Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Colbert's super PAC has raised over $1 million

FILE- This Thursday, June 30, 2011 file photo shows comedian Stephen Colbert as he appears before the Federal Election Commission in Washington. Colbert's ?super? PAC has raised a staggering $1 million. Political action committees were required to submit their financial reports to the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday. Colbert disclosed that as of Monday, his Americans for a Better Tomorrow PAC has raised $1,023,121.24. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File)

FILE- This Thursday, June 30, 2011 file photo shows comedian Stephen Colbert as he appears before the Federal Election Commission in Washington. Colbert's ?super? PAC has raised a staggering $1 million. Political action committees were required to submit their financial reports to the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday. Colbert disclosed that as of Monday, his Americans for a Better Tomorrow PAC has raised $1,023,121.24. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File)

(AP) ? Stephen Colbert's sway in the U.S. presidential election might be a joke, but he's got some real financial muscle.

The comedian disclosed Tuesday that his Americans for a Better Tomorrow "super" political action committee has raised a staggering $1.02 million. PACs were required to submit their financial reports to the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday.

In a letter to the commission, Colbert was quoted as saying, "How you like me now, FEC?"

Colbert raised the money by asking for donations from viewers of "The Colbert Report." He has used the PAC to highlight what he considers the absurdity of campaign finance law and, in particular, the 2010 Supreme Court ruling that allows corporations and unions to raise limitless money to run campaign ads.

"We raised it on my show and used it to materially influence the elections ? in full accordance with the law," Colbert said in a press release. "It's the way our founding fathers would have wanted it, if they had founded corporations instead of just a country."

When Colbert earlier flirted with running for president, he legally transferred control of his PAC to Jon Stewart of "The Daily Show," as the so-called super PACs are supposed to remain independent of the candidates. On Monday's "The Colbert Report," he elaborately hunted down Stewart to regain his PAC presidency.

Colbert said Tuesday that the PAC is considering yet another name change to: John Colbert Cougar Super MellenPAC.

On "The Report," Colbert has portrayed every turn of the screw in the life of a political action committee, going through the law with his attorney, Trevor Potter, former Federal Election Commission chairman.

Thus far, his PAC has created a handful of television ads, including an over-the-top negative ad against Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, and an anti-players ad during the NBA lockout.

Tuesday's FEC filing also revealed the donors who gave more than $200 to Colbert's PAC. Among them are Gavin Newsom, lieutenant governor of California (who gave $500), Bradley Whitford of the "The West Wing" ($250) and "Hot in Cleveland" star Laura Sangiacomo ($250).

Colbert is yet to say what else he intends to do with the money.

___

Online:

http://www.fec.gov/disclosure.shtml

http://www.colbertsuperpac.com/

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2012-01-31-Colbert-Super%20PAC/id-b2d8aecd0db24fc885834c0b88e95024

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Thursday, January 26, 2012

Obama declares 'we've come too far to turn back now'

NBC News

President Barack Obama speaks to members of Congress during the annual State of the Union address.

By Tom Curry, msnbc.com National Affairs Writer

Updated at?10:30 pm ET

With an unfinished legislative agenda from last year and with Election Day nine months from now, President Barack Obama went?before a joint session of Congress?Tuesday night to offer his proposals for economic growth and to draw sharp contrasts with his Republican foes.

He contended that, ?The state of our Union is getting stronger. And we've come too far to turn back now. As long as I'm President, I will work with anyone in this chamber to build on this momentum.? But I intend to fight obstruction with action, and I will oppose any effort to return to the very same policies that brought on this economic crisis in the first place. ?

But Obama also painted a dire scenario of a nation divided into a wealthy elite and a mass of struggling Americans on the verge of insolvency.

Recommended: Obama draws contrast to GOP on immigration

?We can either settle for a country where a shrinking number of people do really well, while a growing number of Americans barely get by,? Obama said. ?Or we can restore an economy where everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same set of rules."

The president calls opportunity for all the "defining issue of our time" in his State of the Union Address.

Obama pointed to some signs of economic revival: ?In the last 22 months, businesses have created more than three million jobs.? Last year, they created the most jobs since 2005.? American manufacturers are hiring again, creating jobs for the first time since the late 1990s.? Together, we've agreed to cut the deficit by more than $2 trillion.? And we've put in place new rules to hold Wall Street accountable, so a crisis like that never happens again.??

Obama?was speaking against the backdrop of an improving economy which is slowly recovering from the recession of 2007-2009. Employment has shown signs of revival in recent months, with the jobless rate falling from 10 percent in October of 2009 to 8.5 percent last month.

But there were still almost one million fewer people employed last month than when Obama signed his $825 billion stimulus bill into law in February 2009.

Reviving a proposal that the Senate rejected in 2010, Obama made a vigorous pitch for changing the law to allow young illegal immigrants to become American citizens. "Hundreds of thousands of talented, hardworking students in this country," he said, "were brought here as small children, are American through and through, yet they live every day with the threat of deportation."?

Obama was also using his speech Tuesday night to expand on the ?fairness? theme he discussed in his Kansas speech last month.

?Slideshow: Ariz. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords

He made the case for raising taxes on higher-income people such as legendary Omaha investor Warren Buffeett who have income from capital gains and dividends.

"Tax reform should follow the Buffett rule: If you make more than $1 million a year, you should not pay less than 30 percent in taxes," the president delcared. "If you're earning a million dollars a year, you shouldn't get special tax subsidies or deductions. On the other hand, if you make under $250,000 a year, like 98 percent of American families, your taxes shouldn't go up."?

He added, "You can call this class warfare all you want.? But asking a billionaire to pay at least as much as his secretary in taxes?? Most Americans would call that common sense."?

Obama advisor David Plouffe was asked on the Today show Tuesday about GOP presidential contender Mitt Romney?s 2010 tax return which showed him paying $3 million in income taxes on $21.6 million in income.

Plouffe said, ?It?s a good example ? ?of the tax reform we need. Warren Buffett said he should not be paying less taxes ? as a rate ? than his secretary.?

President Obama delivers his third State of the Union address, laying out his agenda for the coming year: building the economy, bringing manufacturing back, and increasing infrastructure projects. He describes an America "where hard work pays off and responsibility is rewarded."

Recommended: Read?text of Obama's State of the Union address

About 80 percent of Romney?s income came from dividends and capital gains which are taxed at 15 percent, instead of at the top rate for wage and salary income, 35 percent. With only a brief interval, capital gains have enjoyed preferential tax treatment since the 1920s.

Obama also proposed a series of new tax breaks to encourage American companies to manufacture goods in the United States and not in foreign countries. Obama proposal?s to revive American manufacturing comes after more than half a century in which manufacturing?s share of employment has been falling.

According to a Congressional Budget Office report, ?the rapid growth of productivity in manufacturing has accounted for a substantial fraction of the decline in manufacturing employment and hours.? The CBO said productivity in manufacturing? ? more output from fewer workers ? had risen by about one-third from 2000 to 2008.

Obama declared that, ?I will not cede the wind or solar or battery industry to China or Germany because we refuse to make the same commitment here.? We have subsidized oil companies for a century. That's long enough.?

He asked for new clean energy tax credits, but did not allude to the $535 million in taxpayer money that was lost in an Energy Department loan to Solyndra, the California solar company that went bankrupt last September.

Addressing the need for skilled workers, Obama made a proposal that was?an echo of one?made by President Bill Clinton in his 1996 State of the Union speech, Obama said, ?I want to cut through the maze of confusing training programs, so that from now on, people...have one program, one website, and one place to go for all the information and help they need.? It's time to turn our unemployment system into a reemployment system that puts people to work."

In the Republican response to Obama, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, who passed up a chance to run against Obama this year, said Obama "seems to sincerely believe we can build a middle class out of government jobs paid for with borrowed dollars."

He added, ?Those punished most by the wrong turns of the last three years are those unemployed or underemployed tonight, and those so discouraged that they have abandoned the search for work altogether.?

He said Republicans? ?first concern is for those waiting tonight to begin or resume the climb up life?s ladder. We do not accept that ours will ever be a nation of haves and have nots; we must always be a nation of haves and soon to haves.?

Daniles said,?"The only way out of the dead end of debt into which we have driven, is a private economy that begins to grow and create jobs, real jobs, at a much faster rate than today."

Daniels assailed Obama's decision to block construction of the Keystone XL pipeline that would bring oil from Canada to refineries on the Gulf Coast: "The extremism that stifles the development of homegrown energy, or cancels a perfectly safe pipeline that would employ tens of thousands? is a pro-poverty policy."

Gov. Mitch Daniels delivers the Republican response, saying that the loyal opposition puts "patriotism and national success ahead of party or ideology" and says the GOP "program of renewal" will rebuild the American dream.

Foreign policy played a relatively small role in Obama's speech.

Addressing the threat of Iran getting nuclear weapons, Obama said, ?A world that was once divided about how to deal with Iran's nuclear program now stands as one.? The regime is more isolated than ever before; its leaders are faced with crippling sanctions?.?

He said, ?America is determined to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, and I will take no options off the table to achieve that goal.? But a peaceful resolution of this issue is still possible, and far better, and if Iran changes course and meets its obligations, it can rejoin the community of nations.?

Obama began his address by celebrating military successes: ?For the first time in nine years, there are no Americans fighting in Iraq.?For the first time in two decades, Osama bin Laden is not a threat to this country.? Most of al Qaeda's top lieutenants have been defeated. The Taliban's momentum has been broken, and some troops in Afghanistan have begun to come home.?

On Wednesday morning Obama will leave Washington to take his State of the Union message to three 2012 battleground states: Iowa, Arizona and Nevada. He carried Iowa and Nevada in 2008.

Obama was speaking Tuesday night with his signature first-term achievement ? a historic overhaul of health insurance and an expansion of Medicaid ? under the shadow of a pending decision by the Supreme Court.

Oral arguments before the justices on the constitutionality of the health insurance overhaul will stretch over three days in late March. The high court is considering not only whether the requirement to buy insurance is constitutional, but whether the states can be forced to expand their Medicaid programs, as the law orders them to do.

Meanwhile, Obama?s ability to get Congress pay for any new proposal he might make is boxed in by controls on spending which he signed into law last year as part of an accord with Congress to raise the limit on federal borrowing.

Any new program would likely come in the category of discretionary outlays, the part of the budget that Congress controls through annual appropriation bills. Discretionary spending amounted to $1.35 trillion in 2011, 40 percent of total outlays, according to the Congressional Budget Office. But the Budget Control Act which Obama signed last summer imposes limits on discretionary spending. For 2012 and 2013, the caps would keep spending for items other than the Afghanistan war below the 2011 spending level and would limit the growth of those appropriations to about two percent a year from 2014 to 2021, according to the CBO.

Meanwhile entitlement spending ? the 40 percent of the budget that goes to Medicare for the elderly, Medicaid for the poor, and Social Security for the disabled and retired ? continues to grow steadily, driven by an aging population.

Obama faces a House of Representatives with 242 Republicans ? the most that any Democratic president has had to face since Harry Truman in 1947.

As Truman did in the 1948 presidential campaign, Obama is sure to lambaste the Republican majority as an obstructionist, do-nothing Congress. Republicans are returning fire by saying the House has passed more than two dozen separate job creation bills and the Democratic-controlled Senate hasn?t acted on them.

Source: http://nbcpolitics.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/24/10227972-state-of-the-union-to-lay-out-proposals-for-an-economy-thats-built-to-last

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Wednesday, January 25, 2012

The top 10 songs and albums on the iTunes Store (AP)

iTunes' Official Music Charts for the week ending Jan. 23, 2012:

Top Songs:

1. "Turn Me On (feat. Nicki Minaj)," David Guetta

2. "Set Fire to the Rain," ADELE

3. "What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)," Kelly Clarkson

4. "Rack City," Tyga

5. "Good Feeling," Flo Rida

6. "Young, Wild & Free (feat. Bruno Mars)," Wiz Khalifa, Snoop Dogg

7. "We Found Love (feat. Calvin Harris)," Rihanna

8. "Sexy and I Know It," LMFAO

9. "Domino," Jessie J

10. "Ni(asterisk)(asterisk)as in Paris," Kanye West, JAY Z

___

Top Albums:

1. "21", ADELE

2. "Take Care," Drake

3. "El Camino," The Black Keys

4. "Bangarang," Skrillex

5. "Kidz Bop 21," Kidz Bop Kids

6. "Mylo Xyloto," Coldplay

7. "Joyful Noise (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)," Various Artists

8. "This Means War," Attack Attack!

9. "Lana Del Rey," Lana Del Rey

10. "Making Mirrors," Gotye

___

(copyright) 2012 Apple, Inc.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tech/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120124/ap_en_mu/us_itunes_music_top10

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Tuesday, January 24, 2012

2012 Oscar Nominations Full List

'The Artist' and Martin Scorcese's 'Hugo' lead the way for February 26 awards show.
By Kevin P. Sullivan


Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo in "The Artist"
Photo: Weinstein Company

Jennifer Lawrence read off the names of the year's nominees for the 84th Academy Awards on Tuesday morning (January 24). "The Artist" and "The Descendants" both emerged as Best Picture favorites after big nights at the Golden Globes, but Martin Scorsese's "Hugo" led the field of nominations with 11 total.

Billy Crystal will return for his ninth turn as host when the ceremony airs February 26 on ABC at 7 p.m. ET. Here is the full list of the nominees:

Best Picture
"The Artist"
"The Descendants"
"Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close"
"The Help"
"Hugo"
"Midnight in Paris"
"Moneyball"
"The Tree of Life"
"War Horse"

Best Director
Michel Hazanavicius, "The Artist"
Alexander Payne, "The Descendants"
Martin Scorsese, "Hugo"
Woody Allen, "Midnight in Paris"
Terrence Malick, "The Tree of Life"

Best Actor
George Clooney, "The Descendants"
Demián Bichir, "A Better Life"
Jean Dujardin, "The Artist"
Gary Oldman, "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy"
Brad Pitt, "Moneyball"

Best Actress
Glenn Close, "Albert Nobbs"
Viola Davis, "The Help"
Rooney Mara, "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
Meryl Streep, "The Iron Lady"
Michelle Williams, "My Week With Marilyn"

Best Supporting Actor
Kenneth Branagh, "My Week With Marilyn"
Jonah Hill, "Moneyball"
Nick Nolte, "Warrior"
Christopher Plummer, "Beginners"
Max von Sydow, "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close"

Best Supporting Actress
Bérénice Bejo, "The Artist"
Jessica Chastain, "The Help"
Melissa McCarthy, "Bridesmaids"
Janet McTeer, "Albert Nobbs"
Octavia Spencer, "The Help"

Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
"The Descendants"
"Hugo"
"The Ides of March"
"Moneyball"
"Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy"

Best Writing (Original Screenplay)
"The Artist"
"Bridesmaids"
"Margin Call"
"Midnight in Paris"
"A Separation"

Best Art Direction
"The Artist"
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2"
"Hugo"
"War Horse"

Best Cinematography
"The Artist"
"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
"Hugo"
"The Tree of Life"
"War Horse"

Best Costume Design
"Anonymous"
"The Artist"
"The Help"
"Jane Eyre"
"W.E."

Best Film Editing
"The Artist"
"The Descendants"
"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
"Hugo"
"Moneyball"

Best Makeup
"Albert Nobbs"
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2"
"The Iron Lady"

Best Music (Original Score)
"The Adventures of Tintin"
"The Artist"
"Hugo"
"Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy"
"War Horse"

Best Music (Original Song)
"Man or Muppet" from "The Muppets"
"Real in rio" from "RIO"

Best Sound Editing
"Drive"
"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
"Hugo"
"Transformers: Dark of the Moon"
"War Horse" (alt. "The Adventures of Tintin")

Best Sound Mixing
"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
"Hugo"
"Moneyball"
"Transformers: Dark of the Moon
"War Horse"

Best Visual Effects
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2"
"Hugo"
"Real Steel"
"Rise of the Planet of the Apes"
"Transformers: Dark of the Moon"

Best Foreign Language Film
"Monsieur Lazhar" - Canada
"Bullhead" - Canada
"A Separation" - Iran
"Footnote" - Israel
"In Darkness" - Poland

Best Animated Feature Film
"A Cat in Paris"
"Chico & Rico"
"Kung Fu Panda 2"
"Puss in Boots"
"Rango"

Best Animated Short Film
"Dimanche/Sunday"
"The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore"
"La Luna"
"A Morning Stroll"
"Wild Life"

Best Short Film
"Pentecost"
"Rajua"
"The Shore"
"Time Freak"
"Tuba Atlantic"

Best Documentary Feature
"Hell and Back Again"
"If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front"
"Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory"
"Pina"
"Undefeated"

Best Documentary Short
"The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement"
"God is the Bigger Elvis"
"Incident in New Baghdad"
"Saving Face"
"The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom"

Related Videos Related Photos

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1677781/academy-award-nominations-2012.jhtml

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Sundance Film Festival Review: 'Red Lights'

I?ll say this about ?Red Lights,? the Cillian Murphy- and Robert De Niro-starring thriller that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on Friday night (January 20): I don?t think I?ve talked as much with people about a movie after seeing it since ?Inception.?
Which is not to suggest writer/director Rodrigo Cort?s? feature (his follow-up to 2010 [...]

Source: http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2012/01/21/sundance-red-lights-review/

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Monday, January 23, 2012

Rules to Remember when Investing on Commodities ...

[unable to retrieve full-text content]You need to understand that if you are not really careful with your investments you may simply lose in the end. There are people out there who are so cautious that they went for gold and silver instead. Gold and silver are ...

Source: http://www.confettisgreenbay.com/rules-to-remember-when-investing-on-commodities/260/

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Patriots in Super Bowl, beat Ravens 23-20 (AP)

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. ? Tom Brady's 1-yard touchdown dive held up after the Ravens missed a chance to win, then tie the game in the final seconds, and the New England Patriots are on their way to the Super Bowl.

With New England leading by 3 points with 11 seconds left, Billy Cundiff missed a 32-yard field goal attempt and the Patriots escaped with a 23-20 win over Baltimore in the AFC championship game on Sunday.

Two plays earlier, Joe Flacco's pass to wide receiver Lee Evans in the end zone was stripped by backup cornerback Sterling Moore.

On his touchdown with 11:29 left in the fourth quarter, Brady took a huge hit from Ravens star linebacker Ray Lewis, then emphatically spiked the ball as he walked away. Earlier, Brady showed his fire by barking at Lewis following a hard tackle on a 4-yard run.

Next up as the Patriots chase their fourth Super Bowl trophy in Brady and coach Bill Belichick's tenure in New England is the winner of Sunday's NFC championship game between the Giants and 49ers. The Super Bowl is Feb. 5 in Indianapolis.

In their last trip to the big game, the Patriots had an 18-0 record when they were stunned by the Giants four years ago. They won the NFL championship for the 2001, 2003 and 2004 seasons. This time, they had to the Sup Bowl with a 10-game winning streak.

Brady's fifth trip to the Super Bowl will equal John Elway's achievement with Denver.

"We're going to try to go out and kick some butt in a couple of weeks," Brady said.

Moore's big play made up for getting victimized for a touchdown that gave Baltimore the lead 17-16. After Cundiff's kick hooked left, the Patriots stormed off their sideline in celebration as the chilled crowd roared. The Ravens looked on in disbelief.

A three-time NFL champion, Brady didn't throw for a touchdown for the first time in 36 games, although he did pass for 239 yards.

"Well, I (stunk) pretty bad today, but our defense saved us," Brady said. "I'm going to try to go out and do a better job in a couple of weeks, but I'm proud of this team, my teammates."

Brady needed help not only from Cundiff's botched kick in guiding the Patriots (15-3) to their fifth AFC title in 11 seasons, but from New England's maligned defense.

"We stepped up," Pro Bowl nose tackle Vince Wilfork said. "We all stepped up big time. Being in this situation is a great moment. You have to cherish this moment."

The Patriots shut down Ray Rice, the league's total yardage leader, who was limited to 78 yards. Brandon Spikes made a fourth-quarter interception of Flacco, who played well before that and threw for two touchdowns. And when the Ravens (13-5) were threatening to score a late touchdown to win their first conference title in 11 years, New England clamped down.

"It's two great football teams, two gladiators, I guess, just kind of going at each other at the end, and I'm proud of our guys," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. "You know, we've got 53 guys, mighty men, as we like to call them ? and they fought, and we came up a little bit short, as 53. You know, 53 win and 53 lose."

With Rice a nonfactor, Baltimore had to rely on Flacco, and he delivered one of his best performances. Flacco has led the Ravens into the playoffs in all four of his pro seasons, but not to the Super Bowl. He was 22 for 36 for 306 yards and touchdowns of 6 yards to Dennis Pitta and 29 to rookie Torrey Smith.

The loss hardly could be blamed on Flacco.

Operating against a maligned secondary missing its top cornerback, Kyle Arrington, who left in the second quarter with an eye injury, Flacco gave Baltimore its first lead. His short pass on third down to explosive receiver Smith turned into a 29-yard scamper down the right sideline after Moore completely whiffed on the tackle.

Danny Woodhead's fumble on the ensuing kickoff set up Baltimore at the Patriots 28, but a third-down sack forced Cundiff to kick a 39-yard field goal, making it 20-16.

New England didn't flinch.

Brady took the Patriots 63 yards in 11 plays, and seemed to score on a 1-yard run. The call was overruled by replay, though, and on fourth-down, he dived just high enough over the line for the winning points.

"Those guys fought all year, and just like today, it wasn't always perfect, but they fought to the final gun and we came out on top," Belichick said.

Defense was particularly dominant early on ? New England's 31st-ranked defense. The Patriots held Baltimore to minus-4 yards on its first three first-down runs and forced the Ravens to go three-and-out each time. Meanwhile, the Patriots put together a methodical 13-play, 50-yard drive helped greatly by an illegal contact penalty on Lardarius Webb that negated a tipped interception by Bernard Pollard.

But Brady was sacked for the first time by Paul Kruger and Stephen Gostkowski kicked a 29-yard field goal.

Late in the first quarter, the Ravens changed tactics after Webb did pick off a pass intended for Julian Edelman at the Baltimore 30. Flacco rolled right on first down and threw deep down the sideline to a wide-open Smith. Had the pass not been short, Smith likely would have sprinted into the end zone. Instead, it was a 42-yard gain, not bad at all given Baltimore's previous ineptitude with the ball.

Cundiff's 20-yard field goal momentarily tied it.

Brady, perhaps peeved by his poor throw that Webb picked off, hit two passes for 29 yards on a 75-yard drive to make it 10-3. BenJarvus Green-Ellis rushed for 36 yards on that series, and also drew a personal foul against Webb, who ripped off the running back's helmet on a short rush. Green-Ellis surged into the end zone from the 7, then pointed to the patch on his jersey honoring Myra Kraft, the late wife of Patriots owner Robert Kraft.

Going back to the pass, the Ravens tied it on a 6-yard throw to Pitta ? yes, Baltimore has some dangerous tight ends, too ? that concluded an 80-yard march. Flacco opened the drive with a 20-yard completion to Evans and then Anquan Boldin escaped Arrington's attempted tackle to gain 37 more yards on a reception. Flacco was finding holes in New England's coverage, particularly when he moved out of the pocket.

New England's All-Pro tight end Rob Gronkowski made an error at the end of a 63-yard drive, failing to keep two feet in bounds on a catch. Gostkowski's 35-yard field goal made it 13-10.

Gronkowski left for a while with a left leg problem, but soon returned.

"It's a real credit to the players," Belichick said. "I am real happy they will get to play in this game."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120123/ap_on_sp_fo_ga_su/fbn_afc_championship

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Sunday, January 22, 2012

All Local News Teams Should Use Puppets Instead of Court Sketches [Video]

If you're a local news outlet that's been blocked from entering a courtroom to cover an event live, you have two options. The first is to send in a artist who can sketch the proceedings in a lumpy, boring, pastel blah kinda way. The second? Puppet reenactments. More »


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/ckXotx_Iwv8/all-local-news-teams-should-use-puppets-instead-of-court-sketches

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Video: St. Louis to hold parade for Iraq war vets



>>> something that's made me happy, nine days from now, st. louis will host the nation's first, and so far only, welcome home parade for iraq war veterans. this took off after call of action on facebook. now one month and nearly 3,500 friends later p they will make january 28th , welcome home for heroes from iraq day. congratulations. tell me how this all started.

>> it started, not to correct you, but you said 30 days ago. it hasn't been that long.

>> it hasn't been that long? you were really working your tails off. how many days did it take for you to raise that money, friends?

>> we hit our mark before midnight on january 14th , which is the deadline we set for ourselves. that was the first phase. we have been many phases moving forward for there.

>> how much money were you able to raise? i have here $25,000. what did you raise?

>> that was our first deadline. what did we raise at this point? i haven't had time to check. we got a lot of help from -- it started with the people of st. louis . if anybody asks who our sponsor was, it was people. we got huge help from these folks. anheuser-busch and the mayor.

>> i think it's great that you mentioned anheuser-busch donated $10,000 to the effort. it is surprising, and i think a lot of people would be surprised, that this is the first and only parade planned. what would you like to say to them who cannot make it to the parade?

>> i'd like to say two things. the parade is the rock n roll part. there's an amazing thing happening in st. louis union station , where we will have a group of 100 veteran service organizations. people that help vets. people that understand when they are coming back. we're going to turn it into one grand warehouse to put these folks together and throw some entertainment in there. the parade and everything is one way of saying thanks. the work gets done inside. that's what this is all about.

>> i wish you the best, and all of those people that are working so hard. i know it's going to be a wonderful day. thank you and good luck.

>> thank you.

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/newsnation/46060256/

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Saturday, January 21, 2012

Suspicion grows China was behind hack of U.S. commission (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? Suspicion is growing that operatives in China, rather than India, were behind the hacking of emails of an official commission that monitors relations between the United States and China, U.S. officials said.

News of the hacking of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission surfaced earlier this month when an amateur "hacktivist" group purporting to operate in India published what it said was a memo from an Indian Military Intelligence unit to which extracts from commission emails were attached.

But U.S. officials who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity said the roundabout way the commission's emails were obtained strongly suggests the intrusion originated in China, possibly by amateurs, and not from India's spy service.

A large cache of raw email data from the security breach, reviewed by Reuters, indicates that the principal target of the intruders was not the commission, but instead a Washington-based non-governmental pro-trade group called the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC).

The trade council is headed by William Reinsch, a former top U.S. Commerce Department official who until recently served as the U.S.-China Commission's chairman.

A large proportion of the raw email traffic downloaded by the hackers consists of messages to and from Reinsch at his NFTC email address. Many of the emails were spam, but some related to the work of the commission, which was set up by Congress to take a critical look at a wide range of U.S. dealings with China.

Reinsch told Reuters that the NFTC first became aware in November that large quantities of its message traffic had been hacked. He said that law enforcement authorities, including the FBI, had been quickly notified. The FBI has declined comment.

Reinsch said he could think of "no particular reason" why the Indian government or Indian hackers would be interested in him. By contrast, he and several other U.S. officials said that Chinese hackers, whether amateur or directly affiliated with Chinese government, would have great interest in the U.S.-China Commission's activities, both public and private.

SOFT TARGET

Sources familiar with the hacking and the related investigation said they draw two inferences from the fact that the principal target of the hack appears to have been Reinsch's email account at NFTC.

First, the sources said they found it difficult to believe anyone connected with India would have taken the time or effort to track down Reinsch or his NFTC account, whereas his chairmanship of the U.S.-China Commission made him a potential major target for Chinese hackers.

Secondly, said the sources, the fact that Reinsch's NFTC emails were the principal target suggests that whoever hacked them was hunting for a soft target with poor cyber-security.

That fits a pattern of what is known as a blended attack: sophisticated hackers often plan attacks in multiple stages, targeting the systems of government officials and corporate executives by first breaching less-secure systems of people with whom they regularly communicate.

"It's all about trust relationships and getting inside the trust ecosystems -- whether they be digital ecosystems or interpersonal relationships," said Tom Kellermann, a cyber security expert who has served as a policy advisor to the Obama administration.

"Individuals many times are targeted not just for the network of computers to which they have access, but to the network of individuals to which they have access," said Kellermann, chief technology officer of a company known as AirPatrol Corp.

Pinning down the origin and perpetrator of a particular cyber-intrusion can be very difficult, if not impossible, as hackers frequently take steps to mask their identity or appear that they are from a third country.

One official familiar with the matter said that it was possible that all the hacked email traffic, including messages related to the U.S.-China Commission, originated with the NFTC.

Under this scenario, the reason commission traffic was included in the hacked material was that it consisted of copies of commission messages which were sent to Reinsch at his NFTC email address.

But other officials said it was also still possible some emails were stolen directly from the commission or private email accounts of other commissioners.

A person familiar with details of the incident and related investigation said the hacked emails spanned a six-month period from late March to late October last year. The source said that about 85 percent of the traffic consisted of emails incoming at the NFTC, with the other 15 percent being outgoing messages from NFTC's server.

The source said that there were significant gaps in the hacked traffic, covering both day-long and week-long periods, bolstering the notion the hacking was done by amateurs.

Investigators are still trying to determine if the hacker successfully targeted NFTC's local network or a network which fed messages to a mobile device used by Reinsch.

INDIAN MEMO

The purported Indian intelligence memo implied that the commission emails had somehow been hacked using know-how supplied to the Indian government by mobile phone companies who, as payback, were afforded greater access to the Indian market.

One of the mobile phone manufactures named in the purported memo, Apple, denied giving the Indian government backdoor access to its products. A second, Research in Motion, said the company does not typically comment on rumor or speculation, and a third manufacturer, Nokia, declined to comment.

Indian government officials and agencies declined repeated requests for comment on the alleged government document, although some former Indian officials labeled the memo a fabrication.

Two U.S. officials familiar with the hacking incident said they were puzzled why India would go to the trouble of hacking emails related to the U.S.-China Commission, since its work had little if anything to do with India, and Indian officials and diplomats had never showed much interest in its activities.

By contrast, the commission has been a regular target for what officials describe as persistent attempted hacking intrusions, many through the technique of "phishing," which involves sending bogus but convincing emails which purport to come from insiders but contain malicious code. Investigators strongly suspect these intrusions were launched by people from, or operating on behalf of, China.

A large proportion of the hacked traffic examined by Reuters appeared to be what could be categorized as spam, including summaries of news articles and political fundraising pitches.

Some hacked traffic from the U.S.-China Commission had potentially sensitive implications, however, including messages in which commission personnel discuss matters under deliberation by the organization. These issues included the commission's attitude toward alleged Chinese theft of intellectual property and congressional deliberations about alleged Chinese currency manipulation.

U.S. officials said there was no indication hackers managed to gain access to electronic files related to the commission's most sensitive project - a classified version of its annual public report. Electronic materials related to this project are kept on classified servers, isolated from the Internet, which are operated by agencies other than the commission itself, one official said.

(Additional reporting by Jim Finkle; Editing by Eric Beech and Philip Barbara)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/asia/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120118/wr_nm/us_usa_china_hacking

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Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Game Programming with Google Web Toolkit and HTML5

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Source: www.dzone.com --- Monday, January 02, 2012
GWT does more than make awesome Enterprise Apps, it's a great tool for games too. Learn to write 2D and 3D games using HTML5 and GWT, leverage and port existing game libraries and physics engines, share game code between GWT and Android, publish to the Chrome Web Store, and of course, see demos of really neat GWT games in action. ...

Source: http://feeds.dzone.com/~r/dzone/frontpage/~3/ChFR_b8zb6w/game_programming_with_google_web_toolkit_and_html5.html

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Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Taliban strike deal with Qatar on office there (AP)

KABUL, Afghanistan ? The Afghan Taliban said on Tuesday they have reached a preliminary deal with the Gulf state of Qatar to open a liaison office there in what could be the first step toward peace talks to end more than a decade of war.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said the liaison office will conduct negotiations with the international community. He did not say when it would open.

For the United States and its allies, the idea of a Taliban political office in the Qatari capital Doha has become the central element in efforts to draw the insurgents into peace talks.

"Right now, having a strong presence in Afghanistan, we still want to have a political office for negotiations," said Mujahid. "In this regard, we have started preliminary talks and we have reached a preliminary understanding with relevant sides, including the government of Qatar, to have a political office for negotiations with the international community."

Mujahid's emailed statement also said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan ? the name of Afghanistan under Taliban rule ? , has "requested for the exchange of prisoners from Guantanamo."

He was referring to a Taliban demand that the U.S. military release about five Afghan prisoners believed to be affiliated with the Taliban from the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The Taliban are holding Bowe Bergdahl, a 25-year-old U.S. Army sergeant from Hailey, Idaho, who is the only U.S. soldier held by the insurgents. He was taken prisoner June 30, 2009, in Afghanistan.

A senior U.S. official told The Associated Press last week that Washington plans to continue a series of secret meetings with Taliban representatives in Europe and the Persian Gulf region next year.

The U.S. outreach this year has progressed to the point that there was active discussion on two steps that the Taliban seek as precursors to negotiations, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue.

Trust-building measures under discussion involve setting up a Taliban headquarters office and the release of the Afghan prisoners from Guantanamo.

Last Tuesday, President Hamid Karzai said his government would accept the Taliban establishing a liaison office in Turkey, Qatar or Saudi Arabia for the purpose of holding peace talks.

___

Associated Press writer Slobodan Lekic contributed to this report from Kabul, Afghanistan.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/asia/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120103/ap_on_re_as/as_afghanistan

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UFC 141?s Three Stars: Overeem, Hendricks and Hettes

UFC 141?s Three Stars: Overeem, Hendricks and Hettes

The last card of 2011 started slowly, but became must-watch when the pay-per-view fights started. In the last five bouts, three fighters earned first-round knockouts. Here are our three stars from the eve of the Eve. Tell us yours in the comments or on Facebook.

No. 1 star -- Alistair Overeem: Any question about his lack of competitive opponents was answered with a first-round knockout of former champ Brock Lesnar. Overeem overwhelmed Lesnar from the bell, then used knees to attack where Lesnar was most vulnerable. Next, he'll get to match up with Junior dos Santos in a fight that is nearly guaranteed to end in a knockout.

No. 2 star -- Johny Hendricks: You could practically hear the MMA world groan as the Jon Fitch vs. Johny Hendricks match-up was announced. Fitch's last nine fights went the distance, and Hendricks is a top-notch wrestler. Of course this would be another boring grapplefest. Hendricks proved us all wrong with a 12-second knockout of a man with a tough chin.

No. 3 star -- Jim Hettes: Did you expect Hettes to put on a three-round beatdown of Nam Phan? Me neither. "The Kid" is now 10-0, and ready for a step up in competition. After that display, he has earned it.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFC-141-s-Three-Stars-Overeem-Hendricks-and-He?urn=mma-wp11448

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Monday, January 2, 2012

A Marine in Afghanistan Reflects on Her Country's Problems at Home (Time.com)

As a Marine serving a year-long deployment in Helmand province, Afghanistan, there are so many things that I miss about my home in Jacksonville, N.C.?But I am just one of many service members who will not be spending the holidays with loved ones back home.?For many Marines here, this is their third, fourth or fifth deployment ? others have deployed even more.?We chose to join the military to answer a calling to serve our fellow Americans or to make a difference in the world, despite the sacrifices required to do so.

Being so far from home this holiday season, I look to the United States, and I am saddened, not because times are difficult, but because our nation is too great to suffer so.?Americans have a strength born from overcoming adversity and creating opportunity where there was none before, and the challenges we face today are no different ? if we can come together to serve each other.

(MORE: What to Thank a Vet For: Compassion)

Many people are outraged at the economic condition of the nation, and groups are embroiled in the blame game that?s dividing America.?But rather than trying to find someone to blame ? whether it?s Wall Street, the government or the wealthy ? it?s time to focus on the more important issue of working our way out of the challenges we?re facing.

I?m sure we can all agree that the federal deficit of $15 trillion is far too great, and we should continue to hold our elected officials accountable to find solutions.?But, in the interim, there are serious problems impacting communities across the nation that we can address by working together.

The most troubling problem for me, as a mother, is the plight of child hunger in the United States.?It?s difficult to imagine that a nation as prosperous as America even has a hunger problem. The U.S. Department of Agriculture?s Economic Research Service has found that 14.5% (17.2 million) of U.S. households had a ?limited or uncertain ability? to acquire nutritionally adequate and safe food at some time during 2010.?The majority of these households met this challenge by eating less varied diets or turning to federal food programs or community food pantries where available.?But 6.4 million of these households in 2010 did not have enough money or other resources at times to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways ? that is, without resorting to emergency food supplies, scavenging, stealing or other coping strategies.

(PHOTOS: Marines? Tattoos in Marjah, Afghanistan)

Adequate food is a fundamental necessity, but it?s difficult to obtain without money, which points to another challenge afflicting America:?unemployment and poverty. In early December, the Bureau of Labor Statistics put the unemployment rate at 8.6%, more than 13 million people, of which 5.7 million have been unemployed 27 weeks or more.

Like many problems our nation faces, these may seem insurmountable, but we can each do something small to help our neighbors get back on track. First, I would encourage everyone to buy American products when possible to help American businesses prosper and to promote job growth.

I also encourage people to support local programs, either through donations or by volunteering their time.?For example, you could organize a winter coat drive to collect unwanted coats, like the ones your children have outgrown but are still in good condition. You could also find something you are passionate about, like improving education, and volunteer your support at a school that needs help.?If politics is your passion, run for local elected positions or look for appointed positions where your experience and expertise can benefit others.

As a Marine in Helmand province, I have seen our Marines and sailors do amazing things to rid the area of insurgents and enable Afghan forces to assume responsibility of security, but we are successful because we work together as a team.?Likewise, American history is filled with examples of people coming together to overcome challenges and strengthen our nation.?So this holiday season, instead of pointing fingers and engaging in activities that divide America, perhaps we can begin anew to focus that energy to overcome our challenges through teamwork and dedication. Working together is not a seasonal activity, and neither are the challenges we face.

Franklin is a Gunnery Sergeant in the U.S. Marines stationed at Camp Leatherneck in Helmand province, Afghanistan. The views expressed are her own.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/external/time_rss/rss_time_us/httpideastimecom20111223whywemuststoptheblamegamexidrssnationyahoo/44017805/SIG=12os2ehuo/*http%3A//ideas.time.com/2011/12/23/why-we-must-stop-the-blame-game/?xid=rss-nation-yahoo

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Cross-Canada polar bear dips raise cash for charities

Rather than pledge to shed unwanted pounds or make more money, Al Peterson decided to be realistic, as usual. He opted to start 2012 with a dip in 7 C ocean water.

For the 34th year in a row, the 58-year-old was down at Vancouver's English Bay with his family for one of the oldest polar bear swims in the country.

"Rather than a New Year's resolution, which we don't keep anyway, we just wash off the old and start with the new," Peterson said, standing on wet sand among hordes of participants.

"And wash off that nasty hangover," joked his 23-year-old son Jason, who took his first dip at the turn of the millennium.

The father and son joined more than 2,100 people on Sunday for the annual dip that has spawned sister events across the country since it began 92 years ago. Many raise money for charity or, in Vancouver, food for the food bank.

Thousands more camera-clicking spectators gathered on the balmy 5 C day under a bright sun to watch the spectacle.

No hestitation

When the lifeguard's whistle blew, no one appeared to have cold feet.

Revellers in themed costumes ranging from superheros to reindeer and mermaids splashed into the sea, frolicking in the frigid waves.

"After you lose the feeling in your limbs, it's quite nice," said Tarrin McDonough, 40.

She and her sister Sorrel donned a giant paper mache Jaws costume, their heads peaking out from behind a sharp set of Styrofoam teeth.

Crashing into the cold water on the first day of a new year is a bonding experience, they said. But they don't expect it to be the peak of their 2012.

"No, this is just getting started. We like to start with a bang," Sorrel McDonough said.

It was an unseasonal 4 C in Toronto when the dippers in swim suits ? and some sporting headgear that included Viking-style horns ? took the plunge at Sunnyside Beach at noon Sunday.

Some had done this several times since the first dip in 2006 but others were first-timers attracted by the chance to raise money for Habitat For Humanity or giving in to the urgings of family and friends.

'It was for a good cause and a good way to ring in the new year.'? Jennifer Noddle

Joe McCallion was one of the first timers, who was there at the urging of his daughter.

"It's off the bucket list," a laughing McCallion said after taking the plunge.

"I conquered it. Probably be back next year, too."

For Jennifer Noddle, her first dip was a New Year's Eve decision.

"I saw a preview of it last night [Saturday] and a couple of us went out to the pub last night and just decided we would do it," Noddle said. "It was for a good cause and a good way to ring in the new year."

Organizers were hoping to raise $40,000 for Habitat For Humanity.

Laura McMahon said she was back for a third year to raise money for Habitat.

"It wakes you up after New Year's Eve," she said. "It's a lot of fun. You do it with family, with friends, you see some people year after year it's exciting."

Atlantic chill

Meanwhile, more than 150 people braved brisk winds and frigid water temperatures to plunge into the Atlantic Ocean near Halifax as part of an annual New Year's Day polar bear dip.

People young and old donned bikinis and swimming trunks for a brief-but-bitter dip into the icy waters in Herring Cove at noon Sunday.

Rob MacLellan, organizer of the event and a 14-year participant, says about $5000 was raised for local food bank Feed Nova Scotia.

Firefighters, police and emergency personnel were on hand to oversee the action and sent 20 people at a time to jump off the dock.

MacLellan, 54, compared the experience to being stabbed with needles thousands times.

He said the weather was ideal, with the temperature hovering at about 1 C and the sun peeking through the clouds.

Source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2012/01/01/polar-bear-dips.html?cmp=rss

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Iowa caucuses: Weeding out GOP field (CNN)

Share With Friends: Share on FacebookTweet ThisPost to Google-BuzzSend on GmailPost to Linked-InSubscribe to This Feed | Rss To Twitter | Politics - Top Stories News, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/181754257?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Sunday, January 1, 2012

Mitt Romney Says He Will Veto Dream Act if Elected President

Republican presidential front runner Mitt Romney has said that if he is elected president, he will veto the legislative proposal on the Dream Act.

Replying to a voter's question at Le Mars in Iowa Saturday, Romney said that he didn't endorse certain provisions in the Dream Act that would provide legal status to immigrants who entered the country as children.

He said that he didn't favor undocumented immigrants receiving state tuition credits and other special benefits, just by meeting certain educational criteria mentioned in the bill.

According to the Dream Act, the people who entered the U.S. before they turned 16, lived in the country for consecutive five years and have clean criminal records can get legal residency status. To get citizenship, they should be under 35 years old, should have a GED or graduated from a U.S. high school and attend two years of college or the military in the country.

However, he said he could favor certain provisions of the bill, which authorizes legal status to the immigrants who serve in the military.

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"I'm delighted with the idea that people who come to this country and wish to serve in the military can be given a path to become permanent residents of this country," he said. ?He said that he would take all possible steps to curtail illegal immigration and would protect legal immigration instead.

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Source: http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/274986/20120101/mitt-romney-will-veto-dream-act-elected.htm

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@Theorossi @kateylous the guys were fat golf pussies. The alcoholic Asian hookers they were with were much scarier. sutterink

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