'Boys back on track

Romo throws for 3 TDs, runs for another in first half of 31-15 victory

Brian Blanco / AP

Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo throws a pass over Buccaneers middle linebacker Mason Foster during the second quarter Saturday night.

updated 12:41 a.m. ET Dec. 18, 2011

TAMPA, Fla. - Tony Romo made it look easy, shredding Tampa Bay's secondary at will and helping the Dallas Cowboys get back on track in the NFC East.

"This was an important game," Romo said after throwing for three touchdowns and running for a fourth first-half score Saturday night to lead the first-place Cowboys to a 31-15 rout of the struggling Buccaneers.

"Really the playoffs started for us; that's the way we approached it. Guys came out with great energy and it was a great week of practice. We just had to go forward."

Dallas stopped a two-game losing streak in which it blew fourth-quarter leads to allow a seemingly solid grip on the division lead slip away.

The victory gave the Cowboys (8-6) a half-game lead over New York. Although the Giants hold a tiebreaker advantage after beating Dallas 37-34 last week, the Cowboys can claim the division title and host a playoff game by finishing with wins the next two weeks over Philadelphia at home and the Giants on the road.

"I think it showed our character, our resolve, what we're made of," Dallas linebacker Keith Brooking said. "It was obviously doom and gloom around Valley Ranch for the past couple of weeks ? kind of the world was caving in on us. But we just kept fighting and kept plugging away, and we still control our own destiny."

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The Bucs (4-10), meanwhile, lost for the eighth straight time and played a miserable first half that certainly didn't do anything to help coach Raheem Morris make a case for keeping his job.

Romo threw a pair of 8-yard TD passes to Miles Austin and Dez Bryant in the first quarter, then finished a seven-play, 89-yard drive with a 9-yarder to Laurent Robinson to make it 21-0 with just under 5 minutes remaining in the second quarter. Romo increased the lead to 28 points on a quarterback sneak in the closing seconds of the opening half.

"I thought he just had a good feel for what we were doing against what they were doing," Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said. "I thought he got back quickly and got the ball out of his hands, and when he had to move and make plays, he was able to do that too. He made a lot of big plays and not many bad plays."

Tampa Bay managed just one first down and was outgained 279 yards to 55 in the first two quarters, yet found a way to make it more interesting in the second half.

The Bucs, who had yielded 69 consecutive points dating to the second quarter of the previous week's 41-14 loss at Jacksonville, finally got on the scoreboard in the third quarter when rookie Adrian Clayborn sacked Romo from behind, forcing a fumble that linebacker Dekoda Watson returned 4 yards for a TD for a much-needed spark.

Josh Freeman's 13-yard TD pass to Dezmon Briscoe and a two-point conversion throw to Kellen Winslow cut it to 31-15 heading into the final quarter.

The Cowboys have led in the fourth quarter in five of their six losses, however there wouldn't be a late collapse this time. Tampa Bay turned the ball over on downs twice in the last 6 minutes, and Sammy Morris picked up a first down inside the Bucs 10 to give the Cowboys an opportunity to run out the clock.

"Too little, too late," Morris said about Tampa Bay's comeback. "Not enough ... at the beginning. You can't dig holes like that for yourself."

Austin's TD midway through the first quarter was set up by Tampa Bay's NFL-leading 32nd turnover, a fumble by Freeman on the fifth play of the game.

The Tampa Bay quarterback scrambled 25 yards on third-and-5 to march the Bucs near midfield, but the opening possession of the night came to an abrupt halt on the next play when Freeman took off again for a 7-yard gain and was stripped of the ball at the Cowboys 44.

Linebacker Bradie James recovered and it took Romo seven plays to get Dallas in the end zone for the first time. The Cowboys marched 69 yards in 10 plays on their next possession, with Romo finishing the drive by finding a wide-open Bryant in the back of the end zone to make it 14-0.

In three career games against Tampa Bay ? all lopsided victories ? Romo has thrown for 908 yards, 11 touchdowns and no interceptions. He was 23 of 30 for 249 yards and was sacked twice Saturday night.

"I was just finding guys who were open and the guys do the rest," Romo said. "I thought the offense played good as a whole."

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'Boys back on track

Tony Romo threw for three touchdowns and ran for a fourth score Saturday night, helping the Dallas Cowboys stop a two-game losing streak with a 31-15 victory over the struggling Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/45710883/ns/sports-nfl/

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Pets Sing Jingle Bells | Care2 Causes

Do you sing Christmas songs to your pets?? Better yet, do your pets sing along with you?

Andrew Grantham, the creative voice behind YouTube?s Talking Animals channel is in the process of making another Christmas video for 2011.? No leads as to when it will be released, so enjoy last year?s version of a multitude of animals singing all verses of Jingle Bells.

Grantham is the creator of the Ultimate Dog Tease video that went viral last spring.? He raises money for the Nova Scotia SPCA by donating all proceeds from the sale of merchandise from the videos.? A number of shirts with the infamous line ?The maple kind, yeah?? are available.

For some more fun, have a look at the Christmas video from 2009.? The song is Deck the Halls.

Related Videos:

The Ultimate Dog Tease

Darling Animals Decking the Halls

Celebrate the Cute

?

Source: http://www.care2.com/causes/pets-sing-jingle-bells-hilarious-holiday-video.html

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First Offshore Lease Auction Since BP Oil Spill Fetches $337.7 Million (ContributorNetwork)

For the first time since the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in April 2010, the federal government held an auction to sell offshore petroleum leases in the region, according to the Associated Press. Although the auction fetched $337.7 million in winning bids, 20 companies placed bids cumulatively worth $712.7 million.

Oil companies bid on drilling rights for 191 areas located in the Gulf off the coast of Texas. ConocoPhillips was the biggest buyer, followed by Exxon Mobil and BP. With this auction completed, here are some facts on the efforts to continue and stop offshore drilling ventures in the Gulf:

* MSNBC reported several environmental groups, including Oceana, Defenders of Wildlife, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Center for Biological Diversity filed a complaint in federal court seeking a temporary halt on the auction.

* The complaint asserts that by proceeding with the auction, the Interior Department's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management fails to consider the impacts the BP oil spill had and ignores new information on emergency management.

* In October, BP announced it had received its first offshore drilling permit from the federal government since the oil spill, according to CNN Money.

* BP is looking to resume drilling for oil and establish five new wells at a site located roughly 250 miles southwest of New Orleans.

* Bloomberg noted that following the disaster in the Gulf, the Obama administration issued a moratorium on deepwater drilling.

* Even after the official moratorium was lifted and a second one was imposed by Department of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and then quickly cancelled, as of this past February, no new deepwater permits had been issued.

* The Guardian reported in December 2010, the Obama administration reversed its decision to allow for the expansion of offshore drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico, as well as off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts until at least 2017.

* Despite excluding drilling in the Arctic region, the ban received praise from environmental groups but the oil and gas industry criticized the decision.

* Last month, President Barack Obama took a major step by agreeing to allow for more oil and natural gas exploration and drilling in both the Gulf and off the coast of Alaska, reported BBC News.

* Even though the move opens the area for more oil production, Republicans have continued to push for a more extensive expansion to allow for more leases to drill in both regions.

Rachel Bogart provides an in-depth look at current environmental issues and local Chicago news stories. As a college student from the Chicago suburbs pursuing two science degrees, she applies her knowledge and passion to both topics to garner further public awareness.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/environment/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20111214/sc_ac/10681045_first_offshore_lease_auction_since_bp_oil_spill_fetches_3377_million

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Analysis: Waiving hearing was Sandusky's best option: experts (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) ? When Jerry Sandusky waived his right to confront his accusers at a preliminary hearing on Tuesday, the former Penn State football coach passed up a potentially valuable opportunity to bolster his defense.

But strategically, it may have been his best option, according to legal experts.

The announcement of the waiver was made before a packed courtroom in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania just before the hearing was to begin. Some of Sandusky's accusers were expected to testify.

In Pennsylvania, preliminary hearings are generally offered to defendants arrested on criminal charges. In some cases, as in the Sandusky matter, it comes after a grand jury has issued its report on evidence gathered by the government. The hearings give a judge the chance to evaluate the evidence. They also provide the defense an opportunity a look at the government's case and question its witnesses.

At both the grand jury and the preliminary hearing stages, the questions tend to be the same: was a crime committed and was the defendant probably involved?

In Sandusky's case, the questions turn on whether or not the former coach molested 10 boys over more than a decade. By waiving his right to a preliminary hearing, Sandusky declined to challenge whether the government had enough evidence to proceed to trial.

Though Sandusky told reporters after the hearing that he and his lawyers intend "to stay the course, to fight four quarters," his actions contradicted that statement, said Steven Fairlie, a criminal defense attorney based in North Wales, Pennsylvania who is not involved in the case. Sandusky gave up a chance to cross-examine his accusers, said Fairlie. In essence, Sandusky "skipped a quarter," said Fairlie.

There are several advantages to participating in a preliminary hearing for defendants, according to legal experts. Defendants can assess the witnesses' credibility and their ability to hold up to cross-examination. The hearings can also create an opportunity to exploit inconsistencies with what witnesses said before the grand jury, said Lisa Friel, former chief off the Manhattan District Attorney's Sex Crimes Prosecution Unit.

"Given that no human being ever related an event that happens to them the same way every time they say it, just by making them say it again and againexploits the possibility of inconsistencies at trial," said Friel.

But dispensing with the hearing may have been the best option, experts said. Sandusky's public image, which has already suffered from the charges, could have taken another hit if alleged victims had told emotional stories.

While no television broadcasts or photos were to be allowed in the courtroom, media would have reported the stories extensively.

"I think they weighed those two things and decided that the advantage they might have gotten out of going forward with a hearing was outweighed by how bad they were going to look in the media," said Friel.

Since many sexual abuse cases do not involve physical evidence, they often come down to credibility contests. But under Pennsylvania law, judges are not allowed to consider a witness's credibility in deciding whether to allow a case to move forward at the preliminary hearing stage.

"Given that there are so many victims, they didn't have a chance of prevailing on the hearing or perhaps intimidating the witnesses into not going forward by insisting on the hearing," said Friel.

When defendants waive their right to a preliminary hearing, it can signal that they are poised to engage in plea negotiations. A government prosecutor denied that those kinds of talks have taken place. But Jeff Lindy, a criminal defense attorney in Philadelphia, said that the decision to waive the hearing could come into play later.

"If there have been conversations in the back room (by prosecutors who say) 'hey look if you waive and do us the courtesy and not force us to put these kids on the witness stand, we will favorably consider it if we engage in plea negotiations down the road," said Lindy.

(Reporting by Andrew Longstreth; Editing by Greg McCune)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111213/us_nm/us_crime_coach_strategy

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Brownback says no losers in school finance plan | CJOnline.com

[unable to retrieve full-text content]CJOnline.com is the website of the Topeka Capital-Journal newspaper. It's the Number One source of news, sports, weather and entertainment information, as well as cars, jobs and real estate advertising for the northeastern ...

Source: http://cjonline.com/news/2011-12-13/brownback-says-no-losers-school-finance-plan

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John Blumenthal: 35 Classic One-liners About Aging (Huffington post)

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

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Head of Russian election watchdog detained

MOSCOW?? The leader of Russia's only independent election monitor was detained at a Moscow airport for 12 hours, a colleague said Saturday, the latest government pressure on the group ahead of Sunday's parliamentary vote.

Golos has documented thousands of election law violations during the latest campaign ? most of them linked to the United Russia party, which dominates the Kremlin and supports Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

United Russia dominates Russia's political life and has received overwhelmingly favorable coverage during the campaign, mostly from Kremlin-controlled national television. But the party is increasingly disliked, seen as representing a corrupt bureaucracy and often called "the party of crooks and thieves."

Golos leader Lilya Shibanova was held at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport after refusing to give her laptop to security officers late Friday, the group's deputy director Grigory Melkonyants said. She was released after giving up the computer, he said.

"The detention was politically motivated," Melkonyants told The Associated Press.

The detention follows a decision Friday by a Moscow district court to fine Golos $1,000 for violating a law forbidding the publication of public opinion research within five days of an election.

The group has come under growing pressure since Sunday, when Putin accused Western governments of trying to influence the election through their funding of unidentified Russian non-governmental organizations. Golos, whose name means "vote," is supported by grants from the United States and Europe.

The group's staffers all over Russia "face threats and psychological pressure," Melkonyants said.

Kremlin-controlled NTV television showed a half-hour program on Friday evening that attacked Golos directly. The program included shots of suitcases full of U.S. dollars and claimed that Golos was openly supporting opposition parties and trying to discredit the elections.

The Kremlin is determined to see United Russia maintain its majority in parliament. President Dmitry Medvedev and Putin, who serves as prime minister, both made final appeals for the party on Friday, warning that a parliament made up of diverse political camps would be incapable of making decisions.

Putin needs the party to do well in the parliamentary election to pave the way for his return to the presidency in a vote now three months away.

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/45533663/ns/world_news-europe/

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