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12:28pm

Tue May 21, 2013
The Two-Way

'Tornado Emergency': A Rare, Dire Warning Born In Oklahoma

Credit Brett Deering / Getty Images
Piles of debris and cars lie around a home destroyed by a tornado in Moore, Oklahoma.

If you were watching news coverage on Monday, before a monster EF-4 tornado barreled through Moore, Okla., you probably heard the term "tornado emergency."

The warning is used rarely by forecasters to flag the deadliest of situations.

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12:05pm

Tue May 21, 2013
Law

The Difficulties Of Proving Racial Profiling

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 1:02 pm

Transcript

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

I'm Michel Martin, and this is TELL ME MORE, from NPR News. We'd like to start today by mentioning that, as you would imagine, NPR is continuing to follow developments concerning that deadly tornado that struck Oklahoma yesterday. We hope you will stay tuned to your public radio station or check our website, npr.org, for the latest updates.

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11:58am

Tue May 21, 2013
Parallels

Socks Are Optional As Pakistan Grapples With Power Cuts

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 1:11 pm

Credit Ilyas Sheikh / EPA/Landov
Protesters march against prolonged power outages in Faisalabad, Pakistan, last month. The country faces power outages of more than 18 hours a day in some parts of the country.

Pakistanis have coped with — even rioted — over the country's frequent power cuts. Now, the government is feeling the impact, too. The country's caretaker prime minister has banned air conditioners in government offices and instituted a dress code for civil servants. Among his recommendations: no socks.

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11:40am

Tue May 21, 2013
The Two-Way

Big Changes At U.S. Speedskating Body, But Scandals Linger

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 12:56 pm

Credit Rick Bowmer / AP
Speedskaters practiced for the U.S. Single Distance Short Track Speedskating Championships in Kearns, Utah, last year.

Rebellious athletes, drained budgets, dysfunctional management and a string of embarrassing scandals forced a major reorganization of U.S. Speedskating over the weekend.

The group governs a sport that has produced 85 Winter Olympic medals for the United States — more than any other sport. But persistent turmoil threatened continued success in the next Games, just nine months away in Sochi, Russia.

The changes leave USS with a smaller board and without numerous committees that have permitted parochial interests to meddle in the governance of the sport.

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11:13am

Tue May 21, 2013
Business

Tumblr Users Urge New Owner Yahoo To Keep The Site Weird

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Yahoo's purchase of the blogging site Tumblr sent shockwaves through the Tumblrverse. Is that actually a word now?

WNYC's Ilya Marritz reports that the site's users want to keep Tumblr out of the mainstream.

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11:13am

Tue May 21, 2013
Business

Kids Pitch Business Ideas To Warren Buffett

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Tumblrese.

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

And today's last word in business is: almost millionaires.

INSKEEP: Warren Buffett took time yesterday to listen to kids pitching potential new enterprises. These are kids who competed through Buffett's Secret Millionaires Club, a Web and cable series featuring a cartoon.

(SOUNDBITE OF WEB CARTOON, "SECRET MILLIONAIRES CLUB")

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

WARREN BUFFETT: Hey, kids, Warren Buffett here. A successful business is always trying new things.

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11:13am

Tue May 21, 2013
U.S.

After Okla. Tornado, Obama Offers Prayers Backed With Deeds

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

And let's return now to our top story, that devastating tornado that struck south of Oklahoma City yesterday. President Obama spoke just moments ago at the White House. He offered words of comfort to the people of Moore, Oklahoma.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: What they can be certain of is that Americans from every corner of this country will be right there with them, opening our homes, our hearts to those in need, because we're a nation that stands with our fellow citizens.

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11:13am

Tue May 21, 2013
The Two-Way

'I Was Dismayed' To Learn What Agency Did, Ex-IRS Chief Says

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 12:05 pm

Facing questions for the first time about why Internal Revenue Service personnel singled out some conservative groups for inappropriate scrutiny while he was head of the agency, former IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman told Congress on Tuesday that "I was dismayed and I was saddened" to learn about what had happened under his watch.

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10:25am

Tue May 21, 2013
The Two-Way

After Tornado, A Dog Rescue Raises Spirits, And Gains Fans

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 12:57 pm

Credit Brett Deering / Getty Images
Barbara Garcia, right, sits with friends after a tornado destroyed much of their neighborhood in Moore, Okla. During an interview with CBS, Garcia found her dog buried in the wreckage of her house.

Before Monday's tornado hit, Barbara Garcia says, she had a gameplan. In the event of an emergency, the Moore, Okla., resident would gather up her little dog and retreat to a bathroom to wait out the storm. But after Monday's powerful twister blew through her neighborhood, Garcia tells CBS News, she couldn't find her dog.

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9:55am

Tue May 21, 2013
Shots - Health News

Less Sleep For Teens Means Higher Risk For Car Crashes

Originally published on Wed May 22, 2013 8:06 am

Credit iStockphoto.com
Sleep-deprived teenagers face the greatest risk of accidents while driving at night.

Parents who want to keep their teenagers safe while they're driving might want to tuck them in bed early the night before.

Drowsiness is a well-known risk for adult drivers, but teenage drivers are more impaired than adults when facing an equivalent lack of sleep, an Australian study finds.

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9:04am

Tue May 21, 2013
The Two-Way

Oklahoma Tornados: Finding Aid, Giving Aid

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 10:40 am

Credit Brett Deering / Getty Images
Aid groups are mobilizing relief efforts to help victims of the storm. Here, Candice Lopez, left, and Stephanie Davis help clean debris from Thelma Cox's mobile home near Shawnee, Okla., after it was destroyed Monday.

Residents of Moore, Okla., are searching for survivors and coming to terms with a massive tornado that left dozens of people dead and injured more than 200 others Monday afternoon. As aid and recovery groups search for victims and try to reunite loved ones, they're also seeking donations and coordinating housing:

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9:02am

Tue May 21, 2013
World Cafe

The National On World Cafe

Credit Diedre O'Callaghan / Courtesy of the artist
The National.

The National's rise has been slow and steady, to match the growth and evolution of its dour but beautiful rock sound. In this installment of World Cafe, the band tells host David Dye how sleep deprivation led its members to craft more straightforward songs on their new album, Trouble Will Find Me.

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8:03am

Tue May 21, 2013
Around the Nation

Rep. Cole Is From Moore, Where Deadly Twister Hit

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 11:13 am

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm David Greene.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

And I'm Steve Inskeep. More Oklahoma. The Oklahoma City suburb most devastated by yesterday's tornado is the hometown of the man we'll talk with next. Oklahoma Republican congressman Tom Cole is on the line. Congressman, I'm sorry for the occasion but welcome back to the program.

REPRESENTATIVE TOM COLE: Yeah, Steve, thank you very much.

INSKEEP: Is your family OK?

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7:34am

Tue May 21, 2013
World

Border Collies Protect Scientsts' Research From Geese

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 1:54 pm

Scientists in Canada were working at an experimental research farm, testing crops like corn and barley. But packs of Canada geese had been swooping in and destroying the crops. Two border collies were hired to chase away the geese.

7:28am

Tue May 21, 2013
World

Now's Your Chance To Own A Little Bit Of Gandhi

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 11:13 am

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Good morning, I'm Steve Inskeep.

Today is your chance to own a little bit of Gandhi. The quirky, unpredictable and ultimately triumphant leader spent decades leading India to independence. Along the way, Mohandis Gandhi became known as Mahatma, or venerated one, and he had an appendectomy. Afterward, doctors took samples of his blood. Two microscope slides bearing that blood are being auctioned today in London with bids expected over $15,000.

It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

7:16am

Tue May 21, 2013
The Two-Way

Book News: Stephen King's New Bogeyman? Digital Publishing

Credit Mario Tama / Getty Images
Stephen King holds a special pink Kindle given to him at a 2009 unveiling event for the Amazon Kindle 2.

The daily lowdown on books, publishing, and the occasional author behaving badly.

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7:11am

Tue May 21, 2013
The Two-Way

IRS Officials To Be On Hot Seat

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 11:18 am

Credit Dennis Brack / Landov

Both the former IRS commissioner who was in charge when the agency singled out some conservative groups for extra scrutiny and the man who replaced him will be appearing at a Senate Finance Committee hearing Tuesday morning.

Douglas Shulman, an appointee of President George W. Bush who left the IRS last November, and acting commissioner Steven Miller (who is losing his job because of the scandal) are due at the 10 a.m. ET hearing.

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6:36am

Tue May 21, 2013
Media

Fox News Reporter James Rosen Caught Up In Federal Probe

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 11:13 am

There is word of another controversial leak investigation by the Department of Justice. The target is Fox News reporter James Rosen, who was monitored by the department after breaking a story about North Korea's nuclear weapons program in 2009.

6:30am

Tue May 21, 2013
Europe

Young People Cast Out Of Italy's Welfare System

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 11:13 am

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

We are also following a subtler story of economic devastation, even with all the news about unemployment in Europe, this next number is hard to absorb. In Italy, among younger people, the jobless rate us close to 40 percent. The government is focused on the middle-aged and the elderly leaving little room it seems for their kids

Here's NPR's Sylvia Poggioli.

(SOUNDBITE OF SCREAMING AND SHOOTING)

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6:28am

Tue May 21, 2013
Politics

Unclear Laws May Have Contributed to Tax-Exempt Controversy

Originally published on Tue May 21, 2013 11:13 am

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Let's turn to another story for now: The acting head of the IRS has resigned, but is still facing questions about the agency. Lawmakers continue their probe into the federal tax agency targeting Tea Party groups seeking tax exemption.

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