Sunday Morning for Sunday 27 February 2022

8:11 Covid-19 update with Professor Gary McLean 

We're looking at Covid this morning before we head to Ukraine. Case numbers are rocketing, as we thought they would. Is there anything else we need to be aware of prior to about half of us getting infected? Dr Gary McLean is joining us, the New Zealander who's a Professor in molecular immunology at London Metropolitan University and a researcher with Imperial College. He's an international authority on coronaviruses. 

8:20 Ukraine cross with Mike Eckel in Kyiv 

Russian president Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine this week came days after Radio Free Europe's Mike Eckel told us soldiers in the Ukraine were refusing to believe the Russians would attack, as they'd seen it all before. 
Putin's attack, which saw him order Russian tanks into Ukraine and air strikes on the capital and more than a dozen cities, has drawn comparisons to Adolf Hitler and Saddam Hussain for the cold-blooded aggression that has already seen hundreds in Ukraine killed and injured by invading forces. 
Mike is with us from Kyiv for an update on the situation there. 

8:28 Professor Al Gillespie on the situation in Ukraine 

The world is rightly horrified by the situation in Ukraine, but there's also the ongoing claim that the West has been partly to blame in this conflict, with its intent, supposedly, not only to incorporate Ukraine into the EU, but also NATO. Waikato University's International Law Professor Al Gillespie joins us, author of the multi-volume series of books The Causes Of War.

8:39 The Weekend Panel with Richard Harman and Lavina Good

Joining us on the Weekend Panel this morning are the Politik website editor Richard Harman and journalist and sports commentator Lavina Good. Among other topics, they'll be discussing Omicron, and whether we are ready or not, support for dialogue in the Wellington protest growing along with opposition to the protest itself, and are people ready for a 10% fall in house prices?

9:06 Mediawatch

This week Mediawatch looks at the media's efforts to make sense of what has become the most heavily-covered protest since the '81 Tour - in spite of the hostility reporters have faced documenting it. Also - big changes are afoot for state-owned media and the regulators - but MPs have barely been discussed so far at their annual reviews at Parliament.

9:37 Want to ward off pain during ageing? Exercise harder 

Engaging in high levels of physical activities, such as swimming, running or a game of tennis, once a week can help stave off chronic musculoskeletal pain as we age. 
That's the key finding from a new study out of the University of Portsmouth that examined the data of nearly 6000 people aged 50 or more over 10 years. 
The study is the first to examine the experience of chronic pain alongside gender, BMI, age and wealth over a long time period, with the results also boding well for those doing hard physical labour as part of their job.
Study lead Dr Nils Niederstrasser joins the show to outline the main findings and explain how vigorous activity can have a long-term effect on the development of chronic pain. 

9:52 50 years on, does Desiderata still resonate today? 

It's been 50 years since radio announcer and TV talk show host Les Crane hit the top of the New Zealand music charts with Desiderata. 
Using the lyrics from the 1920s prose poem Desiderata (Latin: "things desired") as a spoken word recording on the lead track of his album, which was also titled Desiderata, Crane briefly held the No 1 spot in the New Zealand charts before being overtaken by the New Seekers. 
It wasn't the first time Desiderata, which was written by American poet Max Ehrmann, had been used by another artist. Calling it 'Spock Thoughts', Star Trek actor Leonard Nimoy recited the poem on his 1968 album Two Sides to Leonard Nimoy.    
Professor of Psychology at Victoria University, Marc Wilson offers his take on how good the advice is in the inspirational prose poem that was embraced by the 1960s counterculture.

10:04 Deliberate ignorance: why people choose not to know 

For various reasons, there are plenty of things that people are happy to stay in the dark about. Christmas presents, movie spoilers, the sex of their unborn baby, or even when they might die - people simply don't want to know. 
Although deliberate ignorance can have (sometimes dire) consequences, and more so during a pandemic and an era of rampant misinformation, it's by no means rare. In fact, it's an active choice that many people make on a daily basis. 
Psychologist Jennifer Howell has tested deliberate ignorance in the lab and uncovered many curious findings. For example, 80% of people don't want to be told how a movie will end, while around 75% of people don't want to know if their partner has had thoughts of cheating on them, even if they don't go through with it. 
Professor Howell is with us to look at deliberate ignorance and why people choose not to know. 

10:31 Hunt continues to find lost beneficiaries of Napier man's will

When popular Napier native Ian 'Smithy' Smith (not the cricketer) died in April 2020 aged 76, he left part of his estate to 100 recipients he called the 'Omega Beneficiaries' in his 15-page will. 
Not having children, Smith, who spent the majority of his life in Auckland after leaving Napier, left a large part of his estate to relatives and charities. But the Omega Beneficiaries included friends from Hawke's Bay, along with a long list of other friends, groups and connections from around the country and overseas - many of whom were long lost. 
Nearly two years since Smith's passing, the executors of the will are still trying to locate a small number of beneficiaries. 
Executor David Lyon joins the show to explain the curious story of his old mate Ian Smith's will. (You can contact David on davidlyon21ac@gmail.com) 

10:44 The Best Song Ever Written: Laura Daniel

In-demand Kiwi actor and comedian Laura Daniel has got plenty on her plate at the moment, having been promoted to a rotating team captain role on 7 Days and picking up a position as a scout on the new talent show 60 Seconds. 
Daniel is well known to New Zealanders for his performances on Dancing with the Stars and other shows like Seven Sharp, Jono and Ben, Taskmaster New Zealand and Funny Girls, which she co-created and starred in alongside Rose Matafeo, not to mention her comedy partnership with real life partner Joseph Moore as Two Hearts.
Laura joins the show to discuss what she has on at the moment, her desire to get overseas to perform, and why 'King of Wishful Thinking' by Go West should be rated as one of the greatest songs of all time. 

11:05  Why eating animals is our moral duty 

If we truly care about animals, says British philosopher Nick Zangwill, then the right thing to do is breed them, kill them, and eat them. 
Zangwill, who is professor of philosophy and honorary research fellow at University College London, argues that eating meat is morally good and our duty when it is part of a practice that has benefited animals. 
And while Zangill abhors cruel factory farming practices and some forms of hunting, he says domesticated animals ultimately get more out of the deal than humans, because the existence of those domesticated animals depends on the practice of humans eating them.
Professor Zangill is with us to discuss eating animals for their meat and why New Zealand is "heroic" for having so many millions of sheep. 

11:30 My Current Song: Jamie McDell, 'Not Ready Yet' 

Critically-acclaimed Kiwi singer songwriter Jamie McDell already had three albums under her belt, but the release of the alt-country star's new self-titled album could be considered something of a new beginning for the 29-year-old.  
The 13-track Nashville-recorded album - which has been described as "a modern journey through 70s folk and country with a healthy dose of roots and rock" - is packed with brutally honest moments, both in writing and performance. 
Jamie admits she's struggled previously to work out what her story is to tell, but it's laid bare on her new album. After being in the public eye since first being signed at 16, she feels the time is finally right to just have her name on the album sleeve. 
She joins the show to discuss Jamie McDell and introduce her new single, 'Not Ready Yet.' 

11:45 Calling Home: Jack Noser in Zürich 

New Zealand asylum seeker worker Jean Claude 'Jack' Noser lives with his wife Sandra in Oerlikon, a multicultural suburb of Zürich, Switzerland. 
The story of how the two of them came to be together is more than memorable. The couple were an item when they were in their teens (with Jack having left New Zealand for Switzerland when he was six) but had fallen out of touch over the years. Then, one day, when he was walking along the road in Zürich, Jack was nearly collected by Sandra, who was riding past on her bicycle. 
The rest, as they say, is history. 
Sandra hasn't been to New Zealand yet but they're planning a return here in January 2023. 
Jack's Calling Home from Zürich this morning.