Source: Hackers send new message to Sony  —  The hackers behind a devastating cyberattack at Sony Pictures have sent a new message to executives at the company, crediting them for a “very wise” decision to cancel the Christmas day release of “The Interview,” a source close to the company told CNN.

SEE IT: NYPD plainclothes officer delivers body blows to youth as he's being cuffed, Internal Affairs investigating  —  'I can't believe he just did that after everything that's happened' a witness says as the boy is punched repeatedly while three NYPD officers try to subdue and cuff him in an incident caught on video.

Rand Paul and Marco Rubio wage Twitter battle on Cuba  —  The first battle of the GOP primary began on radio and cable news, spilled over to Twitter and splashed across Facebook and the wider Internet, a preview of the Republican Party's coming cage match over foreign policy.

In Case You Missed It, Obama Made History Today: Calls Only on Female Reporters … Mark this down as a historic day in White House history.  —  President Obama has just become the first president to field questions from only female reporters at a White House press conference.

The Unidentified Queen of Torture  —  For the past eight months, there has been a furious battle raging behind closed doors at the White House, the C.I.A., and in Congress.  The question has been whether the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence would be allowed to use pseudonyms as a means …

Putin's Bubble Bursts  —  If you're the type who finds macho posturing impressive, Vladimir Putin is your kind of guy.  Sure enough, many American conservatives seem to have an embarrassing crush on the swaggering strongman.  “That is what you call a leader,” enthused Rudy Giuliani …

Woman Seeks Trademark For “I Can't Breathe,” Dying New York Man's Final Words  —  Buster  —  An Illinois woman is seeking to trademark the dying last words of the New York City man who gasped “I can't breathe” while being arrested by NYPD cops for selling loose cigarettes.

Bush officials gave CIA wide latitude  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — In July 2004, despite growing internal concerns about the CIA's brutal interrogation methods, senior members of George W. Bush's national security team gave the agency permission to employ the harsh tactics against an al Qaida facilitator …

Dog shoots man: Accidental shooting injures man  —  SHERIDAN — The Johnson County Sheriff's Office has released its findings on the shooting of a man Monday on Murphy Gulch Road.  —  Sheriff Steve Kozisek said Richard L. Fipps, 46, of Sheridan had driven to Murphy Gulch Road with two employees to move a vehicle that had become stuck.

GOP goes on K Street hiring spree  —  Lobbyists can come home again.  —  As Republicans take control of Congress, they are bringing in veteran influence peddlers to help them run the show.  Nearly a dozen veteran K Streeters have been named as top staffers to GOP leaders or on key committees …