President Barack Obama greets military personnel at Camp Victory in Baghdad, Iraq, Tuesday, April 7, 2009. (AP)
President Obama in Iraq
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President Obama makes a surprise stop in Iraq, his first visit as President. He planned to meet with American troops in Baghdad and speak to Iraqi officials. Ned Parker of the Los Angeles Times joins us from Baghdad.
Friendly Fire
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Private First Class David Sharrett, of Oakton, Virginia, and the Army’s vaunted 101st Airborne Division, was 27 years old when he was killed in a firefight north of Baghdad. The search for the truth of what happened in that fire fight, and the struggle to get the Army to admit it, forged a unique friendship between Private Sharrett’s father, a retired school teacher, and a former student of the father’s, reporter James Meek. We’ll speak with the senior David Sharrett from his home in Virginia, and James Meek, national security reporter for the New York Daily News.
Earthquake in Italy
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The death toll from Italy’s worst earthquake in three decades tops 200 today as rescue crews continue to dig through the rubble. The BBC’s Dominic Hughes has been following their efforts and reports from L’Aquilla in central Italy.
OCD of the Brain
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44 year-old Jill Price can remember just about everything that has ever happened to her. Scientists have been studying her brain for a decade, but cognitive psychologist and author, Gary Marcus, of New York University, came up with his own theory in Wired Magazine. He thinks Ms. Price has obsessive compulsive disorder of the brain, where she’s continuously recalling and reliving details of her life.
Vegan Soul Food
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Can you make soul food meatless and dairy-free? Chef Bryant Terry tells us how, in his new cookbook “Vegan Soul Kitchen: Fresh, Healthy, and Creative African-American Cuisine.”
Music from the show
- Radiohead, “How to Disappear Completely”
- Freddie Hubbard, “Gibraltar”
- Tito Puente, “Royal T”
- Sigur Ros, “Nybatteri”
- Joe Jackson, “Steppin’ Out”
Re: Friendly Fire
This segment was moving beyond words and tragic in myriad ways. What stirred my heart is the nobility of this young hero, Pfc. David Sharrett, who died at the hands of his own comrades; the devotion of his father, who was determined to find justice for his son; and the commitment of reporter James Meek, who uncovered the truth and comforted his former teacher. This is a great story – thank you for telling it. All three of these extraordinary men will be in my prayers.
Posted by Kate Nelson, on April 7th, 2009 at 11:36 am