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The August 9 'MHP' Syllabus

President Obama's airstrikes in Iraq, the aftermath of the NYPD's chokehold on Eric Garner, Paul Ryan's poverty plan, Ebola, and more. 10am ET, msnbc.
Iraq Protests
This photo taken Saturday, June 21, 2014, shows demonstrators protesting outside of the White House in Washington against renewed U.S. involvement in Iraq....

There’s big international news this week with President Obama authorizing airstrikes and humanitarian air drops in northern Iraq. #nerdland viewers who have been watching this story unfold over the last two days probably have some questions about how we got to this point. 

Read in and watch host Melissa Harris-Perry this Saturday where we’ll give you the latest news from the region and talk with a frequent guest, military historian and Iraq war veteran Earl Catagnus Jr., to give us a sense of what the strategy is and where the situation can possibly go from here.

Plus, we’re continuing the ongoing discussion about the killing of Eric Garner and what role police strategy and tactics played in his death.  We’ll have a full panel with Philip Atiba Goff from the Center for Policing Equity, Vince Warren from the Center for Constitutional Rights, criminal defense attorney Seema Iyer, and Global Grind editor-in-chief Michael Skolnik. Read up on:

Then, we dive into Paul Ryan’s plan to solve the problem of poverty in America. We’ll talk to the man often described as Congressman Ryan’s influential adviser on poverty issues, Bob Woodson. Check out some of the competing analyses on Ryan’s plan and see if you think it’s something liberals should embrace, or something that will hurt those Americans most in need of assistance.

 We’ll also have the latest on the Ebola outbreak in western Africa, where the World Health Organization has now declared a state of emergency and a discussion about the verdict in the trial of Renisha McBride’s killer.

Be sure to read what we’ve linked above, and watch Melissa Harris-Perry Saturday at 10am ET on msnbc! Also, don’t forget to join us on Facebook and Twitter with the hashtag #nerdland.