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Second generation flight attendant Rene Foss has had enough of crabby travelers, so she's written a musical comedy starring clueless passengers, and the beleaguered men and women who serve them. Around the World in a Bad Mood is based on Foss' 15 years as a flight attendant - a job she still holds. In fact, her airline supports this "extra-aviational" activity. The musical is on stage in New York on weekends. NPR's Margot Adler reports.

Reviewer Alan Cheuse comments on The Accidental Indies, a book by Robert Finley, about the epochal voyage by Christopher Columbus in 1492. (2:00) The Accidental Indies is published by McGill-Queen's University Press.

NPR's Michele Kelemen reports that although Russian forces continue to lose men in Chechnya nearly every day, the war rarely grabs headlines any more. Soldiers who have fought there complain the war is bogging down, but few Russians are demanding publicly that their government revise its strategy, seek a political settlement, or pull out of Chechnya.

The US women's softball team won a gold medal at the Sydney Olympics Tuesday in the hardest possible fashion. As NPR's Tom Goldman reports, the team was considered unbeatable after a two-year winning streak of 112 games. But it lost three straight games in the early round of competition, nearly putting it out of medal contention. The US then fought back and swept the three teams -- China, Australia and Japan -- it lost to earlier in the tournament.

A note on the life of Lee Erwin, a silent film organist who composed music for Charlie Chaplin, and classic films like "The Hunchback of Notre Dame." Erwin died last week at the age of 92.

NPR's John Burnett reports that as the bottom falls out of the Texas ranch economy, ranchers are turning to economic diversification -- such as ranch tourism -- to preserve their holdings. Tourism includes hosting mountain bike events or charging for admission to the bat cave. Some put a twist on the Tom Sawyer story by charging visitors to help with the ranch work.

David Greenberger reviews a new CD by Dave Alvin, titled Public Domain: Songs from the Wild Land. The tracks are all traditional folk songs, like "Shenandoah,' and "Don't Let Your Deal Go Down."

With the growing acceptance in academia of different kinds of slang as legitimate forms of expression, it should come as no surprise that Amherst College is offering the first university-level course in Spanglish, a combination of Spanish and English. Ilan Stavans, the Amherst professor who's teaching the course, is also preparing a Spanglish dictionary. Pippin Ross reports.

Page two of the New York Times today contains an article acknowledging that the paper could have improved its coverage of the Wen Ho Lee case. Among its admissions: the Times says it made the mistake of taking on the tone of some of the government's positions in the investigation of Wen Ho Lee. Robert Siegel discusses the article with Sandy Padwe, Former Deputy Sports Editor for the New York Times, now a professor at Columbia Graduate School of Journalism.

NPR's Larry Abramson reports the Supreme Court will NOT hear a direct appeal of the Microsoft case. Instead, the landmark anti-trust suit will go the a federal appeals court first. The decision is a setback for the Justice Department, which wanted the Supreme Court to hear the case without first going through the Court of Appeals.

NPR's Julie McCarthy reports from Prague that demonstrators rioted in the streets of the Czech capital today as the International Monetary Fund and World Bank formally opened their annual summit. The protesters -- who see the IMF and World Bank as evil forces of "globalization" -- threw gasoline bombs, rocks and bottles at police. Inside the convention center, the meetings got under way without interruption.

Commentator David Fleischaker says we're facing high prices and a shortage of natural gas, with fewer rigs drilling, new fields less productive than old ones, and an explosion of demand. Natural gas has become the clean fuel of choice for consumers, industry, and the electric utility industry. The solution, he says, lies in balancing fuel development and the environment -- and learning to consume less.

This weekend, a World War II fighter plane took to the skies for the first time in more than 50 years. Until a few years ago, the plane, named Glacier Girl, was buried under more than 200 feet of snow and ice in Greenland, where it crash-landed during the war. John talks with Roy Shoffner, a businessman who played a key role in the recovery and restoration efforts. (3:45)

Commentator Joe Wright went to an experimental school when he was a child. At first, they had no rules, but as time went on, the instructors needed to add rules so that things didn't get out of hand. When he was older, he moved to San Francisco, where there were lots of adults who were trying to get rid of rules. But Joe found that sometimes you need rules -- not a lot, just a few. (4:00)

Banning Eyre has a review of Un Gran Dia en el Barrio, or A Great Day in the Neighborhood, by the Spanish Harlem Orchestra. The band is made up of veteran New York musicians, but they play together for the first time on this new CD. (Atlantic Records ASIN: B00006IZNW ) (4:00)

The control of the U.S. Senate may rest with several key races around the country. Today, we take a look at three of them. First, John Ydstie talks with NPR's Nancy Solomon about the race in New Jersey. Then, we're on to South Dakota, where Republican John Thune is challenging incumbent Democratic Sen. Tim Johnson. We're joined by Curt Nickisch from South Dakota Public Radio for this portion. Finally, we talk about Missouri, where Democrat Jean Carnahan is fighting to keep her seat from Republican challenger Jim Talent. NPR's Greg Allen joins us to talk about the Missouri race. (8:30)

On Dec. 1, the court will hear arguments in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. The Mississippi case tests whether all state laws that ban pre-viability abortions are unconstitutional.

A rarely used U.S. code pertaining to public health was invoked during the pandemic by the Trump White House to expel asylum-seekers. The Biden White House wants to keep it.

Comedian and actor A.J. Johnson has died at age 55. Johnson starred as Ezal, a homeless man with drug addiction, in Ice Cube's Friday.

Jacki Lyden interviews NPR's Ken Rudin about what may be at stake should the Senate elections result in a power shift or what could happen if the balance of power remains the same. (3:30)