Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Abortion opponents find common ground in proposed amendment to Minnesota's informed consent law
  Two doctors, each on opposing sides of the abortion debate, have come together to support an amendment to Minnesota's informed consent law, enacted in 2003. The so-called "Women's Right to Know Act" requires doctors to give scripted abortion information to women seeking an abortion. But Dr. Jan Strathy, an abortion-rights supporter, and Dr. Steven Calvin, who opposes abortion, jointly support an amendment that would relieve doctors from the state's mandatory language when patients are confronted with fatal fetal anomalies - the certain death of a fetus before, during or after delivery.4:49 p.m.
• Disparities persist in Minnesota's justice sytem
  Racial disparities continue to exist in Minnesota's criminal justice system, according to the latest report from the Council on Crime and Justice, a private non-profit research group that has been studying the issue.5:19 p.m.
• Data from 50,000 Minnesota taxpayers gone missing
  State tax officials disclosed Wednesday that a package containing private information on 50,000 taxpayers - mostly businesses being audited for back taxes - has been missing for more than a month.5:23 p.m.
• Ortonville hopes retirees provide a boost
  Ortonville, Minnesota, is hoping to reverse a population decline by attracting retiring baby boomers to town.5:48 p.m.
• State looking for free ugrades
  The state of Minnesota is planning to update some of its outdated information and technology resources, and it's hoping to do it for free. The Office of Enterprise Technology is asking over a dozen local and national corporations and consulting firms to loan out their high-tech professionals for up to a year, with the corporations footing the bill for their salaries. Dan McElroy is the governor's senior advisor on innovation. He says assistance to the state from corporations is not unprecedented.5:54 p.m.
• Guthrie stages North American premiere of DruidSynge
  Gerry Hynes is the artistic director of the Druid Theatre Company in Galway, Ireland, and the director of DruidSynge, the acclaimed staging of the cycle of six plays by Irish playwright John Millington Synge. The marathon performance had it's first day-long review yesterday. The six plays can be seen over the next three nights on the McGuire Proscenium Stage in the new Guthrie complex.6:19 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Wilkes-Barre Avoids Worsened Flooding
  People living near the Susquehanna River in Wilkes-Barre, Penn., are returning to their homes as river waters recede. But flooding still threatens other communities in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and other parts of the Northeast.
• Israeli Strike on Power Plant Sparks New Worries
  Israeli aircraft attack areas of southern Gaza, part of an effort to force Palestinian militants to release an Israeli soldier captured last Sunday. While no serious injuries have been reported, an air strike on Gaza's power plant has raised fears of a humanitarian crisis.
• Fate of Detainees Unclear, Despite Court Ruling
  The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that military war crimes trials for prisoners at Guantanamo Bay are illegal is a rebuke to the Bush administration. But what does it mean for those being held at the U.S. detention facility in Cuba?
• Just Another Graduate Working Two Jobs?
  This is the season for new graduates to get ready for new jobs. Among the recent graduates is commentator Meredith Gudger Raines, who has just finished at Drew Theological Seminary. She is about to take the pulpit at two churches near Morgantown, W.Va.: Community United Methodist Church and Fairview United Methodist Church.
• G8: Iran Has Until July 5 to Reply to Nuclear Plan
  The foreign ministers of the Group of 8 countries press Iran to respond to an offer of incentives for dissolving its nuclear program, setting a deadline of July 5 for a response. The ministers also discussed the Middle East and energy security, preparing for next month's G8 summit in St. Petersburg, Russia.
• Senior Military Lawyer Was Leery of Tribunals
  In the weeks and months immediately after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, a working group of top military lawyers considered how to handle captured prisoners. Ret. Rear Admiral Donald Guter was the Judge Advocate General of the Navy at that time.
• Supreme Court: Tribunals Exceeded Bush's Authority
  President Bush overstepped his authority in the design of war-crimes trials of Guantanamo detainees, according to a Supreme Court ruling. The Bush administration argued that the president has the power to make that decision on his own.
• Bush Pledges to Obey, Analyze Court's Ruling
  Met with news that the Supreme Court has blocked his administration's plans for military tribunals at the Guantanamo Bay prison, President Bush says the White House will study the decision. The court said the administration's approach does not meet the standards of international law or federal statutes.
• Engineering Gems of the U.S. Highway System
  In honor of the interstate highway system's 50th anniversary, Michele Norris and Melissa Block talk to three engineers about their favorite parts of the system: a deck tunnel in Phoenix; a bridge in Toledo, Ohio; and the pavement of Washington state.
• Spring Is Early, and So Are the Birds
  Spring is coming earlier to Europe, thanks to global warming. And at least some birds have adjusted to the change. A new study finds that migrating songbirds from Africa are showing up earlier on their breeding grounds, to take advantage of abundant food. Scientists suggest these bird species are actually evolving rapidly to keep up with our changing world.
• Kuwaiti Women Vote, and Run, in Elections
  Women in Kuwait vote in parliamentary elections for the first time in the history of the emirate. In addition, the candidates vying for seats in the legislature included 28 women.
• Letters: Iraqi Translator, Autism and 'Thank You'
  Melissa Block and Michele Norris read from listeners' letters. Among this week's topics, Jacki Lyden and John McChesney's story about an Iraqi translator who was killed by American forces; Joseph Shapiro's piece on people with autism who want to be accepted as they are; and our story about thank-you-note etiquette.
• Gaza Crisis Escalates, and New Questions Arise
  The Israeli operation to free an abducted soldier has grown to include the arrest of Hamas cabinet members. That has led to many questions, such as what will happen to the officials. Melissa Block talks with Gil Hoffman, political reporter for the Jerusalem Post, and Daoud Kuttab, director of the Institute of Modern Media at Al Quds University, and a columnist for the Jordan Times and The Jerusalem Post.
• New Orleans Marks a Recovery Milestone
  The New Orleans convention center, site of much misery during Katrina, is open for business again. The American Library Association just held the first major gathering in town since the storm. In a city where conventions are a crucial part of the local economy, the event was watched very closely.
• Stolen VA Laptop Recovered; FBI Says Data Not Accessed
  The Department of Veterans Affairs says it has recovered the stolen laptop that contains sensitive personal information on millions of U.S. veterans and active-duty service members. The FBI says there is no evidence that anyone accessed the information. The data could have been used by criminals, but the VA says there have been no reports of identity theft stemming from the incident. The laptop was stolen from the home of a VA analyst in the Washington, D.C., area.

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