Low back pain is second only to cold symptoms when it comes to complaints that send people to the doctor. Sooner or later, back pain seems to get most of us.

Now, a study in the July 5 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine shows that massage is an effective treatment for lower back pain. In some cases, researchers report, the benefits of massage lasted for six months or longer.

The nation celebrated the 235th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence with parades, fireworks, barbecues — and presidential campaigning. Republican candidates sought out potential voters in pivotal early voting states.

Michele Norris talks with Steve Martin about his Fourth of July song, "Me & Paul Revere," sung from the point of view of the horse. He will perform it live on "A Capitol Fourth" — and for Michele.

Teams of firefighters and disaster management officials are going into already-burned areas of the Southwest to figure out how to prevent flooding now that the rainy season is beginning. They're looking for debris that's blocking streams — and for areas now devoid of trees that held together the soil.

Michele Norris talks with Ron Brownstein of National Journal about how the changing U.S. demographics are shifting the political landscape for 2012.

Listener Bev Brown of Georgetown, Texas, tells us about her Summer Sound. Growing up on the plains of southeastern South Dakota, Brown says her father was the Fireworks Man. Every Fourth of July of her childhood, her dad planned and "shot" the Sioux Falls municipal fireworks show.

In Libya, many supporters of Moammar Gadhafi say the leader has used the country's oil money to provide real benefits to the people, including subsidized housing, free health care and education. Critics say those benefits were unequally distributed, with favored groups around Tripoli and the western part of the country getting the lion's share — and those in the east, around Benghazi, getting the least. They say the country's political divide mirrors an economic one.

Just when Venezuelans were talking about President Hugo Chavez's future and thinking about what lies ahead if he doesn't run for reelection, Chavez returned to Caracas after cancer surgery in Cuba. Michele Norris talks with NPR's Juan Forero.

Recently there's been a little more interest than usual in the Civil War, owing to the 150th anniversary of the historic event. Even so, fewer people are donning Union and Confederate gear and participating in historical reenactments. And as those who have been re-enacting for decades retire from the battlefields, many wonder who will take their place.

Michele Norris reads letters from listeners.