Saturday Extra

Arthur Mutambara SUMMARY: Arthur Mutambara, leader of the breakaway fraction of the Movement for Democratic Change, is the forth player in talks in Zimbabwe which many hope will culminate in a national unity government. BHP results SUMMARY: BHP is the world's biggest miner, and a business that many of us have long known as 'The Big Australian'. As the commodities boom has gathered pace, the term 'big' almost undersells the scope of the company's operations, or its profit. It's annual results are due out on Monday and expectations are for a net profit in excess of 17 billion Australian dollars. David Malouf SUMMARY: One of the descriptions many of us would least want to have attributed to us is that we were naive. There is something terribly exposing and suggestive of foolishness to be judged naive, it's indeed the very opposite of experienced. Brazil SUMMARY: In 2001, the chief economist for Goldman Sachs, Jim O´Neill coined the term BRICs to describe Brazil, Russia, India and China. By 2050, these rising markets would steer the global economy. Of course, the international community laughed at the inclusion of Brazil. "I was told that I must have put the B in BRICs to make the acronym sound better," he told Newsweek magazine. That was then. Today Brazilians are just as surprised as the international community at their biggest economic expansion in thirty years. Kasztner's Train SUMMARY: On a Friday in June 1944 an extraordinary event happened in a Budapest railway station. On this day Rezso Kasztner secured the safe passage of over 1,500 Jews to neutral Switzerland. Hungary was occupied by the Nazis and the final solution had reached its apex, but Kasztner had managed to strike a deal of goods for human life. Movies with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY:

Jacob Zuma's Future SUMMARY: South Africa reached something of a watershed moment this week - at least in the political career of the man who could be South Africa's next President, Jacob Zuma. Earlier this week the President of the African National Congress, Jacob Zuma sought to have 16 serious charges against him dismissed. But the judge Chris Nicholson says he will make his ruling in September on whether Mr Zuma's corruption trial will go ahead. Mr Zuma claims he is the victim of a political conspiracy and his many supporters have threatened unrest if he is jailed for corruption. Dividend risk SUMMARY: The forecasts for profit downgrades are coming thick and fast, and with the reporting season about to get underway, the speculation about bad numbers will is reaching a crescendo. For the big banks it´s believed both Westpac and the Commonwealth will report okay results, but the NAB and ANZ will report profit downgrades due to their exposure to the US credit market. Of course the great appeal for many investors in holding bank stocks, is that they all pay a very healthy franked, or tax free, dividend - and right now that dividend is in some instances pushing 10 percent. But it´s not just the banks that pay dividends, Telstra is also a famous dividend stock and there are many others. But does the current global crisis point to a reduction in dividends on shares, and if so could we see dividends, the bread and butter of the sharemarket investor, being cut back. Emissions Trading SUMMARY: Is the argument about Australia becoming uncompetitive because of an emissions trading scheme correct? The Political Panel SUMMARY: Dr Sharman Stone and Dr Geoff Gallop discuss the latest developments in federal politics. The Olympic Games SUMMARY: The Opening ceremony is out of the way and it's game on for the Beijing Olympics. Wherever the games are held the opening and closing ceremonies are always a heady combination of grandeur and tack. So how did China fare in its efforts to convery the olympic spirit to the rest of the world? Film with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY: Jason di Rosso reviews Stop-Loss. It's American director Kimberly Peirce's new film about the US government's 'back door draft' policy to address troop shortages. Also, Pineapple Express, a comic buddy movie starring James Franco and Seth Rogen.

The death of financial deregulation? SUMMARY: In the aftermath of the sub-prime crisis in the United States, there is a push for greater financial regulation. Some of the key players were formally avid proponents of deregulation. Does it spell the end of deregulation in the US? Credit reporting SUMMARY: Some in the financial sector, are arguing that current limits on access to personal credit records mean that both lenders and individuals bear unnecessary risk of falling on financial hardship. The school of thought is that changes to existing rules on exactly what information lenders are privy too would improve risk assessment measures - So better protection for us and the banks and other businesses that lend us money for credit cards, personal loans and the like. But could greater access to our records actually increase credit risk, and could ultimately disadvantage many borrowers, particularly those with limited means? Gordon Brown's political future. SUMMARY: British Prime Minister Gordon Brown is trying to cling on as PM, but he faces a difficult few weeks. The headlines in the British press say it all - `The week that brought Gordon Brown to the brink´, `Can he survive´ and `Is Brown seriously at risk of axe?´ Some Labour insiders are predicting a leadership challenge as early as the end of this month. Rail boom SUMMARY: Rail has for many years now been the poor cousin to the road when it comes to the business of moving goods from A to B. For most products, with the possible exception of coal and iron ore, rail simply can´t compete with the lower costs associated with trucking. But has the wheel started to turn? In the face of spiralling fuel costs, rail is making something of a comeback, and nowhere is this happening faster that in the United States. Clearing the air in China SUMMARY: Pitched as the Green Olympics, organisers in Beijing are on an environmental overhaul to try and clear the smog that is often two or three times the maximum allowed by the World Health Organisation. Film with Julie Rigg SUMMARY: Julie reviews The Bank Job and When did you last see your father?. This film stars Juliet Stevenson and Colin Firth in an adaptation of the poet Blake Morrison's 1993 memoir of his larger-than-life GP father.

Cambodia SUMMARY: Cambodians go to the polls tomorrow and it is not difficult to predict the election outcome. In fact it hasn´t been difficult to predict the outcome since 1985. By all accounts the Prime Minister, or as he is better known among most Cambodians, `the one-eyed, chain smoking, strongman of Khmer´, Hun Sen, will continue his hold on the country. NAB SUMMARY: The National Australia Bank has announced it is increasing its expected losses on debt-related investments to more than $1 billion. What could this mean for US and Australian financial markets? Allan Jones - Getting off the Grid SUMMARY: In the early 1990s engineer Allan Jones set the town of Woking on the path of independence from the national grid. It was a move that saved customers money and radically reduced carbon emissions. He is now trying to repeat the same success for the City of London. Could it work in Australia? India's Middle Class SUMMARY: There are many interesting dimensions to Indian politics and India´s poor are highly politicised. But has India's middle class become disengaged from the political process? Some argue that politics for the middle class is now an intellectual preoccupation, not an urgent ethical imperative. So what it could it mean for democracy in India? Travellers Tales - Colombia SUMMARY: Colombia is one of the most dangerous places in the world and has been ravaged by years of violent civil conflict. Australian Matthew Thompson was living what he calls an unremarkable life but longed for a journey where he would be pushed to the edge. This is why he flew to Colombia. Film with Julie Rigg SUMMARY: Julie reviews the X Files: I Want to Believe and The Savages. The Savages stars Laura Linney and Phillip Seymour Hoffman and is about an estranged brother and sister who in mid life find they have to care for their father, who has dementia.

Pakistan SUMMARY: The Taliban have virtually taken over the North Western Frontier Province - the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan. There has been an influx of jihadists entering Pakistan, making it a more popular destination for extremists than Iraq. And the 100 day old government in Islamabad, seems already paralysed. Not so super SUMMARY: The reality of what the global sharemarket downturn means to you and I is about to be spelled out in no uncertain terms. Australia´s 10 million odd workers will soon start receiving their superannuation annual statements, documents that in recent years have trumpeted consistent double digit returns. Yet in the financial year just ended we should prepare ourselves for negative returns, in excess of minus 10 percent in some cases. But could this gloomy forecast might have a silver lining. After years of excess a bad year like this could provoke us into better engaging with our superannuation - thinking more about the returns we get, who´s managing our money and importantly how much they´re charging us for the privilege? Does the Murray-Darling have a future? SUMMARY: There´s been more bad news on the state of the once mighty Murray-Darling. Last week the Murray-Darling Basin Commission announced that last month´s inflows were the lowest on record for the month of June. The federal government says it will spend billions on new projects, but unless the big dry breaks, is there much that can really be done to enliven the Murray Darling? Lebanon SUMMARY: Thousands in Lebanon have attended the funerals of eight Hezbollah militants returned to Lebanon from Israel. Is this militant group going from strength to strength or is there a tendency to overstate their influence? Chasing the Pope SUMMARY: It´s World Youth Day, and depending on who you ask, anything between 125 thousand and six trillion catholics are in Sydney. Catholics are close to a sixth of the world´s population and they form the largest religious grouping in Australia. Paradoxically charting their progress this week, Australia´s smallest group - or close to it - the Chaser team from ABC TV Film with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY: Jason reviews 'The Dark Knight' - the new Batman movie with Heath Ledger playing The Joker. He also takes a look at 'Salute' - a documentary on Australian sprinter Peter Norman, the white man in the iconic Black Power salute image from the 1968 Mexico Olympics.

Thailand SUMMARY: Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's trial against corruption charges began this week, his US $2.1 billion in assets have been frozen, three of his lawyers have been arrested for trying to bribe the judge and the former Prime Minister has been banned from leaving the country. Credit cards SUMMARY: The number of individuals being declared bankrupt is the highest level in ten years and credit card usage is becoming an increasing factor. This is why the Federal Government is reviewing how lenders approve credit. Michael Marmot SUMMARY: Professor Marmot is a leading international researcher on 'health inequities'. Poor health outcomes are 'not confirmed to people in poverty', many factors like chances in early life, levels of education and housing, and quality of work. Nancy Sherman SUMMARY: Since the invasion of Iraq there has been a very live debate around the ethics of this particular conflict. Nancy Sherman explores the moral dilemmas faced by US troops fighting in Iraq. Do these dilemmas differ from those faced by troops in other theatres of war? Kate Jennings - St Petersburg SUMMARY: Kate Jennings has been to, and fallen for, the great city of St.Petersburg in Russia. Film with Julie Rigg SUMMARY: Julie reviews Mamma Mia with Colin Firth and Meryl Streep.

Asian Contagion SUMMARY: In the face of the rapid rise of China, the Asian economic meltdown of 1997 feels like a very long time ago indeed. A decade on from that upheaval, there are signs that inflation is once more becoming a major problem for some Asian nations. In Vietnam the inflation rate is now 27 percent, while in India Inflation is now at a 13-year high , as the rising cost of food and oil continue to pressure prices. Indonesia and parts what many call west Asia, Saudi Arabia and the various oil producing emirates, are also starting to feel the heat of rising prices and economic overheating. But do these pressures suggest a meltdown, or is that unlikely given China remains, thus far, relatively stable? Combating terrorist cells SUMMARY: As news filtered in on plans for an attack at a popular cafe in West Sumatra, international delegates gathered in Canberra to discuss strategies and what progress has been made in dismantling terrorism cells. Susan Greenfield SUMMARY: Susan Greenfield speculates on what the future might hold. She turns her attention to our malleable brains and asks, how may new technologies change brain function and therefore perhaps personality? Le Tour SUMMARY: Cadel Evans knows better than most just how heartbreaking the Tour De France can be, the cycling classic that is the toughest endurance test in world sport. Last year he rode for 3 weeks, through 21 stages and almost 3,500 kilometres - and lost by less than 30 seconds. This year he´s the favourite to win. If the race has a modern day legend, then it´s Lance Armstrong, the American cancer survivor who, starting in 1999, would win the race an unprecedented 7 times in a row. Johan Bruyneel was there right through that incredible run, he´s was the Director of Armstrong´s team from 1999 right through to his final victory in 2005. It was Bruyneel who assembled the riders, the bikes and put together the strategy that would turn Armstrong from something of a rough diamond into perhaps the greatest cyclist of all time. Film with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY: This week, The Band's Visit, an Israeli film about an Egyptian police band that gets waylaid in a backwater town, by writer/director Eran Kolirin. Also the new Errol Morris documentary, Standard Operating Procedure.

Palestine Inside Out SUMMARY: Saree Makdisi suggests that the only way to solve the bitter conflict between Palestinians and Israelis is to forget the two-state solution and create a single secular state. Bottlemania SUMMARY: Bottled water is about as ubiquitous as any consumer product on earth these days. But is the whole bottled water phenomenon a triumph of marketing over commonsense? What are the actual health benefits of a product that can cost 10,000 times as much as tap water? Carr and Beattie SUMMARY: Is presidential candidate Barack Obama too liberal for America? Walter Mondale, Michael Dukakis and George McGovern, were regarded as being progressive and failed to in their bid for the presidency. Will this be Obama's fate? Managing the Boom SUMMARY: The Kimberley region of WA is an area that contains several national parks as well internationally significant galleries of indigenous rock art. The Kimberley also contains valuable deposits of minerals, precious stones such as diamonds and large reserves of natural gas. So what are the competing interests of employment, development and environmental and cultural heritage? Reappraisals: Reflections on the Forgotten Century SUMMARY: Professor Tony Judt suggests that we have entered an `age of forgetting´ - particularly in relation to the twentieth century. So are those who forget the lessons of history doomed to repeat them?

Nick Sherry SUMMARY: What ideas are driving Senator Nick Sherry to re-think the way we `do´ finance in Australia? Mark Leonard - What does China Think? SUMMARY: According to Mark Leonard intellectual life in China is booming. China has numerous think tanks full of complex, lively argument and they are watching other cultures closely. Each major think tank had devised its own CNP index, measuring the `comprehensive national power´ of different countries and ranking China against them on the basis of economic, military and political power. Giles Milton - Smyrna SUMMARY: The Turkish city of Izmir on the Mediterranean seaboard was once called Smyrna, one of the wealthiest cities in the Ottoman Empire. In September 1922 the victorious Turkish calvary rode into the city after three years of occupation by Greek forces. Two weeks later, Smyrna became, according to Giles Milton, 'hell on earth'. Films with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY: Jason reviews Mongol - the story of the early life of Genghis Khan who was a slave before going on to conquer half the world in 1206. And Daniele Luchetti´s My Brother is an Only Child - an Italian coming of age film about two brothers from opposite sides of the political spectrum.

Karzai's Afghanistan SUMMARY: Six years ago there was hope in Afghanistan - the Taliban had been ousted and the country was in shambles - but there wasa new leader - charismatic, articulate, larger than life and backed by the US. Hamid Karzai, the United States said, was the man who would solve Afghanistan´s many problems. But many Afghans, as well as the international community are not so sure any more. Fuel Cell Futures SUMMARY: Fuel Cells can be used to generate power for heating and electricity in the home, and it's this application which right now shows the most promise, albeit with significant commercial and technological challenges. Babcock and Brown SUMMARY: This week shares in the investment bank Babcock and Brown plunged. On Thursday large institutional hedge funds started selling the stock because of escalating fears the bank may have trouble paying debts. The bank is $50 billion in debt and holds a set of sensitive infrastructure assets around the world. Analysts say technically the company could fold, but it is unlikely. Indonesia SUMMARY: A new report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute stresses that Indonesia today is a country with democratic governance and that is what Australia should focus on as we improve our interests in South-East Asia. Tony Abbott on World Youth Day SUMMARY: Next month Sydney will host World Youth Day. During the six-day festival hundreds of thousands of international and interstate travellers will arrive in Sydney to hear Pope Benedict XVI. What may Pope Benedict have to say to Australia about democracy, western culture and Christianity? Chris Turner - The Geography of Hope SUMMARY: Chris Turner´s book The Geography of Hope: A Tour of the World We Need is an account of successful environmental innovation from around the world.

Japan SUMMARY: Now here´s a prediction about the future that definitely did NOT come true. Back in 1991, American Political Scientist, Samuel Huntington said the next Cold War would be between the US and Japanese economic systems "and Americans have good reasons to be concerned about the consequences of doing poorly in that competition". So how do we understand the cycles of growth followed by stagnation that have been a feature of Japanese politics and economy for the last two decades? The Bike Boom? SUMMARY: Unlike the Europeans, and many parts of Asia, cycling in Australia has largely been a leisure activity rather than a mainstream form of transport for commuting to work or university. Could that be about to change? In a somewhat ironic twist one of Australia's largest retailers of automotive accessories has announced that it will roll out 50 specialist bike stores nationwide. The Super Cheap Auto group is behind the deal, one which involves the purchase of a Victorian chain of bike stores called Goldcross. Peter Birtles says there's an untapped market somewhere between specialist bike stores and the bikes you might buy at K Mart or Big W. The Hillary Debate SUMMARY: Is Hillary Clinton the architect of her own demise, or is she the victime of latent sexism that still flows just under the surface of American social and political life? As she prepares to concede defeat to Barack Obama, its worth asking whether the American public will ever be ready for a woman in The White House. Political panel SUMMARY: The Mersey beat goes on... SUMMARY: In the 1990s the European Union recognised Liverpool as one of the most deprived and depressed areas in Europe. This is why, when Liverpool was nominated as Europe´s Capital of Culture for 2008, some baulked. But for others there is a sense of possibility. Film with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY: Jason reviews Sex and the City, starring Sarah Jessica Parker, and The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian.

Cluster bombs SUMMARY: More than 109 countries have been represented at a meeting to ban cluster ammunition in Dublin this week. Until recently the Rudd government stood in the way of the initiative. Burma - Cyclone Nargis SUMMARY: If you can suspend your imagination, just temporarily, about the despair that must grip many of the Burmese people at the moment, it´s been a very interesting week to watch the subtly shifting political dynamics triggered by Cyclone Nargis. Eric Foner - Freedom and America SUMMARY: For Eric Foner 'freedom' is the central word in American political rhetoric. But the meaning of freedom is a source of continual debate and history is littered with bitter conflicts over who has the right to enjoy liberty. Back to the 1970s? SUMMARY: Stagflation is a word most of us haven't heard much of for the best part of 30 years. But after a long economic expansion, and more recently a once in a lifetime boom in commodities, the spectre of high inflation and rising oil prices has got people looking back to the future. Infact, back to the 1970s when oil shocks and high inflation lead to stagflation, the term used to describe an environment of high inflation combined with economic stagnation. Are we at risk of that situation making a comeback, or have the tools of economic policy been developed to a point that situation can be now forever avoided? Cricket in India SUMMARY: The curtain is about to fall on the first season of the Indian Premier League. It's cricket, but not as we know it. The shortened format of 20/20 cricket, combined with cheerleaders and all the sight and sound that's become synonymous with Bollywood movies. But has it been a success, will the Indian Premier League become a permanent fixture on the cricketing calender? Films with Julie Rigg SUMMARY: Julie reviews The Orphanage, a Spanish gothic thriller and Shine a Light, the Martin Scorsese´s documentary on the Rolling Stones.

The Broadband End Game? SUMMARY: It´s been a very long time coming but it now appears that the dream of a national broadband network might become a reality. Yesterday was the deadline for the 5 million dollar bond companies must pay for the right to lodge a tender to build the network. There are a number of likely bidders - including of course Telstra, Optus and Terria - which is the name that´s been given to the consortium that was formerly known as G9. The deadline for tenders to be submitted is 12 weeks, although the clock won´t start ticking until Telstra has made public or required documentation relating to the existing network. But, as far as we can tell the winning bidder should be known by sometime in August or September, and that party will join with the Government in co-funding this 10 billion plus dollars piece of infrastructure. Financial Futures SUMMARY: The recent announcement that Westpac is seeking to merge with St George put the local banking sector well and truly in the spotlight. But in the bigger picture that deal also perhaps illustrates the challenges for Australian banks to seriously grow their business within what is now a very mature market, and one with barely 20 million potential users. So it´s not surprising that many Australian financial organisations from banks to fund mangers and insurance companies are now looking to emerging markets in Asia for future earnings. Dr John Gray SUMMARY: In his new book 'Black Mass, Apocalyptic Religion and the Death of Utopia', Dr John Gray argues that Utopian thought is as powerful a thought today as it was in the Middle Ages. Will Chaffey SUMMARY: An adventure through a remote area of the Kimberley. Will Chaffey trekked through the harsh and beautiful landscape along the length of the Prince Regent River. With few supplies he found himself stranded at the crocodile infested waters of King Cascade. Films with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY: Jason reviews Mike Newell's adaptation of Love in the Time of Cholera, starring Javier Bardem and Giovanna Mezzogiorno. Also Steven Speilberg's Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Lebanon SUMMARY: We may be witnessing some highly significant developments in Lebanon. And there is a great deal at stake. Could the first American-Iranian joint political governance system in the world emerge from the recent clashes in Beirut? Raid on BHP? SUMMARY: It has been reported that Chinese interests have approached a major Australian public sector superannuation company to join them and a private equity group to acquire a substantial stake in BHP. Vocational training for Indigenous communities SUMMARY: According to Professor Helen Hughes vocational training for Aborigines in the Northern Territory is a sham. She believes the money spent on vocational courses should be used to teach literacy and numeracy. Christopher Kremmer SUMMARY: Christopher Kremmer writes that "While India´s experience is unique it should cause us to reflect on the consequences in any society when religion is exploited by vested interests, including politicians and the media. But it also demonstrates how a republic, wisely constituted on the basis of law and equal rights for all citizens regardless of race, religion, faith, education, language or poverty is the best guarantee against appeals for extremism." Christopher Kremmer explores why, in his opinion, India's constitution is the jewel in its political crown. Films SUMMARY: Jason reviews the new film starring Bette Midler, Helen Hunt and Colin Firth, "Then She Found Me". Also a French Holocaust drama, "Un Secret". Soccer Finals SUMMARY: A memorable week of soccer lies ahead of us - the FA Cup final tonight and next Wednesday morning, the European Championship League final, the contest to find the best club side in Europe. That match is being played in Moscow but like the FA Cup final it´s an all British affair. Those powerhouses of the English Premier League, Manchester United and Chelsea will face off in the Russian capital in a contest that couldn´t be more different to the game that will take place tonight in London between Cardiff and Portsmouth.

The Fortescue boom SUMMARY: Fortescue mining, and its enigmatic CEO and founder Andrew Forrest, have ridden the commodities boom like perhaps no other business in the world. A few short years ago it was what you would politely call a junior explorer, just another penny dreadful among the scores of minor players that dot the landscape throughout Western Australia. Fast forward to the end of last week and this penny dreadful had evolved into a business worth 25 billion dollars, giving it a market capitalisation more than double that of Coles Myer. Yet, until a few days ago it hadn´t earned a single dollar in revenue, the entire value of the business has for the past 5 years been predicated on blue sky, on what might be. And that `might be´ has a lot to do with China and the global iron ore boom it´s currently driving. So where does the story go from here, now that the business is fully operational can it meet the markets long held expectations, or has the company been pushed too far on a very big promise? Dr Boutros Boutros-Ghali SUMMARY: Cyclone Nargis has devastated parts of Burma. Tens of thousands of people have died and more than a million people are homeless. Food supply is also a concern and perhaps this disaster will worsen the international food crisis. How can the world address the problem of food shortages? Generational Burden SUMMARY: The first budget of the new Rudd Labor government is almost upon is. As ever there will be a host of competing interests, some sectors of the community will be happy, others probably not so. The demographic commonly referred to as Generation X have in recent years done pretty well out of the welfare component of the budget, the baby bonus and the expansion of family tax benefits were all key features of Peter Costello´s later budgets. But beyond that largesse has Generation X been perhaps short changed by both fiscal and wider economic trends of recent years? Indeed is this generation being increasingly asked to carry the financial liabilities of both baby boomers, and the generation hot on their heels - Generation Y? Israel´s 60th anniversary - a Palestinian view SUMMARY: Next Wednesday marks the 60th anniversary of Israel declaring itself an independent state - three years after the end of World War II, and the death of six million Jews in the Holocaust. But Palestinians know the foundation day as al-Nakba, or "the Catastrophe". Talking Footy SUMMARY: Well this weekend is quite unusual for millions across this land and those who receive the spectacle via television in our region. Because there´ll only be one game of Australian Rules football played in the main competition, it´s at the MCG in Melbourne tonight. It´s the best Victoria can muster versus what´s called the "dream team", the best that everyone else who plays the game can field. Yet despite the anticipation, state of origin is very much the poor cousin to the club game. And in football, no club is king. That's how its been throughout the 150 years of its life, which is being acknowledged this weekend. It is a long time for one country´s code to not only survive but thrive, so why has it?

Russia - Georgia tensions SUMMARY: Next week is going to be tough for Russia´s incoming President, Dmitry Medvedev. Russia has increased its peacekeeping troops in the areas bordering Georgia´s breakaway regions, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, after the two regions called on international bodies to recognize their independence. Georgia has now accused Russia of preparing to invade Abkhazia. Getting it wrong - rating the rating agencies SUMMARY: Ratings agencies occupy a rarified place in the world of business and finance. Through the application of apparently simple labels, be it a C, B or AAA, they've become a barometer for financial risk. Those ratings have come to mean everything in terms of both perceived and actual risk in relation to the particular underlying corporate or government body or financial instrument. But do the rating agencies themselves now have questions to answer in respect to ratings given to financial products, especially those connected the sub prime meltdown? Riding the Boom SUMMARY: This week the Pilbara Area Consultative Committee in north-west of Western Australia organised a conference called 'Riding The Boom'. At issue? Can this town and region really hold together in the face of the phenomenal rates of mining and development underway? Now, about 10,000 mainly men fly-in-fly-out of this region, boosting a population in Karratha of around 12,000. They don't settle down here, even for a short time. So if places like Karratha aren't more 'normalised' can the boom be sustained into the future? Political Panel SUMMARY: Our regular commentators discuss development and employment in the Pilbara and the upcoming federal Budget. A traveller's tale - Prague SUMMARY: When Rachael Weiss, decided to abandon her life in Sydney and spend a year finding her bohemian roots, she had two plans. One was to write the next great Australian novel and the second was to meet the love of her life - an exotic Czech man with high cheek bones in a smoky Prague bar. Film with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY: Jason reviews Moliere - a French bodice ripper with Romain Duris and Iron Man - a Marvel comic adaptation with Robert Downy Junior.

Aviation turbulence SUMMARY: The global aviation business is undergoing phenomenal change. In the first instance, it's an industry that is experiencing simultaneous growth and consolidation. In the second, spiralling oil prices are threatening to curtail global consumer demand for air travel. The business of flying has never been easy, although the past few years have been described by some pundits as a 'sweet spot' in an other wise tough game. Has that sweet spot has turned sour? Where to now for the Australian economy? SUMMARY: For those in charge of shaping Australia´s economic policy, the resources boom is creating some significant challenges. For one thing, it has created a `two streamed´ economy; a phenomenon most starkly realised when comparing the current economic performance of NSW with that of Western Australia. It makes the job of the Reserve Bank in setting monetary policy, even more difficult than it has ever been in the past. It also makes fiscal policy incredibly challenging for Kevin Rudd and his newly minted Treasurer, Wayne Swan. Re-imagining Australia SUMMARY: What images and myths will define Australia in the future...surely it´ll have to be more than those that govern us now...or maybe not. James A.Kelly SUMMARY: The Chinese authorities are saying something remarkable---that they intend to talk to the Dalai Lama...the very suggestion made to them several weeks ago. It´s yet to happen but it represents a pretty astonishing potential breakthrough. Reading the mind of China and the whole East Asian region right now calls for particularly good diplomatic and predictive skills. Very Rev. Dr John Shepherd SUMMARY: The Very Reverend Dr John Shepherd is one Australian lucky enough to be at the first Dawn Service ever to be held on the Western Front...and there for quite a special event, linking the communities of Villers-Bretonneux and Perth, Western Australia. Pompey Elliott SUMMARY: Pompey Elliott led the counter-attack at Villers-Brettoneux on 25 April 1918. It was a decisive moment in the drawn out war on the Western Front. Preventing the German forces from advancing further meant that the Australians really had an effect on the war's outcome. So why isn´t the battle at Villers-Brettoneux regarded with the same reverence as Gallipoli or Kokoda?

2020 Forum - Ideas into Action SUMMARY: This forum is a nod to the 2020 Summit in Canberra and we look at some good ideas that have turned into innovative action. We explore four areas nominated by the Summit: strengthening communities, sustainability of buildings, Australia's security and prosperity in our region, and optimal use of water. James O'Loghlin and Bernie Hobbes question our 'social capital inventors'.

Middle power diplomacy SUMMARY: Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, has returned home today after a pretty eventful overseas trip. The images from China in the last few days will take some time to digest fully...here and elsewhere. Because it would seem as if a significant shift in focus is underway in terms of how Australia will be seeing itself in the world. Opes Prime SUMMARY: The Opes Prime saga took some rather incredible twists and turns this week. The week began with the astonishing image of Melbourne underworld figure Mick Gatto jetting off to Singapore, apparently on the hunt for money lost by clients of the disgraced broking house. A few days later that spectacle was countered by the somewhat more sober observations of Justice Ray Finklestein. The Federal Court Judge has set a date for a ruling on the legal nature of stock lending practices; in laymans it appears he´s set out to define exactly what `ownership´ actually means in the context of Opes Primes, its aggrieved clients, and one very big Australian bank. That bank is the ANZ, and right now its reputation has taken a battering as it attempts a fire sale of stock that Opes Prime had used as collateral to borrow money from our third biggest bank. The Fall and Rise of the Islamic State SUMMARY: Noah Feldman played a role in the preparation of the Iraqi constitution. His latest book puts the case that sharia law could play a more significant role in a modern Islamic state. Youth Summit SUMMARY: Jennifer O'Brien is one of the 100 young Australians to be selected for Prime Minister Kevin Rudd´s Youth Summit which will be held in Canberra today. Tiger's Quest SUMMARY: The US masters is the first major of the year, and late last year Tiger Woods hinted that he believed it was possible to win all four majors in a calendar year - They being the Masters, The US Open, The British Open and The US PGA. But in a game where luck plays such a big part, Woods will need all of his considerable talent and mental toughness if he´s to achieve one of world sports holy grails. Film with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY: Jason reviews the Imax U2 film and Bruce Petty's film, Global Haywire. This film is a mix of animation and live action.

Intrigue in the West SUMMARY: The West Australian newspaper is a paper under siege. The board and the editor of WA's state daily are being attacked on all fronts with claims of inaccuracy, overdone agendas and personal attacks that go too far. This week Kerry Stokes, rode into town to formally voice his dissatisfaction with the paper and the current editor Paul Armstrong. Stokes owns close to 20 percent of West Australian Newspapers, and is angling for a seat on the board and ultimately, it seems, control of his home town paper. DIY super changes SUMMARY: The popularity of self managed super funds have boomed in recent years. The sector now accounts for about a quarter of all superannuation assets, or about 300 billion dollars in funds. And, recent changes to the rules governing how these funds can invest will likely increase the popularity of DIY super. But are these changes - specifically the green light to borrow for investing - a bridge too far in respect to how much risk the trustees of these funds should be allowed to take? UK migration SUMMARY: An intense public conversation is underway in the UK where plans are being introduced to discuss tough new citizenship tests to bring new immigration controls 'based on the Australian model'. Lobbying on Climate Change SUMMARY: The debate on tackling climate change is getting very robust. In the next few months lobbyists from a range of sectors will be putting their case to the federal government to try and ensure that their constituency is not negatively affected by any changes. We hear from two people who represent the interests of two very different groups - low income households and the energy sector. A Traveller's Tale - Roadkill SUMMARY: Dead animals are an all too predictable sight on our roads. Tasmania is meant to be Australia´s roadkill state and it has been estimated that around a million animals are killed each year in Tasmania alone. Len Zell has taken many journeys around the country and on one trip began taking photos of dead animals. Why would anyone photograph and describe roadkill?

Zimbabwe SUMMARY: Zimbabweans go to the polls, and an election watch analyst has already summed up the outcome: 'Even if Robert Mugabe only gets one vote, the tabulated results are in the box and he has won'. Agricultural boom SUMMARY: Global demand has, in recent years, driven prices for resources to record levels, with the big miners such as BHP and Rio Tinto reaping the benefits. But in the past 12 months a new commodities boom -- unrelated to the mining of minerals and metals -- has been gathering pace. Prices for so-called soft commodities: wheat, corn, soy beans and dairy products to name a few, have gone through the roof. In the case of wheat the humble grain has risen 500 per cent in just over a year. Once again this is, on the face of it, good news for Australia and its legion of primary producers. But what are the broader implications of this rush on agricultural products, an event that is beginning to look like a classic tale of boom and bust? Ross Garnaut SUMMARY: Ross Garnaut and the need to reshape the Australian economy as we tackle the problem of climate change. Can we handle the challenge? Joseph Stiglitz SUMMARY: The Nobel prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz has written a new book about the financial and human cost of the war in Iraq. But that's not the only financial cost that he has in his sights right now. The former chair of the President's Council of Economic Advisors is scathing in his assessment of what caused the global financial meltdown we know as the sub-prime crisis. Political Panel SUMMARY: The week in federal politics. Film with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY: Jason reviews St Trinian's, directed by Oliver Parker and Barnaby Thompson and starring Rupert Everett, Colin Firth and Tallulah Riley. And Never Back Down, directed by Jeff Wadlow. A movie about a fight club at a Florida high school and a kid who must learn to control his anger.

Tourism SUMMARY: How healthy is Australia's tourism industry? According to the latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics the number of tourists coming here is falling. Global shifts SUMMARY: The headlines have barely kept pace with the volatility that's currently shaking global markets. There´s some incredibly alarmist talk around. Former Federal Reserve chief Alan Greenspan says it´s the most demanding financial crisis since World War Two, while others say he should know because he´s largely responsible. Others again, like the venerable chairman of Wesfarmers Trevor Eastwood and the veteran observer Don Stammer, have given interviews suggesting a more sanguine approach, having seen several big crises over the years. So what sense can we make of an environment that, from day to day, seems to make no sense at all? Crisis in the stock markets? SUMMARY: A bewildering week for many of us watching the global stock exchanges. How do we make sense of key developments? Rudd's Tour SUMMARY: Kevin Rudd will set off on his first serious international tour next week, a 17-day journey through the diplomatic and strategic heart of the US, Europe and China. But already the trip´s been dogged with controversy, and some rapidly emerging challenges. Controversial because he´s not found time to visit Japan, although will do so later in the year, and challenging because the Tibet issue has once more put China on the front pages of the world´s press and for all the wrong reasons. And if all of that wasn´t enough to contemplate, Kevin Rudd will also become the first Australian PM to attend a NATO summit. The focus of that will be Afghanistan, and what if anything a small player like Australia might do to better assist the rebuilding of one of the world´s most beleaguered nations. Robin Archer SUMMARY: The United States is the only advanced capitalist country without a Labor party. In 1894 America came very close, but in the end they backed away from forming a Labor based party. What difference has it made to their political system? Peace for Uganda? SUMMARY: On March 28, it is expected that the Ugandan Lord's Resistance Army will sign a peace deal with the government. It is hoped that this will bring the 20-year conflict to a close. The Lord´s Resistance Army was notorious for abducting children to be used as fighters, porters and sex slaves. How was this peace deal reached? Film with Julie Rigg SUMMARY: Julie reviews Brick Lane, a film adapted from the Monica Ali novel, and Before The Devil Knows You're Dead. This is a thriller about two brothers, played by Ethan Hawke and Philip Seymour Hoffman, who plot to rob their parents' suburban store. It all goes horribly wrong.

Anwar's daughter SUMMARY: Last week we witnessed what´s been dubbed a seismic shift in the politics of Malaysia. For the first time since 1969, the governing coalition lost its two-third majority. Decoupling versus globalisation? SUMMARY: In the past year a theory known as decoupling has entered the lexicon, in short it suggests that booming economies such as China and India are now strong enough to resist the influences of America. But some pundits - specifically the pro-globalisation camp - are dismissing decoupling as yesterday's news, as a fad whose time has been and gone. Michael Dukakis SUMMARY: The battle for the Democratic nomination looks as though it won't be resolved until the party convention in August. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have waged something akin to a prizefight in their efforts to become, respectively, the first woman or the first black man to be president. But is this drawn-out and high-profile stoush likely to hurt the party's chances of winning office come the presidential election in November? Taiwan - Presidential poll SUMMARY: Next Saturday March 22nd, the Taiwanese will go to the polls and vote for a new president and in a referendum which is likely to run simultaneously with the poll. The outcomes will be followed closely by Taiwan´s neighbour China. Amotz Asa-El - Israel's changing society SUMMARY: A lesser-told story of a thriving Israeli society. How is Israel changing? Film with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY: Jason reviews The Other Boleyn Girl, starring Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, and Eric Bana and Death Defying Acts directed by Gillian Armstrong

Darfur - A daunting challenge SUMMARY: As the horrific violence in Darfur, the war torn region in Western Sudan enters its sixth year, the country is starting to witness a new phase of the conflict. Banks behaving badly? SUMMARY: For many Australians the spectre of banks raising mortgage rates beyond the RBAs official position has brought the global credit squeeze into sharp focus. Since the journey toward financial deregulation began in the 1980's, banks have stuck to the script on the question of home loan rates. They have effectively quaranteed them from the more variable pricing of other borrowing, such as for example credit cards, business and personal loans. The banks have defended the additional increases as a sign of the times. That is, an outcome of the international repricing of money since the subprime crisis and the subsequent knock-on effect that event has had on the world economy. But is that a valid justification, is it possible that there's not some opportunism going on as well? Private health insurance SUMMARY: This week we heard that health insurance rates will rise again to the tune of just under 5%. Why? So you think you can think? SUMMARY: The 20/20 Summit, Kevin Rudd's big get together set down for mid-April, is a truly aspirational idea, but one with some significant challenges. The furore around the lack of women heading the delegations has already tarnished the event to some degree, as has the fact that its been held on passover, so Australia´s Jewish community has been effectively excluded. But beyond those issues, has the Prime Minister over reached logistically in what´s possible in just two days for an event that is being put together from scratch in a matter of weeks? Travellers Tales: The Forbidden City SUMMARY: We´ve had our debates around so-called black armband views of history but we´re far from alone. China has had a vociferous version of their own. At their epicentre is the Forbidden City in the middle of Beijing, abutting Tiananmen Square. This 72-hectare conglomeration has been at the centre of Chinese history, symbolically and practically, for seven centuries. Film with Julie Rigg SUMMARY: Julie reviews The Black Balloon and highlights from the French Film Festival. Michael Burleigh SUMMARY: In his new book the historian Michael Burleigh looks at terrorist organisations across the decades, including the motivations of the people who join them. But why has he choosen to write about terrorism as a way of life?

Market Update SUMMARY: The old adage what goes up must come down is perhaps the most simple explanation you could apply to recent events on world financial markets. The new year has heralded weeks of turmoil and plain old panic, with this week's massive write down in the value of shares in child care provider, ABC learning, being the latest in a series of corporate meltdowns. Of course, we´ve seen it all before. Big companies over extending themselves and then getting into trouble when the cost of borrowing goes up. But is this downturn really comparable with say 1987, or the credit squeezes of the 1960´s and 1970s? US Primaries SUMMARY: Next Tuesday could well be the most significant in Hillary Clinton´s political career. That´s the day that the citizens of Texas and Ohio will turn out vote in the next round of primaries to decide who will be the Democratic Presidential nominee. It´s not been a good few weeks for Hillary Clinton - Her opponent Barack Obama has landed blow after blow, winning all 11 delegate votes held since Super Tuesday back on February 5th. The pundits are variously saying a loss in both these states will signal the end of the Clinton campaign, while others remain adamant that she will push on right through to the party convention in late August. Drawing the Global Colour Line SUMMARY: A history of Australia in its dynamic global context. Film with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY: Jason reviews In The Valley of Elah. Tommy Lee Jones stars as a father who tries to solve a military cover-up regarding the disappearance of his son. Also King of Kong, a documentary about the rivalry between two middle-aged men over who is the world Donkey Kong video game champion. Malaysia - Dr Anwar Ibrahim SUMMARY: Malaysians are about to experience an early election next week, a full 14 months early, and the country´s former deputy prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim, is calling the move 'a dirty tricks campaign by the government'. Philippines SUMMARY: It's not making the headlines here in Australia, but it looks like opposition anger against Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is the strongest it has been since she took over power in 2001, and all thanks to a government corruption scandal that has rocked the country.

China - The Sun King SUMMARY: Dr Shi Zhengrong or the Sun King is a leading solar scientist and according to Forbes magazine is the richest man in China and the fourth richest in Australia. He is estimated to be worth 3 billion dollars and is the inventor of 11 patents in Photo Voltaic or solar technology. Dr Shi Zhengrong is the founder and Chief Executive of Suntech Power, China´s largest solar manufacturer. War Memorial SUMMARY: On Tuesday the new `Conflicts 1945 to today´ galleries will open at the Australian War Memorial. Sovereign Wealth Funds SUMMARY: When it comes to similarities, to common ground, you could search for a very long time and come up with nothing to connect Norway and Saudi Arabia. Well there are a couple of things about both nations that make them, in a sense, global kindred spirits. For starters they both have a lot of oil, and second they've invested the revenue from that oil into state owned and operated investment funds - or sovereign wealth funds as they're commonly known. All up they're about 20 sovereign wealth funds around the world - The United Arab Emirates is the biggest, Norway and saudi Arabia are second and third largest respectively. In our region China is an emerging player in the sovereign wealth investment market, in fact it was the state owned Chinese Investment Corporation that forked out for that huge stake in Rio Tinto a couple of weeks back. So what should we make of the growth in what has been described by some as the return of state capitalism? Political Panel SUMMARY: The week in federal politics. A League Final SUMMARY: It´s been a long and very unpredictable road, but the A-League for season 2007/2008 has reached its climax. The Central Coast Mariners and the Newcastle Jets will square of in Sydney tomorrow night, in what will be a genuine local derby. This is a contest between two sides who haven´t drawn the sort of attention or accolades of the competition´s glamour sides, the Sydney FCs and Melbourne Victorys. It´s hard to draw a line between them in respect to form. Both sides were hot and cold at different times during the regular season, and they each won a game a piece of their two-game finals clash. Film with Julie Rigg SUMMARY: Julie reviews Margot At the Wedding with Jennifer Jason Leigh and Nicole Kidman in a study of rivalry between adult sisters and Talk to Me, a biopic about Ralph "Petey" Greene, an ex-con who became a talk radio host in Washington in the sixties.

Pakistan - Election fever SUMMARY: Pakistan goes to the polls on Monday, elections that were postponed after the assassination of Benazir Bhutto last December. If opinion polls are anything to go by, then it seems that Bhutto´s Pakistan People´s Party will win the parliamentary elections. In a survey published in Pakistan´s leading English language newspaper Dawn, 70% of Pakistanis want President Pervez Musharraf to quit. Reflections on the Apology SUMMARY: Don Watson reflects on the speech apologising to the Stolen Generations by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. East Timor SUMMARY: Its been an difficult week for East Timor. On Monday rebel soldiers carried out twin attacks on the country´s President Jose Ramos Horta and the Prime Minister, Xanana Gusmao and rebel leader Alfredo Reinado died during the assault. Australia has sent in an extra 340 troops to hunt down the insurgents. Constitutional reform SUMMARY: It was in 1967, more than 40 years ago, that a prominent legal mind described as Australia as "constitutionally speaking ... the frozen continent". Fast forward to 2008 and one of our best thinkers on matters constitutional claims that very little has changed. Constitutional lawyer George Williams argues there has never been a better time to address what he sees as the shortcomings of our constitution, the document that has underpinned our individual and collective rights and responsibilities for over 100 years. The official sorry that was delivered to Indigenous Australians in the Parliament this week has once more brought the issue of the constitution and its adequacy back into sharp focus. Going Green SUMMARY: A green cities conference which was held this week in Sydney. The conference brought together some big property developers and planners, together with local government and guests from overseas. Film with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY: Jason reviews The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. Its a film about a man paralysed after a stroke, based on a famous memoir and directed by Julian Schnabel. Also, Definitely Maybe, a romantic comedy from director Adam Brooks.

Kosovo's independence SUMMARY: Kosovo has been run by the United Nations since 1999, when NATO intervened, to solve the brutal ethnic conflict between Serbian forces and ethnic Albanian separatists. In the next ten days Kosovo´s leadership is likely to unilaterally declare independence, in defiance of the Serbs who have wanted Kosovo to remain part of Serbia. So could an independent Kosovo lead to a major crisis? Alan Moss retires SUMMARY: The man in charge of Australia´s most successful, and controversial investment bank is to retire. Alan Moss announced this week that his 15 year tenure as head of Macquarie Bank would come to a close after he hands down the group´s full year result in May. Having reached a 100 dollars a share just a year ago the bank´s stock is now trading at just over 60 dollars. That´s a significant decline but in context it perhaps reflects global conditions more than it does issues specific to the bank itself. So where to now for an organisation that prides itself on the `deal´, on getting things done? Australia-India relations SUMMARY: The tensions that erupted between Australia and India during the cricket tests made headline news. But you might have missed another story that may also niggle at Australia/India relations. This week the new foreign minister, Stephen Smith, announced that Australia won´t be a part of quadrilateral dialogue between the US, Japan, Australia and India. Some Indian commentators were unimpressed. So do we need a closer engagement with India? Margin Lending SUMMARY: The recent fallout on global equity markets has shone the spotlight on an aspect of the market that just a few years back few of us would´ve even heard of. Margin lending isn´t new, but the practice of borrowing money to buy shares has become far more widespread in recent years. As the stockmarket boomed, so to the amount money being lent to buy shares - a figure that until quite recently was estimated to be in the region of 36 billion dollars. Margin lenders encounter few problems in a rising market, but as we´re about to hear they can cause significant heartache for investors when the lender decides they want their money back. And beyond the individual losses for investors, the collective fallout from margin loans going bad has likely had some influence on the size of the overall market fall, and the volatility that's accompanied it. Travellers Tales - Turkey SUMMARY: For Australian Lisa Morrow, Turkey is the country that has captured both her heart and her imagination. This is her tale. Film with Julie Rigg SUMMARY: Julie reviews There Will be Blood, starring Daniel Day-Lewis in the story of a ruthless man building an oil empire in the early years of California. Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. And The Mist, with Marcia Gay Harden in this Stephen King adaptation. www.abc.net.au/rn/movietime

Super Tuesday SUMMARY: The race for the White Race reaches a significant juncture next week, with voters across 24 States turning out next Tuesday to select their party delegates. It´s not called Super Tuesday for nothing - on a national basis around 50 percent of all delegates for both parties will be decided, with states such as California, New York and Illinois all turning out. What we know about the contest to date is the match up between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton remains as tight as ever, and this week the only other serious Democrat candidate John Edwards withdrew his nomination. But if the story out of the Democratic camp has remained largely static, the road to the Republican nomination has taken a number of twists and turns. The most startling of which would have to be the announcement this week that Rudy Guiliani, the one time favourite for the Republican nomination, had pulled out of the race. RIO SUMMARY: BHP's drawn out pursuit of fellow mining giant Rio Tinto has run into a hurdle few would have seen. Last night it was revealed that a Chinese/US consortium had acquired 12% of RIO's shares. What does this announcement mean for BHP? Kenya SUMMARY: In Kenya the violence over the disputed re-election of President Mwai Kibaki has escalated. It is the most serious violence since Kenyan independence in 1963. Apart from the human cost; the crisis has raised the possibility that Kenya may join a list of failed nation states. Kate Llewellyn SUMMARY: The poet's autobiography is a striking self-portrait of a life of triumphs and regrets. Reading the Garden SUMMARY: The humble household garden is many things to many people - a place to grow flowers or vegetables, or simply the provider of a bit of outdoor space to call your own. But the Australian garden, and that can include public parks and gardens, can also tell us a lot about our culture and history, about who we are. Film with Jason Di Rosso SUMMARY: Jason reviews The Jane Austen Book Club and Charlie Wilson's War starring Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman.

From waste to resource SUMMARY: Each year around three million truckloads of garbage are dumped into landfill sites across Australia. It´s waste that generates methane gas, ammonia and leachate. So what's been done to reduce the mountains of garbage? This interview was first broadcast in 2007. Protecting the Danube SUMMARY: The Danube is the second longest river in Europe and supports 81 million people. The health of the river is critical to the economies of many European countries. Which is why -- and even though many of the countries along the Danube are not members of the EU -- they have agreed to meet strict EU water protection standards. This interview was first broadcast in 2007. Household debt SUMMARY: The Australian economy is booming, but so too our personal debt. In this age of easy credit and high employment it´s perhaps not surprising that we just keep borrowing. Household debt continues to grow faster than our GDP, and credit card debt alone now exceeds $40 billion. This interview was first broadcast in 2007. The Macquarie model SUMMARY: In 2007, journalist Edward Chancellor drew parallels between Macquarie Bank and the infamous Ponzi scheme, and questioned the bank´s method of how it goes about valuing and financing the many assets it has acquired over the years. It was that interview that prompted a sharp rebuke from at least one supporter of Macquarie -- the writer, commentator and shareholder activist Stephen Mayne. This interview was first broadcast in 2007.