According to the latest statistics available, one teen or child is killed with a gun every 3 hours 15 minutes, many by their peers.  It's time for some prison time.

Roe v. Wade has been under constant attack since the Supreme Court declared abortion legal in 1973.  Right now it looks like opposition forces are winning.  More restrictions have been put in place since 2011 than during the entire previous decade.

Love it or hate it, we're now in an election year.  This is good news for women, because they are the majority of voters, and candidates know it. If they listen, getting the female vote is just not that complicated.

In January 1964 President Lyndon B. Johnson announced the War on Poverty. Much has changed, but much has stayed the same.  Did we win or lose the War on Poverty announced in Lyndon Johnson's State of the Union address in 1964?  Poverty is down, but not by much, and we seem to be getting stingier, not more generous with the poor among us.  So was Johnson's domestic war worth it?  (Contains audio of Johnson's speech as part of the  2 1/2 minute commentary.)

The recent budget deal had plenty for war contractors, but jobless Americans were left in the cold. For them, it's going to be a very Unhappy New Year.  Christmas is over, but the tree won’t be the only thing kicked to the curb with the new year.  As of December 28, long-term unemployed Americans will lose some or all of their already paltry benefits, courtesy of Scrooges on Capitol Hill.

Thanksgiving will be just like any other day for millions of U.S. citizens who rely on food stamps. No turkey, just trimmings to the already meager food stamp program. House Republicans want a $40 billion dollar cut.  Senate Democrats want $4 billion. Whatever they choose, it’ll be on top of the loss these families suffered when a 2009 temporary increase ran out November 1st.

On November 19th citizens of Albuquerque, New Mexico, will vote on the first city-level 20 week abortion ban in the U.S. Called the “Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Ordinance,” the proposed Albuquerque law is a test case for city abortion bans nationwide. Whether the local coalition fighting the ban can prevail over out-of-state rabble rousers, the  Catholic clergy, a biased local press, and fundamentalist churches that have taken up the battle is anybody’s guess.

When it comes to how we treat our veterans, we do pretty well in some areas, but fall down in others. Homelessness is one of the worst. It’s way too high for both male and female vets – and this is one area where women are catching up to men.  Substance abuse and mental illness are leading causes of homelessness for male veterans.  But homelessness for our female ex-soldiers actually starts before they leave the military.  A huge factor is sexual trauma from rapes and other assaults during their service. Because they couldn’t report the crimes, or were punished when they did, many women suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and lose their jobs, family, and homes.

The 2013 Global Gender Gap Index from the World Economic Forum is out. It measures overall equality between women and men in 136 countries.  Is the USA number one?  We rank 23rd in the world, just behind Barundi in the Global Gender Gap Index.   Unlike the US,, governments in countries at the top of the list make it possible for parents to combine work and family. No one can argue that we’re not in the world’s top tier when it comes to standard of living -- it's just that women in the good ol’ U.S. of A don’t quite have the same standard as men. Maybe we can learn from those countries that are doing it right.

October 26 is Make a Difference Day. With all the bad news in the world, we can create our own good news by making a difference in our communities.  Created by USA Weekend magazine and Points of Light, Make a Difference Day inspires people around the world to help others by volunteering for the cause of their choice.  Good for communities, good for those in need, and good for the planet.