January 12, 1998

All Things Considered
(entire program)
Requires the RealAudio Player

An index of the day's stories:

IRAQ HALTS INSPECTIONS -- NPR's Eric Weiner reports from Baghdad that Iraq has renewed its confrontation with the United Nations by stating it will no longer let a U-N team led by an American search for weapons of mass destruction. Iraq said it would prohibit the team from working because it was made up overwhelmingly of American and British inspectors and claimed its American leader was a spy. (3:00)

OPTIONS -- Robert talks with Laurie Mylroie, an associate at the Foreign Policy Institute and editor of on-line newsletter "Iraq News," and Shibley Telhami, the Anwar Sadat chair for Population, Development and Peace at the University of Maryland. They discuss what options are now open to the United Nations and the United States for dealing with Iraq's refusal to allow a U-N team to search for weapons of mass destruction. (8:00)

SOUTH AFRICA TRADE -- NPR's Charlayne Hunter-Gault reports from Johannesburg on the controversy stirred by a new South African law giving the government the right to buy patented drugs on the world market. The government says this will lower drug prices and ease shortages. But the pharmaceutical industry--backed by the United States--is fighting the law in court. It says it offers drugs at low prices, and that the legislation violates international trade rules. (5:45)

ON OUR OWN -- Single women over the age of 35 who have never had children are giving birth at twice the rate that they were ten years ago...even as the rate of out-of-wedlock births to teenagers has declined. Older singe women are also adopting babies in record numbers. Jacki talks with Melissa Luedtke, the author of "On Our Own: Unmarried Motherhood in America," about these single mothers, and what these statistics tell us about society and the options open to women when traditional methods of having a family fail. (STATIONS: Melissa Luedtke's book "On Our Own: Unmarried Motherhood in America," is published by Random House.) (8:00)

STILL FROZEN -- Jacki talks with Renee Arcenaux, spokesperson for Hydro Quebec in Montreal, Canada. Some 608,000 customers are still without power after an icestorm that paralyzed much of Northeastern Canada and New England. The city of Montreal had been blacked out for two days...power was restored to the downtown area of Montreal last night. Hydro Quebec is asking those people whose power has been restored to share their homes and to conserve power. The main obstacles to the restoration of power to the province are infrasturctural problems...many power lines have been downed and many towers that carry cables have collapsed. Hydro Quebec is also receiving help from American power companies in making its repairs. Jacki then speaks with John Porteas of the Niagara-Mohawk Power Corporation, which serves the St. Lawrence River valley. About 275,000 customers were left without power in the areas that the company serves. He says it's the worst damage ever experienced by the power company. Jacki also talks with Bernice McHatten, the Deputy Town Clerk for Machias, Maine. They discuss the aftermath of the ice storm and how it has affected Maine residents. (7:00)

INDONESIA TODAY -- NPR's Vicky O'Hara reports. One world leader after another has been in contact with Indonesia President Suharto, urging him to expedite economic reforms required by the International Monetary Fund in exchange for a bailout. Japan's Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto and German Chancellor Helmut Kohl talked to Suharto today; Singapore's Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong arrives tomorrow. An IMF delegation already is in Jakarta, along with US Deputy Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers. The urgency of Indonesia's problem was demonstrated last week by record drops in the country's stock market and currency, followed by panic buying in stores across the country. The economnic crisis, in a matter of a few days has turned into a full-blown political crisis for Indonesia's aging president. (4:30)

IN OTHER NEWS -- Other stories we're following today include: Iraq Halts Inspections and Options. (:30)

COMPUTER TRAINING -- NPR's Elaine Korry reports that the Clinton Administration has unveiled a program designed to increase the number of skilled information technology workers in the economy. A report released today says that 10 percent of these jobs are vacant because there aren't enough skilled workers for the positions available. (3:30)

DRUGS IN PRISON -- President Clinton signed an order today, saying that if state prisons don't report on their inmates' illegal drug use, they will risk losing federal funds. Robert talks to Richard Stratton, the founder and later publisher and editor of Prison Life Magazine, which published from 1992 until 1997. He says drugs are rampant in prison...and are mostly brought in by prison guards. (6:00)

CALIF. SPECIAL ELECTION -- NPR's Ina Jaffe reports on Tuesdday's special election to fill the 22nd District Congressional seat left vacant by the death of Representative Walter Capps. The race is seen as the first test of California's open primary law, which will have its biggest impact in this June's statewide primaries. (6:00)

FUNDING FOR VA RACE -- Virginia holds a special election tomorrow to fill three seats in its House of Delegates. The outcome could determine whether Democrats will lose their long-standing control of the state House -- and it has prompted the national committees of both parties to take the unusual step of spending campaign funds on local races. NPR's Peter Overby reports. (6:00)

GOLF RULES -- Robert talks to Laura Rothstein, a professor of law at the University of Houston Law Center and the author of "Disabilities and the Law." They discuss the lawsuit that was filed by golfer Casey Martin against the Professional Golfers' Association. Martin has a congenital leg disability. He won the Lakeland Classic golf tournament...a minor-league tour event...and wants to move on to the PGA Tour. However, the PGA does not allow the use of golf carts...which Martin needs to participate in golfing. He says this is a violation of the Americans With Disabilities Act. The PGA says that walking is an essential part of the game and allowing Martin to use a cart would provide him with an unfair advantage. (STATIONS: "Disabilities and the Law" was published by Westgroup in 1997.) (4:30)

VASEN -- David Greenberger reviews the new CD from Vasen [VEH-sin], a Swedish band whose music is deeply rooted in the traditional folk melodies and instruments of Sweden. They make exciting new arrangments of centuries-old tunes, and one of the band members plays the nyckelharpa, an ancient instrument of Sweden, a keyed fiddle that can either be played with a bow or plucked. (STATIONS - Vasen's CD, "Whirled", is on Northside Records, in Minneapolis. 612-375-0233 or www.noside.com) (3:30) ((STEREO))