I remember this piece from way back. It holds up. Interestingly, it has a kind of NPR style that still sounds like NPR, while Ira's style has changed quite a bit. The most intimate moment is the conversation between Ira and the Animal Man at the end. I hope Ira will put up other early stuff like this. I remember a good one about a Halloween scary theme park. -JA

National media often give short shrift to labor issues, so this is a welcome piece of work. Good range of voices, context, information, and detail. We get a real feeling for the issues at hand and for why the union-immigrant partnership is so crucial to the labor movement. sl

Interesting take on what it means to be a good citizen. The producer profiles two expressive women with very different priorities. A gentle visit with people like us – lots of demands on our time, genuine concern about government, but different ways of investing in society. sl

Entertaining, lively conversation with the director and screenwriter o f this popular film, along with audio clips. They talk about the origin, meaning, and process, as well as audience response. I haven’t seen this movie, but now I must. sl

Oh Harvey, we love your whimsical, unique, observant self. Harvey makes us look at the world through his eyes, and it’s like when you walk out of a great movie and suddenly the world looks different…Go listen, and let your eyes open wide. Terrific production. sl

"...my only negative comment is about the sound quality, there should be someway of dampening the echo of the room."

I wholeheartedly disagree. If everything sounded like we were in the studio all the time, it would be pretty boring. (Not to mention that public radio really lacks good monster truck ads.) I really don't understand the desire for many in public radio to make things sound dead (soundproofed) or the constant complaining about phone sound. Isn't the content more important? In this case, the echo helps set the listener in the bathroom so it provides a transition.

My only complaint (this is pure opinion) is that I'm not sure what a song about a tall girl from Brazil other than the line "...she just doesn't see.." has to do with anything about North American hotels. I'm actually in favor of talking over song lyrics, but I do believe that they should be relevant to the story otherwise it can be distracting. I would have put a variety of music underneath. Maybe I'm missing the point. It's been known to happen.

The potential power of on-line political discussion is real, but as this piece tells it, unbalanced, and in its infancy. Food for thought. sl

We’ve got polls up the wazoo. This brief, well-paced piece touches on some of the concerns people and politicians in Utah have on the way to casting their votes. The same concerns exist nationwide. sl

Very interesting conversation about a pivotal moment in U.S. history. This horrific fire fueled the first major domestic policy changes of 20th Century, all enacted during the New Deal. And until 9/11, this was the most devastating largescale NY City tragedy on record. It's timely for that reason and because of the current administration's attempts to retract so much of what the New Deal accomplished. That it's a phoner is unfortunate, despite being well-recorded, just because of the grating-ness of phone line recording. Vogel asks good questions and allows the author to fully answer without jumping in to move him along, and that's a good thing. sl

"The Pol Walk" is a delightful and refreshing reminder of someting we too often forget about democracy: that it's supposed to involve regular people. The rhythm of the piece serves its message well, and the sound behind it places the listener firmly on the door-knocking trail with the candidate. Would be a wonderful break from traditional campaign coverage.