NPR 2012-04-19

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The LA Times, however, says they decided⁴ to show a small representative sample of these pictures because it shows a breakdown⁵ in discipline in this unit of the 82nd Airborne Division. And such pictures and such actions by soldiers could endanger their fellow troops. 

 

NPR's Tom Bowman. Meanwhile, the US and NATO are preparing plans to pull their troops from the front lines in Afghanistan next year. Defense⁶ and foreign ministers are gathered in Brussels for two days to finalize⁷ details for shifting combat responsibilities back to Afghan forces.

 

The US Supreme⁸ Court has ruled unanimously that organizations cannot be sued for the torture of American citizens under the Torture Victim Protection Act. NPR's Nina Totenberg reports the court's decision came in the case of a US citizen who is allegedly imprisoned⁹, tortured and killed while in the custody¹⁰ of the Palestinian Authority.

 

Azzam Muhammad Rahim immigrated¹¹ to the US in the 1970s and became a US citizen. In 1995, while on a visit to his home village on the West Bank, he was taken into custody by Palestinian Authority intelligence officers, imprisoned, tortured and killed. The US State Department issued a report concluding he died while in custody. His family living in the US filed suit against the Palestinian Authority and the PLO under the Torture Victim Protection Act. But today the Supreme Court ruled that federal law authorizes¹² suits only against individuals and not against organizations. Nina Tobenberg, NPR News, Washington.

 

In the US, Catholic bishops¹³ say the proposed budget by House Republicans fails to meet moral criteria¹⁴. NPR's Barbara Bradley Hagerty reports the statement comes days after a leading Republican said his Catholic faith inspired the budget.

 

The bishops seemed to be responding to remarks by Wisconsin Republican Paul Ryan, who chairs the House Budget Committee. Recently, Ryan, a Catholic, said that the Catholic principle of subsidiarity suggests that people, not the government, should help the poor. His budget cuts programs for the poor. The comment outraged¹⁶ liberal Christians¹⁷. They urged the bishops to fight the Republican budget as vigorously as they fought the Obama administration's mandate¹⁸ on birth control coverage¹⁹. The bishops wrote that there must be shared sacrifice involving raising taxes, eliminating unnecessary military spending and addressing the cost of health insurance and retirement²⁰. Barbara Bradley Hagerty, NPR News.

 

Dow is down 51 points; NASDAQ is up slightly. 

 

This is NPR News.

 

President Obama is contrasting his economic policies with those of his Republican critics including Mitt¹⁵ Romney. In Elyria, Ohio, a short time ago, the president touted²¹ the need to end certain tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans that have allowed them to pay a lower rate than those making far less money. That is a position supported by billionaire investor²² Warren Buffett, who recently announced he will undergo treatment for early-stage prostate cancer. The White House says President Obama has contacted Buffett to wish him well.

 

A massive campaign to vaccinate²³ against childhood diseases is being launched in Haiti this week. NPR's Richard Knox explains US health officials believe tens of thousands of lives could be saved.

 

The campaign launch drew top US health officials to Haiti. The immediate²⁴ plan is to vaccinate children against eight diseases: polio, measles²⁵, rubella, diphtheria, tetanus, whooping²⁶ cough, hepatitis B and H flu, which causes meningitis. Later rotavirus and pneumonia²⁷ will be added. Haiti is also doing a pilot project to vaccinate against cholera²⁸. That's been controversial. But Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says it's time to move past that.

 

“I don't think it's really a question of disagreement. Let's figure out what makes the most sense to save the most lives. We should look carefully at the current and potential future role for cholera vaccine²⁹.”

 

Frieden met with officials on plan to bring clean water and sanitation³⁰ to more Haitians. Richard Knox, NPR News.

 

Stocks are mixed following news of lackluster earnings³¹ reports from Intel and IBM, worries that Europe may still not have a firm handle on its debt crisis also creeping back into the markets. Dow is down 46 points; NASDAQ up two.

 

This is NPR.

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