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Arizonans Patricia Butler and Tom Maroun don't check the immigration status of the workers who trim these palm trees, but they say they're sure the men are in the country illegally.

In Illegal Immigration Debate, To Hire Or Not?

In Arizona, the immigration debate is taking place in the very homes where illegal workers make a living. Everyday families who hire undocumented workers to trim trees or paint walls are now deciding whether to keep breaking the law -- or to stop paying these workers under the table.

Twin sisters Sheila Newman (left) and Sheryl Lindsay of Orange Beach, Ala., make their case to a BP claims adjuster. The wedding planners have been trying since June to get BP to pay for lost income from the oil spill.

Gulf Coast Claimants Irked By BP's Delays

Many coastal residents are fighting for their economic survival -- and expect BP to keep them afloat. For three months, BP has been promising to make "whole" anyone who has lost income because of the oil spill. Last week, BP announced an expedited process, but claimants say it's anything but quick.

Brian Strumke of Stillwater Artisanal Ales brews a batch of beer at DOG Brewing Company in Westminster, Md.

'Gypsy Brewer' Spreads Craft Beer Gospel

Like an old-world itinerant preacher, Brian Strumke travels from brewery to brewery — from Belgium to Baltimore — crafting his ales on the go. He finds breweries that jibe with his thinking; rents out their excess capacity; and uses his own recipes to create limited edition batches and a brand.

Al Cassagne, who lives just outside of Grand Isle, La., has been fishing the local waters for more than 32 years. He is standing next to one of three commercial fishing boats he operated until the oil spill closed off the fishing waters.

BP Promises To Hire More Locals For Gulf Cleanup

The company with the two-letter name seems more like a four-letter word to many residents along the Gulf Coast, especially those who earned their living fishing the waters that are now tainted with oil. So BP is making changes to its much maligned Vessels of Opportunity program and is hiring more local boats in the cleanup effort.

An employee inspects finished rolls of aluminum at an Alcoa facility in Newburgh, Ind., in 2006. The company has slashed payrolls in its core business by about one-third.

'Extreme Downsizing' May Hurt Companies Later

During the Great Recession, companies laid off workers in record numbers as firms struggled to survive and eventually return to profitability. Despite the slow economy and high unemployment, profits are returning at many companies. But companies that made deep job cuts may suffer in the longer term.

Youth teams play on an auxiliary outdoor rink before the 2010 New Year's Day Winter Classic NHL hockey game. New research shows that young players in leagues that allow checking are much more likely to suffer concussions and serious injuries than kids who play in leagues that ban it.

In Youth Hockey, 'Checking' Ups Risk Of Brain Injury

Body checking -- or using your body to block another player -- is legal in professional hockey. But a new study finds it leads to higher rates of brain injury among youth players. Now the governing body for U.S. ice hockey is debating whether the game needs age restrictions for checking.

A Sons of Iraq volunteer stands guard at a checkpoint in the Azamiyah neighborhood in northern Baghdad in September 2008. The U.S.-backed paramilitary force is credited with helping to defeat al-Qaida in Iraq. Now, its fate hangs in limbo as the U.S. withdraws its troops.

Bitterness Grows Amid U.S.-Backed Sons Of Iraq

A climate of fear has descended on the U.S.-supported Iraqi paramilitary group credited by many for helping defeat al-Qaida in Iraq. With its members the target of frequent assassinations, many Sons of Iraq are not optimistic about the future. Their fate now lies in the hands of the Iraqi government.

Afghan police and U.S. Army soldiers jointly patrol the outskirts of Kandahar city as a boy pushes another boy in a wheelbarrow. The U.S. effort in Kandahar province faces a key challenge: Security is needed to enable local government to flourish, but without a local government in place, security is difficult to establish.

In Kandahar, It Will Take A Village To Oust Taliban

U.S. and Afghan officials say it will take more than the new American-led military thrust in Kandahar to drive out the Taliban. Local governments must start working again for the people, offering public services, jobs and hope. But a lack of security and money means very few Afghans are willing to serve.

Mexican marines patrol at a crime scene near Monterrey.

Drug War Besieges Mexico's Northern Metropolis

Thousands of soldiers and police are being deployed in a city better known as the Mexico headquarters of multinational companies like Whirlpool and Hershey's. Monterrey's peaceful, hard-working image has been shattered over the past few months as rival cartels fight for control of the city.

About 1,000 people are living on the 8-foot-wide median of Route Nationale 2, one of the busiest roads in Haiti.

Haitians On The Margins Make Home On A Highway

Across Haiti's capital, hundreds of thousands of earthquake victims are living in camps. For the residents of one makeshift settlement, the greatest threat is traffic. More than 1,000 people are living on an 8-foot-wide stretch of highway median south of Port-au-Prince.

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