NCPR News: The 8 O'Clock Hour

Vice President Joe Biden says Fort Drum’s 2nd Brigade deserves “a hero’s welcome” for its work training security forces in Iraq. Biden made a personal visit to the Army base near Watertown yesterday. He said it’s the “dawn of a new era in Iraq” as the U.S. prepares to draw down 95,000 troops from the country. The security situation improved so much that Iraqi military and police took control more quickly than expected. That allowed the 2nd brigade to return home three months early. David Sommerstein was at Fort Drum for the vice president’s visit and has our story.

Not so long ago, most kids spent as much of their summer vacations outdoors as they could.Fair weather and free time allowed an escape after months indoors at school.But researchers – as well as parents – are seeing children spend more and more of their escape time in front of computers and televisions. And they’re worried about the consequences.As Brian Mann reports, there’s growing evidence that a summer spent in the fields and woods isn't just fun, it's important, too.

A special legislative session ended with no action on the state budget, now nearly four months late. As Karen DeWitt reports, Governor Paterson vowed to keep lawmakers at the Capitol another day.

Canada and the Netherlands forged deep ties over the past century. Members of the Dutch Royal Family took refuge in Ottawa during the Second World War, and it was largely Canadian forces that liberated the Netherlands from harsh German occupation. When the war was over, a grateful Holland sent 100,000 tulip bulbs to Canada's capital, a gesture that led to the current Tulip Festival. And tens of thousands of Dutch came to land-rich Canada seeking new homes and new lives.At this year's Pioneer Day event in Vernon, Ontario, Lucy Martin found the local co-authors of "They Ventured Forth," a new book telling the story of the post-war Dutch migration to the townships of Osgoode and Russell.