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Rundown 6/14

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An oil slick is near the site of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill contrasts with the water in the Gulf of Mexico.  (AP)
An oil slick is near the site of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill contrasts with the water in the Gulf of Mexico. (AP)

President Obama Tours Gulf Coast Oil, Pressures BP On Victims' Fund

Today President Obama tours three Gulf Coast states tainted by oil, before heading back to Washington to give an Oval Office address on the catastrophe tomorrow. Today's agenda includes a speech and a ferry ride to view barrier islands in Alabama where oil has come ashore. Also this week, BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward will testify in Congress and for the first time, meet with the president at the White House.  All this, as the president says he will order BP to establish a major victims' compensation fund. Our guest is Joel Achenbach, Washington Post national reporter.

Journalist Sebastian Junger Reflects On How Combat In Afghanistan Affects Soldiers

Journalist Sebastian Junger says soldiers who experience combat, end up missing it when they're out.  "It's so traumatizing and yet when they get home, life isn't meaningful and they want to go back," he said. "It's like missing a really bad marriage." More than 1,000 Americans have been killed in the war in Afghanistan, and nearly 50 of them died in the Korengal Valley, a narrow split of land in the eastern part of the country. In 2007 and 2008, Junger was embedded with 2nd Platoon, Battle Company of the 173rd Airborne Brigade, a unit that saw an extraordinary amount of combat defending a remote outpost in the valley. Junger's new book, "War" tells their story.

A soccer fan blows the vuvuzela prior to the World Cup soccer match between Serbia and Ghana in Pretoria, South Africa. (AP)
A soccer fan blows the vuvuzela prior to the World Cup soccer match between Serbia and Ghana in Pretoria, South Africa. (AP)

Sports Wrap: Fans Cheer Celtics; Some Jeer Vuvuzelas

We talk about the  Celtics-Lakers match-up with Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today; the plastic horns called vuvuzelas responsible for that low buzz that some have compared to a swarm of bees invading the World Cup; and a minor-leaguer who was pulled up to the Red Sox and hit a grand slam at his first at bat - only the fourth time in history that's happened.

Watching The Campaign Finance Playbook Change

Congress, state lawmakers and politicians have been scrambling to react to the Supreme Court's decision in the "Citizens United" case last January, in which justices ruled that corporations and advocacy organizations such as labor groups can spend unlimited corporate cash on political campaigns. Carol Leonnig covers elections and campaign finance for the Washington Post.

A Lesson In Educated Guessing

From the fun, "how many dollar bills can you fit into a Brinks truck," to the serious, "how much oil is floating in the Gulf of Mexico," we speak to Sanjoy Mahajan who teaches the art and science of educated guessing at MIT.  Mahajan's book is "Street Fighting Mathematics: The Art of Educated Guessing and Opportunistic Problem Solving."

Music From The Show

  • Air, "Mike Mills"
  • Christian McBride, "Theme for Kareem"
  • Ahmad Jamal, "Patterns"
  • Peter Dixon, "Nagog Woods"
  • David Bryan & Joe DiPietro “Steal Your Rock ‘N’ Roll” performed by the cast of “Memphis”

This program aired on June 14, 2010.

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