NPR 2010-06-18

BP CEO Tony Hayward, testifying before Congress for the first time since the oil rig explosion in April, says he is deeply sorry for the deadly blast and the oil spill, but as NPR's Giles Snyder reports, the BP chief is getting little sympathy.

The day began with a heckler escorted from the hearing room just as Hayward began delivering his opening statement. Once things settled down, Hayward apologized.

"The explosion and fire aboard the Deepwater Horizon and the resulting oil spill in the Gulf¹ of Mexico never should have happened, and I'm deeply sorry that it did."

Under questioning, Hayward insisted BP makes safety a high priority, but lawmakers accused BP of ignoring the risks. Among them, Bart Stupak of Michigan.

"I'm sure you will get your life back, and with a golden parachute back to England. But we in America are left with the terrible consequences of BP's reckless disregard for safety."

Another leading member of the panel, Henry Waxman of California, accused Hayward of stonewalling when asked about BP's drilling practices. Giles Snyder, NPR News, Washington.

Israel is loosening its blockade on Gaza after weeks of international outrage² over its raid of a Gaza-bound aid flotilla. One of the biggest restrictions³ involve construction materials. Israel says more of those will be allowed into the Palestinian territory for civilian⁴ projects with international supervision⁵. Israel also says it's lifting its limits on various food products, but the military is expected to maintain its naval⁶ blockade, citing concerns over weapon smuggling⁷.

In the US, analysts⁸ say the Federal Reserve doesn't need to worry about inflation in the economy anytime soon. That's a take-home from the May Consumer Price Index released this morning. NPR's Tamara Keith reports consumer prices declined 0.2%.

Drops in fuel and other energy prices led the way. Core prices, which don't include often-volatile food and energy, actually increased slightly, 0.1%. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a key indicator⁹ of inflation. And at this point, some are raising concerns about deflation. Arijit Dutta is a senior economist¹⁰ at Moody's Analytics.

"And it's certainly worrying that we've got this for the second month in a row. The top-line CPI was in deflation territory."

Dutta and his colleagues expect considerable weakness for the rest of the year, but he says there are some encouraging signs like increases in airfare and auto¹¹ prices. Tamara Keith, NPR News, Washington.

An investigation's underway into this morning's deadly plane crash in south-central New Mexico. Federal Aviation authorities confirm at least five people were killed when the plane overshot a runway.

Last check on Wall Street, Dow was up 25 points.

You're listening to NPR News.

A new report from the federal government on emergency room visits for drug overdoses shows a dramatic increase in the abuse of prescription¹² medication. More on this from NPR's Brenda Wilson.

Emergency room visits for abuse of prescription drugs were up by more than 100% from 2004 to 2008. Medical records show a total of more than 300,000 emergency room visits including suicide attempts, patients seeking detoxification and unintentional ingesting of drugs. At the top of the list were pain relievers, oxycodone, hydrocodone and methadone. The drugs may have been intended for another person taking at a higher-than-recommended dose or taking with alcohol. There was also an increase in the abuse of anti-anxiety and anti-depressant drugs, such as Zantacs and Valium. Emergency room visits for prescription drug abuse now match those for illicit¹³ drug abuse. Brenda Wilson, NPR News.

Funeral services today for the great-granddaughter of anti-apartheid icon¹⁴, Nelson Mandela. Zenani Mandela was killed in a car crash last week after a World Cup concert in Soweto. She was 13 years old. Former South African President Mandela made a rare public appearance today to attend the funeral. The 91-year-old appeared frail¹⁵, but he occasionally smiled during the service as a troop of singers and dancers performed in Zenani's honor.

An estimated 70 miners are missing, feared dead after an underground explosion in northwestern Colombia today. Colombian President Alvaro Uribe says 16 miners are confirmed dead.
 

1 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

2 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

3 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

4 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

5 supervision   

n.监督，管理

参考例句：

• The work was done under my supervision.这项工作是在我的监督之下完成的。
• The old man's will was executed under the personal supervision of the lawyer.老人的遗嘱是在律师的亲自监督下执行的。

6 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

7 smuggling   

n.走私

参考例句：

• Some claimed that the docker's union fronted for the smuggling ring.某些人声称码头工人工会是走私集团的掩护所。
• The evidence pointed to the existence of an international smuggling network.证据表明很可能有一个国际走私网络存在。

8 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

9 indicator   

n.指标；指示物，指示者；指示器

参考例句：

• Gold prices are often seen as an indicator of inflation.黃金价格常常被看作是通货膨胀的指标。
• His left-hand indicator is flashing.他左手边的转向灯正在闪亮。

10 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

11 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

12 prescription   

n.处方，开药；指示，规定

参考例句：

• The physician made a prescription against sea- sickness for him.医生给他开了个治晕船的药方。
• The drug is available on prescription only.这种药只能凭处方购买。

13 illicit   

adj.非法的，禁止的，不正当的

参考例句：

• He had an illicit association with Jane.他和简曾有过不正当关系。
• Seizures of illicit drugs have increased by 30% this year.今年违禁药品的扣押增长了30%。

14 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。

15 frail   

adj.身体虚弱的；易损坏的

参考例句：

• Mrs. Warner is already 96 and too frail to live by herself.华纳太太已经九十六岁了，身体虚弱，不便独居。
• She lay in bed looking particularly frail.她躺在床上，看上去特别虚弱。