Regardless of your opinion on Iowa's smoking ban, some of the temporary administrative rules - such as the distinction between bars and restaurants - go beyond the intent of the law. As the end to the commenting period approaches, the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH), which is in charge of making and changing the rules, needs to be more reasonable.

Last week's umpteenth special legislative session had a lot more to do with giving the Senate an opportunity to kill off the legislative pay raises than coming up with education-funding-reform ideas or passing a capital-construction plan.

The genesis for this week's legislative special session on education funding is Senator Reverend James Meeks' call for a boycott of the Chicago Public School system's first day of fall classes. But a campaign threat is what really seemed to motivate Governor Rod Blagojevich to take some action.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com), July 24, 2008 - The national minimum wage went up 70 cents on Thursday as the second of three planned increases mandated by Congress took effect. The national minimum wage will increase to $6.55 per hour as part of the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007.

Let's imagine that the old metaphor "climbing the ladder of success" isn't metaphorical but literal.