NPR 2008-11-15

Six, Five, four three, two, one, booster ignition and liftoff of space shuttle Endeavour，preparing our home in space for a larger international family.

 The space shuttle Endeavour with the seven-member crew lifting off the pad just moments ago at Cape 1 Canaveral. The seven astronauts are embarking 2 on a 15-day mission, which will include some remodeling work on the International Space Station. NASA hopes to double the size of the space station crew from three members to six next year. Also on board the shuttle is a new 250-million-dollar wastewater recycling system. If all goes as planned, the shuttle will arrive at the space station on Sunday. Today's launch of Endeavour marks NASA's 124th shuttle mission.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared a state of emergency for Santa Barbara County where an uncontained fire has burned more than 100 homes. From Santa Barbara, Michael Marcard reports.

 Governor Schwarzenegger's declaration shifts most of the cause of the disaster to the state and federal governments. The pronouncement comes after a hellish night in which a wildfire spread quickly through the coastal 3 foothills, north of Santa Barbara, destroying multi-million-dollar homes, classrooms and dorms at Westmont College and levelling the Mount Calvary Monastery 4. The extreme winds that drove the flames finally abated 5 after midnight, and they remained calm since. That gives firefighters a window of opportunity to, as they put it, hit the fire heart by saucing it with water-dropping helicopters and aerial tankers 8. The fears are that winds will pick up again this evening. Meanwhile more than 5, 000 people are ordered to stay out of the evacuation areas and residents are urged to conserve 9 water because of the massive drain on local reservoirs. For NPR News, I am Michael Marcard in Santa Barbara.

 The Commerce Department is reporting sales at US retailers 11 had their biggest decline on record last month, falling 2. 8%. Consumers cut back across the border items such as gasoline, automobiles 12, furniture and electronics. NPR s David Nogueras has more.

October marked the fourth consecutive 13 monthly decline for retail 10 sales. Bernard Baumohl is the managing director of the Economic Outlook Group. He says recession-worried consumers are hunkering down as turmoil 14 in the credit markets continues to rail the economy. "It has been a rollercoaster ride-down that has in the last couple of months, actually accelerated downwards 15, so we're taking up speed at this point and the deterioration 16 of the economy.” But Baumohl is hopeful the economy might show some signs of recovery by mid 7 2009. Until then he says retailers should brace 17 themselves for what could be one of the worst holiday shopping seasons in a quarter century. David Nogueras, NPR news, Washington.

 On Wall Street, a rough ended the week for the Down Jones Industrial Average. The market fell 337 points today to close at 8, 497. The NASDAQ lost 79 points. The Standard & Poor's 500 was down 38 points to end the week.

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 The FDIC is out with a new plan aimed at helping 18 to keep people in their homes. The government agency's put forth 19 a proposal would call for 24 billion dollars in government funding, go towards preventing more than 1.5 million US householders from falling in the foreclosure. The FDIC posted the plan on its website just days after Treasury 20 Secretary Henry Paulson rejected the idea of using any of the government's 700-billion-dollar bailout money to fund such effort.

 Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff says forces are ready at the Mexican boarder in case rampant 21 drug violence goes over to the US. NPR’s Ted 6 Robbins reports.

 Secretary Chertoff says he is not predicting the violence between drug cartels will cross the border but he says customs and border protection forces are prepared if it does. "We even have a MRAP, one of those vehicles we have in Baghdad that we could deploy 22 if necessary at the port of entry or somewhere else. " MRAPs are heavily armored vehicles used against roadside bombs. Chertoff says US agents also have air-power available. Drug-related killings 23 are soaring in Mexico with innocent bystanders being killed as well. Thursday, a prominent Mexican journalist was assassinated 24 outside his home in Juarez across the border from El Paso. More than 4, 000 people have been killed in Mexico so far this year, at least 1, 000 of those in Juarez. Ted Robbins, NPR news, Tucson.

 Sun Microsystems who makes computer service now states it's embarking on a broad reconstructing which the company says could lead to an elimination 25 of as many as 6,000 jobs.

 Space shuttle Endeavour is now in a safe orbit. The shuttle lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral from an earlier evening launch. The seven shuttle astronauts are embarking on a 15-day mission when crew will visit the International Space Station.