Last week's floods left thousands homeless, and officials fear the death toll of about 160 could rise dramatically unless food and clean water supplies quickly reach survivors.

There are security fears in Oro province, north of the capital Port Moresby, after looters made off with a rice shipment and local MPs were accused of commandeering relief supplies for their own villages.

However, on the other hand I have worked for companies that viewed their employees as disposable liabilities. They didn't pay worth a darn and had the attitude "if you don't like it there's the door." Why is this? I understand there are some people who aren't good employees and are unreliable, but why treat everyone that way? Why not hire and treat people as though they were an asset to the company?

Amy Crooks/That's Life. Life Goes On

Fasting is a method of religious observance, penitence and purification which is practiced in several religious faiths. I am of the Protestant persuasion, so I will focus mostly on Protestant fasting.

Fasting was an option for the early Christians, and later became a requirement. In the early church the typical fast lasted 40 hours. It was later changed to 40 days. The 40-day fast in the early Christian church allowed one meal per day. My friend is not allowing himself even one meal. He is on a nothing-but-water fast for the entire 40 days.

It is the first change of US shipping lanes to protect an endangered species. The Coast Guard says electronic maps have been recalculated, navigational charts reprinted and mariners warned.

Schmidt described Google Health as a platform for users to manage their own records, such as medical test results and prescriptions. It would be accessed with a user name and password, just like a Google e-mail account, and could be called up on any computer with an Internet connection.

A primary benefit, Schmidt said, is the portability of records from one health care provider to the next. He repeatedly said no data would be shared without the consumer's consent.