Horseshoe Chamber Blog

Black Friday has long been one of the busiest shopping days of the year, but the businesses that typically stand to benefit from it are usually behemoth retail stores, which draw a huge portion of revenue away from small businesses. What's more, is the corresponding internet shopping event, Cyber Monday, cuts into the retail dollars that might be otherwise spent at small businesses as well. Small Business Saturday, which falls on Saturday, November 29th, aims to change that. According to The Missoulian, Small Business Saturday was created in 2010 by financial services company American Express to help encourage people to do some of their holiday shopping at local small businesses. The Missoulian also reports that studies have shown that both Black Friday and Cyber Monday pose a threat to...

The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed on Tuesday that it will begin equipping its officers with body cameras, according to the Los Angeles Daily News. They have chosen to go with body cameras supplied by Taser, the company best known for producing stun guns that are used by officers to subdue potentially dangerous suspects. Officers from the LAPD tested two different body camera brands in the field over the last three months, choosing the Taser brand cameras due to their ease of use and storage, and other features that make the cameras and video footage more accessible. It also took officers very little time to adjust to evidence.com, Taser's storage site for video footage collected by on-duty police officers. One officer compared the cloud-based storage system to Apple's iPhon...

As the heated national debate continues over the use of the Washington Redskins mascot name, with many citing the term as racist and derogatory, a Navajo high school on the nation's largest Native American reservation, in Arizona, continues to defend the mascot's use despite growing controversy. The high school has emerged as a symbol, and continues to inspire those supporting the NFL franchise's right to use it. Both students and teachers at Red Mesa High School have shown overwhelming support of keeping their football team's nickname as the Redskins. A recent poll conducted by the school revealed that over 88% of students and 70% of faculty are in favor of keeping and honoring the use of their traditional mascot. Furthermore, over half of students -- 60% -- did not feel that the term "R...

A 28-year-old hiker escaped the wilds of Oregon unscathed, thanks in no small part to the forces of luck. Erik Larson, a resident of Bend, Oregon, disappeared into Oregon's famed Three Sisters Wilderness, one of the more scenic parts of the 2,663 mile Pacific Crest Trail, on September 30. Larson, like many hikers, wasn't content with the trails outdoorsmen typically take, and chose instead to take the proverbial road less traveled. That, as the famous Robert Frost poem goes, certainly did make all the difference. Changes in climate, the lack of a map, and spotty cellphone service left Larson without any means of escape, as he slowly realized that he was in out of his depth. Luckily, as the hiker pushed on to find a way out of the woods, he found a spot with cell reception, enabling him ...

A Pennsylvania woman is facing trial for charges after being accused of drunk driving and using her deceased sister's identity. According to CBS, Crystal Lample of Ellwood City waived her right to a preliminary hearing on Tuesday. The 35-year-old is being charged with drunk driving and providing false identification information, among other charges. Lample was arrested on Sept. 11 after police received a report of an erratic driver. During interactions with police, it is alleged that she was barely capable of standing up and told police that she was Brandi Lee Miller. Police later discovered that Miller died in 2010. According to Altoona Mirror, police found Lample inside a pickup truck; when they approached her, she got out of the vehicle and stumbled away. She appeared to be int...