The Five Thousand Percent Man and the Cabinet Duel

The Five Thousand Percent Man and the Cabinet Duel

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Episode description

The Five Thousand Percent Man and the Cabinet Duel

On 21 September 2015, the price of a life-saving drug called Daraprim rose from $13.50 to $750 per tablet overnight, a 5,455% increase that sparked global outrage and forced a national conversation about pharmaceutical pricing. Clare Vale unpacks Martin Shkreli’s infamous decision and its human cost, then steps back to 1809, when two serving British Cabinet ministers resolved a political dispute with pistols on Putney Heath. The episode also visits the 2018 legislative elections in Eswatini, where political parties remain banned by royal decree, and closes with the 1983 FCC approval of the Motorola DynaTAC 8000X, the world’s first commercially available mobile phone. Four stories about power, pricing, politics, and the devices that quietly changed everything.

Chapters

  • Intro Clare introduces the 5,455% overnight price rise of a life-saving drug and the man who seemed confused by the backlash.
  • The Five Thousand Percent Man Martin Shkreli’s Turing Pharmaceuticals raised the price of Daraprim from $13.50 to $750 per tablet on 21 September 2015, causing immediate harm to patients and igniting a national debate about drug pricing in America.
  • Two Cabinet Ministers and a Pistol on Putney Heath On 21 September 1809, British Foreign Secretary George Canning and War Secretary Viscount Castlereagh fought a duel on Putney Heath over a Cabinet dispute. Both resigned. Both went on to distinguished careers.
  • An Election With No Parties Eswatini held legislative elections on 21 September 2018 under a system that has banned political parties since 1973, with all candidates standing as independents in an absolute monarchy.
  • The Eight Hundred Gram Future The FCC approved the Motorola DynaTAC 8000X on 21 September 1983, making it the first commercially available handheld mobile phone. It weighed 800 grams, cost nearly $4,000, and quietly began a revolution.
  • Outro Clare reflects on how small moments and strange decisions carry enormous consequences, often only visible in hindsight.

Links

No transcript available for this episode.