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Philadelphia Phillies' Hunter Pence is safe stealing second as New York Yankees second baseman Doug Bernier fields the throw during the sixth inning of a spring training baseball game at Brighthouse Field in Clearwater, Fla., Friday, March 23, 2012.

Kathy Willens, Associated Press

CLEARWATER, Fla. Hunter Pence's piercing blue eyes grow even wider when he hears the word playoffs.

Reaching the postseason is no longer a dream for Pence. It's an expectation.

When the Philadelphia Phillies acquired the two-time All-Star right fielder from Houston last July, Pence jumped from one of the worst teams in the majors to one of the best. He got his first taste of pennant fever, and wants more.

"Words can't describe how amazing it was," Pence said. "Losing in the first round was pretty painful, but it was one of the greatest experiences of my life."

Despite a franchise-record and major league-leading 102 wins, the Phillies lost in five games to eventual World Series champion St. Louis in the NL division series. It was a bitter disappointment for fans and everyone in the organization.

Winning five straight division titles and the 2008 World Series raised expectations to enormous levels in Philadelphia. Now, anything less than another championship isn't considered a success.

For some, that's pressure. For Pence, it's an adrenaline rush.

"It's very exciting," he said. "It's a great time to be a part of this organization. It's great from the top down. The fans are incredible and in this clubhouse, the expectations are to win a World Series. You couldn't ask for more."

Original post:
Pence excited about Phils' expectations

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) Soul singer Erykah Badu said Wednesday she holds no grudge against Malaysia's government for barring her from performing after a photograph of her body art offended some Muslims.

More than 1,500 people had bought tickets to watch the Grammy-winning American singer at a Kuala Lumpur auditorium Wednesday, but Malaysia's information minister announced on the eve of the concert that it could not proceed because a promotional photo of Badu with the Arabic word for Allah painted on her bare shoulders was "an insult to Islam."

"It's sad, because we traveled a long way," Badu told a news conference. "But I'm totally understanding of (the minister's) protection of the laws and its people. He doesn't want anything to happen. I'm good with that."

The photograph ignited criticism from some politicians and religious groups in Muslim-majority Malaysia after a newspaper published it Monday in a feature to promote Badu's show. The daily has since apologized for what it called an "oversight" that led to the photo's publication.

Badu, 41, said the photo was inspired by images from "The Holy Mountain," a 1973 surrealist movie by Chilean-French filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky.

"I think art is often misunderstood in the realm of religion, and it's OK," she said. "In America, it's a lot different. Art is also misunderstood but it is not such a harsh gesture to promote the names of God. I am learning and understanding about Islam in other countries more as we travel."

Information Minister Rais Yatim said Malaysia's Cabinet endorsed the ban Wednesday. Police feared that if the concert went ahead, it could cause "various situations that may lead to social excitement, and quarrels may break out due to religious sensitivities," the national news agency, Bernama, quoted the minister as saying.

Public reaction to the concert ban has been divided. On Twitter, many Malaysians, including Muslims, accused the government of intolerance, but others praised authorities for being firm about defending religious principles.

Badu said she would "absolutely" welcome another chance to perform in Malaysia someday. She is scheduled to sing at a jazz festival this weekend in Jakarta, the capital of neighboring Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation.

Link:
Erykah Badu sad but not angry over Malaysian ban

The judges for this years Pulitzer Prizes in journalism are getting set to vote which means its time for the latest installment of The Associated Press year-long bash of the NYPD.

And sure enough, the wire service yesterday popped up with a 1,500-word hit-job that said, well . . . not much at all.

The AP story points to a 2008 internal memo that it says shows that undercover New York cops attended meetings of liberal political organizations and monitored even lawful activities.

Ooh sinister: Cops spying on liberals.

(Translation: Hey, Pulitzer judges: Pick us!)

AP

Ray Kelly

The truth isnt even close.

For one thing, calling them liberal political organizations makes it sound like the NYPD was snooping on everyday people in mainstream groups that happen to be on the left. Think: the local Democratic club.

In fact, the groups under surveillance included extremist outfits that have either supported, or sometimes worked with, global terror groups, such as the International Solidarity Movement and the International Action Center.

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More AP Piffle

War Room

The White House

22 March 2012 0900 hours

Look Barry, the Republicans have been crawling all over Iowa. They are painting you as the worst underachiever since unsliced bread. You can't just sit there on TV doing NCAA brackets. You better go to Iowa and make some happy talk about an economic comeback pronto if you want to be re-elected.

"I've told you to call me Barack. If people wanted to vote for a Barry, Manilow would be sitting here now."

Okay Barry, whatever you say, but you still have to go to Iowa. We have to find you a county fair and one of those Main Street cafes that are also gas stations and funeral parlors. Some people in coveralls. Voters eat that stuff up.

"Come on guys. Have you been to Iowa in county fair season? Do you know how hard it is to get sweat out of mocha slacks? I'm from Hawaii, Indonesia, L.A., Chicago, New York and Washington D.C., man. I wouldn't know a heifer from a billy goat. Don't they have any Main Street cafes in Martha's Vinyard or Honolulu?"

Not really. Besides, Iowans are too polite to tell you what they really think of the job government is doing. We're counting on that. We also just blew $2.2 million in taxpayers' money for these customized tour buses that we bought off Bon Jovi. If we don't use them, it's going to be tough to convince people they need to pay us more taxes. Of course, we also have to convince them that we're not campaigning on this campaign tour, we're just 'listening.'"

"Fine. But if we're going to do this tour thing, we're going to need a new theme song. How about some Elvis? They love Elvis and Patsy Cline and all that stuff down in Iowa."

"Sorry, Barry, Michele Bachmann already tried The King. You'll have to think of something else."

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And now, a word from the 'Small People'

TOULOUSE, France (CNN) -

The French police siege to capture a suspected al Qaeda-trained militant came to a bloody end Thursday morning when commandos shot Mohammed Merah in the head as he fired wildly back at them, authorities said.

Merah emerged from a bathroom in his apartment and fired more than 30 shots at police as they burst in to end a standoff that had lasted more than 31 hours, Paris prosecutor Francois Molins said.

He jumped out a window onto a balcony, still shooting, and was found dead on the ground, officials said.

Two police officers were injured in the raid, Interior Minister Claude Gueant said.

Merah had only two bullets left in his gun when he was killed, Molins said.

Merah, 23, was wanted in the killings of three French paratroopers, a rabbi and three children ages 4, 5, and 7. The shootings began March 11 and ended Monday with the slaying of the rabbi and the children at a Jewish school in Toulouse.

Authorities said the young man cited a variety of reasons for the killings, including France's ban on the wearing of Islamic veils, the missions of its troops abroad and the oppression of Palestinians.

Police found video recordings of the attacks, ammunition and ingredients for explosives after he was killed, Molins said.

In the video of the first shooting of a French soldier in Toulouse, Merah told the soldier, "You kill my brothers, I kill you," Molins told reporters. Another video shows Merah gunning down two more French soldiers in Montauban. He is heard saying "Allahu Akbar," or God is great, Molins said.

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No word from suspect in French killings