Hot Buttons: Talk show topics

TREASURY NOMINEE

Secretary of the Treasury nominee John W. Snow pledges a pro-growth, pro-jobs agenda while building a stable global economy during the U.S. war against terrorism, United Press International reports.

Snow, chairman of the Virginia-based freight and transportation conglomerate CSX, says he shared President George W. Bush's belief "we cannot be satisfied until everyone -- every single person who is unemployed and seeking a job -- has an opportunity to work."

"I pledge to you to use all my talents, my power, my energy and my ability to strengthen the current economic recovery," he says.

The nomination follows the resignation of Paul O'Neill from the post after pressure from a White House anxious over a surge in unemployment figures and determined not to let the nation's economic situation torpedo Bush's 2004 re-election bid.

Low inflation, low mortgage rates and a 5.6 percent increase in productivity over the past four quarters were signs America is climbing out of recession and growth, Bush says.

-- Do you think Snow can make a difference in the economy?

-- What exactly should he do?

(Thanks to UPI White House Correspondent Richard Tomkins)

MALE CONTRACEPTIVE

British scientists say they discovered -- unexpectedly -- a drug already approved to treat a rare genetic disorder also might work as a male contraceptive with fewer side effects than others in development.

"Quite a large proportion of men want to share responsibility for birth control," Aarnoud van der Spoel, a medical biologist at the University of Oxford, tells United Press International. "As this compound has been through all the toxicology studies, it would not take as long for this compound to go through development."

Current options for male contraception are limited to condoms, vasectomies and warmth applied to the testicles, none of which presents a comfortable mix of efficacy or reversibility.

The male birth control drugs closest to market in the United States and Europe attempt to stop sperm production by blocking the secretion of testosterone.

-- Do you agree that a large proportion of men want to share responsibility for birth control?

-- If there are both male and female contraceptives, how will couples share family planning?

(Thanks to UPI's Charles Choi)

WHAT'S A WTC LIFE WORTH?

For the past year, the federal government has had to wrestle with the highly charged and emotional issue of what a life is worth -- how to attach a dollar value to a bartender, stockbroker, fireman.

More than year after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York, the Sept. 11 Victim Compensation Fund has settled 142 claims ranging in value from $250,000 to more than $3 million, all tax-free, UPI reports.

What many people don't understand is that tort law is supposed to make people whole again, not better off than they were. It's not a lottery, says Jeffrey Lichtman, president of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association.

"The law is designed to keep a roof over people's heads, not to go and get a better roof, it's supposed to keep a widow from having to sell the family home and live in a studio apartment," Lichtman says.

-- Some think the Sept. 11 victims all should be compensated in the same amount. Do you agree?

-- The awards are based on income, life expectancy and dependents, among other things. Is this fair?