Satire
It's Monday, March 24th.
The tiny Buddhist state of Bhutan is holding its first ever parliamentary elections today, marking the end of a century of absolute monarchy.
Currently, China blames the Dalai Lama.
This is the Current.
SIN Fraud
It's a nine digit number that opens the door to a treasure trove of our personal information. Nearly every Canadian Citizen has a Social Insurance Number - a piece of ID that gives us access to everything from pension benefits to tax credits and credit cards. So perhaps it's no surprise that social insurance numbers have become an irresistible target for fraudsters.
Last month, the RCMP and the Ontario Provincial Police released details about a scheme involving a Canadian Government employee who had allegedly stolen SIN cards from the department she was working for.
Six years ago, Auditor General Sheila Fraser also flagged SIN fraud as a problem. She said there were serious weaknesses in how the federal government was issuing SIN cards and maintaining the Social Insurance Register.
Last year, in another audit, her office discovered that there was still a problem; there were more SIN cards in Canada than Canadians.
Last year, the Fraser Institute also raised the alarm about SIN fraud with a study that said Canada's system of managing social insurance numbers was open to fraud and misuse. Niels Veldhuis is the Director of Fiscal Studies with the Fraser Institute. He co-authored the study and he was in Vancouver.
Also, fraud artists looking to steal Social Insurance Numbers have several routes available to them. With identity theft on the rise, tracking the paper trail is something police have to learn to do better.
Brian Trainor is a former Saskatoon Police Officer who worked in the commercial fraud division. He's also the author of the book Stop Fraud, and he was in Saskatoon.
Listen to The Current: Part 1
The Current: Part 2
Debate - Water as a Human Right
Later this week, the United Nations Human Rights Council is expected to vote on a motion to make water a human right. Spain and Germany are promoting the idea. But the Canadian Government isn't so sure about it. Politicians in Ottawa worry that making this kind of symbolic gesture could end up causing problems down the road if American companies wanted to start buying bulk water from Canada. This stand has critics lining-up to challenge Canada's position.
Maude Barlow from the Council of Canadians is also critical. She says Canada is actively stonewalling the motion to make water a Human Right. We heard from her, but Chris Wood has a different and controversial take on how best to protect the world's water supplies. He believes we should treat water as a commodity because that is the only way to get people to value it. Chris Wood is the author of the new book, Dry Spring: The Coming Water Crisis of North America. He was in Victoria.
Listen to The Current:Part 2
The Current: Part 3
Evangelical Environmentalism
As a general rule, natural scientists and evangelical Christians don't tend to see themselves as political allies. But the Reverend Richard Cizik thinks they have common cause on at least one issue: protecting the environment. Reverend Cizik is the Vice-President for Government Policy with the National Association of Evangelicals, one of the most powerful groups in the American Evangelical Christian movement. He's encouraging his 30-million strong flock to proselytize in the fight against climate change as well as the battle to save souls - and that makes him one of the most potentially powerful environmentalists in North America.
Richard Cizik was in Washington this morning.
Last Word
Earlier in the program we heard about a motion before the United Nations Human Rights Council to make water a human right and a couple of different ideas about how best to preserve the world's water supply. We left you today with some thoughts about just how precious water has become: New World Water, courtesy of American hip-hop artist and actor Mos Def.
Listen to The Current:Part 3
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