Back on How 2010 Changed Our Lives (INFOGRAPHIC)

As we come to a closer to ending the year 2010, we can’t help but look back and think about how our lives changed in a matter of 365 days. Technology and social media applications started to really explode, and it just keeps on growing. We’ve teamed up with Online Schools to take a trip down memory lane, remembering the good times, and the bad times of this event filled year.

(source:forkparty.com)

Officials tell what to expect in 2011

The start of a new year brings with it the promise of new opportunities and the chance to move forward. Officials at school districts and municipalities across the region are hopeful 2011 will offer a delivery on long-promised developments and continued successes with projects already in the works.

From the anticipated opening of an indoor market at the site of an old department store to the first curtain call at yet another renovated downtown theater, this year could offer residents a host of changes.

As 2010 wound down, The Daily Journal asked local leaders to explain what's on their calendars for 2011.

City Of Vineland,.

The city has some major redevelopment plans in the works. Some will only pick up momentum this year, while other projects long in planning will come to fruition this year.

Residents can expect Landis MarketPlace to open in March in the former J.J. Newberry department store on the 600 block of East Landis Avenue. The indoor public market has several tenants already on board, including an Amish market on the bottom level and flowers, fresh fish, spices and other specialty foods on the main level.

The Amish Market in Mullica Hill, run by the same people, gets thousands of visitors a day and Mayor Robert Romano hopes some of that will be replicated on Landis Avenue.

"That would be a lot of foot traffic for Vineland," he said. "It should be nice when it's open."

Also this year:

Vineland will celebrate its 150th birthday. The actual birthday is Aug. 8, but the city is planning events for the entire year. Officials are planning a parade and fireworks display on Aug. 7 and a Civil War Ball is planned on Sept. 24.

"We want to celebrate our heritage," Romano said.

Efforts will continue this year to transform the former Newcomb Medical Center into Newcomb Alliance Medical Center, a medical school with -- ideally -- University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey as the anchor. The university has yet to officially sign on with the effort, but has shown interest, including visits to the State Street site and, most recently, drafting a tentative plan for operating a school there.

(source:thedailyjournal.com)

2011:Year you weren’t expecting

What does 2011 hold in store? It may well start with a flashback. Remember the Y2K bug, when the world’s computers were expected to shut down because they couldn’t handle the “00” in 2000? There’s another one expected this year. It’s known as the Y1C problem, and although equally serious, it’s confined to the island of Taiwan, which uses a calendar that dates year 1 from the founding of the Republic of China in 1912. For many computers in Taiwan, 2011 is the year 100, and with the “00,” chaos may ensue.

f you’re writing that down, make sure your marker is honeysuckle, which Pantone has designated the color of 2011. The year has also already been proclaimed the year of forests and the year of chemistry by the United Nations. You’ll be able to book tickets to two places you’ve never been able to visit before: a massive new Legoland in Dubai and the abandoned city of Chernobyl, which opens to tourists this year. If you’re Canadian, you’ll be able to pay for these using Canada’s new plastic money, set to be released in the second half of this year.

What’s that? You didn’t have any of that on your calendar?

When looking forward to a new year, all too often we focus on the big and the obvious: elections, royal weddings, Harry Potter movies. But a year is much more than that: It’s one enormous landscape of exciting events you had absolutely no idea were about to occur. What follows is the Ideas guide to the year in the obscure and unexpected.

January Chernobyl begins to offer official tours for the first time since April 26, 1986, when the worst nuclear reactor explosion in history devastated the region and made the Ukrainian city a byword for techno-dystopian disaster. Tourists can see both the nuclear plant and the abandoned nearby towns. It’s reachable as a day trip from Ukraine’s capital, Kiev.

January Van Halen is expected to begin recording an album with, for the first time in more than 25 years, original singer David Lee Roth.

January 9 The world will gain a new nation if voters in Southern Sudan choose independence in a referendum that begins today. The youngest countries in the world currently are Curacao and the Republic of Kosovo.

January 11 The Dali Museum opens in St. Petersburg, Fla. It will be home to more works of Salvador Dali than any other museum in the world. Costing $36 million, it will house 2,140 pieces of art and is designed to withstand a category 5 hurricane.

January 12 A new $1 coin debuts in Plymouth, Mass., depicting the hands of Governor John Carver and Supreme Sachem Ousamequin Massasoit exchanging a peace pipe. It joins more than 1 billion dollar coins already minted. Though most Americans rarely see them in circulation, they are very popular in Ecuador, which began using the US dollar as its currency in 2000.

(source:boston.com)

Top 11 stories to watch in 2011

1. Arlington's really big game

The yearlong drumbeat is reaching a crescendo with the final countdown to Super Bowl XLV at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington on Feb. 6. This will be the biggest single event held in North Texas, with almost 300,000 visitors expected, half from outside the state. Out-of-town visitors are expected to create a sales tax bonanza for local merchants.

The National Football League has only praise for the work of the North Texas Super Bowl Host Committee, which has orchestrated this regional effort through unprecedented cooperation among the four major cities -- Fort Worth, Arlington, Irving and Dallas.

An allocation of $31.2 million from the state comptroller's Major Event Trust Fund is expected to ensure that taxpayers can enjoy all the worldwide attention created by the Super Bowl and not pay for any of it.

The only disappointing note is that the Cowboys won't be the first team to play a Super Bowl in its home stadium. They failed to make the playoffs.

2. Gas drilling concerns

The question of whether to impose stronger environmental regulations on natural gas drilling in the Barnett Shale -- to reduce air emissions and protect groundwater supplies from potential contamination -- is expected to be on the front burner again.

The Texas Railroad Commission, which regulates the state's oil and gas industry, has scheduled a Jan. 10 hearing in Austin on an order that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency filed against Fort Worth-based Range Resources. The EPA contends that Range natural gas wells drilled in 2009 contaminated two residential water wells in far south Parker County.

Range has said it doesn't believe its wells are the source of the contamination.

Fort Worth will spend an additional $402,000 to complete a study on the effects of natural gas drilling on air quality.

The Arlington City Council will vote to strengthen the city's 7-year-old drilling ordinance, such as limiting the number of years drillers can tie up a piece of land and setting other requirements to minimize effects on infrastructure, the environment and residents.

And in Southlake, city leaders have yet to give XTO Energy the OK to drill the first well site in the city. Another vote is scheduled for this month.

3. Tea Party momentum builds

The first Tea Party rally in Tarrant County took place in 2009, but the movement showed its political clout in 2010.

Different activist groups played a role in several Republican primaries and general election races. Now comes the hard part. At the state level, lawmakers will tackle a budget shortfall likely to top $20 billion.

Activists are calling for cutting spending and keeping taxes low, which could affect a wide range of popular state services. Tea Party activists have promised to field primary opponents in 2012 for Republicans who don't act like "true conservatives." But it remains to be seen whether the disparate groups can stick to the same message once debates flare over where to cut and how much.

The drama will likely begin in earnest Jan. 11, when some conservative groups plan a rally at the Capitol to coincide with the first day of the legislative session.

4. Will the school finance system get fixed?

While redistricting and a multibillion-dollar shortfall will take center stage during the legislative session, local educators are calling on politicians to change the way public schools are financed.

Officials with the Carroll, Grapevine-Colleyville and Keller school districts plan to collect letters and deliver them in person to legislators. And dozens of other districts statewide have followed the lead of Aledo and joined the grassroots Make Education a Priority campaign.

School districts have slashed budgets for fiscal 2010-11, and many have had to dip into savings to cover shortfalls. Deeper cuts are expected for 2011-12.

5. Grapevine-Colleyville investigation continues

The Tarrant County district attorney's investigation into theft and mismanagement allegations in the Grapevine-Colleyville school district should conclude this year, according to David Lobingier, investigator with the district attorney's economic crimes unit.

"The investigation is ongoing, and we want to take our time with it and be thorough," Lobingier said.

The school district launched an internal investigation into misdeeds in its facilities services department in March, resulting in the resignations of Scott Monaghan, the department's director; and two departmental employees. The district's relationship with primary job-order contractor Paul Hamilton was also severed. The investigation involved about $10,000 in missing district equipment, mismanagement of job order contracts and payroll discrepancies.

6. Pension changes loom in Fort Worth

At some point this year, the Fort Worth City Council will act to save the city's troubled retirement system from insolvency by voting on modifications to the pension formula for new general-fund employees. The vote could become the basis for the city's position when contract negotiations with police officers begin in late 2011. The Fort Worth Police Officers Association has vowed that it would never accept a two-tier retirement system for the force.

Two systems would divide the police force, said Rick Van Houten, president of the police association, and be demoralizing. "That's not good for my officers, and that's not good for our citizens," Van Houten said.

7. Be prepared to stop

Tarrant and Johnson county motorists will be dodging a lot of orange barrels in 2011 and beyond.

The $1.6 billion Southwest Parkway/Chisholm Trail Parkway toll road gets under way from downtown Fort Worth to Cleburne. The road is expected to open in the second half of 2013.

In Northeast Tarrant County, the $3.3 billion North Tarrant Express project -- including the revamping of Loop 820, Texas 121/183 and Interstate 35W -- starts this year and is scheduled to be complete in 2017.

And in Grapevine, the $1.02 billion DFW Connector project, which began in early 2010 on the Texas 114/121 corridor, is expected to take four years to complete.

8. Arlington Heights scandal lingers

There were allegations of students cleaning and doing work at the school for class credit, record tampering, an improper sexual relationship between a teacher and an assistant principal, unreported thefts and racial tensions.

All came to light last year during an investigation at Arlington Heights High School, which resulted in the resignations of Principal Neta Alexander and Assistant Superintendent Chuck Boyd.

The Tarrant County district attorney's office is investigating the use of booster club funds at the school, and the Texas Education Agency is conducting an attendance audit.

Meanwhile, Joseph Palazzolo, a former assistant principal, has filed a whistle-blower lawsuit against the district, saying he was fired for alerting officials to the wrongdoings.

Stayed tuned -- this one is far from over.

9. Reshaping downtown, Trinity River

More than four years after construction began, classes will begin this fall at Tarrant County College's Trinity River East Campus. The striking downtown facility, which features an outdoor classroom, will allow students to enjoy downtown and river views as they move through the campus.

Despite cost overruns and design changes, TCC officials have promised that the project will be completed under the $203 million that has been budgeted.

The campus will include a sunken plaza and a water feature that stretches from Weatherford Street toward the Trinity River.

And by the end of the year, just to the west, one of the first visible signs of the Trinity River Project, the Henderson Street bridge, is scheduled to begin.

This bridge will not replace the existing bridge over the Trinity River. Instead, it is being built to span the flood control and economic development project's bypass channel, which is projected to start construction in 2013.

10. M.D. program needs approval

Money has been raised and regents have approved a proposed M.D. program at the University of North Texas Health Science Center.

All that's left is an OK from the Texas Legislature, which convenes this month.

UNT regents voted to proceed with plans for the program in August. The project has received many financial commitments, including $2.5 million from the JPS Health Network. About $25 million had been raised for startup costs by the fall, according to the health science center.

Despite that support, the M.D. program has also drawn critics who say it will detract from the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Classes are expected to begin in 2013.

11. Legislative redistricting

When Texas legislators return to work Jan. 11, one of their main tasks will be redrawing congressional boundaries to add four districts based on population growth registered in the latest U.S. census.

State lawmakers must determine where those new districts go and configure other districts to make sure that each has at least the required 710,767 constituents.

Many believe that at least one new district will wind up in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

State representatives and senators will also redraw their own district boundary lines and those of the Board of Education. The Democratic-appointed Justice Department must review and sign off on the new maps. The new districts will be in place for the 2012 elections.

Staff writers Pete Alfano, Eva-Marie Ayala, Aman Batheja, Jessamy Brown, Gordon Dickson, Bill Hanna, John Henry, Shirley Jinkins, Susan Schrock, Jack Z. Smith and Anna M. Tinsley contributed to this report.

(source:star-telegram.com)

2011 Bipartisanship or Gridlock? Despite Breakthroughs, Lawmakers

With a divided Congress moving into Washington, President Obama's New Year's resolution might be to channel his inner uniter.

Perhaps the White House will cool it on the John Boehner taunting and telling the Republicans to "sit in back."

But no matter the president's tone, civility and cooperation will be a heavy lift considering all the outstanding legislative fights lawmakers, new and old, are eager to wage. While the president and his allies deftly cleared away a massive tax-cut extension package, the Russian nuclear arms treaty and the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell" at the end of the lame duck, that just made room for new disagreements. Political analysts say hopes for a new era of bipartisanship could yield to the more established Beltway tradition of gridlock.

Here's a sampling of the rumbles Americans can expect to see out of Washington in 2011:

Earmarking Withdrawal

Republican congressional leaders are vowing to cut the pork out of their diets next year with a ban on earmarks. That's a tough habit to kick.

The practice of designating funds for local projects, which accounts for a tiny fraction of the overall budget, has become symbolic of the kind of legal corruption Washington tolerates. But that practice allows lawmakers, particularly powerful ones, to show constituents they care.

Already, some are talking about the ways lawmakers on both sides will be able to get around the ban, by personally requesting with relevant agencies that money be directed toward pet projects -- instead of tagging that money during the appropriations process. Next year will separate the sticklers from the spenders.

Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., an anti-earmark crusader who's moving to the Appropriations Committee where all the magic happens, is vowing to hold lawmakers accountable. He told FoxNews.com he intends to "ridicule" anybody who breaks the pledge.

Even if the House stands its ground on the pledge, it's unclear how much influence those lawmakers will have on the Senate side where Democrats retain the majority. Obama, though, has spoken favorably about kicking the pork.

Health Care Post-Game

Thought the health care debate was over a year ago? Hardly.

The health care overhaul battle wages on in 2011, this time on two fronts.

One will be Washington, where even as new provisions of the law go into effect starting Jan. 1, Republican lawmakers want to pursue a largely symbolic vote to repeal the overhaul while simultaneously starving it of funds.

The second front is the courts, where judges have issued conflicting rulings and may eventually require an opinion by the Supreme Court to resolve them. Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., who opposed the health care law, described the courtroom as the principal battleground going into 2011.

While two judges have ruled in the Obama administration's favor, it was dealt a blow in December when a Virginia judge declared the critical provision requiring individuals to obtain health insurance unconstitutional. That could undermine the whole plan and has, at the very least, fueled the arguments of GOP lawmakers who are fighting the overhaul -- though Obama's veto pen is the biggest obstacle standing in their way.

Rick Tyler, director of the conservative Renewing American Leadership, said Republicans won't give up on this battle because they feel they owe their majority to "Obamacare" angst.

Out of Afghanistan?

One of Obama's toughest tests next year may come in how he handles the troop drawdown in Afghanistan.

July 2011 is supposed to start the clock on withdrawing U.S. forces, with a deadline of December 2014 to finish. The president has some wiggle room and may be putting more emphasis on the 2014 deadline. After all, if he withdraws too quickly, Republicans who helped fund his surge strategy over the summer could balk, demand hearings and cause other trouble.

But Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics, said that if the president doesn't withdraw troops fast enough, the anti-war left will rebel. He predicted a major scuffle over the withdrawal this coming summer.

"I could see them blowing up if a substantial number of troops are not withdrawn," Sabato said.

Complicating matters is the 2011 deadline for completely withdrawing from Iraq. Despite recent spates of violence in the country, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki recently said he would not budge on the withdrawal deadline.

Oversight Overload

With Republicans taking the helm of several powerful House committees, the Obama administration has a new set of headaches on its hands. Feisty GOP chairmen, out of sorts after four years in the minority, will have the power to hold hearings and issue subpoenas to get the answers they've been clamoring for.

Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., incoming chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, is the central player in this new stage of Washington theater. He's promised hundreds of hearings under his watch which could cover everything from the stimulus package to earmarks to the bank bailouts.

Republican strategist Ron Bonjean predicted the party would use those hearings in part to tweak federal departments over the slow progress of job creation, "looking into the Labor Department, the Treasury Department -- what are their programs designed to do to help create jobs?"

Republicans do seem mindful, though, of warnings not to use their newfound power solely to exact embarrassing vengeance on Democrats.

"We can't just go on a witch hunt out there," Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, told Fox News. "We've got to be able to use that in a very judicious way, very respectful way, but also hold the administration accountable."

Deficit Reduction vs. Stimulus and Jobs Creation

For all the campaign trail talk about fiscal responsibility, the lame-duck passage of an $858 billion tax cut-extension package was a testament to anything but.

Sabato said one of the premier fights in the next Congress will be over whether to pursue more stimulus-style measures to boost the economy or get serious about the deficit.

"It's one or the other," Sabato said.

A looming vote over whether to raise the debt ceiling, now at $14.3 trillion, will concentrate minds on the subject. Though a sweeping report by Obama's deficit/debt reduction commission fizzled, any votes to support the debt ceiling increase will surely be accompanied by renewed vows to tackle the deficit by whatever means possible.

Obama has called for a freeze in civilian federal pay, while Republicans are calling for a host of discretionary spending cuts starting with a cutback in some legislative budgets. Richard Goodstein, former adviser to Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, called the discretionary cuts "fantasy" in terms of their ability to dent the deficit. He said entitlement reform must follow.

To that end, Sabato said the GOP's whiz kid Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., is poised to play a big role next year, having put together a road map in advance on Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. The question is whether the rest of his party will follow it.

Bonjean said Congress will still need to push hard on the economy even if it follows through on spending cuts. He predicted Republicans would push a single, jobs-creation package -- mostly consisting of regulatory and tax relief for businesses with the end goal of incentivizing hiring. He said Republicans will have to propose spending cuts point-for-point to offset it.

2012 Gamesmanship

If the first 100 days is a president's honeymoon, then the third year is that rancorous period when some couples move closer and closer to trial separation. The final call doesn't come until November 2012, but virtually anything Republican leaders and Obama do before that will be in the context of the next presidential election.

Consider 2012 the wild-card factor in 2011.

Most, though not all, of the potential GOP contenders in the mix are not in Congress. That's potential relief for Obama. But Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell nevertheless said in an interview shortly before the last election that the "single most important thing" Republicans can do is oust Obama in 2012.

By that standard, anything that's good for Obama next year will not be good for Republicans.

Climate Regulation Backlash

Unable to pass select priorities through Congress, the Obama administration is turning increasingly to the tool of federal regulation to get things done, particularly when it comes to climate change.

A cap-and-trade bill left for dead in the outgoing Congress, the Environmental Protection Agency announced last week it will propose new rules to regulate emissions over power plants and refineries. The agency already announced federal guidelines on industrial emissions earlier in the year.

Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., soon-to-be chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, calls the regulation an "assault" on the country's energy industry and is vowing to fight it next year.

Goodstein predicted a clash of ideologies over climate change, among other things.

"I think coming ahead we see a Tea Party that thinks there shouldn't be an EPA," Goodstein said.

(source:foxnews.com)