Former supermodel Christy Turlington is campaigning for maternal health. The mother of two (with husband actor Ed Burns) is attempting to get the U.S. government to provide more resources to women during childbirth.
According to Turlington, a woman dies every minute of complications from childbirth. She believes that women around the world do not have access to the same medical care she had when she gave birth to her children. I would wager she is right. I couldn't believe the amount of care I received during the birth of my son and after in recovery--and I'm just a regular gal! Women the world over deserve the same amount of care, so I am right there behind Christie in her endeavor.
Joining Turlington on her campaign is former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell, who is mom to daughter Bluebell Madonna Halliwell. Turlington is ambassador for Care, an organization dedicated to fighting global poverty.
Bullying, unfortunately, is a fact of life for many kids. Even funny man and former Saturday Night Live star Will Ferrell had to deal with bullies. The star of the soon-to-be-released Step Brothers says when he was a kid he was taunted by a neighborhood bully.
This teenage bully was unique in that he threatened to shrink Ferrell and even carried around a vial of some sort of powder to prove he was capable of doing so. Ferrell claims he was so traumatized he had nightmares about being shrunk. Hopefully he didn't watch the televised presentation of Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. That would have pushed him over the edge!
Who came to the rescue? Says Ferrell, his mom eventually made the kid come clean that the powder would not, in fact, shrink anyone. Ferrell grew up to be a major star. The bully? Who knows. But I wonder who's feeling small NOW! Moral of the story? We all deal with bullies and we all get past it. If we're lucky our moms will set things straight and, if we're really lucky, we'll grow up to be household names. Take that, bullies!
Say what you will about a smoker's right to light up in his car or her own home, but I think we can all agree that underage smoking is wrong, wrong, wrong. a new study suggests that menthol cigarettes are specifically formulated to attract and snag young smokers (and the keep the adult smokers hooked for life).
Menthol cigarettes are the minty ones, you know, the ones most like candy. they're also easier for a young system to tolerate than regular cigarettes. According to a new study out of Harvard, manufacturers of menthol cigarettes are using this information to nab the "vulnerable population." As smokers get used to menthol, like with pretty much anything else, they naturally prefer a stronger flavor or sensation.
The research also indicated that nearly fifty percent of smokers between the ages of twelve (yes, you read that right, TWELVE) and seventeen prefer menthol cigarettes. Menthol cigarettes make up about 28% of overall cigarette sales per year. There's no need to do the math here to realize that a big group of kids is smoking these cigarettes. Those who participated in the study are urging for stronger legislation. Phillip Morris, the company who owns Marlboro Milds, a milder form of menthol cigarette, deny such allegations, as does its parent company, Atria. Lorillard, owner of the best-selling Newport brand of menthol cigarettes, also denied they lure young smokers.
Every generation thinks they have it tougher than the one before. And, you know what? They probably do. Like the new iphone, every generation is expected to be smarter, faster, better, and thinner than the last. So it is with teenagers, teenage girls to be exact. It's no newsflash to anyone who's ever been a teenager that being one is full of pressure. I remember an ad I saw in a women's magazine when I was a teen that resonates with me to this day: You can never be too rich or too thin (bonus points to any of you who remember what product that ad was selling).
Current research shows that not only such magazines but now too the wonderful world wide web are contributing to making girls feel miserable with regard to being, well, as rich and as thin as possible. In the Generation Under Stress Report, two out of five teenage girls felt more poorly about themselves after looking at pictures of models, music stars and actresses in magazines. And the pressure doesn't end there. Girls also reported feeling pressure to act and dress more like adults, to be sexually active before they were ready and to invest in expensive material items like Ipods, cell phones and brand-name clothing and accessories (what teenager NEEDS a Prada bag?). Add that to the eating disorders and bullying and you have a recipe for disaster.
So what do we do? Send our teenage girls off to the convent? If you have the answer, please let me know--I am about to have a daughter and am feeling the pressure before she's even been born. Not too long ago I saw a onesie that said, "Does this outfit make my butt look big?" HELP!
My son attended a birthday party where guests were asked to bring an unwrapped toy to donate to the fire fighter's toy drive rather than a present for the birthday girl. She had plenty of toys already and liked helping those less fortunate. Halfway through the party we all traipsed down the block to the firehouse to donate the toys. I thought it was a fantastic idea.
Apparently, my son's friend was quite the trendsetter. Parents are eschewing the traditional excess of the child's birthday party, simplifying and greening the events. "We're not saying children shouldn't celebrate," said Alison Smith, whose company, ECHOage, helps parents organize less wasteful, more philanthropic parties. "It's just about making it more meaningful."
If you ask me, there's another advantage to donating gifts instead of keeping them: you avoid having to deal with toys that don't match what you think is appropriate for your kids -- the toy guns, the Barbies, and, yes, the toys that make way too much noise.
And, if so, does it bug your neighbors? Do your neighbors go so far as to complain to you about it? And, if they do, do you care? I live in New York City, in Brooklyn, in an apartment. I am surrounded, in my condo complex, by people to the right of me, on top of me and below me. I also have a fifteen month old. To say that he is rambunctious would be putting it mildly. No one has complained that my son is loud. After all, there are also a set of two-year-old twins across the hall. Many parents, however, aren't so lucky. In an article in the Real Estate section of the New York Times, the author uncovers just how a lot of neighbors feel about their neighbors' kids and how those parents feel about the neighbors. Most try to get along and make it work. Most are sympathetic--we've all had a new baby cry throughout the night and we've all greeted the following day with colic.
Some parents, however, feel like they are caught between a very rough rock and a very hard place: to be the perfect parent while being the perfect neighbor. In Brooklyn, perhaps, it is accepted that maybe you cannot be both. In places like Park Slope, which we mock all the time for being full of the mommy mafia, where we joke they won't let you in without kids, at least you know you can go to a restaurant and they'll treat you like a human being when you bring your kids with you. Your neighbors generally have kids too or at least understand what you're going through and they refrain from giving you a hard time. After all, your kids will grow up--eventually.
Elsewhere it's not so easy to be a parent and a neighbor. And, I would say the trouble isn't limited to apartment dwellers, either. Anyone with a backyard that sits next to someone else's backyard might complain your kids are making too much noise in the pool, or are coming over into their property, etc. You might respond the guests at their non-stop parties get too drunk and throw lawn darts too close to your kids' heads!!!
We've been taught for ages now the importance of reading to our children. From the earliest age, and even in the womb (your child can hear as soon as her ears form, even if she can't see the pictures from in the womb), parents are being instructed to read to their little ones.
Why? Well, it's supposed to make 'em smarter. Now, apparently, it makes them more tolerablenicer too. Just when you thought you couldn't possibly read Goodnight Moon ONE MORE TIME comes reason to celebrate doing so. Researchers reported to The Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology that kids whose parents gave them plenty of intellectual stimulation--that's reading to them, talking to them, etc.--during their first year of life were less likely to have behavior issues such as bullying and disobeying their parents. The study was conducted on 1,863 U.S. children and their mothers (but not their fathers, oddly enough).
Naturally, that theory only goes so far. The temperament of the child during her infant stage also plays a large part in determining how she'll be later. The actual article, however, deflects back onto the parenting skills and makes a case for giving parents the skills they need to do the job right.
State employees in Utah are about to get an extra day off -- sort of. The state government is switching to a four-by-ten work week, beginning in August. Instead of working eight hours a day, Monday through Friday, about 17,000 workers will put in ten hours a day, Monday through Thursday. This will save on heating and electrical bills for buildings that will be mostly unused on Fridays, as well as saving money on gas for state vehicles.
While they will have to work longer days, there are a lot of benefits for the employees. First, and most obvious, every weekend becomes a three-day weekend. Second, there is the savings on commute costs -- gas isn't cheap these days, in case you hadn't noticed. And, of course, there is the convenience of not having to work on a day when other businesses are still open -- I imagine that pediatricians will be pretty booked up on Fridays over the next year. I suspect, too, that schools will be getting a lot more classroom volunteers on Fridays -- always a good thing.
I applaud the state of Utah for working to save energy (and to save money) and hope it works out for them. Having worked both a four-by-eight and four-by-ten work week in the past, I have to say I really liked the freedom that an extra day off -- especially one during the week -- gave me.
Sure, you may be friends with your parents. You may also SAY to people that you are friends with your parents. But, really, when you think about who your mom and dad are (granted they are still with us), as people and not as your parents, do you think you'd still be friends with them?
I'm not sure how things were in previous generations, but it seems like lately people have less than ever in common with their parents. That doesn't necessarily make for an un-friendly situation, but it is food for thought. The things we care about may seem different of course, but we haven't lived as long as our parents (in most cases) and we haven't had the same experiences they've had--the kind that change the very core of our beings. Things like having children of our own put us more on the same page with our parents every day, whether we realize it or not.
And perhaps that's what it is--can you be friends with someone with whom you have too much in common? Or does friendship come down to more than things in common versus not? Many people have said to me, I don't have to like my family--they're FAMILY. I've also heard that while you love your family, you may not particularly like them (anyone got that funny uncle everyone's always talking about?). Others feel that they have a strong bond with their parents that outshines that of the biological bond.
What about you? Would you be friends with your parents if they weren't related to you?
While I had my issues with WALL-E, I wouldn't have considered leftist brain-washing to be one of them (although, I suppose some might argue that I'm so far gone I wouldn't notice it in the first place). It seems, however, that some of the more conservative members of the audience did pick up on it and are visibly upset.
Think Progress (admittedly, it was voted "Best Liberal Blog" in 2006) has a round-up of some of the commentary coming out about the movie from the right side of the theatre. "From the first moment of the film," wrote Shannen Coffin, former general counsel to Vice President Cheney, "my kids were bombarded with leftist propaganda about the evils of mankind."
Another writer described the movie as "a 90-minute lecture on the dangers of over consumption, big corporations, and the destruction of the environment." He goes on to explain that he will be doing his part to save the world by "by boycotting any and all WALL-E merchandise" and calling for others to "join my crusade."
I'm sure that these reviewers do not speak for all conservatives, representing, instead, an extreme, but it is still amusing that they are getting so upset over a movie that they aren't being forced to see. I could get similarly incensed about the VeggieTales series -- or just not watch them.
Diplomats in Geneva recently set new limits on the amount of certain kinds of bacteria allowable in baby formula as well as the level of natural toxins in some types of nuts. They also tackled the amount of gluten permissible in products labeled 'gluten-free.' The safety standards will apply to all internationally shipped foods.
The outcome of the standards is to hopefully affect hygiene practices and therefore reduce the amount of contamination of two kinds of bacteria in powdered formulas which have been known to cause illness and death in infants. Foods labeled gluten-free would not be able to contain more than 20 milligrams of gluten per kilogram, nor could they contain wheat, rye, barley or oats. Regulations were also set for the amounts of aflotoxins in almonds, hazelnuts and pistachios. Aflotoxins are known carcinogens in lab animals.
Over 170 countries claim membership to The Codex Alimentarius Commission responsible for making these decision, which also includes the European Union. Other topics for consideration are frozen foods, flavoring, tomatoes (no surprise there given the United States' recent issues with them) and mineral water.
This chilling incident luckily had a (mostly) happy ending. A fourteen-year-old girl was attacked by a bear during a bike race in Alaska but was saved by her 911 phone call. The teenager, who remains unnamed as of press-time, was participating in a 24-hour long mountain bike race in Anchorage when she was mauled.
The girl was able to make a call to 911, wherein all she was able to say was the word "bear." She later underwent surgery at a local hospital. Experts say the bear was probably a sow grizzly, and some speculate it was the same bear that went after two joggers earlier thew past week.
Dispatchers called the girl back as part of regular procedure, and another biker heard the ringing and went onto the darkened trail to investigate, discovering the teenager. Another biker remained with her until help arrived, despite the knowledge of the bear attack. Although little information has been released about the teen's condition, Police Lieutenant. Paul Honeman said the girl was in a fight for her life.
If you've ever seen television or been the recipient of junk mail, you are probably familiar with the lingerie chain Victoria's Secret. In addition to selling teddies and thongs, they sell apparel aimed at the college set. Their brand, Pink, has licenses with many colleges to sell hoodies, t-shirts, tote bags and that sort of thing.
Now, one college campus seeks to remove such gear. University of Minnesota has decided to remove themselves from the 33 other colleges who sell gear through the Pink Collegiate line. At this time, Victoria's Secret is still offering the merchandise. Instead of dealing with the colleges directly, VS made a deal with the Collegiate Licensing Bureau.
Although the site I sourced has an opinion on this, University of Minnesota hasn't explicitly said it feels the ads are too racy. The school was concerned about their reputation however. A representative quoted stated the school did not feel it was in their best interests to have Gopher gear sold through the apparel giant.
Like any good mom, Gail Jordan wanted to do something special for her son's 21st birthday. Her idea was to put a picture of her son, David, on a birthday cake. The kicker? David, who was five months old in the picture, was not wearing a diaper, so you could see his bum in the picture. The mom with a good sense of humor thought they'd have a laugh--boy was she wrong.
The Asda grocery where Gail requisitioned the cake flat out refused to produce the dessert, saying the nudie pic constituted child pornography. The powers that be (were?) at the Asda finally acquiesced and let Gail use the picture, but only after they put a Perez Hilton-like censor over the bare bum. Gail didn't have time to get another cake made up so she settled for the star-covered bum bake.
Gail said she understood the rules but that common sense should also play a part in the decision. As she points out, the world is full of ads featuring baby bottoms--namely, those for diapers and wipes. I can't imagine what Asda would make of the Coppertone ads from my childhood, where a little dog is pulling down the bikini bottom of a young blonde girl, who, by the way, wasn't even wearing a top!
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have donated $1,000,000 to charities in Iraq and the United States. Through their Jolie-Pitt foundation, the power couple's donations will focus on the needs of children affected by the war.
$500,000 was given to three charities in Iraq to support children's education. Another $500,000 was donated to give aid to children whose parents were killed in the war or who have a parent in the military. The $1,000,000 will provide educational supplies and counseling to children.
Jolie is a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations. Pitt has made a name for himself building homes for those devastated by the flooding in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. It's nice to continutally be able to report on celebrities doing GOOD! Thanks, Ange and Brad!
My son attended a birthday party where guests were asked to bring an unwrapped toy to donate to the fire fighter's toy drive rather than a present for the birthday girl. She had plenty of toys already and liked helping those less fortunate. Halfway through the party we all traipsed down the block to the firehouse to donate the toys. I thought it was a fantastic idea.
State employees in Utah are about to get an extra day off -- sort of. The state government is switching to a 
While I had 
