Archive for November, 2005

Hurricane Economics

Wednesday, November 30th, 2005

The 2005 hurricane season ends today. Twenty-six named storms and four hurricanes hit the U.S., making this season the worst, and most expensive, on record. As preparation turns to rebuilding, host Melinda Penkava looks at the economic realities of hurricanes. Guests include: Jamie Kruse, director of the Center for Natural Hazard Research at East Carolina University; Ashley London, reporter with the Charlotte Business Journal; Jim Kleckley, professor of finance at E.C.U; Barbara Barrett, reporter with the News & Observer of Raleigh; and Michael Madonna, homeowner on Topsail Island. Listener Call-In. (59:00)

This program was produced in cooperation with the students of Professor Patrick Conway’s first-year seminar class at UNC-Chapel Hill entitled “The Economics of North Carolina.” For more information on this topic, click here.

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Review

Tuesday, November 29th, 2005

State of Things theater reviewer Mike Munger offers his take on Michelle Lowe’s play about a family keepsake. “String of Pearls” is presented by Playmakers Theater Company in Chapel Hill and runs through December 11th. (4:00)

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Selling The Dream

Tuesday, November 29th, 2005

As consumers, we are inundated with advertising from the moment we wake up until we go to sleep — on TV and radio (even public radio), along the highways, in movies, on buses and even cars. Does advertising add to hyper-consumerism or somehow harm our children? Or does it provide information and insight into products and services we all need anyway? Host Melinda Penkava speaks with John Hood, president of the John Locke Foundation of Raleigh and the author of “Selling The Dream: Why Advertising Is Good Business” (Praeger/2005) about the use — and potential misuse — of advertising in a free-market economy. Listener Call-In. (45:00)

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Churches and Politics

Monday, November 28th, 2005

The heat of the 2004 presidential election has died down, but for many churches the aftermath of an election rooted in moral and theological issues is still taking its toll. The IRS has announced that it’s investigating approximately 20 churches for possible violations of the codes that grant them tax exemption as non-profit organizations — codes that restrict non-profits from endorsing specific candidates. What should be the role of churches in the political process? And is free speech restricted when church leaders can’t speak out on political issues for fear of financial reprisals? Host Melinda Penkava talks with Melissa Rogers, professor of religion and public policy at the Wake Forest Divinity School; Richard Schmalbeck, professor of law at Duke University; and Robert Wineburg, professor of social work at UNC-Greensboro. Listener Call-In. (59:00) d

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Buckminster Fuller

Friday, November 25th, 2005

In 1948, Buckminster Fuller, then a visiting teacher at Black Mountain College in Western North Carolina, built his first geodesic dome. It collapsed. The next summer he returned to Black Mountain and succeeded. Fuller later became famous for his domes and inventions, including the Dymaxion car, Dymaxion map, and World Game. A current exhibit at the Black Mountain College Museum and Art Center in Asheville looks back at
those inventions and Fuller’s time in North Carolina. Host Frank Stasio talks with John Wright, board chairman at Black Mountain College Museum + Art Center in Asheville; Lloyd Steven Sieden, author of “Buckminster Fuller’s Universe: His Life and Work” (Perseus/2000); Jay Baldwin, author of “Bucky Works: Buckminster Fuller’s Ideas for Today” (Wiley/1997); and David McConville, co-founder of Elumenati, a company in Asheville that designs immersive projection environments. Listener Call-in. (59:00)

(This is a re-broadcast of a show that first aired on Oct. 11, 2005.)

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