PALM HARBOR, Fla. - Tiger Woods said he will return to golf next month at the Masters, ending a four-month hiatus brought on by a sex scandal that shattered his image as the gold standard in sports.

Minnesota Devoe Joseph (5) falls to the floor under pressure from Illinois’ Demetri McCamey (32) and Mike Davis (24) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game last month. The Illini found out this week that the team would play in the NIT and not NCAA. AP/Robert K. O’Daniell

Photo caption: Chicago Hales' Dominique Walls (21) leaps to block a long pass by Breese Central's Brandon Book (50) during the first half of the Class 2A third-place boys basketball game on Saturday, March 13, 2010, in Peoria, Ill. (AP Photo/The Peoria Journal Star, Adam Gerik)

I had several New Year's resolutions for 2010. I would hit the gym on the regular, call family more often and not write ONE word about Tiger Woods until he returned to golf.

Is the passage of health care reform a foregone conclusion? At this writing, Democrats lack enough votes in the House of Representatives to pass even a watered-down version of the initial legislation because, on the left, there is opposition to the absence of a public option and because, on the right, there are objections to market manipulations.

There's an old saying: "Don't bring a slingshot to a gunfight."

There has been much ado about the very public feud television commentator, Tavis Smiley, is having with civil rights activist, Al Sharpton, over Tavis' criticism of Black leadership reportedly saying that President Barack Obama doesn't need a "Black agenda" after recently visiting the White House. It's caused a firestrom of controversy, and a revival of the annual State of the Black Union conference that Smiley had discontinued.

The comedienne, talk show host and actress Mo'Nique has become just the fifth African- American woman to win an Oscar.

Michelle Obama has now challenged Americans to deal with the growing problem of obesity in children. Childhood obesity has tripled in the last thirty years. Nearly one-third of US children are now overweight or obese; nearly one in three will eventually suffer from diabetes. In the African - American and Latino communities, the proportion is almost one in two.

There are a lot of reasons why people end up going to college. Sometimes it’s because you can put a ball through a hoop or run really fast, perhaps you’re just really smart, and in some cases someone else is paying your way.

The closing of Chicago-area building trade union apprenticeship programs is a major setback for jobless adults enrolled in programs to help them get into the unions. But the inability of new workers to get jobs could wind up hurting contractors across the region if insufficient numbers of minorities and women are in the pipeline to meet government participation requirements.

Recently, the Congressional Black Caucus held a press conference and stated they wanted more attention given to the dismal unemployment rates in our communities. This was a noble and very responsible move on their part. There is something else they can do that will directly address the problem. It is right before our eyes and the time to act is now.

When people talk about the "achievement gap" at-risk children face, they often think of it in terms that apply to school-age children-but that gap can start much earlier than most people might guess.

Joseph Andrew Stack’s decision to fly his plane into the IRS building in Austin, Texas last week is going to be interpreted along two main camps.

As apologies go, the one delivered by Eldrick Woods was a doozy.

Time has passed since the Super Bowl and the glorious victory of the New Orleans Saints, but I find that I keep coming back to that game, and not for the reasons that you might think.

On March 15, the Democratic Central Committee will meet to choose a running mate for Gov. Pat Quinn in the November general election.

President Barack Obama's State of the Union Address is a testimony to the power of we: we, who dared to dream breaking the centuries-old color barrier at the White House was possible; we, who continue to fight for expanding voting rights; we, who battle tirelessly every election to maximize voter participation and minimize voter intimidation.

The votes are counted and the voters have spoken. Actually, the voters have yawned. They were under-whelmed by the collection of candidates that were on the ballot yesterday, and the turnout numbers tell more of a story than any election strategy or campaign ad.

The state of America's union is stark. The economic collapse triggered by the bursting of the housing bubble continues to take its toll.

It is rare to come across a story so heinous, disturbing and utterly baffling that you bypass your usual emotional reactions.

I don’t know when they decided to put Thanksgiving on a Thursday. It seems such an odd day, especially if you don’t have the Friday off. You eat like a crazy person, and then you have to go to work the next day, noticeably sluggish and laden with leftovers.

Chicago Public schools went through the past few years with a businessman Arne Duncan in charge. Duncan’s business acumen did little to improve school performance and student achievement. However, he did close some underperforming schools and accepted a few more charter schools, but overall the schools aren’t better or very safe.

Dear President Obama: My name is Jade Windon, 7th grade student at McDonogh 42 Charter School in New Orleans, Louisiana. Mr. President, I write to you expressing how many of our lives continue to be affected today by the storm that happened almost four years ago.

Technology supposedly says a lot about your station in life. i-Phones are for folks who like a lot of bells and whistles while Blackberry’s are for the serious businessman. Macs are for cool urbane techies while PC’s are for stodgy old office drones. New research shows that being a Myspace or a Facebook person says a lot about you, too. I’m a Facebook guy, and according to recent studies that makes me a snobby middle class white kid.

Inasmuch as everyone is sharing stories about the thoughtfulness of the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, I may as well add mine. While attending the national Democratic convention in Denver last August, I wrote a column about what he had to go through to attend the event.