Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Petters guilty on all counts; attorneys plan appeal
  A jury that had deliberated for parts of five days delivered a sweeping verdict against Minnesota businessman Tom Petters on Wednesday, finding him guilty of all 20 counts in what prosecutors said was a $3.5 billion Ponzi scheme.4:35 p.m.
• Immigrant detention grows in Minnesota
  Some 8,000 immigrants are in deportation proceedings in Minnesota. Every night, 200-300 detainees are behind bars. The Obama Administration is overhauling immigrant detention, but moving them out of jails will take years.4:50 p.m.
• Budget shortfall renews political showdown
  State finance officials say the state is facing a projected $1.2 billion budget shortfall for the current two-year budget cycle.5:24 p.m.
• Twin Cities' Catholic Charities gets a new leader
  The Twin Cities' largest social services organization is getting a new leader. Paul Martodam will become CEO of Catholic Charities and he joined Tom Crann in the studio to talk about the role of social service organizations in a time of economic hardship.5:50 p.m.
• Mother, soldier react to Obama's Afghanistan plan
  A day after President Obama announced his plan to send another 30,000 troops to Afghanistan, two Minnesotans with personal connections to the conflict shared their reactions with MPR's All Things Considered.6:15 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• More Stem Cells Get OK For Government Funding
  The National Institutes of Health says 13 previously off-limits human embryonic stem cell lines can now be studied with public funds. The move comes after President Obama lifted restrictions on stem cell research put in place by the Bush administration.
• Stolen Climate E-Mails Cause A Ruckus In Congress
  A congressional hearing on climate change was supposed to be a routine update on the science of global warming. Stolen e-mails from climate scientists, however, have been used to cast doubt on the legitimacy of climate change science by some, turning Wednesday's hearing into more of a sparring match.
• 'Road Rage' Case Highlights Cyclist Vs. Driver Tension
  Bicycling magazine called it "the road rage incident heard 'round the cycling world." A driver in Los Angeles was recently convicted of using his car as a weapon against two cyclists, who were injured. And the case is focusing attention on the often uneasy relationship between motorists and bicyclists.
• The Decade In Music: The Way We Listen Now
  For the past 10 years, the record industry has struggled to control how we listen to music. But the shift from CD to MP3 is just the latest iteration in the evolution of formats. The MP3 file has yanked music free from physical formats entirely, and the number of ways fans can experience music has exploded.
• McChrystal Pitches U.S. Strategy In Afghanistan
  Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, spent Wednesday pitching President Obama's revised Afghan strategy to his troops and Afghan officials. McChrystal acknowledged it's going to take more than words to persuade Afghans that Obama's new strategy can bring peace.
• The Nuts And Bolts Of Training An Afghan army
  A key part of the U.S. strategy in Afghanistan that President Obama announced Tuesday is the training of Afghan security forces. Army Lt. Gen. (retd.) James Dubik, a senior fellow at the Institute for the Study of War, says training troops in Afghanistan is similar to U.S. efforts in Iraq.
• In Fort Drum, Soldiers Prepared For Deployment
  Soldiers at Fort Drum in Watertown, N.Y., say they are not surprised by the news that more of them will be deploying to Afghanistan. Most of them seem resigned to spending more time in combat, but they say it will be hard on their families.
• Letters: Persian Gulf, Down Syndrome
  Listeners responded to a question about whether the Persian Gulf can also be called the Arabian Gulf, and to the story about the rise in the number of babies born with Down syndrome.
• In Pakistan, Skepticism At Obama Speech
  In his speech on Afghan strategy Tuesday, President Obama said that Pakistan and the United States "share a common enemy." Obama also said success in Afghanistan "was inextricably linked" to Pakistan eradicating safe havens within its borders. Many Pakistanis, however, reject that premise.
• Pakistan's Role In Afghanistan Examined
  President Obama said Tuesday success in Afghanistan "was inextricably linked" to Pakistan. Adil Najam, professor of international relations at Boston University and the founding editor of the blog Pakistaniat: All Things Pakistan, says events in Afghanistan have an almost-immediate impact in neighboring Pakistan.

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