October 15, 1998 All Things Considered (entire program) Requires the RealAudio Player

An index of the day's stories:

MIDEAST SUMMIT -- NPR's Ted Clark reports on the peace talks getting underway at a secluded resort in eastern Maryland, to reach an interim agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. At the White House beforehand, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country was willing to withdraw from a further 13 per cent of the West Bank, but only if the Palestinians took concrete steps to ensure Israel's security. Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat, who is seeking an independent state, suggested peace was Israel's best guarantee for security. (4:00)

WOLE SOYINKA'S RETURN -- NPR's Charlayne Hunter-Gault reports on the return to Nigeria of Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka after four years in exile. Soyinka, who won the 1986 Nobel prize for literature, left Nigeria in 1994 during the dictatorship of the late General Sani Abacha. He had been charged in absentia with treason, but after Abacha died in June, his replacement, General Abdulsalam Abubakar, dropped the charges. Abubakar, who has promised a return to democracy next spring, recently met with Soyinka in New York and urged him to return. (4:00)

SMALL BUSINESS & GLOBAL ECONOMY -- NPR's Chris Arnold reports that even with all the turmoil in foreign economies, it's still unclear to what degree small business owners in the U.S. economy will be affected. A recent survey by the National Foundation of Independent Businesses finds small business owners are concerned about the downturn abroad, but for the most part, they are still upbeat about the future. (4:00)

WYOMING FOLK ON SHEPARD -- The killing of Matthew Shepard is sparking lots of discussion in Wyoming. Some people believe the state needs an aggressive hate-crime law, others view the death of the gay student as a senseless, but unavoidable, tragedy. Wyoming Public Radio's Heather Feeney reports. (4:30)

CRIMES OF IGNORANCE -- Commentator Jon Wilson says killings that are based on race, or gender, or sexual orientation shouldn't just be referred to as "hate crimes." He says people are entitled to, and sometimes are even proud of the things they hate. Wilson says such crimes should be viewed as "crimes of ignorance," because ignorance can be fought with education. (3:00)

MAPLESHADE RECORDS -- Noah talks with Pierre Sprey (spray) founder of Mapleshade records. The label and it's studio try and capture the live sound of the blues and jazz in a way they believe, commercial studios can't. The studio goes for high quality sound using old but modified analog tape recorders and its specially designed microphones and wiring. The studio itself is an old southern mansion and Mapleshade uses its parlor and foyer as a recording studio. Pierre Spray believes in using the best technology, not necesarily the newest technology, and using as little of it as possible to make the best sounding recordings. (12:30)

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THE FAMILY IN HOLLYWOOD -- Commentator Daniel Pinkwater explains how his father's decision to move to Hollywood resulted in Daniel having a warped point of view. (4:00)

BUDGET DEAL -- NPR's Brian Naylor reports that budget negotiators have agreed on a wide-reaching budget package that Congress must complete in order to adjourn. Agreement on the 500 billion dollar measure includes compromises on aid to public schools, struggling farmers, and the International Monetary Fund. The spending plan still needs approval by the House and Senate. (4:30)

FED CUTS INTEREST RATES -- NPR's John Ydstie reports the Federal Reserve cut two key interest rates by a quarter percentage point each today. Stock prices soared after news of the reduced interest rates in late afternoon trading. (4:00)

AIRPLANE INSULATION -- NPR's Larry Abramson reports that the Federal Aviation Administration is recommending that airlines replace the insulation on all passenger jets because of suspicions that the current insulation can catch fire. The announcement came after the investigation into the crash of Swissair Flight 111 last month revealed the presence of fire. The FAA is likely to make the retrofit mandatory in about six months. (4:00)

HIV & PREGNANT WOMEN -- NPR's Sean Collins reports on new recommendations from the Institute of Medicine that call for testing all pregnant women for the AIDS virus. A panel of experts convened by the institute says the current policy of voluntarily offering the test to pregnant women is not detecting enough cases. Critics say the new recommendations ignore the importance of counseling women about the risks and benefits of HIV testing. [4:00]

DRIVE-THRU FLU SHOTS -- Robert talks with Sandy Carlson, a nurse at St. Joseph West Mesa Hospital in Albuquerque, New Mexico, who helped inject drive-up clients with flu shots. The hospital expected 400 elderly people to participate in the program and 1,200 people came. (3:30)

HYDE ON IMPEACHMENT -- NPR's David Welna reports that House Judiciary Committee Chairman Henry Hyde spoke today to the Chicago Bar Association about some of his thoughts on the upcoming impeachment inquiry. Hyde said that public opinion polls could have an impact on what Congress will do, and said that he personally believed that for something to be considered a "high crime and misdemeanor" it would have to affect the President's ability to perform his job. (3:30)

PA HOUSE RACE -- The race in Pennsylvania's 13th congressional district two years ago was one of the closest in the nation -- incumbent Republican Jon Fox defeated Democrat Joseph Hoeffel by just 84 votes. It's a big Republican district, but Fox has never been secure here, barely winning his 1994 effort after losing a bid for the seat in '92. Both Fox and Hoeffel are back this year for a rematch, and, as NPR's Eric Westervelt reports, both sides are expecting another close race. (6:15)

PARIS STUDENT PROTESTS -- NPR's Sarah Chayes reports tens of thousands of high school students marched across France today, protesting teacher and classroom shortages. In Paris, looters disrupted the demonstrations by smashing windows, turning over cars and seriously injuring a policeman. (3:15)

SEA OTTER DECLINE -- NPR's Allison Aubrey reports on a new development among sea otter populations off the coast of Alaska. Killer whales have fewer seals and sea lions to eat, most likely because there are fewer fish for those seals and sea lions. So the killer whales are turning on sea otters, which in the past had nothing to fear from killer whales. There's a ripple effect to this; with sea otter populations being eaten, sea urchins (which otters eat) are on the rise, and they're wiping out the kelp beds. (3:30)

MAKAH WHALER -- Robert talks to Keith Johnson of the Mahkah Nation about the tribes tradition and preparation for their first whale hunt since the 1920s. In September, a judge cleared the way for the Mahkah to revive a 2,000-year-old tradition that died out when gray whales nearly reached extinctinction. Johnson describes why the hunt is important and how it will precede. No hunt has occurred as of yet. The tribe is waiting for the migration of the grey whales to pass through the region around Neah (nee-ah) Bay. (4:15)