Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Negotiations continue on U of M light-rail deal
  The University of Minnesota and planners of the Central Corridor light-rail line are under the gun to work out their differences.5:35 p.m.
• Art Hounds
  Each week Minnesota Public Radio News asks three people from the Minnesota arts scene to be "Art Hounds." Their job is to step outside their own work and hunt down something exciting that's going on in local arts.5:48 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• A Sudden Exit Driven By An 'Irrational' War
  A former Marine captain who became the first foreign service official to publicly resign in protest over the war in Afghanistan says staying in the country is not in America's interest. Matthew Hoh says leaving Afghanistan would not turn the country into an al-Qaida safe haven again.
• Calculating The Cost Of The War In Afghanistan
  One of the factors President Obama must weigh as he decides whether to send more troops to Afghanistan is the cost — not just in lives, but in dollars. With the economy still struggling, questions exist about how much the U.S. can afford to spend in Afghanistan — and for how long.
• VFW Post Makes Push To Recruit Young Vets
  Veterans of Foreign Wars posts around Portland, Ore., have closed their doors as members died and funds dried up. But in Tualatin, Ore., Post 3452 has made a point to attract young veterans to revitalize membership, including moving into a new headquarters named after a 22-year-old who was fatally wounded while on duty this summer.
• Crime Locale Is Key In California's 3 Strikes Law
  Under California's three strikes sentencing law, criminals' fate may depend as much on where they're arrested as on what they're arrested for. Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley, who supports the law, almost never charges a nonviolent offense as a third strike. But 100 miles north in Kern County, District Attorney Ed Jagels almost always does.
• Digital Data Make For A Really Permanent Record
  Information doesn't fade the way it used to. Records once forgotten in long-lost files are now searchable online — perhaps forever. Some computer researchers are looking for ways to give data a life span. But others think we should adapt to a new reality of data that will never die.
• 'Lo' And Behold: A Communication Revolution
  The Internet began with a whimper, not a bang. And not everyone agrees on when that whimper occurred. But 40 years ago Thursday, the first communication over a computer network called ARPANET was sent — a message that said simply "lo."
• Roger Deakins, Keeping An Eye On The Small Things
  The noted cinematographer has shaped the visual vocabulary of films including The Shawshank Redemption and every Coen Brothers picture since 1991's Barton Fink. He talks to Melissa Block about the joys of the simple image — and takes us through two of his favorite scenes.
• New Data Show Economy Growing Again
  New government data released Thursday showed an economy that is growing again for the first time in a year. But the economy is receiving much support right now, and no one knows whether it is capable of growing on its own.
• Letters: Autism, Baseball
  Listeners respond to Melissa Block's interview with journalist Amy Wallace, and the story on the Cleveland Indians' contribution to the World Series. Melissa Block and Robert Siegel read from listeners' e-mails.
• Obama Honors Soldiers Killed In Afghanistan
  President Obama traveled to Dover Air Force Base after midnights to honor the Americans killed in Afghanistan earlier this week. Obama joined the soldiers' families for the repatriation ceremony.

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