Search results for

The Senate is expected to confirm Tom Ridge as the first secretary of the new Department of Homeland Security. Meanwhile, the head of the Transportation Security Administration blocks efforts by employees to form a union, saying it would jeopardize national security. NPR's Jackie Northam reports.

Commentator Ben Shaberman says his recent experience with the stock market has allowed him to deal with reality and move on.

Edmonton Oilers coach may regret his action against the Calgary Flames' mascot.

Theresa Schiavone reports on the public television documentary, Two Towns of Jasper, which examines the racial divide in the Texas city where the 1998 racially motivated murder of James Byrd Jr. occurred. Two New York filmmakers, one black and one white, made the movie as a way to reconcile their differing views about race relations. During the Byrd murder trials in 1999, Marco Williams, who is black, interviewed black residents of Jasper; Whitney Dow, who is white, interviewed white residents.

Water levels in St. Louis reach their lowest in more than a decade, affecting the barge transportation business and companies that depend on the Mississippi River to transport cargo. Tom Weber of member station KWMU reports.

Commentator Patt Morrison proposes a "mis-user fee" as a new way for the federal government to raise revenue. It would levy a fine on politicians and Washington pundits who misuse American English.

Rolando Arrieta profiles the French musical group Les Yeux Noirs, which performs Gypsy and Jewish music on acoustic and electric instruments. Singer and violinist Erik Slabiak and his brother, Olivier, grew up in Paris in the 1970s, the sons of Jewish immigrants from Poland.

Economic growth comes to a near standstill in the fourth quarter of 2002, as the gross domestic product rose by an annual rate of just 0.7 percent. Concerns over a possible war in Iraq and rising oil prices prompt many businesses to hold off on new spending. NPR's Chris Arnold reports.

In the second part of our series on debt in America we'll hear about the boom in cash-out mortgage financing and about the history of debt in our society. The book mentioned is Credit Card Nation: The Consequences of America's Addiction to Credit, published by Basic Books; Dec., 2001.

NPR's Lynn Neary and NPR's Michele Norris read from this week's listener letters. Among the topics, the National Geographic Magazine swimsuit edition, the glories of a summer peach in wintertime, and the "State of the Union Drinking Game."