Chautauqua 2011 Video Sampler

John Hamre, president and CEO of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, criticizes the current state of politics in Washington, claiming that members of both parties are pandering to their constituents for reelection rather than being realistic about solving budgetary issues.

"God has not ordained capitalism or socialism. God has not ordained food stamp programs or supply side economics. These are human inventions," argues Rabbi David Saperstein, who believes that religious values must compete in the free marketplace of ideas and provide moral influence on policymaking.

Stanley Fish, professor of law and humanities at Florida International University, rebuts arguments against the value of arts and humanities instruction in post-secondary educational institutions. "The demand for justification is always the demand that something be justified in terms not its own," he says, contending that the arts cannot be adequately explained in any terms but their own.

Dr. Hawa Abdi expresses her distrust of the international community in fighting the famine that is killing Somalis and explains how her foundation is working to nourish those who are walking to Mogadishu to attain medical care. 

"Sending money to UN agencies is not helping so much. Sending money to the government is not helping so much," says Dr. Abdi.

Journalist and foreign policy analyst Robin Wright argues that education and family planning efforts in Iran have changed the lives of women for the better. "Today's generation is far more diverse and constantly pushing the envelope," says wright.

Theologian Karen Armstrong suggests looking at the Iranian Revolution in a different light. It was "experienced as a passion play," says Armstrong. 

Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian Gordon Wood explains that while the end of the international slave trade is commonly viewed as the first step towards abolition, it actually served to bolster the domestic slave trade. Wood argues that the Confederacy included an embargo against international slave trading in its constitution, perhaps in a political move to pressure states into joining them.

Rabbi David Saperstein draws on traditional Jewish law to advocate for liberal social policies with regard to abortion and gay rights. "The fundamental right to choose that is invested in all of us as human beings," says Saperstein, "argues powerfully in a secular country like America for policies that guarantee dignity."

Dr. Hawa Abdi, a Somali doctor who runs a hospital and refugee camp that cares for over 90,000 people, shares her hopefulness for women in the 21st century. "I think that women can change the world in a better way now," says Dr. Abdi. "If they have self-confidence and they know how powerful they are, they can do it."