April 8, 2003 - A study released today by the Union of Concerned Scientists says within the next 30 years, climate change caused by the burning of fossil fuels will have dramatic effects on Minnesota. Minnesota Public Radio's Mary Losure reports. --
March 26, 2003 - Millions of people around the world watch the Arab satellite TV channel al-Jazeera . It viewers can see the war from a different perspective from the one shown to American TV audiences. Minnesota Public Radio's Mary Losure talked with a number of people watching al Jazeera in a local cafe. She files this report. -
March 24, 2003 - A group of 20 anti-war protesters have staged a so-called "die-in" at the Twin Cities office of U.S. Senator Norm Coleman. The office closed at 5 o'clock and the protesters say expect to be arrested on a trespassing charge. Earlier the St.paul police department closed the building to visitors after the protest threatened to disrupt business. That protest followed an anti-war rally at the University of Minnesota that drew between 500 and a 1000 students -- not all of them against the war with Iraq. Minnesota Public Radio's Mary Losure reports.
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March 12, 2003 - Xcel Energy's efforts to move spent nuclear fuel away from Minnesota have suffered a setback. Federal regulators have denied Xcel's application to build a private nuclear waste storage facility in Utah. The denial comes as Xcel seeks to store more waste at its Prairie Island nuclear plant. A nuclear waste storage bill was introduced Monday at the State Capitol. Minnesota Public Radio's Mary Losure reports.
February 11, 2003 - For years, members of Alaska's congressional delegation have pushed for oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife refuge. Minnesota's late Senator Paul Wellstone was a vocal opponent of those efforts. Now, pro-drilling forces backed by the Bush Administration are making a new attempt. Environmental groups say this time around, Minnesota's new Senator, Norm Coleman, could play a key role in the refuge's fate. Minnesota Public Radio's Mary Losure reports.
February 10, 2003 - After the Sept 11 terrorist attacks, US Attorney General John Ashcroft ordered the Immigration and Naturalization Service to begin tracking visitors from 25 mostly Muslim countries. Since the first anniversary of the attacks, male visitors from these countries have been required to report in person to the INS for special registration, or risk deportation. So far, more than 23,000 have registered nationwide. Minnesota Public Radio's Mary Losure followed one Pakistani man as he made his way through the process. She filed this report.
December 16, 2002 - We delve into stories from Minnesota's past, with three Minnesota Public Radio documentaries. First, MPR's Dan Olson reports on Sister Elizabeth Kenny's efforts to fight the polio epidemic in the 1940's and 50's. The second part of the program is a report from MPR's Tim Post and Mark Steil on the 1862 Dakota Indian war, called "Minnesota's Uncivil War." Then, MPR's Mary Losure and Dan Olson report on the struggles of the Finns who immigrated to Minnesota's Iron Range at the turn of the century. This report is called "Finland Was a Poor Country."
December 9, 2002 - At noon today on our Midday program, we'll air a new historical documentary, "Powerline Blues." It's the story of a mass movement of farmers who tried to stop a high voltage transmission line in west central Minnesota in the late 1970's. The struggle caught the attention of a young Carleton College professor named Paul Wellstone. He later co-authored a book about it, Powerline: The First Battle of America's Energy War. In this report, Minnesota Public Radio's Mary Losure looks at how the protest helped shape the man who went on to the US Senate as a champion for the little guy against the power structure. Listen today at for the new documentary "Powerline Blues" -- It will air at 12 noon on MPR's midday program.