Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Public safety tops Rybak budget agenda
  Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak is proposing to spend nearly $200 million on public safety in next year's budget, an increase of nearly $7 million over last year. The money would be spent on more police officers and new crime-fighting techonology.7:20 a.m.
• St. Paul neigborhood activists rally for more police protection
  A group of St. Paul residents say crime in their neighborhood has been getting worse over the past few years and they want the police to do something about it. They're holding a rally on St. Paul's east side to urge the mayor and city council to hire more police officers.7:24 a.m.
• Additional testimony heard today in Rodriguez trial, defense plans to focus on jurisdiction
  The prosecution continues to make its case today in the trial of Alfonso Rodriguez, Jr., who is charged with kidnapping leading to the death of University of North Dakota student Dru Sjodin. During opening statements, the defense argued that the case should not be tried in a federal court because there is no evidence that Sjodin was taken across state lines before she died. Fill-in host Perry Finelli spoke with Twin Cities defense attorney Anthony Torres.7:53 a.m.
• USA Gymnastics national championships at Xcel Energy Center
  The USA Gymnastics Visa Championships begin today at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, MN. Top finishers will advance to the world championships. A current member of the University of Minnesota men's gymnastics team and two former Gopher gymnasts will compete. Fill-in host Perry Finelli spoke with University of Minnesota gymnastics coach Mike Burns.8:24 a.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Astronomers May Add Planets to Solar System
  Astronomers meeting in Prague are considering a new definition for the word "planet." Under the new rules, Pluto would still qualify as a planet, despite its small size. But some say the rules would open the door to dozens of new planets.
• Brittle Bosses Not Often Ready to Hear Criticism
  Most of us, from time to time, have some criticism we'd like to offer to our supervisors. Of course, in the hierarchy of the American office, such a move has its risks.
• Murderer Reaps Benefits of Religious Conversion
  Darrell Mease, a convicted murderer, was scheduled to die in Missouri when his prayers were answered. Pope John Paul II won Mease, a Christian convert, a commutation of his death sentence during a 1999 Missouri visit.
• Gaza Conflict Punctuated by Abduction of Journalists
  Throughout the month-long war between Israel and Hezbollah, Gaza was the forgotten conflict. Israeli forces have been attacking targets there since the end of June, when a soldier was captured by Palestinian militants. Now two Fox News journalists have been abducted.
• Some Florida Restaurants Serve Up Fishy Dinners
  A survey in southern Florida finds that you don't always get the fish you ordered at seafood restaurants. Less tasty, cheaper fish may well be masquerading as the dinner you thought you were getting.
• Katrina Insurance Case Goes Against Family
  A federal judge sided with the insurance industry in a high-profile test case on flood damage from Hurricane Katrina. The couple who filed the case argued that wind caused most of the damage to their home. But the judge ruled the bulk of destruction was caused by flooding, and their policy didn't cover flood damage.
• Lebanon Struggles to Cope with Conflict's Aftermath
  The Lebanese government faces a number of problems in the wake of the Hezbollah-Israel conflict, including how to help thousands of refugees returning to their homes in Beirut's suburbs and the country's south.
• Israel Slowly Stands Down with Cease-Fire
  With a fragile truce holding in south Lebanon, Israel is preparing to pull out more of its forces out as the Lebanese Army and U.N. troops prepare to move south. But it's still not clear how quickly an expanded U.N. force will be in place.
• ACLU Sues Pennsylvania City Over Immigrant Policies
  A city in east-central Pennsylvania that's trying to crack down on illegal immigrants is being sued by Hispanic activists and the ACLU. Among other things, Hazleton, Penn., wants to fine landlords who rent to illegal immigrants.
• Alabama Conflict Ends in Jail, Hospital
  A visitor to a house in Decatur, Ala., smoked a cigarette in the yard. He threw down the cigarette butt. It landed near the neighbor's fence. And that's where the trouble started. The neighbor started shouting about the litter. The homeowners ended up arguing all day. Eventually the two families got into a brawl. Four people were arrested, and three ended up in the hospital. If only Jerry Springer had been there to make peace.
• Iraqi Refugees Point to Conflict as Civil War
  Iraq is in the middle of a growing population displacement crisis. Thousands of Sunnis and Shiites have registered as refugees. Some say that's proof that Iraq is already in the throes of civil war.
• Islamic Scholar Challenges Treatment in Prison
  The Bureau of Prisons says it finds no civil rights violation in the treatment of Ali al-Tamimi, an Islamic scholar convicted in Virginia last year of urging young Muslim men to join the Taliban and fight U.S. troops. Al-Tamimi's lawyer says his client has been moved to stop him from meeting with his attorneys, and has been verbally abused.
• Sectarian Violence Breaks Apart Iraqi Family
  Many Iraqis are being forced to flee their homes under threat by sectarian gunmen. One NPR staff member in Baghdad explains how and why he has had to split his family up in the name of security.
• Airports Retool to Face New Security Threats
  After last week's thwarted terrorist attack in London, airports across the country scrambled to incorporate new security measures into their operations. One airport goal is security, while another is to retain profitable retail space.
• Security Confiscations Turn Up on e-Bay
  What happens to all the items that get confiscated during security checks at U.S. airports? Items like machetes, gardening tools and hockey sticks are being auctioned off on e-Bay.

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