All Global News on One Page

Rising income and wealth inequality has eroded economic opportunity in America. The potential of education to overcome adversity and our collective belief in a fluid social structure continue to be hailed as evidence that everyone has access to a path out of poverty. Yet recent research findings make clear that our faith in the American Dream stands on very shaky ground. Indeed, it seems that our education system may be compounding, rather than countering, the disadvantages faced by millions of low-income

We bow to the over-the-top fizzy silliness that is Oscar night by offering up not one but nine menus — one for each Best Picture nominee — for whatever festivities you have planned. Cherry-pick from the menus and simply serve whatever sounds good to you, or show loyalty to your pick for Best Picture by serving its respective menu. The recipes we’ve selected are meant to capture the mood of the films they represent rather than the exact foods eaten in the movie, but surely there are things we’ve left out. Tell us what you think and what you’ve got planned for the big night in the comments!
Cheers and Happy Red Carpet!
‘The Artist’
1 of 10
FIRST SLIDE
PREVIOUS SLIDE
NEXT SLIDESHOW
This homage to Hollywood’s Golden Age calls for some equally classic

Is New Jersey Governor Chris Christie to reverse course, offer himself for the GOP Presidential nomination? Some heavy-money Republicans want him to and are not bashful about saying so, at least in private. It’s a sure-fire signal that many party leaders feel their nominating process has become a circus.
Now the odds against Christie jumping into the race are as long as the line to get on the Jeremy Lin bandwagon, but the fact that anyone is seriously talking about it now is all about one emotion: desperation. Their reasoning: Romney has proved to be a weaker candidate and more vulnerable than expected, Santorum they consider to be un-electable, and Gingrich — whom they neither like nor trust — is seen as barely breathing as a

Recent astonishing debates about the responsibility of the President of the United States Barack Obama — on the recent increase of the price of a gallon at or above 4 dollars — seem to ignite some presidential candidates. It is simply not true.
The price of a gallon at the pump is fixed by the oil companies. They collectively have the responsibility for this type of oil product that they refine and distribute. The increase in one week between 15 and 25 cents to the gallon came as a shock to the

by guest blogger Maya Rodale,writer of historicaltales of true love and adventure
It’s relatively easy to eat organically at home when one has access to farmers markets, supermarkets, gardens and a kitchen. Eating organically when traveling is hard and for better or for worse, it often requires packing your own snacks. Frankly, given the airplane food these days, I’d bring my own lunch whether it’s organic or not. Being a devotee of organic food, a picky eater and a grouchy bear if I’m not fed, I’ve developed some travel snacking strategies that keep me healthy and happy on the road.
“Just add water” snacks: It’s fairly easy (and free!) to score a cup of hot water from an airport restaurant or a flight

You know that feeling when a comedy has just elicited an unexpected howl of laughter from you? The kind that has you momentarily breathless from the sheer pleasurable violence of it?
Well, that’s not something you’ll experience while watching David Wain’s Wanderlust, a movie that really wants to make you laugh but very seldom succeeds. At its best, it is funny in a smile-and-nod-appreciatively kind of way. It is only rarely laugh-out-loud funny.
The comic mindset of writer-director Wain and his collaborator, Ken Marino, could be considered a concentric circle with that of Judd Apatow, who was a producer on this film. But the Wain-Marino playbook is a mix of crudely embarrassing moments and scenes of outrageous, if not necessarily inspired, silliness.
Paul Rudd and Jennifer Aniston play George and Linda, who decide to escape from New York when he loses his job after they’ve sunk everything into a West Village studio apartment (“A micro-loft,” corrects the wonderfully dry Linda Lavin, as their

Conjure up an image when you hear “the South of France” and it’s likely to include high-end boutique hotels, cafes and exquisite beaches where the rich and famous come out to play. Those things exist in the southern part of France, sure, but that’s not all of what you’ll find there. In fact, partly because of those cliches, there’s quite a bit most people don’t know about the South of France.
With beautiful natural surroundings, pleasant weather, delicious cuisine and plenty of lesser-known towns that offer a slower pace of life than their jet-set neighbors, it’s easy to see why the South of France is appealing — but keep reading to find out how it can be surprising, too.
Here are 7 “secrets” about the South of France.
Ready to go? Book your flights to France, look for hotels in France, learn about wine tasting in France, and find out 10 reasons why you should visit France now.
1 – The South of France Is Not About Glamour
1 of 8
FIRST SLIDE
PREVIOUS SLIDE
NEXT SLIDESHOW
Sure, there is the James Bond-worthy casinos at Monte Carlo, the mega-yachts of St. Tropez and the star-studded Cannes Film

Whenever I went on family trips as a child, we stayed in chain hotels. My relatives chose big-name accommodations because the standard was reliable. Unfortunately, the “safe choice” tends to be the boring one. I remember these rooms as a single beige

Whether you’re on a ski trip, a cruise, at the beach or filming your kid’s baseball game, there is one prominent button on your video camera that you’re going to want to press and should avoid: the zoom control. Avoid it like the plague.
“But I need to get in real close,” you say? Yes, except no one can hold the camera steady when zoomed in tight on those surfers ripping it out in the waves. Your viewers will become as seasick as I got whenever I tried surfing.
Look at a video you previously shot, or record a new one as a test. You’ll

With so many incredible historic locations and delicious places to dine on vegan, gluten free and overall healthy food, I just had to return for a second post. Whether you’re checkin’ out the famed Beale Street or walking through the legendary Sun Studio, there is so much tasty food in and around the music city on the Mississippi River that you gotta make time for some awesome eatin’!
If you are looking for a unique and memorable Memphis and delta area adventure, you may want to look into American Dream Safari Tours. Customized tours of Memphis and surrounding areas, curated and chauffeured by the one and only Tad Pierson. One of the coolest cats you’ll ever meet, Tad drives you around in style, in a pink ’55

It is human nature to test the limits and with the close of the Winter X Games last month and the start of the Iditarod next month, Cheapflights’ experts have compiled a list of the most extreme sporting events in honor of the thrill-seeking, adrenaline-pumping daredevils who push the limits every day.
– Meagan Delury
Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Anchorage to Nome, Alaska
1 of 11
FIRST SLIDE
PREVIOUS SLIDE
NEXT SLIDESHOW
Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Anchorage to Nome, Alaska | March 3
The Last Great Race on Earth, the Iditarod Trail started out as a supply route. In 1925, when diphtheria broke out in Nome, 20 mushers and 150 dogs rushed to deliver the antiserum from Anchorage. Every year since 1973, mushers from all over the world and their teams of 12-16 dogs prepare for 1,150 miles of snowy tundra, impenetrable forest and rocky terrain. If thats not enticing enough, this years event starts March 3rd, when the temperatures are below freezing and daylight hours are still

In our romanticized and admittedly naive fantasy about life as a movie star, nothing is as unquestionably glamorous as traveling around the world on location. But considering that central casting hasn’t yet discovered us, we’ll make do by traveling in the footsteps of the best picture nominees for the 84th Academy Awards, airing this Sunday.
From sipping soda at the Jackson, Mississippi caf visited by Hilly Holbrook (Bryce Dallas Howard) and her friends in The Help to charging an ATV through the Kauai ranch owned by Matt King (George Clooney) in The Descendants, our transporting list of film locations puts you in the center of the action.
Due to a change in voting rules this year, the Academy nominated only nine films instead of the usual 10, so we conclude our list with a roundup of Oscar rejects redeemed only by their gold-statuette-worthy settings. Unsung location scouts, we salute

You may havegotten over themed spots after your tenth birthday party, but they’re actually great for some old-fashioned adult fun. Hotels across the world have fabulously themed bars that run the gamut from classy to trashy. So we’ve shuffled through the clutter to find the top 10 hotel bars that, despite (or because) of being themed, are super cool. Check out one of our favorites, Stables Bar in London below, and the rest of the cool, kitschybars here.
Stables Bar at The Milestone Hotel, London
1 of 6
FIRST SLIDE
PREVIOUS SLIDE
NEXT SLIDESHOW
Why we love it: Located in the luxurious Milestone Hotel — perhaps the most famous boutique hotel in London, Stables Bar embraces an over-the-top horse theme that only Londoners can truly appreciate or

A basic outline for prevention has existed for more than 30 years, but wellness has had a hard time making real headway. Old habits are hard to break. Our society has a magic bullet fixation, waiting for the next miracle drug to cure us of every ill. Doctors receive no economic benefit from pushing prevention over drugs and

Decades ago, when I was reporting a story on New York sex clubs for Playboy, the proprietor of one club showed me a special door that provided Hasidic rebbes a discreet exit when their congregants showed up to be serviced.
I admire that foresight. “Below the belt, all men are brothers,” Henry Miller wrote, but really, it just wouldn’t do for a sect that preaches the kind of chastity for women that the Taliban would approve to have its holy men cavorting with loose women — some surely shiksas — in full view of the members of their sect.
I thought of this hypocrisy when I dropped in at The Corner Bookstore to meet Deborah Feldman, who has just published a memoir of her 23 years in the Satmar sect. In this unlikely venue — the bookstore is on Madison Avenue at 93rd Street, a chip shot from New York’s posh private schools and apartments that sell for eight figures — the writer and her friends were bracing for trouble, for Feldman is about as popular in her former community as Eichmann. She gets hate mail: “R U ready to CROKE?” There’s a web site called Exposing Deborah Feldman as a

Awareness, Attitude and Action.
Many of us know that much of what happens to us, intellectually speaking, is dictated by our level of awareness, our attitude and actions. However, only when we become more conscious of how these attributes affect others and us do we make an effort to improve them. These three components are tantamount to who we are or how others experience

I’ve always been fascinated by attempts to document personality types. Part of that fascination surely stems from the fact that in another life, I’d be a psychotherapist. And part of it is that as I go about the networking process that is part and parcel of looking for a job, I’m coming into contact with all sorts of personality types along the way.
If you pay someone to advise you on changing careers these days, the very first thing they’ll likely do is administer a personality test to see what career paths you’re suited to. Personality tests are also increasingly part of the recruitment and promotions process at top firms.
I’ve had my own brush with them along the way, recounted in this post about how — for better or for worse — my own essential personality “type” doesn’t seem to have changed much over the

Psst. Hey, Senator! Just wanted to say thanks for all the free publicity! It’s getting even better now that your pal – what’s her name, the Half-Governor? – is talking about me too. You know what they say: It’s not bad press if they spell your name right!
But listen – and I really shouldn’t do this – I’m not sure you realize where you’re headed. Put it this way: When the lead singer from Megadeth says he’ll vote for you, take it as a

In the past two decades, the American religious Right has become increasingly Catholic. I mean that both literally and metaphorically. Literally, Catholic writers have emerged as intellectual leaders of the religious right in universities, the punditocracy, the press, and the courts, promoting an agenda that at its most theoretical involves a reclamation of the natural law tradition of Thomas Aquinas and at its most practical involves appeals to the kind of common-sense, “everybody knows,” or “it just is” arguments that have characterized opposition to same-sex marriage. There is nothing new about Catholic conservative intellectuals – think John Neuhaus, William

During this Black History Month, Haitian-American philanthropist and businessman, Fabrice J. Armand is focusing his time and energy on planning his 30th birthday. Unlike most of his peers who typically celebrate such a milestone by throwing a fabulous fete, Fabrice has committed himself to an unselfish purpose. Inspired by famous columnist, Liz Smith, who uses her annual birthday bash to bring attention to philanthropy, Fabrice will use his March 3rd celebration for his 2nd Annual Haiti Cherie:

Finally, after what felt like 75 weeks of auditions, “American Idol” has revealed its Top 24. Though none of them really struck me as breakout stars, all fall somewhere between competent and impressive, although I’m still not feeling particularly invested in seeing any of them become the latest in a long line of failed moderately successful recording artists. Maybe Heejun Han, just for being so hilarious.
After last night’s ponderous reveals, the final 10 contestants in the Top 24 were:
Adam Brock — Though Wednesday’s episode attempted to squeeze out a little dramatic tension by leaving Adam’s fate on a “cliffhanger,” there was no way that the soulful crooner wasn’t making it through to the live

A Conversation With Amy Ray
Mike Ragogna: Amy Ray, we are very happy to have you here, thanks for your time.
Amy Ray: Happy to be here!
MR: Lung Of Love?
AR: Yeah?
MR: What’s behind that title and song?
AR: The title I got from the song that’s on the record Lung Of Love. It encompassed the song for me because it refers to my voice and our ability to be in the world and express ourselves through song or through breathing or through whatever you do and what keeps you alive as well as what hinders you. Your physicality is this great thing, but it is also the thing that makes you clumsy and limits you in the world, so to speak. That song was about that, and then I thought that would be a cool album title that reflects some of the other songs as well, or reflects the human condition, for me

There is a disturbing new trend involving youth that is the new “it” thing on YouTube. Pre-teen and teenage kids, mostly girls, are uploading videos of themselves asking the question, “Do you think I’m pretty?” This may seem harmless to those children who are posting these videos, but what they don’t realize is that these videos open the door to a plethora of Internet dangers.
Most youth today live in the land of social media. They use their Smartphone to text, BBM, tweet, connect with friends on Facebook, post pictures on virtual corkboards via Pinterest and let everyone know where they are on Foursquare. Privacy is no longer an issue because they share their entire lives with complete strangers unaware of how dangerous those strangers could become.
The Internet, and now social media, has given sexual predators access to youth, not only around the country, but also

My post last week elicited a number of sharply critical comments from conventional evolutionary thinkers, most notably from my University of Chicago colleague Jerry Coyne on his Why Evolution Is True website. Let me respond and add four additional points.
1. The comments from Jerry Coyne and other orthodox critics on his website showed that they misunderstood my point completely. Apparently, all they could see was an assault on natural selection as a valid