All Things Considered

Last Updated: May 09, 2008 05:11 pm

How to Pack Everything You Own in One Bag

Now that many airlines are charging for a second checked bag, one packing expert reveals tricks travelers can use to pack everything they need in one checked bag. He says the key is to draw up a list and bundle wrap clothes.

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Groups Scramble to Get Aid to Myanmar Survivors

Despite troubles with Myanmar's military rulers, U.N. World Food Program spokesman Paul Riley says the agency has 240 staffers on the ground hurriedly working with government ministries to get aid to survivors of the cyclone. The agency fears running out of time.

Poverty Knows No Party Affiliation

Machlyn Blair, a 21-year-old from eastern Kentucky, shares his thoughts about growing up in poverty and preparing to join the working poor.

Elvis, bin Laden and Hitler Join Mission to Mars

A Mars spacecraft carrying a DVD of thousands of names was intended to increase public interest in space missions. But the unintended consequence was lasting space memorials to Donald Duck, John Lennon, Adolf Hitler and Malcolm X.

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Citigroup, AIG Dampen Wall Street's Optimism

Investors have been growing cautiously optimistic in recent days that the worst of the credit crisis is over. But now, there's fresh evidence that there's still trouble looming. The insurance giant AIG announced a huge loss related to bad mortgage debt, and Citigroup, the nation's largest bank, is going to sell off some $400 billion in assets as it seeks to become more efficient.

Raul Castro's Reforms Raise Expectations in Cuba

The big question in Cuba is how far the new president, Raul Castro, is willing to go in changing the country. Many elements of his brother Fidel's rigid system of state socialism are still in place, such as food rationing.

Bust Likely Won't Stop Drug Use on Campus

Final exams start next week at San Diego State University, but dozens of students won't be in class. They face prosecution on drug-related charges after an unprecedented bust on campus. Still, some students and experts say this week's crackdown is not likely to change a thing. Andrew Phelps reports for member station KPBS in San Diego.

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Can Obama Be Called the 'Presumptive Nominee'?

Several more superdelegates threw their support behind Democratic presidential candidate Barak Obama on Friday, all but erasing the once substantial lead of his rival, Hillary Clinton. Clinton vows to continue campaigning. Political analysts E.J. Dionne of <em>The Washington Post</em> and David Brooks of <em>The New York Times</em> talk about the race.

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For Mother's Day: A Memory

Across the country, sons and daughters are scrambling to find gifts for Mother's Day on Sunday &mdash; perhaps flowers, cards or chocolates. But 18-year-old Natalie Marquez, from Curie Youth Radio in Chicago, has something else for her mother: a memory.

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Global Pool of Money Got Too Hungry

NPR's Adam Davidson and <em>This American Life's</em> Alex Blumberg jointly report on how rising defaults on subprime mortgages in the U.S. have became a global financial crisis. <em>This American Life</em> host Ira Glass talks with Michele Noris about this first ever collaboration.

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Why Is Myanmar Reluctant to Accept Help?

Bridget Welsh, assistant professor of Southeast Asian studies at Johns Hopkins University, talks about the military government of Myanmar and why it's been so reluctant to accept outside assistance in the aftermath of the cyclone.

Hezbollah Seizes Control of West Beirut

After a night of heavy fighting, Shiite Hezbollah militiamen seize control Friday of most parts of Muslim West Beirut from ragtag Sunni militias. The Lebanese army has so far stayed out of the fray.

Letters: Gender Identity

Michele Norris reads listener e-mails regarding NPR's two-part series on transgender youth.

Edwards: Endorsements Don't Matter

Former presidential candidate John Edwards refuses to endorse either New York Sen. Hillary Clinton or Illinois Sen. Barack Obama for the Democratic nomination. While Edwards says both would be strong candidates, the math involved in the race is no longer on Clinton's side.

'Twilight' Author Pens Other-Worldly Romance

Stephenie Meyer, author of the best-selling young adult series <em>Twilight</em>, has written her first adult book. <em>The Host</em> is a science fiction romance about two woman &mdash; one an alien from outer space &mdash; who inhabit the same body and are in love with the same man.