Top Stories

It’s the Economy, Voter!

This week we’ve been looking at the impact of faith in this year’s election with David Kinnaman of the Barna Group, who helped lead a study that breaks people into five different faith segments – but no matter where they land in terms of faith, the economy is still the biggest issue on their minds.  And health care and taxes are important, too, because they also impact economic policy. There are a lot of other factors influencing voters too.  For links and the full interview with David Kinnaman See the links on the right side of this page.

Gendercide All Around the World

“Gendercide” is taking the lives of millions of girls ever year, especially in China and India.  It’s the willful abortion of an unborn child, simply because it’s a girl, and a new documentary is exploring some of those stories. Evan Grae Davis is the Director of the documentary film “It’s A Girl.”  He says the reality of life as a girl in these countries is so devalued that girls are not only aborted, but often simply killed—after they are born—in order to accommodate their preference for boys. Dowry killings are another form of the abuse, whereby if a girl does not have an adequate dowry to present her husband, she is often found not fit to live. And families often prefer boys so they can RECEIVE the dowry from a worthy girl’s family. Screenings are coming to Family Life Nation over the next month or so, including Tucson next week. Find out more with the links to your right.

String Cheese Recall

If you pack a little string cheese in your lunch, you should know that Kraft is recalling some of theirs.  The Kraft Jalapeno String Cheese with a “Use By” date of November 23rd is being taken off shelves because the plastic wrapper sticks to the cheese, making it hard to know if you got the whole wrapper off.

Drone Strike at Afghan/Pakistan Border

Another possible blow to US/Pakistan relations after another drone strike reportedly killed 5 people near the Afghan border.  At least that’s what Pakistani intelligence officials are saying.  Four missiles struck a house where a lot of militants are suspected of hiding out.  One of those groups, the Haggani Network, is among the biggest threats to peace in Afghanistan.

Toyota Recall

Toyota is recalling close to 7.5 million vehicles because of a faulty power window switch.  It affects more than a dozen 2005 to 2010 models and is just the latest quality snafu at Toyota, which continues to try to fix its reputation after a series of massive recalls over the past couple of years.

Feds to Issue Warning About Counterfeit Air Bags

If you’ve had to have the air bag replaced in your vehicle over the past 3 years, you may want to get it checked out again.  The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is getting ready to issue warnings about counterfeit air bags, which may have been installed during that time frame.  According to auto industry officials who have been briefed on it, tens of thousands of car owners may be affected.

Faith

Poll ID’s More Religious “Nones”

About one in five of us now say we have no religious affiliation in America.  That’s the highest number ever polled, the latest coming from the Pew Forum On Religion and Public Life, which calls them “nones”.  They say the number has now hit 46 million people, much of that growth in the under 30 population.

Family & Relationships

Furnace Season is Fire Season for Many

If you live in the northern parts of Family Life Nation, chances are your furnaces have already been tried out at least once.  That’s one of the big reasons that October is Fire Awareness Month, and Fire Captain Grant Cesarek says there’s one simple thing everybody can do to be safe. He says the biggest focus is smoke detector safety. Don’t forget to change the smoke detector batteries. Pick a date you’ll remember, like birthdays or anniversaries or the start of a sports season. Some of the other things on the check list:  Make sure you have 2 ways to get out of your house; That everybody knows the escape plan; and make sure your address is visible from the street.

Work

In Your Job Search, Keep Your Emotions in Control

If you’ve been out pounding the pavement looking for a job, you know all too well that there are a lot of ups and downs in that process.  But a new study by the Academy of Management suggests that one of the biggest mistakes job seekers make is not keeping their emotions in check.  The study says too many start off the job search angry, then become too confident, and finally frustrated.  None of those are good.

GM Opens High Tech Center

General Motors is making plans to hire 15-hundred high-tech employees as they get ready to open a new Tech Center in Metro Detroit.  That’s one of four opening across the nation, and it signals a shift for GM – which will now keep a lot of its tech jobs here in the US.  They’re taking applications at GM.com.

Health

Group Weight Loss Programs Rated as Good As Professional Systems

If you or someone you know needs to lose a lot of weight, you may find Weight Watchers just as successful as those more expensive clinical programs.  US News and World Report says group-based weight loss, like you get with programs like Weight Watchers, produce just as much weight loss as those run by professionals.

A Tomato A Day May Help Keep the Cardiologist And Neurologist Away

To prevent a stroke – eat a tomato.  A new study suggests the lycopene in tomatoes acts as an antioxidant, reduces inflammation and prevents blood clots.  They say it cuts stroke risk by as much as 55-percent.

Technology Makes Your Medical Records More Mobile

Take two aspirin and text me in the morning.  With healthcare providers mandated to move to electronic medical records, there have been growing concerns among patients that their confidentiality will be compromised.  The answer to that:  More technology.  A company called Imprivata is working with hospitals that makes healthcare workers swipe an ID badge, or use a fingerprint to gain access to records – which should help doctors forward patient information to others when they have to send them away, like to a specialist.  About 60 hospitals have beta-tested the program, called “Cortext”.

Meningitis Outbreak Small But Still Dangerous

The meningitis outbreak that has killed eight people and sickened 105 others nationwide is NOT contagious like the viral or bacterial forms, but there still may be as many as 13,000 people exposed.  The Centers For Disease Control says they don’t expect that many people to get sick, but they’re also trying to be realistic about the potential impact.  That outbreak started with a contaminated steroid that some people take for back pain.

Regions Differ regarding Angioplasty

The doctors say you’ve had a heart attack and there’s some blockage.  The question now is do you have a stent put in?  That may depend on where you live.  Dr. Karen Joynt says her study found public reporting has a big impact on angioplasty procedures, “Public reporting probably does have some effect on how physicians and hospitals select patients to receive these procedures, that in states with public reporting patients are slightly less likely to receive these procedures if they’re having a heart attack.” More in the latest Journal of the American Medical Association.

Features

It's A Girl

You've heard of China's one-child policy. Well, The United Nations estimates that as many as 200 million girls are missing in the world today because of so-called "gendercide." That is, children are killed, aborted, or abandoned, simply because they are girls. Evan Grae Davis is doing something about it as the Director of a new film called "It's A Girl." He spoke with FLR's Steve Tanner about the film and the issue of gendercide.

The film is screening next week in Tucson with more screenings coming all across Family Life Nation, including perhaps, your church or theater. Davis hopes the exposure of the issue through this film will motivate people of faith all around the world to work to eradicate the horrific practice of gendercide.

Find out more about the issue of gendercide, this film, and your opportunity to see it at itsagirlmovie.com. And hear Steve's complete interview with Director Evan Grae Davis via the link at right.

How Much Impact Does Your Faith Have On Your Vote?

It’s the economy.  No, it’s social justice.  No, it’s the sanctity of life.  There is no shortage of opinion as to the top issues this election.  Earlier this year, the Barna Group did some research on those issues – and how much of a role faith plays in it.  Over the course of the next couple of weeks, we’ll look into the specifics of that survey with David Kinnaman of the Barna Group, who tells us they break people down into 5 faith segments: Evangelical Christians, Non-Evangelical Christians, Notional (or cultural) Christians, Non-Christians, and Skeptics (atheists and agnostics). Stay with us over the next several days as we delve deeper into that study from the Barna Group. And you can hear Dennis Hutchinson’s entire interview with David Kinnaman, president of Barna Research, by clicking the link to your right, on this page.