Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Survey shows hunger's presence in Minnesota
  One in 10 people say they know someone who has gone to bed hungry in the past month.4:48 p.m.
• "A lot less shouty"
  The British Television Advertising Awards return to the Walker Art Center for the 21st year in a row.4:52 p.m.
• Two Minnesota soldiers killed by same blast
  The two Minnesota National Guard soldiers who were killed in Iraq this weekend were from the same unit based in Crookston.5:20 p.m.
• The Mount Everest of materialism
  The holiday shopping season is in full swing, and if you feel limited by your shopping options, don't worry, last week officials at the Mall of America announced details of a massive second phase of the mall. The mall is already the Mount Everest of materialism and it's a mountain guest commentator Rosemary Williams knows very well.6:19 p.m.
• Three Minnesotans receive arts grants
  The first-ever United States Artists fellowships were announced today, and three Minnesotans are among the 50 recipients. Authors Sandra Benitez and Susan Powers, along with Theatre De La Jeune Lune director Dominique Serrand will each receive a $50,000 grant in recognition of their work. MPR's Tom Crann spoke with Benitez from the awards banquet at Lincoln Center in New York.6:22 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Soldiers Say Army Ignores, Punishes Mental Anguish
  The Army says it has extensive mental-health programs and services for soldiers returning from Iraq. But some stressed-out soldiers at Colorado's Ft. Carson say that instead of giving them help, officials are purging them from the ranks.
• Deaths Prompted Withdrawal of Cholesterol Drug
  Pfizer Inc. halts tests of a highly touted new cholesterol drug because of an unexpected number of deaths and other complications. Testing on the drug, torcetrapib, was ceased after more people in the drug group died than in the placebo group. The drug was unique in that it raises HDL, the "good" kind of cholesterol.
• Bolton Resigns as U.N. Ambassador, Avoiding Battle
  U.N. Ambassador John Bolton announces that he will step down at the end of his temporary appointment, which expires in a few weeks along with the current session of Congress. Bolton faced a tough, if not impossible, fight for Senate confirmation.
• Varied Responses to Cholesterol Worries
  People walking and jogging on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., express their personal concerns about high cholesterol in their lives and those of relatives and friends. Most people are thinking about the issue; some are actually adding more exercise and a better diet to their lives.
• Drugs to Help Lower Cholesterol Levels
  Robert Siegel talks with Dr. Jerry Avorn about ways to reduce one's cholesterol. Avorn is a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, and chief of the division of pharmacoepidemiology and pharmacoeconomics at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. He's also author of the book Powerful Medicines: The Benefits, Risks, and Costs of Prescription Drugs.
• Marketing Campaign Targets Noses at Bus Stops
  The California Milk Processor Board approves a first-ever "olfactory-based" marketing plan. After today, five bus shelters in San Francisco will gain aromatic strips smelling of just-baked cookies. Marketers hope the strips, attached to the interior walls of bus shelters, will lead passengers to drink a glass of milk.
• Secretary-Nominee Gates Has Critics and Fans
  Once recognized as the preeminent intelligence expert on the Soviet Union, in 1991 Robert Gates saw many friends and subordinates testify against his nomination to be director of the Central Intelligence Agency.
• The Sound of Little Footsteps on the Stairs
  Listener Jerry Deaton of Frankfort, Ky., tells us why the thump thump thump of his daughter's feet on the stairs of his self-built log cabin mean so much to him and his wife.
• Bush Hosts Iran-Backed Iraqi Leader for Talks
  President Bush meets with a top Iraqi Shiite politician whose followers control the Iraqi Interior Ministry -- the agency widely accused of involvement in the killings of Sunni Arabs. The president hosted Abdelaziz al-Hakim at the White House. Hakim heads the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, a group founded by Iraqi exiles in Iran.
• A Contrarian Confidant Leaves State Department
  Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is losing one of her closest advisors, Philip Zelikow, who is leaving his job as counselor of the State Department to return to academia. Known for taking stances contrary to policy, Zelikow was executive director of the 9/11 Commission.

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