An Alternative to Raises Wednesday, February 13

University of Pittsburgh Medical Center's non-medical employees have been campaigning for union representation, suggesting their current wages leave many workers dangerously close to poverty. Though …

Blame the Lawyers Wednesday, February 6

Usually, clients are accountable for their lawyers’ errors because lawyers are their “agents,” but death row inmates might get different treatment; they usually don’t select or pay for …

Spare the Waterboard, Spoil the Child Wednesday, February 13

William Province, 42, was arrested in Jefferson County, Mont., in December, charged with waterboarding four boys — two were his sons — at his home. In January, Kirill Bartashevitch, 52, was …

Cliché Come to Life Wednesday, February 13

The Kerry, Ireland, county council voted in January to let some people drive drunk. The councillors reasoned that in the county’s isolated regions, some seniors live alone and need the camaraderie …

Feathery Find Wednesday, February 13

Emma Whittington, of Hutchinson, Kan., rushed her 7-month-old daughter to the ER in December when she developed a golf-ball-sized lump on her neck. Two days later, at a Wichita hospital, a doctor …

Stress Relief for Students Wednesday, February 20

In November, students at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, ordered three therapy dogs and set up a room for "super stressed" final-exam studiers. Typically, the dogs are lent to hospital …

Oil Can Crook Wednesday, February 20

Jorge Sanchez, 35, was arrested in Burbank, Calif., in February after walking into a Costco store, brazenly stuffing 24 quart cans of motor oil under his clothing (some affixed with bungee cords), …

Even a Dog Can Drive It Wednesday, February 20

Dog trainer Mark Vette showed off his best work in Auckland, New Zealand, in December: dogs driving a Cooper Mini on a closed course. Using knobs fitted to the dogs' reach, Vette taught mixed-breed …

Fibbing for Firearms Wednesday, February 20

The issue of "background checks" for gun purchases occupies center stage in the current gun-regulation debate, even though, ironically, current federal law on such checks is apparently half-heartedly …

Whose Best Friend? Wednesday, January 30

In Westfield, Mass., in August, and near Eureka, Calif., in November, families of dog owners drowned trying to save their pets, who'd fallen into a lake and the ocean, respectively. The Massachusetts …