U.S. Android users use smartphones more in the bathroom, survey shows

Android's No. 1, apparently, when it comes to No. 1 and No. 2. That's right, a survey of 1,000 Americans by marketing agency 11mark has found that Android users are more likely to pick up their phone while in the loo, to the tune of 87 percent. That's three percentage points higher than our BlackBerry brethren, and 10 percentage points higher than iPhone users.

But it's BlackBerry users who are more likely to do business while doing their business, with 75 percent of them taking a call while answering the call. Us Android folk do so 67 percent of the time, and iPhone users take calls 60 percent of the time.

You can check out the full report at the link below. Bonus points if you do so from your phone on the throne.

Download: IT in the Toilet

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/ioVzdMV2yXc/story01.htm

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Yemen: US airstrikes kill 15 suspected al-Qaida militants

By NBC News and msnbc.com news services

Updated at 6:15 a.m. ET: U.S. airstrikes targeting leaders from Yemen's active al-Qaida branch killed 15 suspected militants, Yemeni officials said on Tuesday.

Yemeni security and military officials said missiles struck a school and a car in Abyan province in an area between Lauder and Mood where the militants were believed to be hiding.

NBC News also reported Tuesday that members of a Yemeni tribe had kidnapped six United Nations aid workers. They were demanding money and the release of one of their members from jail.

---

According to NBC, the U.N. aid workers include a German, French, Colombian, Iraqi and Lebanese.

A Western official in Washington confirmed the U.S. carried out a strike against suspected leaders from al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, but said initial indications were that five people were killed. The official did not say where the strike occurred or specify whether it was carried out by a drone or a warplane.

All the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to release the information.

Also Tuesday, Yemen's information minister, Ali al-Amrani, escaped an assassination attempt in the capital Sanaa, an aide said.

Unidentified assailants opened fire on the minister's car after the weekly cabinet meeting and then fled, Amrani's secretary, Abdel-Basset al-Qaedi, said.

The minister was not hurt, he said.

Updated at 2:33 a.m. ET: At least 11 people, including several alleged local?al-Qaida leaders, were killed in an overnight airstrike in southern Yemen, local residents said Tuesday.

They said an unidentified drone attacked two vehicles east of the city of Lauder in Abyan province in southern Yemen.

A tribal leader said at least four of those killed were local al-Qaida leaders. Residents said no civilians were hurt in the airstrike.

The United States has used drones repeatedly to attack al-Qaida militants in Yemen. Last September, a U.S. drone killed U.S.-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, described by U.S. officials as "chief of external operations" for al-Qaida in Yemen.

Al-Qaida has exploited unrest and protests against President Ali Abdullah Saleh to strengthen its hold on remote areas in southern Yemen in recent months.

An opposition-led government has been set up in Yemen after Saleh agreed in November to transfer authority to his deputy ahead of presidential elections in February.

But protests have continued and activists are pressing on with demands that Saleh be tried for alleged killings of demonstrators and that the government is purged of members of his family.

More from msnbc.com and NBC News:

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/31/10275742-yemen-us-airstrikes-kill-15-suspected-al-qaida-militants

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Prosecutors plan retrial in Katrina shootings cover-up case (Reuters)

NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) ? Federal prosecutors plan to seek a retrial for a retired New Orleans police detective accused of conspiring to cover up wrongdoing in police killings in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, a spokeswoman said on Saturday.

A federal judge declared a mistrial on Friday in the case of Gerard Dugue, who was accused of obstructing justice, lying to the FBI and of civil rights violations by writing false police reports about the 2005 shooting.

"The government intends to retry Gerard Dugue," said Anna Christman, a spokeswoman U.S. Attorney Jim Letten. She declined to comment on the mistrial.

Police shot dead two unarmed civilians in the incident on the Danziger Bridge as much of New Orleans remained under water from flooding in the chaotic days following the hurricane.

Dugue was not directly involved in the shootings but took up the investigation a few months later.

U.S. District Judge Kurt Engelhardt granted a mistrial in his case after a prosecutor mentioned a separate case that involved the defendant while questioning Dugue on the witness stand. The judge had warned attorneys not to mention that case.

Dugue's trial, which had opened on Monday, had been expected to take two weeks as the final proceeding against a group of police officers charged in connection with the shootings.

Ronald Madison, 40, and James Brissette, 17, were killed, and four others were seriously injured on the bridge after New Orleans police officers responded to a call about gunfire.

Prosecutors painted a picture of out-of-control officers firing indiscriminately at bystanders. Defense lawyers said the officers saw guns and believed they were in danger.

Last summer, jurors convicted five officers of civil rights violations and obstruction of justice in the case. The officers face sentences that could range up to life in prison.

Five other officers had pleaded guilty to participating in the shootings or cover-up and were sentenced to three to eight years in prison each. Most of those officers testified for the prosecution in the trial last summer and some had testified at Dugue's trial this week.

(Reporting by Kathy Finn; Editing by David Bailey and Cynthia Johnston)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120129/us_nm/us_neworleans_police_mistrial

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Why MBA in Finance is Recommended | Foundations of Finance

Completing a degree program in accounting prepares students to step into various careers that involve accounting and finance. Accounting programs are available to students at the associate?s, bachelor?s, master?s, and doctorate?s degree level. Student?s career goals will determine which degree program to complete. Other possible accounting and finance career preparation programs can include:

• Accounting Technology
• Corporate Financing
• Finance and Banking

?

Corporate finance also awards undergraduate degrees unless students advance their training inside a finance degree program.

To gain the best career options in accounting and finance students should complete graduate degree training. Students study risk management, assurance, financial management, taxation, and much more. Master?s degree programs train students to understand business and taxation. Possible career options for students that have a graduate degree include risk assessors, corporate executives, financial managers, and auditors.

Students that complete a bachelor?s degree program will explore financial reporting, international market, and personal investments.

Accredited accounting and finance degree programs give students several career opportunities.

Accounting and Finance Career Preparation Programs

Accounting or financial managers are the people responsible for overseeing and maintaining the financial strategy and history of a company. The accounting manager is focused more on financial reporting, while the financial manager is focused on strategy and money management. The CFO supervises all accounting and financial operations, as well as administering the company?s general financial policies and strategies. The financial officer may formulate and implement strategies to raise capital, oversee cash management, or manage the company?s capital investment activity.

from your own site.

Source: http://www.icasm2009.org/why-mba-in-finance-is-recommended

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Iran says oil could reach $120 to $150 per barrel

An Iranian demonstrator holds a poster to support Iran's nuclear activities as he waits for arrival of delegates of International Atomic Energy Organization, IAEA, who were not appeared in public, at Imam Khomeini airport in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012. A U.N. nuclear team arrived in Tehran early Sunday for a mission expected to focus on Iran's alleged attempt to develop nuclear weapons. The delegation includes two senior weapons experts, Jacques Baute of France and Neville Whiting of South Africa, suggesting that Iran may be prepared to address some issues related to the allegations. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

An Iranian demonstrator holds a poster to support Iran's nuclear activities as he waits for arrival of delegates of International Atomic Energy Organization, IAEA, who were not appeared in public, at Imam Khomeini airport in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012. A U.N. nuclear team arrived in Tehran early Sunday for a mission expected to focus on Iran's alleged attempt to develop nuclear weapons. The delegation includes two senior weapons experts, Jacques Baute of France and Neville Whiting of South Africa, suggesting that Iran may be prepared to address some issues related to the allegations. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

An Iranian protester holds an anti-Israel poster for condemning activities of International Atomic Energy Organization, IAEA, at the Imam Khomeini airport, waiting for arrival of the agency's delegates, who were not appeared in public, on Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012. A U.N. nuclear team arrived in Tehran early Sunday for a mission expected to focus on Iran's alleged attempt to develop nuclear weapons. The U.N. nuclear agency delegation includes two senior weapons experts, Jacques Baute of France and Neville Whiting of South Africa, suggesting that Iran may be prepared to address some issues related to the allegations. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) ? The head of Iran's state oil company said Sunday that the price of crude will reach $120 to $150 per barrel, as officials in Tehran prepare to discuss a ban on crude sales to European Union countries in retaliation for an EU embargo.

Head of the National Iranian Oil Company Ahmad Qalehbani also said that Tehran would expand its capacity to refine crude domestically, instead of selling it on international markets.

The EU announced an embargo on Iranian oil last week to pressure Tehran on its controversial nuclear program.

The embargo is set to go into effect in the summer, but Iran says that it may cut the flow of crude to Europe early.

Iran says the EU accounts for only 18 percent of its output and that it can find new customers. It says the embargo will hurt the West more than Iran, in part by causing a spike in prices.

"It seems we will witness prices from $120 to $150 in the future," Qalehbani was quoted as saying by IRNA. He did not give a time frame for the prediction, nor any other details.

The price of benchmark U.S. crude on Friday was around $99.56 per barrel.

Qalehbani also said that Iran could find other customers for its crude in the short term, while in the longer term expanding its refining capacity to turn the crude into other petroleum products.

"The sale of some 18 percent of Iranian oil, to a market other than the EU, is quite possible. But our long term idea is to increase refining capacities to produce valuable products," he said.

Qalehbani's statement came as Iranian oil officials prepare to debate a ban on crude sales to European Union countries.

Many Iranian lawmakers and officials have called for an immediate ban on oil exports to the European bloc before the EU's ban fully goes into effect in July. They say this will hurt Europe before it can find alternative suppliers.

It also coincided with a visit by a U.N. nuclear team expected to focus on Iran's alleged attempt to develop nuclear weapons.

The United States and its allies argue that Iran is trying to develop nuclear weapons technology, while Tehran says the program is for purely peaceful purposes.

With some 3.5 million barrels of crude production, Iran is the second largest OPEC producer.

Some 80 percent of the country's foreign revenue comes from exporting around 2.2 million barrels of oil per day.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-01-29-ML-Iran-Oil/id-c0486e57c2fc4254b9e60a985a3660b4

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Is Oprah Really Blue Ivy's Godmother?

Some reports surfaced earlier this week that none other than Oprah is the godmother of Beyonce and Jay-Z's newborn baby girl, Blue Ivy Carter. But is it true?

It is not. Oprah is not the godmother.

She may be a fairy godmother in a non-official sense - she did send baby Blue an entire trunk full of books already - but she hasn't been given any title.

Winfrey's BFF Gayle King said: "Let me just say, if [this] is true, it is news to her. You know, she was heading to South Africa when the baby was born."

A separate source close to the power couple's camp also tells E! News that this is not true, and that Media Takeout was wrong (in a stunning revelation).

Again, no need to worry, though, as Oprah's close to Beyonce and Jay-Z, so Blue Ivy should still get first dibs on Winfrey's annual Favorite Things list.

YOU get a gold-plated stroller!!!

[Photos: WENN.com]

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/01/is-oprah-really-blue-ivys-godmother/

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Valve ventures into mobile with Steam on iOS and Android (Digital Trends)

Launched earlier this week and announced on the Steam site, Valve has started a closed beta for Steam Mobile on the iPhone and Android phones. The mobile application brings a vast amount of core functions found within the PC and Mac version of the Steam software, the most notable being the ability to make purchases through the application. This will allow any mobile Steam user to take advantage of the frequent sales?that cut popular games up to 90 percent off. Assuming the user agrees to notifications from the application, Steam will also be able to feed mobile alerts to the user when a game on a user?s wishlist goes on sale. The interface offers the familiar Steam categories of new, featured, popular and specials. In addition, there?s a search interface allowing the user to find games by price, title or genre.?

After a user logs into the mobile application, they have the ability to chat with Steam friends, peruse friend activity, read gaming news, check out profiles and groups in addition to looking at screenshots and other gaming media. Within the chat interface, friends are split up into?categories?such as?recent chats, in-game, online and offline. However, group chat is?unavailable?through this version of the mobile interface. There?s also no obvious link between the mobile device and a PC at home that would allow a user to queue up Steam downloads while away from the computer.?

While all of Steam?s features aren?t included within the application,?Valve president Gabe Newell?believes?that this application represents a good start.?Newell?stated ?Seeing which of your friends are online and playing a game, sending quick messages, looking at screenshots for an upcoming game, or catching a sale ? these are all features customers have requested. Mobile is changing way people interact, play games and consume media, and the Steam app is part of our commitment to meet customer demands and expand the service functionality of Steam to make it richer and more accessible for everyone.? Newell did not indicate if the Steam platform would start to sell mobile games.

While Steam is moving forward with mobile,?Electronic Arts still hasn?t rolled out a mobile counterpart to the Origin download service. Origin also lags behind Steam in terms of the amount of games offer for sale on the service. While Steam offers more than 1,800 titles for sale, Electronic Arts lists less than 10 percent of that figure. Electronic Arts did announce an additional 11 third-party publishers have been added to the Origin service recently, but did not indicate how many games would be added over the coming months. ?

As reported at CES 2012, Valve is still prepping Steam?s ?Big Picture? user interface designed to bring the Steam experience to the television screen. This will allow users to hook a computer to the television and play games on a much larger screen, similar to user experience of console owners.?Newell hasn?t indicated if Valve will release a set-top box to offer this feature to consumers that don?t have a computer hooked into their main television in the living room. Some analysts have also speculated that the??Big Picture? mode could utilize cloud streaming technology similar to OnLive and be delivered through an application on gaming consoles or through?Internet-connected televisions. However, Valve has said repeatedly that??Big Picture? mode will include controller support.?

While the mobile application is currently in a closed beta, Steam users can download the mobile application onto the iOS platform and log into the application to declare interest in joining the beta. Valve plans to roll out new invites slowly while the application is still being tested over the next few weeks.

This article was originally posted on Digital Trends

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Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/applecomputer/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/digitaltrends/20120126/tc_digitaltrends/valveventuresintomobilewithsteamoniosandandroid

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Making the Blackest of Black Materials

Link Information - Click to View

Making the Blackest of Black Materials
"We made carbon nanotubes that are blacker than anything else." Our material absorbs more than 99 percent of visible and ultraviolet light and 98 percent of infrared light.

Source: POPSCI
Posted on: Friday, Jan 27, 2012, 8:55am
Views: 13

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/117148/Making_the_Blackest_of_Black_Materials

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USDA sets guidelines for healthier school meals (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? School meals for millions of children will be healthier under obesity-fighting U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) standards unveiled on Wednesday that double the amount of fruits and vegetables in cafeteria lunches - but won't pull French fries from the menu.

In the first major changes to school meals in more than 15 years, the new USDA guidelines will affect nearly 32 million children who eat at school. They will cost about $3.2 billion to implement over the next five years.

"Improving the quality of the school meals is a critical step to building a healthy future for our kids," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in a statement.

The new meal requirements are part of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act championed by first lady Michelle Obama. President Barack Obama approved the measure in late 2010.

The guidelines double the amounts of fruits and vegetables in school lunches and boost offerings of whole grain-rich foods. The new standards set maximums for calories and cut sodium and trans fat, a contributor to high cholesterol levels.

Schools may offer only fat-free or low-fat milk varieties and must assure that children are getting proper portion sizes, the USDA said.

The new standards will be largely phased in over a three-year period, starting in the 2012-13 school year.

About 17 percent of U.S. children and teenagers are obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About one-third of U.S. adults are obese.

FRIES WITH THAT?

Lawmakers altered the guidelines in November. They barred the USDA from limiting French fries and ensured that pizza counted as a vegetable because of its tomato paste.

Trade associations representing frozen pizza sellers like ConAgra Foods Inc and Schwan Food Co as well as French fry sellers McCain Foods Ltd and J.R. Simplot Co were instrumental in blocking changes to rules affecting those items.

Margo Wootan, nutrition policy director for the non-profit Center For Science in the Public Interest, said that the new standards were a big improvement despite food industry lobbying and the congressional revamp.

"The new school meal standards are one of the most important advances in nutrition in decades," she said in a statement.

The Environmental Working Group said the changes could pack a financial punch since they may help reduce medical bills related to diabetes and other obesity-related chronic diseases.

"A healthier population will save billions of dollars in future health care costs," said Dawn Undurraga, EWG's staff nutritionist.

As an example of a new meal, the USDA said an elementary school lunch could be whole wheat spaghetti with meat sauce and a whole wheat roll, green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, kiwi, low-fat milk, low-fat ranch dip and soft margarine.

That lunch would replace a meal of a hot dog on a bun with ketchup, canned pears, raw celery and carrots with ranch dressing, and low-fat chocolate milk.

As part of the new standards, schools will receive another 6 cents a meal. The USDA also will increase the number of inspections of school menus.

Food and beverages sold in vending machines and other school sites "will also contribute to a healthy diet," the USDA statement said.

The USDA gives school districts funds for meals through its National School Lunch and School Breakfast programs.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/health/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120125/hl_nm/us_usda_meals

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France arrests breast implant boss amid scare

PARIS?? The former head of a French company at the center of a breast implant scandal affecting tens of thousands of women worldwide has been arrested in southeast France.

Jean-Claude Mas, who founded and ran the now-defunct French company Poly Implant Prothese, was detained Thursday as part of a judicial investigation in the southeastern city of Marseille into manslaughter and involuntary injuries, an official close to the investigation said.

So far no specific defendant has been named. The official spoke on condition of anonymity, because the case is in the hands of judicial investigators.

Investigating judge Annaick Le Goff opened the probe after a woman filed a lawsuit in the wake of the 2010 death from cancer of her daughter who had received a suspect implant.

As many as 3,000 other complaints by other alleged victims have been taken into account.

The implants have been removed from the marketplace in several countries in and beyond Europe amid fears they could rupture and leak silicone into the body.

"This is a comfort for the victims," said Laurent Gaudon, whose clients accuse PIP and surgeons who used its implants of fraud.

"It's the feeling that justice is advancing and they have not been forgotten. It's the assurance that the guilty are at last going to be held accountable," Gaudon added.

Philippe Courtois, who represents a group of 1,300 people with PIP implants, said it was vital Mas was not allowed to flee justice.

"A degree of provisionary detention is desirable," he said.

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Mas, who sold some 300,000 implants around the world, has acknowledged that he had used unapproved silicone but dismissed fears that it constituted a health risk.

Video: A divide on faulty breast implants (on this page)

Mas is also on Interpol's most-wanted list, but the international police agency said its "red notice" was issued in June at the request of Costa Rica, where he faces a drunken driving charge.

Mas, 72, was detained shortly before dawn during a search of a residence in the Mediterranean coastal town of Six Fours Les Plages, a police official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, said.

A secretary at the office of Mas' defense lawyer Yves Haddad said the lawyer ? who was with Mas during police questioning ? was not immediately available for comment.

Silicone more rupture-prone
Authorities worldwide have been scrambling to strike a proper public response to the scandal ? notably concerning who will pay to remove the implants ? made with cheap, industrial-grade silicone instead of medical-grade gel ? or if the implants need to invariably come out.

European governments have taken different positions: German, Czech and French authorities say the implants should be removed, while Britain says there is not enough evidence of health risks to suggest they should be taken out in all cases.

On Wednesday, health authorities in Brazil said the government will fine private health plans that refuse to pay for the removal and replacement of faulty breast implants sold by PIP and a Dutch company.

A lawyer for Mas said in a statement earlier this month that his client, who ran PIP until it was closed in March 2010, would not speak publicly on the case.

The scandal has put pressure on French health authorities for allegedly not doing enough to vet the quality of a product used by untold thousands of women both in France and abroad.

France's Health Safety Agency has said the suspect implants ? just one type of implants made by PIP ? appear to be more rupture-prone than other types. Investigators say PIP sought to save money by using industrial silicone, whose potential health risks are not yet clear.

PIP's website said the company had exported to more than 60 countries and was one of the world's leading implant makers. The silicone-gel implants in question are not sold in the United States.

According to estimates by national authorities, over 42,000 women in Britain received the implants, more than 30,000 in France, 9,000 in Australia and 4,000 in Italy. Nearly 25,000 of the implants were sold in Brazil.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46144725/ns/world_news-europe/

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'Open for business': Ind. House OKs right-to-work (AP)

INDIANAPOLIS ? Indiana is poised to become the first right-to-work state in more than a decade after the Republican-controlled House passed legislation on Wednesday banning unions from collecting mandatory fees from workers.

It is yet another blow to organized labor in the heavily unionized Midwest, which is home to many of the country's manufacturing jobs. Wisconsin last year stripped unions of collective bargaining rights.

The vote came after weeks of protest by minority Democrats who tried various tactics to stop the bill. They refused to show up to debate despite the threat of fines that totaled $1,000 per day and introduced dozens of amendments aimed at delaying a vote. But conceding their tactics could not last forever because they were outnumbered, they finally agreed to allow the vote to take place.

The House voted 54-44 Wednesday to make Indiana the nation's 23rd right-to-work state. The measure is expected to face little opposition in Indiana's Republican-controlled Senate and could reach Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels' desk shortly before the Feb. 5 Super Bowl in Indianapolis.

"This announces especially in the Rust Belt, that we are open for business here," Republican House Speaker Brian Bosma said of the right-to-work proposal that would ban unions from collecting mandatory representation fees from workers.

Republicans recently attempted similar anti-union measures in other Rust-Belt states like Wisconsin and Ohio where they have faced massive backlash. Ohio voters overturned Gov. John Kasich's labor measures last November and union activists delivered roughly 1 million petitions last week in an effort to recall Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker.

Indiana would mark the first win in 10 years for national right-to-work advocates who have pushed unsuccessfully for the measure in other states following a Republican sweep of statehouses in 2010. But few right-work states boast Indiana's union clout, borne of a long manufacturing legacy.

Oklahoma, with its rural-based economy that produces comparatively fewer union jobs than Indiana, passed right-to-work legislation in 2001.

Hundreds of union protesters packed the halls of the Statehouse again Wednesday, chanting "Kill the Bill!" and cheering Democrats who had stalled the measure since the start of the year.

House Minority Leader Patrick Bauer said the legislative battle has been an "unusual fight" from the beginning, but Democrats waged a noble effort against majority Republicans determined to pass the bill.

"What did they fight for? They fought for less pay, less workplace safety and less health care. This is their only job plank: job creation for less pay with the so-called right to work for less bill."

Republicans foreshadowed their strong showing Monday when they shot down a series of Democratic amendments to the measure in strict party-line votes. Democrats boycotted again for an eighth day

Republicans handily outnumber Democrats in the House 60-40, but Democrats have just enough members to deny the Republicans the 67 votes needed to achieve a quorum and conduct any business. Bosma began fining boycotting Democrats $1,000 a day last week, but a Marion County judge has blocked the collection of those fines.

The measure now moves to the Indiana Senate which approved its own right-to-work measure earlier in the week. Gov. Mitch Daniels has campaigned extensively for the bill and said he would sign it into law.

___

Tom LoBianco can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/tomlobianco

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/democrats/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120125/ap_on_re_us/us_indiana_right_to_work

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Libyan government concedes to restive town's demands (Reuters)

TRIPOLI (Reuters) ? Libya recognized a tribal-based local government in the former Gaddafi stronghold of Bani Walid on Wednesday, illustrating the power of tribal leaders over the fragile interim government.

Fighters from the Warfallah tribe -- the dominant tribe in Bani Walid and the most populous in Libya -- drove out a pro-government militia from the town this week.

Salah al-Maayuf, a member of the Warfallah Elders Council in Bani Walid, said his tribal body appointed a new local council on Tuesday and that Defense Minister Osama al-Juwali recognized the body during all-day talks on Wednesday.

"The Defense minister told us that if we, as a tribe, believe that the new local council in Bani Walid will work, then we have convinced him that it can," Maayuf told Reuters from Bani Walid, a bastion of support for former leader Muammar Gaddafi during last year's rebellion.

"We told him that we want to keep the whole country peaceful

and that national unity was a priority," Maayuf added.

An official at the Defense ministry confirmed that Juwali had accepted the new council, but did not give further details.

NTC RETREATS

Juwali is a member of the provisional government installed in November by the National Transitional Council (NTC), the self-appointed body which won Western backing in the uprising that ousted Gaddafi in August.

On Monday, armed residents attacked the barracks of the NTC force in the town, killing four fighters by the account of the government militia, and forcing the unit to retreat to beyond the desert city's limits. Eight of the town's residents were also killed, doctors at the hospital said.

Echoing complaints by residents that the NTC fighters had been harassing people, making arrests and abusing prisoners, the town's elders said on Tuesday they did not want any interference from the Tripoli authorities and dismissed the local NTC council.

The unrest will heighten doubts about the NTC's ability to bring order and establish control over armed groups - goals crucial to rebuilding oil exports and securing Libya's vast desert borders in a region where al Qaeda is active.

Bani Walid, in Libya's Western Mountains 150 km (90 miles) south of Tripoli, was one of the last towns to surrender to the anti-Gaddafi rebellion last year. But residents reject accusations from NTC fighters that they remain loyal to Gaddafi.

After Gaddafi was captured and killed in October, one of his sons, the now captive Saif al-Islam, staged his last stand in Bani Walid before fleeing into the Sahara.

Reuters reporters who toured Bani Walid on Tuesday saw no signs of the Gaddafi-era green flags which NTC supporters said had been hoisted over the town following the retreat of the pro-government militia.

Some pro-Gaddafi graffiti remains in the town, but the most common banners flying were the red, green and black tricolor of the NTC.

GOVERNMENT FORCES SURROUND THE TOWN

Bani Walid is not alone. Towns and cities across Libya are being run with little reference to central authority. In a number of areas tensions have emerged between groups which were nominally allies in the revolt.

Abdul Azziz al-Jmaili, a resident of Bani Walid, said government forces were around the town to prevent escalating fighting.

Speaking to Reuters by telephone, Jmaili said a "peacekeeping force" comprised of units of former rebel fighters loyal to the NTC and drawn from other towns in the region had set up checkpoints in the outskirts of Bani Walid.

(Additional reporting by Taha Zargoun and Oliver Holmes; Writing by Oliver Holmes; Editing by Rosalind Russell)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120125/wl_nm/us_libya_talks

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U.S. tightens grip on Iran's financial system (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? The United States on Monday sought to tighten the financial screws on Iran by imposing sanctions on the country's third-largest bank for allegedly helping Tehran develop its nuclear program.

Now any foreign firm that deals with Iranian state-owned Bank Tejarat and its affiliate, Belarus-based Trade Capital Bank, will no longer be able to access the U.S. financial system.

The sanctions "will deepen Iran's financial isolation, make its access to hard currency even more tenuous, and further impair Iran's ability to finance its illicit nuclear program," Treasury Undersecretary David Cohen said in a statement.

The United States and Europe are pressuring Iran to talk to the international community about its nuclear activities, which the West says are aimed at developing a weapons program but which Tehran says are peaceful.

The European Union on Monday banned imports of oil from Iran and followed the United States in imposing sanctions on its central bank, which acts as the clearinghouse for the country's oil revenue.

A senior U.S. Treasury official said he was optimistic that Europe would also blacklist Bank Tejarat, which has nearly 2,000 branches in Iran, as well as branches in France and Tajikistan.

Bank Tejarat was penalized for providing financial services to the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines and other entities already sanctioned for their involvement with the country's nuclear program.

The action "strikes at one of Iran's few remaining access points to the international financial system," Cohen said. Twenty-three Iranian-linked firms have been sanctioned by the United States, a list that now includes all of the largest state-owned banks.

Washington also accused Bank Tejarat of indirectly supporting the activities of Iran's Revolutionary Guard.

The United States is working to apply sanctions signed by President Barack Obama last year that seek to block countries and their institutions from dealing with the Iranian central bank.

The aim is to starve Iran of revenues needed to develop nuclear weapons without disrupting jittery oil markets and impeding the U.S. economic recovery.

"We do expect there will be a significant reduction in Iran's exports," said the senior U.S. official.

He would not quantify the amount but said the Obama administration anticipates that Iran would have a hard time accessing revenues from the oil it was able to sell once the sanctions were fully in place.

Iran is the world's third-biggest crude exporter and its economy is heavily reliant on the oil industry.

(Reporting By Rachelle Younglai; Editing by Jackie Frank, Sandra Maler and Xavier Briand)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iran/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120123/wl_nm/us_nuclear_iran_usa_bank

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Does Newt Own a Beet Farm? (Powerlineblog)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories News, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/190196348?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Sundance Today: Swag Beats (Boots?) Snow

The Sundance Film Festival is about, as the name implies, films. But there's another secret agenda at the heart of the Park City weeks-long event: swaaaag, man!
If you've been keeping up with the MTV Movies team's escapades in our Sundance Today blogs, then you know that yours truly has been having some difficult time walking [...]

Source: http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2012/01/23/sundance-today-swag-beats-boots-snow/

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Giants top 49ers 20-17 in OT to reach Super Bowl

New York Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes (9) kicks the game-winning field goal during overtime of the NFC Championship NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012, in San Francisco. The Giants won 20-17 to advance to Super Bowl XLVI. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

New York Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes (9) kicks the game-winning field goal during overtime of the NFC Championship NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012, in San Francisco. The Giants won 20-17 to advance to Super Bowl XLVI. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

New York Giants place holder Steve Weatherford (5) celebrates after his team scored a game winning field field during overtime of the NFC Championship NFL football game Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012, in San Francisco. The Giants won 20-17 to advance to Super Bowl XLVI. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

New York Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes (9) celebrates with punter Steve Weatherford (5) after making the game-winning field goal during overtime of the NFC Championship NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012, in San Francisco. The Giants won 20-17 to advance to Super Bowl XLVI. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

New York Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes (9) celebrates with Zak DeOssie (51) and Jerrel Jernigan after Tynes scored the game winning field goal during overtime of the NFC Championship NFL football game Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012, in San Francisco. The Giants won 20-17 to advance to Super Bowl XLVI. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

New York Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes (9) celebrates with holder Steve Weatherford (5) after kicking the game-winning field goal during overtime of the NFC Championship NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012, in San Francisco. The Giants won 20-17 to advance to Super Bowl XLVI. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ? The New York Giants have their own Super Bowl formula: in overtime and on the road.

And with Lawrence Tynes' foot.

Five plays after the 49ers' Kyle Williams fumbled a punt, Tynes kicked a 31-yard field goal in overtime, sending the Giants to the Super Bowl with a 20-17 victory over San Francisco in the NFC championship game Sunday.

In another tight one in this decades-old postseason rivalry, both defenses made key stops before New York capitalized on a rare mistake in San Francisco's resurgent season. Williams' blunder put the Giants in perfect position for another sensational finish in a season full of them.

"That was a tough game. We had to fight for every yard that we got," Giants quarterback Eli Manning said. "Defense was outstanding, special teams getting us two turnovers was huge. That led to 10 points."

The first three overtime series ended in punts before Williams fumbled. The Giants won it moments later and silenced ? for good this time ? the towel-waving, poncho-wearing sellout crowd at cold, rainy Candlestick Park.

"It was one of those situations where I tried to turn it upfield and it just didn't work out," Williams said.

Manning and the Giants (12-7) will face the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl on Feb. 5 in Indianapolis as 3?-point underdogs. The last time the teams met for the NFL title, 2008, the Giants ended the Patriots' bid for a perfect season.

Tynes had a hand, er, foot in getting the Giants to that one, too, kicking a field goal in overtime.

Devin Thomas put the Giants in position this time by recovering his second fumble of the game after Jacquian Williams stripped the ball from fill-in return man Kyle Williams, who also fumbled earlier to set up a New York touchdown.

"It's my second NFC championship game, my second game-winner," Tynes said about his kick 7:54 into overtime. "It's amazing. I had dreams about this last night. It was from 42, not 31, but I was so nervous today before the game just anticipating this kind of game. I'm usually pretty cool, but there was something about tonight where I knew I was going to have to make a kick. Hats off to Eli, offense, defense. Great win."

Holder Steve Weatherford celebrated with a slip-and-slide on his back down the soggy field. Victor Cruz fell to his knees. Tynes quickly found his crying wife for a warm hug. Manning tossed his gloves into the temporary seats with a big smile, then received a surprise visit from big brother, Peyton, in the locker room.

Manning went 32 of 58 for 316 yards and two touchdowns and overcame six sacks in his record fifth road playoff win, New York's fifth in a row overall.

Manning threw a go-ahead 17-yard touchdown pass to Mario Manningham with 8:34 remaining after Kyle Williams fumbled for the first time.

The Giants challenged that the ball touched Williams' right knee and Thomas recovered with 11:06 left and coach Tom Coughlin won, giving the Giants the ball back at the 29.

"That was a tremendous football game for those that really enjoy football at it's very basic element," said Coughlin, who matched former Cowboys coach Tom Landry for most road playoff wins with seven. "Just a classic football game that just seemed like no one was going to put themselves into position to win it. Fortunately we were able to do that."

A 12-point underdog in the 2008 title game, the Giants battered Brady and got a last-minute TD pass from Manning to Plaxico Burress to win their third Super Bowl. Five months ago, Manning declared he was in the same class as Tom Brady. Now, he'll get another chance to outdo him on the NFL's biggest stage.

During this playoff run, he's already outplayed Aaron Rodgers and the defending champion Packers, and fellow former No. 1 pick Alex Smith.

Cruz set the tone Sunday with eight of his 10 receptions in the first half and finished with 142 yards.

"It's just been a tremendous effort by all of us, man," Cruz said. "We understand that any one of us can get hot at any moment. As long as we're all on the same page and just playing together, man, we've got a great group of guys."

The Giants appeared on the verge of collapsing and Coughlin's job status in jeopardy just a month ago, when they fell to 7-7 with an embarrassing loss to the Washington Redskins on Dec. 18.

They were facing elimination the following week against the Jets and Rex Ryan, but the Giants won 29-14. They followed with a 31-14 win over Dallas in the regular-season finale to win the NFC East and get to the playoffs for the first time since 2008.

New York dominated Atlanta at home in the opening round, and then came another stunner: a 37-20 victory at Green Bay.

Vernon Davis caught touchdown passes of 73 and 28 yards for the NFC West champions (14-4), who went from 6-10 a year ago to a contender and ended an eight-year playoff drought.

"It will be a tough one. It will take a while to get over," Harbaugh said. "There were a lot of ways in which we played well enough to win. We just didn't come away with it."

Smith completed just 12 of 26 passes for 196 yards, connecting on only one short throw to a wide receiver. With no threats on the outside, San Francisco managed one third-down conversion, coming on the final play of regulation. The offense was unable to overcome Williams' blunders.

"We all know him. We know how committed he is to winning," Smith said. "It's not on him. I look at the 1-for-13 on third downs. I know he's going to feel bad, but he's still part of our team. We didn't lose the game there. We lost it across the board offensively. We just couldn't get it done."

The only other time these two franchises faced off in the conference championship the game finished in memorable fashion. On Jan. 20, 1991, Roger Craig fumbled with the 49ers leading 13-12 late in the fourth quarter and the Giants went on to win 15-13 to deny San Francisco a chance at a third straight Super Bowl title. New York then beat the Bills to capture its second Super Bowl.

This time, it was Williams who made the crucial mistake.

'You hate to be the last guy that had the ball, to give it away in that fashion and to lose a game of this magnitude," Williams said. "It is what it is. We're going to move forward as a team. Everyone has come to pat me on the back and the shoulder to say it's not me."

Notes: Davis joined Jerry Rice as the only 49ers with at least two touchdowns receiving in back-to-back playoff games. ... Cruz caught a 36-yard pass from Manning on the first play of the second quarter, then Manning hit Bear Pascoe for a 6-yard touchdown seven plays later. ... Giants C David Baas beat his former team. ... Manningham missed the potential game-tying TD in a 27-20 loss here on Nov. 13.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2012-01-23-NFC%20Championship/id-e9a6e404589c414b957ca4acea6e4e6e

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Serena Williams into 4th round at Australian Open

[unable to retrieve full-text content]MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) ? Serena Williams was so dominant in her 6-1, 6-1 third-round win over Greta Arn at the Australian Open that there's probably only one shot she'll remember more than most.

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2012-01-21-TEN-Australian-Open/id-2bf9e672e1e342efb1bb194148ffa80a

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Gingrich angrily denies he sought open marriage (AP)

CHARLESTON, S.C. ? Presidential contender Newt Gingrich on Thursday angrily denied that he asked his second wife for an "open marriage" that would allow him to have a mistress as she claims in an interview broadcast two days before the South Carolina primary.

"Let me be quite clear. The story is false," Gingrich said at a debate, without elaborating.

At the same time, his campaign released his tax returns, showing that he paid more than $994,000 in federal taxes on more $3.1 million in income in 2010.

It was a day of ups and downs for Gingrich, who picked up the endorsement for former rival Texas Gov. Rick Perry. The former House speaker is working to consolidate the support of conservatives behind his candidacy with polls showing him rising in his bid to overtake Republican front-runner Mitt Romney.

"Newt is not perfect but who among us is," Perry said as he bowed out of the race, seeking to provide Gingrich with some political cover in a state filled with evangelicals likely to cringe at Gingrich's two divorces and acknowledged infidelity.

Gingrich's ex-wife threatened to throw his campaign off course.

In excerpts the network released earlier in the day, Marianne Gingrich told ABC News for a "Nightline" segment that when she discovered Gingrich was having an affair with Callista Bisek, a congressional staffer, he asked his wife to share him.

"And I just stared at him, and he said, `Callista doesn't care what I do,'" Marianne Gingrich told ABC News. "He wanted an open marriage, and I refused."

She confirmed to The Associated Press that the former speaker had asked her for an open marriage, but she refused his request. She declined to comment further. The full segment aired Thursday night some 90 minutes after the debate.

At the debate, Gingrich forcefully denied his ex-wife's charges and castigated debate moderator ? CNN's John King ? for raising the issue at the start of the two-hour event.

"I think the destructive, vicious, negative nature of much of the news media makes it harder to govern this country, harder to attract decent people to run for public office," Gingrich said. "And I am appalled that you would begin a presidential debate on a topic like that."

As he stood on stage in Charleston, his campaign released his 2010 income tax returns, which showed he paid roughly 31.6 percent of his adjusted income in taxes, giving about 2 percent to charity. Gingrich criticized rival Romney ? who is worth more than $250 million ? this week for saying he paid only 15 percent.

Gingrich gave $81,133 in cash or checks to charities, about 2.6 percent of his income. That is considerably less than the average of $259,692 that households earning at least $2 million a year gave to charities in 2009, according to research from the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University.

Personal financial disclosure forms filed last summer show Gingrich is worth more than $6.5 million. He reported at least $500,000 in assets from Gingrich Productions, his media company that produces books and films.

Two days before the pivotal South Carolina primary, Gingrich's political and private life were clashing just as new polls showed him rising as he looks to overtake Romney in the third state to weigh in on the presidential race. Gingrich has seen his crowds grow in recent days after a strong performance in a debate Monday.

It was unclear how the new revelations from Marianne Gingrich would play in a state where religious and socially conservative voters hold sway. The interview's mere existence shined a spotlight on a part of Gingrich's past that could turn off Republican voters in a state filled with religious and cultural conservatives who may cringe at his two divorces and acknowledged marital infidelities.

Marianne Gingrich has said Gingrich proposed to her before the divorce from his first wife was final in 1981; they were married six months later. Her marriage to Gingrich ended in divorce in 2000, and Gingrich has admitted he'd already taken up with Bisek, the former congressional aide who would become his third wife. The speaker who pilloried President Bill Clinton for his affair with Monica Lewinsky was himself having an affair at the time.

A Gingrich spokesman suggested, as Gingrich's daughters had a day earlier, that Marianne Gingrich's comments may be suspect given the emotional toll divorce takes on everyone involved.

"Divorces are very tough and people have very different recollections of how things happen," R.C. Hammond said Thursday.

Equally uncertain was whether Gingrich would get a boost from Perry's endorsement, given that the Texas governor had little support in the state, and get conservative voters to coalesce behind his candidacy. Complicating Gingrich's effort is another conservative, Rick Santorum, who threatens to siphon his support.

A CNN/Time South Carolina poll released Wednesday showed Gingrich in second place with support from 23 percent of likely primary voters, having gained 5 percentage points in the past two weeks. Romney led in the poll with 33 percent, but he had slipped some since the last survey. Santorum was third, narrowly ahead of Texas Rep. Ron Paul and well ahead of Perry.

Regardless of the South Carolina outcome, Gingrich was making plans to compete in Florida's primary on Jan. 31.

Confidence exuded from Gingrich, who rose in Iowa only to be knocked off course after sustaining $3 million in attack ads from an outside group that supports Romney. Gingrich posted dismal showings in both Iowa and New Hampshire.

By the time the race turned to South Carolina, he was back on course ? and criticizing Romney as a social moderate who is timid about attacking the nation's economic troubles.

___

Ray Henry in Atlanta and Jack Gillum in Washington contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politics/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120120/ap_on_el_pr/us_gingrich

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Woman used young children to rob 84-year-old of life savings

Authorities are on the lookout for a woman who forced an 84-year-old to empty her life savings from a bank account in Takoma Park, Md. WRC's Darcy Spencer has the story.

By NBCWashington

A robber used young children to help take advantage of an elderly woman in Montgomery County, Md., last week, according to police.

The 84-year-old victim said she was robbed of her life savings by a woman claiming she needed help cashing a check at a bank. The culprit approached the victim at Murry?s Steaks in Takoma Park about noon Thursday with two toddlers and an infant in tow. She said the children hadn?t eaten in days.

?That?s the only thing that stopped me, to help the children,? the victim said.

---

She agreed to drive the culprit to a Bank of America on New Hampshire Avenue in Langley Park. The children stayed behind with another woman.

For more, visit NBCWashington.com

Once in the car, the robber changed her story.

?She told the victim she had a gun and threatened to shoot the victim if the victim did not withdraw several thousand dollars,? police said.

Inside the bank, the culprit stood next to the victim as she made the transaction. Surveillance video showed the robber shoving the victim out the door after the transaction.

The victim was forced to drive back to Murry?s, where the robber left with the cash.

?I?m still scared,? the victim said Wednesday. ?I keep looking around thinking they?re watching me, and that they will follow me home.?

Source: http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/19/10190870-woman-used-young-children-to-rob-84-year-old-of-life-savings

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Classic matchups for spots in Super Bowl (AP)

No complaining about these championship matchups: prolific offense vs. stingy defense, or old foes renewing a storied rivalry.

Whichever suits your preference, the NFL has it this weekend.

When the New England Patriots host the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday for the AFC title, four players who have come to represent the highest levels of achievement will be on each side of the ball. Tom Brady, seeking a fifth start in a Super Bowl, and Wes Welker on New England's offense, Ray Lewis and Ed Reed on Baltimore's defense.

How juicy.

"They've got a lot of guys over there that are very explosive," said Reed, the Ravens' star safety. "Obviously, they score a lot of points, and we've all seen that. It's going to be an all-day affair for our defense."

The other championship affair Sunday is at Candlestick Park, where the New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers have played some memorable games, regular season and postseason. Despite the geographic separation, these franchises have quite a history with each other.

"You know there are a lot of memories," former Giants quarterback Phil Simms said of the rivalry. "They went from maybe the greatest to the worst in lots of ways. The games were awesome."

It could shape up as an awesome weekend. Certainly an intriguing one.

New England (14-3) hasn't won the AFC crown since 2007, when it was unbeaten until the Giants pulled off a shocker in the Super Bowl. The Patriots' last NFL title came in January 2005.

To get their fourth league championship under coach Bill Belichick and with Brady at quarterback, they'll need to have their offense in high gear, which it has been nearly all season. The Patriots scored at least 27 points in all but three games and averaged 32.8, including last week's 45-10 rout of Denver, their ninth straight victory.

But New England didn't beat an opponent that finished with a winning record, and lost to its two most difficult foes, Pittsburgh and the Giants.

Baltimore (13-4) most assuredly presents a difficult challenge, with a defense that yielded 266 points, more than only two teams.

"I think we have a lot of confidence, we are a confident type team, have a lot of good players and they feed off each other," All-Pro receiver Welker said. "We feel someone will step up and make a play ... and it makes it tough on defenses.

"I understand we are playing a great football team this week and have to be on top of everything. No mental errors, no bad mistakes, knowing your job and taking care of your business."

Brady usually does that, although before the romp past Denver, he and the Patriots had lost three straight postseason games. He is 4-0 in regular-season meetings with the Ravens, but lost their only playoff matchup.

If he isn't at his best, it will be because of Lewis, Reed and that staunch Baltimore D. The Ravens are as physical as anyone, and one thing that historically has slowed Brady has been when a defense gets in his face, disrupts his rhythm ? and hits him. Many times.

"It's more important that we stop their whole offense," said Reed, whom Belichick called the greatest safety he has faced during his coaching career. "We can't focus on one particular player, because Brady doesn't. Brady throws it to everybody. I've been saying that all week. He'll throw it to an offensive lineman. We're looking at everybody that's eligible that's going out on a route and not going out on a route. We're paying attention to everybody. Everybody has a responsibility. They have 11 guys on the field. We have 11 guys on the field. Everybody has to do their responsibility."

The 11 guys on each side of the ball at Candlestick Park for the NFC championship game will carry on a tradition of notable meetings that dates back to when the 49ers (14-3) and Giants (11-7) were dominating the conference in the 1980s. Their only faceoff in the title game was in January 1991, when New York kicked five field goals for a 15-13 victory, preventing San Francisco from going after a third straight Super Bowl trophy.

While it's fun to conjure up memories of Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, Ronnie Lott, Lawrence Taylor and Matt Bahr, this year's participants are more concerned with adding to a winning legacy. This is the 49ers' first playoff appearance since the 2002 season, when they won a wild 39-38 wild-card game against the Giants. New York, of course, won it all four years ago.

"Winning is what it's all about and it definitely makes coming to work a lot better than hearing, Who's going to be your new head coach or defensive coordinator?' All-Pro defensive tackle Justin Smith said. "I'll take this over the other for sure."

No worries on the coaching front after Jim Harbaugh made his first year in charge one of the most successful for any rookie coach. Harbaugh doesn't have much of a feel for Giants-49ers, though; he didn't play for either team.

Giants coach Tom Coughlin, who was on the 1990 championship staff, knows all about it.

"I have thought about that and we will talk about some of the things that occurred there," Coughlin said, "but only from the standpoint of the history and the tradition and what a great event that was at that particular time. That was a long time ago and I think some of our players, because they are historians, will know a little about that game and the great players that played in that game."

More appropriate, perhaps, is the 27-20 win by the 49ers in November, a game decided only when Smith blocked Eli Manning's last-minute pass deep in San Francisco territory. It was the latest installment of a grand rivalry.

Until Sunday.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120121/ap_on_sp_fo_ne/fbn_championship_weekend

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