Politics
11:57 am
Fri May 18, 2012

Romney Says No To Super PAC Smear Campaign

Mitt Romney releases his first general election campaign ad. Plus wealthy GOP investors say their super PAC won't run a smear campaign connecting controversial pastor Jeremiah Wright with President Obama. Host Michel Martin discusses the latest political developments with Lenny McAllister of Politic365.com and author Michael Fauntroy.

World Cafe
10:53 am
Fri May 18, 2012

Rodrigo Y Gabriela On World Cafe

Credit Courtesy of the artist
Rodrigo y Gabriela.

Rodrigo y Gabriela plays everything from heavy metal to jazz to acoustic folk. The duo started out in a thrash-metal band in Mexico City, but moved to Dublin in 1999. From Ireland, its inventive instrumental music spread to the U.K., then to Europe and the U.S. before finally finding its way back to Mexico. Rodrigo y Gabriela's big break came in 2006, when the pair's self-titled debut topped the Irish charts.

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Business
10:50 am
Fri May 18, 2012

JPMorgan's Troubles And The Price Of Eggs

Credit Joern Pollex / Getty Images
Do complex Wall Street transactions ever do anything to help average people? To answer that question, we consider the case of an imaginary company, Chickens LLC, that's looking to grow.

Originally published on Fri May 18, 2012 4:20 pm

Journalists have spent many days and millions of words hashing over the news that banking giant JPMorgan Chase lost billions of dollars trading "synthetic" derivatives.

I am one of those journalists who, more or less, can understand what the bank says it was trying to do, i.e., hedge against loan losses. But here's what I have a hard time explaining:

What does this kind of complex trading have to do with the price of eggs?

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The Two-Way
10:35 am
Fri May 18, 2012

Is It Fair That A Quarterback Set The Record For Paper Airplane Tossing?

Credit ThePaperAirplaneGuy
Joe Ayoob (in red shirt) winding up for the record-breaking throw. Plane designer John Collins is behind him.
Shots - Health Blog
10:05 am
Fri May 18, 2012

Trash Can May Be Greenest Option For Unused Drugs

Credit Keith Srakocic / AP
Surplus and expired drugs collected during the DEA's fourth National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day. New research suggests it might be better for the environment to dispose of drugs in household trash.

Originally published on Fri May 18, 2012 10:21 am

American homes are filled with unused prescription drugs. Each year we squirrel away 200 million pounds of pharmaceuticals we don't need anymore, according to some estimates.

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The Two-Way
9:39 am
Fri May 18, 2012

French Plan To Pull Troops From Afghanistan Starts Busy Diplomatic Days

Credit Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP
President Barack Obama meets with French President Francois Hollande on Friday in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington.

Originally published on Fri May 18, 2012 1:36 pm

Update at 1:17 p.m. ET. Support Afghanistan In 'Different Way':

During their meeting in the White House, President Francois Hollande, the new socialist leader of France, said he told President Obama that he was committed to withdrawing French troops from Afghanistan by the end of the year.

But, the AP reports, Hollande said he was committed to supporting Afghanistan in a "different way."

This was Obama's first meeting with Hollande.

The two leaders also said they wanted Greece to remain a part the European monetary union.

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The Two-Way
9:33 am
Fri May 18, 2012

French Plan To Pull Troops From Afghanistan Starts Busy Diplomatic Days

Before President Obama welcomes world leaders to Camp David and Chicago, new French President Francoise Hollande is expected to say he wants his nation's 3,300 troops home from Afghanistan by year's end. That could upset other NATO nations.

The Two-Way
8:34 am
Fri May 18, 2012

5 Takeaways From Trove Of Evidence Related To Trayvon Martin's Death

Credit Florida State Attorney's Office / AFP/Getty Images
A photograph of George Zimmerman's head taken after the Feb. 26 shooting death of Trayvon Martin. It shows blood from injuries he Zimmerman says he received during their encounter.
  • NPR's Greg Allen reporting on 'Morning Edition'

Among the key things to know about what's in the hundreds of pages of evidence and other materials related to the Feb. 26 shooting death of Florida teenager Trayvon Martin, which were released Thursday:

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Europe
7:42 am
Fri May 18, 2012

Is Now The Time To Vacation In Greece?

Originally published on Fri May 18, 2012 10:08 am

Despite all the chaos and misery of the Greek debt crisis, the country still has some major assets: It's a stunningly beautiful place, with sunny weather, great beaches, ancient marvels and modern amenities.

Greece has been attracting visitors for centuries — at least since Darius the Great led an unsuccessful Persian military package tour about 2,500 years ago.

That didn't work out so well for Darius, who was defeated at the Battle of Marathon.

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The Two-Way
7:33 am
Fri May 18, 2012

Like It Or Not, It's Facebook's Day On Wall Street

Credit Emmanuel Dunand / AFP/Getty Images

Originally published on Fri May 18, 2012 4:03 pm

  • Steve Henn talks with Steve Inskeep on 'Morning Edition'

Facebook's much-publicized first sale of stock to the public started with a bang late this morning as the price per share jumped. But though the volume of shares sold was a record for an initial public offering, the stock's price gave up its gains as the day continued.

By the end of trading in the U.S., Facebook had settled right at the $38 initial offering price that had been set before shares went on sale.

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