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Noah talks with Wang Xizhe, an exiled Chinese dissident. Wang has been a leading activist in the democracy movement in China for the last twenty years, and he talks about why he believes that the current repression of dissidents in China is really an expression of the desperation of a shaky regime.

General Motors reports that its profits for the third quarter of 1996 are double what they were for the same quarter last year. NPR's Don Gonyea reports that despite the good financial news, more than ten thousand auto workers have been laid off from GM plants in the US and in Mexico due to the Canadian Auto Workers' strike against GM.

Commentator Elissa Ely tells the story of a psychiatric patient whom she was asked to assess, in order to see if he was competent to make decisions. His loving children thought he was not; his social worker thought he was. This man spoke only one word-- but with the help of his social worker, Ely learned volumes about the man's capacity to make his own decisions.

Commentator Reynolds Price remarks on his obsession with time and his constant fear that he will be late and hold someone up. He traces this back to his childhood. He adored his travelling salesman father, but when he would drive around with him, his father often would leave him waiting in the car for endless stratches of time.

Noah talks with Charlie Louvin, longtime Grand Old Opry star, known both for his solo work and his duet singing with his older brother Ira. The Louvins were from Sand Mountain, Alabama, and began as a gospel duo...although they turned to country music in the 1950's. Their harmonies have been an inspiration to many modern country and rock singers, including Emmylou Harris and The Byrds. Ira Louvin died in a car crash in 1965, and Charlie has auditioned many singers over the years, not finding a single one who could sing the high parts of harmonies as well as Ira. Charlie has always used the song "If We Forget God," arranged in the key of E, as a test. Mr. Louvin has a new recording, titled "The Longest Train."

the former Soviet Central Asia for business and political influence. Trying to sidestep the US-inspired trade boycott, Iran is building a railroad into the former Soviet republic of Turkmenistan in an effort to channel trade from the region through its Persian Gulf ports.

NPR's Adam Hochberg reports that some customers of Avis say the company wouldn't rent them cars because they're black. A class action suit was filed against a North Carolina franchise of Avis for racial discrimination. Some former employees have also joined the suit.

Robert talks to Jan Vansina, a professor emeritus at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, about possible political ends to the crisis in Zaire. Vansina says that the difficult problem to resolve is how to return Hutu refugees to a Rwanda ruled by Tutsis...who may very well exact some kind of retribution agains the returning refugees.

The Democratic National Committee today announced new procedures to screen campaign contributions and to help it comply with federal election law. The DNC was criticized during the election for accepting contributions from foreigners and foreign companies and for dismantling similar screening procedures in 1994 for budgetary reasons. NPR's Peter Overby reports.

and won't hear any criticism of them.