Tebow Time in New York over after Jets cut QB

In this Sunday, Dec. 30, 2012 photo, New York Jets quarterback Tim Tebow (15) warms up before an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park, N.Y. The New York Jets say, Monday, April 29, 2013, they have waived Tebow. (AP Photo/Gary Wiepert)

In this Sunday, Dec. 30, 2012 photo, New York Jets quarterback Tim Tebow (15) warms up before an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park, N.Y. The New York Jets say, Monday, April 29, 2013, they have waived Tebow. (AP Photo/Gary Wiepert)

New York Jets quarterback Tim Tebow arrives on the first day of NFL football offseason workouts at the Jets practice facility in Florham Park, N.J., Monday, April 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)

NEW YORK (AP) ? Tebow Time is over in New York ? before it ever got started.

Tim Tebow was waived by the Jets on Monday, the end of an unsuccessful one-season experiment in New York.

Coach Rex Ryan said in a statement by the team in announcing the move that had been expected for months: "Unfortunately, things did not work out the way we all had hoped."

The Heisman Trophy winner attempted just eight passes after his ballyhooed arrival in a surprising trade from the Denver Broncos in March 2012. He threw for 39 yards and rushed 32 times for 102 yards ? and stunningly had no touchdowns as a member of the Jets.

Meanwhile, starter Mark Sanchez struggled amid constant questions about Tebow's playing time, and still Tebow remained mostly on the sideline. The Jets and new general manager John Idzik drafted former West Virginia star Geno Smith in the second round of the NFL draft Friday, giving New York six quarterbacks on its roster ? and creating uncertainty about Sanchez's future as well.

Tebow arrived at the team's facility in Florham Park, N.J., on Monday morning and was told he had been cut.

"Tim is an extremely hard worker, evident by the shape he came back in this offseason," Ryan said. "We wish him the best moving forward."

Tebow led the Broncos to the playoffs in 2011, but became expendable when Denver signed Peyton Manning as a free agent. The popular backup quarterback was acquired by the Jets for a fourth-round draft pick and $1.5 million in salary. He was introduced at the Jets' facility to plenty of fanfare at a lavish news conference, with Tebow repeatedly saying he was "excited" to be in New York.

It turned out to be one of the few high points in Tebow's stay with the Jets. Along with his shirtless jog from the practice field in the rain during training camp, of course.

Owner Woody Johnson jokingly said last season that "you can never have enough Tebow." Well, the Jets apparently had their fill after just one year.

From the day the Jets made the move to bring Tebow in to compete with Sanchez, many fans and media predicted it was only a matter of time before the former Florida star stepped in as the starting quarterback. There were billboards outside the Lincoln Tunnel in New Jersey welcoming Tebow, and sandwiches named after him at Manhattan delis.

Meanwhile, the Jets insisted having both Tebow and Sanchez would not be a distraction. The plan was that the team would benefit from having both players' different skill sets: Sanchez as the traditional quarterback, and Tebow running the wildcat-style offense.

While everyone from Johnson to Ryan to former general manager Mike Tannenbaum to former offensive coordinator Tony Sparano said they were all "on board" with Tebow, it became evident early that he had no clear role.

And Tebow simply didn't impress enough in practice to earn more playing time.

Ryan refused to start Tebow in place of a struggling Sanchez late in the season, choosing instead to go with third-stringer Greg McElroy ahead of him for one game ? despite Tebow's multitude of fans taking to Twitter and begging the team to give their favorite player a chance. The since-fired Sparano never was able to figure out a way to consistently use Tebow, who spent most of his time on the sideline during games.

He was solid in his role on special teams as the personal punt protector, but the Jets stopped using him even there after he broke two ribs in a game at Seattle in November. Tebow's overall role diminished greatly after the injury, even after he healed. He tried to hide his frustration, but acknowledged late in the season that things didn't turn out quite how he expected in New York.

"I think it's fair to say," Tebow said, "that I'm a little disappointed."

The Jets appear to be sticking with Sanchez despite his struggles and the arrival of Smith as the future quarterback because he is guaranteed $8.25 million this season. But Idzik made it clear that the team would bring in competition for Sanchez. Tebow, however, is not going to be among the team's options. And, he's free to explore other opportunities ? even if there don't seem to be many at this point.

It appeared Jacksonville, the other team to pursue Tebow last offseason, would be an obvious landing spot. But new general manager David Caldwell nixed the idea of a happy homecoming when he declared at his introductory news conference that he couldn't "imagine a scenario in which he'll be a Jacksonville Jaguar."

Many believe Tebow's best chance to stick in the NFL would be to switch positions, but he insists he is a quarterback and just wants an opportunity. Just as the Broncos gave him two seasons ago when he took over for Kyle Orton and led Denver to several comeback victories and into the playoffs.

Tebow was the talk of the country back then, as it seemed everyone ? including actor Robert Downey Jr. at the Oscars ? was dropping to a knee to do their version of "Tebowing," mimicking the quarterback's prayerful pose.

It was something that was absent all season in his stint with the Jets.

Chicago could be a possibility since new coach Marc Trestman worked with Tebow before the NFL draft in 2010 and in the Senior Bowl and liked what he saw. He'd be a backup there behind Jay Cutler, though. Tampa Bay, San Diego and New England might also be options.

Tebow could also head to Canada and play in the CFL, taking the route several others before him have, such as Doug Flutie, Warren Moon and Jeff Garcia. The Montreal Alouettes own his exclusive negotiating rights, but whether Tebow would even be open to a move north of the U.S. border is uncertain.

Brett Bouchy, the owner of the Orlando Predators of the Arena League, recently told the Orlando Sentinel that his team would "love to have him," and added that "we have a contract waiting for him to sign."

Either way, it's quite a fall from grace for Tebow, who was a two-time national champion with the University of Florida, and whose No. 15 Broncos jersey ranked second in national sales to Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers in 2011. He remained a model citizen throughout his frustrating year in New York and answered the constant barrage of questions about his role and mindset all season.

Recently retired Jets special teams coordinator Mike Westhoff labeled the way the team used Tebow an "absolute mess." Former Jets teammate Mike DeVito, now with Kansas City, said after the season that he would've liked to have seen Tebow get a chance.

Whether Tebow gets another one elsewhere ? and if it's as a quarterback ? this season remains to be seen.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2013-04-29-Jets-Tebow%20Waived/id-cf40482184d54db28e26a8b705715115

magic johnson jetblue pilot solicitor general neighborhood watch dodgers sale tami roman jetblue captain

Obama administration simplifies health care form

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The first draft was as mind-numbing and complex as tax forms. Now the Obama administration is unveiling a simplified application for health insurance benefits under the federal health care overhaul.

Details to be released Tuesday include a three-page short form that single people can fill out, administration officials said. Medicare chief Marilyn Tavenner, also overseeing the rollout of the health care law, called it "significantly shorter than industry standards."

The earlier draft of the application was widely panned, and administration allies feared uninsured people would give up in frustration. Administration officials say they have trimmed the paperwork burden back considerably.

One activist briefed on the changes said Monday the administration has made big improvements. Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA, said the new application will be easier to navigate and much less intimidating.

Although the new forms may be shorter, it's unclear whether the administration can get rid of all the complexity. That's because applicants will have to provide detailed snapshots of their incomes to see whether they qualify for government assistance. Individuals will have to gather tax returns, pay stubs and other financial records before filling out the application.

Nearly 30 million uninsured Americans are eventually expected to get coverage through President Barack Obama's health care law. Enrollment starts Oct. 1 for coverage that takes effect Jan. 1. Middle-class people who don't get coverage through their jobs will be able to purchase private insurance, in most cases with the help of tax credits to make premiums more affordable. Low-income uninsured people will be steered to government programs like Medicaid.

Administration officials expect most consumers to apply online through new health insurance marketplaces that will be operating in each state. A single application form will serve to route consumers to either private plans or the Medicaid program. Identification, citizenship and immigration status, as well as income details, are supposed to be verified in close to real time through a federal "data hub" that will involve pinging Social Security, Homeland Security and the Internal Revenue Service.

Currently, applying for health insurance individually entails filling out a lengthy questionnaire about your health. Under Obama's overhaul, insurers will no longer be able to turn away the sick, or charge them more. The health care questions will disappear, but they'll be replaced by questions about your income. Consumers who underestimate their incomes could be in for an unwelcome surprise later on in the form of smaller tax refunds.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/bbd825583c8542898e6fa7d440b9febc/Article_2013-04-30-Health%20Overhaul-Applying%20for%20Benefits/id-658f11a3a2ae465da20880c127917e3c

Lane Goodwin Romnesia eminem eminem Tagg Romney Bosses Day Cabin Fever 2

Justice Breyer released from hospital after bicycle fall

By Lawrence Hurley

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer was released from the hospital on Monday after being injured in a fall from his bicycle last week, a court spokeswoman said.

Breyer, 74, had shoulder surgery on Saturday at Georgetown University Hospital to repair a broken bone in his right shoulder after the bicycle accident on Friday afternoon near the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington.

He missed the court's public session on Monday. The next time the nine justices are due to meet is at their private conference on May 9. The next public session is scheduled for May 13.

Breyer is no stranger to bicycle accidents, having been injured twice before.

In 2011, he broke his collarbone, while in 1993, before he was appointed to the court, he broke his ribs and suffered a punctured lung.

Breyer, who was appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1994, is viewed as a moderate on the liberal wing of the nine-member court.

(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley; Editing by Howard Goller and Eric Beech)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/justice-breyer-released-hospital-bicycle-fall-213013638.html

metro north taco bell taco bell Breezy Point Seaside Heights nj transit PSEG

Miss. man arrested in ricin-laced letters case

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) ? A Mississippi man whose home and business were searched as part of an investigation into poisoned letters sent to the president and others has been arrested in the case, according to the FBI.

Everett Dutschke, 41, was arrested about 12:50 a.m. Saturday at his Tupelo home by FBI special agents in connection with the letters, FBI spokeswoman Deborah Madden said. The letters, which allegedly contained ricin, were sent last week to President Barack Obama, Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi and earlier to an 80-year-old Mississippi judge, Sadie Holland.

Madden said FBI special agents arrested Dutschke (pronounced DUHS'-kee) without incident. She said additional questions should be directed to the U.S. attorney's office. The office in Oxford did not immediately respond to messages Saturday.

Dutschke's attorney, Lori Nail Basham, did not immediately respond to phone or text messages Saturday. Basham said earlier this week that Dutschke was "cooperating fully" with investigators. Dutschke has insisted he had nothing to do with the letters.

Ryan Taylor, a spokesman for Wicker, said Saturday that "because the investigation is still ongoing, we're not able to comment."

Charges in the case were initially filed against an Elvis impersonator but then dropped. Attention then turned to Dutschke, who has ties to the former suspect and the judge and senator. Earlier in the week, as investigators searched his primary residence in Tupelo, Dutschke had remarked to reporters, "I don't know how much more of this I can take."

Charges initially were filed last week against Paul Kevin Curtis, 45, the Elvis impersonator, but then dropped after authorities said they had discovered new information. Curtis' lawyers say he was framed.

Curtis' attorney, Christi McCoy, said Saturday: "We are relieved but also saddened. This crime is nothing short of diabolical. I have seen a lot of meanness in the past two decades, but this stops me in my tracks. "

Dutschke and Curtis were acquainted. Curtis said they had talked about possibly publishing a book on an alleged conspiracy to sell body parts on a black market. But he said they later had a feud.

Judge Holland is a common link between the two men who have been investigated, and both know Wicker.

Holland was the presiding judge in a case in which Curtis was accused of assaulting a Tupelo attorney in 2004. Holland sentenced him to six months in the county jail. He served only part of the sentence, according to his brother.

Holland's family has had political skirmishes with Dutschke.

Her son, Steve Holland, a Democratic state representative, said he thinks his mother's only other encounter with Dutschke was at a rally in the town of Verona in 2007, when Dutschke ran as a Republican against Steve Holland.

Holland said his mother confronted Dutschke after he made a derogatory speech about the Holland family. She demanded that he apologize, which Holland says he did.

Steve Holland said he doesn't know if his mother remembers Curtis' assault case.

___

Associated Press writer Jack Elliott Jr. in Jackson, Miss., contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/fbi-miss-man-arrested-suspicious-letters-case-151339370.html

zack greinke kermit gosnell jackie robinson Coachella 2013 Scary Movie 5 MTV Movie Awards 2013 masters

Marathon deaths prompt review of security policy

Left unattended, no accessory looks as menacing these days as a backpack.

At the airport. On the subway. At a sports event.

And, as a result of the two backpack-encased bombs that exploded near the finish line at the Boston Marathon, sports teams and leagues around the world are rethinking what kind of bags, satchels, purses and, yes, black nylon backpacks should be allowed inside stadiums and arenas.

The packs will even be the focal point of a conference this summer of stadium-security personnel in Orlando .

"After what happened ... I wouldn't be surprised if the number of people eliminating backpacks would increase," said Lou Marciani, director of the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security, founded in 2006 and based at the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg.

Next Saturday, more than 165,000 people are expected at Churchill Downs for the Kentucky Derby. Backpacks, duffel bags and large purses have been banned from the track since 2002 ? part of the clamp-down that followed the Sept. 11 attacks. Still, Derby officials have told fans their bags will undergo increased security checks for this year's race.

No matter where the world ends up on the bag-check spectrum, some fans may never again regard the pack slung across their body quite the same way.

"I never really thought about backpacks until last week, and now you notice backpacks all over the place," said Ryan Hershberger of Hartwell, Ga., as he headed into a Colorado Rockies game carrying a black backpack. "It makes you think."

Down the street, at the Denver Nuggets game, a handful of fans shared the same sentiment.

"I've been thinking about it all day," Joel Cross said on the concourse at the Pepsi Center in Denver. He and his wife traveled from Harrisburg, Neb., to attend Tuesday night's Nuggets playoff game. "We're from a community where our whole county only has 600 people in it. Nobody is going to bomb us because there's no one there. But we're coming to a populated area."

The NFL beefed up security for thousands of fans attending its annual draft, which runs through Saturday, with metal detectors, pat-downs and about 20 percent more personnel in place than previous years. Backpacks are banned. The league said it would consider what, if any, changes might be made for the 2013 season, which ends with the Super Bowl in New York next February.

Major League Baseball's security officials met Thursday but Commissioner Bud Selig said no changes are expected in the rules on bags fans can bring to ballparks, generally limited to 16x16x8 inches. The meeting was scheduled before the Boston explosions that killed three and injured more than 260/

"I wouldn't say that Boston has changed anything," Selig said. "Each club makes its own decision."

At Yankee Stadium, for example, briefcases, coolers and other hard-sided bags or containers are not permitted. At Kansas City's Kauffman Stadium, wrapped presents are banned along with cameras with lenses of 12 or more inches. The Baltimore Orioles ban bags with wheels at Camden Yards.

Boston and San Francisco were among the teams opting to use metal-detecting wands on fans and their possessions this week.

"We've added people, and people are getting in faster now, so we're going to stick with the plan," Giants president and CEO Larry Baer said.

Though the marathon bombings caught the attention of the world, not every event or championship, especially overseas, is beefing up or changing security measures.

For instance, officials at Manchester United, the FA Cup final and the European Champions League say their policies, which either ban large bags or strongly discourage them, are under constant review but not set to change.

"We did, of course, contact the police in the aftermath of the Boston bombings, as part of our commitment to the security of fans and visitors to the stadium," Manchester United said in a statement.

At Wimbledon, where tennis action starts in June, no changes are planned.

"It was a terrible event, but we have no reason to believe it's something that has a direct impact on Wimbledon," All-England Club chief executive Richard Lewis said, referring to the Boston explosions.

At the Summer Olympics in London, soft-sided bags were required to fit under seats and couldn't hold more than 25 liters (6 gallons).

Sebastian Coe, who led London's organizing committee, says a ban on backpacks at sports events would not be justified.

"We have to make some pretty tough decisions in the way we want to live our lives," he said. "It's very easy to draw all sorts of conclusions (from the Boston bombings). Do we want to live in a world where people can't wear backpacks to sporting events? I'm not sure we do."

Organizers in Brazil aren't making any radical changes to their backpack policy for the upcoming Confederations Cup or next year's World Cup. So far, the extensive list of prohibited items includes "unwieldy" bags ? no more than 10x10x10 inches and too big to fit under a seat.

Officials in Russia, which hosts the 2018 World Cup, said that whenever a sports-related tragedy occurs, they review what happened "to ensure that our own regulations and procedures are sufficiently covering such potential tragedies or risks."

In Sochi, Russia, site of February's Winter Olympics, security for test events was so stringent that the president of the international skiing federation, Gian Franco Kasper, cracked, "The only moment they didn't inspect our athletes was during the race."

International Olympic Committee member Dick Pound of Canada said one strategy might be to push back security boundaries.

"I remember in Vancouver and other places, the tension between the organizers and the events and the security folks was over the size of the perimeter," Pound said. "If you can move the perimeter back 50 or 100 meters, a backpack bomb is going to have less lethal effect."

In the U.S., NBA spokesman Tim Frank wouldn't comment on specific security practices, beyond saying: "We regularly practice a wide range of state of the art security measures in all of our arenas." The Nuggets have long used wands and searched bags. But Cross' wife, Shelly, said she noticed a more extensive security presence at Tuesday's game than the last time they made the trip to Denver.

"We were here not too long ago and we don't remember this," she said.

At least one backpack developer said she was unaware of any pending changes to basic designs. She also thought the bombings were unlikely to create a need for see-thru or clear backpacks.

"I don't think people want to share their belongings with everyone. Everyone wants their privacy," said Annelies Mertens, a member of the Samsonite development team in Belgium. "I don't think this will have an influence on the way backpacks are made. I don't see that happening."

While the Boston Marathon presented its own set of difficult challenges ? securing a 26-mile course dotted with trash cans and spectators on almost every block ? one expert says there's no such thing as perfect security guidelines, regardless of venue.

"A no-backpack policy is fine if it applies to everyone," said Derek Catsam, an associate professor at University of Texas of the Permian Basin in Odessa who has studied the safety issue in stadiums. "But then you start making exceptions for people with kids, and for the elderly and for women with purses and people in expensive seats. Where does it end? You can have a policy or not have a policy. But once you start selectively enforcing it, that's going to be problematic."

After the bombings, the NHL's Boston Bruins added metal-detecting wands to their security regimen and checked cars parking in a garage underneath the arena. Security measures vary by arena in the NHL. The New York Islanders, for example, don't allow backpacks; the Detroit Red Wings ban oversized bags and search all bags that are allowed in.

Catsam said security can always be ratcheted up, but then comes the issue of how much convenience people are willing to give up for the sake of safety.

"They could start saying you can bring whatever kind of backpack you want but you have to go through an X-ray system like you do at the airport," he said. "It would take forever and we'd adjust, but I'm not sure what we'll discover or if we'll be making anything really safer."

Marciani, on the other hand, envisions a day when backpacks are as obsolete at a stadium as the bulky transistor radios that fans once brought along so they could listen to play-by-play as they watched the game.

"I think it's just one less aggravation we'd have to put up with," he said. "I'd just say, 'Why backpacks at a stadium?' I don't think we need them."

___

AP Sports Writers Pat Graham in Denver, Howard Fendrich in Washington, Stephen Wilson, Rob Harris, Steve Douglas and Chris Lehourites in London, Tales Azzoni in Sao Paolo, Brazil, Janie McCauley in San Francisco, Jon Krawczynski in Minneapolis, Graham Dunbar in Geneva, Jimmy Golen in Boston, Ben Walker and Ron Blum in New York, David Ginsburg in Baltimore and Bernie Wilson in San Diego and Associated Press reporter Peter Banda contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/marathon-deaths-prompt-review-security-policy-192823940.html

Royal Rumble 2013 senior bowl norovirus Eclampsia Kendrick Lamar JJ Abrams New Orleans Pelicans

Obama vows to defend abortion rights at Planned Parenthood event (Washington Post)

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

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/301893148?client_source=feed&format=rss

Nate Silver stock market stock market Obama Acceptance Speech 2012 dow jones Selena Gomez ariel winter

Samsung Electronics profit jumps ahead of Galaxy S4 debut

SEOUL (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co Ltd reported on Friday its sixth straight quarter of profit growth ahead of the debut of its latest Galaxy smartphone, the South Korean IT giant's biggest assault on rival Apple Inc yet.

By launching the Galaxy S4 in the United States on Saturday, Samsung is taking aim at Apple's home market at a time when the iPhone maker appears to have hit a snag. Earlier this week, Apple reported its first profit decline in more than a decade and indicated no major product releases until the fall.

Samsung is widely expected to resume posting record quarterly profits, after a hiatus in January-March, as the S4 is dispatched to 327 mobile carriers in 155 countries.

This week, Samsung has kicked off a massive advertising campaign for the S4 and set up mini stores at Best Buy locations to promote the smartphone. Initial orders have surprised on the upside, with the firm expecting a short-term supply crunch.

Early success of the S4 is crucial in determining the extent of the expected second-quarter record earnings for a company that gets more than 70 percent of its overall profit from mobile devices.

The new S4, which sports a host of software-enabled features, is seen as stealing a head-start on what's widely expected to be an upgraded iPhone later this year. But the Galaxy phone has drawn mixed reviews so far.

Profit from Samsung's mobile division jumped 56 percent to a record 6.51 trillion won in the first quarter, accounting for nearly three quarters of the firm's entire profit, the company said on Friday, before the stock market open.

Samsung, which doesn't provide smartphone sales figures, likely sold 68-70 million smartphones in the quarter ended March, up from 63 million in the previous quarter, according to five analysts.

By contrast, second-ranked Apple said on Tuesday it shipped 37.4 million iPhones in the March quarter, up from 35.1 million a year ago, but down sharply from 47.8 million in the previous quarter.

Samsung's first-quarter overall operating profit increased 54 percent from a year ago to 8.8 trillion won ($7.9 billion), broadly in line with its earlier estimate and almost on par with the fourth-quarter's record of 8.84 trillion won.

Shares in Samsung, valued at around $215 billion, have risen 2 percent in the past three months, beating a 21 percent decline in Apple and a 1 percent drop in the wider market.

(Reporting by Miyoung Kim; Editing by Ryan Woo)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/samsung-electronics-profit-jumps-ahead-galaxy-s4-debut-103335938--finance.html

kirby sarah palin cbi the shins atomic clock john mccain game changer