. >> this is an example of greed rather than reason irks ed rosenthal took on the federal governmentn oakland's cultivation ordinance. the city was planning to sell four permits to growers at $211,000 apiece. >> there are 300 applicants and they're only going to choose four? most of those 300 people are already growing. so if they -- if they're not chosen, they're not going to stop growing. >> reporter: rosenthal says permit holders who paid top dollar will want those small growers shut down. the alameda county district attorney is also issuing a warning saying in a letter to the counsel, it remains an open question whether public officers or public employees who aid and abet or conspire to violate state and federal laws in the furtherance of a city ordinance are exempt from criminal liability. rebecca kaplan says the letter is leading to changes in the ordinance but she's not worried about facing charges. >> she is not saying we will be tossed in jail. historically when there have been prosecutions, it has never been against the city government, it's been against the facility. >> re

rosenthal rosenthal's group investigated 19 other institutions.ents i'd met a decade ago. that first horrible adult hospital was closed after our last report. and we discovered that 60 patients were dumped here at the samuel ramirez hospital. where this doctor is in charge. even he acknowledges, while the facility is cleaner, the plight of the patients has not been improved. >> they just put them in different facilities. in order to appear like they transformed it. >> reporter: you're saying nothing really changed for the people. >> no, no. >> reporter: the doctor came to the hospital three years ago and has inherited many of the problems. he agreed to take us behind the locked gates. >> let's see something like hell. >> reporter: you -- you're the director here and you describe it as hell? >> you are going to see. i'm not lying. >> reporter: i mean, you look at this man's eyes and he tears up with human contact. one wonders how long it's been since someone held his hand. we see patients lying naked, unattended, rocking. >> the rocking is a kind o

. >> rosenthal says people who paid top dollar will want those growers shut down. district attorney also issues a warning, saying it remains in public question whether public officers or public employees who aid or abet or conspire to break city laws are exempt from a criminal liability. rebecca caplin says the letter is leading to ordinances. >> she is not saying we'll be tossed in jail. it's never been against the city government, it's been against the facility. >> in closed session tonight, they suspend the the marijuana application process. the deadline to apply was tomorrow. kaplan won't say exactly what's changing. the councilmember says the growing number of dispenseryes is up for debate. >> the number of facilities would be four or eight or 12 would have to be reestablished. >> rosenthal predicts the plan will go up in smoke. hundreds of people who are now interested in those grow permits, they will have to wait until the city council comes up with new rules and new language to apply. nbc bay area news. >>> it is a mistake that can cost you hundreds of doll

abe rosenthal first said he cut me off mid sentence, he said, you know, john, what i've discovered in 40 or 50 years in this business, when things don't get done, they don't get done because they don't get done. in other words, you can excuse anything. the truth is, writing a book is simply an act of courage, and i have to summon up the courage to do it. >> of all the assignments you got, which one was the most exhilarating? >> exhilarating were the wars. these wars impose the quintessential questions of life in their darkest form because they bore so heavily on the interest of the united states and of my newspaper, an american newspaper. in terms of sheer fun, and exhilaration, i would say china during revolution. but do you know something? i used to say to colleagues of mine who were moving from very desirable assignments to those that were less desirable that there is no such thing as a bad foreign assignment. all i know is that i worked very little in the united states. people would say, well, he would say that, would he not? to be a correspondent in "the new york's times" is to h

but that said there was a conference where i had the chance to meet a guy named jack rosenthal, a managing editor at the new york times and basically i told him i was researching wasted food and he said something like this sounds interesting but why should i care? what is the big deal? if i want to throw it out as did my business? and i didn't have a great response. i was kind of dumb struck and it was the first time anyone had really provided any opposition what i've talked about a topic. it is not like there are many people love their who are pro food waste. so anyway when jack said that to me it was constructive criticism because i had to go back and really think about how to craft an argument and do so in an intelligent way. i wanted to tell him just because. the reason it is wrong is because it is but that doesn't exactly fly. so what i did was to think about that and if you see in the book, dedicated an entire chapter to answering that question. why food waste matter is. why we should care. and i details the economic environment and ethical reasons why we should care. so for the firs

it rosenthal, the first editor that employed me at "the new york times" was a controversial and brilliant man. i was a correspondent in australia. he asked me why i had not done a magazine article that i had pledged to do. he cut me off in midsentence pin he said, "you know what i have discovered in 40 years to 50 years in this business? when things do not get done, they do not get done because they do not get done." in other words, you can excuse anything. i can excuse why i have not written the book. the truth of the matter is that writing the book as an act of courage. -- is an act of courage, and i simply have to summon up the courage to do it. >> of all the assignments you got, which one was the most exhilarating? >> exhilarating were the wars. these wars impose the quintessential questions of life in their darkest form because they bore so heavily on the interest of the united states and of my newspaper, an american newspaper. in terms of sheer fun, and exhilaration, i would say china during revolution. but do you know something? i used to say to colleagues of mine who were moving f

but that said, there was a conference where i had the chance to meet a guy named jackd rosenthal who was a managing editor at "the new york times." and, basically, i told him thatt i'm researching wasted food, and he said something like, okay o, yeah, that sounds pretty interesting, but why should i care? what's the big deal? i bought food, and if i want to throw it out, isn't that my business?an and to be perfectly honest, i didn't have a great response. i was kind of dumb struck, and itki was the first time anybody really provided any opposition when i talked about the topic.dn it's not like there are manyc. people out there are actually pro-food waste. which thank good. [laughter] so anyway, jack said that to me, and it was really constructiveod criticism because i had to go back and really think about how to craft an argument and to do g so in an intelligent way. i kind of wanted to tell him, you know, just because the reason food waste is wronged t because it is. but that didn't exactly fly.g is so what i did was think aboutacl that, and if you'll see in the book, i've dedicated

ed rosenthal first editor in the new york. controversial man. i was a correspondent in africa. and he was visiting with a former publisher. he kind of cut me nauf mid sentence. he said, you know, john, what i've discovered in 408, 50 years this business when things don't get done, they don't get done because they don't get done. in other words, you excuse anything. i can excuse why i have not written a book. the truth of the matter is that writing a book is an act of courage. i have to have the dourge do it. >> last question. of all the assignments you've got what one was the most exhilarating? >> exhilarating? i think the war. i think the wars -- >> these wars right now. >> these wars because they pose the essential questions -- con sexual -- consensual interest because they bore so heavily on the united states and my newspaper and the american newspaper. in terms of sheer fun, exhilaration, i would say china during the cultural revolution. but you know something, i used to say to colleagues of mine colleagues of mine from the "new york times" and were moving from very desirab