Wednesday, December 24th – from HPR2, it’s The Conversation
Alternate Perspective on Cuba and Fidel Castro: Dr. Ken Cardoza
The recent move toward a rapprochement between the US and Cuba has to potential to be a historic shift in relations between this country and a near neighbor that has outlasted eight presidents and any number of efforts to undermine its Communist regime. For generations, Americans have gotten a muddled picture of life inside Castro’s world, but Dr. Ken Cardoza is one of the few who has made repeated visits to the country, dating back to the days of the Batista regime. He says there’s much about Cuba that will surprise us.
Intro Music: Little Drummer Boy/Peace On Earth by Bing Crosby & David Bowie
Outro Music: Me Dicen Cuba by Alexander Abreu, Havana D'Pimera
We’re seeing ongoing conflicts on many fronts. But war is nothing new. And neither is the impulse to broker peace. According to the ancient Hawaiian calendar, we are in the midst of a four-month customary season of peace. Makahiki, as it is known, is a time to retreat from warfare, honor Lono, the ancient god of agriculture, and hold celebrations to strengthen our ties to the land. Our next guest knows about these customs. He is Laiana Kanoa Wong, a Hawaiian cultural specialist and teacher at Kamehameha Schools.
Intro Music: Aloha Mele Kalikimaka by Ho`okena
Outro Music: LIVE oli chant by Laina Wong
Rail Transit Delays: Cliff Slater
In what is becoming a familiar pattern, the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation last week looked at its cost and revenue projections and announced that the city’s 5.26 billion dollar rail project will go well beyond its budget – by a half million dollars or more. A number of reasons have been advanced, including one that is sure to provoke rail opponents – the notion that legal challenges to the project are part of the reason it’s costing so much. Cliff Slater, a longtime rail opponent, is likely to have something to say about that
Intro Music: Still Sound by Toro Y Moi
Outro Music: Hurricane Season by Dan Andriano in the Emergency Room
Music to Revel By: Eddie Ortiz
A week from right now—we will be anticipating New Year’s Eve. For the night of revelry, many of us will be faced with a choice of ballrooms where large orchestras hold forth under the baton of our many renowned bandleaders—or NOT….! Actually, large orchestras and their bandleaders more or less went the way of the V8 engine: too big and too expensive... But Hawaii’s Latin Band of Choice has survived; the ten-member Son Caribe—under the direction of band leader Eddie Ortiz — is thriving.
Intro Music: Santa Baby by Eddie Ortiz and Son Caribe
Outro Music: White Christmas by Eddie Ortiz and Son Caribe
