All Society
Dumb Starbucks: Funny, yes. But is it legal?Dumb Starbucks made a smash debut in Los Angeles over the weekend, until it was shut down by the county health department for its undocumented (permit) status. A tangle of legal issues persists.
Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg is 2013's top philanthropist. Youngest, too.Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, gave 18 million shares of Facebook stock to their Silicon Valley Community Foundation. The top 50 donors last year gave $7.7 billion, up about 4 percent from 2012.
The Beatles: 50 years after 'Ed Sullivan,' they're everywhere, in everythingFifty years after their iconic performance on 'The Ed Sullivan Show,' the legacy of the Beatles lives on in iPods, music classes, and throughout pop music.
How religion in the US today tracks closely with geographyA bare majority of Americans still call themselves Protestant as other religions gain ground. But the millennial generation is more likely to reject any formal religion, and this could have political import.
Jay Leno exits. Jimmy Fallon succeeds, or not. Late-night lives on.The late-night landscape is fragmented. Hosts rise and fall. But late-night programming has a solid niche in popular culture. Millions tuned in to watch Jay Leno's farewell to 'The Tonight Show' this week.
Pat Robertson rejects 'young earth' creationism. 'Nonsense,' he says.'Science Guy' Bill Nye debated creationist Ken Ham this week. Now, televangelist Pat Robertson says he disagrees with the biblically literalist view of Earth created in six days 6,000 years ago.
Philip Seymour Hoffman death: A cautionary tale about branded heroin?It's fashionable to tag heroin with trendy names, such as 'Ace of Spades' 鈥� the brand reportedly found in Philip Seymour Hoffman's home. But the labels mean nothing, experts warn, and heroin can be cut with anything, including deadly substances.
Flash! Fox News is the most trusted network ... and the least trustedAmericans rank Fox News as No. 1 most trusted television news network, a new poll finds. But a similar percentage ranks Fox at the bottom. Why? Republicans like Fox. Democrats don't.
New York lawmakers bite hard on Bitcoin: why that's good for investorsIn two days of hearings, New York regulators sought to learn the fundamentals of the Bitcoin system. Experts say regulation would bestow legitimacy on the virtual currency.
Pete Seeger: in the words of other musicians who knew himPete Seeger, who died Monday, recorded 100 albums and is widely credited as a mentor to many in the folk tradition. Here are reflections from others in the music world.
MLK Day of Service: Carrying his legacy forward by doing for othersAmericans all over the country are honoring the memory of Martin Luther King, Jr. by giving back to their community and taking part in the national MLK Day of Service.
Saving horses from slaughterA new law bans the slaughter of horses for human consumption in the US. Animal rights advocates are pushing a law that would prevent the export of horses for slaughter.
Smoking reports from surgeon general: What will it take to fully snuff it out?Fifty years after the surgeon general's first report on the subject, smoking is still identified as the leading preventable cause of death in the US.聽What role will public policy play in the next 50 years?
Homeless in South 'ran for their lives' as polar vortex bit hardThe polar vortex that froze water in all 50 states raised special concerns in the usually mild South. A quick civic response 鈥� extra patrols, warming centers, expanded hours at homeless shelters 鈥� helped reduce fatalities among the region's homeless population.
Duck Dynasty guns? Yep, but will new product line actually revive hunting?Duck Dynasty guns, a new line of Mossberg shotguns and rifles, is the latest offering from Phil Robertson and his bayou-based clan. Some see early evidence that the 'Duck Dynasty' craze may help boost hunting, at a time when ducks and geese are relatively plentiful.- Chicago murders drop in 2013. Good police work, or something else?Chicago police credit new techniques targeting gangs and violence-prone neighborhoods with the sharp drop in homicides, but analysts say changes in gang disputes may be a big factor.
Father of slain girl forgives Colorado shooter. Is that helpful?Michael Davis said Wednesday that he and his wife have forgiven Arapahoe High student Karl Pierson for fatally shooting their daughter Claire. Not all who suffer such a loss choose to walk the forgiveness path, but here's why some do.- Percentage of Republicans who believe in evolution is shrinkingA Pew study finds that the percentage of Republicans who believe that Darwin's theory of evolution is correct has dropped 11 percent in about five years. That is suggestive of the country's broader polarization, the authors say.聽
Wordpocalypse! 'Selfie,' 'twerk' top list of most annoying words of 2013.Seen one too many 'selfies' of the Kardashians or still recovering from Miley Cyrus's 'twerk'-fest at the MTV Video Music Awards? You are not alone.
'Duck Dynasty' star told men to marry 15-year-old girls. Is that even legal?Phil Robertson of 'Duck Dynasty' has a new controversy: A video has surfaced in which he counsels men to marry young teen brides. While that's legal, it's not necessarily sage advice, data show.
