COMBAT OUTPOST SAYED ABAD, AFGHANISTAN — In a big war, Army Spec. Cherry Maurice believed that one small gesture could make a difference. Temperatures at her mountain base plunged to 20 degrees below zero in January, and snow covered the ground. Maurice noticed that the eight Afghan workers on the outpost were coming to work in rubber flip-flops. The 35-year-old soldier labored with the men in the outpost’s kitchen, which is not much bigger than a walk-in closet. She dug into her personal savings and spent $135 to buy them eight pairs of boots. Read full article > >

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U.S. soldier’s gift to Afghan workers at her base underscores divide

5@5 is a daily, food-related list from chefs, writers, political pundits, musicians, actors, and all manner of opinionated people from around the globe. As Earth Day, April 22, approaches, we encourage you to consider how you can reduce your carbon footprint and live more sustainably . When you dine at restaurants — which some of us do on a daily basis — it may seem hard to eat healthfully, let alone sustainably, but this isn't necessarily true. Clean Plates founder and nutritionist Jared Koch has some suggestions to put sustainable dining within your reach. Five Ways to Dine More Sustainably for Earth Day … and Every Day: Jared Koch 1. Try to order meat from animals that were pastured, and choose seafood that was caught or farmed sustainably “More and more restaurants are serving meat from pastured animals, that are often referred to as 'grass-fed.' Pastured animals get to go outside and munch on grass. It might not sound like a big deal, but it has a very beneficial effect on the surrounding environment (and the animals themselves). Factory farmed animals are cooped up together and produce significantly more pollutants than pastured livestock that help fertilize the soil they graze upon and support new grass growth. Also, it takes a significant amount of fossil fuel to grow and deliver the grain used to feed livestock. Grass? You just need some rain. As an added benefit to your health, pastured animals are also more likely to come from farms that don’t use hormones or antibiotics. As I learned from the Seafood Program Director of the Blue Ocean Institute, both wild-caught and farmed fish can be ocean-friendly depending on the fishing and farming methods. But how can you tell while scanning a menu? Download the constantly updated Seafood Watch app from Monterey Bay Aquarium (it even has a sushi guide), or text the Blue Ocean Institute at 30644 with the message FISH and name of the fish in question; they’ll text you back with an assessment and more sustainable alternative (if necessary).” 2. Try a vegetarian or vegan dish (Yes, I'm talking to you, meat eaters) “You don't need to be a vegetarian or vegan to be healthy or eat sustainably; simply ordering a vegetarian or vegan meal once in a while has a very positive environmental impact. In general, the less meat we consume, the lighter our carbon footprint. Who knows, you might even enjoy it and feel better afterward.” 3. Select dishes with produce that is locally grown and organic (or at least pesticide-free) “Local produce travels a shorter distance, retains more of its nutrients and tastes better. Organic farming practices support healthier soil and air, and ensure you won't ingest the pesticides used in conventional farming. Soy products, corn and canola oil are very likely to contain GMOs (genetically modified organisms) unless they're organic, so be sure to investigate before you order.” 4. Skip the bottled water “American landfills are overflowing with single-use water bottles. Fortunately, some restaurants are starting to filter their own water now, which makes the choice easy. If you want to avoid tap water and insist on a bottle, try to make the most local choice possible: Choose bottled water from the U.S. instead of water shipped across the globe.” 5. Don’t waste food “Restaurant portions can be super-sized; while I don't want to encourage you to overeat and finish your plate, I do suggest you think twice before sending your leftovers to the trash. Food waste in the U.S. has become a big problem. It's increased the carbon footprint of trash delivery services and created excessive landfills that release large amounts of methane into the air. If leftovers aren't for you, take your box and hand it to a homeless person on your way home, or leave the container on top of a trash bin for someone to find. Don't forget: These small changes, made on a consistent basis, will have a positive impact not only for your personal health but the health of the planet too.” Is there someone you'd like to see in the hot seat? Let us know in the comments below and if we agree, we'll do our best to chase 'em down.

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5@5: Dine more sustainably for Earth Day and every day

The Chancellor says he would be “very happy” for the government to consider publishing the personal tax returns of ministers.

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Osborne happy to reveal tax data

This week, the 9 remaining Idolettes will sing songs from their personal idols. But only after being dressed by Tommy Hilfiger again. Hilfiger isn’t risking rejection again, after his fashion advice was roundly ignored by the Idolettes last week. This week he meekly directs them to the racks full of “Idol”-branded merchandise and tells them to pick their own outfits. “Don’t forget, you can mix and match!” Hilfiger says as they start to poke around. Read full article > >

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‘American Idol’ 2012: Top 9 Idolettes wow the judges

Conservative women have formed a core of Rick Santorum’s support since the primaries began, drawn by his message of family values and his personal biography.

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Rick Santorum Attracts Votes of Conservative Women

Company is his personal banker and largest contributor.

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Goldman Ties Enrich Romney

Under renewed pressure to release his personal income tax returns, Mitt Romney on Tuesday acknowledged that he pays an effective tax rate of about 15 percent.

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Romney Says His Tax Rate Is ‘Probably’ 15 Percent

President Obama is scheduled to make a rare visit to the Pentagon on Thursday to unveil details of a strategic review for the U.S. military that will consolidate missions and downsize the ambitions of the armed forces as they adjust to a new era of austerity, officials said. Obama, who will be joined by Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta and Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will place his personal imprint on a new military strategy that Pentagon officials have been preparing for months in anticipation of the largest cuts to the defense budget since the end of the Cold War. Read full article > >

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Obama to unveil austere Pentagon strategy

As a flood of family photos, videos and holiday greetings hits the Internet this time of year, online users will be swarming the social networking and photo-sharing sites that have become the personal scrapbooks of our time. But in the shaky and often promiscuous business of the Web, where companies fold and merge at astonishing speed, you can’t always trust that those sites will take long-term care of your digital treasures. Read full article > >

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As Web sites come and go, so too could the information you entrust them with

Newt Gingrich’s skill in facing criticisms about his personal and public life head-on has only swelled support for his campaign.

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Political Memo: Flaws and All, Newt Gingrich Says Life Is an Open Book

The multimillion dollar campaign features the personal stories of members who defy stereotyping.

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Mormon Ad Campaign Seeks to Improve Perceptions

The social network will ask users to opt into future changes to the way it uses their personal information according to a report.

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Facebook privacy overhaul, report

Reggie Love, a key member of the Obama entourage, is planning to leave the White House by the end of the year, people close to the administration said. Love, 30, is a popular, gregarious figure in the White House. A onetime forward for the Duke Blue Devils basketball team, Love started out as a staff assistant in Obama’s Senate office after college, rising to become his personal assistant, known as the “body man.” Read full article > >

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Reggie Love, Obama ‘body man,’ to leave White House by year’s end

Authors, like books, should not be judged by their covers. Consider Joan Didion. At nearly 77, with bones like toothpicks and a spectral face hidden behind large-framed glasses, she looks fragile. She is anything but. Although she made a name for herself decades ago by writing cool, frank commentaries about the cultural movements in 1960s California, she is more recently known for her personal losses. In December 2003, her husband of nearly 40 years, fellow writer John Gregory Dunne, died of a heart attack while she was fixing him a salad. Didion wrote about his death in “ The Year of Magical Thinking” (Knopf, 2005), which was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for biography or autobiography. Read full article > >

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Conversation: Joan Didion on ‘Blue Nights’

Along with other personal items.

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Jackson’s Deathbed to Be Auctioned