01. Election Fears and Looming Lawsuits
02. The New Yorker’s Evan Osnos: Who is Joe Biden?
03. Are You Suffering Election Stress Disorder?
04. Weeks Away: Hospitals Brace for Coming COVID Surge
05. He Helped a First Lady Set an Underwater Speed Record
06. World Kindness Day Is More Important Than Ever
07. ’This Is Us’… How Hollywood Depicts Memory Loss
08. Chill Out! Become a Wine Whiz in 15 Minutes
09. This Neurologist Could Solve Football’s Concussion Problem
10. Like the Stork Personified – ‘What I Learned from 6,000 Deliveries!’
11. Would You Sacrifice Your Career for Your Child’s?
12. Will Joe Biden Eliminate Single-Family Homes?
13. Will God Make Sure That Trump Wins the Election?
14. When Abnormal Became the New Normal
15. Just the Facts, Please
1.==> Election 2020: Voter Fears and Looming Lawsuits
Americans are worried about this election. And who can blame them? Each day, a new story, whether true, false, or overblown, creates fresh anxiety about mail-in voting or polling places. A battleground-state survey conducted by the Stanford-MIT Healthy Elections Project shows that registered voters harbor worries about voting in this election that diverge in predictable ways, given their partisan affiliations. Invite Stanford Law School’s Nathaniel Persily to discuss voters’ fears as well as the status of the many lawsuits involving election rules during the pandemic. Persily says despite voter worries and confusion, most voters are confident that their ballots will be counted accurately. “Although partisans share some worries and diverge on others, we should be heartened by the overall confidence that people have that their vote will be counted. This goes against a larger narrative that suggests a widespread lack of trust that this election will be free and fair.” The Healthy Elections Project is led by Stanford Law School’s Nathaniel Persily and MIT’s Charles Stewart III. Contact Persily at (650) 725-9875; npersily@law.stanford.edu
2. ==> The New Yorker’s Evan Osnos: Who is Joe Biden?
Democratic presidential nominee Joseph R. Biden Jr. is no stranger to Americans; he has been a fixture in U.S. politics for more than 50 years. But what do your listeners know about the man running for the nation’s highest office? Evan Osnos has spent nearly ten years writing about the Democratic contender for The New Yorker. Invite him on your show to discuss Biden’s years in Congress, his role in the Obama administration and his role in previous foreign policy. You’ll also learn how the former vice president overcame a childhood stutter and how the memory of grade-school taunts still sensitizes him to embarrassment. Can Biden balance the demands of his party’s leftward shift with his own centrist leanings and those of moderate voters he will need to win? Are his instincts to build unity precisely what a divided country and legislature need in its next leader? Osnos’ new book “Joe Biden: The Life, the Run, and What Matters Now” is based on his in-depth New Yorker interviews with Biden, and more than 100 other interviews with individuals including Barack Obama, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar, John Kerry, advisors, family, and opponents. Evan Osnos has been a staff writer at The New Yorker since 2008. Contact Johanna Ramos-Boyer at (703) 991-8328; jboyer@rtirguests.com
3. ==> Are You Suffering Election Stress Disorder?
Nearly 70% of U.S. adults say the presidential election is a significant source of stress, according to the American Psychological Association’s Stress in America survey this month, a dramatic increase from the 2016 election when 52% of Americans said the same. Rami Odeh (Oh-DAY), an author, certified exercise physiologist, personal trainer and corporate presenter, can share coping strategies to lesson election information overload. Odeh’s suggestions include reading the news instead of watching it, focusing on what’s going on in the moment instead of worrying about the future, and spending time on things you can control like your health and wellness. He’ll discuss the benefits of soaking in a little sunshine sans sunscreen and ways to keep active, no matter what your schedule or circumstance. You’ll also learn five daily steps everyone should take to train for living in these difficult, divided times. Odeh is the author of the three-volume series “Quiet The Noise.” Contact him at (770) 773-6970; rami@quietthenoisebook.com
4. ==> Weeks Away: Hospitals Brace for Coming COVID Surge
Coronavirus cases have reached record highs across the nation and since hospitalizations lag a few weeks behind, hospitals are on edge in anticipation of what’s to come. “We may see a surge like we have not seen yet, and that is very troubling,” says Dr. Bruce Siegel, president of America’s Essential Hospitals, which represents more than 300 safety-net hospitals. With COVID rampant in the Midwest and rural areas, Siegel warns that some hospitals may have to ration health-care resources if the trend continues. “We’ll just have national shortages of everything and there’ll be no ability to backstop here and there — your emergency rooms will be overwhelmed, and your ICU will be overwhelmed.” The outlook sounds grim, but public health experts say there are steps people and policymakers can take that even now can help flatten the curve of new infections like wearing masks, social distancing and limiting gatherings. “These are simple things. And they may be inconvenient, but they can have just a world of difference,” Siegel says. “We still have some weeks where we could change this picture, where we can blunt it.” Contact Carl Graziano at (202) 585-0102; media@essentialhospitals.org
5.==> He Helped a First Lady Set an Underwater Speed Record
Few of us have had close contact with a president and first lady the way Steven Mays did, and he has a great story to tell. Mays was serving on a nuclear submarine at the time when this particular president and first lady came aboard his “stinky, smelly, hot tube 400 feet below the water” to get a behind-the-scenes tour of what his high-tech vessel could do. On your show, Mays will share all the details: who the president and first lady were, the feverish preparations for their visit including the banning of some overweight crew members, what happened when the first couple visited his engine room, and how the first lady perked up when informed that she was the first female to break an underwater speed record. ” Mays is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis who served on nuclear submarines. He was also a mathematician, electrical engineer and nuclear engineer who worked in private industry and at the Nuclear Regulation Commission. Contact Steven Mays at (703) 552-5672; smays@rtirguests.com
6. ==> World Kindness Day Is More Important Than Ever
With a contentious election to sort out, a pandemic to deal with and a general decline in civility, we could all use some gentle reminders to be kinder to our fellow human beings. World Kindness Day on November 13th might be just the thing to bring a divided nation and world together, according to former paraplegic Barry Shore. Invite the author/entrepreneur who has earned the sobriquet the Ambassador of Joy to discuss how to celebrate the holiday and share eleven ways to practice kindness. Listeners will learn how to become a joy generator in as little as 55 seconds and be encouraged to participate in Shore’s worldwide Keep Smiling Movement. Barry Shore is a successful serial entrepreneur who in 2004 became a quadriplegic overnight from a rare disease. Over the past 16 years, he has worked to regain some of his functioning and has become an avid swimmer who logs two miles per day. A motivational, keynote speaker and host of the weekly radio show-podcast “The Joy of Living,” Shore is the founder of the JOY of Living Institute. He’s been featured on CBS, ABC, NBC, Fox and in O Magazine, Forbes, Daily Herald, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, and MarketWatch. His upcoming book is “The JOY of LIVING: Healthier Wealthier You.” Contact Barry Shore at (310) 770-4685; barry@barryshore.com;
7. ==> ‘This Is Us’… How Hollywood Depicts Memory Loss
How accurate has the entertainment industry been when telling stories of forgetfulness, early-onset Alzheimer’s, and caregiving for loved ones with memory loss? On Tuesday, the new season of “This Is Us” debuted with a powerful storyline that tried to mirror real-life for millions of families stricken by Alzheimer’s. Interview Carlen Maddux for a reality check. His late wife Martha was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s at age 50. Not unlike the characters in the popular “This Is Us” TV drama and the movie “Still Alice,” Carlen watched his spouse decline while in the prime of life. Ask this author of “A Path Revealed” for his insights about what it would take for Hollywood to portray memory loss accurately and how families can cope. Contact Carlen Maddux at (727) 351-8321; CMaddux@rtirguests.com
8. ==> Chill Out! Become a Wine Whiz in 15 Minutes
Wine sales have been climbing during the pandemic as people stuck at home turn to vino to lift their spirits. With heightened interest in wine, Jim Laughren, CWE, could be the perfect guest for COVID-19 times as he shares how to master the essentials of wine in 15 minutes. He can answer such questions as: why have COVID times been good for wine-drinkers and how important is the right glass? Jim is the author of two short new eBooks, “The 15-Minute Guide to Red Wine” and “The 15-Minute Guide to White Wine.” Jim has appeared on radio and TV around the country and is also the award-winning author of “50 Ways to Love Wine More” and “A Beer Drinker’s Guide to Knowing and Enjoying Fine Wine.” Contact Jim Laughren at (954) 317-9623; JLaughren@rtirguests.com
9. ==> This Neurologist Could Solve Football’s Concussion Problem
NFL, college and high school football are under attack. All because of the high risk of concussions and the resulting health consequences. But what if there was a way to make concussions a thing of the past? Or at least a way to diagnose and treat traumatic brain injuries (TBI’s) more easily and quickly? Interview Dr. Paul Wand to hear about the “Wand Protocol” that could do all that and more. He, along with other private practitioners, has created ways to diagnose and treat concussions which if put into place could save the NFL, as well as other sports where concussions happen regularly. Paul Wand, M.D., P.A., has been a medical doctor for 35 years, specializing in neurology and is the author of “The Concussion Cure: 3 Proven Methods to Heal Your Brain.” Contact Dr. Wand at (954) 743-5380; PWand@rtirguests.com
10. ==> Like the Stork Personified – ‘What I Learned from 6,000 Deliveries!’
If they are lucky, most people experience the birth of a couple of children. But Alan Lindemann, M.D., has experienced 6,000 births and has the stories to tell about them. He’s seen just about everything possible when it comes to childbirth including the birth of quadruplets. Dr. Lindemann is sure to be a favorite guest for anyone interested in pregnancy and childbirth, including expectant parents and the just-plain curious. He is a former clinical instructor and associate clinical professor at the University of North Dakota’s medical school. Among the topics he can address are: is there a COVID baby boom? Or, conversely, have couples been more birth-control minded as hospitals become COVID hotspots? Contact Alan Lindemann, M.D., at (701) 399-9556; ALindemann@rtirguests.com
11. ==> Would You Sacrifice Your Career for Your Child’s?
How far should parents be willing to go to help grown children? Should they lend adult children money that they might need for retirement, raise their grandchildren due to addiction issues or move closer to their children to provide childcare? Oliver Akamnonu, M.D. went about as far as a parent could go, giving up his medical practice (as did his wife) to help his daughter Nena make it through medical school, childbirth, and early parenting while the latter’s husband was abroad. Was what Dr. Akanmnonu and his wife did excessive? Do they have any regrets? Would they encourage others to take the same path? Find out when you explore this heartwarming story told in “Little Baby Lydia, Grandma, Grandpa and Student Mom: Saga of Family Role Reversal and the New Times.” Contact Oliver Akamnonu at (413) 206-6753; oakamnonu@rtirguests.com
12. ==> Will Joe Biden Eliminate Single-Family Homes?
As Election Day approaches, some Americans are shocked to learn details of the Green New Deal embraced by many progressives in the Democratic party. Of particular concern is the plan’s policy to eliminate single-family home zoning, which some, like property rights advocate Tom DeWeese, say will destroy private property. Listeners will learn how several states are working to pass legislation to ban single-family home zoning and are instead promoting “smart growth” stack and pack high-rises while the mayor of Minneapolis calls single-family zoning racist, charging that homeowners self-segregate themselves. Tom DeWeese warns the final result of such a policy would eliminate private property, forcing all housing under government-control using the excuse of environmental protection. DeWeese, president of the American Policy Center, is the author of “Sustainable: The WAR on Free Enterprise, Private Property and Individuals.” He has been featured by Fox News, the New York Times, and the Washington Times, and other media nationwide. Contact him at (540) 341-8911; APCDeWeese@aol.com
13. ==> Will God Make Sure That Trump Wins the Election?
A Politico story contends that millions of Americans believe God wanted Donald Trump to be president. But is a second term in God’s plan? Interview Patric Rutherford, Ph.D., who agrees that a Trump White House was God’s will. But find out why he says God may not want Trump to serve two terms. Originally from Jamaica, Dr. Rutherford has studied politics, faith and human nature for decades. His critically acclaimed book is “God and President Trump Plus the Rest of Us.” Ask him why did many deeply committed Christians have no qualms about electing a seemingly godless man? What does the anti-Trump contingent get right and wrong? Why didn’t he vote for Trump? How would God “grade” Trump’s first term in office? Contact Dr. Rutherford at (786) 201-6638; patricrutherford@gmail.com
14. ==> When Abnormal Became the New Normal
Mental health counselor Cheryl Powell combines research and statistics with personal knowledge and expertise when she talks about the pandemic and how it has changed our lives. Invite the health-care worker and author to share her experiences navigating the “new normal” as a professional and observer. She’ll discuss the mental health effects of COVID-19 both on herself and others, how future generations will view the pandemic, and how our species can emerge from this crisis stronger than before. Cheryl Powell, LMHC, is the author of “Pandemic 2020.” Contact her at (508) 360-6753; cgkyntamara@aol.com.
15. ==> Just the Facts, Please
Tired of listening to politicians and officials spinning numbers, making things up and downright lying? What does the data say about COVID-19 and the economy? How many Americans are living without health insurance? How often do police use excessive force in arrests? USAFacts’ “Change the Story” campaign demonstrates how decisions grounded in real data can allow Americans to make informed choices. The nonpartisan civic initiative provides a data-driven portrait of the population, government’s finances, and government’s impact on society. According to Steve Ballmer, founder of USAFacts and former CEO of Microsoft, “As we head into the election, our nation’s citizens are looking to inform their vote based on the facts.” USAFacts presents metrics on all U.S. governments, from federal records to a growing collection of state and county data, including coronavirus data. It provides vital spending, revenue, demographic, and performance information as a free public service and commits to maintaining and expanding their available data in the future. Contact Lisa Conquergood at (425) 332-4196; lisac@usafacts.org;