If you haven't had enough of curses, black magic, good luck, bad luck, and salt -- Matthew Hutson has a couple of thoughts on his blog related to the election (and our show yesterday). You can check 'em out here. Just in time for Halloween...

The nomination of an African-American candidate ensured that race would be a part of this presidential election in a way we've never seen before. Both campaigns have accused the other side of "playing the race card." Now that we're down to the last few days, how has the issue of race played out in this extraordinary year? How did the campaigns use the issue, and what effect might it have on Tuesday?

Earlier this week, the FBI charged two neo-nazi skinheads with plotting to kill Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) and students at a predominantly-black high school. Their plan was fantastic in scope, and investigators believe the men never thought they'd be successful, but wanted to die trying. There's obviously a lot of fear about plots like these, and further concern that that fear will keep folks from voting for Obama, or away from the polls altogether. So, after two less-than-viable but scary threats, it'ss time to take a closer look at the state of white supremacism with Mark Potok from the Southern Poverty Law Center. The SPLC keeps a close eye on hate groups and their activities. Here's hoping they're out of a job someday -- that job, anyway.

I was born and raised a Red Sox fan, so superstition is part of my DNA. Don't blink during an important at-bat, knock three times on the table before the seventh inning, don't think of Bill Buckner at all, wear lucky underpants (yuck). As far as I can tell, there was no measurable difference in the success of this magical thinking between then and now -- except the underpants are smaller -- but nevertheless, we did not win a championship in 1986, and we did in 2004. Of course, maybe that has to do with that other potent magic, the Curse of the Bambino. Whatever it is, I'm as susceptible as the next secular person -- including John McCain, who has a combination of feather, compass, and lucky shoes to help him along, or Barack Obama, who's gotta play basketball on Election Day. Even the most skeptical among us don't want to mess with those prickly little fairies of chance, and will toss salt over our shoulders no matter whose eyes it burns. What do you do? Why?

All week, we've asked supporters of the two major-party candidates to tell us for whom we should vote, and why. We finish the series today, with Lawrence Eagleburger, who served as Secretary of State under President George H. W. Bush. He'll tell us why he decided to back Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), based on his foreign policy plans.

If you'd like to hear the other installments in our "Make The Case" series, they're in our voluminous archives. Michael Gerson and John McWhorter outlined the domestic policy plans for McCain and Obama, respectively. And Sarah Sewall, a senior adviser to the Obama campaign, presented an argument for her candidate on foreign policy.

McCain supporters, make the case for your candidate on foreign policy.

Discussions about race have become more prominent during this presidential election, from the media to our dinner tables. Now that we're in the home stretch of the campaign, in our first hour today we want to take a look at what has been said about race during this election, what we have learned, and whether or not we have made any progress. What has this election taught you about race? Later, we will discuss the recent arrest of two men who were allegedly plotting to assassinate Barack Obama. The men have been identified as skinheads. Mark Potok, director of the intelligence project at the Southern Poverty Law Center, will talk about the case and how dangerous white supremacists groups really are.

I don't worry that stepping on a crack will break my mother's back. And I've walked under a ladder and still experienced good fortune. But if I'm strolling with a friend, I refuse to split the pole. A minor superstition, but one that I claim wholeheartedly. What's your personal superstition? Perhaps it's a good luck charm. (John McCain has lucky shoes) Or a ritual you believe must be performed to bring you good luck. (Barack Obama will likely be shooting hoops on Election Day.) In our second hour, we'll talk about why people have superstitions and the psychology behind them. Then, Lawrence Eagleburger, former United States Secretary of State, will explain why he supports John McCain on foreign policy.

Yesterday, during our program with John Updike, a caller named Carl asked Mr. Updike to comment on Master and Commander author Patrick O'Brian's work. Neal mentioned he'd done an interview with O'Brian, and here it is. Enjoy!

Today is our last junkie show before the country elects a new president (we'll be back next Wednesday of course, but after the election). That's six days, millions of dollars in ads, last minute campaign trips to swing states, one final dash to the polls, and lots of NoDoz for Ken Rudin.

New polls show Barack Obama with a sizeable lead in several swing states, but a narrowing lead nationally. And the state of Florida is now nearly up for grabs. Ken will let us know what to watch for in the final days, and come election night. He'll also talk about the Democrats' chances at a filibuster-proof Senate, Sarah Palin's political future - win or lose - and how a unanimous vote in Washington shiatsued the career of Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK).

When our Political Junkie Ken Rudin takes the stage at the Newseum, all eyes are generally on him -- odd are, hilarious expressions and quips will soon spill forth. Today, however, it's safe to say he may be upstaged: Dan Schorr joins us, journalist of journalists, in the museum of news, on the eve of this historic election. Formally, he joins us to mark the paperback release of his book, Come to Think of It: Notes on the Turn of the Millennium, but really, we'll use any excuse to get him on. When Dan speaks, I listen, so today I'm all ears.

John Updike sends his coven back to Eastwick.

Source: Getty Images/Hulton Archive

John Updike's sheer writerly abundance-- novels, short stories, criticism, poems -- often reduces him in my feeble mind to an amorphous being, a "great American author." I don't often identify him with a certain book or character, though I know many people think of him as Rabbit Angstrom's creator. Reading the The Widows of Eastwick reminded me that his real potency is his prose -- his wonderfully long and waved cadences, his sharp and funny observations ("Herbal tea is a delusion"), his unapologetically dyspeptic characters. He's just plain fun to read -- best put, from the 1960 New York Times review of Rabbit, Run: "Mr. Updike has a knack of tilting his observations just a little, so that even a commonplace phrase catches the light."

Widows is a return to his 1984 coven The Witches of Eastwick, but in their sixties and seventies, the ladies have aged considerably, and mellowed quite a bit. Aging is just as hard for the witches as it is for the rest of us, and the great strength of this book is his emotional sensitivity (mostly) as they face down their past sins, and future mortality. It was lovely to meet the 76-year-old and rather elfin Mr. Updike when he arrived, and find him charming, lively, and cheerful -- seemingly robbed of none of his powers. Reading the marvelously enjoyable Widows certainly confirmed that his prose powers are splendidly intact.

We've heard arguments for both candidates, based on their domestic policy plans. Today and tomorrow, we'll focus on their foreign policy plans.

Sarah Sewall, who served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Peacekeeping and Humanitarian Assistance during the Clinton administration, is the faculty director of the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government -- and a senior foreign policy adviser for the Obama campaign. She'll explain why she decided to support, and to work for, the Illinois Senator. On tomorrow's program, former Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger will argue for McCain. Obama supporters, make the case for your candidate, on foreign policy.

Well, I've already given you a taste of what to expect from today's Political Junkie segment -- yes, some new ads, and certainly a last Junkie look at the campaign. We've got a number of special treats today, too -- not just one trivia question, but two! So get ready for that, and resist the urge to Google furiously. Special treat the second? Dan Schorr joins us. Need I say more? Probably not, but I will anyway -- his book's out in paperback, which we're using as an excuse to get his take on election '08. Few, if any, political analysts have the long view Dan's got, so listen up.

In our second hour, yet another treat: One of America's most prominent novelists, John Updike. He's got a new book out, The Widows of Eastwick, a follow-up to his best seller The Witches of Eastwick. The ladies are back: Older, single, and less powerful. Sounds like a downer, but Barrie assures me it's quite enjoyable, and she would know. Stay tuned for her take here on the blog around 2pm. Finally, we hear from Obama supporter Sarah Sewall, former US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Peacekeeping and Humanitarian Assistance in the Clinton administration, on how her candidate's going to get foreign policy right.

Late yesterday, Ken Rudin joined our afternoon meeting to talk about tape for today's Political Junkie segment. Everyone was talking about the anti-Obama Jeremiah Wright ad released by the National Republican Trust PAC, and we knew it'd come up today, but that I'd need to find a similar, 527-released video from the other side*. After perusing Vox Politics for leads, I headed over to the election desk to consult with blogger and all-around-smartie Evie Stone. She turned me onto a blog I didn't even know NPR had: The Secret Money Project. Peter Overby is NPR's Power, Money and Influence correspondent, and the site is amazing. Want to know who's behind that incendiary radio or TV spot now airing in your town? Odds are, he and co-blogger Will Evans are on it. Check it out!

*This isn't the one we picked -- it's too visual to play well on radio -- but it's definitely my favorite. Welcome back, guys!

I don't think I know a Rickey, but you might... Or you might even be one. So, who is a Rickey? Simply put, Rickey isn't planning to vote.

Jim and Jeff are friends who discovered a classmate of theirs, Rickey, didn't plan to vote in Tuesday's election. Flabbergasted, they started a PAC with one goal: Get Rickey to vote. It worked, so they've expanded their focus to all the "Rickeys" in the country, in the most original GOTV effort I've heard of. So, are you a Rickey? Why aren't you planning to vote?

Some Muslim voters feel snubbed by the Obama campaign. Others say they're ignored by the McCain side. And many worry that they've been painted as terrorists in this campaign. Rumors that Barack Obama is a muslim (he's not) persist, and former Secretary of State Colin Powell is one of the few to publicly ask the question: what would be wrong with it if he was? It's been a long, frustrating presidential campaign for Muslim Americans. And today, we want to hear from you. If you're Muslim in America, how has this campaign played out for you?

Yesterday, Michael Gerson, of the Council on Foreign Relations and The Washington Post, presented the conservative argument for Senator John McCain (R-AZ), focusing on the candidate's domestic-policy agenda, in specific. Today, John McWhorter, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, will argue that, when it comes to domestic policy, Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) has a better plan, and deserves your vote.

Obama supporters, make the case for your candidate on health care, education, taxes, etc. Why are you behind him? And why should others join his camp?

Winning this election is a little like losing, too -- after all, this moment in history is a rough one. Every issue has a crisis attached -- financial, energy, national security. Whoever wins this thing is going to need a serious group of brains to help out. One of the fun things about picking a fantasy cabinet for a McCain or Obama presidency is that it's like choosing who you want to have dinner with -- alive or dead. You can pick anyone! On Foreign Policy's "Dream Team" web section, you'll find some pretty wild picks, including Buckminster Fuller, who, despite his qualifications, is missing one important one -- a heartbeat. You can go to their website and try your own hand at picking a cabinet, or check out Ebonyjet.com's Fantasy Draft.

We're exactly one week from Election Day, and today is your chance to come up with your White House dream team. In your fantasy world, who do you think President Obama or President McCain should assemble on his cabinet? Send us your suggestions. Remember, this is your fantasy, so make it good. Then, we want to hear from those of you do not plan to vote next Tuesday. Tell us why. And if you know someone who is planning not to vote, what are you saying to them?

False rumors that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is a Muslim have echoed consistently throughout the presidential campaign season, and it appears both presidential campaigns have avoided overt association with Muslim and Arab Americans. So how is this election playing out for them? In our second hour, we want to hear reactions from Muslim and Arab Americans. How do you feel about the presidential campaigns? At the end of the hour, John McWhorter, senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, makes the case for Barack Obama.

The political candidates for president are wrapping up their campaigns, which means here at NPR, we're gearing up for our biggest event of the year: election night. To that end, editors and producers from around the building have been plucked from their desks (ln fact, Scott, Barrie, and David are in a meeting now outlining their duties for next week) and dropped down in Studio 4A for the coverage that will take us through ATC and all around the clock to Wednesday's Morning Edition. Fear not, I get to play too -- and personally, I think I get to have the most fun. I'm headed back to St. Louis to set up shop at the Obama event there* with NPR's Larry Abramson. It's an exciting gig on an exciting night, and whether Obama wins or loses, there shouldn't be a dull moment. So, now you know where I'll be next Tuesday. Where will you be? And who will you be with?

*Fear not -- many McCain events will be represented as well. I just happened to draw an Obama one.

There are more than 150 initiatives on the ballot this election, in dozens of states, according to The Wall Street Journal. Most focus on local issues like tax limits and bond issues. But in five states, voters will be asked to decide on more controversial issues... Gay marriage, and abortion. Ballot measures on gay marriage are on the ballot in California, Arizona and Florida. Colorado and South Dakota vote on abortion bans; and parental notification is on the ballot in California. If you're in one of those states, how is this playing out where you live?

In the home stretch (and when I say stretch, I mean s-t-r-e-t-c-h -- is anyone else sick of this already!?), Republican presidential candidate John McCain has invoked the possibility of Democratic one-party government, saying, "...when Americans demand change in Washington, one-party rule where power is an end of itself isn't exactly what they have in mind." He's not the only one who worries about that possibility -- there are Democrats who worry about the health of a party with total control, too. Writing in the National Journal, Jonathan Rauch warns that one-party rule wasn't great for the GOP, either.

It will work no better for them than it did for Bush's Republicans. One-party government would do to Obama's Democrats what it did to Bill Clinton's in 1994 and to Republicans in 2006. Sky-high expectations for a new era in Washington would be followed by disappointment as reality sinks in, followed by a political backlash against what the public regards as the Democrats' ineffectiveness and extremism. In a year or two, Obama and the Democrats would be as despised as the Republicans are today.

An investment, or a solace?

Source: Jen Maiser

While all I can think about in this rotten economy is what talent I can mine to make a few extra bucks, there are those with an altogether different concern: What to invest in when the market's shaky. Two simple answers are real estate and gold, but that's far from the whole list, as Wall Street Journal reporter Jennifer Levitz discovered. If you've got some cash you'd like to invest, have you considered fine wines? Collectibles? Alpacas?

With the election only a week away, we've asked four people -- two Obama supporters, two McCain supporters -- to make the case for the candidates.

First up: Michael Gerson, a columnist for The Washington Post and a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. (Previously, he worked as an assistant to, and a speech writer for, President George W. Bush.) Gerson tells us that he has not endorsed McCain, and he doesn't plan to. (His affiliation with CFR, a non-partisan think tank, precludes him from doing so.) So he'll lay out the conservative case for the Arizona senator.

If you're a conservative voter, have you warmed to McCain? Did you ever think you'd support him? What concerns do you have with his candidacy? If you think of yourself as a moderate [Republican], do you have concerns about McCain's recent move rightward?

In our first hour today, we'll look at both sides of ballot measures on gay marriage in California ,and abortion in South Dakota. Then, on our opinion page, Jonathan Rauch will explain why he believes that for liberals concerned with climate change and health care, the best thing MAY be to vote for John McCain.

In the midst of the current financial storm and with stock markets falling, we want to know: Where are you investing your money now? In our first our, we'll talk with Joseph Borg, director of the Alabama Securities Commission, and Jennifer Levitz, reporter for the Wall Street Journal about what people do when stock markets tank. At the end of the hour, we kick off a week-long series of conversations with four poeple who will make the case for the Democratic and Republican presidential candidates on foreign and domestic policy. Today, we'll talk about John McCain and the conservative base with Michael Gerson, former deputy assistant to the President, and former principal speech writer for George W. Bush.

Another dispatch from producer Susannah George, traveling through the Middle East.

One settlement highway, an elaborate check point, and four or five Maccabee beers* is what is takes to get from Jerusalem to Ramallah. Rabiah, who made it clear to me that he no longer thinks of himself as Israeli or Palestinian, but just a "Christian from the Holy Land," was my guide for a night out on the town.

Although we drove alongside the famous "separation barrier" ** in Beit Hanina and past Israeli settlements, we weren't there for a so-called misery tour or anything political. It was a Saturday night, and we were there to go out. And we far from the only fun-seekers.

Once we hit the center of town we saw packed streets; restaurants were open, families were out walking, and groups of teenagers were chilling in cafes and bars. At one point Rabiah pointed to a group of hip looking young Palestinians (for serious: they were wearing skinny jeans and fedoras) and said "look boys, girls hanging out together, hugging, kissing, its like Tel Aviv!"

We stopped into a new trendy bar, Sangria, and had a few Taybehs -- well, I did. Rabiah had Carlsberg, as he hates Taybeh. I genuinely like the taste, but I agreed that for most foreigners, it's the novelty of a Palestinian Beer that keeps them sipping.

I hadn't seen Rabiah in almost ten years so I asked him the usual questions: family, friends, work. And as is usually the case with Rabiah, his answers were hilarious, frightening and borderline mystical.

Work was good, God was giving him a lot of business, his family is pressuring him to get married, and almost all his friends are in Israeli prisons. When I asked him why he wasn't imprisoned himself, he exclaimed "Because I chose sex, drugs, and rock and roll! I told my friends come on, let's get wasted, drink vodka, but no they wanted to carry an AK-47 and shoot up at helicopters they they will never, ever reach. They should have just partied like me!" I haven't laughed so hard at something so sad in a long time. But that's what you get on a Saturday night in Ramallah, over beers with Rabiah.

*At least when Rabiah is your guide.
**Also referred to as a wall or fence, each with its own political charge, but to be clear, the portion we drove along side was a wall with an electric fence on top of it.

Early voters in Norwalk, CA.

David McNew/Getty Images

Voters may get a lot more than they bargained for at the election polls this year. Record turnouts in states with early voting have been marked by long lines and seemingly endless waits. But voters in some places stand to face an even bigger problem: the sobering possibility of being turned away. Both parties have accused the other side of trying to "steal the election." Republicans point fingers of fraudulent registration, while Democrats cite voter suppression and sweeping purges. Last election, it was problems with provisional ballots and new machines. The election before that, it was butterfly ballots and dangling chads. But, this time around, it seems the big concern is unreliable state registration lists. So, amid all the unsettling allegations, can we trust the election of 2008? Today, we'll hear from election law expert Daniel Tokaji who will parse truth from fiction, and give us a sense of whether voters should be prepared to fight for their right to cast a ballot come November 4th. We'll also talk to blogger and political Lenny McAllister who says the real issue in this election is voter mistrust, not fraud. And we want to hear from you, too: What do you see where you live? And what's your biggest concern come voting day?

A diagram from Harper's Bazar, circa 1868.

Source: digfndtns

For decades, social scientists have referred to "the hemline index" when the economy has faltered. (The old theory correlates economic performance with the length of women's skirts. Bad economy? Long skirts.)

For a recent article reporter Tamar Lewin, of The New York Times, asked several experts if the hemline index has a modern-day equivalent.

"Data points litter the landscape as economists, sociologists, psychologists and marketers examine the societal changes, big and small, trivial and traumatic, that accompany a bad economy," Lewin discovered. But "it's one thing to measure changes in society, however, and another to ascribe causes."

According to Professor Terry F. Pettijohn II, whom Lewin interviewed, "In uncertain times, people tend to prefer songs that are longer, slower, with more meaningful themes." (It's time to break out the Simon & Garfunkel, folks.)

Other indicators abound. Lewin notes that, historically, "Playboy magazine's Playmate of the Year in bad times tended to have a more mature appearance -- that is, to be older, heavier, taller and less curvy -- than those selected when times were good." She points to a Nielsen report, which "listed tobacco, carbonated drinks and eggs as especially vulnerable to recession, and candy, beer and pasta sauce as recession-proof."

So, what is your hemline index? In other words, what in American popular culture tells you that the economy isn't doing so hot?

Is this how you imagined your retirement?

Source: tabooze

I did something dumb the other day -- my quarterly TIAA-CREF statement arrived, and instead of chucking it in the filing cabinet like I usually do, I opened it. Oops. Needless to say, it was not full of good news. But I'm lucky -- I've got a good job (fingers crossed!), and I've got my relative youth on my side -- lots of earning years ahead of me. Things look very different to those 10 or fewer years from retirement, like Deborah Fleishman of Miami, who thought she'd be able to retire, but isn't so sure anymore, "The last time we looked at our 401(k), it was half the amount that it was six months ago. I don't think we're going to be able to retire at all. So, yeah, we're worried. We're very worried." Has the picture of retirement you have in your mind changed since the economic slump started? Are you planning differently now? And if you're already retired, do you think you'll get to stay retired?

Tomorrow is the anniversary of Black Thursday. October 24, 1929 marked the beginning of the Wall Street crash, and the first sign of what would become the Great Depression. Reading just about every newspaper these days, you're forgiven for thinking 2008 may be the next 1929. But according to Jason Zweig in The Wall Street Journal, it might not be time to stock up on rice and beans quite yet.

In fact, the market is probably wrong again in its obsession over whether this decline will turn into a cataclysmic collapse. Eugene White, an economics professor at Rutgers University who is an expert on the crash of 1929 and its aftermath, thinks that the only real similarity between today's climate and the Great Depression is that, once again, "the market is moving on fear, not facts." As bumbling as its response so far may seem, the government's actions in 2008 are "way different" from the hands-off mentality of the Hoover administration and the rigid detachment of the Federal Reserve in 1929 through 1932. "Policymakers are making much wiser decisions," says Prof. White, "and we are moving in the right direction."

You don't have to look far to smell the fear in the markets today, and to see its effects on stocks. How are you handling it... Are you hunkering down, or starting to snap up the bargains?

Election Day is less than two weeks away and reports show that voters have turned out in record numbers in states that allow early voting. But concerns of voter fraud looms as Election Day draws nearer, and both presidential parties have warned that the other side plans to steal the election. In our first hour, we want to hear from you, particularly those of you who have participated in early voting in your state. What did you see? What will be your biggest concern come Election Day? Do you trust this election? Then, we'll talk to you about your "hemline index." What indicator tells you the economy is really, really bad?

In our second hour, we'll talk about your plans to re-plan your retirement. Stock prices have fallen and retirement funds have lost money, and for some it may mean having to reconsider their plans for retirement. We'll talk to one woman who had to change her retirement plans after she and her spouse lost thousands of dollars in their portfolio. And the director of financial security at AARP will explain how the financial crisis is changing retirement plans. Our ender topic for the hour is coming soon, so stay tuned.

Andrew Sullivan, of The Atlantic, embedded this video in his blog earlier today. A comedy group, called The Landline, made the short film.

Here is the premise: Sen. McCain, down in the polls, recruits three Hollywood directors -- John Woo, Kevin Smith, and Wes Anderson -- to make ads for his campaign. I agree with Sullivan's assessment of them: "John Woo (meh), Kevin Smith (decent), and Wes Anderson (brilliant)."

Enjoy.

Senators McCain and Obama, on the trail this week (separately, of course).

Chip Somodevilla/Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty Images

 

Polls and politics and presidential candidates, oh my! Yes, another day another poll (more accurately: polls). This time the Wall Street Journal puts Obama ahead by 10 points nationally. Pew has Obama ahead by 14 in a national survey (if you trust any polls). Of course, the national numbers don't mean as much as what's happening in the swing states. The McCain campaign has made Pennsylvania a major focus of the next two weeks, going so far as to say it's a must-win state. Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia, Florida, Missouri, Nevada -- all will play a major role in deciding who takes the oath of office in January. For its part, the Obama campaign is rolling out the biggest spending machine in the history of U.S. elections, with major ad blitzes in swing states and a planned half-hour prime time Obama infomercial on the major television networks.
If either side has a secret plan to win this thing, now's the time. We'll talk with Ken Rudin today, our political junkie, and with two strategists, one on each side, about what John McCain and Barack Obama need to do in the next 13 days to win this election: What's working and what's not.

Candidate Cynthia McKinney at a rally in July.

Source: Mario Tama/Getty Images

We brought you Ralph Nader. We brought you Bob Barr. And now, at long last, Cynthia McKinney. The former congresswoman is the Green Party's nominee for president, and she joins us today to talk about her campaign -- why she's running, how she's running, and who she's running with (that would be Rosa Clemente -- I'm sure McKinney will fill you in).

Today we have a special treat for all you logophiles* out there. Author and humorist Roy Blount, Jr., joins us to talk about his new book titled (and this one's a whopper), Alphabet Juice: The Energies, Gists, and Spirits of Letters, Words, and Combinations Thereof; Their Roots, Bones, Innards, Piths, Pips, and Secret Parts, ... With Examples of Their Usage Foul and Savory. (exhale) In our second hour, Blount will take us into the origins of words and language like only a bonafide wordsmith can.** What words do you love to roll off your tongue?

* Logophile (n.): a word lover or word buff. From the Greek logos, meaning "speech," and -phile, meaning "friend or lover." Then again, if you were a true logophile, you would already know that now, wouldn't you?
** I could've used his help on the GRE!

If you are a regular TOTN listener, you are probably familiar with the summer movie series, which is stretching into autumn this year]. The inimitable Murray Horwitz, Director and CEO of the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center, joins us every now and then, to dig deep into a film genre (political documentaries and summer blockbusters, for instance) -- or sub-genre (movies about bosses from hell, nuclear bombs, and movies about the movies, among other things).

At the end of our second hour, Murray will join us at the Newseum. (Rumor has it that Roy Blount Jr. may stick around, too.) The topic: movies about journalism. His Girl Friday! Shattered Glass! Capote! Broadcast News! Network!

What is your favorite? For extra credit, give us a link to a clip on YouTube!

We're at the Newseum today, and less than two weeks away from Election Day. In the first hour, NPR's political editor (and political junkie) Ken Rudin will talk about Barack Obama's money surge and recent endorsement from Colin Powell, some unusual state-by-state campaigning by both presidential candidates, and the trial of Ted Stevens. And of course, he'll have a trivia question for you. Later, Green Party presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney will take your questions about her campaign and the Green Party platform.

In his latest book, Roy Blount, Jr. explores the idosyncracies of the English language. It's... er... a little hard to explain, so I'll let the title of his new book speak for itself. Here goes: Alphabet Juice: The Energies, Gists, and Spirits of Letters, Words, and Combinations Thereof; Their Roots, Bones, Innards, Piths, Pips, and Secret Parts, ... With Examples of Their Usage Foul and Savory. Got it? Don't worry. Roy Blount, Jr. will explain it all in the second hour. And at the end of the hour, we'll combine movies with journalism with Murray Horwitz. Think summer movie festival... in the fall. So tell us, what's your favorite movie about journalism? (Broadcast News is my personal favorite.)

Enjoy.

Took the GRE yesterday. Scored 40 points higher on the math portion than the verbal, which was a surprise considering I guessed on most of the word problems. Those red/green/blue marble ones are the bane of my existence. Bane! I was excited, though, to see "perspicacious" in one of the analogies. Ironically, by that time, my head was so fuzzy from staring at the computer screen for four hours straight that I sadly lacked "keenness of mental perception and understanding; discernment."

In other news, I've decided to be Juno for Halloween. I thought she would be overdone, but thanks to the advent of Palin, I no longer think our favorite pregnant teen will be the cliche of the evening. I have all the essentials in place: Hamburger phone, check. Sunny D, check. Acerbic, precocious one-liners, check. Now how to go about procuring that bump...

Troy Davis is back on death row in Georgia. In 1991 he was sentenced to death for the murder of an off duty police officer in Savannah. Since day one he has insisted that he's innocent. Seven of nine witnesses in the case later recanted their testimony or changed their story. The Supreme Court granted a temporary stay, but last week denied his final appeal. The governor of Georgia, Sonny Purdue, is now the only person standing between Davis and his execution.
Over the years, a loud opposition has protested Davis' execution. They argue that with so many questions now raised about the case and the evidence; how can this be fair? While the prosecutor has been barred from speaking publicly while the appeals were pending, he can now talk openly about the details of the case. In today's Atlanta Journal Constitution he writes:

The trial was fair. Davis was represented by superbly skilled criminal defense lawyers. He was convicted by a fair jury (seven black and five white members). The post conviction stridency we've seen has been much about the death penalty and little about Davis. The jury found that Davis, after shooting another man earlier in the evening, murdered a police officer who came to the rescue of a homeless man Davis had beaten.

We'll talk with Spencer Lawton, the district attorney for Georgia's Eastern Judicial Circuit. And hear from a fellow lawyer with serious concerns about the level of doubt in this case. What do you think... Was this case fair?

The safest place to talk politics while doing business abroad?

Source: amajunior

You think you're addicted to politics -- well, guess what, it's not merely an American affliction. An article in USA today (yes, they have articles as well as pretty pictures) details the sticky situations that international businessfolks are walking into when they shoot the breeze with their overseas colleagues. The curiosity about our election has reached fever pitch, and more than a few people have found themselves feeling uncomfortable with a co-worker or taxi driver on their travels. What to do? Here are a few of the guidelines that Mercedes Alfaro, an international business etiquette expert, suggests. Want more? She'll be on the show today.

Don't bring up politics yourself. Let them be the one to raise the subject.
Don't get involved. "You don't want to create any situation where you lose control of your emotions," Alfaro says.
Listen and ask questions. If you must get involved in the discussion, listen more than you speak and ask questions to learn more about others' views. "Learn how to weed out those guys who are baiting you from those who want to learn something new," says Richard Arndt, author of The First Resort of Kings: American Cultural Diplomacy in the Twentieth Century.
Be prepared for blunt questions. "A question that's perfectly innocent (from the perspective of your counterpart) may seem brash or rude to you," says Jason Hancock of Arlington, Va., an international business development consultant who's worked overseas during every election cycle since 1992. "If you react negatively, the discussion could take a negative turn, and one or both of you may become needlessly offended - and that could damage the working relationship."
Consider other viewpoints besides yours. Foreigners often track our election process closely, so if you do reply, make sure you're well informed of others' viewpoints. "Don't stray into territory where you'll be ill-suited to provide a meaningful, informed response," Hancock says.
Remember your role. Don't forget that you are an unofficial diplomat.
Hail a cab. If you must get politics out of your system while abroad, talk to people you're not doing business with. "Tell the taxi driver all you want," Alfaro says. "You'll never see him again."

Come to think of it -- those aren't bad rules for a talk show, either...

Brandon, now Bridget. Beth, now Matt*. It's the article we couldn't stop talking about on Friday -- Hanna Rosin's piece in The Atlantic, "A Boy's Life." It's about kids who feel they were born in the wrong body, like Brandon, who told his mom at 5 years old that God made a mistake, putting him in a boy's body. And Beth, who told her mother that she'd "rather be dead" than go to school anymore as a girl when she was 11. There's a school of thought that says the best way to help these kids, who suffer from rage and depression thanks to their feelings that their gender is wrong, is to support the identity they crave -- change their names, allow them to play with Barbies and wear dresses -- and even, in some cases, give them hormones to suppress puberty, so that so that boys trapped in girls' bodies remain flat-chested, and girls trapped in boys' bodies keep their smooth faces and higher-pitched voices. It sounds like a tolerant, modern course of action but, as is to be expected, it has its detractors. In the biggest study on transgender children, Dr. Richard Green followed a group of 44 extremely feminine boys. Three-quarters of them grew up to be gay or bisexual... And only one, transsexual. So another school of thought counsels parents to discourage a child's opposite-gender urges, because it's so difficult to predict if a child is truly transgender, or something simply a feminine boy, or a tomboy. Whichever choice the parents choose, there is one constant: They must be absolutely committed to said course, unwavering in either their support or denial of the new identity. Clearly, there's no easy answer. If you've got a child with gender identity disorder, tell us your story.

*All the names of the children and parents profiled in the Atlantic story are pseudonyms.

In 1997, Madeleine Albright became the first female Secretary of State in our country's history. During her tenure, she focused much of her attention on the Middle East and the former Yugoslavia. Now, as the founder and principal of The Albright Group LLC, Albright consults on international commerce issues. Recently, she has offered her advice to the next president -- in her newest book, recently released in paperback, and during a CNN special. (NB: During the Democratic primaries, Albright supported Sen. Hillary Clinton. Now she is an adviser to the campaign of Clinton's one-time rival, Sen. Barack Obama.)

Our occasional series, called "This American Moment," continues today. Albright will join us from New York, to tell us what the upcoming election means to her. We also want to hear from you. Step back from all the partisanship, and tell us what this American moment means to you.

In our first hour today, we will detail the case of Troy Davis, a man who was convicted and now faces execution for the killing of a police officer in Savannah, Georgia in 1989. Davis has maintained that he is not guilty and most of the prosecution's witnesses have recanted their original testimony, or changed their story. Last week, the Supreme Court cleared the way for Davis' execution. We will talk about this case, and take a closer look at the death penalty process from both sides. How fair is it? Later, we want to hear from people who travel overseas. While you traveled abroad, did you get grilled on U.S. politics? At the end of the hour, we'll read from your emails and blog comments.

In our second hour, we'll talk with Hanna Rosin, a contributing editor to The Atlantic Monthly. Rosin recently wrote an article that details the complicated realities of families with children who are transgender and struggling with sexual identity. We'll also be joined by one of the mothers featured in the article. Are you a parent whose child has struggled with their sexual identity? Please tell us your story. Then, our series, This American Moment, continues with former Secretary of State Madeline Albright.

Last week around this time Barrie and I picked up a set of matching minivans to drive the crew to southwest Virginia, as you may know by now. One of the vans -- the one with Ken Rudin in it -- was much as Scott imagined, though with more Madonna, more dancing, and more juice boxes. That was not my van. My van had a more senior set of passengers (and by that I mean both in age and esteem), and though we spent a bit of the trip working, much of it passed in relative silence. It may sound boring, but for me, it was perfect -- southwest Virginia is a region close to my heart; I've spent 28 of 30 Thanksgivings outside Roanoke with family friends, had a best friend graduate from Virginia Tech, and met my first boyfriend in Blacksburg. I spent a lot of time staring at those gorgeous mountains awash in red, gold, and green foliage and thinking about all the good times I've had there, peppering Neal -- riding shotgun -- with random memories. As we entered Buchanan County, I dropped some local knowledge on him: "Hey Neal, just so you know, this Buchanan isn't Bew-chanan, it's Buh-chanan." He likes to know about that kind of stuff because he takes calls from everywhere, of course, and what do you know, the very next day during our show in Roanoke, we got this call:

CONAN: And let's see, we got another caller on the line and this is Kirsten. Kirsten is with us from Buchanan in Virginia. Did I pronounce that right?
KIRSTEN (Caller): Yeah, you did actually. Thank you. Both my name and my town. That's great.

Score one for strolling down memory lane with Sarah! I tell ya, pure genius at all times. Really.

Though it's currently en vogue to contemplate the incipient death of capitalism at the pub or in the papers, it's probably a bit premature. Focusing on the positive, Harper's Magazine gathered essays from a bunch of financial geniuses under the title "How to Save Capitalism: Fundamental Fixes for a Collapsing System." Two of the brainiest join us today. Economist Joseph E. Stiglitz has his eye on CEOs:

They are enriched regardless of what happens to investors, homeowners, and others who lost so much. Unless we reform incentives, the financial sector will only try to circumvent whatever new regulations are put in place. We will simply have a short respite before the next crisis.

And venture capitalist Eric Janszen wants less meddling from the federal government:

First, get government out of the way of progress by removing subsidies for uncompetitive companies. We can't expect private capital to compete with, for example, the current proposed $95 billion tax break for the dinosaurs of the American auto industry. Second, and more important, we should remove subsidies of FIRE (finance, insurance, and real estate) industries. This means not just ending the mortgage-interest deduction but also breaking up Fannie Mae and Fredding Mac into parts and selling them on the open market.

Dramatic recommendations, all, and it's refreshing to hear ideas about long-term solutions instead of philosophical positing about -isms.

The big buzz on Capitol Hill today is Colin Powell's endorsement of Senator Barack Obama for president. The former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Secretary of State told Meet the Press yesterday that John McCain is "unsure" on the economy, and said Sarah Palin is not ready to be president should anything happen to McCain.

Politico has called on current and former elected officials, as well as strategists and scholars, to answer the question, "What is your reaction to Colin Powell's endorsement of Obama and his criticism of the Republican campaign?" Today, we'll hear from Mickey Edwards, former Republican congressman from Oklahoma and once a member of the Republican leadership, who will explain why he thinks Colin Powell's endorsement is "important" and "devastating."

We want to hear from Republicans today: Do you agree with General Powell? And no matter who wins the election, what's the future of the Republican party?

Sure, sure, you love The Godfather. Gone With The Wind. The Deerhunter. Ah, but if you're a true film buff, your truly cherished movies are low budget, obscure little masterpieces -- they're proudly B-list. The grade, of course, doesn't refer to the movies quality; it's more a reference to its pedigree. And that list of lowly film births can range from the sublime to the ridiculous; from Platoon, to Invasion of the Body Snatchers. David Sterritt and John Anderson, along with the National Society of Film Critics, have lovingly put together a delicious critical collection of these low-brow treats, titled, The B List: The National Society of Film Critics on the Low-Budget Beauties, Genre-Bending Mavericks, and Cult Classics We Love. Their list is in no way exhaustive, though, so feel free to celebrate your own favorites, and let's do the time warp again! (My favorite is above -- get this -- it's Beat The Devil, by author Truman Capote, director John Huston, starring Humphrey Bogart and assorted beauties like Jennifer Jones and Gina Lollobrigida. Go to 2:15 in the clip to see my favorite line, practically of all time.)

1st October 1862: President Abraham Lincoln visiting soldiers encamped at the Civil War battlefield of Antietam in Maryland.

Rischgitz/Getty Images

 

In the preface to his new book, Tried By War: Abraham Lincoln As Commander In Chief, James M. McPherson, George Henry Davis '86 Professor of History Emeritus at Princeton University, notes that "the amount of attention devoted to [Lincoln's] role as commander in chief is disproportionately far smaller than the actual percentage of time he spent on the task." McPherson argues that Abraham Lincoln, perhaps more than any other president, and certainly more than we give him credit for, defined "commander in chief." He'll join us, at the end of our second hour, to talk about his new book, "war powers," and Lincoln. If you have a question for him, leave it here.

Happy Monday! Neal Conan is back in Washington in the host's chair. Here's what's happening on the show today:

In our first hour, we'll talk with two economists who are featured in an article in next month's Harper's Magazine entitled "How to Save Capitalism." Joseph Stiglitz is the winner of the Nobel Prize in economics and Eric Janszen is a former venture capitalist. Both guests will define capitalism and explain whether or not the system needs fixing. And we want to hear from you. Have you benifitted from capitalism? Or has the system failed you? Later on our weekly Opinion Page segment, Mickey Edwards, former Republican congressman from Oklahoma and member of the Republican leadership, will talk about what General Colin Powell's recent endorsement of Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama could mean for the Republican Party.

We'll celebrate the beloved B movie in our second hour. Oh, you know you love them. We can hear you humming the entire soundtrack of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. So if you love B movies, make your voice heard. We want to know what's on your B-List? Guest David Sterrit will tell us what's on his. He is the co-author of The B-List: The National Society of Film Critics on the Low-Budget Beauties, Genre-Bending Mavericks, and Cult Classics We Love. Then, author James McPherson will discuss his new book Tried by War that explains how Abraham Lincoln's leadership role as Commander in Chief evolved during the Civil War.

Susannah's friend Christina bargains with a Bedouin woman on the beach in Egypt.

Susannah George

 

Producer Susannah George is on vacation in Egypt, and will be sending us blog posts from her travels. Here's the first:

Although the drive only took five hours, once we arrived at our "camp" -- a cluster of thatched huts on the beach -- in the Sinai , Christina and I felt a world apart from the choked streets and gray skies of Cairo. The Bedouin style seating, low tables and hammocks -- not to mention the camp owner, Salame, who greeted us in a bathing suit and a beaded necklace -- looked more fit for Goa than Egypt. The Sinai is an oasis of package vacations that boast all the attractions of a vacation in the third world (sun, sand, cheap five star hotels) without any of the hassle (dress code, language barriers, foreign cuisine). Generally, tourists fly directly from Europe to either the Taba or Sharm el-Sheikh airport and are then shuttled into resort compounds that act as western bubbles. You can watch belly dancing, go for a camel ride, and get a necklace of your name in hieroglyphics all while wearing a bikini and sipping on imported alcohol. While our camp was far from a five star resort, it was still a western bubble. Two women traveling alone in Cairo attracted attention, here we didn't get a second look. One night over a Sakara (Egyptian beer), Christina asked Salame if he'd seen a decrease in Israeli tourists since the Taba bombings. Salama replied that he had, but slowly Israelis were starting to come back to the Sinai. Then he said, "You know, this floor is from the Taba Hilton." He gestured to the mismatched marble and stone floor of the camp's main dining area. "After the bomb they threw it out so I drove up and took it to make my floor... Nice, huh?" I'd love to go all Tom Friedman on you and extrapolate a wider metaphor of the Middle East from this story, but won't. However, it still amazes me that upon hearing of a bombing, someone's reaction is to think about building materials. Is that adaption or callousness? We asked what he thought about terrorist attacks in the Sinai in general. He said that he didn't approve of the bombings because they were targeting tourists. "If they changed the world that would be one thing, but nothing changes." Christina and I had both heard that one before. It was a common way to condemn terrorist attacks (albeit lightly), but avoid condemning the "struggle." Then Salame sighed and continued, "Plus we don't want the world to change, we like it the way it is." He gestured at the Red Sea and the surrounding landscape. "Life is nice." Now that is something that I don't think I had ever heard in the Middle East before.

It's a no-brainer here at NPR, as journalists often work under a code of ethics that bans any political campaigning and contributions, even political bumper stickers and buttons. That's not always the case with other companies, though. Some have well-articulated policies on what employees can and cannot do -- or say -- when it comes to politics. Others have no policy at all.

In New York City, the chancellor of schools recently announced he would enforce a ban on teachers politicking at work. And the state universities in Illinois went so far as to announce a ban on buttons and bumper stickers for professors. Both are being fought for by teachers. What about where you work? Where do you draw the line on politics in the office?

Last night's final presidential debate was watched by tens of millions of people. Some of you gathered in front of your flat-screen TVs with like-minded kin, to holler at comments made by both candidates. One of my friends watched less passionately... She cleared out her summer wardrobe as the TV blared in the background... A few colleagues IM'd each other... And I got sore thumb from incessant text messaging.

But many of you, I'd wager, hosted or attended a debate-watching party. Today we're talking to writer Shawn Hubler. Last night, she attended a debate-watching party in Orange County, California, with a mix of neighbors -- donkeys and elephants. She wrote about the event in today's Los Angeles Times -- Of neighbors and presidential debates.

We'll talk to her about what happens when people reach across party lines and test the fragile civility of a friendly neighborhood. How did you watch the debate? And with whom?

I've always been amused when people talk positively about multitasking, as if it is an admirable skill. In my estimation, a good multitasker is someone who, by some stroke of luck [or genius, I suppose], can disguise how easily he is distracted. He is able to listen to the radio, answer his phone calls, type emails, watch YouTube videos, refresh blogs, and -- by some minor miracle -- look engaged and interested, and get his work done on time. We all try to multitask. And as some of us succeed, others of us, having prepared scripts, printed them, edited tape and blog posts, realize, 12 minutes into the show, that we haven't written our blog posts yet. But I digress....

New studies show that multitasking isn't good for you. That it can be dangerous, even. Jon Hamilton, a correspondent on NPR's science desk, has been reporting a four-part series on the subject for Morning Edition. He'll join us in the second hour, to talk about how people juggle so much. Do you? How?

NO. It's one of the worst words to hear from a parent. What's worse is that the holiday season is coming up, and for some teens that were lavished with gifts of iPods, cell phones, and name-brand gear last year, well, let's just say that Hannukah Harry or Santa may not be as benevolent this year. The unstable economy is making many parents jittery. Credit lines are thinning, foreclosures continue, and many people are on the verge of unemployment. So what is a parent to do? In Sunday's New York Times, reporter Jan Hoffman wrote about the battle between parents and teens in these economic hard times, "The Frugal Teen, Ready or Not." Today, we're going to "Ask Amy" about this budget battle -- that is, Amy Dickinson, who writes the syndicated "Ask Amy" column for The Chicago Tribune. And are you saying or hearing NO more often?

Last night, after the presidential debate at Hofstra University, we held our fourth -- and final -- NPR listening party, which aired on many NPR stations across the country. Most of the TOTN gang was in Blacksburg, Virginia, on the campus of Virginia Tech, in a room with several hundred Hokies.

Our Political Junkie, Ken Rudin, was there, roaming around the audience, microphone in hand, listening to reactions, asking about issues. It wasn't hard to see, or hear, how divided the Commonwealth of Virginia is. (Old Dominion is, after all, a so-called "swing state," a "battleground," "up for grabs".)

Back here in Washington, I was answering calls from listeners from around the country. The phones rang from 10:45 p.m. (before the on-air party started!) until well after midnight. We asked callers to tell us what issue matters the most to them, and if the candidates addressed it during the debate. What did I hear a lot of? Everything from the economy, which callers said Sens. John McCain (R-AZ) and Barack Obama (D-IL) did address, to immigration, which came up only once.

Did you tune in to our listening parties? If so, what did you think? And if you tried to call last night, and I didn't get to you, now's your chance to tell us what is important to you in this election. And are you still waiting to hear the nominees talk about it?

If you listen much on Wednesdays, you know what an experience it can be to spend an hour with Ken Rudin (aka: the Political Junkie). Well, picture this: The TOTN crew drove from DC to Roanoke, Virginia yesterday after the show. Four hours. Ken Rudin. With sugar and caffeine. I wish we could have live blogged the trip, and videotaped the whole thing. But, then we may all be out of jobs.

My point: We're in Virginia today, the last stop on our swing state road trip. It's not a role Virginia is used to playing, it's voted reliably Republican for years. This year, the race is much closer and the state is on the verge of shifting from red, to purple, to blue on the electoral map. Ohio, Colorado, and others are in similar circumstances. So, if you're in a state that's changing colors this election, what's driving the shift?

L. Douglas Wilder is currently the mayor of Richmond, Virginia. But he's probably known best as the first African American in U.S. history to be elected governor. He served in that capacity for the state of Virginia from 1990 to 1994. He took office as mayor in Richmond in 2005.

In a state that has consistently registered in the red column in previous elections, but is now shifting to purple and possibly blue, he's in a unique position to talk about what this American moment means to him. And again, we want to know... getting away from the ugliness and the day to day of the political campaigns... If you step back and think about this election, what does this moment really mean to you?

Last weekend, my girlfriend and I drove on the Skyline Drive, along the Blue Ridge Parkway, through the Shenandoah National Park, in Virginia. The foliage was beginning to turn bright red and yellow, and the views were spectacular. At the end of one hike, we found ourselves in "Big Meadows," an incredibly vast, golden field.

The Appalachian Mountains are beautiful, especially at this time of year.

In our second hour, we'll talk to two filmmakers, Ross Spears and Jamie Ross, about the region. Their newest project, Appalachia: A History of Mountains and People, airs on many PBS stations this month.

If you're from the Appalachians, or if you live there now, tell us how those mighty mountains have shaped, or shape, your life.

Since 2003, StoryCorps has recorded the stories of tens of thousands of everyday people as part of an ongoing project to create one of the largest oral histories in the country. In their words:

The heart of StoryCorps is the conversation between two people who are important to each other: a son asking his mother about her childhood, an immigrant telling his friend about coming to America, or a couple reminiscing on their 50th wedding anniversary.

The recorded stories are intended to be a "portrait of who we really are as Americans." Their silver mobile booth is stationed here in Roanoke, Virginia, until the end of this week. So we thought we'd take this opportunity to check in with them to get a sense the stories they're hearing from people in the area. And in the current economic climate, we're particularly interested in hearing people's stories of hard times.

And we also want to hear from those of you out there who've told StoryCorps your story about surviving economic hardship.

It's like trompe l'oeil on a bikini!.

Source: Axel Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images

Unintentional Hilarity has been on vacation, not because of any lack of amusement, mind you. The election is making everything a little less, well, hilarious. But then I saw this picture, and I knew I had to share it with y'all. This is a leather dessous by Berlin fashion designer Daniel Rodan. The theme of his collection is "secrets in leather." Um... secret? Those are leather nipples, people!

By now, many of you are probably familiar with this exchange between Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and a supporter, at a town-hall meeting in Lakeville, Minnesota. She tells the Republican candidate that she can't trust his opponent, Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL), because -- she avows after a long pause -- "he is an Arab."

McCain corrects her. Sort of. "No, Ma'am," he says. "[Obama] is a decent family man, citizen, that I just happen to have disagreements with."

This campaign has taken an ugly turn. The presidential candidates -- and their running mates -- have slung mud. At rallies, it has become difficult to hear them speak. Supporters boo, yell, and sling slurs. Veronica Miller, writing for The Root says she has had enough: "This campaign is bringing the ugly out of everybody. Me and you ... your mama and your cousin, too."

In our first hour, Ron Elving, NPR's senior Washington editor, will join us, to tell us what has been happening. And if a presidential campaign has ever been this nasty. We'll also hear from Bill Bishop, the author of The Big Sort: Why The Clustering of Like-Minded America Is Tearing Us Apart. On his eponymous blog, he says that "homogeneity creates extremity." Basically, when a bunch of like-minded people get together, chances are they'll become more rabidly like-minded. Case in point: these recent political rallies.

Here's what we want to know: How much is too much? Where do you draw the line? Where should your candidate draw the line? If you're a supporter of Obama, chances are you have plenty of opinions about where McCain should draw the line. Likewise, if you're a supporter of McCain, I'm sure you could tell me where Obama should. We want to hear your thoughts on the candidate you support. ("Hey, I like you [and your policies], but c'mon!")

The fires that erupted on Sunday and continue to blaze in the north-western section of Los Angeles hit home for me. Literally. My family's house is located in the hills of the San Fernando Valley -- the epicenter of the flames. Our entire neighborhood was evacuated yesterday. I got frantic calls here in DC from my brother ("I'm loading up the car. Quick, what do you want me to save?"), and incoherent ones from my mom who strained to tell me what was going on through a mess of tears and coughs from the smoky air. Online pictures show a situation akin to the eruption of the fictional Dante's Peak, at least in appearance, and I can recognize familiar streets I've driven a hundred times in other ones. And one news article even referenced two of my family members, remotely. This, from the Associated Press:

Residents were not allowed to drive into one of Porter Ranch's gated communities because officials wanted to keep roads clear for emergency vehicles. Instead they parked their cars, ran to their homes and carried out whatever they could carry in pillow cases, in their arms, sacks and suitcases. Some ran out clutching paintings.

Clutching paintings... that was my aunt and uncle, and the paintings were the ones my dad painted for my brother and me.

10,000 acres and 49 structures, some homes, have been destroyed so far. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared it a state of emergency. My brother was able to get out a few important keepsakes, and we're keeping our fingers crossed that the Santa Ana winds calm down.

Have you ever had to evacuate your home or apartment with just what you could carry? What did you take? What did you have to leave behind?

Although the news from Wall Street may have been remarkably positive yesterday, there's just no way this economy's going to turn on a dime. Credit card companies are dropping customers' credit limits and canceling cards altogether, banks are eliminating home equity, and gas and food prices are as high as ever. So what are you doing? You've probably already been condensing and limiting car trips, clipping coupons, turning off lights... What's next? How do you hunker down even further... And what's next on the chopping block?

We've been talking about this presidential election for the last two years. In some circles, the conversation has been going on even longer. Now, with three weeks to go before voters head off to the polls, both campaigns are focusing on one ever-shrinking group: undecided voters. That fact irks Ezra Klein, as he wrote in Sunday's Los Angeles Times:

It's a bit odd that we give the Undecided Voter such a privileged place in American elections. Because from a civic standpoint, few creatures are as contemptible. This election has dominated every form of American news media for the better part of two years. Newspapers, magazines, networks, cable, radio, blogs, people on street corners with signs -- it's really been rather hard to miss. Further, it pits two extremely different candidates against each other. Whether your metric is age, ideology, temperament, race, funding sources, healthcare plans or Iraq strategies, it would be hard to imagine two men presenting a starker contrast.

Given the length of the campaign, the ads, the debates, the rallies, the talk shows, the blogs, the polls, the robo-calls, the attacks and rebuttals, if you're still undecided, what do you need to hear to make up your mind?

We are exactly three weeks from election day, and both presidential candidates have turned up the heat on their opponents... and their attacks. But has it gotten too ugly? And not just from the candidates, but from their supporters? In our first hour, we'll talk about where we should draw the line in politics. Then, we'll talk about the fires that continue to scorch parts of southern California. At the end of the hour, we'll read from your email and blog comments on past show topics.

The shrinking economy has caused more and more people to face unemployment, bankruptcy foreclosures... and the daunting task of devising a Plan B. In the midst of an uncertain financial future, what are your contingency plans? Our guests in the second hour will discuss the challenges small business owners are facing and the ways people are hunkering down until the economy gets back on track. After that, we'll talk about the power behind the undecided voter. Undecided voters are crucial to this presidential election. Are you one? We want to hear from you. What are you STILL waiting to hear that will help you decide?

At the bottom of my Netflix queue are about two dozen classic films, documentaries, and recommendations from friends that I really do mean to watch (eventually). It's just that I keep bumping the action flicks and dramas to the top of the list instead. And when the next silent film, or docu-drama does drop through my mailbox, it sits on the coffee table for weeks. Eric Zorn, the Chicago Tribune columnist, wrote yesterday that he recently decided he is not a Netflix guy:

We ended up keeping movies or HBO episode collections around for half a year or so. Which, even at the lowest membership rate of $5 a month (limit 2 per month), meant we were spending more not to watch the discs than it would have cost us to buy them new. I know, from conversations with others, that I'm not alone in being (or having been) an engine for the profits of Netflix. I also know that this phenomenon -- investing in the kind of person you think you are instead of the kind of person you actually are -- extends beyond Netflix.

Any other Netflixers want to fess up to stagnant queues of great old films that you may never actually want to watch?

Lynching, true lynching of the heinous, rope-and-tree variety, sounds like something that only happened long ago. But, in fact, it's happened in my lifetime, to a young man named Michael Donald. In 1981, at an informal Ku Klux Klan meeting, James "Tiger" Knowles became preoccupied with a question: "Wonder what people would think if they found a n---er hanging in Mobile?" Two nights later, he and Henry Hays came across Michael Donald walking down the street, pulled over, and asked him for directions. They put a pistol in his face, made him get in the car, drove him to the woods, put a noose around his neck, and killed him. Then they took his body back to Mobile and hung his body from a tree for all to see. Ted Koppel spoke with Tiger Knowles and others about the crime, digging into America's ugly history of race relations. It's so horrifying, and so recent, that one can't help but wonder what's happened to the message behind lynchings... At a time when a black man is just one election away from the White House, is the hate and fear that built the Klan really gone, in the past? Is it something you still think about, still worry about?

Recent polls have not been good to Senator John McCain. Here's a modest proposal, made by conservative columnist Bill Kristol in the New York Times. Fire the campaign. That's right -- he thinks the McCain campaign has gotten off track, and it's time to try something radical. We'll get Kristol's take on what went wrong, and how to make it right.

A replica of Columbus' Santa Maria, sailing along Madeira's southern coast.

Source: Madeira

 

As a child, my knowledge of Christopher Columbus didn't extend far beyond 1492 and the ocean blue. It wasn't 'til Howard Zinn in high school that I became aware of his brutality toward the natives. And, of course, there's also the fine point that Columbus wasn't actually the first European to reach the New World. But, still, we celebrate.

In a new book called Toward the Setting Sun: Columbus, Cabot, Vespucci, and the Race for America, historian David Boyle argues that for Columbus and his fellow explorers, the race to reach the riches of the orient was as much about turning a profit as it was about discovery. They figured out a way to translate exploration into wealth and power -- a plan that quickly came to rely on slavery. If you have questions for David about the economics of exploration, leave them here.

North Korea has been removed from the list of state sponsors of terror, and now the North Koreans say they'll let UN inspectors back into their main nuclear complex at Yongbyon. While it may seem like a pretty dramatic development, former US nuclear envoy Jack Pritchard calls the deal "watered down," and Scott Snyder at the Asia Foundation says it's basically an "agreement to disagree" that "gives this administration a sense of closure." Former deputy head of the U.S. delegation for the six-party talks and director of Asian affairs on the National Security Council, Victor Cha, however, says there may actually be some benefits to this move for the next administration. We'll get his take.

Neal Conan is back at our NPR headquarters in Washington (for the time being) and in our first hour, he'll talk to Ted Koppel about a new documentary entitled The Last Lynching that airs tonight on the Discovery Channel. In it, Koppel focuses on three Americans whose lives were deeply affected by acts of hatred and racism, and investigates the last recorded lynching incident that surprisingly took place in 1981. And we also hope to answer this question: Now that an African American may be our next president, how much progress have we really made? Then, on our opinion page, New York Times columnist William Kristol explains why he believes John McCain should fire his campaign.

To celebrate this Columbus Day holiday, we'll be joined by author and historian David Boyle in our second hour. In his new book entitled Toward the Setting Sun: Columbus, Cabot, Vespucci, and the Race for America , Boyle explores the relationship between the three men and their joint venture in crossing the Atlantic. At the end of the hour, Victor Cha, director of Asian studies at Georgetown University and a senior fellow at the Pacific Council, will discuss the Bush administration's recent move to de-list North Korea from the list of states that sponsor terrorism.

Honestly, who even needs football when your marching band can do this?

Source: Barrie Hardymon

 

They don't call it a swing state for nothin'.

Source: Barrie Hardymon

Things I learned about Ohio on my weeklong sojourn last week.

1) Both my parents are from Ohio (Toledo and Columbus), but they neglected to tell me how beautiful the state is. Driving from Columbus to Athens rivaled the prettiest foliage I've ever seen -- and I'm from Massachusetts!
2) This state is really split -- driving down Lane Avenue in Upper Arlington, a suburb of Columbus, I saw alternating campaign sign on every lawn (see small photo). Makes you wonder if there are spirited political discussions going on over fences between neighbors. If so, right on, Columbus. Talk it out! (Now I know how my childhood dinner table got so feisty.)
3) The Ohio State University marching band is really extraordinary -- I was lucky enough to go to the football game against Purdue on Saturday, and I gotta tell you, they don't call it The Best Damn Band In The Land for nothin'. Look at the tuba dotting the "i!" (see above) Amazing. Who needs football? (Oh, I know, I know. The game was cool, too.)

Ohio's a lot of things -- country and metropolitan, mountainous and corn-producing -- but easy to win it ain't. The diversity that makes it incredibly interesting also makes it difficult for politicians to craft winning messages that appeal widely. If you ask Governor Ted Strickland -- clearly adept at winning over Ohioans -- he'd say a message about fixing our rotten economy would do the trick. Senators Barack Obama and John McCain are paying a lot of attention to the state, and we've got some folks on who think they, too, know how to appeal to Ohioans across the state. If you live in Ohio -- what's the message you're hearing? And if you've traveled within the state, did you hear that message change from county to county?

By now, we're all familiar with the allegations of voter fraud and "voting irregularities" in several states during the 2000 and 2004 elections. To this day, Florida is still the butt of voting jokes. Ohio was another state that had issues. Current polls show that the margin of victory in this year's election may be just as narrow as in 2000, so all ears and eyes are attuned... to make sure there aren't any voting irregularity repeats. And people are especially paying attention to swing states like Ohio. Today, we'll be joined by Ohio's secretary of state, Jennifer Brunner, who will tell us how the state has prepared for the election on November 4th.

Generally when we talk about illegal immigration we're talking about states like California and Arizona. But, after back-to-back immigration reform bills died in the U.S. Congress in recent years, states and local communities are starting to tackle illegal immigration on their own. Oklahoma passed one of the toughest laws in the country against illegal immigration last year. Not exactly on the border. Mississippi followed up soon after. Virginia, Alabama, and Pennsylvania have all cracked down on illegal immigration. Sometimes with unintended consequences. As the Columbus Dispatch reported:

In Oklahoma, about 3,600 poor children were booted from a government health-care program because of problems with their Social Security numbers. Most were not immigrants.

U.S. citizens renewing driver's licenses in Alabama waited for hours because of confusion over all of the documents required to prove identity.

The Dispatch did a multiple-day series called "American Divide" on state and local laws that deal with the issue of illegal immigration in ways many say the federal government has failed to do. If you live in a state that's far from the U.S. border with Mexico, how is this issue playing out where you live?

In our second hour today, live from Athens, Ohio, TOTN brings you an exciting Musical Moment from two cool cats. Hilarie Burhans is a banjo player who's been anointed the "coolest person in Athens County," literally. Also joining us is guitarist Jorma Kaukonen, a founding member of The Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna, and 1st runner-up for the coolest person in Athens County.* He runs the Fur Peace Ranch Guitar Camp in Southeastern Ohio, and his newest album is called Stars in My Crown. Let us know if you have any questions. Hopefully, we'll get them to riff together!

* Will things heat up between these two nominees? Tune in to find out!

Cover the masthead and see if you can tell the two apart.

Scott Cameron, NPR

This has been months in the making, but this morning I reached into my bag to pull out The New York Times and instead grabbed The Wall Street Journal. The kicker: I didn't realize it until the third page.

A little background: If you're a fan of either paper, you know that The Journal is famous for its stark black and white images, usually hand-drawn sketches, and its graphs, charts, etc. Color on the front page of The Journal was almost unheard of. Until just recently, The Journal was also significantly wider than many other broadsheets, including The New York Times. The Times, on the other hand, will often grab you with a dramatic, full color image above the fold on the front page. To my eye, graphs and charts tend to appear lower on the page, or inside the paper.

When Rupert Murdoch bought The Journal he promised changes, and many in the news business expected him to go gunning for the huge national audience of The Times... with more political coverage and lifestyle features to complement The Journal's bread and butter business reporting. Now, look at that side-by-side image at the top of this post, and tell me the changes are not striking. Anyone read The Journal and want to chime in on the differences...

Last night's debate was relatively cordial, and free of personal attacks. Which was a surprise, really. All week we've heard that John McCain was readying to attack Barack Obama. Maybe in ads and on campaign stops, but not in the town hall format debate. What was clear, though, are the issues both candidates are using to define themselves... The economy, healthcare, and Iraq, among them. We now have less than a month before voters cast their ballots for president, and it's been an awfully long campaign. What have you heard from the candidates, either in these debates or on the trail, that really defines them for you?

My feelings about Andy Warhol have always vascillated between disgust -- he does seem to have been a repellent fellow -- and confusion. I frankly, didn't get it. That is, until I walked into the stunning exhibit at the Wexner Center for the Arts here at Ohio State; their Warhol exhibit "Other Voices, Other Rooms," is a real revelation, and makes Warhol's fifteen minutes seem absolutely prophetic. YouTube, reality TV, Us Weekly -- Warhol was the granddaddy of all of them. We're going to talk to Sherri Geldin today, she brought the exhibit here to the Wexner -- but I'd love to hear from all of you about your Warhol feelings. Do you get him? Is it art? What do you think?

When it comes to discussions about the electoral map and swing states, I envision a Schoolhouse Rock-type cartoon of Ohio state swinging on a swing set, singing about wedge issues.* Today, TOTN broadcasts live from Columbus, Ohio. We're talking to voters in that state about who they're going to vote for come election day, and why. In this crucial swing state, there is no campaign issue harder to quantify than the impact of Senator Obama's race. He portrays himself as post-racial -- a bi-racial candidate with roots in both worlds. But not all voters see it that way. Last month an AP/Yahoo poll found that 1/3 of white Democrats harbor negative attitudes toward blacks, and some suspect that people may tell pollsters one thing, but vote differently on the basis of race.

Of course, race operates differently depending where you are, and who you talk to. Today we want to hear from you -- whether you live in Pennsylvania, California or multi-ethnic Miami... how is race playing out in this election where you live?

* Hey, whatever increases retention, right? I would not have done nearly as well in English class in middle school if it wasn't for "Conjunction Junction".

Ashley GRE commences in 13 days, 1 hour, and 4 minutes. And that means I have just a little under two weeks to bring myself up to speed on 8th grade math. I'm disconcerted by my lack of knowledge regarding long division. How did that slip away from me?* I also have to memorize hundreds of recondite vocabulary words. I've made it through the "J's" so far. Some sound euphonious, others have an ugly, cacophonic quality to them. It almost feels like a game -- that's right, chicanery is deception! Ding, ding, ding! Donna, tell her what she's won! I'm surprised by how much I've retained just by watching my favorite films over and over again (also: interminably). I got this gem from Woody Allen's Melinda and Melinda: "I'm running out of obsequious banter."

For the next two weeks, I will continue to pepper my blog posts with $10 words so as to help my fellow GRE takers. Got any fun ones you can pass along?

* Darn calculator watch! Seriously, 5th graders would score higher than I would right now.

Students play the part of candidates Barack Obama and John McCain in Nashville, TN.

Source: PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images

Tonight's second presidential debate from Belmont University in Nashville is a town-hall format, meaning 100 undecided voters will pose questions to Senators McCain and Obama, moderated by Tom Brokaw. It's a time for the people to propel the debate, and odds are domestic issues will figure prominently. So, as a bit of a preview, we've got a crack team of NPR reporters covering the waterfront, so to speak: David Welna on Social Security, Julie Rovner on health care, and Claudio Sanchez on education. If you're one of the select 100 attending tonight's debate, maybe some background will help you better formulate your question... And if not, after our show you'll be able to call yourself an informed voter as you tune in tonight.

When I think Puritans, several words come to mind, some inexplicable, others expected: Bible, heresy, literacy, wood, God, sermons, exile, simplicity, fear, and Gary Oldman. And now I have one more to add to the heap: Sarah Vowell. Author, humorist and frequent contributor to This American Life, Vowell is also quite a historian. Her new book, The Wordy Shipmates, takes us into the lives of the Puritans. It's a world packed with dynamic characters -- think John Winthrop, Anne Hutchinson and Roger Williams -- that laid the foundation for some of America's deepest values. If you have questions for Sarah Vowell, leave them here. And have you ever become fascinated by a certain period of history? Tell us about it...

The Dow probably matters to him. Does it matter to you?

Source: TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images

Almost every newscast I heard yesterday mentioned the stock market plunge... And specifically the fact that the Dow dropped below 10,000 points for the first time in four years. When investors and finance types compare stocks and funds, they often refer to the Dow. But when we talk with experts about the economy, they tell us the Dow doesn't matter, that it's just another number among many. Sure doesn't feel that way when you've got a retirement account in the mix, and all you hear about is how much that number's dropped in the last 24 hours! I know, I know... the markets go up and down, and they'll eventually come back up. But if you watch the Dow, I'm curious why. What does it tell you?

The Gateway Arch, St. Louis.

Sarah Handel, NPR

 

Chris and Sean take in St. Louis.

Sarah Handel, NPR

Talk of the Nation's been scattered to the four corners of the U.S. lately (OK, not exactly, but it feels like it with trips to Tempe, St. Louis, Columbus and Athens, and Blacksburg, VA), and right now most of our crew's in Ohio. Tonight Neal hosts our third National Listening Party there, and tomorrow and Thursday he's hosting the show from Columbus, then Athens. But before tonight's event gets rolling, I just want to take a quick moment to sing St. Louis's praises. I arrived there late Wednesday night (note to future visitors: do not expect to find a bar serving food after 11pm in the outskirts of the city. You won't. Try sneaking Steak-n-Shake into Brewskeez instead.), and had a late call time on Thursday for the broadcast, so my engineer friends Chris Nelson and Sean Phillips picked me up and we made our way to the Gateway Arch. That, my friends, is an impressive monument. We had a perfectly gorgeous day, so we dashed around snapping photos outside, then headed underground to board the tram to the top. The tram is a total trip -- 8 tiny little space pods hold 5 passengers each, and let me tell you, it's cozy. The pods lurch their way to the top*, after which you emerge onto a narrow stairwell. At the top -- narrow and low-ceilinged as you'd expect -- the view from the tiny windows stretches for miles. My boss warned us that on a windy day you can feel the structure sway, but mother nature spared us, offering a clear and steady view. Ten bucks and a morning off well spent. Thanks, St. Louis!

*This is hearsay, but a woman in our pod on the way down told us that when the National Parks folks renovated the system recently, they could have eliminated the lurching feeling and grinding sounds, but opted not to. It's all part of the experience!

Many of the candidates for president (McCain and Barr, especially) have said that they want to cut government, or to make it smaller. But what does that really mean? What could make smaller? What would Americans willingly do away with? In our first hour today, we'll ask, "Is less government a good thing?" Andrew Kohut, of the Pew Center for the People and the Press will join us, as will Paul Light, a professor of public service at New York University. What role do you think government should play in our lives?

The signs are all there that we're in the middle of a serious financial crisis... a $700 billion federal bailout, plunges on Wall Street, growing unemployment. This is obviously big, but how big? Bigger than 9/11, argues David Rothkopf:

By all the metrics available to us, then, the current financial crisis easily exceeds the post-9/11 war on terror in economic terms. Human costs are harder to measure, of course, and the tolls of both events have been devastating. But the financial crisis will certainly touch many more people in many more countries than did 9/11. And even greater crises may loom ahead, thanks to our unwitting creation of a financial Frankenstein's monster of unregulated, risk-laden, global derivatives markets.

What do you think... Are the long-term effects of the financial mess going to prove more significant than the attacks on 9/11?

Born and bred Catholic, I have an intimate knowledge of confession, penance, guilt, and the Agnus Dei. Don't tell my priest this, but I've been tempted on more than one occasion to karaoke "Ave Maria" -- the only thing stopping me are high octaves and a little thing my CCD teacher liked to call "sacrilege." And the closest I've ever come to exploring a different faith (Buddhism) was ten minutes of uninterrupted meditation in a heat yoga class.

But I'm not the only one who likes to play with the limits of her faith. For one full year, journalist Benyamin Cohen, an Orthodox Jew, set out to explore the inner workings of Christianity. With a stamp of approval from his rabbi, Cohen watched Christian wrestling matches, accompanied Mormon missionaries, and even confessed his sins to a Catholic priest! In the end, his journey helped him reconnect with his Jewish faith. He regales us with his stories in his new book, My Jesus Year: A Rabbi's Son Wanders the Bible Belt in Search of His Own Faith.

And we want to hear from you. Have you ever explored another religion? If so, did it strengthen your faith, or weaken it?

It's Nobel Prize season again. And that means hopefuls are sitting on the edge of their seats, waiting for the call. But not American authors, apparently. Last week, Nobel official Horace Engdahl made it clear he does not think much of American literature. He called Europe the "center of the literary world," and said that "the U.S. is too isolated, too insular," and that Americans "don't translate enough and don't really participate in the big dialogue of literature." That's quite an opinion. And, needless to say, his comments were not well-received stateside.

The Nobel Prize in literature will be presented on Oct. 9. Today, we'll hear from book critic Adam Kirsch, as well as from Liesl Schillinger, a regular contributor to the New York Times Book Review, about their take on Engdahl's comments. And we also want to hear from you: which American author do you think deserves to win the Nobel Prize and why?

It's not called capital for nothing -- credit is what makes the economy groove. You may have noticed that the "financial crisis" all over CNN has been replaced by phrases like "credit crunch" and "lending freeze." The primary worry? The credit markets: they're the lifeblood of the American economy, and they've been dealt a stiff blow by the domino effect of the subprime mess. Everyone from mom and pop shops to big companies like AT&T are feeling it, and the lack of liquidity is the ghoul that's really scaring everyone from Wall Street to Madison Avenue to Small Town Drive. Today, we'll explain why credit is so important -- doesn't anyone just have cash anymore? -- and we want to hear from you, especially if you're an employer feeling the pinch.

Star-crossed lovers in the Shakespeare Theatre Company's all-male production of Romeo and Juliet.

Source: Scott Suchman

I still remember the first time I was introduced to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. I was in the 8th grade, and I had every passionate, angst-filled soliloquy memorized by the time the semester was up. Don't tell anyone, but I used to recite Juliet's lines to an imaginary Romeo (ahem, Leonardo DiCaprio)* from the balcony of my parents' house. Many years later, I had the fortune of seeing it performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon -- truly magical. I became a life-long aficionado of the Bard after that one.

High school English class taught us that Shakespeare's plays were all-male affairs during his day. And Juliet Capulet, one of his greatest female characters, was actually written for a boy. "It is the east, and Juliet is the sun." And, in this case, she's literally the son. Here in Washington, DC, the Shakespeare Theatre Company has staged an all-male production of Romeo and Juliet. Today, the director, David Muse, along with the actor who plays Juliet, James Davis, will join us to talk about the new discoveries that emerge about this timeless classic when it's performed as it was originally intended.

Have you seen an all-male production of Romeo and Juliet? What did you think?

* Every girl I knew in middle school wanted to be Claire Danes in that movie.

Marshall Brain discovers how Tasers are made -- right before he gets tased!

Source: National Geographic Channel

Have you ever wondered what gives the tennis ball its signature bounce? Or how the Taser gets its knockout punch? Or what hot dogs are really made of? In a new series called, Factory Floor with Marshall Brain, the National Geographic Channel and engineer whiz Marshall Brain, of HowStuffWorks fame, give us a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to make some of our most common goods -- from fireworks and escalators to airbags and frozen pizza. So hitch a ride on the conveyor belt, take a turn in the durability lab, and give us a call if you have a question for Marshall.*

* We particularly want to hear what fascinates you about how things are made. And if you work in such a factory, tell us your stories!

Ladies and gentlemen, our series continues...

On yesterday's program, Neal asked columnist Peggy Noonan, of The Wall Street Journal, to put this campaign and the upcoming presidential election into context. Today, we'll hear from Eboo Patel, founder and executive director of the Interfaith Youth Core, which "builds mutual respect and pluralism among young people from different religious traditions by empowering them to work together to serve others," and a regular contributor to On Faith, on which The Washington Post and Newsweek collaborate. You may have heard him last year, on Talk of The Nation, when he talked to us about his new book, recent released in paperback, Acts of Faith. He blogs regularly here.

Patel will tell us what this American moment means to him. What does it mean to you?

Neal Conan is in St. Louis, Lynn Neary is in the host's chair, and here's a quick look at what's happening on today's show:

Our economy relies on short-term capital funding -- it's how many businesses make payroll, for instance -- and if the current financial crisis causes the credit market to dry up, businesses may find themselves without any means to keep money flowing. In our first hour, we'll leave Wall Street, and walk down Main Street, to focus on what the credit crisis could mean for small businesses and business owners. Then, we'll talk to David Muse, the director of an all-male production of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juiet, and actor James Davis who portrays Juliet.

Have you ever wondered how fireworks know just when to explode? What makes an airbag deploy so fast? Or how something goes from an assembly line to "voila" the final product. Marshall Brain has, too. He's the founder of HowStuffWorks.com and the host of National Geographic's "Factory Floor with Marshall Brain." He'll also be a guest on our show in our second hour. Now is your chance to ask him a question about how ordinary stuff gets made. At the end of the hour, we'll continue our "This American Moment" series with author and activist Eboo Patel.

Dear Political, Election, and News Junkies,

Please do not forget to eat, shower, and talk to your loved ones in the coming days. As the election builds to a fever pitch, and almost every night holds the promise of a press conference, debate, or thrilling commentary from the media elite, it is important to keep up your strength. Eat protein! Exercise! Listen to the radio -- where Ken Rudin, who is a pro at these trying times, will be talking strategy with the likes of Katherine Seelye. (You can see her veep-debate-pre-game-show here.) Remember, Ken has done this before -- he hasn't slept in three days and he can hold his breath underwater (why else would he be able to talk so fast? It's all about lung capacity.) But please, don't bang on the table, don't surf the internet at the same time, and remember to take a moment or two to yourself. You've earned it, junkies and junkettes. The world will continue to turn if you do not recalculate the electoral map for an hour or two.

Best,
Barrie

P.S. Can someone pass this on to my fiance? I think he fell asleep mired in HuffPo.

Para quien vas a votar?

Source: ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP/Getty Images

Almost sounds like a Tom Clancy novel, doesn't it? Maybe not. In 2004, Latino voters rallied around George W. Bush, which helped him secure the White House for a second time. He did much better with that block of voters than previous Republican presidential candidates. But this time around, it looks like Senator McCain has his work cut out for him. The Latino vote could prove crucial in swing states, and analysts say he needs to secure more than 1/3 of the Latino vote for it to make a difference. And, of course, Senator Obama doesn't want to lose those votes. So, with a month left to go until election day, both candidates are working hard to convince Latinos to vote for them.

Today, we want to hear from Latino listeners: do you feel like the campaigns are paying enough attention to you? How have they reached out to you? Radio ads? Phone calls? Is it working?

In a recent column, "A Hope for America," adapted from her new book, Patriotic Grace: What It Is and Why We Need It Now, Peggy Noonan argues that our leaders are "removed from life as we live it each day." The "mood of the moment," she writes, "is marked in part by a sense that our great institutions are faltering, that they've forgotten the mission; that the old America in which we were raised is receding, and something new and quite unknown is taking its place; that our leaders have gone astray. There is even a feeling, a faint sense sometimes that we have been relegated to the role of walk-on in someone else's drama, that as citizens we are crucial and yet somehow...extraneous."

Our series, "This American Moment," continues today. (Since the Republican and Democratic conventions, we have been asking thinkers of all stripes, of all beliefs, about the significance of this campaign and election.) Noonan will join us, at the end of the second hour, to share her thoughts.

Tell us: What does this American moment mean to you?

We're back at the Newseum today with NPR's political junkie Ken Rudin. There's so much to talk about on the political front in our first hour: tonight's Senate vote on the new and hopefully improved $700 billion bailout, tomorrow's vice-presidential debate between Republican Sarah Palin and Democrat Joe Biden, and a Democratic pollster and a Republican strategist each weigh-in on which color the swing states are turning-- red or blue. Later in the hour, Katharine Seelye, political reporter for The New York Times will explain the debating experience and styles of Sarah Palin and Joe Biden and what we can expect in tomorrow night's debate.

We are almost exactly one month away from Election Day. Both presidential candidates are campaigning hard to get votes, but in our second hour, we're going to focus on what they need to do to convince Latinos, the largest minority group in the United States, to vote for them. We'll talk to some experts on the Latino vote, and we want to hear from voters in the Latino community. What are the campaigns doing to win your vote, and is it working? Then, we'll continue our "This American Moment" series with author and Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan.

Bad Winston! Bad cat!

Sarah Handel, NPR

Dear Barrie,
Today, when I got home, I discovered a gristly grisly, chilling crime scene. I am sorry to inform you of the sad demise of Cletus. He was a good fish. We have one suspect in custody, a male smoke tabby who answers (most of the time) to the name Winston. He appears unrepentant, and when he was asked why he didn't eat the victim, he turned his nose up and asked me if I remembered where Cletus came from*, but he was careful not to admit guilt. He is on timeout until future notice. The only small solace I can offer you and Steve, two of his nearest and dearest, is that you are clearly blameless in this tragic incident.

Best,
Sarah, Ben, and Sweeney

*Ben won him at a county fair.