Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Politicians, Republicans especially, are scrambling for position to replace Saxby Chambliss.
Republican 10th District U.S. Rep. Paul Broun is running for Senate in 2014. So is Republican 1st District U.S. Rep. Jack Kingston. And Republican 11th District U.S. Rep. Phil Gingrey. But Republican Tom Price, who represents the 6th District, announced Friday that he's not. Which might open the door for former Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel, a pal of Price's, who said in a statement last week that she'd end the suspense "in the very near future." Meanwhile, John Barrow, the only white Democrat from the Deep South in the U.S. House of Representatives, announced recently that he won't seek the seat being vacated by the retiring Sen. Saxby Chambliss. Which might mean tough 2014 sledding for Democrats, who have yet to put forth a …
Monday, May 13, 2013
A database released by the federal government shows shocking price discrepancies.
How can a medical procedure that costs $7,000 at one hospital cost nearly $100,000 at the hospital down the street? Because patients don't know what anyone charges for anything. That might change soon. The federal government has released a database laying out charges for common medical procedures at hospitals across the country, The Huffington Post reports. Officials said they released the data to make hospitals more intelligent competitors and patients better informed consumers. The results are vexing: What's your reaction to the variation in health care prices? Will this information change how you seek health care? What should be done to improve medical pricing? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Saturday, May 11, 2013
'Great Gatsby' is playing this weekend in Cumming.
Leonardo DiCaprio stars in Baz Luhrmann's take on "The Great Gatsby," which is at times more style than substance – just like like the novel's main character himself – say some critics. "The Great Gatsby" is rated PG-13 and runs two hours and 22 minutes. It is now playing at Movies 400, 415 Atlanta Road or AMC Avenue Forsyth 12, 350 Peachtree Parkway. For more theater information, show times and pricing, click the links above. Here's what else the critics are saying: Baz Luhrmann’s new film version of The Great Gatsby is stylish, slick, funny and entertaining—a bit detached at points, a bit overblown at others. That should be all that matters. — Jeremy Mathews, Paste Magazine Just because a film looks like it was dipped in 18-karat gold …
Friday, May 10, 2013
A Generation Y publication calls out Abercombie & Fitch for eschewing plus sizes.
Even as one metro Atlanta mall hosted a casting call for plus size models last weekend, a popular retailer was discouraging larger women from dropping in. Elite Daily, "The Voice of Generation-Y," recently pointed out that mall staple Ambercrombie & Fitch doesn't carry XL or XXL sizes of women's clothing, stopping at size 10 for women's pants. Competitors such as H&M and American Eagle go much larger. The article points to a 2006 interview with CEO Mike Jeffries in Salon.com: Is it cool to just go after the "cool" kids? Does your pants size make you cool? What do you tell your children? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Thursday, May 9, 2013
The Google-owned video sharing site reportedly is planning to charge for some premium content. Will you pay to press play?
YouTube, the popular video sharing site that also is the world's second-leading search engine, reportedly is about to charge for some content. Mashable.com has reported that Google-owned YouTube this week will begin charging for "specialist" channels to help finance production of content such as television shows and films. The service will include up to 50 YouTube channels, and subscriptions will start as low a $1.99 per month, the Financial Times reported. A YouTube spokesperson told Mashable, "We have nothing to announce at this time, but we're looking into creating a subscription platform that could bring even more great content to YouTube for our users to enjoy and provide our creators with another vehicle to generate revenue from …
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
"It's hard to say," says author Peggy Drexler, "but our increasingly me-first world might have something to do with it."
Mother's Day is coming up this Sunday, but not every mom is pleased to carry the mantle. Some are even walking off the job. In an opinion piece on CNN.com, parenting author Peggy Drexler writes that "reports would seem to indicate that the number of moms who ... run away -- or at least walk away -- is increasing." Drexler cites an increase in the number of single fathers, and several anecdotal examples of mothers who simply took off: There's Rahna Reiko Rizzuto, who wrote in an essay for Salon.com that she realized, when her sons were 3 and 5 that she didn't want to be a full-time mother anymore. There are even support groups now for women who decide to leave their children. Why do some moms leave? Here's what Rizzuto says in the Salon …
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
The suicide rate for people aged 35 to 64 increased 30 percent from 1999 to 2010, the New York Times reports.
Are Americans in the middle of their lives being stretched to the breaking point? The first decade of this century witnessed a dramatic rise in suicides among middle-aged people, The New York Times reports. The increase, about 30 percent among 35- to 64-year olds, has raised the question of whether "a generation of baby boomers who have faced years of economic worry and easy access to prescription painkillers may be particularly vulnerable to self-inflicted harm," according to the Times. The paper cites a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official who says the financial and family situations of baby boomers might be creating unique stresses, such as taking care both of their aging parents and their young adult children. The …
Monday, May 6, 2013
A Kentucky boy accidentally shot his 2-year-old sister to death with a gun he got for his birthday.
Two-year-old Caroline Sparks loved playing outside, singing, and her 5-year-old brother, who accidentally shot her to death last week with the .22-caliber rifle he got for his birthday. CNN reports the children's mother had stepped outside for just a few minutes when the accident occurred. It was the third time in about a month that someone was shot to death by a child under 6. The boy's gun was a Crickett rifle marketed specifically for young children as "my first rifle," the CNN story said. The gun stocks come in colors such as pink and blue. Officials in Kentucky noted that gun ownership among young children is common in the area. “It’s a normal way of life, and it’s not just rural Kentucky, it’s rural America – hunting and shooting and…
Thursday, May 2, 2013
With a host of new streaming, online and on-demand features, does anyone just channel-surf anymore?
Like political dramas? Kevin Spacey stars in the hit "House of Cards," which you can stream on Netflix. Prefer soap operas? The classics "All My Children" and "One Life to Live" are returning as online-only shows. Want celebrities? AOL, Patch's parent company, just announced 15 new web-based shows featuring stars such as Gwyneth Paltrow and Sarah Jessica Parker. And even if you're hooked on traditional television shows like "The Office," services such as Hulu allow you to watch current shows online or stream on your television. So, does anybody just watch TV anymore? Do you still have cable service? How do you use it? Tell us in the comments below.
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Collins, who has played for the Atlanta Hawks and several other NBA teams, announces he's gay in a Sports Illustrated article.
"I'm a 34-year-old NBA center," former Atlanta Hawks player Jason Collins announced this week in the May 6, 2013, issue of Sports Illustrated. "I'm black. And I'm gay." Collins goes on: The revelation came just weeks after former NBA Coach Phil Jackson said in an interview that he'd "never run into" a gay pro basketball player. This week, Hawks managers weighed in on Collins' announcement. "We have great respect for Jason and his message today. Creating an environment where we support, respect, and accept our players' individual rights is very important to us," Hawks Managing Partner and NBA Governor Bruce Levenson said in a statement. "Jason represented everything that we look for as a member of the Atlanta Hawks and we are proud he wore …
Lisa Mende
12:24 am on Thursday, May 16, 2013
I think Mr. Broun is entitled to believe what he wishes. I do not think his beliefs should be a factor in his governance, There are many of his constituents who do not believe as he does, many folks who do not wish to have his particular faith take precedence over another faith or have it rammed down their throats. Mr. Broun held a town hall meeting several years ago on Yom Kippur, the highest of… more ›