Pot, Inc. Inside Medical Marijuana, America’s Most Outlaw Industry by Greg Campbell (Sterling, 2012). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Pot, Inc.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Once again I am joined by the writer Greg Campbell. He’s written a new book, Pot, Inc. Inside Medical Marijuana, America’s Most Outlaw Industry. We’ll get Mr. Campbell to tell us what the book’s about, and how he involved himself in the debate over marijuana in the United States. In this part of the world, by that I mean Vancouver, we’re pretty liberal when it comes to pot, so it’ll be interesting to see what his research uncovered. Not only did he grow pot in his basement, in this book he also looks at the culture of DIY ganjapreneurialism, and the history over marijuana prohibition. Greg Campbell was last on for the book he co-authored, Flawless: Inside the Largest Diamond Heist in History, which was a bestseller and a hell of a read. He’s also authored Blood Diamonds, and The Road to Kosovo. He’s won awards for his journalism which has appeared in many publications. The book is published by Sterling. The website for more is www.bygregcampbell.com. He joins me from his home in Fort Collins, Colorado. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Greg Campbell; Mr. Campbell, good morning.

Out of the Blue: A Memoir of Workplace Depression, Recovery, Redemption, and Yes, Happiness by Jan Wong (2012). Click to buy this book from JanWong.ca: Out of the Blue

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Jan Wong joins me again. For over twenty years she’s been one of Canada’s most famous and infamous of journalists. Her reporting won her awards, and her famous ‘Lunch with. . .’ column in the Globe and Mail was legendary. In 2006 covering the Dawson College shooting in Montreal, what she wrote set off a controversy that marked the beginning of the end of her relationship with the Globe and Mail. After receiving many death threats, being denunciated in Parliament, and outright racism, it was the abandonment of her newspaper that caused her to fall into severe clinical depression. She has just written and published a new book, Out of the Blue: A Memoir of Workplace Depression, Recovery, Redemption, and Yes, Happiness. It’s a captivating book wherein Wong narrates her spiral from the heights of journalism in Canada to the depths of depression. Throughout the book, she cites books and people that had helped her along the way. It’s a terrific bibliography if you’re interested in reading more about depression and grief. The book is also a chronicle of her battles with the Globe and Mail; Manulife, the paper’s insurer; and Doubleday, which had been contracted to publish this book, before deciding otherwise, prompting Wong to self-publish. Virginia Woolf once said, “Take notes, and the pain goes away.” We’ll ask Ms. Wong if she took this to heart, and whether writing this book has helped her. I suspect it’ll help a lot of people define depression, notice its signs, and perhaps challenge the stigma associated with it. It’s also got the sort of media gossip that’s interesting. Jan Wong was last on for her previous book Beijing Confidential. Her previous books include Red China Blues, Jan Wong’s China, and Lunch with Jan Wong. She’s won many awards, was at the Globe and Mail for 20 years, and is currently a columnist at Toronto Life and the Halifax Chronicle Herald, and a professor of journalism at St. Thomas University in Fredricton, New Brunswick, where she splits her time with Toronto. The website for more is at www.janwong.ca; that’s where you can buy the book. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program in Toronto today, Jan Wong; Ms. Wong, good morning.

A Roller-Coaster Ride: Thoughts on Aging by Naomi Beth Wakan. (Poplar Press, 2012) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: A Roller-Coaster Ride

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

The prolific author Naomi Beth Wakan joins me now. She’s just published a highly readable, charming book A Roller-Coaster Ride: Thoughts on Aging. It is a collection of essays written with Ms. Wakan’s thoughtful style, looking at her own concerns about growing older, as well as tips on how to do it gracefully. She joins me to talk about the book, her observations on being a woman of a certain age. Having past her eightieth birthday, she’s gained some knowledge, some expertise, and she shares that in this book. People growing older whether they’re in their eighties or just hitting their thirties can gain much from this book. Roller coasters might not be for everyone; then again growing older isn’t for sissies as Bette Davis once said. Naomi Beth Wakan has written over thirty books. Her essays, haiku and tanka have appeared in many magazines and anthologies, and have been broadcast on the CBC. Among her previous books include one that I liked a great deal, Book Ends: A Year Between the Covers. The website for more is at www.naomiwakan.com. She joins me from her home on Gabriola Island. This book is published by Poplar Press. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Naomi Wakan; Ms. Wakan, good morning.

Falling Into Easy: Help For Those Who Can’t Meditate by Dee Willock. (O Books, 2012) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Falling Into Easy: Help For Those Who Can’t Meditate

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

We’re going to talk meditation now with Dee Willock. She’s a local instructor on meditation, and the author of a new book, Falling Into Easy: Help for Those Who Can’t Meditate. Meditation is something we hear a lot about, especially the benefits derived from it. There is a bit of a stigma, perhaps it’s seen as a waste of time, new age, or even mystical. But there’s a way it can work, and Ms. Willock in this book tells us what they are and how. We’ll ask her now what those are, how meditation has affected her life, and what are some of the tips she’s got as to how to go about clearing one’s mind, relaxing, and meditating for a better you. The book is accessible and practical. Dee Willock’s website is at www.fallingintoeasy.com and the book is published by O Books. She’s taught meditation and yoga for over 25 years. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Dee Willock; Ms. Willock, good morning.

The Carb Sensitivity Program: Discover Which Carbs Will Curb Your Cravings, Control Your Appetite and Banish Belly Fat by Dr. Natasha Turner. (Random House, 2012) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: The Carb Sensitivity Program

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Dr. Natasha Turner joins me again. She is one of North America’s leading naturopathic doctors. She is an authority on hormonal and digestive concerns. She’s written a new book, her third, The Carb Sensitivity Program: Discover Which Carbs Will Curb Your Cravings, Control Your Appetite and Banish Belly Fat. Her previous books The Hormone Diet and The Super Charged Hormone Diet were big bestsellers here in Canada and beyond. This new book is not a diet book, rather it’s a carb rehab program that repairs ones metabolism and helps you reintroduce the right carbs to ones diet. Not all carbs are created equal, there are those that are bad and those that are good, yet we all react to each carbohydrate differently. There are four phases which one can do over a period of six weeks. We’ll get Dr. Turner to walk us through it and offer some tips on how to live and eat better. She is the founder of Clear Medicine, a wellness boutique that provides integrated health care. www.carbsensitivity.com is the website for more. The book is published by Random House. Please welcome back to the Planta: On the Line program, Dr. Natasha Turner; Dr. Turner, good morning.

The Urban Food Revolution: Changing the Way We Feed Cities by Peter Ladner. (New Society Publishers, 2011) Click to buy this book from New Society: The Urban Food Revolution

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

We rely too much on industrial agriculture, to the point where it’s damaging our health, our economy and the environment itself. Sure food is cheap and easy to come by in this part of the world, but the costs inherent are almost incalculable. A new book, The Urban Food Revolution: Changing the Way We Feed Cities is part recipe for solutions to our problems, and highlights places where great advancements are taking place; examples of where we could be with new ways of growing and delivering our food. It’s a fascinating, stimulating and important book. Peter Ladner is a journalist, and a former two-term member of Vancouver’s city council. He is the publisher and co-founder of Business in Vancouver, and a director of The Natural Step Canada. This book is published by New Society Publishers. The website for more is at www.peterladner.ca. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Peter Ladner; Good morning, Mr. Ladner.

Memoirs of An Addicted Brain: A Neuroscientist Examines His Former Life on Drugs by Marc Lewis, PhD. (Doubleday, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: Memoirs of An Addicted Brain

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

I’ve just started an engrossing, accessible, highly readable book, Memoirs of An Addicted Brain: A Neuroscientist Examines His Former Life on Drugs. Its author Marc Lewis joins me now. Dr. Lewis is a distinguished neuroscientist, who for many years was a drug addict himself. He describes in this book how his addictions manifested itself, what happened, and how he eventually overcame all that which affected his early life. Clean for some 30 years now, he’s currently a professor of human developmental psychology at Radboud University in the Netherlands. He was at the University of Toronto for over 20 years. This is a fascinating book in that we get Dr. Lewis’s own story as well as all the science behind what’s really happening to our brains. In that, it’s incredibly accessible. We also attempt to understand addiction more, and not just from an academic and scientist like Dr. Lewis, but from someone who’s literally been there and done that. And it’s not just drugs in this book, we read about our addictions to stuff like love, soap operas, wealth. We’ll get Dr. Lewis to explain more. The website is at www.memoirsofanaddictedbrain.com. The book is published by Doubleday. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Marc Lewis; Good morning, Dr. Lewis.

The Grandest Challenge: Taking Life-Saving Science from Lab to Village by Dr. Abdallah Daar and Dr. Peter Singer. (Doubleday, 2011) Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: The Grandest Challenge: Taking Life-Saving Science from Lab to Village

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

It’s an unfortunate reality that our world sees alarming disparities between the developed and developing world, the First and the Third World to use somewhat archaic terms. In terms of life expectancy alone those in the West can expect to live into their 80s, while those in the developing world barely make it past 40. There’s been much advancement in medicine, what with designer drugs and treatments for diseases unheard of a decade or two ago, not to mention genetic research that’s looking at our DNA, as well as biotechnology with regards to genetically modified crops. Joining me now to wade through all of these issues of ethics and morality, science and technology are Dr. Abdallah Daar and Dr. Peter Singer. They are the authors of a new book, its premise is rather simple, but it’s also challenges how we look at ourselves and each other, with its thought provoking ideas on how to remedy the inequities. The book is called The Grandest Challenge: Taking Life-Saving Science from Lab to Village. The doctors Daar and Singer are at the forefront of all this biotechnology and are passionate about saving millions of lives. Dr. Abdallah Daar is a Professor of Public Health Sciences and of Surgery at the University of Toronto, and Director of Ethics and Commercialization at the McLaughlin-Rotman Centre for Global Health. He is also Chief Science and Ethics Officer of Grand Challenges Canada. Dr. Peter Singer is the Director of the same McLaughlin-Rotman Centre for Global Health, and is a Professor of Medicine at the University of Toronto. He is the Chief Executive Officer of Grand Challenges Canada. Both have advised many governmental and non-governmental organisations. The book is published by Doubleday. Please welcome in Toronto this day to the Planta: On the Line program, Dr. Abdallah Daar and Dr. Peter Singer; Good morning, Dr. Singer; and good morning, Dr. Daar.

First You Smoked, No You Live by Dr. Derek Poteryko. Click to buy this book: First You Smoked, No You Live

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

Tuesday, 31 May 2011 is World No Tobacco Day. We know we shouldn’t smoke, yet we can all name people we know who do and who ought to know better. Dr. Derek Poteryko joins me now. He is a family physician based in Nanaimo and the medical director of the Central Island Smoking Intervention Clinic. They’re at www.cisic.ca. He is the author of a book First You Smoked, Now You Live. Over four million Canadians still smoke. Up to 70% of those who smoke want to quit, and of course few have had success at it. We’ll get some tips on how to quit, as well discuss the provincial government’s plans with regards to quitting smoking. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, in Nanaimo, BC, Dr. Derek Poteryko; Good morning, Dr. Poteryko.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver at TheCommentary.ca.

I’m very pleased to be joined now by Graham Kerr. Internationally known for his legendary television program, The Galloping Gourmet, Mr. Kerr has been on television since 1960 in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, the United States, here in Canada, and around the world. He is also a bestselling author, and an award-winning culinary personality. Next month, here in Vancouver, Mr. Kerr will be one of the personalities headlining the EAT! Vancouver Food and Cooking Festival, June 10th, 11th, and 12th. Check out their website at www.eat-vancouver.com for more information. The Galloping Gourmet program was known for its humour and generous use of butter, cream, fat and alcohol. Now, Mr. Kerr and his wife Treena, who produced the television programs are promoting less hedonistic values. I’ll ask him about his goals to increase vegetable and fruit consumption and reduce portion sizes. His website is at www.grahamkerr.com. His latest book is called Growing at the Speed of Life: A Year in the Life of My First Kitchen Garden. From Mount Vernon, Washington, please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Graham Kerr; Good morning, Mr. Kerr.