NPR 2010-09-08

Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley says he will not seek reelection next year. The 68-year-old Daley has been mayor since 1989 following a special election after the death of Mayor Harold Washington. Daley's father, Richard J. Daley, died at age 74 of a heart attack while still in office. We have more from NPR's David Schaper.

Family is very important to Mayor Richard M. Daley, as it was to Mayor Richard J. Daley. He has said to close friends, to confidants and to some others for a long time that he did not want to be mayor for life, that he did not want to stay in office. And I think in the background, he must have been thinking that he did not want the job to kill him, he did not want to die in office, the way his father did after 21 years in that same office, in that same chair.

NPR's David Schaper reporting from Chicago.

Hermine, barely a tropical storm, is drenching 1 south and central Texas with copious 2 rains but causing very little damage. NPR's John Burnett covering the storm.

I'm standing 3 here in central Austin under an umbrella, where I can look out and see classic grade tropical cyclone 4 clouds rotating counterclockwise and still feel the gusty 5 wind. Herminie is about to lose her name. It'll be demoted to a lowly tropical depression. The unexpected storm made landfall in northeastern Mexico late last night and rolled across the Rio Grande into Texas. The storm system is expected to continue its north-northwesterly course all the way into Oklahoma and Kansas. Herminie watered the richest citrus field and huge pastures of historic ranches 6 in south Texas, but no significant flooding has been reported. John Burnett, NPR News, Austin.

Hewlett-Packard is suing its former chief executive Mark Hurd to stop him from working for HP's competitor Oracle 7. HP argues Hurd could divulge 8 trade secrets.

A general strike hobbled public transport and slowed down business in France today. And Eleanor Beardsley reports there were large turnouts for demonstrations 9 across the country to protest President Nicolas Sarkozy's pension reform plans.

Chanting "Sarko if you only knew what will do with your reform", tens of thousands of people marched down Paris's boulevards most of the afternoon. People here say Sarkozy's reform is unfair because it would raise the retirement 10 age from 60 to 62 for everyone, even those who start work as young as 16. Gachetonwa, who works at the Banque de France, says there are other ways to save the French pension system.

"We just want a fair reform where when you have worked for sufficiently 11 long, you can get a decent pension.”

French unions are hoping the demonstrations across the country will send a message the French government cannot ignore, but Sarkozy has said he will not back down on raising the retirement age. From NPR News, I'm Eleanor Beardsley in Paris.

Dow's down more than 100 points at last check at 10,341.

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The pastor 12 of a Florida church says his congregation still plans to burn copies of the Koran on the anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks as a message that Americans will not fear Islamist extremists. Today, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said American lives could be in danger.

"That type of activity's being transmitted back to places like Afghanistan, where General Petraeus obviously is our lead commander. As he said, it puts our troops in harm's way."

Yesterday, several hundred people protested in Kabul and chanted "Death to America."

Two American soldiers have been killed in Iraq. In a statement, the military says the troops were gunned down by someone wearing an Iraqi army uniform. They were the first US military death since President Obama ended combat operations in that country.

The recipients 13 of this year's Kennedy Center Honors were announced this morning in Washington. NPR's Neda Ulaby has details.

The Kennedy Center has apparently 14 made up with Paul McCartney. He was selected before in 2002 but made Kennedy Center history by declining to attend a ceremony in favor of a family wedding. McCartney will be honored this year alongside Broadway composer Jerry Herman, who knocked the Beatles off the top of the pop charts in 1964 with the tune 15 from a musical. Herman also composed the musical scores for "Mame" and "La Cage aux Folles". Other honorees include a dancer-choreographer, Bill T. Jones, TV host Oprah Winfrey and the original Okie from Muskogee, country star Merle Haggard. The Honors will be broadcast on December 28th. Neda Ulaby, NPR News.