Two recent news events caught my eye. The first was the publication of a study in a psychology journal suggesting that having a crappy first name can make you less happy and less successful in life. The second was the publication of a state-by-state list of the names of the first babies born in 2012. Read full article > >

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Gene Weingarten: Harm monikers

The recent news item about a Connecticut worker fired for Facebook postings that annoyed her employer, like other accounts of employees sacked for private speech, was bound to draw a lot of attention. Americans hold First Amendment rights to free speech as a kind of sacrosanct birthright, and for many of us the idea that you can lose your job for expressing private thoughts away from work offends the core principle of freedom of expression.

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Opinion: Facebook vs. your job

Thank goodness for comedian Zach Galifianakis cutting the tension by smoking marijuana on Real Time with Bill Maher last night. The late-night host asked his audience and panel if he was racist for worrying about the recent news story that said the…

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Maher Called Racist on His Own Show

Thousands of people have posted personal testimonies to YouTube in an online campaign titled “It Gets Better” that coincides with a rash of recent news stories about bullying and suicides.

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Campaign Offers Help and Hope to Gay Youths