Podcast Pick of the Day - This American Life

This American Life
#337: Man vs. History
Run Time: 59:36

Hosted by Ira Glass, This American Life features intriguing stories from all walks of American life. Act One of the episode featured Dal LaMagna, an entrepeneur who made some of his small fortune selling high quality tweezers. During retirment, Dal set a new lofty goal for himself: end the violence in Iraq. Armed with some lobbying and Washington D.C.experience, Dal traveled to the Middle East and hooked up with an Iraqi Parliamentary member, Mohammed Al-Dynee, to broker a peace between warring factions and the U.S. troops. Dal recored his meetings and journeys, some 25 hours of audio. The podcast provides great insight into the behind scenes in Baghdad, including a meeting with the British high commander.

Act two featured espionage in the Czech Republic at the end of the Cold War. Spies playing one another, and emotional attachments that interfere with Operation: Brief Encounter.

The podcast can be found on iTunes and here.

Podcast Pick of the Day - This American Life

This American Life
331: Habeas Schmabeas 2007
Run Time: 1:03:37

Hosted by Ira Glass, This American Life features intriguing stories from all walks of American life. This episode focused on the right of habeas corpus. Habeas Corpus states the government has to explain why they're holding a person in custody. The episode focuses primarily on the detainees at Guantanamo and how most of their rights, including habeas corpus, have been stripped. The episode also explains the history of habeas corpus dating back to England in the 17th Century. It’s a fascinating examination of how the British Civil War of the mid 17th century produced it own version of Guantanamo, and the dangers that arose from suspending habeas corpus.

The podcast can be found on iTunes and here.