Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Red Cross helps refugees find lost family members
  The United Nations established World Refugee Day to honor the millions of people forced from their homes by conflicts around the globe, and according to the Minnesota Department of Human Services, the state houses more than 70,000 refugees.6:50 a.m.
• Weather with Mark Seeley
  University of Minnesota climatologist Mark Seeley discusses Minnesota weather history and looks ahead to the weekend forecast.6:55 a.m.
• DFL leaders call Pawlenty's unallotment a 'misuse of power'
  DFL leaders in the Minnesota House and Senate say Gov. Tim Pawlenty's proposed unilateral budget cuts are a misuse of power and will add too many people to the unemployment line.7:20 a.m.
• Minority contractors look for their share of the stimulus
  As federal stimulus money pours into cities, minority contractors are hoping to get a share of the work.7:25 a.m.
• Alcohol breath machine's software code center of dispute
  There's a court hearing Friday afternoon on a challenge to a settlement agreement between the state of Minnesota and a firm that makes a breathalyzer that police often use on drunk drivers.7:35 a.m.
• Company says comedy is vital for Alzheimer's play
  The idea of a comedy about Alzheimer's disease is unsettling to most people. But members of Minneapolis-based theater company Live Action Set say when it comes to Alzheimers, humor is not only allowed - it may be vital. Tonight they open "My Father's Bookshelf" at the Guthrie Theater.8:25 a.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• 'Wicked Plants' Creep Through Brooklyn Gardens
  Wicked Plants is a new book documenting the sometimes deadly plant kingdom. Author Amy Stewart writes about illegal, dangerous and toxic species, including oleander and poison sumac. This summer, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden features some of these "evil" plants skulking among its lily ponds and greenhouses.
• McChrystal: Next 18 Months Pivotal In Afghan War
  Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, a former special operations commander, took charge of nearly 90,000 U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan this week to lead the Obama administration's new strategy against the Taliban insurgency. He sat down for an interview with NPR's Tom Bowman.
• Librarian Nancy Pearl Picks Summer's Best Books
  Looking to cozy up with some good books? Librarian Nancy Pearl has some great suggestions. Her list includes a somber, genre-defying graphic novel about Doctors Without Borders volunteers, and a whimsical first novel about a die-hard Philadelphia Eagles fan.
• Senators Question Geithner On Financial Blueprint
  Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is encountering some skepticism on Capitol Hill about the president's plan to transform the Federal Reserve into a super-regulator. Some lawmakers have proposed that the job of overseeing large institutions be left to a council of regulators, not a single agency.
• Small Banks Undecided On Financial Overhaul
  Big financial firms, insurance companies and credit card issuers are not the only ones who would be affected by President Obama's sweeping regulatory overhaul. There are thousands of community banks across the country, and the president's plan is making some of them nervous.
• In Allen's 'Whatever Works,' Not Much Does
  There was a time when Woody Allen's characters were both funny and recognizably human. Sadly, the work necessary to accomplish that looks to be something the writer-director can't be bothered with anymore.
• High Court Says Convicts Lack Right To DNA Testing
  The Supreme Court has ruled that the U.S. Constitution does not give convicts the right to test DNA evidence from their cases. Forty-seven states have passed laws establishing rules on when the government has to give convicts access to such evidence.
• Senior Somali Security Officials Killed This Week
  Somalia's interim government has lost two of its most effective weapons against the Islamist insurgency that may have links to al-Qaida. Somalia's national security minister and the police chief of Mogadishu died in separate incidents this week.
• Abuses In Sri Lanka Worry Human Rights Groups
  It's been a month since the civil war ended in Sri Lanka. Government troops defeated the Tamil Tiger separatist rebels, who they fought for nearly three decades. Tensions remain high on the island, and human rights activists say they're worried about the future of democracy in Sri Lanka.
• Scrushy Ordered To Give Billions To Shareholders
  A circuit judge in Alabama has ordered former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy to pay $2.9 billion to shareholders due to accounting fraud at the rehabilitation chain. Scrushy was acquitted in a federal criminal case over the fraud and testified in the state civil suit that he knew nothing about it.

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