Monday, November 26

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is urging states to adopt new quarantine laws to prepare for bioterrorism. Legal experts say if there were an outbreak of smallpox or some other highly contagious disease, the legal authority to act would fall to states, not the federal government. The CDC has floated a model state law calling for strict quarantines and compulsory vaccinations. So far at least seven states, including Minnesota, are considering measures based on the CDC model. Minnesota's proposed legislation would give state health authorities powers greater than any they've used in the past, even during historic outbreaks of smallpox. Minnesota Public Radio's Mary Losure reports.

James McQuirter, forecaster with the National Weather Service, joins us with a look at what to expect as a winter storm moves into Minnesota.

Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court hears a case involving the University of Minnesota, the first time ever the U of M will appear there. At issue is whether a federal rule allows two former employees to sue the school for age bias. Minnesota Public Radio's Patty Marsicano reports.

Charities on the Iron Range are suffering a double-whammy. Thousands of people on the Range have lost their jobs. That means more people need help from nonprofit groups. But it also means fewer people are making donations. Minnesota Public Radio's Chris Julin has the story.

For the first time in 98 games, the Minnesota Vikings failed to score a touchdown as they lost to the Chicago Bears last night by a score of 13-6. It was only the second home loss of the year for the Vikings who now fall to 4-6 on the season. Minnesota is now in fourth place in the NFC Central and is a long shot to make the playoffs. Joining us now is Sean Jensen who covers the Vikings for the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

MPR's Chris Farrell is here with his weekly market update.

Major League Baseball's Commissioner Bud Selig and team owners are expected to meet Tuesday in Chicago to discuss the League's contraction efforts. Selig announced in early November that owners planned to eliminate two teams before next season. No teams have been identified yet, but the Twins and Montreal Expos are the top candidates. Selig says contraction will help the economics of the game. But others say the plan is ill advised and will harm the game. They also question why the Twins are considered over other clubs. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports.

MPR's Jeff Horwich discusses snowfall, bad roads and school closings in central Minnesota.

The winter storm that hit much of the region couldn't be better news for snow-starved children in Minnesota. The fresh white blanket also means a lot to the many businesses that have been anxiously waiting for winter. Minnesota Public Radio's Mark Zdechlik reports.

Financially troubled Sun Country Airlines says it is cutting its schedule and fleet. The airline says it wants to focus on its strength: winter vacation markets. Sun Country officials say the move will make the airline more attractive as they shop the company to potential buyers or investors. Minnesota Public Radio's Bill Catlin reports.

Camp Ripley in north-central Minnesota was built in the 1930s to train Minnesota National Guard troops for war. Seventy years later, Camp Ripley is considered one of the premier Guard facilities in the country. It still prepares soldiers for battle, but the training has taken on new significance since the attacks of Sept. 11. Mainstreet Radio's Tim Post reports.

Leaders in the St. Croix valley of Western Wisconsin hope to persuade state officials to provide the help they need to continue economic development in the region. They'll make their case today in Milwaukee, where hundreds of lawmakers, business leaders, and other officials are meeting for a statewide economic summit. Some leaders in western Wisconsin hope to build the region into an engine that would lead the state in economic development. Republican Representative Kitty Rhoades of Hudson, Wisc. will be at the conference today. She's on the line now.

Northwest Airlines laid off more than 4,000 employees in Minnesota after the Sept. 11 attacks. Those workers are confronting the toughest labor market in years. Rejoining the workforce may be an even taller task for those who had spent most of their careers in the airline industry. Minnesota Public Radio's Andrew Haeg has more.

Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig says the League's owners have made little progress on the eliminating two teams before the start of next season. At the owners meeting in Chicago yesterday, the owners extended Selig's tenure as commissioner and talked about contraction. They didn't name which teams they plan to cut but the Twins and Montreal Expos are widely considered the top candidates. Selig says the injunction by the Hennepin County District Court and other legal challenges have made contraction an obstacle for next season, but he still thinks they can cut teams before next year. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports.

Officials at Macalaster College have decided not to pull the plug on the school's football program. After years of struggling on the field, President Michael McPherson wondered publicly this year whether the school should continue supporting the program. McPherson announced Tuesday the answer is yes, the team will stay. But, he says, there will be changes. Minnesota Public Radio's Marisa Helms reports.

An Olmsted County District Court Judge has given the go-ahead for a recount in Rochester's controversial school referendum. School district officials say they are upset money they say should go towards education will pay for the recount. Minnesota Public Radio's Laurel Druley has this report.

Human cloning and stem cell research have become hot topics of debate again this week after a company announced that it was the first to clone human embryos. Advanced Cell Technology says they have taken human eggs, combined them with cells from adults and turned them into embryos. Lori Andrews is an author and medical ethicist at Chicago-Kent College of Law. She will deliver a speech today entitled "Embryo Stem Cell Policy, the Intersection of Values, Science and Law" at the University of Minnesota Law School later today. Professor Andrews joins us on the line now.

Well, if any folks from Willmar were planning to drive down for Lori's lecture, they've got some digging to do. Yesterday's snow storm stalled over that city and buried it in snow. Les Heitke is Willmar's mayor.

Major League Baseball owners say they plan to move ahead with contraction. The fate of the Minnesota Twins is still unclear. The Twins are a big story in the Twin Cities, but we wondered how the baseball saga is playing in Fargo. Mainstreet Radios Dan Gunderson hit the streets to find out.

A tripartisan stadium task force is expected to begin sifting Thursdsay through various proposals for a new Twins ballpark. Many legislators feel securing a new ballpark is key to saving the team from elimination. But others argue a new home won't boost the team's fortunes versus better-financed, large market teams. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo reports.

Student union leaders at the University of Minnesota could decide tonight whether to ban the sale of tobacco products on the Twin Cities campus. The products are currently sold at three stores on campus, and the student unions get some of the profits. Two committees at the University's Boynton Health Service passed resolutions last spring requesting a ban. School health officials say campus surveys show a 60 percent increase in tobacco use since 1992 by students 18 - 24-years old. Kristen Moore is the president of the Twin Cities Student Unions' Board of Governors, the group which could decide at a meeting tonight whether or not to continue selling the products.

University of Minnesota Meteorologist and Climatologist Mark Seeley, on the golden November and its stormy finish.

Twins President Jerry Bell told a tri-partisan stadium task force that a new stadium may increase the team's chances of surviving contraction. Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig says he wants to eliminate two teams before the start of next season. He hasn't named the teams, but the Twins and Montreal Expos are widely considered the top Candidates. In addition to Bell's testimony, the task force also listened to several stadium proposals. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports.

An Alabama businessman says he's interested in buying the Minnesota Twins. Donald Watkins is a practicing attorney and chairman of the board for Alamerica Bank in Birmingham, Ala. He is reportably worth $1.5 billion dollars. Watkins, who would be the first African-American to own a Major League Baseball team, has put in an application to buy the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, but he says Minnesotans have drawn his attention to the Twins.

South Dakota needs $47.5 million dollars in reserve funds to balance its books for this year and next. Governor Bill Janklow proposed his $2.5 billion budget to lawmakers Thursday in Pierre. He says state revenues are coming in at about a third of the pace anticipated. Minnesota Public Radio's Cara Hetland reports.

The University of Minnesota will continue to allow cigarettes to be sold on campus. The Student Board of Governors for the Twin Cities student unions voted unanimously Thursday to deny a proposal banning the sale of cigarettes. Minnesota Public Radio's Marisa Helms reports.

It's World AIDS Day Saturday, and thousands of people are expected to observe the day with educational conferences, candlelight vigils, and fundraisers. World AIDS Day started with a call from a World Summit of Ministers of Health in 1988, and is the only international day of coordinated action against AIDS. Here in Minnesota, over 6,500 cases of HIV and AIDS have been reported since the disease was first detected, and a new case is still diagnosed about every 26 hours. The Minnesota World AIDS Day committee has planned a free conference tonight, intended help the public better understand HIV and how it is spread. Chi Ellis is a co-chair of tonight's event, and director of the HIV and AIDS division at The City, Inc in Minneapolis. She says the committee has several things on tonight's agenda.