Bob from San Jose said it was hard to be optimistic and that the audience was not a true representation of the Californian population.

Another audience member, Meryl, said in Berkley the mayor wants to fund solar panels for homes and that in Oakland people are being trained to build sustainable homes. But California is not doing enough in the public transport area.

Dan said many programmes tried in the past had benefited the rich and that a carbon tax
system may well be better than a "cap-and-trade" system.

Ros asked the audience how many of them use long-life lightbulbs and at least two people admitted they didn't, but on of them said that as soon as the next bulb blew in his home he would fit one.

Chris called from the UK to say he welcomed the Californian moves, but said they would be useless unless the Chinese, Russians and Indians also joined the fight. Todd disagreed with him as did a woman who says she moved to California from a third-world country.

Catherine, the Operating officer from Western States Petroleum Association, also got in touch.

Rich said in Europe many wind turbine projects have been abandoned, while the US has been exporting some bad technology.

Kent said he would like to see the cars and guns melted down. Mustafa said he didn't think the media was covering climate change properly and making people away of the issue.

Some of you have been writing in with with your opinions. Here are a selection of them:

Mike wrote

While ths US uses more per capita than other countries, last year china overtook us in co2 emissions. In fact if china were to ever reach our per capita standard for living the world could not sustain it.

Mary writes

The sun is energy in the plants, in animals, in us. It is even the source of energy in fossil fuels that were plant and animal life millions of years ago. We are now technically advanced enough to convert energy directly from solar energy.

Scott in the UK:

We are not talking about saving the planet. We are talking about saving the human race.

Paul in Barcelona

Has anyone been able to calculate the environmental impact of the Iraq war? All those planes flying round etc. The American war machine probably produces more CO2 than India and China combined!

Charlie writes

Global population growth must be reduced if we are to have any chance of
success in reducing/eliminating global climate change

Kapil

There is no doubt that the climate is changing but it has always been changing. There are many arguments that I can give to show that the temperature changes are due to the sun and not the CO2.

Phil writes

I'm writing live from the University of Maryland on the outskirts of Washington DC. Today, more than 5500 youths are gathered here at a conference called Power Shift, focused on building a youth movement to stop climate change and bring clean energy and clean jobs to the US.

Linda in Oregon

While California is to be applauded for it's move to improve climate - it has more dependence on cars/trucks than many other states. Each state needs to develop a program that works for it.

Arthur in Palo Alto, CA

We need a cap-and-trade system that auctions off the greenhouse gas pollution credits. That lets the market set the rate based on the amount of the reduction needed. The money needs to go for research and development of alternative energy approaches.

Drummond wrote

This problem is not so much regulatory but technical. The only way the entire world will replace fossil fuels with clean energy sources is if the clean source is cheaper than the dirty one. California should fund clean energy research the way it is doing so with stem cell research.

Paul in San Francisco says:

It all sounds very good, but just like your Tony Blair, the Governor has backtracked on many of the global warming initiatives he proposed or said he'd support.A simple walk around town will show you that even the most ardent
environmentalists here still drive cars as primary transportation.

Abdelilah in Marrakesh, Morocco

Saving the world from the disastrous effects of climate change is above all the responsibility of heavily industrialised countries that put out the most of carbon emissions. Pressure should also be put just on economically emerging nations like India and China that are considered the next polluters of the environment.

ODIS

Global warming can be stopped if:
1. All space exploration is banned.
2. The International Space Station dismantled.
3. All nuclear warheads, testing and stockpile scrapped.

Miles

I would urge everyone in the world who has the means to do, is to put photovoltaic panels on your roofs, put solar hot water panels on your roofs, and put in solar hot water space heating through pipes in your floors.

John the Baker in Oakland

CFCs are a big contributer to Global Warming and the greenhouse effect. i am not sure what scientists say about the ozone layer above the east and west coasts but it does seem as if skin cancer rates have increased. I am wondering if there is any documentation on the state of the ozone layer above the east and west coast of USA.

Ian from Arizona:

It all comes down to what's more important: saving money or saving the world? It's people like President Bush who pass on the misinformation that creating new technologies or passing laws that raise the standards on pollution will effectively shut down our economy.

Felipe in Belgium

We, the whole World need to be realistic and united. We can make changes by nations alone such as the new laws for California, but we need an international body which can enforce changes globally.

J. shanti writes:

Environmentalists need to explain global warming in the language the people that are causing it understand: economic terms - rendering the planet uninhabitable will be bad for business!

Rob in Tomball, Texas, says:

The California initiatives are a good way to start fighting climate change. Undoubtedly they will have an effect on emissions in that state. Let's extend the concept a little bit and say that all 50 states, 10 Canadian provinces and 37 Mexican states passed the same statutes.

Daniel writes:

Should we fight climate change the California way?
In short, no. Are these good ideas? Yes, but I don't see any sense of urgency here at all.

Uzondu Esionye, in Monrovia, Liberia

America is the world's greatest economy. I think if measures are going to be taken by the Authorities in California to cut down greenhouse gas emissions, thumbs up to them, I wish them sucess in the process.

The programme came live from Phoenix, Arizona, and we got lots of messages about the two subjects we covered.

We started discussing if the rich should pay more taxes.

In our second hour we moved on to the value of water. With global warming and population growth, is water the new oil?

Chris called in from Namibia to describe how difficult life was there because of the lack of water. She asked the Governor of Arizona, Janet Napolitano, whether Arizona recycled water and whether they used desalination plants. Governor Napolitano said they did.

Nick Nuttall from the UN's environmental programme joined us to say that many people did cooperate over the provision of water, such as the Israelis and Palestinians.

John in Australia got up very early to speak to us by phone and say that Australia had finally received a wake up call about managing water demand - recognising water has value, pricing it accordingly, allowing trade in water entitlements, etc - and things had improved.

TOILET FLUSHING

Gay, who is visiting Arizona from New Jersey, said that charging for water by the amount used would cut its consumption, but some in the audience said this already happened.

Greg asked whether there were any financial incentives for people to turn their lawns back into desert-type land. Governor Napolitano said there was no state funds for such a move. Another audience member said the use of dual-flush toilets should be encouraged.

Kevin, in the audience, said they have an excellent water management system in Arizona, but they need a safe "cushion" of water supply above usage. He said restrictions should be placed on usage.

Sheryl in the audience said that if you want to use more water you should have to pay for it. Samuel asked whether global warming would affect Phoenix's water supply.

WHY PHOENIX?

Steve in Virginia sparked a debate by asking:

Why would people want to live in Phoenix? I've been there several times, and have some relatives there, but it's just absolutely oppressively hot. You can actually see the heat distort the air, like if you were grilling food.

Susanne said she had moved to Phoenix from Vermont in the 1970s and she had never shovelled heat there, which got a big round of applause.

Dave wrote:

I would like to point out that Arizona water policy is evolving for the better. This year it became legal for residents to recycle their gray water on plants outdoors. A number of us are already doing it.

Vicki writes:

Having lived in Santa Fe NM where Stage II water restrictions were in effect I was amazed when I moved to Arizona that there were not restrictions (this being the desert and all).

Richard in Tempe writes

I see many communities waste a good deal of water. Especially this time of year when most communities install winter rye grass lawns. Is there any restrictions or any restrictions on the legislative table to restrict this activity as well as future developments in Arizona?

Soraya says:

Arizona is generally backward when it comes to earth-friendliness and environmental responsibility. There are cities such as Anthem that don't even offer home recycling pick up.

JD in Tempe wrote

Water prices are very low here in Arizona, and a price signal would be the best way to improve conservation. Of course, we have to provide drinking water at low cost to our residents, but large quantities of potable water are being used for landscaping, etc.

Devin in Phoenix

Just as you see people thinking about conservation as oil prices rise, you will see that with water if price controls are lifted on a finite resource. Let scarcity, not just policy, determine how people use it.

Tiffany

Why is it so hard to find Grey Water systems for residents in Arizona? Especially in the desert, I think we should All be watering our landscaping with grey water systems.

Howard, from Australia, who is in China

In Australia about 40% of water supply is lost through leaks and damaged pipes and less than 5% of purified water is drunk. So there are huge shifts needed in public behaviour to manage and better use current water supplies.

Steve in Detroit wrote in to say:

I am from the Great Lake State, and the lakes are at record lows already. They increased the water flow into the Chicago River some years ago to keep the Mississippi flowing for barge traffic, and this only hastened the lower levels.

Ros kicked off the programme by describing the beautiful view from KJZZ in Phoenix and explaining that the US's second richest man, Warren Buffet, pays less tax than his secretary.

We heard from businesswoman Sheryl in Phoenix who said she was proud to earn a descent amount and pay taxes, but that the middle-classes were paying too much taxes. She said a flat tax of around 35 per cent would be appropriate.

The next speaker agreed with her, but Kevin said he was against such a plan.

Carlos in Venezuela said he was dissatisfied with level of taxes and services in his country. Bob's email, which you can see below, took the debate too Phonenix's development. Aimee said you had to decide the role of government to decide what level of taxes you pay. Sheryl agreed.

Samuel, 21, said he thought US taxes were being wasted on the war in Iraq, while Brooks in Portland called to say that some American people were now avoiding paying taxes by registering their companies as corporations, giving themselves low salaries, then paying themselves the rest as dividends.

The debate moved round to whether poor people were receiving too much help.

Teresa in Denmark called to say that her country had a very different system from that in the US, with people paying about 50 per cent of their income in taxes. She said Denmark had far fewer poor people than in the UK.

Christiane in Scottsville, Ariziona, called to say there was no law saying you had to pay taxes, but she thought that it was ridiculous to say rich people should be paying lower taxes than other people.

Kelster

A flat tax is a great idea. But who really thinks that people in power (who tend to be wealthy) would approve a practice that costs them money? They are rich for a reason and they are not giving up that reason.

The problem of "encouraging" those with great wealth to pay a fair share is not to change the tax rates, nor impose a new type of tax. It is the loopholes which creep into the laws. By means of loopholes, those who can afford tax planning can pay less tax than those living under the poverty line.

Daniel in Prescott Arizona

Has Warren Buffett not considered that the moral duty of the successful is not to ask government to steal more money from the rich, but for the rich to voluntarily give more to the less fortunate through charities?

Two of my dearest friends, Ian and Hayley, live in Phoenix-Arizona! I'm not sure whether Ian and Hayley will be in the place where WHYS is broadcasting from! Ian and Hayley, if you guys are with Ros and the WHYS team, then I just wanna say hi.

John in Salem, Oregon, wrote:

The rich feel they are entitled to pay lower taxes because of their success, the politicians feel they deserve donations from the rich for keeping their taxes low and average Americans feel lucky when they get a refund after paying the taxes the rich should have paid.

Mina in Carmel, Calfornia

I want you to discuss how many americans between the age of 20 and 40 who get federal money because they are on disability. She says they are capable of working, but are taking advantage of the system when the people who really need it can get it.

Alison in Idaho

Unless everyone is paying the same percentage of their income, it can never be considered fair. In my opinion, we should not even have income taxes. We should be depending more on sales tax. If you're spending more, you should be paying more.

Tim wrote to us to say:

Buffett takes a (comparatively) low salary. The vast majority of his income is from dividends. Those dividends pay a 15% tax rate, this is true. However, before those dividends are paid, the corporation itself has already paid tax on the profits. Buffett's actual tax rate on the profits he receives is more like 50% than 17%.

Our country gets up in arms about our tax rates and thinks that we shouldn't go down the road of other countries that pay between 45-60% in tax. I feel sure that if we add up our health care premiums, school and university tuition and fees, and special bonds and levies we would probably find that we pay an equivalent or greater sum. The man in Dubai is referring to Goods and Services Tax or GST. It is a very interesting prospect.

Andrew in Australia wrote to us:

Of course the rich should pay more tax, it is only reasonable to expect this. I specifically mean tax on income earnings from business or investments. There is a joke which says that is the difference between the rich and the poor, the poor pay more tax and this is so true.

Miguel in Mexico:

If you tax cash, you will certainly tax more on regular people. Rich people dont earn money, they dont actually have money, they just control everything in sight.

Jessica:

More taxes imply that the rich should pay more taxes than the middle class and the poor rather than the same percentage of taxes as every other class group pays. It's not "more" taxes its equal the taxes.

Bridget send this comment to Ros, who can't understand why US hotel rooms don't have one big, ceiling light:

We don't usually have one big light in our hotel rooms. I'm not sure why, officially, but from my perspective, it's nice to be able to read in bed without a bright light overhead, directly in your line of vision.

Warren should instead ask his staff if they would like to spilt the 15.7% he isn’t paying in taxes. He will increase the buying power of his employees and in turn that money will end up being collected as sales tax.

While Steve rights:

Kind of ironic that I make a pretty good income here in the US, I pay a lot of taxes, probably about $35,000 a year on all levels (federal, state, social security, medicare) and I went into a grocery store and they had signs saying that they had flu shots available. I asked about them, and they said you had to be on medicaid to get them.

VictorK:

Wealthy Americans pay more than their fair share of income tax. IRS figures for 2003 showed that a third of all taxes are paid by 1% of US workers. Two thirds of all income tax comes out of the pockets of the wealthiest 10% of Americans. And 25% of US workers accounted for 84% of all taxes.

Bob in Lynnwood, WA:

I go down to the Phoenix area every year during spring training to visit my father who lives in Sun City. I am amazed at how much urban blight there is in areas that were developed 20-30 years ago. It is such a waste of land and resources to take ranches, farms and cotton fields and plow them under asphalt.

Andrew in Australia

Of course the rich should pay more tax, it is only reasonable to expect this. I specifically mean tax on income earnings from business or investments. There is a joke which says that is the difference between the rich and the poor, the poor pay more tax and this is so true.

Miguel in Mexico

If you tax cash, you will certainly tax more on regular people. Rich people dont earn money, they dont actually have money, they just control everything in sight.

We're chasing people in Karachi to find out what's next for Pakistan -- where does democracy go from here.

LUCKY DUBE

Also today, the South African reggae musician, Lucky Dube, has been shot dead in front of his children in Johannesburg during an attempted car hijacking. He had been dropping his teenage son and daughter off in the suburb of Rosettenville on Thursday night.

Crime is reaching astonishing levels in South Africa. Depending on who you talk to people say everyone knows someone who's a victim. And this is the equivalent of say Bob Dylan or Bono or Phil Collins being shot, not for any other reason other than being in the wrong place and driving a nice car. Anyway, we're going to talk to South Africans about this, plus one of his closest musical collegues.

RUGGER

Also today: thousands of rugby fans are heading for Paris ahead of the mouth-watering World Cup final between England and South Africa tomorrow. We're putting fan against fan, we're looking for predictions, the tactics and the atmosphere.

Ms Bhutto, who was travelling from the city's airport to a rally marking her homecoming after eight years in self-imposed exile, was not hurt.

THREATS

Ms Bhutto had already been threatened by pro-Taleban militants before her return and had been negotiating with President Pervez Musharraf over a possible power-sharing agreement.

She had earlier warned that if targeted she would hold what she described as hidden authorities within the government as partly responsible. Her husband, Asif Ali Zardari, said members of the government and intelligence agencies who were going to lose power were behind the attack.

Was such an attack inevitable? With elections due in January, where does this leave the future of Pakistan?

ARMED FOR SCHOOL

We have arranged to speak today to Shirley Katz, the Oregon school teacher who has gone to court to enforce what she believes is her right to take a hand gun to work to protect herself and her students from Columbine-style attacks.

If you would like to speak to her and ask her a question, please send us your contact details.

LUCKY DUBE

One of South Africa's most popular artists, the reggae musician, Lucky Dube, has been shot dead in front of his children in Johannesburg during an attempted car hijacking.

He was dropping his teenage son and daughter off in the suburb of Rosettenville on Thursday evening. The programme came from South Africa all last week and the shooting seems to reflect the high crime rates there.

Do you agree? What is your reaction to the shooting dead of a man who sang about the country's social problems and has now become a victim of them?

BURMA

Events in Burma were the top of the news agenda a few weeks ago, but now it seems to have slipped off many people's radar screens.

The government there is drafting a new constitution, while three prominent dissidents detained following last month's protests have been released.

Maybe we should get an update on what has been happening there.

TOO OLD?

The US Senator John McCain, who is 71, has countered claims that he is too old to be president by campaigning for the Republican nomination with his 95-year-old mother.

In Britain this week, the 66-year-old leader of the Liberal Democrats, Ming Cambell, resigned after some people said he was too old for the job.

Is age and experience not equally as important as youth and vibrance?

DNA AND FREEDOM OF SPEECH

Earlier this week, James Watson, the DNA pioneer and Nobel laureate, made comments claiming that Africans are less intelligent than whites.

The Science Museum in London has cancelled Professor Watson’s sell-out speaking engagement there tonight, on the ground that his views have gone “beyond the point of acceptable debate”.

The Science Museum says that it does not want to provide a platform for scientific racism, but its actions have ensured that the professor has gained worldwide publicity.

Were they right to have cancelled his talk, or is freedom of speech, especially in the scientific world, not more important?

Its economy is centered around agriculture and timber products, and it's a central location for people wanting to visit areas such as Oregon Caves National Monument, Crater Lake, and the Rogue River Valley.

PROTECTING STUDENTS

Ms Katz, who holds a firearms licence, says she wants to take her handgun to school to be able to protect herself and her students from attacks, such as the ones that took place at Virginia Tech earlier this year and the Columbine-attack in 1999.

She initially got the gun because she says that her former husband was a threat - something he denies - but she now says school safety is her priority.

AN ARMED SOCIETY IS A SAFER SOCIETY

Ms Katz says that she previously taught at an inner city school and that because the students had access to guns they didn't use them because they knew they would get shot themselves.

But because her current school - South Medford High - is gun free, there is is nothing to deter someone from using a weapon on the premises.

OTHER ARMED TEACHERS

Ms Katz says that many of her students support her stance and that she knows of other teachers in other schools who carry weapons to defend themsleves and their students.

We plan to talk to Ms Katz during Tuesday's programme. If you would like to take part in the discussion, please email us your phone number (it won't be published) to worldhaveyoursay@bbc.co.uk or post your details on the blog.

It’s located at the top of a remote hill, 1,582m above sea level and around half-an-hour's drive outside the capital, Windhoek. We were wondering if any of our other listeners could beat Chris and Ed, who both originate from Britain, when it comes to living in unusual locations.

AN ENGLISHMAN AND WOMAN'S HOME

“The size of our garden,” says 66-year-old Ed, “it’s just not logical for an Englishman. We get kudu (antelopes), warthogs, mongoose, ground squirrels, porcupines and maybe the occasional jackal up here,” he says.

They bought the land four-and-a-half years ago and had the igloo house specially built on it. Two large balloons were inflated over the foundations, then several layers of concrete and reinforcing mesh were moulded around the balloons and left to dry.

HOT WATER

They get their electricity via a transformer from a power line that runs along the nearest road, while their water comes from a pipe that supplies a nearby local youth mission. But being high up and at the end of the line means their water tanks are not always filled, which can be a problem with summertime temperatures of up to 42C.

Inside they have nearly all the mod cons of most modern houses, while they stay in touch with the outside world through the radio, TV, and internet, although their solar-powered telephone doesn’t always work after nightfall.

CLAUSTROPHOBIA

They moved to Windhoek in 2001, after previously living in Tsumeb in the north of the sparsely populated country, then at a research station in the Namib desert, which had a permanent population of 15.

“I get claustrophobic in towns. Windhoek only has a population of about 250,000, but we didn’t like it,” says Ed. So when the chance came to buy the land outside the city they leapt at it.

AN IGLOO WITH A VIEW

"The view was a big consideration, but so was the sun," says Chris. "Facing south means you get less sun, which makes it cooler. And the south-facing view is very good, you must admit.

"Another consideration was the cost of getting power to the house. Closer to the power line along the
road made it cheaper. But much closer would have been too close to the road - and not such a good view."

Let us know about where you live. You can email us the details and the photos of your home to worldhaveyoursay@bbc.co.uk

It says it wants to focus specifically on women's issues, such as the aborting of female foetuses, and the provision of dowries for daughters getting married.

She said they would provide the country with a clean political system, including the rooting out of the criminalisation of politics, speedy justice for women, an equitable society, and equal representation for men and women in elected assemblies.

Last month in Poland the Women’s Party was launched, saying it wanted to alert female voters to what it believes is the real political problem in Poland: male chauvinism.

Do women need specific political parties? Should women only vote for women?

ANARCHY IN PARADISE

Australia and New Zealand have warned that the South Pacific is plagued by political unrest and poverty.

Citing last year’s military coup in Fiji and recent riots in Tonga and the Solomon Islands, New Zealand’s foreign minister, Winston Peters, said several countries teetered "on the brink of civil war and anarchy."

He said the socio-economic indicators of some Melanesian countries are almost on a par with those of sub-Saharan Africa, adding that "there are no quick fixes".

His remarks coincided with the opening of the Pacific Islands Forum in Tonga which brought together the leaders of Australia, New Zealand and 14 island nations. Would you like to hear more about this part of the world?

RUSSIA AND IRAN

Russia's President Vladimir Putin has offered qualified support for Iran's nuclear programme on a visit to Tehran.

Mr Putin told journalists that "peaceful nuclear activities must be allowed" and cautioned against using force to resolve the dispute over Iran.

Iran wants Russian help in its dispute with the West over its nuclear aims. Up to now Moscow has blocked any new UN sanctions over the Iranian nuclear programme, which Iran says is for peaceful purposes, while the US accuses it of trying to develop nuclear weapons.

Is Russia a true friend of Iran or is it simply interested in selling its nuclear technology there?

BACK TO THE FUTURE

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has confirmed that she will end more than eight years of self-imposed exile on Thursday.

President Musharraf had asked her to delay her return until the Supreme Court decides on whether he is eligible to be president for another term. The two leaders have been in power-sharing talks.

She left the country to escape court cases involving corruption allegations, while Pro-Taleban fighters have vowed to assassinate her and President Musharraf.

Is she right to be going back now?

SOMALIAN VIOLENCE

The UN World Food Programme's top representative in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, has been abducted after gunmen stormed the UN compound.

There is a history of tension between the interim government in Somalia and the WFP, which is the biggest UN agency operating in the country.

A UN official said about 30 Somali government troops had raided the UN headquarters, forcefully entered the offices and arrested the WFP chief, Idris Mohamed Osman.

The kidnapping comes the day after Mogadishu witnessed some of the worst fighting since the Union of Islamic Courts, who ruled much of Somalia for six months last year, were driven from power last December by Ethiopian-backed government forces.

Should we be trying to speak to Somalis about what is happening in their country.

THE PROS AND CONS OF IMMIGRATION

There are two new reports out in the UK about immigration. One says migrants are harder working and more reliable than their British born counterparts.

The other says almost every UK region has difficulties in housing, health, education and crime because of increased migration.

They follow a large influx of Eastern European migrants into the UK since the expansion of the European Union in 2004.

Is immigration a good thing or a bad thing for the host nation? Do you have to take the rough with the smooth when you let immigrants into your country?

VOTES FOR MONEY

Some Argentinians are seeking to auction off their votes on the internet ahead of the presidential election later this month.

Argentine electoral authorities say they can do little to stop the practice because it falls into a legal vacuum. The sellers say they are doing it to protest against useless politicians.

Is there anything wrong with selling votes for money, as long as you're open about it?

VOICES FOR MONEY

Madonna has signed a ground-breaking recording and touring contract with concert promoter Live Nation.

She is the first major star to choose an all-in-one agreement with a tour company over a traditional record deal.

It gives Live Nation rights to all her music-related projects - including new albums, tours, merchandise, websites, DVDs, sponsorship, TV shows and films.

Other performers, such as Radiohead and the Charlatans, are releasing their albums as downloads, with Radiohead saying fans can pay whatever they think the album is worth.

With sales of CDs falling ever lower, is this the end of the record industry as we have known it?

On Monday, the EU upped sanctions on Burma and the US urged "consequential" action against its leaders.

BLACKWATER

Iraq's Minister for Human Rights, Mrs Wijdan Salim, has said private security guards from the US firm Blackwater should stand trial in Iraq.

It follows the shooting dead of some 17 Iraqi civilians last month, in an incident involving Blackwater employees. The company says its guards acted in self-defence.

The minister said all private security firms in Iraq should be liable under Iraqi criminal law. They currently enjoy immunity from prosecution under a law passed by Iraq's now defunct Coalition Provisional Authority, which she said must now be ended.

Is she right or will such a move stop firms like Blackwater from operating in Iraq, where they provide services that the government and the US-led coalition is unable to provide?

TURKEY AND IRAQ

Iraq has urged Turkey's government to be "wise and patient" after it said it would seek MPs' permission for military action against Kurdish rebels in Iraq.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki said he was prepared to conduct "urgent talks" to defuse the crisis and said a diplomatic solution had to be found.

The US also warned Ankara against ordering any incursions into Iraq, but soon after the Turkish cabinet agreed to submit a motion to parliament seeking authorisation for military action.

Meanwhile, Britain's Times newspaper has reported that Turkish forces, who are already carrying out low-level shelling operations across the border into Iraq, have carried out their deepest assault so far into Iraqi territory - prompting a sharp reaction from the Kurdish regional government.

Should we be discussing this?

RUSSIA AND IRAN

The Russian President, Vladimir Putin, is in Iran for a historic visit, the first visit by a Kremlin leader since Stalin joined a summit there in World War II.

Iran's nuclear programme is set to top the agenda, with Iran seeking Russian help fending off new UN sanctions over its programme.

Russia has said there is no evidence that Iran is trying to develop nuclear weapons, something the US says Iran wants to do. Should Russia be taking a tougher stance over Iran and its nuclear programme?

BOLLYWOOD

In India a legal battle is taking place over the country's entry for best foreign film at the Oscars.

"Eklavya: The Royal Guard" is facing a legal challenge from a rival director who says the jury that selected it was biased.

The Oscar authorities have asked India to reconfirm its choice by Wednesday, while the Bombay High Court is due to consider the case today.

Eklavya was selected from among five films, including Dharm (Religion) directed by Bhavna Talwar.

Ms Talwar, a first time director, has gone to the court complaining that the jury making India's choice had close links with Eklavya's director. It's making headlines in India, home of the world's biggest film industry. Perhaps we should be talking about it?

The week-long gathering is held every five years to decide future policies and President Hu may use this congress to nominate a possible successor to take over from him in 2012.

The congress comes as change continues to take place at a rapid pace, but the gap between the rich and poor continues to widen, while China's economic power is evident the world over.

Should we be talking about the future of China? Should we be worried by its seemingly unstoppable rise on the world stage?

GUNS AND SCHOOL

We have a very active listenership in Oregon in the US and a story that comes from there is that of school teacher
Shirley Katz who has gone to court to demand the right to take a handgun into class.

'I know it is my right to carry that gun,' she said. Her legal action takes place against a backdrop of shootings in schools and on university campuses in the States.

It would be interesting to speak to Shirley and hear her views first hand and let you put your questions to her.

EUROPE AND IMMIGRATION

A new study has found that Sweden is the most welcoming country in Europe when it comes to dealing with new immigrants, but that on the other side of the Baltic Latvia is the least welcoming.

The study says that overall, European Union nations are only doing half as much as they could to help migrants integrate. Are you a migrant in Sweden, Latvia or anywhere else in the world? Would you like to tell us about your experiences?

THE UN AND THE MIDDLE EAST

A top UN expert has said he will urge the world body to withdraw from the Quartet of Middle East mediators unless it addresses Palestinian human rights.

John Dugard, the UN human rights envoy for the Palestinian Territories, said the US, EU, UN and Russia were failing to protect the Palestinians. He said every time he visits the region, the situation seems to have worsened.

Mr Dugard highlighted Israeli restrictions on Palestinians' freedom of movement. He said that although Israel did have a threat to its security, "its response is very disproportionate". He also said the purpose of some of the checkpoints in the middle of the West Bank was to break it up "into a number of cantons and make the life of Palestinians as miserable as possible".

What do you think? Should the UN pull out of the Quartet? Is Israel making life disproportionately difficult for the Palestinians?

NEW ZEALAND TERROR ARRESTS

Although we have some listeners in New Zealand we don't hear a lot from the country, but one story you may like to talk about is the arrest of 17 people and the seizing of a number of weapons during a series of anti-terror raids.

More than 300 police were involved in the operation, reportedly aimed at Maori sovereignty and environmental activists. The head of New Zealand's police, Howard Broad, said those held had been in military-style training camps. Maybe we should get reaction from what is generally considered to be a very peaceful country?

One story that caught my eye was the announcement by the Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, that if he is re-elected he will hold a referendum on changing the constitution to recognise indigenous Australians.

Many Aboriginal leaders have already criticised the announcement, saying that changing the constitution means nothing and that only a formal apology regarding their people's suffering will suffice.

But Mr Howard says a collective national apology for past injustices would reinforce what he described as a culture of victimhood.

Should the descendants of settlers apologise for the wrongs committed centuries ago by their forefathers, or is Mr Howard right to refuse such a request?

MATERNAL MORTALITY

There are two studies out today about childbirth. One condemns the "appalling" lack of progress made in reducing the number of women worldwide dying during pregnancy and childbirth.

Analysis in The Lancet medical journal shows half a million women die every year - little change from 20 years ago.

The other, also published in the Lancet, found that while the rates of abortion fell globally by 17% between 1995 and 2003, the number of abortions taking place in "unsafe" conditions remained the same - about half of all abortions carried out.

The vast majority of unsafe abortions are done in developing countries, the figures show. Dr Iqbal Shah of the World Health Organisation said reducing the number of unsafe abortions was "imperative" in order to reduce maternal deaths.

Would legalising abortion in places where they are currently banned improve the conditions in which they are carried out and reduce maternal mortality rates?

NOBEL PEACE PRIZE

This year's Nobel Peace Prize has been won by the former US vice-president Al Gore and the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

The award comes just two days after a High Court judge in Britain said that Mr Gore's Oscar-winning climate change film, An Inconvenient Truth, contained "nine scientific errors".

The judge, who was ruling on whether the film could be shown in British schools, said that nine statements in the film were not supported by mainstream scientific consensus. Although he did say that the film's main argument that climate change was mainly caused by man-made emissions of greenhouse gases and will have serious adverse consequences, was supported by the majority of scientific opinion.

What do you think about Mr Gore's Nobel prize award?

THE DEATH OF CDs

Madonna is leaving her lifelong record label, Warner, and is poised to sign a contract with a concert promoter in a deal that has sparked fresh debate over the future of record labels.

Madonna is thought to be signing a multi-million dollar, 10-year deal with the US firm. It is the latest move by a big-sellling act to bypass traditional record companies.

Radiohead recently announced that their latest album would be available as a download and that fans could choose how much they wanted to pay for it, while The Charlatans are giving their new album away as a free download. Is this the beginning of the end of the record industry as we have known it?

SINGING BAN

A popular Spanish singer has been banned from performing in a Venezuelan stadium over remarks he made about the country's president, Hugo Chavez.

A government minister accused Alejandro Sanz of criticising Mr Chavez three years ago while touring Venezuela. The musician has been banned from staging a concert at a state-run stadium but the government says he can perform at any privately owned venue.

Forget the rights and wrongs of this case. Who would you ban from singing and why?

-----------------

WE'RE EXPERIENCING SOME TECHNICAL PROBLEMS AGAIN, I'M AFRAID. THAT'S WHY I'M PUBLISHING HERE SOME OF THE COMMENTS WE'VE RECEIVED VIA EMAIL AND TEXT MESSAGE:

Who do you think should win the nobel peace prize ? It is not doubt to monks in Burma ? frank italy

Nobel Peace Prize. If it were up to me. the brave Burmese monks would win the Prize. Ivy, kenya

The noble peace prize should be shared amongs the group of elders consisting of Nelson Mandela,Desmond Tutu and the rest.
Shuwary Barlatt,Freetown.

One big African story that they may also talk about is a new report that says that the cost of armed conflict on the continent over a 15-year period was equal to the amount of money received in aid during the same period.

The report concludes that what is needed is a global, legally-binding arms trade treaty. Do you think such a move would help stop war in Africa? Should aid be stopped until such a treaty is in force? Is Africa poor because of war?

MUSLIM-CHRISTIAN RELATIONS

More than 130 Muslim scholars have written to Pope Benedict and other Christian leaders urging greater understanding between the two faiths. They say that world peace could depend on improved relations between Muslims and Christians.

The letter identifies similarities in both religions, such as the requirements to accept only one god and live in peace with one's neighbours.

What do you think? Does world peace depend on better relations between Muslims and Christians? Are relations between countries not equally important? What about relations between other religions or groups within religions?

FOOTBALL BOYCOTT

An Iranian-born German footballer has refused to play a match in Israel, sparking an outcry in Germany, with some Jewish leaders calling for his exclusion from the German national team.

Ashkan Dejagah, who moved to Germany as a child, pulled out of Friday's game in Tel Aviv – a qualification match for the European Under-21 Championship – saying he was doing it out of respect for his Iranian parents.

It has also been reported that he feared that if he played he would be refused entry to Iran where many of his relatives still live. Iran refuses to recognise Israel and bans its citizens from visiting there. But some Jewish groups are calling for Dejagah to be dropped from the German squad.

Do sportsmen and women have a right to boycott countries for political or personal reasons?

ARMENIA AND GENOCIDE

Yesterday I wrote about the planned vote by a US congressional committee to recognise as genocide the 1915-17 mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks.

Despite warnings from President Bush and his administration to the committee that such a move would damage relations with Turkey, its members voted in favour.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul said the decision was unacceptable and had no validity for Turkey, which has always denied any genocide took place. Was the committee right to do what it did? Is it right for people to reassess historical events with a modern-day perspective?

NOOSE

A black professor at Columbia University in New York has found a hangman's noose left on her door and
police are investigating the incident as a possible hate crime.

The discovery echoes a case last year in Jena, Louisiana, where white high school students placed nooses in a tree under which white students usually met.

Nooses are reviled by many as symbols of lynchings that were once common in the southern US. Is this latest incident a sign of rising racism in the US? Is ground won by the civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s being lost?

THE DEATH PENALTY AND ABORTION

Europe is marking its first anti-death penalty day, despite moves from Poland to block the event, calling for it also to condemn abortion and euthanasia.

The day was organised by the Council of Europe, a human rights body, after Poland's veto threatened to derail an EU-sponsored event. If you are against the death penalty should you also have to be against abortion and euthanasia?

Back at the ranch in London, I've been looking out for stories that may also be debated.

Meanwhile, an increasing number of Iraqi provinces are refusing entry to refugees fleeing violence in other parts of the country, the UN refugee agency said.

The head of the UNHCR Iraq Support Unit said up to 11 governors were restricting access because they lacked resources to look after the refugees. Another 2 million refugees have already left the country and we have in the past spoken to some of them, who are now living in places like Jordan and Syria.

Perhaps we should try and talk to some of those who have been displaced within their own country by the violence.

TURKEY AND IRAQ

The US has warned Turkey against making an incursion into northern Iraq to hunt down Kurdish separatists .

The Turkish government is seeking parliamentary approval for a possible cross-border military operation, with Kurdish rebels having killed 15 soldiers since Sunday.

But does the US have the right to warn off Turkey when it cited security for its own intervention in Iraq.

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE?

Meanwhile, Turkey has itself warned the US that bilateral ties will suffer if Washington adopts a bill recognising as genocide the Ottoman empire's killings of Armenians.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul has said "serious problems" would emerge if US lawmakers passed the bill. The US House Foreign Affairs Committee is due to discuss it this week.

Ankara rejects Armenian claims that the deaths of some 1.5m Armenians in 1915-17 amounted to genocide, but should the US follow France's example in recognising the killings as genocide?

PAKISTAN

Most of the talk about Pakistan recently has been about President Musharraf and whether he should stand down as army chief, but in recent days there has been a surge in violence in the country's border region of North Waziristan.

Pakistani warplanes have attacked suspected pro-Taleban positions near the Afghan border, while
the army says a total of 45 troops and 150 rebels have died so far in battles.

Locals have been fleeing the area in their thousands, and say many civilians have died. It is the heaviest fighting for many months in North Waziristan, which the US says is an al-Qaeda safe haven.

Should we try and hear from people in the region about what's happening there?

BRITAIN AND THE PALESTINIANS

A 60-year-old Palestinian bringing a case against the British government in the High Court today saying that sales of arms to Israel are illegal.

Saleh Hassan says Israel uses military equipment bought in Britain to repress Palestinians. Mr Hassan, who lives in Bethlehem, says that Israel used such equipment to bulldoze his farm and confiscate his land in 2005 to allow the construction of its barrier, which he calls its "annexation wall". Israel says the West Bank barrier is a security measure to stop suicide bombers.

What do you think? This raises many questions about the arms trade and who sells arms to who.

MALAYSIAN IN SPACE

Malaysia's first astronaut is set to blast off today for a voyage to the International Space Station.
Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor will be the first Muslim to fly in space during the holy month of Ramadan and will be there for the Eid festival, when he will treat his crewmates to a celebratory meal.

Officials in Malaysia have prepared special guidelines for him on observing religious rules while he is at the station. When Muslims have had a lot of bad publicity in some quarters in the recent past, is Mr Shukor a postive Muslim role model? Are you celebrating this year's Ramadan in an unusual location?

This is the WHYS team in London. We had an excellent first hour of discussion from the Kaizer Chiefs' training ground in Soweto on Tuesday. We were due to roll into a second hour as well, but a power cut hit the area and we were unable to broadcast live to SAFM listeners and BBC World Service listeners in Africa. In the end we had to re-run a recording of the first hour of discussion. We can only apologise to everyone who wanted to join the discussion in the second hour. I think Ros and the team are currently sitting in the dark. I'm sure they'll blog about their experiences on Wednesday!

The articulated lorries we broadcast next to during yesterday's show from the Zimbabwean border are keeping us company and others with noticeably heavier loads are heading in the other direction.

And they are not going unattended. We’ve just been stopped by a police roadblock set up to Occasionally we’re passing clutches of small brick houses who I’m guessing are earning their living from the passing trade the road brings along with the farms that we can see dotted around.

If you’d like, to read more on yesterday’s show see towards the bottom of this posting.

WORLD CUP WINNERS AND LOSERS

FIFA, football’s world governing body, is in town to see how South Africa is doing ahead of the World Cup in 2010. Very well seems to be the verdict after a visit to Soweto to see Soccer City which is the venue for the final. But there’s an undoubted sensitivity surrounding the issue of South Africa’s preparedness. Danny Jordan – the man heading the preparations – went as far as saying at one event that he didn’t want to address that issue. He’d answered it too many times.

Today we’re going to be broadcasting from the training centre of the Kaizer Chiefs, one of South Africa’s top two football teams and one of the richest club s on the continent. We’ll be joined by administrators, players, club owners, coaches (including the national coach we hope), youth players and fans to thrash out some of the questions that won’t go away about 2010.

These are questions I’ve heard debated just since I’ve been here:
What will happen to the stadiums after the tournaments? Club football (apart from the Chiefs and their rivals the Pirates) is watched by very few so several grounds may be given to rugby clubs to use. Does that serve South Africans well?

Will South Africans be able to afford tickets to the games?
Angela Merkel’s been here over the past few days highlighting how the World Cup changed people’s perceptions of Germany. Is there a risk that SA will change perceptions but not in the people here would like? ‘It’ll be public humiliation’ one person said to me.

SCOUTS PROMISE

Not everything went to plan on yesterday’s programme. Some things were plain our fault, others were unlucky such a dust storm kicking up just as went on air, and others were a little more sinister. If you heard the show you’ll know that I had to keep going outside into a car park near the border to speak to Zimbabweans who weren’t comfortable making themselves known to the audience. But we also speaking to some South Africans in the same position.

These were ‘scouts’ – the men who arrange to illegal immigrants to come across the border, then look after them (in reality they leave them in a hiding place in the bush for up to 3 days and then pick them up) and deliver them to drivers ready to take them south – normally towards Johannesburg.

We had arranged to speak to two scouts but ten minutes before they were due we called and they cancelled. The reason they said was that local police has threatened to stop turning a blind eye if they did the interview. They would arrest them, the Zimbabweans they were helping and of course in turn damage the way they earn their money. That put pay to that interview.

SABC AFRICA AT 10PM TONIGHT

Right, this seems to have turned out to be almost as long as the N1 motorway we’re still on. I’ve just been told I’ve got to go and get made-up ahead of a TV interview. I’d have brought my own blusher if I’d know. The interview will be broadcast on SABC Africa between 10-10.30pm on SABC Africa is you have access to that.

Speak to you later.
Cheers,
Ros

They will be joined by South African footballers Lucas Radebe, who played for Leeds United, and Sean Bartlett, as well as the former Brazilian player Carlos Pereira.

We'll also be asking, is sport a way of bringing people together in South Africa or does it still divide the nation?

Meanwhile, we're monitoring things from London.

DARFUR

Darfur is back in the headlines after the British government warned rebel groups from the troubled-Sudanese region they could be excluded from the peace process if they boycott talks due to be held in Libya later this month.

One key rebel faction says it will not enter peace talks until a promised peacekeeping force is deployed.

The warning follows a rebel attack on an African Union base last week and a subsequent follow-up attack by the Sudanese army. Where does this leave the prospects for peace in Sudan?

NIGERIA

An Islamic court in Nigeria has banned a satirical play written by a rights activist about corrupt politicians in states run under Sharia law.

The play, written by Shehu Sani, makes fun of officials who use Sharia laws to help them plunder state funds. A complaint against it was filed by a pro-Sharia group.

Is the court right to ban the play or should religious groups have more of a sense of humour when it comes to people poking fun at them? What's more important, respecting someone's religious sensibilities or the right to freedom of speech?

MUSLIM DOCTORS

Another similiar story is that of a minority of Muslim trainee doctors in Britain who are refusing to have anything to do with patients with alcohol problems or sexually transmitted diseases, and sometimes even with patients of the opposite sex.

Do doctors have the right to use their religious beliefs as a grounds for refusing to treat someone or should doctors have to treat everyone irrespective of who they are or what they have done?

BLACKWATER

This story was around yesterday, but it still has legs. The Iraqi government has called on the United States to end its co-operation with the private security firm, Blackwater, within six months.

The government has accused guards from the company of firing randomly at civilians in Baghdad last month, killing seventeen and injuring more than twenty.

It's demanding that Blackwater pay compensation of eight-million dollars to the families of each of the victims. The company says the guards returned fire after being attacked.

Should the US do as asked, or was Blackwater just doing the job it was employed for by the US - protecting diplomats and other foreign workers?

IRAQ AND BRITAIN

Another story that was around yesterday, but that we haven't looked at is Britain's announcement that it is to cut troop numbers in Iraq by around half to 2,500 next spring.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Britain was able to cut its troop numbers "because the Iraqis are now able to take responsibility for the security themselves".

Is Britain right to do so or should it be keeping its troop numbers up to help the transition and the US military surge?

Mr Brown also announced that local Iraqi staff, including interpreters, who have worked for the British armed forces for more than a year would be able to apply for financial payments to help them resettle elsewhere in Iraq or, "in agreed circumstances", for admission to the UK.

We have talked about this before, with many of the Iraqi workers fearing for their lives because they have helped British troops. Is Britain doing enough to help those who have helped its military operations in the south of Iraq?

These stories are all in today’s edition of The Sowetan newspaper. A serial killer is dumping bodies in a sugar cane plantation in Kaw-Zulu Natal, a girl was killed by a stray bullet while lying in her bed, a suspected burglar was shot and injured after a high-speed chase in Pretoria, in Soweto three men suspecting of holding up a supermarket were shot dead by the police, further south in Durban a security guard was killed during heist on a bank van (one has just driven past us and looks like a steel box) in the Eastern Cape a man has been arrested for raping his girlfriend, a Durban women has been arrested for having body parts in her possession, a charity in central Johannesburg has said so many of its staff are being mugged it’s difficult to recruit volunteers, details are emerging of a Joburg man who was stabbed many times ad died when he went to check on a noise outside his house, a domestic row turned to murder in KZN leaving a wife dead.

There’s a standard argument that I have whenever I visit South Africa as a journalist. At some point we describe the crime that we’re either seeing, experiencing or reading about, and a South African will take issue with us. It happened last time WHYS came to town when a guy from Soweto accused us trying to exaggerate the crime problem here. With a very sad irony, the person who put the argument most eloquently was the brilliant Jozi FM reporter Jabu Mlangeni who helped us a great deal during our last trip here and was murdered as he walked home a few weeks after we said goodbye.

CRIME EXISTS ELSEWHERE

His point was this. Yes SA has crime but so do many other countries and they don’t have to continually answer to accusations of a crime problem. Look at London he said to me – I read all the time about the murders there. Also, seen in the context of apartheid the direction crime rates are going, it’s not so much a problem, as a problem being solved.

I don’t know it if matters if we describe SA’s crime rates as a problem. And clearly listing stories in newspapers
proves nothing. But the violence in South African society is undeniable and when you read it detailed day after day in the local press, it makes sobering reading.