Germany may be softening its opposition to expanding the 750 billion-euro ($966 billion) rescue facility for indebted euro nations as investors question Portugal’s ability to avoid tapping the fund. Air Jordan 11 European Union leaders may discuss expanding the fund at their next summit in February, the Handelsblatt newspaper reported today, citing German government officials it didn’t identify. Der Spiegel magazine said the EU could time such a pledge to coincide with granting aid to Portugal. With Portugal due to sell debt on Jan. 12 and Spain on Jan. 13, attention is shifting back to whether Europe is doing enough to stem the crisis. Chancellor Angela Merkel has up to now opposed expanding government-funded aid for debt-plagued euro nations, saying as recently as Dec. 6 that she sees no need for additional aid. UGG Boots Bailey Button “No decision has been taken about widening the rescue fund,” Steffen Seibert, Merkel’s chief spokesman said by telephone yesterday when asked whether her policy remains the same. “We should note that only a small part of the available funds has been tapped.” France and Germany will push Portugal to accept aid as officials in the two countries doubt the Lisbon government can raise money on capital markets much longer, Der Spiegel reported Jan. 8 in a preview of an article in this week’s edition. All Means Necessary Aid for Portugal should coincide with an agreement by the euro-area countries to provide all means necessary to safeguard the monetary union, including unlimited funds to expand the bailout facility if required, the Hamburg-based weekly said. Seibert denied that Merkel is pressing Portugal to tap the rescue fund, saying Germany’s aim is to ensure that Prime Minister Jose Socrates persuades markets he is pursuing budget discipline. UGG Boots Argyle Knit “What’s important is that governments take sustainable steps toward more stability and competitiveness, and that the markets recognize that,” Seibert said. The yield investors demand to hold Portuguese government bonds over similar-maturity German bunds rose last week as the country seeks to persuade investors it can narrow its budget gap and avoid following Greece and Ireland, which were forced to accept EU bailouts last year. “Markets won’t stay at these levels because that’s just not sustainable and if they widen much further, then we’ll soon have rescue packages for Spain and Portugal,” Erik Nielsen, chief European economist at Goldman Sachs Group Inc, said in a research note yesterday. “All the mechanisms are in place” to help Portugal if it asks for aid, German Finance Ministry spokesman Tobias Romeis said in a telephone interview. Cheap Jordans

Faced with tough and impractical conditions from N and Q Leagues, the short of parliamentary strength Pakistan People’s Party-led coalition government is making last ditch efforts to win back support of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement at the cost of more stringent conditions, party sources told Daily Times on Wednesday.Air Jordan 23 The sources said the communication channel between the former allies are still open and the PPP’s top leadership is in the process of negotiating a deal with the MQM on conditions it had earlier refused as suicidal for the party in Sindh. The sources said the PPP high command has almost conceded to Karachi-based MQM’s demand of withdrawing its proposed local government bill meant to reverse the local bodies system to pre-Musharraf period. The existing demarcation of constituencies in Karachi and Hyderabad would also be allowed to stay as demanded by the MQM, said a party source from Karachi on the condition of anonymity. The top PPP leadership has, however, convinced the MQM leadership to rejoin the coalition government besides shunning the opposition to the recent hike in petroleum prices. The sources said modalities have almost been firmed up by the two sides and arrangements are being finalised to make the agreement public by asking a high profile PPP leader to visit the MQM central secretariat soon. Air Max 88 The sources said President Asif Ali Zardari has been camping in Karachi for the past few days keeping the party’s hope alive to come out of imminent threat of survival of Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and his government, which is staying in the office only because of the incapability of a divided opposition. The PML-N, which has extended its deadline for three more days after the assassination of Governor Salmaan Taseer in Islamabad on Tuesday to the PPP government to respond in yes or no on bringing in revolutionary changes in the governance, was the only parliamentary party capable of brining in a no-confidence motion against the prime minister. However, since it has no support from other parliamentary parties to form a coalition government in place of the one in office now, it was reluctant to do so to avoid taking the blame of derailing a political government it pledged not to do under the Charter of Democracy it signed with the PPP in 2005 during Musharraf regime. Air Max 87 Analysts believe that no renewed political understanding between the PPP and the MQM would help the shaken-up democratic set up in the country to retake roots since the political turmoil triggered by the JUI-F and the MQM through unabated blows to the political set up has triggered a serious political crisis bound to orchestrate country’s internal and external dynamics in the future. Though the crisis is on, it seems the government can survive without any change for some more time, as, inside gurus believe, both Muslim Leagues have backed the PPP government to continue in the name of continuity of democracy, and maybe, when the political situation stabilises, they can consider taking advantage of its governance-related failures and call for mid-term elections. Both Muslim Leagues, who can be decisive factors in toppling the PPP government in the centre, actually do not want to become part of any alliance, but would back the PPP to improve governance, which they believe it would not be able to do. The Muslim League factor seems to be an attempt to kill two birds with one stone by standing along with democracy with outside support while at the same time seeking to push it into a deep ditch, saying it has failed to deliver. Analysts say such examples exist in various parliamentary democracies, such as India where the Communist Party of India helped the Congress-run minority political government by extending outside support and without joining the cabinet. However, they said the situation in Pakistan demand from the political forces the same, but the decreased tolerance level and voluminous crisis had not made the political parties mature enough to work on single point agenda of sustaining the democratic setup against an establishment hell-bent to keep the political system tattering. Political pundits believe the uncertainty will help the establishment further delay the demand for military action in North Waziristan and the greater say the clergy is attaining in Pakistan is helping this cause of the establishment. Air Max 24-7 They believe that assassination of Governor Salmaan Taseer, even if not a conspiracy, has helped religious parties further screw the democratic forces by getting a greater say in the policy-making apparatus of the state. This situation that has arisen following Salmaan Taseer’s murder had weakened the democratic forces at the cost of gaining a greater negotiating power to the religious parties swaying support of bigotry on non-issues like the demand of procedural changes in the law against blasphemy. They say the way the events are unfolding, it is getting obvious that politicians, particularly those belonging to the ruling PPP, are being bundled up to face consequences similar to those meted out to its leaders and workers since the very creation of the party.Gucci Outlet The situation that exists at the national horizon today, political pundits say, appeared to be a curtain raiser to change in the internal and external landscape according to the thoughts of country’s real power holder - the military establishment. This will happen either by further shaking up the political setup or putting in place a technocrats’ government, as being talked much before the present political crisis was set in largely to mould world opinion towards Pakistan’s not so defined national interests. Cheap Jordans

Five teams in this year's NFL playoffs had two different players run for more than 500 yards during the regular season. The Indianapolis Colts just wish they could have one. The Colts' leading rusher this season,Nike Air Max Donald Brown, gained just 497 yards on the ground. That makes Indianapolis the first team since 1998 to qualify for the playoffs without a 500-yard runner, and just the 12th team to do it in a 16-game season. The last team to win a Super Bowl without one was also the Colts—but that was in 1970, when they played in Baltimore and had a 14-game schedule. Of the 11 previous teams to make the playoffs in a 16-game season without a 500-yard runner, none won more than one postseason game, and seven of the 11 lost their opener. Cheap Jordans It's not that the Colts haven't tried to build a strong running game. They spent a first-round draft pick on Mr. Brown in 2009, and they took Joseph Addai in the first round of the 2006 draft. But both have been limited by injuries this season and often were ineffective when they played. Despite their poor rushing attack, the Colts tied an NFL record by making the playoffs for a ninth consecutive year. But if history is any guide, their playoff run will be short. Kids Jordan

The Republican congressman who is taking over responsibility for congressional oversight called President Obama's administration "one of the most corrupt administrations" on Sunday and predicted that the investigations he is planning over the next two years could result in about $200 billion in savings for U.S. taxpayers. Gucci Bags Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), the incoming chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, was bullish in laying out his agenda for the new Congress with Republicans in control of the House. Issa, who as chairman will have subpoena power, said he will seek to ferret out waste across the federal bureaucracy. While he used fiery rhetoric in describing the Obama administration in a series of television interviews Sunday, he said he will focus on wasteful spending, not the prosecution of White House officials. Asked on "Fox News Sunday" about reports that the White House is staffing up on lawyers to prepare for his oversight hearings, Issa said: "They're going to need more accountants. "It's more of an accounting function than legal function," Issa said. "It's more about the inspector generals than it is about lawyers in the White House. And the sooner the administration figures out that the enemy is the bureaucracy and the wasteful spending, not the other party, the better off we'll be." Coach Handbags 2010 New Arrivals Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.), who as ranking Democrat on Issa's committee will be the administration's chief defender during oversight investigations, criticized Issa for his partisan tone. "I couldn't help but think about the fact he has called this president the most corrupt in history," Cummings said on CNN's "State of the Union," referencing a comment Issa made to radio host Rush Limbaugh last fall but has since dialed back. "Keep in mind, Issa will have subpoena power to subpoena almost anybody he wants to," the congressman from Baltimore said. "And that's a problem when you come to these conclusions before you even bring people in. . . . I think that we're just going to have to be careful with this power." Issa also was sharply critical of Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr., stopping short of calling for his resignation. He said the Justice Department has not properly investigated the publication of thousands of classified diplomatic cables by WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. Issa said Holder should prosecute Assange as a criminal. Coach HoBo Bag "I think [Holder] needs to realize that, for example, WikiLeaks, if the president says, 'I can't deal with this guy as a terrorist,' then he has to be able to deal with him as a criminal," Issa said on "Fox News Sunday." "Otherwise, the world is laughing at this paper tiger we've become. "He's hurting this administration," Issa said of Holder. "If you're hurting the administration, either stop hurting the administration or leave." Issa said he plans to lead bipartisan investigations on food and drug safety, as well as Medicare fraud. "We can save $125 billion in simply not giving out money to Medicare recipients that don't exist for procedures that didn't happen," Issa said on CBS's "Face the Nation." "These are real dollars. Ten percent of the deficit goes out in wasted money - money that doesn't get one person health care in Medicare." On the CNN show, Issa said: "When I look at waste, fraud and abuse in the bureaucracy and in the government, this is like steroids to pump up the muscles of waste." Coach Leather Bags

It's hard to believe these teams set a Rose Bowl record for scoring with 24 first-quarter points. Coach Leather Bags Since then, the defenses have settled in, with Texas Christian proving why it came into the game as the national leader in overall defense, giving up averages of only 11.4 points and 215.4 yards per game. Wisconsin had 234 yards of offense at halftime, but the Badgers -- who ran up 70 or more points three times this season, have been shut out since Philip Welch made a 37-yard field goal on the final play of the first half. And now time is running out. With only 7 minutes 32 seconds left in regulation, Wisconsin has the ball on its own 16-yard line. Coach handbags After a fast start, Wisconsin's offense hasn't been able to sustain much against Texas Christian's top-ranked defense, which made two big plays early in the third quarter. First, cornerback Greg McCoy stripped Wisconsin receiver Nick Toon of a pass that would have moved the Badgers inside the 10-yard line. Then, on a key third-down play, linebacker Tank Carder made like his first name and flattened Wisconsin quarterback Scott Tolzien before he could deliver a pass. TCU has been impressive on special teams, too, with punter Anson Kelton most recently pinning Wisconsin back on its own three-yard line thanks to a hot-potato relay by his teammates on the coverage team. Texas Christian's offense hasn't had the ball much compared to Wisconsin, but the Horned Frogs are making the most of their time.Coach outlet Fullback Luke Shivers just scored from one yard on his first carry of the game to give TCU a 21-13 lead just 3 minutes and 4 seconds into the second half. Wisconsin has held the ball more than twice as long as TCU, but Horned Frogs quarterback Andy Dalton has had his unit in motion most of the game. Dalton completed passes of 33 yards to Ed Wesley and 12 yards to Jimmy Young on the drive. TCU also picked up 15 yards on a pass interference call. Dalton has completed nine of 12 passes for 154 yards in the game. TCU 14, Wisconsin 13 (halftime) A not-very-smart call that worked and an officials challenge enabled Wisconsin to pull within a point on the last play of the first half. The call: On fourth-and-nine from its own 33 yard line, Wisconsin punter Brad Nortman ran 11 yards for a first down. A gutty play since it worked. Something far less than that if it hadn't.Women Air Max Then, later in the drive, wide receiver Nick Toon made a diving catch of a Scott Tolzien third-down pass, but officials on the field ruled it a trap. However, Toon popped up, sprinted across the field, and appealed to his coaches to challenge the ruling. They did -- and won. Tolzien was then sacked by Texas Christian strong safety Colin Jones on the next play, but he rebounded to complete three passes to put Wisconsin in field goal range. Philip Welch converted from 37 yards out as time expired in the half. Jones, a 6-foot, 208-pound senior, has been all over the field for the Horned Frog defense, batting away passes and generally being a thorn in the side to Tolzien. Halftime statistical leaders: For TCU, quarterback Andy Dalton has completed seven of 10 passes for 109 yards and a touchdown. He also leads the Horned Frogs with 31 rushing yards in seven carries. Jimmy Young is the top receiver with three catches for 34 yards. For Wisconsin, Tolzien has completed eight of 12 passes for 106 yards. Montee Ball is the leading rusher with 101 yards in 13 carries -- 40 of those yards coming on the game's first play from scrimmage. Lance Kendricks is the Badgers' top receiver with three catches for 26 yards. Something to remember late in the game: Wisconsin ran 38 plays for 234 yards in the first half, keeping the ball 21 minutes and 28 seconds. TCU has gained 141 yards in 18 plays and has kept the ball only 8:32.longchamp bags Still TCU 14, Wisconsin 10 (late in second quarter): Wisconsin's Philip Welch was six for six making field goals from 39 yards in. But now he's six for seven. Welch, a junior, just missed wide left on a 39-yard field-goal attempt early in the second quarter. TCU 14, Wisconsin 10 (start of second quarter): Andy Dalton is faring considerably better in his second Bowl Championship Series game than he did in his first. The Texas Christian senior had three passes intercepted in last year's Fiesta Bowl, a 17-10 loss to Boise State. But in the early going against Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl, he's been nearly flawless. Dalton has put the Horned Frogs back in front on a four-yard run with 36 seconds left in the first quarter. Jeremy Kerley set up the 57-yard scoring drive with a 35-yard kickoff return. Then came a one-yard run by Ed Wesley on the first play. After that, it was all Dalton. He hit Josh Boyce with a perfectly thrown pass for a 44-yard gain, then ran on three consecutive plays, gaining one, seven and four yards. The 24 points in the first quarter is a Rose Bowl record. The previous record was 17 points, accomplished on multiple occasions -- the last time in 1993 by Michigan and Washington.air jordans Wisconson 10, TCU 7 in first quarter: What's this? Wisconsin can pass the ball too? The offense that one time this season ran on 29 consecutive plays, just moved right down the field to take a 10-7 lead on the arm of quarterback Scott Tolzien. Tolzien, showing why he led the nation in completion percentage, connected on passes of 14 yards to Lance Kendricks, 18 to Jared Abbrederis and 27 to Bradie Ewing on a six-play, 67-yard drive. John Clay scored the touchdown on a one-yard dive, the first score since Oct. 23 for the 2009 Big Ten Conference offensive player of the year. He has been slowed by knee injuriesAir Max 90 Women

After one look at the final score and the statistics, it's hard to say one play changed the game in Michigan State's 49-7 loss to Alabama in the Capital One Bowl on Saturday. Coach Classic bags After all, the Spartans (11-2) were outgained 546-171 for the game and managed minus-48 yards rushing. While some of the lost rushing yards came on quarterback sacks, Michigan State gained just 28 yards on running plays and it caused problems for the offense the entire game. But there was one point in the second quarter when the Spartans were still in the game and looked like they were about to cut a 14-0 Alabama lead in half. The Spartans had a strong opening drive before it ended in an interception from quarterback Kirk Cousins. They converted three consecutive third downs and moved the ball. It carried over into the next drive and Cousins marched the Spartans back into the red zone with the help of a 28-yard pass to tight end Brian Linthicum to set up first-and-goal at the Alabama 7-yard line. basketball shoes Edwin Baker was held for no gain on first down before Cousins hit Keith Nichol for a gain of 4 yards, putting the ball at the 3. That's when things started to fall apart for the Spartans. First, they were called for having too many men in the huddle, pushing the ball back to the 8-yard line. Then, as Cousins dropped to pass, he got nailed by Alabama linebacker Courtney Upshaw and lost the ball. As players scrambled for the ball, it got kicked all the way back to the 38-yard line where it was recovered by Michigan State center John Stipek. But now it was fourth down, and the Spartans were out of field-goal range and were forced to punt. The drive ended with no points when Michigan State was counting on at least getting three. Coach Classic Handbags "We got down to the 2-yard line on third down and we had miscommunication in the huddle," Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio said. "We sent in our big people, so we get 12 in the huddle. … Again, it's an accumulation of things. Some of it we can control and some of it we couldn't control, you know, based on the physicality of everything." It turned out to be the last real shot the Spartans had at making it a game. Alabama took advantage of the miscue and put together a seven-play, 80-yard drive that lasted only 2:22 and culminated in a 6-yard touchdown run by Mark Ingram. "It could have been 14-7, instead it went to 14-0 and before you know it, it's 21-0," wide receiver Keith Nichol said. "In college football at this level it's incredibly hard to come back from. Not many teams can do that." Despite the crushing loss and the mistakes on that particular play, Dantonio chose to talk about how his team can learn from it. "The game of football sort of teaches you to get up after you've been knocked down," he said. "You have to get back up on your own two feet and play. That's what this game teaches you. It was a lesson learned today. We'll continue to push forward and improve ourselves and our focus will be to win the next bowl game. We need to continue to try to meet that challenge." Coach handbags 2010

The coming year is a big one for President George W. Bush, President Clinton and for millions of others born in 1946, the start of the post-war baby boom. Coach Small Bags They're turning 65. That makes them eligible for Medicare, with huge implications for our future, CBS News Correspondent Sharyl Attkisson reports. On New Year's Day, the first baby boomers will celebrate the big 6-5, and they're not just getting older. They're getting more costly. "Boomers" are the 77 million Americans born from 1946 through '64. Beginning Jan. 1, 10,000 a day will turn 65. That will continue for the next 19 years. "The retirement of the baby boom generation will bring a tsunami of spending that will cause a severe problem for the federal government's budget over time," said David Walker, former U.S. comptroller general and CEO of the Comeback America Initiative. Take Medicare, health care for the elderly and disabled: ? The number of people eligible will nearly double from 46 million to 80 million by the time all the boomers reach 65. ? It's estimated the cost will grow from $500 billion a year today to $929 billion by 2020. ? The number of workers supporting each senior will fall. Coach Shoulder Bags "Ultimately we're going to have to make tough choices about how much health care can we afford and sustain and how are we going to change our payment systems to make sure that it doesn't bankrupt the country," said Walker. "Because if there's one thing that could bankrupt the United States, it's out-of-control health care costs." Medicare is already underfunded by at least $23 trillion. That's the difference between the benefits promised and the taxes actually being paid into Medicare. It could go bankrupt as early as 2017. Yet Americans still, apparently, want it all. According to a new Associated Press/GfK poll, they don't want to raise the age for Medicare. Sixty-one percent favor raising Medicare taxes to avoid cutting Medicare benefits, and a majority of both Democrats and Republicans, young and old, would rather raise taxes than cut benefits. The health care town hall meetings gave a glimpse into how Americans react when they think their benefits might be cut. To save the system, fiscal watchdogs insist Americans will ultimately have to work longer and get used to less government help. The question is not if change will have to be made but when politicians choose to make them. Air Jordan 12

Tis the season when news is where you find it (or make it up). So with Republicans and Democrats back home plotting political strategy and tallying campaign contributions for 2012, we’ll hit on something just ever-so-slightly over the edge into the irrelevant and ridiculous. Air Max Skyline We’re talking here of the reaction to President Obama’s approval of the Philadelphia Eagles giving quarterback Michael Vick a second chance after his jail stint for running a particularly cruel dog-fighting operation. The latest twist is conservative commentator Tucker Carlson’s declaration that Vick “should have been executed” for killing dogs. Mr. Carlson was filling in for Sean Hannity on the Fox News Channel. IN PICTURES: Dogs at work Carlson didn’t suggest the means of execution he had in mind (perhaps being thrown into a pit of angry canines). Here’s his full quote: “I’m Christian. I’ve made mistakes. I believe fervently in second chances. Michael Vick killed dogs in a heartless and cruel way. I think, firstly, he should have been executed for that. The idea the president of the United States would be getting behind someone who murdered dogs is beyond the pale.” Now it’s not like Mr. Obama called a press conference to announce his position on Vick and the Eagles. It was a brief, one-on-one conversation with Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie. But of course as soon as Mr. Lurie told Sports Illustrated’s Peter King, it was all over the place – including on the Eagles’ website. "The president wanted to talk about two things, but the first was Michael,'' Lurie told SI’s Mr. King. ”He said, 'So many people who serve time never get a fair second chance.’ He was ... passionate about it. He said it's never a level playing field for prisoners when they get out of jail. And he was happy that we did something on such a national stage that showed our faith in giving someone a second chance after such a major downfall.'' Coach Claire Bag (The other thing Obama wanted to talk about, by the way, was Lurie’s plans for alternative energy at the Eagles’ Lincoln Financial Field – proving that one can be wonky, sports-minded, and philosophical all in one brief conversation.) But really! Suggesting redemption for a millionaire professional sports figure who abused animals for fun? The White House has been trying to spin the story by saying the main reason for Obama’s call was clean energy at the Eagles’ stadium. But at least as team owner Lurie recalls it, that wasn’t the case. Either way, is anybody surprised that Fox News Channel commentators – even (or maybe especially) when they’re filling in, as Carlson is – take every possible chance to ding Obama? I don’t think so. And Obama’s perhaps impolitic comment in support of a convicted animal abuser gave Carlson – who’s also a well-known animal advocate, by the way – something hot to talk about. But it’s not just Fox newsies chewing on Obama’s ankles. Over at the Washington Post, columnist Richard Cohen is even harsher on Obama. “The sanctimony regarding this dog killer is sickening,” Mr. Cohen writes. “Vick got a second chance not because he deserves it but because he can play football. This is the lesson we can all take from this sorry episode.” For his part, Vick has said he’d like to have another dog some day. Can he be sincere? Here’s a true test: Obama should invite him to the White House for a little pooper-scooper duty after he’s met first dog Bo.Coach outlet

Billy the Kid, the mythologized gunslinger whose bloody exploits have been both romanticized and condemned, may receive his pardon from New Mexico’s governor this week – 130 years after historians say it was promised. Coach handbags Bill Richardson, a long-time enthusiast of Old West lore who is leaving office after eight years as governor, polled his constituents via the state website, seeking their thoughts on whether the Kid deserves a posthumous reprieve for court testimony he gave in an 1879 murder. The governor’s office reported receiving more than 800 e-mails, mostly in favor of the pardon. Who got pardons or clemency in 2010?Air Max 95 Like anything associated with Billy the Kid, whose real name may have been Henry McCarty but who also went by the names William Bonney and William Antrim, among others, legend and fact do not play well together. Hundreds of films, novels, poems, songs, televisions and stage plays have offered widely divergent versions on Billy the Kid’s life, where he was born, his motivations for killing, how many people he actually killed and even the circumstances of his death. Public perception regarding the Kid is split into two camps, says Paul Hutton, a history professor and Old West expert at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque: “people who see him as this homicidal maniac and [others] who see him as a romantic character fighting for justice against a corrupt New Mexico system.” Governor Richardson has long acknowledged how that fascination with the Kid, and Wild West stories in general, can generate tourism dollars, much like Wyatt Earp in Arizona and Davy Crockett in Texas. Tourists already can arrive in New Mexico and visit his foster home in Silver City, where he liked to gamble in Ruidoso, and his final resting place at an old military cemetery in Fort Sumner, although whether or not his body is there remains a matter of debate. In 2000, Richardson assembled a team of scholars, including Mr. Hutton, to investigate competing claims to Billy the Kid’s identity. An effort to dig up the remains of a woman thought to be his mother for DNA sampling created a public outcry and Richardson abandoned the effort to concentrate on his presidential campaign. He is returning to this issue just a few days from leaving office. Historians say documents show Billy the Kid was promised a pardon by Lew Wallace, then the state governor, in exchange for testimony the Kid gave against the three men who killed a one-armed lawyer during the Lincoln County wars. The petition to pardon the Kid, filed by Albuquerque attorney Randi McGinn, quotes an exchange of letters between the Kid and Mr. Wallace in which the governor tells him, “In return for your doing this, I will let you go scot [sic] free with a pardon in your pocket for all your misdeeds.” Hutton says most historians agree that Billy the Kid’s life was not as violent as the legend suggests and that he was a product of his unwieldy times of government corruption and vigilante justice. Air Max 90 “He certainly felt solving problems with a gun was the way to go, but that was the world in which he lived in,” he says. “The forces of authority in 1877 New Mexico were nothing to brag about.” Whether or not Richardson will decide in favor of the Kid remains to be seen, although the state website specifies that any decision will be confined to the pardon owed to him and nothing more. “Any decision will be made in light of the explicit concern as to whether one of [Richardson’s] predecessors as governor committed the state of New Mexico to a specific act, and whether that pledge was upheld,” he states. New Mexico’s incoming governor, Susana Martinez, called the effort “a waste,” according to CBS News. Hutton says the historic ramification of a pardon will simply be “a state recognition that the Kid was wronged, which he actually was.” However, others suggest the decision will do nothing to re-frame how the Old West is perceived, truthfully or otherwise. “History is already written,” Tim Sweet, owner of the Billy the Kid Museum in Fort Sumner, told National Public Radio. “All it is going to do is bring publicity. In three months, nobody will care.”Air Max 2010

Michael Vick marked another milestone during his NFL resurrection Tuesday. The Philadelphia Eagles quarterback earned his first Pro Bowl invite since returning to the league following a two-season absence while he served 18 months in federal prison for operating a dogfighting ring. Vick, who garnered more than 1.5 million all-star votes from fans, is having his best statistical season (2,755 yards and 20 TDs passing, 613 yards and eight TDs rushing) and was the NFC's top-rated passer (103.6) entering Tuesday night's game vs. the Minnesota Vikings. Air Max 90 "I'm just blessed to be here," he said last week. "I spent two Christmases in (prison), and that was by far the toughest thing I've had to do. Each and every year I reflect on that, and I think it will always make the holiday season more gratifying. "Just thankful for a lot, thankful for the opportunity that I've been given, thankful for the blessings, and hopefully they'll continue to come." Vick, a Pro Bowler three times during his first six seasons with the Atlanta Falcons, will start opposite New England Patriots signal-caller Tom Brady, who is the league's top-rated passer (109.8), and the only player with more fan votes — and probably more MVP support (34 TD passes, record 319 consecutive passes without an INT) — than Vick. THE HUDDLE: Tom Brady wins balloting among fans Air Jordan 4 The Falcons will send a league-high seven players to the Pro Bowl, which will be played in Honolulu on Jan. 30, a week prior to Super Bowl XLV. Roddy White, who has a league-best (and career-high) 109 receptions, will start at wideout for the NFC alongside the Detroit Lions' Calvin Johnson. Atlanta's entire backfield — quarterback Matt Ryan, tailback Michael Turner and fullback Ovie Mughelli— is Hawaii-bound. Tight end Tony Gonzalez, defensive end John Abraham and special teams ace Eric Weems also got the call. Johnson is among 21 first-time all-stars and will be joined by teammate and defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, the game's only rookie starter. Other rookies making the cut were Pittsburgh Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey, Patriots cornerback Devin McCourty and Tennessee Titans return specialist Marc Mariani. The AFC team will have six Patriots players with linebacker Jerod Mayo, nose tackle Vince Wilfork, safety Brandon Meriweather and guard Logan Mankins (who missed the first seven games amid a contract impasse) joining Brady and McCourty. Four teams — the Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers— will not be represented. The rosters were determined with input from fans, players and coaches. Players who are Super Bowl-bound will be replaced. Long snappers will be added later. Air Jordan 1