Staff writer Alex Carver offers criticism of President Obama in the Feb. 16 East Tennessean. He's entitled to his point of view, but he should be more careful of his facts. He writes about debt. Let's look at a few facts from the 2012 edition of The World Almanac.

In our generation, we have definitely experienced exponential progress in the advancement of technology. We are fascinated and sometimes even obsessed with the latest gadgets and finding easier ways to do various tasks. Our generation has seen so many innovative products be released and advance rapidly.

Presidential candidate strikes a chord with young voters

With the Republican Primary well under way, few could have predicted how things now stand. Jon Huntsman, Rick Perry, Michele Bachman and Herman Cain have left the race. Rick Santorum has won some confidence by winning the preference polls in Minnesota, Colorado and Missouri.

So many people go searching for their true love in nightclubs, singles clubs, through online dating sites and among friends of friends. The truth is, finding true love starts right in your own home — or, more accurately, in your own heart. Before you can find true love in a relationship, you must find it within yourself.

Dear Sex Matters, My girlfriend and I are wondering if you would solve an argument we are having. Can you please tell us your opinion about whether cybersex is the same thing as real sex? One of us thinks that cybersex shouldn't be categorized as real sex, and the other of thinks that it is the same as real sex.

When Obama campaigned for the presidency four years ago, he promised change. Increasing debt, gas prices and unemployment rates was the change we received. As America prepares for one of the most important presidential elections in decades, we must remember how America has changed over the past four years.

"The Bodyguard" was one of the greatest movies of the ‘90s and the first time I was introduced to Whitney Houston. Her beauty and her voice were astounding. Was anyone not wishing they could belt out songs like Whitney? I aspired to be an amazing singer like her, but I soon realized I have no right singing out loud.

The 10-year-old ho committed suicide recently in a rural Illinois community came home from school the day before in tear . It wasn't the first time. Ashlynn Conner, a fifth grader, had complained of bullying for two years. After the most recent episode, Ashlynn asked to be homeschooled and her mother promised to take her for a chat with the principal the following Monday.

Right-wing group "One Million Moms" must not have expected how much backlash would happen after giving its two cents about J.C. Penney hiring Ellen DeGeneres as their spokesperson. OMM's site has a link to a petition urging that DeGeneres — spelled ‘Degeneres' on their page — be removed for being "an open homosexual," and for not being "a true representation of the type of families who shop at the retailer.

Not many English majors can decide on a single book as their favorite — it's something of a faux pas to even try — but I can't stop returning to how much I connect with "One Hundred Years of Solitude." For the sake of being spoiler-free, I won't name the character in "Solitude" who became much more to me than a passing name and a personality.