Top Stories
UN Recognizes Palestinian
State Over US Objections
The United Nations yesterday voted overwhelmingly to
recognize a Palestinian state, and unfurled the flag on the floor of the
General Assembly. Even with the U-S
actively fighting against it, the final vote was 138-9 in favor. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called the
vote “unfortunate and counterproductive.”
The first evidence of that came from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu,
who said the move violated past agreements between Israel
and the Palestinians, and that Israel
would act accordingly.
Arizona Girl Taken from Hospital
Police in Phoenix are searching for an 11 year old girl who they say was pulled out of a hospital cancer ward by her mom, with a catheter still in her chest. The girl is identified only as “Emily”. ABC says surveillance shows the two of them walking out around 10:30 last nite.
Fiscal Cliff Talks Include Possibly Doubling Gasoline Taxes
As the talks to try to avoid the fiscal cliff in Washington continue,
don’t be surprised if a hike in the gas tax is part of the solution. The oil and gas industry is asking to have
that taken off the table, but it’s reportedly still part of the negotiations. Right now the tax is 18.3-cents per
gallon. At least one commission is
suggesting adding another 15-cents per gallon on top of that.
No Web for Syria
Let’s hope no news is good news in Syria. A group that monitors Internet connectivity
around the world says all of the Internet and mobile communication has been
shut off in Syria,
which means it’s hard to find out what is going on with the fighting
there. It’s happened before, such as every
time the Syrian government has been preparing a major offensive.
President Bush “41” Hospitalized
Keep former President George H-W Bush in your prayers
today. He’s in a Houston hospital for a lingering cough that
won’t clear up. The good news is doctors
do not believe it is life threatening, and they hope to have him back home this
weekend.
Verizon Tops Wireless Plan User Ratings
How do you really feel about your cell phone plan? Consumer Reports says its readers give
Verizon the highest marks for voice and data quality, as well as for their
customer service. AT-and-T did best in
the 4G wireless category. And if you
thought a long term contract would save you cash? Two-thirds of people in that survey changed
from the long contract to a prepaid plan and saved about 20-dollars per month.
Arizona
in Another Illegal Immigration Debate
A lawsuit has been filed in Arizona against Governor Jan Brewer’s order
to not give driver’s licenses to young immigrants with work permits. That suit was filed on behalf of five young
adults who were brought to Arizona from Mexico
as children. They claim that the move
essentially overrides the federal government’s authority to regulate
immigration.
Church Around the World
Hindu Radicals Attack Pastor in India. Again.
A pastor in India
is recovering after another beating at the hands of Hindu radicals. Samuel Kim was in the hospital recovering
from a previous attack when a mob broke in and almost killed him. They only stopped when they heard hospital
workers coming. Kim had been living and
working in Karnataka
State, and having success
seeing people come to know Christ.
Faith
A Tucson
Church is “Being the
Church”
Are the kids at your church gearing up for the big Christmas
program? That’s one thing a lot of
families use to bring non-believers into church at this time of year. One church in Family Life Nation is going a
different route. Victory
Worship Center
in Tucson is
investing their time and money to adopt an elementary school in their
neighborhood. Pastor Zane Anderson says, “We’re going to paint the entire
campus. We’re doing some major changes in their landscaping, sprinkler system,
demolishing buildings that needed demolishing. There are classrooms that
desperately need new counter tops. They just don’t have the funds, [it’s] probably
going to be a 100 thousand dollar project. Our congregation has raised it.
We’re not a wealthy church. We’re just everyday people that embraced a call to
be the church not just do church.” Pastor Anderson has invited the school’s
administrators and staff to church on Sunday to recognize and appreciate their
efforts. Beyond that, Victory also
sponsors 300 kids from the school to make sure they get nutritious meals on the
weekends, not just at school.
Work
Keep Your Cold at Home
If you have a cold, you may want to rethink that decision to
tough it out and go to work anyway. A
new survey by Staples says three-quarters of us go into work sick, but
one-third worry about being exposed when a co-worker comes in sick. And only 8-percent actually appreciate your
effort. Andy Ernst with the staffing
firm Robert Half has some tips for fighting off the flu at your office. He says
if you feel sick, stay home. And he also encourages managers to promote a work
environment that encourages employees to be smart when it comes to bringing a
cold to work, rather than making them feel like a slacker if they don’t come
in. Andy also says today’s technology may let you do some work from home, and
keep you from infecting everybody else.
And The New Employee’s Got “Personality!”
Really want to know how to nail down that new job? Be fun to be around. A new research paper out of Northwestern
suggests that hiring managers often pick candidates that they have a lot in
common with and who appear to be fun.
Knowledge and qualifications still matter but all things being equal, a
lot of managers say if they’re going to spend a lot of time with somebody –
they’d rather do it with someone they like to be around.
Finances & Economy
Jobs Numbers Slightly Improved
New claims for unemployment are back down under 400-thousand
again, and for a change long-term jobless claims were also down. Still there are more than five million people
out of work and analysts say those weekly numbers have to get under
300-thousand before we start to see any growth in the jobs market.
Health
Fighting Cavities
If Johnny had another cavity at the dentist this time, may
want to add a little vitamin D to the diet.
A new study out of the University
of Washington shows that
when kids have enough vitamin D, their number of cavities is cut in half.
Positive Attitude Key to Health Recoveries
It was Pastor Chuck Swindoll who said “I am convinced life
is 10-percent what happens to me and 90-percent how I react to it.” In other words, attitude matters. Researchers say that’s true when it comes to
bouncing back from health setbacks, especially for seniors. A new study out of Yale shows that seniors
who stay positive, not only about themselves but others, weather stress better
than those who are more negative.
Autism on the Rise
Congress is looking into the rise in autism in America,
as the House Oversight Committee yesterday heard testimony from several
advocacy groups. Michele Murphy is with
the Behavioral Intervention Institute in Ohio,
and says autism is the fastest growing developmental disability in the nation.
She says, “More children will be diagnosed with autism this year than with
AIDS, diabetes and cancer combined. The other thing that I think that is
difficult is that there’s no medical cure for autism at this time. At this
time, the best treatment method is behavior modification through applied
behavior analysis.” www.BehavioralInterventionInstituteOfOhio.com has all you need
to know.
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