Find your officials and legislature, read local ballot measures, litigation news or learn about changes in ballot law. http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
Find the 18 states where citizens can initiate constitutional amendments, the 22 states where citizens can initiate new laws/statutes, the 25 states where citizens can overturn state statutes through veto referendum—and more at:
http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/States

Iceland and three other Scandinavian countries lead the world in gender equality, according to a report released Tuesday by the World Economic Forum. The forum, a nonprofit group based in Switzerland, ranked countries according to how much they had reduced gender disparities based on economic participation, education, health and political empowerment, while attempting to strip out the effects of a country’s overall wealth. Iceland, which has been rocked by a financial crisis, rose from fourth place a year ago to top the list. It was followed by Finland, Norway and Sweden. New Zealand came in fifth. Norway was ranked first last year. The United States fell four spots, to 31st, behind Lithuania and ahead of Namibia. Yemen was ranked the lowest.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/28/business/global/28gender.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8327895.stm

From its northern Arctic islands to the majestic mountains of the Western Cordillera and the windswept tip of Newfoundland, Canada encompasses an area of almost 4 million square miles (10 million square kilometers). It is the largest country in North America but its entire population of approximately 30 million is equivalent to that of California. Most people reside close to the U.S. border and the vast expanse of remaining land forms one of the most extensive wilderness areas in the world. Geographically, Canada is divided into six distinct regions: the Atlantic provinces, the interior lowlands, the Canadian Shield, the great plains, the western mountains and the Arctic archipelago. The largest of these is the Canadian Shield covering almost 50% of Canada’s land mass. It forms a great arc around Hudson Bay and is roughly defined by the Atlantic, the St. Lawrence River, and the waterways that connect Lakes Huron, Superior, Winnipeg and Athabasca as well as the Great Slave and Great Bear Lakes. Much of the Canadian Shield is occupied by boreal forests that provide food and shelter for ducks, geese, numerous species of migratory birds and other woodland creatures. This area, possessing the world’s greatest concentration of lakes and rivers, supported the fur trade on which Canada was built. http://www.great-adventures.com/destinations/canada/history.html

Shaggy dog stories, part 3
These stories have been fairly popular since the 1930s, and reached their height in 1951. Lead-ins are deceptively leisurely; endings are unexpected, sometimes absurd. Shaggy dog stories are about dogs, other quadrupeds, fish, insects, humans.
The Shaggy Dog Story by Eric Partridge

How can you call reality shows “real” when people know they are on camera, and have a script to follow?

Forensic accounting
A science dealing with the application of accounting facts gathered through auditing methods and procedures to resolve legal problems. Forensic accounting is much different from traditional auditing. Forensic accounting is a specialty requiring the integration of investigative, accounting, and auditing skills. The forensic accountant looks at documents and financial and other data in a critical manner in order to draw conclusions and calculate values and to identify irregular patterns and/or suspicious transactions. A forensic accountant does not merely look at the numbers but rather looks behind the numbers. Find other business terms at this glossary: http://www.allbusiness.com/glossaries/forensic-accounting/4951633-1.html

Q. What do George Sand and George Eliot have in common? A. They are pen names of authors. See a list here: http://www.geocities.com/Axiom43/pennames.html

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society Guernsey was occupied by the Germans during the war and when a group of people were caught out after curfew, they came up with a manufactured claim that they were a book club that ran late. So they were forced to begin one to keep the lie current. Soon they added food to their meetings too. The book was begun by an American book editor and bookseller, Mary Ann Shaffer, who found herself fascinated by Channel Island history. After she became ill, and later died, her niece, children's book author Annie Barrows, completed the novel. http://www.bookpage.com/0808bp/fiction/guernsey_literary.html
http://www.reviewsofbooks.com/guernsey_literary_and_potato_peel_pie_society/
From the book “That’s what I love about reading: one tiny thing will interest you in a book, and that tiny thing will lead you onto another book, and another bit there will lead you onto a third book. It’s all geometrically progressive—all with no end in sight, and for no other reason than sheer enjoyment.” “ . . . I much prefer whining to counting my blessings.” Humor is the best way to make the unbearable bearable.

The Channel Islands are closer to France than England. People may recognize the names of the two biggest islands, Jersey and Guernsey, because of their namesake cows. The cuisine has a wonderful French flair, with a predominance of local fish and seafood, plus British traditions such as English breakfasts and cream teas. The climate is mild, with more sun than the English mainland, and local produce abounds. Prehistoric sites strewn throughout the islands, include dozens of dolmens (burial sites) and menhirs (standing stones) and massive burial mounds. Ancient fortifications sit beside majestic castles. Fortified 19th century towers line the shores of Jersey and Guernsey like stone sentinels. The Channel Islands were occupied by the Nazis during World War II and several immense fortifications remain. Of particular interest are two underground hospitals.
http://www.transitionsabroad.com/publications/magazine/0311/the_uk_channel_islands.shtml

Living abroad, jobs, study and travel information:
http://www.transitionsabroad.com/index.shtml

Multiple professional reviews of recently released books
http://www.reviewsofbooks.com/site_map/

Feedback from A.Word.A.Day with Anu Garg
From: Thea E. Smith (thea.e.smith gmail.com)
Subject: otiose
Def: 1. Superfluous 2. Futile 3. Indolent
The word otiose reminds me of a game my parents played, wherein they'd try to think of words that contained silent—or otiose (as in "lacking use or effect")—letters. E.g., subtle, gnu, knife, and many more-interesting ones that I can't think of right now
From: Paula D. (via Wordsmith Talk, bulletin board)
Subject: Mendicant as a type of chocolate confection
Regarding the word mendicant, meaning beggar and also referring to four Catholic monastic orders. Mendicant (French: Mendiant) is also the name of a small disk or bar of chocolate which has been sprinkled with dried fruit or nuts. In France, chocolate mendicants are part of the 13 desserts of Noel. From the site Chocolate & Zucchini:
"Among these are the four 'mendiants' (beggars), symbolizing four mendicant monastic orders and the color of their robes: raisins for the Dominicans, hazelnuts for the Augustins, dried figs for the Franciscans, and almonds for the Carmelites."

On October 28, 1919, the Volstead Act was passed, ushering in Prohibition.
On October 28, 1962, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev ordered the removal of Soviet missiles from Cuba, ending the Cuban Missile Crisis. http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/thisday/