Soaring defense spending
U.S. defense spending soared from $287 billion in 2001 to more than $700 billion in 2010 and 2011, including the supplemental costs for Iraq and Afghanistan. The U.S. currently spends $250 billion more on the military each year than it does on Medicare.
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Rubio water bottles
Sen. Marco Rubio was the subject of mockery after he reached for a water bottle during his response to the State of the Union last week, but his PAC has raised more than $100,000 by selling customized Rubio water bottles to contributors for a minimum of $25 each. “Send the liberal detractors a message that not only does Marco Rubio inspire you, he hydrates you too,” said the fundraising pitch.
ABCNews.com
Carbon emissions fall
U.S. carbon emissions have fallen to 13 percent below 2005 levels. The increased use of natural gas instead of coal accounts for 38 percent of that decline, while the growing use of wind power has contributed 27 percent of the carbon savings, a new study has found.
The Washington Post
A groundbreaking sex survey
A groundbreaking survey of more than 200,000 Americans has found that 3.5 percent of the population identifies as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender.
Gallup
Paul Broun's mythmaking
U.S. Rep. Paul Broun (R-Ga.) said last week that “there are more people killed by baseball bats and hammers than are killed with guns.” This is a myth. In 2011, FBI data shows, 8,583 people were murdered with firearms. Only 496 people were killed with baseball bats, hammers, and other objects.
Slate.com
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'Actual poop' – the messy ending of 'And Just Like That...'Talking Point Reviewers slam 'unfunny and hateful' finale to 'Sex and the City' reboot
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'Animal Farm' at 80: Orwell's parable remains 'horribly' relevantTalking Point George Orwell's warnings about authoritarianism and manipulation have been weaponised across the political spectrum
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Will Ukraine trade territory for peace?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION Kyiv’s defences are wearing thin but a land swap is constitutionally impossible and crosses Zelenskyy's red lines
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Very rich and very poor in California, and morefeature California is home to 111 billionaires, yet it also suffers the highest poverty rate in the country.
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Arctic cold kills tree insects, and more
feature This winter’s arctic temperatures have had at least one beneficial impact: They’ve killed ash borers, gypsy moths, and other tree-eating insects.
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Congress's poor record, and more
feature The 113th Congress is on course to pass less legislation than any Congress in history.
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Gender differences in employment, and more
feature
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A first for West Point, and more
feature For the first time, two male graduates of West Point were married at the military academy’s chapel.
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A God given land?, and more
feature More white evangelical Protestants than U.S Jews believe that Israel was “given to the Jewish people by God.”
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Jailing the mentally ill, and more
feature American prisons have replaced state mental hospitals as a place to warehouse the mentally ill.
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Treating Internet addiction, and more
feature Treating Internet addiction; Freshman virgins at Harvard; A salary handicap for lefties; Prices for vintage automobiles soar; Gun permits for blind people