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KOMOTINI, Greece (AP) -- A former plastics factory employee in the northern Greek city of Komotini who took two hostages has surrendered after nearly 12 hours early Friday, police said. He had previously shot and wounded three people....

MICHIGAN

Man in Detroit explosive case still not mentally competent

MARQUETTE | A judge has ruled that a Michigan man who authorities say placed an explosive outside a federal building in Detroit last year is still not mentally competent to face the charges.

The Mining Journal of Marquette reports that ...

NEW YORK (AP) -- President Barack Obama, turning his political sights on snowy New Hampshire, demanded that Congress eliminate oil and gas company subsidies that he called an outrageous government "giveaway." Though politically a long shot, the White House believes the idea resonates at a time of high gasoline prices....

BRUSSELS (AP) -- Europe's leaders have said they are committed to supporting economic growth, in a concession that their focus on austerity as the key to solving the debt crisis is not working as unemployment hits record highs and recession looms over the region....

While Mitt Romney is on a four state winning streak and is out-pacing John McCain's 2008 performance on most fronts, he still has a very long way to go. Super Tuesday can either solidify his standing as the front-runner or allow for a competitor, most likely Rick Santorum, to re-emerge.

Some of the 10 Super Tuesday states are easy to predict, but others remain a big question mark. Polls of individual "Super Tuesday" states have been rare and, in most instances, only poll a handful of the larger contests. The impact of the recent Romney victories and Santorum losses has yet to be determined. National polls suggest he has lost most of his momentum.

As of today, here is how things look to be shaping up:

Three Easy Romney Wins

Romney will be an easy winner in Massachusetts, where he was governor, and most likely in demographically-similar Vermont. He was handed a gift in Virginia where longtime residents Newt Gingrich, who failed to submit enough valid signatures, and Rick Santorum, who didn't even try to submit signatures, won't even be on the ballot.

Newt Good For Georgia, Maybe

While he once was a major favorite in the state he represented in congress, four straight polls have Newt hanging out in the 24-39% range. Really any of the candidates could pull out a win here, but Newt will still be favored. Romney, the toughest challenger, would need a big enough boost from his recent wins and for Santorum to grab enough votes from Newt for that to happen.

Santorum "Must Wins"

While Santorum has yet to notch a big win (he had less than 30,000 votes in all three caucus victories) he is still considered Romney's main competition and is the favorite in both Tennessee and Oklahoma. In 2008, Mike Huckabee won Tennessee while McCain pulled out a win in Oklahoma on Super Tuesday. Santorum must win both of these states to remain competitive in the long run.

Ohio: The Big Get

Certain states always get more attention than others. On Super Tuesday, Ohio is that state. Newt has split his time between Georgia and Ohio for the better part of a month. Santorum has been busy battling in Michigan with Romney and probably missed out on precious opportunity to collect early votes. Romney has been the only candidate with an early-vote operation and the ability to launch a campaign in multiple states at one time. These factors, combined with momentum, could give Romney the edge.

The Unpredictable Rest

Alaska, Idaho, and North Dakota round out the rest of the Tuesday contests. All three will be low-turnout caucuses and will be somewhat unpredictable. Romney actually won Alaska and North Dakota in 2008, while Idaho held a primary after Romney withdrew. Santorum has done well in smaller caucuses like these, but only when he has been able to heavily out-campaign his opponents. This won't happen here. It could be a clean sweep for Romney once again based on his continuing momentum and the fact that his competition has been able to spare little resources outside of the main Super Tuesday contests.

The Bottom Line

To really secure the nomination lead, Romney would need to win Ohio or to pull off an upset in Georgia, Oklahoma, or Tennessee and take the three small caucus states. If he wins seven states, it's hard to see his momentum derailed. Gingrich will probably only win Georgia and anything beyond that will give him reason to continue on. Santorum really needs to win Ohio, Oklahoma, and Tennessee. Since he is considered the favorite in those states, he would also need to steal a caucus state or two. If he leaves Super Tuesday with only two victories, the road ahead becomes increasingly difficult.

See Also: Super Tuesday Forum Predictions

Super Tuesday Preview originally appeared on About.com Conservative Politics: U.S. on Thursday, March 1st, 2012 at 23:16:31.

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Human mattress dominos, a lawnmower-on-ice race, and what happens when a weather presenter gets the giggles.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) -- Supporters of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide are planning rallies this month to demonstrate the power of his Lavalas party and protest Haiti's current government, a longtime Aristide ally said Thursday....

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) -- Supporters of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide are planning rallies this month to demonstrate the power of his Lavalas party and protest Haiti's current government, a longtime Aristide ally said Thursday....

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) -- Supporters of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide are planning rallies this month to demonstrate the power of his Lavalas party and protest Haiti's current government, a longtime Aristide ally said Thursday....

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez made his first live communication with his country's news media in nearly a week Thursday, saying he was in good shape and recovering quickly from tumor surgery in Cuba....

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez made his first live communication with his country's news media in nearly a week Thursday, saying he was in good shape and recovering quickly from tumor surgery in Cuba....

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) -- Argentine President Cristina Fernandez made a surprise conciliatory gesture Thursday by seeking negotiations with the United Kingdom to establish several weekly flights from Buenos Aires to the Falkland Islands....

WASHINGTON (AP) -- TITLE: "Three of A Kind"...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- TITLE: "Three of A Kind"...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- TITLE: "Three of A Kind"...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- TITLE: "Three of A Kind"...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- TITLE: "Three of A Kind"...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- TITLE: "Three of A Kind"...

MAD ISLAND, Texas — Strange things are aloft in the bird world.

Endangered whooping cranes flew 2,500 miles from Canada to Texas, where they usually spend the whole winter. Instead, they pecked around for a short time and flew back. In Nebraska, other cranes never left.

Some ducks just ...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney padded his lead in the race for delegates Tuesday by winning Republican presidential contests in six states....