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KIEV (AFP) - Controversy has enveloped the son of Ukraine President Viktor Yushchenko for a second time in a week, amid reports that the 19-year-old owned the copyright to the lucrative trademarks of last year's "orange revolution." ADVERTISEMENT The new scandal erupted as the legal chief of Yushchenko's campaign tried to put to rest a controversy that flared last week, after local media reported that Yushchenko's eldest son, Andriy, appeared to be living beyond his declared means. "Andriy Yushchenko has author's rights to all political brands that were used during the 'orange revolution,'" Mykola Katerynchuk was quoted as saying during...

Ukrainian Agriculture Minister Criticizes Government on Sugar Import Decree KIEV, Ukraine (AP) -- Ukraine's top agriculture official criticized the government Wednesday for a decree he said would allow the import of thousands of tons of Brazilian sugar, calling the deal a suspicious scheme. ADVERTISEMENT Agriculture Minister Oleksandar Baranivsky said the decree allows state-run companies, including oil and gas company Naftogaz Ukraine, to import some 30,000 tons of processed sugar cane from Brazil in a deal worth tens of millions of dollars (euros). According to the decree, the deal is aimed at stabilizing sugar prices, which have risen sharply in recent...

Congress passed a multinational trade bill known as CAFTA last week, but not without a feverish late night vote marred by controversy and last-minute vote switching. Leaving aside the arguments for or against CAFTA itself, the process by which the bill ultimately passed should sicken every American who believes in representative government. Late-night arm-twisting by House leaders to get votes is of course nothing new. We witnessed far worse when Congress passed the ruinous Medicare prescription drug bill in the dead of night two years ago. Yet even after months of unprecedented wheeling and dealing by corporate lobbyists, congressional leaders,...

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A federal judge sentenced a woman to 2 1/2 years in prison Monday for trying to export missile and fighter jet parts to her native China. In a deal with prosecutors, Xiuwen Liang, 34, pleaded guilty in 2003 to conspiracy to export defense items and attempted unlawful export. Her husband, 35-year-old Jinghua Zhuang, pleaded guilty to the same charges and also was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison in December 2003. Liang, who has been free on bail, must surrender by May. She will be deported after she completes her sentence. The couple was arrested...

FRENCH TOAST: George Soros lost the latest round of his 16-year battle with French regulators. Photo: Jim Alcorn Billionaire George Soros, the former investor and current philanthropist and political activist, failed yesterday to convince a French appeals court to overturn his 2002 conviction for insider trading. Soros, 74, is expected to take his conviction — related to the 1988 purchase and sale of shares in Societe Generale — to the equivalent of France's Supreme Court in an attempt to clear the sole blemish from his 40-year investment career. In 2002, a trial court in France found Soros used insider...

In the past several months as the debate over Social Security reform has taken center stage in the theater of the absurd that is modern American politics, the idea has been floated that the entire pay-as-you-go structure of this system closely resembles a Ponzi scheme, albeit one that is about to collapse. In reality, few people likely have any idea what a Ponzi scheme is, nor how closely America’s largest retirement system follows its tenets. As such, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission:http://www.sec.gov/answers/ponzi.htm “Ponzi schemes are a type of illegal pyramid scheme named for Charles Ponzi, who duped thousands...

When talking about Social Security reform, we need to make two points extremely clear: No one is going to end Social Security or reduce or take away any benefits you have earned over the years. And discussing other options is healthy for our country. Our Social Security system, in its current form, was designed for another era. It cannot meet the needs of today's demographics and it cannot support the benefits it has promised for tomorrow. A program that 50 years ago relied on 16 workers for each beneficiary now relies on three workers. And in less than 30 years...

President Bush must really be on to something with his proposals to reform Social Security. The liberals are circling the wagons and hunkering down for a desperate defense. You'd think these self-described "progressives" would be more receptive to an overhaul and modernization of a 70-year-old program that was designed during the Great Depression. This vehement opposition is over more than the mechanics. It's ideological. The left regards Social Security as the cornerstone of FDR's New Deal socialism. Privatizing it is nothing short of blasphemy. A Ponzi scheme can only survive as long as the number of suckers grows. With the...

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (AP) - A grand jury indicted a former city councilwoman and seven other people Wednesday for an alleged real estate scheme that involved converting apartments into higher-priced condominiums without the required permits for the changes. Pamela Houchen, who resigned from the City Council in September, also was charged with corruption for allegedly concealing her ownership of an apartment building in a redevelopment district where she was prohibited from owning property under conflict-of-interest laws. The former councilwoman, a real estate broker who also has served as mayor, is charged with 11 counts of mail fraud and seven counts...

Twenty people were indicted by a federal grand jury in Austin this week and accused of running an elaborate real estate scheme in which they defrauded banks and mortgage lenders of about $15 million. Most of the people used their positions in the real estate business to buy dozens of houses and duplexes in and around Austin, create false appraisal and loan documents to fool financial institutions, then sell the properties to an associate at an inflated price, according to the indictment. That associate would then usually default on the loan, and the participants would share the profit with the...

The genius of not accepting the nomination Kerry's Brilliant Scheme: Roger Simon (the U.S. News writer, not the novelist/blogger) thinks Kerry's idea of not accepting the Democratic nomination at his party's convention--in order to accept it a month later--is "too dumb even for politics." If Kerry does not accept the nomination at his convention, how will he get anybody to watch it? The damn things are dull enough, but a convention without the presidential candidate accepting? Who would tune in to watch such a thing? And by giving up their audience, the Democrats will give up tons of free publicity....

Kerry's Brilliant Scheme The genius of not accepting the nomination. By Mickey Kaus Updated Wednesday, May 26, 2004, at 1:46 AM PT 1:58 A.M. Kerry's Brilliant Scheme: Roger Simon (the U.S. News writer, not the novelist/blogger) thinks Kerry's idea of not accepting the Democratic nomination at his party's convention--in order to accept it a month later--is "too dumb even for politics." If Kerry does not accept the nomination at his convention, how will he get anybody to watch it? The damn things are dull enough, but a convention without the presidential candidate accepting? Who would tune in to watch such...

Homes of several Atlanta-area residents were unexpectedly mortgaged by a Bedford County man being sought by Georgia authorities, investigators revealed today. David Glenn Helton, 56, falsely claiming power of attorney, obtained mortgages on homes and land under at least 12 different names without the awareness of the property owners, said Detective Sgt. Sam Bragg of the Bedford County Sheriff's Department. Helton is at large and was last known to be in the Knoxville area over the weekend, authorities said. The owners were unaware their properties had been mortgaged until foreclosure notices were received after Helton failed to make payments, said...

Amnesia 101 – Democrat Senator, John F. Kerry, professor The more things change, the more they remain the same. - Alphonse Karr Democrat presidential candidate, John F. Kerry, frequently speaks to the need of taking back America, insisting a regime change is necessary. Finally, I understand what Kerry is talking about when he speaks of change. He and his followers have actually come up with a revolutionary idea. They suggest for this election, President Bush and his political party leave the Democrat, presidential nominee's record and history alone. They submit, what happened to Kerry over numerous years on the national...

Amnesia 101 – Democrat Senator, John F. Kerry, professor The more things change, the more they remain the same. - Alphonse Karr Democrat presidential candidate, John F. Kerry, frequently speaks to the need of taking back America, insisting a regime change is necessary. Finally, I understand what Kerry is talking about when he speaks of change. He and his followers have actually come up with a revolutionary idea. They suggest for this election, President Bush and his political party leave the Democrat, presidential nominee's record and history alone. They submit, what happened to Kerry over numerous years on the national...

<p>LOS ANGELES (AP) - A woman who helped her former boyfriend, an ex-immigration agent, smuggled dozens of Filipinos into the United States was sentenced Monday to three years in prison.</p> <p>Rita Cunanan, 43, of North Hills, pleaded guilty in October to charges of conspiracy and bringing illegal aliens into the country.</p>

STRATEGIC USE OF PUBLIC INFORMATION TO BECOME EVER-MORE CRITICAL IN BUILDING SUPPORT FOR UNITED NATIONS, UNDER-SECRETARY-GENERAL TELLS FOURTH COMMITTEE War in Iraq Was Foremost of Mounting Challenges Facing Organization, He Says, Outlining Department’s New Structure, Operational Model At a time of mounting challenges, such as those posed by the Iraq crisis, the strategic use of public information would become increasingly critical in building public support for the United Nations, Under-Secretary-General Shashi Tharoor told the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) this afternoon, as he introduced the Secretary-General’s report on questions relating to information. Outlining the changes in the Department of...

The Philippines and China have signed a $1-billion bilateral currency swap that would enable the Philippines to avail up to 10 percent of the facility under the Chang Mai Initiative. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) and the People’s Bank of China formally signed the agreement after months of negotiations, giving the Philippines access to draw from the facility should it need to do so. According to BSP Governor Rafael Buenaventura, the agreement was a one-way swap where the Philippines would exchange the peso equivalent that China would convert to renminbi (its currency) and then into dollars. The Chang Mai...

Health Care: Presidential candidate Dick Gephardt thinks his health care plan will help him beat George Bush next year. Better ask small businesses about that.Millions of small businesses in America employ over 80 million people. So whenever a major presidential candidate comes out with an idea that could cost them billions of dollars or make them cut jobs, they pay attention.Gephardt's plan is one of those. He calls it a "stimulus" to the economy, one that would create jobs. Sounds great. Who wouldn't want health coverage for the 41 million Americans who have none, more jobs and a bigger economy?But...

Local News: Wednesday, May 01, 2002 Robbers earn extra cash by taking orders at Starbucks By Janet BurkittSeattle Times Snohomish County reporter The man and woman who robbed a Monroe Starbucks yesterday morning apparently weren't satisfied with what they found in the safe. After cleaning it out, they worked the store's drive-up window for about a half-hour, pocketing the cash, Monroe police say. About 5 a.m., the woman, believed to be about 24 years old, walked up to an employee who was setting up tables outside the Starbucks on U.S. Highway 2 and asked if she could use the...