Rapper Rick Ross reportedly hospitalized 2nd time

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (AP) — Rapper Rick Ross was reportedly hospitalized in Alabama after suffering two medical scares in six hours that required planes to be diverted.

The first scare came Friday afternoon as Ross was on a Delta Air Lines flight from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to Memphis, Tenn., where Ross was scheduled to appear at a University of Memphis basketball event that night. The plane returned to Florida after Ross suffered an unspecified medical problem. He was treated at a Fort Lauderdale hospital, and he even tweeted afterward: "Memphis here I come."

But after Ross hopped a Memphis-bound private jet, it made an unscheduled landing in Birmingham, Ala., because the 34-year-old singer experienced another medical problem, Memphis basketball coach Josh Pastner told a crowd at the Friday night event where Ross was to appear.

"On his way to Memphis," Pastner said, "he had to make another emergency landing, in Birmingham. He got really sick again, and they had to rush him to the emergency room."

WMC-TV in Memphis reported that Ross suffered a second medical seizure and had been hospitalized. The news station said the University of Alabama-Birmingham Hospital would not comment on his condition.

A hospital spokeswoman told The Associated Press that no one by Ross's name or his real name, William Leonard Roberts II, was listed as a patient. An emergency room representative, citing federal privacy laws, said she could not confirm the identity of anyone being treated there.

Birmingham airport spokeswoman Toni Bast confirmed to The Associated Press that a private plane traveling from Fort Lauderdale to Memphis made an unscheduled landing in Birmingham at around 5:30 p.m. because of a medical emergency, but she could not provide any further details.

Calls to Ross' publicist from the AP were not returned Friday.

Ross was scheduled to perform Friday night at the University of Memphis basketball team's midnight opening practice event, "Memphis Madness."

Authorities said Ross was on the Delta Air Lines flight when he suffered the first medical episode at around 1 p.m. The flight, carrying 121 passengers, returned to Fort Lauderdale.

Mike Jachles, a spokesman for Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue, said the flight landed at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and was met by paramedics. They performed what Jachles called "advanced life-support care," though it did not include CPR.

Jachles could not specify what exact care Ross was given, but he said the performer was stable, breathing, conscious and alert.

Ross was in a seat when paramedics reached him and he walked off the plane, Jachles said. He was taken to a terminal area where he was evaluated before being transported to the hospital to be checked out.

Jachles said there was a doctor on the plane who had tried to assist Ross, though he could not say what, if anything, the doctor did.

"Nobody told us, either when we were advised, dispatched or on the scene, no mention was made of CPR being initiated or in progress," Jachles said.

Soon after going to the hospital, Ross contacted Memphis officials to tell them he was still coming.

"He called a member of our staff and said not to believe what's out there and that he's on his way to perform at Memphis Madness," Lamar Chance, a university athletics department spokesman, said Friday afternoon.

"He called us," Pastner explained Friday evening. "We talked to him after the doctors cleared him. He said it was the altitude."

A video on his Twitter page Friday night showed a relaxed Ross talking from an airplane seat on the second flight and promising to appear as scheduled in Memphis.

The Miami-based gangsta rapper gained fame with his husky voice and lyrics that spotlighted the grimier side of Miami life. He has become one of rap's most popular figures in recent years.

Ross has a new album entitled "God Forgives, I Don't," due out in December. The hefty rapper's hits include "Aston Martin Music," ''B.M.F. (Blowing Money Fast)" and "Hustlin'."

Joe Jonas & Katy Perry To Mentor Disney Channel Competition - Make Your Mark

LRA: Rebels worth sending U.S. troops to Africa?

(AP)

NAIROBI, Kenya - Why is the U.S. sending its troops to finish off a fractured band of bush fighters in the middle of Africa? Political payback for the quiet sacrifices of Uganda's troops in Somalia could be one reason.

President Barack Obama announced Friday he is dispatching about 100 U.S. troops — mostly special operations forces — to central Africa to advise in the fight against the Lord's Resistance Army — a guerrilla group accused of widespread atrocities across several countries. The first U.S. troops arrived Wednesday.

Obama sends troops to Africa to counter rebels

Long considered one of Africa's most brutal rebel groups, the Lord's Resistance Army began its attacks in Uganda more than 20 years ago. But the rebels are at their weakest point in 15 years. Their forces are fractured and scattered, and the Ugandan military estimated earlier this year that only 200 to 400 fighters remain. In 2003 the LRA had 3,000 armed troops and 2,000 people in support roles.

But capturing LRA leader Joseph Kony — a ruthless and brutal thug — remains the highest priority for Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, a 25-year-leader who has committed thousands of troops to the African Union force in Somalia to fight militants from al-Shabab, a group with ties from al Qaeda.

The U.S. has not had forces in Somalia since pulling out shortly after the 1993 Black Hawk Down battle in Mogadishu in which 18 American troops died.

Some experts believe that the U.S. military advisers sent to Uganda could be a reward for the U.S.-funded Ugandan troops service in Somalia.

"I've been hearing that. I don't know if our group necessarily agrees with that, but it definitely would make sense," said Matt Brown, a spokesman for the Enough Project, a U.S. group working to end genocide and crimes against humanity, especially in central Africa.

"The U.S. doesn't have to fight al Qaeda-linked Shabab in Somalia, so we help Uganda take care of their domestic security problems, freeing them up to fight a more dangerous — or a more pressing, perhaps — issue in Somalia. I don't know if we would necessarily say that but it's surely a plausible theory," Brown said.

Col. Felix Kulayigye, Uganda's military spokesman, told The Associated Press previously that Ugandan forces have long received "invaluable" support from the U.S. military, including intelligence sharing, in the fight against the LRA.

That support got a huge boost this week.

Though the deployment of 100 troops is relatively small, it marks a possible sea-change for Washington in overcoming its reluctance to commit troops to Africa. Even the U.S. Africa Command, which oversees U.S. military operations on the continent, is based in Germany. The U.S. maintains a base in the tiny East African nation of Djibouti, but most troops there are not on combat missions.

The LRA poses no known security threat to the United States, and a report from the Enough Project last year said that Kony no longer has complete and direct command and control over each LRA unit.

But the group's tactics have been widely condemned as vicious. Few are expected to object to Obama's move to help regional security forces eliminate a group that has slaughtered thousands of civilians and routinely kidnaps children to be child soldiers and sex slaves.

Kony is wanted by the International Criminal Court for his group's attacks, which now take place in South Sudan, Congo and the Central African Republic.

Still, Bill Roggio, the managing editor of The Long War Journal, called the Obama administration's rationale for sending troops "puzzling," especially since the LRA does not present a national security threat to the U.S. — "despite what President Obama said."

"The timing of this deployment is odd, especially given the administration's desire to disengage from conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan," Roggio said. "It is unclear why the issue has resurfaced, but the administration may be rewarding Uganda" for its military contributions in Somalia, he said.

Obama said that although the U.S. troops will be combat equipped, they will not engage LRA forces unless it is in self-defense.

In recent months, the administration has stepped up its support for Uganda. In June, the Pentagon moved to send nearly $45 million in military equipment to Uganda and Burundi, another country contributing in Somalia. The aid included four small drones, body armor and night-vision and communications gear and is being used in the fight against al-Shabab.

Last November, the U.S. announced a new strategy to counter the LRA's attacks on civilians. U.S. legislation passed last year with huge bipartisan support calling for the coordination of U.S. diplomatic, economic, intelligence and military efforts against the LRA. That's one reason, Brown said, Obama may be sending in advisers. He said that regional stability is also good for U.S. interests.

"It really doesn't take that many U.S. resources," Brown said. "You've got 100 troops to go in and take care of the LRA problem once and for all."

Trace Cyrus and Brenda Song Engaged!

Miley Cyrus is gaining a sister-in-law!

That's right, they may not be confirming anything else, but they are confirming this: Trace Cyrus and Brenda Song are engaged!

The couple, who began dating in spring 2010 and who, at least at last check, are expecting their first child together, revealed the happy news on (where else?) Twitter this afternoon.

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"I am very excited to say, last week I asked my girlfriend Brenda Song to marry me and she said YES! We are both very excited to be engaged!" the 22-year-old fiancé announced.

There's still been no official word from Song—not that one is really needed—but it was the 23-year-old Disney star herself who sparked speculation of her marital status this morning, when photos emerged of her wearing what appeared (and has since been proven) to be an engagement ring.

All we can say is—dang! Who knew being the former frontman of Metro Station paid so well?

"@TraceCyrus can't wait for Brenda to be a Cyrus :) couldn't be more excited about my 'sister in law to be' yay :)," a supportive Miley Cyrus tweeted to her bro.

MORE: Where is Brenda Song's baby bump?

No wedding date has yet been announced for the couple, which makes two unknowns for the young duo.

Though a source confirmed to E! News back in August that Brenda was pregnant, last month her mother Mai Song reportedly (grain of salt alert) spoke to Star, and adamantly declared that her daughter is "actually not pregnant."

For her part, Song has taken pains to maintain a low profile (save for today's bling-baring excursion), and when she has appeared in public, it's always been under the protection of some pretty baggy clothes. So the mystery, at least for now, continues.

In any case, congrats, you two! Life for the Suite Life of Zack & Cody star has never been so suite sweet.

Read more: http://www.eonline.com/news/trace_cyrus_brenda_song_engaged/269576#ixzz1arfIWv8P

Midnight Madness: NCAA hoops practices tip off

AP)

Things were pretty normal for the opening night of practice for Division I men's basketball.

Most of Friday night's events were called some form of madness, from Big Blue to Mountaineer to First Night. Most of them ended well before the midnight part of many of their names.

There were also some coaches who let the fans know things were going to be serious this season.

Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun didn't promise a repeat of last season's national championship — the Huskies' third in a span of 13 years — but he didn't discourage any thoughts of it.

Calhoun said he believes his team may be more talented than the one that beat Butler in April.

Kentucky made it to the Final Four as well last season, but the Wildcats lost to Connecticut in the semifinals.

Coach John Calipari made it clear what this season's goal is by saying it's time to turn the page from anticipation to preparation.

"Tonight we begin to write the next chapter," Calipari said. "Tonight we feel the Kentucky effect in full force as we once again redefine college basketball. ... We see no plateaus. We see no stopping points. Let's persist beyond what it is, and let's try to create what was never before imagined. We do more than move the needle. We are the needle. We are UK."

Vanderbilt isn't usually mentioned as a national contender. But the Commodores have all five starters back this year.

"More than ever before we are going to be the hunted rather than the hunter," coach Kevin Stallings said. "We expect to get everyone's best shot. We look forward to getting everyone's best shot. We are excited about perhaps being a program that can have that said about them. Quite honestly, we have never been that program before. That has always been Kentucky or Florida or somebody else in the (Southeastern Conference). Maybe, we have a chance to be that program now."

Stallings sent the crowd of 3,500 at Memorial Gymnasium into pandemonium when he made a half-court shot from behind his back — on the first try.

Some of the highlights of the start of practice:

-This was the seventh time Big Blue Madness was held at Rupp Arena, and Kentucky opened the doors at 6 p.m. with fans filling 20,000-plus seats quickly. Students in the section behind one basket held up a very large banner reading "KENTUCKY BASKETBALL NEVER STOPS" before the festivities started.

Kentucky kicked it off with a video highlighting the hundreds of students who camped out in tents for tickets to attend Big Blue Madness. As freshman Anthony Davis said in the video, "They just want to see us win a championship this year."

The Wildcats came down white staircases bookending a large video screen on the stage at one end of Rupp, and the fans stayed on their feet.

-Connecticut's teams showed off their skills in front of their fans for the first time since the men brought home the program's third national championship and the women returned from their 12th Final Four.

They showed off their athleticism for more than 10,000 fans who came out to watch the school's annual "First Night" show.

Freshman guard Ryan Boatright, generously listed in the media guide at 6-feet-0, won the dunk contest. Niels Giffey topped freshman Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis from the women's team in the 3-point contest, and there was dancing and contests for students, even appearances from alumni such as Ray Allen and the hero of last year's national title run, Kemba Walker.

-Vanderbilt hosted its first Midnight Madness session in six years. Vanderbilt went 23-11 last season but failed to get out of the first round of the NCAA tournament for the second straight year. Each of the starters and the top three reserves return. Among those coming back are John Jenkins, Jeffery Taylor and Festus Ezeli — all three passed on entering the NBA draft last spring.

-Butler stuck to its traditional opening-night schedule. Coach Brad Stevens closed practice, ditched the dunk contests and got down to coaching basketball earlier than most other teams.

Just 15 minutes after the official start to basketball season, the two-time national runners-up hit the court at Hinkle Fieldhouse without a fan in sight.

The Bulldogs never celebrated Midnight Madness when it was covered live on late-night television, and still don't open it up for fans even though the NCAA has agreed to let teams start working out earlier in the day.

-New Arkansas coach Mike Anderson received the loudest ovation inside Bud Walton Arena. He walked back onto the court he called home as an assistant coach for 17 seasons under former coach Nolan Richardson. Anderson was greeted with plenty of support from the estimated 5,000 who attended "Primetime at the Palace."

-North Carolina kicked off a season of high expectations in front of a packed arena of about 21,000 fans. The Tar Heels held their annual "Late Night with Roy" preseason event in the Smith Center, which included an intrasquad scrimmage as well as the players performing dances and skits in a night of fun before things get serious for a team expected to contend for the national championship.

All five starters are back from a team that won the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season title and got within a game of the Final Four.

-Memphis unveiled its team before an almost full house at the FedExForum.

Fans were waiting outside the arena when the doors opened 90 minutes before the start of Memphis Madness. The festivities included a dunk contest, a 3-point shooting display and a scrimmage.

Rapper Rick Ross was supposed to be the featured entertainment for the evening, but he had a medical problem on a flight from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to Memphis, that forced him to miss the event.

-West Virginia's Mountaineer Madness had a season-opening scrimmage, slam-dunk contest and a special musical performance.

Deniz Kilicli, a native of Istanbul, Turkey, and an amateur guitarist who has performed around town, entertained the crowd by performing the university's adopted fight song, "Country Roads," with his teammates. He played electric guitar as the gold-and-blue clad Mountaineers joined the throng in John Denver's song.

-Duke opened practice with its "Countdown to Craziness," and one of the highlights was the intrasquad scrimmage that was the debut for freshmen Austin Rivers, Quinn Cook and Marshall Plumlee in front of the Cameron Crazies.

-The Syracuse team was already on the court when Orange coach Jim Boeheim gave the crowd of 20,000 in the Carrier Dome some great news.

He stepped to the center of the court bearing his name and declared "There's one more guy here." He pointed to the tunnel at the corner of the building and yelled the name they all were hoping to hear.

New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony jogged onto the court where he left his definitive mark during Syracuse's 2003 national championship season. It was all part of Syracuse's annual Midnight Madness.

-Hours after letting Kansas fans hear some bad news about the program, Jayhawks coach Bill Self made a lot of them smile.

On Friday afternoon, Self announced that the NCAA ruled freshmen Ben McLemore and Jamari Traylor partial qualifiers and they won't eligible to play this season.

On Friday night, Self rode to the center of James Naismith Court on a specially made Kansas motorcycle to commemorate the 2008 national championship. He was even wearing a black leather jacket and black leather chaps. It wasn't his idea to wear the chaps.

"They told me I need to look like a biker for whatever reason," Self said. "I tried to do what they ask me to do."

McLemore and Traylor will be able to practice starting Dec. 16, and will be eligible for competition for the 2012-13 season. They can work out and lift on their own.

-Maryland Madness had several members of the 2002 national championship team, along with former head coach Gary Williams, on hand to mark the 40th anniversary of the first Midnight Madness. Steve Blake, Byron Mouton, Chris Wilcox and Mike Grinnon, along with current NBA star Greivis Vasquez and former NBA standout Steve Francis, participated in a star-studded alumni game.

This version of Maryland Madness had a different feel than the ones that preceded it. The first one, held in 1971 under coach Lefty Driesell, was little more than a one-mile run around the track at midnight by the players on the first official day of practice.

In recent years, the event revolved around Williams, the winningest coach in school history.

-St. John's coach Steve Lavin wasn't able to attend the school's tipoff event. He did send a message to the fans.

"Last week's surgery was a success. Now my return to coaching duties will be dictated by the healing process," Lavin said in a statement Friday night. "I'm under the expert care of Dr. Scardino at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and we are working closely to measure the daily progress being made during this vital recovery period."

Lavin is recuperating from prostate cancer surgery on Oct. 6.

"Naturally, I wish I was at Carnesecca Arena tonight to participate in the tip-off festivities with our team, and celebrate the start of the college basketball season with our loyal fans!" Lavin said.

-Arizona coach Sean Miller isn't a big proponent of celebrating the start of practice.

"Our red-blue game really has become midnight madness. Your midnight madness is just a show because at this point your guys don't know enough of what you do to even play. They're almost playing a glorified pickup game," he said. "I think it means more to them and all the things that happen in a midnight madness happen in the afternoon, at a sane time so if you want to go to bed at 10:00, you can. You don't have to be in McKale at 1:30 or 2 in the morning and then have to get back up as a college coach or player the next day. To me, it makes a lot more sense across the board."

Students take PSAT on ice rink

Students take PSAT in ice rink

Some parents thought it was a joke when a North Texas school district said high school students would be taking a major preliminary college entrance exam in an ice hockey arena. But 258 students from Wichita Falls High School ended up taking the PSAT on Wednesday at desks placed atop temporary flooring that covered an ice rink at Kay Yeager Coliseum.

The Wichita Falls school district blamed the venue operator for failing to make the arena suitable, as promised. The operator blamed school administrators, saying they waited so long to choose a testing date that all the best sites were unavailable.

Marshall

Educator reprimanded in hair dispute

An East Texas educator has been reprimanded for using a permanent marker to color in the shaved lines of a boy's haircut.

The superintendent of the Marshall school district has apologized for the incident involving 12-year-old Sheldon Williams, who was sent to the principal's office Monday for allegedly violating a school dress code ban on hair designs.

TEXAS HOUSE

Driver won't seek re-election

GARLAND — Rep. Joe Driver plans to retire from the Texas House after serving nearly two decades in Austin. The Republican from Garland, who faces a criminal investigation over travel reimbursements, said he will not seek re-election in 2012.

Driver drew attention last year after The Associated Press reported on his use of travel funds, leading to a Travis County investigation. Driver acknowledged that for years he collected reimbursements from taxpayers for travel he'd already paid for using donated campaign money. Driver said he didn't know he was doing anything wrong, but he later reimbursed his campaign $49,426.

The 65-year-old legislator and insurance company owner, who was first elected in 1992, said he plans to return to his private life.

Report: Big East plans to invite Boise State, three others

NEW YORK – The Big East plans to invite Boise State, Air Force and Navy as football-only members, and Central Florida to compete in all sports, after it doubles the exit fee for current members to $10 million.

Big East Commissioner John Marinatto speaks at a press conference at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx borough of New York.

By Stephen Chernin, AP

Big East Commissioner John Marinatto speaks at a press conference at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx borough of New York.

Enlarge

By Stephen Chernin, AP

Big East Commissioner John Marinatto speaks at a press conference at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx borough of New York.
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An official in the Big East, speaking on condition of anonymity because the conference had not authorized anyone to speak publicly about its plans, told The Associated Press the invites could go out as soon as next week, but could take longer.

The officials also said Commissioner John Marinatto was in Cincinnati on Friday meeting with representatives from UCF.

Conferences do not publicly invite new members unless they are confident those invitations will be accepted.

The New York Post first reported the Big East was expected to invite Boise State, Air Force, Navy and UCF.

The Big East announced earlier this week it wanted to expand to 12 football schools.

Big East officials made protecting the league's automatic bid to the Bowl Championship Series their expansion priority. That pushed Boise State, which is in its first season in the Mountain West Conference after a decade in the Western Athletic Conference, to the top of the Big East's most wanted list, along with the service academies.

The Broncos are 71-5 since 2006, finished 10th in the final BCS standing next season and at 5-0 seem on their way to an under-top 10 finish. Big East officials believe putting Boise State's record on the Big East's ledger when the BCS reviews which leagues should have automatic bids beyond 2013 should allow the conference to make the cut.

Right now, the Big East has only six schools committed to play football in the league beyond this season.

Pittsburgh and Syracuse have announced they will move to the Atlantic Coast Conference, though Big East rules require them to stay in the league for the next two seasons and Marinatto has said he will hold the Panthers and Orange to that. However, that seems unlikely if the league can grow to 12 teams for next season without them.

TCU was slated to join the Big East in 2012, but the Horned Frogs reneged on that commitment and accepted an invite to the Big 12 last week.

Trying to recruit new members has been tricky for the Big East because its remaining members might also be looking for new conference homes.

Louisville and West Virginia are possible targets for the Big 12 if it needs to replace Missouri, which is pondering a move to the Southeastern Conference, or decides to expand back to 12 teams.

Connecticut has interest in joining the ACC if it expands again, and there has been speculation about Rutgers moving, too.

By raising the exit fee, the Big East is trying to ensure the schools it is recruiting that the conference will be viable in the long run. Boise State, Air Force, which also competes in the MWC, and Navy, an independent in football, all had reservations about the Big East's long-term health.

The Big East is still considering adding Temple, and UCF's Conference USA rivals SMU and Houston. Temple, which was kicked out of the Big East in 2005, plays football in the Mid-American Conference.

The Texas schools would replace the presence in the state the Big East thought it was going to have with TCU, and help make the move to the Big East more palatable to Boise State.

Boise, Idaho, is nearly 1,900 miles away from the closest current Big East member, Louisville. Though the trip to Houston is about as far, having a presence in Texas is alluring to Boise State.

Boise State and Air Force would have to find a conference to house their other sports. A return to the WAC is possible for both.

The Big East also has eight members that do not compete in the league in football: Villanova, Georgetown, St. John's, Providence, Seton Hall, Marquette, DePaul and Notre Dame.

Notre Dame's goal is to remain a football independent, but if the Big East crumbles the Fighting Irish could end up with no place for their basketball, baseball and Olympic sports to compete. That could force Notre Dame to finally give up football independence and put its storied program in a conference, because it's unlikely another league will give the Irish the same deal they have in the Big East.

Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon Announce Split

The indie rock power couple have separated after 27 years of marriage, their label confirmed.

Indie rock power couple and Sonic Youth bandmates Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon are splitting up after 27 years of marriage.

The pair confirmed the news via a statement issued by the band’s representative at Matador Records, which read: "Musicians Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore, married in 1984, are announcing they have separated. Sonic Youth, with both Kim and Thurston involved, will proceed with its South American tour dates in November. Plans beyond that tour are uncertain. The couple has requested respect for their personal privacy and does not wish to issue further comment."

Moore and Gordon have a daughter together, Coco, born in 1994, and reside in Western Massachusetts. They have been playing music together since 1980 when they first formed Sonic Youth in New York City with guitarist Lee Ranaldo and later drummer Steve Shelley. Originally signed to famed label SST in the 1980s, they joined the Geffen Records roster in 1990 with the album Goo. The band would see eight more releases under the Universal Music banner, their most commercially successful effort, 1994’s Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star, peaked at No. 34 on the Billboard 200 chart.

In 2009, the pioneering noise rock outfit returned to its indie roots by signing with Matador Records and releasing their 16th album, The Eternal. The band is currently touring in South America. Moore's latest solo album, Demolished Thoughts, was released in May, and he is scheduled to head out on a European tour on Nov. 27.

In 2008, Moore told Spin Magazine, “I can't think of how or where I'd be without Kim's influence. And we're like any couple that's been together for close to 30 years. There's a genuine psychophysical connection. Sometimes I feel things happening in me, and I know that something's going on with her. When you're married and you have that kind of connection, you become really spiritually, psychologically connected. We grew up together, in a way."

Trace Cyrus and Brenda Song Engaged!

Miley Cyrus is gaining a sister-in-law!

That's right, they may not be confirming anything else, but they are confirming this: Trace Cyrus and Brenda Song are engaged!

The couple, who began dating in spring 2010 and who, at least at last check, are expecting their first child together, revealed the happy news on (where else?) Twitter this afternoon.

MORE: Brenda Song expecting a child?
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"I am very excited to say, last week I asked my girlfriend Brenda Song to marry me and she said YES! We are both very excited to be engaged!" the 22-year-old fiancé announced.

There's still been no official word from Song—not that one is really needed—but it was the 23-year-old Disney star herself who sparked speculation of her marital status this morning, when photos emerged of her wearing what appeared (and has since been proven) to be an engagement ring.

All we can say is—dang! Who knew being the former frontman of Metro Station paid so well?

"@TraceCyrus can't wait for Brenda to be a Cyrus :) couldn't be more excited about my 'sister in law to be' yay :)," a supportive Miley Cyrus tweeted to her bro.

MORE: Where is Brenda Song's baby bump?

No wedding date has yet been announced for the couple, which makes two unknowns for the young duo.

Though a source confirmed to E! News back in August that Brenda was pregnant, last month her mother Mai Song reportedly (grain of salt alert) spoke to Star, and adamantly declared that her daughter is "actually not pregnant."

For her part, Song has taken pains to maintain a low profile (save for today's bling-baring excursion), and when she has appeared in public, it's always been under the protection of some pretty baggy clothes. So the mystery, at least for now, continues.

In any case, congrats, you two! Life for the Suite Life of Zack & Cody star has never been so suite sweet.

Read more: http://www.eonline.com/news/trace_cyrus_brenda_song_engaged/269576#ixzz1are71fj1

Watch Siri "Work" On the Old iPhone 4

Siri, the personal assistant extraordinaire, is one of the hallmark features of the new iPhone 4S. But why oh why can't she be on the old iPhone 4? She's just software! iPhone developer Steven Troughton-Smith thought the same thing but actually managed to port Siri over to the iPhone 4.

His first effort was less polished than the one above but this latest one (in the video above), shows Siri working just as buttery smooth and delicious on the old iPhone 4 as on the 4S. He somehow ported the Siri and specific springboard files over and it loads just fine, you see the complete Siri interface, actions and she can even understand you but... you can't do anything with Siri on an iPhone 4 yet. Apple isn't authenticating Siri commands from an iPhone 4 on its servers so all you get to do is stare at the purple and silver of Siri.

Hopefully, Apple will introduce Siri to more devices (namely the iPhone 4 and iPad 2) because the software is amazing and the hardware can clearly handle it. No excuses Apple. We all want the fun. [9to5Mac via Engadget]

Dylan Ratigan: Get The Money Out Of Politics Read more: http://www.benzinga.com/news/11/10/1984909/dylan-ratigan-get-money-out-of-politics#ixzz1ardZk5D8

He may be uncomfortable in a cape and tights, but MSNBC host Dylan Ratigan is quickly becoming a superhero nonetheless.

Inspired by the powerful, but unfocused Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street movements, Ratigan is channeling their energy toward the obvious, unstated goal of both movements: eliminate the obvious rigging of the system so that everyone in America has a fair chance at success.

To that end, Ratigan has propelled a movement called Get Money Out, which has the singular purpose of ending the rigging of America by eliminating the influence of money in politics. There is a website, www.getmoneyout.com, where you can sign a petition supporting the goal, as well as collect information and — perhaps most importantly — share it with your friends and family.

"The petitions started at 30,000 (signatures) and quickly jumped another 30,000," Ratigan told Benzinga Radio this week. Ratigan expects to eclipse 200,000 this week. From there, the sky is the limit.

"If we get to 200 we can shoot for 400. 400 we can shoot for 800. 800, 1.6 million. We do this ten times and we're 100 million people strong for the conventions, sending three words to both conventions: 'Get Money Out'."

Notice the game plan that Ratigan and his team are going for. It's ingenious. Rather than go to Washington and beg those buzzards to change the rules and take money out of the system, Ratigan and the movement are taking their message directly to the people. The people will build a wave of support that will, if successful, flood Washington with a message of change, cleansing it along the way.

"You have to think of me like a surfer on a wave. This exists. People are pissed off. People know that they live in an unfair system. I don't have to do anything. My trick is how do I harmonize with the energy that is there and try to guide it to a positive outcome as opposed to what typically happens, which is either self-annihilation or destruction of something else," Ratigan said.

"We have to go to the philosophy of discipline and encouragement, which is a personal decision that each person who signs the petition has to make for themselves. If you hear the heroes and villains thing, whether it's Dylan Ratigan or anybody else, is a losing proposition."

This is where Ratigan really captured not only my interest, but my attention. I do, after all, go pretty hard after the Tea Party Movement. And there are other writers and activists who go similarly after the Occupy Wall Street movement. Instead of focusing on one or the other and the things that divide the two, Ratigan suggests coming together under what unites both movements (and millions more outside of either movement).

"The greatest strength of this movement is the ability to teach all of us about what it means to live in an open-source universe, in a world where everybody's own identity is not made to be homogenized into some system, but is actually made to be differentiated and celebrated," Ratigan said.

"What I mean is this. Every person I've met at these protests agrees to one thing: the system is unfair and is rigged to the advantage of some and the disadvantage of others. Everybody agrees to that. The reason that they are there and the personal story that each individual has, whether it's a Texas Tea Partier or a union member or an anarchist or a lawyer or a teacher or a biker or an old granny. Whatever it is, the reason that they individually are there is unique to them."

Rather than try to label this anger at the injustice, let's come together, acknowledge the injustice and the core problem — that the government is not a democracy but is, instead, what Ratigan calls an auction government — and change THAT. We all agree on that part, so let's start there.

"As long as we have an auction system for our government, where 94 percent of the time, the candidate that raises the most money wins, we just have a policy auction that is not, by definition, a democracy. By definition, it is a corrupted system with misaligned interests that prevents us from doing anything else that we want to do."

This is spot on correct. This is why we cannot get a plan passed on anything that solves any problem. This is why we cannot fix health care. This is why we cannot fix education. This is why we are mired in wars across the globe. This is why we cannot agree on taxes or spending. This is why we cannot get a handle on environmental issues. This is why, year after year, Congress after Congress, Republican or Democrat, nothing gets done. At least, nothing positive gets done. Big donors get their handouts, big business gets their bailouts, and all we get is the bill.

So we've identified the problem. Now, how do we fix it? If the problem is money in the political system, we have another problem: The Supreme Court has already ruled that money is speech. In other words, it is not only legal, but Constitutionally protected to be able to buy the government of your choosing, if you're wealthy enough. There's only two ways around a Supreme Court decision: get the Court to reverse itself (which will not happen with this current Court) or an Amendment to the Constitution that nullifies the Supreme Court's asinine decision.

Get Money Out will be pursuing the second option of a Constitutional Amendment. They'll do so by amassing an army of supporters (who, really, disagrees with this proposition?) and bringing their demands for an Amendment directly to Congress and directly to the State Legislatures, which are the two paths an Amendment can go down.

It's a long haul and will be a lot of hard work. After all, over $1 trillion was spent on the last election cycle. Those folks, the one percent, the elite, whatever you want to call them, they are not going to give up power easily.

Ratigan is aware but unfazed by the challenge.

"To sit around and talk about how hard it is to climb Mount Everest guarantees you'll never climb Mount Everest," Ratigan said.

"To get off your ass and start climbing gives you a chance."

Now is our chance. Will you join? Sign up, as I did just now, at www.getmoneyout.com. Be part of the solution.

Read more: http://www.benzinga.com/news/11/10/1984909/dylan-ratigan-get-money-out-of-politics#ixzz1ardeBG4B

Brewers vs. Cardinals: Zack Greinke Undone By Errors

The St. Louis Cardinals are one game away from the World Series after topping the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday night by a 7-1 margin. The Brewers offense struggled, but the defense, working behind Zack Greinke, was just as poor. And the breakdowns proved costly, putting the Brewers' backs against the wall as the series heads back to Miller Park.

Greinke pitched well, even if a peek at the scoreline shows the Brewers gave up five runs while he was on the mound. After the game, manager Ron Roenicke praised Greinke's performance, saying he threw the ball well.



Yeah, Zack threw the ball well. I know he didn't get the strikeouts but he still only should've given up one run if we make the plays for him. So I like the way he threw it, his fastball was good today. His breaking ball, he couldn't get it down in the dirt when he wanted to get one down he couldn't bounce it and that hurt him, but I thought he threw the ball well.

But there were those errors. Milwaukee committed four errors on the night and Greinke gave up three unearned runs. Roenicke had the following to say about the defense.

No, we weren't. We still had some opportunities to score offensively even though we gave up the runs for Zack. (If) We put the ball in play a couple of times, score two runs when we have a runner on third and less than two outs and it's a 5-3 game. So I still would've felt good there. We had opportunities with people on base, we swung the bat ok today. But defensively, yeah, we gave up some runs.

Still, the Cardinals offense put up seven runs in the win, and pasted the Brewers' pitching en route to the blowout. The errors were bad, but St. Louis helped itself out quite a bit while scoring in spurts to take a 3-2 advantage in the NLCS. And all the Cardinals have to do now is win one of two in Milwaukee to book their ticket to the World Series.

Bird-watching comedy 'The Big Year' never takes flight

There are two possible reasons why a film like the bird-watching comedy "The Big Year" isn't shown to critics in advance.


One is that the film isn't very good. Another is that the film seems so deeply confused in tone that studio marketers have no idea how to sell the movie to the public.

The latter would seem to be the case for this odd duck. Advance trailers made it look like a tightly edited comedy riot with Steve Martin, Jack Black and Owen Wilson yukking it up. Rather, these comedic actors all play rather somber fellows, all living with regrets while chasing egrets and owls.

Watching "The Big Year" reveals that moments having nothing to do with one another in the movie were cobbled together to make the trailers in an attempt to pass the picture off as funny. It doesn't work.

It's difficult to determine whether director David Frankel ("The Devil Wears Prada") was attempting to make a straight comedy out of screenwriter Howard Franklin's adaptation of Mark Obmascik's book, which is more thoughtful than wacky. It's a bad fit.

Listening to Franklin's words led me to believe that he was shooting for a kind of heartfelt humor with light drama, like Martin's "Parenthood," which seems better every year as filmmakers try to duplicate its formula and find it nearly impossible to pull off.

"The Big Year" is perhaps most remarkable in the way that it forces its three lead actors to act uncomfortably against type as they chase after a "Big Year," which is a competition among birders to either see or hear the largest number of bird species within a single calendar year.

Martin looks the most comfortable of the three as Stu, a titan of business who's desperate to retire so he can travel cross-country to chase birds and spend more time with his wife, children and grandchildren. The character is so torn that Martin spends most of the movie looking like he has a stomachache, and it makes him look old. That's sad, not funny.

Black's penchant for creating characters out of controlled zaniness is severely undercut. His Brad is a 36-year-old guy who's never accomplished anything of note, so he spends the movie trying to achieve his way out of his funk by setting a new birding record. Black hasn't looked this lost since trying out rom-coms with "The Holiday."

Wilson attempts to use his usual California cockiness to infuse some life into Kenny, the defending "Big Year" champion determined to retain his title. But this boorish oaf is such an emotionally empty dork who neglects his wife that we can't embrace his unlikable, narrowly drawn competitor.

I didn't connect with any of the characters enough to connect them with any of the film's themes. We see a variety of birds, but only for about one second each, so I wouldn't necessarily recommend the picture to members of the Audubon Society or any other animal lovers.

"The Big Year" looks like it should be a hoot when considering the extensive cast beyond the three principals. But the three supporting females (Rosamund Pike, Rashida Jones and Jobeth Williams) have thankless roles that are performed largely by telephone as the men gallivant to bogs and Alaskan outposts for bird sightings. Anybody could have phoned in these parts.

The picture is packed with cameo performances (Tulsa's Tim Blake Nelson is joined by Anjelica Huston, Jim Parsons, Joel McHale, Kevin Pollak, Anthony Anderson, Steven Weber, Corbin Bernsen, I could go on). This is apparently an attempt to spread the lack of humor, and direction, around.

"The Big Year" never seems to take flight. It never really explains the phenomenon of birding very well. I kept expecting to see more flapping than flopping.

The Monolith - It’s A Case! It’s A Battery! It’s A Projector! It’s … ALL OF THEM

Sometimes, smartphone screens are just not big enough. Linking it to a projector is helpful but it's hardly portable and before you know it, the battery's gone. The Monolith, a triple-threat iPhone case that works as a projector and a battery pack, can light up your room while keeping your gear booboo-free.

The case, made by Japanese accessory maker Century, is said to be capable of providing about three hours of image projection at sizes up to 60 cm (in 16:9 format), in 640×360 resolution, with a 1,000:1 contrast ratio. But with a brightness of a mere 12 lumens, it's certainly no makeshift movie theater. At best, you'll probably end up using it for a viral video party … if you're entertained by three hours of that stuff.

If you are (and I'm not judging you!), you won't have to worry about killing your battery life; the 1,900 mAh battery will either cancel out the drain or boost your iPhone's lifespan up to 50 percent without projector usage and takes four hours to fully charge. For $260, it's a pricey battery pack, but you can decide whether the novelty of having a handy projector is worth the investment.

The Monolith is available in black or white. [Sirobako via TechCrunch]
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Comic Artie Lange, who lives in Hoboken, is making a comeback with 3-hour nightly show streamed live on iheartradio.com

Hoboken’s Artie Lange, the former Howard Stern Show sidekick, has teamed up with fellow comedian Nick DiPaolo in Lange’s return to radio, LaughSpin.com reports.

The program, called “The Nick and Artie Show,” can be streamed live on iheartradio.com from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. and is being carried by 940 WINZ: The Sports Animal in Miami, reports said, noting that “DirectTV is capturing the action to broadcast at a later date. And each hour of every episode will be offered the following day as an on-demand podcast.”

The show is Lange’s return to the airwaves after many bad breaks, including his attempted suicide in January 2010. His last gig was Stern’s daily morning show, which is broadcast on Sirius and XM satellite radio. Stern has not replaced Lange since he left the show.

The comedian said he has since been in three psychiatric wards and two rehab centers.

LaughSpin described his experiences:

He participated in, among other things, group therapy and art therapy. There was also some old-school gaming: “You haven’t lived until you’ve played Scrabble in a psych ward,” he said.

Lange said he’s currently attending AA meetings to help stay sober, reports said.

Artie Lange was on The Late Show with David Letterman on CBS last night at 11:35 p.m. along with Eddie Brill and musical guest Beirut.

Hilary Duff Pregnant: Expecting Mike Comrie and Duff Have Superbaby Boy on Way

What do you get when you combine a pro hockey player and a Disney actress turned hot millionaire? We're about to find out. Hilary Duff and Mike Comrie are expecting, according to People.

The couple announced on the Ellen DeGeneres show that they were having a boy, but haven't decided upon a name yet. The fact of the matter is, it doesn't matter what they name their son, he's bound for glory.

Just ask Gwyneth Paltrow, who named her baby Apple. It doesn't matter what you name your celebribabies, they're destined to be sensational.

With Duff's ridiculously good looks and Comrie's superior athletic ability, their baby is tailor made to be an Abercrombie model and Hall of Fame hockey player, should he so choose to do so.

What should the couple name their baby?
Traditional first name, traditional middle name Traditional first name, unique middle name unique first name, unique middle name first name only shape or symbol A roman numeral Submit Vote vote to see results

Duff and Comrie are open to baby-name suggestions from the public. How about Superman? It's fitting, though not original. A New Zealand couple once named their baby Superman, after their original name for the baby, 4Real, was rejected.

The most fitting approach may be something bizarrely traditional. It's a fairly uncommon approach for celebrities, as most of them want to name their baby something spectacular.

If they name their baby Joe, with no middle name, he's bound to exceed expectations. He doesn't need an extravagant name for people to recognize his awesomeness. When people bow to Joe, it will point to just how incredible he is.

Whatever they choose to name their baby will be an overwhelming success. He's going to have the means to legitimize even the most bizarre nicknames.

When his friends come over and Duff is making lemonade and Comrie is on TV, it's hard to see children poking fun at the child, who might need to turn himself into a symbol once his celebrity surpasses his name.

Does Herman Cain’s 9-9-9 plan make for good marketing, but bad policy?

Herman Cain has experienced a meteoric rise in the polls in recent weeks, and now the candidate who has vaulted into the top tier of the GOP presidential primary will need to add substance to the catchy, yet untested 9-9-9 plan, which forms the backbone of his economic policy. As Michael Fletcher reported, the devil is in the details:

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The GOP’s new ‘it man’: Presidential candidate Herman Cain was at ease in the spotlight as dozens of reporters and hundreds of supporters squeezed in amid the oversized shopping carts and towering shelves to catch a glimpse of the GOP's new “it man.” — Washington Post photographer Melina Mara

The “9-9-9” plan that has helped propel businessman Herman Cain to the front of the GOP presidential field would stick many poor and middle-class people with a hefty tax increase while cutting taxes for those at the top, tax analysts say.

The plan would do away with much of the current tax code and impose a 9 percent personal income tax, a 9 percent business tax and a 9 percent national sales tax, which tax experts say would mean that low- and middle-income Americans would pay more.

“Right now, we have a strongly progressive income tax. High-income people are paying a higher share of income in taxes than lower-income people,” said Alan D. Viard, a former Federal Reserve Bank economist and a resident scholar at the right-leaning American Enterprise Institute. “That is a pattern that would be disrupted by adoption of the Cain plan.”

The 9-9-9 plan has helped define Cain’s candidacy. Coupled with his buoyant, plain-spoken style, it has helped transform the former long shot into a front-runner. Cain has touted the proposal’s apparent simplicity and fairness, but he rarely delves into details. His campaign Web site shows that the plan is only a step toward achieving his ultimate goal: to eliminate the Internal Revenue Service after replacing all federal taxes with a national sales tax.

Meanwhile, analysts said the 9-9-9 part of Cain’s vision would place a further burden on those hit hardest by the nation’s economic problems.

Roberton Williams, a senior fellow at the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center, is working on an analysis of Cain’s signature policy proposal. Although the plan’s details remain sketchy, Williams said that it would increase taxes for the poor and middle class, despite Cain’s statements to the contrary.

For starters, about 30 million of the poorest households pay neither income taxes nor Social Security or Medicare levies. “So for them, doing away with the payroll tax doesn’t save anything. And you are adding both a 9 percent sales tax and 9 percent income tax. So we know they will be worse off,” Williams said.

Herman Cain’s personal style and willingness to admit ignorance about certain issues has endeared himself to many voters. As Sandhya Somashekhar explained:

He opposes abortion, including in cases of rape and incest. He thinks Iran could be deterred from aggression by deploying more warships. And he is a proponent of privatized Social Security.

But just one topic — his “9-9-9” tax plan — has dominated Herman Cain’s rhetoric in this presidential race, helping to propel him to the top of Republican polls this month

And that has prompted questions about what else he stands for and whether he has the breadth of knowledge — particularly on foreign policy — expected of an occupant of the White House.

Google Closing Buzz, Jaiku in Latest House Cleaning

Google is shuttering Google Buzz, Jaiku and some developers tools to put more emphasis behind Google+ and other endeavors, part of the company's "more wood behind fewer arrows" strategy.
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With Google+ hitting more than 40 million users since its June 28 launch, Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) Oct. 14 said it was shuttering social network services and other developer products.

Leading the short list is Google Buzz, the social networking service that was the company's first serious attempt at challenging Facebook or Twitter by allowing users to share status updates with their Gmail contacts. However, Buzz engineers failed to properly account for users' privacy requirements.

The application leveraged users' Gmail contacts to quickly scale large social networks of Buzz contacts and users' Gmail friends were publicly exposed, sparking outrage from thousands of users. Google settled class-actions suits and acceded to the Federal Trade Commission's demand to accept privacy audits for 20 years.

Buzz and the Buzz API are being nixed in favor of Google+. Users won't be able to create new Google Buzz posts, but they will be able to see their legacy posts on their Google Profile and download them for posterity via the Google Takeout data export application.

Bradley Horowitz, Google's vice president of product management, commented on what Google learned from Buzz privacy debacle on Google+ (of course), noting:

"What did we learn from Buzz? Plenty. We learned privacy is not a feature... it is foundational to the product. And this awareness gave us the resolve to design privacy in from the very beginning, which led to Circles for sharing the right information with the right people, as well as transparency around which parts of your profile can be seen by whom... "With the majority of Buzz users now here on Google+, it became obvious that all of our attention should be focused on this community."

The company also nixed Jaiku, the mobile social service it acquired in 2007 to let friends send updates on their status to other friends. A poor man's Twitter, Jaiku never gained much traction beyond its early core users after Google failed to develop it.

Jaiku was shunted to Google's App Engine platform in 2008 and will go the way of the Dodo bird on January 15, 2012, though Google will allow users to export their data from Jaiku. It isn't clear if Takeout will enable this data migration.

Google is also canning social widgets in its iGoogle personalized homepage, essentially because they're redundant now that Google has Google+ to offer its users. Those features will also be shuttered Jan. 15, 2012.

Also on Jan. 15, Google is getting rid of Code Search and the Code Search API, which was apparently created to help developers search for open-source code all over the Web. Google's University Research Program for Google Search, which provides API access to the company's search results for some academic researchers, will also close on Jan. 15 next year.

Last but not least, the Google Labs site has shut down, fulfilling a pledge Google CEO Larry Page made on the company's July earnings call to "put more wood behind fewer arrows," or focus on core products.

Page has been on quite the mission for fewer arrows. Page closed Google Health, PowerMeter and the company's Slide social software unit since taking the helm from now-Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt in April.

Occupy Wall Street Movement Goes Worldwide

The Occupy Wall Street movement that has been spreading across America is going worldwide this morning.

Protests are planned in solidarity from Europe to Australia in what is being called an "International Day of Action" this weekend.

In Tokyo, protesters are fighting inequality and about 300 Australians chanted the cry that started on Wall Street, "We are the 99%!"

In the Philippines, protesters marched in Manila, where they announced their support for the movement and denounced "U.S.-led wars and aggression," the Associated Press reported.

While the worldwide protests get underway, protesters at the movement's home base in Lower Manhattan said they're not done spreading the message of the so-called "99 percent."

There are two major events planned for today -- a march to Times Square and a rally at JP Morgan Chase Bank where protesters say they'll be pulling the money from their accounts and closing them all together.

Elsewhere in the country, protesters like Larry Coleman in Flint, Mich., say they're in solidarity with similar protests against corporate greed and economic injustice.
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"There's a lot of things wrong in our county that need to be corrected and the only way to get them corrected is to start with a grassroots movement," Coleman said.

Protesters Holds Its Headquarters in New York

On Friday, protesters camping out at New York City's Zuccotti Park will be able to stay put a few more days after the company that owns the park postponed a planned cleaning.

Real estate company Brookfield Properties along with the backing of police told protesters the rules against camping – the protesters saw it as an eviction order.

Protesters vowed to stay in the park and would try to stop cleaning crews from coming in.

Brookfield Properties said in a statement that they postponed the cleaning "at the request of a number of local political leaders."

The company said hoped "to reach a resolution regarding the manner in which Zuccotti Park is being used by the protesters.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said on WOR radio Friday that if no agreement is reached, the company will likely attempt the same cleaning next week.

He warned that "it would be a little harder at that point in time to provide police protection."

At least 14 people were arrested Friday for blocking access to the park, authorities said.

It was one of several incidents between protesters and police around the country.

In Denver, police in riot gear moved Wall Street protesters away from the Colorado state Capitol grounds.

In San Diego, scuffles erupted between protesters and police over a tent encampment.

Pepper spray was used to disburse a human chain that was formed around the tents, San Diego ABC News affiliate KGTV reported.

ABC News' Greg Krieg, Richard Esposito, Aaron Katersky, Ben Forer and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Cain's 'Impossible Dream' Resonates With Voters

Cain's 'Impossible Dream' Resonates With Voters

Herman Cain is firing up the crowd at a tea party rally in this West Tennessee town when the generator powering his sound system shudders to a halt.

Cain stands awkwardly for a few moments then suddenly begins to sing. Slowly at first but gaining in speed, he belts out "Impossible Dream" in the rich baritone he's honed in church choir.

"You know, when it's your rally, you can do what you want to do!" Cain says as he finishes with a raucous laugh. The 500 or so supporters who have jammed the strip mall parking lot to hear the Republican Party's newest star speak roar their approval.

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Cain's 9-9-9 Plan Would Double the Sales Tax for Residents of Some States, Study Finds

Momentum restored, Cain launches into a pitch for his signature 9-9-9 tax plan, and the crowd is right there with him, chanting 9-9-9 along with the Georgia businessman.

The 65-year-old's improbable campaign for the presidency is all about momentum right now. How does he maintain the wave he's riding in recent polls that have catapulted him from an also-ran in the GOP race to the elite top tier?

There are many reasons his bid could fade as quickly as it rose. He acknowledged Friday that he will trail former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Texas Gov. Rick Perry significantly in fundraising. Cain has never held elected office and could wilt under the rigors of the campaign trail and the withering scrutiny coming his way.

But Cain's moment is right now, and the former Godfather's pizza chief executive is marketing himself with practiced skill, banking on his charisma and the notion that the messenger is as important as the message.

His everyman image is resonating.

"In the field right now, he's the most like me," said Jimmy Hoppers, a 60-year-old physician from Jackson, who was hoping to meet Cain so he could hand deliver a $1,000 donation to his campaign. "He's run a business and paid the bills. He's authentic."

On Friday night Cain, who is African-American, drew about 2,000 people -- some in workshirts and overalls and nearly all white -- to a feed barn in rural Waverly, Tenn.

This is a socially conservative country and Cain -- ever the salesman -- knows his audience. He closes by invoking God and singing the hymn "He Looked Beyond My Faults."

"I love him," gushed truck driver James Bland after Cain spoke. "He doesn't talk down to you. I think he gets the working man."

"And it makes me so happy that he's put God back into things," chimed in Bland's wife, Karen.

In a year of anti-government fervor, Cain is casting himself as the anti-politician Main Street candidate who would bring common-sense business know-how to the bureaucratic thick of Washington. The former conservative radio show host is brash and straight-talking, saying that "stupid people are ruining America." He mimics liberals with a high-pitched whiny voice.

"Well, he doesn't have foreign policy experience," he says to laughs. "And the guy we have in there now does?"

Cain doesn't ignore the race issue, saying that some critics have called him "a racist" and an "Oreo" for leaving the "Democrat plantation."

"I have grown up telling it like it is and I am going to continue to tell it like it is," he said at a campaign rally in a suburb of Memphis, where he was born. "I don't talk politician."

Voters are responding

He drew large and enthusiastic crowds Friday as he kicked off a two-day bus tour in Tennessee, hopscotching to a trio of tea party events across the state.

Tea party activists make up the backbone of Cain's support and he speaks their language fluently. "My fellow patriots," he begins some sentences. References to freedom and liberty pepper his remarks.

He dives into an anecdote about the Constitution and takes a jab at President Barack Obama.

"You know what? I kinda like my guns and my Bible," he says.

And at every turn, he stresses his business background, noting that at a recent debate fellow Republican candidates dismissed his 9-9-9 tax plan as politically dead on arrival.

"Politicians put together things that will pass. Businessmen put together plans that solve the problems," he said.

Indeed, Cain's 9-9-9 plan seems to have put him on the map.

Following the rally in Jackson, Cain bolted off the stage and shook hands with onlookers, including Linda Fowler-Cole, who had wandered over after a shopping trip to Lowe's and was wearing a T-shirt with an oversized picture of Obama

"I heard the 9-9-9 guy was here and I came to take a look," the Democrat said. "I like Obama, but that 9-9-9 is catchy."

In Bartlett, Tenn., Cain drew a number of black supporters who were excited at the prospect of a conservative African-American of his stature.

"To me he represents what Martin Luther King was talking about when he talked about his dream," Reginald Tooley, a 49-year-old physical therapist from Memphis, said. "With hard work and self-reliance you can do anything you want."

Cain says he has been buoyed by support from regular folks.

"You just don't know how much this encourages me, the fact that you all came out tonight," he said in Waverly.

"You see, this is what the folks in D.C. don't get because they don't come out here to meet with you."

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/10/15/cains-impossible-dream-resonates-with-voters/#ixzz1arb79KiE