Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Cass Lake abolishes police force, seeks enforcement deal with county
  Cass Lake plans to abolish its police department because of budget problems. They're hoping to contract their law enforcement needs with Cass County, a move other towns have made.6:50 a.m.
• Weather with Mark Seeley
  University of Minnesota Climatologist Mark Seeley discusses Minnesota weather history and looks ahead to a warm weekend.6:55 a.m.
• Bridge collapse survivor searches for touch of healing
  Lindsay Petterson broke her back when her car plunged to the bottom of the Mississippi River. She still suffers from irrational fears and intense waves of sadness.7:20 a.m.
• Panel distributing money from bridge compensation fund will face tough decisions
  Victims who were injured in the 35W bridge collapse and families of the 13 people killed can file for compensation from a nearly $37 million fund created by the Legislature. A panel of three attorneys will decide who gets some of the money, and how much they get. Morning Edition host Cathy Wurzer talked with Susan Holden, chair of that panel.7:25 a.m.
• Crash witness: from wing tip to wing tip the plane 'was straight up and down'
  An eyewitness to the crash of a business jet in Owatonna says it looked like the plane was making a normal landing when the pilot tried to take off again.7:50 a.m.
• MnDOT: One year later
  MnDOT is a different agency than it was one year ago, when one of the worst infrastructure failures in U.S. history happened.7:55 a.m.
• Future Tense with Jon Gordon
  Scrabulous returns with a new look.8:20 a.m.
• New Minnesota law prohibits texting while driving
  Starting today, it is illegal in Minnesota to text message, e-mail, or access the Web on a wireless device while driving. The new law is a primary offense, so law enforcement can stop vehicles if they see drivers breaking the law.8:25 a.m.
• Duluth man finishes second in Pacific sailing race
  Eric Thomas placed second overall in the 2008 Singlehanded TransPacific Yacht Race. He sailed alone from San Francisco Bay to the Hawaiian Island of Kauai, covering more than 2000 miles.8:40 a.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• NASA's Phoenix Lander Confirms Ice Exists On Mars
  In the ongoing search to see whether conditions on the Red Planet could once have supported life, NASA scientists extend the Phoenix Mars Lander's mission through September.
• Army Of Shopowners Paved China's Way In Africa
  Business owners and shopkeepers are the vanguard of China's ever-expanding presence in Africa. One scholar says China is hungry for the continent's raw materials and warns that the relationship is unbalanced.
• US Airways Starts Charging For Soft Drinks
  US Airways is the first major U.S. carrier to start charging for nonalcoholic beverages. It's part of a slew of new fees aimed at offsetting higher fuel costs. Flight attendants are against the move.
• General Motors Announces $15 B Quarterly Loss
  General Motors says it lost more than $15 billion in the most recent quarter, much more than many analysts and investors were expecting. North American sales dropped 20 percent. Sales of its military-style Hummer have also plunged, and GM is considering deals with overseas companies.
• 'Harry Potter' Author Pens Tales For Charity
  A book of wizard fairy tales written and illustrated by Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling is going to be published for charity in December. The book is a collection of five wizarding tales referred to in the Potter series.
• Pakistan Denies Aiding Indian Embassy Attack
  Pakistan has vehemently denied a report appearing in Friday's New York Times that says the country's intelligence agency had a hand in the bombing of the Indian embassy in Kabul. The July 7 attack left more than 40 people dead.
• House Panel Grills FDA On Salmonella Probe
  Congress wants to know who is to blame for the lag time between the onset of the latest salmonella outbreak and the identification of the suspected peppers. Some House members say the FDA was slow. The agency says it was a very complicated outbreak.
• Parties Test New Methods In Writing Platforms
  The political parties are trying new methods for writing their platforms this year. The Republicans are going digital, inviting comments via YouTube and message boards. Meanwhile, the Democrats have embraced the Obama camp's fondness for caucuses. Both camps say they're making the platform-writing process more democratic — to an extent.
• Campaign Roundup: Obama, McCain Trading Jabs
  Barack Obama is home from his tour of Iraq, Afghanistan and Europe, but the trip did not give him a bounce in the polls. John McCain's poll numbers were not hurt by Obama's trip, but he was hammered by the media and some Republicans for a series of negative attacks on Obama.
• July Jobs Report: 51,000 Lost
  New numbers from the Labor Department show that the U.S. economy lost another 51,000 jobs in July. That's less than the market was expecting, so stock prices are up, but it's the seventh straight month of job losses. That's never happened before without the economy falling into recession.
• New Report Says Aid For Iraqi Refugees Lacking
  Nearly 5 million Iraqi refugees have left their country, some heading to nearby Syria, Jordan and Lebanon. A new report from the International Crisis Group, a nonpartisan research organization, says countries that are occupying Iraq, including the United States, must do more for the refugees.
• Deaths Decline In Iraq; Afghanistan Fight Intensifies
  The month of July was the least deadly month for U.S. troops in Iraq. Eleven American deaths were reported — the lowest count since the war began. But in Afghanistan, violence has intensified.
• Yosemite Visitors, Businesses See Upside Of Wildfire
  More than 20 homes have been destroyed in a wildfire at the edge of Yosemite National Park in California, and hundreds of residents had to evacuate. Still, tourists in the Yosemite Valley are enduring the smoke-filled skies and power outages, and business is mostly going on as usual.
• Letters: Sick Days, Saving Energy, Visas, Comics
  Renee Montagne and Deborah Amos read some comments from listeners — including responses to our story about how more employees are showing up for work when they're sick.
• Minnesota Marks 1 Year Since Fatal Bridge Collapse
  One year ago Friday in Minnesota's Twin Cities, the Interstate 35 West bridge crumbled into the Mississippi River, killing 13 and injuring 140 people. Accelerated construction of a new bridge is almost complete.

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