The Current: Part 1

Satire

It's Tuesday August 12.

Vancouver's celebrity set is preparing itself for the arrival of the National Enquirer.

The supermarket tabloid announced it's opening a bureau in the heart of Lotusland.

Currently, editors at the paper anticipate the move will create some tough journalistic dilemmas. With one drunk driving premier and another who owned Fantasyland, will there ever be space for the bat-faced monkey-boy?

I mean, he just graduated from UBC, can you believe it!

This is the Current.

Met Life – Canadian Complainants

You may have noticed certain ads on television for Met Life …

There were similar ads running in Canadian newspapers.

It's all about a class action suit settled earlier this year in the United States.

The suit alleged that the insurance company Metropolitan Life not only charged more money for policies sold to non-whites - but also paid out less cash for claims. Now Canadian clients may be eligible for compensation.

Rosemary Sadler and her mother, Bernice Sadler, both have life insurance with the company. They joined us in our Toronto studio.

Met Life – American Lawyer

According to Metropolitan Life, nearly two million people are eligible for compensation.

Andy Friedman is one of the lawyers who helped secure the settlement.
He joined us from Phoenix, Arizona.

Listen to The Current: Part 1

The Current: Part 2

Jamaican Policing

For many, Jamaica is a playground - a place for a little rest and relaxation in the middle of winter.

But, for the people that live there, Jamaica can be a very dangerous place - full of crime and guns.

The island has the highest crime rate in the Caribbean with more than a thousand murders a year.

And, the police don't have the best reputation for keeping things under control.

According to Amnesty International, the Jamaican constabulary police have the highest number of police killings per capita in the world - an average of one hundred and forty a year.

In January, the Current's Cathy Perry went to Jamaica to look at the changes in how the police and people are communicating.

And, she came back with this documentary.

Preventing Dictators

While rebels and government soldiers celebrated in the streets yesterday, Charles Taylor slipped out of Liberia to begin his exile in Nigeria. But before he left, the Liberian dictator said he hoped to one day return to his country.

It took months of pressure from the United States and West African leaders to convince Mr. Taylor to give up power. Critics complained he shouldn't be allowed to just walk away from fourteen years of chaos and bloodshed.

Elmira Woods says there's an easier way ... don't let dictators get power in the first place. Ms. Woods grew up in Liberia and is currently the Co-director of Foreign Policy in Focus at the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington.

Listen to The Current: Part 2

The Current: Part 3

The New Economics

In this half-hour, we'll look to the laws of supply and demand to address some of the world's toughest problems… or, at least answer that pressing question: do beautiful people really make more money?

The science of economics is getting a bit of a makeover. The subject that was once relegated to the ivory towers of academia is coming down to earth.

Economists are beginning to address other relevant - if somewhat more mundane - questions dealing with everyday life .. things like "what's more dangerous: a gun or a backyard swimming pool?"

One of the people behind this new style of economics is Dan Hamermesh. He teaches at the University of Texas in Austin.

Futures Economist

Figuring out why beautiful people make more money is one thing, but what about using economics to predict the future?

That's what the Pentagon had in mind when it floated the idea of a geo-politics futures market. Essentially, the market would let people bet on the likelihood of potential terrorist acts and future political developments in the Middle East. Following a public outcry, the Pentagon put the whole project on ice.

Robin Hanson was one of the brains behind the Pentagon's infamous futures market. He teaches economics at George Mason University. He is in San Antonio, Texas.

Betting Economics Factboard

The Pentagon may be out of the market ... but there is still a place where you can bet on world events.

Tradesports.com is an online futures market where anyone with a credit card can bet on whether they think Saddam Hussein or Osama Bin Laden will be captured.

There's even a contract on whether weapons of mass destruction will be found in Iraq before the end of September. In May, traders thought there was an 80 percent chance such weapons would be found, but the odds are changing. If you bought one two dollar and fifty cent contract last night, and weapons are found before September 30th, you will win only 10 dollars. If nothing is found, you lose your investment.

Other contracts up for grabs on tradesports.com: Will the Kobe Bryant case go to trial? .... next year's oscar winners; and even, for a little Canadian content, who'll win the 2003 Grey Cup.

Pessimistic Economist

Jim Stanford doesn't share the same optimism of our first two guests. He's the economist for the Canadian Auto Workers.

Mash Up Promo

Coming up on a future edition of The Current, something else that's making young music fans very happy and getting up the noses of the copyright cops.

Mash-ups, also known as bastard pop, are the latest music trend hitting all the hottest dance clubs.

With the right computer software, a few CDs and an irreverent attitude toward intellectual property law, you could end up with an underground dance club hit ... maybe something like "Let's Pole Dance," in which DJ Lazy Tramp has the Beastie Boys pull a break and enter job on David Bowie.

Listen to The Current: Part 3