Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Federal government rejects loan for DM&E railroad
  The head of the Federal Railroad Administration says the $2.3 billion federal loan sought by DM&E would pose an unacceptably high risk to federal taxpayers.7:20 a.m.
• Muslim cab drivers make their case in hearing
  Metropolitan Airports Commission officials are holding a hearing in an effort to resolve a dispute that has pitted freedom of religious expression against service to airport customers.7:25 a.m.
• Liberians in Minnesota face a return to a homeland still reeling from civil war
  Thousands of Liberians have been living in Minnesota and the U.S. for years on a temporary basis.7:50 a.m.
• Commentary on refugees returning home
  Should the government decide when and if a refugee returns to his or her home country? Robin Washington, editorial page editor of the Duluth News Tribune, offers this commentary on the subject.7:56 a.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Insurance Industry Watches 'Medical Tourism'
  More Americans are looking abroad for medical care. A hospital in Thailand is a leader in the field of "medical tourism," doing everything U.S. hospitals do at a fraction of the cost. U.S. health insurers are taking notice.
• U.N. Weighs Force to Protect Darfur Aid Efforts
  The International Criminal Court accuses two people of war crimes in Sudan's Darfur region. One is a former state minister, the other a militia commander. Meanwhile, the U.N. Security Council weighs a peace force for Chad and the Central African Republic.
• Post Office to Create 'Forever' Stamp
  The Postal Service is close to unveiling the "forever stamp," good for first-class postage even after postal rates increase. Postal officials say there's no danger of hoarding or losing money on the deal. In fact, they say supplying rolls of two-cent stamps every time there's a rate change is more costly.
• Exonerated Prisoners Adjust to Life on the Outside
  After 22 years in prison, Willie "Pete" Williams was recently exonerated by DNA evidence. As he adjusts to his newfound freedom, he's taking advice from Calvin Johnson, the first man in Georgia to be exonerated by DNA evidence.
• Filmmaker Cameron Claims to Find 'Tomb of Jesus'
  Titanic director James Cameron says he has found the remains of Jesus Christ, Mary Magdalene and a son named Judah. Scholars are skeptical. A documentary, The Lost Tomb of Jesus, will debut March 4 on the Discovery Channel.
• How Environmentalists Shaped TXU Deal
  Environmental advocacy groups were called in to help structure the deal for TXU Corp., the Texas electrical utility. Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense, describes the process of winning environmental commitments from TXU's suitors.
• Nanotechnology Seen as Answer to Counterfeiters
  Improved digital-imaging technology is prompting fears of a flood of funny money. A National Research Council report on emerging counterfeiting threats says the long-term solution is to go high-tech with currency.
• Blast Rocks Base During Cheney Visit to Afghanistan
  A suicide bomber attacked the entrance to the main U.S. military base in Afghanistan Tuesday during a visit by Vice President Dick Cheney. Cheney, fresh from a visit to Pakistan, was unhurt. A U.S. soldier was among an undetermined number of dead and injured. The Taliban claimed responsibility.
• Iraqis Hard at Work on Oil-Regulation Laws
  Iraqi lawmakers have produced a draft measure that would regulate Iraq's oil industry. Yet to come is a plan to divide the revenue from the nation's major resource, which could fund as much as 80 percent of Iraq's national budget.
• That's the Ticket
  Ed O'Neill works at a Chamber of Commerce in Iowa, where a co-worker told him a story about "some idiot" who had failed to turn in a winning lottery ticket. The story prompted O'Neill to check the numbers on his own lottery ticket. Yep, he was the "idiot." But now he's an idiot with an $800,000 payoff.
• Longfellow Fans Seek to Make the Weather Verse
  In honor of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's birth — 200 years ago Tuesday — the Longfellow Bicentennial Committee invites broadcasters to use lines from his poems in weather reports. For instance: "Silent and soft and slow descends the snow."
• Coal-Fired Plants Scrapped as Part of Utility Deal
  The largest electric utility in Texas, TXU Corp., has agreed to be sold for $32 billion to a group of private-equity firms. In a nod to environmentalists, the utility's new owners would drop plans to build 8 of 11 proposed new coal-burning power plants and make other environmental concessions.
• Sri Lanka Fighting Traps Thousands in Jaffna
  Thousands of people trying to leave Sri Lanka's Jaffna peninsula are trapped by ethnic conflict. The peninsula is held by the Sri Lankan government. The territory just to the south is in the hands of Tamil Tiger rebels.
• Palestinians Among Refugees from Iraq War
  An estimate 2 million people have fled Iraq since the start of the war. Among them are thousands of Palestinians. At a refugee camp in eastern Jordan, Palestinian refugees find themselves seeking asylum again.
• Wal-Mart Eyes Big Expansion in China
  Wal-Mart is vying to be the largest operator of mega-supermarkets in China. A $1 billion deal could give Wal-Mart control of a Chinese chain called Trust-Mart. Wal-Mart is battling French retailer Carrefour for dominance in China.

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