Rear Vision (ABC) 2014 and Ukraine’s relationship with Russia. This is a replay of an episode from 2014, just as Russia had invaded Crimea. It all seems rather prophetic now. Ukraine was the largest republic of the former USSR, and it withdrew from USSR in 1991. With hindsight, they were dudded by the Bucharest Memorandum of 1994 whereby they gave up their nuclear arms for a security ‘assurance’ – not a guarantee- of territorial integrity from their guarantors including Russia (something that Bill Clinton now regrets). In the wake of huge inflation and very low wages, the Orange Revolution took place in 2004 ending with the election of Viktor Yushchenko. At the time of recording (2014) Crimea had just been invaded by Russia. Crimea had been settled with many Russians who had been encouraged to move there by Stalin, but many of the original Tartars had since returned, and in 2014 comprised about 35% of the Crimean population. Interesting, in he light of current events.
In the Shadows of Utopia Episode 11 Mao’s Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution I listened to this just after reading Linda Jaivn’s book Bombard the Headquarters (my review here), and this makes a really good companion listen. In fact, well done young Lachlan, because this episode hangs together really well. He points out that the Cultural Revolution, as well as changing China, also acted as a test of loyalty of Mao’s officials. He draws some parallels with different phases of the French Revolution, and sees the dispersal of young people into the provinces as a way of reining the revolution back in. He reminds us of the Sino/Soviet conflicts, and suggests that China’s rapprochement with the US was an example of ‘the enemy of my enemy is my friend’ in action.
99% Invisible All About That Bass I’ve started playing bass ukulele- yes, there is such a thing- so this episode really interested me. It’s about the Roland 808 drum machine, which apparently is ubiquitous- even (drummer) Phil Collins used one on ‘One More Night’. When the Roland 808 was released in 1980 it cost $1200 (about $4600 in today’s currency), and was intended to replace drummers. It was when they realized that they could use the ‘decay’ function to replicate the bass and kick drum sound that the Roland 808 gave the bass the prominence that it now has in hip-hop and R&B.
The Human Subject (BBC) The Boy with an Ice Pick in His Brain. Actually, despite all the warnings about gruesome details that preface this episode, I didn’t find it particularly disturbing. It’s about Dr Walter Freeman, who championed the lobotomy process throughout the US, even by psychiatrists whose surgical skills must be questionable. The Boy with the Ice Pick in his brain was 12 year old Howard Dully whose step-mother arranged to have a lobotomy for ‘childhood schizophrenia’ (which sounded just like 12 year old cussedness to me). It was Freeman who operated on Rosemary Kennedy as a 23 year old, who never recovered from the surgery.
The Resident Judge of Port Phillip 