KQED's Forum

California grows a lot of pot. As in 13.5 million pounds. But much of it remains on the black market, despite recreational cannabis becoming legal in 2018. The lawmakers behind Assembly Bill 286 hope to change that by reducing California's 15 percent cannabis excise tax to 11 percent. A similar bill failed to pass last year when opponents argued that it was too soon to know if taxes were driving people to the black market. Now a year into licensed sales, the legal cannabis market hasn't performed as industry officials had hoped. Do you think the state should cut its cannabis tax? Why or why not?

A federal appeals court in Washington D.C. will hear arguments Friday in a challenge to the Federal Communications Commission's 2017 decision to end net neutrality. The challengers, a coalition of tech companies and digital rights advocates, are asking the court to reinstate Obama-era rules that barred internet service providers like Comcast and Verizon from blocking or prioritizing internet traffic. The FCC defends the rollback as encouraging innovation and easing unnecessary regulatory burdens. We'll discuss the case and its implications for California, which enacted its own rules protecting net neutrality last fall.

In Pulitzer-Prize winning playwright Edward Albee's "Seascape," a middle-aged couple reflects on their lives during a picnic when they encounter another couple, who are, wait for it, lizards. Enormous talking lizards. We'll talk with new American Conservatory Theater (ACT) Artistic Director Pam MacKinnon about why she chose the play for her San Francisco directing debut. We'll also discuss her vision and priorities for ACT, the largest theater company in the Bay Area.

After Donald Trump was elected president, Oakland-based actor and playwright Dan Hoyle headed for the U.S.-Mexico border. Trump had made illegal immigration the hallmark of his campaign and Hoyle--who specializes in a genre he calls "journalistic theater"--wanted to capture the complex stories behind the president's rhetoric. The interviews Hoyle conducted became the basis of the 11 characters who populate his one-man show, "Border People," now playing at The Marsh San Francisco. Hoyle joins us studio.

President Nicolás Maduro on Wednesday rejected calls for new presidential elections, as the U.S. and 20 other nations continue to support opposition leader Juan Guaidó as interim president. We'll get the latest developments out of Caracas and hear how Venezuelans--many of whom who are facing shortages of food, fuel and medical supplies--are faring amid the crisis.

San Francisco's been long associated with sourdough bread, ever since a Gold Rush miner reportedly passed on his starter to baker Isidore Boudin. But the city also lays claim to a number of other classic dishes, including turkey tetrazzini, which the Palace Hotel created in honor of opera singer Luisa Tetrazzini, and pisco punch, a status symbol of the late 1800s. We'll talk about some of the food and drink that make San Francisco unique and we want to hear from you: what's your favorite San Francisco signature dish?

The Bay Area News Group and KQED have sifted through newly-released files outlining how Bay Area police officers are disciplined for major offenses. The files became available for the first time under a new police transparency law took that took effect this year. KQED reporters Sukey Lewis and Alex Emslie join us in studio to share their findings into how police misconduct is handled, from a Burlingame cop who asked a woman to trade sex for help with a DUI charge to a Rio Vista cop using excessive force on a hit and run suspect.

The mantra "We will not negotiate with terrorists" has long guided American policy on rescuing hostages, the idea being that paying ransom only encourages kidnapping and terrorism. But in his new book, "We Want to Negotiate: The Secret World of Kidnapping, Hostages and Ransom," journalist Joel Simon argues for a different approach, one he calls "strategic ambiguity." Simon compares U.S. hostage situations with those involving European nations that routinely pay ransom. We'll talk with Simon about his book and about his work as executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Approximately 70 percent of U.S. offices use open environments, without office cubicles or walls according to a 2017 Gallup poll. But when Apple presented its employees with a more open floor plan, some workers threatened to quit. The open work space has been gaining popularity for years despite employee complaints about distractions, loud coworkers and a lack of privacy. Advocates for the plan often cite increased collaboration but a recent Harvard Business School study found that office spaces without walls and doors led to a decrease in face-to-face communication. We discuss the pros and cons of the open work space, why it’s so popular with companies and unpopular with workers. If your office utilizes an open floor plan, how do you feel about it? Any tips for those struggling to work in one?

PG&E is expected to file for bankruptcy protection as early as Tuesday, as the utility faces more than $30 billion in potential wildfire liabilities. We'll discuss what bankruptcy could mean for ratepayers, employees, investors and fire victims.

In his new memoir "Prisoner," former Washington Post Tehran bureau chief Jason Rezaian details the year and a half that he spent in an Iranian prison. Rezaian describes his encounters with his jailers, who had complete control over him and were "the most hardheaded and least sophisticated people I had ever encountered." Rezaian's captivity occurred as the Obama administration was negotiating a nuclear deal with Iran, and Rezaian was released on the day that the deal was formally announced. He joins Forum to talk about his experience.

Forum reviews, analyzes and answers your questions about the latest news from Washington. And we'll hear about the rally on Sunday in Oakland, kicking off Senator Kamala Harris' presidential campaign.

In his new book, "The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee," anthropologist David Treuer purposefully expands the narrative often associated with Native Americans by writing "adamantly, unashamedly, about Indian life rather than Indian death." We'll speak with Treuer, an Ojibwe from the Leech Lake Reservation in Minnesota, about his approach to writing the book and what the past may tell us about the current experiences of indigenous people in the U.S.

The Berkeley City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to ban all take-out foodware--including containers, straws and utensils--that cannot be composted. The ban, to take effect in January 2020, will also require merchants to charge customers 25 cents for a disposable cup. Starting in July 2020, all dine-in foodware must be reusable. We'll talk about the new ordinance with its author, Berkeley Councilmember Sophie Hahn.

Cal Fire announced Thursday that the 2017 Tubbs Fire, which burned over 36,000 acres across Calistoga and Santa Rosa, was started by a private electrical system, not PG&E equipment. The Tubbs Fire is the state's second most destructive fire ever, destroying more than 5,000 homes and killing 22 individuals. We'll discuss how Cal Fire's finding will affect the hundreds of lawsuits against PG&E, and what it means for the company's bankruptcy filing.