It's not clear yet whether the Occupy Wall Street protests will be a good thing or a bad thing for Democrats. That's why President Obama always treads carefully when asked about them.

"People are frustrated, and that frustration has expressed itself in a lot of different ways," he said Tuesday on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. "It expressed itself in the Tea Party. It's expressing itself in Occupy Wall Street."

One little-noticed measure of economic growth is the Truck Tonnage Index. The latest reading shows that trucks are carrying more goods, and that suggests the economy is doing well enough to avoid a recession.

Another prisoner exchange is expected in the Middle East on Thursday. Israel is freeing 25 Egyptian prisoners — mostly smugglers and drug dealers — in exchange for an Israeli-American who was detained in Egypt four months ago on suspicion of spying for Israel. Israel has denied the accusation.

European leaders met through the night in Brussels and finally emerged Thursday with a debt deal they say is wide-ranging. They're hopeful it will guide the continent out of the widening debt crisis that started with Greece. But it's unclear whether they have the political will and economic flexibility to implement it.

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Protestors in Oakland, California gathered again in front of City Hall. Oakland's Occupy Wall Street last night was much more peaceful than the night before, when police used tear gas and non-lethal bullets to disperse the crowd. The confrontation left one protester hospitalized and it left allegations of excessive police force under investigation. NPR's Carrie Kahn reports.

(SOUNDBITE OF CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

CARRIE KAHN, BYLINE: Protesters by the hundreds streamed into Oakland's downtown city hall plaza.

Hey guys, feeling confused about the fuss over PSA screening for prostate cancer?

Listen up. A couple of docs who ponder such medical dilemmas say there's a middle ground between business-as-usual and throwing PSA tests out altogether.