309:
Cat and Mouse
Originally aired 02.24.2006
Stories about the kinds of chase games that just never end. From the high California desert to a high-end furniture showroom.
Host Ira Glass talks to Adam Stein about the very real cat-and-mouse game between his friends and the vice principal of his high school that preoccupied them throughout their high school careers. (6 minutes)
Just near the US-Mexico border, a group of self described "pissed off patriots" called the Minutemen stake out illegal immigrants trying to cross the border. They've got call-signs and walkie-talkies and guns. But not long after they've set up their observation posts, another group shows up to cause trouble. In the dark of night, in the high desert of California, the chase begins. James Spring embeds himself for the night. (21 minutes)
A story by David Sedaris about what happens when natural enemies meet, in an Alcoholics Anonymous program, in prison. This story appears in David's collection of animal fables Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk. (9 minutes)
It's been well over a decade, so why can't Eric, who is in many other respects a measured and reasonable person, select a simple piece of furniture? David Segal attempts to explain why the man can't just buy himself a couch, already. David works at The New York Times. (8 minutes)
In a way, it's the most classic cat-and-mouse game of all: A nimble graffiti writer dashes out into the night to leave his mark. Watching and waiting for him are the stronger—if less agile—NYPD Vandal Squad, whose sole mission is their arrest. Brian Thomas Gallagher reports. (8 minutes)
