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First Southern Bank Expands into Central Florida by Acquiring First Commercial Bank of Florida from F.D.I.C.

2011-01-11T12:59:00.000-08:00

Transaction More Than Doubles First Southern Bank’s Assets and Branch Locations, Extends Customer Service-Based Focus to State’s Third-Largest Metro Area

BOCA RATON, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- First Southern Bank today announced that it has acquired substantially all of the assets and assumed all of the deposits, except brokered deposits, of First Commercial Bank of Florida from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), introducing First Southern Bank’s capital strength and reputation for excellent customer service to the state’s third-largest metro area and more than doubling its community bank franchise.

The Florida Office of Financial Regulation closed First Commercial Bank of Florida today and appointed the FDIC receiver. The FDIC, which insures deposits in its corporate capacity, entered into an agreement with First Southern Bank for the transfer of the First Commercial Bank of Florida deposits following a competitive bidding process.

The transaction is effective immediately, and customers of First Commercial Bank of Florida are now customers of First Southern Bank.

First Commercial Bank of Florida had $598.5 million in total assets and $529.6 million in total deposits as of Sept. 30, 2010. Its banking locations will reopen Monday as First Southern Bank branches. Employees of First Southern Bank will be present to answer customers’ questions and help make the transition to First Southern Bank as easy as possible for customers and employees of the former First Commercial Bank of Florida.

The FDIC and First Southern Bank entered into a loss-share transaction on $484.3 million of First Commercial Bank of Florida’s assets. First Southern Bank will share in the losses on the asset pools covered under the loss-share agreement.

With this transaction, First Southern Bank now has a presence in seven counties in Florida’s three most populous regions – South Florida, Northeast Florida and Central Florida – with 16 branches, including nine branches of the former First Commercial Bank of Florida. These nine locations include two in Orlando and one each in Winter Park, Winter Garden and Edgewood, all in Orange County; one each in Kissimmee and St. Cloud in Osceola County; one in Lake Mary in Seminole County; and one in West Volusia in Volusia County.

“Customers today want to do business with a strong, well-capitalized bank that puts them first and understands their communities,” said J. Herbert Boydstun, chairman and CEO of First Southern Bank. “We are that kind of institution. First Southern Bank has money to lend, and we invite the community to call on us.

“First Commercial Bank of Florida also has a great team, and we’re pleased to have them join the First Southern Bank family. We look forward to working with them to deliver great community banking service to current customers and new ones as we grow in the Orlando market.”

Customers may call on their favorite banker at any branch of the former First Commercial Bank of Florida and access their accounts by using their checks, ATM cards and debit cards, as well as First Commercial Bank of Florida’s online banking and bank-by-phone services. In addition, customers should continue to make loan payments and conduct other transactions just as they did prior to the announcement. First Southern Bank will provide additional information to customers in the coming days.

Questions from customers regarding today’s transaction can be directed to the FDIC toll-free at 1-800-423-6395 until 9 p.m. Eastern Time tonight, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. tomorrow, from noon to 6 p.m. Sunday and from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. thereafter. Interested parties also can visit the FDIC’s Web site at www.fdic.gov/bank/individual/failed/firstcommercial.html. Additional information about First Southern Bank can be found at www.firstsouthernbank.com.

First Southern Bancorp, parent company of First Southern Bank, raised approximately $400 million of capital in early 2010 to grow the company in Florida and elsewhere through strategic merger and acquisition opportunities. Its first transaction was with the FDIC in September 2010 for Haven Trust Bank Florida, which added two branches and gave First Southern Bank its first presence in Northeast Florida in Ponte Vedra Beach and St. Augustine.

First Southern Bank, headquartered in Boca Raton, Fla., provides comprehensive products and services for businesses and consumers. First Southern Bank now has 16 banking locations in the following counties: Broward, Orange, Osceola, Palm Beach, St. Johns, Seminole and Volusia.

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WOW error message: Launcher cannot obtain patching information – Pics Continue reading on Examiner.com: WOW error message: Launcher cannot obtain pat

2011-01-11T12:45:00.000-08:00

From a casual glance, it may look like the World of Warcraft is either down, broken.

You might even think your computer has a problem.

See the photo gallery.

If you play World of Warcraft, you could be getting the following error: “Launcher cannot obtain patching information. Please check your Internet configuration.”

People started reporting this problem on the morning of January 11th.

You could have an Internet configuration, but if you have been playing the WOW Cataclysm and have not messed around with your Internet config, that is probably not the cause.

Strollerderby says: Before you restart your computer, successfully download the new patch, and continue playing, consider this — is World of Warcraft a safe game for kids to be playing anyway?

Reviews of Electronics tells of one possible fix:

* Please remove any custom proxy settings.
* Go into Internet Explorer > Tools > Internet Options> Connections> LAN settings and make sure that you Select Automatically Detect settings.
* And make sure that you have Use Automatic configuration Script and Use a Proxy server not checked.
* If this doesn’t work, renewing your IP address and flushing your DNS cache can often help resolve connection issues.

WOW Stability offers another fix: When I got into wow, the news said there is indeed a problem when logging in. Until this gets fixed, just click inside wow.exe file.

Another reason could be that the WOW web site may be updating its information and you just happened to catch it at the wrong time.

Still another problem may be that you need to download a WOW patch.

A lot of people have been scratching their heads on this and a lot of bloggers have been writing about what to do to either solve or find a work-around the problem.

You might want to try this: Click on the wow.exe program instead of using the launcher. This work-around was published by WOW Stability. You can visit that web site in the link above.

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Sudden Change Eye Serum: It Really Does Work

2011-01-11T12:38:00.000-08:00

Did you see the Rachael Ray Show today? No? Good. Me neither. But boy, oh boy, did you and I both miss out. See, Rachael had on Dr. Youn. No, I don’t know who he is, but I’ll tell you what I do know. He can give you a 90 second facelift that will drastically change your appearance without even having to go under the knife. The remedies espoused by the good doctor combat crow’s feet, sagging face, and my personal favorite—under-eye bags.

According to her show’s website, Rachael Ray is helping parents maintain their youthful good looks by having guests such as Dr. Youn drop inexpensive beauty tips on her viewers. And the one that really got my attention was the tip he had for the area underneath your eyes. Dr. Youn recommends a product known as Sudden Change Under Eye Firming Serum.

And I’m here to tell that it works. At least the stuff I got did. Mine came in a package of three, and arrived via C-section on July 29, 2007, and the area under my eyes hasn’t been the same since. I wish I had a before and after photo to prove it, but God as my witness, on the day it arrived, I was just a normal guy with normal eyes. But within a few short weeks I was sporting some big ol’ bags. Dark suckers at that. I looked like a cartoon character desperately in need of a 30-minute rest with a couple of raw steaks sitting atop my eyes. One thing, though. The show claims the serum is reasonably affordable. But the stuff I got cost me an arm and a leg.

But boy did it change the way my eyes looked. Sadly, though, I seem to have plateaued a bit, so to make sure that my eyes don’t go back to normal, my wife and I ordered more. Accidentally ordered more that is.

It’s due in on July 21, 2011. Just one package this time, thank God.

We’re not sure what we’re going to name it yet.

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Here's How to Ditch Your AT&T iPhone and Switch to Verizon for Free

2011-01-11T12:12:00.000-08:00

If you're excited that the iPhone is finally on Verizon and you want to switch, that excitement was probably short lived when you realized the cost that switching involves. Here's how to make the switch at no cost to you.

Determining the Cost

If you have an iPhone on AT&T and it's not fairly old, you're probably going to have to pay an early termination fee (ETF) to get out of your contract. This fee can be as much as $325. Fortunately, if you've had your iPhone 4 for even a month, that fee isn't quite that bad. It goes down $10 a month. If you'd like to figure out the exact cost of your ETF, the Consumerist points out a handy iPhone ETF calculator (courtesy of Wolfram Alpha). If you've had your iPhone for less than a month, chances are you can probably return it. That may be a bit of a hassle, since you'll have to figure out some other phone to use while you wait until Verizon actually releases the iPhone on February 10th, but it's better than getting stuck with a several hundred dollar ETF. Whatever your situation may be, once you've determined the cost of leaving AT&T we can move on to avoiding it entirely, or at least in part (depending on your situation and level of ambition).

Making the Switch

Making the switch for free is going to take a little work because you not only have an early termination fee (ETF) to deal with, but the cost of a new phone as well. Nonetheless, a combination of a little Craigslist (or selling online in general) and creative negotiating should get the job done.

Sell Your AT&T iPhone

Presumably you won't need your AT&T iPhone 4 if you're making the switch to Verizon. It won't work on Verizon because the technology is different and you're going to have to buy a new phone anyhow. We've taken an extensive look at how to upgrade to the new iPhone for free, and those principles still very much apply to this situation. You're not really upgrading your phone, but you are upgrading your network. If you have an iPhone 4, you also have the advantage of selling the current model. The resale value of an iPhone drops significantly when a newer model is released, but the iPhone 4 you currently own is likely worth enough to cover both the ETF and the cost of your new phone (or at least come close). Why? Because your iPhone is contract-free. If you really want to up the resale value, you can also jailbreak and unlock the phone. Most people will pay extra for this service because they don't know how to do it themselves (or just don't feel comfortable trying). While the idea of selling your iPhone on craigslist (or through other online classifieds) is pretty straightforward, getting the best price takes a little work and patience. For the full run-down, be sure to read our guide on upgrading to the latest iPhone for free.

Circumventing the Early Termination Fee

When you buy your phone hardware, you're probably aware that you're getting a discount at a cost: you're tied, via contract, to the carrier for a certain amount of time (generally two years). This is a legally-binding contract, and carriers currently have the right to charge you a fee if you want out early. This shouldn't be news to anyone who's owned a cellphone in their lifetime, but you may not be aware of how much your ETF actually is. As mentioned earlier, either call AT&T and find out how much it will cost to kill your contract or use this iPhone ETF calculator for a quicker answer. That's the easy part. Getting out of your obligation to finish your contract or pay an early termination fee is where it gets tough.

Negotiate Your Way Out

Of all the ways you can get out of your fee, this is my least favorite. You did sign a contract and you did agree to finish it, so you're basically cheating AT&T by trying to get out of it for free. That said, the reason so many have wanted to switch to Verizon is because, for many, AT&T's network performs horribly for them. If you're not getting the service you're paying (likely) upwards of $100 per month for, you're getting screwed. Negotiating your way out of your contract can take some time and it can be stressful, so if you're not ready for numerous calls to customer support and logging every dropped call you get from this day forward, this is not for you.

If you want to take this ethically questionable route and complain your way out of your ETF, here's what you need to do:

* Log every dropped call for the next week. It shouldn't be hard to get a lot of them, but try making calls in areas where you know you'll lose service. If you can manage about 20 a day, that's a lot of dropped calls. On an average day out in Los Angeles, I drop 8-10 calls. Use your phone more and you won't have any problems hitting 20 pretty quickly. Do this for a week.
* Once you have your data, file a formal complaint with the Federal Trade Commission and the Better Business Bureau.
* Complain to AT&T. They won't do anything, so log some more dropped calls and complain again. When they do nothing, let them know you're filing reports (even though you already have). If they offer to send you a free femtocell device to improve your signal, know that's only for a single location and refuse it on the basis that your calls drop just as frequently outside of your home. Let them know you want out of your contract because your service has been so terrible, especially with the latest iPhone. If they won't let you out of the contract, you're going to need to call back again.
* For your last complaint call, you're going to need to go all out. Get to a supervisor or have the call escalated as quickly as you can, because you're going to have a tough time getting out of your contract with just a standard customer service representative. You always want to be as kind as possible during this process, by the way, or nobody will want to help you. It's best to make your situation seem tragic. You want to engender sympathy, not anger. Once you're with the supervisor you should let them know you've filed reports and go over all the dropped calls with him/her. Ask nicely to be let out your contract so you can try other carriers. If you can't get out of the ETF at this point, it's probably not going to happen. If you're a little emotionally manipulative (which is another place this method gets ethically questionable), however, you shouldn't have any problem talking your way out of the fee.

Note: it also helps to be an undesirable customer. If you still have unlimited data on AT&T, use it. Download huge amounts of data on your iPhone. This will be far easier if you jailbreak it, since you can remove the 20MB cap and just let it download endlessly, but AT&T will want to get rid of you if you're hogging their bandwidth. The same goes for phone calls, to a lesser extent, so make use of those unlimited minutes if you've got 'em.

Use Contract Changes as a Way Out

Cellular providers change their contracts all the time and you're pretty much forced to agree to the new terms. Whenever this happens, they're almost always obligated to allow you to break the contract within 30 days of receiving and "agreeing" to the new terms. Keep an eye out for these contract updates and check the latest contract you have. If you've received it in less than 30 days (this may vary, but that's the usual timeframe), canceling your cellular contract fee-free may be as simple as making a quick phone call.

Give Your Contract to Somebody Else

If you can't get out of your contract on your own, you can always transfer financial responsibility to somebody else. If you know someone who will take over your contract, that's a pretty quick way to solve the problem. If you don't, you can use a site like CellSwapper or Cell Plan Depot to find someone. Generally this isn't as simple as just giving your contract to another person—they're probably going to want something for taking on the burden. Nonetheless, it's often cheaper than paying your ETF and you may have the option of trading with someone who has a Verizon contract.

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Verizon iPhone release date closing in fast

2011-01-11T12:02:00.000-08:00

Verizon iPhone release date is just around the corner. But will AT&T customers jump ship once the Verizon iPhone release date arrives?

After years of rumors, questions, and frustrations from some AT&T customers, the Verizon iPhone is real. America's largest cellular network announced Tuesday that it will soon carry America's most popular cellphone.

Now that the partnership is official, the most important question is: When?

The Verizon iPhone release date will be February 10. Current Verizon customers may pre-order the phone on February 3.

Price tags range from $199 for the 16GB model, $299 for 32GB.

The Verizon handset will be the same iPhone 4 offered to AT&T customers, with a few interesting tweaks. (Check back later today for a full breakdown of how the Verizon iPhone differs from the AT&T iPhone.)

SEE RELATED ARTICLE: iPhone 4 vs. Droid X: How do they compare?

The chief differentiator will likely be connection strength. No one has played with the Verizon iPhone long enough to properly review it. However, Verizon has an impressive history of customer satisfaction. Consumer Reports' Winter 2010 reader survey tracked carrier quality in 26 metro areas – across all handsets, not just the iPhone. Verizon topped the satisfaction charts for every city. AT&T came in last place for 19 of them.

But AT&T PR head Larry Solomon fired back at this assumption in a recent Business Insider article. "The iPhone is built for speed, but that's not what you get with a CDMA phone," he said, referring to Verizon's network technology. "I'm not sure iPhone users are ready for life in the slow lane."

We'll see who's correct in February.

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Verizon Stock Slips Despite Verizon iPhone Announcement At Today’s Press Conference

2011-01-11T11:54:00.000-08:00

Today was the day that many people were waiting for. Today was the official Verizon press conference in which the Verizon iPhone announcement was made.

For over 2 years now, fans of the iPhone were awaiting a partnership between Apple (AAPL) & Verizon (VZ), that would bring the iPhone to the Verizon Wireless Network. Today, came the official announcement, of the February 10th release date. On February 3, 2011, Verizon Wireless customers will have the ability to pre-order the iPhone 4.

After all the speculation and rumors have been swirling, one would have thought that Verizon stock would see large gains upon the huge news. However, that clearly wasn’t the case today. On a day when the NASDAQ was about even (as of 2:00 PM ET), Verizon (VZ) saw it’s stock price drop over 2%.

As of 2:00 PM ET, shares of Verizon Stock were down $0.75 (2.06%) per share on a trading volume of 32.90 million shares.

What could be the reasoning for the rather sharp decline? Day traders have a saying “Buy the rumor, sell the news”. Apparently that is what thousands of investors are doing here.

In other stock news, shares of Apple stock (AAPL) were down 0.76%, while shares of AT&T (ATT) were down 0.77%. AT&T is the company that is expected to suffer the most from the Verizon iPhone, according to some analyst.

What is your opinion on the Verizon stock slip today?

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Understanding the Verizon iPhone 4 Announcement

2011-01-11T11:36:00.000-08:00

Earlier today Verizon did what has been rumored for a while now and announced a partnership with Apple beginning with the CDMA iPhone 4.
Device pricing remains unchanged from the AT&T iPhone 4. The 16GB model retails for $199.99 while the 32GB will set you back $299.99. There is no white version available.

Hardware specs, both internal and external, remain unchanged. Apple is also quoting the same battery life as the AT&T version of the iPhone 4, although battery life is very dependent on signal strength so it will vary depending on network coverage where you use the phone.

Verizon isn't talking about data plan pricing and specifics at this point, although I suspect we'll find that out closer to the February 10th release date. Existing Verizon customers will be able to pre-order online beginning February 3rd, while the floodgates will open for everyone else on the 10th.

Verizon insists that it has prepared both its retail presence and network for the launch, what that means for availability and likelihood of you getting a device remains to be seen. The good news is the iPhone 4 is a mature device that shouldn't be production limited. The launch will mostly be a question of whether Apple/Verizon appropriately estimated the number of customers they'll have on day 1.

Verizon will offer a personal hotspot option for its iPhone 4, a feature that isn't available on AT&T. Apple wouldn't say if there are other architectural changes required for it, just that it's something that Verizon supports and AT&T doesn't. Verizon isn't talking about pricing for enabling personal hotspot but functionally it works very similarly to tethering on the AT&T iPhone. You enable personal hotspot which you can use over Bluetooth or USB. If you have WiFi enabled you can connect up to 5 devices via WiFi to the Verizon iPhone 4.

Receive Antenna Diversity - The New Strip

I've got some more detail on the difference in antenna design on this new iPhone. As you can see from the pictures below, the good ol' death grip still attenuates signal strength on Verizon. Held normally I was getting a reading of -65 dBm on the Verizon iPhone, but in full on death grip the signal strength dropped to -83 dBm. That's in line with what we've seen on AT&T.

You will notice that there are more external antenna segments on the Verizon iPhone compared to the AT&T model. Specifically, there's a new strip at the very top of the phone that previously was a part of the UMTS/GSM antenna. With the Verizon iPhone 4 that strip is actually for a secondary receive antenna. This dual-receive antenna architecture is something that Verizon refers to as antenna diversity and it's a part of Verizon's spec for devices on its network. This is not something that's present on the GSM version of the iPhone 4.

It's too early to tell if receive antenna diversity will mitigate the hand holding problems that drop calls in low signal scenarios. We will have to do extensive testing before we can figure that part out.

Network Performance

As far as network performance goes, AT&T's signal is strong but performance isn't very good at the Lincoln Center where Verizon held today's press event. To showcase network performance we have a couple of options. First up is a web page load test. I loaded three pages: AnandTech.com, our Dirk Meyer article and the CPU section on the site. The video below shows the latter two in action and the table below it summarizes performance of Verizon at my current location.

Again I have to mention that AT&T's performance at the Lincoln Center in NYC is pretty bad, definitely worse than it is at my office in Raleigh, NC. This is ultimately what will determine whether you go with the Verizon or AT&T versions of the iPhone 4 - what the network coverage looks like in your area.

Apple didn't have any installations of the Speedtest app, so we had to resort to using testmy.net. I ran three times on both the upload and download, I've reported the results below:

Verizon iPhone 4 Network Performance at Lincoln Center in NYC
Direction	Downstream	Upstream
Average	1888Kbps	321Kbps
Max/Min	2238/1483 Kbps	368/256 Kbps

Download speed is suspiciously good. At 2.2Mbps it's higher than I have seen AT&T's iPhone 4 hit anywhere in NYC and the highest download speed I've ever seen for a device on Verizon that I've tested. Verizon likely has a local femtocell here to guarantee the best performance possible.
Upload speed is significantly worse however at only 321KB/s on average. This is pretty typical for EVDO devices.

We'll have to wait until we get devices in hand before we can truly characterize network performance on the new Verizon iPhone 4. The numbers above are only a small snapshot of behavior.

As I mentioned in our earlier coverage, you can't use data and voice at the same time on the Verizon iPhone 4 (unless the data is over WiFi). If you are in the middle of a call and try to load a web page you'll get an error telling you that data is not available.

You'll notice that the 3G marker goes away during a call as well (because the call doesn't technically use the 3G radio). It doesn't disappear when you're sending an SMS however.

And there you have it. We'll be publishing a full review as soon as we can get our hands on a sample.

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Why Verizon’s iPhone spells the end of the golden age for carriers

2011-01-11T11:24:00.000-08:00

At Tuesday’s launch event for the Verizon iPhone, Verizon Wireless displayed an inadvertently ironic slogan: “Rule the air.”

What the actual news revealed was that Verizon — and other wireless carriers — can no longer make that claim. The Verizon iPhone is exactly the same as the AT&T iPhone, just on a different network — and not even on Verizon’s fastest, latest network, which could have showcased Verizon’s strengths.

In the U.S., carriers historically had enormous power over handset makers. Because they heavily subsidized the phones consumers bought, they negotiated wholesale pricing and then decided what to charge consumers. It’s a game that the old Palm, BlackBerry maker Research In Motion, Motorola, and others learned to play.

Then along came Apple with the iPhone. It signed up AT&T, then badly trailing Verizon, as its exclusive carrier, but kept both carriers mostly in the dark as to the iPhone’s workings. AT&T struggled to keep up with the load iPhone users placed on its data network, taking most of the PR hit for failings that may have had as much to do with the iPhone’s immature hardware and software as with AT&T’s network.

The most attractive thing about the iPhone, of course, is its apps. But those run the same on the Verizon iPhone as on AT&T, all things (like local coverage) being equal. If you’re on a Wi-Fi network, how would you even know what carrier you’re on?

Google hoped to shift the industry in this carrier-free direction, but it overreached with its unlocked Nexus One, discovering belatedly that wireless carriers’ subpar customer service was better than none at all and that consumers, not surprisingly, preferred the lower prices provided by subsidies.

Apple has found a smarter way to hack the carriers’ business models: with cold, hard, cash. While carriers pay top dollar for iPhones wholesale — $350 to $400, analysts estimate — they more than make it up with data charges, as the results for AT&T and other iPhone partners have shown. Those data profits, not to mention blockbuster sales numbers, have made it worth the compromises Apple has demanded — like a complete lack of input into the design of iPhone’s hardware and software.

So the Verizon iPhone points the way to the carriers’ sad if profitable future: They’ll be no more than dumb pipes for smartphones — phones that other people, who are far cleverer at the job of building hardware and software, design and build.

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Nnamdi Asomugha To Become A Free Agent: Let The 49ers Chatter Begin!

2011-01-09T12:32:00.000-08:00

Although the 2011 NFL playoffs are officially underway, Bay Area sports has found a new way to butt in on the conversation. After a week that saw Jim Harbaugh sweep the site into a frenzy, we have a new topic of conversation: newly minted free agent Nnamdi Asomugha. The Oakland Raiders cornerback had certain incentives in his contract that were not met and because of that he will become a free agent when free agency begins at some unknown point in the future. Thanks to Delmuir for the preliminary FanPost on this, as well as brundylop's FanShot.

According to Adam Schefter, Nnamdi had certain incentives he had to reach otherwise his contract would void. Additionally, the language of Nnamdi's contract prevents the Raiders from franchising him, which is obviously a big deal. For those wondering about the contract, it was a three year $45.3 million contract that made him the highest paid DB in NFL history. To reach the necessary incentives, Nnamdi had to play in a greater number of defensive plays in 2010 than he did in 2009 or improve on his interceptions, fumble recoveries or sacks this season. He didn't have any of these this year. He missed two games due to injury and that cost him the defensive plays option.

Needless to say Raider Nation is not pleased with this development. When Nnamdi hits the market he'll be the most sought after defensive free agent, and possible overall free agent. I'd imagine the 49ers will be in the mix in some form or fashion. However, there are a couple things to consider. First is when free agency will actually start. Free agency is set to start I believe the first week/weekend in March. However, if a CBA has not been signed at that point, free agency will be delayed indefinitely.

While the NFL Draft will happen even without a CBA (the picks just won't be able to sign), free agency could be pushed well into the summer depending on how negotiations move along. If that's the case it will impact a lot of decisions because then teams will be drafting ahead of signing big name free agents, which is the opposite of the normal process. A guy like Nnamdi will still be pursued, but with a high pick in the upcoming draft, do the 49ers go with a cornerback anyway?

The other issue is of course the money. What's it going to cost to sign arguably the best cornerback in the NFL? Maybe it won't be a record-breaking contract like his previous deal, but it's going to be pricey. Much of this will depend on the cap numbers after a new CBA is announced. A big issue has been the percentage distribution of revenues between players and owners, which affects the salary cap. Does the team want to invest a big chunk of money in one player at this point? It's a hard point to argue at this point given the labor uncertainty, but it's something that will have to be considered at some point down the road.

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Jared Loughner Tied to American Renaissance Extremist Group

2011-01-09T12:27:00.000-08:00

Fox News reports there’s a link between Jared Loughner, the accused Tucson shooter and American Renaissance a right-wing extremist group.

According to Fox News, there is a “strong suspicion linking Jared Loughner, the man accused in the Tucson shooting on Saturday, to what it called an ‘anti-ZOG (Zionist Occupational Government) and anti-semitic’ group known as American Renaissance.”

The leader of the American Renaissance group denies any affiliation with shooter Jared Loughner. Group leader Jared Taylor responded to the Fox News report this morning, and told the cable news network that he ” took especial issue with the reference to his group being “anti-ZOG.”

In other news about Saturday’s mass shooting in Arizona, law enforcement officials are asking the public for help finding a possibly associated with suspect Jared Loughner in Saturday’s mass shooting in Arizona.

Early this morning, authorities released a photo of a man who was seen at the location where the shooting occurred. According to CNN, the person of interest is “a white male, approximately 40 to 50 years old. He has dark hair and was last seen wearing blue jeans and a dark blue jacket.”

Go to CNN for additional information but if you know anything, you are asked to contact 911, 88-CRIME or the Federal Bureau of Investigation at (520) 791-6974.

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NFL Playoffs: Jamaal Charles, Chiefs Trail Ravens At Halftime

2011-01-09T12:21:00.000-08:00

The Kansas City Chiefs enter halftime down 10-7 against the Baltimore Ravens at Arrowhead Stadium in the wildcard round of the NFL playoffs. The Chiefs started off slow allowing the Ravens to drive nearly 70 yards before the Chiefs defense stopped them inside the two yard line.

The Ravens kicked a field goal making it 3-0 Baltimore.

The Chiefs got the ball out, went three and out before Baltimore started on another long drive. As the Ravens were driving, Joe Flacco dropped back to pass on one play and Tamba Hali came around the edge and stripped the ball allowing the Chiefs to recover.

KC got the ball back and ran two players before Jamaal Charles broke one off for 41 yards for a touchdown making it 7-3 Chiefs.

The Ravens offense was stalled several times by the Chiefs but they punched another touchdown in shortly before halftime to give them a 10-7 lead at intermission.

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Facebook Ending on March 15?

2011-01-09T12:19:00.000-08:00

Only a day after congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot in the head in Tucson, Arizona, one of the hottest search engine terms on as per Google Trends, focuses on whether or not Facebook will be shutting down for good on March 15, 2011.

The rumor has reached viral proportions throughout the Internet and a group has already been started on Facebook to prevent the social media giant from shutting down.

It's unclear as to how the rumor was started in the first place but a recent CNN article claiming that the recent Goldman Sachs investment was the beginning of the end for Facebook likely played a role in a rumor that is otherwise ridiculous.

Goldman Sachs invested $450 million in Facebook recently, while a Russian firm added an additional $50 million.

Facebook will not be shutting down on March 15, 2011 or at any other time in the near future.

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Arizona shooting update: Gabrielle Giffords, Sarah Palin crosshairs video

2011-01-09T11:59:00.000-08:00

Arizona shooting update: Gabrielle Giffords, Sarah Palin crosshairs video interview

In March, Sarah Palin created a graphic poster announcing Congress members whom she felt needed to be removed from office, primarily based upon their votes on health care. Shortly after the health care vote passed, Gabrielle Giffords’ office was vandalized. Gabrielle Giffords spoke to MSNBC immediately following the Sarah Palin gun crosshairs photo included in the “Sarah Palin’s Target List” and spoke about the image and expressed her concern for the growing discontent between political parties. Gabrielle Giffords was one of 20 people who were targeted on Sarah Palin’s list.

When asked if she were fearful regarding the political tensions in Arizona she said she wasn’t but also spoke about the heated contentions going on. She also referred to Arizona as an area where the “Tea Party movement congregates and the rhetoric is incredibly heated.” Gabrielle Giffords elaborated and addressed Sarah Palin’s crosshairs graphic.

“We’re on Sarah Palin’s targeted list, but the way that she has it is depicted is it has the crosshairs of a gun site over our district,” Gabrielle Giffords continued. “When people do that, they’ve got to realize there are consequences to that action.”

You may see Gabrielle Giffords video interview regarding the Sarah Palin crosshairs and violence in the Tea Party, Republican movement in the video player to the left. It is the eighth video down titled, “Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords Talks Palin Crosshairs.”

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Vitriol focus of lawmakers after Arizona shooting of Democratic Rep. Gabrielle Giffords

2011-01-09T11:55:00.000-08:00

Political vitriol is cited by some politicians Sunday after the shooting rampage targeting Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Democrats point to bitter rhetoric while Republicans say the suspect is 'deranged' with no clear link to politics.

Reporting from Washington —
A day after a gunman opened fire at a public event in Tucson hosted by Democratic U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, political vitriol was the focus among some lawmakers, and the politics surrounding the violence broke down largely along partisan lines on the Sunday morning talks shows.

Democratic members of Congress largely suggested that the shootings might have been sparked by increasingly bitter political rhetoric while Republicans described the suspected shooter, Jared Lee Loughner, as "unstable" and "deranged" without a clear link to politics.

Despite the differing interpretations, most Democrats refrained from openly accusing their political opponents, including "tea party" leaders or former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, for ratcheting up the vitriol, as many in the blogosphere have done.

Instead, Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinios said putting certain congressional districts in cross hairs, including Giffords', was "beyond the bounds" and "not acceptable rhetoric." During the 2010 campaign, Sarah Palin's Facebook page identified 20 critical congressional races by placing them in gun sights and at one point tweeted that Republicans should not "retreat" but "reload."

"Those of us in public life and the journalists who cover us should be thoughtful in response to this and try to bring down the rhetoric, which I'm afraid has become pervasive in our discussion of political issues," Durbin said on CNN. "The phrase 'don't retreat, reload' – putting cross hairs on congressional districts as targets – these sorts of things I think invite the kind of toxic rhetoric that can lead unstable people to believe this is an acceptable response."

Republicans focused on what they asserted was the isolated, unhinged nature of the accused gunman, Loughner, whose rambling, incoherent YouTube videos have been cited by politicians and analysts as a possible sign of his instability.

"I don't think we should rush to speculate," said Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.). "It's probably giving him too much credit to ascribe a coherent political philosophy to him. We just have to acknowledge that there are mentally unstable people in this country. Who knows what motivates them to do what they do? Then they commit terrible crimes like this."

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David Sedaris: A Writer's Fairy Tale Life

2011-01-09T11:37:00.000-08:00

(CBS) Author David Sedaris is a writer whose success story is one of the most unlikely you could imagine. CBS' Serena Altschul reports:

David Sedaris, playing to a standing room only crowd at New York's fabled Apollo Theater, is not a rock star, but don't tell that to his fans.

He's a writer who still can't quite believe his good fortune, despite nine million book sales that say: "Believe it."

"At last night's signing, I was approached by a young girl wearing the ugliest T-shirt I have ever seen. It was painted by a dolphin, the girl explained. I must have looked like that wasn't quite strange enough for me. 'A dolphin with scoliosis,' the girl's mother added," Sedaris said.

"The fact that I could make a career out of reading - I never allowed myself to dream that that would happen."

"Do you like to listen or read?" Serena Altschul asked a fan.

"I do both, listen and read. I wish he were my best friend."

His devoted readers wait for hours for a chance to share a story or joke with the guy who's been called the "prime candidate for funniest writer alive" by Greg Villepique of Salon.com.

Sedaris never complains that the lines are too long.

"I love getting attention, just like a child loves it, and it's never worn off. So when people say, oh the book signings go on. Why would I shoo away someone who's giving me attention? What part of standing in line for 10 hours to say how much they love you is bad to you?"

Sedaris was born in upstate New York, but grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina. He's the second of six children, all of whom - along with his mother Sharon and father Lou - figure prominently in his stories.

The quest for attention, and the love of storytelling, he says, began around the family table.

"All we ever wanted was to make our mother laugh, and she was generous with her laughter. She wasn't a fool, though. She would say, 'That went on way too long' or 'I've heard that before.' Even at the time, I remember thinking, 'I think this is different than other people's lives.' "

Which may help explain why younger sister Amy Sedaris also found fame with her quick wit and comic timing.

"It was a normal, simple, middle class upbringing?" Altschul asked. "And somehow you and Amy catapulted into the spotlight?"

"I think just because we were more ambitious, I think that had anyone else in my family wanted that, they could have had it as well," he said.

If young David had high ambitions, he kept them to himself.

He dropped out of college, twice. He did way too many drugs, and kept together with a series of low-paying jobs.

One of those jobs was as a Christmas elf at Macy's department store in New York City.

"I don't have any skills, and I'm small, so they hired me," he said.

That led to his story, "Santaland Diaries": "I wear green velvet knickers, a forest green velvet smock and a perky stocking cap decorating with spangles. This is my work uniform."

Every day, the 30-something Sedaris toiled in the service of Santa, and every night he would write in his diary about what happened.

"Can you close your eyes and make a wish? Everything these elves say seems to have an exclamation point at the end of it!"

Then one day, NPR's Ira Glass asked him to read one of his stories on the radio.

"That just changed everything overnight. It was like somebody came along with a wand and said, 'Here you go, here's everything you ever wanted!' " Sedaris said.

"He's been showered with accolades ever since, even invited to speak to Princeton's graduating class in 2006.

Today, Sedaris divides his time between France and England, and travels the world gathering material for his quizzical and slyly subversive stories.

His latest book is a collection of tales about animals. Kind of.

"The squirrel and the chipmunk had been dating for two weeks, when they ran out of things to talk about."

"They become just so human," Altshul said.

"If they were human, then I think, as a listener or a reader, you would think, 'I'm like that. I don't want to listen to that anymore.' But if it's a chipmunk, then you think, 'Oh, that's a story about a chipmunk,' then you're almost near the end and you think, 'Oh, that's about me.' "

"Would you have taken a job here in your early days, when you were cleaning houses and working as an elf?" Altshul asked Sedaris as the two were walking around New York's Central Park Zoo.

"I couldn't have played second fiddle to a sea lion as gracefully as the people who work here," Sedaris said. "Because here it's all about the sea lions. Where with me, it would be like, I eat fish too! I had fish just last night, it was great!"

Fodder, perhaps, for another story, somewhere down the line.

"Is it fair to say that you life story, it's a little bit of a fairy tale?" Altshul asked.

"Exactly," Sedaris said. "I mean, if mine isn't, I don't know whose is."

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Christina Taylor Green's grandfather, ex-Mets & Yankees manager Dallas Green, devastated by death

2011-01-09T11:27:00.000-08:00

He is a big man with a voice to match, a voice you could always hear all over the ballpark, when Dallas Green was managing the Phillies to the World Series in 1980, later when he became one of the few men to manage both the Yankees and the Mets.

Only now the voice on the telephone was small, in these small, terrible pieces, the voice of a grieving grandfather talking about the loss of Christina Taylor Green, his 9-year old, one of the six killed on Saturday in Tucson when the shooting started outside a Safeway.

"We're all hurting pretty hard," Dallas Green said.

He was at his winter home in the Caribbean, a place called Providenciales, an island in Turks and Caicos, when he found out about his granddaughter. Green and his wife managed to make it to Miami last night, now they were on their way to Arizona to be his with son, John, a Dodger scout, and Green's daughter-in-law Roxanna.

In their family, in lives that will never be the same for a single day, the tragedy in Tucson wasn't about Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, or the death of a federal judge, or the other people killed or wounded by a monster carrying a gun out of his own madness, through the gates of hell. This was about a little girl killed for what is always the worst reason, in America or anywhere else, killed for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Their little girl.

Green trying to find a way to put into words what never can be put into words, just because there never are any.

"It's pretty hard," Dallas Green said. "We're all hurting pretty bad."

"I can't believe this could happen to any 9-year old child," he said, "much less our own."

He said, "The worst thing to ever happen to us."

Then the big man with his big head of white hair, one who was never afraid of anybody or anything in baseball, who once called out George Steinbrenner as "Manager George" - it was a day when a Yankee manager effectively fired the Yankees - began to cry.

Green was watching television on Saturday afternoon, nothing else to do, he said, when he learned about the shooting in Tucson: A gunman, unnamed at the time, walking up to 40-year-old Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and shooting her in the head, then opening fire with what turned out to be a Glock on the people waiting in line to meet their congresswoman from the 8th Congressional district, Tucson, Ariz.

"I didn't make any connection," Dallas Green said yesterday.

Why would he? Why would Dallas Green have any idea that his 9-year old granddaughter, recently elected to the student council at her school, a second baseman on her Little League team, had been brought by a neighbor to meet her Congresswoman?

But that is exactly what had happened, the 9-year old just elected at the Mesa Verde Elementary School wanting to meet Giffords, just elected to her third term in Congress, once the youngest woman - at the age of 32 - elected to the state senate in Arizona.

Green's wife left the room to call their son, see what he thought about what had just happened in Tucson, what his reaction was to something like this happening so close to his own home.

When Sylvia Green came back into the room, she was sobbing, barely able to manage this:

"They shot our beautiful Christina."

And that is how the old baseball man, a great baseball man, 76 now, found out that one of the bullets had been fired directly into the heart of his family, killed a 9-year old girl who was only at the Safeway, as her mother would tell Fox News later, because she was "very interested in government ...how she could help her community."

By the time Dallas Green's daughter-in-law, got to the hospital in Tucson, it was too late, the girl was gone. John Green would talk later about his daughter being born on September 11, 2001, such a tragic day in American history, and now dying in this senseless and tragic way, but how the nine years in between were so magical, for the little girl, for her parents.

And for her famous baseball grandfather.

"She was a good speaker," John Green would tell the Arizona Star. "I could easily have seen her as a politician."

When the little girl was old enough, her parents told her the significance of the day she was born, her baby picture even featured in a book called "Faces of Hope: Babies Born on 9/11." At first the little girl would tell people that she was born on a "holiday," before her parents would have to correct her.

"This beautiful little girl," Dallas Green said yesterday, not just a grandfather now, a father trying to get across the country to comfort his own child. "Gone like this..."

Then the voice was gone again.

He has a name that has been known around baseball for such a long time. Nearly made a year managing the Yankees, lasted a lot longer than that with the Mets in the 90s. These were supposed to be Dallas Green's golden years, in the winter sun of the Caribbean, and spring training in Clearwater, Fla., where the Phillies train.

Then a gun went off outside a Safeway in Tucson and the old man found out one of the bullets had killed one of his own, much too young.

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Tea Party Rhetoric: “Nothing better than a dead liberal”

2011-01-09T11:20:00.000-08:00

An internal DHS memo obtained by FOX News indicates that Jared Lee Loughner may have been connected to a known hate group, American Renaissance.

no direct connection – but strong suspicion is being directed at AmRen / American Renaissance. Suspect is possibly linked to this group. (through videos posted on his myspace and YouTube account.). The group’s ideology is anti government, anti immigration, anti ZOG (Zionist Occupational Government), anti Semitic. Gabrielle Gifford is the first Jewish female elected to such a high position in the US government. She was also opposite this group’s ideology when it came to immigration debate.

The Southern Poverty Law Center has more background on this group, but it appears to be yet another organization that supports white supremacy and has an international following.

Pima County Sheriff, Clarence Dupnik, said yesterday what should have been obvious to everyone over the last twenty years as we’ve all witnessed the rise of right wing radio and the tea party.

“When you look at unbalanced people, how they respond to the vitriol that comes out of certain mouths about tearing down the government. The anger, the hatred, the bigotry that goes on in this country is getting to be outrageous,” said the sheriff. “And unfortunately, Arizona I think has become sort of the capital. We have become the mecca for prejudice and bigotry.”

At this point we are all familiar with Palin’s PAC’s map of twenty house targets from last year. Sarah Palin’s aide claimed yesterday that the crosshairs on the map did not allude to guns.

“We never ever, ever intended it to be gun sights,” she said.

…

She said that the graphic was contracted out to a professional. They approved it quickly without thinking about it. “We never imagined, it never occurred to us that anybody would consider it violent,” she said. Rather, she said, that it was simply “crosshairs that you would see on a map.”

There is “nothing irresponsible about our graphic,” she said.

She did not, however, mention the “don’t retreat, instead- RELOAD!” Palin tweet that went out shortly after the graphic was posted on both her Facebook page and SarahPac’s website, directing them to the graphic. The tweet turned quickly into a Palin mantra. Many, even then, urged her to stop using such violent rhetoric. If she heard them, she did not retreat.

The very fact that Palin removed these photos from her PAC’s website within an hour and a half of the shooting indicates that she knew very well that those gun sights would incite violence. Back in March when they were first posted Palin faced criticism and requests to tone down the violent rhetoric. She didn’t bother to do that until after the violence had taken place and lives had been lost. How convenient that Palin’s tweet, “don’t retreat, instead- RELOAD!” has now been deleted as well.

Jesse Kelly, Giffords’ opponent in 2010, took Palin’s words literally and held a fundraiser where donors could shoot an M-16.

Jesse Kelly, meanwhile, doesn’t seem to be bothered in the least by the Sarah Palin controversy earlier this year, when she released a list of targeted races in crosshairs, urging followers to “reload” and “aim” for Democrats. Critics said she was inciting violence.

He seems to be embracing his fellow tea partier’s idea. Kelly’s campaign event website has a stern-looking photo of the former Marine in military garb holding his weapon. It includes the headline: “Get on Target for Victory in November. Help remove Gabrielle Giffords from office. Shoot a fully automatic M16 with Jesse Kelly.”

The event costs $50.

It’s amazing to look back to the 2009 DHS report that right wing extremists were planning acts of violence. This was a report that right wing pundits railed against as being untrue – and yet when we look at what the report warned about and at the suggested connection of Loughner to American Renaissance, as well as his You Tube videos, the report seems fairly accurate.

* Proposed imposition of firearms restrictions and weapons bans likely would attract new members into the ranks of rightwing extremist groups, as well as potentially spur some of them to begin planning and training for violence against the government. The high volume of purchases and stockpiling of weapons and ammunition by rightwing extremists in anticipation of restrictions and bans in some parts of the country continue to be a primary concern to law enforcement.
* Rightwing extremist chatter on the Internet continues to focus on the economy, the perceived loss of U.S. jobs in the manufacturing and construction sectors, and home foreclosures. Anti-Semitic extremists attribute these losses to a deliberate conspiracy conducted by a cabal of Jewish “financial elites.” These “accusatory” tactics are employed to draw new recruits into rightwing extremist groups and further radicalize
those already subscribing to extremist beliefs.
* DHS/I&A assesses that rightwing extremist groups’ frustration over a perceived lack of government action on illegal immigration has the potential to incite individuals or small groups toward violence.
* Rightwing extremist paranoia of foreign regimes could escalate or be magnified in the event of an economic crisis or military confrontation, harkening back to the “New World Order” conspiracy theories of the 1990s.

Here’s a Google map that kept track of right wing violence from March 15, 2010 through September 15, 2010. How many of these instances could have been avoided if the rhetoric of “Reload!” wasn’t so prominent?

The Sun Times Editorial today notes that we can’t say we weren’t warned about this shooting tragedy.

For more than two years, sensible people have been pleading with their fellow Americans to tone down the rhetoric, to quit with the demonizing, to end the fear-mongering.

In what kind of country, the sensible people asked, do political leaders across the board not condemn a sign at a rally that reads: “We left our guns at home — this time”?

In what kind of country do people show up at presidential speeches with guns on their hips?

In what kind of a country do callers to radio shows routinely smear those with whom they disagree — beginning with our president — as “traitors” and “un-American,” while pandering hosts say only, “Thanks for the call.”

If we continue this way, the sensible people warned, something will happen.

Last summer Sharron Angle called for “Second Amendment solutions” for a broken Congress as well as armed insurrection.
In August 2009, Florida Congresswoman Kathy Castor was escorted out of a local town hall after violence erupted among protesters. Several town hall meetings that August involved screaming protests by tea party candidates – many of them Glenn Beck’s 9/12 followers.

When there is rhetoric that inflames the public – a focus on a distrust of government, a fear of tyranny, the idea that “we need to take our country back” – this kind of rhetoric has consequences and now we are seeing the results of those consequences. Will media pundits and right wing politicians like Palin and Angle learn something from the events this weekend? Or will they simply make excuses for themselves and keep making statements like, “don’t retreat, instead- RELOAD!”

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The Untalented Gypsy Rose Lee

2011-01-08T13:11:00.000-08:00

Burlesque entertainer, actress and writer Gypsy Rose Lee was born 100 years ago today. Dismissed as "untalented" by her own mother, she remains a source of inspiration four decades after her death.

Born in Seattle as Rose Louise Hovick to a teenage mother fresh out of a convent, Louise (as she was then called) got an early start in show business, appearing alongside her younger sister June as a vaudeville act. It was soon evident that “Baby June” was the more naturally talented performer of the two, and Louise was from a young age relegated to the background while June, even before she could speak, was pushed into the limelight. The family relocated to Hollywood and the act was renamed “Dainty June, the Hollywood Baby, and Her Newsboys.” Rose also pushed her young progeny into film – if a director needed tears for a shot in a silent two reeler, mother Rose would tell June that the family dog had died. Her overbearing determination to see her young daughters have successful stage careers soon led to a divorce from her husband.

Beginning in their teenage years, Louise and June were responsible for supporting the family with their act. They travelled the country, playing cheap vaudeville theatres, living out of suitcases and avoiding formal education altogether. But when June was 13 (or possibly 15 or 16 – Rose had five different birth certificates for June and routinely shaved years off her true age), she broke up the act by briefly eloping with fellow vaudevillian Bobby Reed.

Louise was unable to sustain the act on her own. Aged 17, stranded in Kansas City without a booking, she was approached by an agent about appearing on a burlesque stage (the usual stripper had landed in prison). Over her mother’s objections (or because of her mother's insistence -- accounts vary), Louise took the job.

Thus was born Gypsy Rose Lee.

Not long after, she made her New York debut on April 1, 1931, at Minsky’s famous 42nd Street theatre The Republic, the first to feature burlesque on Broadway. Comedians like Abbott & Costello, Phil Silvers, Red Buttons and Rag Ragland rounded out the bill, but the star attraction were the striptease artists, who, during the height of the Depression, made between $700 and $2,000 a week. Gypsy Rose Lee would play 12 weeks straight at The Republic, setting a record for the theatre. Her arrest during one of the many police raids on Minsky’s theatres only heightened the public’s awareness of burlesque’s rising star.

Many were at a loss to explain why she, of all the pretty girls losing clothing onstage, became such an attraction. As a 1942 Life magazine article in noted, “She shows less than Margie Hart, is less suggestive than Ann Corio, less ‘hot’ than Georgia Sothern. She scorns the use of either bumps or grinds, fundamental gyrations of a burlesque routine…her routine for years has been a slow strip which she accompanies with a smart patter song.” Her smart patter may have been just as big an asset as her slow reveal – in those days, women made up nearly half of the typical striptease audience – and she became famous for her sophisticated onstage wit and casual banter.

Gypsy Rose Lee was involved with every aspect of her act, making up her own song lyrics and designing her own clothes, and an armchair psychologist might conclude that her perfectionism was driven by being labeled the ‘untalented one’ so early in her youth. Her sister had by then gone on to a successful career in Hollywood as June Havoc, and the two of them maintained a sibling rivalry throughout their lives, though they remained closely bound by the shared experience of growing up in showbiz under a domineering, manipulative mother.

In 1937, Gypsy Rose Lee’s notoriety earned her a Hollywood contract with Daryl Zanuck’s Fox Studio, but church groups and the Legion of Decency complained so loudly that the Hays Office forced her to drop her burlesque name and revert to her given name of Louise Hovick. Her skills didn’t translate particularly well to the silver screen, and she was soon back on the burlesque stage, though she would occasionally appear in films for the rest of her career.

Though her charms may not have won over cinemagoers, her humor and life experiences helped her win over readers as she embarked on an unlikely third career as a writer. In 1941, her novel The G-String Murders, became publishing’s best-selling mystery since Dashiell Hammett’s The Thin Man. She published another mystery, Mother Finds A Body in 1942, but her best known work today remains 1957’s Gypsy: A Memoir.

Prior to its publishing, she’d already sold autobiographical snippets to The New Yorker, Harper’s Bazaar, Mademoiselle and Collier’s, but now freed from fear of libel suits by her mother’s death, Gypsy Rose Lee turned a harsh light on her upbringing, using the book to paint Rose as the mother of all stage mothers. The memoir was adapted into the hugely successful Broadway musical Gypsy: A Musical Fable, with the Mother Rose character being played over the years by Ethel Merman, Tyne Daly and Bernadette Peters. Rosalind Russell and Bette Midler have played in her film and TV productions. Gypsy Rose Lee was played by Natalie Wood in the 1962 film.

Gypsy would provide its author a steady income for the rest of her life, but it would also lead to estrangement from June, who took issue with her portrayal and that of her mother in the stage production (her reservations were muffled with a cash payout). Her personal relationships never less than chaotic, Gypsy was married and divorced three times and had a son out of wedlock by film director Otto Preminger. Named Erik Lee, he would be the only constant man in her life and would later pen his own memoir, My G-String Mother, chronicling his experience working as her stage manager beginning when he was only eight years old.

In her later years, Gypsy Rose Lee appeared on television, hosted her own radio show and entertained troops in Vietnam during USO tours. After being diagnosed with lung cancer, she reconciled with her sister, joking that the disease was their mother’s revenge. Gypsy Rose Lee died on April 26th, 1970.

In 1942, Life magazine wrote, “It is safe to assume no culture but our own could fashion such a unique national character as Gypsy Rose Lee. She cannot sing, dance or act but she earns more on the stage than Helen Hayes or Katherine Cornell.”

Just this week, The New York Times reported that Barbara Streisand was in talks to star in a remake of Gypsy. Whatever you think of their relative talents, it’s safe to assume no one is currently planning a film based on the life of Helen Hayes of Katherine Cornell.

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Elvis Presley birthday food: Peanut Butter and Banana Sandwich (Recipe)

2011-01-08T13:06:00.000-08:00

With the celebration of Elvis Presley today, fans are sharing in the enthusiasm by eating, singing and entertainer just like the King of Rock and Roll. The best part has to be the eating with folks in Graceland enjoying the Peanut Butter and Banana Sandwiches.

You can easily make these at home and the kids will adore you after the first bite. The Food Network has done entire specials on the favorite foods of Elvis Presley with one of the easiest dishes being the Peanut Butter and Banana Sandwiches.) The series Food Nation With Bobby Flay actually gave a simple recipe to fans to bring this sandwich to the table:

Ingredients

4 ounces whole peanut butter, 2 slices Texas Toast or 1/2-inch thick bread, 1 whole ripe banana, 4 ounces whole butter

Directions

Spread peanut butter side to side, evenly on 1 side of each piece of bread. Slice banana in 3/4-inch slices and place on 1 piece of bread with peanut butter. Banana slices should be close together, and cover 1 side completely (usually 9 slices). Top with the other slice of bread.

Heat butter in saute pan on medium heat. Place sandwich in pan and brown for approximately 3 to 5 minutes or until golden brown. Add 2 ounces of butter to the pan and flip sandwich to other side and continue cooking for 2 to 5 minutes or until golden brown and peanut butter is melting. Cut into quarters and serve very hot.

While the final sandwich is a bit messy, it is definitely a tummy pleasing way to enjoy the day of celebration. Happy Birthday Elvis Presley.

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Report: La. police searching Mississippi River for brother of Ravens S Ed Reed

2011-01-08T13:01:00.000-08:00

Authorities in St. Rose, La., were searching the Mississippi River Friday for the brother of Baltimore Ravens Pro Bowl safety Ed Reed after he jumped in to elude police that morning.

The St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Office said that Brian Reed, 29, had been questioned by deputies following a report of a black car running another off of River Road. A vehicle matching the description of the car was found parked beside the road and as police questioned the man inside, the car was reported as stolen over the radio, Sgt. Dwayne LaGrange said.

While being handcuffed, the man jumped in the river near the border between Kenner, La., and St. Charles Parish and did not resurface, LaGrange said. The Coast Guard and Port Authority are searching for the man.

Reed's mother, Karen, said her son had problems with drugs and alcohol.

Ed Reed, whose eight interceptions in 10 games led the NFL this season, was preparing for Sunday's AFC wild card game at the Kansas City Chiefs.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the Reed family," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said Friday night. "We're just praying that Ed's brother's OK and that's all we can do right now. I love Ed Reed and I know he's fighting something right now and hopefully this thing will turn out OK. He's got our prayers. He's got his hands full right now."

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Kentucky falls to Pittsburgh 27-10 in BBVA Compass Bowl

2011-01-08T12:53:00.000-08:00

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — As it turned out, Pittsburgh didn't need a full-time coach to handle Kentucky in the BBVA Compass Bowl.

The Wildcats' ineptitude on offense and special teams turned out to be all the Panthers really needed. UK, which was without suspended starting quarterback Mike Hartline, struggled early to score, and a pair of special teams gaffes set up the Panthers' first two touchdowns as Pitt cruised to a 27-10 win at Legion Field.

It was the worst bowl loss in 15 post-season appearances for Kentucky (6-7) and also wrapped up its first losing season since 2005.

The defense did its part on its first series, as Randall Burden picked off Tino Sunseri at the UK 16.

Morgan Newton drove the Cats into scoring position but gave it right back to the Panthers when he fumbled on a quarterback draw at the Pitt 34.

UK appeared to gain a second straight turnover when Burden recovered what looked to be a Sunseri lateral to Ray Graham, but replay officials overturned the original call and ruled it an incomplete pass.

Kentucky scored first on a 50-yard Craig McIntosh field goal with 5:10 remaining in the opening period, but Pitt responded with a Dan Hutchins 21-yard field goal early in the second.

Things got a little chippy late in the first half. The Pitt offensive line jumped early, but play never completely stopped and UK linebacker Ridge Wilson took down Sunseri. That led to a brief fracas near midfield that resulted in both teams getting flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Pitt got a 33-yard field goal from Hutchins on that possession to go ahead 6-3. Then Adam Taglianetti broke through and blocked a Ryan Tydlacka punt that gave the Panthers the ball at the UK 10. Sunseri scored on a 1-yard quarterback sneak with 34 seconds left in the second quarter, giving Pitt a 13-3 lead going into halftime.

The second half didn't start any better for UK, as a botched fake punt set up Pitt on the Cats' 35. That set up Sunseri's 13-yard TD pass to Brock DiCicco that gave the Panthers a 20-3 cushion with 10:47 left in the third.

Kentucky did put together a 14-play, 74-yard drive to close to within 20-10 late in the period.

After a wide-open Matt Roark dropped a TD pass in the end zone, Randall Cobb carried 19 yards on a reverse to the Pitt 1, and fullback Moncell Allen took it in on the next play with 41 seconds in the period.

UK forced Pitt into a fourth-and-4 from the Kentucky 35 on its next possession, but Sunseri hit Cruz for a 14-yard gain, and Dion Lewis' 2-yard TD run pushed it back to a 17-point lead (27-10) with 10:26 remaining.

Pitt didn't do anything fancy, relying heavily on the running tandem of Lewis (22 carries, 106 yards) and Graham (13 carries, 64 yards).

Newton went the whole way at quarterback for Kentucky, finishing 21-of-36 for 212 yards. He was sacked three times.

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Ariz. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in critical condition after Tucson shooting; eight others injured

2011-01-08T12:47:00.000-08:00

Arizona Democratic Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was shot and critically wounded Saturday morning while hosting an event outside a Tucson grocery store, according to local news reports, a tragic turn of events after an unusually heated campaign season.

President Obama said in a statement that some people had died in the shooting, and that Giffords was "gravely wounded."

C.J. Karamargin, Giffords' spokesman, told the Washington Post on Saturday afternoon that Giffords was in surgery. Earlier in the afternoon, CNN and NPR reported that she had died.

Giffords, who in November narrowly won reelection to a third term, was hosting her first "Congress on Your Corner" event when a gunman ran up and began shooting her and others in her entourage with a Glock handgun, according to law enforcement sources. The gunman is in custody.

According to a local news report, Giffords was shot in the head at point-blank range. She was taken to University Medical Center in Tucson, but was reported to have been responsive immediately after the shooting. A hospital spokesperson told CNN that nine people had arrived and that all were in critical or serious condition, including a child.

"We do not yet have all the answers. What we do know is that such a senseless and terrible act of violence has no place in a free society," Obama said. "I ask all Americans to join me and Michelle in keeping Representative Giffords, the victims of this tragedy, and their families in our prayers."

Last March, Giffords was one of ten House Democrats who were the subject of harassment over their support for the national health care overhaul. At the time, the front door of Giffords' Tucson office had been shattered in an early morning incident.

Giffords had been a top target by Republicans in the 2010 midterm elections, but managed to win a tough re-election battle against a tea party candidate.

The up-and-coming lawmaker, known as a moderate Democrat who paid close attention to constituent concerns, had been singled out by Sarah Palin's SarahPac as one of the 20 Democrats on the ballot in November who represented states that supported Sen. John McCain for president in 2008. "It's time to take a stand," Palin's fundraising appeal said of Giffords and the other Democrats, who had all supported the health-care bill.

House Speaker John Boehner (R.Ohio) put out a statement saying: "I am horrified by the senseless attack on Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords... An attack on one who serves is an attack on all who serve. Acts and threats of violence against public officials have no place in our society."

NPR reported that Giffords was talking to a couple outside of a local Safeway when the suspect ran up and fired indiscriminately from about four feet away. The man, described by witnesses as in his late teens or early 20s, was tackled when he tried to flee the scene. Police confirmed that a young man was in custody in connection with the shooting.

The "Congress on Your Corner" program was popular among Democrats elected in recent years from swing districts, as a way of keeping in regular contact with local concerns. The event was the first of Giffords' third term; she took the oath of office for the 112th Congress on Tuesday.

Arizona has been a political hotbed in recent months, especially after the state approved last April restrictive immigration laws that became a conservative rallying cry.

Giffords is a member of the House Blue Dog Democrat coalition, a bloc of moderate and conservative Democrats whose ranks were ravaged by losses in November. Her husband is astronaut Mark E. Kelly.

Her 8th congressional district borders Mexico, and Giffords was judicious in her response to the Arizona immigration law, describing it as a "clear calling that the federal government needs to do a better job."

This was not the first time someone brought a gun to a Giffords event. A protester protester in August brought a gun to Giffords' Congress on Your Corner event in Douglas. Police were alerted after he dropped the firearm.

"When you represent a district that includes the home of the O.K. Corral and Tombstone, 'the Town Too Tough to Die,' nothing's a surprise out in Cochise County," Giffords, D-Ariz., said Tuesday in an interview with The Arizona Republic Editorial Board.

The man in question shouted "some pretty disparaging comments," Giffords said, but "at no point did I ever feel in danger and at no point did I ever feel there was a problem."

Giffords is a former Arizona state senate and house member who had previously served as president of a tire company founded by her father. She was a top recruit in 2006 by Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman Rahm Emanuel, viewed as the type of young, middle-of-the-road candidate with crossover appeal. She is a Spanish speaker whose hobbies include motorcycle racing.

Giffords beat a crowded Democratic primary field in 2006, and won 54 percent of the vote in the general election against immigration opponent Randy Graf, to succeed retiring Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-Ariz.). She easily won re-election in 2008.

But the immigration debate sparked by the legal crackdown in her home state became a defining issue in Giffords' campaign last year. She denounced the law as "extreme" and has supported legislation to provide a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrations. But she supported a Republican effort to add National Guard troops along the border, and opposed a crusade led by her homestate colleague Rep. Raul Grijalva (D) to boycott Arizona businesses, in protest of the state law.

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NFL Playoffs Schedule: TV Schedule For Wild Card Saturday

2011-01-08T12:04:00.000-08:00

The playoffs for the 2010 season get underway today with four teams battling it out in this always popular win-and-move-on football tournament. The late-afternoon game scheduled is between the defending champion New Orleans Saints traveling all the way to Seattle to take on the Seahawks who were the first team in NFL history to make the post-season with a losing record at 7-9.

The evening game features the defending-AFC Champion Indianapolis Colts who are hosting the New York Jets.

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Joel Thorman at SBNation.com has the full schedule breakdown:

Want an NFLShop(R) gift card?

New Orleans Saints vs. Seattle Seahawks, 4:30 p.m. (ET), NBC: The Seahawks enter the game as heavy underdogs -- 10-11 points -- and no one is giving them a real shot to win. The Saints are the defending Super Bowl champs and enters the game as the No. 5 seed with an 11-5 record. The Seahawks, 7-9, are the first losing team to win their division, which got them a home playoff game.

New York Jets vs. Indianapolis Colts, 8:00 p.m. (ET), NBC: The Colts are 2.5 point favorites entering this game and Peyton Manning has Rex Ryan's number with a 5-1 record against Ryan-coached defenses since 2005. Ryan has been talking the Jets up all year so they'll be looking to back up what they've been saying. This game takes place in Indy's Lucas Oil Dome where they've been highly successful.

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At U.S. Army All-American Bowl, High School Players Using Concussion-Detecting Helmets

2011-01-08T11:31:00.000-08:00

The 2011 U.S. Army All-American Bowl, which puts the talents of the nation's top high school football players on display, is now in progress. The bowl is attracting plenty of attention, since we're likely to see a handful of players who will make their mark in the NFL someday.

The game is also turning some heads, thanks to the introduction of a bit of interesting concussion-detection technology. The players' chin straps are equipped with sensors that detect the force of impact:

Outside the strap is a light indicator. Green means you're fine. A yellow blinking light means there's a 51-percent chance you have a concussion. A blue light means there's a 70-percent chance, and red means 90-percent chance.

This is certainly the first I've heard of this technology. It apparently isn't cumbersome -- one player interviewed said that they aren't bulky or otherwise hindering. This certainly makes it more likely for football institutions to adopt the technology, which is always a good thing.

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2011 Cotton Bowl, LSU Vs. Texas A&M Prediction: Never Bet Against Les Miles

2011-01-07T13:03:00.000-08:00

The 2010 college football postseason is hitting the home stretch as it heads to Dallas for the Cotton Bowl. The LSU Tigers and Texas A&M Aggies hit the field on Friday, Jan. 7 and we've got all your odds and predictions needs covered. With Les Miles at the helm, you're gonna need all the help you can get.

The line: LSU by a measly two points. The game opened dead-even, as a pick-em, but the line shifted slightly in LSU's favor.

Notable LSU units: The defense for the Tigers is giving up just 17.8 points per game, ranking them 11th in the nation. On the offensive side of the ball, it's all run and no pass for the Tigers. The LSU passing offense is ranked 107th in the nation, but the running game produces 179.2 yards per game, ranked 30th in the nation.

Notable Texas A&M units: The passing game. The Aggies are throwing for 281.8 yards per game, good for 18th in the nation. The Texas A&M defense also gives up 20.3 points per game, placing them 25th in the nation.

The pick: Pick against LSU and Les Miles? Yeah, right. There's no chance you'll catch me betting against Miles, who seems to snatch victory from the jaws of the defeat in a new and creative way every single game. Miles does it again as the Tigers win and cover.

The 2011 Cotton Bowl kicks off at 8:00 p.m. EST. The game will be televised on ESPN. Browse our 2010 college football postseason schedule for a complete list of bowls.

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Girl Scout cookies go on sale Jan. 9

2011-01-07T12:59:00.000-08:00

The annual Girl Scout Cookie Sale Girl Scouts will begin Jan. 9 and run through Jan. 23.

Each year, the Girl Scouts of northern Illinois sell cookies to raise money for the council, awards, and the local troops.

The proceeds support scout programs, camp scholarships, volunteer training, membership assistance and outreach programs.

By selling the cookies, the scouts learn about business and economic literacy. Through the participation, girls develop skills they will use their entire lives.

The girls learn goal setting, decision making, money management, people skills, and business ethics.

This year the price the scouts will sell cookies at is $4 per box.

Delivery of the cookies will be completed between Feb. 18 and March 20.

Contact cookies4you@girlscoutsni.org to place an order if no local scout asks about ordering cookies. The order will then be passed on to a local Girl Scout.

The Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois serves 20,000 girls including Ogle, Carroll, Stephenson, Lee, Winnebago, and Whiteside Counties.

For more information about the Girl Scouts visit www.girlscouts.org or call 1-800-478-7248.

For local information about the Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois call 1-815-962-5591 or visit www.girlscoutsni.org.

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JV girls win Folsom tourney, freshmen take second

2011-01-07T12:18:00.000-08:00

Oak Ridge High’s junior varsity girls’ basketball team improved to 12-0, while the freshman team sits at 10-2 with league play beginning next week.

The junior varsity girls won the Lady Bulldog Classic last week, beating Burbank, 70-19, El Camino, 62-43 and Nevada Union, 65-56, while the freshman team defeated Davis, 64-17 and Antelope, 58-18, but lost to Nevada Union, 52-49.

For the junior varsity, the team’s talent and depth showed brightly at the Folsom Sports Complex. In three games the team had three different leading scorers. Nikki Dow scored 18 in the win over Burbank, while Jenn Hoffman finished with 23 against El Camino. Ali Bettencourt scored 21 in the win over Nevada Union.

Against the Miners, Oak Ridge trailed 49-48 after three quarters before outscoring Nevada Union 17-7 in the fourth quarter to pull away for the win.

“That game was a shootout with about 30 different lead changes,” Oak Ridge coach Annie Lamy said. “In the fourth quarter we decided to start rebounding with Maddie Petty leading the way. We also hit a couple of threes and were more patient on offense.”

Hoffman was the tournament’s most valuable player, while Bettencourt also made the all-tournament team.

The freshman team was devastated by the loss to Nevada Union, a team they had beaten a few weeks earlier. Oak Ridge played a near perfect game through three quarters, leading 43-32, but foul trouble and poor free throw shooting did them in.

Oak Ridge only had eight players suited up and three, Kristen Swanson, Alyssa Ramona and Celeste Vitolas fouled out in the fourth quarter leaving coach Greg Lamy with five players: Krisztina Zagyi, Cailin Navickas, Nina Grimes, Heather Dunham and Lauren Barca.

Long story short, the Lady Trojans lost the lead and the game by three, despite playing harder than they ever had previously this season.

“I haven’t seen this team work as hard or as well this season,” Oak Ridge coach Greg Lamy said. “They were focused on this game and have improved so much. We had 50 rebounds in the game, 14 by Krisztina Zagyi.

“I was distraught with the outcome, not the end result but how it happened. We can’t play any better 11 games into the season than that, but we’ve got to learn from it and remember how it felt to lose.”

Oak Ridge made only 7-of-22 free throws, which Lamy said wasn’t the reason for the loss, but definitely an area the team needs to improve upon.

Zagyi and Grimes made the all-tournament team for the Lady Trojans.

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Chicago Cubs Acquire Matt Garza, Sparking Figurative Fan Riot

2011-01-07T12:13:00.000-08:00

The Chicago Cubs are finalizing a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays to acquire right-handed starting pitcher Matt Garza. The North Siders are sending right-handed pitcher Chris Archer, shortstop Hak-Ju Lee, outfielders Brandon Guyer and Sam Fuld, and catcher Robinson Chirinos to the Rays for Garza, 27-year-old outfielder Fernando Perez and another, as of yet unnamed minor leaguer presumed by many to be a pitcher.

As a result of this deal, two large mobs of fans have converged and clashed on the streets outside Wrigley Field. (Not the real one. The figurative one. Bear with me.) One one side are those who herald the deal as the team's ticket to contending in the suddenly noteworthy NL Central. To them, Garza is the kind of hard-nosed battler that the Cubs lost when they traded southpaw Ted Lilly to the Los Angeles Dodgers this past season. And, coming from the elite AL East and having won 15 games just last season, the now-about-to-be-former-Rays hurler is a blockbuster addition to the embattled Cubs. (He'll also be a mere 27 years old on Opening Day and is under team control, though arbitration eligible, for three more seasons.)

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On the other side are the prospect mavens and sabermagicians, who point out that, well, Garza isn't that good of a pitcher. Over the last three seasons, his ERA has been under 4.0 (which his fine), but:

* His FIP and xFIP (stats that read like ERA but set aside defense and focus only on what a pitcher can control) have been over 4.0;
* He doesn't have a strong career strikeout rate (7.10 K/9); and
* He generally doesn't keep the ball on the ground (career 39.7% groundball rate), which could be a problem at Wrigley Field.

What the Cubs needed was a No. 1, top-of-the-rotation ace. What they got was another solid but not likely dominating middle-of-the-rotation starter to stand alongside Ryan Dempster and Carlos Zambrano, not above them.

Plus, Cubs GM Jim Hendry gave up one of its top pitching prospects in the 22-year-old Archer along with the 20-year-old Lee, who could develop into a speedy lead-off-man-type with very strong defensive skills (though he's at least a couple of years from his MLB debut). Meanwhile, Chirinos profiles as a solid, young backup catcher and Guyer was the organization's minor league player of the year (though still probably a bench guy in the majors). "Hasn't the team's ownership been preaching developing from within? What happened to that?" these incensed fans cry. "Do we really think Garza is an equal counter-move to the acquisition of Cy Young Award-winner Zack Greinke by the Milwaukee Brewers?"

And so the battle rages. Quick-witted (or not so much) barbs are exchanged. Cars are overturned and set alight. Dogs and cats amble by, paw in paw.

As with all baseball trades, time will tell. If nothing else, assuming Garza stays healthy (something he's been very good at thus far), he should add a few wins to the Cubs' 2011 total. Will it be enough to get by the St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds and aforementioned Brew Crew? That seems doubtful. But it's early January, the Cubs convention is a few days away and we haven't even gotten to spring training yet. So let's be optimistic and say that things just got a little more interesting on the corner of Clark and Addison.

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Furthur Tour Dates and Tickets; Phil Lesh and Bob Weir

2011-01-07T12:06:00.000-08:00

Phil Lesh and Bob Weir, known for their roles in the Grateful Dead, are now touring as Furthur, and the musicians have just announced tour dates for 2011. Scroll down to see full Furthur tour dates and find the lowest prices on Furthur tickets right here.

Furthur provides a taste of what the Grateful Dead offered in their live shows, with mesmerizing improv jams and laid-back retro rock. In addition to Phil Lesh and Bob Weir, Furthur features guitarist John Kadlecik of Dark Star Orchestra, keyboardist Jeff Chimenti of RatDog and other musical legends.

Be sure to pick up Further tickets right here and check out the live Furthur video below. Let us know if you plan on attending any Furthur tour dates in the comments! Furthur shirts are here.
Furthur Tour Dates, Tickets

Find the lowest prices on Furthur tickets right here.

Fri, Mar 4th Orpheum Theatre Boston, MA
Sat, Mar 5th Orpheum Theatre Boston, MA
Sun, Mar 6th Orpheum Theatre Boston, MA
Tue, Mar 8th Oakdale Theatre Wallingford, CT
Thu, Mar 10th Best Buy Theater New York, NY
Fri, Mar 11th Best Buy Theater New York, NY
Sat, Mar 12th Best Buy Theater New York, NY
Sun, Mar 13th Best Buy Theater New York, NY
Tue, Mar 15th Best Buy Theater New York, NY
Thu, Mar 17th Patriot Center Fairfax, VA
Fri, Mar 18th Tower Theater Upper Darby, PA
Sat, Mar 19th Tower Theater Upper Darby, PA
Sun, Mar 20th Tower Theater Upper Darby, PA
Tue, Mar 22nd Tower Theater Upper Darby, PA
Wed, Mar 23rd Tower Theater Upper Darby, PA
Fri, Mar 25th Radio City Music Hall New York, NY
Sat, Mar 26th Radio City Music Hall New York, NY
Sun, Mar 27th Radio City Music Hall New York, NY
Tue, Mar 29th Broome County Civic Binghamton, NY
Wed, Mar 30th Petersen Events Center Pittsburgh, PA
Fri, Apr 1st Hampton Coliseum Hampton, VA
Sat, Apr 2nd North Charleston Coliseum Charleston, SC
Sun, Apr 3rd Fox Theatre Atlanta, GA
Tue, Apr 5th UCF Arena Orlando, FL
Wed, Apr 6th Mizner Park Amphitheatre, Boca Raton, FL

Furthur Live

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John Edwards engaged to Rielle Hunter? His camp says no

2011-01-07T12:00:00.000-08:00

John Edwards is not engaged to Rielle Hunter, a family spokeswoman says, in the wake of a National Enquirer story this week alleging the former senator had asked his former campaign aide to marry him.

This comes as Elizabeth Edwards' will, revised six days before her death, was revealed Thursday to have no mention of her estranged husband.

Regarding any alleged wedding, "I can tell you that it’s not true," the rep told the Daily Beast, saying she had no idea as to the source of the story, which trumpets Edwards' "outrageous disregard for his wife Elizabeth's deathbed wish" and a rumor that Hunter told his kids, "Call me mommy."

The Enquirer has more than its usual credibility in the Edwards arena after holding the onetime vice presidential candidate's feet to the fire with breaking stories about his mistress and their baby. Edwards, of course, initially denied that daughter Frances, now 2, was his child.

After he admitted that, he and wife Elizabeth legally separated. Elizabeth Edwards died Dec. 7 after battling breast cancer for years. When the cancer recurred in 2007, the couple decided he should stay on the campaign trail. Hunter was an aide during the campaign.

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Jumpin Jammerz: The (Ridiculous) Pajamas Built for Partying

2011-01-07T11:44:00.000-08:00

The winter clothes have moved to the front of your closet. No animal prints in sight? Get out your phone.

Unlike average pajamas, Jumpin Jammerz solve the quantum quandary of cold feet. The footed pajamas tout themselves as built to "Do Anything!" and "Wear Anywhere!" -- subscribing to NewsFeed's personal belief that life really is a pajama party. Take this Sunday afternoon. The NFL playoffs are in full swing. You and your bros are watching the game -- in footie pajamas. Clearly, "It's Game Time!"

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"People's Choice Awards 2011" Winners List Includes Johnny Depp, "Glee," Neil Patrick Harris, Conan O'Brien, Katy Perry, Kristen Stewart, Taylor Swift

2011-01-06T12:30:00.000-08:00

THE “PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS 2011″ HONORS FAN FAVORITES IN MOVIES, MUSIC AND TELEVISION AT THE FIRST AWARDS SHOW OF 2011

Winners Included Johnny Depp, “Glee,” Neil Patrick Harris, Conan O’Brien, Katy Perry, Kristen Stewart, Taylor Swift, “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse,” and More

Winners for the PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS 2011 were announced during a live broadcast hosted by Queen Latifah at the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE last night on the CBS Television Network. To determine the winners, fans cast a record-breaking 175 million+ votes on www.PeoplesChoice.com. Two categories, Favorite New TV Comedy and Favorite New TV Drama, remained open for online voting through the first hour of the broadcast, with “$#*! My Dad Says” and “Hawaii Five-0″ ultimately being selected as fans’ favorites, respectively.

A complete list of the PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS 2011 winners follows:

MOVIES:

FAVORITE MOVIE

“The Twilight Saga: Eclipse”

FAVORITE MOVIE ACTOR

Johnny Depp

FAVORITE MOVIE ACTRESS

Kristen Stewart

FAVORITE ACTION MOVIE

“Iron Man 2″

FAVORITE ACTION STAR

Jackie Chan

FAVORITE DRAMA MOVIE

“The Twilight Saga: Eclipse”

FAVORITE FAMILY MOVIE

“Toy Story 3″

(More)

FAVORITE COMEDY MOVIE

“Grown Ups”

FAVORITE COMEDIC STAR

Adam Sandler

FAVORITE ON-SCREEN TEAM

“The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” – Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner

FAVORITE MOVIE STAR UNDER 25 (Presented By Moviefone)

Zac Efron

FAVORITE HORROR MOVIE

“A Nightmare on Elm Street”

TV:

FAVORITE TV DRAMA

“House M.D.”

FAVORITE TV DRAMA ACTOR

Hugh Laurie

FAVORITE TV DRAMA ACTRESS

Lisa Edelstein

FAVORITE TV COMEDY

“Glee”

FAVORITE TV COMEDY ACTOR

Neil Patrick Harris

FAVORITE TV COMEDY ACTRESS

Jane Lynch

FAVORITE COMPETITION SHOW

“American Idol”

FAVORITE TV CRIME DRAMA

“Lie To Me”

FAVORITE TV CRIME FIGHTER

Tim Roth – “Lie To Me”

FAVORITE SCI-FI TV SHOW

“Fringe”

FAVORITE TALK SHOW HOST

Conan O’Brien

FAVORITE TV OBSESSION

“Dexter”

FAVORITE TV GUILTY PLEASURE

“Keeping Up with the Kardashians”

FAVORITE TV GUEST STAR

Demi Lovato on Grey’s Anatomy

FAVORITE TV DOCTOR

Gregory House – Hugh Laurie

FAVORITE TV FAMILY

The Simpsons on “The Simpsons”

FAVORITE FAMILY TV MOVIE

“Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam”

FAVORITE TV CHEF (Presented By DinnerTool.com)

Rachael Ray

FAVORITE NEW TV COMEDY

“$#*! My Dad Says”

FAVORITE NEW TV DRAMA

“Hawaii Five-0″

MUSIC:

FAVORITE MALE ARTIST

Eminem

FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST

Katy Perry

FAVORITE SONG

“Love the Way You Lie” – Eminem featuring Rihanna

FAVORITE ROCK BAND

Paramore

FAVORITE BREAKOUT ARTIST

Selena Gomez & The Scene

FAVORITE POP ARTIST

Rihanna

FAVORITE COUNTRY ARTIST

Taylor Swift

FAVORITE R&B ARTIST

Usher

FAVORITE HIP-HOP ARTIST

Eminem

FAVORITE MUSIC VIDEO (Presented By VEVO)

“Love the Way You Lie” – Eminem featuring Rihanna

ONLINE:

FAVORITE ONLINE SENSATION (Presented by Wonderwall.com)

Katy Perry

FAVORITE VIRAL VIDEO STAR (Presented By Wheat Thins)

“Single Ladies” Devastation – The Whittaker Family

About People’s Choice

Now in its 37th year, the People’s Choice Awards celebrate fan favorites in music, movies and television. The People’s Choice Web site at www.PeoplesChoice.com serves as a year-round destination for entertainment enthusiasts to voice their opinions on pop culture by voting in and creating polls, and features an extensive video archive and photo gallery of People’s Choice Awards footage. PeoplesChoice.com houses the voting platform where fans determine the categories, nominees and winners for the annual awards show. Fred Nelson is the President of People’s Choice, and the awards show is produced by Procter & Gamble Productions, Inc. (NYSE:PG), which is represented by MediaVest Worldwide, Inc., supervisors of the production. Queen Latifah is the host of the PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS 2011 and Mark Burnett is the executive producer.

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Reading of the U.S. Constitution Text Can Spark Kids’ Interest in History

2011-01-06T12:25:00.000-08:00

This morning, in a historical, first-time event, the House of Representatives read parts of the U.S. Constitution aloud. The reading was an effort organized in order to bring the country back to its political roots.

This historic occasion is good news for kids. In a world where kids are immersed in texting, iPods, Facebook, Twitter and other technology that didn’t exist more than a couple decades ago, the reading of the Constitution is a great way to bring kids back to the old-school and give them a healthy dose of history in a way that’s more accessible than through the pages of their dusty textbooks.

Remember the School House Rock’s video of the U.S. Constitution’s Preamble (“We the people, in order to form a more perfect union…”)? Putting the Preamble into song helped many kids “back then” memorize it and maybe, just maybe, go on to read other parts of the Constitution.

Keeping history alive and entertaining for kids is an ongoing struggle. How do you make a long document packed with formal language and a bunch of old guys in wigs seem cool for kids?

However, after today’s reading of the U.S. Constitution, teachers will be able to show kids that the Constitution isn’t just some pages of words in their textbooks. It’s alive and kicking. This is also a great opportunity for parents to point out to their children that their lives are very much affected by the way the United States were founded, and for better or worse, that will continue to affect their lives as they grow up.

Like most things in government though, the reading wasn’t without a little inevitable controversy.

As Rep. Frank Pallone of New Jersey read Article 2, Section 1 of the Constitution, (“No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President”), a woman yelled out “Except Obama!” The woman, a “birther” (person who argues that President Obama has failed to prove that he was born in the United States) was removed, but the interruption was still noted.

Although the interruption was somewhat of a downer in an otherwise positive-spirited event, perhaps it can also be used to teach kids about the struggles that have existed throughout American history.

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Obama Picks William Daley For Chief Of Staff Post

2011-01-06T12:20:00.000-08:00

President Obama on Thursday appointed William M. Daley — a former Clinton administration official and part of the famed Chicago political family — as his new chief of staff, calling him an "experienced public servant."

Daley, a sometimes-ally, sometimes-critic of the president, will step into what is traditionally the most influential advisory job in the White House – acting as the president's day-to-day sounding board, gatekeeper and scheduler.

Daley "possesses a deep understanding of how jobs are created and how to grow our economy," Obama said at the White House.

"Few Americans can boast the breadth of experience that Bill Daley brings to this job," the president said.

Stepping down from the post is Pete Rouse, who has held the job on an interim basis since Rahm Emanuel resigned three months ago as chief of staff to run for mayor of Chicago.

Rouse, who did not want the job permanently and recommended Daley as his replacement, will remain as a counselor to the president, an elevated position from his former job as senior adviser. Daley is expected to start in the next couple of weeks.

Daley is the youngest of late Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley's seven children. He is credited with helping his older brother, Richard, win their father's old office and hold onto it for the last 22 years.

On the national stage, William Daley helped craft successful campaigns to elect President Clinton and was named Commerce Secretary under Clinton in 1997.

At the White House announcement on Thursday, Daley thanked the president, praising him for his "proven leadership."

Daley, who is currently Midwest chairman of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., said in an interview with The New York Times last year that the administration had "miscalculated" on health care and moved too far to the left. He has strong centrist credentials and joins the White House just as it finds itself in need of making more bipartisan compromises to get things done.

Word of Daley's appointment brought praise from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which has frequently been at odds with the administration.

"This is a strong appointment. Bill Daley is a man of stature and extraordinary experience in government, business, trade negotiations, and global affairs. He's an accomplished manager and strong leader. We look forward to working with him to accelerate our recovery, grow the economy, create jobs, and tackle America’s global challenges." Chamber of Commerce President Thomas J. Donohue said in a statement.

The new job will thrust Daley, 62, into the heart of national politics just as Obama adapts to a new reality in Washington. Republicans now control the House and are working to gut his signature health care law, as well as pushing for major cuts in spending.

For Obama, the move comes amid other major shifts in White House staffing –- among them the impending departure of White House press secretary Robert Gibbs, who said on Wednesday he would step down by early February. Senior adviser David Axelrod will also be leaving soon, and both of Obama's deputy chiefs of staff, Jim Messina and Mona Sutphen, are exiting soon. David Plouffe, a key member of Obama's inner circle as his former presidential campaign manager, will be joining the senior staff of the White House on Monday.

But the chief of staff position is considered the most consuming job in the White House, helping shape nearly everything that the president deals with - how he spends his time, how he pursues his strategies on foreign and domestic policy, how he deals with Congress and the public.

When Obama launched his presidential campaign, the Daley family put aside its deep connections to Bill and Hillary Clinton and endorsed the young Illinois senator. Until then, Obama and the Daleys had operated in mostly separate spheres of Illinois politics. After Obama's victory, Daley helped oversee the presidential transition.

Daley laid out his political ideology last year upon joining the board of Third Way, a moderate Democratic think tank.

"We must acknowledge that the left's agenda has not won the support of a majority of Americans - and, based on that recognition, we must steer a more moderate course," he said at the time.

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Endodontist with Onalaska practice awarded board certification

2011-01-06T12:09:00.000-08:00

Derek Nordeen, D.D.S. of La Crosse, recently earned his certification from the American Board of Endodontics. Nordeen is an endodontist in private practice with Endodontic Specialists of La Crosse in Onalaska. Becoming a board-certified diplomate is the highest status an endodontist can achieve.

In order to obtain diplomate status, Nordeen successfully completed a rigorous three-part examination that included a review of his education, knowledge, skills and ability to apply new research and advances to the practice of endodontics, as well as his commitment to providing the highest quality of patient care. The American Board of Endodontics is the only certifying board for the specialty of endodontics and is one of the nine specialty boards recognized by the American Dental Association.
Nordeen is a 1990 graduate of Logan High School in La Crosse. He received his D.D.S. from the University of Iowa College of Dentistry in 1998 and earned his certificate in endodontics from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., in 2001. Immediately after graduation, Nordeen joined Dr. Eva Dahl at Endodontic Specialists.

An endodontist is a dentist who specializes in saving teeth. They have an additional two to three years of educational training and advanced expertise in comfortably treating even the most complex endodontic procedures, including root canal treatment and endodontic surgery.

Nordeen has several publications and is president of the La Crosse District Dental Society as well as a member of the Wisconsin Dental Association and the American Dental Association. He lives in La Crosse with his wife, Julie, and son, Will.

He enjoys snowboarding, surfing and mountain biking.

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Steve Buckley, Boston Herald sports columnist announces he's gay in column

2011-01-06T11:40:00.000-08:00

Longtime sportswriter Steve Buckley is having a coming-out party. And the whole world's invited.

The 54-year-old announced that he's gay in an especially candid column today in the Boston Herald. Shortly after it was posted, it had more than 300 comments.

In the piece, "Welcome to my coming-out party," Buckley recounts how his mother suggested seven years ago that he come out in "that story you've been talking about."

The columnist said he made "the biggest mistake of my life" because he didn't write the piece immediately.

"With a vacation lined up for the first week of December, I told her I'd get to it when I returned to Boston -- just before Christmas," he said, not knowing she would die of a heart attack the day after he came back from vacation.

Buckley never got around to writing it — until now.

"I haven't been fair to my family, my friends or my co-workers. And I certainly haven't been fair to myself: For too many years, I've been on the sidelines of Boston's gay community but not in the game -- figuratively and literally," he wrote.

Gerry Callahan, a fellow sports columnist for the Herald and radio talk show host of the "Dennis and Callahan" show on WEEI, applauded Buckley but said coming out won't be easy.

"He's on the frontlines down at Foxborough," he said. "He's in the locker room, he's dealing with fans. He's gonna be out there in the open and it's not gonna be easy for him. And he knows it. He knows it and I'm sure that's why he was reluctant all those years."

Co-host John Dennis argued it wouldn't be an issue.

Buckley isn't the first sports writer to come out. In 2007, the Los Angeles Times' Mike Penner made international headlines when he announced he was transsexual in a column and began working under the byline "Christine Daniels." He committed suicide in 2009.

Of course, not all stories end so tragically. And Buckley acknowledges he has "read sobering stories about people who came undone, killing themselves after being outed."

But he says it's those stories that helped him with his decision.

"These tragic events helped guide me to the belief that if more people are able to be honest about who they are, ultimately fewer people will feel such devastating pressure," said Buckley. "It's my hope that from now on I'll be more involved. I'm not really sure what I mean by being ‘involved,' but this is a start: I'm gay."

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Elizabeth Edwards' Will Makes No Mention of John

2011-01-06T11:30:00.000-08:00

The late Elizabeth Edwards makes no mention of her estranged husband, John, in the will she signed days before her death last month.

Edwards, who died after a six-year battle with breast cancer on Dec. 6, appointed her eldest daughter Catharine, as the executor of her will.

Cate Edwards, 28, will also serve as guardian for her two younger siblings -- Emma Claire, 12, and Jack, 10 -- if anything happens to John Edwards, the former U.S. senator and presidential candidate who admitted to fathering a child with his mistress, Riley Hunter.

"All of my furniture, furnishings, household goods, jewelry, china, silverware and personal effects and any automobiles owned by me at the time of my death I give and bequeath to my children who shall be living at the time of my death," the will states.

Edwards had long indicated that she had faith Cate would take care of the family after her death. In a 2007 interview, Edwards said she had prepared her children for the possibility of her death and that Cate had already stepped in to take on new responsibilities, both in the home and outside.

The will, first posted in full by Inside Edition, was signed on Dec. 1, just four days before Edwards died in her North Carolina home.

It makes no mention of John Edwards.

It's no surprise that the former political wife left her estranged husband out of the will. The two separated last year after 32 years together, although their divorce was never finalized.

John Edwards was by his ex-wife's side during her final days but did not speak at her funeral.

Elizabeth Edwards was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004, at the height of her husband's unsuccessful vice-presidential campaign with presidential contender John Kerry.

Elizaebeth Edwards' Will Omits John Edwards

The cancer returned in 2007 as Edwards was engaged in his own unsuccessful presidential run, and late last year, the mother of three announced she had stopped all treatment.

Just days before her death, Edwards wrote a moving message on her Facebook wall, stating: "You all know that I have been sustained throughout my life by three saving graces: my family, my friends, and a faith in the power of resilience and hope. These graces have carried me through difficult times and they have brought more joy to the good times than I ever could have imagined."

"The days of our lives, for all of us, are numbered. We know that. And, yes, there are certainly times when we aren't able to muster as much strength and patience as we would like. It's called being human," wrote Edwards.

"But I have found that in the simple act of living with hope, and in the daily effort to have a positive impact in the world, the days I do have are made all the more meaningful and precious. And for that I am grateful."

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Real Life Super-Hero Phoenix Jones Rescues Man from Carjacking in Seattle

2011-01-05T12:54:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday, an attempted car theft in Seattle was thwarted by a super-hero, and when I say "a super-hero," I don't mean that in the sense that, as Superman says, we can all be super-heroes if we do the right thing and care about each other. I mean a dude in a bulletproof costume with a codename and a secret identity. Specifically, this guy:

According to a report by Seattle's KIRO that includes a pretty amazing video, a man known only as "Dan" was in danger of having his car stolen when Phoenix Jones, Guardian of Seattle (who is legally obligated to use his full title or risk a lawsuit by a band of the same name) "dashed in" and chased off the would-be thief, before returning to his secret hideout in a secret room at a comic book store.

Yes, really.

Despite the fact that you'd think they'd be thrilled about a news story where one of their own actually fought a crime rather than just, say, having a Facebook page, some members of the Real Life Super-Hero community have claimed that the whole thing was a setup designed to get Phoenix Jones (Guardian of Seattle) media attention. In fact, as seen on Talking Points, one member of an RLSH forum went so far as to claim that PJ (GOS) was being funded by Hollywood, although I cannot imagine a world where that possibility is actually more likely than the alternative.

I will say, though, that in KIRO's video, the semi-anonymous "Dan" does have the air of someone delivering a well-practiced speech......but let's be honest here: If this happened to me, I would've told the story at least a hundred times by the time the reporters showed up to get my statement.

Either way, it's a victory for (Phoenix) Jones (Guardian of Seattle), who claimed in an interview to have been motivated to fight crime when his car was broken into at a water park. On the scale of origin stories, that's not quite as dramatic as, say, being rocketed to Earth from your exploding home planet, but it does have the benefit of leaving a souvenir: a jar of broken glass that he keeps to this day, presumably next to whatever Seattle's versions of a giant penny and a robotic Tyrannosaurus Rex are.

As to where Phoenix Jones, Guardian of Seattle keeps these things, that's the best part: He has a secret headquarters located in a hidden room at a comic book store.

This is basically amazing -- for one thing, there' s a comic book store with a secret passage behind a bookshelf, and that's rad even without it being used as a super-hero hideout -- but from a security standpoint, I've read enough comics to realize it's pretty lacking.

For one thing, changing into your alter-ego in an extremely conspicuous public place isn't exactly the height of secrecy, and while there was always a chance that Aunt Harriet would find the secret button in Bruce Wayne's bust of Shakespeare, someone opening up that shelf while reaching for the latest Walking Dead seems like more of a mathematical certainty.

Especially now that it's been on TV.

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A Social Security Reality Check

2011-01-05T12:44:00.000-08:00

Once upon a time, workers were told that Social Security was but one leg of a three-legged stool that would support them during retirement. Private pensions and personal investments would serve as the other two legs. As time passed, most employers eliminated their pension plans. Instead of defined-benefit plans, workers were given access to defined-contribution plans. The three-legged stool then became the two-legged stool.

Looking Back at Social Security Benefits
As time passed and the economy faltered, investment values plummeted; the S&P 500 fell by nearly 40% at one point during the Great Recession, and many actively-managed portfolios fell even more than that, wiping out a significant portion of workers' wealth in a single year. Hurt by the economic downturn, many employers stopped funding their defined-contribution plans, further hurting the workers' ability to fund their retirement.

As a result, with severely depleted savings and no pension plans, many workers found themselves sitting on a one-legged stool. Looking to the future, they may see Social Security as their sole source of retirement funding. While it's true that the Social Security program was created to help workers supplement their retirement income, the program was never intended to be the sole means of support for retirees. And worse yet, the program is in trouble.

Looking Ahead at Social Security Payout
In 2010, the future solvency of the Social Security program was in question and the contribution to retirement funding provided by Social Security was expected to decline. The government predicts that by 2037, the Social Security fund would be exhausted according to the 2010 OASDI Trustees Report.

Looking at that scenario in today's dollars, a person retiring at full retirement age would be entitled to a payout of about $2,300 per month and just under $28,000 per year. That number is based on earning the maximum taxable wage base every year of one's career from age 21 through age 66 (which was $106,800 in 2010 and indexed annually). Assuming you make that kind of money, which few people do, that's $2,300 per month.

Of course if you were making $106,800 per year you would probably be able to save some of it for retirement, but what about someone earning the average income, which has been in the $35,000 to $50,000 per year range? Funding a retirement becomes much harder and Social Security payments would amount to even less. Getting a check is likely to become even harder in the future, as the age at which workers become eligible for full benefits is likely to be extended. At some point in the future, age 70 may be the norm for collecting full benefits.

Do the Social Security Math
Investors who are fortunate enough to retire at the tail-end of a stock market bull run and are wise (or lucky) enough to cash out have a good chance of enjoying their golden years. Those unlucky enough to retire during or after a bear market may be forced to delay retirement. For example, the Great Recession of 2008 was a game-changer, erasing a decade's worth of gains. The outlook for a financially secure retirement presented a troubled vision for a significant number of investors at the time. Few workers can afford a double-digit drop in the size of their nest eggs as they approach retirement age.

What can you do? Start by making a sound assessment of your situation. First, look at your projected income. What is the balance of your retirement savings? What do you realistically project that balance to be when you reach retirement age? Assuming a 4% drawdown rate on your retirement savings, how much income can you anticipate on a monthly basis? How much do you expect to earn from Social Security?

Now look at your expenses. How much do you spend today? What percentage of that do you anticipate spending in retirement? If there is a shortfall between your expected earnings and your expected savings, you'll need to consider your options for closing the gap. Working longer, saving more and downsizing your expectations may all be required.

Retirement Reality Check
If retirement is still on the distant horizon, you may be able to get back on track by increasing the amount you save each month. If retirement is looming but your funding is lacking, a revised spending plan may be in order. If your expected income won't cover your expected expenses, some expense reduction may help you keep your retirement date on track.

The Bottom Line
If no amount of cost cutting will get your income and expenses to line up, it may be time to rethink your retirement. Extending the date at which you plan to retire and taking a part-time job are two options to consider. Even if you remain on track despite the market doldrums, memories of the last bear market are a good reminder to remain vigilant - you never know what the future has in store.

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No sympathy here for fired ESPN announcer Ron Franklin

2011-01-05T12:36:00.000-08:00

Ron Franklin supporters will talk about the “PC police” stomping out free speech. And I imagine that talk will only increase upon ESPN’s decision to fire announcer Ron Franklin for his crass speech towards sideline reporter Jeannine Edwards.

I hate to pop anyone’s bubble, but there is no such thing as “free speech” when you work for a multi-million dollar corporation. Words and actions are scrutinized and individuals are rightly held to a higher standard of accountability — especially when you work in the communication business.

Franklin’s decision to call a co-worker “sweet baby” in a tone that was perceived as demeaning was unfortunate. But the real issue was how he addressed Jeannine Edwards after she told him she didn’t prefer to be called “sweet baby.”

Instead of acting as a professional, Franklin chose to call her an a-hole.

Maybe that’s an acceptable form of communication for chatrooms, but it is absolutely not acceptable for a place of business.

Let me be clear about this. I believe ESPN’s original discipline was enough. The firing seems to be knee the standard knee-jerk reaction these days to public opinion.

That being said, I don’t have much sympathy for Franklin either. He’s a seasoned professional and should have known better than to engage in inappropriate communication.

But the bigger question now being raised today is about ESPN’s overall work environment. One marketing firm sent a press release Monday evening in response to Ron Franklin’s firing with this statement, “Overall, this is yet another incident at ESPN where a female employee has been subjected to uncalled for and harassing behavior by a fellow male co-worker. In addition, this is also just another prime example of ESPN being the “all boys” club.”

Interesting thought, but I don’t know that I would go so far as to call ESPN a boys club. Do you remember how quickly ESPN slapped Tony Kornheiser’s hand after he commented on Hannah Storm’s outfit?

Granted, the public has heard its fair share of stories about sex scandals between ESPN employees over the past decade. But I imagine if you go digging into the personnel files of any major corporation with thousands of employees, it would be no different.

Bottom line is this, Ron Franklin was unprofessional — on more than one occasion — and he paid the price.

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Kappa Alpha Psi, One Of The Oldest Black Fraternities, Celebrates 100 Years

2011-01-05T12:33:00.000-08:00

Kappa Alpha Psi, one of the nation's oldest black fraternities, turns 100 today.

January 5th marks their annual celebration of Founder's Day, which commemorates the 10 men who first conceived the organization in 1911. KAPsi was officially chartered and incorporated under the state of Indiana as Kappa Alpha Nu on May 15 of the same year. The name was changed to its present form in 1914.

"This is a milestone that is certainly worth celebrating," said Richard Lee Snow, the fraternity's executive director and chief operating officer, told the Philadelphia Daily News. "Since 1911 this organization has initiated over 150,000 members including some of the foremost citizens of this country, and we have remained steadfast to our principle of 'achievement in every field of human endeavor.' "

The Indiana University frat was the first of its kind, and aimed to combat racial discrimination from the start, focusing largely on achievement. The founders, which include notables Elder Watson Diggs (often referred to as "The Dreamer") and Byron K. Armstrong, aimed for national expansion from the start, according to the fraternity's website.

In 1911, black students were all but shunned from the university, forced to sit in hallways to hear lectures, and not allowed to even sit next to white peers.The perhaps miraculous founding of AKPsi came at a time when black students weren't even allowed to congregate in public, writes the Philadelphia Daily News.

Now the fraternity boasts 364 chapters on college campuses nationwide, as well as alumni chapters in 347 cities in the United States and 5 other countries, including Germany and South Africa.

Wilt Chamberlain, Johnnie Cochran, and Arthur Ashe were all Kappas. KAPsi has also produced a number of notable figures in entertainment, including Cedric the Entertainer and Tavis Smiley. The national fraternity has produced politicians, educators, and athletes.

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Cleveland Cavaliers Offer Homeless Radio Man Job, Home

2011-01-05T12:26:00.000-08:00

The Cleveland Cavaliers have offered a job and a house to a homeless man with a golden radio voice.

Ted Williams, whose deep baritone and plight have made him an online video sensation, was first contacted Wednesday by the NBA team during an interview on a local Columbus radio station.

"We'd like to offer you full-time work with the Cleveland Cavaliers, as well as Quicken Loans Arena. On top of it, because we know you're a person trying to get up on your feet, Quicken Loans is actually offering to pay a mortgage on a home," team spokeswoman Tracy Merek said on the show.

The 71-year-old father of nine tells Fox8.com that he will take the job offer.

"That lady offered me a full-time job with the Cavs and then something about the mortgage of a home? I'm going with that! Out of all the offers I've had, and I've had quite a few, I'll be working in Cleveland, Ohio," Williams told the website.

"It's just phenomenal and it's getting more and more overwhelming as the minutes go by."

Williams was spotted by the Columbus Dispatch newspaper standing near a highway exit ramp. In a video interview, Williams -- holding a cardboard sign that asks motorists for help and says, "I'm an ex-radio announcer who has fallen on hard times" -- explains in his smooth, deep voice that he grew up in New York and that he was drawn to radio at the age of 14.

Williams said he went to school for his voice training, but that his life was later affected by alcohol and drugs in the 1990s. He says he has been sober for two years.

NFL Films is also hoping to contact Williams about doing possible voiceover work.

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Gibbs stepping down as White House press secretary

2011-01-05T12:18:00.000-08:00

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs confirmed Wednesday that he is leaving the administration in the coming days, saying he will play an outside advisory role and give speeches before helping President Obama gear up for the 2012 campaign.

Gibbs, addressing reports of his departure at his daily briefing for the first time, said the major staffing changes about to hit the White House will benefit Obama.

"You have to admit there's a bubble in here to some degree," Gibbs said.

The decision to leave the White House for the private sector came as something of a surprise: Gibbs, 39, has worked by Obama's side for nearly seven years, and other advisers had expected him to move into a senior advisory role. One of his colleagues said just a few months ago that Gibbs could be counted on to last all eight years if Obama were reelected - and would be the one to "turn out the lights."

Gibbs had also been rumored to be a potential chairman of the Democratic National Committee. But the current DNC chairman, Tim Kaine, said he would not leave the post. And amid a broader personnel reshuffling - and with former campaign manager David Plouffe assuming a major job in the West Wing starting Monday - it became difficult to see what portfolio Gibbs would manage if he remained inside the administration as a senior adviser, one official said.

With the the 2012 campaign rapidly approaching, the new arrangement will give Gibbs the flexibility to help the president from the outside. But first, he said, he plans to decompress - and drive his young son to school.

"Obviously, this was not an easy decision," he told reporters who peppered him with questions about how he had decided to leave. "I think this is a very natural time period to make the decision to recharge a little bit."

His last day will be in early February, he said. He said he expects his successor to be named before then. A full staff sweep is on the way, with Obama planning to announce his his head of the National Economic Council, replacing outgoing Lawrence Summers, on Friday during a visit to a window manufacturer in the Washington area. Obama will then name his permanent chief of staff - former commerce secretary William Daley appears to be the front-runner. That announcement could happen Friday or early next week.

Gibbs said Obama has not spoken to Daley so far this week. But when asked whether that conversation could occur, he replied: "It's certainly possible, yes."

In addition to those three vacancies, there are at least five other key positions the president must fill in the days ahead: two deputy chiefs of staff; a new director of the Office of Public Engagement to replace Tina Tchen, who will be Michelle Obama's chief of staff; a potential new political director; and a possible replacement for Peter Rouse, who left his senior adviser post to become interim chief of staff.

White House aides said Gibbs began telling his colleagues about his plans over the past few days, evoking an emotional response. Like departing White House senior adviser David Axelrod and Plouffe, Gibbs has been "universally adored" by the people who work for him, always ready with a homespun Alabama quip or a joke, even during tense times, said White House spokesman Tommy Vietor, who has worked with Gibbs for nearly the duration of Obama's presidency. "He is someone you know would go to bat for you and has your back all the time."

Judgments from the outside were not always as generous. Gibbs sparred frequently with reporters, sometimes in ways viewed as glib or condescending. He made frequent promises from the podium to answer questions later in the day, then did so only occasionally. Colleagues joked that he enjoyed spending time in meetings with the president more than calling reporters back.

But Gibbs did go to bat for the press on several memorable occasions, scuffling with Chinese officials during a trip to Copenhagen over access for the White House press corps, and again during a trip to India in November. His enthusiasm for the job appeared boundless, and unlike many of his predecessors, he had wide-ranging access to the president and top-level meetings, lending his answers from the podium a high degree of credibility.

Beyond giving speeches and advising Obama from the outside, it is not entirely clear what work Gibbs will now do.

He did not rule out taking on corporate clients, saying he would do so if he felt comfortable with them. He did, however, say he has no plans to write a book in the near future.

And the president, Gibbs said, will likely be his last political client: "Seems like a pretty good one to stop on."

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Sugar Bowl Score: Ohio State Soars Early, Hangs On Late For Win vs. Razorbacks

2011-01-05T11:55:00.000-08:00

When the Sugar Bowl score went final Tuesday night, Buckeye Nation breathed a collective sigh of relief; the wait was finally over.

After years of futility, Ohio State finally bagged its first-ever bowl win over an SEC team, hanging on to knock off the eighth-ranked Arkansas Razorbacks 31-26.

Early in the contest, it looked like the Buckeyes wouldn't even break a sweat against the Razorbacks, as they used a 21-0 run spanning almost a quarter and a half of game time to take a commanding 28-7 lead, which shrunk slightly to 28-10 at halftime.

But, in the second half, Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett rallied the troops and led the Razorbacks back into the game, cutting the lead to 31-26 with just under nine minutes to play.

In the end, though, the Buckeyes defense proved to be too much for the Razorbacks to overcome, and an interception by defensive lineman Solomon Thomas sealed the victory.

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Lottery suspense builds in Mass. for $355m prize

2011-01-05T11:35:00.000-08:00

An air of excitement and wistful speculation surrounded lottery players across the state yesterday, as the jackpot for the Mega Millions game climbed to $355 million in anticipation of last night’s drawing.

Across the country in 41 states yesterday, 240,000 tickets a minute were being sold, sending the red hot jackpot to its third-highest in game history, according to Massachusetts Lottery spokesman Dan Rosenfeld, with an estimated cash payout option of $220 million.

The drawing was held just after 11 p.m., but Rosenfeld said any information on the sale of winning tickets would not be released until this morning. The winning numbers were: 4-8-15-25-47, with a Megaball of 42.

“Sales are a lot higher than we anticipated,’’ Rosenfeld said last night. “As of 6:45 p.m. we’ve sold nearly 6 million tickets in Massachusetts today alone.’’

The last drawing took place on New Year’s Eve, and in just four days the jackpot has jumped by more than $100 million.

Last night, many retailers said lottery sales were up significantly, as scores of would-be winners poured into convenience stores and other establishments to purchase last-minute tickets.

Andy Morgan, who works at the Common Ground Cafe in Methuen, said the atmosphere there has been chaotic.

“It is crazy,’’ Morgan said. “You’re just seeing all kinds of people coming in that don’t normally play. Lots of new faces.’’

At Border Bets & Butts in Attleboro, Chris Thornhill said business was booming.

“Lots of different faces grabbing those Mega Millions tickets,’’ he said. “But even the regular customers are buying more than usual.’’

Rosenfeld said the timing of the drawings, coming over the end of the holiday season, has been a boon to lottery sales.

“There’s a lot more commerce going on,’’ he said. “And when people are out more often, they buy more lottery tickets.’’

Of course, there is also the sheer size of the potential winnings.

Massachusetts lottery agents have sold about $26 million in tickets over the course of this 16-draw series, which has failed to produce a jackpot winner. The tickets have raised $11 million for cities and towns.

If no one won last night, the next drawing will take place on Friday.

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Thank you, Hurley! 'Lost' numbers pay off as winning Mega Millions numbers

2011-01-05T11:21:00.000-08:00

Maybe Hurley's not so unlucky after all. During Tuesday night's lotto drawing, more than 26,000 people won $150 each simply by playing the lucky Mega Millions numbers that Hugo "Hurley" Reyes used to win the $114-million jackpot on "Lost." Interestingly, winning the lottery brought Hugo bad luck on the show.

Four of the six numbers selected in the real-life $355-million lottery matched Hurley's picks. The winning Mega Millions numbers were 4, 8, 15, 25, 47 and 42. Hurley's winning numbers were 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 and 42.

Though he reported different figures, "Lost" executive producer Damon Lindelof happily Tweeted about the winnings. "9,078 people played Hurley's numbers in the MegaMillions tonight, each winning $150. #THATSSORAVEN," he wrote.

On "Lost," Hurley's magic numbers were a major recurring theme. They often popped up in the lives of several characters, and toward the end of the series, they were found written inside a cave, with castaways' names corresponding to different numbers: John Locke was 4, Hurley was 8, Sawyer was 15, Sayid was 16, Jack was 23, and Kwon was 42.

Meanwhile, Jorge Garcia, the actor who played Hurley, has been bombarded by reporters. "A tabloid news show just showed up at our FRONT DOOR hoping to get an intvw with Jorge about last night's lotto #s," Tweeted his girlfriend. "Is this really our life?"

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Chinese jet fighter 'sighting' raises fears over region's military power balance

2011-01-05T11:09:00.000-08:00

A photograph of what is reported to be a new Chinese stealth fighter and "carrier-killer" missile has prompted concerns that a tilt in the balance of military power in the western Pacific towards China may come sooner than expected.

The emergence of the hi-tech weaponry - which would make it more difficult for the US navy and air force to project power close to Taiwan and elsewhere on China's coastline - comes at a politically sensitive time. Later this month, President Barack Obama and his Chinese counterpart, Hu Jintao, will hold a summit in Washington aimed at patching up their differences after a niggling year in bilateral relations.

The photograph, of what appears to be a prototype J-20 jet undergoing runway tests, has been circulating on the internet since last week, fuelling speculation that China's fifth-generation fighter may fly ahead of forecast.

The defence ministry has yet to comment on the image, which seems to have been shot from long-distance near the Chengdu aircraft design institute. The photographer is also unknown, which has added to the mystery about its origins and authenticity as well as the motive of the distributor.

But defence analysts believe this is the first glimpse of the twin-engined, chiselled-nosed plane that mixes Russian engine technology with a fuselage design similar to that of the US air force's F-22 "stealth" fighter, which can avoid detection by radar.

If confirmed, it would be an impressive step forward for the Chinese air force, which until now has largely depended on foreign-made or designed planes. "I'd say these are, indeed, genuine photos of a prototype that will make its maiden flight very soon," said Peter Felstead, the editor of Jane's Defence Weekly.

The J20 is likely to be many years from deployment, but the US defence secretary, Robert Gates - who visits Beijing next week - may have to revise an earlier prediction that China will not have a fifth generation aircraft by 2020.

It is not the only challenge to US superiority in the region. China has refurbished a Ukranian aircraft carrier and wants to build its own by 2020.

A more immediate threat is posed by China's adaptation of an intermediate-range ballistic missile - the DF-21D - to target US aircraft carriers. This project is also further advanced than previously believed.

Admiral Robert Willard, the US navy's commander in the Pacific, warned last month that the weapon - nicknamed the "carrier killer' - had reached "initial operational capability". Faced by this threat US battle groups are likely to take a more withdrawn position if there is a standoff over Taiwan than they did in 1996, when the USS Nimitz sailed through the strait.

"The main implication of China deploying this system is that it would certainly make the US navy pause before deciding to project naval power into the South China Sea region during a time of tension," said Felstead.

But China's ambassador to the UK, Liu Xiaoming, said today that his country had no ambitions to rival US military power in the western Pacific region.

"We do not see ourselves as rivals to the US. We believe the US and China can work together in the region," Liu said, arguing there was a double standard in the west towards Chinese defence spending.

"When China carries out an exercise on its own territory there is a lot of attention, but when the United States comes all the way across the Pacific for exercises with its allies, no one speaks about it in the same way. There is a cold war mentality still. If you develop your defence capability, they [the Americans] are annoyed. But our defence construction is purely for self-defence. China's defence expenditure is still the lowest among the five permament members of the [UN] security council."

China's military advances worry many in the east Asian region who have benefited for decades from the US-policed status quo. In its latest defence white paper, Japan noted that China's military spending had nearly quadrupled over the past decade, while its own shrank by 4% due to a stagnant economy.

Officials in Tokyo have also expressed alarm at the increasingly confrontational approach of Chinese vessels in disputed fisheries. In Washington, rightwing thinktanks and commentators want Obama and Gates to apply diplomatic pressure on China to join the intermediate nuclear forces (INF) treaty and halt its missile buildup.

The photographs of the J20 jet are also likely to prompt calls for accelerated production of F35s - the US's next generation stealth fighter - to ensure air superiority.

The US remains the most potent military force in the western Pacific with 60,000 troops, a military airbase in Okinawa and one forward-deployed carrier fleet.

The US also outspends China on defence by a ratio of six to one, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. Even so, while China's economy grows rapidly and the US remains sluggish, fears of a shift in the balance of power are likely to grow. It will not happen overnight and worldwide, but China appears to be steadily pushing the US back from its shores in a strategy know as "area denial". The government has not confirmed this approach. Chinese nationalists want their country to be more assertive, but they say the priority is to improve defence of an increasingly wealthy coastal region.

The "area denial" strategy can be seen as China trying to manage its own market and routes to main trading partners such as South Korea and Japan.

"We don't need the US to be the policeman in the west Pacific area," said Song Xiaojun, a former naval officer who now edits military magazines.

"China's priority is to develop its near sea defence, because our economy is concentrated on the coast. But we have to reconsider the concept of 'near sea' to fit a modern age in which military threats can come from far away. China must improve its defences, but that does not mean we are a threat. Only arms merchants would say that to persuade the US to raise military spending. The US is far ahead," he said.

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Latest Liberal Talking Point: Repealing Obamacare Would Add to Deficit

2011-01-04T12:10:00.000-08:00

House Republicans announced Monday that they would vote to repeal health care reform legislation next week. The legislation that they would repeal, according to an estimate by the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, would reduce the budget deficit by $143 billion over a decade.

According to the rules laid out by the incoming House Republican majority, the House must pay for all new legislation that increases federal spending - and a repeal bill, of course, is a form of legislation. That would suggest that they must come up with $143 billion to make up for the cost of repealing the health care bill.

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Sugar Bowl 2011 – Ohio State Buckeyes Vs Arkansas Razorbacks Football

2011-01-04T11:59:00.000-08:00

Time is over to look for Sugar Bowl cheapest college football tickets! Avail Sugar Bowl 2011 (BCS Bowl games 2011) Ohio State Buckeyes vs Arkansas Razorbacks Sugar Bowl Live streaming, live scores, TV Schedule, betting, picks and odds trends here. All State Sugar Bowl 2011 is scheduled on January 4, 2011, in the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.

You can watch Sugar Bowl 2011 Ohio State Buckeyes Vs Arkansas Razorbacks live streaming on favorite sports channel. The game is scheduled for an 8 p.m. (ET) kickoff. The two teams include Ohio State Buckeyes from the Big Ten Conference and the Arkansas Razorbacks from the Southeastern Conference. This will be the 77th Sugar Bowl and payout is US$14-17 million.

Odds wise Arkansas is +130 and Ohio State -150. Respective spreads are +3 -110 and -3 -110 with total of 57 o -110 and u -110.

Sugar Bowl 2011 invites lot of controversies. Terrelle Pryor, Daniel Herron, DeVier Posey, Mike Adams, and Solomon Thomas have traded autographs for tattoos, a violation of NCAA rules. The school investigated the allegations and reported that the five players will not miss the Sugar Bowl but will miss five games of the 2011 season.

Well apart from controversies, here is detail team analysis. In Ohio State Buckeyes, who must be watched? Daniel Herron, Dane Sanzenbacher and Brandon Saine. Daniel Herron made Total 15 Touchdowns, 15 Rushing Touchdowns, 0 Passing Touchdowns and 0 Receiving Touchdowns. Two Points Conversion Made is 0. Total Points Scored is 90. Dane Sanzenbacher made Total 10 Touchdowns, 0 Rushing Touchdowns, 0 Passing Touchdowns and 10 Receiving Touchdowns. Two Points Conversion Made is 0. Total Points Scored is 60. Brandon Saine made Total 7 Touchdowns, 2 Rushing Touchdowns, 0 Passing Touchdowns and 5 Receiving Touchdowns. Two Points Conversion Made is 0. Total Points Scored is 42.

In Arkansas Razorbacks, who must be watched? Knile Davis made Total 14 Touchdowns, 13 Rushing Touchdowns, 0 Passing Touchdowns and 1 Receiving Touchdowns. Two Points Conversion Made is 0. Total Points Scored is 84. Zach Hocker made 55 Extra Points with 55 Extra Point Attempts. % of Extra Point Made is 100. Field Goals Made are 13 with Field Goal Attempts of 16. % of Field Goal Made is 81.3. Longest Field Goal Made was 51. Total Kicking Points Scored is 94.

Last time out for Arkansas, they were a 31-23 winner as they battled LSU at home. Arkansas covered in the match as a 3.5-point favorite, while 54 combined points moved the game UNDER for totals bettors.

Ohio State was a 37-7 winner in their most recent outing at home against Michigan. They covered the 17–point spread as favorites, while the total score (44) made winners of UNDER bettors.

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Free Dunkin' Donuts Coffee for Giving Caffeinated Blood

2011-01-04T11:52:00.000-08:00

Dunkin' Donuts is making me consider facing my fears. There are only two things that give me horrific anxiety: Driving in the snow (it's crippling, really) and needles. Ouch. Just thinking about getting a shot or giving blood hurts. The thought of being pricked with a needle for any extended amount of time makes me weak in the knees. But throw a free pound of coffee in the mix, and well, maybe I'll reconsider conquering my fear ... for a good cause, of course.

That's right. In honor of National Blood Donor Month, Dunkin' Donuts is offering free coffee to blood donors, but only if you live in select states.

Are you one of the lucky ones? Find out after the jump:

New Englanders, rejoice: If you live in New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, New York, Rhode Island, Maine, or Massachusetts, then you're eligible to receive free Dunkin' Donuts joe.

Throughout January, donors will be eligible to receive a coupon as a part of the "Give a Pint, Get a Pound" campaign, which can be redeemed for a free pound of coffee at any of the Dunkin' Donuts franchises.

I know what you're wondering ... a pound of coffee lasts for about two weeks tops, so can I donate twice in one month? Unfortunately, no. According to the American Red Cross, you can only donate once every 56 days. And even if that rule was a non-issue (such a good Samaritan, you are!), customers are limited to one coupon each.

In my mind, there is absolutely nothing wrong with offering some sort of incentive to get fraidy cats, like me, into blood donation clinics. More than 38,000 blood donations are needed every day, and maybe I'm being a bit selfish just because of my fear of a little skin pinch.

However, I will say this: When I'm on the run, headed to the office on a chilly morning -- I'm thinking a gift certificate may be a bit easier for us working folks than fresh grounds, no? Ponder it, Dunkin' Donuts.

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Brett Favre sued by Christina Scavo, Shannon O'Toole for sexual harassment

2011-01-04T11:45:00.000-08:00

Brett Favre was hit with a sexual harassment lawsuit Monday from massage therapists Christina Scavo and Shannon O'Toole, just days after the conclusion of an NFL investigation into lewd text messages and explicit pictures allegedly sent to sideline reporter Jenn Sterger when she and Favre were both on the New York Jets payroll.

The Minnesota Vikings quarterback on Sunday announced his retirement (again) from professional football, after not playing in the Vikings' game against the Detroit Lions.

Scavo and O'Toole allege that while they were working for the Jets during training camp in 2008, Favre sent text messages to a fellow massage therapist, hinting at a threesome with Scavo and saying he was "lonely" and had "bad intentions." They also allege that a Jets coordinator told one of the women in October she and the others should keep their mouths shut, and that they would never work for the Jets again. The lawsuit was filed Monday in New York against Favre, the Jets and Lisa Ripi, the woman who coordinated massage therapists during training camp.

The Favre-Sterger investigation resulted only in a $50,000 fine against the $16-million-a-year quarterback for failing to play nice with the league during the probe -- a penalty that had Leo Sterger, Jenn's dad, "absolutely furious."
"I better not meet that guy down a dark alley," papa Sterger told Radar Online on Friday, adding that his daughter felt vindicated and was doing well. And that he thought the fine was a "complete joke."

Scavo's husband approached Favre after the "bad intentions" texts were sent, telling him to back off, with the quarterback responding "inappropriately" and refusing to apologize, the suit alleges. O'Toole and Scavo were not called back to work for the Jets after Favre was confronted, the suit says.

Also cited are texts allegedly sent by Ripi to Scavo in October (when the Sterger scandal broke), which said in part, referring to Favre, "For sure feel horrible that u had to go thru that w a pervert ... however I truly with u wldvd came forward at the time it happened ... you sureley wldve gotten the treatment you were looking for in the moment. He was wrong on all counts ... and we cldve helped you a lot more at that time."

"i've been up there 13 yrs without anything that happened to me on tmz ... cuz it was hanndled internally the way it shd be," read another alleged Ripi text. "And ur husband shlve repsected the fact that the jets wldvd ttakecare of it. All this nonsense is unecessary. He is what he is ... and I won't take that back," the message said, apparently referring at the end to Scavo's husband, whom Ripi had previously called the unprintable equivalent of a jerk.

Ripi called it "questionable" that Scavo had held onto the Favre messages for two years, the suit says.

The suit alleges that Ripi phoned O'Toole, who had introduced Scavo to the Jets organization, and told her to "keep your mouth shut" and that she'd "never work for the Jets again."

The suit also states that the Jets do not have an appropriate anti-sexual harassment policy in place, and includes this smile-inducing simile regarding the NFL's investigation of Favre:

"The conduct of the Jets and the NFL is tantamount to the scene in the movie 'Casablanca' where the police captain, while pocketing his winnings at the roulette wheel stated, 'I am shocked, shocked, to find gambling going on in this establishment.' "

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Blackbird mystery deepens: more birds fall from sky in Louisiana

2011-01-04T11:38:00.000-08:00

Just days after more than 1,000 birds fall from the sky over Beebe, Ark., another batch of blackbirds has dropped in Pointe Coupee Parish, La. What's going on?

Motorists stopped and gawked at hundreds of dead red-winged blackbirds on a highway in Pointe Coupee Parish, La., Monday, just days after residents of Beebe, Ark., saw more than 1,000 birds fall from the sky on New Year's Eve.

On Monday, state biologists were gathering up some of the approximately 500 blackbirds and starlings that lay dead along Louisiana Route 1 near Pointe Coupee Central High School for testing.

The United States Geological Survey has noted 16 incidents in the past 30 years where more than 1,000 black birds have died at the same time, usually the result of tightly-packed flocks flying into bad weather. What's more, more than 5 billion birds die of natural causes in the United States each year, so it is, in a way, unusual that Americans don't witness more major bird kills.

The top 10 weirdest stories of 2010

Yet the use of improved testing and a state of heightened concern on the parts of state ornithologists is a proper response, even if the two bird kills had not come so close together, experts say.

"Birds can be really good indicators of environmental problems, so I'd hate to think that 5,000 would die and nobody would care," says Greg Butcher, director of bird conservation at the National Audobon Society, in Washington. "It's worth investigation to find out what happened because there is potentially something we should worry about and it's potentially something that has an odd, but benign cause."

Americans have theorized that everything from fallout from secret government weapons testing to UFO collisions downed the birds in Arkansas. But the newly-discovered bird rain in Louisiana is likely to focus more serious attention to the plight of blackbirds now bundled in winter flocks that can number over 100,000 birds.

Postmortem tests of birds in the Arkansas incident showed evidence of blunt force trauma to many of the victims, which Mr. Butcher says means that it's likely the birds were spooked by New Year's Eve fireworks and may, in mass confusion, have run into cars and houses.

Since blackbirds are considered a nuisance by farmers, the mass death in Louisiana could be attributable to a legal pest control effort. Pest control experts kill blackbird roosts in several ways, including spraying water on birds to induce hypothermia or by using legal poisons. Most such poisons work quickly, but a botched control attempt could mean that birds may have flown away from the roost and died nearby.

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Bizarre blackbird, fish deaths spread: 500 birds dead in Louisana; 100 tons of fish die in Brazil

2011-01-04T11:21:00.000-08:00

It isn't 2012, but a rash of animal deaths is making this year look like the End of Days.

Following on the heels of thousands of red-winged blackbirds dying in a small Arkansas town, several hundred more mysteriously died farther south in Louisiana.

Officials are trying to determine what killed an estimated 500 of the small birds, who littered Louisiana Highway 1 near Pointe Coupee Parish when they fell out of the sky, according to Baton Rouge's The Advocate.

Among this new batch of dead birds were several starlings, the newspaper reported.

"We have sent bird carcasses to two individual labs to obtain toxicology reports," Bo Boehringer, spokesperson for the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, told the Daily News.

He said it was not clear what had caused the birds to die off, despite random theories including fireworks or hail, as well as the wrath of God and government conspiracies. Boehringer downplayed any connection between the red-winged blackbird deaths in Louisiana to the ones in Arkansas, several hundred miles away.

"It's too early to connect the two scenarios," he said, noting that it could be a week or more before the results come back.

Meanwhile, as officials in Arkansas continue to investigate what may have killed nearly 100,000 fresh water drum in the Arkansas River, wildlife experts in Maryland are looking into their own massive fish kill in the Chesapeake Bay.

"We are seeing small/juvenile menhaden, croaker, spot fish dead, in very large fish kills," said Dawn Stoltzfus, director of communications for Maryland's Department of the Environment. "The numbers are estimated in the hundreds of the thousands at this point."

Officials began receiving reports of the dead fish last week. The species there generally leave for warmer waters during this time of year, but it was not clear why that did not happen, she said.

"The drop in water temperatures has been quite quick in December, and cold stress is the likely cause [of the deaths]," Stoltzfus said.

The last time the Chesapeake saw such a massive fish kill was in 1976, records show, when about 15 million spot died due to the cold.

Mysterious animal deaths so far this year have not been limited to the United States.

Nearly 100 tons of dead fish, consisting mostly of sardines, hit the beaches of Paranagua, Brazil, on Sunday.

According to Paraná Online, a team from the Environmental Institute of Paran?/a>? is conducting tests to determine what killed them. As a precaution, the sale of seafood in Paranagua has been suspended.

The website also reports dead fish have begun to appear along the coasts of Antonina, Guaraquecaba and Pontal do Pontal do Paraná.

"We desperately need a solution to this," said Edmir Manoel Ferreira, president of the Federation of Fishermen of Paraná.

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Bill Erwin, character actor and 'Seinfeld' Emmy nominee, dies. Let's watch some of his greatest work.

2011-01-04T11:11:00.000-08:00

Bill Erwin, a character actor whose resumé included everything from Gunsmoke to Everwood, died at his home in California on Dec. 29. He was 96.

Erwin was nominated for an Emmy for his role as Sid “The Old Man” Fields on a 1993 episode of Seinfeld, the role for which he is perhaps best remembered:

He was also the knowledgeable bellhop in the 1980 romance drama Somewhere in Time, in which his character helped Christopher Reeve’s time travel to find love. When the film became a cult classic, Erwin regularly attended fan gatherings in Michigan.

One of Erwin’s early roles was on the classic “Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up?” episode of The Twilight Zone:

He appeared on several episodes of Gunsmoke, The Fugitive, Perry Mason, Growing Pains, Highway to Heaven, and Just the Ten of Us, as well as more recently appearing on episodes of Monk, The West Wing, Just Shoot Me!, and My Name Is Earl.

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Valerie Bertinelli Weds Longtime Love

2011-01-02T13:00:00.001-08:00

The 50-year-old Hot in Cleveland star tied the knot with her boyfriend of seven years, financial planner Tom Vitale, in Malibu, Calif., Saturday night, according to People.

Bertinelli and Vitale, who reportedly swapped vows at their Malibu home in front of about 100 guests, got engaged in March during a vacation in Italy, after meeting in 2004.

The Jenny Craig spokesperson was previously married to Eddie Van Halen. The ex-couple officially split in late 2005.

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NFL Playoff Scenarios: Week 17 Playoff Picture Coming Into Focus, Or Is It

2011-01-02T12:54:00.000-08:00

As we wrap up the regular season of the NFL, all eyes turn towards the playoff picture. With a handful of games left on the schedule that matter for seeding and scenarios the fans of those teams lucky enough to still have teams good enough to be relevant are in for a treat. In Arizona, however, the only mystery that remains is which of the two teams most people picked to win the NFC West will end up on the bottom.

The Cardinals and 49ers are fighting out in the futility bowl while in other NFC action there are two actual playoff spots up for the taking. The New York Giants, Green Bay Packers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (technically) are vying for the wildcard. And of course the one remaining division title comes down to the league's worst division, your NFC West. The Seattle Seahawks and St. Louis Rams were flexed by NBC to get the prime time spot so see which .500 team gets the honors of advancing to the post season.

For the NFC wildcard the scenarios are simple. If the Packers beat the Bears they are in. If the Packers lose and the Giants beat the Redskins then New York gets in. If both the Packers and the Giants lose then the team once considered the best in the NFC -- by their coach -- backs into the playoffs. Simple.

In the AFC, all the playoff spots have been locked in but the seeding is very much up for grabs.

The New England Patriots won the AFC East and a first-round bye and home-field advantage in playoffs. The Pittsburgh Steelers clinched playoff spot and can clinch the AFC North division and a first-round bye with a win; a tie and a Ravens loss or tie; OR a Ravens loss.

The Kansas City Chiefs clinched AFC West and can get the No. 3 seed with a win/tie against the Raiders or a Colts loss/tie. The Chiefs could drop to the No. 4 seed if they lose and the Colts win. The Indianapolis Colts can win the AFC South division with a win/tie against the Titans or a Jaguars loss at the Texans. Indy can still become the AFC's No. 3 seed if they win and the Chiefs lose to the Raiders.

The Baltimore Ravens have secured their playoff berth and can't do worse than the No. 5 seed. They can can win the AFC North, No. 2 seed and a first-round bye by beating the Bengals along with a Steelers loss/tie vs. the Browns.

The New York Jets are in the playoffs and can secure the 5th seed with a win against the Bills Sunday, along with a Ravens win/tie versus the Bengals and a Steelers loss at the Browns.

The Jacksonville Jaguars need to both win and hope that the Colts lose so they can lock up AFC South title and the 4th seed. A loss/tie or a Colts win/tie would eliminate Jacksonville.

How much more clear could it be?

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2010 Top 'Jersey Shore' Huh? Moments

2011-01-02T12:47:00.000-08:00

Yes, it could be argued that "Jersey Shore" is one big Huh? but here are some of our favorite moments that took place at the intersection of New Jersey and Miami Beach.

1. Ron cheats on Sammi and and Sammi gets mad at everyone in the house except Ron. Wait, whaaat? The guy goes out, cheats with two women, comes home and gets into bed with you, but you're mad at your roommates?

2. The Situation doesn't get the girl twice in a row. Did we ever see this coming? Pauly D scores and The Situation is left smush-less. Good job, Miami women!

3. J Woww and Snooki get the genius idea of writing an anonymous letter to Sammi about Ron's cheating. What was better? The idea or the execution? Stick with the gelato job, Snooks. Typing ain't your thing.

4. Sorry for being gross but the discovery of Angelina's used maxi pad and what The Situation decided to do with it was something a TV writer would never come up with. Can't blame The Situation for reacting the way he did. Girlfriend is a pig.

5. The Situation's handling of the hippo in the house shows why he is this show's top wage-earner. The man is a strategist as well as a wordsmith!

6. Vinny hooked up with Snooki and then smushes Angelina. Like, really? There was no one else in Miami?

7. Vinny meets the woman of his dreams: Ramona, a go-go dancer at a club. He wants to, gasp!, romance over dinner. He buys a new outfit, gets a haircut ... even buys flowers! And the chick doesn't show up! We were just as confused as you, Vinny.

8. Disgruntled Sammi (refer to Huh? moment No. 1) continues to alienate herself from the rest of the clan with her bratty attitude. It escalates when she decides to get involved in a an argument between JWoww and Angelina. Fists start flying between Sammi and JWoww. And Sammi is convinced she is the victor. Uh, play back the tape.

9. It was the scene worthy of the "Jaws" overture: the chicken cutlet in the jacuzzi. One of the boys' many lady visitors loses her bosom enhancer. Meanwhile, the boys create a new game: toss the cutlet.

10. It stinks in this car! And the stench isn't from one of Snooki's pickles. Wait. Wait. Oh God, how old is that sandwich?

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Rex Ryan Wife Photos: What Do The Jets Have To Say About New X-Rated Photos?

2011-01-02T12:40:00.000-08:00

Rex Ryan Wife Photos, are a hot Internet trend this Sunday because the masses continue to obsess over whether or not his wife, Michelle, is really the woman in new photos that have surfaced doing a lot more than just showing off her feet.

"Coach Ryan considers this a personal matter and will have no comment," said a Jets spokesman to the New York Daily News.

According to the Daily News, new photos of a woman that resembles Michelle Ryan surfaced on MediaTakeOut.com

"The woman in the photos bears a strong resemblance to Michelle Ryan, and a headline on the posting identifies her as such. The site does not indicate the source of the photos," reported the Daily News.

In the photos, the woman in the picture is seen having her feet rubbed by man who is most definitely not Rex Ryan. There is also another seductive photo of the woman, in a seductive pose wearing no underwear.

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Indiana Unemployment Will Feel Tighter Amid State's Looming Bankruptcy

2011-01-02T12:32:00.001-08:00

Indiana Unemployment numbers feel and look staggering in a state that is struggling to make good on paying back a $2B federal loan. The site www.in.gov/dwd is busy with searches today as the General Assembly gears up to meet Wednesday to discuss a budget for the new fiscal year.

Indiana lawmakers are scrambling to find a solution to the issue of unemployment benefits and payments for thousands of laid-off Hoosier workers. For years the government has been struggling from the impact of the recent recession that claimed many jobs due to higher imposed taxes. In its wake, Indiana unemployment has been rising, according to the Journal Gazette.

Faced with how to keep the government working, officials borrowed $2 billion from the feds but is struggling with paying back a $60M interest payment. That's just one of the many problems the state faces and it doesn't feel good for anyone involved, especially laid-off workers who fear the weekly benefit is subject to a cut.

The only piece of good news is that the state had an unexpected windfall from recent tax revenue. This may be a sign that local businesses now have the ability to pay into the Unemployment Benefit Fund as part of their licensing agreement with the state.

This money can be used of offset any Medicade and educational cuts. That has to feel great to the residents of the state who also feared schools and police would fall victim to budget cuts.

When lawmakers meet to discuss a new budget, it must begin with how the state can build on the new revenue, and devise feel-good ways to get the Indiana Unemployment Fund in the black.

Currently, according to lawmakers, if something is not done, it will take ten years to get the fund out of a deficit as it is paying out more than it collects in tax revenue.

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Pork and Sauerkraut Perfect for College Football Game Day

2011-01-01T12:40:00.000-08:00

Pork and Sauerkraut always finds its way on my table on New Years because it is a great addition to the College Bowl games fiesta. It’s time to break out that Slow Cooker. Pork and Sauerkraut slow cooker recipes can be found all over the net.

I don’t think there is any food in this world that was more made for each other than Pork and Sauerkraut. Although I don’t really believe in the myth that Pork and Sauerkraut bring good luck, I do know that it bring good eating and that is all that is important, especially on New Years Day Game Day.

Sauerkraut is German for “sour herb” or “sour cabbage”. Sauerkraut is finely shredded cabbage that has been fermented by various lactic acid bacteria, including Leuconostoc, Lactobacillus, and Pediococcus.

It has a long shelf-life and a distinctive sour flavor, both of which result from the lactic acid that forms when the bacteria ferment the sugars in the cabbage. It is therefore not to be confused with coleslaw,
which receives its acidic taste from vinegar.

The acidic taste is the reason why pork and sauerkraut are such a wonderful combination. Nothing like putting all this in a big bun with mustard and any other condiment you may like and of course having a cold beer in hand also while watching the College Bowl Games. Man Life is good

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New Years Day Sales at Dillards, Walmart, Macys, and Sears

2011-01-01T12:32:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year 2011 to all! Today is the first day of the year 2011 and this presents an opportunity once again for various retailers to take profits for New Years Day Sales. Due to the excess in supply of several stores like WalMart, Best Buy, Target, Sears, Gamestop, Circuit City, and even Macy’s, online special on New Year’s Day Sales 2011 and after sales are more likely to be even hotter. Once again, all outlets of these retailers are expected to slash prices even more even to the point of going red just to give out all stocks to consumers.

This is an opportunity once again for shoppers and consumers to buy their most expensive items at discounted prices. Dillards is having their popular New Year’s Day Sales this year. According to their website, Dillard’s New Years day sale will start at 9 a.m. until 7 p.m. Dillard’s is taking an additional 50 percent off marked-down merchandise.

Retailer Target will offer its New Year’s Sales online of up to 75% savings on select items and their special deals are good until the end January 2011. You can buy TVs, HDTV’s, Blu-Rays, stereos, toys, clothes and many other Target items online for convenience and updated on stock items. Target also offers special deals like free shipping when you purchase items online. Other New Years Day Sales items are available at Target.com

Harbor Freight will be open on January 1st with special store hours from 9am-5pm for their New Years Day Sales. Shoppers can save 25% off any single item at Harbor Freight Tools stores nationwide this New Years Day only!

Sears will be having its New Years Sale starting on January 1, 2011 and will end some of its best deals and promotions until January 31, 2011. The most popular item searches on Sears website this New Years Day Sales include tools , power tools , appliances , dishwashers ,refrigerators , toys , video game, pressure washers , fitness equipment , clothing snowblowers and tires. Visit Sears.com now to get updated on the latest New Years Day Sales as they are constantly adding items from time to time.

Meanwhile Sears’ sister company Kohls has already started its New Years Day Sales early last December 31, 2010. Kohl’s will have 3-day New Year’S Day Clearance Sales until January 2, 2011. Kohl’s is offering great discounts of 60%-80% at the Kohl’s Gold Star Clearance Sale. Plus, shoppers will only pay 99cents standard shipping on every item.

For Macy’s, their New Year Day Sales offerings cover online deals and promotions until January 3, 2011. Some of the great deals that offer savings at Macy’s: $10 off with Denim Purchase, free shipping with $60 Jockey purchase, free Shipping with $60 Men’s underwear purchase, etc.

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OWN Network Schedule Launched by Oprah Winfrey

2011-01-01T12:24:00.000-08:00

Talk show host Oprah Winfrey has launched her OWN network channel today after 25 years of shows. The Oprah Winfrey Network debuts on January 1, 2011 with hopes of her loyal followers coming to the new channel.

(Media-Newswire.com) - Talk show host Oprah Winfrey has launched her OWN network channel today after 25 years of shows. The Oprah Winfrey Network debuts on January 1, 2011 with hopes of her loyal followers coming to the new channel.

The schedule for the OWN network begins at 12 noon Eastern time with a one hour special with Oprah Winfrey who will guide viewers through the new channel, programming and shows that are upcoming.

Some of the programs have already been set for the day including 'Kidnapped by the Kids', 'Master Class' and a show hosted by Peter Walsh.

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Knuble says officials need to "work a miracle" on Winter Classic ice

2011-01-01T12:16:00.000-08:00

With players and coaches and media members and fans trying to kill a rainy and dreary Saturday afternoon in Pittsburgh, there was plenty of time for media members to ask coaches and players about weather and ice and routine. Mostly, players said the switch to a night start will make their routine a lot more familiar and manageable, making the Winter Classic feel even more like just a regular regular-season game. And mostly, they said everything would work out with the ice.

Some, though, admitted that they had serious concerns after skating on the Heinz Field ice on Friday afternoon.

"Honestly, yeah," Mike Knuble said, when asked if he had safety concerns during Friday's practice. "I mean, there were holes. A lot. Not just one or two. And potential for a lot more, if you get 10 guys skating, playing at a pace of an NHL game. Yesterday, I don't know. I don't know about yesterday. I think they're all smart enough. I mean, I know there's a lot of money involved in this thing, and I know everybody's got a lot of time spent, energy, dollars spent, but they're not gonna risk our players. The GMs wouldn't do that. So we'll see. They've got to work a miracle, and I'm sure they will."

"The wait is over. Get Madden(R) NFL(R) 11 plus a game console of your choice."

The NHL is removing thousands of gallons of water from the playing surface, which sounds terrifying. But moving the start to night will, at least, take the sun out of the equation as a problem, and Caps Coach Bruce Boudreau suggested that was a major plus.

"If it was sunny as it was yesterday when we practiced at that time, that sun was coming up, that ice was melting faster than Frosty the Snowman," the coach said on Saturday. "The sun was so bright in that one spot, you couldn't freeze the ice."

While a good number of fans here are constantly refreshing meteorological sites on their handhelds while watching bad college football games, Pens Coach Dan Bylsma said the team's coaches are "not checking the weather forecast." And plenty of players said that once they started skating, they couldn't afford to worry about the ice.

"I think that the league's smart enough to know that they're gonna do whatever they can to protect us and make sure that the ice is at its best," Matt Cooke said. "And whether that means playing at 8 o'clock or waiting or whatever, whatever it means. The league's doing the right thing by not putting us out there at risk."

"Honestly, I don't think about that stuff, at all," Pittsburgh winger Craig Adams added. "I know other guys do maybe a little bit, but it doesn't really cross my mind until after the fact, until after you have three guys out with groin injuries. Having said that, the ice crew I'm sure will get the ice in great shape."

"I mean, everybody's in the same boat so you can't be worrying about it and everybody else is passing you by," Knuble said. "As you get in the game, you'll really concentrate on what you're trying to do. So that'll go out the window. You probably have to simplify your game as a player. It may negate some skill out there, especially if it's really rough and bumpy and passes will be mishandled. [But] we'll all be in the same boat. They're in the same boat. They'll mishandle as many as we will."

(Knuble also had the best quote I heard on this day, on a completely unrelated subject. Someone asked him to compare the Penguins' new digs to the old, musty Igloo. "Nice building, good locker rooms," he said. "You don't feel like you're being poisoned by asbestos all the time and picking up funk off the floor and getting warts off the floor." Those are good things.)

Source

Stores Open On New Year’s Day 2011 in Demand For New Years Day Sales

2011-01-01T12:09:00.000-08:00

Stores Open On New Year’s Day 2011 in Demand For New Years Day Sales – Various stores are opening their New Years Day Sales 2011 today, the first day of New Year 2011. Since today is holiday, a lot of offices are closed and that includes government offices nationwide. Today is the start of the year for profit taking and just like the recently held Black Friday Sales, Cyber Monday Sales and After Christmas Sales, New Years Day Sales is expected to become a hit amongst stores nationwide.

Apparently, not all stores are open for today’s New Years Day Sales 2011 as most of them are offering their sales online like Sears, Kohls, Macys, etc. Among the store that will open on today’s New Year’s Day Sales 2011 are Dillard’s, Walmart, Best Buy, Target, and Harbor Freight.

Dillard’s stores will be open today from 9 am to 7pm offering their New Years Day 2011 Sales which includes the popular 50% off marked down price. Meanwhile, Harbor Freight stores will be open today from 9am up until 5pm and consumers and shoppers can avail of the 25% off discount on any tools item in all Harbor Freight stores as part of their New Year’s Day Sales 2011 nationwide.

The largest retailer Walmart will also join the New Years Day Sales as most of their stores open 8am to 10pm depending on the location. but we’re not sure if this will hold true for all stores nationwide. Joining the team of open stores this New Year’s day 2011 is Target which today on New Year’s day 2011. You will need to check with your local Target stores for their store hours.

Best Buy stores will also be open as several consumers will buy in-store items this New Year’s Day 2011 to take advantage of the New Year’s Day Sales 2011 offered by the retailer. Some Best Buy stores are reported to be open from 10am to 8pm today. Happy New Year 2011 to all and enjoy shopping with today’s New Years Day Sales 2011!

Source

2011 Rose Bowl Game: Tournament Of Roses Parade Features 'On Wisconsin'

2011-01-01T12:01:00.000-08:00

One of the better parts of the Rose Bowl Game — the Grandaddy of Them All, if you miss Keith Jackson like I do — is the pageantry of the Tournament of Roses Parade. And today's was no different. Here's the Wisconsin marching band playing the Wisconsin fight song, "On Wisconsin." (That was a lot of Wisconsin for one sentence.)

The 2011 Tournament of Roses Parade may be remembered, though, for a remark that will be amusing to the 12-year-old in all of us: KTLA personality Stephanie Edwards, in talking about the properties of various nuts when used to preserve the faces seen on some parade floats, managed to put the words "nuts" and "face" in close enough proximity for some chuckles.

The Rose Bowl Game will kick off at 4:30 p.m. Eastern, as Big Ten champion Wisconsin takes on undefeated Mountain West champion TCU.

Source

Mega millions winning numbers – Virginia, NYS, Colorado, PA, Ohio, Mass, SC Lottery

2011-01-01T11:50:00.000-08:00

New Year 2011 Mega millions winning numbers and Lottery Jackpot Results are up!! Colorado Lottery, VA Virginia lottery, NYS Lottery, PA Pennsylvania Lottery, Ohio lottery, SC lottery, TN lottery ,Mass Massachusetts State Lottery, md lottery, mega millions California etc winners are in announcements.

Colorado Lottery: $200 million jackpot for Tuesday’s Mega Millions drawing was the largest since Colorado joined the game in May and if there is no winner, the jackpot will grow to a whopping $237 million with an estimated $150.8 million in cash value.

Virginia lottery: The VA lottery spokesman John Hagerty says that the last ticket for $20 was sold out just after noon on Friday. The drawing is set for Saturday new years day. There are three prizes for a whopping $1 million and there are six $25 thousand prizes! This is quite a nice chunk for the VA lottery.

NYS Lottery :Two Rochester residents will have some extra money for Christmas. They have each won $1,000,000 from the state lottery. he winners will get their over-sized check Thursday at the 7-Eleven on Monroe Avenue at 1 p.m. The Christmas Powerball winning numbers are 1, 17, 38, 50, and 52, and the Powerball number is 24. The Power Play number is 2. A scam in which targets are told they’ve won thousands of dollars from a state lottery drawing is widespread, New York’s state comptroller warns.

Pennsylvania Lottery: The last of 500,000 Millionaire Raffle tickets sold out a few days ago for today’s, January 1, 2011 lottery drawing. The PA Lottery says the Millionaire Raffle tickets sold out earlier this year than last year’s lottery tickets.

Ohio lottery: Mr. Smith filed a claim Thursday as a top-prize winner — as in $500,000 — of the Ohio Lottery’s Winter Riches instant game. He bought the ticket at True North, 5473 Monroe St., Sylvania Township, which gets a $5,000 bonus for selling a top-prize ticket.

Massachusetts State Lottery : Massachusetts State Lottery announced that no one hit the Mega Millions which had a jackpot estimated at $242 million last night.

Source

HGTV Dream Home 2011: Your Family’s Chance to Live in Celebrity Style! (Video)

2011-01-01T11:39:00.000-08:00

Have you ever dreamed of living in fine celebrity fashion? With the HGTV Dream Home 2011 giveaway, you have your chance of snagging the celebrity lifestyle without the paparazzi!

Keep reading for details on the 2011 HGTV Dream Home and see how you can enter to win the fabulous home!

Fantastic home with all the amenities nestled in the mountains of Vermont. Conveniently located near the area’s best ski resort with 5 star restaurants and celebrity clientele. That’s just a taste of what you could win in the 2011 HGTV Dream Home.

For the 15th annual HGTV Dream Home giveaway, the network turned to the pictureque New England town of Stowe Vermont. Up for grabs is a completely furnished dream home with plenty of room for your family. Decked out with all of the latest and greatest furnishings and design upgrades, this is truly a dream house!

If you want a chance of winning the 2011 HGTV Dream Home you can enter the Sweepstakes twice daily by visiting HGTV.com and Frontdoor.com through February 18, 2011. The winner will be announced in March.

Source

Elaine Mellencamp (Irwin) And John Mellencamp Split

2010-12-31T12:44:00.001-08:00

John Mellencamp who is famous for collecting hits is also becoming a professional divorcee!

The successful musician and his wife Elaine, a former model, have announced that they were ending their twenty years of marriage (the duo have two sons together).

This is the third divorce for Mellencamp who is a father of five.

The couple’s spokesperson released a statement that read:

“John and Elaine Mellencamp are proud of their 20 years together and are very happy with their accomplishments both as parents and as a family.”

No other details were given. John Mellencamp who is a well known supporter of President Barack Obama will be going on a U S tour as early as next February.

Source

Auld Lang Syne Lyrics and Sing-A-Long Video from “Waterloo Bridge”

2010-12-31T12:39:00.000-08:00

All over the world the Auld Lang Syne lyrics are sung to ring in the New Year. My favorite video for this purpose on YouTube is this one below, done by JunoDante in 2006 using scenes from the movie “Waterloo Bridge” (an excellent movie, by the way). The video uses the 1940 version of the film, starring Vivien Leigh and Robert Taylor. The Old Lang Syne lyrics in this version skip a few verses and repeat over and over so as to finish out the whole story of the movie; but I’ve never minded as I enjoy the video so much.

The Auld Lang Syne meaning is somewhat difficult to grasp since it was originally written in Scotland by poet Robert Burns (who claimed it was really a folk song that he just wrote down). The ancient dialect used then probably made perfect sense to him, but for us several centuries later, it’s a bit obscure. “Auld Lang Syne” literally translated means “old long since,” which we take to mean “long time ago” and extrapolate the meaning of the song to be celebrating the good times and friendship of past years. Don’t forget to toast your friends with champagne while singing Auld Lang Syne tonight!

Auld Lang Syne Lyrics

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and auld lang syne* ?

CHORUS:
For auld lang syne, my jo,
for auld lang syne,
we’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

And surely ye’ll be your pint-stowp !
and surely I’ll be mine !
And we’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We twa hae run about the braes,
and pu’d the gowans fine ;
But we’ve wander’d mony a weary fit,
sin auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We twa hae paidl’d i’ the burn,
frae morning sun till dine ;
But seas between us braid hae roar’d
sin auld lang syne.

CHORUS

And there’s a hand, my trusty fiere !
and gie’s a hand o’ thine !
And we’ll tak a right gude-willy waught,
for auld lang syne.

Source

Authorities say elderly couple, dairy farmer killed in Arkansas New Year's Eve twister

2010-12-31T12:36:00.000-08:00

CINCINNATI, Ark. (AP) — The Washington County Sheriff's Office says the three people killed in an early morning tornado are an elderly couple and a farmer who died while milking cows in his dairy barn.

Sheriff Tim Helder says the Friday morning twister killed 88-year-old Gerald Wilson, and his wife, 78-year-old Mamie Wilson. They were in their rural Washington County home when the twister struck around 6 a.m. Friday. Also killed in the storm was 78-year-old Dick Murray, who was milking cows when the tornado hit.

Source

Finance Council meets for first time; sees India hitting double-digit growth

2010-12-31T12:32:00.000-08:00

Regulators' meet: (Left) The IRDA Chairman, Mr J. Hari Narayan; the RBI Governor,Dr. D. Subbarao; and the SEBI Chairman, Mr C.B. Bhave, on their way to the firstmeeting of Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) at North Block in theCapital on Friday. (Right) The Finance Minister, Mr Pranab Mukherjee, briefs the mediaafter the meeting. - Ramesh Sharma

Our Bureau

New Delhi, Dec. 31

For the Indian economy, 2011 is set to start on a strong and reassuring note. The newly set-up Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC), which met on Friday for the first time, sees the economy not only sustaining its present growth levels, but also attaining double-digit growth in the coming years.

The FSDC meeting, chaired by the Finance Minister, Mr Pranab Mukherjee, assessed the state of the Indian economy and also the signs of economic recovery in the West. It concluded that India's exports are likely to see an improvement in 2011, on the back of better economic growth in the US.

The European Union could also see positive growth though the sovereign debt crisis and woes of some nations are a matter of concern, it was noted.

The general conclusion was that 2011 could see improvement in the world economy.

The currency issues, as is being played out, could have implications for India, the FSDC noted.

It was felt that the effort to keep the value of currencies artificially low could have adverse impact on the competitiveness of Indian companies, both within, and outside the country.

"If nations adopt protectionist measures, it could have serious implications for the world economy as a whole," the FSDC said in a statement.

It was also decided at the meeting that necessary guidelines for FSDC's functioning would soon be issued.

Source

Black-eyed peas recipe: Good luck for 2011, served with bacon and Fergie

2010-12-31T11:48:00.001-08:00

It's a New Year's tradition in homes across the country and especially the South: If you want to have good luck in the coming year, eat some black-eyed peas on Jan. 1.

And just to be clear, we're talking about actual black-eyed peas. We do not endorse the cooking and eating of Fergie, Will.I.Am and Co.

In addition to supposedly bringing luck (legumes are representative of money, and the black-eyed pea tradition in this country dates to the Civil War), the following recipe sounds like a pretty nice hangover cure. It's got a little bit of spice, good amounts of starch and protein courtesy of the main ingredient and the best post-bender fix of all, bacon.

This recipe is courtesy of the Food Network's Tyler Florence. Enjoy.

Spicy Black-Eyed Peas

Ingredients

2 slices thick-cut bacon, sliced
5 cloves garlic, peeled
5 dried red chiles, broken up
2 bay leaves
1 pound dried black-eyed peas
1 quart low-sodium chicken stock
2 tomatoes, quartered
1/4 bunch fresh thyme, leaves removed
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lemon, juiced
4 green onions, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Directions

In a large pot over medium heat, add bacon and render until crisp. Remove the bacon to the paper towel-lined plate. To the same pot with rendered bacon fat, add the garlic, chiles, bay leaves, and dried peas and stir to combine. Pour in the chicken stock and add the tomatoes. Simmer over medium-low heat for 1 hour until peas are tender.

Transfer about 1 to 2 cups of the peas to a blender and puree until smooth. Place the blended peas back into the pot and stir to incorporate. Add the thyme leaves and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Continue to cook for another 15 minutes. Place in a serving dish and dress the peas with the lemon juice, green onions, cilantro and bacon before serving.

And, OK, if you're eating black-eyed peas, you might as well listen to the Black Eyed Peas.

Source

Inspirational New Years Quotes: That will make you Happy

2010-12-31T11:38:00.000-08:00

Are you looking for Inspirational New Years Quotes that will make you happy? With the beginning of a new year just around the corner let’s celebrate with these great Inspirational Quotes! January 1 represents not just a fresh start of a new year, but also the remembrance of the passing year! Let’s start off 2011 with a Fresh New Start!

Keep reading after the jump to view the Inspirational New Years Quotes!

Inspirational:

* Here’s to the bright New Year, and a fond farewell to the old; here’s to the things that are yet to come, and to the memories that we hold. (Author unknown)
* Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man.
Benjamin Franklin
* Ring out the old, ring in the new, Ring, happy bells, across the snow: The year is going, let him go; Ring out the false, ring in the true. Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 1850
* Every man should be born again on the first day of January. Start with a fresh page. Take up one hole more in the buckle if necessary, or let down one, according to circumstances; but on the first of January let every man gird himself once more, with his face to the front, and take no interest in the things that were and are past.
Henry Ward Beecher
* “Then sing, young hearts that are full of cheer, With never a thought of sorrow; The old goes out, but the glad young year
Comes merrily in tomorrow.” -Emily Miller

Source

Cincinnati, Arkansas Tornado Kills Three

2010-12-31T11:33:00.000-08:00

CINCINNATI, Ark (LALATE) – A tornado striking Cincinnati, Arkansas has killed as at least three people today. Cincinnati’s tornado set down in seasonably warm temperatures. Winds from the Gulf brought temps as warm as 70 degrees Thursday.

Local weather reports immediately warned residents of pending tornado activity on Friday. Nine minutes after tornado alerts were issued, a significant tornado set down at 6 am local time.

The Arkansas Department of Emergency Management says damage is widespread.

Highway 16 in sections of Benton County was closed Friday. A fire station in Cincinnati suffered a collapsed roof. The last reported tornado on New Years Eve was in 1975.

Washington County EMS has yet to release the name of the victims. 18,000 Ozarks Electric customer are back with power midday after outages earlier Friday.

Source

Skirvin Crying Baby

2010-12-31T11:27:00.000-08:00

Skirvin Crying Baby,I flew to Oklahoma City on Wednesday through See during play a home game “on my bucket list. After the Nets beat the Zombies, I joined friends at Mickey Mantle (local restaurant) for a late dinner and some beers before heading back to my room. I stayed at the Skirvin, a local hotel that is supposed inhabited by a ghost named Effie. According to legend, Effie got hit by the guy who owned the hotel in the 1920s, then jumped from a window with the baby. She was allegedly haunting the place since.

When we were in control, I jokingly asked the clerk to put me on one floor haunted. She said she did. We laughed and that was the end of it. That night, I was so tired that ghost stories never entered my mind. I prepared for bed, called my wife, watched 10 minutes of “SportsCenter” and fell asleep. So you know I am a heavy sleeper. Once I got out, I’m out.

That’s what makes it so strange when I woke up at 4:30 with a beating heart. I swear on Tom Brady’s ACL that the following events: Initially, I heard a baby crying and I realized why I woke up. I thought it was one of my own children before remembering that my kids are not babies, then remembering that I was in Oklahoma City, not Los Angeles. Suddenly it dawned on me that I was not alone. I had an unbearable feeling that someone else was in the room. Until you’ve experienced this feeling, you can not understand what it is. Your blood is humming in your veins at 200 mph; you do not understand why – your body reacts a few seconds before your brain does.

I decided to turn on the light. Stretching my right to switch out of nowhere, I heard the sound of (what sure as hell looked like) a baby who cries urgently to my extreme left (right near the window). Wahhhhhhh. Wahhhhhh. Wahhhhhh. Wahhhhhhh. The emergency and I freaked out as much as him to cry. I fumbled for the switch, could not find it, dig, dig a little more, then finally turned on the light. The sound stopped crying. I jumped out of bed and turned on every light in the room. I turned on the television and pushed the volume. Then I grabbed my Blackberry and googled “Skirvin baby cry.”

I kept the lights on. And television. And that’s how I spent the next three hours and half and half-asleep, half awake and totally scared. The words “Man Up” do not enter the equation. Not even a little. I came to Oklahoma City to Durant and Westbrook left and tell stories about Baby Effie. Just know that the next time someone tells me a ghost story, I think.

http://usspost.com/skirvin-crying-baby-25010/

Thursday Travel and Weather Updates

2010-12-30T12:28:00.000-08:00

Here's a comprehensive travel and weather update for Arizona.

There are several updates on weather and travel throughout the state.
Travel

The ADOT az511.gov site is overloaded, and you currently cannot get through on their website. But, ADOT still has Twitter to communicate with folks, and here is a collection of recent Twitter postings from ADOT. (See: http://twitter.com/#!/ArizonaDOT)

As you read the list below, please note that the latest posting is at the top. Our current time is at 8:00 AM, so that will give you reference when the tweets mention how long ago they were posted.

* ADOT's 5-1-1 system experiencing an overload. BE CLEAR: Roads to/from N. AZ are closed and will be for sometime. No snow adventures today!
43 minutes ago

* URGENT: I-40 from MP 71 to MP 250 (Kingman-Flagstaff-Holbrook) - Highway closed in both directions. Per NWS, more snow coming.
2 hours ago

* Closure Recap: I-40, I-17, SR-260, SR-87, SR-89A all closed at this time due to ice/snow. Updates 5-1-1 or www.az511.gov.
2 hours ago

* SR-260 MP 260 to MP 302 [Payson] - Winter storm and disabled vehicles, Road closed
2 hours ago

* SR-87 NB @ Payson (MP 250) - Winter storm and disabled vehicles, Road closed
2 hours ago

* I-40 is being closed EB at MP 71 (US93) and WB in Winslow.
2 hours ago

* L-101 EB at I-17 - Road Reopened
2 hours ago

* I-40 WB @ MP 115 [Seligman] - Weather, Traffic moving
3 hours ago

* L-101 EB at I-17 - Injury Crash, Road Closed
3 hours ago

* I-40 WB @ MP 115 [Seligman], Weather, Traffic stopped
3 hours ago

* It's cold, snowy, windy and icy out there. DRIVE INFORMED. Call 5-1-1 or visit www.az511.gov. Many highways remain closed, blocked.
4 hours ago

* SR87 @ MP 284.5 [Payson Org], Disabled vehicles, Southbound lanes blocked
4 hours ago

* US180 MP 237 - 255 [Flagstaff], Weather, Road closed
4 hours ago

* SR260 EB @ MP 280 [Payson], Disabled vehicle, Road blocked
4 hours ago

Thursday's Hazardous Weather Outlook

This hazardous weather outlook is for portions of east central Arizona...North Central Arizona...Northeast Arizona and West
Central Arizona.

For more information, go to the National Weather website.

Day One...today and tonight

A strong and very cold winter storm will produce snowfall across central and northern Arizona today. Snow levels will fall to the valley floors. The heaviest snow will shift into eastern Arizona later this morning...with light to moderate snow showers continuing elsewhere.

Winter storm warnings and advisories continue today for most of Northern Arizona. See the winter storm warning product for details.

Days Two through Seven...Friday through Wednesday

Extremely cold temperatures are forecast on Friday and Friday night. Most areas will see high temperatures at or below freezing and low temperatures from the teens in the valleys...to well below zero in the mountains. After a break in the weather this weekend...more unsettled weather is possible next week.
More Details Regarding This Week's Coming Weather:

Thursday: Snow. The snow could be heavy at times. Temperature falling to around 22 by 5pm. Breezy, with a west wind around 23 mph, with gusts as high as 33 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.

Thursday Night: A 30 percent chance of snow showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 18. West northwest wind 14 to 17 mph decreasing to between 6 and 9 mph. Winds could gust as high as 24 mph. Little or no snow accumulation expected.

Friday: A 10 percent chance of snow showers. Mostly sunny, with a temperature rising to near 30 by 10am, then falling to around 20 during the remainder of the day. West northwest wind between 5 and 8 mph.

Friday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 14. West wind 5 to 9 mph becoming south.

New Year's Day: Mostly sunny, with a high near 33. Light south southeast wind.

Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 19.

Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 38.

Sunday Night: A slight chance of snow showers. Partly cloudy, with a low around 21.

Monday: A slight chance of snow showers. Mostly sunny, with a high near 38.

Monday Night: A slight chance of snow showers. Partly cloudy, with a low around 20.

Tuesday: A slight chance of snow showers. Mostly sunny, with a high near 40.

Tuesday Night: A slight chance of snow showers. Partly cloudy, with a low around 21.

Wednesday: A slight chance of snow showers. Mostly sunny, with a high near 42.
Wednesday News
National Weather Service

From the National Weather Service, as of about 6 PM Wednesday night:

...Strong winter storm in progress across northern and central Arizona...

A strong and cold Pacific storm system moved into Arizona this morning...spreading precipitation rapidly from west to east across the region throughout the day. Snow levels so far today have been in the 4000 to 5000 foot range. In addition to the snow...this system has also brought strong southwest winds to portions of the high country with areas of blowing and drifting snow. Below are the snowfall levels received so far today.

Snowfall reports as of 4 PM MST...

Parks 2N 12.0 inches 400 pm
Jacob Lake 8.0 inches 320 pm
Snowbowl Ski Area 8.0 inches 415 pm
Bellemont 7.0 inches 400 pm
6 NW Flagstaff 6.5 inches 349 pm
6 S Prescott 6.0 inches 300 pm
Williams 6.0 inches 315 pm
Flagstaff 7.0 inches 500 pm
Munds Park 6-8 inches 340 pm
Tonto Village 4.0 inches 307 pm
14 N Payson 4.0 inches 315 pm
Pine 4.0 inches 300 pm
Clints Well 4.0 inches 320 pm
Sedona 10 N 3.5 inches 415 pm
5 NW Prescott 3.5 inches 230 pm
5 N Ash Fork 3.0 inches 316 pm
14 NE Payson 3.0 inches 315 pm
Prescott 2.0 inches 330 pm
Window Rock 1.0 inches 1201 pm
Doney Park 1.0 inches 342 pm
Payson 0.5 inches 137 pm

...winter storm warning remains in effect until 5 PM MST Thursday Above 3500 feet...

A winter storm warning remains in effect until 5 PM MST Thursday.

* Timing: after a brief lull early this evening...expect snow to continue across the region through tomorrow. Snow will become heavy at times later tonight due to a strong cold front. snowfall rates will lessen by Thursday afternoon.

* Snow Levels: falling from around 4000 feet this evening to 2000 feet by early Thursday morning.

* Snow Accumulations: storm total snow amounts 12 to 24 inches above 6500 feet elevation. 6 to 12 inches between 5000 and 6500 feet. 2 to 6 inches between 4000 and 5000 feet. Locally higher snowfall amounts are possible...mainly on the southwest slopes of the mogollon rim and other west facing slopes of area mountains.

* Impacts: dangerous winter driving conditions will occur with some roadways becoming impassable. Southwest winds of 20 to 30 mph with gusts around 40 mph will cause extensive blowing and drifting snow with near zero visibilities at times. Near blizzard conditions are possible for portions of this storm...especially at higher elevations.

Precautionary/preparedness actions...

A winter storm warning means severe winter weather conditions are Expected or occurring...due to significant amounts of snow and Strong winds producing limited visibilities.

For the latest road conditions and closures...call the ADOT Freeway management system at 1 888 411 7623 or visit their web Site at az511.com.

Additional weather information is on the web at Weather.gov/Flagstaff.
Roads and Travel

Sr 87 and I-17

State Route 87 reopened; snow chains, 4x4 recommended

Northbound I-17 remains closed north of State Route 179

PHOENIX — As winter weather descends on Northern Arizona, the Arizona Department of Transportation is announcing the following highway opening under restriction, and affirms two existing closures:

State Route 87 northbound between mileposts 254 to 264 (north of Payson) - Road reopened but a snow chain or four-wheel-drive advisory has been issued due to weather following slide offs involving more than 20 vehicles.

I-17 northbound remains closed north of State Route 179. Traffic at this time is being diverted to southbound I-17. Drivers are advised to detour in advance or delay travels to avoid congestion at the turnaround. Southbound I-17 from Flagstaff remains open and passable for all vehicles.

State Route 89A remains closed from Pumphouse Wash at milepost 386 to Forest Highlands Road at milepost 397 due to winter conditions and resource allocation.

I-17 Closure

Travel Alert: I-17 Closed at SR-179;
I-40 May Close Due to Winter Weather

PHOENIX — Interstate 17 northbound has been closed at the junction of State Route 179, the Sedona turnoff, due to snowfall in Northern Arizona as part of the flurry of winter weather. Traffic is redirected to southbound I-17 because State Route 89A, the only alternative, remains closed.

In addition, Interstate 40 may close east of Flagstaff due to high winds and blowing snow as was experienced during last winter’s storms.

As conditions change, ADOT will inform drivers via the media, roadway message boards and other communication.

SR 89A

State Route 89A has closed, helping to prioritize snowplowing efforts.

Highway closed at 2 p.m. until at earliest Thursday afternoon.

FLAGSTAFF — As winter weather descends on Northern Arizona, the Arizona Department of Transportation is announcing the following highway closure:

State Route 89A between Sedona and Flagstaff (mileposts 386 at Pumphouse Wash to milepost 397 at Forest Highlands): This highwayclosed at 2 p.m. on Wednesday until at least Thursday afternoon to allow ADOT snowplow crews to prioritize efforts on Interstate and 17. As an alternate, drivers should use I-17.

Before heading out on the roads, drivers are encouraged to call 5-1-1 or log on to ADOT’s Traveler Information Center at www.az511.gov for the latest highway conditions around the state. The website features images along state highways that give drivers a glimpse of weather conditions in various regions. Driver safety tips are available from the Arizona Department of Public Safety at http://www.azdps.gov/Media/News/View/?p=280 or from ADOT at www.azdot.gov/KnowSnow.

Source

ESPN Anchor Will Selva Suspended for Plagiarism

2010-12-30T12:20:00.000-08:00

ESPN anchor Will Selva has been suspended by the sports television network after lifting commentary from a newspaper column without attribution. Selva's suspension is for an indefinite period.

Selva apologized to Kevin Ding of the Orange County Register, whom he plagiarized a preview of the Laker-Spurs Tuesday night game. Ding publicly called out Selva and made the issue public in a blog post.

Source

Callers Overwhelm ADOT's Road Info System

2010-12-30T12:13:00.000-08:00

Weather Prompts 60,000 Calls In 8 Hours

BELLEMONT, Ariz. -- Motorists looking to the state Department of Transportation for information on road conditions will experience some delays.

The winter weather has overwhelmed a Web site that lets drivers know which roads are closed and provides live shots of some roadways.

People also will have trouble getting through on a department hot line that has automated updates on road conditions.

Department spokesman Timothy Tait said the Arizona 511 system took 60,000 calls in an eight-hour span Thursday morning. The line typically handles 1,000 calls in a 12-hour time frame.

Tait said people shouldn't rely solely on the department for weather-related closures. He said the department's Twitter page, media Web sites and TV stations are all good sources of information.

Source

Army and SMU clash in Armed Forces Bowl

2010-12-30T12:09:00.000-08:00

Army finds itself back in the postseason for the first time in 16 years, and the Black Knights will take on the SMU Mustangs in the Armed Forces Bowl at Ford Stadium.

Army is playing in its first bowl game since 1996 and only the second since 1988. The Black Knights did fade a bit down the stretch, dropping three of their final four contests to close out the regular season. They also lost their ninth consecutive showdown against Navy earlier this month, although the game was much more competitive than the final score (31-17) would indicate, due largely to a fumble just before the half that Navy returned for a touchdown.

"What we proved to ourselves is that we can play with a really good football team," head coach Rich Ellerson said following the Navy game. "We didn't play with them for 60 minutes, and you have to play all 60 minutes. We can go on and talk about a play, and there are all kinds of plays in that contest, but that's the difference. The difference is 60 minutes."

Meanwhile, SMU will have the luxury of playing in its home stadium for this matchup, where the team went 4-2 this year. SMU has reached the postseason for the second straight year after topping Nevada in the 2009 Sheraton Hawaii Bowl, 45-10. The Mustangs won the Conference USA West Division with a 6-2 league mark this year, though they went just 1-4 outside of conference play. In the C-USA Championship, SMU fell to UCF by a 17-7 final. The Mustangs also faced Navy earlier this year in Annapolis, as they rallied from a 14-0 halftime deficit to claim a 28-21 victory.

Army has won both prior meetings in the all-time series between these two schools, although these teams have not met since 1967. This will be the eighth installment of the Armed Forces Bowl, which saw Air Force knock off Houston by a 47-20 final in last year's game.

Since taking over as Army's head coach following the 2008 season, Ellerson has made his triple-option attack a staple at West Point. The Black Knights will have to execute it very well in order to keep SMU and its dangerous offense off the field. Army averages a robust 256 rushing yards per game, which ranks 10th in the nation. Like most option teams, the passing game has taken a backseat as the Black Knights rank 120th in that department (82 ypg). While they'll scheme a pass play or two into the weekly gameplan to keep defenses honest, for the most part the Black Knights are perfectly content to move the ball down the field a few yards at a time. It's a formula that works as long as they can avoid turnovers, which they've done throughout the season by ranking seventh nationally in turnover margin.

However, perhaps the costliest turnover of the year came during a pivotal moment against Navy. Trailing 17-7 late in the first half with the ball on the Navy two-yard line, Army quarterback Trent Steelman had the ball stripped near the goal line and returned 98 yards the other way for a touchdown. The result: instead of cutting the deficit to 17-14, Army went into the locker room trailing 24-7 at halftime and was never able to recover. It was an unfortunate moment for Steelman, who has been as integral to the team's success as anybody. He threw for 128 yards and two touchdowns in the game, while also rushing for 74 yards to help the Black Knights out-rush Navy 209-139. On the season, Steelman has rushed for 694 yards and a team-best 11 touchdowns in addition to his seven passing TDs. Fullback Jared Hassin tops the squad with 931 rushing yards to go along with his nine TDs.

Army's defense has been susceptible to the run at times this season, but the Knights are solid against the pass, ranking 23rd nationally with 190.5 passing yards allowed per tilt. They also rank 27th in total defense (332 ypg) and 57th in scoring (25.2 ppg). Overall, Army's D turned in a very solid effort against Navy by bottling up the Mids' option game and coming away with four takeaways from quarterback Ricky Dobbs. However, when they needed a stop most in the fourth quarter, the Black Knights allowed Navy to grind down the clock with a 13-play drive that chewed up nine minutes and made it a 31-10 game with 5:44 to play. With coach Ellerson having spent the past few weeks hammering home 60 minutes of football, it will be interesting to see how his team responds if a similar situation presents itself in this matchup.

Linebacker Stephen Anderson, as he has done so often throughout the season, led Army with 12 tackles against Navy, also registering a half-sack, a forced fumble and fumble recovery. Anderson is the heart and soul of the unit, as he paces the team with 94 tackles, including 10.5 for loss. He has also broken up a half-dozen passes and forced four fumbles on the year. Josh McNary has notched a team-best 9.5 sacks to go along with three forced fumbles. In the secondary, Donovan Travis has come away with a team-high five interceptions while also ranking third with 53 tackles. All three of those players will need to bring their A-games if the Black Knights are to slow down SMU's potent offense.

While Army will look to keep things on the ground with the option game, SMU's spread passing attack under head coach June Jones will present quite a contrast in styles. The Mustangs are littered with playmakers on that side of the ball, including three first-team All-Conference picks. One of those players is left tackle Kelvin Beachum, who has started all 13 games this season to anchor a line that has paved the way for a school-record 5,391 yards of total offense. Another is running back Zach Line, whose 1,391 rushing yards this season trails only Eric Dickerson (1981, '82) in school history. Line is the C-USA leader with 107 yards per game on the ground. At wideout, senior Aldrick Robinson has amassed 1,225 receiving yards this season, making him the only receiver in school history with two 1,000-yard seasons. His 13 touchdown catches are also a new SMU record, as are his seven straight games with a TD grab.

In that loss to UCF in the C-USA Championship, all of the Mustangs' offensive weapons went missing and the result was a season-low seven points scored. Quarterback Kyle Padron has had a fine season for SMU, but in that game he was sacked five times and intercepted twice, finishing with 220 yards on 18-of-34 passing. The team's lone touchdown didn't come until the fourth quarter on a 22-yard pass from Padron to Robinson, but the next two possessions resulted in an interception and a turnover on downs to end any threat. On the season, Padron is averaging 271.2 passing yards per game and has thrown 29 touchdowns against 12 interceptions. While Robinson has accounted for nearly half of those TD passes, Padron does have some other solid options in the passing game. Cole Beasley has also gone over the 1,000-yard mark (1,036) and actually leads the team with 84 catches. Darius Johnson ranks second on the team with 69 catches, as he and Beasley have combined for 11 TDs.

SMU's defense has seen the triple-option already this season, so there shouldn't be many surprises there. As always, gap discipline and each player knowing their assignments are the keys to stopping it.

"The triple-option is a very difficult offense to prepare for," coach Jones said. "I'm glad we have time to prepare for it. We also played against it at Navy. This will be a better situation for us. I know (Ellerson) very well. He will have some new little wrinkles and some little things by the time we get to game day."

SMU only gave up 311 yards and two trips to the red zone in the title game against UCF, but the Knights were able to keep drives alive by converting 7- of-13 first downs. Charged with stopping that trend will be linebackers Taylor Reed (133 tackles) and Pete Fleps (116), the top two tacklers for SMU. Ja'Gared Davis has notched 82 tackles from his linebacker spot, including a team-high 15 for loss and nine sacks. He has also scored TDs on a fumble return and a blocked field goal return, and the Mustangs could certainly use a big play or two from him. Defensive end Taylor Thompson (32 tackles, 4.5 sacks) will need to set the edge in SMU's 3-4 scheme in order to limit big gains against the option.

SMU has played a fairly tough schedule, with seven of its opponents this season earning bowl bids. The Mustangs also placed five players on the All- Conference USA first team, the most for the program since 1984. That '84 season was also the last time they went to bowl games in consecutive seasons, highlighting a significant turnaround for the program under third-year coach Jones.

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Crossbow Cannibal was a known 'serial killer' in the making

2010-12-30T11:58:00.000-08:00

Police knew that Stephen Griffiths, the Crossbow Cannibal, was dangerous but were powerless to act, it has been revealed.

Griffiths was being watched two years before he killed his victims, and a haul of hunting knives and a crossbow had already been seized by police.

Managers of the flats where he lived had been alerted by a WPC after librarians reported Griffiths was reading books about human dismemberment.

Housing staff insisted no females went alone to speak with Griffiths after neighbours had reported threats and sinister behaviour towards women.

The association even kitted up the male caretaker with a panic alarm as they were so concerned by Griffiths' behaviour.

Griffiths had formed "platonic" relationships with at least two women residents in the block who had at first described him as polite and friendly.

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'We Can Do It!': Geraldine Doyle, WWII Poster Inspiration, Dies

2010-12-30T11:40:00.000-08:00

She was the fresh-faced 17-year-old who helped inspire the American home-front during World War II. Geraldine Hoff Doyle died Sunday at 84.

You probably don't know her name, but you've seen her face. Doyle was 17 and working in a Michigan steelworks when her picture was taken by the United Press. That image - well, the face at least - became part of the 'We Can Do It' poster commissioned from artist J. Howard Miller during World War II, used to motivated a nation of female workers called into manufacturing jobs to support the war effort overseas.

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Book Report: Sarah Bernhardt -- The First Cause Celeb

2010-12-30T11:30:00.000-08:00

Sad but true: few people today are familiar with Sarah Bernhardt’s illustrious career and personality. History and film buffs know that Bernhardt was the first artist to market her talent to modern audiences by creating an adoring following. In other words, she was the first celebrity. Unfortunately, not many of us today know why she was so famous.

Former Simon and Schuster Editor-in-Chief Robert Gottlieb pieces together the person and the persona in Sarah: The Life of Sarah Bernhardt. Although it’s a biography, Gottlieb’s book reads like a novel, with highly digestible anecdotes and propulsive narration.

Gottlieb admits researching Bernhardt's life was a difficult task. Considered the most famous person in the world, Bernhardt was a dramatist who preferred story to fact. Biographers can't look to her for accurate accounts of dates, places or even birth parents. Perhaps this is why Gottlieb’s is the first English-language biography of Bernhardt.

Her childhood reads like a rewrite on Les Miserables. Starting in 1844—or, as Gottlieb questions, “Was it 1843?”—in Paris, Sarah bounced around to various homes as a foster child. Despite a cruel and detached mother, and no father at all, she had an extraordinary will to survive, if only for vindictive triumph. At age 9, Bernhardt adopted her lifetime motto: Quand meme, loosely translated as “Against all odds.”

Her acting career began at the Comedie-Francaise theater, though she later signed on with the famous Odeon in 186l. Sarah was constantly compared to the celebrated memory and reputation of Rachel, a classic tragedienne of the time.

By 1880, she had carved out a name for herself by taking the lead in Joan of Arc, Camille, and even Hamlet (as the Danish prince himself). Death scenes became her stock in trade, and she was especially revered for her melodramatic onstage suicides. Her beautiful voice and delivery repeatedly charmed sold-out audiences.

Gottlieb notes that Bernhardt’s mix of personal eccentricities and onstage talent made her the most fascinating human alive. At the peak of her career, Bernhardt traveled with a coffin, which she sometimes slept in. Her notorious private zoo housed three dogs, a parrot named Bizibouzon, a monkey named Darwin, a cheetah, seven chameleons, and a wolf.

Bernhardt also collected men. In a letter to one lover, she writes, “My heart demands more excitement than anyone can give it.” Her long string of suitors included writer Victor Hugo and Jacques Damala, a bigoted gambler who didn’t love her and was the model for Bram Stoker's Dracula.

The actress never revealed the father of her son, Maurice. She did boldly admit her love for her illegitimate son throughout her life, though, in no way trying to conceal her status as an unmarried mother.

Sarah Bernhardt was not only the first celebrity, she was also the first cause celebrity. Her strongest legacy, which Gottlieb covers in great detail, was her dedication to causes other than acting. She knew how to parlay her fame into awareness for women’s rights, civil rights, and religious freedom.

Bernhardt ran a hospital during World War I, working in the trenches to take care of wounded soldiers. On her first voyage to America, she helped a young woman in steerage give birth, and saved an elderly woman from plunging headfirst down a dangerous staircase. Although raised Catholic, Bernhardt was born Jewish, and she always stood firm against anti-Semites of the age. Being Jewish to Bernhardt was a matter of race, not belief.

Despite an amputated leg, for which P.T. Barnum offered $10,000, Bernhardt continued acting until the last moments of her life, famously claiming she tortured the French paparazzi just as they had tortured her. Her brilliance, avarice, and sexuality make her a personality that eclipses even the likes of Lady Gaga or Madonna.

By the time you finish Gottlieb’s account of Bernhardt’s life, you will be in as much awe of the woman as her audiences were. Gottlieb has distilled the truths of Berndhardt’s history. He lets his readers form their own opinions: Was Bernhardt mostly diva, actress, or missionary?

Sarah Bernhardt lived life like a performance. It's only fitting that her biography follows suit.

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Indiana earthquake strikes in rare location

2010-12-30T11:11:00.000-08:00

Bloomington - Thursday's earthquake was felt in four states beyond Indiana. At Indiana University's Seismic Station, the phones were ringing off the hook.

It's an earthquake scientists describe as rare, unusual and unprecedented as far as its location in Indiana.

The quake registered on seismographs at IU's lab Thursday morning. It picked up the vibrations centered in Howard County, kicked the pens all over the place and splattered ink across the paper.

Although the quake was originally reported as 4.2 magnitude, the US Geological Survey downgraded it to a 3.8. Scientists say that's because more information came in from recording stations around the world.

Indiana has had earthquakes in the past, the most recent in April 2008. But most of them over the years have been centered around the Wabash Valley fault in southwestern Indiana.

This time the location is rare. It's only the third earthquake of note to hit north of Indianapolis in 175 years.

Report quake damage here.

Scientists scoured their maps for fault lines nearby and say it was likely triggered by the Sharpsville fault, alittle-known fault Near Kokomo.

"We know so little about it simply because it's deep within the earth and we haven't experienced any seismic in this part of the state in our historic records," said John Steinmetz, Indiana Geological Survey.

"This earthquake was in an area with relatively low previous seismic activity. It's kind-of a reminder that earthquakes can happen almost anywhere in the midwest and every once in awhile they surprise us," said Michael Hamburger, IU professor, Geological Sciences.

Although there are no injuries reported and no significant damage, the Geological Survey has been in touch with the US Department of Transportation. They will likely want to check overpasses and bridges to make sure there is no danger there.

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Hoppin John Recipe: Healthy New Year's Day

2010-12-29T11:51:00.001-08:00

Hoppin John recipe—this hearty dish is based on a southern tradition that says eating black-eyed peas will bring luck for the upcoming year.

Perfect for a New Year’s Day brunch, this dish is slow-cooked so you won’t have to waste the first day of the year in the kitchen.

Healthy Hoppin John

This recipe, from food.com, substitutes the ham with turkey sausage and uses brown rice for a slimmer and just as delicious dish.

Ingredients:

* 2 cups cooked brown rice
* 1 lb cooked turkey sausage
* 1 (15 oz) can black-eyed peas, drained
* ½ cup diced onion, sautéed
* 1/.4 cup diced celery, sautéed
* 1 ½ cups chunky salsa
* 1 tsp garlic powder
* 1 tsp onion powder
* 1 tsp cayenne pepper or 1 tsp hot sauce (optional)

Click here for the directions at food.com.

(Vegetarian) Barley Hoppin’ John

This southern classic gains some great texture and protein by replacing the rice with barley.

Ingredients

* 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
* 1 medium onion, chopped
* 1 small red bell pepper, chopped
* 2 stalks celery, chopped
* 2 cloves garlic, minced
* 1 14-ounce can vegetable broth
* 1 cup quick-cooking barley
* 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried
* 2 teaspoons lemon juice
* 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 2 15-ounce cans black-eyed peas, rinsed

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Suspicious online 'dead body' posting ignites anger among Chinese netizens

2010-12-29T11:44:00.000-08:00

The online posting of a scary dead body has created fury against the Chinese Government among netizens, who have claimed that Qian Yunhui was killed by officials to silence his six-year campaign to protect fellow villagers in a land dispute.

Although seizing illegal lands by officials are common in China, but horrific photographs of Qian's death on Saturday have ignited widespread fury, forcing local officials to offer explanations in a news conference, the News York Times reports.

Within 36 hours, the initial post attracted nearly 20,000 comments. Tianya and two other Web sites that reported on the case together received 400,000 comments.

However, officials of Yueqing in Zhejiang Province, which supervises Qian's home village, have said that the photographs indicate that he had met with a terrible accident. But some Chinese reporters and residents of Zhaiqiao say that they are 'foul play and a sloppy cover-up.'

Qian, the former Communist Party representative in the village, had reportedly travelled to Beijing to file a petition with the central authorities.

In the news conference on Monday, city officials said that Qian was arrested, found guilty of criminal conduct and imprisoned at least twice. Qian continued his crusade after recently being released from prison.

Before his death, he had become the villagers' favourite for the post of village chief in the coming election, the paper said.

On Saturday morning, he was run over by a red truck, and his body crushed beneath the left front tire, the paper quoted Chinese Business News that cited Qian's wife, Wang Zhaoyan, as saying.

Meanwhile, an eyewitness has claimed that several men wearing security uniforms held down the victim in the road. One of the men waved his hand, and a truck then drove slowly over Mr. Qian, the paper added. nternet users and Chinese reporters are continuing to question the explanation by city officials, pointing to discrepancies revealed by the photos. (ANI)

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West Virginia Lottery Bowl Report

2010-12-29T11:36:00.000-08:00

ORLANDO, Fla. - A West Virginia Lottery Champs Sports Bowl report on the WVU Mountaineers continuing their preparation for the game against NC State on Tuesday, Dec. 28. This report features interviews with Keith Tandy, Chris Neild, and Head Coach Bill Stewart.

Be sure to catch the Mountaineers360 Champs Sports Bowl Special Monday night at 7 p.m. on MSN affiliates throughout West Virginia. Check your local listings.

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Mega Millions Jackpot Rises To $237M

2010-12-29T11:26:00.000-08:00

Drawing Is New Year's Eve

DENVER -- Seven months after the multistate lottery game Mega Millions came to Colorado, the jackpot has risen to $237 million. It's the largest Mega Millions jackpot since Colorado joined the game in May 2010.

Mega Millions drawings are held on Tuesdays and Fridays. The game is played in 41 states and Washington, D.C.

The Mega Millions jackpot starts at $12 million. No one has hit the jackpot since Oct. 29.

Mega Millions costs $1 per ticket. Players select 5 out of 56 numbers, then select 1 out of 46 for the Mega Ball number, according to the Mega Millions website. Players can also pay an extra $1 for a Megaplier that multiples your winnings up to 4 times the original amount (excluding the jackpot). The Megaplier is drawn before the Mega Millions winning numbers are drawn.

Mega Millions was created in 2002 in nine states. Learn more about Mega Millions on the Mega Millions website.

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Pro Bowl Roster: Falcons Send 7, Patriots Send 6 to NFL's All Star Game

2010-12-29T11:18:00.000-08:00

Pro Bowl roster highlights include seven selections from the Atlanta Falcons for the NFC team and six players from the New England Patriots for the AFC squad. The Falcons selected to the Pro Bowl were Ovie Mughelli, Michael Turner, Matt Ryan, Tony Gonzalez, Roddy White, Eric Weems and John Abraham.

Fullback Mughelli earned his first spot at the Pro Bowl. He has racked up 28 rushing yards, 126 receiving yards and one touchdown this season.

The Falcons were trailed only by the New England Patriots this season as the Patriots sent six players to the Pro Bowl. Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was selected as a starter for the game along with Philadelphia Eagles' Michael Vick.

The invite is a milestone for Vick who was asked for the first time since his 18-month conviction for his part in an illegal dogfighting ring. Vick is having one of his best seasons with 2,755 yards and 20 TDs passing, 613 yards and eight TDs rushing and was the NFC's top-rated passer at 103.6.

Pittsburg Steeler's player Maurkice Pouncey made the Pro Bowl selection as a rookie. He will play as the No. 2 center for the AFC team.

The Pro Bowl is expected to take place Jan. 30 in Honolulu, Hawaii.

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