Bristol Palin

Bristol Palin was interviewed by Greta Van Susteren of Fox News and she had some interesting things to say about teens and sex. Van Susteren asked Bristol if she was "just lazy" about using contraception, she replied that expecting teens to be abstinent was "not realistic at all." She suggested that teens should try to abstain from sex before marriage, but that it was so accepted by kids today it was almost impossible to do.

The Palin family is not the only one grappling with this issue. In Washington state, the number of teenagers giving birth has started increasing, for the first time since 1991. After years of annual decreases in women ages 15-19 having babies, 2006 marked the first year when that number went up, in both our state and the country as a whole, according to an article in USA Today.

Bristol Palin isn’t running for office, but she had to know that doing big-media interviews would mean that she had to have an answer for some political issues surrounding her teen pregnancy. This is in contrast to Bristol's mother's high-profile position on sex before marriage. Sarah Palin, former candidate for Vice President, is opposed to sex-education that includes discussions of contraceptives.

Trump Entertainment

Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection overnight before the casino operator’s bondholders could present an involuntary petition. The Chapter 11 bankruptcy, filed days after founder Donald Trump quit the board and four years after its predecessor company failed, listed assets of $2.1 billion and debt of $1.74 billion as of Dec. 31, according to the filing today in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Camden, New Jersey.

Trump Entertainment, the owner of three casinos in Atlantic City that already have been through bankruptcy twice, missed a $53 million interest payment at the start of December, and a creditor-extended grace period to make the defaulted coupon payment expires today. Gambling revenues in Atlantic City plunged the most on record last year amid the recession and competition from slot machines neighboring states.

“Dialog is continuing” on restructuring the company’s capital structure, Chief Financial Officer John Burke said in a court filing. “The bankruptcy will provide a forum for a prompt and efficient restructuring of the” senior notes. The company asked the court to schedule a hearing for tomorrow to consider a series of requests, including approval to pay “critical” pre-bankruptcy creditors such as suppliers and employees.

Susan Axelrod

Susan Axelrod tells the story of her daughter, she begins like most parents of children with epilepsy: The baby was adorable, healthy, perfect. Lauren arrived in June 1981, a treasured first-born. Susan Landau had married David Axelrod in 1979, and they lived in Chicago, where Susan pursued an MBA at the University of Chicago and David worked as a political reporter for the Chicago Tribune.

Susan began to meet other parents living through similar hells. They agreed that no federal agency or private foundation was acting with the sense of urgency they felt, leaving 3 million American families to suffer in near-silence. In 1998, Susan and a few other mothers founded a nonprofit organization to increase public awareness of the realities of epilepsy and to raise money for research.

Then-First Lady Hillary Clinton signed on to help; so did other politicians and celebrities. Later, veterans back from Iraq with seizures caused by traumatic brain injuries demanded answers, too. In its first decade, CURE raised $9 million, funded about 75 research projects, and inspired a change in the scientific dialogue about epilepsy. “Epilepsy is not benign and far too often is not treatable,” Susan says. “We wanted the public to be aware of the death and destruction. We wanted the brightest minds to engage with the search for a cure.”