DARTS & LAURELS

DART

While some have declared the recession over, the real gauge should be the Halloween factor, we think. Surveys report there will be fewer parties and less candy doled out tomorrow. Indeed, the National Retail Federation says individual spending will fall from $86.59 last year to $68.56 this year. As an aside, the federation study says despite nurses being on the frontline of issuing doses of H1N1 vaccine, nurse costumes this year dropped from fifth to 13th most popular, while politicians dropped off the list altogether. They interpret that as possible evidence of public fatigue with the health-care debate.

LAUREL

Just in time for Veterans Day, President Obama signed legislation this week necessary to complete the merger of the North Chicago Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Naval Health Clinic Great Lakes. Officials say the Lovell Federal Health Care Center that is scheduled to be open next year -- the groundbreaking partnership between the military and the VA -- could be replicated in other cities. Final piece to make the transformation official was legislative wording to allow beneficiaries who had previously received care at Naval Health Clinic Great Lakes to be eligible for care and not required to make a co-pay.

DART

We may be standing in line in Lake County for H1N1 vaccines, but take this consolation into consideration: Congressmen and senators in Washington, D.C., are eligible for the vaccine if they are health-care workers, pregnant women, children, young adults 18 through 24 years old, and adults between 25 and 65 years old with underlying medical conditions. You may not believe that, but those priorities were set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And, we're told, being a spendthrift is not an underlying condition.

LAUREL

Wendy's restaurants in Round Lake Beach and Libertyville will help feed individuals and families in the area who need assistance with their "Wednesday at Wendy's" fund-raiser on Veterans Day. A percentage of diners' proceeds will go to the People Lending Assistance Network, a nonprofit organization in Round Lake Beach that helps out more than 1,000 area individuals and families a month. Those who bring donations of nonperishable food to the eateries will get free Frosty coupons. The fund-raiser will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. at Wendy's in Round Lake Beach, 210 E. Rollins Road, and the Libertyville Wendy's just east of the intersection of Route 45 and Peterson Road.

DART

Latest in the "No Duh" department: A study on American attitudes on identity theft found that 45 percent of U.S. adults would feel most at risk for such a crime when making a credit-card purchase that requires the card to be temporarily taken out of their sight, as in a restaurant. Commissioned by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, the survey also found that just 21 percent of respondents said they would be worried if they could keep a constant eye on their card.