1. Massive crowds and wait times expected for weekend travel
Many Americans will take advantage of their long Memorial Day weekend and travel. Officials at Hartsfield-Jackson airport are already expecting large crowds. Friday may have broken a TSA record with 76,000 people crossing security checkpoints inside Hartsfield-Jackson. Airport officials caution those traveling to build extra time into their schedules to avoid missing flights. [How to make your trip through security as fast as possible]
2. Obamacare causing head and toothaches across Georgia
An estimated 4 million Georgians do not have dental coverage. While dental coverage is available through the Affordable Care Act, it is a stand-alone option that many opt out of to save money. Tax credits that are used to lower health insurance costs do not apply to dental care. [How the state handles dental care for the poor]
3. Boy Scouts consider gay leader ban
As more and more Americans believe gay marriage should be legal in the United States, the Boy Scouts are faced with addressing their own gay rights stance. Boy Scouts of America president Robert Gates has called for an end to the group's ban on gay and lesbian scout leaders. Some in the organization disagree. ["The status quo in our movement's membership standards cannot be sustained"]
4. Charter school performance is mixed
The State Charter Schools Commission evaluated the performances of 13 state-chartered schools. It found that while elementary charter schools perform below state level, charter middle schools perform as well or better than state level and high schools are mixed. Schools chartered by local districts were not evaluated. [More charter schools coming with Gov. Deal's "Opportunity School District"]
5. Sports report
The Atlanta Hawks lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in game 2 of the NBA Eastern Conference finals, making the series 2-0. Game 3 will be played on Sunday. [Photos from the game]
UGA and Georgia Tech are making good use of football off-season to evaluate their priorities. [Georgia's off –season priorities] [Georgia Tech's off-season priorities]
And the Atlanta Braves lost to the Milwaukee Brewers Friday night 11-0. Ouch! Their series is now tied 1-1. [Highlights of the game]
6. Any podcast listeners?
Have you listened to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's new true-crime podcast, Breakdown? If not, use this long weekend to catch up. Episode 1 is available for download for everyone now and episode 2 will be available for myAJC subscribers this Sunday. [Download Breakdown now!]
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