GOOD MORNING, MR. PRESIDENT

By TERENCE HUNT

WASHINGTON (AP) - Stepping into history, Barack Hussein Obama grasps the reins of power as America's first black president in a high-noon inauguration amid grave economic worries and high expectations.

Braving icy temperatures and possible snow flurries, hundreds of thousands of people descended on the heavily guarded capital city Tuesday for the first change of administrations since the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

The capital city, a quick starter on even the most ordinary of days, took on the kind of frenetic predawn life rarely seen. The streets were becoming populated well before daybreak, and competition for space on the Metro subway system was fierce. Several suburban parking lots for subway riders were filled to capacity well before 6 a.m.

Two years after beginning his improbable quest as a little-known, first-term Illinois senator with a foreign-sounding name, Obama moves into the Oval Office as the nation's fourth youngest president, at 47, and the first African-American, a racial barrier-breaking achievement believed impossible by generations of minorities.

Around the world, Obama's election electrified millions with the hope that America will be more embracing, more open to change.

The dawn of the new Democratic era - with Obama allies in charge of both houses of Congress - ends eight years of Republican control of the White House by George W. Bush. He leaves Washington as one of the nation's most unpopular and divisive presidents, the architect of two unfinished wars and the man in charge at a time of economic calamity that swept away many Americans' jobs, savings, homes and dreams - leaving behind a sickening feeling of insecurity.

Bush - following tradition - is leaving a note for Obama in the top drawer of his desk in the Oval Office.

White House press secretary Dana Perino said the theme of the message - which Bush wrote on Monday - is similar to what he has said since election night about how Obama is about to start a "fabulous new chapter" in the United States, and that he wishes him well.

The unfinished business of the Bush administration thrusts an enormous burden onto Obama's shoulders. Pre-inauguration polls show Americans believe Obama is on track to succeed and are confident he can turn the economy around. He has cautioned that improvements will take time and that things will get worse before they get better.

Culminating four days of celebration, the script for Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden at the nation's 56th inauguration was to begin with a traditional morning worship service at St. John's Episcopal Church, across Lafayette Park from the White House, and end with dancing and partying at 10 inaugural balls lasting deep into the night.

By custom, Obama and his wife, Michelle, were invited to the White House for coffee with Bush and his wife, Laura, followed by a shared ride in a sleek, heavily armored Cadillac limousine to the U.S. Capitol for the transfer of power, an event flashed around the world in television and radio broadcasts, podcasts and Internet streaming. On Monday, Vice President Dick Cheney pulled a muscle in his back, leaving him in a wheelchair for the inauguration.

Before noon, Obama steps forward on the West Front of the Capitol to lay his left hand on the same Bible that President Abraham Lincoln used at his first inauguration in 1861. The 35-word oath of office, administered by Chief Justice John Roberts, has been uttered by every president since George Washington. Obama was one of 22 Democratic senators to vote against Roberts' confirmation to the Supreme Court in 2005.

The son of a Kansas-born mother and Kenya-born father, Obama decided to use his full name in the swearing-in ceremony.

The Constitution says the clock - not the pomp, ceremony and oaths - signals the transfer of the office from the old president to the new one.

The 20th Amendment to the Constitution specifies that the terms of office of the president and vice president "shall end at noon on the 20th day of January ... and the terms of their successors shall then begin."

To the dismay of liberals, Obama invited conservative evangelical pastor Rick Warren - an opponent of gay rights - to give the inaugural invocation.

About a dozen members of Obama's Cabinet and top appointees - including Secretary of State-designate Hillary Rodham Clinton - were ready for Senate confirmation Tuesday, provided no objections were raised.

More than 10,000 people from all 50 states - including bands and military units - were assembled to follow Obama and Biden from the Capitol on the 1.5-mile inaugural parade route on Pennsylvania Avenue, concluding at a bulletproof reviewing stand in front of the White House. Security was unprecedented. Most bridges into Washington and about 3.5 square miles of downtown were closed.

Obama's inauguration represents a time of renewal and optimism for a nation gripped by fear and anxiety. Stark numbers tell the story of an economic debacle unrivaled since the 1930s:

_Eleven million people have lost their jobs, pushing the unemployment rate to 7.2 percent, a 16-year high.

_One in 10 U.S. homeowners is delinquent on mortgage payments or in arrears.

_The Dow Jones industrial average fell by 33.8 percent in 2008, the worst decline since 1931, and stocks lost $10 trillion in value between October 2007 and November 2008.

Obama and congressional Democrats are working on an $825 billion economic recovery bill that would provide an enormous infusion of public spending and tax cuts. Obama also will have at his disposal the remaining $350 billion in the federal financial bailout fund. His goal is to save or create 3 million jobs and put banks back in the job of lending to customers.

In an appeal for bipartisanship, Obama honored defeated Republican presidential rival John McCain at a dinner Monday night. "There are few Americans who understand this need for common purpose and common effort better than John McCain," Obama said.

Young and untested, Obama is a man of enormous confidence and electrifying oratorical skills. Hopes for Obama are extremely high, suggesting that Americans are willing to give him a long honeymoon to strengthen the economy and lift the financial gloom.

On Wednesday, his first working day in office, Obama is expected to redeem his campaign promise to begin the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq under a 16-month timetable. Aides said he would summon the Joint Chiefs of Staff to the Oval Office and order that the pullout commence.

6-year-old killed in Monster truck mishap at Tacoma Dome

TACOMA, Wash. – A 6-year-old boy died and a man was injured when a piece from a truck flew into the stands at the Monster Jam monster truck show Friday night at the Tacoma Dome.

Police and fire officials said the victims were taken to the hospital and KING 5 News received confirmation early this morning that the boy had died. Earlier reports that the two were related were incorrect.

»»»VIDEO«««

KING 5 has confirmed that the boy attended Graham Elementary School.

Christine Moe was there with her family and saw the horrifying accident.

"When they came over to the end of the grandstands, the truck broke. Parts were falling off and a piece flew up and hit a little boy. He couldn't have been more than 5 years old," Moe said, her voice full of emotion.

"I talked to the people sitting next to them. Their little girl had blood all over them. It was just so horrible," said Moe. "You just saw the mother just sitting there holding her son and the whole top of his head was just gushing with blood."

It was right after intermission during the free-style competition when witnesses say the incident occurred.

Witnesses say a truck driver started doing donuts when debris flew into the stands.

Witnesses who were sitting behind the victims say debris from a red truck flew some 30 to 50 feet into the stands. They say there was no netting or glass between the stands and the arena floor.

"There was everybody running down towards him and people were putting towels over his head," witness Adrian Kelley said.

"The poor dad was just collapsed at the top of the stairs," Moe said. "Just because he was in such shock."

Those who witnessed it wonder why it took so long for the boy to get help, and why the show continued.

Witnesses say they had to throw cups off the stands to try and get the attention of medics.

"They didn't even stop the damn show," Moe said. "They just kept going. We grabbed our kids and just beelined out of there."

According to the Tacoma Dome's Web site, four more Monster Jam shows are scheduled for today and Sunday.

All 155 safe after pilot ditches jet in NYC river

NEW YORK (AP) - A US Airways pilot ditched his disabled jetliner into the frigid Hudson River on Thursday afternoon after a collision with a flock of birds apparently knocked out both engines, but officials said rescuers pulled all 155 people on board into boats as the plane sank.

There were no immediate reports of any serious injuries.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg, an experienced pilot, said it appeared the pilot did "a masterful job of landing the plane in the river and then making sure everybody got out." And Gov. David Patterson pronounced it "a miracle on the Hudson."

Flight 1549 went down minutes after takeoff from LaGuardia Airport for Charlotte, N.C., splashing into the river near 48th Street in midtown Manhattan.

"There were eyewitness reports the plane may have flown into a flock of birds," said Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Laura Brown. "Right now we don't have any indication this was anything other than an accident."

Passenger Jeff Kolodjay of Norwalk, Conn., said he heard an explosion two or three minutes into the flight, looked out the left side of the Airbus A320 and saw one of the engines on fire.

"The captain said, `Brace for impact because we're going down,'" Kolodjay said. He said passengers put their heads in their laps and started praying. He said the plane hit the water pretty hard, but he was fine.

"It was intense. It was intense. You've got to give it to the pilot. He made a hell of a landing," Kolodjay said.

The plane was submerged in the icy waters up to the windows when rescuers in police and

vessels and ferry boats arrived, opened the door and pulled passengers in yellow life vests from the aircraft, whose fuselage appeared intact. The plane was sinking in the near-freezing water on one of the coldest days of the year, with the mercury around 20 degrees.

Police divers rescued a few people from the water, Bloomberg said. Other passengers were able to walk out onto the wings, then onto rescue boats.

Paramedics treated at least 78 patients, fire officials said. The Coast Guard said it rescued 35 people who were immersed in the cold water and ferried them to shore. Most were sent to hospitals. No information was released on their condition.

Witnesses said the pilot appeared to guide the plane down.

"I see a commercial airliner coming down, looking like it's landing right in the water," said Bob Read, who saw it from his office at the television newsmagazine "Inside Edition." "This looked like a controlled descent."

Barbara Sambriski, a researcher at The Associated Press, saw the plane go down from the news organization's high-rise office. "I just thought, 'Why is it so low?' And, splash, it hit the water," she said.

The pilot reported a "double bird strike" less than a minute after taking off, said Doug Church, a spokesman for the National Air Traffic Controllers Union. The controller sent the aircraft back toward LaGuardia, but the pilot saw an airport below him and asked what it was, Church said. It was Teterboro Airport in New Jersey, and the pilot asked to land there, Church said.

The instruction to land at Teterboro was the last communication with the plane before it went into the river, Church said.

US Airways said 150 passengers, three flight attendants and two pilots were on board the jetliner.

"This is really a potential tragedy that may have become one of the most spectacular days in the history of New York City's agencies, its coordination and the greatness of the people that work here and all they did for those passengers who are now tonight going to go home to their families," the governor said.

Joe Mazzone, a retired Delta Air Lines pilot, said it is not unusual for birds to strike planes. In fact, he said, when planes get ready to take off, if there are birds in the area, the tower will alert the crew.

In the rare cases in which birds get sucked into an engine, "they literally just choke out the engine and it quits," Mazzone said.

Twenty-seven years ago this week, an Air Florida plane bound for Tampa crashed into the Potomac River after hitting a bridge just after takeoff from Washington National Airport. The crash on Jan. 13, 1982, killed 78 people including four people in their cars on the bridge. Five people on the plane survived.

On Dec. 20, a Continental Airlines plane veered off a runway and slid into a snowy field at the Denver airport, injuring 38 people. That was the first major crash of a commercial airliner in the United States since Aug. 27, 2006, when 49 people were killed after a Comair jetliner mistakenly took off from the wrong runway in Lexington, Ky.

Ricardo Montalban muere a los 88 años

El actor Ricardo Montalban, reconocido por su papel de "Mr. Roarke" en la serie de televisión ´La Isla de la Fantasía´, murió hoy a los 88 años de edad en su casa de Los Angeles por complicaciones de salud debido a su edad.

El artista mexicano, que durante su juventud era el icono del "amante latino", fue uno de los primeros hispanos en llegar lejos en Hollywood. Montalban era un personaje muy respetado por su trabajo fuera y dentro del mundo latino de la industria del cine.

A principios de los años 40, Montalban actuó en decenas de films al lado de distinguidas personalidades del mundo del cine como Clark Gable y Lana Turner.

El fallecimiento fue confirmado por el titular del Concejo Municipal de Los Angeles, Eric Garcetti. "El Teatro Ricardo Montalbán de mi distrito, donde las próximas generaciones de actores participan en obras de teatro, musicales y conciertos, se mantiene como un tributo a este consumado artista", dijo en un comunicado.

El actor había llegado a Hollywood en 1946, cuando ya era una estrella del cine mexicano. Allí filmó películas como "Fiesta", "On an Island With You", o "Neptune´s

Sin embargo, alcanzó fama mundial por su interpretación del misterioso señor Roarke en la serie de la cadena ABC "La isla de la fantasía", que se emitió entre 1978 y 1984. Allí compartió el papel protagónico con el inolvidable "Tatoo".

A lo largo de su dilatada carrera, Montalbán se alzó con un premio Emmy al mejor actor secundario por la serie "How the West Was Won" (1978), y recibió el galardón del Sindicato de Actores de EE.UU. a su carrera en 1994.

THIS JUST MIGHT BE THE BEST JOB IN THE WORLD:

If you're looking for a new job, then you're going to want to pay attention . . . because this just might be the BEST JOB IN THE WORLD.

--An Australian company called Tourism Queensland has announced that they're looking for a caretaker for Hamilton Island . . . which is a private island off Australia's northeastern coast in the Great Barrier Reef.

--So what are the job duties?

#1.) Maintain a weekly blog . . . including a photo diary and video updates . . . about Hamilton Island

and the unique life there.

#2.) Clean the pool, feed the fish and pick up the mail at the three-bedroom residence which the company will provide.

--That's all. But that's not even the best part. Get this:

--The job only requires you to work for six months a year, all your living costs will be completely paid for . . . and the salary is just over $106,000 a year. (!!!)

--Tourism Queensland will interview 11 job candidates in May . . . and the winner will start work on July 1st. (Scotsman)

(--You can learn more about the job and fill out an online application here . . .)

http://www.islandreefjob.com/

Abigail and Brittany Hensel are Dicephalus twins - conjoined twins who share one body.

The flying car

It is the ultimate off-roader and it is coming to an airstrip near you. The flying car has been talked about for almost as long as cars have existed, and now a prototype built by a small American company is finally ready to make the idea a reality.

The Terrafugia Transition is a two-seater plane that at the touch of a button converts into a road-legal car. It takes its maiden flight next month and is scheduled to hit the showrooms by next year. You can’t help but wonder whether, if Bob Nardelli and Rick Wagoner, of Chrysler and General Motors respectively, had been forward-thinking enough to fly into Washington DC in swept-wing Dodge Vipers and Cadillac Escalades instead of corporate jets when they were seeking bailout cash, they would have been showered with government money, downturn or no downturn.

“It’s like a little Transformer,” says Carl Dietrich, the Terrafugia boss, proudly. “This is the first really integrated design where the wings fold up automatically and all the parts are in one vehicle. All we have is one simple folding wing, and that means the Transition takes just 15 seconds to switch between flying and driving.”

Dietrich has a well-rehearsed list of reasons why “roadable aircraft” make financial sense. They promise to be quicker than cars for intercity commuting, fit into a normal garage (saving hangar fees) and even run on plain old premium unleaded. However, he’s missing the real reason the Transition is causing such a stir in the automotive as well as the aviation world: flying cars are cool. They’re James Bond. They’re Blade Runner. They’re Back to the Future.

Related Links

• World’s first flying car prepares for take-off

At the moment, though, Terrafugia’s car looks more like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang than The Jetsons. The prototype Transition has been made at Terrafugia’s small workshop in Woburn, Massachusetts, by a team of young engineers recruited from MIT and Nasa. The ungainly vehicle has a single engine — a 100bhp petrol motor that drives either the wheels or a rear-facing propeller. As a car, it has a normal steering wheel, accelerator and brake pedals, but no gearstick (the Transition has a continuously variable transmission).

With its wings deployed and the propeller spinning, the Transition can take off from any airfield, although not from roads — it’s illegal everywhere in the US except in sparsely populated Alaska. It can fly up to 500 miles on a single tank of petrol at a cruising speed of about 115mph. That’s the plan, at least. Though it has reached 90mph in test drives, the prototype Transition’s wheels have yet to leave the ground.

That’s not for technical reasons; it’s because the various road and aircraft licensing authorities have been wondering how to classify it. “It took six months just to get our \plate,” says Dick Gersh, a former lawyer with the car insurance industry and now a vice-president at Terrafugia. “The government, insurance companies and lawyers have never contemplated a flying car. I wanted a car that could fly and drive but you couldn’t do either because you couldn’t get insured.”

Gersh is confident that he will be able to insure the Transition once it makes a successful test flight — and a safe landing. The Transition has a safety cage and crumple zones, although it will not have to pack the latest safety features or undergo a crash test before it takes to the air.

“There are already exemption policies for low-volume manufacturers like Lamborghini,” says Dietrich. “We can’t afford the huge amounts of research and development for motion-sensing airbags, and we certainly can’t afford to crash-test our only prototype. If it makes you feel safer, Boeing doesn’t crash-test its big jets either.”

Terrafugia hopes to deliver the first production flying car by the middle of next year. The company already has orders for 40 aircraft. “The majority of our customers are retired or near-retired couples who want a fun vehicle to putter around the country in. They’ve worked hard their whole lives and now they can have a flying car, a technology that they’ve been promised in films and TV since they were a kid,” says Dietrich. “We even have a couple of orders from people who are not pilots but will learn because of this vehicle. They’re willing to put money down on a vehicle that they can’t fly yet.”

Terrafugia’s Transition will set them back a cool $200,000 (£132,000). “For an airplane, that’s very reasonable, but for a car, that’s very much at the high end,” Dietrich admits. “It’s got to start there. You can’t make a $10,000 flying car yet. This is not going to change overnight and it won’t become a mass-market item any time in the near future. But in the long term we have the potential to make air travel practical for individuals at a price that would meet or beat driving, with huge time savings. And that could be a real game-changer for aviation as well as driving.”

The flying car has been technically possible for years but the legal runway was cleared for take-off only four years ago. The American Federal Aviation Authority created a new category of plane called light sports aircraft. These planes are subject to fewer rules and regulations than traditional passenger aircraft and can be flown by pilots after just 20 hours of training, half the normal American requirement.

At the same time, advances in avionics (the systems that allow you to pilot the plane) have made flying much simpler. Gone are the days when a plane’s cockpit was a kaleidoscope of flashing buttons and switchgear. Instead, new technology means that the inside of a cockpit is little different from that of a luxury car. Navigation can be taken care of by GPS, weather patterns can be displayed on a simple colour screen and automatic throttles help to keep control of the aircraft.

So the next time you remind the passengers in your car to fasten their seatbelts, it might be in preparation for take-off.

Blue-sky thinking: the rivals

PARAJET SKYCAR

What is it? A lightweight two-seater buggy that uses a giant fan mounted on the back and a paraglide-style chute to keep it airborne.

Are they serious? It seems so. The Skycar is due to take off on Tuesday on its maiden flight. It has been developed by British engineers, who are proving its worth by flying and driving it 3,730 miles from London to Timbuktu. On the road it has a top speed of 110mph; in fly mode it can reach 80mph with a range of 180 miles. The wing takes about three minutes to deploy manually and the Skycar can take off in only 200 yards. If the trip is successful, the team aims to put the design into production, with prices from £40,000 for a basic model up to £60,000 for a sports version.

A5 ICON AIRCRAFT

What is it? The world’s first multi-purpose recreational flying vehicle.

Are they serious? Yes. The A5 has made several test flights and the Los Angeles company plans to bring it to market this year. Not strictly speaking a flying car, the A5 requires a trailer to transport it to its take-off point. This is made possible by the fact that it has folding wings, meaning it can also be housed in a garage. The A5 is also amphibious and so doesn’t need a runway to get airborne — a lake or river will do. It comes complete with parachute to lower the plane to the ground (or water). The engine runs on ordinary unleaded fuel and Icon says the A5 will cost $139,000 (£92,000).

PAL-V EUROPE BV

What is it? A three-wheeled girocopter, capable of vertical take-off and landing.

Are they serious? Possibly. After six years of concept work, the project has entered the final phase of development: building the first commercial prototype to prove all the technologies work. The Dutch company hopes to begin marketing the vehicle this year and customers can sign up to buy one, although prices are yet to be decided. On the road it has the agility of a motorbike, and the single rotor and propeller fold away. Airborne, the PAL-V flies below 4,000ft, so pilots don’t need to log a flight plan to use it, and it has a top speed of about 125mph.

Spider-Man has a new sidekick

WASHINGTON (AP) - Spider-Man has a new sidekick: The president-elect.

Barack Obama collected Spider-Man comics as a child, so Marvel Comics wanted to give him a "shout-out back" by featuring him in a bonus story, said Joe Quesada, Marvel's editor-in-chief.

"How great is that? The commander in chief to be is actually a nerd in chief," Quesada said. "It was really, really cool to see that we had a geek in the White House. We're all thrilled with that."

The comic starts with Spider-Man's alter-ego Peter Parker taking photographs at the inauguration, before spotting two identical Obamas.

Parker decides "the future president's gonna need Spider-Man," and springs into action, using basketball to determine the real Obama and punching out the impostor.

Obama thanks him with a fist-bump.

Marvel comics have featured most presidents, but generally in walk-on roles, Quesada said.

"I think President Nixon might have appeared on the cover, but not in a good way," he said.

Obama has said that as a child, he collected Spider-Man and Conan the Barbarian comic books. His Senate Web site used to have a photo of him posing in front of a Superman statue.

The Obama story is a bonus in Marvel Comic's Amazing Spider-Man #583, available in comic book shops nationwide on Jan. 14 for $3.99 and is expected to sell out, with half the covers devoted to Obama.

pet rat won't leave a cat alone

This pet rat won't leave a cat alone. It follows the cat everywhere and climbs all over it. The cat doesn't like it at first, but comes around eventually. (--Note: The cat even licks the rat at :36.)

Here's a close-up of someone's Lasik eye

Here's a close-up of someone's Lasik eye surgery.
(--Note: They cut into the cornea at 1:50, fold back a flap of the cornea at 3:19, and replace the flap at 5:06.)

(--Warning: There's hardly any blood, but this is an extreme close-up of eye surgery.)

A police officer in Oakland, California, shot and killed a guy

A police officer in Oakland, California, shot and killed a guy who was lying on the ground and seemed to be cooperating. Several people caught the incident on their cell phones. Here's the best angle.

(--Note: You'll have to sign into YouTube to view this video. It's a little hard to see what's happening, but you can clearly hear the gunshot at :07.)

(--WARNING: A man was killed by this gunshot, which you may find disturbing . . .)

74-year-old Gordon Stewart of England got lost in a maze of junk he kept in his home and died of dehydration.

37-year-old Mirela Gradinaru of Romania got a can of hairspray stuck in her sphincter.

Diphallia is a condition in which men are born with a second penis.

Richard Batista donated a kidney to his wife Dawnell back in 2001.

TCS - Ex-husband wants wife to give back his kidney or pay up

Richard Batista donated a kidney to his wife Dawnell back in 2001.

He found out she was having an affair and they divorced in 2005. Now he wants his kidney back or $1.5 million.

Skier Suffers Exposure

Man left dangling u
pside down, pantsless after Vail lift mishap

JANUARY 6--In a bizarre incident that will surely lead to litigation (or an out-of-court settlement), a skier at Colorado's ritzy Vail resort was left dangling upside down and pantsless from a chairlift last Friday morning. The January 2 mishap apparently occurred after the male skier and a child boarded a high-speed lift in Vail's Blue Sky Basin. It appears that the chairlift's fold-down seat was somehow not in the lowered position, which caused the man to partially fall through the resulting gap. His right ski got jammed in the ascending chairlift, and that kept him upended since his boot never dislodged from its binding. As seen in the photos on the following pages (which were snapped by fellow skiers), the Skyline Express lift was stopped shortly after the pair's botched 10:30 AM boarding resulted in the man dangling from the lift. The exposed skier was stuck for about 15 minutes before Vail personnel backed the lift up and successfully dislodged the unidentified man from the four-seat chair