Congress Has Held Up 170 Super-Easy Confirmations for No Reason

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Making the rounds Friday was Norm Ornstein's updated essay on the horrors of our slow-moving Congress, which still — still! — cannot strike a deal on the impending fiscal cliff.

By J.K. Trotter

Dec 27, 2012

58% Want to Make it Harder to Buy a Gun

A double-digit jump from last year, when just 44 percent answered likewise, and the highest percentage recorded by Gallup since 2004.

Comments | 2,393 Views

By J.K. Trotter

Dec 26, 2012

Fastest Bullet Train Could Do DC-to-NY in 72 Minutes

China now has the fastest, longest bullet train in the world. Why don't we?

Comments | 2,767 Views

By J.K. Trotter

Dec 21, 2012

The Human Cost of Each Gun is $644

That covers the "work lost, medical care, insurance, criminal-justice expenses and pain and suffering" associated with gun violence, and might be one to think on over the holidays as the post-Newtown gun debate rages on.

Comments | 2,931 Views

By J.K. Trotter

Dec 20, 2012

4,082 Totally Preventable Medical Disasters Occur Each Year

A new study being passed around cites cites significant errors — sewing a sponge into a chest cavity, say, or operating on the wrong patient — but before you freak out, understand the context.

Comments | 1,724 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Dec 19, 2012

62% of Americans Now Support a Ban on Semi-Automatic Assault Rifles and Clips

Obama was right. On the same day the president said at a press conference that a "majority of Americans support banning the sale of military-style assault weapons" and "high-capacity ammunition clips" a new CNN/ORC International poll finds just that.

Comments | 1,552 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Dec 17, 2012

54% of Americans Want Stricter Gun Laws

The latest ABC News-Washington Post poll finds a five-year high in Americans who want stricter gun laws. But how high is that, really?

Comments | 1,690 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Dec 14, 2012

There Are 88.8 Guns per 100 People in This Country

That's the highest gun-ownership rate in the world.

Comments | 7,074 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Dec 13, 2012

Only 2% of Americans Think the Mayan Apocalypse Is Coming

Though Russians are panicking about the upcoming doomsday and Gail Collins is writing her column about zombies, it's important to note this new survey from the Public Religion Research Institute and the Religion News Service.

Comments | 2,059 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Dec 12, 2012

Office Workers Lose Focus Every Three Minutes

If you're reading this blog post at work, it probably means you're distracted. Don't worry. You're not alone.

Comments | 4,759 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Dec 10, 2012

76% of Americans Want Christmas to Be More About Jesus Than Santa

In a poll made for Fox Nation and the ongoing War on Christmas, a survey has found a majority of Americans want Christmas to be less about the man in the Coca-Cola ads and more about the one with the birthday.

Comments | 1,035 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Dec 7, 2012

75% of NFL Players Own Guns, NFL Players Say

As the NFL wrestles with the murder-suicide involving the Kansas City Chiefs' Jovan Belcher, an informal new survey claims that gun ownership in the NFL vastly outnumbers that in the general population.

Comments | 1,745 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Dec 6, 2012

48% of L.A. Crashes Are Hit-and-Runs

That's the eye-popping stat in a new LA Weekly investigation, which takes a look at the hit-and-run epidemic and its repercussions.

Comments | 2,541 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Dec 5, 2012

One Third of U.S. Doctors and Lawyers Are Now Women

It's not equal yet, but it's a start. Except for the whole salary thing.

Comments | 1,698 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Dec 4, 2012

32% of Young People Use Social Media in the Bathroom

Not that we're sure what that means, really.

Comments | 1,996 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Nov 30, 2012

90% of Companies Will Throw Holiday Parties This Year

A sign of good times? The Wall Street Journal reports that 90 percent of 105 companies surveyed by the firm Battalia Winston will throw parties this holiday season.

Comments | 1,427 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Nov 28, 2012

No Person Got Shot, Stabbed, Slashed, or Murdered in NYC Monday

It may be a small — or, rather, nonexistent — number, but it's a heartening statistic: there were no shootings, stabbings, slashings, or murders in New York City between around 10:30 p.m. Sunday night and 11:20 a.m. Tuesday morning, the NYPD said.

Comments | 6,398 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Nov 26, 2012

Bounce Houses Injure a Child in the US Every 46 Minutes

The latest in childhood-party research seems to indicate that those inflatable moments of joy — apparently more popular than ever — now point to serious moments of injury.

Comments | 1,807 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Nov 21, 2012

Number of Potential Future Lawyers of America Drops to 13-Year Low

The number of LSAT tests administered dropped from 45,169 last October to 37,780 this October—a decline of 16.4 percent, ad the lowest since 1999.

Comments | 1,708 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Nov 20, 2012

California Drivers are Twice as Likely to be High Than Drunk

Drunk drivers are not the biggest problem on California's roads according to a new survey from the  California Office of Traffic Safety.

Comments | 3,557 Views

By Jake Adelstein

Nov 19, 2012

When the Yakuza Come Calling, One in Five Japanese Companies Admit to Paying Them Off

Roughly one in five Japanese companies shaken down by the yakuza ended up paying them off, according to a study released by Japan’s National Police Agency.

Comments | 3,883 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Nov 16, 2012

More Than 200 Million Gallons of New Jersey Sewage Is Pouring into New York Harbor Every Day

We think we may have found the award for the grossest repercussion that Hurricane Sandy has left behind: the damaged New Jersey plant dumping hundreds of millions of gallons of partially-treated human waste water into the New York Harbor.

Comments | 2,023 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Nov 13, 2012

Save Up Your Bubbly: The Champagne Harvest Was Down 40%

Some depressing news out of France as the holiday season approaches: this year's champagne harvest was down 40 percent this year as terrible weather including hailstorms, and fungus attacked vineyards.

Comments | 952 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Nov 7, 2012

One in Five U.S. Senators Will Be Women Next Term

Obama may have won the female vote in last night's election, but there will also now be a record number of women serving in the Senate next January when one in five members of the upper chamber will be female.

Comments | 4,046 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Nov 6, 2012

Each Ohio Voter Has a 1 in a Million Chance of Deciding the Election

The importance of Ohio to this presidential race has been repeated again and again as Election Day approached, but as voters go to the polls, how important is just one vote in the state?

Comments | 1,802 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Nov 5, 2012

Dewatering SWAT Team Has Been Pumping Out More Than an Olympic-Size Pool Per Minute

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said yesterday that its dewatering task force removed more than an Olympic-size swimming pool's worth of water per minute from New York's flooded mass transit tunnels.

Comments | 1,552 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Nov 2, 2012

The New York Marathon's Generators Could Power 400 Homes in Staten Island (But They Won't)

Those nifty generators are instead being used for the not-so-dire task of lighting up a media tent 24/7 and that's what has people so angry this morning. 

Comments | 16,963 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Oct 31, 2012

Late-Night TV Monologues Have Joked About Romney Twice as Often as Obama

Maybe this is why Romney is so reluctant to go on late night shows: he's been joked about more than twice as much as the president has.

Comments | 1,207 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Oct 26, 2012

It Would Take 80 Days to Watch All of the Campaign Ads Aired in Ohio Last Month

With Ohio now the make it or break it state in the presidential race, its citizens are being inundated with propaganda: in fact, Julie Bykowicz of Bloomberg News reports that watching all of the presidential advertisements that aired in Ohio in the past month would take 80 days nonstop.

Comments | 445 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Oct 24, 2012

Obama Will Travel 5,300 Miles Today

No rest for the campaign weary: Obama is traveling about 5,300 miles today with attempts to win over voters in Iowa, Colorado, a stop in California to talk to Jay Leno, then a stop in Las Vegas before an overnight trip to Florida. 

Comments | 896 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Oct 19, 2012

More New Yorkers Want Anthony Weiner to Run for Mayor Than Alec Baldwin

More New York City voters would rather see Eliot Spitzer, driven from the governor's mansion over a prostitution scandal, and, Anthony Weiner, driven from Congress by sending gross pictures on Twitter, enter next year's crowded mayoral race, than see Alec Baldwin, hilarious star of 30 Rock and Words With Friends plane outbursts jump into politics.  

Comments | 2,067 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Oct 16, 2012

An Hour's Pay at Minimum Wage Can't Buy Two Gallons of Gas

Gas prices are so high and the federal minimum wage is so low that working for one hour at the federal rate can't buy two gallons of gas at the nationwide average price.

Comments | 2,294 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Oct 11, 2012

Naked Prince Harry Was a $23 Million Publicity Boon for Las Vegas

Even though what happened in Vegas didn't stay there, Prince Harry's nude photo incident did some good for the city.

Comments | 560 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Oct 9, 2012

The Actor Who Created Big Bird Makes About $314,000 a Year

Even Big Bird has to make some money. The Sesame Workshop's 990 form for the 2010 tax year reveals that Caroll Spinney, the man behind the newsworthy avian creature and other Muppets, including Oscar the Grouch, made $314,072.

Comments | 20,433 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Oct 5, 2012

FMK James Bond, by the Numbers

Fifty years ago today the first James Bond film, Dr. No, had its world premiere, so, in honor of 007, let's play a game of FMK.

Comments | 804 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Oct 4, 2012

Romney Spoke Four Minutes Less, but Got in 541 More Words

We've noted the Barack Obama's "intellectual stammer" before, but just how much did it slow him down last night? Well, despite talking four minutes less than Obama, Mitt Romney was able to speak 541 more words. 

Comments | 3,007 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Oct 3, 2012

By Esther Zuckerman

Oct 2, 2012

7% of Americans Think Lee Harvey Oswald Shot Lincoln

Okay, America, it's time for a history lesson. Who shot Abraham Lincoln?

Comments | 11,898 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Oct 1, 2012

There Are Really More Like 21 Million Adult Cod in the North Sea

Last month we wrote about a shocking stat reported in some British newspapers: there are just 100 adult cod left in the North Sea. But the BBC News Magazine reports on just how wrong that information was. The number is more like 21 million. 

Comments | 690 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Sep 27, 2012

A Fifth of All Households Are Paying Off Student Loans

The financial burden of rising tuition costs is hitting more households in this country than ever before.

Comments | 1,379 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Sep 26, 2012

Female Editors-in-Chief Make $15,000 Less Than Men

The only thing equal is the job title. Even though there are stories of editors like Anna Wintour and Janice Min pocketing seven-figure salaries, Folio magazine's annual compensation survey found that on average, male editors-in-chief made about $15,000 more than their female counterparts last year. 

Comments | 7,414 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Sep 25, 2012

About 25 Percent of Adult Children Live at Home with Their Folks

While adult children moving in with their parents used to be quirky enough to serve as a movie premise (like in Jeff, Who Lives at Home or that one starring Matthew McConaughey), it's pretty common these days: about 25 percent of Americans between 18 and 30 are living with parents. 

Comments | 2,982 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Sep 24, 2012

Doctors Perform Surgery on the Wrong Body Part About 40 Times a Week

Well, this makes us never want to go under the knife for any reason whatsoever.

Comments | 3,478 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Sep 20, 2012

Saying 'S**t' 14 Times Is Nowhere Near Comedy Central's Profanity Limit

During his epic rant about Fox News titled "Chaos "Bulls**t Mountain," Jon Stewart used the words bulls**t or s**t 14 times, which got us wondering, just what is Comedy Central's limit on profanity for the Daily Show?

Comments | 995 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Sep 18, 2012

College Students Can Make More Money Studying Mining Than Going to Harvard

Harvard may have the fancy name, but people who go to the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology made more money after graduation this year, with a median starting salary of $56,700 compared to the Cantab median of $54,100.

Comments | 8,255 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Sep 17, 2012

There Are Just 100 Fully Grown Cod Left in the North Sea

Maybe call off that order of fish and chips: only about 100 adult cod are left in the North Sea according to recent estimates by marine biologists.

Comments | 6,380 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Sep 13, 2012

Anna Wintour Is Obama's Fourth-Biggest Fundraising Bundler

Anna Wintour must like her fund-raising like she likes her magazine: big. While her September issue of Vogue had 916 pages, her fundraising efforts yielded $2,682,001for Barack Obama in 2011 and 2012.

Comments | 2,376 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Sep 12, 2012

30 Cents of Every Dollar Spent on Health Care is Wasted

With health care at stake in the presidential race, a new study finds just how much money in the country's medical system gets wasted: for every dollar spent, 30 cents.

Comments | 2,826 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Sep 11, 2012

800,000 Americans Could Have Avoided Foreclosure

A new study finds that an alarming number of homeowners — 800,000 — would not have faced foreclosure had the banks taken full advantage of the government's Home Affordable Modification Program to assist distressed mortgage-holders following the financial meltdown.

Comments | 3,887 Views

By Esther Zuckerman

Sep 10, 2012

Florida Found Just One Illegally Registered Voter in Its Voter Crackdown

Florida's hunt to find non-citizens registered as voters has turned up one Canadian — probably not what Governor Rick Scott was expecting. 

Comments | 3,915 Views

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