FRESH AIR
Washington Post correspondent Thomas Ricks — author of the bestseller Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq ? talks about his latest trip to that country and the latest strategies the Pentagon is
employing there. Ricks, a Pulitzer Prize winner and former Wall Street Journal staffer, is also author of Making the Corps and A Soldier’s Duty.
ALSO, former Navy petty officer Stephen Benjamin, trained as an Arabic translator, was headed to Iraq when he was dismissed from the Navy under the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. Benjamin is gay; his supervisors knew he was gay, and most of his peers also knew, and he says he was always accepted as a member of the team. Two other gay Arabic translators were also dismissed.
Now, in part because there’s a shortage of Arabic speakers working as translators in the military, a group of U.S. legislators has asked the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee to hold hearings on the ousted linguists, stating that the continued loss of such “capable, highly skilled Arabic linguists continues to compromise our national security during time of war.”
RADIO TIMES
Hour 1
Update on Philadelphia’s troubled Department of Human Services: A recent city review of DHS operations showed that 52 children died while under the agency’s supervision and it concluded many of them were preventable. We’ll find out what changes the agency is making to improve the safety of its children. We’ll talk with ARTHUR EVANS, the acting commissioner of DHS, RITA URWITZ the vice president of the supervisor’s union at DHS, and with ESTELLE RICHMAN the former director of Philadelphia’s Social Services Department, and now the Secretary of Public Welfare for Pennsylvania.
Hour 2
Does the U.S. need immigrants? Do immigrants contribute to economic growth in certain business sectors? How do immigrants impact the wages and job opportunities for the unskilled workforce? We talk with Wharton professors BERNARD ANDERSON and PETER CAPPELLI.
THE WORLD CAFE
Famed producer and musician, Nick Lowe
Nick Lowe joins David Dye on the World Cafe to play a few tunes from his first release in six years, At My Age. Throughout his epic career, he has produced influential records for artists such as Elvis Costello, The Damned, and The Pretenders. He’s also penned such hits as Elvis Costello’s classic “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love, And Understanding.” At My Age, including covers as well as original work, is a soulful collection of country-rock tunes.
NICK LOWE: Cruel To Be Kind