National

Attorney General Eric Holder called this week for sweeping changes to America's drug laws. He's part of a growing movement of black leaders pushing for major changes to the nation's 40-year war on drugs. But for decades, many African-American leaders supported tough sentencing rules.

Just weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated a key part of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, North Carolina has a new law to require photo ID at the polls and to shorten early voting. Proponents say the law will stave off voter fraud. Opponents say it will effectively quash the vote of many poor minorities.

The carvings etched into limestone boulders near Pyramid Lake in western Nevada show that the early North Americans were surprisingly creative artists. The carvings, which are at least 10,000 years old, are abstract, geometric designs including shapes that look like diamonds and trees.

Werner Herzog's latest project is a slight departure for the acclaimed filmmaker: a 35-minute public service announcement on the dangers of texting and driving. Yes, it's long, he says, but the "inner landscape" of great suffering such accidents can cause "can only be shown if you have more time."

Thousands of seasonal workers come to California's Salinas Valley each year to pick crops, and many of them seem destined for a life in the fields. Now, a training program run by ALBA Organics is giving these workers the skills they need to be their own bosses.

Bikers may have a tough image, but Happy Dodson, Taz Roman and other members of Bikers Against Child Abuse have a soft spot for kids. The international nonprofit accepts referrals from parents, police and social workers, and if those kids ever feel unsafe, BACA members will come roaring to their aid.

Zodiac produces most of the inflatable rafts used by the U.S. military. But a California company challenged that contract, saying it violates a requirement that the Defense Department use products made with American material and by U.S. workers. In response, Zodiac set up a factory in Maryland.

"Comedians all over the country have used political figures to make fun of current events, it's nothing new," rodeo clown Tuffy Gessling has told a Missouri news outlet. The skit he directed at the state fair sparked outrage.

A growing number of employers are paying their workers to help out at local charities on company time. Human resources experts say compensating staff who put in volunteer hours makes for more engaged workers — and lower turnover.

Former Illinois Representative Jesse Jackson Jr. was sentenced to 30 months in prison on Wednesday. Jackson had pleaded guilty to spending $750,000 in campaign funds for personal use. Jackson's wife Sandi received a one year sentence for her role in the scheme.