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Europe
4:31 am
Sat August 18, 2012

France To Hollande: Time To Get To Work

Originally published on Sat August 18, 2012 1:03 pm

Transcript

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Scott Simon. The president of France, Francois Hollande, has just passed 100 days in office. Mr. Hollande swept to victory in a wave of discontent aimed at former President Nicolas Sarkozy. But now, there are concerns that the new president's slow, cautious manner may not be suited to solving some of the challenges facing his country. Eleanor Beardsley sends us this report from Paris.

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Middle East
4:31 am
Sat August 18, 2012

Fighting Continues To Scar Syrian Cities

Originally published on Sat August 18, 2012 1:03 pm

Transcript

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Scott Simon. The last U.N. military observers are pulling out of Syria today. Their mission has been made near impossible by the heavy fighting gripping the country.

A former Algerian foreign minister is taking over as U.N. envoy on Syria, but he's not optimistic about a quick end to the fighting. And neighboring Lebanon remains on edge, after a spate of kidnappings this week related to the Syrian conflict. NPR's Anthony Kuhn joins us from Beirut.

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Sports
4:31 am
Sat August 18, 2012

Week In Sports: The Nationals And Steven Strasbourg

Originally published on Sat August 18, 2012 7:58 am

Weekend Edition Saturday host Scott Simon speaks with Howard Bryant about sports this week and the Nationals' plans for star pitcher Steven Strasbourg.

Sports
4:31 am
Sat August 18, 2012

Preparing For The 2012 Paralympic Games In London

Originally published on Sat August 18, 2012 1:03 pm

Transcript

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

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Europe
2:54 am
Sat August 18, 2012

Italian Yacht Owners Weigh Anchor To Dodge Taxes

Originally published on Sat August 18, 2012 6:24 pm

Italy has a public debt of nearly 2 trillion euros, and it's cracking down on its notoriously wily tax evaders. Owners of luxury yachts are a prime target, with tax police launching dockside raids to see how individual tax files line up with owning and maintaining an expensive boat.

But yachts are mobile assets. In response, many boat owners are simply weighing anchor and setting course for more tax-friendly Mediterranean marinas.

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The Two-Way
4:27 pm
Fri August 17, 2012

Paul Ryan, Wife Paid 15.9 Percent In Taxes In 2010; 20 Percent In 2011

Credit Alex Wong / Getty Images
Republican vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan speaks during a campaign rally at West Springfield High School on Friday.

Originally published on Fri August 17, 2012 4:43 pm

GOP vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan and wife, Janna, have released the tax returns for the past two years.

According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the returns show that in 2010, Ryan and his wife paid an effective tax rate of 15.9 percent and one of 20 percent in 2011.

The Journal reports that a little more than half of the couple's income for that period came from Ryan's Congressional salary. The paper adds:

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Summer Nights: Funtown
4:03 pm
Fri August 17, 2012

For A Silvery Calif. Fish, A Special Moonlit Night

Summertime is beach time in Southern California, even at night. Locals gather around bonfires, roast marshmallows and enjoy each other's company. On some very special nights, there's even sex — at least for the fish.

The grunion run happens only in the spring and summer months. Late at night, under the full and new moons, thousands of tiny, silvery fish swim to shore for a very peculiar mating ritual.

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Youth Radio
4:03 pm
Fri August 17, 2012

PTSD Not Just War Wound, Young People Suffer, Too

Credit Courtesy of the Etkin Lab at Stanford University
Dr. Amit Etkin and a research assistant help a participant into the bore of the MRI.

Originally published on Fri August 17, 2012 4:38 pm

Though post-traumatic stress disorder is often associated with war veterans, many sufferers have yet to finish high school.

According to the National Survey of Adolescents, about 4 percent of teenage boys and 6 percent of teenage girls meet the clinical definition of PTSD.

But adolescents can be hard to diagnose.

'A Total Nightmare'

The night Stephanie Romero turned 23, she and a friend were attacked by a stranger.

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The Two-Way
3:22 pm
Fri August 17, 2012

Moscow Court Upholds 100-Year Ban On Gay Pride Events

Credit Mikhail Metzel / AP
Russian police officers detain a gay rights activist with his flag during an attempt to hold a gay pride parade in Moscow in May.

Aside from the sentencing of the punk rock band Pussy Riot, there was another interesting ruling out of Moscow today: A court upheld the city's 100-year ban on gay pride events.

According to the BBC, Nikolay Alexeye, Russia's most prominent gay rights activist, challenged the city council's decision to ban any events that could be considered "gay parades" from March 2012 until May 2112.

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Election 2012
3:13 pm
Fri August 17, 2012

Once 'The Obama Of Alabama,' Now A GOP Headliner

Originally published on Fri August 17, 2012 7:57 pm

Four years ago in Denver, Artur Davis took the podium at the Democratic National Convention to speak up for Barack Obama.

"I am honored to second the nomination of the man whose victory tonight takes us closer to becoming what we know America can be," he said.

But now, as President Obama seeks re-election, Davis is on the list of scheduled speakers for the Republican National Convention.

The former Democratic congressman from Alabama, who tried and failed to become the state's first black governor, is now a Republican resident of Virginia.

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It's All Politics
3:08 pm
Fri August 17, 2012

Five Social Issues On November Ballots

Credit Elaine Thompson / AP
Petitions for Referendum 74, which would provide a public vote on gay marriage, were submitted in June in Olympia, Wash.

Originally published on Fri August 17, 2012 4:03 pm

In addition to choosing a president and members of Congress, voters in several states will weigh in on high-profile social issues on Nov. 6. Here are some of the key voter initiatives on ballots:

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