Bob CollinsIt’s a good day to let the pictures do the talking.
1) The decade in news photographs from the Boston Globe. It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.
2) Christmas, White House style (from White House):
3) Did the fans leave Target Center early last night? This was at the start of last night’s Timberwolves game against Atlanta, during the only 90 seconds of the game that was competitive. Is it too early to start the speculation on where the Wolves will be moving to?
4) A professional photographer didn’t intend to have a career photographing shelter animals. “This thing just ran me down and tackled me,” she said. (nola.com)
5) Daniel Frazier, who was killed in Afghanistan, was buried yesterday at Arlington National Cemetery. And the look on his family’s faces looks all too familiar.
TODAY’S QUESTION
After months of debate and deliberation, the Senate is poised to pass its version of health care reform. It would require most Americans to carry health insurance, and would offer subsidies for those who can’t afford it. How satisfied are you with the Senate health care reform bill?
WHAT WE’RE DOING
The latest leg of the Golden Snowball challenge begins today. Participants will be any meteorologists who make a prediction on the snowstorm from 12 to 6 p.m.
Midmorning (9-11 a.m.) – First hour: Terrorists around the world are using the Internet to spread propaganda, and increasing using English to reach more potential jihadists. A look at the tactics terrorists use and the ways some governments are convincing some to leave before committing violence against civilians.
Second hour: Psychologists have discovered in the laboratory that virtuous shopping, that is buying green, earth-friendly products, can lead to stingy and immoral behavior. But in real life, is there a connection between how we feel, what we buy, and how we behave?
Midday (11 a.m. – 1 p.m.) – First hour: The National Institute on Media and the Family, a nonprofit that has fought for safe video games and television shows for children, is closing its doors due to lack of funding. Founder and director David Walsh joins Midday in the studio.
Second hour: Famed journalist Walter Cronkite died in July at the age of 92. Midday rebroadcasts a memorial service in which President Barack Obama and some of the nation’s top broadcasters remember Cronkite.
Talk of the Nation (1-3 p.m.) – First hour: The year in politics with political editor Ken Rudin.
Second hour: The few. The proud. The pregnant? A military order designed to keep troops in the field opens a window into the social life of the men and women in the U.S. military. If you’re in northern Iraq, pregnancy, and causing a pregnancy, are now punishable offences.
All Things Considered (3-6:30 p.m.) –
Robert Siegel talks with President Obama about health care reform.
As the U.S. Senate prepares to debate a major overhaul of the nation’s food safety regulations, MPR’s Tim Nelson looks at a particular strain of e. coli – 0157-H7. Virtually unknown to the world 30 years ago, it has come to be considered a plague on the nation’s food supply. The battle is being led by Minnesota officials.-
