Radio Curious

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Non-lethal chemical warfare may be an oxymoron to some, but it was actually the goal of a U.S. Army research program in the 1960s and 70s at Edgewood Arsenal, an army arsenal in Maryland. The research goal was to find incapacitating non-lethal chemical weapons that would cause the enemy to lie down, smile and laugh. The research team was lead by a then colonel in the U.S. Army, psychiatrist Dr. James S. Ketchum. The team attempted to determine if LSD, cannabis, or belladonna could achieve the goal. Dr. Ketchum, the author of “Chemical Warfare: Secrets Almost Forgotten,” visited the studios of Radio Curious on August 1, 2008. We began our interview when I asked what originally drew him to participate in the project at Edgewood Arsenal.

The books he recommends are “Pihkal: A Chemical Love Story” and “Tihkal: The Continuation,” by Alexander and Ann Shulgin.

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State guidelines for growing and possessing medical marijuana, were issued by the California Attorney General on August 25, 2008. In this edition of Radio Curious, we visit again with Mendocino County Sheriff Tom Allman, who participated in the development of these guidelines, to discuss their implementation. This interview was recorded August 27, 2008, in the studios of Radio Curious.

The book that Tom Allman recommends is, “Reagan’s War: The Epic Story of His Forty-Year Struggle and Final Triumph Over Communism,” by Peter Schweizer.

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The Virtues of Aging – Considering the alternatives, growing older is really not all that bad. The frame of mind that we develop and carry with us as we age controls much of how we feel and behave. James Earl Carter Jr., more often known as Jimmy Carter, the 39th President of the US, is the author of a book called, “The Virtues of Aging.” President Carter’s book covers issues from Social Security and medical expenses to the importance of staying active and involved. Radio Curious spoke with President Jimmy Carter by phone, in the fall of 1998, and I asked him what prompted him to write the book.

President Jimmy Carter recommends “The Age Wave: How the Most Important Trend of Our Time Can Change Your Future,” by Ken Dychtwald.

Originally Broadcast: December 4, 1998

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To Kill or Not To Kill: That is the question still presented to juries in capital cases in the United States, one of the few countries remaining in the world to employ the death penalty. In this edition of Radio Curious, we visit with Pastor Carroll Pickett, who served as chaplain for the Texas Department of Corrections from 1982 to 1995 and counseled 95 inmates on their way to death by lethal injection. “At the Death House Door: No Man Should Die Alone,” is a independent film documentary, directed and produced by Steve James and Peter Gilbert, that presents a personal and intimate look at the death penalty in Texas through the eyes of Pastor Pickett, a Presbyterian minister. Over the years, after each of the 95 executions, Pickett would record his experiences with that person on the tape he used to practice his sermons. Although he never listened to those tapes, they became the thread and primary source for the movie. I spoke with Pastor Carroll Pickett on May 23, 2008 from his home in Texas, after hearing him speak at a special hearing on capital punishment in San Francisco, CA, while he was on a break from a national publicity tour. We began when I asked him to explain what brought him to work with condemned men and be with them in their last hours. This program was originally broadcast on June 25, 2009.
The book Carroll Pickett recommends is “Just Call Me Mike: A Journey to Actor and Activist,” by Mike Farrell and Martin Sheen.

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Few people in Mendocino County who are not elected officials have created as much enmity and as many disruptive relationships as has Richard W. Johnson, Jr., the owner, editor and publisher of four local newspapers under the banner of Mendocino Country, since 1984. Johnson, who characterizes himself as a community organizer, lives in his office in downtown Ukiah, CA, overlooking Courthouse Square; he claims among many other things to be the original organizer of California Certified Organic Farmers, the Recipient of Walking Stick Award from Mendocino Environment Center in 1992 for promoting Ocean Sanctuary off the Mendocino Coast, and the original proponent of Measure G on the 2000 ballot. When I invited him to visit Radio Curious he said he would like to discuss “the amazing but little understood and seldom appreciated Richard Johnson, his life and times.” We touched on those and a few other topics in this conversation, recorded in the studios of Radio Curious on February 19, 2008, and began when I asked him about some of the areas where he would like to be better understood.

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There is a lot of discussion about hope in this time of the pending election for president.  Francis Moore Lappe, author of, “Diet for a Small Planet,” discusses the need to give up certain old assumptions in her new book, “Getting a Grip: Clarity, Creativity and Courage in a World Gone Mad.”  One path to abandoning old assumptions comes from curiosity, which is also a guiding principal for this program.  When I visited with Francis Moore Lappe on Feburary 20, 2008, from her office in Cambridge, Massachusetts, we discussed curiosity and her reflection that she should have included “curiosity” in her title of, “Getting a Grip.”

The book she recommends is, “The Field: The Quest for the Secret Force of the Universe,” by Lynne McTaggart

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Can rural, local government actually run smoothly and meet the changing needs of the community?  It is slow to happen in Mendocino County, California.  In this two part interview about the politics and development possibilities in Mendocino County, specifically in the North end of Ukiah, where a large shopping center is proposed that would be 700,000 square feet with 3,800 parking places and approximately 28 restaurants, we’ll be talking with Frank McMichael and Richard Shoemaker.  Both of these men were members of the Ukiah City Council and representatives of the Ukiah area on the Mendocino County board of Supervisors, serving consecutively, ending in 2005. Frank McMichael served a one year-term, and Richard Shoemaker served a two-year term. This program was originally broadcast on March 12, and March 19, 2008.

Richard Shoemaker recommends, “Longitude,” by Dava Sobel. Frank McMichael recommends, “Coercion: Why We Listen to What ‘They’ Say,” by Douglas Rushkoff.

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Can rural, local government actually run smoothly and meet the changing needs of the community?  It is slow to happen in Mendocino County, California.  In this two part interview about the politics and development possibilities in Mendocino County, specifically in the North end of Ukiah, where a large shopping center is proposed that would be 700,000 square feet with 3,800 parking places and approximately 28 restaurants, we’ll be talking with Frank McMichael and Richard Shoemaker.  Both of these men were members of the Ukiah City Council and representatives of the Ukiah area on the Mendocino County board of Supervisors, serving consecutively, ending in 2005. Frank McMichael served a one year-term, and Richard Shoemaker served a two-year term. This program was originally broadcast on March 12, and March 19, 2008.

Richard Shoemaker recommends, “Longitude,” by Dava Sobel. Frank McMichael recommends, “Coercion: Why We Listen to What ‘They’ Say,” by Douglas Rushkoff.

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Years ago, before the myriad of things to buy were as available as they are now, retail businesses were most often locally-owned and operated, often for generations. This all began to change in the middle of the last century, as many of the items in the Sears Catalogue became available in towns and cities across the nation for consumers to feel and touch. But, it wasn’t until approximately 25 years ago when Wal-Mart, Target and other big-box stores appeared nationwide in small communities, to the detriment of locally-owned businesses and the social and economic benefits those businesses provided to their communities.  Michael Shuman, an attorney and an economist, is the author of, “The Small-Mart Revolution: How Local Businesses are Beating the Global Competition.” This book addresses the issues and problems of locally owned businesses and how they can successfully compete with the big-box stores owned by corporations foreign to the region. We began our conversation, which occurred on January 21, 2008, when I asked Michael Shuman to describe how a corporation comes into being, as a basis to understand some of the problems of locally owned businesses in competition with the big box stores.

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