My neighborhood gas station is fattening up even as my favorite Mexican restaurant is thinning out the chicken in my quesadilla. I can now buy beer, beef jerky and a toy that too closely resembles an AK-47 at my cluttered Valero station, where the owner is desperately trying to sell something that makes him money 'cause the dollars ...

''It's not the responsibility of the federal government to provide womb-to-tomb health care for America. '' -- Republican presidential candidate Tom Tancredo, Aug. 5, 2007 debate in Des Moines. Which reminded me of what an Irish tour guide told me when I asked why taxes there were so high (currently a 20% rate on the first roughly $47k ...

Been a tough week if you like to eat. Studies show diet sodas are as bad as regular ones, and that hefty people hang with other hefties. The World Health Organization says 1 billion adults around the world are overweight. But if you want the real down and dirty on chow, go to www.ifoce.com (Hint: it's the International Federation of Competitive ...