Victim's Daughter Shares Story at Domestic Violence Conference
from The Pantagraph
Morgan Hartrich's mother died in her arms in April 2002 after she was beaten by her boyfriend. Hartrich, 29, of Normal, Ill., hoped her mother's story would inspire at least one woman to get out of an abusive relationship. Hartrich spoke during a day-long domestic violence conference at Illinois Wesleyan University. "It's Time to Talk Day" was sponsored by the Corporate Alliance to End Partner Violence and 29 other local organizations. More

Rally at the State Capitol
from NASW IL
Next year's budget shortfall is going to be even larger. As lawmakers return to Springfield, they need to find a real solution to this crisis – one that protects our families from harmful cuts one and for all. More

Nobel Prize for Participation? Chicago Parents Know Trend
from the Daily Herald
As a fellow soccer dad, Barack Obama shouldn't have been surprised when he won this year's Nobel Peace Prize, said Chuck Goudie, a Daily Herald columnist. The Nobel Committee has merely started using the same criteria for the peace prize as our children have come to expect for winning "awards" in their lives. Just show up. More

Telltale Symptoms of Alcohol Abuse
from Chicago Tribune
This questionnaire by the National Institutes of Health is designed to identify symptoms of alcohol abuse and dependence. Answering yes to even one question may indicate someone is abusing alcohol, according to NIH, and three or more positive answers can suggest alcohol dependence or alcoholism, depending upon the severity of symptoms. More

Neurology Docs: Treatments Improve ALS Patients' Lives
from Chicago Sun-Times
There's no cure for ALS, the progressive muscle-weakening condition also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. Most people who have it die within five years. Just 10 percent live 10 years or longer. But there are treatments that have proven effective in slowing the progression of the disease and managing its symptoms, and doctors should look to those more, according to new guidelines from the American Academy of Neurology. More

Babies Born to Childhood Cancer Survivors Do Well
from The New York Times
Cancer treatments can compromise fertility, but new research suggests that when survivors of childhood cancer are able to have children, their babies do not face an increased risk of birth defects. Women who survived childhood cancer were more likely to have premature or low birth weight babies compared with women who had never had cancer, one study found. But the survivors’ newborns were no more likely to have malformations or die, nor were the mothers at greater risk for pregnancy complications over all. More

Behind the 'Wimpy Kid' Phenomenon
from The New York Times
This is a big week for the grade-school set. Greg Heffley, the crude and clueless protagonist of Jeff Kinney's wildly popular book series, "Diary of a Wimpy Kid," is back. Like the first three books in the series, "Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days," chronicles the misadventures of Greg and his best friend, Rowley, two middle-school students who try to navigate adolescence, home life and the social pecking order at school, all by putting forth as little effort as possible. More

Date Nights Benefit Couples' Relationships
from Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
When jobs, kids, activities, housework and all the pressures of life compete for time and energy, what married people actually have time to date each other? Finding and committing to time for date nights -- whether by going out one-on-one, or having private, quality time at home -- might be a challenge, but people who value their marriage better do it, experts say. Stephen Brunetti -- a licensed clinical social worker -- says that when couples fail to date each other, they drift apart emotionally and are vulnerable to affairs. More

Black Male Dropouts Lead Nation in Incarceration
from Reuters
On any given day, nearly 23 percent of all young Black men ages 16 to 24 who have dropped out of high school are in jail, prison, or a juvenile justice institution in America, according to a disturbing new national report released on the dire economic and social consequences of not graduating from high school. More