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Election 2012
6:31 pm
Thu October 11, 2012

A Closer Look: Beyond the Buzzwords

Originally published on Thu October 11, 2012 8:19 pm

A few terms and figures became flash points for later discussion in the first presidential debate between President Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney. From Simpson-Bowles (which was mentioned at least eight times) to the much-discussed $716 billion cut in Medicare, the presidential debate and the wider campaign have featured a growing list of devilish details that could use a good footnote. Here's a closer look at a few of these disputed terms that are likely to come up in the vice-presidential debate.

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It's All Politics
6:28 pm
Thu October 11, 2012

B-I-D-E-N Or R-Y-A-N? It's Debate Bingo

Credit WNYC
WNYC's vice presidential debate game

If you're looking for something else to do while watching or listening to tonight's 90-minute vice presidential debate, there's always debate bingo.

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Around the Nation
4:48 pm
Thu October 11, 2012

To Survive A Shooting, Students Learn To Fight Back

Credit iStockphoto.com
Many schools advise students and staff to lock doors and stay in place during a shooting threat. But others are adopting an approach that includes fighting back if escape is impossible.

Originally published on Tue October 16, 2012 4:30 pm

The names Columbine and Virginia Tech have both become tragic shorthand for school shootings in America. In the wake of those shootings, schools have developed a fairly typical lockdown procedure when there's a threat: sound the alarm, call police, lock doors and stay put.

The standard school-lockdown plan is intended to minimize chaos so police arriving on the scene don't shoot the wrong people. Students practice following directions, getting into classrooms and essentially, waiting.

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Solve This
4:48 pm
Thu October 11, 2012

Obama, Romney On Higher Ed Help: Dueling Visions

Credit Jacquelyn Martin / AP
Gan Golan holds a ball and chain representing his college loan debt during at a Occupy DC event last year.

Originally published on Fri October 12, 2012 4:13 pm

Many Americans today feel like they've lost or are losing their shot at a college education because paying for it often seems out of reach. So how big of an issue is this in the presidential campaign?

Here's what President Obama has done to help families pay for college: He negotiated a deal with Congress this summer that kept the interest rate on government-backed Stafford loans from doubling for 7.5 million students.

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Medical Treatments
4:48 pm
Thu October 11, 2012

CDC Estimates 14,000 Got Infected Steroid Injections

Originally published on Fri October 12, 2012 4:13 pm

Transcript

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

The CDC announced today that as many as 14,000 people have been exposed to the potentially contaminated steroid treatments. And we're going to hear now about the massive effort under way to identify, notify and, if need be, treat them.

Dr. Rachel Smith is an epidemic intelligence service officer at the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta. And she says the vast majority of those exposed have now been contacted.

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