PC THE TOWN

  This week marks a time when Americans celebrate a uniquely American holiday�Thanksgiving. No other nation marks this time, and as Americans have become accustomed to having a day set aside as a national time of refreshment and rest, the meaning of the season has often been lost on football (also uniquely American), tons of food�turkey ad nauseum--and the beginning of the holiday shopping season. Even this year, stores cannot wait til �Black Friday,� so called because the day after Thanksgiving on Thursday is the busiest retail shopping day of the year that brings billions of dollars to stores. In 2012, that was a $59 billion dollar day. This year, shopping starts after dinner on Thursday. Has the nation lost its mooring to the original intent of this time? In 1789, George Washington, a freshly minted first President and Father of a new nation, proclaimed a time to be set aside for all Americans to honor God in a time to give thanks for the blessings bestowed on a count...

Today marks the 50 th anniversary of the assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the 35 th President of the United States, in downtown Dallas, Texas. A huge shock to the nation, it singlehandedly affected the entire population at once and forever changed the image of news coverage in the US as well as the leading cause of the end of the �Age of Innocence� in America. Also, the tragic loss of JFK was a harbinger of how vulnerable society was to violent acts and violence in general. As an 8 year old living in southwestern Pennsylvania, I remember distinctly this day. Although it has been fifty years to the day, I still remember the announcement by our elementary school principal over the loud speaker in our room, and how the entire teaching staff and some students reacted to the news pronounced slowly and haltingly by a grown man not typically known to be emotional. Many of the female teachers screamed and ran into the hallway, crying out loud and shaking. Some of the students in my ...

Choking is the mechanical obstruction of the flow of air from the environment into the lungs. Choking prevents breathing, and can be partial or complete, with partial choking allowing some, although inadequate, flow of air into the lungs. Prolonged or complete choking results in asphyxia which leads to anoxia and is potentially fatal. Oxygen stored in the blood and lungs keep the victim alive for several minutes after breathing is stopped completely; but unless the choking issue has been resolved and life saving measures have been implemented in time, you could die. According to the Harvard Medical School Family Health Guide, a person who is choking will instinctively grab at the throat. The person also may panic, gasp for breath, turn blue, or be unconscious. If the person can cough or speak, he or she is getting air. Nothing should be done. If the person cannot cough or speak, begin the Heimlich maneuver immediately to dislodge the object blocking the windpipe. The Heimlich mane...

Many people worry about losing their hair, especially if they are going through certain medical procedures or illnesses that can cause loss of the hair on their head. However, some baldness is caused by the body�s reaction to some drug therapies, and some is due to genetics. Also, aging has an effect on losing your hair. There are multiple reasons that cause baldness. According to the Wexner Medical Center at Ohio State University, baldness, also known as alopecia, is hair loss, or absence of hair. Baldness is usually most noticeable on the scalp, but can occur anywhere on the body where hair grows. The condition is more common in men than in women. Hair loss is believed to be primarily caused by a combination of the following: �          Aging �          Change in hormones �          Illness �          Family history of ...