April 29, 2025 • 37 mins
We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!
Survive Stroke Week (May 4-10) aims to educate Americans about the symptoms of stroke and the lifesaving treatment options available to patients. This year it focuses on the Hispanic Community in the U.S., where stroke ranks as the fourth leading cause of death for Hispanic men and the third for Hispanic women. Dr. Violiza Inoa joined Dan to discuss.
Why does it feel like summertime is increasingly bleeding into May? Ken Mahan – Boston Globe Meteorologist checked in.
"A World Safe for Commerce” - a comprehensive exploration of the intricate relationship between commerce, national security, and the propensity for conflict. Dale Copeland – Author & Professor of International Relations at the Department of Politics, University of Virginia joined Dan.
Jewish community reacts Pope Francis death…Rabbi Rick Jacobs - President, Union for Reform Judaism had pleasure of meeting Pope Francis.
Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!
Survive Stroke Week (May 4-10) aims to educate Americans about the symptoms of stroke and the lifesaving treatment options available to patients. This year it focuses on the Hispanic Community in the U.S., where stroke ranks as the fourth leading cause of death for Hispanic men and the third for Hispanic women. Dr. Violiza Inoa joined Dan to discuss.
Why does it feel like summertime is increasingly bleeding into May? Ken Mahan – Boston Globe Meteorologist checked in.
"A World Safe for Commerce” - a comprehensive exploration of the intricate relationship between commerce, national security, and the propensity for conflict. Dale Copeland – Author & Professor of International Relations at the Department of Politics, University of Virginia joined Dan.
Jewish community reacts Pope Francis death…Rabbi Rick Jacobs - President, Union for Reform Judaism had pleasure of meeting Pope Francis.
Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
It's a nice side.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
We've done Ray undelling you Mazy Boston's News Radio. Thanks
very much, Madison. We are ready for a very busy
Tuesday night here on Nightside. We have so much to cover.
I don't know how we're gonna get it all in,
but we will try. We will try. We have four
very interesting guests coming up during the first hour. No
(00:22):
phone calls, as I'm sure all I have you know
by now. During the first hour at nine o'clock tonight,
we will talk with a Boston Globe correspondent who is
also a junior at Harvard College, Harvard University, Harvard Well
Harvard College, the undergraduate, and she is going to talk
with us about the return of college Republicans on that
(00:45):
embattled campus right now. We'll also at some point tonight
talk about President Trump's first one hundred days. Give you
an opportunity to give him a grade, and some of
the efforts that he's been engaged in, some successful, others
perhaps not so successful. And we hope to get to
the question of the arrest of a couple of judges,
one in Wisconsin and one forman judge in New Mexico
(01:07):
by federal authority. So we have lots to cover tonight,
and we will start off with some information that hopefully
all of you will listen to very carefully, because this
is a Survive Stroke Week and we hope to educate
Americans about the symptoms of stroke. By the way, I
will remind you that Rob Brooks is back in the
control room. Almost forgot about you, Rob, You're the most
(01:29):
valuable player in the program, so thanks very much for
being back there. As a matter of fact, Rob just
told me a moment ago that we have our first guest,
doctor vill Lisa. I knowah, doctor, I knowah. Welcome to NIGHT'SID.
Speaker 3 (01:43):
How are you good? How are you? Thank you for
having me?
Speaker 2 (01:46):
You're right welcome. Stroke is something that is important. It's
particularly important, I guess this year a Survived Stroke Week
is focusing on the Hispanic community here in the US,
where stroke ranks as the fourth leading cause for death
for Hispanic men and the third leading cause for Hispanic women. Clearly,
strokes can hit any one of us. Why is it
(02:09):
that within the Hispanic community stroke seems to be especially dangerous?
Not I mean cancer's dangerous heart attacks. We're all all
of this is things that we're all concerned about. But
this is one that there's a focus this uh this
week on getting the world out to the Hispanic community.
What what's going on?
Speaker 3 (02:32):
That's a very very good question. I first of all,
I really want to say thank you for having me
this evening. I am Dominigan, so I am Hispanic, and
I can I can speak from heart. I mean, obviously
there are a lot of respactors that will be more
prevalent in the Hispanic population. And we're talking about high
(02:54):
blood pressure and diabetes, obesity on healthy lifestyle, so that
would be one factor. But I think there's something very
important to understand, which is that the knowledge about stroke
symptoms actually is going to be less When we interview
Hispanic patients, they do not know how stroke would present,
(03:18):
and also they do not know that stroke is a
treatable condition, so they will not call nine one one.
Hence they won't get to the hospitals where they're going
to be able to get the right treatment for this condition.
Speaker 2 (03:32):
Now, look within every community, obviously there are people who
allow their health is not their top priority. What can
be done to make sure that the Hispanic community, not
only here in Boston, but anywhere within the sound of
our voice, were heard on over the air terrestrial radio
in half of the United States. What do individuals need
(03:55):
to do? Are the websites they can go to? Obviously
they need to talk with their doctors about this as well.
What can we do to bring this to everyone's attention
everyone who's listening tonight, but the Hispanic or not, but
everyone possibly? What needs to be done?
Speaker 3 (04:15):
I think what you are doing right now is absolutely important.
Right so making sure that the message gets to keep
all people in the community and that we create stroke
awareness campaigns. There are multiple websites we are working with
the get Ahead of Stroke dot org website, which has
(04:36):
a lot of information not only for the English speaking community,
but also data that has been translated into Spanish and
creating mnemonics that are not only understood by the English
population but also by the Hispanic population, like rapid though,
and we can go over the mneumonic in a minute
(04:58):
if you would like me too, and I can explain.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
It in Spanish. Go right ahead on all ears.
Speaker 1 (05:04):
Absolutely absolutely, thank you.
Speaker 3 (05:06):
So Rappio stands for our rosto last persona. No can
I speak? Can I speak Spanish? Can I explain in Spanish?
Speaker 2 (05:17):
Sure? That's that's the audience that we need to reach.
Speaker 4 (05:19):
Absolutely, go right ahead, perfect, perfect rostro candola cara is
the devil Alo la jent no pether comin bieng perlasa
peo pierna.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
The impedimental, isel bosa the difficult that para avla la
hin avl biengtro poso oh tenga I do the rap.
So that's in summary in Spanish, and thank you for
(06:03):
the opportunity.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
Sure. There's also a website called Let's Talk about Hispanic
and Latino Americans and Stroke that is provided by the
American Heart Association. People should realize that things like high
blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, high cholesterol, smoking, stress, social determinants
(06:27):
of health. All of these factors can increase the likelihood
and increase your fist. If you want to reduce the
likelihood of stroke or whatever your background is, you want
to eat more fruits and vegetables, reduce salt in your diet,
increase physical activity, quit smoking, or never start. The smallest thing.
(06:48):
One of the smartest things I've did in my life
was I've never smoked. My dad was a two packa
day cigarette smoker. I hated the smell of cigarette smoke,
and I have never smoked a cigarette in my life.
Managing stress I'm not so good at. So there's things
that all of us need to need to improve on,
(07:08):
there's no doubt. But I hope that the American Heart
Association will make all of this information available not only
in English, but also in Spanish, so that you know
Hispanic and Latino friends, I just as prepared to avoid
stroke and not prepared to deal with it once their occurs.
Speaker 1 (07:32):
Absolutely absolutely prevention for stroke. Prevention is extremely important. Like
you just mentioned, once.
Speaker 3 (07:43):
You have a stroke, and I hope that never happens
to you, but it is fairly common, as you said,
in the United States, it is right now the fifth
cause of death, and one person will have a stroke
every forty seconds. So it is likely that someone you
know will have a stroke at some point in their lives, unfortunately,
(08:05):
and that is the reality that we need to understand.
We really need to understand and recognize the stroke symptoms,
and again very important, we need to know that stroke
is a treatable condition and that the treatment is time dependent.
So the sooner we get to the hospital, the sooner
(08:25):
we call nine one one, the more likely we're going
to be able to get the stroke treatment, hence hopefully
we'll be able to reduce disability and death from stroke.
Speaker 2 (08:37):
Well, I very much appreciate you being with us. I
was just doing the math in my head. We've talked
about nine minutes, so that would mean that in the
time that we've talked about a dozen people in the
United States have suffered a stroke at some level. So
that puts it in perspective as well. Doctor. I really
appreciate your time tonight, and I appreciate what you're trying
(08:59):
to do. Doc to Uh THEO Lisa, I know, I Knowah.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
Thank you so much for having me much.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
We will talk again. Thank you, my friend. Thank you.
Wow when you focus on the things that can impact
your family so dramatically, Uh, this has to be right
up there. So take what you heard, doctor, I knowah say,
whether you listened in Spanish, Hispanic in Spanish, or in English,
(09:28):
take it to heart. We get back to talk about
We're going to talk with a rabbi, Rabbi Rick Jacobs.
He's the president of the Union for Reform Judaism. He
had the pleasure of meeting Pope Francis and we'll talk
about that meeting when we get back here. On Nightside.
My name's Dan Worry. This is Nightside coming back after
(09:49):
this quick break.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
It's Nightside with Dan Ray on Boston's news radio.
Speaker 2 (09:57):
All right, welcome back. We're going to change our lineup
a little. We had a little bit of trouble reaching
our eight p fifteen guest, which happens, happens, but moving
him up from the fourth spot to the number two spot.
He's been here before. Boston Globe meteorologist Ken Mahan. Ken,
I'm particularly happy to hear from you tonight, and we're
(10:18):
going to talk about the month of May. We're on
the doorstep of the month of May, and after the
winter we've had. I am looking forward to May because
but May apparently it's more summer like now than it
used to be spring like. I'll take a little bit
of summer. What's going on? What's what are we expecting here? Ken?
(10:40):
How are you tonight?
Speaker 5 (10:41):
Well?
Speaker 6 (10:42):
Dan, thanks again for having me on the show. It's
been a minute. Always been a fan, and hey, you
made me feel like a Red Sox player getting bumped
up in the batting order.
Speaker 2 (10:50):
That's why, you know, we use that metaphor all the time.
You know. We looked down the bench and I said, hen,
get up here, grab a bat, let's go.
Speaker 4 (11:00):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (11:00):
I feel like Dustin putjoya. You know this is great,
it's too better. So it's interesting. We're coming off one
of the coldest winters that we've seen in a while
around you know, Boston and really all six New England states,
and it's been interesting. You know, we've seen March become
warmer than average, almost four degrees warmer than average, and
(11:22):
the Greater Boston a couple of degrees across New England
as a whole. And April is going to wrap up
what tomorrow and it's going to end up with two
to three degrees warmer than average typically compared to the
thirty year norm. So what does that mean?
Speaker 2 (11:36):
Just January and February we're very cold? Correct?
Speaker 6 (11:40):
Yes, were?
Speaker 2 (11:41):
So how much did it all balance out? I mean,
I read on Sundays. I always look at the the
yearly temperature and it's always warmer it was in January.
It was looking to me like it was warmer in January.
And I'm saying, what planet living on? How much cold
(12:01):
it was January? How much cold was February compared to
margin April. Let's let's just deal with that for one second,
rough numbers, give a rough idea.
Speaker 6 (12:08):
Yeah, starting yeah, I mean starting right there, you're talking
between one to three degrees colder than average across all
of New England as you blend in all six stakes,
all their average temperatures from all weather reporting stations, right,
And that was the first time in four years where
New England as a whole was actually below the pharmatological norm.
(12:32):
So it just felt that much more colder than we
were used to.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
Well, that's January. Well that was Jane.
Speaker 7 (12:37):
That was January, and what happened in February.
Speaker 6 (12:41):
February was the repeat of the same. Not as dramatic
as January, but it's still the pretty much half degree
to a degree and a half colder than the typical
month of February that we see Boston and beyond. Basically
throw a dart at them at a map in New
England and it was older than average in February.
Speaker 2 (13:00):
Okay, So then a long time March in April, and what.
Speaker 6 (13:03):
Happened we saw, you know, everyone has heard about El Nino,
La Nina and the endo sort of climate pattern. We
saw basically a dramatic shift to neutral conditions and that
basically took us from a could of an average trend
and put us a right smack dab to like more normalcy.
(13:24):
Problem is normalcy over the past ten twenty thirty years
is basically an increase in temperature. So we've actually seen
a warm up in March, a warm up in April,
and all signs points to the original question. May you know,
the conversation is does may become a summer month? And
it certainly seems that way if you take the sort
(13:46):
of macro views of all of New England over the
past thirty years.
Speaker 2 (13:51):
Okay, so it may becomes a summer month. I assume
June was always we think of summer as I think.
I think it's been schools out June, July and August,
and I like this September is the start of fall.
It's like the most beautiful month in New England, best
weather except for the occasional hurricane. And then you know,
(14:15):
it gets a little cooler in October and then reality
strikes with November. So as of right now, even although
we had a cold January and a cold a colder
January and a colder February, that's more than been offset
by a warmer March and a warmer April. So we're
a little bit above where we should be in terms
(14:37):
of temperature, is what I'm hearing. You said that right now.
Speaker 6 (14:40):
Yes, that's correct. Yeah, and that really is the case
for all major cities across New England, you know, Boston certainly,
And it looks like, you know, going into May, the outlook.
I was just looking at the you know, eight to
fourteen day outlook and then the monthly outlook, and it
doesn't look like at a minimum will be at average.
(15:00):
But the chances are it's just the way that things
have been trending, will end up, you know, a degree
or two above average once again.
Speaker 2 (15:07):
Okay, so the good news. Let's let's put a good
news spin on this, ken. We could put the shovels away,
and we could take the snowsteaks off the driveway, yes, yes.
Speaker 6 (15:19):
And we can reduce those heavy winter coats and put
those away. We and in our household, we just put
the winter gear down into the basement. So as a
as a meteorologist, I'm home right.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
You know, and I'm sure you are. I think we're pasted.
I do remember snowstorm. I think it was back in
seventy seven, the first week of making a significant snowstorm
that I covered way back as a as a as
a rookie reporter.
Speaker 6 (15:47):
Uh yeah, you know you know that on the head.
I had someone just email me about that this morning,
and yeah, that was exactly right.
Speaker 2 (15:56):
Yeah remember that stuff.
Speaker 6 (16:00):
Oh my gosh, for sure, for sure. Thank yeah, I will,
thank you.
Speaker 2 (16:04):
Good. I didn't mean to be sorry.
Speaker 7 (16:07):
Good, totally fine, I was.
Speaker 6 (16:09):
It's just really interesting we've seen for the month of May,
just the number of seventy degree days, in the number
of eighty degree days just increase basically all across southern
New England. So you know, if you're Boston, Worcester, Springfield, Providence, Hartford,
down the south and the North Shores down into the
Cape even seeing a bump in seventy and eighty degree days,
which is nice for those folks that love the warmth. Right,
(16:31):
summer starts early, but you're right though, Dan, summer sort
of bloating. You know, we have an earlier start and
then like a later finished September is hot as well.
Speaker 2 (16:40):
Let's do this. Let's plan maybe in the last week
of May or the first week of June. Let's bring
you back and let's just see how how may turns
are because I think it'd be fun to follow it.
You've laid it out so beautifully for my audience to understand. Yeah,
cooler in January, colder or cooler, whatever you want to
call it. January February, warmed up in March and April
just a little bit. Let's see what happens to me.
(17:01):
I love w backup on a month from now, if
that's possible.
Speaker 6 (17:03):
Okay, always happy to jump on, Dan. I appreciate it
and looking forward to connecting again.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
All right, you're a great picture tonight. Thanks Ken. I
appreciate it.
Speaker 6 (17:11):
Yeah, you for three with the home run. I love it.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
You've got it. Boston Globe Meteorologist Ken Mahon. Thanks Ken,
we'll talk again. Thanks very much. Good night. Here comes
the news at the bottom of the arm. By the way,
want you, if you have a moment in the next
day or so, pull down the iHeart app, the new
and improved iHeart app. You can make us your first
preset on that app on all your devices. You will
(17:36):
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(17:56):
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(18:16):
Back on Nightside, right after the news break at the
bottom of the hour.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
Night Side with Dan Ray on Boston's news radio.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
All right, so we have had a little confusion here,
but we are delighted to welcome. This is no confusion here.
We're delighted to welcome University of Virginia Professor Dale Copeland.
Professor Copeland, welcome UVA. I think all of us know
is a great school not too far down the East
(18:47):
coast from us, located here in Boston. How are you tonight.
Speaker 7 (18:51):
I'm great, great to be here with you.
Speaker 2 (18:53):
You're an author and a professor of international relations with
the Department of Politics. Right in my Wheelhouse. Here you
have a new book, A World's Safe for Commerce, American
foreign policy from the Revolution to the Rise of China.
It's published by Princeton Studies and International History and Politics.
Tell us about the book, Is this your first? I
(19:14):
suspect it's not.
Speaker 5 (19:16):
No.
Speaker 7 (19:17):
No. Robert's my third book, and it's part of this
larger project to look at how the rise and fall
of great powers in world history tends to affect their
foreign policies. But this time I focus solely on the
commercial side, or at least the commercial determinants of that.
So if a state like China, take a contemporary example,
(19:40):
its state like China believes that it's not going to
be able to get access to its markets or its
raw materials, that negative expectation about the future can lead
it to believe that it has to go to war
or maybe just a militarized conflict over say Southeast Asia,
to keep its trade routes open. And so this is
(20:00):
really a struggle right now. It's a struggle between US
and China over control of the world economy, and it's
a struggle over smaller powers or smaller states like Malaysia, Indonesia.
But it could also be over larger states like Japan
or even India. So there's a lot going on right now,
and the book addresses those kinds of questions.
Speaker 2 (20:22):
I follow this pretty closely. I believe that yesterday China
staked out they actually unfrilled the flag on an island
that is close to the Philippines that they want to
claim ownership of, but it is actually an island that
is owned by the Philippines. Are you hip to that
story yesterday?
Speaker 7 (20:41):
I actually I was doing a presentation on the book
yesterday and I drove all day, so I haven't been
following the news. But it doesn't sound it sounds very familiar.
China's been doing this for twenty five thirty years before
even see Jingping, and it's largely a policy based around
this idea of a nine day line that suggests that
(21:01):
China controls most of the South China Sea, that area
between say Philippines and Vietnam and Indonesia, and it's a
way of projecting naval power into that area. A lot
of people see it as tied to potential resources that
are under the sea, such as oil, natural gas. I
(21:23):
actually think that it's more about projecting naval and air
power against this very narrow strait called the Malaca Strait
between Indonesia and Malaysia. And it's essentially a way to
tell the US and India don't mess with us, don't
try to cut us off from oil like you did
to Japan in nineteen forty one. So in that sense,
(21:46):
it's tied to economics.
Speaker 2 (21:48):
And it's all the national power, you know, it's also
this sense of this sense of manifest destiny and that
you know, we have the Monroe doctrine that and we
have backed off a lot of that. I think we
are ruining the day that we saw we sold the
Panama Canal for a dollar. Yeah, right, I think that
(22:09):
was a huge mistake. China has its footprint not only
all over Southeast Asia, right, and of course it's looking
at Taiwan. They also have tremendous footprints in Central America,
South America and in Africa.
Speaker 7 (22:26):
I mean no question about it. And in fact, the
movement into the Caribbean is the latest of this. And
they've basically bought the harbor of the small island of
Antigua about one hundred thousand people, but it's an island nation,
and they are setting up one of the largest ports,
but also surveillance centers that they have anywhere in the world.
(22:50):
And it's part of the Belt Road Belton Road initiative
you mentioned, but it's also part of this larger strategic interest,
very much like Alfred theyer Mahan's idea of projecting naval
power around the world to protect their trade routes, their markets,
their raw material supplies and so forth. And we did it,
of course after Alfred they er Mahan clewed us in
(23:13):
on it, and the Japanese did it, and the Germans
did it. But now the Chinese are doing it. And
while it may be very common for great powers to
do this, it's very scary for the ones that find
their neighborhoods suddenly not taken over, but suddenly they're no
longer the big guy on the campus, so to speak.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
By the way, when you mentioned Antigua, I have been
to Antigua. What absolute abject poverty. It's very close to Montserrat,
the island that had that volcano about twenty years ago.
When you talk about China, you can't forget that they
ran that balloon across the United States of America a
(23:53):
couple of winters ago and in a difference. And also
they've been purchasing vast areas of arm acreage aught in
places like North Dakota that are very close to US
military installations. This is expansionism that is extraordinary when you
think about it, and I think that is driving And
(24:15):
maybe I'm dead wrong, you're the professor. I'm not, but
I think that at its base, that is what is
driving Trump's tariff policy. Now, I don't think he's executed
it well so far, and I'm well to criticize that,
but I think, and I'm wondering if you might agree
with me, and if you don't tell me I'm wrong,
that that might be an underlying factor in why he
(24:37):
is doing this to try to bring China to heal
a little bit. That's what I sense about it.
Speaker 7 (24:44):
Yeah, there's no question about that, Robert. And in fact,
we can see this in a number of ways. A
declining and very dominant state in history tends to do
these kinds of things, tries to stop the rising power
from growing further by trey by economic power projection. And
others have done this too, say Britain or Britain did
(25:05):
this to others, and then Germany did it when the
US did it to the Soviet Union in the nineteen fifties,
kept the Soviets from growing. It's not surprising that both
the Democrats and the Republicans agree that China has grown
too fast and too large and there should be some
(25:26):
restrictions on further growth. Now. The real question, though, is
and I think it's a trade off, and this is
in the book, my book, A World's Safe for Commerce.
There's this trade off between keeping the other down through
trade restrictions or tariffs or simple cutoffs of supply like
we did to Japan in nineteen forty one, and the
(25:48):
potential for a spiral of conflict, not necessarily a Cuban
missile crisis, but a crisis say in the South China Sea,
where China worries about its supplies and it's it's markets
and then thinks, well, now we really have to project power.
So I would argue, yeah, Taiwan is a good example.
(26:09):
And one of the reasons that Si Jinping, the leader
of China, has not gone after Taiwan when he probably could,
is that he knows that the economic costs not just
of the invasion, but of the cutoffs or the restrictions
that would follow would devastate China. China has about forty
percent of its economy tied up in overseas trade. The
(26:32):
US is about twenty two percent, but we're more sheltered
because we trade a lot with allies. They the Chinese
trade mostly with US or with people that are in
our political sphere and allies of ours. So they have
a very delicate situation here. They're the biggest trading country
in the world. They have over one hundred countries that
(26:54):
see China as their largest trading partner. And yet at
the same time they have have some leverage over US,
so we have to be careful here. Their main leverage,
to be honest, is in rare earth. They supply the
US with these critical minerals called rare earth for cell
phones and electronics, and you know SUVs and.
Speaker 2 (27:15):
So, and that ties right into the Ukraine and Russia
as well. Professor Coplan, I've so enjoyed this conversation. I
want to go back to college, but it's a little
too late at this point. Okay, you sound like you'd
be a great professor of the book. Is a World
Safe for comer commerce? Is it it's available now? Is
(27:36):
it just out or is it out for a loot.
Speaker 7 (27:37):
No, it came out about a year ago, but it'll
be perfect time. It's on Amazon.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
So I'll tell you if you even had a bump
in your sales with the imposition of the tariffs. Uh,
President Trump has actually, I think done you a favor.
People should be buying your book at this point.
Speaker 7 (27:54):
Well, I don't know. It's it's it's a scary proposition.
The whole last chapter is about US China. But I
did not anticipate the full scope of what what could
have happened. I warned about it, of course, but the
idea of one hundred and forty five or fifty percent tariffs,
it seems a little crazy to most people right now.
And I think they will come down. He promised they
(28:16):
would come.
Speaker 2 (28:16):
Down, right. Remember, what goes up has to come down.
It's a it's a lot.
Speaker 7 (28:20):
It's probably in this case, the.
Speaker 2 (28:22):
World's safe for commerce. You have been a great guest.
I really do mean that, and I thank you for
joining us tonight. And I wish I was a student
at you've already signing up.
Speaker 7 (28:32):
Hey, we'll take care, take care and then, and good
to talk to you. Thank you, BacT with you.
Speaker 2 (28:37):
Professor Dale Copeland a world safe for commerce. When we
get back, we will I'll be talking with Rabbi Rick
Jacob's president of the Union for Reform Judaism back on
nights Side. Right after this, you're on Night Side with
Dan Ray on Boston's news radio. Well, early this evening
had to shake up our batting order a little bit.
(28:57):
And I'm not sure if Rabbi Rick Jacobs as a
baseball fan, but Rebbi Jacobs, you were. You were hitting
in the number two spot, and now you're batting clean up,
you're number four. So I'm glad, very glad that we
finally got you. I'll sort of keep the religious metaphor
going along and saying our prayers were answered. We were
afraid we weren't going to get you tonight. How are
you this evening?
Speaker 5 (29:18):
I'm great and a big baseball fan, so I think
in Boston that would put me in like a big
poppy spot. That's a big pressure spot. But I'll do
my best.
Speaker 2 (29:26):
It's a big pressure spot. It certainly is right right now.
They're they're moving people around. You know, the Devers is
hitting second and they have Bergman is hitting fourth, So
that's that. And he's a good guy to have hitting
hitting forth, that's for sure. So first of all, explain
to us what the Union for Reform Judaism is. And
I guess you also had an opportunity to meet with
(29:47):
Pope Francis. Tell us about what you're the president of
the Union for Reform Judaism. Explain I'm not Jewish. I
have some familiarity with with the various diferences within the
Jewish religion, as I have some familiar with the different
different religions within the umbrella of Christianity. But Reform Judaism,
(30:10):
go right ahead, sure, well.
Speaker 5 (30:12):
First of all, it's good to be with you and
the Union Reformed Judaism with actually the largest movement in
Jewish life here in North America according to the Pew surveys,
around two million people. We've got over eight hundred congregations
and network of summer camps, youth movements, social justice arm
in Washington, d C. And you know, we're very much
present all through North America and pleasure to be with you.
(30:36):
And I did have a great privilege and honor of
meeting with Pope Francis. What an extraordinary religious leader, I
have to say. It was in twenty seventeen, he convened
a conference at the Vatican on refugees, asylum seekers, migrants
and immigrants, and it was an urgent moral issue for him,
(30:58):
and he brought together a group of religious leaders from
around the world to not just think and talk, to
figure out what more we could do to raise our
religious voices on behalf of the most vulnerable. And that,
of course was his essence. And we sat together in
a one on one and I have to say it's
something I'll remember all my days, just the humility of
(31:19):
this incredible man, but also the audacity, the fearlessness, and
the way in which he was able to raise issues
and bring people together, not just within the church but
really across all faith lines. Really an extraordinary loss, I
think for all of us.
Speaker 2 (31:37):
Well, it was interesting. By twenty seventeen, you know, Paul
Francis had certainly secured his footing. He was elected elevated
to the position of the College of Cardinals in twenty thirteen.
He probably was in he was would have been eighty
years old or eighty one years old at that time,
so therefore he was really at the top of his game.
(32:00):
And did you again, you're coming from from a different
you know, faith perspective. But as I tell friends of mine,
I happen to be Roman Catholic, but I'm someone who
is as a television reporter, visited Auschwitz and one Emmy
(32:20):
for my work in Auschwitz in nineteen eighty six, and
people will say to me, gee, you're not Jewish, how
come you're so open to Judaism and also very supportive
of the state of Israel. And I kid with people.
I said, well, you know, the guy that founded my
religion was Jewish and his poser's word as well, and
that kind of takes the edge off a little a
(32:41):
little bit. So you're pretty progressive, I assume on reform,
Judaism is probably a pretty progressive brand of Judaism.
Speaker 5 (32:50):
Correct, That's absolutely correct, Okay.
Speaker 2 (32:53):
And Francis was very I thought, pretty progressive, certainly compared
to John Paul the Second and some of the prior popes.
And as a Catholic, you know, I'm I'm a an
imperfect Catholic. But one of the things that sometimes I think,
(33:14):
uh that I've had my question with Francis and so
in his absence to you is I know that a
lot of the more progressive groups are talking about immigration
and immigration is an international issue. There's immigration from Africa
to Europe, there's immigration from all around the world to
the United States. As someone who probably is a little
(33:36):
more conservative, I guess would be the way to describe it,
I'm very much in favor of immigration, but legal immigration.
So any country needs to know who's coming into that
country and what their purpose is. How do I square
that with you? And how do I square that with
my religion, my Catholicism, the philosophy that France has projected.
(33:58):
Am I a total troglodyte.
Speaker 5 (34:00):
No, Well, first of all, I don't think you're some
minority on that. I mean, we have to have some
rules obviously, you know, just open borders is not actually
a plan. But we have tens of millions of refugees
and asylum seekers in the world, and we have a
moral responsibility to them, whether or not they can come
(34:21):
into the country in which we reside. We are to
treat them with not just dignity. But the Bible commands us,
more than any other commandment, to love the gear the stranger,
to love that one who's not like you, maybe doesn't
share a language, maybe not even the same faith. But
you know, Pope Francis was really about the dignity of
(34:42):
every human being, and in that there's just that's not
a political issue, it's a core religious commitment. And I
have to say, you know, he started his career in Argentina,
and he was so close to a number of rabbis
that were really my teachers. So he was somebody who
had been a part of the Jewish community. He knew rabbis,
(35:03):
they had worked together on behalf of social justice, the
more fair, more equitable society. So when he came into
the papacy, he already brought those relationships and it was
very comfortable for him to talk about the issues that
were burning in our community. And you know, I remember
when he was asked about, you know, his policy towards
(35:25):
the LGBTQ community within the church, and he said, who
am I to judge? And you know what, he's the pope.
Wouldn't that be the role of a pope if he
wanted to. But his you know, humanity, he saw every
person individually and gave each person, you know, his full
heart and attention. And I think he modeled for all
(35:47):
of us what faith could be. And there are a
lot of people in the world who don't have faith,
but for many of them, not just for the Catholics
with you know, within the one point three or one
point four billion Catholics, there are so many people who
just heard his voice and said, that's the voice of
a religious leader. That's the voice that speaks about the
dignity the humanity, and always from a place of kindness
(36:12):
and love. I mean, if that's not the real deal,
I don't know what is.
Speaker 2 (36:16):
Yeah, I understand that between you and me, I'm more
of a John. Paul's the second guy because he stood
up against the Nazis and the Communists in the face
of real physical danger at a time when the world
was burning. But I certainly appreciate your reflections tonight. And
it's great when two of the great religions in the world,
(36:39):
because I do think religions are so important can work
together as you and the Pope did. So thanks so
much for enlightening us about reform Judaism. And I know
folks can probably find you and find a website and
perhaps get in touch with you if they're so inclined.
Speaker 5 (36:55):
Absolutely, it's been a pleasure, and thank you for telling
this story. And yes, on Paul, what an extraordinary leader.
It's not about you know this one was good, in
this one not. They have moved so beautifully into a
new chapter of interfaith cooperation and that's what we need
more of in this world than I thank you for
(37:16):
all that you do.
Speaker 2 (37:17):
Very important. Right back at your Rabbi Rick Jacobs, thank
you very much. The president of the Union for Reform Judaism,
thank you, thank you.
Speaker 5 (37:24):
Revi, thank you, thank you.
Speaker 2 (37:26):
When we get back, we are going to talk about
the return of college Republicans at Harvard University. Yeah, there
was a front page Globe magazine piece earlier this month,
and we're going to talk with the author, Adelaide Parker.
She is a Harvard junior and very very interesting young woman,
and we'll be back with her and looking forward to
(37:48):
your phone calls as well. Right after the nine o'clock
news
It's a nice side.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
We've done Ray undelling you Mazy Boston's News Radio. Thanks
very much, Madison. We are ready for a very busy
Tuesday night here on Nightside. We have so much to cover.
I don't know how we're gonna get it all in,
but we will try. We will try. We have four
very interesting guests coming up during the first hour. No
(00:22):
phone calls, as I'm sure all I have you know
by now. During the first hour at nine o'clock tonight,
we will talk with a Boston Globe correspondent who is
also a junior at Harvard College, Harvard University, Harvard Well
Harvard College, the undergraduate, and she is going to talk
with us about the return of college Republicans on that
(00:45):
embattled campus right now. We'll also at some point tonight
talk about President Trump's first one hundred days. Give you
an opportunity to give him a grade, and some of
the efforts that he's been engaged in, some successful, others
perhaps not so successful. And we hope to get to
the question of the arrest of a couple of judges,
one in Wisconsin and one forman judge in New Mexico
(01:07):
by federal authority. So we have lots to cover tonight,
and we will start off with some information that hopefully
all of you will listen to very carefully, because this
is a Survive Stroke Week and we hope to educate
Americans about the symptoms of stroke. By the way, I
will remind you that Rob Brooks is back in the
control room. Almost forgot about you, Rob, You're the most
(01:29):
valuable player in the program, so thanks very much for
being back there. As a matter of fact, Rob just
told me a moment ago that we have our first guest,
doctor vill Lisa. I knowah, doctor, I knowah. Welcome to NIGHT'SID.
Speaker 3 (01:43):
How are you good? How are you? Thank you for
having me?
Speaker 2 (01:46):
You're right welcome. Stroke is something that is important. It's
particularly important, I guess this year a Survived Stroke Week
is focusing on the Hispanic community here in the US,
where stroke ranks as the fourth leading cause for death
for Hispanic men and the third leading cause for Hispanic women. Clearly,
strokes can hit any one of us. Why is it
(02:09):
that within the Hispanic community stroke seems to be especially dangerous?
Not I mean cancer's dangerous heart attacks. We're all all
of this is things that we're all concerned about. But
this is one that there's a focus this uh this
week on getting the world out to the Hispanic community.
What what's going on?
Speaker 3 (02:32):
That's a very very good question. I first of all,
I really want to say thank you for having me
this evening. I am Dominigan, so I am Hispanic, and
I can I can speak from heart. I mean, obviously
there are a lot of respactors that will be more
prevalent in the Hispanic population. And we're talking about high
(02:54):
blood pressure and diabetes, obesity on healthy lifestyle, so that
would be one factor. But I think there's something very
important to understand, which is that the knowledge about stroke
symptoms actually is going to be less When we interview
Hispanic patients, they do not know how stroke would present,
(03:18):
and also they do not know that stroke is a
treatable condition, so they will not call nine one one.
Hence they won't get to the hospitals where they're going
to be able to get the right treatment for this condition.
Speaker 2 (03:32):
Now, look within every community, obviously there are people who
allow their health is not their top priority. What can
be done to make sure that the Hispanic community, not
only here in Boston, but anywhere within the sound of
our voice, were heard on over the air terrestrial radio
in half of the United States. What do individuals need
(03:55):
to do? Are the websites they can go to? Obviously
they need to talk with their doctors about this as well.
What can we do to bring this to everyone's attention
everyone who's listening tonight, but the Hispanic or not, but
everyone possibly? What needs to be done?
Speaker 3 (04:15):
I think what you are doing right now is absolutely important.
Right so making sure that the message gets to keep
all people in the community and that we create stroke
awareness campaigns. There are multiple websites we are working with
the get Ahead of Stroke dot org website, which has
(04:36):
a lot of information not only for the English speaking community,
but also data that has been translated into Spanish and
creating mnemonics that are not only understood by the English
population but also by the Hispanic population, like rapid though,
and we can go over the mneumonic in a minute
(04:58):
if you would like me too, and I can explain.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
It in Spanish. Go right ahead on all ears.
Speaker 1 (05:04):
Absolutely absolutely, thank you.
Speaker 3 (05:06):
So Rappio stands for our rosto last persona. No can
I speak? Can I speak Spanish? Can I explain in Spanish?
Speaker 2 (05:17):
Sure? That's that's the audience that we need to reach.
Speaker 4 (05:19):
Absolutely, go right ahead, perfect, perfect rostro candola cara is
the devil Alo la jent no pether comin bieng perlasa
peo pierna.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
The impedimental, isel bosa the difficult that para avla la
hin avl biengtro poso oh tenga I do the rap.
So that's in summary in Spanish, and thank you for
(06:03):
the opportunity.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
Sure. There's also a website called Let's Talk about Hispanic
and Latino Americans and Stroke that is provided by the
American Heart Association. People should realize that things like high
blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, high cholesterol, smoking, stress, social determinants
(06:27):
of health. All of these factors can increase the likelihood
and increase your fist. If you want to reduce the
likelihood of stroke or whatever your background is, you want
to eat more fruits and vegetables, reduce salt in your diet,
increase physical activity, quit smoking, or never start. The smallest thing.
(06:48):
One of the smartest things I've did in my life
was I've never smoked. My dad was a two packa
day cigarette smoker. I hated the smell of cigarette smoke,
and I have never smoked a cigarette in my life.
Managing stress I'm not so good at. So there's things
that all of us need to need to improve on,
(07:08):
there's no doubt. But I hope that the American Heart
Association will make all of this information available not only
in English, but also in Spanish, so that you know
Hispanic and Latino friends, I just as prepared to avoid
stroke and not prepared to deal with it once their occurs.
Speaker 1 (07:32):
Absolutely absolutely prevention for stroke. Prevention is extremely important. Like
you just mentioned, once.
Speaker 3 (07:43):
You have a stroke, and I hope that never happens
to you, but it is fairly common, as you said,
in the United States, it is right now the fifth
cause of death, and one person will have a stroke
every forty seconds. So it is likely that someone you
know will have a stroke at some point in their lives, unfortunately,
(08:05):
and that is the reality that we need to understand.
We really need to understand and recognize the stroke symptoms,
and again very important, we need to know that stroke
is a treatable condition and that the treatment is time dependent.
So the sooner we get to the hospital, the sooner
(08:25):
we call nine one one, the more likely we're going
to be able to get the stroke treatment, hence hopefully
we'll be able to reduce disability and death from stroke.
Speaker 2 (08:37):
Well, I very much appreciate you being with us. I
was just doing the math in my head. We've talked
about nine minutes, so that would mean that in the
time that we've talked about a dozen people in the
United States have suffered a stroke at some level. So
that puts it in perspective as well. Doctor. I really
appreciate your time tonight, and I appreciate what you're trying
(08:59):
to do. Doc to Uh THEO Lisa, I know, I Knowah.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
Thank you so much for having me much.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
We will talk again. Thank you, my friend. Thank you.
Wow when you focus on the things that can impact
your family so dramatically, Uh, this has to be right
up there. So take what you heard, doctor, I knowah say,
whether you listened in Spanish, Hispanic in Spanish, or in English,
(09:28):
take it to heart. We get back to talk about
We're going to talk with a rabbi, Rabbi Rick Jacobs.
He's the president of the Union for Reform Judaism. He
had the pleasure of meeting Pope Francis and we'll talk
about that meeting when we get back here. On Nightside.
My name's Dan Worry. This is Nightside coming back after
(09:49):
this quick break.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
It's Nightside with Dan Ray on Boston's news radio.
Speaker 2 (09:57):
All right, welcome back. We're going to change our lineup
a little. We had a little bit of trouble reaching
our eight p fifteen guest, which happens, happens, but moving
him up from the fourth spot to the number two spot.
He's been here before. Boston Globe meteorologist Ken Mahan. Ken,
I'm particularly happy to hear from you tonight, and we're
(10:18):
going to talk about the month of May. We're on
the doorstep of the month of May, and after the
winter we've had. I am looking forward to May because
but May apparently it's more summer like now than it
used to be spring like. I'll take a little bit
of summer. What's going on? What's what are we expecting here? Ken?
(10:40):
How are you tonight?
Speaker 5 (10:41):
Well?
Speaker 6 (10:42):
Dan, thanks again for having me on the show. It's
been a minute. Always been a fan, and hey, you
made me feel like a Red Sox player getting bumped
up in the batting order.
Speaker 2 (10:50):
That's why, you know, we use that metaphor all the time.
You know. We looked down the bench and I said, hen,
get up here, grab a bat, let's go.
Speaker 4 (11:00):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (11:00):
I feel like Dustin putjoya. You know this is great,
it's too better. So it's interesting. We're coming off one
of the coldest winters that we've seen in a while
around you know, Boston and really all six New England states,
and it's been interesting. You know, we've seen March become
warmer than average, almost four degrees warmer than average, and
(11:22):
the Greater Boston a couple of degrees across New England
as a whole. And April is going to wrap up
what tomorrow and it's going to end up with two
to three degrees warmer than average typically compared to the
thirty year norm. So what does that mean?
Speaker 2 (11:36):
Just January and February we're very cold? Correct?
Speaker 6 (11:40):
Yes, were?
Speaker 2 (11:41):
So how much did it all balance out? I mean,
I read on Sundays. I always look at the the
yearly temperature and it's always warmer it was in January.
It was looking to me like it was warmer in January.
And I'm saying, what planet living on? How much cold
(12:01):
it was January? How much cold was February compared to
margin April. Let's let's just deal with that for one second,
rough numbers, give a rough idea.
Speaker 6 (12:08):
Yeah, starting yeah, I mean starting right there, you're talking
between one to three degrees colder than average across all
of New England as you blend in all six stakes,
all their average temperatures from all weather reporting stations, right,
And that was the first time in four years where
New England as a whole was actually below the pharmatological norm.
(12:32):
So it just felt that much more colder than we
were used to.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
Well, that's January. Well that was Jane.
Speaker 7 (12:37):
That was January, and what happened in February.
Speaker 6 (12:41):
February was the repeat of the same. Not as dramatic
as January, but it's still the pretty much half degree
to a degree and a half colder than the typical
month of February that we see Boston and beyond. Basically
throw a dart at them at a map in New
England and it was older than average in February.
Speaker 2 (13:00):
Okay, So then a long time March in April, and what.
Speaker 6 (13:03):
Happened we saw, you know, everyone has heard about El Nino,
La Nina and the endo sort of climate pattern. We
saw basically a dramatic shift to neutral conditions and that
basically took us from a could of an average trend
and put us a right smack dab to like more normalcy.
(13:24):
Problem is normalcy over the past ten twenty thirty years
is basically an increase in temperature. So we've actually seen
a warm up in March, a warm up in April,
and all signs points to the original question. May you know,
the conversation is does may become a summer month? And
it certainly seems that way if you take the sort
(13:46):
of macro views of all of New England over the
past thirty years.
Speaker 2 (13:51):
Okay, so it may becomes a summer month. I assume
June was always we think of summer as I think.
I think it's been schools out June, July and August,
and I like this September is the start of fall.
It's like the most beautiful month in New England, best
weather except for the occasional hurricane. And then you know,
(14:15):
it gets a little cooler in October and then reality
strikes with November. So as of right now, even although
we had a cold January and a cold a colder
January and a colder February, that's more than been offset
by a warmer March and a warmer April. So we're
a little bit above where we should be in terms
(14:37):
of temperature, is what I'm hearing. You said that right now.
Speaker 6 (14:40):
Yes, that's correct. Yeah, and that really is the case
for all major cities across New England, you know, Boston certainly,
And it looks like, you know, going into May, the outlook.
I was just looking at the you know, eight to
fourteen day outlook and then the monthly outlook, and it
doesn't look like at a minimum will be at average.
(15:00):
But the chances are it's just the way that things
have been trending, will end up, you know, a degree
or two above average once again.
Speaker 2 (15:07):
Okay, so the good news. Let's let's put a good
news spin on this, ken. We could put the shovels away,
and we could take the snowsteaks off the driveway, yes, yes.
Speaker 6 (15:19):
And we can reduce those heavy winter coats and put
those away. We and in our household, we just put
the winter gear down into the basement. So as a
as a meteorologist, I'm home right.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
You know, and I'm sure you are. I think we're pasted.
I do remember snowstorm. I think it was back in
seventy seven, the first week of making a significant snowstorm
that I covered way back as a as a as
a rookie reporter.
Speaker 6 (15:47):
Uh yeah, you know you know that on the head.
I had someone just email me about that this morning,
and yeah, that was exactly right.
Speaker 2 (15:56):
Yeah remember that stuff.
Speaker 6 (16:00):
Oh my gosh, for sure, for sure. Thank yeah, I will,
thank you.
Speaker 2 (16:04):
Good. I didn't mean to be sorry.
Speaker 7 (16:07):
Good, totally fine, I was.
Speaker 6 (16:09):
It's just really interesting we've seen for the month of May,
just the number of seventy degree days, in the number
of eighty degree days just increase basically all across southern
New England. So you know, if you're Boston, Worcester, Springfield, Providence, Hartford,
down the south and the North Shores down into the
Cape even seeing a bump in seventy and eighty degree days,
which is nice for those folks that love the warmth. Right,
(16:31):
summer starts early, but you're right though, Dan, summer sort
of bloating. You know, we have an earlier start and
then like a later finished September is hot as well.
Speaker 2 (16:40):
Let's do this. Let's plan maybe in the last week
of May or the first week of June. Let's bring
you back and let's just see how how may turns
are because I think it'd be fun to follow it.
You've laid it out so beautifully for my audience to understand. Yeah,
cooler in January, colder or cooler, whatever you want to
call it. January February, warmed up in March and April
just a little bit. Let's see what happens to me.
(17:01):
I love w backup on a month from now, if
that's possible.
Speaker 6 (17:03):
Okay, always happy to jump on, Dan. I appreciate it
and looking forward to connecting again.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
All right, you're a great picture tonight. Thanks Ken. I
appreciate it.
Speaker 6 (17:11):
Yeah, you for three with the home run. I love it.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
You've got it. Boston Globe Meteorologist Ken Mahon. Thanks Ken,
we'll talk again. Thanks very much. Good night. Here comes
the news at the bottom of the arm. By the way,
want you, if you have a moment in the next
day or so, pull down the iHeart app, the new
and improved iHeart app. You can make us your first
preset on that app on all your devices. You will
(17:36):
only then be a finger tip away from WBZ anywhere
in the world. Three hundred and sixty five days a year,
twenty four to seven. We talked last night with one
of our favorite listeners up in Alaska. She talked about
be My Eyes, the volunteer project that she's working on
(17:56):
for people with limited or no vision, how they can
get help through telephone. So anywhere in the world just
pull it down. It's new and improved. The iHeart app
easy to find at your app store. And if you
know what I'm talking about, you know how easy it is.
If you don't know what I'm talking about, talk to
someone who's a little younger and they'll help you do it.
(18:16):
Back on Nightside, right after the news break at the
bottom of the hour.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
Night Side with Dan Ray on Boston's news radio.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
All right, so we have had a little confusion here,
but we are delighted to welcome. This is no confusion here.
We're delighted to welcome University of Virginia Professor Dale Copeland.
Professor Copeland, welcome UVA. I think all of us know
is a great school not too far down the East
(18:47):
coast from us, located here in Boston. How are you tonight.
Speaker 7 (18:51):
I'm great, great to be here with you.
Speaker 2 (18:53):
You're an author and a professor of international relations with
the Department of Politics. Right in my Wheelhouse. Here you
have a new book, A World's Safe for Commerce, American
foreign policy from the Revolution to the Rise of China.
It's published by Princeton Studies and International History and Politics.
Tell us about the book, Is this your first? I
(19:14):
suspect it's not.
Speaker 5 (19:16):
No.
Speaker 7 (19:17):
No. Robert's my third book, and it's part of this
larger project to look at how the rise and fall
of great powers in world history tends to affect their
foreign policies. But this time I focus solely on the
commercial side, or at least the commercial determinants of that.
So if a state like China, take a contemporary example,
(19:40):
its state like China believes that it's not going to
be able to get access to its markets or its
raw materials, that negative expectation about the future can lead
it to believe that it has to go to war
or maybe just a militarized conflict over say Southeast Asia,
to keep its trade routes open. And so this is
(20:00):
really a struggle right now. It's a struggle between US
and China over control of the world economy, and it's
a struggle over smaller powers or smaller states like Malaysia, Indonesia.
But it could also be over larger states like Japan
or even India. So there's a lot going on right now,
and the book addresses those kinds of questions.
Speaker 2 (20:22):
I follow this pretty closely. I believe that yesterday China
staked out they actually unfrilled the flag on an island
that is close to the Philippines that they want to
claim ownership of, but it is actually an island that
is owned by the Philippines. Are you hip to that
story yesterday?
Speaker 7 (20:41):
I actually I was doing a presentation on the book
yesterday and I drove all day, so I haven't been
following the news. But it doesn't sound it sounds very familiar.
China's been doing this for twenty five thirty years before
even see Jingping, and it's largely a policy based around
this idea of a nine day line that suggests that
(21:01):
China controls most of the South China Sea, that area
between say Philippines and Vietnam and Indonesia, and it's a
way of projecting naval power into that area. A lot
of people see it as tied to potential resources that
are under the sea, such as oil, natural gas. I
(21:23):
actually think that it's more about projecting naval and air
power against this very narrow strait called the Malaca Strait
between Indonesia and Malaysia. And it's essentially a way to
tell the US and India don't mess with us, don't
try to cut us off from oil like you did
to Japan in nineteen forty one. So in that sense,
(21:46):
it's tied to economics.
Speaker 2 (21:48):
And it's all the national power, you know, it's also
this sense of this sense of manifest destiny and that
you know, we have the Monroe doctrine that and we
have backed off a lot of that. I think we
are ruining the day that we saw we sold the
Panama Canal for a dollar. Yeah, right, I think that
(22:09):
was a huge mistake. China has its footprint not only
all over Southeast Asia, right, and of course it's looking
at Taiwan. They also have tremendous footprints in Central America,
South America and in Africa.
Speaker 7 (22:26):
I mean no question about it. And in fact, the
movement into the Caribbean is the latest of this. And
they've basically bought the harbor of the small island of
Antigua about one hundred thousand people, but it's an island nation,
and they are setting up one of the largest ports,
but also surveillance centers that they have anywhere in the world.
(22:50):
And it's part of the Belt Road Belton Road initiative
you mentioned, but it's also part of this larger strategic interest,
very much like Alfred theyer Mahan's idea of projecting naval
power around the world to protect their trade routes, their markets,
their raw material supplies and so forth. And we did it,
of course after Alfred they er Mahan clewed us in
(23:13):
on it, and the Japanese did it, and the Germans
did it. But now the Chinese are doing it. And
while it may be very common for great powers to
do this, it's very scary for the ones that find
their neighborhoods suddenly not taken over, but suddenly they're no
longer the big guy on the campus, so to speak.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
By the way, when you mentioned Antigua, I have been
to Antigua. What absolute abject poverty. It's very close to Montserrat,
the island that had that volcano about twenty years ago.
When you talk about China, you can't forget that they
ran that balloon across the United States of America a
(23:53):
couple of winters ago and in a difference. And also
they've been purchasing vast areas of arm acreage aught in
places like North Dakota that are very close to US
military installations. This is expansionism that is extraordinary when you
think about it, and I think that is driving And
(24:15):
maybe I'm dead wrong, you're the professor. I'm not, but
I think that at its base, that is what is
driving Trump's tariff policy. Now, I don't think he's executed
it well so far, and I'm well to criticize that,
but I think, and I'm wondering if you might agree
with me, and if you don't tell me I'm wrong,
that that might be an underlying factor in why he
(24:37):
is doing this to try to bring China to heal
a little bit. That's what I sense about it.
Speaker 7 (24:44):
Yeah, there's no question about that, Robert. And in fact,
we can see this in a number of ways. A
declining and very dominant state in history tends to do
these kinds of things, tries to stop the rising power
from growing further by trey by economic power projection. And
others have done this too, say Britain or Britain did
(25:05):
this to others, and then Germany did it when the
US did it to the Soviet Union in the nineteen fifties,
kept the Soviets from growing. It's not surprising that both
the Democrats and the Republicans agree that China has grown
too fast and too large and there should be some
(25:26):
restrictions on further growth. Now. The real question, though, is
and I think it's a trade off, and this is
in the book, my book, A World's Safe for Commerce.
There's this trade off between keeping the other down through
trade restrictions or tariffs or simple cutoffs of supply like
we did to Japan in nineteen forty one, and the
(25:48):
potential for a spiral of conflict, not necessarily a Cuban
missile crisis, but a crisis say in the South China Sea,
where China worries about its supplies and it's it's markets
and then thinks, well, now we really have to project power.
So I would argue, yeah, Taiwan is a good example.
(26:09):
And one of the reasons that Si Jinping, the leader
of China, has not gone after Taiwan when he probably could,
is that he knows that the economic costs not just
of the invasion, but of the cutoffs or the restrictions
that would follow would devastate China. China has about forty
percent of its economy tied up in overseas trade. The
(26:32):
US is about twenty two percent, but we're more sheltered
because we trade a lot with allies. They the Chinese
trade mostly with US or with people that are in
our political sphere and allies of ours. So they have
a very delicate situation here. They're the biggest trading country
in the world. They have over one hundred countries that
(26:54):
see China as their largest trading partner. And yet at
the same time they have have some leverage over US,
so we have to be careful here. Their main leverage,
to be honest, is in rare earth. They supply the
US with these critical minerals called rare earth for cell
phones and electronics, and you know SUVs and.
Speaker 2 (27:15):
So, and that ties right into the Ukraine and Russia
as well. Professor Coplan, I've so enjoyed this conversation. I
want to go back to college, but it's a little
too late at this point. Okay, you sound like you'd
be a great professor of the book. Is a World
Safe for comer commerce? Is it it's available now? Is
(27:36):
it just out or is it out for a loot.
Speaker 7 (27:37):
No, it came out about a year ago, but it'll
be perfect time. It's on Amazon.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
So I'll tell you if you even had a bump
in your sales with the imposition of the tariffs. Uh,
President Trump has actually, I think done you a favor.
People should be buying your book at this point.
Speaker 7 (27:54):
Well, I don't know. It's it's it's a scary proposition.
The whole last chapter is about US China. But I
did not anticipate the full scope of what what could
have happened. I warned about it, of course, but the
idea of one hundred and forty five or fifty percent tariffs,
it seems a little crazy to most people right now.
And I think they will come down. He promised they
(28:16):
would come.
Speaker 2 (28:16):
Down, right. Remember, what goes up has to come down.
It's a it's a lot.
Speaker 7 (28:20):
It's probably in this case, the.
Speaker 2 (28:22):
World's safe for commerce. You have been a great guest.
I really do mean that, and I thank you for
joining us tonight. And I wish I was a student
at you've already signing up.
Speaker 7 (28:32):
Hey, we'll take care, take care and then, and good
to talk to you. Thank you, BacT with you.
Speaker 2 (28:37):
Professor Dale Copeland a world safe for commerce. When we
get back, we will I'll be talking with Rabbi Rick
Jacob's president of the Union for Reform Judaism back on
nights Side. Right after this, you're on Night Side with
Dan Ray on Boston's news radio. Well, early this evening
had to shake up our batting order a little bit.
(28:57):
And I'm not sure if Rabbi Rick Jacobs as a
baseball fan, but Rebbi Jacobs, you were. You were hitting
in the number two spot, and now you're batting clean up,
you're number four. So I'm glad, very glad that we
finally got you. I'll sort of keep the religious metaphor
going along and saying our prayers were answered. We were
afraid we weren't going to get you tonight. How are
you this evening?
Speaker 5 (29:18):
I'm great and a big baseball fan, so I think
in Boston that would put me in like a big
poppy spot. That's a big pressure spot. But I'll do
my best.
Speaker 2 (29:26):
It's a big pressure spot. It certainly is right right now.
They're they're moving people around. You know, the Devers is
hitting second and they have Bergman is hitting fourth, So
that's that. And he's a good guy to have hitting
hitting forth, that's for sure. So first of all, explain
to us what the Union for Reform Judaism is. And
I guess you also had an opportunity to meet with
(29:47):
Pope Francis. Tell us about what you're the president of
the Union for Reform Judaism. Explain I'm not Jewish. I
have some familiarity with with the various diferences within the
Jewish religion, as I have some familiar with the different
different religions within the umbrella of Christianity. But Reform Judaism,
(30:10):
go right ahead, sure, well.
Speaker 5 (30:12):
First of all, it's good to be with you and
the Union Reformed Judaism with actually the largest movement in
Jewish life here in North America according to the Pew surveys,
around two million people. We've got over eight hundred congregations
and network of summer camps, youth movements, social justice arm
in Washington, d C. And you know, we're very much
present all through North America and pleasure to be with you.
(30:36):
And I did have a great privilege and honor of
meeting with Pope Francis. What an extraordinary religious leader, I
have to say. It was in twenty seventeen, he convened
a conference at the Vatican on refugees, asylum seekers, migrants
and immigrants, and it was an urgent moral issue for him,
(30:58):
and he brought together a group of religious leaders from
around the world to not just think and talk, to
figure out what more we could do to raise our
religious voices on behalf of the most vulnerable. And that,
of course was his essence. And we sat together in
a one on one and I have to say it's
something I'll remember all my days, just the humility of
(31:19):
this incredible man, but also the audacity, the fearlessness, and
the way in which he was able to raise issues
and bring people together, not just within the church but
really across all faith lines. Really an extraordinary loss, I
think for all of us.
Speaker 2 (31:37):
Well, it was interesting. By twenty seventeen, you know, Paul
Francis had certainly secured his footing. He was elected elevated
to the position of the College of Cardinals in twenty thirteen.
He probably was in he was would have been eighty
years old or eighty one years old at that time,
so therefore he was really at the top of his game.
(32:00):
And did you again, you're coming from from a different
you know, faith perspective. But as I tell friends of mine,
I happen to be Roman Catholic, but I'm someone who
is as a television reporter, visited Auschwitz and one Emmy
(32:20):
for my work in Auschwitz in nineteen eighty six, and
people will say to me, gee, you're not Jewish, how
come you're so open to Judaism and also very supportive
of the state of Israel. And I kid with people.
I said, well, you know, the guy that founded my
religion was Jewish and his poser's word as well, and
that kind of takes the edge off a little a
(32:41):
little bit. So you're pretty progressive, I assume on reform,
Judaism is probably a pretty progressive brand of Judaism.
Speaker 5 (32:50):
Correct, That's absolutely correct, Okay.
Speaker 2 (32:53):
And Francis was very I thought, pretty progressive, certainly compared
to John Paul the Second and some of the prior popes.
And as a Catholic, you know, I'm I'm a an
imperfect Catholic. But one of the things that sometimes I think,
(33:14):
uh that I've had my question with Francis and so
in his absence to you is I know that a
lot of the more progressive groups are talking about immigration
and immigration is an international issue. There's immigration from Africa
to Europe, there's immigration from all around the world to
the United States. As someone who probably is a little
(33:36):
more conservative, I guess would be the way to describe it,
I'm very much in favor of immigration, but legal immigration.
So any country needs to know who's coming into that
country and what their purpose is. How do I square
that with you? And how do I square that with
my religion, my Catholicism, the philosophy that France has projected.
(33:58):
Am I a total troglodyte.
Speaker 5 (34:00):
No, Well, first of all, I don't think you're some
minority on that. I mean, we have to have some
rules obviously, you know, just open borders is not actually
a plan. But we have tens of millions of refugees
and asylum seekers in the world, and we have a
moral responsibility to them, whether or not they can come
(34:21):
into the country in which we reside. We are to
treat them with not just dignity. But the Bible commands us,
more than any other commandment, to love the gear the stranger,
to love that one who's not like you, maybe doesn't
share a language, maybe not even the same faith. But
you know, Pope Francis was really about the dignity of
(34:42):
every human being, and in that there's just that's not
a political issue, it's a core religious commitment. And I
have to say, you know, he started his career in Argentina,
and he was so close to a number of rabbis
that were really my teachers. So he was somebody who
had been a part of the Jewish community. He knew rabbis,
(35:03):
they had worked together on behalf of social justice, the
more fair, more equitable society. So when he came into
the papacy, he already brought those relationships and it was
very comfortable for him to talk about the issues that
were burning in our community. And you know, I remember
when he was asked about, you know, his policy towards
(35:25):
the LGBTQ community within the church, and he said, who
am I to judge? And you know what, he's the pope.
Wouldn't that be the role of a pope if he
wanted to. But his you know, humanity, he saw every
person individually and gave each person, you know, his full
heart and attention. And I think he modeled for all
(35:47):
of us what faith could be. And there are a
lot of people in the world who don't have faith,
but for many of them, not just for the Catholics
with you know, within the one point three or one
point four billion Catholics, there are so many people who
just heard his voice and said, that's the voice of
a religious leader. That's the voice that speaks about the
dignity the humanity, and always from a place of kindness
(36:12):
and love. I mean, if that's not the real deal,
I don't know what is.
Speaker 2 (36:16):
Yeah, I understand that between you and me, I'm more
of a John. Paul's the second guy because he stood
up against the Nazis and the Communists in the face
of real physical danger at a time when the world
was burning. But I certainly appreciate your reflections tonight. And
it's great when two of the great religions in the world,
(36:39):
because I do think religions are so important can work
together as you and the Pope did. So thanks so
much for enlightening us about reform Judaism. And I know
folks can probably find you and find a website and
perhaps get in touch with you if they're so inclined.
Speaker 5 (36:55):
Absolutely, it's been a pleasure, and thank you for telling
this story. And yes, on Paul, what an extraordinary leader.
It's not about you know this one was good, in
this one not. They have moved so beautifully into a
new chapter of interfaith cooperation and that's what we need
more of in this world than I thank you for
(37:16):
all that you do.
Speaker 2 (37:17):
Very important. Right back at your Rabbi Rick Jacobs, thank
you very much. The president of the Union for Reform Judaism,
thank you, thank you.
Speaker 5 (37:24):
Revi, thank you, thank you.
Speaker 2 (37:26):
When we get back, we are going to talk about
the return of college Republicans at Harvard University. Yeah, there
was a front page Globe magazine piece earlier this month,
and we're going to talk with the author, Adelaide Parker.
She is a Harvard junior and very very interesting young woman,
and we'll be back with her and looking forward to
(37:48):
your phone calls as well. Right after the nine o'clock
news
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