Mar 18th, 2010 · The chief minister of India's most populous state came from humble origins, but Mayawati, as she is known, has not been shy about displaying her wealth. Recently, the show of opulence at a political rally — where she accepted a garland made entirely of money — seems to have gone too far, even by her standards.
Mar 17th, 2010 · Residents of the Jewish community of Ramat Shlomo, located in East Jerusalem, say they are unfazed by the international furor surrounding the announcement that 1,600 homes will be built there. But Palestinians say Israel is trying to push the Arab population out of the area.
Mar 12th, 2010 · A high school in Wayne County, N.C., has a student population that is poor and 99 percent black. That's not the case at other public high schools in the same county. The disparity has prompted a civil rights inquiry — and complaints about what one leader calls "re-segregation."
Mar 5th, 2010 · When it comes to economic indicators, none may be more abstract than GDP per capita. It is the measure of all goods and services a country produces, divided by its population. Take two countries that seem alike in almost every important way — from geography, climate, colonial history and government structure — but one has a much lower GDP. The differences between Jamaica and Barbados are striking.
Mar 1st, 2010 · Russian President Dmitry Medvedev says during a state visit to France that his country is ready to consider new sanctions over Iran's nuclear program. He also noted that it would be "desirable" to avoid sanctions — and insisted they should not harm the Iranian population.
Feb 28th, 2010 · Iraq's prime minister on Sunday defended a decision to ban hundreds of candidates from the upcoming election, saying the decision was not intended to target the country's minority Sunni population.
Feb 27th, 2010 · It's been more than two weeks since U.S. Marines and NATO forces went into Marjah, a town in southern Afghanistan that's been dominated by the Taliban. Commanders there say most of the town has been secured. Now comes the hard work of reviving a farming town of around 75,000 people, and convincing the population that the Afghan government is their friend. Host Scott Simon speaks with NPR's Corey Flintoff from Marine Camp Leatherneck in Helmand Province.
Feb 25th, 2010 · In Born To Run, No. 7 this week, Christopher McDougall travels to the unforgiving terrain of Mexico's Copper Canyons, in a quest to understand the area's indigenous population of ultra-runners, the Tarahumara Indians.