From Washington to Oregon, to Vermont, states across the country are tallying lower crime rates over the past few years. Even in 2009, amidst economic downturn, cities like Los Angeles, Dallas and New York have seen a dramatic reduction in violent crime.
“In much of Los Angeles County and elsewhere in Southern California crime has dropped significantly so far this year, despite an economic meltdown that has pushed unemployment into double digits, imploded the housing market and shuttered countless businesses,” exclaimed the LA Times last month.
New York City’s crime rate for the first three months of 2009 was the lowest in more than 40 years, which “defied fears that the sinking economy might send the city back into the bad old days of rampant murders and rough streets,” said the New York Daily News three weeks ago.
Raising hopes for the development of an AIDS vaccine that might actually work, researchers report they were able to protect monkeys against infection with simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV), the primate version of HIV. 
A migration route for almost half the world’s whale species which contains vast amounts of rare coral will be preserved in the Savu Sea within the borders of the newest and largest marine park in Southeast Asia.
The Orphan Collection t-shirts are all limited editions, printed with eco-friendly water-based inks, and are available in women, men and kids sizes. The designs are derived from artwork by orphans in Obanjenie, South Africa and other developing nations. With each t-shirt, supporters receive a tag with the name of an orphan that CommonThreadz is able to feed for a month with that purchase. Supporters are also immortalized on the CommonThreadz Honor Wall in Africa. 
