We talk about Iran's influence in Afghanistan as Iranian President Ahmadinejad visits Kabul; Haiti's continued struggles with recovery; The problem with prodigy; Illinois' attempts for cleaner political reputation with an online lieutenant governor nomination; and why eating jellyfish, nutria and other nuisance species can help save the world. Todd Zwillich fills in for Celeste Headlee.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will visit Afghanistan today. His visit has strategists around the world scratching their heads as they try to discern his agenda.
A study by the Employee Benefit Research Institute released Wednesday shows that more Americans are waiting longer to retire because they are not financially secure.
"The Hurt Locker” was undoubtedly the star of this year’s Oscars, winning six awards, including Best Picture. The New York Times declared it the best American feature film yet about the war in Iraq. Cinematic awards are well and good, but how true to life is the film?
When it comes to environmentally responsible eating, we’re often told what not to eat: Don’t eat tuna because it’s overfished. Don’t eat Chilean sea bass because it’s bottom-trawled. Don’t eat beef because of carbon dioxide emissions from cows.
But what we’re not often told is that putting jellyfish on the menu will help save the world.
Even after you restore safety and security, how do you begin to rebuild? Haitian President Rene Preval will meet with President Barack Obama in Washington today to discuss what Haiti needs two months after the earthquake that devasted large swathes of the country. Along with severe damages to infrastructure in the wake of the disaster, Haitians are trying to deal with economic issues — some of them pre-existent — brought into sharp relief by the quake. We're checking in with two people who have a birds-eye view of Haitian need, and how it interacts with that country's economy, past and future.
Illinois has a long history of political corruption. Four of the past eight governors have been indicted on corruption charges, and dozens of other public officials have been convicted on similar grounds. In February, the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, Scott Lee Cohen, stepped aside after allegations that he had abused his wife.
A video of a Prius that lost control in a dramatic crash on a California highway has sparked a new investigation into Toyota's acceleration problems. Worse, the driver says he had already reported problems to the car dealer.
In this third installment of our series on genius, we look at the problem of child prodigies. Author David Shenk and chess champion Josh Waitzkin, who was the inspiration for the main character in 1993's Searching for Bobby Fisher, join us to discuss where prodigy comes from, and where it goes when the child grows up.
An American woman who called herself "Jihad Jane" on the internet has been charged with trying to recruit Islamic terrorists. She is also accused of taking part in an international conspiracy to kill a Swedish cartoonist. Colleen LaRose, a blond-haired, green-eyed resident of suburban Philadelphia, was taken into custody last October, but her arrest was kept secret until yesterday.
During his State of the Union Address, President Obama called out the Supreme Court for its ruling that allowed corporations to spend money on ads for political candidates. At the time, Justice Alito rolled his eyes and mouthed "not true." The scene caused a stir as different branches of the government pointed fingers at each other. Yesterday, Chief Justice John Roberts broke the silence and shot back, telling a group of University of Alabama students that the incident was "very troubling."