"Roughly 80 percent of patients report moderate to severe pain levels after surgery," said study author Gregory Plotnikoff, medical director of the Penny George Institute for Health and Healing at Abbott Northwestern Hospital.

"We struggle to provide effective pain control while trying to avoid the adverse effects of opiate medications, such as respiratory depression, nausea, constipation, dizziness and falls," he added.

In the study, the researchers evaluated more than 1,800 cardiovascular, surgical, oncology and orthopedics patients and had them score their pain on a verbal scale of zero to 10 both before and after treatment.

The treatments included natural therapy services, such as acupuncture, acupressure, massage therapy, healing touch, music therapy, aromatherapy and reflexology. The research team found the therapies effectively reduced pain levels by more than 50 percent across numerous patient groups.

Moreover, the study’s authors concluded that non-traditional pain therapy options can be clinically implemented under the operational and financial constraints of a hospital setting.

In 2010, a total of 43 percent of the workforce reported that they have less than $10,000 in their savings account, up from 39 percent in 2009, according to CNN Money. Respondents who said that they had less than $1,000 also rose, jumping from 20 percent last year to 27 percent in the current survey.

Furthermore, the percentage of workers who said that they were confident in their ability to save enough money to comfortably retire fell to 16 percent, the second lowest rating in the 20-year history of the reports.

"People just don’t want to think about [saving for retirement]," said Jack VanDerhei, EBRI’s research director and co-author of the survey. "Everybody thinks they’re too young to think about it, until suddenly they’re too old to do anything about it."

VanDerhei noted that the national decline of savings is attributable to mortgage problems, job losses and the suspension of many company-matched 401(k) programs in 2009.

The measure known as the Marriage Equality Act was signed by D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty last December after the city council passed it. It then went through a review period during which Congress declined to intervene and the Supreme Court, as well as lower courts, rejected attempts to block it.

Supporters of the law hailed it as a step towards winning an important freedom for gay people nationwide.

However, Evan Wolfson, executive director of Freedom to Marry, pointed to recent setbacks of similar legislation in California and Maine, and said that "those of us impatient for the day when America no longer excludes committed couples from marriage have to redouble our efforts."

In fact, he is likely to face tough opposition as activists have vowed to force a ballot initiative to overturn the law, saying they believe city residents, and not just the council, should have a chance to vote on the issue.

Moreover, the Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington, which does not support same-sex marriages, has announced it will no longer extend job benefits to employee spouses not already enrolled, according to The Washington Post.

D.C. joins Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont in allowing same-sex couples to marry.

The criminal complaint accuses Maria Miles and Kevin Clancy of submitting several voter registration applications for the same individual on multiple occasions to meet a 20-signature-per-day quota imposed by the controversial anti-poverty group.

Clancy reportedly acknowledged to police that he had signed up his brother and his mother multiple times to fulfill his quota, according to TodaySTM4.com. The complaint also identified another worker who was allegedly fired for not reaching the requisite daily number of signatures and who said that she saw other ACORN employees "getting names out of the phonebook."

ACORN spokesman Kevin Whelan said that the organization verified information on each voter registration card and flagged any duplicates.

"The small number of instances in which an employee has submitted duplicate or fraudulent voter registration cards are an example of workers attempting to defraud ACORN by passing off bad work as good work—and the organization supports their prosecution," Whelan said, quoted by the news source.

Meanwhile, a Wisconsin prosecutor was quoted on Monday by The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, criticizing local police for ignoring voter fraud cases in the area.

Attorney General Eric Holder’s decision to transfer Mohammed and other terrorist suspects from Guantanamo Bay to New York City has come under heavy scrutiny from Republicans, who have stated that military tribunals are a more appropriate venue for those accused of attacking America.

Representative Peter King (R-N.Y.) and Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) have each proposed legislation that would prohibit any terror suspect from being tried in federal courts or in reformed military commissions located in the United States, according to Fox News.

In addition to GOP opposition, local city officials have resisted Holder’s decision because of costs, security and logistical concerns, the Associated Press (AP) reports.

Meanwhile, many liberal groups have lashed out at the president for even considering a change of venue for the 9/11 trials.

"If this stunning reversal comes to pass, President Obama will deal a death blow to his own Justice Department, not to mention American values," said Anthony Romero, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), quoted by the news source.

"Even with recent improvements, the military commissions system is incapable of handling complicated terrorism cases and achieving reliable results," he added. "President Obama must not cave in to political pressure and fear-mongering."

In particular, although U.S. consumer spending was up 0.5 percent in January, the national savings rate fell to a 15-month low of 3.3 percent. However, in order to spur a lasting recovery, the NIA believes the savings rate should exceed 10 percent.

The organization also points to decisions being implemented in countries such as Canada, which is trying to cut its government spending and reduce budget deficit in order to achieve a balanced budget by 2016. Similarly, Australia’s central bank has raised its benchmark interest rate to 4 percent.

According to a NIA press release, "If the U.S. doesn’t follow in the footsteps of Canada and Australia, instead of Zimbabwe, we could see massive emigration out of this country [as a result of hyperinflation].

Moreover, the NIA says that as the U.S. dollar is declining, China will be building up their gold holdings in order to ensure the stability of its foreign currency reserves. This will drive gold prices up, and provide great investment opportunities for Americans who are concerned about shielding their wealth and assets from the ravages of inflation.

"It is only a matter of time before the world wakes up and realizes the U.S. economic recovery is phony and the only way our debts will be paid back is through monetization," the release concluded.

"We’re not going to vote for this bill with that kind of language," said Stupak on Good Morning America, referring to the Senate version of the healthcare bill that President Obama is urging lawmakers to adopt. "I want to see healthcare," added the Michigan Representative, "but we’re not going to bypass some principles and beliefs that we feel strongly about."

If Stupak and the other Democrats follow through on their pledge, it will be very difficult for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to approve the bill, which only passed by a margin of 220-215 in November.

However, Senate Democrats may resist Stupak’s attempt to include the more restrictive abortion language in the final version of the bill, as it would almost certainly rule out the possibility of utilizing budget reconciliation. This parliamentary tactic would allow Democrats to pass healthcare legislation in the Senate with only 51 votes, rather than the 60 that are usually required to overcome a Republican filibuster.

Recently gun-control advocates have petitioned the Starbucks coffee chain—whose policy is to comply with state open carry weapons laws, although it has the final say on its property—to ban guns on its premises, Fox News reported.

In the last few days pickets have been held across the country, including in Seattle where the company is headquartered, but Starbucks has reiterated its commitment to the policy, saying that banning guns at its stores might put baristas, or coffee servers, in danger.

"The political, policy and legal debates around these issues belong in the legislatures and courts, not in our stores," states the company’s official position, quoted by the news provider.

The developments are taking place as the Supreme Court is hearing arguments in one of its biggest cases in recent years, where the plaintiff in McDonald v. Chicago is urging the court to reverse the city’s 28-year-old handgun ban.

The study entitled “The Early Adopters: Reading the Tea Leaves” found that activists are motivated by feelings of responsibility to future generations and belief in America’s founding principles. It also discovered evidence that they are a diverse group composed of individuals who—often for the first time in their lives—are becoming involved to change the political landscape and hold elected officials more accountable.

"A lot of surveys have focused on the Tea Party movement, but they’ve been about what others think of them," said Sam Adams Alliance chairman Eric O’Keefe.

"We decided to learn what the Tea Party leaders are up to [by asking them]," he added.

When queried about what issues are "very important" to them, a total of 92 percent of respondents said "budget," some 85 percent pointed to "economy," and 80 percent singled out "defense."

The poll’s authors also found that 86 percent oppose the formation of a third-party and that 62 percent identified themselves as Republicans. However, only a minority (36 percent) support Sarah Palin’s potential presidential bid in 2012.

Sam Adams Alliance is a non-profit organization that works to raise awareness of free market principles and policies.

The law was inspired by a government investigation that found widespread allegations that children were being abused through misuses of restraint and seclusion in classrooms.

Prepared by the Government Accountability Office, the report stated that children as young as 3 and 4 were disciplined using ropes, duct tape and chairs with straps and bungee cords to restrain or isolate them. The experience was nearly universal, affecting students with disabilities and without disabilities, and those who attended both public and private schools.

"This critical piece of legislation confronts the unimaginable situation in schools across the country whereby some of our nation’s most vulnerable children are treated in an inhumane and degrading manner," said Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.), original sponsor of the bill.

However, the organization American Principles in Action did not agree, saying it will limit freedoms enjoyed by private and religious schools.

Its executive director, Andresen Blom, said that 80 percent of Catholic schools and a large number of independent private schools accept federal government funding. "Americans do not pay their hard-earned money to private schools in order to subject them to burdensome and subjective regulations written by unelected federal and state bureaucrats," he stated.