Morning Edition

Boy Scouts 'Moving Forward' Vote To Allow Gay Members

Kathy Lohr — Fri, 24 May 2013 09:34:00 +0000

The Boy Scouts of America has decided to allow openly gay Scouts to join the organization but not gay Scout leaders. Sixty-one percent of the National Council who cast ballots supported the controversial proposal.

The Last Word In Business

editor — Fri, 24 May 2013 09:14:00 +0000

At McDonald's annual shareholders meeting in Chicago Thursday, Hannah Robertson told CEO Don Thompson, "It would be nice if you stopped trying to trick kids into wanting to eat your food all the time." Hannah and her mother were part of a contingent from a watchdog group.

Obama Tweaks Vision For Terrorism Fight

editor — Fri, 24 May 2013 09:14:00 +0000

President Obama discussed America's counter-terrorism strategy — including the use of drones and the prison at Guantanamo Bay — during an address at the National Defense University on Thursday. He rejected the idea that the country can fight an opened-ended "global war on terror."

China's Air Pollution: Is The Government Willing To Act?

Frank Langfitt — Fri, 24 May 2013 08:11:00 +0000

Denise Mauzerall arrived in Beijing this year at a time that was both horrifying and illuminating.

Can This Man Bring Silicon Valley To Yangon?

Robert Smith — Fri, 24 May 2013 06:54:00 +0000

Like a proud father, Nay Aung opens up his MacBook Air to show me the Myanamar travel website he's built. But we wait 30 seconds for the site to load, and nothing happens.

"Today is a particularly bad day for Internet," he says. This is life in Myanmar today: Even an Internet entrepreneur can't always get online.

Guava Paste And Tamarind? What To Do With Weird Food Gifts

editor — Fri, 24 May 2013 06:49:00 +0000

This is an installment of NPR's ongoing Cook Your Cupboard, a food series about improvising with what you have on hand. Have a food that has you stumped? Submit a photo and we'll ask chefs about our favorites!

Harrison Gowdy of Dayton, Ohio, has developed a reputation among friends and family of liking everything and wasting nothing.

"Sometimes I'll even find things like Swiss chard dropped off on my doorstep," she says.

Military Moms: A Bond Borne From Shared Loss

NPR Staff — Fri, 24 May 2013 06:46:00 +0000

In 1991, Kentucky residents Sally Edwards and Lue Hutchinson had sons serving in the Gulf War. Sally Edwards' son, Jack, was a Marine captain. Lue's son, Tom Butts, was a staff sergeant in the Army. The two men never knew each other, but today, their mothers are best friends.

Both soldiers were killed in February of 1991. Jack was 34. "They were the cover for a medical mission.

Igor Stravinsky's 'Rite Of Spring' Counterrevolution

NPR Staff — Fri, 24 May 2013 06:03:00 +0000

As the 100th anniversary of Igor Stravinsky's ballet The Rite of Spring approaches, commentator Miles Hoffman reminds us that — as earthshaking as that infamous debut was — the composer soon branched out into a variety of musical styles that would surprise his fans and critics.

Hoffman says that, up until the infamous (and riotous) Rite of Spring debut — on May 29, 1913 — the public had never heard anything like it

Why You Have To Scratch That Itch

Rhitu Chatterjee — Thu, 23 May 2013 22:27:00 +0000

Everybody itches. Sometimes itch serves as a useful warning signal — there's a bug on your back! But sometimes itch arises for no apparent reason, and can be a torment.

Think of the itchy skin disorder eczema, or the constant itching caused by some cancers. "A very high percentage of people who're on dialysis for chronic kidney disease develop severe itch that's very difficult to manage," says Dr.

Octogenarian Rivals Race To Top Of Mount Everest

editor — Thu, 23 May 2013 11:25:00 +0000

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Good morning. I'm Renee Montagne. Five years ago, at the age of 75, a Japanese mountaineer raced a 76-year-old Nepalese climber to the top of Mount Everest. Japan's Yuichiro Miura lost. This morning, in an epic rematch, the now 80-year-old Miura won, becoming the oldest person ever to reach the summit. But that record may not last. Next week, his Nepalese rival, at 81, plans to make the ascent again. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

New Jersey Officials Wrap Up 'Operation Swill'

editor — Thu, 23 May 2013 11:19:00 +0000

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Good morning, I'm David Greene with a story of mistaken identity - at the bar. New Jersey officials have wrapped up an operation called Operation Swill that target bars who are trying to pull a fast one. They'll charge for good booze but actually pour the cheap stuff in your glass. They've caught 29 bars red-faced; 13 of those TGI Fridays. The operation involved confidential informants, gizmos to test out liquor, and more than 100 agents. I would say this was some top shelf police work.

You're listening to MORNING EDITION.

IRS Official's Silence Riles House Committee Members

Peter Overby — Thu, 23 May 2013 08:38:00 +0000

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

The IRS has admitted to targeting conservative groups seeking tax exempt status. And yesterday at a House hearing the IRS director of exempt organizations said, quote: "I have not done anything wrong." She then declined to testify.

Obama Group's Climate Push Puts President Under Scrutiny

Ari Shapiro — Thu, 23 May 2013 07:06:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biUc0D6_UPA

Living In Two Worlds, But With Just One Language

Michele Norris — Thu, 23 May 2013 07:05:00 +0000

NPR continues its conversations about The Race Card Project, where NPR Host/Special Correspondent Michele Norris asks people to send in six-word stories about race and culture.

Sick Inmates Dying Behind Bars Despite Release Program

Carrie Johnson — Thu, 23 May 2013 07:05:00 +0000
Prison is a tough place, but Congress made an exception nearly 30 years ago, giving terminally ill inmates and prisoners with extraordinary family circumstances an early way out. It's called compassionate release.
But a recent investigation found that many federal inmates actually die while their requests drift through the system.
One of them was Clarence Allen Rice.
Rice operated a leasing company in Iowa for decades.