This fall brought a major tragedy to the north eastern United States with Hurricane Sandy; much of the area was destroyed or damaged severely and millions of people are still in the process of recovering from the storm. The good news is that there is some hope and there are signs that the recovery is taking hold.

The biggest indicator right now is that car dealers in the northeast are seeing an incredible increase in car sales following the storm. Millions of cars were totaled by the storm and thanks to insurance many of the owners are now out shopping for brand new cars. Car dealers are seeing record numbers in the northeast, but the sales are also way up in other areas too; both of these factors are absolutely great for the economy and the car industry as a whole.

The tragedy of Hurricane Sandy has also brought a few other pieces of good news. Donations and relief funding has been phenomenal following the storm as millions of Americans have chipped in to various charities that will help with the rebuilding process in New York, New Jersey, and other affected areas. For now the recovery is still on going but experts say it is absolutely looking promising.

Ever since 1965 murder has been listed as one of the top 15 causes of death all across America. For the first time since then it has officially been removed from the top 15 causes as the murder rate has declined overall . Not only has the murder percentage dropped, the actual number of murders has also declined dramatically which is great news for anyone and everyone living anywhere in the United States.

The total number of murders is still quite high according to analysts but overall the reduction is a very good sign. Even more interesting is the fact that researchers and analysts were actually quite surprised by the results of the study since this result hasn’t actually occurred in such a long time. The drop in murders around the country is relatively consistent in nearly every city around the country and every demographic area. In every possible way analysts say that this is good news for everyone, obviously other things have now become part of the top 15 causes but the fact that murder has been delisted is great news for everyone.

A reparatory illness is now the number 15 cause of death and since it only generally affects older people it is likely not a concern for a majority of people. This should bring comfort and security to many people around the country as the technical chance of death is in fact slightly lower than before.

Today a United States Coast Guard ship successfully rescued the crew from an Iranian ship that was in trouble in the Persian Gulf. The ship was apparently suffering from some sort of mechanical failure as well as crew sickness and as part of a humanitarian effort towards Iran the U.S. Coast Guard decided to rescue the crew. The surprising part of this story is that this is the second time it has happened to this specific ship in the last few weeks but the good news is that everyone survived just fine in both instances.

The ship was located just 50 miles off the coast when a distress call was heart. The Coast Guard immediately sprung into action executing their emergency preparedness plans to rescue the group of mariners from the troubled boat. Upon arriving on the scene the Coast Guard cutter found that the ship was carrying a full crew in need of rescue and they promptly took the men aboard and returned them to their home port.

Stories like this don’t occur often so when it happens twice to the same crew in such a short period there is definitely something special going on. The crew was very happy to have been rescued both times by the Coast Guard and despite the duplicate miraculous rescue the men say that they were simply doing their job by responding to a distress call when needed.

U.S. Life Expectancy Rising

A report released this week indicates that the life expectancy in the United States is once again increasing. Originally analysts had expected the average life expectancy to go down due to health and weight issued but it seems they were incorrect in their prediction.

The report from the Center for Disease Control says that on average people born now should expect to live approximately 78 years and 2 months. Obviously this isn’t a huge improvement but any increase at all is a good sign say many doctors.

Among the increase in life expectancy the United States has reportedly seen many fewer deathly cases of diseases and illnesses. Things such as the flu and pneumonia are being treated much more rapidly now and as a result they are less likely to be deadly.

The news also came out this week that it is not only the United States that is seeing the benefit of higher quality healthcare systems. Much of Europe has also been seeing continually rising life expectancies despite small increases in obesity. Of course US officials still say it is crucial that the current weight gain situation in the US be dealt with but the fact that life expectancy is still increasing means healthcare is moving in the right direction still.