WE'RE A LITTLE SAD THE SUPER BOWL IS OVER, BUT MAYBE THAT'S FROM ALL THE BUMMER ADS The big plays. The sad ads. The halftime show. Yep, we're still talking about the Super Bowl, so indulge us with some Monday morning (errr, evening) quarterbacking. We wonder if Tom Brady, who led the New England Patriots to victory over the Seattle Seahawks, is, in fact, the greatest quarterback of all time after capturing his fourth Super Bowl title. We rehash that game-sealing interception that made our jaws drop and try to figure out what happened with that baffling play call. We're still surprised we didn't hear more about theinflation of the balls. And Katy Perry ... wow, was that a show. But of course, what really has us talking is the ads. We're still kind of sad inside from that Nationwide spot where the kid tells us he died in an accident. The insurance company issued a statement after the ad caused a stir. "Preventable injuries around the home are the leading cause of childhood deaths in America. ... The sole purpose of this message was to start a conversation, not sell insurance." Mission accomplished. Now for some talk about the ads we liked best, like Budweiser's tug-at-your-heartstrings "Lost Dog" spot, and Always' "Like a Girl" ad. Those ads took spots 1 and 2 in USA TODAY's annual Ad Meter, which has been compiling consumer rankings of the ads since 1989. Watch all the ads here. Find fullSuper Bowl coverage here. You can share your thoughts with us here, or by tweeting to #theshortlist. Until next year, super fans.
LET THE NEGOTIATIONS OVER THE FEDERAL BUDGET BEGIN It's likely dead on arrival, but that's not stopping President Obama from thinking big with his budget plans. He unveiled a nearly $4 trillion budget today that is "designed to bring middle class economics into the 21st Century" through new programs to be financed by higher taxes on the wealthy. That's not likely to sit well with the Republican-controlled Congress, and everyone is girding for a fight. Obama fired the opening shots by delivering his proposal from the Department of Homeland Security, the funding of which has been a key sticking point. Republicans want to use the power of the purse to roll back some of Obama's executive actions on immigration. Recent years have seen a government shutdown, near-shutdowns and a debt limit crisis, ending with the passage of resolutions that fund the government temporarily, as opposed to a specific budget. Hopefully, we won't have to dust off that shutdown clock.
GROUNDHOG DAY 2015: #SIXMOREWEEKSOFWINTER REALLY ISN'T THAT FUNNY, PHIL So that's what we get for letting a rodent give us the weather forecast . Pennsylvania's Punxsutawney Phil, perhaps America's most famous groundhog, saw his shadow today. The nation's collective groaning could be heard from coast to coast. "Forecasts abound on the Internet, but I, Punxsy Phil, am still your best bet," Inner Circle president Bill Deeley read from Phil's scroll. "Yes, a shadow I see...You can start the Twitter hashtag #sixmoreweeksofwinter ." Phil's people actually sort out his forecast in advance. Since 1887, the groundhog has seen his shadow 101 times — which means a longer winter — and not seen it 17 times — early spring. There is no record of the prediction for nine times in the late 19th century. How has the groundhog fared over the years? The National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, N.C., conducted an analysis and determined that "there is no predictive skill for the groundhog." Because we needed research for that.
CHRIS CHRISTIE HAS TO CLARIFY HIS COMMENTS ABOUT VACCINATIONS When you're a potential GOP presidential candidate and the governor of New Jersey, people take note of what you say. Chris Christie had to walk back comments today about "balance" in the vaccines debate, after he said that "parents need to have some measure of choice" on the issue. The governor's office issued a statement after his comments were initially publicized to stress "there is no question kids should be vaccinated" against the measles. Also today, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said he believes most vaccinations "ought to be voluntary." In an interview that aired on NBC's Today show this morning, President Obama urged parents to get their kids vaccinated. All this talk about vaccinations is because of that outbreak of measles linked to Disneyland.
JAPANESE JOURNALIST'S OLD TWEET GOES VIRAL DAYS AFTER HIS DEATH AT THE HANDS OF ISIL He mused about French wine. He tweeted reports from Syria. But it's a tweet about tolerance on Kenji Goto's feed that has gone viral, in a sort of online memorial to the freelance Japanese journalist who was purportedly seen dead in a video released by the Islamic State this weekend. The message is from Sept. 7, 2010: "Closing my eyes and holding still. It's the end if I get mad or scream. It's close to a prayer. Hate is not for humans. Judgment lies with God. That's what I learned from my Arabic brothers and sisters." It had more than 20,000 retweets. An English translation of the tweet, originally in Japanese, was also circulating. Goto's last tweet was in October, about the time he left for Syria, to rescue Haruna Yukawa, who went missing last summer and was also purportedly killed by the militant group in recent days. Meanwhile, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe today defended his policy on terrorism, as the nation mourned. |
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| Compiled by Cara Richardson. Contributing: Gregory Korte, David Jackson, Matthew Diebel, Catalina Camia, Jane Onyanga-Omara, John Bacon, Doyle Rice, USA TODAY; Jessica Durando, USA TODAY Network; USA TODAY Sports; Associated Press |
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