Canada to maintain steel anti-dumping duties on China

A $20,000 diamond ring found in a tanning salon in St. Charles, Mo., appears to be at the center of a legal dispute over "finders keepers." The St. Louis Post-Dispatch attempts to explain murky statutes revolving around found property versus stealing. After Bonnie Land found the expensive ring and agreed to return it weeks later, she was arrested. She subsequently sued the ring's owner for $66,500 alleging breach of contract as Land wasn't given the posted $3,000 reward money.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/canada-maintain-steel-anti-dumping-duties-china-180858535--finance.html

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Idaho Medicaid Won't Expand Under Obamacare, GOP Governor Says

Idaho won't expand Medicaid to cover more poor people under President Barack Obama's health care reform law, Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter (R) told legislators during his State of the State address on Monday.

Otter is the 10th Republican governor to reject extending Medicaid health coverage to more poor residents. The governor's decision contradicted a unanimous recommendation from a commission appointed by Otter that the state take advantage of the available federal funding to broaden Medicaid.

The health care reform law is supposed to use an expansion of Medicaid as the means to offer health benefits to as many as 17 million people earning up to 133 percent of the federal poverty level, which was $14,856 in 2012. Its effects, however, are being blunted by the Supreme Court and hostile Republican governors. When the court upheld the rest of Obama's law last year, it allowed states to refuse the Medicaid expansion, which the Congressional Budget Office says will deny health benefits to about 3 million people.

Idaho shouldn't expand Medicaid without reforming the program first, Otter said during his address to state lawmakers in the state capitol building Monday, according to his prepared remarks.

"There?s a lot more work to do, and we face no immediate federal deadline. We have time to do this right, and there is broad agreement that the existing Medicaid program is broken. So I?m seeking no expansion of those benefits," Otter said. Instead, Otter tasked Idaho's chief health and welfare official to develop a new proposal that Otter will introduce next year, he said.

In addition to Otter, the Republican governors of Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, South Carolina, South Dakota, Oklahoma and Texas have announced plans to reject adding more people to Medicaid. Sixteen states and the District of Columbia either intend to participate in Obamacare's Medicaid expansion or already have begun, according to a tally by the Advisory Board, a Washington-based consulting company.

Just one Republican governor, Brian Sandoval of Nevada, has agreed to expand Medicaid to date.

Republican governors are turning down the Medicaid expansion despite generous federal support. Under the health care reform law, the federal government will pay the full cost of covering newly eligible people from 2014 to 2016, then will scale back funding to 90 percent in 2022 and later years. If every state were to participate, the total increase in state spending would amount to just 3 percent while millions would gain health coverage, according to an analysis by the Urban Institute and the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.

Idaho could add 88,000 poor people to Medicaid under the Obamacare expansion, and 19,000 people already eligible under today's rules, but not enrolled, also may sign up for coverage, the report says. The state would spend an additional $261 million from 2013 to 2022 to cover these individuals and the federal government would send $3.7 billion to Idaho.

Otter's rejection of the Medicaid expansion follows his decision to adopt another major element of Obamacare. Last month, Otter was one of just three Republican governors who said he intends to establish a health insurance exchange in his state under the law.

Health insurance exchanges are the state-based gateways where small businesses and individuals who don't get health benefits at work can comparison shop for health plans. The exchanges are due to be open for business on Oct. 1 to sell health insurance that will take effect on Jan. 1, 2014. People also will use the exchanges to learn whether they qualify for Medicaid benefits or tax credits for those who earn between poverty and four times that amount, which was $44,680 last year.

Twenty-five states won't create health insurance exchanges and will defer to the federal government to run them instead. Seventeen states and the District of Columbia will operate exchanges on their own, while seven states will work in partnership with federal authorities. Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney (R) wants to set up a health insurance exchange, but faces resistance from Gov. Phil Bryant (R).

READ IDAHO GOV. C.L. "BUTCH" OTTER'S STATE OF THE STATE ADDRESS:
Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter's State of the State Address

Related on HuffPost:

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/07/idaho-medicaid-obamacare-governor_n_2426983.html

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Fighting in Syria as world slams Assad speech

A Free Syrian Army fighter feeds a cat bread in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The revolution against Syrian President Bashar Assad that began in March 2011, started with peaceful protests but morphed into a civil war that has killed more than 60,000 people, according to a recent United Nations recent estimate. (AP Photo/Andoni Lubaki)

A Free Syrian Army fighter feeds a cat bread in the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The revolution against Syrian President Bashar Assad that began in March 2011, started with peaceful protests but morphed into a civil war that has killed more than 60,000 people, according to a recent United Nations recent estimate. (AP Photo/Andoni Lubaki)

Syrian men leave the old city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The revolution against Syrian President Bashar Assad that began in March 2011, started with peaceful protests but morphed into a civil war that has killed more than 60,000 people, according to a recent United Nations recent estimate. (AP Photo/Andoni Lubaki)

A camouflaged convoy of Dutch military trucks carrying two batteries of Patriot missiles is lined up for a media opportunity before departing De Peel Air Base in Vreedepeel, southern Netherlands, Monday Jan. 7, 2013. A total of 12 Patriot missile launching systems from the Dutch military are on its way to help Turkey defend its border against Syrian rockets. The missile batteries are being shipped to Turkey and are scheduled to be fully operational by January 26th. (AP Photo/Mark D. Carlson)

A camouflage convoy of Dutch military trucks carrying two batteries of Patriot missiles is lined up for a media opportunity before departing De Peel Air Base in Vreedepeel, southern Netherlands, Monday Jan. 7, 2013. A total of 12 Patriot missile launching systems from the Dutch military are on its way to help Turkey defend its border against Syrian rockets. The missile batteries are being shipped to Turkey and are scheduled to be fully operational by January 26th. (AP Photo/Mark D. Carlson)

BEIRUT (AP) ? U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday expressed disappointment with Syrian President Bashar Assad for rejecting the most important elements of an international roadmap to end the country's civil war ? a political handover and establishment of a transitional governing body.

Assad in a rare speech Sunday outlined his own vision for ending the country's conflict with a plan that would keep him in power. He also dismissed any chance of dialogue with the armed opposition and called on Syrians to fight what he called "murderous criminals."

U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky said Monday the secretary-general is disappointed that Assad's speech "does not contribute to a solution that could end the terrible suffering of the Syrian people." Nesirky said Ban and U.N.-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi will continue to work for a political transition that leads to U.N.-organized elections.

The West, including the U.S. and Britain, denounced Assad's speech, which came amid stepped-up international efforts for a peaceful settlement to the Syrian conflict.

On Monday, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan also criticized the Syrian leader's initiative. He accused Assad of "state terrorism" and called on him to relinquish power.

"There is one way out for Bashar and that is to respect the will of the people and do whatever is necessary," Erdogan said at a media conference while visiting Gabon. His remarks were broadcast by Turkish state TV Monday.

The violence on the ground, meanwhile, continued unabated.

Syria's state media said Monday that government troops repulsed a rebel attack on a police school in the northern city of Aleppo.

The official SANA news agency said regime forces killed and wounded members of a "terrorist group" in the fighting late Sunday, but did not provide a number. The government and the pro-regime media refer to the rebels seeking to topple Assad as terrorists.

Aleppo, Syria's largest city and former commercial hub, has been a major front in the civil war since July, with battles often raging for control of military and security facilities such as the police school. Rebels have recently made gains around Aleppo, as well as in the east and in the capital Damascus, bringing the civil war closer to the seat of Assad's power.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said rebels clashed with troops in the suburbs of Damascus, including in Daraya south of the capital. The Observatory said the army sent reinforcements there to join in an offensive aimed at dislodging rebels from the district, located just a few kilometers (miles) from a strategic military air base west of the capital.

Activists also reported shelling and fighting in southern Syria, as well as eastern and central Syria.

In his speech Sunday, his first public address in six months, Assad struck a defiant tone, ignoring international demands for him to step down and saying he is ready to hold a dialogue ? but only with those "who have not betrayed Syria." He also vowed to continue the battle "as long as there is one terrorist left."

He offered a national reconciliation conference, elections and a new constitution but demanded regional and Western countries stop funding and arming rebels trying to overthrow his regime first.

Syria's opposition rejected the proposal. Those fighting to topple the regime, including rebels on the ground, have repeatedly said they will accept nothing less than the president's departure, dismissing any kind of settlement that leaves him in the picture.

As expected, Assad's proposal did get support from close Syrian ally Iran.

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said it contains "solutions" to the conflict and outlines "a comprehensive political process which guarantees the presence of all voices in power." Salehi called on the international community to support Assad's initiative.

"All regional and international partners should help the immediate resolution of the crisis and prevent its spread to the region," Salehi said in a statement that was carried by the state-run IRNA news agency Monday.

Previous diplomatic initiatives have failed to stem the violence, which at times has spilled over into Syria's neighboring countries, including Turkey.

The Dutch military on Monday shipped Patriot missiles to Turkey, a fellow NATO member, after the alliance agreed in December to deploy the anti-missile systems along Turkey's southern border with Syria.

Once a close ally of Damascus, Ankara has turned into one of the Syrian regime's harshest critics since the uprising began. Turkey requested the missiles to boost its air defenses against possible spillover from Syria.

Violence has flared along the border in recent months, with Turkey firing artillery across the frontier to retaliate for Syrian shells hitting Turkish soil.

The two Dutch batteries are scheduled to be operational by the end of the month and will remain in Turkey for a year. They are part of a NATO contingent of Patriot missiles that intercept incoming ballistic missiles. Two U.S. and two German batteries are also being deployed to other parts of southern Turkey.

The Syria crisis began with peaceful protests in March 2011 but has since shifted into a civil war. At least 60,000 people have been killed in the conflict, according to a recent U.N. estimate.

____

Associated Press writer Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey and Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-01-07-Syria/id-8f3ca981acfe4116bf65a49e409cd9b1

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Back to the gadget mecca: What CES 2013 will bring

10 hrs.

Rosa Golijan , NBC News

It's January, which means it's time for the Consumer Electronics Show ? that Super Bowl of gadgets better known by its initials, CES. As usual, the festivities are taking place in Las Vegas and NBC News will be there, bringing you the latest innovative, mesmerizing, and just plain crazy new gear.

Year after year,?we've braved the event, wearing out shoes, losing sleep, swallowing vitamins by the fist-full to avoid that communal cold that's?not-so-affectionately dubbed the "CES Plague."?So why do we keep going back??Because the trip to the desert always?leaves us with an idea of where the tech world is headed.

With over 1.9 million square feet of exhibitor space filled by over?3,300 exhibitors ? not to mention over 150,000 wide-eyed attendees from all over the world ? CES 2013 is?the "biggest innovation event in the world," said?Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association, which runs the show.

In addition to the thousands of "smart" TVs and touchscreen?tablets that will compete for dominance, this year will?bring many wild firsts:

• A robot that clings to?windows as it cleans them
  
• A?chair with built-in "zone of silence" noise?cancellation?
  
• A digital?hearth that doubles as cooking surface and social?fireplace
  
• An iPhone case that makes the whole surface of the phone touch-sensitive
  

We'll be on the lookout for new?3-D screens that don't require glasses,?never-before-seen?gesture-recognition interfaces, gadgets that save energy and the environment, and all sorts of crazy remotes and smartphone accessories. I've personally got my heart set on testing every rugged product or?protective iPhone case I can find ? in search of a?weakness. I also want to take a look at?the long-awaited Pebble smartwatch with its?e-ink screen, and see just how strong the next version of Corning's Gorilla Glass really is.

"Your mind can't possibly process everything that happens at CES," Shapiro?told me, during a phone interview.?

That doesn't mean that every major company is represented though. Those currently?at the tippy top of the technology mountain, including?Apple, Google, Amazon and Facebook, don't have massive, colorful?booths, and even Microsoft, which dominated the conference for over a decade, won't have a significant presence this year.

"I certainly invited Steve Jobs every year and I'll certainly invite Tim Cook every year," Shapiro told me, before reiterating that those companies do take part in some way, be it Google partnering with the CEA to promote the use of Google+,?Amazon having meeting rooms set up during the event, or even?Apple employees lurking on the show floor. "They're all there. I'd be more upset if they weren't there."

One country in particular is going to take a prominent role in CES this year. Already the center for tech manufacturing, the?Chinese tech industry is stepping out from the shadows of Japan, South Korea and Taiwan to promote its own brands, including?Huawei, Hisense, and ZTE.?"They have an innovation plan, it's very specific," Shapiro said. "They want to be the world leader in innovation."

It remains to be seen?whether these companies can shine at an almost unnaturally star-studded series of events ??Tim Tebow, Will.I.Am., Ke$ha, Alicia Keys, Snooki, Danny DeVito,?50 Cent and even former U.S. president?Bill Clinton are among the luminaries?booked to make?appearances.

"This is the best [year] ever," Shapiro told me. "Not every year is the best ever. 2009 was 'Let's just survive.' We were down 25 percent by almost every measure and I remember also the one after 9/11, the 2002 event, was 'Let's just survive.' And so there were two that were not 'the best ever,' that I can recall very specifically saying, 'We just have to get through this and put a good face on and do what we can.'"

But 2013 is the best year ever, he repeats again and again throughout our conversation.?We hope so, Mr.?Shapiro. We hope so.

Keep your eyes glued to NBCNews.com for our coverage of CES 2013. Tech & Science editor?Wilson Rothman,?writers Rosa Golijan and Devin Coldewey, and?video producer?Matt Rivera?will bring you plenty of videos, photos and stories live from the event while our mission control back at the office brings additional stories and analysis.

Want more tech news?or interesting?links? You'll get plenty of both if you keep up with Rosa Golijan, the writer of this post, by following her on?Twitter, subscribing to her?Facebook?posts,?or circling her?on?Google+.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/gadgetbox/back-gadget-mecca-what-ces-2013-will-bring-1B7828995

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Utah city renames street due to sexual connotation

LEHI, Utah (AP) ? The Lehi City Council has renamed Morning Glory Road after a technology company planning to relocate to the street raised concerns about the name's sexual connotation.

Council members in the city about 30 miles south of Salt Lake City voted unanimously last month to change the name to Morning Vista Road.

Minutes from the meeting show that Xactware Solutions Inc., which provides software for the insurance industry, asked for the name change so that the road would fit with its "international corporate image."

"Morning glory" is the name of a flower and part of the title of a popular 1990s song from British rock band Oasis. But the term is sometimes used to describe male arousal.

Councilman Johnny Revill, who moved to approve the resolution at the Dec. 11 meeting, told the Salt Lake Tribune that he didn't know about the term's slang meaning previously but was happy to appease Xactware officials.

"That name has a negative meaning for some reason," Revill said. "When you use the word, there is a different meaning that can be taken from that."

Councilor Mark Johnson told the Daily Herald that he only knows of the noxious weed called Morning Glory that is difficult to control, but he also voted in favor of the resolution. Johnson said Lehi doesn't like to change street names, but it does in some cases to "honor people or organizations."

The street name was a red flag for Xactware officials when they began considering moving their company's headquarters from Orem to Lehi's Traverse Mountain, said Jonathan Gardner, commercial venture project director for the planned community.

The company was worried that the sexual connotation of morning glory would become too prominent in the minds of prospective clients, Gardner said.

Morning Glory is far from an R-rated word in most of America. It is the name of a 2010 Hollywood film starring Rachel McAdams as an upbeat television producer trying to revive a struggling morning show. That movie is rated PG-13.

In the popular 1960s TV show "Bewitched," the family lived at 1164 Morning Glory Circle.

Morning Glory is also the name of a small community near El Paso, Texas.

Xactware went "a little overboard," in requesting the street name change, said Lehi resident Emily Scanlon. She said she has never thought of the sexual connotation in her four years driving past the road.

Lehi, with a population of about 48,000 people, is named after a prophet in the Book of Mormon and is the former home of the Brown family that stars in the reality TV series, "Sister Wives." Kody Brown moved his wives and 16 children from Lehi to the Las Vegas area in January 2011 after Utah authorities began a bigamy investigation.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/aa9398e6757a46fa93ed5dea7bd3729e/Article_2013-01-04-Morning%20Glory%20Road/id-6e0a2fae3cfe4ab7880038a38cd7d580

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The Harrowing Helicopter Rescue of the Kulluk Rig

Coast Guard aircraft commander Jason Evans pointed his MH-60 Jayhawk directly into sustained 50 knot winds as he came into a hover 40 feet above the deck of the oil rig Kulluk. Below him, the rig plunged up and down in swells as high as 30 feet. It was the afternoon of Saturday, December 29, two days after a buckle on the tow line connecting the conical oil rig to the Shell tug Aiviq broke, leaving the Kulluk powerless is violent Gulf of Alaska seas. Evan?s aircraft was one of two Coast Guard helicopters charged with evacuating the 18 workers on board.

The hazards of the mission?high winds, heavy seas, freezing water?were evident to Evans and his three-man crew, and typical of their search and rescue (SAR) missions out of Air Station Kodiak. Unique was the design of the Kulluk, which has no propulsion of its own and from a distance looked like a toy top, a wobbling, brightly-colored cone bobbing on the churning surface of the Gulf of Alaska. The Kulluk?s superstructure stretches 150 feet up from the vessels? deck.

"Usually when you're going to a fishing vessel or a pleasure craft, you can keep your blades above their masts or antennas or superstructure," says Evans, a 36-year-old lieutenant who has been stationed in Kodiak for a year and a half. "But because this is 150 feet, there's no way to stay above the superstructure. You've got that superstructure beside you, abeam you, and it's swinging toward you the whole time."

The Coast Guard crew was able to communicate with the Kulluk workers by radio. They were experienced mariners, and not injured. Often a Coast Guard rescue swimmer is sent down in the helicopter?s rescue basket to facilitate a rescue, but that wouldn?t be necessary in this case. Instead, Evans gave the swimmer a new job: to watch the blade tips. "If the superstructure starts approaching 10 feet you need to say something to me immediately," the pilot told the swimmer. Meanwhile, Evans tried to avoid spatial disorientation by keeping his own focus on the horizon. He was also aware of an additional hazard: a replacement tow line that by Saturday once again connected the Kulluk to its primary tow vessel, the Aiviq.

The tow line was 500 to 700 feet long, and attached to the Kulluk right beneath his aircraft. "That was one of my concerns?is there a hazard of the tow line recoiling, rebounding into the rotor blades, if it were to break again," Evans says. Earlier in the day, Evans? crew had hoisted four baskets full of spare parts down to the deck of the crippled Aiviq, whose engines were partially disabled by contaminated fuel. He?d asked about the tow line, concerned that it could snap, spring up, and get fouled in the hovering helicopter. Though Evans was told that the lack of slack in the line would make such a recoil extremely unlikely, it remained one more hazard to keep in mind.

As Evans held the hover over the Kulluk, flight mechanic Derrick Suba lowered the metal rescue basket toward the? deck. The Kulluk?s crew had been instructed to let the basket touch the deck before they grabbed it, to discharge any static electricity. Tied to the basket was a long line that the crew on deck would use to stabilize the basket as the rig workers were raised back up to the helicopter one-by-one. "The Kulluk had a lot of movement, a lot of pitch, a lot of roll. The elevation of the deck was changing at least 30 foot altitude," Evans says. "We'd be trying to maintain a 40-foot deck height and they'd take a big swell and the deck would come all the way up right under the bottom of the aircraft." Such conditions made Suba?s job of managing the hoist cable extremely challenging. "If he had too much tension in the cable, the deck would drop out from underneath the basket as the rig workers were trying to get loaded in," Evans says.

Although the conditions were extreme, they?re exactly what the air crew trains for, and in less than half an hour six of the oil workers were safely inside the aircraft (a second Kodiak Jayhawk recovered the remaining 12 in two separate trips). "That's a risky flight, a risky situation," says Evans, who has flown several more missions to the Kulluk since the Saturday rescue. "Whenever the seas are that heavy and the winds are that strong, it's raining, it's snowing, lower ceilings, there's reduced visibility, that compounds it."

The extended Kulluk scenario had been demanding for Kodiak Coasties, who usually get some downtime between late December and early January. Since the disaster began, the Coast Guard cutter Alex Haley, which carries a crew of 112, has been stationed near the grounded oil rig (the ship had been scheduled for a Bering Sea patrol before it was drawn into efforts to prevent the Kulluk?s grounding). "We are putting all the assets, all the personnel that we can towards the response," Coast Guard Capt. Paul Mehler said at a Thursday press conference organized by Unified Command, the collaboration of industry and government representatives who have joined to manage the response. "It is definitely a heavy lift for our crews but it is not beyond what we can do safely and what we're manage."

"It's a huge group effort at all levels to manage and prioritize flights, assets, and people," says Evans. "We've been burning through crews one right after another." Evans was flying again on New Year?s Eve, sent out specifically to try to document the Kulluk?s grounding, which occurred just before 9 p.m. on Monday, December 31. Meanwhile, many of his fellow pilots were celebrating at the Golden Anchor, a bar at the air station. "Winds were sustained 60 mph and it was gusting 70. Seas were 30 feet and when we got on scene it started blowing snow and rain," Evans says. "We could not even orbit the Kulluk because the winds were so strong. I told the crew, This is not worth it, we're going home." His crew ended up flying by the Golden Anchor 10 seconds after the ball dropped.

In many ways, it?s fortunate that the Kulluk debacle is unfolding so close to Coast Guard resources. The rig is now grounded 40 miles southwest of the Kodiak Air Station, the largest Coast Guard facility in Alaska. The helicopter flight takes just 20 minutes. The Coast Guard has five MH-60s at the air station right now, as well as three smaller 65 Dolphin helicopters. That won?t be the case for much longer. On January 13, two of those Jayhawks along with their aircrews are scheduled to be transferred to St. Paul, a tiny island in the Bering Sea that serves as a SAR staging ground during the historically dangerous winter crab-fishing season. Those helicopters and crews will depart for St. Paul as scheduled next week, according to Coast Guard public affairs officer Sara Francis. In the meantime, Shell has announced intentions to bring in its own aircraft?hopefully manned by pilots who have plenty of experience flying the Gulf of Alaska in wintertime.

Source: http://www.popularmechanics.com/outdoors/survival/stories/the-harrowing-helicopter-rescue-of-the-kulluk-rig-14940780?src=rss

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Vikings-Packers: Familiar foes, polar opposites

Not many surprises between these long-time NFC North rivals

By Greg Bedard

NBCSports.com contributor

updated 2:16 p.m. ET Jan. 4, 2013

On Saturday night, the Packers and Vikings will face off for the third time in five weeks.

They split the two regular season matchups, setting up an NFC wild-card showdown on NBC at Lambeau Field (8 p.m. ET). As long-time NFC North rivals, there aren?t many surprises between the two teams.

?So much familiarity with the team that we are playing because of the number of times we have played them in the last month and a half,? Vikings coach Leslie Frazier said this week. ?So not a whole lot that needs to be discussed as far as getting motivated to play this game.?

It probably doesn?t hurt the rivalry that, in many ways, the Vikings (10-6) and Packers (11-5) are polar opposites.

Minnesota relies on a miraculous workhorse running back in Adrian Peterson, who became the seventh player to rush for more than 2,000 yards last week ? with almost all of the carries coming less than a year after reconstructive knee surgery.

For the Packers, everything runs through their uber talented quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who can beat you with his arm, feet and mind.

Defensively, the Vikings are a 4-3 team that is big, physical and features pass-rushing end Jared Allen.

The Packers run a 3-4 and use angles, speed and overloads up front, and a slew of talented cornerbacks to cover up the back end.

The Vikings are a ground-and-pound physical bunch on both sides of the ball that would be more fitting with dirt and mud on their uniforms, instead of playing on an artificial surface.

The Packers are fast and precise, and star receiver Greg Jennings said this week what everyone knows but is afraid to say: the Packers are better suited as a dome team, yet call the historic ? and freezing ? Lambeau Field home.

Vikings coach Leslie Frazier is the definition of low key and cool. Packers coach Mike McCarthy admitted he needs to do a better job of keeping his emotions in check during the heat of battle.

The Packers raised, nurtured and ascended to great heights with Brett Favre at quarterback. The Vikings found a backdoor way, through a trade and retirement from the Jets, to have Favre don a purple jersey his final two seasons.

So much familiarity. So much difference. So much at stake on Saturday night.

"I think it'll be a great contest," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said this week. "It's an opponent we're very familiar with, and they're familiar with us. Everybody has confidence going into the playoffs. Most importantly, we'll be at home. We're excited to play these guys again."

Here are a look at the three keys for each team:

Vikings
Brace for the passing game: After a slow start, the Packers were able to move the ball through the air against Vikings even without Randall Cobb (ankle) and a full game from Jordy Nelson (knee). Both will be back on Saturday. That?s only going to cause further problems for a Vikings secondary that couldn?t contain Greg Jennings, James Jones and tight end Jermichael Finley. The inside passing game is going to be a problem for the Vikings if cornerback Antoine Winfield (hand) can?t play more than the 19 he did on Sunday.

Minnesota has a distinct lack of slot corners. It?s Winfield and Marcus Sherels. Jennings, who had been dealing with a groin injury/surgery most of the season, looked very much like his explosive and dangerous self in the Vikings? 37-34 victory over Green Bay on Sunday. He caught eight of the 11 passes thrown his way for 120 yards and two touchdowns ? and Jennings even dropped two passes. So, needless to say, the coverage against Jennings was not very good by the Vikings. Sherels, especially, and Winfield are going to need help from the safeties. Minnesota will have to play more two deep safety coverage and hope the cornerbacks can be physical underneath to have a chance.

Go deep early: The Packers were embarrassed by Peterson?s 209-yard performance on Sunday, which included more than a dozen missed tackles ? and happened when the Packers were slamming the box with an extra safety. Green Bay will not let Peterson gain more than 200 yards for a third-straight matchup. It will sellout against the run even more this time, which means quarterback Christian Ponder will have to make them pay. Vikings should run playaction right off the top and not be afraid to take multiple shots down the field. They will have to be more balanced to win this game on the road this time around. Right guard Brandon Fusco needs to be better this time around in all areas of his game. Tackle B.J. Raji was dominant and has the ability to disrupt the run and the pass if he?s not blocked better in this game.

Take advantage of the right tackle: The Packers were so weak at right tackle with undrafted rookie Don Barclay on Sunday that they might have to think about moving left guard T.J. Lang back out to right tackle on Saturday. Whoever is there, that?s a big weakness for the Packers that the Vikings have to exploit with end Brian Robison and tackle/end Everson Griffen. Expect the Packers to provide more help on that side in this game, which should give right end Jared Allen more room to maneuver. He?s obviously beat up, but the Vikings need him to dominate in this game to advance.

Packers
Be more disciplined against the run: On Sunday, the Packers had three problems in the run game. Inside linebackers A.J. Hawk and Brad Jones hit less than half the time at properly and quickly hitting in the gaps against the Vikings? inside zone scheme. When they played downhill, Peterson had trouble. When they were late, the offensive linemen were able to combo block to the second level and Peterson was off to the races. That can?t happen again. There were also several problems with players setting the edge properly, which widened Peterson?s cutback lanes and also allowed him to escape outside. And, finally, the tackling was shoddy. It must be cleaned up or they?ll never get off the field.

Go fast: In both of the previous games against the Vikings, the Packers? offense has started on the slow side. On Sunday they were down 13-0 and 20-7. The Packers need to be the aggressor offensively and they need to do that by taking their no-huddle offense out of mothballs. It has been effective in the past, and will help Rodgers and the passing game get into a better rhythm quickly. It will also help keep the Vikings? pass rush from gaining much traction.

Get it and go: The pairing of Cobb and Jennings once again should give the Packers? offense ample weapons to get back to their short, quick passing game. It has been nonexistent at times and it?s really hurting the offense. There have been too many deep routes that take too long to develop, especially when Rodgers is playing behind a line that has average players at both tackle spots, and center. If the Packers quicken the pace with the no huddle, and shorter routes, that will keep Rodgers from falling into his usual trap of holding onto the ball too long. The Packers have multiple dynamic weapons now that everyone is healthy. Rodgers should let them do the work by getting rid of the ball quickly.

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