VOA常速英语2007-California Dates Shipped Around the World

By Ade Astuti and Susy Tekunan Palm Springs, California 12 October 2007 Dates have been a staple food in the Middle East for thousands of years -- and they are especially consumed by Muslims during Ramadan. Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Iran are the world'

VOA常速英语2007-New Study Shows Stress at Work Linked with Heart

By Carol Pearson Washington 10 October 2007 If you have had a heart attack, doctors recommend a good diet and regular exercise in order to prevent another one. But even if you follow your doctor's advice, a stressful job may mean more heart problems

VOA常速英语2007-New Program Aims to Support Youth in African Coc

By Phillip Wellman Dakar 14 October 2007 The United States Agency for International Development and the U.S.-based World Cocoa Foundation have agreed to launch a multi-year partnership aimed at improving education and providing greater opportunities

VOA常速英语2007-Spike in Food Prices Causes Global Concern

By Michael Bowman Washington 15 October 2007 During the past year, basic foods have become significantly more expensive in many parts of the world, adding to the misery of impoverished regions and straining the budgets of families across the globe. V

VOA常速英语2007-Marchers Walk for Northern Uganda Peace

By Margaret Besheer Washington 20 October 2007 Young people took to the streets of nearly 100 cities in 15 countries on Saturday to raise awareness about the humanitarian suffering in northern Uganda, where two decades of conflict have taken a severe

VOA常速英语2007-UN: North Korean Flood Victims Need Emergency Ai

By Lisa Schlein Geneva 18 October 2007 The United Nations Children's Fund says hundreds of thousands of flood victims in North Korea are in a fragile state and need emergency assistance. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from Geneva that UNICEF says food,

VOA常速英语2007-Proposed Single West African Currency Could Boos

By Naomi Schwarz Dakar 12 October 2007 Experts say a single currency across West Africa could boost regional and international trade and increase stability across the region. West Africa's regional economic body, ECOWAS, has said it aims to create a

VOA常速英语2007-IMF Predicts Global Economy to Slow

By Barry Wood Washington 17 October 2007 The International Monetary Fund has released its semi-annual global economic forecast, marking it down by nearly .5 percent, mainly because of a slowdown in the United States. VOA's Barry Wood has more. Global

VOA常速英语2007-Egypt Gives Rice Cautious Support for Mideast Co

By Challiss McDonough Cairo 16 October 2007 U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice earned cautious Egyptian support for a Middle East peace meeting that the Bush administration wants to hold in the U.S. city of Annapolis, Maryland. She met with the

VOA常速英语2007-Iraqis React Angrily to Another Shooting by Fore

By Jim Randle Irbil 10 October 2007 Iraqis are reacting angrily to the shooting on Tuesday of two women in Baghdad by foreign security contractors, the second such shooting in the past month. VOA's Jim Randle reports from northern Iraq. Guards workin

VOA常速英语2007-South Africans' Blood 'Runs Gold-Flecked Green'

By Delia Robertson Johannesburg 19 October 2007 From South African President Thabo Mbeki to children playing on the streets of Soweto, South Africans are once again united in support of the national rugby team, the Springboks, ahead of their World Cu

VOA常速英语2007-Mauritanian Rappers Fight Against Clandestine Mi

By Phuong Tran Dakar 09 October 2007 Thousands of youths line up in Mauritania's poorest neighborhoods to see the mostly underground concerts of a homegrown rap group. Diam Men Teky does not win many fans in the government for their songs about corru

VOA常速英语2007-Blackwater Chairman Defends His Guards Against A

By Sean Maroney Washington 14 October 2007 The chairman of the American security company Blackwater USA is defending his company's guards, who are under investigation over a September shooting incident in which 17 Iraqis were killed. VOA's Sean Maron

VOA常速英语2007-Zoellick Confident World Bank Getting Back on Tr

By Barry Wood Washington 22 October 2007 World Bank President Robert Zoellick says that, three months into the job, he is confident that the lender organization is getting back on track following the turmoil that led to the resignation of his predece

VOA常速英语2007-Car Bomb in Baghdad Kills 4, Wounds 15

By Jim Randle Irbil, Iraq 12 October 2007 Iraqi officials say a Baghdad car bomb has killed four people and wounded 15 more. In northern Iraq, a bomb in a cart full of toys has killed one child and wounded another 13. And the U.S. military is investi

VOA常速英语2007-Ethanol Helps Fuel US Family Farms' Future

By Jeffrey Young Washington 16 October 2007 U.S. farmers have gone through many cycles of boom and bust. But as VOA's Jeffrey Young reports, prospects for American agriculture are looking up, thanks to rising crop prices and land values, especially i

VOA常速英语2007-Recruitment of Children into Militias Skyrockets

By Noel King Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo 17 October 2007 Prospects for children in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo are darkening, as fighting continues between forces loyal to dissident General Laurent Nkunda and the Congolese army. Prote

VOA常速英语2007-Campaigning Ends Ahead of Togo Election

By Phuong Tran Dakar 13 October 2007 Campaigning has ended for Togo's legislative elections, the first serious challenge to the ruling party's more than four-decade grip on power. Party leaders say Sunday's election can change Togo's reputation as an

VOA常速英语2007-Australian Election Battle Begins

By Phil Mercer Sydney 18 October 2007 Australians will go to the polls on November 24. The country's conservative Prime Minister John Howard is campaigning for re-election on the back of a strong economy and a promise of a decisive hand on matters of

VOA常速英语2007-Activists in US Prepare for Major Legal Battle o

By Malcolm Brown Washington 10 October 2007 Activists on both sides of America's contentious debate over gun control are gearing up for what could be a major showdown. Their focus is on the nation's highest court, which has been asked to decide wheth