“We’re spending ourselves to death in order to be healthy.” So says science and medical journalist Laurie Garrett. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 1996 for her reporting from Zaire on the Ebola virus outbreak, Garrett talks with her former Newsday colleague, David Zinman, about the crisis in U.S. healthcare and the arrogance of Americans who think that dangerous diseases are “somebody else’s problem.” She also tells the compelling story of the arrest, subsequent torture, and recent release from Libya of the “Benghazi 6”— five Bulgarian nurses and one Palestinian doctor.

Host> David Zinman, Chautauquan, author, playwright, former reporter for Newsday and the Associated Press, and columnist for the Horry Independent (South Carolina)

Guest> Laurie Garrett, best-selling author of The Coming Plague: Newly Emerging Diseases in a World Out of Balance, and Betrayal of Trust: The Collapse of Global Public Health

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Philip Zelikow, who served as executive director of the 9/11 Commission, tells Bill Clinger, Chairman of the Board of Chautauqua Institution, what he thinks is the Commission’s most important legacy. Their discussion covers a wide range of topics including; the VISA waiver program, the screening of aviation and maritime cargo, intelligence gathering, the Israeli-Palestinian situation, and “extraordinary rendition” – the practice of detaining and moving terrorist suspects to other countries for interrogation, outside of judicial oversight.

Host> William F. Clinger, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Chautauqua Institution, and former Member of Congress from Pennsylvania
Guest> Philip Zelikow, Professor of History, University of Virginia; past Counselor of the U.S. Department of State; and executive director, National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States

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United States Senator Kit Bond of Missouri joins Bill Clinger, Chairman of the Board of Trustees at Chautauqua Institution, in a conversation about America’s security and preparedness. He talks about why he thinks America has been implementing the wrong plan in Iraq, why he thinks we’re now on the right track, and what he sees as the consequences if America withdraws its troops too soon. From his perspective as Vice Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Senator Bond shares his views on surveillance of terrorists and intelligence gathering methods.  

Host> William F. Clinger, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Chautauqua Institution, and former Member of Congress from Pennsylvania
Guest> Christopher S. “Kit” Bond, United States Senator, Missouri

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How do you “un-do” the culture of war? Professor Miroslav Volf, who holds the Henry B. Wright Chair of Theology at Yale Divinity School, talks with The Rev. Dr. Joan Brown Campbell about forgiveness and loving our enemies – the central topics of much of his scholarly writings. He explains why he sees the relationship between Islam and Christianity as fundamental to achieving peaceful coexistence, and how nations can begin to move beyond anger and retribution.  

Host> The Rev. Dr. Joan Brown Campbell, director, Department of Religion
Guest> Miroslav Volf, Henry B. Wright Chair of Theology, Yale Divinity School; director, Yale Center for Faith and Culture; and author of The End of Memory: Remembering Rightly in a Violent World

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Anne-Marie Slaughter, Dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University, says that the very real threat of nuclear proliferation is a prime example of an issue on which Republicans and Democrats agree more than one might expect. In a conversation with Mike Sullivan, Director of Institution Relations for Chautauqua, Slaughter explains why America needs to “walk the walk,” not just “talk the talk.” She also discusses the importance of marrying international law and international relations, and shares her advice for the next President of the United States.

Host> Mike Sullivan, director, Institution Relations
Guest> Anne-Marie Slaughter, Dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University, and author of The Idea that Is America: Keeping Faith with Our Values in a Dangerous World

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