Feature Interviews –
Nov 10/10 - Pt 3: Medical Evidence
John Ioaniddis has spent a long time pushing evidence-based medicine. And in the process his faith in how we search for truth has been shaken. Dr. Ioaniddis feels much of what we think we know about medicine is wrong and that much of the information doctors base their treatments on is flawed.
Read more »
Read more »
Nov 08/10 - Pt 1: Judge John Reilly
In 1997, Judge John Reilly did something no provincial court judge was supposed to do. Frustrated by so many impoverished people from Alberta's Stoney Reserve facing charges, he pointed to the Native leadership and ordered an investigation into corruption on the Reserve. We talk to Judge Reilly about his new book, Bad Medicine.
Read more »
Read more »
Nov 01/10 - Pt 3: Blood Diamonds
Ten years ago, governments, diamond companies and human rights groups came together to crack down on the global trade in conflict diamonds. We talk to one of the people who helped kick-start the Kimberley Process and find out why his faith in it is slipping.
Read more »
Read more »
May 31, 2010
Pt 1: Turkey/Israel - We awoke to news this morning of a NATO country, Turkey, in turmoil over an Israeli military action off the coast of Gaza. We heard the latest, and spoke with two people who have loved ones on those flotillas that were seized. The attack is not the only pressing issue facing the Secretary General of NATO. From Canada's decision to pull its top soldier out of the battlefield, to a US report which rips into its own for mistakes with Predator Drones - it has been a weekend of unexpected turns for NATO. We also spoke with NATO's top man, Anders Fogh Rasmussen. (Read More)
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Oil Drilling in Canada - Drilling without spilling. Are Canada's regulations tough enough to keep oil out of our waters? We spoke with two environmental experts who say government reviews are a good start, but don't go far enough. (Read More)
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: WW2 Caper - Dead men don't tell lies, do they? How a prevaricating corpse changed the course of the Second World War. (Read More)
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Having trouble with our audio or video players? Check out the Help Page
Read more »
April 14, 2010
Pt 1: MS Debate - An Italian doctor named Doctor Paolo Zamboni has pioneered a new and controversial treatment for multiple sclerosis. It involves unblocking veins leading to the brain. And he says it has worked wonders for some patients. But critics say it is still untested and unproven. (Read More)
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: MS Debate (cont'd) - We continue our discussion on new treatment for MS with some criticism from Doctor Mark Freedman, the Director of the Multiple Sclerosis Research Unit at the Ottawa Hospital. And we also speak to a man who suffers from MS to hear what he thinks about the controversial treatment. (Read More)
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Cuban Jubans - Twenty-five years ago, Okony Simon Mori was part of a hand-picked group of Sudanese children who were sent abroad in the hopes that they would one-day return to help re-build the country. He's back in Sudan now to work towards the potential independence of South Sudan. (Read More)
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
December 31, 2009
Pt 1: Proroguing Parliament - The government says it's all part of its bid to get the Canadian economy back on track. But the opposition says it's really about sidelining the parliamentary committee that's investigating the Afghan detainee issue and stacking the Senate with Conservatives.
Pt 2: Brig. Gen. Rhonda Cornum - Canadians are absorbing the news of a deadly day in Afghanistan. As you've been hearing in the news, four Canadian soldiers and a Canadian journalist were killed near Kandahar yesterday. It was a difficult day for the U.S. too -- eight American civilians were killed in Khost Province, near the border with Pakistan. Watching fellow soldiers die can take a terrible psychological toll on their colleagues. And according to American Brigadier General Rhonda Cornum, armed forces need to do a better job in preparing soldiers to deal with that.
Pt 3: Iran Dissent - It has been a week of mayhem in the streets of Iran. First, a cell phone video broadcast on the Internet showed the Iranian government's violent crackdown on street protests-- a crackdown that killed at least eight people. Then yesterday, thousands gathered for state-sponsored rallies in support of the government. The unrest began after the disputed Presidential election in June. And the anti-government protests swelled again earlier this month. Iran hasn't seen unrest like this since 1979, when the Islamic Revolution toppled the Shah of Iran and Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini rose to power.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Brig. Gen. Rhonda Cornum - Canadians are absorbing the news of a deadly day in Afghanistan. As you've been hearing in the news, four Canadian soldiers and a Canadian journalist were killed near Kandahar yesterday. It was a difficult day for the U.S. too -- eight American civilians were killed in Khost Province, near the border with Pakistan. Watching fellow soldiers die can take a terrible psychological toll on their colleagues. And according to American Brigadier General Rhonda Cornum, armed forces need to do a better job in preparing soldiers to deal with that.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Iran Dissent - It has been a week of mayhem in the streets of Iran. First, a cell phone video broadcast on the Internet showed the Iranian government's violent crackdown on street protests-- a crackdown that killed at least eight people. Then yesterday, thousands gathered for state-sponsored rallies in support of the government. The unrest began after the disputed Presidential election in June. And the anti-government protests swelled again earlier this month. Iran hasn't seen unrest like this since 1979, when the Islamic Revolution toppled the Shah of Iran and Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini rose to power.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
December 28, 2009
Pt 1: Year-End Polical Panel - Joining us for a look back on the year that was and to give us as a sneak peak of what the new year may bring, we've brought back together our political panel from last year. Audio to come
Pt 2: The Sound and The Sea - Documentary - Unless you live on the West Coast, you have probably never heard of the Salish Sea. But it's very possible that you'll soon be finding that name on every new map of Canada. Unofficially, the Salish Sea refers to the waters between mainland British Columbia and Vancouver Island stretching down to Seattle, and including the Straits of Georgia, Juan de Fuca as well as Puget Sound. Audio to come
Pt 3: Wendy Babcock Interview - Law school is hard work. Even those with the best financial and emotional support can have a hard time actually becoming a lawyer. Think then - how hard it is for someone like Wendy Babcock. Before she became a teenager, Wendy Babcock had run away from home, and by 15, she was a sex worker - and spent much of her adolescence homeless. Today, she's in her first year at Osgoode Hall Law school in Toronto, hoping not only to graduate but to change the world. Audio to come
Read more »
Pt 2: The Sound and The Sea - Documentary - Unless you live on the West Coast, you have probably never heard of the Salish Sea. But it's very possible that you'll soon be finding that name on every new map of Canada. Unofficially, the Salish Sea refers to the waters between mainland British Columbia and Vancouver Island stretching down to Seattle, and including the Straits of Georgia, Juan de Fuca as well as Puget Sound. Audio to come
Pt 3: Wendy Babcock Interview - Law school is hard work. Even those with the best financial and emotional support can have a hard time actually becoming a lawyer. Think then - how hard it is for someone like Wendy Babcock. Before she became a teenager, Wendy Babcock had run away from home, and by 15, she was a sex worker - and spent much of her adolescence homeless. Today, she's in her first year at Osgoode Hall Law school in Toronto, hoping not only to graduate but to change the world. Audio to come
Read more »
December 23, 2009
Pt 1: Shalit Negotiations- It has been three-and-a-half years since Israeli Corporal Gilad Shalit was taken hostage by Palestinian militants. And this morning, a deal to release him is reported to be closer than ever. Corporal Shalit was captured in a cross-border raid in June of 2006. Hamas officials were demanding the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for his release. And the talks are still underway.
Pt 2: The Push to Prescribe - There was a time when drug companies produced and marketed mainly medicines and medical devices. Today, the industry's critics argue that those companies also create and market the diseases themselves.
Pt 3: Nuclear Waste - It's been more than 30 years since Canada first started its nuclear program. And in that time, we've managed to accumulate about 2 million used uranium fuel bundles. That's enough highly toxic radioactive waste to fill six NHL hockey rinks, right up to the top of the boards. And now, the Nuclear Waste Management Organization is looking for a permanent home for all of it.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: The Push to Prescribe - There was a time when drug companies produced and marketed mainly medicines and medical devices. Today, the industry's critics argue that those companies also create and market the diseases themselves.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Nuclear Waste - It's been more than 30 years since Canada first started its nuclear program. And in that time, we've managed to accumulate about 2 million used uranium fuel bundles. That's enough highly toxic radioactive waste to fill six NHL hockey rinks, right up to the top of the boards. And now, the Nuclear Waste Management Organization is looking for a permanent home for all of it.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
December 14, 2009
Pt 1: Mayors in Copenhagen Panel - Tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of Copenhagen on the weekend as part of a Global Day of Action on The Climate. There were as many as a thousand arrests on Saturday and displays of anger as they protest a lack of action at the United Nations Climate Change Summit. The summit continues this week ... as do the demonstrations.
Pt 2: Elderly Care - We started this segment with a clip of Doctor Jay Slater pulling up to the curb in his black Smart Car. He jokes that he should put a handle on the top, to make it look like a doctor's bag. The car is his proxy office. He drives to his patients' homes around Vancouver. His patients are all elderly and often frail. He's one of just a handful of Canadian doctors whose entire practice is built on going out to see the housebound elderly ... people such as Anne - a 94-year-old in Vancouver. We heard her story.
Pt 3: Afghan Midwives - When complications arise during a childbirth, Canadian doctors have all sorts of options when it comes to saving the life of the baby and the mother. But where Matthew Roddick works -- at the Bamiyan Provincial Hospital in Afghanistan -- things aren't nearly so easy. Pashtoon Azfar is the President of the Afghan Midwives Association. She was in Kabul.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Elderly Care - We started this segment with a clip of Doctor Jay Slater pulling up to the curb in his black Smart Car. He jokes that he should put a handle on the top, to make it look like a doctor's bag. The car is his proxy office. He drives to his patients' homes around Vancouver. His patients are all elderly and often frail. He's one of just a handful of Canadian doctors whose entire practice is built on going out to see the housebound elderly ... people such as Anne - a 94-year-old in Vancouver. We heard her story.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Afghan Midwives - When complications arise during a childbirth, Canadian doctors have all sorts of options when it comes to saving the life of the baby and the mother. But where Matthew Roddick works -- at the Bamiyan Provincial Hospital in Afghanistan -- things aren't nearly so easy. Pashtoon Azfar is the President of the Afghan Midwives Association. She was in Kabul.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
December 11, 2009
Pt 1: Misleading Parliament - We started the segment with a clip from Canadian diplomat Richard Colvin. His testimony kicked off what's turned out to be a tough month for Defence Minister Peter MacKay. Within hours of that testimony, Mr. MacKay was facing pointed questions about allegations that he did know -- or should have -- known that Afghan prisoners were being abused by The Afghan Security Police in 2006 and 2007 after Canadian Forces handed them over.
Pt 2: Cold Case # 2 - For 13 years, Danielle and Justin Greavette have been consumed with a single question -- Who killed their father. Wayne Greavette died instantly on December 12th, 1996, when a booby-trapped flashlight filled with explosives and roofing nails blew up in his face. The police investigation did not produce any arrests.
Pt 3: The Faith Instinct - Richard Dawkins is known for two things -- his passionate defense of evolution, and his belief that God is a dangerous delusion. For him, those two beliefs are inextricably linked. And that is where Nicholas Wade comes in.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Cold Case # 2 - For 13 years, Danielle and Justin Greavette have been consumed with a single question -- Who killed their father. Wayne Greavette died instantly on December 12th, 1996, when a booby-trapped flashlight filled with explosives and roofing nails blew up in his face. The police investigation did not produce any arrests.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: The Faith Instinct - Richard Dawkins is known for two things -- his passionate defense of evolution, and his belief that God is a dangerous delusion. For him, those two beliefs are inextricably linked. And that is where Nicholas Wade comes in.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
December 09, 2009
Pt 1: CIHR and Pfizer - We started this segment with Doctor Bernard Prigent. He's the Vice President and Medical Director of Pfizer Canada, the Canadian division of the world's largest pharmaceutical company. And he is also a newly appointed member of the Governing Council of the Canadian Institute for Health Research (CIHR).
Pt 2: Nortel Redux - It's been almost a year since Nortel -- Canada's one-time technology darling -- filed for bankruptcy protection. And whenever we do a story about Nortel, we usually call on Julie Ireton in Ottawa.
Pt 3: Iranian Detention - For 118 days, Maziar Bahari was confined to Iran's notorious Evin prison ... left to wonder if anyone outside its walls could do anything to get him out. He suffered through months of beatings, torture and many moments of hopelessness before he was finally released in October.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Nortel Redux - It's been almost a year since Nortel -- Canada's one-time technology darling -- filed for bankruptcy protection. And whenever we do a story about Nortel, we usually call on Julie Ireton in Ottawa.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Iranian Detention - For 118 days, Maziar Bahari was confined to Iran's notorious Evin prison ... left to wonder if anyone outside its walls could do anything to get him out. He suffered through months of beatings, torture and many moments of hopelessness before he was finally released in October.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
December 08, 2009
Pt 1: Murder in Mexico - Governor General Michaelle Jean will be in the southern Mexican state of Chiapas today. She is travelling with Jr. Foreign Minister Peter Kent and she'll be entering a state stewing in anti-Canadian sentiment.
Pt 2: Journalism - Sir Harold Evans has been a journalist for more than 6 decades ... ever since he turned 16. And he hasn't been shy about using his trade to push for change.
Pt 3: Olympic Village Documentary - We continue our ongoing series Work In Progress with some sound of the Olympic Village going up in Vancouver. For more than 2 years the site really was - a work in progress.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Journalism - Sir Harold Evans has been a journalist for more than 6 decades ... ever since he turned 16. And he hasn't been shy about using his trade to push for change.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Olympic Village Documentary - We continue our ongoing series Work In Progress with some sound of the Olympic Village going up in Vancouver. For more than 2 years the site really was - a work in progress.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
December 03, 2009
Pt 1: The Meaning of Gay - We started this segment with a scene from Modern Family, a sitcom about three families, including a gay couple who have just brought home the daughter they have adopted. It's the first time a network show has featured two gay men raising a child.
Pt 2: Guerrilla Diplomacy - Prime Minister Stephen Harper is in Beijing on day two of his trip to China. He's hoping to pull off a delicate diplomatic maneuver by improving trade ties and talking about human rights. It appears he's making some headway. China notified Canada, it has granted approved destination status, something the Canadian tourism industry has long requested.
Pt 3: Letters - This is Thursday, the day we turn part of the program over to you. And we're happy to welcome back Linden MacIntyre. He's the co-host of CBC Television's The Fifth Estate and a Giller-Prize winning novelist. He's also the Friday host of The Current for the next few weeks.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Guerrilla Diplomacy - Prime Minister Stephen Harper is in Beijing on day two of his trip to China. He's hoping to pull off a delicate diplomatic maneuver by improving trade ties and talking about human rights. It appears he's making some headway. China notified Canada, it has granted approved destination status, something the Canadian tourism industry has long requested.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Letters - This is Thursday, the day we turn part of the program over to you. And we're happy to welcome back Linden MacIntyre. He's the co-host of CBC Television's The Fifth Estate and a Giller-Prize winning novelist. He's also the Friday host of The Current for the next few weeks.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
November 23, 2009
Pt 1: H1N1 Survivors - As H1N1 vaccination clinics ramp up their efforts to treat everyone in the country, we're going to hear from three people who have experienced the pandemic first hand.
Pt 2: Child Welfare - Two decades ago, Canada signed on to the United Nations Convention for the Rights of the Child. It acknowledged that all children have the right to be safe and protected from harm, cared for, nurtured, and heard.
Pt 3: Teachers Selling Lessons - It can be pretty hard coming up with lesson plans day in and day out that are interesting for kids. Now some teachers would like to share their hard thought-up lesson plans with other educators by offering them on the web for a fee. But critics say teachers who buy their lessons from other teachers are shortchanging their students in classroom creativity.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Child Welfare - Two decades ago, Canada signed on to the United Nations Convention for the Rights of the Child. It acknowledged that all children have the right to be safe and protected from harm, cared for, nurtured, and heard.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Teachers Selling Lessons - It can be pretty hard coming up with lesson plans day in and day out that are interesting for kids. Now some teachers would like to share their hard thought-up lesson plans with other educators by offering them on the web for a fee. But critics say teachers who buy their lessons from other teachers are shortchanging their students in classroom creativity.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
November 19, 2009
Pt 1: Malalai Joya - Hamid Karzai was sworn in for another term as Afghanistan's President this morning. This against the backdrop of explosive news here in Canada that in 2006 and 2007, senior government officials including the prime minister's office and the defense ministry were told Afghan detainees taken by Canadian troops and handed to Afghan officials were subject to beatings and electric shocks.
Pt 2: Letters - It's Thursday. That's mail day on The Current. And our Friday host this week is CBC Television's Susan Ormiston.
Pt 3: Climate Cover-Up - And we had more letters in response to last Friday's program, which was hosted by David Suzuki. The program looked at climate change and the prospects for the upcoming United Nation's climate change conference in Copenhagen. The program elicited a lot of reaction, much of it scathing.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Letters - It's Thursday. That's mail day on The Current. And our Friday host this week is CBC Television's Susan Ormiston.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Climate Cover-Up - And we had more letters in response to last Friday's program, which was hosted by David Suzuki. The program looked at climate change and the prospects for the upcoming United Nation's climate change conference in Copenhagen. The program elicited a lot of reaction, much of it scathing.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
November 18, 2009
Pt 1: Golden Rice - To its supporters, Golden Rice is a nutritional godsend. It's genetically engineered with high levels of nutrients, including -- most notably -- Vitamin A. Every year, up to half-a-million children go blind because of a lack of Vitamin A. Half of them die within a year of losing their sight. Ten years ago, a bio-technology company called Syngenta bought the patents for Golden Rice. But the company has since given them away to a not-for-profit group.
Pt 2: Vitamin Eh? - Freelance journalist Paul Webster brings us a documentary about the struggle to deal with Vitamin A deficiency in Uganda and how the sweet potato might help.
Pt 3: Malcom Gladwell - Writer Malcolm Gladwell explains his fascination with ketchup, hair colouring, hedge funds and food gadgets and why you should be curious too.
Having trouble with our audio or video players? Check out the Help Page
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Vitamin Eh? - Freelance journalist Paul Webster brings us a documentary about the struggle to deal with Vitamin A deficiency in Uganda and how the sweet potato might help.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Malcom Gladwell - Writer Malcolm Gladwell explains his fascination with ketchup, hair colouring, hedge funds and food gadgets and why you should be curious too.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Having trouble with our audio or video players? Check out the Help Page
Read more »
November 16, 2009
Pt 1: World Hunger - Every six seconds, a child dies from hunger. And for the first time, the United Nations estimates that the number of people suffering from hunger has topped one billion. So as world leaders gather in Rome today for the United Nations' World Food Summit, they have their work cut out for them.
Pt 2: World Hunger - Panel (Cont'd) - World leaders are gathering in Rome today for The United Nations World Food Summit. And we're talking about what it's like to grow up hungry and how that experience lingers.
Pt 3: A Mining Town - For the last four months, more than 3,000 miners in Sudbury, Ontario have been on strike. And neither they, nor Vale Inco -- the company that employs them -- have budged. It's a story that will ring familiar to most people who know Sudbury, a small town that grew into a city on the wealth of its nickel mining ... a city famous for its big nickel, its superstack and its blue-collar identity.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: World Hunger - Panel (Cont'd) - World leaders are gathering in Rome today for The United Nations World Food Summit. And we're talking about what it's like to grow up hungry and how that experience lingers.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: A Mining Town - For the last four months, more than 3,000 miners in Sudbury, Ontario have been on strike. And neither they, nor Vale Inco -- the company that employs them -- have budged. It's a story that will ring familiar to most people who know Sudbury, a small town that grew into a city on the wealth of its nickel mining ... a city famous for its big nickel, its superstack and its blue-collar identity.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
November 13, 2009
Pt 1: What's at Stake in Copenhagen? - We started this segment with Elisapee Sheutiapik, the mayor of Iqaluit on Baffin Island in Nunavut. The residents of Iqaluit have had a ringside seat for one of the most obvious signs of global warming ... the melting of a great, ice-bound ocean. The prospect of an Arctic Ocean that's ice-free in the summer looks less and less fantastical with every passing year.
Pt 2: 2009 Nobel Prize for Economics - Elinor Ostrom is the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize in Economics. She spent most of her career studying what's called a 'polycentric' approach to addressing communal problems. She's most interested in the power of collective action.
Pt 3: Geo-Engineering - Earlier in the program, we mentioned that in the 1980s, several political leaders already saw climate change as a grave problem. But they were a couple of decades behind U.S. President Lyndon Johnson. By 1965, he was already worried about carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. And seven years before that an influential scientific paper warned that we were doing "a great geophysical experiment" on the atmosphere.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: 2009 Nobel Prize for Economics - Elinor Ostrom is the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize in Economics. She spent most of her career studying what's called a 'polycentric' approach to addressing communal problems. She's most interested in the power of collective action.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Geo-Engineering - Earlier in the program, we mentioned that in the 1980s, several political leaders already saw climate change as a grave problem. But they were a couple of decades behind U.S. President Lyndon Johnson. By 1965, he was already worried about carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. And seven years before that an influential scientific paper warned that we were doing "a great geophysical experiment" on the atmosphere.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
November 06, 2009
Pt 1: Fort Hood - It was the deadliest act of violence committed on a US military base in American history. Yesterday a barrage of gunfire left 13 people dead and wounded 28 more at the U.S. Military Base in Fort Hood, Texas.
Pt 2: IRA Bombing and Forgiveness - We started this segment with some tape of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher responding to the bombing 25 years ago at the Grand Hotel in Brighton, England. The man who planted that bomb was an IRA operative named Patrick Magee. His intent was to kill British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. She survived. But the bomb killed five people and injured many others. Patrick Magee received 8 life sentences for the bombing. But he was released 10 years ago, under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement.
Pt 3: Nurture Shock - There are heaps of parenting books and mounds of interactive DVDs out there. But when it comes right down to it, most parents end up going with their gut ... at least some of the time.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: IRA Bombing and Forgiveness - We started this segment with some tape of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher responding to the bombing 25 years ago at the Grand Hotel in Brighton, England. The man who planted that bomb was an IRA operative named Patrick Magee. His intent was to kill British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. She survived. But the bomb killed five people and injured many others. Patrick Magee received 8 life sentences for the bombing. But he was released 10 years ago, under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Nurture Shock - There are heaps of parenting books and mounds of interactive DVDs out there. But when it comes right down to it, most parents end up going with their gut ... at least some of the time.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
November 03, 2009
Pt 1: Afghanistan Look Ahead - In his first speech since being declared winner in a much disputed presidential election, Afghanistan's Hamid Karzai is pledging to tackle corruption in his government, however he has made no specific commitments in his speech today.
Pt 2: Military Recruitment - For the military they are 'information sessions'. Others call it active recruiting. Call it what you will, in Quebec, a coalition of students' and teachers' unions is hoping to ban the Canadian military from high school and CEGEP - or junior college - campuses across the province.
Pt 3: Clinton Speaks - Every President of the United States lives under the burning light of intense scrutiny. And by any standards, Bill Clinton's two terms in office were scorchers, including having the dubious distinction of being only the second U.S. president ever impeached.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Military Recruitment - For the military they are 'information sessions'. Others call it active recruiting. Call it what you will, in Quebec, a coalition of students' and teachers' unions is hoping to ban the Canadian military from high school and CEGEP - or junior college - campuses across the province.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Clinton Speaks - Every President of the United States lives under the burning light of intense scrutiny. And by any standards, Bill Clinton's two terms in office were scorchers, including having the dubious distinction of being only the second U.S. president ever impeached.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
October 27, 2009
Pt 1: Kidnapped Publisher - Many journalists have to put their lives on the line for their work. But until Friday night, Jagdish Grewal didn't think he was one of them. Mr. Grewal is the Editor and Publisher of the Canadian Punjabi Post, a daily newspaper published in Brampton, Ontario. He left his office late on Friday night. And before he got out of the parking lot, he was viciously attacked by three men. It's unclear what prompted the attack. But other Sikh-Canadian journalists have been targeted for holding views similar to Mr. Grewal's.
Pt 2: Too Big to Fail - On the morning of September 17th, 2008, U.S. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson stood surrounded by two dozen staff members and announced that the United States was in the midst of an "economic 9/11." Lehman Brothers had filed for bankruptcy. Merril Lynch had sold itself to Bank of America to avoid a similar fate. And AIG was being kept afloat by an 85-Billion-dollar loan from the Federal Reserve. The United States was on the verge of financial collapse. And it was threatening to take the rest of the world down with it. Over the next few weeks, hundreds of billions of dollars would be ear-marked for a bailout - a move that is still being tested today.
Pt 3: Gay Uganda - Uganda is a pretty tough place to live if you're gay. It's illegal for gays and lesbians to have sex with each other. And the maximum penalty is life imprisonment. Now a proposed new law would go well beyond that. It would require people who know someone is gay to report them to the police within twenty-four hours, or face their own jail term. It would also give a broader definition to the offense of homosexuality. And under some circumstances, the penalty for gay sex would be death.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Too Big to Fail - On the morning of September 17th, 2008, U.S. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson stood surrounded by two dozen staff members and announced that the United States was in the midst of an "economic 9/11." Lehman Brothers had filed for bankruptcy. Merril Lynch had sold itself to Bank of America to avoid a similar fate. And AIG was being kept afloat by an 85-Billion-dollar loan from the Federal Reserve. The United States was on the verge of financial collapse. And it was threatening to take the rest of the world down with it. Over the next few weeks, hundreds of billions of dollars would be ear-marked for a bailout - a move that is still being tested today.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Gay Uganda - Uganda is a pretty tough place to live if you're gay. It's illegal for gays and lesbians to have sex with each other. And the maximum penalty is life imprisonment. Now a proposed new law would go well beyond that. It would require people who know someone is gay to report them to the police within twenty-four hours, or face their own jail term. It would also give a broader definition to the offense of homosexuality. And under some circumstances, the penalty for gay sex would be death.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
October 26, 2009
Pt 1: General Rick Hillier - General Rick Hillier calls it one of the more idiotic decisions ever made by the Canadian forces. In the mid 1990s, the Canadian military sold its heavy-lifting Chinook helicopters to the Netherlands. The decision came after years of funding cutbacks and infighting between top army and air force officials over who should pay for the helicopters.
Pt 2: H1N1 Vaccine Fears - We started this segment with some advice from Rick Mercer. Although according to public health officials, what we should really be doing is getting vaccinated for the H1N1 flu virus. They've been making the case for vaccinations as often, as clearly, and as loudly as they can. But a couple of weeks ago, when reporters asked him if he planned to get the vaccine, Prime Minister Stephen Harper sounded almost as confused as Rick Mercer.
Pt 3: Lasers and Planes - We started this segment with helicopter pilot Spencer Harden. He was describing what it's like to be hit by a laser pointer... one that's been aimed by someone standing invisibly on the ground below. He's an American but pilots in Canada and around the world say they're also noticing a disturbing spike in the number of these kinds of incidents.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: H1N1 Vaccine Fears - We started this segment with some advice from Rick Mercer. Although according to public health officials, what we should really be doing is getting vaccinated for the H1N1 flu virus. They've been making the case for vaccinations as often, as clearly, and as loudly as they can. But a couple of weeks ago, when reporters asked him if he planned to get the vaccine, Prime Minister Stephen Harper sounded almost as confused as Rick Mercer.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Lasers and Planes - We started this segment with helicopter pilot Spencer Harden. He was describing what it's like to be hit by a laser pointer... one that's been aimed by someone standing invisibly on the ground below. He's an American but pilots in Canada and around the world say they're also noticing a disturbing spike in the number of these kinds of incidents.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
October 19, 2009
Pt 1: Pakistan Attacks - Well, Pakistan is a country on edge today. The military says it sent close to thirty thousand soldiers into the tribal areas of south Waziristan two days ago, in an offensive against Al Qaueda and the Taliban and an area along the border with Afghanistan. As a result, thousand of civilians are fleeing.
Pt 2: Power in the Workplace - We started this segment with a scene from the original, British version, of The Office, a TV show that pokes fun at the absurdity of workplace relationships. This morning, as part of our series, Work In Progress, we're looking at real-life power relationships on the job.
Pt 3: Intensive Self-Help - We started this segment with a clip from David Booth describing the disturbing changes he saw in his wife, Rebekah Lawrence ... changes he says came on suddenly and dramatically in December of 2005. Thirty-four year-old Rebekah Lawrence, an Australian woman had taken part in an intense, four-day self-help seminar called, The Turning Point. She'd hoped it would help change her life. Instead her family says it led to her death. Just days after she completed the last session, Rebekah Lawrence committed suicide.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Power in the Workplace - We started this segment with a scene from the original, British version, of The Office, a TV show that pokes fun at the absurdity of workplace relationships. This morning, as part of our series, Work In Progress, we're looking at real-life power relationships on the job.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Intensive Self-Help - We started this segment with a clip from David Booth describing the disturbing changes he saw in his wife, Rebekah Lawrence ... changes he says came on suddenly and dramatically in December of 2005. Thirty-four year-old Rebekah Lawrence, an Australian woman had taken part in an intense, four-day self-help seminar called, The Turning Point. She'd hoped it would help change her life. Instead her family says it led to her death. Just days after she completed the last session, Rebekah Lawrence committed suicide.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
October 16, 2009
Pt 1: Mining Bill Debate - Canadian mining companies, environmentalists and human rights activists are all keeping a close eye on a private member's bill that's working its way through parliament. Bill C-300 would give the Canadian Government the power to investigate Canadian resource companies operating abroad.
Pt 2: Copyright Wars - When Ralph Lauren put out an ad featuring model Filippa Hamilton, more than a few people noticed something a little funny about it. Filippa Hamilton is five-foot-ten and 120 pounds. She's a size four. But somehow, she looked all out of proportion. The ad was reprinted on the American web site Photoshop Disaster.
Pt 3: Retirement Study - For lots of people, the idea of never having to work again would be a dream come true. But according to a new study, all that "R and R" can cause problems. For more than 15 years, researchers in the United States tracked more than 12,000 people as they headed into retirement. And they found that retirees who take on temporary or part-time work have fewer major diseases and function better day-to-day.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Copyright Wars - When Ralph Lauren put out an ad featuring model Filippa Hamilton, more than a few people noticed something a little funny about it. Filippa Hamilton is five-foot-ten and 120 pounds. She's a size four. But somehow, she looked all out of proportion. The ad was reprinted on the American web site Photoshop Disaster.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Retirement Study - For lots of people, the idea of never having to work again would be a dream come true. But according to a new study, all that "R and R" can cause problems. For more than 15 years, researchers in the United States tracked more than 12,000 people as they headed into retirement. And they found that retirees who take on temporary or part-time work have fewer major diseases and function better day-to-day.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
October 13, 2009
Pt 1: Immortality - Just last week, the Nobel prize in medicine went to three scientists for their discovery of what's being called the "immortality enzyme"... an enzyme that helps cells multiply without the effects of aging.
Pt 2: Tim Flannery - Rich states, poor states, Petro-states and states on the brink will soon converge in the December darkness of a Denmark. A bit prophetic really given they'll be there in Copenhagen for another attempt to deal together with climate change.
Pt 3: Wild Art - As Vancouver readies itself for the Olympics, the city's downtown east-side is getting a face-lift. Alleys are being "greened," Parks are being renovated, and walls are getting a fresh coat of paint. But with all the aesthetic improvement - something is getting lost, and that something is what some call wild art. Other's call it graffiti: the art found in the dark corners and back alleys of cities everywhere.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Tim Flannery - Rich states, poor states, Petro-states and states on the brink will soon converge in the December darkness of a Denmark. A bit prophetic really given they'll be there in Copenhagen for another attempt to deal together with climate change.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Wild Art - As Vancouver readies itself for the Olympics, the city's downtown east-side is getting a face-lift. Alleys are being "greened," Parks are being renovated, and walls are getting a fresh coat of paint. But with all the aesthetic improvement - something is getting lost, and that something is what some call wild art. Other's call it graffiti: the art found in the dark corners and back alleys of cities everywhere.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
October 5, 2009
Pt 1: Pre-mature Births - The numbers are startling, about a million babies die each year because they are born prematurely. And the rate of premature births is on the rise all over the world. When the numbers are broken down by region, North America -- that's Canada and the United States taken together -- ranks a close second ... right behind Africa ... in the percentage of babies born prematurely.
Pt 2: Angela Davis - During the radical protest movements of the 1960's and 70's in the U.S., there was no woman more famous or notorious than Angela Davis. She was active in the civil rights movement ... a member of the radical and often violent Black Panthers.
Pt 3: Forest Offsets - We started this segment with a clip of Moses Kiptala. He's a farmer in Eastern Uganda. Seventeen years ago, he and a group of other farmers were pushed off their land in the name of conservation ... evicted so that the Ugandan Government could establish Mount Elgon National Park. Mount Elgon is an important watershed. And it supports a rich variety of vegetation. So the land there is highly contested.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Angela Davis - During the radical protest movements of the 1960's and 70's in the U.S., there was no woman more famous or notorious than Angela Davis. She was active in the civil rights movement ... a member of the radical and often violent Black Panthers.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Forest Offsets - We started this segment with a clip of Moses Kiptala. He's a farmer in Eastern Uganda. Seventeen years ago, he and a group of other farmers were pushed off their land in the name of conservation ... evicted so that the Ugandan Government could establish Mount Elgon National Park. Mount Elgon is an important watershed. And it supports a rich variety of vegetation. So the land there is highly contested.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
October 02, 2009
Pt 1: Cultural Competence - We started this segment with some voices of newcomers to Canada at an English class in Toronto. The questions we asked them were similar to the ones Canadian officials put to Suaad Hagi Mohamud when they were trying to determine if she was who she said she was. And the question we're left with now is whether it's fair to assume that there is a common set of cultural reference points that all -- or even most -- Canadians share.
Pt 2: Egg on Mao - China's military might was on full display yesterday. Nearly 200,000 people took part in the pageantry, including soldiers marching in mathematical precision and school children releasing thousands of balloons into a perfect, cloudless, blue sky. It's the sort of thing China's Communist Party does once a decade to celebrate China's national day.
Pt 3: Frans de Waal - We started this segment with a clip of legendary economist Milton Friedman at the height of his powers in 1979. And the idea that self-interest, greed and even a little ruthlessness will get you ahead is still a powerful one. But according to Frans de Waal, when you look at human beings as a species, the warm and fuzzy stuff matters ... a lot.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Egg on Mao - China's military might was on full display yesterday. Nearly 200,000 people took part in the pageantry, including soldiers marching in mathematical precision and school children releasing thousands of balloons into a perfect, cloudless, blue sky. It's the sort of thing China's Communist Party does once a decade to celebrate China's national day.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Frans de Waal - We started this segment with a clip of legendary economist Milton Friedman at the height of his powers in 1979. And the idea that self-interest, greed and even a little ruthlessness will get you ahead is still a powerful one. But according to Frans de Waal, when you look at human beings as a species, the warm and fuzzy stuff matters ... a lot.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
September 24, 2009
Pt 1: Justice Reform- Getting tough on crime is popular in Ottawa these days. Two years ago, the Federal Government commissioned a report to look at ways of improving Canada's Prison System. The government took the resulting recommendations. And in June, Public Safety Minister Peter Van Loan introduced a bill to amend the Corrections and Conditional Release Act. The idea -- according to the government -- was to improve public safety and make prisoners more accountable for their actions. For instance, no more statutory release, they have to earn their parole. In the end, the bill did not pass.
Pt 2: Olympics & Homelessness - Vancouver's Downtown Eastside is well-known for its problems with homelessness and drug addiction. And this morning, many of the people who live and work there are talking about a proposed new law that would change how the police deal with the homeless. Among other things, under extreme weather conditions, it would give police the power to take homeless people to shelters against their will. With the 2010 Olympics fast approaching, critics are questioning the timing of the proposed law.
Pt 3: Letters - Thursday is our mail day on The Current and our producer John Chipman, joined Jan Wong in studio to help get through the mail.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Olympics & Homelessness - Vancouver's Downtown Eastside is well-known for its problems with homelessness and drug addiction. And this morning, many of the people who live and work there are talking about a proposed new law that would change how the police deal with the homeless. Among other things, under extreme weather conditions, it would give police the power to take homeless people to shelters against their will. With the 2010 Olympics fast approaching, critics are questioning the timing of the proposed law.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Letters - Thursday is our mail day on The Current and our producer John Chipman, joined Jan Wong in studio to help get through the mail.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
September 16, 2009
Pt 1: Harper in Washington - Ever since September 11th, 2001, the relationship between the United States and Canada has been both strengthened and strained. But one nagging irritant has been the issue of national security.
Pt 2: Flu Shots - Hospitals across the country are on high alert. A second wave of the swine flu could mean higher numbers of patients filling waiting room chairs and hospital corridors this Fall. And public health officials are grappling with how to protect both patients and health care workers from infection.
Pt 3: Dirty Secrets, Dirty War - It seems like the kind of story any journalist would jump at. Over the course of seven years, a government targets an estimated 30-thousand people - they are picked up at all times of the day, bundled into cars, interrogated, tortured, and then, they disappear.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Flu Shots - Hospitals across the country are on high alert. A second wave of the swine flu could mean higher numbers of patients filling waiting room chairs and hospital corridors this Fall. And public health officials are grappling with how to protect both patients and health care workers from infection.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Dirty Secrets, Dirty War - It seems like the kind of story any journalist would jump at. Over the course of seven years, a government targets an estimated 30-thousand people - they are picked up at all times of the day, bundled into cars, interrogated, tortured, and then, they disappear.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
September 8, 2009
Pt 1: Failing Kids - We started this segment with some tape of Patrick Mascoe, an elementary school teacher in Ottawa. And he's not the only one who has noticed that the F-word -- and by that we mean "Fail" -- is something you don't hear a lot in classrooms these days. Across Canada, the practice of holding back students who haven't met the requirements to complete a grade is fading.
Pt 2: Work In Progress - Documentary - We're going to take you on a journey through the world of work this year on The Current. We'll have documentaries, profiles and interviews about work ... what we do, why we do it, how our work is changing and what we get out of it. Dick Miller is going to get us started this morning. He's The Current's Documentary Editor and he was in Toronto. His documentary is called, Work In Progress.
Pt 3: Soap & Water and Common Sense - Bonnie Henry has traced the path of the Ebola virus in Northern Uganda. She has held the hands of grieving relatives during the SARS outbreak in Toronto. Now, she is at the centre of Canada's fight against the H1N1 influenza pandemic.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Work In Progress - Documentary - We're going to take you on a journey through the world of work this year on The Current. We'll have documentaries, profiles and interviews about work ... what we do, why we do it, how our work is changing and what we get out of it. Dick Miller is going to get us started this morning. He's The Current's Documentary Editor and he was in Toronto. His documentary is called, Work In Progress.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Soap & Water and Common Sense - Bonnie Henry has traced the path of the Ebola virus in Northern Uganda. She has held the hands of grieving relatives during the SARS outbreak in Toronto. Now, she is at the centre of Canada's fight against the H1N1 influenza pandemic.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
September 1, 2009
Pt 1: Rats - It's been fifty years since Alberta had to cope with a rat infestation. Thanks to a few happy geographical accidents and a very dedicated rat patrol, Alberta boasts of being "rat-free" since the 1950s. But this morning, the whiff of rats in the distance is wafting through the province and the vermin are at the gates.
Pt 2: The Super Committed - Two Documentaries : A Day in The Life of Tyler Johnson and A Quixotic Candidate
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: The Super Committed - Two Documentaries : A Day in The Life of Tyler Johnson and A Quixotic Candidate
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
August 27, 2009
Pt 1: Afghan Election - It has been one week since Afghans went to the polls to elect a new President. And it will be at least several more before anyone knows who won. Only one-in-five votes have been tallied so far. And widespread accusations of ballot stuffing and voter intimidation have cast a pall over the election.
Pt 2: The Laws Between Worlds - Documentary - In April, Afghan President Hamid Karzai signed a law that shocked even some of his most ardent supporters. The law would have made it illegal for a Shiite woman to refuse her husband sex or to leave the house without his permission. After intense criticism, President Karzai has now ordered a constitutional review of the law.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: The Laws Between Worlds - Documentary - In April, Afghan President Hamid Karzai signed a law that shocked even some of his most ardent supporters. The law would have made it illegal for a Shiite woman to refuse her husband sex or to leave the house without his permission. After intense criticism, President Karzai has now ordered a constitutional review of the law.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
August 26, 2009
Pt 1: Child Soldier Language - Some powerful words are disappearing from the hallways of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Among them are "international humanitarian law," and "child soldier" ... phrases that are especially relevant in the case of Omar Khadr -- the Canadian being held in Guantanamo Bay. And the words are disappearing at a time when the Federal Government is appealing a court ruling ordering it to press for Khadr's release.
Pt 2: Twice Lost - Documentary - We have a documentary about a brother and sister named Ron and Kerry. Growing up, they were close. They loved and supported each other. But then things went off the rails. And their relationship fractured for reasons neither of them really understood until years later.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Twice Lost - Documentary - We have a documentary about a brother and sister named Ron and Kerry. Growing up, they were close. They loved and supported each other. But then things went off the rails. And their relationship fractured for reasons neither of them really understood until years later.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
August 25, 2009
Pt 1: .eco Battle - Three letters at the end of an internet address have sparked a surprisingly high-stakes fight between two environmental champions. The letters in question are "eco." And they're in play because starting next year, the Internet Corporation of Assigned Names and Numbers -- the body that oversees internet domain names -- plans to begin letting people register web sites that end in dot-eco.
Pt 2: Spiders of Allah - Throughout the Middle East, politics is often driven by powerful religious beliefs. Islam, Judaism and Christianity were all born there. And radical interpretations of each of them continue to define the region. So how does a self-declared atheist make sense of the theological maelstrom of Middle East politics?
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Spiders of Allah - Throughout the Middle East, politics is often driven by powerful religious beliefs. Islam, Judaism and Christianity were all born there. And radical interpretations of each of them continue to define the region. So how does a self-declared atheist make sense of the theological maelstrom of Middle East politics?
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
August 21, 2009
Pt 1: Arctic vs. Inuit Sovereignty - Prime Minister Stephen Harper visited the North this week. The intentions were tto showcase the Prime Minister's commitment to asserting Canada's sovereignty in the Arctic.
Pt 2: Polar Prom - Documentary - High school proms are a rite of passage that most teenagers take for granted. But not in Igloolik. It's a small, isolated Arctic town in Nunavut. And this past spring, the town's students, parents and teachers staged the first prom in the town's history. It was a huge success and an inspiration in a lot of ways. And it can all be traced back to an e-mail that the CBC's Maureen Brosnahan received last winter. Maureen's documentary is called Polar Prom and it first aired on The Current in June.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Polar Prom - Documentary - High school proms are a rite of passage that most teenagers take for granted. But not in Igloolik. It's a small, isolated Arctic town in Nunavut. And this past spring, the town's students, parents and teachers staged the first prom in the town's history. It was a huge success and an inspiration in a lot of ways. And it can all be traced back to an e-mail that the CBC's Maureen Brosnahan received last winter. Maureen's documentary is called Polar Prom and it first aired on The Current in June.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
August 20, 2009
Pt 1: Afghanistan Election - The polls are closing in Afghanistan. Some observers have suggested the Taliban threats to disrupt the vote with violence may have led to a low voter turnout, especially in the country's south. This despite the governments efforts to prevent such attacks.
Pt 2: Dina Babbitt Update - We have an update this morning on a story The Current first brought you last year. You may remember Anna Maria Tremonti's interview with Dina Babbitt. Ms. Babbitt was a prisoner at the Auschwitz Concentration Camp, where she was forced to paint for the notorious Nazi doctor, Joseph Mengele ... a man known as the "Doctor of Death." She painted portraits of prisoners ... most of them Roma, most of whom were sent to their death.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Dina Babbitt Update - We have an update this morning on a story The Current first brought you last year. You may remember Anna Maria Tremonti's interview with Dina Babbitt. Ms. Babbitt was a prisoner at the Auschwitz Concentration Camp, where she was forced to paint for the notorious Nazi doctor, Joseph Mengele ... a man known as the "Doctor of Death." She painted portraits of prisoners ... most of them Roma, most of whom were sent to their death.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
August 12, 2009
Pt 1: Traditional Healing & H1N1 - All over the world, health professionals are preparing for the fall when the number of cases of H1N1 or swine flu is expected to surge. On Monday, the first human trials of the swine flu vaccine were carried out.
Pt 2: David Wessel: In Fed We Trust - We started this segment with a clip of Ben Bernanke, the Chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve, testifying before Congress last month.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: David Wessel: In Fed We Trust - We started this segment with a clip of Ben Bernanke, the Chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve, testifying before Congress last month.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
August 10, 2009
Pt 1: NDP Name Change - When members of the federal NDP gather in Halifax for their annual general meeting on Friday, it could be the last time the NDP meets at all. On the agenda is a proposal to change the group's name from the New Democratic Party to the Democratic Party. Some see it as a symbolic push to get the party moving forward. But others think a name change is too little, too late.
Pt 2: Chris Hedges - Now it is indeed summer. But according to Chris Hedges, the living is anything but easy. Chris Hedges is a prominent American social critic who spent twenty years as a war correspondent and has since written several books, including War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning. His new book is called Empire of Illusion: The End of Literacy and The Triumph of Spectacle. And in it, he argues that western society is being eroded by a celebrity-obsessed culture that clouds our sense of reality and mires us in narcissism. Chris Hedges was in New York City.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Chris Hedges - Now it is indeed summer. But according to Chris Hedges, the living is anything but easy. Chris Hedges is a prominent American social critic who spent twenty years as a war correspondent and has since written several books, including War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning. His new book is called Empire of Illusion: The End of Literacy and The Triumph of Spectacle. And in it, he argues that western society is being eroded by a celebrity-obsessed culture that clouds our sense of reality and mires us in narcissism. Chris Hedges was in New York City.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
August 07, 2009
Pt 1: The Plains of Abraham - It has been two-hundred-and-fifty years since the Battle of the Plains of Abraham. In some ways, it's still going on.
Pt 2: The Family Author- South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford's expressed a lengthy mea culpa for his expeditions to Buenos Aires to hike the Argentinean Appalachian trail and for cheating on his wife. But for Jeff Sharlet, it was the mention of "C-Street" -- the group that Governor Sanford turned to for help -- that was of crucial importance.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: The Family Author- South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford's expressed a lengthy mea culpa for his expeditions to Buenos Aires to hike the Argentinean Appalachian trail and for cheating on his wife. But for Jeff Sharlet, it was the mention of "C-Street" -- the group that Governor Sanford turned to for help -- that was of crucial importance.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
August 03, 2009
Pt 1: Cheapness - For some people, nothing tops a great bargain. Finding an item on sale, paying a reduced price -- the profound desire of getting something for cheap. And at this time of year, many of us are scowering the summer sell-out bargain bins, looking for a deal.
Pt 2: Left Behind - Documentary - Last June, Stephen Harper apologized - on behalf of the government of Canada - not only for the known excesses of the residential school system, but for the creation of the system itself.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Left Behind - Documentary - Last June, Stephen Harper apologized - on behalf of the government of Canada - not only for the known excesses of the residential school system, but for the creation of the system itself.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
July 31, 2009
Pt 1: Lawn Obsession -Whether in their own yards, in parks, or puttering around on the golf green. Canadians love their lawns. So much so, according to Statistics Canada - Canadians spent more than $2 billion on lawn and garden care in 2006. That's up more than $600 million since 2002 proving in many ways that while the grass is always greener...it's never green enough.
Pt 2: Is the Recession Over? - Well, is it over or isn't it? Depends who you ask. Canada's recession is nearly over according to the Bank of Canada. The Finance Minister is sounding somewhat more cautious about declaring an end to the economic crisis.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Is the Recession Over? - Well, is it over or isn't it? Depends who you ask. Canada's recession is nearly over according to the Bank of Canada. The Finance Minister is sounding somewhat more cautious about declaring an end to the economic crisis.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
July 29, 2009
Pt 1: Canada's Role in Honduras - When the ousted President of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya, briefly set foot in his home country, it was Zelaya's latest attempt at returning to Honduras since he was forced out of power and into exile on June 28th.
Pt 2: George Vallient - Ah, The Good Life ... you might define it as a villa in Tuscany ... or simply being surrounded by family and friends. Either way, the good life is a lot easier to define than to achieve -- hence the massive self-help industry. But what if we could put people's lives under a microscope to understand exactly what makes a good life?
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: George Vallient - Ah, The Good Life ... you might define it as a villa in Tuscany ... or simply being surrounded by family and friends. Either way, the good life is a lot easier to define than to achieve -- hence the massive self-help industry. But what if we could put people's lives under a microscope to understand exactly what makes a good life?
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
July 21, 2009
Pt 1: Mad Pride - July is officially Mad Pride month-- a series of events taking place all over the world to help people with mental health issues celebrate - and take pride - in who they are... "madness" and all. And like other pride movements, part of it is about reclaiming a term that has long been a stigma. But while the movement has gained a lot of ground over the years, it still faces some resistance.
Pt 2:Last Lawyer Standing- Lawyers as we'd recognize them today first started popping up in Roman times. The first lawyer joke is said to have followed a few weeks later. Still, for all the popular disdain for the profession, the idea that you really should get a lawyer for anything more than the simplest of court cases has become widely accepted wisdom.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2:Last Lawyer Standing- Lawyers as we'd recognize them today first started popping up in Roman times. The first lawyer joke is said to have followed a few weeks later. Still, for all the popular disdain for the profession, the idea that you really should get a lawyer for anything more than the simplest of court cases has become widely accepted wisdom.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
July 20, 2009
Pt 1: Forest Fires in British Columbia-As the sun set over British Columbia's Lake Okanagan last night, a bright orange band of fire -- propelled by gusting winds and tinder-dry underbrush -- continued its steady march across the hills overlooking the placid lake. So far, 4 hundred hetcares of West Kelowna have been left charred in the fire's wake.
Pt 2: Tanya's Trial- Documentary - Last fall, Detective Wendy Leaver had what she thought was an open-and-shut case. A man was accused of forcibly confining and brutally assaulting a young woman named Tanya. And as long as Tanya made it to court to testify, Detective Leaver thought she'd have a good chance at a conviction.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Tanya's Trial- Documentary - Last fall, Detective Wendy Leaver had what she thought was an open-and-shut case. A man was accused of forcibly confining and brutally assaulting a young woman named Tanya. And as long as Tanya made it to court to testify, Detective Leaver thought she'd have a good chance at a conviction.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
July 16, 2009
Pt 1: Anti-Gang Legislation - Canada's anti-gang legislation has had quite a workout this week. On Monday July 13, 2009, a jury in British Columbia acquitted four members of the Hells Angels motorcycle club on charges of committing crimes for the benefit of a criminal organization. The decision was a blow to police, prosecutors and politicians. But there was a very different outcome in a courtroom in Toronto just three days later.
Pt 2: Rape of Berlin - A little over a year ago, the United Nations passed a resolution called, Women and Peace and Security- laying out actions countries are obliged to take to prevent sexual violence in war and punish those who commit it. But some say that resolution has done little -- or even nothing -- to stop such abuses. And to drive that point home Human Rights Watch is released a report this day about how members of the Congolese army have been committing rape with impunity.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Rape of Berlin - A little over a year ago, the United Nations passed a resolution called, Women and Peace and Security- laying out actions countries are obliged to take to prevent sexual violence in war and punish those who commit it. But some say that resolution has done little -- or even nothing -- to stop such abuses. And to drive that point home Human Rights Watch is released a report this day about how members of the Congolese army have been committing rape with impunity.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
July 14, 2009
Pt 1: Ponzi - No one is answering the phone this morning at Earl Jones Consultant and Administration Corporation. The firm, located on Montreal's West Island, has been vacant for more than a week. Jones' investors have been unable to track him down. And they're not sure where the money they gave him went either.
Pt 2: Moon Landing 40th Anniversary- We started this segment with some sound with how the earth's first manned adventure to another celestial body began, 40 years ago this week. The war in Vietnam was raging.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Moon Landing 40th Anniversary- We started this segment with some sound with how the earth's first manned adventure to another celestial body began, 40 years ago this week. The war in Vietnam was raging.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
July 10, 2009
Pt 1: Old Japantown - Tour - The Vancouver Japanese Language School has been buzzing with anticipation all week as students and teachers prepare their songs and decorations for the arrival of Japan's Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko. The school is located in the heart of Vancouver's downtown east-side, the poorest postal code in the country and a neighbourhood rife with drug dealers and addicts.
Pt 2: Peak Phosphourus - It's gardening season again ... Which means there are at least a few of you out there agonizing over the appropriate level of phosphorous for your tomatoes. And it turns out that simple act is a microcosm of a crucial dilemma for the world's food supply. Modern agriculture relies heavily on phosphorous fertilizer. It's mined from rock phosphate, a finite resource whose reserves are shrinking and controlled by just three countries -- Morocco, China and Russia.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Peak Phosphourus - It's gardening season again ... Which means there are at least a few of you out there agonizing over the appropriate level of phosphorous for your tomatoes. And it turns out that simple act is a microcosm of a crucial dilemma for the world's food supply. Modern agriculture relies heavily on phosphorous fertilizer. It's mined from rock phosphate, a finite resource whose reserves are shrinking and controlled by just three countries -- Morocco, China and Russia.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
July 06, 2009
Pt 1: Prairie Drought - Across the prairies, farmers are facing one of most severe droughts anyone can remember. Some say it's the worst in 50 years. And the effects are devastating. Many are already writing off their crops. Others wait anxiously for signs of rain, hoping they can avoid the same fate. The dry-spell is the worst in west-central Saskatchewan and central Alberta. But according to Canada's top weather man -- David Phillips from Environment Canada -- the prairies are parched, no matter where you look.
Pt 2: God's Land - Documentary - Forty years ago, a group of Canadian Mennonites packed up and headed for Bolivia. They went in search of good farm land and isolation. And that's what they got. But now, their quiet, comfortable existence is being threatened. Last January, Bolivians voted in favour of a new constitution and a series of new laws on land ownership proposed by the country's President, Evo Morales.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: God's Land - Documentary - Forty years ago, a group of Canadian Mennonites packed up and headed for Bolivia. They went in search of good farm land and isolation. And that's what they got. But now, their quiet, comfortable existence is being threatened. Last January, Bolivians voted in favour of a new constitution and a series of new laws on land ownership proposed by the country's President, Evo Morales.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
July 02, 2009
Pt 1: CIA in Iran - Tehran blames the unseen hand of Western intelligence for the uprising at the same time that U.S. President Barack Obama has been criticized for what some see as a hands off approach to Iran.
Pt 2: The Miracle at Springhill - This morning we replayed a documentary we first brought you on October 23rd of last year ... the fiftieth anniversary of the Springhill mining disaster. On October 23rd 1958 a series of shockwaves rumbled through the Number Two mine in Springhill, Nova Scotia, one of deepest coal mines in the world.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: The Miracle at Springhill - This morning we replayed a documentary we first brought you on October 23rd of last year ... the fiftieth anniversary of the Springhill mining disaster. On October 23rd 1958 a series of shockwaves rumbled through the Number Two mine in Springhill, Nova Scotia, one of deepest coal mines in the world.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
June 17, 2009
Pt 1: All-Day Kindergarten - This week, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty announced a plan to launch a full-day, fully funded and fully integrated child-care and kindergarten program and to do it starting in 2010.
Pt 2: Cruelty - Most of us would like to believe that cruelty is for others ... the sort of thing best left to psychopaths or genocidal warlords and the kind of thing we might not even be capable of.
Pt 3: Female Happiness - Kelley Ripa is Regis Philbin's co-host on the Regis and Kelley show and the modern-day "superwoman" in commercials for household products. In those commercials, Ms. Ripa successfully juggles work and family and looks good doing it. She is the effortless host of lavish dinner parties ... the happy wife of a square jawed husband ... the mother of cute, well-behaved kids. Oh, and she also has perfectly chiseled arms. All in all, she's pretty much guaranteed to make many women feel inadequate, angry and maybe even unhappy.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Cruelty - Most of us would like to believe that cruelty is for others ... the sort of thing best left to psychopaths or genocidal warlords and the kind of thing we might not even be capable of.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Female Happiness - Kelley Ripa is Regis Philbin's co-host on the Regis and Kelley show and the modern-day "superwoman" in commercials for household products. In those commercials, Ms. Ripa successfully juggles work and family and looks good doing it. She is the effortless host of lavish dinner parties ... the happy wife of a square jawed husband ... the mother of cute, well-behaved kids. Oh, and she also has perfectly chiseled arms. All in all, she's pretty much guaranteed to make many women feel inadequate, angry and maybe even unhappy.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
June 12, 2009
Pt 1: Swine Flu in the North - For the first time in 41 years, the world is facing a global flu epidemic. Yesterday, the World Health Organization raised its alert level for the H1N1 or swine flu virus from five to six because of the growing number of infections. There are close to three thousand confirmed cases here in Canada.
Pt 2: Peru Oil Standoff - We started this segment with some sound from earlier this week as security forces clashed with the mostly indigenous inhabitants of Peru's northern Amazon region.
Pt 3: Rubber Duckie Death - When the full weight of summer hits and the air quality - in many places - takes a dive because of pollution and smog ... we head indoors, seal up our windows and take refuge in the hermetically sealed bubbles of our homes.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Peru Oil Standoff - We started this segment with some sound from earlier this week as security forces clashed with the mostly indigenous inhabitants of Peru's northern Amazon region.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Rubber Duckie Death - When the full weight of summer hits and the air quality - in many places - takes a dive because of pollution and smog ... we head indoors, seal up our windows and take refuge in the hermetically sealed bubbles of our homes.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
June 10, 2009
Pt 1: NS NDP - After more than a century of Tory blue and Grit red, Nova Scotia is awash in orange this morning. Last night, NDP leader Darrell Dexter led his party to its first victory in the history of the province ... and the entire Atlantic region. The NDP took 31 of the province's 52 seats, giving it a majority government and making Darrell Dexter the Premier-designate of Nova Scotia. Darrell Dexter was in Halifax.
Pt 2: Wafa Sahnine - For the last six years, Wafa Sahnine has been waiting for a phone call telling her that her step-father, Abousfian Abdelrazik, is finally coming home. The last time they saw each other was March of 2003 when Abousfian Abdelrazik left for Sudan to visit his mother.
Pt 3: Geronimo - Skull & Bones - Even 100 years after his death, Geronimo's legacy is still highly contested, even among his descendants. Earlier this year, his great-grandson -- Harlyn Geronimo -- filed a lawsuit on behalf of some of Geronimo's descendants. They are seeking to repatriate Geronimo's remains.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Wafa Sahnine - For the last six years, Wafa Sahnine has been waiting for a phone call telling her that her step-father, Abousfian Abdelrazik, is finally coming home. The last time they saw each other was March of 2003 when Abousfian Abdelrazik left for Sudan to visit his mother.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Geronimo - Skull & Bones - Even 100 years after his death, Geronimo's legacy is still highly contested, even among his descendants. Earlier this year, his great-grandson -- Harlyn Geronimo -- filed a lawsuit on behalf of some of Geronimo's descendants. They are seeking to repatriate Geronimo's remains.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
June 8, 2009
Pt 1: Forestry Bailout - About 200 workers at the Fraser Papers sulphite mill in Edmundston, New Brunswick may very well be starting their last shift this morning. The mill usually closes down temporarily for routine maintenance around this time of year. But this year, Fraser Papers says that if its fortunes don't turn around significantly and quickly ... that shut-down could be permanent.
Pt 2: Polar Prom - Documentary - Prom season is upon us. Across the country, high school students have been busy hunting down the perfect dress, the right tuxedo and of course fretting over who they're going to walk in the door with.
Pt 3: Blame - Office Politics - Until last week, Jasmine MacDonnell was the press secretary for Natural Resources Minister Lisa Raitt. But then some government documents marked secret were left at a CTV office and Jasmine MacDonnell took the fall. And it raised voices in the House of Commons all last week.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Polar Prom - Documentary - Prom season is upon us. Across the country, high school students have been busy hunting down the perfect dress, the right tuxedo and of course fretting over who they're going to walk in the door with.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Blame - Office Politics - Until last week, Jasmine MacDonnell was the press secretary for Natural Resources Minister Lisa Raitt. But then some government documents marked secret were left at a CTV office and Jasmine MacDonnell took the fall. And it raised voices in the House of Commons all last week.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
June 5, 2009
Pt 1: Poetry in Canada - We started this segment with a a clip of Rollie Pemberton, better known as Cadence Weapon. He was named the poet laureate for the City of Edmonton last week. And given that virtually every other poet laureate in Canada comes from the print tradition, his selection seems like a bit of a shakeup -- or a shot in the arm -- for Canadian poetry. At least that's how Edmonton's Mayor Stephen Mandel sees it.
Pt 2: Lebanon Election - On Sunday, Lebanon will head to the polls in a national election with huge implications for one of the most volatile regions on earth. It is a tight race, where an odd alliance between a one-time Christian militia and the Islamic militants of Hezbollah are challenging the son of a murdered former Prime Minister.
Pt 3: Upper Canada Village - Talk Tape - Along the highway between Toronto and Montreal -- right near Cornwall, Ontario -- there is a sprawling, 60-acre tourist site called Upper Canada Village. Many of you will have heard of it. But judging by its attendance numbers, many of you haven't been there in a while.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Lebanon Election - On Sunday, Lebanon will head to the polls in a national election with huge implications for one of the most volatile regions on earth. It is a tight race, where an odd alliance between a one-time Christian militia and the Islamic militants of Hezbollah are challenging the son of a murdered former Prime Minister.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Upper Canada Village - Talk Tape - Along the highway between Toronto and Montreal -- right near Cornwall, Ontario -- there is a sprawling, 60-acre tourist site called Upper Canada Village. Many of you will have heard of it. But judging by its attendance numbers, many of you haven't been there in a while.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
June 2, 2009
Pt 1: Cdn/Us Healthcare - Shona Holmes' story is part of an advertisement by Patients United Now, a project run by the Americans for Prosperity Foundation ... a not-for-profit group that promotes limited government and free markets. The reason groups such as that are so interested in highlighting problems in the Canadian health care system is that the United States Congress is spending the next two months working on legislation to overhaul the U.S. health care system.
Pt 2: Weaning Cities Off Cars - People who live in Toronto like to think of their city as a dynamic, accommodating, multicultural metropolis. But close one lane of traffic on one downtown thoroughfare and people stop pulling their punches.
Pt 3: Weaning Cities Off Cars (cont'd) - All over the country now soccer season is kicking into high gear. But like any other sport, even "The Beautiful Game" can get ugly. Supportive parents start out encouraging their budding young Ronaldos. But some of them soon end up heaping abuse on coaches, referees and opposing players.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Weaning Cities Off Cars - People who live in Toronto like to think of their city as a dynamic, accommodating, multicultural metropolis. But close one lane of traffic on one downtown thoroughfare and people stop pulling their punches.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Weaning Cities Off Cars (cont'd) - All over the country now soccer season is kicking into high gear. But like any other sport, even "The Beautiful Game" can get ugly. Supportive parents start out encouraging their budding young Ronaldos. But some of them soon end up heaping abuse on coaches, referees and opposing players.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
May 27, 2009
Pt 1: North Korea Panel - As you've been hearing on the news, the latest out of North Korea is a threat to launch missile strikes against South Korea as the South agreed to join the U.S. in intercepting any ships suspected of carrying material related to North Korea's nuclear weapons program.
Pt 2: Gaia - We started this segment with a clip from the pitch for the CBC-sponsored campaign for one million acts of green. The idea is to encourage as many people as possible to take individual actions that -- when taken together -- would have a significant impact on the health of the planet.
Pt 3: Tanya's Trial - Last fall, Detective Wendy Leaver had what she thought was an open-and-shut case. A man was accused of forcibly confining and brutally assaulting a young woman named Tanya. And as long as Tanya made it to court to testify, Detective Leaver thought she'd have a good chance at a conviction.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Gaia - We started this segment with a clip from the pitch for the CBC-sponsored campaign for one million acts of green. The idea is to encourage as many people as possible to take individual actions that -- when taken together -- would have a significant impact on the health of the planet.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Tanya's Trial - Last fall, Detective Wendy Leaver had what she thought was an open-and-shut case. A man was accused of forcibly confining and brutally assaulting a young woman named Tanya. And as long as Tanya made it to court to testify, Detective Leaver thought she'd have a good chance at a conviction.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
May 25, 2009
Pt 1: Buy America - Ever since the United States Government approved a 787-Billion-dollar economic stimulus package, Canadian manufacturers have been on pins and needles. That's because the package includes a clause specifying that -- wherever possible -- the money the U.S. Government hands out should be spent on American-made products. When it was first signed into law, many Canadian manufacturers panicked and said the "Buy American" policy would lead to significant financial hardship and even job losses.
Pt 2: Oil - Well all roads lead to oil when it's cheap ... vacations are more affordable, fruit and vegetables from around the world are on our grocery shelves and all those cheap, imported electronics stay nice and cheap.
Pt 3: Beauty vs Kitsch - We started this segment with the song A Fifth of Beethoven by Walter Murphy and The Big Apple Band ... a disco re-interpretation of the first movement from Beethoven's Fifth Symphony.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Oil - Well all roads lead to oil when it's cheap ... vacations are more affordable, fruit and vegetables from around the world are on our grocery shelves and all those cheap, imported electronics stay nice and cheap.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Beauty vs Kitsch - We started this segment with the song A Fifth of Beethoven by Walter Murphy and The Big Apple Band ... a disco re-interpretation of the first movement from Beethoven's Fifth Symphony.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
May 21, 2009
Pt 1: Death of a GM Salesman - General Motors severed its ties with about 245 of its Canadian dealerships yesterday. In a series of e-mails, the company told the dealerships that it will not be renewing their licenses beyond October, 2010 ... a move that effectively shuts down more than a third of the 709 GM dealerships in Canada and could put 10,000 people out of work.
Pt 2: Rwandan War Crimes Trial - After two years and more than 1.5 million dollars, Judge André Denis is poised to make judicial history tomorrow. The Quebec Superior Court Judge is expected to hand down his decision in the trial of Desiré Munyaneza, the first person to be charged under Canada's Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act.
Pt 3: Letters - This is Thursday and our Friday Host Bob McKeown joined Anna Maria in studio for our weekly look at the mail.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Rwandan War Crimes Trial - After two years and more than 1.5 million dollars, Judge André Denis is poised to make judicial history tomorrow. The Quebec Superior Court Judge is expected to hand down his decision in the trial of Desiré Munyaneza, the first person to be charged under Canada's Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Letters - This is Thursday and our Friday Host Bob McKeown joined Anna Maria in studio for our weekly look at the mail.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
May 20, 2009
Pt 1: Tamil Diaspora - Today is a national holiday in Sri Lanka. In an address to the nation, the Sri Lankan president declared the holiday as a tribute to his military for crushing the final remnants of the Tamil Tigers and putting an end to the decades long civil war.
Pt 2: Al-Qaeda Watcher - Eight months after that act of terror on Islamabad's Marriott Hotel, there is still no conclusive evidence of who was behind the attack. But Pakistan's intelligence service was quick to blame Al Qaeda or one of its allied terror cells for the bombing. For governments around the world, that spectacular attack, was a reminder of how Osama Bin Laden's network of extremists continues to project its influence.
Pt 3: Mexico Water - While life seems to be returning to normal in Mexico City in the wake of the Swine flu outbreak, officials there are still urging people to be vigilant about hygiene. But extra cleaning and hand washing is straining the water supply in a city of more than 20 million people, already struggling with a serious water shortage.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Al-Qaeda Watcher - Eight months after that act of terror on Islamabad's Marriott Hotel, there is still no conclusive evidence of who was behind the attack. But Pakistan's intelligence service was quick to blame Al Qaeda or one of its allied terror cells for the bombing. For governments around the world, that spectacular attack, was a reminder of how Osama Bin Laden's network of extremists continues to project its influence.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Mexico Water - While life seems to be returning to normal in Mexico City in the wake of the Swine flu outbreak, officials there are still urging people to be vigilant about hygiene. But extra cleaning and hand washing is straining the water supply in a city of more than 20 million people, already struggling with a serious water shortage.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
May 15, 2009
Pt 1: Protests - Last Sunday, thousands of Tamil Canadians walked onto the Gardiner Expressway in downtown Toronto -- shutting down one of the busiest highways in the country.
Pt 2: Michael Jackson - Ever since he was 11 years old, Michael Jackson has been a certified pop music star. From his debut with the Jackson Five to the best-selling album of all time. Of course the years since then have been less thrilling for the King of Pop ... His bizarre and well-documented personal habits ... his brushes with the law including two new business-related lawsuits - filed just last week.
Pt 3: Afghan War Changing? - U.S. President Barack Obama came into office promising to get the United States out of a war it shouldn't be in Iraq and re-committed to one it should be be fightin in Afghanistan. But the man his administration has picked to lead the renewed Afghan campaign has had a recent career largely steeped in the Iraq war.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Michael Jackson - Ever since he was 11 years old, Michael Jackson has been a certified pop music star. From his debut with the Jackson Five to the best-selling album of all time. Of course the years since then have been less thrilling for the King of Pop ... His bizarre and well-documented personal habits ... his brushes with the law including two new business-related lawsuits - filed just last week.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Afghan War Changing? - U.S. President Barack Obama came into office promising to get the United States out of a war it shouldn't be in Iraq and re-committed to one it should be be fightin in Afghanistan. But the man his administration has picked to lead the renewed Afghan campaign has had a recent career largely steeped in the Iraq war.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
May 14, 2009
Pt 1: Sri Lanka - The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam remain cornered ... trapped in a shrinking five-square kilometre piece of land in Sri Lanka's northeast. And trapped alongside those fighters are an estimated 50,000 civilians.
Pt 2: Hubble & Science - Yesterday, the Canadarm aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis gingerly plucked the Hubble Space Telescope from the depths of space and maneuvered it into its payload bay, 560 kilometres above the Earth's surface. Now comes the delicate business of five separate space-walks to install new cameras and other equipment, followed by a series of complex repairs in what amounts to an orbiting garage.
Pt 3: Letters - It's Thursday and that's mail day and our Friday host Bob McKeown joined Anna Maria in studio to help with the mail.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Hubble & Science - Yesterday, the Canadarm aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis gingerly plucked the Hubble Space Telescope from the depths of space and maneuvered it into its payload bay, 560 kilometres above the Earth's surface. Now comes the delicate business of five separate space-walks to install new cameras and other equipment, followed by a series of complex repairs in what amounts to an orbiting garage.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Letters - It's Thursday and that's mail day and our Friday host Bob McKeown joined Anna Maria in studio to help with the mail.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
May 13, 2009
Pt 1: Mulroney - Why Care? - You'd think that the prospect of a former Prime Minister appearing before a commission of inquiry into some allegedly shady business deals would transfix the nation. But according to the latest poll from Nanos Research, that's not the case. The poll is accurate to plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. And among other things, it found that 45 per cent of Canadians said the inquiry was not a good use of taxpayer money while only 7 per cent thought it was.
Pt 2: Babylon - Tourism - The Hanging Gardens were just one of Ancient Babylon's many invaluable treasures. Four thousand years ago, Babylon was a vibrant city and an important trading centre on the Euphrates River, in what is now Iraq. It's ruler, Hammurabi, created one of the world's first written codes of law. Alexander The Great lived in Babylon's palaces. And ancient writers marveled at the city's imposing walls, grand gates and striking statues.
Pt 3: Drunkyards Walk -We started this segment with a scene from the movie version of Tom Stoppard's play, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. In it, the two characters stumble on a paradox -- With every toss of a coin, there is a 50-50 chance that it will come up heads. But to do that again and again and to have it come up heads again and again ... Well, that just seems to defy the odds. Even though the odds on any given toss are 50-50.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Babylon - Tourism - The Hanging Gardens were just one of Ancient Babylon's many invaluable treasures. Four thousand years ago, Babylon was a vibrant city and an important trading centre on the Euphrates River, in what is now Iraq. It's ruler, Hammurabi, created one of the world's first written codes of law. Alexander The Great lived in Babylon's palaces. And ancient writers marveled at the city's imposing walls, grand gates and striking statues.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Drunkyards Walk -We started this segment with a scene from the movie version of Tom Stoppard's play, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. In it, the two characters stumble on a paradox -- With every toss of a coin, there is a 50-50 chance that it will come up heads. But to do that again and again and to have it come up heads again and again ... Well, that just seems to defy the odds. Even though the odds on any given toss are 50-50.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
May 12, 2009
Pt 1: Pakistani Women Panel - As the fighting in Pakistan's Swat Valley rages on, hundreds-of-thousands of civilians are just trying to stay out of the cross-fire. At least 360,000 people have fled their homes since a military offensive that began last week.
Pt 2: Break a Terrorist - We started this segment with some sounds from Abu Musab Al Zarqawi's spectacularly bloody playbook. He was the chief of Al Qaeda in Iraq and responsible for blowing up the United Nations' headquarters in Baghdad that killed Sergio Viera de Mello. He was responsible for the beheading American contractor Nicholas Berg, and destroying the Golden Dome Mosque in Samarra. He also killed hundreds of civilians and coalition soldiers.
Pt 3: Obama and Gay Rights - We started this segment witha clip from a documentary about his life, gay rights activist Harvey Milk speaking in November of 1977... right after he became the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California. One year later, Harvey Milk was assassinated. But his message lived on.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Break a Terrorist - We started this segment with some sounds from Abu Musab Al Zarqawi's spectacularly bloody playbook. He was the chief of Al Qaeda in Iraq and responsible for blowing up the United Nations' headquarters in Baghdad that killed Sergio Viera de Mello. He was responsible for the beheading American contractor Nicholas Berg, and destroying the Golden Dome Mosque in Samarra. He also killed hundreds of civilians and coalition soldiers.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Obama and Gay Rights - We started this segment witha clip from a documentary about his life, gay rights activist Harvey Milk speaking in November of 1977... right after he became the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California. One year later, Harvey Milk was assassinated. But his message lived on.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
May 4, 2009
Pt 1: Health Workers - As you've been hearing on the news, pigs at an Alberta farm have caught the same swine flu strain that is affecting people in parts of Canada and across approximately 20 countries.
Pt 2: Virus Hunter - For thirty years, whenever a new virus popped up in the world, C.J. Peters took note. Quite often, he would take off after it, seeking out emerging infectious diseases to identify them, track them to their source and contain them. He is known to many as one of the scientists who fought the Ebola virus outbreak that was chronicled in the 1994 best seller The Hot Zone. C.J. Peters is a former U.S. Army Colonel and the former Chief Physician with the Special Pathogens Branch of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. He's also the author of Virus Hunter: Thirty Years of Battling Hot Viruses Around the World. C.J. Peters was in Houston, Texas.
Pt 3: Wild Blue - The blue whale is the largest animal to have ever lived on earth - bigger than dinosaurs. For those who have seen one, it's awe-inspiring but even though blue whales still live on planet earth, we don't know much more about them than we do about dinosaurs.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Virus Hunter - For thirty years, whenever a new virus popped up in the world, C.J. Peters took note. Quite often, he would take off after it, seeking out emerging infectious diseases to identify them, track them to their source and contain them. He is known to many as one of the scientists who fought the Ebola virus outbreak that was chronicled in the 1994 best seller The Hot Zone. C.J. Peters is a former U.S. Army Colonel and the former Chief Physician with the Special Pathogens Branch of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. He's also the author of Virus Hunter: Thirty Years of Battling Hot Viruses Around the World. C.J. Peters was in Houston, Texas.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Wild Blue - The blue whale is the largest animal to have ever lived on earth - bigger than dinosaurs. For those who have seen one, it's awe-inspiring but even though blue whales still live on planet earth, we don't know much more about them than we do about dinosaurs.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
May 1, 2009
Pt 1: Global Deal - We started this segment with a clip including the voices of United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, U.S. President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Stephen Harper ... all calling for global cooperation on climate change. That kind of talk should be music to Nicholas Stern's ears.
Pt 2: Sharing the Shelf - Sometime in the next two weeks, France is expected to lay an official claim to a larger portion of the continental shelf off the east coast of Canada. The part of the shelf in question could turn out to be rich in oil and natural gas reserves. And that would be a boon to the 6,500 people who live on St. Pierre and Miquelon, two tiny islands -- and French territories -- off the south coast of Newfoundland.
Pt 3: Taliban in Pakistan - The Pakistani military has begun a new offensive against the Taliban ... one it hoped it would never have to fight. Pakistani forces are trying to push back Taliban fighters who seized control of the Buner region in the country's north-west about 100 kilometres outside the capital, Islamabad.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Sharing the Shelf - Sometime in the next two weeks, France is expected to lay an official claim to a larger portion of the continental shelf off the east coast of Canada. The part of the shelf in question could turn out to be rich in oil and natural gas reserves. And that would be a boon to the 6,500 people who live on St. Pierre and Miquelon, two tiny islands -- and French territories -- off the south coast of Newfoundland.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Taliban in Pakistan - The Pakistani military has begun a new offensive against the Taliban ... one it hoped it would never have to fight. Pakistani forces are trying to push back Taliban fighters who seized control of the Buner region in the country's north-west about 100 kilometres outside the capital, Islamabad.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
November 13, 2008
Pt 1: Mellissa Fung - It is the richest city in the middle east a shimmering collection of glass and concrete rising out of the desert of the United Arab Emirates, an engineering marvel of man-made islands in decorative shapes sprinkled like a folly along its coast.
Pt 2: Mellissa Fung (Cont'd) - CBC reporter Mellissa Fung was kidnapped and held hostage for 28 days in Afghanistan. Yesterday, Anna Maria spoke with her about that experience, and we continued that conversation by asking Mellissa if she developed any kind of relationship with her kidnappers.
Pt 3: Mellissa Fung (Cont'd) - We concluded our conversation with Mellissa Fung. After she was freed, Mellissa was brought to the Afghan security offices in Kabul. Anna Maria started this part by asking her how she felt at that moment.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Mellissa Fung (Cont'd) - CBC reporter Mellissa Fung was kidnapped and held hostage for 28 days in Afghanistan. Yesterday, Anna Maria spoke with her about that experience, and we continued that conversation by asking Mellissa if she developed any kind of relationship with her kidnappers.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Mellissa Fung (Cont'd) - We concluded our conversation with Mellissa Fung. After she was freed, Mellissa was brought to the Afghan security offices in Kabul. Anna Maria started this part by asking her how she felt at that moment.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
November 12, 2008
Pt 1: Bailout Transparency - Since the financial crisis hit in September, it seems the United States economy is earning a bad rap over bailouts. You might remember the
original bailout price tag was pegged at $700 billion dollars. But as it starts to look more like 2 trillion dollars of U.S. taxpayer money is being spent, Americans are rhyming off a new word: transparency.
Pt 2: Avichay Sharon Feature - At any Israeli checkpoint, the sound of Palestinian protest speaks volumes about how an Israeli soldier stands at the line separating Israel and the Palestinian territories. And for Avichay Sharon, the fine line between war and peace has him asking questions about what's right and wrong.
Pt 3: The Changeling - The life and crimes of Canadian Gordon Stewart Northcott is the subject of a book writer Tony Mostrom is currently working on. He was in Los Angeles this morning.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Avichay Sharon Feature - At any Israeli checkpoint, the sound of Palestinian protest speaks volumes about how an Israeli soldier stands at the line separating Israel and the Palestinian territories. And for Avichay Sharon, the fine line between war and peace has him asking questions about what's right and wrong.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: The Changeling - The life and crimes of Canadian Gordon Stewart Northcott is the subject of a book writer Tony Mostrom is currently working on. He was in Los Angeles this morning.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
November 07, 2008
Pt 1: Mexican Drug War - The numbers are staggering. So far this year, nearly 4,000 Mexicans have died in drug-related violence. The Mexican Government is trying to crack down on the country's increasingly powerful and pervasive drug cartels.
Pt 2: Quebec Election - The fall of 2008 will go down as the autumn of elections. With national campaigns finally over in Canada and the United States, Quebecers are being asked to head to the polls on December 8th. And the issues sing a familiar refrain ... the economy, healthcare ... the economy, the environment ... and the economy. Oh, and since this is Quebec, sovereignty is always in the mix.
Pt 3: Ronald Wright: What is America - "Change" is the word on the lips of everyone who's followed the political fortunes of Barack Obama over the last two years. And now that's he's President-elect, change is the expectation.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Quebec Election - The fall of 2008 will go down as the autumn of elections. With national campaigns finally over in Canada and the United States, Quebecers are being asked to head to the polls on December 8th. And the issues sing a familiar refrain ... the economy, healthcare ... the economy, the environment ... and the economy. Oh, and since this is Quebec, sovereignty is always in the mix.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Ronald Wright: What is America - "Change" is the word on the lips of everyone who's followed the political fortunes of Barack Obama over the last two years. And now that's he's President-elect, change is the expectation.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
November 05, 2008
Pt 1: Obama Reaction - For the first time in American history, the next President of the United States will be an African American. And this morning, the American Dream -- the idea that anyone, regardless of their race, class or religion, might one day grow up to be President -- seems just a little more believable to a great many Americans.
Pt 2: American Reporter - This has been one of the most historic American elections in recent memory. And it's also been one of the most emotional. There were tears of joy, relief and grief. Across the United States, fans of both candidates gathered in groups -- too anxious to watch the results come in alone.
Pt 3: Reporter - So, let's say you're an American and you're in Moscow while the most historic election of your life is unfolding at home. Where do you go to watch the results? The Starlite Diner, of course. It's a little slice of 1950's Americana ... right down the road from the Kremlin. Vinyl booths, burgers and shakes. You know the kind of place.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: American Reporter - This has been one of the most historic American elections in recent memory. And it's also been one of the most emotional. There were tears of joy, relief and grief. Across the United States, fans of both candidates gathered in groups -- too anxious to watch the results come in alone.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Reporter - So, let's say you're an American and you're in Moscow while the most historic election of your life is unfolding at home. Where do you go to watch the results? The Starlite Diner, of course. It's a little slice of 1950's Americana ... right down the road from the Kremlin. Vinyl booths, burgers and shakes. You know the kind of place.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
October 27, 2008
Pt 1: Deficit Diagnosis - The experts all seem to agree that we are in the midst of dark times and can expect them to grow darker still. We're hearing the word deficit echo throughout the country as a sign that our revenues aren't what we hoped they would be and we'll have to spend more than we're taking in to keep the economic ship as we know it on an even keel.
Pt 2: Unlikely Soldiers - In the summer of 1943, two young Canadian men were sent on a secret and extremely dangerous mission into occupied France, part of a covert effort to stoke an uprising across Europe and end Nazi rule throughout the continent. The risk of capture was high, so both men carried suicide pills. Their life expectancy was short.
Pt 3: The Impact of These Unlikely Soldiers - In our last part, we heard the heroic and tragic story of Frank Pickersgill and Ken Macalister - two young, Canadian men sent to infiltrate Nazi-occupied France, who died in a cellar at Buchenwald Concentration Camp.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Unlikely Soldiers - In the summer of 1943, two young Canadian men were sent on a secret and extremely dangerous mission into occupied France, part of a covert effort to stoke an uprising across Europe and end Nazi rule throughout the continent. The risk of capture was high, so both men carried suicide pills. Their life expectancy was short.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: The Impact of These Unlikely Soldiers - In our last part, we heard the heroic and tragic story of Frank Pickersgill and Ken Macalister - two young, Canadian men sent to infiltrate Nazi-occupied France, who died in a cellar at Buchenwald Concentration Camp.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
October 24, 2008
Pt 1: An Obama Government - With just 11 days to go, many pundits -- and even some Republicans -- think it's going to take a miracle for John McCain to win this election. Some cite the Iraq war. Others blame the economy. And of course it's never easy to be up against a charismatic opponent with a short track record.
Pt 2: The Wrecking Crew - Back in 2004, Thomas Frank wrote a book called, What's the Matter with Kansas. In it, he argued that the people of that state -- and many Americans elsewhere -- consistently vote against their best interests when they vote Republican. Today, Thomas Frank is back with a new book. It's called Wrecking Crew: How Conservatives Rule. And according to him, the short answer is not very well. Thomas Frank was in Washington this morning to explain why.
Pt 3: Economy Fall Out - If you want to know what's on the minds of American voters, a phone call to Mike Rosen is a good place to start. But if Americans were already worried about the state of their economy, Alan Greenspan must have pushed them right over the edge yesterday.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: The Wrecking Crew - Back in 2004, Thomas Frank wrote a book called, What's the Matter with Kansas. In it, he argued that the people of that state -- and many Americans elsewhere -- consistently vote against their best interests when they vote Republican. Today, Thomas Frank is back with a new book. It's called Wrecking Crew: How Conservatives Rule. And according to him, the short answer is not very well. Thomas Frank was in Washington this morning to explain why.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Economy Fall Out - If you want to know what's on the minds of American voters, a phone call to Mike Rosen is a good place to start. But if Americans were already worried about the state of their economy, Alan Greenspan must have pushed them right over the edge yesterday.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
October 22, 2008
Pt 1: The Trial of Abou-Elmaati, Almalki and Nureddin - Ahmad Abou-Elmaati, Abdullah Almalki and Muayyed Nureddinthree are three Canadian men who were all separately imprisoned and tortured in Syria.
Pt 2: The Alberta Tar Sands and The Economy - There's a patch of boreal forest in Northern Alberta that's about the size of Florida. Depending on who you talk to, it's either Canada's yellow brick road to prosperity or our very own highway to hell. The Alberta tar sands has transformed the Canadian economy. And it's re-shaping the face of the earth across Northern Alberta.
Pt 3: Aabid Khan's Case -Aabid Khan is a young British citizen of Pakistani origin. He's from Yorkshire, in northern England and he's currently serving a twelve-year sentence for violating Britain's anti-terrorism laws.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: The Alberta Tar Sands and The Economy - There's a patch of boreal forest in Northern Alberta that's about the size of Florida. Depending on who you talk to, it's either Canada's yellow brick road to prosperity or our very own highway to hell. The Alberta tar sands has transformed the Canadian economy. And it's re-shaping the face of the earth across Northern Alberta.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Aabid Khan's Case -Aabid Khan is a young British citizen of Pakistani origin. He's from Yorkshire, in northern England and he's currently serving a twelve-year sentence for violating Britain's anti-terrorism laws.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
October 20, 2008
Pt 1: Poisoned Lawyer - Later today, French Police may say whether they believe a Russian lawyer was poisoned in the French city of Strasbourg last week. But that's just the beginning of the intrigue. The lawyer in question is Karinna Moskalenko. She was representing the family of Anna Politkovskaya, a Russian journalist and one of the most scathing critics of Vladimir Putin until she was shot to death in Moscow two years ago.
Pt 2: Dead Zones - Just before the Beijing Summer Games opened in August, it looked as though the Olympic motto for sailing would be "thicker, greener, slimier."
Pt 3: Contact Charlie - Seven years after the fall of the Taliban, Afghanistan is still a dangerous and unstable place. But according to Chris Wattie, if it hadn't been for a company of Canadian soldiers, things could have been much worse.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Dead Zones - Just before the Beijing Summer Games opened in August, it looked as though the Olympic motto for sailing would be "thicker, greener, slimier."
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Contact Charlie - Seven years after the fall of the Taliban, Afghanistan is still a dangerous and unstable place. But according to Chris Wattie, if it hadn't been for a company of Canadian soldiers, things could have been much worse.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Read more »
October 17, 2008
Pt 1: Blaming Dion - The votes are in, the knives are out, and if there's one question facing Liberal Leader Stephane Dion it's this: "Should I stay or should I go..."
Pt 2: Camel Jockeys - Documentary - For the wealthy, camel-racing is a great sport. Betting on large lumbering beasts as they thunder around a track can be entertaining and bring a handsome profit. But for some of the jockeys, it can be torture. They are often young boys snatched from their homes and forced to ride the camels boys who become pawns in an illegal trade of tiny, human cargo.
Pt 3: Kangaroos For Climate Change - Environmentalists in Australia have come up with an interesting pitch for fighting global warming - eat more kangaroo. It works like this. If Australians are raising and eating kangaroo, they'll be raising and eating less sheep and cattle. That's important because cows and sheep produce methane when they burp and fart. Methane is a greenhouse gas and all that flatulence is a significant contributor to Australia's greenhouse gas emissions.
Read more »
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 2: Camel Jockeys - Documentary - For the wealthy, camel-racing is a great sport. Betting on large lumbering beasts as they thunder around a track can be entertaining and bring a handsome profit. But for some of the jockeys, it can be torture. They are often young boys snatched from their homes and forced to ride the camels boys who become pawns in an illegal trade of tiny, human cargo.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
Pt 3: Kangaroos For Climate Change - Environmentalists in Australia have come up with an interesting pitch for fighting global warming - eat more kangaroo. It works like this. If Australians are raising and eating kangaroo, they'll be raising and eating less sheep and cattle. That's important because cows and sheep produce methane when they burp and fart. Methane is a greenhouse gas and all that flatulence is a significant contributor to Australia's greenhouse gas emissions.
Download Flash Player to view this content.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
October 10, 2008
Pt 1: Battle of the Ecos - For almost two years, the environment -- and especially climate change -- has been near the top of the list of Canadians' concerns. But now, the American economy is on the verge of collapse and it's threatening to take the rest of the world's markets down with it. There's even discussion about how to bail out Canadian banks, should it come to that. In the midst of this, politicians are sensing panic and now the economy is THE issue in the federal election campaign.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Nowtopia - For North American political junkies, this fall is Nirvana.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: Bird Life International - In this part we listen to David Suzuki's meeting with Rob Butler in Stanley Park. Mr. Butler works for Bird Studies Canada. He's also the Bird Atlas coordinator.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Nowtopia - For North American political junkies, this fall is Nirvana.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: Bird Life International - In this part we listen to David Suzuki's meeting with Rob Butler in Stanley Park. Mr. Butler works for Bird Studies Canada. He's also the Bird Atlas coordinator.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
October 8, 2008
Pt 1: Canadian Economy - It's been another turbulent week for the global economy. Asian markets continued to tumble again today. European banks are taking a beating as investors worry about their solvency.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Rogers' Autobiography - About 18 months ago, Ted Rogers began warning the executives at his company that there was a financial storm coming. Unfortunately, he was all too right. After more than five decades of business experience, Ted Rogers has learned a thing or two about surviving tough economic times ... and thriving. As the CEO of Rogers Communications, he turned a cable company into one of the largest media corporations in Canada. His new autobiography is called Relentless: The True Story of The Man Behind Rogers Communications and he's with me in Toronto. Good morning!
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: PM Biographers - With less than a week until election day, we're going to take a look this morning at a key ingredient for any successful prime minister -- leadership.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Rogers' Autobiography - About 18 months ago, Ted Rogers began warning the executives at his company that there was a financial storm coming. Unfortunately, he was all too right. After more than five decades of business experience, Ted Rogers has learned a thing or two about surviving tough economic times ... and thriving. As the CEO of Rogers Communications, he turned a cable company into one of the largest media corporations in Canada. His new autobiography is called Relentless: The True Story of The Man Behind Rogers Communications and he's with me in Toronto. Good morning!
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: PM Biographers - With less than a week until election day, we're going to take a look this morning at a key ingredient for any successful prime minister -- leadership.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
October 6, 2008
Pt 1: Julie Couillard - It's a story that has got it all ... Sex, violence, political intrigue. But for Julie Couillard -- the woman at the centre of the story -- it's about her life.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Medical Officers - Five-and-a-half years ago, when Torontonians -- and indeed many Canadians -- were wracked with anxiety over the SARS outbreak, they looked to the late Sheela Basrur for information and reassurance. She was Toronto's Medical Officer of Health and people came to rely on her as an authoritative voice they could trust, someone who was clearly in charge.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: Sri Lanka Military - One of Asia's longest running civil wars may be coming to an end. Sri Lankan military forces are within three kilometres of the headquarters of the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and now say military victory is in sight.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Medical Officers - Five-and-a-half years ago, when Torontonians -- and indeed many Canadians -- were wracked with anxiety over the SARS outbreak, they looked to the late Sheela Basrur for information and reassurance. She was Toronto's Medical Officer of Health and people came to rely on her as an authoritative voice they could trust, someone who was clearly in charge.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: Sri Lanka Military - One of Asia's longest running civil wars may be coming to an end. Sri Lankan military forces are within three kilometres of the headquarters of the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and now say military victory is in sight.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
October 3, 2008
Pt 1: Premiers Panel - Off the top of the show, we saw how last night's federal leaders' debate sounded to some poli sci students from Memorial University. They watched the debate at the Breezeway Bar here in St. John's.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Jeff Skoll - An Inconvenient Truth ... Charlie Wilson's War ... Good Night and Good Luck ... and North Country. Those are four Hollywood films that tackle social issues with political consequences. And each one of them is funded by Participant Media, a production company based in Beverly Hills that backs "movies with a message."
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: Youth Panel #2 - In Part 2 of this day's edition of The Current, the discussion was focused on ways to get young people engaged in politics.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Jeff Skoll - An Inconvenient Truth ... Charlie Wilson's War ... Good Night and Good Luck ... and North Country. Those are four Hollywood films that tackle social issues with political consequences. And each one of them is funded by Participant Media, a production company based in Beverly Hills that backs "movies with a message."
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: Youth Panel #2 - In Part 2 of this day's edition of The Current, the discussion was focused on ways to get young people engaged in politics.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
September 29, 2008
Pt 1: Native Issues - About half of all aboriginal Canadians live on less than 10,000 dollars a year. Unemployment among natives is three times the national rate. And Statistics Canada estimates that more than half of all native children live in poverty and that three-quarters of them drop out of school before finishing Grade 12.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Six O'Clock in Alabama - Documentary - Over the summer, the United Nations leveled a stunning allegation against the state of Alabama. According to the UN, state officials are "strikingly indifferent" to the risk of executing innocent convicts and may have already sent innocent people to their deaths.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: Bush Stopped Drinking - On July 6th, 1986, George Bush quit drinking for good.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Six O'Clock in Alabama - Documentary - Over the summer, the United Nations leveled a stunning allegation against the state of Alabama. According to the UN, state officials are "strikingly indifferent" to the risk of executing innocent convicts and may have already sent innocent people to their deaths.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: Bush Stopped Drinking - On July 6th, 1986, George Bush quit drinking for good.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
September 26, 2008
Pt 1: Election Panel - "It's the economy stupid." Those famous words from former US president Bill Clinton couldn't be more appropriate today.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Phone-a-Friend - Mitt Romney lost his bid for his country's top job, then got passed over as second in command. But he's still seen by many Americans as the man who should have been. The former Massachusetts Governor lost the Republican Presidential nomination to John McCain then got beat out by Sarah Palin for the Vice Presidential bid. So he's watching the U.S. election -- and the country's economic meltdown -- from a unique vantage point.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: Tax Reform - In today's jittery economic environment, finding investors willing to put cash into the Canadian economy can be a challenge.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Phone-a-Friend - Mitt Romney lost his bid for his country's top job, then got passed over as second in command. But he's still seen by many Americans as the man who should have been. The former Massachusetts Governor lost the Republican Presidential nomination to John McCain then got beat out by Sarah Palin for the Vice Presidential bid. So he's watching the U.S. election -- and the country's economic meltdown -- from a unique vantage point.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: Tax Reform - In today's jittery economic environment, finding investors willing to put cash into the Canadian economy can be a challenge.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
September 11, 2008
Pt 1: NDP Leader - Jack Layton - On the first day of the election campaign, Jack Layton said that if Stephen Harper was going to quit his job, he was going to apply for it. So consider this a job interview.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Bottlemania - It bubbles out of the earth for free. Huge multinational companies make billions serving our unquenchable thirst for it. Activists call it the very essence of environmental ruin. And politicians worry about our addiction to something that puts such an immense strain on our cities.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: Letters - Thursday is mail day here at The Current and Jan Wong is here to help me sort through what you've sent us. She's an author and a journalist and she's back this week as our Friday host.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Bottlemania - It bubbles out of the earth for free. Huge multinational companies make billions serving our unquenchable thirst for it. Activists call it the very essence of environmental ruin. And politicians worry about our addiction to something that puts such an immense strain on our cities.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: Letters - Thursday is mail day here at The Current and Jan Wong is here to help me sort through what you've sent us. She's an author and a journalist and she's back this week as our Friday host.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
September 9, 2008
Pt 1: Killed Bills - When Canada's 39th Parliament was officially dissolved on Sunday, it left behind some unfinished business. Specifically, 35 bills that are now in a kind of legislative purgatory. Among them is Bill C-61, the Digital Copyright Bill. If passed, it would have given independent artists more rights over their intellectual property in the digital realm. Duncan McKie explains it. He's the CEO of the Canadian Independent Record Production Association.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Ice Cartel - Yes, you heard right. I'm talking about ice, baby - the packaged stuff for sale at corner stores and gas stations, the cubes you use to fill up a picnic cooler or a bath tub of beer.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: The Forsaken - The idea of moving from one country to another in search of work is, by now, almost second nature. But back in the 1930s, that kind of mobility ended up destroying thousands of lives. And yet, it's a story few of us even know about. It was during the Great Depression when tens-of-thousands of Americans -- and also many Canadians -- moved to Stalin's Russia in search of work and a better life.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 2: Ice Cartel - Yes, you heard right. I'm talking about ice, baby - the packaged stuff for sale at corner stores and gas stations, the cubes you use to fill up a picnic cooler or a bath tub of beer.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Pt 3: The Forsaken - The idea of moving from one country to another in search of work is, by now, almost second nature. But back in the 1930s, that kind of mobility ended up destroying thousands of lives. And yet, it's a story few of us even know about. It was during the Great Depression when tens-of-thousands of Americans -- and also many Canadians -- moved to Stalin's Russia in search of work and a better life.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Read more »
Air Times
CBC
| Network | Times |
|---|---|
| Radio One | Weekdays at 8:37 a.m. (9:07 NT) |
| The Current Review: Weekdays at 8 p.m. (8:30 p.m. NT) | |
| Sirius 137 | Weekdays at 8 a.m. ET |
Featured Audio
Please download the latest version of Flash Player to view this content.
- Sort By:
- Latest
- Most Listened
Stay Connected
