Budget Reductions Threaten Firefighting in California
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There's good news and bad news on the state budget crisis, which may spell trouble for fire control in California if mutual aid is compensated with IOU's instead of real money. Also, the latest on soccer superstar David Beckham. On our rebroadcast of today's To the Point, charges against two Somali- Americans have revealed an investigation stretching from Minnesota to Somalia. It raises questions about the reach of militant Islam and the reach of al Qaeda.
Banner image: Robert A. Eplett/California Governor's Office of Emergency Services
Main Topic
Jihad: from Somalia to Minnesota ()
Two naturalized American citizens of Somali descent have been indicted in Minnesota. The charges include providing support for terrorists and conspiracy to “kill, kidnap, maim or injure” people in foreign countries. Federal authorities say they're just part of a major investigation which became public on Monday of this week.
Guests:
- James Walsh: Reporter, Minneapolis Star Tribune
- Jeffrey Gettleman: East Africa Bureau Chief, New York Times
- Peter Bergen: Senior Fellow, New America Foundation
- Bruce Hoffman: Professor of Security Studies, Georgetown University
Links:
- Walsh's article on recruitment and training of alleged Somali-American terrorists
- Walsh (video) interview on Somalis indicted in terror plot
- Gettleman's article on Somalia's battle with chaos
- Gettleman (2007 video) on challenges facing Somali government
- Bergen's 'The Osama bin Laden I Know: An Oral History of al Qaeda's Leader'
- Hoffman's 'Inside Terrorism'
Making News
A Budget Deal? ()
The good news is that the budget crisis finally may be resolved. The bad news is that tens of thousands of Californians will have to do without services they depend on. Evan Halper is Sacramento Bureau Chief for the Los Angeles Times.
Guests:
- Evan Halper: Sacramento Bureau Chief, Los Angeles Times
Main Topic
Budget Reductions Threaten Firefighting in California ()
Last week, the Getty Center was evacuated because of a brushfire. Today, another blaze closed northbound lanes on Interstate 5 near Pyramid Lake. It's that season again--but budget reductions have closed fire stations and cut services all over the state. On top of that, the state's resort to paying bills with IOU's is a threat to the system of mutual aid, which has helped to control and extinguish some of the most dangerous conflagrations of recent years.
Guests:
- Javier Mainar: Assistant Chief, San Diego Fire and Rescue Department
- Frank McCarton: Undersecretary, California Emergency Management Agency
- Pat Dennen: Chief, San Bernardino County Fire Department
Reporter's Notebook
Beckham's Back ()
The latest from David Beckham is that his family loves Los Angeles and he'll stay with the LA Galaxy. The soccer superstar claims to have settled his differences with Landon Donovan, who was asked to give up as team captain when Beckham came on the scene. In The Beckham Experiment: How the World's Most Famous Athlete Tried to Conquer America, published this week, Donovan accused Beckham of giving up on the team and failing to give his best effort. The author is Sports Illustrated writer Grant Wahl.
Guests:
- Grant Wahl: Senior Writer, Sports Illustrated
Underwriters
Which Way L.A.? is made possible in part by the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, the Nathan Cummings Foundation, and the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation, which supports study and research into policy issues of the Los Angeles region.
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