Sarah Bidgood is managing editor of the Journal of the American Society of Echocardiography. She says her parents helped her start adult life with no debt, giving her a leg up.
Credit Art Silverman / NPR
Shannon and Lee Dingle say help from family and their strong faith have helped them stay on financially sound ground.
Credit Art Silverman / NPR
Don and Carmen Zepp describe their economic situation as "dismal." The couple bought a music store in Wendell, N.C., after leaving corporate America.
Credit Alex Cardinell / Courtesy of Phil Luby
When Phil Luby was laid off in late 2008, he decided to become an entrepreneur and open a used car lot.
As the presidential campaign has unfolded, the candidates have traded polemics about wealth, class warfare, taxes, dependency and the role of government.
And while it may be uncomfortable to admit, some Americans are simply more financially successful than others. But why do some achieve wealth, while others struggle? Why does one woman make it to the executive suite, while another man drives a taxi? And what do we think explains our prosperity — or lack thereof?
Originally published on Tue October 30, 2012 3:26 pm
As this long election comes to end, Superstorm Sandy is offering a chance for President Obama to showcase his leadership skills one last time.
For Obama, this campaign has truly been a fight against the elements: a painfully slow economic recovery and a political landscape in which the Republicans swept the table just two years ago. The Obama campaign, with its trademark discipline and meticulous organization, set out to overcome these obstacles.
But the long campaign has also put the spotlight on features of Obama's own personality and performance.
Crazy Horse doesn't just redeem Neil Young's mawkish moments — it transforms them. From left, Ralph Molina, Poncho Sampedro, Neil Young and Billy Talbot are Neil Young and Crazy Horse.
A bloodied woman is helped by demonstrators after clashes with police in a protest against an industrial waste pipeline in Qidong, Jiangsu province, on July 28. The Chinese government devotes enormous resources to suppressing dissent, but opposition to government policies is increasingly common.
Credit Louisa Lim / NPR
Cui Weiping, a soft-spoken, retired film professor, has been monitored by state security agents for the past nine years. The surveillance began after she wrote a letter sympathizing with mothers whose children were killed in the 1989 student protests.
Credit Louisa Lim / NPR
Filmmaker Zhang Zanbo made a documentary showing how local officials go to great lengths to prevent citizens from lodging protests in Beijing. The local officials sometimes pay bribes to have complaints erased from government records.
Credit Louisa Lim / NPR
Police stand on watch on the streets of Shaxi, China, following three days of riots in June.
China is about to get new leaders for the first time in a decade, and it comes at a crucial moment for the world's most populous nation. Economic growth, which surged for decades, has slowed. Demands for political reform have increased and the Communist Party has been hit by scandal. In a series of stories this week, NPR is examining the multiple challenges facing China. In this story, Louisa Lim looks at China's pervasive efforts to maintain order.
You're listening to ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News.
ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:
The storm on the East Coast is making a devastating impression on New York City. Storm surge coupled with a high tide have swelled the water to record levels in some places that includes Battery Park, and now, reports of flooding in the subway and in automotive tunnels.
NPR's Margot Adler joins us from New York with more details. And, Margot, what can you tell us about these reports of flooding?
Sandy hit the East Coast on Monday and knocked out power for millions of people. Utility companies face major challenges to get power back online after the massive storm.
Originally published on Mon October 29, 2012 4:02 pm
A poll released Monday by the Pew Research Center shows that President Obama has failed to regain much of the support he lost in the days after the first presidential debate.
The poll shows that among likely voters, the race is now a statistical dead heat with both Obama and Mitt Romney receiving 47 percent support. Among registered voters there is what Pew calls a "statistically insignificant two-point edge" of 47 percent to 45 percent for Obama.
Michael and Amy Tiemann estimate their personal wealth at about $25 million — and say luck played no small part in their financial success.
Credit Art Sliverman / NPR
Bob Hatley's parents struggled to make ends meet when he was a boy. He says his competitiveness and his drive to emulate successful people eventually enabled him to open his own bank.
As the presidential campaign has unfolded, the candidates have traded polemics about wealth, class warfare, dependency and the role of government.
And while it may be uncomfortable to admit, some Americans are simply more financially successful than others. But why do some achieve wealth, while others struggle? And what do we think explains our prosperity — or lack thereof?
Originally published on Mon October 29, 2012 4:22 pm
The rest of the government may have been shut down for the hurricane, but not the U.S. Supreme Court.
The justices were in court Monday to consider a challenge to the 2008 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, known as FISA. The new law broadly expanded the government's ability to conduct large-scale monitoring of international phone calls and emails to and from people in the United States.
