Occupy Wall Street protestors and others portray the 1 percent as a fixed group.

Best known as the lead singer and bassist of Kiss, Gene Simmons is also a savvy businessman who has amassed a $160 million fortune selling Kiss merchandise, setting up online firms, and running a financial planning service.

his college football season, helmets are popping off player’s heads at an alarming rate.

According to a new study from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, teen drivers are approximately 50 percent more likely to crash in the first month of driving than they are after a full year of experience driving on their own.

A growing domestic demand for Greek yogurt has influenced U.S. companies to enter the industry or expand their yogurt production operations.

On January 1, 2012 California will become the first state in the nation to ban minors from using tanning beds. In October, Governor Jerry Brown signed into law a bill prohibiting anyone under the age of 18 from using ultraviolet tanning devices.

In November, Heinz unveiled its latest ketchup concoction, Heinz Tomato Ketchup Blended with Balsamic Vinegar.

Netflix, the successful, though recently beleaguered, online video rental and streaming service is being utilized by scammers looking to make a quick buck.

The latest craze in teen literature is the series The Hunger Games, a story set in a futuristic dystopia where teenagers battle in a fight-to-the-death competition for the entertainment of the upper-class citizens.

Those looking to make a quick buck should be doubly skeptical of a buck made with no effort at all. Mystery shopper scams are an increasingly common online deception purporting to pre-pay the shopper for services yet to be rendered...

Attorneys general across the country are investigating procedures used in foreclosures after it came to light that mortgage providers were using so-called “robo-signers,” people who signed documents without reviewing them, in order to push the paperwork through as fast as possible.

A myth surrounding the arrival of immigrants to the U.S. through Ellis Island is that officials often changed the name of an immigrant or family due to misspelling or the immigrant’s inability to communicate in English.

Retirees heading south of the border are part of a growing trend, according to a report in Kiplinger.

In Arizona, English teachers no longer have to speak the language properly; they just have to be able to understand it well enough to teach it.

Bill AB-131, more commonly known as the second half of the California Dream Act, was passed by the California State Assembly in late August and awaits final approval from Governor Jerry Brown.

Next time you find yourself on the moon, you won’t have to go hungry. Domino’s Pizza plans to build the first pizzeria located on the moon, according to the Daily Telegraph. In 2001, Pizza Hut delivered a pizza to astronauts in the International Space Station.

Until now, pet owners only had two options to help them find a missing dog or cat—an ID tag or a microchip.

After 36 years, 110,000 trips and countless 8- to 12-hour days manning the “Maid of the Mist,” Captain Malcolm Bunting is stepping down from the helm as Niagara Falls’ longest tenured boat captain.

An aviary incident in the 1970s has caused a sudden infestation of wild parrots in the Bakersfield area this summer.

A woman in Spartanburg, South Carolina, was approached by two men in a McDonald’s parking lot offering her an iPad for a bargain price of $300.

On September 15, a 10-ton tree suddenly fell on Irvine Avenue, crushing a car and killing the driver.

A Texas woman might be the “luckiest woman in the world,” having hit multi-million dollar jackpots on scratch tickets four times since 1993. Joan R.

America’s emergency services hope to implement a new program this fall that would allow those in need to send text messages, photos and videos to 911 responders.

A 27-year old Texas bank is closing its doors because of a “tightening regulatory noose”, according to a WSJ report.

2011 has been a big year for Marilyn Monroe, especially for her iconic image from The Seven-Year Itch.

With gas prices creeping up yet again, consumers might look to purchase smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles to save money on gas.

A post on a jihadist website is urging fellow Muslims to “cut the tongue” of late-night talk show host David Letterman over a joke he made on his show.

Amazon.com may soon have to charge sales tax on the products it sells, removing an advantage that the world’s largest online-retailer has enjoyed since its inception in 1994.

A quick search of the internet reveals cases nationwide of people being robbed, attacked, and even killed when meeting someone to buy or sell items listed on Craigslist—a crime police in Chicago have dubbed “robbery by appointment.” It has become so prevalent that many cities are issuing warnings to citizens.

If cats could write heroic epics, they would undoubtedly scratch one out about Lima. The cat, owned by Cherry Woods, reportedly fought off two large pit bulls that were attacking the 39-year-old Woods.

The University of San Diego’s Index of Leading Economic Indicators for San Diego County edged up slightly by 0.2 percent in June.

Online daters know that in person, people don’t always look as they do in their profile pictures. And those who search for romance in cyberspace also know that many people stretch the truth in their online profiles.

A 475-page report released this month by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) titled “The Information Needs of Communities:

Best known for her work on substance and alcohol abuse, former U.S. First Lady Betty Ford died on July 8 at age 93.

For the first time in our nation’s history, the majority of babies are minorities.

In 2006, Congress imposed a backdoor ban on horse slaughter.

A La Jolla resident recently witnessed, and nearly caught on camera, a horrific sight while vacationing in Maui.

Following two years of relatively flat sales, the U.S. wine industry responded in 2010 with a 7 percent rise in domestic sales, the result of Americans drinking more wine—an average of 2.6 gallons a year—and consuming more expensive vintages, especially in California, according to The Week news magazine.

Details of a massive German art-forgery scandal are receiving extra attention after it was reported that comedian Steve Martin was one of the buyers foiled by the ring.

The Crystal Cathedral, the Orange County home of Rev. Robert H. Schuller’s megachurch since its founding in 1955, has filed for bankruptcy.

Women love a man in uniform. But beware if the handsome military man romancing you in cyberspace starts asking you for money.

The latest University of San Diego Index of Leading Indicators for San Diego County had a 0.2 percent gain for May.

Unsurprisingly, a proposal to build a Muslim community center – including a mosque – near Ground Zero has ignited a fierce debate In May, a Manhattan community board backed the construction of a center, a mere two blocks from the site of the 9/11 attacks in an advisory vote.

Restaurant and other business owners shouldn’t read too much into reviews posted on Yelp.com

Many Americans traveling overseas get a nasty surprise when they try to make a purchase with a credit card. It isn’t accepted.

A new website dubbed Silk Road allows users to anonymously buy and sell marijuana, LSD, heroin, and other illegal drugs.

It was recently reported that many Newport Beach lifeguards make more than $100,000 a year, with two making $200,000

Apple recently signed licensing deals with three of the four major music labels

Since April 1, Amazon has sold 105 Kindle e-books for every 100 paperback and hardcover books purchased.

Federal regulators have warned Google repeatedly that many online pharmacies that advertise on its network are violating U.S. law by operating without proper licensing, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

A class-action lawsuit alleging sex-bias against women by Walmart has been thrown out by the Supreme Court..

The U.S. Supreme Court has blocked a federal lawsuit brought by states and conservation groups who were attempting to force reductions in power plant emissions, stating that the Environ-mental Protection Agency (EPA) has the authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions.

On May 19, LinkedIn—the professional social networking site—opened for trading on the New York Stock Exchange...

The Hollywood Sign is now a part of a land conservation pact which will protect the 138 acres surrounding the Sign from development.

Apparently, movies aren’t the only things that need 3-D technology to stay relevant — the new $100 bill is incorporating the technology as well.

A Los Angeles gang member provided a new twist on the idea of carrying your past with you when he was convicted of first degree murder because of a tattooed depiction of the crime rendered on his chest.

JPMorgan Chase recently began charging non–Chase customers $5 withdrawal fees at its ATMs in Illinois, and $4 withdrawal fees at Texas-located ATMs.

After weeks of controversy surrounding an iPhone location-tracking feature, Apple recently released iOS 4.3.3, which resolves a controversial “bug” with its location-based services.

A team of ten engineers from UCSD and the University of Washington has determined several ways to break into a typical 2009 sedan by hacking into the car’s internal computers.

On April 9 the Franchise Tax Board-the agency responsible for collecting state income taxes-released its list of worst tax delinquents.

Apocalyptic weather activity in the mid-west and southern United States has included a record-setting tornado season followed by heavy rains and mass flooding in several states.

After nearly 20 years, U.S. and Mexican officials recently agreed to a solution that would resolve a dispute over cross-border trucking, which subjected the U.S. to punitive tariffs.

The oldest known free-flying bird in the United States–a roughly 60-year-old albatross named Wisdom–recently hatched a chick on Sand Island at Midway, wildlife officials reported.

Following the devastating tsunami that slammed the eastern coast of Japan earlier this month, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued warnings on March 11 to the entire western coast of the U.S. and Canada.

hile overall California home sales activity declined by 9 percent in 2010, the number of homes that sold for more than $1 million last year rose for the first time in five years–a result of bargain hunting on the part of high-end home shoppers.

Only after a 911 call by a 14-year-old boy reporting long-term parental abuse of him and his six siblings did the parenting practices of a conservative Christian sect in Oregon come to light.

A Russian billionaire investor recently paid $100 million for a 25,500-square-foot, French chateau-style mansion in Los Altos Hills, Calif. - the highest known price paid for a single-family home in the U.S.

You might want to rethink taking that red-eye flight. Due to considerable public pressure from recent reports of numerous air traffic controllers falling asleep on duty, the Federal Aviation Administration’s top air traffic control official resigned on April 14th.

A bill passed on April 14 by the State Senate would make California the first state to mandate the teaching of gay history.

In March, Rev. Terry Jones, a Florida preacher, finally made good on his threat to burn a copy of the Koran. Last year, Rev. Jones made headlines when a planned Koran burning on the 9th anniversary of September 11 became highly publicized surrounding the controversial plans to build an Islamic Center in the vicinity of Ground Zero.

On April 6, the Senate voted 87-12 to repeal a tax-reporting mandate contained in the Health Care bill that would have required business, charities, and local governments to file 1099 forms when more than $600 worth of good or services were purchased from vendors.

Christie’s in New York has set up a 20-ton bronze teddy-bear sculpture in a Park Avenue plaza prior to auctioning it off in May for an expected $10 million.

The printed edition of Encyclopedia Brittanica, a collection which has been in print since 1768...

The New York Times has come under scrutiny for a double standard when it allowed an ad calling for Catholics to leave the church, but refused to run a subsequent ad making the same plea to Muslims.

The Trayvon Martin case, in which an unarmed 17-year old African-American Martin was allegedly killed by George Zimmerman...

The United States is one of the worst offenders when it comes to wasting food.

According to a report recently released by the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, $6.8 billion was spent by Californians as a result of incidents originating from underage drinking in 2010.

This past holiday season, the US Air Force “separated” (i.e. fired) 157 officers right before their retirement...

In fiscal year 2011, drug seizures rose along the U.S.-Mexico border, including in the San Diego area.

According to U.S. income statistics, if you earn more than $340,000 annually, you are part of the so called “1%.” Yet...

Nicole Weider, model and Christian blogger, has been campaigning since August, 2011 to restrict the sale and display of Cosmopolitan magazine.

In January 2011, Democratic Governor Pat Quinn of Illinois passed a $2 billion tax increase, the largest in Illinois history...

The news that Utah is thinking about making senior year of high school optional – for budget reasons – has been met with outrage. As the St. George, Utah, Spectrum and Daily News put it, “This is lunacy. No research and little thought have gone into this proposal.

As reported in The Week magazine, an editorial in Moscow’s Nezavisimaya Gazeta declares that vodka is Russia’s curse.

The statistics on the February East Coast snow storms are mind-numbing: Millions were trapped in their homes; more than 230,000 federal employees in Washington were given a 4th snow day, the worst of the weather was between Washington and Maryland that driving was actually banned for several hours in Baltimore; the season’s snowfall total in the US capitol broke the previous record of 54.4” during the winter of 1898-99; nearly 6,000 flights were canceled at the height of the storms on Wednesday, Feb 11; in New York the United Nations headquarters closed.

Where would you rather live? In Manhattan’s skinniest house, or in a huge 3-story home on the Cays in Coronado?

Want to bet that a particular horse will lose? You’ll be able to in California, but not until next year, beginning in May 2012.

By “dog name” we mean the arf-arf kind, and not simply an ugly name (although in some cases, a particular baby name might be both, in your opinion).