The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_12-27-2011.mp3)

It’s almost the New Year.

And this time around, when you make plans and resolutions, STICK TO THEM!

So what are some of the smartest decisions people can make with their money to see a difference in 2012?

“Yeah I think that when you look at what you’re spending your money on, a lot of Americans find that they have some consumer credit debt and that debt is typically a higher interest. First thing you gotta look at is what you’re paying on that debt and try to actively reduce and pay that debt off; that higher interest debt.”

That’s Managing Member at John Thomas Capital Management Group, LLC — George Jarkesy – speaking with Scott at WERC in Birmingham, Alabama.

Ok… so number one – pay off the debt.

Number two — according to Jarkesy?

Home mortgages.

“Right now, mortgage rates are really low. People are finding that they might have refinanced three, four, five years ago and that refinancing it today may seem kind of crazy to do it that close, but there’s a lot of savings out there right now.”

What about when people say, “I’ll spend less money this year” – should their resolutions be more specific?

“Statistically it’s shown, that if people don’t make the terms of what they’re committing to, if they don’t make it very specific, that they’re less likely to adhere to it. So you want to make it specific, you want to make it something meaningful.”

Jarkesy recommends thinking twice before each purchase, but definitely be specific!

Because cutting out all of those little purchases, according to Jarkesy — can really add up to quite a bit of savings over all.

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.

The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_12-22-2011.mp3)

Some people call it tacky and rude to take a gift given to you that don’t really like, and give it to someone else.

But is there an art to re-gifting?

And, is it a good idea or a bad idea?

Hardison:

“I think it’s a good idea, but it’s got to be done in the right way.”

That’s Etiquette Expert Paige Hardison speaking with Al at KCOL in Fort Collins, Colorado.

You just have to make sure to match the gift to the person that you’re giving it to right?

Hardison: “Definitely. You don’t want to give someone who lives in an apartment complex a gardening set.”

Al (KCOL): “Or a Great Dane dog!”

Hardison: “Right! You know what I mean? It’s just, sometimes people just give gifts just to check it off their list when they’re really not thinking about what they’re actually doing. So it’s a really good idea to keep in mind who’s actually getting the re-gift in the first place.”

And the key to good re-gifting is, according to Hardison, is to be stealthy enough that the gift recipient has NO IDEA that you’re re-gifting.

According to Consumer reports, 36 percent of Americans plan on re-gifting this year. That’s up 5 percent from the previous year!

It’ll make you think twice this Christmas when you open your gifts!

Are they first-hand gifts? Or are your friends and family just really stealthy re-gifters?!

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.

The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_12-21-2011.mp3)

“Duck” and cover!

A deadly new strain of bird flu has been created by Dutch scientists.

A warning issued by U.S. Bio-security officials.

“They only had to change 5 genes to take this from a non-contagious disease; and by the way, as you were saying, H5N1 is about the worst disease we’ve ever known in the fact that it kills 60 percent of those infected. The only good news about it was, it wasn’t contagious. Generally humans didn’t get it from another human, you had to get it from a duck or a pig or whatever.”

That’s Retired Air Force Col. Randy Wilson who’s expertise is Weapons of Mass Destruction speaking with Al at KCOL in Fort Collins, Colorado.

The newly created strain has the potential to kill millions.

“Well now they went in and changed these 5 genes, and now, you know if a person were infected with this and they just sit on an airplane breathing in and out they could infect a large number of people on that airplane. So now we have a disease that could become contagious and kills 60 percent of them.”

Scary stuff!

Buzzing right along:

Just in time for the holidays! Gas prices are taking a tumble.

Is it happening nationally, or just in random spots?

“No. It’s dropping all around the country. The primary reason is that all the uncertainty in Europe has led to fears of a possible recession in Europe that could impact our economy. So there’s fear that the demand for oil could drop, that’s why prices have come down lightly.”

That’s Oil and Gas Analyst with Hodges Capital, Mike Breard speaking with Scott at WERC in Birmingham, Alabama.

Do you see us going below 2.50 a gallon any time soon, Mike?

“Well, I hope we don’t, because that would mean we’re in either a depression or a deep recession. You know, there’s good news and bad news when you get low prices.”

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.

The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_12-08-2011.mp3)

The Fort Worth School District is on Santa’s naughty list, that’s for sure.

The district is banning Santa, the exchanging of gifts, and also the distribution of personal holiday messages in honor of Christmas during class.

Can a school really ban Santa?

“I think the worst thing that the school did is that they put a ban on what they call “personal holiday messages”, and the reason why they banned the kids from exchanging personal holiday message is because, and this is what their memo states, because if they allowed them the kids might exchange religiously themed personal holiday messages and we can’t have religion in our schools, even if it’s the kids who are exchanging it amongst themselves.”

That’s the Director of Litigation at the Liberty Legal Institute Hiram Sasser speaking with Scott at WERC in Birmingham, Alabama.

According to Sasser the school district’s position on this hasn’t changed.

“They decided to allow Santa back in to provide a little PR cover, but they’re still banning the kids from exchanging what they call “personal holiday messages.”

According to District Spokesman Clint Bond, however, students can exchange gifts and cards before and after school and during lunch, and additionally, students can say “Merry Christmas” to one another during the school day. The district’s memo also says “seasonal decorations are appropriate if they are not religious in nature” and classroom parties are allowed if they “serve an appropriate instructional purpose.”

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.

The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_12-02-2011.mp3)

You better watch what you do in Texas, Big Brother’s watching.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office is just WEEKS away from launching an unmanned aerial drone to help fight crime.

Is this a tool that police really need?

“I’ll tell ya, it’s going to be a life saving tool when it comes to high speed pursuits for example. As you know we’ve seen on TV numerous high speed pursuits throughout the country. Vehicles up to 120 – 30 mph with a dozen police cars chasing the suspect, usually ends up in the death and serious injury of innocent people.”

That’s Police Detective Steven Rogers of the Nutley, New Jersey Police Department speaking with Scott at WERC in Birmingham, Alabama.

According to Rogers, with the drone:

“We’ll be able to eliminate the number of police vehicles pursuing suspects. The drone will be able to track the suspect and then when the suspect stops, the drone will be able to give the coordinates of where that vehicle is.”

The drone is a ShadowHawk Helicopter which is six feet long, weighs 50 pounds and fits in the back of an SUV.

What about people concerned about privacy?

“Well first of all, look there’s certainly room for abuse in anything anyone does. One is local law enforcement does not have the time to spy on law abiding citizens. Two is, I am absolutely sure, Scott that there will be guidelines coming out of every attorney general’s office and every DA’s office regarding how these drones are going to be used. And you cannot, and this is something we must make very specific, you cannot invade anyone’s privacy; like peek into their windows without a warrant. The warrants do not go away, all the rules are in play as well as with the drones.”

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.

The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_12-01-2011.mp3)

You better watch out. If you’re on the naughty list this year,

Santa’s packing heat!

In Scottsdale, Arizona at least; where at the Scottsdale Gun Club you AND the kids can get a picture with Santa and his high powered rifle.

The cost? Ten bucks to capture this lasting image.

To a lot of folks I’m sure this is the coolest thing ever. But is the image of Old St. Nick with his machine gun a healthy thing for your kids to associate with Christmas?

“You know, personally I do believe that there can be harm. You know, what concerns me the most is that there doesn’t appear to be a lot of thought put into the impact images like these have on children or people who have been traumatized by guns.”

That’s Psychotherapist Meg Batterson speaking with Scott at WERC in Birmingham, Alabama.

“If kids are taking pictures with semi-automatic rifles with Santa Claus, I think they learn to associate feelings of joy and happiness, the spirit of Christmas, with these kinds of weapons.”

Families could choose to pose with pistols, semi-auto AR-15s or grenade launchers.

But! As Batterson points out:

“In not all cases will it be detrimental to children, but possibly in some.”

Jingle Bells — and shotgun shells.

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.

The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_11-30-2011.mp3)

The case of an 8 year-old Ohio boy who tipped the scales at 200 pounds and was taken by state officials because of his weight.

You either fall on one side of the issue or the other. There is NO in-between. It’s either:

“The parent neglecting obvious condition of her son, or it’s a case of the government agency over-reaching, and really coming in and taking some drastic measures.”

That’s Family Law Attorney Brett Myers speaking with Forrest at WREC in Memphis, Tennessee.

“You know, a few things I look at – is that first of all, no one is going to argue that the kid did not have a severe weight problem. He’s an 8 year old with over 200 pounds, and on anybody’s chart, that’s not even on the charts; that’s way off the charts.”

Ok, what’s the second?

“The second thing; is that you know, the agency, when I read the comments from the agency to me, overwhelmingly what comes through is how frustrated the agency was. They’d been working with this family for 20 months, had experienced a modest success in that the child was losing weight.”

According to Myers, the child began to gain weight again over the last few months.

“What the agency did, is that based on the child’s weight, they went into court and convinced the Judge that if they did not remove this child from this family situation that this child would be in imminent harm. And the Judge agreed.”

Should the boy have been taken away? Was it really the right move for the state agency to make?

“You know, I rely on the Judge’s wisdom to look at the situation, look at the facts that were presented to the Judge that made this decision, and I think ultimately I come down on perhaps it was the right thing to do in this case.”

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.

 The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_11-29-2011.mp3)

With winter time on the approach, so is cold season!

What can we do to prevent those annoying colds aside from staying in a bubble?

“The first thing you can do is probably take proper care of yourself to be as fit as possible.”

That’s Medical Expert Dr. Mitchell Brooks speaking Tony at WHAS in Louisville, Kentucky

The whole idea of avoiding a cold is prevention and avoidance of germs.

Avoid people who are ill.

“If you are ill, cover your mouth when you cough. Try and wash your hands regularly, particularly if you’re in frequent contact with door knobs or escalator handles – you can use any one of the commercial hand washing liquids that are available. And, take care of yourself.”

Some other things the doctor suggests; flu shots and LOTS of zinc.

There are also natural ways to stave off that pesky cold like sleep, exercise, hot-and-cold showers, oysters, vitamin D, and a nasal rinse.

Buzzing right along.

American soldiers – furious – after the military removed a cross from a Christian chapel.

It happened at a base in northern Afghanistan.

Someone complained about the cross.

“The army did an investigation and they determined that that cross violated army regulations because they say that chapels have to be “religiously neutral” when they’re not being used for a worship service.”

That’s FOX News Radio’s Todd Starnes speaking with Bill at WTAM in Cleveland, Ohio.

Among other symbols that are not allowed at that NATO base –

“Crosses, Crucifix’s, the Star of David and the Menorah.”

Likely NOT to be the last time we hear of this story, or ones like it.

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.

The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_11-22-2011.mp3)

Are you down in the dumps at work?

You’re not alone!

A study of 1,200 workers worldwide finds 1/4 of them are depressed. Why?

“The U.S. Statistical measure of that was only 8 percent. So only 8 percent of the respondents were U.S. citizens and worked in the U.S., so I’m not sure how accurate that is. I will say this though, I think the American workforce in general is more discouraged than it has been in a number of years.”

That’s Employee Morale Expert Ron Newton speaking with Tony at WHAS in Louisville, Kentucky.

Why do you believe that? Why are they more discouraged now?

“I think there is a sense of helplessness that’s in the workplace now that hasn’t been there in awhile. It’s a helplessness that’s based in not feeling like you can influence the future or control the present. I think because of the economic uncertainty that we have right now and businesses are riding the fence of economic viability; that we’ve got a general ‘we can’t control our own future’ and that is so anti-American, you know, in feeling.”

Well that’s no good. Chin up, America!

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.

The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_11-21-2011.mp3)

Fibbing on Facebook could get you into trouble.

Thanks to an anti-hacking law that was passed in 1986, well before social networking sites were even around.

“The problem with the law is if you prosecute people for violating user term agreements, what’s to stop these companies from making arbitrarily rules and terms of use, and people being prosecuted.”

That’s Defense Attorney Eric Schwartzreich speaking with Tony Cruise at WHAS in Louisville, Kentucky.

Advocacy groups on both sides of the aisle are pressing lawmakers to re-write the law.

Hoping to prevent an administration push to toughen penalties from treating online mischief-makers the same as criminal hackers.

Critics of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, point most often to a section that imposes penalties on ANYONE who knowingly “exceeds authorized access” on a computer to obtain information.” Authorized access” they warn, could refer to ANYTHING from a website’s terms of use agreement to an employer’s restrictions on computer use.

Schwartzreich warns:

“The internet is forever. You know, it’s a different age than when you and I grew up in a digital age. They’re Digital fingerprints, and they are posting pictures that I think they’ll later regret, and employers have access to this and you know they’ll see certain things that probably should not have been posted, and I think it’s very detrimental to our young women and men there looking for employment, especially in an economy like this.”

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.

The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_11-11-2011.mp3)

It’s Veterans Day… and as we give thanks to our many Veterans for their service to our great nation, Republican lawmakers and conservative activists are outraged – after the Obama administration announced its objection to adding President Franklin Roosevelt’s D-Day prayer to the World War II Memorial in our nation’s capitol.

The objection noted during a congressional hearing on the bill – called the “World War II Memorial Prayer Act of 2011″ – introduced by Ohio Republican Representative Bill Johnson.

“Does FDR’s prayers – is it significant enough to be added to this already amazing memorial, and I think that if you start with the Capitol building and walk up and down the mall, and you will see that memorials are replete with prayers.”

Retired Army Officer Bob Kinder – speaking with Jeff at KLIF in Dallas.

President Roosevelt asked the nation to join him in prayer as U.S. and allied troops launched the invasion that led to the defeat of Nazi Germany. He asked God to give the allied troops courage and faith, saying, “With thy blessing we shall prevail over the unholy forces of our enemy.”

Some the memorials that Kinder speaks of include the Jefferson memorial, the Capitol Building – both House chambers say “In God We Trust” as you enter, the JFK memorial, the Lincoln memorial.

But Robert Abbey, Director of the Bureau of Land Management said that any plaque or inscription of prayer added to the World War II memorial would “dilute” it’s central message and therefore “should not be altered.”

“I think FDR’s prayer was, it does exactly what Mr. Abbey is concerned about doing. It does just that. It adds, it adds – lots of commemoration to memorialize those great men and women that were alive during those times.”

Abbey went on in written testimony to say that altering the memorial as proposed “will necessarily dilute this elegant memorial’s central message and its ability to clearly convey that message to move, educate, and inspire its many visitors.”

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.

The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_11-10-2011.mp3)

Amid scandal – Coach Joe Paterno fired from Penn State University Wednesday night, along with University President Graham Spanier.

“Is Penn State doing anything correctly here?”

“Yeah, they did the right thing by firing Joe Paterno, and by firing the President.”

That’s Partner at Goldman McCormick, a Media Relations Agency - Ryan McCormick speaking with Charlie Parker at WOAI in San Antonio.

The firings – following growing outrage at how the school handled sex abuse allegations against former Assistant Coach Jerry Sandusky, who was arrested earlier in the week.

What else should the school do?

“They need to fire every single person involved in that scandal, and they need to fire their relatives, too. They have to completely purge the University of the dark consciences that allowed children to be raped in order to protect – you know – a football program.”

I bet these two latest firings are just scratching the surface as far as the fallout we’ll see at Penn State…

Buzzing right along…

A first grade teacher had a rough day at work – and posted on her Facebook page that she was a “warden for future criminals”…

Well, a New Jersey Judge has ruled teacher Jennifer O’Brien should lose her tenured job because of it…

Should the school fire her?

“Even at face value, yes they can fire her, and yes as an employee you better be darn careful about what you post on Facebook or in social media because employers are watching, and it’s not – you may think it’s private, but it’s not. ”

Attorney Susan Solovic – speaking with Chip Franklin at KOGO in San Diego.

O’Brien posted the remark on March 28th of this year – to 333 friends… it was forwarded right along and some parents saw it…

“Most employers today have social media policies, although this is a very new area of law. You know, everything is developing, we’re learning as we go. But, most employers recognize that of course they want their employees to be cheerleaders for their brand and all of that in using social media, but they also understand that their employees can get them in a lot of hot water by those postings that they do on Facebook or on Twitter or whatever it might be.”

What Solovic suggests, and it really does apply to EVERYONE – not just employees:

“If you don’t want it to be posted on a billboard, you don’t want the whole world to know – just don’t put it out there in the social media world because it’s out there, and it’s permanent.”

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz, from Fox News Radio.

The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_11-09-2011.mp3)

Early signs of childhood obesity – could be detected in weight gain of infants as young as 6 months old – suggests a new study.

“You know, we don’t know exactly why these babies are gaining weight so quickly – but the take away is that if your baby is gaining weight so quickly that regardless of the reason – that’s a child you want to watch out for – you want to be particularly careful with the types of foods that you introduce to them and what you feed to them.”

That’s Pediatrician and Child Obesity Specialist Dr. Joanna Dolgoff, speaking with Greg Knapp at KCMO in Kansas City.

Doc, in the study – did they look into what kind of feeding these babies were receiving?

“They did not look at that in this study – however many studies show that breast feeding does help children to maintain a normal weight throughout life.”

Could this lead to schools going after the parents of the infant for being obese?

“Well you know they’ve actually, they’ve done that – and there have been some children removed from houses because they were so morbidly obese – and I do think that’s a mistake.”

According to Dr. Dolgoff – 70% of parents of obese children actually think that their child is either normal or under weight, and when the school gets involved, it’s just as a warning for parents.

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.

The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_11-08-2011.mp3)

Parents – forget letting your kids get chickenpox the “old fashioned way”…

Now – you can order chickenpox lollipops… yep, you guessed it – lollipops licked by kids who are infected with the pox!

I’m not even making this stuff up!

“It’s a result of really, incorrect information and ignorance.”

That’s Medical Expert, Dr. Mitchell Brooks – speaking with Charlie Parker at WOAI in San Antonio.

How did this all begin? Well, according to the Doctor, some very false information got printed in a medical publication – suggesting that preservatives in chickenpox vaccines – cause autism.

“And it’s absolutely false. So you have these parents who are helicopter parents – who read a couple of things online, or are told by their friends that these vaccines are unsafe, and it perpetuates this ridiculous myth, and what they wind up doing is not only putting their children at risk – which would be fine if it were only their children, they put other people at risk, which is really negligent.”

You don’t even have to stick with ordering the lollipops – you can just order spit!

But, according to the good doctor:

“Chickenpox is not spread by spit. So, you’re really not protecting your child. Chickenpox is spread by respiratory secretions.”

So really, you’re just wasting your money, and putting the health of your child at risk here, then, right?

“Unless you want to dip the lollipop in urine – you’re not going to get chickenpox. What’s worse is, you don’t know what else is on this lollipop. You don’t know where this came from, so you’re setting yourself up for other diseases. You can even get staph from that!”

The moral of the story – stop with the lollipops! Go with the vaccine. Doctor’s orders!

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.

The Radio Buzz. The top talk radio stories of the day.

(Play: THEBUZZ_11-07-2011.mp3)

In light of a barrage of sexual harassment allegations lobbed at Republican Presidential hopeful – Herman Cain we ask;

What constitutes sexual harassment in the workplace?

“Well – under the law – the term sexual harassment is defined as conduct that is of a sexual nature as opposed to profanity or just general boorishness. But of a sexual nature that is severe or pervasive. Severe could be a one time very serious thing or pervasive means it’s a series of things over time that effect the term or condition of employment.”

That’s Employment Attorney Bryant McFall, speaking with Tony at WHAS in Louisville.

So what if I were to just say – wow – nice sweater! Or… your hair looks nice today!

“No – that is not unlawful harassment – but it could be, if it’s interpreted by someone as offensive, they could certainly accuse you of it.”

Good to know.

Buzzing right along:

With Veterans Day – just a few days away — A 70 year-old Navy Veteran – faces eviction – for hanging the American Flag outside of his apartment.

“The landlord has the right to set up these types of rules to prohibit people from displaying things on the outside of the apartment because the landlord has an interest in wanting to maintain a uniform look on the apartment.”

That’s Legal Expert Brett Myers – speaking with Forrest at WREC in Memphis.

According to Myers, this is different though… because he’s a vet.

“He rents, so he doesn’t own the property. Had he owned the property, then federal law prohibits a homeowners association from coming in and saying he can’t display his American flag.”

From what Myers says, it seems as if there’s an agreement that’s been met:

“They have been able to reach an agreement with Mr. Zivica, he will be able to fly his flag; However, the agreement is that there has to be certain pre arranged pre agreed to dates in which he can fly his flag.”

Seems to me this is going to open up a flood gate to other folks in the apartment complex wanting to their fly flags… we haven’t heard the last of this story.

I’m Jessica Curtis, and that’s your Talk Radio Buzz from Fox News Radio.