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Morning Edition's series, the Twelve Days of Tax Deductions, zeroes in on some of the tax breaks lawmakers are grappling with as they hammer out a budget deal, to raise revenue, cut spending and avoid the end-of-year "fiscal cliff." On Day 11, we look at the deduction for employer sponsored health insurance.

Record shops have been closing across the country in recent years, victims of the digital music revolution. But the closing of Floyd's Record Shop in Ville Platte, La., is different. For 56 years, Floyd's hasn't just sold records, it has helped revitalize Cajun music. Floyd's is closing its doors for good on Christmas Eve.

Wall Street didn't get much of a gift at the end of last week. The Dow lost 120 points, or nine-tenths of a percent, on Friday. The slump is partly tied to events in Washington last week — a Republican plan to avoid the "fiscal cliff" came undone.

Nariman Behravesh, chief economist of IHS Global Insight, talks to Steve Inskeep about his economic forecasts for 2013. Among his predictions: the U.S. recovery will gradually pick up steam. Unless it falls off a cliff — then a recession will probably be unavoidable.

There were reports of explosions in Damascus Monday, where international envoy Lakhdar Brahimi was due to meet with Syrian leaders. He's there at a time of heavy bloodshed as government forces battle rebel fighters, and civilians continue to perish in large numbers.

U.S. vaccine diplomacy is in full swing, especially in Southeast Asia. This distribution of millions of shots is an effort aimed in part at helping regain influence across several countries.

NPR's Mary Louise talks with British Ambassador to the U.S. Karen Pierce about how the pullout from Afghanistan has impacted the so-called "special relationship" between the U.S. and the U.K.

The soccer stadium in the Haitian seaside town of Les Cayes is now a tent city of people whose homes were damaged or destroyed by the earthquake. Aid continues to arrive, but slowly.

NPR's Ailsa Chang speaks with Steven Butler of the Committee to Protect Journalists about his organization's efforts to help evacuate Afghan journalists.

NPR's Ailsa Chang speaks with Grover Street, a travel nurse and author of the book Chasing the Surge: Life as a Travel Nurse in a Global Pandemic, about working on the road with COVID-19 patients.