Saturday, December 31, 2011

harrymccracken: Only problem w/using Zagg keyboard with iPad: Time lost explaining it to random strangers who stop by to marvel at it.

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Only problem w/using Zagg keyboard with iPad: Time lost explaining it to random strangers who stop by to marvel at it. harrymccracken

Harry McCracken

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Source: http://twitter.com/harrymccracken/statuses/153217360516485120

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Wynonna Judd to marry for a third time

FILE- In this Sunday, Dec. 11, 2011 file photo, Wynonna Judd waits on the sidelines before singing the national anthem at an NFL football game between the New Orleans Saints and the Tennessee Titans in Nashville, Tenn. Judd is engaged to her boyfriend, the drummer for the country group Highway 101. Judd, 47, and Cactus Moser, 54, got engaged Dec. 24. (AP Photo/Wade Payne, File)

FILE- In this Sunday, Dec. 11, 2011 file photo, Wynonna Judd waits on the sidelines before singing the national anthem at an NFL football game between the New Orleans Saints and the Tennessee Titans in Nashville, Tenn. Judd is engaged to her boyfriend, the drummer for the country group Highway 101. Judd, 47, and Cactus Moser, 54, got engaged Dec. 24. (AP Photo/Wade Payne, File)

(AP) ? Wynonna Judd is celebrating an engagement this holiday season.

Representatives for the 47-year-old country singer say her boyfriend, Cactus Moser, popped the question on Christmas Eve.

They have been dating since 2009.

Moser, 54, is a drummer with the country group Highway 101.

The couple are currently on tour as Wynonna and The Big Noise.

This will be Judd's third marriage. She has two teenage children with her first husband.

News of the engagement was first reported Thursday by the website People.com.

___

Online:

http://www.wynonna.com/

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2011-12-29-People-Wynonna%20Judd/id-64711cea84e54eed89fa8df0ba5c6e0b

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Fearing split, pastors urge GOP candidates to quit (AP)

DES MOINES, Iowa ? Two politically active pastors in Iowa's robust evangelical conservative movement say that an effort is under way to persuade either Rick Santorum or Michele Bachmann to consider quitting the Republican presidential race ahead of next week's caucuses.

The hope is that one would endorse the other to avoid splintering the influence of this influential voting bloc.

The pleas represent a fear among a group of evangelical conservative voters that this year's caucuses could be won by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney or Texas congressman Ron Paul.

Neither Romney nor Paul track as closely to the religious right as Santorum, Bachmann or Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/gop/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111228/ap_on_el_pr/us_iowa_caucuses_pastors

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Vt. reopens last highway destroyed by Irene (AP)

STOCKBRIDGE, Vt. ? After hundreds of thousands of tons of rock were hauled out and tens of thousands of man-hours were spent, Vermont celebrated the completion of the biggest single engineering challenge following the flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Irene.

Just in time for the new year, and four months after the storm hit, Route 107 between Bethel and Stockbridge was reopened Thursday. The state highway, a major east-west thoroughfare, is the last to reopen after being closed by flooding.

The road's reopening was marked with a ceremony at a Stockbridge school, where scores of local residents and state officials tossed fluorescent orange baseball caps into the air.

"It will cut our commute time down, it will lessen our trauma of looking at all the damage and the moonscape," said Stockbridge resident Melissa Thompson, who had to navigate a 70-minute detour to get her son to school and to get to work for the past few months. "We'll probably miss all the flaggers (who) we got to know on the way. It just means so much to us to not have to make that commute every day."

Much remains to be done on Route 107 and across the state, but Vermonters used the reopening as a moment to pause and celebrate. Many people are still struggling to rebuild their homes and their lives. The state is just totaling up the bill, and the Legislature is preparing to deal with a variety of Irene-induced, long-term challenges.

The repair of Route 107 posed one of the biggest tests following the storm that left a dozen towns cut off from the outside world for days, damaged or destroyed more than 500 miles of roads and 200 bridges, killed six and reshaped much of the low-lying countryside.

Irene ripped up Vermont on Aug. 28. The downtowns of communities from Whitingham in southern Vermont to Waterbury, just west of Montpelier, were flooded to levels not seen since the state's epic flood of 1927.

Neale Lunderville, the state's appointed chief recovery officer, said it would be years before many Vermont families are back to what he calls "a new normal."

"If we want to have a robust recovery and one that brings us back to a place where we are stronger, smarter and safer than before Irene, we have to continue to remember what Irene did and what we need to do to recover from that," Lunderville said. "It's going to take a concerted effort and ongoing attention at high levels in order for us to have a really strong recovery."

The stretch of highway between Bethel and Stockbridge is one of the state's major east-west arteries, and sections of the highway were part of the riverbank where the road and the White River pass through a narrow cut in the Green Mountains. Irene's run through Vermont funneled record volumes of water through that narrow pass, where it tore riverbanks to pieces.

"All of a sudden the road ended and then we were looking at river and mud and what used to be huge sheets of asphalt that had shifted into the river," said Maine Army National Guard Capt. Norman Stickney, of Gardiner, who arrived five days after the storm. "It was like something fell from the sky and completely crushed all of the asphalt and scooped it away and dumped it into the river."

In the three-mile section of road that was hardest hit, about 4,000 feet of Route 107 was completely gone, said Vermont Transportation Agency Engineer Eric Foster, who oversaw the rebuilding of the highway. A job that would normally take two years was done in 119 days after the first work crews ? the soldiers from the Maine National Guard and other states ? arrived.

In addition to the guard, it took two contractors, 250,000 tons of rock, at least 20,000 hours of heavy equipment time, 7,500 feet of guardrail, 38 culverts and 46 companies over 16 weeks to repair the highway, according to information provided by the Vermont Transportation Agency.

The biggest challenge was getting the rocks and other fill material to Bethel. A special "rock train" was used to bring fill from distant quarries before it was unloaded a couple of miles from the work site. The train saved an estimated 6,600 truck trips.

In other parts of the state, officials have said some of the repairs done on the fly to get traffic moving again might have to be redone. That's not the case for Route 107.

The roadway was built with layers of different sized rock and the banks sloped to withstand another Irene, said Glenn Cairns, of the Windham, N.H., contractor George Cairns and Sons, which brought its specialized equipment ? excavators and dump trucks that are up to twice the size of those usually found on Vermont highway projects.

It's designed to withstand another "Irene, plus two feet," said Foster.

Both Stickney and Cairn said they were amazed by how grateful Vermonters were despite the challenges they faced.

"Even though these people, their lives were turned upside down, they were friendly," Cairns said. "They really didn't mind sitting in traffic waiting for us ? the hardship that they went through and everybody was just thankful and waved and smiled.

"They went through a lot. I could understand how they could be bitter, `Why isn't my road back together?' But I've got to say the people were just extremely friendly and welcoming."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111230/ap_on_re_us/us_irene_last_highway

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Friday, December 30, 2011

FinalFantasy1026 commented on FinalFantasy1026's post about re: Anonymous Threatens Sony With Robotic Voice On YouTube .

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    Legal Schnauzer: Newt Gingrich Is A Matrimonial Saint Compared to ...


    The political world is aflutter with reports that GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich lied about key elements of his 1980 divorce. But we can show that Gingrich is a paragon of matrimonial virtue compared to a Wall Street titan who has left his ex wife and two daughters on food stamps in Alabama.

    Newt Gingrich might be a scuzzbucket in the spouse department, but he's got a ways to go if he's going to catch Ted Rollins, the CEO of Campus Crest Communities. Rollins' company completed a $380-million Wall Street IPO late last year, based on its projected strength as a developer of student housing near universities across the country.

    Investors probably were attracted by the fact that Rollins belongs to one of America's wealthiest families, the folks behind Orkin Pest Control and other profitable enterprises. Court records show that Rollins owns multiple private jet craft and has engaged in business ventures with his cousin, R. Randall Rollins of Atlanta. Randall Rollins is chairman of Rollins Inc., the parent company for Orkin, and his stock worth in 2005 was estimated at a cool $763.8 million. Gary Rollins, Randall's younger brother and president of Rollins Inc., had a 2005 stock worth of $791 million.

    It seems a safe bet that the overall wealth for both Randall and Gary Rollins has easily topped the $1 billion mark by now. And that gives us some idea of the financial waters in which Ted Rollins swims.

    So why are Sherry Carroll Rollins (Ted's ex wife) and their daughters (Sarah and Emma) on food stamps in Birmingham, where they now live? The answer seems to be this: Ted Rollins came up with schemes in his divorce case that Newt Gingrich could not even imagine.

    To be sure, Gingrich did not behave honorably in his first divorce. And public records show that he has been lying about what transpired in that case. Reports CNN:

    Newt Gingrich claims that it was his first wife, not Gingrich himself, who wanted their divorce in 1980, but court documents obtained by CNN appear to show otherwise.

    The Republican presidential candidate, now in his third marriage, has been peppered with attacks and questions about his divorce from Jackie Gingrich for the past three decades.

    Questions about his past--and what that past tells voters about his personal behavior--have re-emerged as he has returned to the political scene 13 years after he resigned as speaker of the House.

    A new defense that has arisen as Gingrich entered the presidential race this year is the insistence that she, not he, wanted the divorce.

    How should the Gingrich campaign spin these latest revelations, which threaten to sink his bid for the White House? I have a suggestion: Shower the press with details about the Rollins v. Rollins divorce case--it has connections to Gingrich's home state of Georgia; that could be the hook. Newt will look like George Bailey, the famed Jimmy Stewart character from?It's A Wonderful Life, compared to Ted Rollins.How might the Gingrich campaign proceed? Well, it could compile a brief "scorecard of marital sleaze" and show how Newt stacks up against our guy, Ted. Here's how it might look:

    * Jurisdiction--By all accounts that we've seen, the Gingrich divorce case was filed in the proper jurisdiction and never left there. In Rollins v. Rollins, Sherry Rollins filed for divorce in Greenville, S.C.--where the family lived--and the case was litigated there for roughly three years. Infidelity was one of the grounds cited in Ms. Rollins' divorce complaint. When judges in Greenville issued several unfavorable rulings for Ted Rollins, the case mysteriously got shifted to Alabama, contrary to volumes of law saying that can't happen.

    Marital Sleaze Scorecard: Ted Rollins 1, Newt Gingrich 0

    * Housing--Support for a wife and two daughters was an issue during the pendency of the Gingrich case. Jackie Gingrich stated in a court filing that Newt failed to provide sufficient funds for food and utilities. That's bad, but it's nothing compared to Ted Rollins' actions. A South Carolina judge ordered Ted to make sure that Sherry Rollins and the children had "undisturbed possession" of the marital home while the divorce case was pending. Did Ted Rollins follow that order? Nope. A bank kicked Sherry Rollins and the children out of the house when the mortgage went unpaid, and that's when they fled to Alabama, where Sherry Rollins had family.

    Marital Sleaze Scorecard: Ted Rollins 2, Newt Gingrich 0

    * Deadbeat Dad--Documents obtained by CNN indicate that Jackie Gingrich and her children struggled to make ends meet during the 1980 divorce case. But records also show that Newt Gingrich made a relatively modest salary then, so there was not a lot to go around. Ted Rollins, on the other hand, owns multiple private planes and has been involved in a number of apparently successful business ventures. Public records, and interviews with Sherry Rollins, show that Ted Rollins failed to make court-ordered support payments for some 33 months.

    Marital Sleaze Scorecard: Ted Rollins 3, Newt Gingrich 0

    * Court Orders--Documents obtained by CNN show that Newt Gingrich failed to abide by provisions of his final divorce judgment. That's bad, but Ted Rollins made a habit of violating court orders while his divorce case was ongoing. Rollins violated orders regarding shelter, discovery, legal expenses, child support, alimony . . . well, you get the idea.

    Marital Sleaze Scorecard: Ted Rollins 4, Newt Gingrich 0

    * Child-Support Forms--More information on the Gingrich divorce case is likely to surface in the coming days, but for now, we see no sign that Newt Gingrich provided false information in a sworn document. Ted Rollins, on the other hand, signed an Alabama child-support document (called a CS-41), stating that he made roughly $50,000 a year--and his only source of income was from a mortgage company in Brentwood, Tennessee. A guy who flies around in private jets and has family ties to multiple billionaires makes 50 grand a year? Does anyone in his right mind think that document, signed under oath, was truthful and accurate?

    Marital Sleaze Scorecard: Ted Rollins 5, Newt Gingrich 0

    As you can see, Ted Rollins is pitching a shutout on our Official Marital Sleaze Scoreboard (brought to you by Hooters). Gingrich is way behind and appears to have little chance of catching up.

    Our advice to the Newster: Figure out a way to compare yourself to Ted Rollins. Your "family values" will be glowing by comparison. It just might save your presidential campaign.

    Source: http://legalschnauzer.blogspot.com/2011/12/newt-gingrich-is-matrimonial-saint.html

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    TV show on Muslims takes on Sept. 11 attacks (AP)

    NEW YORK ? A television show about members of a Muslim community in Michigan is focusing what may be its second-to-last episode almost entirely on the conflicted feelings that its featured participants have about marking anniversaries of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

    The episode of TLC's "All-American Muslim" airs Sunday (10 p.m. EST). The series attracted attention earlier this month when a conservative Christian group called on advertisers to boycott the series, calling it "propaganda that riskily hides the Islamic agenda's clear and present danger to American liberties and traditional values."

    Two companies, the Lowe's home improvement chain and travel planning website Kayak.com, announced they were pulling ads. TLC hasn't said how many companies responded to the Florida Family Association's call to stop sponsoring the show. The controversy prompted a backlash of people protesting against Lowe's. Some new advertisers have signed on since then, TLC General Manager Amy Winter said Thursday.

    Filming for the reality TV series took place during commemorations for the 10th anniversary of the attacks. Both TLC and the show's characters, Muslims living in and around Dearborn, a suburb of Detroit at the heart of one of the largest Arab-American populations outside the Middle East, wanted to address the topic, Winter said.

    "I'm very proud of it," she said. "What you'll see in there is a community with a range of emotions that they express over what was probably one of the most pivotal moments in our nation's history."

    Mike Jaafar, a deputy sheriff who participated in a Sept. 11 memorial service at Tiger Stadium in Detroit, helped law enforcement prepare for any problems related to the anniversary. He choked up when recalling how police officers in New York City were killed as they tried to rescue people at the World Trade Center.

    "You think about your guys who work for you, going into a building and not coming home," he said.

    Nawal Auode was a high school sophomore on Sept. 11, 2001, when her mother called to say she was picking her up at school. Her mother found out about the attacks as she was passing out flyers to advertise a day care center and a man spit at her and ordered her off his porch.

    "It was the first time I realized that people looked at me as less American," said Suehaila Amen. "As a person who was born and raised in this country, it was very difficult."

    Auode said she dreads the anniversary of the attacks because of a sense that members of her community have to defend themselves for something they had nothing to do with.

    That's at the root of the biggest conflict in Sunday's episode. One woman talks about how important it was to attend a Sept. 11 commemoration, but her adult-age children didn't want to go.

    One man, Bilal Amen, traveled to New York City to visit the Sept. 11 memorial because, he said, "I want to see the place that changed my life."

    Another woman, Nina Bazzy, spoke angrily about the Sept. 11 terrorists and said they weren't real Muslims because "a real Muslim would not do anything like that." She said Osama bin Laden made life difficult for many Muslims in the United States.

    "He ruined it for us," Bazzy said. "He ruined it for our kids. He made us scared in our own homes."

    "All-American Muslim" ends its eight-episode first season on Jan. 8. Its ratings are considered disappointing for TLC, and the attention caused by this month's controversy didn't improve them. Based on ratings alone, a second season would be considered unlikely. Working in its favor is TLC's pride in a series that spotlights communities that many viewers aren't familiar with.

    TLC hasn't made a decision on the show's future and its executives will meet soon to consider it, Winter said.

    ___

    Online:

    http://tlc.discovery.com/

    Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tv/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111229/ap_en_tv/us_tv_muslim_show

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    2 planes make emergency landings at Vt. airport

    A Vermont airport has responded to two emergency landings on one day.

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    A Delta plane carrying about 36 passengers landed safely Wednesday afternoon. No injuries were reported.

    Airport officials say the plane was headed from Detroit to Burlington, Vt., when the pilot reported an unexplained banging noise.

    Earlier in the day a Chicago-bound United Airlines regional jet made an emergency landing at the two-runway Burlington International Airport shortly after takeoff after a report of smoke in the cargo hold. No injuries were reported among the 66 passengers and four crew members.

    United spokesman Rahsaan Johnson says a cockpit indicator light erroneously alerted the flight crew to smoke in the cargo hold. He says passengers flew in a different plane to Chicago and landed safely.

    Delta Air Lines Inc. hasn't commented.

    Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

    Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45806508/ns/travel-news/

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    Thursday, December 29, 2011

    Survey: Home prices down in most major US cities

    In this Dec. 20, 2011 photo, a carpenter works on a roof of a home in Happy Valley, Ore. U.S. home prices fell in most major cities for the second straight month, further evidence that the housing recovery will be bumpy. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

    In this Dec. 20, 2011 photo, a carpenter works on a roof of a home in Happy Valley, Ore. U.S. home prices fell in most major cities for the second straight month, further evidence that the housing recovery will be bumpy. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

    This Dec. 20, 2011 photo, shows a new home for sale in Winter Garden, Fla. U.S. home prices fell in most major cities for the second straight month, further evidence that the housing recovery will be bumpy. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

    (AP) ? U.S. home prices fell in most major cities for the second straight month, further evidence that the housing recovery will be bumpy and weigh on the broader economy in 2012.

    The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index released Tuesday showed prices dropped in October from September in 19 of the 20 cities tracked.

    The decline reflects the typical fall slowdown after the peak buying season. Prices had risen modestly in April through August in at least half of the cities tracked.

    Still, home prices have fallen roughly 32 percent nationwide since the housing bubble burst five years ago and are back to 2003 levels, according to the index.

    Prices are even lower in hard-hit areas, such as Atlanta, Cleveland, Detroit, Phoenix and Las Vegas. Washington, New York, Los Angeles and San Diego have seen the smallest declines.

    Home values remain depressed despite some modest progress in the housing market.

    Residential construction is likely to add to U.S. economic growth in 2011, the first time that has happened in four years. That's mainly because apartments are being built almost twice as fast as two years ago ? reflecting a surge in renting and weaker home sales.

    The Case-Shiller index measures prices for roughly half of all U.S. homes. Prices are compared with those in January 2000 and the index is based on a three-month moving average. The monthly data are not seasonally adjusted.

    Atlanta, Detroit and Minneapolis posted the biggest monthly declines. Prices in Atlanta and Las Vegas fell to their lowest points since the housing crisis began. Prices rose in Phoenix after three straight monthly declines.

    David M. Blitzer, chairman of S&P's index committee, said steep price drops in cities such as Atlanta, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit and Minneapolis were particularly worrisome because their gains earlier this season were so strong.

    "Atlanta and the Midwest are regions that really stand out in terms of recent relative weakness," Blitzer said. "These markets were some of the strongest during the spring/summer buying season."

    Americans are reluctant to purchase a home more than two years after the recession officially ended. High unemployment and weak job growth have deterred many would-be buyers. Even the lowest mortgage rates in history haven't been enough to lift sales.

    Some people can't qualify for loans or meet higher down payment requirements. Many with good credit and stable jobs are holding off because they fear that prices will keep falling.

    Sales of previously occupied homes are barely ahead of 2008's dismal figures ? the worst in 13 years. And sales of new homes this year will likely be the worst since the government began keeping records a half century ago.

    Prices are likely to fall further once banks resume millions of foreclosures. They have been delayed because of a yearlong government investigation into mortgage lending practices.

    Foreclosures and short sales ? when a lender accepts less for a home than what is owed on a mortgage ? are selling at an average discount of 20 percent.

    Associated Press

    Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2011-12-27-Home%20Prices/id-942064cb42c24fcba3e86d7da46e6039

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    Christmas Church Attacks by Islam's Boko Haram in Nigeria (Time.com)

    On the blood-splattered front walls of the blasted church, using wood burned into charcoal from the flames of the explosion, somebody scrawled two messages: "Revolution now" and "No more peace in the country." In the aftermath of the attack by Islamist militants against a Christian sanctuary in Abuja and four other churches in Nigeria, those are the symptoms of a sectarian backlash that Nigerian authorities are most alarmed about.

    At least 32 people were killed as they poured out of the packed Christmas-morning Mass in St. Theresa Catholic Church near Abuja, the capital, Interior Minister Abba Moro told TIME. Four other bombs elsewhere in the country took at least three lives. Boko Haram, a group whose aim is to impose a strict interpretation of Islamic Shari'a on Africa's most populous country, took credit for the attacks. One-third of Nigerian states already live under Shari'a. (See TIME's photo-essay "Bombing in Nigeria.")

    Authorities are now battling to keep a lid on the bubbling threat of a sectarian civil conflict that would pitch one half of Nigeria's population of 155 million against the other. "The fact that Christian facilities were bombed was intended primarily to provoke Christians into attacking Muslims," Moro told TIME. "We have appealed to our Christian brothers for them not to do so." But two days after the bombing, the area around St. Theresa remained tense as angry young men loitered just beyond military cars patrolling the area. "If the government cannot protect us, we will take revenge by ourselves," said Josiah Agbo, 18, whose mother was killed in the blast. He left only after a priest from St. Theresa took to the streets urging Christians not to attack Muslims. In a country where religious leaders wield enormous power, Muslim counterparts in the powerful Sokoto and Kano caliphates -- the country's historic Islamic communities -- denounced the bombings.

    "The people lying in hospitals after the Christmas bombs were ... Muslim and Christian," Moro said. "Boko Haram aren't aliens from another planet. People know who they are. We want to draw members of the public into sharing that information to prevent future attacks." He said two arrests in connection with the Christmas bombings were made because of just such collaboration.

    But there have been almost 500 deaths in near daily bomb blasts and shoot-outs in the predominantly Muslim northeast in 2011 alone. And Boko Haram (a name that means "non-Islamic education is sacrilege" in the northern Hausa language) at times seems perilously close to plunging the country into chaos. "The Islamic militants want Nigeria to be an Islamic republic like Iran, but we may end up becoming a Sudan or Somalia if the violence continues at this pace and scale," says activist Shehu Sani, who heads the Civil Rights Congress of Nigeria and led attempts to mediate a cease-fire with the group. "It all depends on the ability of the leadership to handle the crisis."

    A diplomat who requested anonymity told TIME that Boko Haram has splintered into different factions that are prepared to use varying degrees of force. A December report by the U.S. Congress said Boko Haram has morphed from homegrown criminals into worldly terrorists with the capability of forging international links. Boko Haram spokespeople have claimed that its members have traveled as far east as Somalia, where al-Shabab militants have shared financing and techniques. In December, a serving Senator from Boko Haram's home of Borno State was charged with financing the organization. He denied the charges and has been released on bail. (See "Hell on Christmas Day: Nigeria's Deadly Bombings.")

    Countries such as the U.S., France and the U.K. are stepping up assistance to Nigeria in areas like explosives forensics and intelligence gathering, a Nigerian military spokesperson says. "How does one keep one step ahead of not just one but all these groups? That is what we in Nigeria, just like in developed nations, need to work out," the spokesperson adds.

    "Some people see Boko Haram as the right irritant to sting the government into action over poverty and corruption," says Sani, the activist. For some, however, the response from Nigeria's ruling elite has often seemed lackluster. "Still not a single [senior] government has visited," Agbo said at St. Theresa. "It's always the same. They are too busy with themselves to bother with us." Some of the Boko Haram mayhem can be traced back to the government. Its attempts to crush the group in 2009 led to the killing of Boko Haram's then leader and 900 other deaths in sectarian riots. The move may have further radicalized the organization, pushing its leadership underground and into neighboring countries. Meanwhile, the Muslim elite is grumbling over the ascendancy of President Goodluck Jonathan -- a southern Christian. His succession to the office violated an unwritten agreement that the highest office should rotate between north and south every two terms. A former university lecturer, Jonathan was dubbed the Accidental President by the local press after he succeeded Umaru Yar'Adua, a Muslim, who died in 2010 midway through his first term. The following year, Jonathan ran successfully for office.

    See TIME's Pictures of the Week.

    See TIME's 2011 Person of the Year: The Protester.

    View this article on Time.com

    Most Popular on Time.com:

    Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/religion/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/time/20111227/wl_time/08599210316300

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    Alltop_Photo: Sony leaves LCD joint venture to Samsung http://t.co/3gWCSmSM Photography.alltop

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    Gun Laws in California

    Caution: This summary is meant for general purposes only. Firearm laws frequently change and the following answers may not reflect changes in the laws.

    State Requirements

    Rifles and Shotguns
    • Permit to purchase rifles and shotguns? No
    • Registration of rifles and shotguns? No
    • Licensing of owners of rifles and shotguns? No
    • Permit to carry rifles and shotguns? No

    Handguns

    • Permit to purchase handgun? No*
    • Registration of handguns? Yes*
    • Licensing of owners of handguns? No
    • Permit to carry handguns? Yes (If concealed)

    * Police record all purchases from dealers.
    * Residents moving into California have 60 days to register their handguns.

    Purchase

    All firearms sales including private and gun show sales, transfers or loans, must go through a California licensed firearms dealer. An application for sale or transfer must be made with a licensed California gun dealer before any firearm may be sold or transferred.

    The purchaser must present the dealer with a valid California Driver's License or a California I.D. Card and supply their thumbprint. The purchaser of a handgun must also provide additional proof of California residence. The dealer sends a copy of the application to the Ca. Dept. of Justice and the local police chief.

    The CA DOJ will conduct a background check on each buyer at a fee. There is a 10-day waiting period before delivery of any firearm. Dealers must keep a register of all firearm transfers.

    Possession of the firearm from the dealer must be done within 30 days or the entire purchase process must be repeated.

    The waiting period and dealer application do not apply to:

    • Transfers to police officers
    • Other gun dealers.
    • Manufacturers or importers.
    • Antique firearms, and rifles and shotguns which are classified as curios or relics by the federal government.
    • Infrequent gifts or transfers to one's "immediate family," an infrequent temporary loan not to exceed 30 days to a person who is not prohibited from possessing a firearm.
    • A transfer of a rifle or shotgun at auctions by nonprofit or public benefit corporations.

    No person shall make an application to purchase more than one pistol, revolver, or other firearm capable of being concealed upon the person within a 30-day period and no delivery shall be made to any person who has made an application to purchase more than one pistol, revolver, or other firearm capable of being concealed upon the person within any 30-day period. No person shall purchase or transfer a handgun to someone without a Handgun Safety Certificate (HRC).

    To receive a handgun safety certificate, a person must pass a written test that includes but is not limited to laws applicable to the ownership, use, handling, and carrying of firearms, particularly handguns.

    A CA DOJ certified instructor must administer the Handgun Safety Certificate test.

    The HRC is valid for five years.

    To receive a handgun from a dealer, a person must have or buy an approved firearms safety device. A list of firearms safety devices certified for sale can be found at California Department of Justice, Firearms Division.

    Possession:

    • It is unlawful for anyone convicted of a felony, or who is a drug addict, present or former mental patient, ever committed for mental observation, or acquitted by reason of insanity to own or possess any firearm.
    • People with certain misdemeanor convictions involving force or violence may not possess or own any firearm within 10 years of the conviction.
    • A person who has been adjudicated as a juvenile offender or delinquent for any offense which would be classified as a felony or misdemeanor involving force or violence if committed by an adult may not own or possess any firearm until age 30.
    • A minor may not possess a handgun except with written permission or under the supervision of a parent or guardian.
    • A minor under 16 may not possess a handgun, unless they are accompanied by their parent or guardian while participating in a legal recreation activity involving firearms or has written permission to participate in such activities.
    • A minor under 16 may not possess live ammunition except with the written permission or under the supervision of a parent or guardian, or while going to or from an organized lawful recreational or competitive shooting activity or lawful hunting activity.

    Carrying And Transportation In Vehicles:


    It is unlawful to carry a loaded rifle, shotgun, or handgun in any public place or on any public street in an incorporated area or an area where firing a firearm is prohibited.

    Exceptions include:

    • Persons shooting on target ranges, or while hunting on the premises of a shooting club.
    • A person who reasonably believes that he or his property is in immediate danger and the weapon must be carried for "preservation."
    • A person "engaged in the act of making or attempting lawful arrest."
    • A person carrying a firearm while at home or at his place of business, including temporary residences and campsites.
    Carrying a handgun concealed is prohibited without a license. The law states "Firearms carried openly in belt holsters are not concealed within the meaning of this section."

    Carrying a handgun concealed within a vehicle is prohibited without a license. A handgun carried in a glove compartment or under the seat of a vehicle is considered to be concealed. A handgun placed in the trunk of an automobile, or locked in a container in the vehicle other than the utility or glove compartment or while in a locked container carried directly to or from a vehicle is deemed not to be "concealed." A locked container means a fully enclosed secure container locked by a key lock or similar locking device.

    Exceptions to this prohibition are:

    • Members of clubs organized for practice shooting while on any established target range or going to and from such range.
    • Licensed hunters and fishermen while engaged in hunting or fishing and while going to or from such hunting or fishing expeditions and members of an antique or historical collector's club while at a show, or while going to and from a display as long as the weapons are locked in a trunk or are in a locked container.

    More Information

    The California gun laws are complex and can not be fully explained within this section. For detailed information and clarifications of the current gun laws visit, NRAILA and the California Department of Justice, Firearms Division.

    Source: http://crime.about.com/od/gunlawsbystate/p/gunlaws_ca.htm

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    Wednesday, December 28, 2011

    Authentic NFL jerseys, cheap authentic nfl jerseys from china


    Benefits

    • okay Create lasting relationships with other like minded women.
    • okay Blogging, let your voice be heard!
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    Source: http://fabulously40.com/blog/id/authentic-nfl-jerseys-cheap-authentic-nfl-jerseys-from-china-22139

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    iPad Post Christmas Sales Are In Full Swing

    An IBM Benchmark report found that the sales from the mobile devices on December 25th of this year accounted for 14.4 per cent of the total online sales, up from 5.3 per cent on Christmas Day 2010 ? an increase of 172.0 per cent.

    An iPad has been accounted for 7% of the online sales on Christmas day. It means that just after the 18 months of release of the tablet computer the 7% were from an iPad from all the purchases made online on Christmas Day this year. The iPhone have been accounted for 6.4 per cent of all the online sales.

    Meanwhile at the third place was an Android having a 5 per cent share of the spoils.

    Mr John Squire, the chief strategy officer for IBM?s Smarter Commerce unit has said that, ?The iPad wasn?t even around two years ago and now it?s the leading mobile device for purchases. Android came out from nowhere last year, and now it is in third place?.

    Mr Squire also said that, ?It shows us that retailers are doing a great job in providing deals or promotions. Consumers are outlooking for value?.

    IBM also noticed that 18.3 per cent of all the online sessions on a retailer?s site were initiated from a mobile device on this Christmas, which is up from the 8.4 per cent on Christmas Day in 2010 ? an increase of 117.8 per cent.

    Source: iPad News ? iPad Post Christmas Sales Are In Full Swing

    Related Posts:

    Source: http://www.i-padnews.com/ipad-post-christmas-sales-are-in-full-swing.html

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    Arsenal blows opportunity

    [unable to retrieve full-text content]Arsenal's flailing title hopes in the Premier League received a setback when it was held 1-1 at home by struggling Wolverhampton Wanderers on Tuesday.

    Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/45797049/ns/sports-soccer/

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    Titleist Vokey SM4 Spin Milled Wedge Help Golf Celebrities Win the Game

    Titleist has launched their newestTitleist Vokey SM4 Spin Milled Wedge, which aimed at renewing some of the spin lost following the change of groove regulations. The new Vokey wedge, called the SM4 because it is the 4th generation of Spin Milled wedge, features a new configuration with 17 grooves on the face with each one precisely milled right to the edge of the R&A's legal limit. I have never seen the wedge until I watch the game of Australia Open. So I decide to go to the online golf shop to buy one. After several rounds of hitting, I like it very much.

    Titleist Vokey SM4 Spin Milled Wedge is so popular with players on International Tour since it has released by Bob. All Bob Vokey purpose of creating this golf clubs is study, create, and design wedges for players from the amateur 20 handicap to the elite touring pros. Tour players are usually pretty particular about their wedges as they are their scoring clubs and players such as Rory, Rickie, Scott Stallings and Brendan who have won the game by changing into the new SM4's right away. The touring pros play his wedges because they work the best.

    The New Titleist Vokey SM4 Spin Milled Wedge has several advantages from models past. Bob spent a lot of time working on the SM4 wedges and through his new design, has been able to increase the spin over the SM3 by about 1000 to 1200rpms. He has also developed a new treatment for the grooves that help keep the grooves last longer and stay sharp. SM4 grooves allow for the Maximum conforming spin through tour proven extreme grooves that are totally inspected, maintain tight tolerance, and have the most aggressive groove edge at the limits allowed by the Rules of Golf.

    The Titleist Vokey SM4 Spin Milled Wedge features grooves in order to allow for superior full shot control. Durability is always a key factor when selecting a wedge, and all SM4 Spin Milled wedges receive a localized heat treatment in the impact area that preserves the precise milled grooves and micro edges. Lastly, the SM4 Spin Milled wedges come in more loft, bounce and sole grinds than ever before. Go and get Vokey at online golf shop- you won't be regret to have this wedge in the golf greens.

    Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/golf-articles/titleist-vokey-sm4-spin-milled-wedge-help-golf-celebrities-win-the-game-5517587.html

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    President & Mrs. Obama Thank Troops, Encourage Spirit of Giving in Holiday Address


    President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama offered a special tribute to those who serve our nation and the families who support them unconditionally, while encouraging all Americans to give in their own way in his weekly address.

    "Giving of ourselves; service to others – that’s what this season is all about. For my family and millions of Americans, that’s what Christmas is all about," he said.

    "It reminds us that part of what it means to love God is to love one another ... to be our brother’s keeper and our sister’s keeper. But that belief is not just at the center of our Christian faith, it’s shared by Americans of all faiths and backgrounds."

    "So whatever you believe, wherever you’re from, let’s remember the spirit of service that connects us all this season – as Americans. Each of us can do our part to serve our communities and our country, not just today, but every day."

    Here's Barack and Michelle's address to the nation:

    Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2011/12/president-and-mrs-obama-thank-troops-encourage-giving-in-christm/

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    Tuesday, December 27, 2011

    Ford Explorer Fuel Gauge Doesn't Work

    Questions and Answers

    Ford Explorer Fuel Gauge Doesn't Work

    Q. Hi: I have a 1993 Ford Explorer with 160,000 miles. Recently I had to replace the gas tank because of rust around the inlet. The new one was installed, and the gas gauge quit working. The shop checked the sending unit and it was fine, they said the gauge was bad and replaced it, still the same problem. we have checked the gauge, the ground, continuity from sending unit to gauge and still nothing. Have you ever run into this problem?

    Thanks,
    Bill

    Ford Explorer Fuel Gauge Doesn't Work

    A. The fuel gauge and fuel sending unit are very easy to test and in about 15 minutes you will know exactly what's wrong.

    First thing you need to do is check all the fuses and make sure you are getting power to the gauge. Then check the black/yellow wire at the fuel tank connector and make sure you have a good ground.

    If power and ground are good, then ground the yellow/white wire at the fuel tank connector. If the fuel gauge goes all the way to FULL, you have a bad sending unit. If it stays at Empty, you have a bad gauge or an open in the yellow/white wire.

    Ford has a special tester for the Anti-Slosh module. But if you replaced the fuel level sending unit and fuel gauge, and assuming the wiring is indeed good, then it's a pretty good bet the Anti-Slosh module is bad.

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    Source: http://autorepair.about.com/library/faqs/bl664g.htm

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    Katnip Lounge: PSA for pets!

    Kitties!

    ?It's The Daddy, with a GREAT announcement concerning lost pets.

    I was working last Saturday morning when the phone rang--I answered and got a computer generated message--and I almost hung up, thinking it was a telemarketer. But just as I was about to press END...I heard "PET AMBER ALERT...PET AMBER ALERT!" ?So I listened and found out a Border Collie Woofie named BRINKS was lost in our neighborhood!

    (To our foreign readers, an "Amber Alert" is a PSA that goes out for missing children.)

    The message was detailed and informative, told me ALL about BRINKS, and a number to call if he was found/seen. ?I wrote the number down and called to find out more about BRINKS, like what part of our neighborhood was he last seen? ?And guess what? ?When I called I got BRINKS? dad on the phone, and BRINKS was already home! ?Somebody else had seen BRINKS after getting the same phone call and got him to come to them.

    Apparently,?PETAMBERALERT.COM?is AWESOME. ?It's available in the US and Canada. ? BRINKS? dad found the site, signed up, and it automatically faxed and emailed ALL the surrounding VETS and SHELTERS.

    Then, if that wasn?t good enough--it calls EVERYBODY [like me] within a THREE MILE radius, BRINKS lived two miles away from us!

    (BRINKS didn?t even live in our 'hood, thank Cod...we don?t need any woofies here, and you know what happens to strays that show up at our door.)

    It does cost money to use--but they're worth it, right?

    Pets are priceless!

    Happy Monday!

    XX ?The Daddy ?XX

    pee ess: ?In case you're wondering, yes, Daddy talks in caps, too! ?He's crazypants!

    Source: http://katniplounge.blogspot.com/2011/12/psa-for-pets.html

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    The perfect little extra Christmas present, Revitalising hot coconut oil treatment for sclap and hair, Foot Detox, Hair Cut, Blow dry and finish for Short or Medium length hair.Plus a $25 Gift voucher towards colour Only $59.

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    Analysis: Russia's Putin risks losing touch amid protests (Reuters)

    MOSCOW (Reuters) ? Vladimir Putin is looking increasingly out of touch in Russia after the opposition brought tens of thousands of people out onto the streets of Moscow for the second time in two weeks to demand a parliamentary election be re-run.

    But the looming New Year holiday in Russia means there is likely to be a pause in the biggest opposition protests since he rose to power 12 years ago and he will hope they will now at least temporarily lose momentum.

    The protesters say they are tired of his domination of Russia after eight years as president and now four as prime minister, and suspect the December 4 election, won by his United Russia party, was rigged.

    First Putin dismissed the protesters as chattering monkeys financed from abroad, then he backed President Dmitry Medvedev's proposal for gradual political reform and later the 59-year-old leader had a former KGB spy appointed as Kremlin chief of staff.

    The gulf between Putin and many of his people has convinced many that he has lost his popular touch and is refusing to take the protests as seriously as many of his closest allies do as he prepares to reclaim the presidency in an election in March.

    "They do not understand," one person close to policy makers said of Putin and Medvedev. "One is weak and the other does not want to listen, though people have tried to explain the seriousness of the situation."

    That could bode badly for the long-term stability of the world's biggest country and energy producer.

    Opponents say Putin's inner circle is a small group of former KGB spies, businessmen and Kremlin officials who have little empathy with the Internet-savvy generation of younger, urban Russians who have come out onto the streets this month.

    But Putin's portrayal of the protesters as pawns financed by a foreign power has also contrasted with the conclusions drawn by some of the other men at his court.

    Kremlin deputy chief of staff Vladislav Surkov, who helped Putin craft his tightly controlled political system, warned on Friday that some enemies wanted to provoke a revolution but that the protesters were among the best people in society.

    PUTIN'S COURT

    "The best part of our society, or rather the most productive part, is demanding respect," Surkov, one of Putin's most powerful advisers on domestic policy, told Izvestia. "You cannot simply swipe away their opinions in an arrogant way."

    An even closer Putin ally, former Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin, joined Saturday's protest in Moscow, warning that Russia needed much more serious political reforms to ensure a stable development.

    "I came today because I do not believe the elections were fair and I believe we need to hold an investigation and punish those responsible up to and including criminal responsibility," Kudrin, 51, told Reuters at the protest.

    "There is a possibility today, without any sort of revolution, to make a transformation to ensure fair elections and real representation in parliament," said Kudrin, who helped Putin get his first job in the Kremlin in 1996.

    But Putin has other powerful advisers too.

    Nikolai Patrushev, the powerful head of the Russian security council and former head of the FSB state security service, said this month that Russia should impose "rational regulation" of the Internet.

    Another former KGB spy, Sergei Ivanov, was appointed Kremlin chief of staff on Thursday and Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin, a Putin ally, has voiced concern about the role played by the Internet in the Arab Spring revolts.

    Patrushev, 60, Ivanov, 58, and Sechin, 51, are all old friends of Putin and though they may be divided by tactics and court politics, they are ultimately hardliners.

    Medvedev, Russia's 46-year-old iPad-carrying president, may have more sense of the anger against Putin but he is weak, sources close to the situation said.

    "Medvedev understands this all a little better because he is a person less prone to conspiratorial theories," said a source with close ties to the leadership, adding that Russia's leaders were hoping the protests would burn themselves out.

    "Putin has realized his popularity is declining," the source said.

    PUTIN'S POPULARITY

    For Putin, who has used his popularity to justify his plan to run for the presidency in the March 4 presidential election, that may be a hard thing to accept.

    Putin still remains Russia's most popular politician and though his ratings are high by Western standards, they are low according to Putin's own expectations.

    Russia's biggest independent pollster, Levada-Center, said 63 percent of Russians approved of his activities as prime minister in a poll carried out on Dec 16-20.

    But that is just three percentage points above the lowest level since August 2000, when he was dogged by the botched reaction to a naval disaster that killed all 118 crewmen aboard the submarine Kursk.

    "They are worrying and they are nervous," said Mikhail Kasyanov, who served as prime minister under Putin for four years before joining the opposition. "And they really do have something to be worried and nervous about."

    CHATTERING MONKEYS?

    Putin seems intent on riding out the protests. While tens of thousands turned out for the second time on two weeks on Saturday, he is likely to take comfort from the fact that there was not a huge increase in the numbers.

    Tens of thousands protested in cities across Russia on December 10. On Saturday, organizers said they had gathered 120,000 in Moscow though the police put the number at 30,000.

    The truth may lie somewhere in between: Russia's Navaya Gazeta opposition newspaper said its reporters counted more than 102,000 while estimates from state news agency RIA put the crowd at about 56,000.

    Putin appears to reason that even though the protests are much larger than any he has faced before, it is still a relatively small percentage of the population that is protesting in a country of more than 140 million.

    He is counting on the support of the many millions in the provinces who regard him as the man who restored order to Russia after the chaos of the decade that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

    In a televised question and answer session with the Russian people, Putin used a reference to the chattering monkeys known as "Bandar Log" in Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book to describe the protesters and said he thought the white ribbons which are the symbol of the election protests were condoms.

    But Alexei Navalny, the most prominent leader of the divided opposition groups which refuse to negotiate with the Kremlin, turned Putin's comments back against the authorities.

    "Hi all of you Bandar Logs and Internet hamsters: You were called Bandar Log but you came here today. But where is the chap who called us that?" Navalny, 35, told tens of thousands of people at the protest in Moscow's Sakharov Avenue.

    Navalny's satire may excite the crowds and the thousands who read his blogs but there is still no leader of the fragmented opposition. As if to illustrate that, dozens of different leaders addressed the crowd in Moscow.

    United or not, Navalny warned that there were enough people at the protest to take the Kremlin by force, though he quickly added that this was not the plan.

    "If the authorities continue to cheat the people and thieves and if those two swindlers continue the usurpation of power - they have stolen it from the people - then the people will come and take it back because it is theirs by rights," he told Reuters.

    So does he plan a revolution?

    "It is not a revolution," he said. "The revolution, the illegal takeover of power, was implemented by Putin and Medvedev. Here there will be a legal return of power to the people."

    (Editing by Jon Hemming)

    Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111226/wl_nm/us_russia_putin

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    Monday, December 26, 2011

    Packers beat Bears 35-21, clinch No. 1 seed (AP)

    GREEN BAY, Wis. ? With the first five-touchdown game of his NFL career, Aaron Rodgers ensured that the Green Bay Packers' playoff road will go through Lambeau Field.

    He also made sure the rival Chicago Bears will be spending the playoffs at home.

    Rodgers broke a close game wide open by leading three quick scoring drives in the second half, and the Packers beat the Bears 35-21 on Sunday night.

    Rodgers noted that he once threw six touchdowns in junior college ? also in a rivalry game ? but acknowledged this one was a little bit bigger.

    "Yeah, this one's pretty special," Rodgers said.

    With the win, the Packers (14-1) nailed down the No. 1 seed in the NFC and claimed another round of bragging rights in the NFL's most storied rivalry by knocking the Bears out of the playoff chase.

    "We wanted the path to go through Lambeau," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said.

    Rodgers threw a pair of touchdown passes to Jordy Nelson, another two to James Jones, and found tight end Jermichael Finley for a score. Rodgers was 21 of 29 for 283 yards and five touchdowns with no interceptions when backup Matt Flynn took over for Rodgers with 7:54 left in the game.

    Rodgers surpassed Lynn Dickey's single-season franchise record of 4,458 yards passing with one game left, although it's unclear how much Rodgers will play in the Packers' finale against Detroit.

    The loss eliminated the Bears (7-8) from playoff contention and put the Atlanta Falcons in the playoffs.

    Third-string running back Kahlil Bell rushed for 121 yards for the Bears, who trailed by only four early in the third quarter. But Rodgers drove the Packers for touchdowns on their next three possessions to put the game out of reach.

    "When you play the Super Bowl champions, you have to be on top of your game," Bears coach Lovie Smith said. "Offensively, we did enough things to keep us in the game and have a chance to win the game at the end. But defensively we just didn't have it."

    McCarthy said the team's run defense will be examined after the big performance by Bell, but added that the final score told the story.

    "We won big," McCarthy said. "That's the bottom line."

    Chicago came into Sunday on a four-game losing streak and beset by injuries. But the Bears were able to stay in the game with solid defense and tough running by Bell, who started because of injuries to Matt Forte and Marion Barber.

    Rodgers' second-half fireworks proved to be too much for Chicago.

    "Thirty-five points on that defense, that's a good night," McCarthy said.

    The victory was the Packers' fourth over the Bears in 2011. Green Bay also beat Chicago in the 2010 regular-season finale, the NFC Championship game, and at Soldier Field on Sept. 25.

    With the Bears trailing 14-3 at halftime, quarterback Josh McCown found Earl Bennett wide open for a 49-yard gain to set up first-and-goal on the 1. Bell fumbled just short of the goal line on the next play but offensive lineman Edwin Williams recovered the ball for a touchdown.

    With the Packers nursing a four-point lead, and the Lambeau Field crowd nervously quiet early in the third quarter, Rodgers answered by dropping deep and throwing a rainbow pass to Nelson, who blew through the Chicago secondary and hauled in the ball for a 55-yard touchdown.

    Rodgers then showed his running ability on the Packers' next possession, juking his way between Bears linebackers Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs on a scramble. Rodgers finished the drive with a 7-yard touchdown toss to Jones, giving the Packers a commanding 28-10 lead.

    Packers safety Charlie Peprah came up with an interception, and Rodgers found Nelson for another score to give Green Bay a 35-10 lead.

    "It just hasn't gone the way we wanted to," Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher said. "If we play like this, that's what's going to happen. The last five weeks, we haven't played well enough to win, and we've lost all five games. We're not real happy where we're at. Our coaches aren't happy, but that's what we get."

    McCown finally answered with a 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kellen Davis ? then drew the ire of the Lambeau crowd by scrambling for a two-point conversion and spiking the ball over the goalpost with his team trailing 35-18.

    Rodgers' offensive feats came behind a patchwork offensive line, as the Packers were without three of their top four tackles.

    Chad Clifton returned to practice this week after sitting out since October because of hamstring and back injuries, but isn't ready to play. Bryan Bulaga was inactive Sunday because of a left knee sprain, and backup Derek Sherrod is out for the season with a broken right leg.

    Green Bay also was missing wide receiver Greg Jennings, because of a sprained left knee, and defensive lineman Ryan Pickett because of a concussion.

    The Bears have lost five straight games since losing quarterback Jay Cutler to a broken right thumb in a Nov. 20 victory over San Diego. Chicago was 7-3 after that win, but came into Sunday's game barely alive in the playoff chase.

    The Bears started McCown on Sunday after backup Caleb Hanie struggled to fill in for Cutler. McCown's most recent start came with the Oakland Raiders in 2007, and he was out of the NFL last season.

    "It's a tough assignment, but you've got to find a way to pull it off," McCown said.

    To make matters worse for the Bears' offense, Barber was inactive because of a calf injury. Chicago already was without Forte, who missed his third straight game because of a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee.

    Notes: Sunday's attendance was 70,574, the team's 300th consecutive sellout, including the playoffs. ... Bears offensive lineman Lance Louis left the game in the first half because of an illness. ... Packers RB James Starks bruised an ankle.

    Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111226/ap_on_sp_fo_ga_su/fbn_bears_packers

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