in deaths. We’ll speak with chemist and industrial hygienist Monona Rossol about the protozoa, amoebas and other things that love to go swimming with us. Monona is also founder and President of Arts, Crafts and Theater Safety.

Frank McCourt

The Leonard Lopate Show

Frank McCourt has been a guest many times on this show over the years, starting in 1996 for the memoir, Angela’s Ashes, that would earn him a Pulitzer Prize. Fame came to him late in life, after he’d retired at the age of 65 from teaching English and creative writing at public schools here in New York. He was a sweet, eloquent man who spoke with grace and humility; he just died at the age of 78 after a battle with cancer. You can hear him speaking with Leonard Lopate for his Survival Kit in 2000, and in 2005, for his memoir, Teacher Man.

Science and Faith

The Leonard Lopate Show

Earlier this week, Pres. Obama announced that he plans to nominate geneticist Dr. Francis Collins to lead the National Institutes of Health. You can listen to Leonard’s 2006 conversation with Dr. Collins about how he reconciles his personal faith with his professional scientific knowledge.

FDA to Regulate Tobacco?

The Leonard Lopate Show

May 14, 2009
Congress is getting ready to a vote on whether to make tobacco subject to FDA regulation. You can listen to a segment we did in May about the bill and what it would mean for the cigarette companies.

Our 3-ingredient Challenge wins a James Beard Award

The Leonard Lopate Show

On May 3, the Lopate Show won its third James Beard Award for our 3-ingredient challenge. In August, we asked our listeners to call in and name 3 ingredients and then challenged New York chef and 3-ingredient expert Rozanne Gold to whip up a recipe! You can listen to the 3-ingredient challenge and get some inspiration for simple, delicious, and unexpected dishes.

Leonard is on Facebook

Now Leonard is on Facebook! We’re posting photos, status updates, links to notable interviews, and lots more. Check it out.

Barack Obama, Circa 2004

The Leonard Lopate Show

Listen to President-Elect Barack Obama on the Leonard Lopate Show in November 2004. He had recently won a seat in the U.S. Senate, and only a few months before, his rousing speech during the 2004 Democratic National Convention catapulted him into the national spotlight.