On Passports, Mother and Father Will Soon Be 'Parent 1' and 'Parent 2'

Gay-rights proponents are cheering and some conservatives are up in arms after the State Department said it would replace the words "mother" and "father" on U.S. passport applications with gender-neutral terms.

Instead of "mother" and "father," the forms will read "parent one" and "parent two."

A statement on the agency's website called the changes "improvements" that are being made to provide a more accurate description "of a child's parents and in recognition of different types of families."

Brenda Sprague, deputy assistant secretary of State for Passport Services, told Fox News the new forms reflect the realities of the modern world.

"We find that with changes in medical science and reproductive technology that we are confronting situations now that we would not have anticipated 10 or 15 years ago," Sprague said.

Christian conservative organizations were quick to slam the forthcoming changes.

"Only in the topsy-turvy world of left-wing political correctness could it be considered an 'improvement' for a birth-related document to provide less information about the circumstances of that birth," Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, said in a statement.

Perkins said the gender neutral terms were "designed to advance the causes of same-sex 'marriage' and homosexual parenting without statutory authority, and violates the spirit if not the letter of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)."

Under the 1996 federal law, marriage is legally defined as a union between one man and one woman.

Gay-rights supporters hailed the move toward gender neutral terminology.

"Changing the term 'mother' and 'father' to the more global term of 'parent' allows many different types of families to be able to go and apply for a passport for their child without feeling like the government doesn't recognize their family," Jennifer Chrisler, executive director of Family Equality Council, told Fox News.

Chrisler, who pushed for the changes for years, praised the government for recognizing that "the family structure is changing."

"The best thing that we can do is support people who are raising kids in loving, stable families," she said.

The State Department said the new passport applications will be available online next month.

Facebook 'Friends' Mock Woman's Suicide Message

A U.K. woman was left to die after posting a suicidal message on Facebook. She was then taunted by her Facebook ‘friends’ who commented on her status.Simone Back, 42, had 1,048 Facebook “friends,” none of whom came to her rescue or alerted authorities of her suicidal post that read, "Took all my pills be dead soon bye bye everyone." She posted this message on the social networking site at 10:53 p.m. on Christmas Day and received responses calling her a “liar,” “she OD’s all the time and she lies” and saying the fatal overdose was “her choice,” The Telegraph reports.Some out-of-town friends did respond wanting to help, requesting her address and telephone number to no avail.Not one of Back’s friends checked in on her.Seventeen hours after the Facebook post, her mother, Jennifer Langridge, was alerted to her daughter’s online suicide note. She then immediately called emergency number 999.Police arrived at Back’s apartment at 4 p.m. on Dec. 26, where they found her body. She was declared dead an hour later.Facebook says that they have a help center where concerns can be reported to a team of trained professionals. It is not yet known at what time Back died or whether she could have seen any of the callous messages. Langridge later posted on her daughter’s Facebook page: “My daughter Simone passed away today so please leave her alone now,” The Telegraph reports.

Sarah Palin better watch out, fellow Tea Party star Michele Bachmann may have eyes on White House

Sarah Palin (left) called Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) a "fireball" at an April 2010 rally.

Move over, Sarah Palin. There may be a new Tea Party star with eyes on the White House.

Rep. Michele Bachmann, a Minnesota Republican who once said God told her to run for Congress, is planning a speech in her native Iowa later this month, fueling speculation she will run in 2012.

On Wednesday, Bachmann spokesman Sergio Gor confirmed an ABC News report of the congresswoman's potential White House aspirations.

"Nothing is off the table," Gor told the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.

Bachmann's chief of staff, Andy Parrish, added that his boss is "looking forward over the next year to traveling and sharing the story of why we can't reelect Barack Obama as President."

Bachmann, who was born in Iowa and moved to Minnesota as a child, ducked questions about a presidential run on Thursday, saying there was nothing more to her keynote speech at a Des Moines fund-raiser supporting Iowans for Tax Relief.

"If you speak in Iowa today, most people think that you're running for President," Bachmann told the "Today" show.

"What I'm serious about is focusing on the issues," Bachmann said.

The 2012 presidential race's first big contest is the Iowa Caucuses two years from now in January.

Bachmann is a supporter of the Tea Party and started the Tea Party Caucus in the House. She appeared alongside Palin, the anti-Washington movement's most vocal cheerleader, at an April rally in Minnesota.

Palin told the crowd that Bachmann was a "fireball" and had a "stiff spine."

Bachmann's constant criticism of Obama that ranges from his economic policies to his overseas trips helped her raise a record $13 million in the runup to winning her third term in Congress last November.

During the 2008 presidential campaign, Bachmann questioned whether Obama held "anti-American" views, though later backed off her claim after backlash from Democrats and Republicans such as former Secretary of State Colin Powell.

However, last March during a speech at a Pro-Life event, Bachmann seemed to revive her earlier view of the President.

"I said I had very serious concerns that Barack Obama had anti-American views," Bachmann said. "And now I look like Nostradamus."

Bachmann was elected to the Minnesota state Senate in 2000 and ran successfully for Congress in 2006.

During her House campaign, she once told a rally that she and her husband, Marcus, prayed and fasted in the hopes that God would tell her to run.

"And in the midst of that calling, God then called me to run for the United States Congress," she said.

Oops! Royal Suffers Wardrobe Malfunction

Prince Henrik of Denmark suffered an embarrassing wardrobe function when he appeared with his wife, Queen Margrethe II, at the royals' gala New Year's party Saturday night at Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen.

The 76-year-old prince consort was resplendent in formal dress and medals -- but His Royal Highness had neglected to zip the royal trousers.

The French-born Henrik was born Henri Marie Jean Andre, Count de Laborde de Monpezat,

and served as a diplomat before he married then Princess Margrethe in 1967. She came to the throne in 1972 on the death of her father, King Frederik IX.

The Danish royal family prides itself on being one of the oldest ruling dynasties in the world. It stretches back to Gorm the Old, who died in 958 and was succeeded by his colorfully named son, Harald Bluetooth, for whom Bluetooth technology is named.

Members of the royal family all gathered for the traditional New Year's fete, with the exception of Crown Princess Mary. Mary, the Australian-born wife of Crown Prince Frederik, is pregnant with twins, which are due any day.

The crown prince and princess already have two children, 5-year-old Prince Christian, who is second in line to the throne, and Princess Isabella, 3.

Cat fight! 'Real Housewives' stars Kim Zolciak, NeNe Leakes act icy cold; Lisa Vanderpump is snooty

 

Kim Zolciak (l.) and NeNe Leakes (r.) had a diva showdown at Bravo honcho Andy Cohen's New Year's Eve bash, and Lisa Vanderpump shared her own two cents.

The claws were out at the New Year's Eve bash that Bravo honcho Andy Cohen hosted at the cable network's West Village clubhouse. A party source tells us things were frosty between "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" cast-mates Kim Zolciak and NeNe Leakes. The on-and-off BFFs "avoided each other," the insider tells us, while exhibiting dual diva behavior. Both demanded "private dressing rooms" and "top hair and makeup people," instead of using those provided. They both also managed to annoy "Real" Beverly Hills Housewife Lisa Vanderpump. The Brit babe was overheard calling the women "pedestrian." How dryly bitchy.

Stewart says sorry about the chuckles

Jon Stewart gets the last laugh, even if he has to make fun of himself. "The Daily Show" host returned to duty Monday night, saying: "We won't blow out of town when important [bleep] is going down. We're not the governor of New Jersey." Except that's what Stewart did last month - when, after singlehandedly reviving the Zadroga bill, he left town for the holidays. "Oh, yeah, I'm wrong," he admitted. 

Lifetime flick is 'pathetic': Kristin Davis 

Manhattan madam Kristin Davis calls Lifetime's latest film "pathetic." Monday's "Craigslist Killer," based on Philip Markoff's real-life crimes, drew 5.4 million viewers, but the ex-gubernatorial candidate was no fan. Among Markoff's victims was a Davis pal and one-time employee, Julissa Brissman, whom the movie identifies only as a prostitute. Lifetime is "capitalizing on [Julissa's] death without even giving her a name," Davis says. "Lifetime had the opportunity to give her a voice in this movie, and they didn't." Lifetime declined to comment.

Alexa Ray is a daddy's girl

Alexa Ray Joel's famous parents weren't in the crowd when she performed at the Plaza Hotel's Oak Room on Monday, but her dad's current flame was. Alexis Roderick, 29, sat front and center in the dining room, wearing a gray striped blazer, and Joel greeted her with a hug after her set.

Singer/songwriter Alexa Ray, 25, told us she spent the holidays with her pops in Oyster Bay, L.I., drinking tea, opening gifts and watching movies. "My dad is like a best friend to me," she said. Her mom, supermodel Christie Brinkley, is also like a pal, Alexa Ray was quick to add, but was in the Caribbean. "So I'm hanging with Dad!" she chirped.

Let's hope their time together extends to next Monday, when Alexa Ray told us she'll be doing a tribute to the Piano Man at her next Oak Room performance. We hope that wasn't meant to be a surprise.

Wendy Williams gets wove-y dovey with hubby

Wendy Williams got a jump-start on the holidays last Wednesday — but we're not talking New Year's Eve. A source tells us the talk-show host was throwing back Given tequila liqueur at Nikki Beach in Miami with husband Big Kev (Kevin Hunter), and the two were so "gropey" you might have thought it was Valentine's Day instead of Dec. 29.

Suspected Michigan Serial Killer to Plead Insanity

The attorney for suspected serial killer Elias Abuelazam plans to mount an insanity defense and is asking for a change of venue, according to court motions.

In the motions, filed in Genesee County, Mich., Circuit Court, Abuelazam's lawyer says he plans to have a forensic psychiatrist testify that Abuelazam was insane at the time of the attacks, WTOP reported.

Erik S. Lesser, APThe attorney for Elias Abuelazam, shown in an Atlanta courtroom in August, is reportedly planning and insanity defense for his client.The documents indicate attorney Brian Morley has requested a psychiatric test for his client but, according to WTOP, acknowledges "Abuelazam has not retained witnesses to support his claim of insanity."

Abuelazam, 34, was extradited from Atlanta in August, after he wasarrested while attempting to board a flight to Israel.

A Christian Arab from the Israeli city of Ramla, east of Tel Aviv, Abuelazam is suspected of committing 14 attacks on men in Michigan, Ohio and Virginia, killing five in Michigan. He has beencharged with three open counts of murder and five counts of attempted murder in Michigan, and an attempted murder in Ohio.

Abuelazam's attorney is also requesting a change of venue. Morley said pretrial publicity has made it impossible for his client to get a fair trial.

"Mr. Abuelazam has been repeatedly referred to as the 'Serial Stabber,' " Morley said, according to WTOP.

A Genesee County judge has yet to rule on the motions.

Abuelazam is being held in isolation at the Genesee County Jail. If convicted, he faces a possible sentence of life in prison without parole.

'Biggest Loser: Couples' features a few famous faces, familiar storylines and daytime TV gimmicks

Former Olympian Rulon Gardner is a featured competitor on this season's 'Biggest Loser: Couples,' and talks in-depth about how he went from Olympic fit (r.) to unhealthy flab.

"The Biggest Loser" won't ever lose its basic appeal, a combination of slightly uncomfortable voyeurism and commendable positive spirit.

That said, it's starting to fray a little around the edges as the new couples season begins Tuesday night.

With Jillian's quasi-terrorism less a novelty than a standard part of the production, the show is counting a little more on competition gimmicks, melodramatic contestant stories and even a little hint of star power.

One contestant this season is Rulon Gardner, who startled and delighted the country a few years back by winning an unexpected Olympic gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling.

He weighed about 285 then. He has since added a couple of hundred more. So he and a pal have signed up, and he turns out to be an entertaining contestant. He also gets a lot of airtime to talk about how he got from the Olympics to here.

In fact, everyone gets a lot of airtime in this two-hour opener. A pair of plus-size police officers, 54-year-old twins, start off as good-natured, self-aware contestants and gradually become soap-opera characters.

One has a son who died of a heroin overdose. The other has a son who disowned him because he seemingly refused to deal with his weight issues.

The stories are touching enough. They just move the whole "Biggest Loser" show a little further from prime time and closer to traditional daytime TV fare.

Tuesday night's featured gimmick, however, is a trainer overhaul. Call it the "Biggest Loser" version of the "American Idol" judge shuffle.

Bob and Jillian are still with us, and increasingly are treated less as trainers than as rock stars.

But the show has added a second pair of trainers, first shown only in mysterious silhouette and called "The Unknowns."

The deal is that contestants get to choose with whom they will train.

If they take "The Unknowns," they get four weeks of guaranteed immunity from elimination.

If they take the rock stars, they don't.

As gimmicks go, this is, pardon the term, thin.

Once we're past these preliminaries, of course, the show's success will depend on how well viewers bond with contestants.

Besides Gardner, it seems to be a solid group, although laden with stories we've heard before. The mother who is concerned about her daughter, who is concerned about her mother. The dad who comes from a culture of hearty eaters who all died before they reached 50, and now has decided he wants to live to see his grandchildren.

There's an opera singer who is mildly haunted by having had a fat joke written into one of her roles.

"The Biggest Loser" still has a ways to roll. But it may be on the downhill side of the ride

Dollar General to Hire 6,000 for 2011 Expansion

Dollar General (DG) announced Monday morning that its 2011 expansion plan to open 625 new stores will allow it to hire 6,000 workers. The discount retailer said the store openings in new suburban, rural and metropolitan markets would create 6,000 new jobs in local communities. Hiring will be spread throughout its existing 35-state operating area, as well as three new states: Connecticut, Nevada and New Hampshire. The company also plans to remodel or relocate 550 stores. "Bringing our store model of convenience and value to more people in more states is an exciting opportunity for us," said Chairman and CEO Rick Dreiling. "We believe the new communities and states we are entering will benefit from the new jobs, shopping choices and dedication to community found at Dollar General."

Unlike many other companies that have spent the past several years laying off employees, 2011 will mark Dollar General's third consecutive year of creating, rather than eliminating jobs. If its estimates for this year are accurate, from 2009 though 2011, the company will have created more than 15,000 new jobs. Dollar General currently has more than 9,200 stores in 35 states, which it says is more retail locations than any other discount retailer in America.

Six Symptoms of PMDD

If you're a woman, this probably sounds familiar. One week out of every month, you find yourself crying more than usual. You have to refrain from snapping at your co-workers. You constantly crave chocolate.

Experts tell women these are just side effects of premenstrual syndrome, or PMS. But if you find yourself in a serious emotional funk that goes so far as to disrupt your work and relationships, you may have PMS's debilitating cousin, premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD). And if the blues continue even after your period, they could be a sign of depression or bipolar disorder.

What is PMDD?
PMDD wreaks the same emotional havoc of PMS, but more so. The disorder strikes women the week before their period and subsides when their period starts, just like PMS. Experts associate PMDD with higher incidences ofsuicidal thoughts in women.

While about 75 percent of women have at least mild premenstrual symptoms, only about 5 percent have symptoms severe enough to quality for PMDD, says Dr. M. Beatriz Currier, an associate professor of clinical psychiatry at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. No one knows exactly what causes either PMS or PMDD, but figuring out whether you have PMDD can help you ease its effects. Most women with PMDD have found relief throughdiet, exercise, and rest.

If these six symptoms describe how you're feeling, you may have more than PMS.

Your symptoms are all emotional
PMS includes a whole host of physical symptoms -- like breast tenderness, bloating -- along with emotional symptoms like mood swings. "When it crosses over to where the symptoms are mostly emotional and are really interfering with your life, that could be PMDD," says Patricia J. Sulak, MD, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine and the director of the adolescent sex education program at Scott & White Clinic and Memorial Hospital, in Temple.

You experience debilitating depression
If you're a little down the week before your period but feel fine the rest of the month, chances are you're experiencing PMS. But if your pre-period depression really interferes with your work and your relationships, PMDD is likely to blame. And if you can't climb out of the rut all month long, you may have depression or another underlying illness.

"Some women will say they're really, really impossible the week before their period, but when you start probing into their energy, appetite, and sleep conditions, they tell you they never really get back to their old self," explains Currier. "That could mean patients have a baseline depression that gets worse during their premenstrual time."

You're extremely irritable, anxious, and cry easily
Even if you don't have depression, you could still be a victim of PMDD if you are irritable, anxious, and cry easily. But how do you know if your irritability level is normal or not? Who hasn't had a day where her nerves are wound a tad tighter and everyone is annoying?

If your annoyance level rises to the point where you're lashing out at your family or co-workers, you may have moved beyond PMS. And while you may be weepier than usual before your period, you shouldn't be concerned unless you are regularly crying over nothing.

You feel easily overwhelmed and out of control
When you're juggling family matters, work obligations, and more, who wouldn't be overwhelmed? But when that feeling threatens to engulf you, take note-it may be PMDD. "My patients tell me they're easily discombobulated when they need to get the kids off to school," says Currier. "They feel overwhelmed with their typical day-to-day schedule."

"I've even had a couple of patients tell me in tears that the week before their period was when they were most apt to scream at-or even think about hurting-their children," Sulak adds. "They get to the point where they feel completely out of control."

You have problems concentrating
Memory or concentration lapses-like misplacing your keys or blanking on a name-are no cause for alarm right before your period. But when these issues start seriously interfering with your life, you should see your doctor. "It's really common for women with PMDD to say, 'I just can't get through my work,'" says Currier. "They'll tell you they're just not productive during this time."

The duration of your symptoms
Whatever your combination of symptoms, they should disappear within a day or two of getting your period-if you have PMS. If the symptoms are life-disrupting but they still go away at the start of your period, you should talk to your doctor about the possibility it may be PMDD. In either case, says Currier, "the symptoms typically become a problem the week before you get your period and abruptly subside on Day 2 of menses."

But if the symptoms aren't necessarily in sync with your period, generalized anxiety disorder or depression may be to blame. "If the bad stuff is going on all month long," says Sulak, "there's something other than PMS going on."

Amber Portwood is number one on top ten reality TV show star arrests in 2010

Amber Portwood (l.) and Snooki (r.) are number one and two on the Daily News' top 10 reality TV show star arrests in 2010.

1. "Teen Mom" Amber Portwood was arrested Monday and charged with three felonies for allegedly beating up her baby daddy in front of daughter Leah.

2. Ronnie Ortiz-Magro knocked a guy out with "one punch" on the first season of "Jersey Shore" and was arrested. But he got indicted on the assault charge just two weeks ago.

3. Ortiz-Magro was also arrested for unpaid parking tickets at the cast's shore house in Seaside Heights this past summer.

4. In July, "Jersey Shore's" Nicole (Snooki) Polizzi was hauled off in cuffs for disorderly conduct after falling all over the Seaside Heights beach. We'll see more when season 3 starts this week.

5. "Raising Sextuplets" dad Bryan Masche was arrested in September and charged with resisting arrest and threatening domestic violence after a fight with wife Jenny.

6. Before becoming a star of "Real Housewives of New Jersey," Danielle Staub was arrested in 1986, charged as an accessory in a kidnap and ransom plot.

7. Another Jersey cast member, Joe Giudice (Teresa's husband), was arrested last January for outstanding warrants, just after cops from another town charged him with DWI.

8. While filming the reunion special of "Basketball Wives" in May, Suzie Ketcham (NBA star Michael Olowokandi's ex-girlfriend) was taken into police custody after flinging water on the groupie who broke them up.

9. Richard Hatch won the first season of "Survivor" back in 2000, but five years later he was indicted for failing to report the $1 million he scored from the show on tax returns.

10. "Dog the Bounty Hunter" star Duane Chapman was arrested in 2006 by U.S. marshals on behalf of Mexico on charges of deprivation of liberty for bounty-hunting there. The charge was later dropped.