Listen Live on KKFI
Every Friday at 9:00amAbout the Show
Between the Lines
"Between the Lines" is a national, half-hour program that provides a platform for individuals and spokespersons from progressive organizations generally ignored or marginalized by the mainstream media.
Listen to the entire program using these links, or to individual interviews via the links appearing prior to each segment description below.
64 kb/s 
broadcast quality 
Podcast
As Military Situation in Afghanistan Deteriorates, U.S. Could be Drawn Back into Endless War
Interview with Matthew Hoh, senior fellow at the Center for International Policy, conducted by Scott Harris
While President Obama had planned to end the U.S. war in Afghanistan by the time he leaves office in January 2017, the escalation of Taliban attacks and the rise of ISIS in the war-torn country threatens to derail that timetable. Most U.S. combat troops were withdrawn from Afghanistan at the end of 2014, leaving behind some 10,000 American soldiers in the role of advisors and as a counterterrorism quick-reaction force. Half of those troops were scheduled to leave in 2016, but in March President Obama announced he would slow down the withdrawal schedule, leaving some or all of the troops in place through the end of next year. Story continues
New Orleans Still Faces Enormous Challenges 10 Years After Katrina, 5 Years After the BP Oil Disaster
Interview with Cynthia Sarthou, executive director of the Gulf Restoration Network, conducted by Melinda Tuhus
Aug. 29 marks the tenth anniversary of the destruction wrought by Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans and along the Louisiana and Mississippi Gulf coasts. The bulk of the damage in New Orleans occurred as a result of the failure of Mississippi River levees, which inundated vast swaths of the city. The devastating flood led to the horrific, iconic images of residents frantically calling for help from their rooftops, and of thousands of storm refugees stranded for days in the Superdome without adequate food and water. Story continues
Social Security Disability Fund Shortfall Solution Becomes New GOP Hostage in Congressional Debate
Interview with Eric Kingson, co-director of the Strengthen Social Security Campaign, conducted by Scott Harris
As the nation’s popular Social Security system celebrated its 80th birthday on Aug. 14, the program signed into law by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1935 faced a new challenge. The annual report issued by Social Security’s trustees in late July warned, “Social Security’s Disability Insurance Trust Fund now faces an urgent threat of reserve depletion, requiring prompt corrective action by lawmakers if sudden reductions or interruptions in benefit payments are to be avoided.” The report assured the public that Social Security’s retirement fund will remain solvent until 2035 without further adjustments, a year later than previously estimated. Story continues
This week’s summary of under-reported news
Compiled by Bob Nixon
- In the run-up to this fall’s Paris Climate Summit, China—the world’s largest emitter of carbon dioxide set ambitious new targets in July to reduce the country’s output of CO2. A. study by researchers at the London School of Economics has projected that China could meet its new climate goals earlier than expected. China has pledged to reduce its carbon emissions by 65 percent by the year 2030. (“China makes gains on climate change,” East Asia Forum, July 16, 2015)
- US Secretary of State John Kerry attended a historic ceremony in Havana on August 14th, where the American flag was raised at the US embassy in Cuba for the first time in 54 years. But while the two countries have moved forward to normalize relations, the agenda has been limited to negotiating routine matters such as restoring postal deliveries and expanding air travel. (“What about Guantanamo?” Christian Science Monitor, July 22, 2015;“In brief trip to Havana, Kerry to preside over US embassy flag-rising,” Miami Herald, August 11, 2015; “Russia don’t want GITMO base in Cuba, Havana Times, July 25, 2105)
- An investigation by the Guardian newspaper reports that the Chicago Police department has detained more than thirty five hundred people in a West Side warehouse, known as Homan Square over the last decade. Some 80 percent of the detainees were African-American, and only three suspects were allowed visits by defense attorneys. (“Chicago police detained thousands of black Americans at interrogation facility,” The Guardian, Aug. 5, 2015)
