Free Republic

China's rise as the world largest exporter, though significant, does not mean Chinese exports will be of as high a quality as Germany's goods, experts said. The Chinese government should seriously consider ways to improve the quality of goods for export and create more value-added products to strengthen its competitiveness, they said. For the first time, China took the lead as the world's export champion, surpassing Germany by a minimal amount in the first half of the year. A report released yesterday by the World Trade Organization (WTO) shows that from January to June, China exported goods worth $521.7 billion....

NEW YORK -- More details about Eliot Spitzer's alleged meeting with a prostitute emerged Monday after the New York governor and father of three apologized to his family and the public. According to a law enforcement source close to the investigation, the Democratic governor used the alias "George Fox" when meeting with a prostitute. His alleged conversations with the prostitution ring are detailed in court papers in which Spitzer is identified as "Client 9," according to a source. On Monday afternoon, the Democratic governor delivered an apology standing next to his wife, Silda, who looked down at the ground as...

LOS ANGELES (AP) - First he went on national television to apologize for his racial tirade against two black hecklers. Now Michael Richards is taking his contriteness to the next level: he's hired a public relations expert with deep contacts in the black community. New York publicist Howard Rubenstein took on Richards as a client Wednesday after being contacted by the actor-comedian. He then arranged for Richards to call the Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton. "I've known those gentlemen for many years," Rubenstein told The Associated Press. "Michael apologized profusely. He wants to heal the tremendous wound that he's...

Michael Richards exploded in anger as he performed at a famous L.A. comedy club last Friday, hurling racial epithets that left the crowd gasping, and TMZ has obtained exclusive video of the ugly incident.

Brussels, Belgium (AHN) - Running out of ideas to name their 15th child, a Belgian couple submitted an ad in a local newspaper to get help from the public with ideas. The couple, Brigitte Dillen and Ivo Driessens, from Merksem, have given all their children names ending with 'y' but cannot think of yet another one for their latest addition. The new baby will be a brother or sister for Wendy (20), Cindy (18), Jimmy (17), Brendy (16), Sonny (15), Sandy (14), Purdy (13), Chardy (9), Yorry (8), Yony (6), Britney (5), Yenty (3), Ruby (2) and Xanty (1). According...