The Least Annoying Ski Weekend Ever

Lake Tahoe, Calif.
Days: The Ritz-Carlton (MAR), Lake Tahoe, is the nicest hotel on the lake and the closest to the airport (from $ 369 a night). Slopeside at Northstar California (MTN), it offers ski-on, ski-off access, maximizing mountain time. Tahoe is Shaun White’s home resort, and aspiring X Gamers can sign up for the Burton Snowboard Academy near the hotel’s back door ($ 250 for a full-day lesson). For wilderness runs, ride the lifts to Monument Glades.

Après: Take the 15-minute drive to the PlumpJack Squaw Valley Inn, a cozy establishment that attracts pro skiers but is better known for its wine cellar. Too sore to leave the hotel? Book the private chef’s table at the Ritz’s Manzanita and watch as chef Traci Des Jardins prepares a personalized tasting menu (from $ 75 per person).

Tip:
Get a head start on the morning powder by purchasing in advance a “first tracks” ticket for access to the Northstar slopes at 7:30 a.m., an hour and a half before the masses arrive ($ 185, including breakfast; available Feb. 16, 23; March 9, 23).
 
 
Jackson Hole, Wyo.
Days: Upgrade to a mountain view room at the Four Seasons Resort Jackson Hole, a log-and-stone lodge on the edge of Grand Teton National Park ($ 899). In the morning, take the Big Red tram up to Rendezvous Bowl or Tensleep Bowl, some of the best terrain in Jackson Hole (lift ticket, $ 105). Winter is the time to watch Wyoming’s wolves stalk their dinner in the National Elk Refuge. Sign up for an expedition led by the Four Seasons’s wildlife biologist, Tenley Thompson. Guests ride in a luxury SUV equipped with gourmet provisions ($ 199 per adult, $ 99 per child).

Après: Teton Village’s new Wool & Whiskey is part high-end clothing store, part saloon. Up front, shoppers browse clothing by John Varvatos, Filson, and Relwen. In the back, three fingers of Basil Hayden’s Kentucky bourbon poured over chilled soapstones (they don’t dilute it) is available for $ 15. Carb loaders: Get a table at Il Villaggio Osteria for house-made sausage and pastas.

Tip: East Coasters can finally go nonstop: In December, United Airlines (UAL) started offering direct flights from Newark to Jackson Hole.
 
 
Photograph by Michael Friberg for Bloomberg BusinessweekThe Orange Bubble Express at Canyons ResortPark City, Utah
Days: The Waldorf Astoria Park City ($ 179) is at the Canyons Resort, which underwent a major renovation last year. Avoid the trek to a rental in the base village by calling Black Tie Ski Rentals, whose staff will come to your room, fit you for equipment, and deliver boots and skis the next morning ($ 59 a day for the premium package). The hotel is a short gondola ride from the toasty Orange Bubble Express, the first enclosed, heated ski lift in North America (the seats act as butt warmers).

Après: High West Distillery and Saloon is the world’s only ski-in whiskey distillery, located in a 100-year-old livery stable just off Park City’s Main Street. Order the High West Flight ($ 13) for four-ounce pours of craft batches. For dinner, head to the newish Talisker on Main, which offers an outstanding tasting menu featuring local ingredients for about $ 100 a person.

Tip: New Yorkers can catch Friday’s 6:55 a.m. flight out of JFK (about $ 400, one-way) and ski for free by noon using Park City’s Quick Start program. Register at visitparkcity.com/quickstart and bring your voucher and boarding pass to the resort.
 
 
Vail/Beaver Creek, Colo.
Days: The Bavarian-inspired Arrabelle at Vail Square is the friendliest ski resort for smartphone addicts ($ 749). Order room service or book a massage using the hotel’s own app—even the nearby gondola is equipped with Wi-Fi. The ski concierge will have your boots and skis ready first thing in the morning. After a day on the hill, simply ski into the hotel, then head up to the rooftop hot tub. In Beaver Creek, book a room at the Osprey at Beaver Creek ($ 748), the closest hotel to a chairlift in North America: It’s 10 steps from the lobby to the Strawberry Park Express.

Après: If the thin air on the Beaver Creek trails bothers you, stop by the slopeside Ritz-Carlton Moet and Chandon Bubbles Bar, where you can get a 15-minute hit of pure oxygen and some Champagne. Then visit chef Nobu Matsuhisa’s eponymous restaurant, which opened last winter and serves such Japanese-Peruvian dishes as salmon fillet with wasabi pepper ($ 32). The Arrabelle’s SUV will shuttle you back and forth.

Tip: Vail’s EpicMix app uses technology in your lift ticket to track your day. The app lets you compare your time with Lindsey Vonn’s. (You’ll lose.)
 
 
Aspen, Colo.
Days: The 124-year-old Hotel Jerome ($ 695) underwent a total renovation last year. At the spa, experience the Sanctuary of the Mountains, a Ute Indian ritual purification of the hands and feet (80 minutes, $ 225). The Aspen lift ticket ($ 114) grants access to four mountains. After mastering Aspen Mountain’s mellow rollers, move over to Snowmass, where a short hike off the High Alpine lift leads to Headwall’s powdery chutes between banded cliffs.

Après: Don’t feel like dealing with the night lift? Ski to the Oasis, a pop-up Champagne bar on Aspen Mountain’s slopes. It opens at 1 p.m. and has lounge chairs and a solar-powered sound system. Find it on Twitter (@TheLittleNell). In Snowmass, the Viceroy’s Eight K restaurant serves New Orleans-inspired food, such as red snapper with butternut squash puree, black kale, and roasted pecans ($ 33).

Tip: Craft brew lovers stay at Wildwood Snowmass, a hotel that opened last December and features a beer hall by Colorado’s New Belgium Brewing (pints, $ 6).

Businessweek.com — Top News

Title Post: The Least Annoying Ski Weekend Ever
Url Post: http://www.news.fluser.com/the-least-annoying-ski-weekend-ever/
Link To Post : The Least Annoying Ski Weekend Ever
Rating:
100%

based on 99998 ratings.
5 user reviews.
Author: Fluser SeoLink
Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment

Read More..

Construction Writers Association Call for Speakers- Annual Conference “CONNECTED 2013″ in Chicago

CHICAGO, IL–(Marketwire – Feb 15, 2013) – The Construction Writers Association (CWA) is accepting speaker proposals for the upcoming annual conference — CONNECTED 2013 — that will be held October 21-22, 2013 in Chicago. CWA is celebrating its 55^th anniversary as an association. This is a two-day conference includes the presentation of awards at the Grand Awards Dinner and a construction tour. The deadline to submit speaker proposals is Friday, March 15, 2013.

Potential ideas for submittals are:

• Economic Forecast & Impact-total and by market type


• Engineering-new or current applications and technologies


• Equipment-new or current applications and technologies


• Green Buildings or LEED


• Leadership-brilliant and awesome leaders or visionary concepts


• Marketing Communications-best practices, ideas and visionary concepts


• Media-new innovations or ideas


• Public Relations-best practices, ideas and visionary concepts


• Recycling Ideas-buildings or products


• Roundtable Topics-topics applicable to 20-30 minute sessions


• Social Media-ideas, perceptions, innovative use and practices


• Specific markets: building types, roads, bridges or infrastructure projects


• Top Construction Projects-national and international


• Subjects related to renovation and preservation of historic landmarks


• Safety practices-innovative


• Subjects related to building near bodies of water


• Other topics and idea are welcome

The meeting location will be in downtown Chicago near the Magnificent Mile. Chicago is one of the most beautiful cities in the United States with an abundance of architecture, museums and shopping. Hotel and other conference details will be announced in March.

Speakers should complete the speaker proposal form to provide a brief overview of your proposed idea, speakers and main points of your presentation or program. All sections must be completed at the time of submittal. Send the completed form to CWA at [email protected] by Friday, March 15, 2013. All submittals must state in the email subject line: “2013 Annual Conference Proposal.” 

If you have any questions, contact Deborah J. Hodges, Executive Director, 1-773-687-8726 or Tim Gregorski, 2013 annual conference chair.

For more information about CWA’s annual conference, visit the Events section of the CWA Web site. To join the outstanding sponsors of this event and be recognized as a supporter of journalists, writers, and marketing communicators in the construction industry, contact Deborah Hodges, CWA executive director, for more information at [email protected] or at 1(773) 687-8726.

Join us on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/groups?mostPopular=&gid=2185694,
Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/groups/78345106861/
and Twitter at https://twitter.com/#!/CWA_Tweets

The Construction Writers Association (CWA), founded in 1958, is a non-profit, non-partisan, international organization that provides a forum for journalism, photography, marketing, and communications professionals in all segments of the construction industry to connect with other professionals and enhance skills through education.

Marketwire News Archive – Yahoo! Finance

Read More..

Beckham must wait before making PSG debut

SAINT-GERMAIN-EN-LAYE, France (AP) — David Beckham will have to wait at least one more week to make his debut for Paris Saint-Germain because his coach says he needs to get in better shape.

Coach Carlo Ancelotti ruled out the 37-year-old former England captain for Sunday's match against Sochaux in the French league.

"He will stay here and work," Ancelotti said Saturday. "He will stay here and improve his physical condition. He still needs to work, and with a week's work he will be ready the following week against Marseille."

PSG hosts title rival Marseille on Feb. 24 and again three days later in the French Cup.

"I think he can play easily against Marseille after one week more training, no problem," Ancelotti said. "I will make the decision whether he starts or not."

Beckham, looking to win a league championship in a fourth country, started full training with PSG this week and has not played since his last appearance for the Los Angeles Galaxy on Dec. 1. He worked out last week in London with personal fitness trainers.

"The level of French football is high, there is a lot of rhythm, a lot of intensity," Ancelotti said, adding he plans to use Beckham either in a defensive central midfield role or out wide on the right.

"He brings his experience, his quality, his professionalism. These are the things we need from David," said Ancelotti, who is close to Beckham after coaching him at AC Milan. "I'm not just keeping him for the Cup or the Champions League. He can play in every match."

Entering this weekend's matches, PSG leads Lyon by six points and Marseille by eight.

"We are in very good form at the moment," Ancelotti said, referring to PSG's unbeaten start to the year.

PSG took a step toward reaching the Champions League quarterfinals by winning 2-1 at Valencia this week.

Read More..

How Carnival can clean up PR mess

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• David Bartlett: For Carnival, impact of 'cruise from hell' potentially devastating.


• Passenger video, media puts Carnival increasingly on the defensive, he says


• He says it must show real concern, lay out plan, go a long way to make amends


• Don't try to justify or explain, he says, but get proactive now about fixing problem

Editor's note: David Bartlett is a senior vice president of Levick, a crisis and issues management and strategic communications firm based in Washington. He is the author of "Making Your Point" (St. Martin's Press), a guide to communication strategy and tactics.

(CNN) -- As three tugboats towed the disabled Carnival cruise ship Triumph back to port in Mobile, Alabama, things went from bad to worse.

The fire that caused the ship to lose power and drift aimlessly on rough Gulf of Mexico swells was just the beginning. Raw sewage seeped into corridors and cabin ways. Food had to be rationed. There were fears of looting. Not surprisingly, passengers were furious and emotional. Some were reported to be "acting like savages."

For Carnival and the rest of the cruise line industry, the implications are potentially devastating. The deadly capsizing in January 2012 of the Costa Concordia ship off the coast of Italy still lingers in the public's mind. About a month later, the Costa Allegra liner suffered a similar engine fire, lost power, and was set adrift in pirate-infested waters in the Indian Ocean. Carnival owns Costa Cruises, and now a third high-profile crisis for Carnival in just over a year threatens to cement the perception among vacationers that cruising might not be worth the risk.

Five things we've learned about cruises

David Bartlett

In the age of social and digital media, the problems faced by cruise lines are compounded. Using mobile phones, passengers aboard the Triumph have been providing concerned family members with constant updates. Those enraged family members have immediately passed the horror stories along to the eager media. The public is getting the full play-by-play in virtual real time, leaving Carnival playing catchup from an increasingly defensive posture.

But as bad as the potential damage to Carnival's image may be, the company, as well as the rest of the cruise line industry, has an opportunity to blunt the impact, if it acts quickly and wisely.

It seems counterintuitive, but while the gruesome stories of the "cruise from hell" are still fresh, the crisis offers an opportunity for the cruise line to make a compelling statement about the industry's commitment to its passengers. (Statements from Carnival.)

Crisis management experts know that customers and the general public are more likely to judge an organization by how it handles a problem than how it got into the problem in the first place. That means Carnival has to go much further than mere reimbursements and vouchers for onward travel.

The challenge to Carnival's reputation is three-fold.

First the company must articulate real concern for passengers and clearly communicate what it is doing to make things right for customers. This will require financial sacrifices, of course. But Carnival has little choice but to pay now and win some badly needed goodwill -- or pay later in the courtroom, in the court of public opinion, and, of course, at the cash register when bookings decline.

Second, the company must clearly communicate what it is doing to fix the problem and prevent anything like it from ever happening again. How did an engine fire, serious as that might be, so quickly develop into a disaster of this magnitude?

My celebration trip on the Carnival Triumph: From joy to misery

How could it have been allowed to happen? Why was the widely reported chaos and disorder allowed to develop? Why did Carnival not have emergency response plans in place? What is the industry doing to prepare for what would seem to be a manageable situation? The public will demand answers to these basic questions before it will begin to trust again. Uncertainty breathes life into a crisis. Accurate and timely information smothers it.

Third, Carnival must aggressively and clearly deliver these messages now, and for as long as it takes to restore the public's trust.

So far, the story has been about the unthinkable conditions the passengers have been forced to endure. Carnival must move aggressively to reshape that narrative to reflect all that it is doing to rectify the situation.

After a bad cruise, can you cruise into court?

Carnival has to resist the temptation to explain, minimize, or justify what happened and position itself instead as part of the solution to the problems that caused the disaster. That is what the public will focus on and remember, but only if Carnival is able to communicate it fast and effectively.

Follow us on Twitter @CNNOpinion.

Join us on Facebook/CNNOpinion.

The opinions in this commentary are solely those of David Bartlett.

Read More..

Work starts on Seaside Heights, NJ, boardwalk

SEASIDE HEIGHTS, N.J. (AP) — The sounds shaking the ground in Seaside Heights aren’t from nightclubs.

The town featured in the MTV reality show “Jersey Shore” has started rebuilding the boardwalk that was destroyed by Superstorm Sandy.

Heavy equipment began drilling holes in the sand and pounding pilings into the ground Friday. It’s the first phase of a project that could ultimately cost $ 6 million to $ 7 million.

Mayor Bill Akers says the mile-long walkway should be done by May 10, but amenities like railings, lighting and ramps will come after that.

Many residents turned out to see the start of the work. They expressed hope that the place where they vacationed as children and came to settle down will recapture what made it so special to them.

Entertainment News Headlines – Yahoo! News

Title Post: Work starts on Seaside Heights, NJ, boardwalk
Url Post: http://www.news.fluser.com/work-starts-on-seaside-heights-nj-boardwalk/
Link To Post : Work starts on Seaside Heights, NJ, boardwalk
Rating:
100%

based on 99998 ratings.
5 user reviews.
Author: Fluser SeoLink
Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment

Read More..

Wall Street edges up on data, S&P up for seventh week

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rose slightly Friday with the S&P 500 gaining for a seventh week in the wake of upbeat consumer sentiment data, though thin trading and the modest rise showed a continuing trend of a consolidating market after strong recent gains.

The S&P 500, up nearly 7 percent so far this year, is facing strong technical resistance near the 1,525 level. But investors, expecting the index to advance further in the quarter, have held back from locking in profits.

The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's preliminary reading on the overall index of consumer sentiment rose to 76.3 in February from 73.8 in January, topping economists' forecasts of 74.8.

"This is unexpected given the increase in gas prices and payroll taxes," said Jim Awad, managing director at Zephyr Management in New York. "This is a welcome event and it should be embraced by the market."

The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> rose 14.51 points or 0.1 percent, to 13,987.9, the S&P 500 <.spx> gained 1.44 points or 0.09 percent, to 1,522.82 and the Nasdaq Composite <.ixic> added 4.68 points or 0.15 percent, to 3,203.34.

The S&P is on track to register its seventh straight week of gains by the close of trading Friday, a feat not seen since a run of consecutive weekly gains between December 2010 and January 2011.

A surge in merger and acquisition activity, with more than $158 billion in deals announced so far in 2013, has given further support to the equity market as it points to healthy valuations and bets on the economic outlook.

Art Hogan, managing director of Lazard Capital Markets in New York, said the flurry of mergers and acquisitions should be seen as a tailwind for the market.

"You don't go into M&A if you don't have a positive outlook," he said.

Herbalife shares surged 10 percent to $42.12 a day after billionaire investor Carl Icahn said in a regulatory filing that he now owns 13 percent of Herbalife and was ready to put it in play.

Burger King Worldwide shares jumped 3.8 percent to $17.21 after it beat estimates with a 94 percent rise in fourth-quarter profit, thanks to new menu additions.

(Additional reporting by Ryan Vlastelica; Editing by Bernadette Baum)

Read More..

Wall Street opens flat with data on tap

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Wall Street opened flat on Friday, continuing a trend this week of thin trading and tight moves, with the S&P 500 struggling to extend a streak of weekly gains to seven.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> shed 0.62 points, or 0.00 percent, to 13,972.77. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index <.spx> gained 1.24 points, or 0.08 percent, to 1,522.62. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> added 5.10 points, or 0.16 percent, to 3,203.76.</.ixic></.spx></.dji>

(Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Bernadette Baum)

Business News Headlines – Yahoo! News

Title Post: Wall Street opens flat with data on tap
Url Post: http://www.news.fluser.com/wall-street-opens-flat-with-data-on-tap/
Link To Post : Wall Street opens flat with data on tap
Rating:
100%

based on 99998 ratings.
5 user reviews.
Author: Fluser SeoLink
Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment

Read More..

Living In | Van Cortlandt Village, the Bronx: Van Cortlandt Village, the Bronx – Affordable Homes, and Price of Place

Read More..

Ligety wins GS for 3rd gold medal at worlds

SCHLADMING, Austria (AP) — Ted Ligety became the first man in 45 years to win three gold medals at a skiing world championships by blowing away the field in winning his favored giant slalom on Friday.

The American can match French great Jean-Claude Killy, who earned four golds in 1968, if he wins Sunday's slalom.

"I am super pumped. This is such a cool feeling," Ligety said. "I am glad I've done it ... it's been a dream for sure. It's been a really cool experience."

Defending champion Ligety, who also took the super-G and super-combined titles, built on his big first-run lead of 1.31 seconds with a fast start but cautious finish in the second.

Marcel Hirscher of Austria was 0.81 behind in second, and Manfred Moelgg of Italy took third, trailing Ligety by 1.75.

"This has been a crazy and unbelievable week. It's definitely far exceeded my expectations," Ligety said. "To win three gold medals here is awesome. It's a really cool feeling to join some of the legends of our sports."

Ligety is the first American to win two world GS titles, and has equaled Bode Miller's American record of four golds at the worlds.

"It's been pretty surreal," Ligety said. "I knew I had good chances of medals in those other two events but I didn't think the chances were gold-medal chances. So to achieve that this week it's been unbelievable. It's been by far the best week of ski racing in my life. So hopefully I can continue that streak and step up in those other events on a more regular basis.

"I definitely had a lot of pressure in the GS being the defending champion. With these gold medals it added a little bit of extra pressure for sure, so to live up to that is awesome."

Ligety, who smiled and closed his eyes several times while listening to the American anthem during the flower ceremony in the finish area, was widely praised by rivals and coaches.

"Ted is the man. He's the best in the world," Aksel Lund Svindal said. The Norwegian was second after the opening run but had only the 13th fastest time in the final run and was edged for third place by Moelgg by 0.04.

"It's not possible to beat Ted, I think," added Svindal, who won gold in downhill and bronze in super-G. "With two golds already in his pocket I bet he was fairly confident in the start."

Stephen Eberharter, the Austrian who won the 2002 Olympic GS, called Ligety's GS skiing "sensational."

"He completes these turns to perfection," Eberharter said. "He is unbelievably steady. And if he gets in trouble, he knows how to correct them immediately."

According to Alpine sport director Hans Pum of the Austrian ski federation, Ligety was "flying, not skiing. He goes from one victory to another."

"He's in very good form, he has a very good setup with the materials and he skis well," Pum said. "He got his first super-G win in the first race and then he just carried on. He's doing (whatever) he wants to."

After sunshine in the morning, grey clouds moved in and worsened visibility for the final run. In front of 35,000 visitors, Ligety increased his 1.31-second advantage over Hirscher from the first run to 1.68 before slowing down to avoid further risks.

"I wasn't easy. I took some risks but it was very difficult," Ligety said. "It was pretty dark and bumpy. I had several mistakes but I could afford them being 1.3 ahead."

Hirscher, the defending overall World Cup champion, posted the fastest time in the final run to win his second medal of the worlds after taking gold in the team event.

Hirscher hurt his lower back while GS training in nearby Haus on Thursday and had more treatment after his first run. The Austrian said he even considered skipping the race when he woke up at two in the morning.

"I wasn't sure if would make sense to race but I mobilized all energy in my body," Hirscher said. "Normally you would stay in bed. I had only had four or five hours of sleep. My neck also hurts ... it was difficult with the expectations. It was difficult to race and I am extremely happy with silver."

Hirscher was regarded as Ligety's closest challenger after beating the American in Val d'Isere, France, in December, Ligety's only loss in five World Cup giant slaloms this season. Most of the wins were by huge time differences.

"I've just had a good feeling on this hill and snow and I have high confidence," Ligety said, "so I think that helps me right now."

Read More..

Where's Obama's foreign policy?

By Isobel Coleman, Special to CNN

February 13, 2013 -- Updated 1653 GMT (0053 HKT)

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Isobel Coleman: Obama mainly addressed domestic issues: economy, immigration, energy


• He spoke very little about and offered nothing much new on foreign policy, she says


• Coleman: He talked about ending Afghanistan War, spoke briefly about Iran, Syria, China


• Coleman: His reinvigorated free trade agenda seems to be the boldest move

Editor's note: Isobel Coleman is the author of "Paradise Beneath Her Feet" and a senior fellow for U.S. foreign policy at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.

(CNN) -- President Obama's State of the Union address predictably focused on his domestic priorities.

Immigration reform, a laundry list of economic initiatives including infrastructure improvements (Fix it First), clean energy, some manufacturing innovation, a bit of educational reform and the rhetorical high point of his speech -- gun control.

Isobel Coleman

As in years past, foreign policy made up only about 15% of the speech, but even within that usual limited attention, Tuesday night's address pointed to few new directions.

On Afghanistan -- America's longest war -- Obama expressed just a continued commitment to bringing the troops home, ending "our war" while theirs continues. On Iran, there was a single sentence reiterating the need for a diplomatic solution, which makes me think that a big diplomatic push is not likely. On North Korea, boilerplate promises to isolate the country further after its provocative nuclear test, and on Syria, a call to "keep the pressure" on the regime, which means more watching from the sidelines as the horror unfolds.

Notably, China was mentioned only twice -- once in the context of jobs, and another time with respect to clean energy. Nothing about managing what could very well be this administration's most vexing but critically important bilateral relationship.

Obama's call for a reinvigorated free trade agenda was his boldest foreign policy statement of the evening. He is right to note that free trade "supports millions of good-paying American jobs," but his pledge to pursue a "comprehensive Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership" -- a free trade agreement with Europe -- will run into significant opposition from organized labor, especially given ongoing weaknesses in the economy.

Without fast track negotiating authority, the prospects for such a deal are minimal. Fast track authority, which allows the president to negotiate trade deals that Congress can then only approve or disapprove but not amend, expired in 2007, and it would require quite a breakthrough for Congress to approve it again. Still, despite these challenges, an agreement is worth pursuing.

Aside from a free trade agreement with Europe, there was little else in this State of the Union that hinted at foreign policy ambition. But unpredictable events have a way of derailing America's best laid plans to stay above the fray of the world's messiest problems. Who could have predicted just a few months ago that Mali would get a mention in the State of the Union? Iraq -- not uttered once tonight -- could re-emerge as a formidable crisis; Iran, Pakistan and North Korea also have tremendous potential to erupt.

While this administration seems determined to focus inward on getting America's economic and fiscal house in order, I doubt events in the rest of the world will be so accommodating.

Follow @CNNOpinion on Twitter.

Join us at Facebook/CNNOpinion.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Isobel Coleman

Part of complete coverage on

February 13, 2013 -- Updated 1629 GMT (0029 HKT)

After Barack Obama's speech and Marco Rubio's rebuttal, we should have heard from Kim Peters, who has been unemployed for more than a year, says John Sutter.

February 13, 2013 -- Updated 1420 GMT (2220 HKT)

Anne-Marie Slaughter says the hallmark of the 2013 State of the Union address was progressive pragmatism.

February 14, 2013 -- Updated 1528 GMT (2328 HKT)

David Rothkopf says a newly confident and empowered Obama offered an agenda for change and determination to get to the work of governing.

February 13, 2013 -- Updated 1848 GMT (0248 HKT)

CNN invited contributors to weigh in on President Obama's State of the Union address Tuesday night.

February 13, 2013 -- Updated 1859 GMT (0259 HKT)

Jessica Massa says today's romantic landscape is full of ambiguity and gray areas about where any given connection might lead.

February 13, 2013 -- Updated 1752 GMT (0152 HKT)

LZ Granderson: Marco Rubio was set to showcase the new, women-friendly face of the GOP. Too bad he had just cast a women-unfriendly vote.

February 13, 2013 -- Updated 1753 GMT (0153 HKT)

Ruben Navarrette says Sen. Marco Rubio's effective response to the State of the Union showed he is someone to be reckoned with.

February 13, 2013 -- Updated 1415 GMT (2215 HKT)

Matt Welch: The State of the Union laid out an agenda too costly for a country that wants to see what it's getting in return for debt.

February 13, 2013 -- Updated 1653 GMT (0053 HKT)

Isobel Coleman says Obama's speech ignored huge challenges the U.S. faces in the world, ones which could quickly dominate domestic agenda.

February 13, 2013 -- Updated 1417 GMT (2217 HKT)

Presidents once delivered State of the Union only in writing; now they reckon with a stream of social media comments, says Bob Greene.

February 12, 2013 -- Updated 2118 GMT (0518 HKT)

Peter Bergen says the interview with the bin Laden "shooter" adds important detail to the story of bin Laden's final minutes.

February 12, 2013 -- Updated 1700 GMT (0100 HKT)

David Frum says many people want to believe in living alone, without traditional attachments, but is that kind of life best?

February 12, 2013 -- Updated 1612 GMT (0012 HKT)

Timothy Stanley says Pope Benedict XVI, who struggled to reconcile the Catholic Church's relationship with the modern world, embraced the living traditions of the church while attempting to extend its reach.

February 10, 2013 -- Updated 1839 GMT (0239 HKT)

Dean Obeidallah says the CBS dress advisory note to Grammy attendees was hilarious -- and sexist.

Read More..