NPR美国国家公共电台 NPR 2014-03-15

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Ukraine's Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk says his country is facing military aggression³ from Russia, a veto-holder on the UN Security Council. 

This is absolutely and entirely⁴ unacceptable in the 21st century to resolve any kind of conflicts with tanks, artillery⁵ and boots on the ground. 

He spoke⁶ briefly⁷ in Russian to say he doesn't think Russians want a war. Russia's ambassador said no one does, but blasted the west and protesters in Kiev for starting this crisis. The US is proposing a Security Council resolution to protect Ukraine's territorial⁸ integrity. Russia is sure to veto it. Michele Kelemen NPR News, Washington.  

 

 

President Obama has signed off on the presidential memorandum⁹ that directs the Department of Labour to put in place new rules that will make more workers eligible¹⁰ for overtime¹¹ pay. The President wanted it the most far-reaching executive action put in force. Rules include retail¹² managers and others who often work more than 40 hours a week, for an additional bump bump in pay, something the President says needs to change. 

It doesn't matter of what you do is mostly physical work like stocking shelves; it doesn't matter of your working 50, 60 or 70 hours a week: your employer doesn't have to pay you a single extra dime¹³. And I think that's wrong. 

Legis effort comes as Obama seeks to bypass Congress * on the the zoning areas they can. Critiques of the president's initiative say it would be too much a burden for small businesses. 

 

 

A bipartisan group of Senators is introducing a bill that would increase the capability¹⁴ of the Justice Department. NPR's Carrie Johnson reports law makers¹⁵ wanted an independent watchdog to investigate ethical¹⁶ breaches¹⁷ by prosecutors¹⁸. 

Republican Senator Mike Lee of Utah and Democratic Senator Jon Tester of Montana want to give the inspector¹⁹ general more power to look into attorney misconduct at the Justice Department. Under current practice, those investigations²⁰ to justice are reported up to the attorney general, not an independent agency. But law makers signed a new report by the project on government oversight²¹. That study documents 650 cases of recklessness or misconduct by justice lawyers over the past decade. Senator Lee says people need to know more about these cases, and have confidence they will be handled quickly and responsibly. Carrie Johnson NPR News Washington.    

 

 

Consumers are apparently²² up their spending a bit more last month as the latest released the government's retailer²³ numbers for February show. According to Commerce Department, retail sales last month were up 3/10 of a percent. The gain followed the decline of the previous month. 

 

 

A down day for Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 231 points to 16,108. That was a decline of more than one percent. The NASDAQ was down 62 points. 

 

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New data on some of the models of compact cars has been cut up in a recall by General Motors. According to a study commission by Center for Auto²⁴ Safety, more than 300 deaths have been recorded in some of the models being recalled after the vehicles' air bags apparently failed to deploy²⁵. In announcing a recent recall to the potentially faulty ignition switches in some cars, GM had reported 12 deaths and 34 injuries in the recalled models. GM has come under criticism for decades-long failure to issue a recall of the two models Chevrolet Cobalt and Saturn²⁶ Ion in between 2003 to 2007.

 

 

Americans still love their libraries. That's according to a new study report by the Pew research center. The reports ascertained²⁷ files of serious studies on American library habits, focused on how much Americans engaged with public libraries. NPR's Lynn Neary reports.

Conventional wisdom may assume that the growth of new technology has taken a big bite of the public's interest in and use of the library. But according to a Pew report, the most highly-engaged library users are also big technology users. From library lovers and information omnivores, to distant admires and off the grid²⁸, Pew categorized people's attitudes and use of public libraries. Pew found that 69% of all Americans are either highly engaged or moderately engaged with libraries. These groups express broad support for public libraries, and believe there are positive influences on their communities. They also tended to have higher incomes and be more engaged both culturally or socially than groups that had little or no contact with their public libraries. Lynn Neary NPR News Washington.

 

 

Crude oil future's prices closed higher. The price of crude up 21 cents a barrel today to end the session at 98.20 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. 

 

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