February 5, 1998 All Things Considered (entire program) Requires the RealAudio Player

An index of the day's stories:

Congress and Iraq -- There are some lawmakers on Capitol Hill who say any attack on Iraq should either remove Saddam Hussein from power or end his weapons program once and for all. But Congress has put off any debate on the issue in order to give diplomacy a chance. NPR's Elizabeth Arnold reports. (4:00)

The Kremlin’s Position -- All Things Considered host Linda Wertheimer talks with NPR's Andy Bowers in Moscow about confusion over the statements coming out of the Kremlin. Yesterday, Russian President Boris Yeltsin said U.S. military action against Iraq could precipitate a world war. Aides worked quickly to clarify his remarks, saying the Russians had no plans to retaliate. Today, Yeltsin said he wouldn't allow an American strike on Iraq. Yeltsin also said he thinks the worst of the crisis is over and that Russian diplomatic efforts to ease the crisis are winning support. (3:30)

Obituary: Mary Howell -- NPR's Margot Adler reports on the death of Mary Howell, who was instrumental in convincing medical schools in America to admit more women. Howell, who was 65, was the first woman to be named a dean at Harvard Medical School. (3:00)

Men’s Fashion -- Noah talks with Jim Moore, the fashion director for GQ Magazine, about a new group of American menswear designers who many say are the ones to watch for years to come. Designers like Gene Meyer, Sandy Dalal, and John Bartlett are showing their collections in New York this week, and critics are saying these men are setting the tone for men's fashion for the new millenium. (5:00)

School Donations -- Linda talks with Alfred E. Mann, the chair and CEO of Mini-Med and Advanced Bionics. They discuss Mann's decision to donate 100 million dollars to establish an institute for research into technology for practical medical applications at the University of Southern California. He also plans to make a similar gift to the University of California at Los Angeles. Mann, whose companies produced pacemakers for heart patients and insulin pumps for diabetics, thinks that more attention needs to be paid to the development of scientific discoveries into workable medical devices --such as bionic hearing devices or a prosthetic pancreas. (4:00)

Rich Young Philanthropists -- NPR's Wendy Kaufman reports from Seattle on the philanthropic habits of youthful technology moguls who have made millions in the computer business. (5:30)

Letters to ATC -- Noah and Linda read from listeners' comments. To contact All Things Considered, write to All Things Considered Letters, 635 Massachusetts Avenue Northwest, Washington D.C., 20001. To contact us via the Internet, the address is atc@npr.org. (3:00)

Mexican Art -- The largest privately owned collection of modern Mexican art -- consisting of 2000 paintings, drawings, and sculptures -- has just been donated to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The collection was assembled by Bernard and Edith Lewin through decades of travel in Mexico and friendships with some of the artists, particularly Rufino Tamayo and David Siqueros. (8:00)

The Starr Investigation -- NPR's Nina Totenberg reports that independent counsel Kenneth Starr pressed forward with his investigation into allegations that President Clinton had lied under oath about an affair with a White House intern, even as negotiations continued over what kind of immunity, if any, to grant the intern for her testimony. The grand jury heard today from John Podesta, deputy White House chief of staff, about his involvement with efforts to get the intern a job after she left the White House. Administration officials were trying to decide just how much confidential information they were willing to turn over to the grand jury. (5:00)

Health Care for Childern -- NPR's Patricia Neighmond reports on one reason that millions of children who are qualified to be on Medicaid assistance are not receiving assistance. A new study says that federal health clinics are not even trying to enroll children in the government's health program for the poor. (3:30)

Minnesota and the Tobacco Industry -- Laura McCallum of Minnesota Public Radio reports on this week's testimony in the state's Medicaid lawsuit against the tobacco industry. (3:00)

Prayer Breakfast -- Today, the 46th annual National Prayer Breakfast was held in Washington, D.C. We'll hear part of Reverend Billy Graham's closing prayer at the meeting. (3:30)

Music Review: Robert Wyatt -- Robert Wyatt has been a musician for more than 30 years. He hit the pop charts in Britain just twice, but Wyatt is unmoved by the pressures of the marketplace. "Shleep" is his first album in six years. He is wheelchair-bound, and his performance opportunities are limited and cash is usually in short supply. But reviewer David Greenberger says Wyatt's music is gentle, surreal, moving, and ultimately enduring. (4:30)

El Niño Storms -- The weather is making headlines around the country this week. Linda talks with Vernon Kowski, a research meteorologist with the climate prediction center of the National Weather Service. He says we can chalk this latest weather on both coasts up to the El Nino phenomenon, and we can expect this odd weather patterns all the way up until spring. Noah talks with Meredith Reynolds in Pescadero, California where a creek overflowed. She's decided to leave town. There's mud and water everywhere in Pescadero, and the wind is what is scaring her the most. Finally, Noah talks to a Virginia Beach fire captain -- Al Chewning -- who says that no one can get around the town in a car because of all the water. Homes are flooded - some condemned - the one positive thing from the disaster is that some shipwrecks have been uncovered. (10:15)

Cable Car Disaster -- In Cavalese, Italy, the mayor of the town proclaimed a day of mourning for the 20 people killed Tuesday, when an American military jet cut the wire holding a cable car. More than a thousand people attended a mass in their honor in the ski resort town. The BBC's Paul Wood reports on the investigation into the accident and Italian demands that the pilot responsible face criminal charges. (1:30)

Royal Auction -- Last September, an auction of the Collection of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor was scheduled at Sotheby's. The deaths of Princess Diana and her companion Dodi Fayed led to the delay of that auction, which is now scheduled for February 19th. A public exhibition of the collection will begin at Sotheby's on February 10th. Edward, the Duke of Windsor, was set to become the King of England, but he chose to abdicate from the throne rather than give up his relationship with American divorcee Wallis Warfield Simpson. Commentator Robert Trout, who broadcast Edward's abdication in 1936, remembers what a important love story this was at the time, and how it now fades into history. (7:30)