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KPBS reporter Joanne Faryon has been looking into beef. She's learned industrialization and our demand for a big, juicy and cheap steak has created corn-fed, hormone-injected, and fast-growing cattle. Cattle that changes hands and travel thousands of miles before arriving at your local grocery store.

A controversial federal ban on a type of abortion procedure has been struck down by a federal judge in San Francisco. The "Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act," signed into law by President Bush last November, was declared to be unconstitutional and an infringement on a woman's right to choose. Hear NPR's Melissa Block and NPR's Richard Gonzales.

Severe droughts have combined with an unexpected culprit — a tiny fish — to put the squeeze on Southern California's water supply. Avocado and citrus farmers feeling the pinch are considering planting new crops that use less water.

State transportation authorities announced they will temporarily close a desert highway heavily trafficked by off-road enthusiasts in the spring, rather than during the hottest summer months, in order

Congress turns its attention to immigration, but not to the larger national policy bills that are stuck between the House and Senate. Instead, with midterm elections looming, Republican leaders in both chambers are focusing strictly on enforcement measures.

Democratic Congressman William Jefferson, who is under investigation for bribery, easily won a run-off re-election in Louisiana. Jefferson is under investigation for bribery; earlier this year, FBI agents allegedly found $90,000 in his freezer, and two associates say they bribed the congressman.

The American Civil Liberties Union files a lawsuit challenging the federal "No-Fly" list of people barred from flying due to suspected terrorist ties. The plaintiffs in the suit are U.S. citizens who the ACLU says are wrongfully on the list, with no way to have their names removed. Those on the list are routinely stopped and searched during travel. NPR 's Larry Abramson reports.

What sorts of religious freedom issues are involved with Halloween? There are plenty. These Days legal analyst looks at the politics of Halloween, plus the latest on the Mt. Soledad War Memorial and

The Arabic translator who pleaded guilty last week to possessing classified defense documents got past several security hurdles. Noureddine Malki lied about who he was — first to get U.S. citizenship, then to get a job as a translator doing military intelligence work in Iraq, and finally to get a top-secret security clearance.

This year, new or one-time tax breaks are available that many people qualify for. But they don't appear on the printed forms many taxpayers use, making them easy to be overlooked. Robert Siegel talks with Kevin McCormally of Kiplinger's Personal Finance.