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In the past ten years, one third of the executions in the United States have been carried out in the state of Texas. Since 1924, executions in Texas have taken place in the Walls Unit in Huntsville. The Warden of that prison, Jim Willett, narrates a documentary titled Witness to an Execution. It includes first hand accounts from the men and women who participate in and witness executions as part of their jobs. Guards, chaplains and reporters talk about their work -- detailing what occurs in the minutes before, during and after the execution. The prison employees say they do the job because the vast majority of citizens want it done. Most are affected by the work. Some reach the breaking point and find they can no longer work in the system.

Scott recalls the 1993 pact between Yitzak Rabin and Yasser Arafat and wonders what can be done to rescue the peace process.

Voters in Oregon and Colorado, this November, will be able to vote on nearly identical ballot measures. The measures would close the so-called gun show loophole. Both states have been considered friendly to gun rights. Even so, the measures are getting nearly 80% support in the polls. Colorado Public Radio's Kelley Griffin reports.

Scott reads mail from listeners.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat have agreed to a summit meeting aimed at stopping the violence in the Mideast. Scott speaks with NPR's Mike Shuster about this latest development.

Scott talks to Christopher Guest about his new film, Best in Show. It's a mock documentary about show dogs and their eccentric owners. Guest directed the film, and co-wrote it with Eugene Levy, and the cast includes many of the stars from his previous film, Waiting for Guffman.

Lisa talks with Shibley Telhami, a Middle East scholar at the University of Maryland about the current prospects for peace between Israelis and Palestinians. On Monday, Egypt is hosting an emergency summit designed to bring an end to recent violence that has taken scores of lives. Many high level diplomats will be on hand including President Clinton who will travel to the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheik to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.

Scott speaks with classics professor Elaine Fantham about the role of the auction in ancient times.

In a week of turmoil, the politics as usual that make up the U.S. presidential campaign took a rest. Vice President Gore returned to Washington while Governor Bush began to incorporate the international tensions into his campaign rhetoric. NPR's Peter Kenyon reports.

A former U.S. Army sergeant pleaded guilty today to conspiring with Saudi-born dissident Osama Bin Laden to bomb two American embassies in Africa. Ali Mohamed, an Egyptian native, is among seventeen people indicted for the attacks on the embassies in Kenya and Tanzania that killed more than 220 people in 1998. Appearing in federal court in New York City, Mohamed admitted to working with the organization known as Islamic Jihad to attack Western targets. Mohamed left the U.S. Army in 1989.