Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Livestock and poultry producers challenge ethanol subsidies
  Farmers usually stick together, but the powerful influence of ethanol is causing cracks in their united front. The issue is ethanol subsidies.6:20 a.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• For Empty Water Bottles, There's an Afterlife
  Used water bottles are becoming a hot commodity. Enterprising recyclers, known as "reclaimers," are salvaging the polyethylene terephthalate, or PET, in plastic and turning a profit selling the material.
• Pacific Island Cultures Brace for Climate Change
  The ecosystems of the Pacific are changing in mysterious ways. Those who live there have limited options for adapting to rising water levels and new cycles of drought and storm.
• Andre Previn: Musical Polymath Goes Solo
  After decades conducting symphony orchestras and composing classical music, Andre Previn records a solo jazz album. The musical polymath has written scores for hit musicals like Gigi and Kiss Me Kate.
• Arizona TB Patient Jailed as a Public Health Menace
  Robert Daniels is locked up in a bare room in the jail unit of a hospital in Phoenix. Daniels has extensively drug-resistant TB and mishandled his treatment. He is now forced to stay in the hospital until he's no longer contagious.
• Poll: Rural Vote No Longer a Lock for Republicans
  A new national poll suggests rural Americans are no longer reliably Republican, and the Bush administration's conduct of the war in Iraq seems mainly to blame.
• Senate Vote May Not Dislodge Gonzales
  The Senate is preparing to vote on a resolution expressing "no confidence" in Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. But the symbolic vote will not necessarily make it more likely that Gonzales will leave office anytime soon.
• 'Sopranos' Spoilers Hard to Avoid
  The series finale of The Sopranos is a hot water-cooler topic. But many who planned to watch the last episode of the long-running HBO show by tape, TiVo or rerun are now trying to avoid hearing how it all wrapped up.
• U.N. Torture Report Dismays Jordan
  Human rights organizations have long accused Arab governments of torture. Jordan, which became the first Arab state to host a U.N. investigaton of torture, is not pleased with the results.
• Political Struggle for Kirkuk Intensifies
  As refugees expelled by Saddam Hussein repopulate oil-rich Kirkuk, political demographics in Northern Iraq shift. A referendum on the fate of the region — mandated by the Iraqi constitution – is due to take place by the end of the year.
• Senate to Debate Higher Fuel Standards
  A new energy bill sets up a Senate debate on a measure to increase fuel economy standards. It would require that cars, trucks and SUVs achieve an average of 35 miles per gallon by 2020. That's 10 miles per gallon over current levels.
• Clinton Stumps for Higher Fuel Standards
  Speaking to union workers in Detroit, Sen. Hillary Clinton says automakers should accept tougher fuel economy standards in exchange for government help with the costly burden of retiree health care.
• Hurricane Season Sparks Survival Training
  As hurricane season begins, Katrina survivors along the Mississippi coast — many still living in FEMA trailers — attend a workshop sponsored by the Mental Health Association to learn new coping skills.
• Portrait of a Suicide Bomber
  Sunni insurgents remain willing and able to blow themselves up in crowded public places. The story of a 29-year-old man with a degree in accounting shows a suicide bomber in the making.
• Italian Senator Fakes Illness to Make TV Interview
  When President Bush's visit to Rome forced road closures over the weekend, one Italian senator called for an ambulance. Gustavo Selva was going to be late for a TV interview.
• Blue-Eyed Cicada Spotted in Midwest
  Cicadas are again humming in the Midwest, emerging from the ground on schedule. Every 17 years their glowing red eyes signal invasion. Outside Chicago, 6-year-old Nicholas Wagner spotted a rare blue-eyed bug, which one expert says is a one-in-a-million find.

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