Phila. Archbishop Retires Amid Sex Abuse Report

The Vatican has appointed an outspoken archbishop to lead the troubled Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Charles Chaput of Denver will move to Philadelphia in September. He succeeds Cardinal Justin Rigali, who has been criticized for the way he has handled child sex abuse allegations. For the past five months, Cardinal Rigali has been dogged by claims [...]

Latest Figures On Obesity Paint An Uglier Picture

Too many Americans weigh more than is good for them. What else is new, right? We learned less than two weeks ago that rates of obesity worsened in 16 states last year, and not one state showed improvement. Today the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is out with the latest analysis of its own [...]

Public Interest Group Slams Restaurants’ Most Unhealthful Meals

One of the reasons why Americans are still getting fat is that we eat too much. And it doesn’t help that the nation’s restaurant chains promote their oversized and fattening food items, while at the same time touting their new healthier menu options for kids. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) today [...]

Requiem For Pork Bellies

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange ended trading in pork-belly futures last Friday. When I heard the news, I dialed up the Merc’s meat pit, and Brian Muno answered the phone. He’s worked in the trading pit since 1975. And his father had been working there when the pork belly futures contract was invented, in the early [...]

A Peek Into The Secret World Of Somali Pirates

Jay Bahadur wanted to know firsthand how modern pirates live and operate, so he traveled to Somalia. He spent weeks meeting with pirates and government officials. Bahadur tells their stories, debunks myths and examines the rise of piracy off the Somali coast in his new book, The Pirates of Somalia. He spent three months in [...]

Ads Push For A Middle Ground Amid Syrian Conflict

The uprising in Syria is often described in terms of black or white — you either support the country’s leader or you are a revolutionary. But many residents of Damascus describe themselves as gray people, neither black nor white, and they’re struggling to find a voice. In the clutter of the modern city, one new [...]

Fiery Iraqi Cleric’s Political Party Puts On New Face

At a recent press conference, Iraq’s minister of planning, Ali Youssef al-Shukri, stepped to the podium, gave a brief and somber blessing, and announced the issue of the day: a new mechanism for quality control of imports to Iraq. Shukri spoke softly and wore a pressed suit. The former academic has spent time in the [...]

Hopeful Applicants Settle For Spare Job Openings

Check the want ads in just about any city or town in the U.S. and you’ll find the words, “Help Wanted.” The economy added only a few thousand jobs in June according to the latest jobs report, and 14 million Americans remain out of work. But, there are jobs in Allentown, Pa. The town used [...]

How The Debt-Ceiling Negotiations Are Like Poker

Las Vegas’ World Series of Poker isn’t the only high stakes battle being played out right now, there’s an even bigger one in Washington, D.C. And there’s a lot of strategy involved when there’s so much at stake whether in cards or politics. If you remove the politics, the talking points and the media from [...]

Why Borders Failed While Barnes & Noble Survived

It appears to be all over for the Borders bookselling chain. The company will be liquidated — meaning sold off in pieces — and almost 11,000 employees will lose their jobs. The chain’s 400 remaining stores will close their doors by the end of September. The retailer’s first bookstore opened in Ann Arbor, Mich., 40 [...]