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NPR's Cheryl Corley reports on an unusual lawsuit by an Oklahoma Indian tribe, over millions of acres of land in Illinois. The Miami tribe claims a 200 -year old treaty gives them rights to lands their ancestors once roamed - lands that now house farms, businesses and two state universities.

Host Jacki Lyden speaks with fire fighter Tim Duck about the fires in the West. Duck has been fighting the fires in the Salmon Challis National Forest in Idaho where U.S. Marines have recently joined the battle.

Ten years ago this month Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait, leading ultimately to the Persian Gulf War. Jacki speaks to Middle East scholar Shibley Telhami about the legacy of the invasion, and the impact sanctions and a strengthened Saddam Hussein have on the people of Iraq.

Jacki talks with George Hudler, professor of Plant Pathology at Cornell University, about a giant fungus. The fungus, which looks like a giant mushroom, is spreading across a forest in Eastern Oregon. It is thought to be the largest living organism in the world.

Next week's Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles has the Los Angeles Police Department worried about Seattle-style protests. NPR's Aaron Schachter reports that LA police are warning downtown businesses of possible violence; demonstrators are trying to assure merchants they don't intend to be unruly.

Sixty-six large fires are burning in the western United States today. This is being called the worst fire season in fifty years. NPR's Aaron Schachter reports on the financial cost of this year's firefighting.

Up to 40 percent of inmates in US prisons are infected with Hepatitis C, a blood-borne virus that can cause fatal liver disease. Because treatment is expensive and often does not work, most prison systems are choosing to do little or nothing about the problem. Christine Arrasmith from member station KPLU in Seattle reports.

Commentator Reynolds Price muses on the reasons why the vivid ease and eloquence of letter writing has all but died out. He bemoans the loss of an irreplaceable source of history, expression and human encounter. He cites the lasting gift of a vivid letter from his grade school teacher about her first migraine.

Noah talks with John Brumgardt, Director of the Charleston Museum in South Carolina, about the raising of the wreckage of the H.L Hunley, a Confederate submarine. The H.L. Hunley is said to be the first sub in the world to sink an enemy warship. Brumgardt talks about how the wreck was pulled out of the water, and the plans to restore it for display at the Charleston Museum.

Commentator Carol Wasserman contemplates the realities of aging while floating like "a bed of kelp" off the beach in Massachusetts.

William Mercer, known to many listeners as the disk jockey, Rosco, died last week at the age of 73. Rosco worked on several radio stations on both coasts from the 60's through the 80's, and in the 90's was a sports announcer for CBS. Noah offers an appreciation.

As part of NPR's summer jobs series, Patty Murray reports from Door County, Wisconsin on the Peninsula Players. Professional actors and college students share meals and cabins all summer while putting on five plays. The director casts people willing to be "good campers" while appreciating the opportunity to concentrate on their craft among the pines by the lake. (5:00) Music played one minute before the hour: "Some Cow Fonque" from the CD "Buckshot LeFonque" by the band of the same name, headed by Brandford Marsalis, copyright 1994, Sony Music Entertainment.

NPR's Elaine Korry reports the advent of the Internet -- and Web-based travel companies -- has forced many travel agencies to change their approach or go out of business. While some agents have closed, others have specialized - in travel for disabled people, or in adventure travel. Still others have taken their businesses online in order to compete.

Moscow Times reporter Natalya Yefimova reports that an explosion ripped through a crowded underground walkway in central Moscow today, killing at least seven people and wounding dozens more. Police said the blast was apparently caused by a bomb planted in the passageway beneath Pushkin Square. There was no immediate claim of responsibility, although the mayor of Moscow was quick to suggest Chechen rebels might be to blame.

NPR's Martin Kaste reports from Santiago that the supreme court of Chile has voted that former dictator Augusto Pinochet may be stripped of immunity against prosecution. That ruling clears the way for the aging general to be put on trial for the kidnappings and presumed murders of political opponents during the years when his military regime ruled Chile. Families of the so-called "disappeared" have been seeking information about the victims as well as prosecution of those responsible.

NPR's Gerry Hadden reports on a growing Buddhist movement in a seemingly unlikely country -- Mexico. He visited a Buddhist monastery in the western state of Vera Cruz. It's resources are being stretched by the growing popularity of its teachings.

Commentator Jim Sleeper says news that Senator Joe Lieberman will be the first Jew on a major national ticket says volumes about past mistakes of the Democratic party. He says Lieberman is a return to the party's center. Had the party kept Lieberman's kind of balance of faith and political pragmatism, of family values and social justice, says Sleeper, a lot of its faithful wouldn't have left to become neo-conservatives.

Twenty-eight states filed suit today, accusing the five major record labels of fixing prices on CD's. The suit follows a settlement earlier this year between the labels and the Federal Trade Commission over an FTC investigation into similar charges. Both involved an industry policy dubbed MAP - for "minimum advertised price" - the labels helped finance advertising for record stores that agreed not to sell CD's below a minimum price set by the labels. Today's suit was filed in New York. NPR's Jim Zarroli reports. 3:30

In Nashville today, Al Gore formally introduced his runningmate, Senator Joseph Lieberman. The two-term Senator from Connecticut is the first person of Jewish faith to be nominated for a major party ticket, and he thanked Gore "for making this miracle possible." The two Democrats then set their sights on the GOP ticket and the race ahead. NPR's Anthony Brooks was there.

Safety advocates today called on Ford Motor Company and Japan's Bridgestone Corporation, makers of Firestone tires, to pull certain models of truck tires off the market. Analysis of accident statistics show sport utility vehicles with these tire models are several times more likely to be involved in road crashes than similar SUV's with different tires. NPR's Mary Ann Akers reports. (4:00) Please note: The US Department of Transportation consumer hotline number to report tire incidents is 1-888-327-4236.