Don't ever let anybody tell you we're not broadminded.

As you know, we try to focus on international news on Thursdays. So we were very pleased to have the opportunity to speak to the leader of Zimbabwe's leading opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change. If you've been following the news at all in that country, you know that circumstances are very dire — inflation is rampant, the economy is grinding to a halt — to a degree we can't even imagine. A country whose agriculture was once was one of the most productive on the continent is now unable to feed itself. And basic supplies — food, medicine — are available only in the black market.

What we wanted to know is, how can anyone live this way? And why is there no opposition to President/strongman Robert Mugabe? There is, of course, but what's it like to try to function as a credible opposition in a country where the leader shows no interest in leaving after nearly three decades in power. Coincidentally, (which is to say, our interviews came together entirely separately!) Morning Edition is running a series this week on opposition leaders and movements around the Globe; if you're interested in Myanmar/Burma, Iran and Egypt for example, pay visit to the Morning Edition program site.

Speaking of the web ... I know this is not everyone's cup of tea. I know it. OK, shield the eyes of any young ones. But if you're interested in a sassy take on politics you have to check out angryblackbitch on the Internet.

We wanted to talk to Pamela Merritt, the blogger known as the Angry Black B****, as part of the series of conversations we've been having about non-traditional paths to power. Here it is ... I wanted to talk to her because she so thoroughly embraces the B-word, which is anathema to many women. Especially if you consider that a jury in New York awarded a female executive more than $11 million in damages because another executive, New York Knicks coach Isiah Thomas, insisted on addressing her that way.

So, why does Pamela Merritt feel it's her right to not only to say it, but to embrace it? Where's she coming from?

Only one way to find out. Go to the source. I find her point of view as provocative as her blog.

And I want to ask you ... do you think the B-word will ever become the new "black"? Believe it or not, there was once a time when the word "black" could be easily be interpreted as an offensive term toward African Americans. For instance, "You black so and so ..." Now, of course, it's more embraced as a harmless descriptive term for people of African descent.

So, again, what do you think? Could bitch ever be normalized, in a sense, to become the new black? ... Prompting little to no offense at all?

... And tomorrow, we cap off the week of conversations with a name you probably haven't heard in a while. Want a hint? Let me see ... she was once the toast of New York. Her best-selling memoir taught the birds and the bees to a generation of randy teens. Her name and her country of residence are the same.

Who is it?

Check us out tomorrow.