It was fascinating to read this article by our colleague Eric Deggans on the new array of black, brown and gay superheroes that will be arriving to newsstands while DC Comics simultaneously reboots 52 different titles in its catalog.  The project is called the New 52, and it's an ambitious effort by DC Comics to reimagine some of its best-known comic books in an effort to draw in new fans, starting or restarting 52 different series at once with Number One issues publishing this month.

While most attention goes to marquee names such as Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman, a cadre of writers and artists are developing characters of color and a gay woman as superhero stars in six new books — some for the very first time. Among them, Deggans reports, are: ... Read more

There's some great tips and advice in this story by our colleague Marlene Sokol on how to save money when shopping for school supplies. Marlene brought in a great adviser: Lissette Godwin, a mother of three who is also a curriculum specialist for the Hillsborough County School District. Two of her kids are in high school, the youngest is entering fifth grade, and she has 15 years of experience as a classroom teacher. Much of that time was in kindergarten, where crayons vanish by Christmas and glue sticks are always in demand. She has back-to-school shopping down to a science.

This advice is timely with the Florida sales tax holiday coming up this weekend. You may want to get up to speed on new tweaks to Florida's tax holiday. This guide by business writer Mark Albright makes it clearer. The price for qualifying clothing and school supplies has gone up, but books have been taken off the list. Even though the state loses $30 million in sales taxes during the holiday, retailers say in the end it gets more back because people buy other items while they are out shopping.

We've already started some of our shopping because last year, I made the mistake of waiting until the last minute and the store was sold out of some of the items I needed. Godwin endorsed that idea in Marlene's story, but cautioned that one of the big mistakes parents make is buying up things that they may not need. ... Read more

As our colleague Mark Albright reports, Universal is joining Disney in hiking up theme park prices this year. The business types spin it this way: It's a sign of optimism about Florida tourism that Universal Orlando matched Walt Disney World by raising its daily admission to $85 and escalating multiday pass prices by bigger margins. Yay! Optimism! Who's with me? *crickets*

Hoo boy, I always feel like I've been shaken down by the mob when I fork over big bucks for theme park tickets. They know you'll pay anything to make your kid happy, So whattaya gonna do about it my friend? Now take the mouse ears before I do somethin' I might regret. Capiche? ... Read more

I love, love, love this idea from the Hillsborough County Extension office: a financial camp for teens, ages 13-16, that features hands-on learning activities dealing with credit, banking, car buying, and job searches and interviewing. They are also throwing in fun afternoon field trips like bowling, visit MOSI and play miniature golf. We are talking about teenagers after all.

But I really hope anyone out there with the resources copies this idea and spreads it far and wide. The financial illiteracy in this country is a big reason we are coming out of one of the worst recessions in history.

Here's what you need to know if you want to sign up your free-spending teen for this camp: ... Read more