[Formula Presented]: Factorization, charming penguins, strong phases, and polarization

Using the soft-collinear effective theory we derive the factorization theorem for the decays [Formula Presented] with [Formula Presented], at leading order in [Formula Presented] and [Formula Presented]. The results derived here apply even if [Formula Presented] is not perturbative, and we prove that the physics sensitive to the [Formula Presented] scale is the same in [Formula Presented] and [Formula Presented] form factors. We argue that [Formula Presented] penguins could give long-distance effects at leading order. Decays to two transversely polarized vector mesons are discussed. Analyzing [Formula Presented] we find predictions for [Formula Presented] and [Formula Presented] as a function of [Formula Presented].