Search results for

Commentator Carol Wasserman grieves the end of summer. Although she's an adult, she still feels as if she will have to go back to school in the fall. She wonders why all the "shrinks" take this time of year off to vacation, when August is when they are needed most to deal with this leftover feeling from childhood.

Host Renee Montagne talks to reporter Jonathan Miller, who's in Lima, about the decision by a Peruvian military court to overturn the life sentence of Lori Berenson. The 30-year-old New York native was found guilty of treason by the secret tribunal in January 1996 for allegedly helping the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement plan an attack on Peru's Congress.

Colorado Public Radio's Andrea Dukakis reports on a controversy over the national motto "In God We Trust." The state school board passed a non-binding resolution that suggested public schools post the motto, but some schools have been hesitant to do so. Critics say the motto excludes students of different faiths, and some warn of possible legal battles.

Renee Montagne talks to Jean Bethke Elshtain, professor of social and political ethics at the University of Chicago about this week's Millennium World Peace Summit. Elshtain says there's a real possibility that religious leaders can help bridge ethnic, religious, and political differences between people in ways traditional leaders can not.

NPR's Barbara Bradley reports on a controversy over whether or not DNA evidence should be used to overturn a prior conviction. More convicted prisoners are trying to prove their innocence by testing evidence as far back as 20 years. But, the use of DNA science is proving to be problematic in many of these cases because evidence has been thrown away or destroyed.

The College Board today released its annual S.A.T. scores for this year's college freshman class. This year there are a record number of test takers. The highest percentage of foreign born students ever took the S.A.T. this year, and more test takers than ever are the first in their families to attend college. Although the overall math scores are the highest in 30 years, verbal scores did not budge for the fifth year in a row. NPR's Claudio Sanchez has a report.

After a volunteer collected more than 200 dead migratory birds from the sidewalks around the World Trade Center, bird groups in the city called on the complex to dim unnecessary lights at night.

NPR's Pam Fessler reports on decision-making by state election officials across the country about which of the two Reform Party candidates to recognize on their presidential election ballots. Both Patrick Buchanan and John Hagelin claim to be the real Reform Party candidate. This dispute -- which has some 12-point-6 Million dollars in Federal funds ((ed: *NOT* "Federal matching funds")) riding alongside it -- will wind up in courts across the country before election day.

Commentator Bill Harley reflects on the fact that Pete Seeger once accidentally left his banjo on top of a car. It was lost but later returned. Harley himself has left a guitar in many places, and sympathizes with Pete.

NPR's Martin Kaste reports from Cartagena, Colombia, on President Clinton's visit today. The President wants to show support for Plan Colombia, which aims to end Colombia's 40-year cycle of political and criminal violence. The U.S. will provide nearly a billion dollars toward the plan, much of it in military aid. Human rights groups are worried that the plan will contribute to even more violence against civilian populations.