Ken Stanford

Amid partisan conflict in Congress, dozens of lawmakers from both parties - including staunch liberals and conservatives - have united behind a bill that supporters say addresses a heart-rending issue beyond politics: the millions of foreign children languishing in orphanages or otherwise at risk because they have no immediate family.

When the powers that be decided a few years back that this season's Super Bowl would be played in an open-air stadium in a cold climate, I applauded the move because I still believe all football should be played outdoors, regardless of the weather - and I began dreaming of a white Super Bowl. But now that Feb. 2 is fast-approaching, the NFL is apparently getting, shall we say, "cold" feet.

The first full day of winter brought a wild mix of weather across the U.S. on Sunday: ice and high wind in the Great Lakes and New England areas, rain and flooding in the South, snow in the Midwest and record-shattering temperatures in the 60s and 70s along the mid-Atlantic. Gainesville came within a degree of the record high for the date and set a record for rainfall.

The U.S. is the juiciest target for hackers hunting credit card information. And experts say incidents like the recent data theft at Target's stores will get worse before they get better.

The glitch-plagued rollout of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul was the top news story of 2013, followed by the Boston Marathon bombing and the dramatic papal changeover at the Vatican, according to The Associated Press' annual poll of U.S. editors and news directors.

Several metro Atlanta residents are asking state lawmakers to pass legislation protecting drug users who call for help during an overdose.

A half-dozen children got some special early Christmas presents from a University of Georgia class this month.

As a key enrollment deadline hits Monday, many people without health insurance have been sizing up policies on the new government health care marketplace and making what seems like a logical choice: They're picking the cheapest one.

The sheriff of Douglas County, Phil Miller, has said he's cutting ties with the A&E network in response to the suspension of "Duck Dynasty" star Phil Robertson.

Hall County is hosting two Parent Information Nights in January for rising 9th graders, as well as an International Baccalaureate Information Night.