THE SHOW: 12/23/2009 - WING MAN?? / RACIAL ISSUES STILL A FACTOR / FT CAMPBELL OFF AGAIN / IT'S A HO-HO- HOLD UP!!

Local Buzz:
"Thousands Of Ft. Campbell Soldiers To Deploy"

*FT. CAMPBELL, Tenn. - Next summer, 3,400 soldiers in Fort Campbell's second brigade combat team will deploy early to support Operation Enduring Freedom.
The deployment is part of the 30,000 additional troops ordered by President Barack Obama.
Three other brigades of the 101st have already been preparing for scheduled rotation to Afghanistan next year.
In the meantime, members of the 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment were back home Wednesday morning for the holidays.
The group left a few weeks ago for training at Camp Shelby, Miss., ahead of another deployment to the middle east.

*NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A man was behind bars Wednesday morning after he allegedly fired a shot at SWAT officers, according to a police affidavit.
Metro Police's East Crime Suppression unit along with the Special Response Team attempted to serve a narcotics search warrant at 1125 Westchester Drive on Tuesday night.
Officers used a PA system to announce the search warrant. Inside the home was 27-year-old Matthew Hodges.
When Hodges did not come out, SWAT officers surrounded the home and used a flash bang grenade to distract the 27-year-old.
Hodges allegedly ran past a window in the home, pointed a handgun at two officers and fired one shot. Thankfully, the projectile was lodged in a wall.
Police report after Hodges was arrested he admitted to firing the shot but denied he was shooting at officers.
Hodges has been charged with attempted criminal homicide and multiple drug charges.

*CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Clarksville's largest nongovernment employer, Trane, will lay off 113 employees before the end of the year.
The Leaf-Chronicle reported Wednesday that the heating and air conditioning manufacturer were hit by a slow construction market; therefore, enacted a series of layoffs and job eliminations.
Trane spokeswoman Joan Pulley said in a news release that it will lay off 113 hourly production employees at its Clarksville plant effective Dec. 30.
After the layoffs, Trane will have approximately 775 hourly production employees and about 375 salaried employees in Clarksville, with 400 hourly employees on layoff.

*Police are looking for a bank robber in a Santa suit who was packing something more than gifts.
Armed with a gun, he robbed the SunTrust Bank at 4809 Old Hickory Boulevard in Hermitage around 10 a.m. Tuesday, placing the money into a Santa-style sack, and fled in a gray mid-size car from the nearby Hermitage Church of Christ parking lot on Lebanon Pike.
It's the first time that a Santa suit has been used to pull off a robbery in Davidson County in recent years, said Metro police spokeswoman Kristin Mumford. The clothing of choice is usually sweatshirts and sunglasses or a Halloween mask.
"I don't remember a Santa doing that," Mumford said. "I don't recall when a costume like he had today was used for a robbery."
Investigators declined to say how much money was taken.
While overall commercial robberies are down by 18 percent from last year, local police don't track bank robberies. The local FBI office handles them. Efforts to reach the FBI for comment were unsuccessful Tuesday.
Several bank robberies have involved people mimicking Kris Kringle. In Pennsylvania earlier this month, a man donned a white beard and flashed a handgun at a bank.
The most infamous Santa Claus heist was in Cisco, Texas, on Dec. 23, 1927, billed The Santa Claus Bank Robbery. A man dressed in a Santa suit and his crew shot and killed six people and injured several others.
Tuesday's suspect is described as a 6-foot-tall white male with brown hair.
Anyone with information should contact detective Keith Sutherland with the FBI Violent Crimes Task Force at 615-232-7500 or Crime Stoppers at 74-CRIME. Residents can also send electronic tips to Crime Stoppers by texting the word CASH along with their message to 274637 or online at www.nashvillecrimestoppers.com. Tipsters remain anonymous and qualify for a cash reward.

Top Stories:
"Plane Overshoots Runway in Jamaica "

*An American Airlines flight carrying more than 150 people skidded off a rain-slicked runway as it landed in Jamaica Tuesday night, hitting a fence and plowing into a sandy embankment before it came to rest a few feet from the Caribbean Sea.
No one was killed in the accident, which knocked off the engines of the Boeing 737-800 and cracked its fuselage, but about 90 passengers were treated for minor injuries at hospitals around Jamaica’s capital, Kingston, according to a statement from Norman Manley International Airport.
Tim Smith, a spokesman for American Airlines, said two of the 148 passengers had been admitted to the hospital for observation. Mr. Smith said he did not know the extent of their injuries, but said they were not life-threatening.
Photographs from the scene Tuesday night show distraught-looking passengers being wheeled through the airport and into hospitals, some holding towels and shirts to their heads, others with cuts and bruises on their faces.
In interviews with Jamaican newspapers, passengers said the plane, American Airlines flight 331, landed in pouring rain after a turbulent flight from Miami. Some passengers clapped as the plane touched down at 10:22 p.m., they said, but then it started skidding.
"The plane crashed and broke almost in front of me,” one passenger, Naomi Palmer, told the Jamaica Observer.

"Plan to Move Guantánamo Detainees Faces New Delay"

*WASHINGTON — Rebuffed this month by skeptical lawmakers when it sought finances to buy a prison in rural Illinois, the Obama administration is struggling to come up with the money to replace the Guantánamo Bay prison.
As a result, officials now believe that they are unlikely to close the prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, and transfer its population of terrorism suspects until 2011 at the earliest — a far slower timeline for achieving one of President Obama’s signature national security policies than they had previously hinted.
While Mr. Obama has acknowledged that he would miss the Jan. 22 deadline for closing the prison that he set shortly after taking office, the administration appeared to take a major step forward last week when he directed subordinates to move "as expeditiously as possible” to acquire the Thomson Correctional Center, a nearly vacant maximum-security Illinois prison, and to retrofit it to receive Guantánamo detainees.
But in interviews this week, officials estimated that it could take 8 to 10 months to install new fencing, towers, cameras and other security upgrades before any transfers take place. Such construction cannot begin until the federal government buys the prison from the State of Illinois.

"Court Wants Boy in Brazil Sent to U.S."

*The chief judge of Brazil’s Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that a 9-year-old boy at the center of an international abduction and custody fight must be returned to the United States with his American father, according to the court’s Web site.
The ruling, the latest in a five-year legal battle that has unfolded in both the American and Brazilian courts, put the father, David Goldman, one step closer to being reunited with his son, Sean. The boy was taken to Brazil in 2004 by the woman who was Mr. Goldman’s wife at the time, a native Brazilian, and has remained there ever since.
The ruling by Judge Gilmar Mendes was immediately binding, said Mr. Goldman’s American lawyer, Patricia E. Apy.

Celeb News:
"JENNIFER HUDSON: Baby Rumors Untrue"

*Reports that Jennifer Hudson is pregnant with her second child are "not true," the singer's publicist tells us. Yesterday, various websites quoted a so-called source who allegedly told the Star magazine, "It's another thing for them to celebrate during the holidays." Hudson and fiance David Otunga welcomed son David Junior in August.
Question??: How long should you wait after giving birth to have another baby?

*Mariah Carey and Young Money newcomer Nicki Minaj recently shot a video for Carey's new single, "Up Out of My Face," on which Minaj is featured. Pics from the video posted on Nick Cannon's website depict the two singers as Barbie dolls, with Mariah wearing a long red dress and Nicki sporting a white mini-skirt.
Carey called the collaboration a "stone winner" in a recent message to fans on Twitter. No word on when the video will premiere.

"KID CUDI: Racial Profiling Victim?"

*Kid Cudi and his entourage were detained in Hollywood on Monday -- for nothing. They were pulled over while riding in a vehicle that matched the description of a car used in a burglary. Police swarmed in and began detaining passengers before determining they had nothing to do with the crime and letting everyone go. A member of Cudi's group told T-M-Z, "This is what you get for being black and driving around L-A."

Questions??: Do you think this incident was an honest mishap or just another case of racial profiling?
Have you ever been a victim of racial profiling? How was it handled?

*December 23, 1863~Robert Blake, powder boy aboard the USS Marbelhead, was the first Black awarded the Naval Medal of Honor "for conspicuous gallantry, extraordinary heroism, and intrepidity at the risk of his own life." The heroic action ocurred during a victorious battle off the coast of South Carolina on this day.

Healthy Matters:
HOLIDAY EATING: "Moderation" Is Key"
Christmas is finally here. For the next few days we will be surrounded by delicious food. How can we avoid packing on the pounds -- without giving up our favorite foods?
Here are some simple things to keep in mind every day, even though there's rich food everywhere ...
1. Take control the moment you wake up -- Recognize that you will be tempted and just vow to not stuff yourself silly.
2. Don't skip breakfast -- By skipping breakfast, you will be more likely to overeat later on.
3. Load your plate with variety, not volume -- Instead of heaping your plate with tons of food, take a couple of your favorite items to nibble on. Enjoy everything, but not in mass quantities.
4. Forget the "all or nothing" mindset -- Instead, think "moderation" and choose a smaller plate if you start craving larger portions.
5. Savor it all -- Tasting food before swallowing leaves us feeling more satisfied, which might take the edge off our hunger before a party.

Relationship:
"RULES OF A GOOD WINGMAN"

*There will be plenty of opportunities to score over the next couple weeks, as everyone will be in a festive mood.
The odds of scoring, though, will be much greater if you have a solid wingman.
According to TheBachelorGuy.com, here are some rules for a good wingman:
-Introduce Your Friends -- A good wingman always invites his friend into the conversation and offers something positive that gets the conversation rolling.
-Never Talk Bad About Them -- Guys are competitive, so they'll rip on one another. This can't happen when out in the field. Talking bad about your friend not only makes your friend look bad, it makes you look bad.
-Occupy Potential Obstacles -- Once you notice that your friend has hit it off with a woman, you have one main objective: clear the way for him. Occupy the girl's "bitter" friend. She wants to keep them apart. It's your job to keep her away from them.
-Never Fight Over a Girl -- A good rule to follow ... the guy who starts the conversation with the girl has first chance at her. Let things run their course without interfering.

HOT MESS OF THE DAY:
"Stylin on Ya"

*Cheap wig? Check. Headband? Check. Spandex for pants? Check. Combat boots without socks? Check. Wow, this guy's really got all the elements for a classic Hot Mess outfit.