November 6, 1998 All Things Considered (entire program) Requires the RealAudio Player

An index of the day's stories:

Jerusalem Bombing -- NPR's Eric Weiner reports that the Israeli cabinet suspended deliberations on the recent Wye peace accords after a suicide bomber blew up a car in a Jerusalem street market. Two people died and countless were wounded prompting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to suspend approval debate on the still-unimplemented peace proposals pending more Palestinian measures to crack down on Hamas terrorists. (4:30)

Honduras Airlift -- All Things Considered host Robert Siegel talks to NPR's Tom Gjelten at the Soto Cano military base outside the Honduran capital Tegucigalpa, about preparations for the large-scale U.S. emergency airlift set to begin tomorrow. The United States has allocated a total of seventy million dollars in food, medicine, fuel, and rescue assistance to help Honduras and Nicaragua dig out from the ravages of Hurricane Mitch. Rescue workers continue struggling to reach large numbers of people stranded by dozens of washed-out bridges and roads. (3:30)

Southwest Airlines Expansion -- NPR's Jim Zarroli reports that Southwest Airlines may be about to launch a major new venture. The Wall Street Journal reported this week that Southwest is planning to offer service to New York's Long Island, a move that would shake up airline fares up and down the East Coast. The move would give the airline a foothold in one of the world's largest and most competitive air-travel markets. NPR's Jim Zarroli reports. (4:00)

Smart Cards Not so Smart -- A year ago, the Chase Manhattan Bank, Citibank, MasterCard, and Visa distributed 100,000 "smart cards" to their customers in New York -- cards that could be credited with cash from automated teller machines and then used as cash at various vendors on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Now, the experiment has ended and is being regarded as a failure. We talk with Diana Knox, Vice President of the Chip Products Group at Visa USA, about why the idea didn't succeed. (4:00)

'Gods and Monsters' -- "Gods and Monsters" is a new movie about James Whale, the Hollywood director who turned Boris Karloff into Frankenstein. Bob Mondello says it deserves to be a monstrous hit. (3:30)

Osama bin Laden Case -- NPR's Ted Clark reports that counter-terrorism experts have expressed skepticism over last week's all-encompassing Justice Department indictment of renegade Saudi businessman, Osama Bin Laden, for terrorism. Not only did the belated Justice Department indictment seek to link Bin Laden to last summer's bombings of U.S. Embassies in East Africa, but the indictment attempts to connect him to almost every unsolved terrorist act in the last decade. (5:00)

Peanut Panic -- Science Reporter Frank Browning looks at the media hype behind the banning of peanut butter in schools across the country. While there is a real health risk to some children and adults from ingesting peanuts and peanut products,few schools in fact have banned these products outright, despite a recent New York Times front page article claiming this as a trend. Browning interviews advocacy groups, parents, school cafeteria administrators, and the New York Times Vice President for Communications, trying to get at the bottom of the story. (7:00)

Abortion Provider Murder -- All Things Considered host Linda Wertheimer talks with Dan Herbeck, a crime reporter for The Buffalo News who has been covering the murder of Dr. Barnett Slepian. Slepian was an obstetrician and gynecologist who was also an abortion provider in upstate New York. He was killed on October 23. Herbeck and his reporting partner recently interviewed the step-mother of one of the suspects in Slepian's murder. The suspect, James Charles Kopp, has been identified as the same person who delivered disturbing anti-abortion packages to a Canadian newspaper. A federal material witness warrant has been issued for Kopp in connection with Slepian's death. (4:15)

Black Abolitionist Tale -- As part of NPR's continuing series on the history and legacy of slavery, Historian James Horton tells the story of black abolitionist William Still and his family. This commentary is part of NPR's collaboration with the PBS documentary "Africans in America -- America's Journey Through Slavery." (3:15)

GOP Leadership Challengers -- NPR's Peter Overby reports from Capitol Hill that House Republicans are mounting a challenge to Speaker Newt Gingrich and his team of GOP leaders. This morning, Oklahoma Representative Steve Largent announced he would challenge Representative Dick Armey of Texas for the post of Majority Leader, and this afternoon Louisiana Rep. Bob Livingston announced that he will run against Gingrich for the Speaker's post. (4:00)

What Next for Republicans? -- Linda talks with NPR's Elizabeth Arnold about today's announcements by two House Republicans that they will challenge the existing House leadership in light of Tuesday's election results. Party members are trying to determine why Republicans did not win more House seats, as they had expected. Many blame Speaker Newt Gingrich, but it's not clear whether congressional Republicans will be able to agree among themselves on which direction the party should head. (4:00)

Ballot Initiatives -- Robert talks with John Zogby, the president of independent research and polling firm Zogby International. They talk about some of the initiatives on this week's ballots, and whether their passage or defeat reflect the development of a more moderate electorate. (4:00)

Hyde's 81 Questions -- Linda talks with Stephen Saltzburg, a professor of law at The George Washington University and chair of the Special Taskforce on the Independent Counsel Statute for the American Bar Association. They discuss the 81 questions submitted to President Clinton by the House panel conducting the upcoming impeachment inquiry. (4:00)

Saint-Exupery Crash -- NPR's Jennifer Ludden reports from Paris on a search off the southern coast of France for the wreckage of the 1944 plane crash of French writer Antoine Saint-Exupery. A fisherman from Marseilles recently hauled up a bracelet belonging to the author of "The Little Prince" and other classics. Now searchers are hunting for the plane itself, although Saint-Exupery's descendants say the writer would have wanted to rest in peace below the waves. (4:00)

Former La. Governor Indicted -- NPR's John Burnett reports former Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards has been indicted on racketeering and conspiracy charges involving the awarding of riverboat casino licenses. Edwards, his son, and 4 others were charged with 34 counts. Some of the charges date back to Edwards's 4th term as governor, which ended in 1996. The indictments had been expected for some time. Several associates of Edwards, including San Francisco 49ers owner Edward DeBartolo, have pleaded guilty to related crimes and agreed to testify against him. (3:30)

Republican Gains in the West -- NPR's Howard Berkes reports that twenty years ago, every state in the interior American West had a Democratic governor. Today, all of the interior West governors are Republican. Some analysts wonder what the West's swing to the GOP might mean for the future. (5:00)

Urban Sprawl Initiatives -- NPR's John Nielsen reports that candidates for political office this week on an anti-sprawl platform generally did well. Environmental groups say the issue of overdevelopment has come of age and propelled many candidates into office over business-as-usual opponents. But at the same time, actually changing the myriad local zoning laws to get more building in urban areas and less development in outer suburbs and farmland will be very difficult. (4:00)

Best Headphone Stories -- Forty years ago this month, John Koss began selling his invention -- the stereo headphone. In honor of John Koss, we asked listeners to tell us a good headphone story. Tonight we present those stories, with complete with sound effects and music. Get out your headphones for this one! (8:00)