By TOM SHARP / Associated Press Writer NASHVILLE (AP) — A constitutional amendment to define marriage as the union of one man and one woman passed out of a House committee Tuesday. The resolution by Rep. Bill Dunn, R-Knoxville, would insert current state law into the Tennessee Constitution. Tennessee law already defines marriage as a…

McMinnville resident and Warren County native Mary Sue Slatton, 55, died March 22 at Centennial Medical Center in Nashville after a lingering illness.A homemaker and a member of the Christian Fellowship Church, she was the daughter of the late Rufus and Louise Watley Rogers, and was preceded in death by daughter, Lesia Slatton Wilson; and…

McMinnville resident and Tuscumbia, Ala., native Mary Katherine Clarke, 84, died March 21 at NHC Healthcare after an extended illness.A retired nurse with River Park Hospital and a member of First United Methodist Church, she was the daughter of James and Mollie Duncan Abb; and was preceded in death by her husband, Fred Rider Clarke…

Hopkinsville, Ky., resident Mabel Irene West, 97, died March 20 at NHC Healthcare in McMinnville.A cafeteria worker, a Sunday School teacher, and a self-employed seamstress, she was a member of Hillcrest Baptist Church. She was a member of WMU and the Saints Alive Choir at Hillcrest Baptist Church.The daughter of the late Bert and Cara…

Sparta resident and Warren County native Binnie Kay Rowland Moore, 63, died March 21 at White County Hospital.A bank teller with City Bank and First National Bank, she was the daughter of the late Ben and Bessie Hudson Rowland.She is survived by sisters and brothers-in-law, Linda and Rodney Schlimmer, Myrna and Wayne Simons, all of…

By CHAKA FERGUSON / Associated Press Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Black Americans are less likely than white Americans to own homes, don’t earn as much as whites, don’t live as long, and don’t do as well in school, according to a report by the National Urban League. The report, released on Wednesday, is a…

By LINDSEY TANNER / AP Medical Writer CHICAGO (AP) — A breakthrough study found that psychotherapy can help hypochondriacs deal with their fears. But the treatment has its limits: A quarter of the patients quit after being told the problem was in their heads. Hypochondria is a mental, not physical, illness. Getting sufferers to believe…

By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID / Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Postmaster General John Potter warned that a postal rate increase planned for 2006 could be 4 cents or more for first class letters unless restrictions on how the agency operates are eased. Potter asked a joint House-Senate hearing on the future of the post…

By MIKE SCHNEIDER / Associated Press Writer ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — In an effort to combat domestic violence, Florida’s attorney general is enlisting the people in the best position to notice bruised faces, broken fingers or bumpy scalps — hairstylists, nail technicians and cosmetologists. Charlie Crist announced Tuesday that his office is starting an initiative,…

By PAMELA HAMILTON / Associated Press Writer COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A federal appeals court has upheld a ruling that South Carolina’s anti-abortion license plates are unconstitutional. A three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va., unanimously ruled Monday that the plates, which bear the slogan “Choose Life” violate the…