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7:46am

Tue February 14, 2012
The Two-Way

Iranian Is Suspected In Bangkok Explosions

Credit Apichart Weerawong / AP
A Thai Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) official examines a backpack that was left on the bomb site by a suspect bomber in Bangkok on Tuesday.

A man thought to be Iranian blew off his legs, when he tried to lob an explosive at police in Bangkok. Shortly before that happened, two other explosions were reported in the commercial district of the city.

The AP reports police found a passport that identified the man as Saeid Moradi from Iran.

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7:23am

Tue February 14, 2012
The Two-Way

Mormon Baptism Of Wiesenthal Kin Sparks Jewish Outrage

Two decades of anger, apologies and agreements have failed to keep the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from ending posthumous Mormon baptisms of prominent Jews and holocaust victims.

In the latest incident, the parents of the late Simon Wiesenthal, a survivor of a Nazi death camp and an advocate for holocaust victims, were baptized in a Mormon ceremony.

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7:11am

Tue February 14, 2012
The Two-Way

A Year After Uprising, Bahrain Sees Protests Quelled By Teargas

Credit Hasan Jamali / AP
Bahraini anti-government protesters react to tear gas fired by riot police on Monday.

Today marks a year since an uprising started in the Gulf Nation of Bahrain. And over the course of the year, we saw lots of protests, and we saw the Gulf Cooperation Council send troops into the country to quash the rebellion. We saw the monarchy dismantle the Pearl Roundabout, which had become symbolic of the uprising and later commission a report about what went wrong at the height of the protests last February.

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6:49am

Tue February 14, 2012
Around the Nation

Remembering Jackie Kennedy's White House Tour

On this day 50 years ago, first lady Jackie Kennedy offered a Valentine to America: A televised tour of the newly-restored White House. She had been shocked at how little of the past was in the White House. So she threw her heart into bringing that history back. A record number of Americans tuned in to watch the tour.

6:43am

Tue February 14, 2012
Europe

Croatia's Museum Of Broken Relationships

The museum's collection includes a wedding dress from a marriage gone wrong. It also includes a shattered garden gnome that a wife had hurled at her husband's car. And then there's an axe a woman used on her ex's furniture.

4:27am

Tue February 14, 2012
Asia

White House Welcomes Chinese Official Xi Jinping

China's Vice President Xi Jinping visits the White House Tuesday. While in Washington, Xi will discuss a broad range of bilateral, regional and global issues. He'll also travel to Iowa and California. Xi is widely expected to become China's next president.

4:13am

Tue February 14, 2012
Around the Nation

Pa.'s Gas Boom Worsens Low-Cost Housing Shortage

The natural gas boom in Pennsylvania has new workers flooding into the state. That's causing a housing crunch in some communities, as locals get priced out of the rental market. One rural county in the northern part of the state has opened its first homeless shelter.

4:10am

Tue February 14, 2012
Television

Love A TV Show? Watch It Live. Just Like It? DVR It.

About 40 percent of TV households have digital video recorders. Once you have one, you may think differently about the shows you watch. TV critic Eric Deggans of the Tampa Bay Times has found some hidden meanings in the TV series his DVR tapes week after week.

4:00am

Tue February 14, 2012
NPR Story

The Last Word In Business

Steve Inskeep has the Last Word in business.

4:00am

Tue February 14, 2012
NPR Story

Apple Factory Audit

Apple has hired an independent labor association to audit working conditions at supplier assembly plants. Apple is responding to criticism about working conditions at factories in China operated by its manufacturing partners. NPR's Steve Henn reports.

12:05am

Tue February 14, 2012
Election 2012

Study: 1.8 Million Dead People Still Registered To Vote

Credit Ethan Miller / Getty Images
A sign at the Feb. 4 Nevada caucuses in Las Vegas.

Democrats and Republicans don't agree on much. But they do agree that voter registration lists across the country are a mess.

A new report by the Pew Center on the States finds that more than 1.8 million dead people are currently registered to vote. And 24 million registrations are either invalid or inaccurate.

There's little evidence that this has led to widespread voter fraud, but it has raised concerns that the system is vulnerable.

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12:01am

Tue February 14, 2012
The Impact of War

Building Better Houses For Wounded Soldiers

Originally published on Wed May 23, 2012 11:02 am

All wars bring innovations — in weapons, and also in ways to repair the damage done. Penicillin is one of the more famous examples: It came into use as a treatment for troops in World War II.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have brought their own breakthroughs, none more dramatic than the prosthetics that come close to giving back what has been lost. And big advances in treating grievous injuries have meant many more troops coming home alive.

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12:01am

Tue February 14, 2012
Asia

A Pragmatic Princeling Next In Line To Lead China

Second of three parts

In northwestern China's Shaanxi province, a neatly manicured and landscaped memorial park the size of six soccer fields is one sign of the revolutionary lineage of Xi Jinping, the man set to become China's next leader.

Known as a Communist Party princeling, Xi is the 58-year-old son of Xi Zhongxun, a deputy prime minister and revolutionary hero who died in 2002.

The elder Xi was born in Fuping county in Shaanxi, more than 600 miles southwest of Beijing, and is considered a hometown hero.

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12:01am

Tue February 14, 2012
Africa

At 85, Senegal's Defiant President Seeks A New Term

Credit Gabriela Barnuevo / AP
Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade, 85, greets supporters during a campaign rally in Dakar last week. He is seeking a third term. Critics say he is violating the constitution and should step down.

The Senegalese are known for campaigning loudly, musically and enthusiastically, yet the country's reputation for democracy and stability in turbulent West Africa has taken a knock as it prepares for elections on Feb. 26.

When Senegal's top court gave its blessing last month to President Abdoulaye Wade's third-term ambitions, his opponents angrily took to the streets to demonstrate their disapproval.

Senegal was tense as police clashed with protesters demanding that the president withdraw his candidacy.

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12:01am

Tue February 14, 2012
Author Interviews

Networking Tips from the Ultimate Networker

"Relatively few people should start companies," Reid Hoffman says bluntly. And he should know. As a co-founder of popular social networking website LinkedIn and an influential Silicon Valley angel investor, he has engineered several startup success stories — and now he has distilled his business wisdom into a book, The Start-up of You: Adapt to the Future, Invest in Yourself, and Transform Your Career.

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12:01am

Tue February 14, 2012
The Picture Show

A Brother And Sister Get Married (And Later, Their Son Tweets It)

Originally published on Wed May 23, 2012 11:02 am

Credit Courtesy of John Fugelsang
Peggy and John Fugelsang kiss on their wedding day.

As comedian John Fugelsang recalls, all in life was dandy until one fateful day, at age 6, he noticed an odd motif in some photos: "In every family picture ... my mother was wearing a habit."

Last August, he tweeted his parents' unusual love story — with photos — on the first anniversary of his father's death. In a series of blurbs 140 characters or less, he tells it better than I ever could:

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9:00pm

Mon February 13, 2012
Music Interviews

The Chieftains: For 50 Years, Irish Music For The World

Originally published on Tue February 14, 2012 12:01 am

Credit Barry McCall

Paul McCartney, Madonna, Doc Watson and Luciano Pavarotti have at least one thing in common: They've all collaborated with Irish folk band

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6:16pm

Mon February 13, 2012
It's All Politics

GOP Candidates And The Budget: A Look At Their Plans

It goes without saying that the men who are vying for the Republican presidential nomination found serious flaws with the budget plan President Obama released Monday. But it got us thinking, this might also be a good time to dig into the budget plans offered by the GOP candidates.

All of the candidates want to cut government spending and balance the federal budget. They also want to cut taxes.

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6:12pm

Mon February 13, 2012
The Two-Way

Federal Appeals Court Hears Challenge To California Affirmative Action Ban

U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals heard a challenge to California's 15-year ban on using affirmative action in public college admissions.

As the AP put it, Proposition 209, as it's known, "barred racial, ethnic or gender preferences in public education, employment and contracting." And over the 15 years since it was approved by California voters, that same court has upheld it.

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6:10pm

Mon February 13, 2012
Music

The Ballad Of The Tearful: Why Some Songs Make You Cry

Credit Kevin Winter / Getty Images
Adele won the song of the year category at this year's Grammy Awards for her tear-jerker "Someone Like You."

British singer Adele won six Grammy Awards on Sunday night, including one for her aching ballad "Someone Like You." What is it that makes a song like hers such an emotional powder keg?

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