Hey, I'm Josh Barrow, your new host of Left, Right, and Center.

Every week, join Rich Lowry, Bob Shear and Me for a contentious yet civilized debate of the week's big political stories, from ISIS to the U.S. economy to this 47 candidate presidential election we're having.

You can find Left, Right, and Center on KCRW's iTunes page.

From KCRW in Santa Monica and PRI, Public Radio International, this is To the Point.

What's happened in North America's oil boom?

Hello again, I'm Armin Alney, and this is To the Point from Public Radio International. The daily look at the issues Americans cut about most.

Shell won't be exploring for oil in the Arctic Ocean after all.

In the Gulf of Mexico, leases for new oil wells aren't selling.

Tens of thousands of workers are being laid off from Texas to North Dakota to central Canada.

Hydraulic fracking equipment is lying idle.

Is it just another decline in a boom and bust industry or the beginning of the end of the oil economy? Also on our program,

Vice President Joe Biden finally decides. I believe we're out of time, the time necessary to

mount a winning campaign for the nomination.

First up, here's the rest of the news.

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Hello again, Warren Olney, back with To the Point. The price of oil is half what it was just a year ago,

and the price of gasoline is going down along with it. Good news for drivers, at least for the moment.

Is it a sign of long-term weakness in the oil economy? Today's talking point, Syria's President Bashar al-Assad talks politics with

President Putin in Moscow. First, here's this news update. In the White House Rose Garden today with

...