Where We Live

There are lots of tools to help us gauge the quality of nearly any product or service we wish to buy, from cars to computers to restaurants. Yet there's no easy way to assess the quality of the doctors who take care of what's most important to us -- our health.  Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It turns out that state budget chief Ben Barnes was being dead serious when he said Connecticut was in "permanent fiscal crisis." Recent budget cuts have caused an uproar among hospitals, which get hit hard. Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

According to an annual report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition, Connecticut is home to the eighth-priciest rental market in the nation. The average amount needed to afford a two-bedroom apartment is now a staggering $24.29 per hour. For a person making minimum wage, that means working 106 hours each week.  Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for...

Raouf Mama is a beloved storyteller by children and adults familiar with his books Why Goats Smell Bad   and  Why Monkeys Live in Trees .  His love of storytelling stems from a long and honorable oral tradition that goes back to the ancient empire of Mali, when people preserved the lessons of life in memory instead of on the written page. Raouf says we each have a story of belonging...

With recent incidents like the ones in Ferguson and Baltimore, the issue of police training and leadership has come under the spotlight. Police commissioners and chiefs have either been fired or forced to resign due to some of these incidents. But police leadership may not be solely responsible for the practices and policies employed by cops on the street. Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate...

At some point during this 2015 municipal election cycle, an argument could be made that Hartford rivaled Bridgeport for having the most bizarre mayoral race in Connecticut. Not anymore. Within the last seven days, incumbent Mayor Bill Finch not only lost his party's nomination to a former mayor who served seven years for corruption, but he also lost a spot on the November ballot. Support the show:...

The Green Revolution of the mid-twentieth century revolutionized the way the world fed itself.  It introduced new fertilizers, pesticides, and hybrid seeds. At the same time, it also placed an enormous burden on the world’s environmental and ecological systems. Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It wasn’t that many years ago that gambling was seen as a pretty good bet when it comes to improving the state’s economic situation. In Connecticut, two tribal casinos were thriving and spinning off slot revenues into the general fund. Then came the recession and declining revenues just as other states started to get into the gambling business. Now, in a move that couldn’t have been predicted a de...

A judge in 17th century Connecticut ruled on the thorniest of problems. Some of these included ruling on  a piglet’s paternity, who was to blame for faulty shoes, and whether illicit sex had occurred on a boat sailing to Stamford.  While most of the rulings wouldn’t stand up in today’s court, our earliest settlers struggled to decide a fair price to pay under a harsh system. Connect...

Connecticut is waking up on Thursday learning who the nominees are for important mayors’ jobs around the state. And it's a little bit of a surprise. All three Democratic incumbents in Bridgeport, Hartford, and New London lost their respective races. Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In many of Connecticut's strongly Democratic cities, the local primary IS the election. This hour, our weekly news roundtable The Wheelhouse brings you election coverage from across the state, including the close races for mayor in Hartford and Bridgeport. Are you voting in this primary? Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Violent crime in America has been dropping for years, reaching a point in 2012 that was roughly half of what it was in 1993. But that may be changing. The New York Times reported last week that violent crime was rising sharply in cities like Milwaukee and St. Louis. In Hartford, homicides jumped to 25 so far this year, up from 19 in 2014. Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com...

Neanderthals have long been recognized as humans’ closest relatives. They were highly intelligent, skilled hunters, with a rugged build, and a knack for toolmaking. Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we’ll talk with our exploration expert, Michael Robinson of the University of Hartford. He’s written about the great arctic explorers of the past, but his new book has him on his own voyage to the tops of giant mountains in Uganda, searching for a fabled “Lost White Tribe.” His book Lost White Tribe: Explorers, Scientists and a Theory of Race that Changed Africa will be out in 2015.  &n...

President Obama has called on both parties in Congress to send him an immigration reform package - saying in his State of the Union address that “now is the time to get it done.” He’s vowed to let Congress do its work...but in the last few days, we learned that the President has crafted his own proposal. Many in Congress see it as a priority, too. Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate See...

America’s debate over guns was in Newtown High School last night - as hundreds gathered to give emotional testimony to state lawmakers. It was happening in Washington too, where Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal re-affirmed his support for tighter gun control, invoking the “Sandy Hook Promise” group formed by parents of the victims. Today, we’ll take a look at what we’ve heard in this week of...

Yesterday, President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden announced 23 executive orders and proposed laws in response to the horrific shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. "No one can know for certain if this senseless act could have been prevented, but we all know we have a moral obligation -- a moral obligation to do everything in our power to diminish the prospect that something like t...

Last month, on December 13, Governor Malloy appeared on our show for his monthly visit. We talked about the budget and the upcoming legislative session, and the issues he hoped to work on in the coming year.   The next morning, everything changed. Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The tragedy in Newtown has consumed our lives for the last several days. We’ll continue to have that conversation - as Connecticut attempts to heal. But today, we welcome in two guests to talk about something that many people in our state turn to as a relief - a respite - and a place to gather: Sports. The University of Connecticut has been built into a top academic and research institution - but...

This week, we lost Dave Brubeck. You’ve been hearing about his music and its impact on generations. You might know that he made his home in Connecticut and influenced many artists here. You might not know about his work in fighting the spread of communism during the cold war. Or his work for civil rights, by leading integrated bands at a time when that was not the norm. Support the show: http://wn...

Remember the 1989 Robin Williams movie “Dead Poet’s society?” An unorthodox and inspirational teacher takes on the establishment culture of a prestigious boy’s school. The real-life teacher who helped inspire that character has been teaching literature at UConn since 1978. Sam Pickering told us that he doesn’t really think much about the movie. He told us that he “only saw it once” and even missed...

  Last year - a major Vanity Fair story brought the issue of sex trafficking in the US to many who’d never considered the issue. And the stories it told were centered right here in Connecticut. In that story, our first guest, Krishna Patel, an Assistant US Attorney told the magazine this: Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We know that music, pets, and exercise make us feel good - but did you know they can also make our aging brains stronger?  It used to be that getting older meant forgetting more, slowing down, and acting more and more like our grandparents. But no more. We can add years to our lives and boost our brain power by learning to play an instrument, jog around the block, or even bond with our dog. S...

Greg Tate of the HartBeat Ensemble has been an important part of Hartford’s artistic community. They create original plays based on the place where they live...and work with school systems to create student theater works. Tate has been diagnosed with lung cancer - and has been sharing intimate details of his treatment on a simple blog called “Greg Tate Updates.” Support the show: http://wnpr.org/d...

Today we talk with Palestinian physician Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish . In 2009 during Israel’s invasion and bombardment of Gaza, a rocket hit his house killing three of his daughters and his niece. Author of “I Shall Not Hate,” Abuelaish has devoted his life to reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians. Support the show: http://wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.