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Martin Kaste Martin Kaste is a correspondent on NPR's National desk.
Martin Kaste 2010
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Martin Kaste

Politics

Do Cellphones Apply To Court's GPS Tracking Ruling?

While the Supreme Court ruled police must get a warrant for a GPS tracking device, the court didn't specify if cell phones are covered by the decision. That issue is up to Congress, where legislation spelling out cell phone privacy rights may have gotten a boost because of Monday's high court's ruling.

Do Cellphones Apply To Court's GPS Tracking Ruling?

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Environment

Snowstorm Pummels Northwest U.S.

A major snowstorm is blowing through the northwest U.S. Wednesday, dumping more than a foot of snow in some places. Seattle only got a few inches. But that's enough to close much of the city down.

Snowstorm Pummels Northwest U.S.

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Blocking Keystone Won't Stop Oil Sands Production

Oil storage tanks at the Chevron Burnaby Oil Refinery on the shores of Burrard Inlet, east of Vancouver, British Columbia. Andy Clark/Reuters/Landov hide caption

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Andy Clark/Reuters/Landov

Energy

Blocking Keystone Won't Stop Oil Sands Production

Oil from the Canadian north is already making its way into the U.S. market through existing pipelines and tanker shipments. Energy experts say even if President Obama blocks the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, it may already be too late to stop Americans from relying on this dirty source of fuel.

Blocking Keystone Won't Stop Oil Sands Production

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Pro-Pipeline Canada To Americans: Butt Out, Eh?

A screen shot from Ethical Oil's OurDecision.ca campaign, which calls on Canadians to write to Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver asking him to ban foreigners and "their local puppet groups" from appearing before ongoing public hearings for a new pipeline project. OurDecision.ca hide caption

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OurDecision.ca

Energy

Pro-Pipeline Canada To Americans: Butt Out, Eh?

Canada's environmental organizations are working hard to block a proposed oil pipeline to its west coast. But the country's conservative-led government is pointing to American support and accusing those groups of being lackeys of nefarious foreign interests.

Pro-Pipeline Canada To Americans: Butt Out, Eh?

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Sinking Ship? Saving The Historic Kalakala Ferry

Not Dead Yet: On July 3, 1935, the Kalakala started daily ferry service between Seattle and Bremerton, Wash. Today, it sits unused in a nearby Tacoma dock. Martin Kaste/NPR hide caption

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Martin Kaste/NPR

National

Sinking Ship? Saving The Historic Kalakala Ferry

When it debuted in 1935, the Kalakala was a Seattle icon. These days, the art deco ferryboat is better known for its fight to survive both on water and in local memory.

Sinking Ship? Saving The Historic Kalakala Ferry

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Economy

Raising The Minimum Wage: Whom Does It Help?

The new year brings an increase in the minimum wage in a number of places around the country, including Washington state, which now boasts the nation's highest statewide rate: $9.04 an hour. But the increase has rekindled an old debate over whether minimum wages make sense — especially at a time of high unemployment.

Raising The Minimum Wage: Whom Does It Help?

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Police Say They Aimed For Restraint With Protesters

A police officer pins an Occupy Wall Street protester in New York City on Dec. 17. Police in different cities have found their own responses to the ongoing protests. John Minchillo/AP hide caption

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John Minchillo/AP

National

Police Say They Aimed For Restraint With Protesters

Police learned to monitor the Occupy protests through livestreams and Twitter feeds. But there is no national standard for dealing with passive resistors. And sometimes that can lead to pepper spray incidents.

Police Say They Aimed For Restraint With Protesters

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National

Police Use Flash Grenades To Reopen Seattle Terminal

Hundreds of Occupy protesters marched to Seattle's Harbor Island on Monday and briefly blocked traffic coming into the city's busy port. The Seattle event was the culmination of a day of coordinated protests at ports up and down the West Coast.

Police Use Flash Grenades To Reopen Seattle Terminal

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Politics

Congress Pushes Bills To Promote Cybersecurity

Congress isn't doing much — with the major exception of cybersecurity. Citing rare bipartisan agreement and a common sense of purpose, members of both parties are advancing bills designed to protect American businesses and government agencies from hackers and intellectual property pirates. The proposed laws allow the government to block Americans' access to certain overseas websites, as well as make it legal for Internet service providers to share with the government information about emails and other traffic traveling their networks, in the interest of detecting and stopping cyberattacks. Sponsors of the bills say they're necessary to protect the U.S. from hacker disaster. But skeptics say the fears are overblown, and the legislation could take the U.S. closer to having its own version of the Great Firewall of China.

Congress Pushes Bills To Promote Cybersecurity

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Business

Boeing, Machinists Union Reach Tentative Deal

Boeing and the International Association of Machinists have reached a tentative deal that would extend the contract for four years and end Boeing's dispute with the National Labor Relations Board. If approved, the agreement would mean that a new version of the popular 737 model would be built by union workers in Washington state, and that the new 787 model could be assembled in South Carolina, which is a right-to-work state.

Boeing, Machinists Union Reach Tentative Deal

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How Private Is Your Email? It Depends

Some big-name tech companies are asking Congress to step in and clarify Americans' online privacy rights. Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images

Law

How Private Is Your Email? It Depends

The law that governs the privacy of cloud computing was written 25 years ago, when the concept of storing emails and other data away from the personal computer wasn't the norm. Some big-name tech companies are asking Congress to step in and clarify Americans' online privacy rights.

How Private Is Your Email? It Depends

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National

Actions Toward Protesters Alienate Mayor's Base

The Occupy encampment outside Oakland city hall has become a political quagmire for Mayor Jean Quan. Elected just a year ago, she was at one point a source of hope and inspiration for the city's liberals. Now, after her mishandling of the Occupy campsite — she forcibly evicted the campers, and then let them come back — she's managed to alienate friends and open up an opportunity for her political rivals. The situation may cost her the mayor's office before her term is up.

Actions Toward Protesters Alienate Mayor's Base

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As More Police Wear Cameras, Policy Questions Arise

Officer Huy Nguyen shows a video camera worn by some officers in Oakland, Calif. Oakland and dozens of other police departments across the country are equipping officers with tiny body cameras to record anything from a traffic stop to a violent crime in progress. Jeff Chiu/AP hide caption

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Jeff Chiu/AP

Technology

As More Police Wear Cameras, Policy Questions Arise

Police departments are starting to equip officers with video cameras on their uniforms. It's supposed to protect both cops and the public, and clarify he-said-she-said situations. But the technology is raising a number of questions and concerns about privacy and who has access to the videos.

As More Police Wear Cameras, Policy Questions Arise

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A Final Resting Place On The Green, But No Mulligans

Grieving families may chip shots out of the rough, or the sand trap, as well as putter on the green.

Courtesy Sunset Hills Memorial Park hide caption

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Courtesy Sunset Hills Memorial Park

Sports

A Final Resting Place On The Green, But No Mulligans

A cemetery in Washington is now offering cremation spots under a putting green for the avid golfer. There's a sand trap that can also accommodate ashes. "The one unique thing about Sunset Hills is that we guarantee you that everyone here finishes six under," says the man who came up with the idea.

A Final Resting Place On The Green, But No Mulligans

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