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Michael talks with Judge Hiller Zobel - who sits on the Massachusetts Superior Court - about the history of jury trials. Zobel says that even though juries have come under a lot of scrutiny in recent high profile trials, he believes a jury system is still the best available. And that any alternative that would grant more power to judges to decide cases would not be in the best interest of justice.

San Francisco based Wells Fargo won its three-month effort to takeover another California based bank today. First Interstate agreed to be acquired in a stock transaction valued at $11.6 billion. If the deal is approved by regulators it will be the largest merger in U.S. banking history. The deal is expected to eliminate as many as 7,000 jobs, half of them in the Los Angeles area, as hundreds of First Intersate branches are closed.

Linda Wertheimer speaks wtih Janet Fleischman, Washington director of Human Rights Watch/Africa. She describes some of the recent political history of Liberia and attempts to current descent into factional chaos the country is experiencing. The current fighting represents the failure of the 12th agreement in the last several years which attempted to bring all the conflicting parties together within a single authority which would lead to a government.

Noah and Robert read letters from All Things Considered listeners. This week's topics include the history of the screw (and screwdriver), visions of the Virgin Mary, and the squeezing of baked goods in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. (3:30) You can send e-mail to atc@npr.org or via the post office: Letters, All Things Considered, National Public Radio, 635 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20001.

Noah talks with Colonel John R. Bourgeois (BOOR-zhwa), who is retiring today after seventeen years as the director of "The President's Own" U.S. Marine Band. The band, once led by the legendary John Philip Sousa, has only had twenty-five directors in its history. Tonight marks Col. Bourgeois's last time conducting the group.

Robert talks with Mary Lefkowitz, the Andrew Mellon professor of Humanities at Wellesley College, about her book "Not Out of Africa: How Afrocentrism became an Excuse to Teach Myth as History." She contests the theory that many of the outstanding features of ancient Greece originated in ancient Egypt. Lefkowitz says the theory stems from an 18th century french novel.

Danny talks with Kim and Reggie Harris, who are black, and Greg Artzner and Terry Leonino, who are white, about their musical collaberation as a mixed-race singing group that performs songs about African-American history and other political issues. They talk about how race has...or has not...affected their relationship and their performing styles. Their cd is called "Spoken in Love," (Long Tail Records).

3: Comedian and film maker MEL BROOKS. Brooks has made some of the funniest films in movie history, including "The Producers," "Young Frankenstein," and "Blazing Saddles." His latest film is a spoof on the vampire film genre, "Dracula: Dead and Loving It." (REBROADCAST from 7

Mary Kay Magistead reports from Taiwan that President Lee Teng-hui won today's election, the first fully democratic vote in the island's history. Lee, who was appointed president eight years ago by Taiwan's parliament, gained more than 50 percent of the vote, an unexpectedly large margin. The vote took place in the face of threats from China, threats in the form of missile tests and military exercises.

that Ford Motor Company has announced what could be the largest recall program in the history of the auto industry. Ford is offering to fix faulty ignition switches on more than 8 million vehicles manufactured between 1988 and 1993. The ignition switches can short circuit, leaving Ford vehicles vulnerable to fire.