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Palestinian leader calls for urgent aid to Gaza

2012-03-15T07:17:00.000-07:00

The Palestinian president urged that more humanitarian aid be sent urgently to Gaza, saying Saturday that aid shipments were meeting only one-fifth of the actual need.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the three-week Israeli offensive targeting Hamas militants based in Gaza had left the people desperate. Turkey has complained, meanwhile, that Israeli surveillance was preventing its aid shipments from reaching Palestinians quickly.

"The Palestinian people suffered from the most ruthless and barbaric onslaught for three weeks," Abbas told a joint news conference with Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul. "We want aid shipments to speedily …

Black pharmacy student fired

2012-03-15T04:53:00.000-07:00

((PHOTO …

Brazilian Candidates Trade Barbs

2012-03-15T02:31:00.000-07:00

SAO PAULO, Brazil - Brazil's president and the former governor trying to deny him a second term attacked each other Wednesday on the nation's economic future in their final campaign appearances before a runoff vote.

Speaking from a stage mounted on a closed-off street in a low-income Sao Paulo suburb that strongly supports his leftist Workers' Party, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said that his challenger would sell out Brazil by privatizing state industries and enacting policies benefiting the rich and virtually enslaving the poor.

But candidate Geraldo Alckmin reiterated the corruption allegations that have hit the Workers' Party hard during the campaign, and said …

Police: At least 6 dead in Iraq suicide blast

2012-03-15T00:08:00.000-07:00

A suicide bomber struck a funeral Monday in western Iraq, killing at least six mourners for a member of a prominent tribe with ties to security forces, a police official said.

The bomber detonated an explosive belt inside a funeral tent in the mostly Sunni area of Haditha, about 140 miles (220 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad. At least 15 people were injured, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to media.

The funeral was for a member of the al-Daghaytha tribe, which includes members of the police and army.

Haditha is located in Anbar Province, which was once a stronghold for the Sunni …

Sand gives patio a firm foundation

2012-03-14T21:47:00.000-07:00

Q. We want to put in a brick patio this summer and we want to doit ourselves. I have heard this can be done without mortar. Couldyou give us a little help getting started?

A. There are several steps involved but it's fairly simple tomake a great patio or walk. Choose the site and mark it off withstakes. Figure out at what level you want the finished patio to beand mark the stakes closest to the house with this mark. Make surethe finished patio slopes away from your foundation.

Excavate the area to the depth of your bricks plus about twoextra inches for a layer of well-tamped sand. Before installing thebricks, you might want to add a border of wood or bricks …

Family Affair

2012-03-14T19:27:00.000-07:00

Three things prompted Andrew Calvanese to leave Suffield Country Club in 2003 and take over the food operation at Storrowton Tavern in West Springfield with his sons Vincent and Donald, after operating the Connecticut club's restaurant and pub for 18 years.

"First, there was the challenge of revitalizing an incredible establishment. Second, it was a great opportunity for my two sons. And third, there are the memories at the Tavern, not only that I have, but that many other people had," he told Business West. "I love this place because of the personal feelings I have attached to it. And I love people, and I wanted to bring it back for them."

The historic tavern that is a …

China weathering global slump better than expected, World Bank says as it raises GDP forecast

2012-03-14T17:06:00.000-07:00

China's economy is weathering the global slowdown better than expected, the World Bank said Thursday as it raised its growth forecast for the Asian giant to 9.8 percent from 9.4 percent.

The World Bank cited the country's strong domestic demand and sustained competitiveness in exports as key strengths.

"Amid weaker and uncertain global prospects, China's growth will be supported by strong international competitiveness and a robust domestic economy," David Dollar, the bank's country director for China, told reporters in Beijing.

Just two months earlier, the World Bank had lowered its growth estimate for China to 9.4 percent from 9.6 …

United unions fight for skipped pension payments

2012-03-14T14:46:00.000-07:00

Hoping to salvage some lost pension money, the trusteerepresenting employee pension funds at United Airlines sought a courtorder Tuesday that the carrier be required to make up hundreds ofmillions of dollars in skipped contributions before exitingbankruptcy.

Independent Fiduciary Services said in the motion filed in federalbankruptcy court that it seeks to collect as much as $994 million inpayments that United has missed since it announced last July that itwas halting pension contributions. It asks for at least $260 million,the minimum that United was to have paid.

The investment advisory firm, appointed as independent fiduciarythis fall, said its action applies to …

Better Nutrition's 2000 guide to children's supplements

2012-03-14T12:25:00.000-07:00

Every parent wants to provide their children with the tools needed for optimal health and development, but it can sometimes be hard to know where to start. It is becoming clearer all the time that a diet rich in natural foods and complete in essential nutrients provieds a good foundation for wellness. And now that herbs and other natural alternatives are widely available, many parents would prefer these gentle and safe supplements and remedies.

Of course, we cannot and should not experiment on our childern with supplements and remedies that have neither scientific nor historic validation of their use. Unfortunately, this is the case with many of the medications currently being …

Turkey: Ruling party did not incite violence

2012-03-14T10:05:00.000-07:00

Turkey's top court says in justifying its decision not to disband the ruling Islamic-rooted party that the party violated secular laws but did not incite violence.

The Constitutional Court in July cut off some $15 million of state aid to the ruling party over charges of violating secular principles, but it narrowly voted against disbanding the party over accusations …

Please let's restrict the amount of 'To Let' signs ; letters

2012-03-14T07:45:00.000-07:00

It is rare for an issue to unite a community, but the excessivenumber of 'To Let' signs some property agents put up at this time ofyear does so.

The community in and around Oldfield Park does not like them.This is because: The signs clutter the streetscape; They remindlonger-term residents of the rapid change of tenure in recent years;They advertise that there are possibly multiple high value portableelectrical items in the property.

The properties are mainly (and sometimes exclusively) marketed tostudents in our community. Students and property agents alike havemany ways of finding and advertising property, and additionally haveaccess to the …

New York Magazine Wins 5 Awards

2012-03-14T05:24:00.000-07:00

NEW YORK - New York magazine won five National Magazine Awards on Tuesday night, clinching more than any other title. National Geographic won the prize for overall excellence in the largest circulation category.

Esquire magazine was nominated for seven prizes but wound up winning just one, for reporting, for an article by C.J. Chivers about a three-day siege of a school by Chechen terrorists in the Russian town of Beslan.

The awards were announced Tuesday night by the American Society of Magazine Editors, an industry association.

The other winners for general excellence included Rolling Stone in the 1 million to 2 million circulation category; Wired in the …

Buildings and homes damaged, hundreds of people hurt in apparent tornadoes in Virginia

2012-03-14T02:50:00.000-07:00

Apparent tornadoes swept through central and southeastern Virginia on Monday afternoon, damaging multiple homes and buildings and injuring more than 200 people, authorities said.

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine declared a state of emergency for the damaged areas of southeastern Virginia.

Two apparent tornadoes struck the city of Suffolk, city spokeswoman Dana Woodson said. Bob Spieldenner from the Virginia Department of Emergency Management said at least 200 people were injured there.

At least 18 more people were injured when the storm hit Colonial Heights, Spieldenner said. Three of those were taken to hospitals.

Sentara Obici Hospital in Suffolk was damaged, but remained operational, Spieldenner said. Another hospital in the city also was treating the injured, Woodson said.

Sentara spokesman Dale Gauding said about 60 people were being treated, and he expected most to be released.

"We have lots of cuts and bruises," plus leg and arm injuries, he said. Some of the hospital's windows were cracked, apparently by flying debris.

"Multiple buildings have been destroyed, homes have been destroyed," Woodson said. She said the areas around the hospital and in the community of Driver were hardest hit.

The storm in Colonial Heights overturned cars and blew out vehicle windows in the Southpark Mall area. Some buildings also were damaged.

Southside Regional Medical Center treated one storm victim with minor injuries and was poised to receive more, hospital spokeswoman Terry Tysinger said. John Randolph Hospital in Hopewell was put on "high alert."

Property damage also was reported in Brunswick County, one of several localities where the National Weather Service had issued a tornado warning. Sgt. Michelle Cotten of the Virginia State Police said an apparent twister destroyed two homes. Trees and power lines were down, and some flooding was reported.

The National Weather Service had not confirmed any of the tornado reports, system forecaster Rick Curry of the Wakefield office said. However, he said the service was reasonably certain that a tornado hit Colonial Heights based on televised images and an eyewitness account from a weather service employee.

About 18,000 Virginia Dominion Power customers were without service.

The storm also damaged some homes in North Carolina, but the damage was not widespread or severe.

US charges Irish firm, officers over sales to Iran

2012-03-13T23:58:00.000-07:00

An Irish trading company and three of its officers have been charged with sending helicopter engines and other aircraft parts to Iran.

A 25-count indictment unsealed Tuesday in federal court in Washington charges the Mac Aviation Group and three men of buying the components from U.S. companies and sending them to Iran through companies in Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates.

The Justice Department says the recipients included an Iranian military firm that the United States alleges is involved in an Iranian nuclear and ballistic missile program.

Justice Department officials are seeking the arrest and deportation of the three Irishmen: company owner Tom McGuinn, his son Sean McGuinn, who is the sales director, and commercial manager Sean Byrne. The company's address was given as Cloonrnull House, Drumcliffe, County Sligo, Ireland.

'Math doctor' prescribes humor for young learners

2012-03-13T21:06:00.000-07:00

Shahid Muhammad, known as the "math doctor," loves to see students lean forward, eyes lit up because they have just made a connection between their daily lives and the abstract world of mathematics.

"Our students are potential geniuses," Muhammad told a gathering of black parents in Boston recently. "It's just when you look at students nationwide they are not doing as well as they could. I think the problem is motivation and a whole lot of things to do with our condition as a people."

To motivate his pupils to care about mathematics, Muhammad zings word problems at them involving famous figures such as Al Sharpton and Shaquille O'Neal. He uses examples from daily life -- blood pulsing through the veins or the beats in a rap song -- to demonstrate that math is all around us.

"Kids just see math as a bunch of numbers with no meaning," said the prep school teacher and university professor. "Too many times we just feed them a bunch of numbers and say give me the answer."

Muhammad marketed his book, "How to Teach Math to Black Students," independently for four years before Chicago African American Images agreed to publish it. The book hit stores in October.

Teachers and parents came to hear Muhammad's message in Boston and Brockton recently in events organized by the Education Committee of Muhammad's Mosque #11. Many brought concerns that their children are struggling with mathematics.

Lesa Muhammad, whose son is in fourth grade at the John Winthrop Elementary, said she tries to help him with his math but the techniques she learned are different from the ones he is being taught -- a common concern among parents.

"They are trying to teach him long division," she said. "He still has not grasped on. I use a technique I used when I was in school, but he wanted to do it another way and I said, `That way is even longer.'"

Many black parents in Boston face multiple handicaps when trying to teach their children math. Some do not have more than a high school education and some are single parents, making it harder to devote time to their children in the evenings.

Large class sizes also contribute to keeping parents out of the loop, stretching teachers' schedules until they have little time to communicate with parents.

"Parents have so many questions, but only ten to fifteen minutes at best for teacher conferences," said retired special education teacher Sylvia Muhammad. "You don't really discuss learning styles when you meet with students. You only have time to talk about the quality of their work, and it is unfortunate because learning styles are so important."

Students' different learning styles are what the math doctor focuses on.

"Yale University did a study that found that Sesame Street appeals more to African Americans, while white children responded better to Mr. Rogers," said the doctor, who teaches in the Chicago area. "Therefore, it may not be that black children are hyper, it may be that classes are too slow."

The Boston Public Schools should place more emphasis on techniques such as phonics, a reading technique which may help black children learn more efficiently than other techniques, according to some parents and teachers.

"I think the BPS needs to expand the number of techniques it uses to teach math," said Amina Barnes-Abdullah, a former kindergarten teacher and mother of a fourth-grader at the Boston Renaissance Charter School. "Some people are more visual, or more auditory. Some are more tactical."

As for math doctor Shahid Muhammad, he sees the need for teachers to lure students into a love of learning by drawing upon their non-academic interests.

"Most kids are interested in sports," he said. "I tell them if they don't know math, they can't play sports. At football, at halftime, they go back into the locker room and talk about calculations. But we've got to make more to do about being scholastically powerful than about being good at sports. These things black and Hispanic kids need because they are beat down in society, and sometimes parents beat them down."

Article copyright The Bay State Banner.

Photograph (Shahid Muhammad)

WORLD at 1000GMT

2012-03-13T18:16:00.000-07:00

NEW THIS DIGEST:

ZIMBABWE-ELECTIONS. 2 foreigners acquitted of illegally covering elections.

ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS. 3 Israeli soldiers, 4 Hamas gunmen killed in Gaza fighting.

EU-IRAQ. Iraqi PM seeks closer ties with EU, vows to defeat al-Qaida.

TURKEY-KURDS. Turkish warplanes hit Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq.

Bomb explodes in food market in Pakistan, hurts 11

2012-03-13T15:21:00.000-07:00

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — Police say a bomb has exploded in the main food market in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar and 11 people were hurt.

Police officer Shafqat Malik says three of the injured from Thursday's attack are in serious condition. He says the bomb contained about 6.5 pounds (3 kilograms) of explosives and was planted in a cooking oil canister.

Local TV footage showed damaged shops with pieces of metal and wood littering the ground.

Peshawar is the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and has been frequently targeted by the Pakistani Taliban.

Fire ravages frozen Chinese food plant near LA

2012-03-13T12:23:00.000-07:00

HUNTINGTON PARK, Calif. (AP) — Firefighters knocked down a fire Monday that caused $5 million in damage to a frozen Chinese food plant in Southern California and blackened the sky with a plume of smoke.

Five-thousand gallons of soybean cooking oil fed the flames that took 100 firefighters six hours to extinguish at the Windsor Quality Food Co. plant in Huntington Park, Los Angeles County fire Inspector Matt Levesque said.

About 25 workers were in the plant when it was hit by an explosion around 5:30 a.m., Levesque said. Employees fought the blaze with handheld fire extinguishers before fleeing.

One woman suffered a minor elbow injury when she fell, and a firefighter had a minor injury.

"We will be working closely with fire officials to determine the cause of this incident and we appreciate the quick response of firefighters today," Lynn Hall, Senior Vice President of Houston, Texas-based Windsor Foods said in a statement.

The cause of the fire was not immediately known.

The blaze burned through the roof and made it too dangerous to send firefighters inside, fire officials said. Instead, they used ladders and hoses to stream water on the roof.

The building was reduced to a blackened ruin. However, a wall kept the flames from spreading to adjoining structures.

The building housed the Golden Tiger brand of the Windsor company. The plant made eggrolls and other Asian items that are sold at Costco and restaurants such as Red Lobster, according to the brand's website.

Huntington Park is about 5 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles.

Viewers, judges trim Miss America hopefuls to 10

2012-03-13T09:23:00.000-07:00

In ball gowns, blue jeans and bikinis, 52 young women took to the stage to compete for the Miss America 2009 title Saturday, capping a mini-reality series on pageant prep work and a week of preliminary competition.

After an opening dance number and the traditional parade of states, judges and fans trimmed the field in the 88-year-old contest to 15 finalists.

Five more finalists were trimmed based on swimsuit and evening gown competitions, while the remaining 10 went on to showcase their dancing, singing and other skills during the talent portion of the pageant.

"This gown nearly blinds people," Miss Arkansas Ashlen Batson said in a video clip played as she walked onstage in a silver dress with beading. Batson was eliminated before she could play her flute in the talent competition.

Miss Hawaii Nicole Fox drew cheers as she performed a traditional Tahitian dance, wearing a huge white feathered headdress and skirt to match. After she exited, part of the 23-year-old's skirt remained on the stage.

In a new twist this year, viewers of a lead-in reality show, "Miss America: Countdown to the Crown" voted in four of the finalists to the top 15, while the judges announced the other 11 contestants moving on during a live TLC television broadcast from the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino on the Las Vegas Strip.

The four finalists chosen by viewers were: Miss South Dakota Alexandra Hoffman, Miss Georgia Chasity Hardman, Miss Indiana Katie Stam and Miss Alabama Amanda Tapley. Hoffman and Tapley were later eliminated.

The other eight finalists remaining were: Fox, Miss Michigan Ashlee Baracy, Miss District of Columbia Kate Marie Grinold, Miss Iowa Olivia Myers, Miss New York Leigh-Taylor Smith, Miss California Jackie Geist, Miss Florida Sierra Minott and Miss Tennessee Ellen Carrington.

The winner will be crowned by reigning Miss America Kirsten Haglund of Michigan and take home a $50,000 scholarship before embarking on a year of travel and public appearances.

The viewer interaction to name four contestants as "America's choice" was Discovery-owned TLC's attempt to stoke interest in this year's crop of well-groomed young women. Once an American icon, the shine on Miss America's crown has been dimmed by slipping ratings and the popularity of more salacious reality shows.

The pageant was dropped from network television after the 2004 pageant drew a record low viewership. It found a home in Las Vegas after moving from its longtime location in Atlantic City, N.J., but it has struggled to get its footing on cable.

In its second year on TLC, Mario Lopez, of "Extra," hosted with an assist from Clinton Kelly of TLC's "What Not to Wear." Judges include actress Laura Bell Bundy, Miss America 1999 Nicole Johnson, hairstylist Ken Paves and Olympic swimmer Cullen Jones.

As always, the women competed in swimsuit, evening gown and talent competitions, as well as a short "interview," in which they were asked their thoughts on a current event or hot topic. TLC has tried to dash the days of answers that declared that "children are the future." Questions came from average people and are intended to put the contestants on the spot.

TLC also is having some fun with the cliches of pageants past. For example, in its scorecard for home viewers posted online, it asks viewers to count the number of mentions of world peace and to name the contestant with best spray tan.

Other contestants who won challenges on the reality TV show and earned golden sashes for the right to compete for "America's choice" included: Geist, Giaccone, Minott, Fox, Myers, Miss Idaho Elise Davis, Miss Kansas Emily Deaver, Miss Ohio Karissa Renee Martin, Miss Texas Rebecca Robinson, Miss Virgin Islands Shamika Thomas and Miss Wisconsin Briana Lipor.

Associated Press writer Kathleen Hennessey contributed to this story.

On the Net:

Miss America: http://www.missamerica.org/

TLC Network: http://www.tlc.com/

Not safe to cross lanes ; Your views

2012-03-13T05:36:00.000-07:00

MAY I add my voice to those calling for a review of the BrookStreet roundabout.

I hope that your coverage will help convince the Highways Agencythat the 2008 revamp did not make the roundabout safer.

The quote from the Highways Agency misses the point.

The revamp did improve the journey to Brentwood from the M25clockwise, but from the other two directions the journey toBrentwood was made much more dangerous.

It is not safe to ask drivers to cross over straight from theinside lane to the outside one.

Thank you for raising this matter again. I hope the HighwaysAgency will listen.

James Pate By email

No royal treatment for Spanish crown prince Nation objects when U.S. puts him through security check

2012-03-13T02:10:00.000-07:00

A routine security check at Miami International Airport turnedinto a diplomatic flap when the unhappy subjects of the search turnedout to be the future king of Spain and his fiancee.

The couple and four bodyguards were connecting onto a commercialairliner in Miami after arriving from the Bahamas in a chartered jet,the Miami Herald reported over the weekend.

But before boarding their Iberia Airlines flight to Madrid onThursday, Crown Prince Felipe, Spanish television anchorwoman LetiziaOrtiz and their entourage had to pass through a security check.

"The prince and his bodyguard felt they should not be subjected tothe screening, but if they do not have an escort from the StateDepartment or the Secret Service, it is required," saidTransportation Security Administration spokeswoman Lauren Stover."It's the law."

The couple, who had only given six hours notice instead of thestandard 72, were taken to an American Airlines lounge, where theywere searched by three "top-notch screeners with VIP experience,"Stover said.

That same day, Miami-Dade County Mayor Alex Penelas sent the royalfamily a letter of apology about what he called a "lamentablesituation."

"The facts I have received thus far indicate an apparent disregardfor protocol and disrespect of His Highness and his delegation. ... Ihave called upon our County Manager to conduct a completeinvestigation into this matter," he wrote.

A Spanish consular official in Miami, who refused to give his nameto the paper, said it would be Consul General Javier Vallaure'sdecision whether to file a complaint. "We don't consider this theproper way to treat our future king," the official said. "It's abreach of protocol."

Costa-Gavras takes on racism // `Betrayed' examines everyday bigotry

2012-03-12T23:10:00.000-07:00

LOS ANGELES Costa-Gavras, the Greek-born director whose latestmovie, "Betrayed," focuses on organized racism in the Americanheartland, just can't seem to stay away from controversy. He's amaster of the political thriller, and many of his previous films havetaken unconventional looks at inflammatory issues.

The Oscar-winning "Z" (1969) dissected the 1960s Greek militaryjunta's assassination policies. "Missing" (1982) was a study of U.S.involvement - both emotional and covert - in the Pinochet coupagainst Chile's elected, socialist government. "Hanna K" (1983), anunlikely love story played out in Israeli-occupied Palestine, broughtfundamental concepts of justice into question.

And with "Betrayed," now playing at local theaters,Costa-Gavras examines grassroots U.S. fascism in a melodramatic,ugly light. That wouldn't be so remarkable if he didn't alsoportray its hateful, sometimes deadly proponents as caring, evendownright attractive human beings. Tom Berenger, who (aside from hisevil sergeant role in "Platoon") generally plays likable leading men,is a bitter Nebraska farmer and former Marine who dearly loves hisfamily but is paranoically contemptuous of anyone who's not Christianand Caucasian.

Suspected of the ambush murder of a liberal, Jewish radio-showhost, he is put under FBI surveillance in the person of DebraWinger. Disguised as a combine operator, Winger's character isactually a fresh-out-of-college G-woman who has been betrayed a fewtimes herself, especially by her ex-lover and boss (John Heard).Raised in an orphanage, she's quickly charmed by her widowed quarry,his cute kids and their salt-of-the-earth relatives and neighbors.By the time she learns, in the ghastliest way, that the Bureau'ssuspicions were founded, it's too late: She's already hopelessly inlove.

"Betrayed" began causing a stir a few months ago, when anangered woman stormed out of a preview screening, protesting that thefilm portrayed white people inaccurately. The picture also can beexpected to evoke resentful grumblings from minority groups for itsgraphic, racist language and situations (at one point, the farmersactually hunt a black man like they would a forest animal), not tomention its more sympathetic scenes of the hatemongers at work andplay. In this year of "Colors" and "The Last Temptation of Christ,"however, any public tempests "Betrayed" stirs up should becomparatively teapot-size. Nevertheless, Costa-Gavras hopes his filmis judged as a work of art, not a media event.

"The movie has to be seen and shown with less of an uproar,"said the leathery-skinned, 55-year-old director in broken, haltingEnglish. "I would prefer to speak about what's in the movie, not anyprotests around it, as happened with Martin Scorsese's film (`LastTemptation'). Otherwise, we lose the point."

Costa-Gavras' point is that the disease of racism is one we allhave to immunize ourselves against. "We all can be racists," he said."Personally, I try to fight it. Some people don't. That doesn'tmake them any less human than I am, so portraying them as humanshouldn't be surprising. I think even Hitler could be a very humanperson. There are home movies of him and Eva Braun at his summerresidence. He's being nice to his dogs, playing with some children.Sure, that's the image every politician cultivates, but behind itthere's reality.

"It would be a fake idea to say that just because someone hasbad theories or hateful philosophies that they are also bad withtheir kids or dogs or their mothers."

For his first American production, Costa-Gavras traveled thecountry for more than a year, working with screenwriter Joe Eszterhas("Flashdance," "Jagged Edge") on the script, studying reams ofinformation on white-supremacy groups and interviewing some of theirmembers, although of the latter he said, "Once you speak to, say,three of these people, you know everything."

Costa-Gavras' most profound realizations came from the moreeveryday forms of racism he found in American society. He wasshocked by a news report about a black teacher who moved into anall-white Chicago neighborhood to be nearer to the school where sheworked, only to have her house broken into and windows smashed bysome angry neighbors.

"I was riding in a cab in downtown Chicago," Costa-Gavrasrecalled. "This old black man was crossing the street, and my Polishdriver said, `Look how much time that monkey takes.' I said, `Hey,he's an old man, he can't help it.' The driver was surprised that Ieven argued with him. This is the awful thing.

"What I'm trying to say is that if the movie shows extremistracist groups, it's not about those groups. They're marginal. Theycan kill some people, as gangsters do, but I don't believe they're adanger to the security of this country. But the seeds of racism arethe same as in a lot of places.

"A character in the movie, Shorty (played by the busy Chicagoactor John Mahoney, who turns in the same solid performance here asin `Moonstruck' and `Eight Men Out,' opening Friday in Chicago), islike my taxi driver. He lost his farm and needs to blame somebodyfor that. If something personal happens to him, he will go with hishatred, like the German people did and as, I'm afraid, the French aredoing now with (right-wing politician) Le Pen."

Of course, not all of Costa-Gavras' experiences in the UnitedStates were negative. He said Chicago's film crews ("Betrayed" wasshot for 3 1/2 weeks in the Windy City) were as professional andenthusiastic as any he has worked with. Contrary to most Europeandirectors' horror stories about hands-on American producers,Costa-Gavras found his boss, Irwin ("Rocky") Winkler, immenselyhelpful in a non-interfering way. And he fell in love with thephysical beauty of the Midwestern countryside. Although filmed forthe most part in southern Alberta, Canada, "Betrayed" bathes itsamber waves and big-sky horizons with a loving, golden glow fewhomegrown filmmakers could hope to match.

"As I traveled around the United States, I found the countrybreathtakingly beautiful," Costa-Gavras said. "France (where he haslived for the past 35 years) is also beautiful, but you go quicklyfrom one landscape to a different one in an hour. Here, you have totravel for six hours before a change. It's that feeling we Europeansused to get from your cowboy movies, that what you see goes onforever. That gives you much more of an idea of freedom. It's scaryas well, like being caught far out in the ocean, but the possibilityof everything is there and it can all be yours."

Costa-Gavras might have been an American by now, if ourimmigration service had cooperated. Born Konstantinos Gavras inAthens, he left Greece at the height of that nation's long,post-World War II civil war between communists and conservatives,with the intention of joining relatives in Milwaukee. Refused a visato the United States (although he could not return to Greece duringthe years of the colonels' regime, Costa-Gavras originally left hishomeland to study, not as a political exile), he settled in Paris,where he quickly earned a degree in literature at the Sorbonne.After attending film school, he apprenticed as an assistant directorfor legendary French auteurs such as Rene Clair and Jacques Demy.

His first feature, "The Sleeping Car Murders," was a majorsuccess in 1965. Most of his subsequent work has married politicalthemes with suspense: "The Confession" (1970) was about a Stalin-eratrial, "State of Siege" (1973) looked at CIA-sponsored repression inUruguay and "Special Section" (1975) re-created the executions ofFrench partisans in Nazi-occupied Paris. Most recently, however, thedirector turned to black social comedy with "Family Business," ahilarious portrait of afamily of French thieves that was not released in Chicago.

When you try to pigeonhole Costa-Gavras as a politicalfilmmaker, he immediately responds with evasive maneuvers. "Peopleare always trying to put me in a box. I'm always trying not to fitin one; you're going to spend enough time in a box after you die,"he said with a mischievous chuckle. "I wouldn't say my films focus onpolitics. They're more oriented toward ethical or social issues. Ideal with politics, I would say, only in the Greek origins of theword. Which is: What concerns the policy of the city or state andhow it governs our lives.

"I'm not trying to say that I always see the right thing in theright way. It's more like I'm asking questions. Why this? Whythat? I'm not issuing answers. What the great Czech author MilanKundera said about writing, I feel, also applies to movies: The onlyclever thing is to ask questions.

"Television gives answers to everything today. Movies shouldstay away from that."

Investigation of iages of Chinese gymnasts expands

2012-03-12T20:16:00.000-07:00

The investigation into the ages of China's gold-medal women's gymnastics team has been expanded to include members of the 2000 team that won a bronze in Sydney, the Associated Press has learned.

International gymnastics officials are examining whether Yang Yun and Dong Fangxiao, in particular, were old enough to compete at the Sydney Olympics. Gymnasts must turn 16 during the Olympic year.

"If we had a look at all the articles that came before, during and after the games, there were always rumors about the ages of China's athletes in Sydney," Andre Gueisbuhler, secretary general of the International Gymnastics Federation, told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

"We did not have another choice," he said. "If we want to remain credible, then we have to look into things."

Free Alaska brochure

2012-03-12T16:21:00.000-07:00

The 16-page brochure "Southeast Alaska" highlights optionsavailable to travelers exploring the Inside Passage region on theirown. For a free copy, write: Southeast Alaska Marketing Council, Box20710-B, Juneau, Alaska 99802.

American League Standings

2012-03-12T12:40:00.000-07:00

All Times EDT

East Division

W L Pct GB

Boston 57 40 .588 _

Tampa Bay 55 39 .585 1/2

New York 50 45 .526 6

Toronto 47 48 .495 9

Baltimore 45 48 .484 10

Central Division

W L Pct GB

Chicago 54 40 .574 _

Minnesota 53 42 .558 1 1/2

Detroit 47 47 .500 7

Kansas City 43 53 .448 12

Cleveland 41 53 .436 13

West Division

W L Pct GB

Los Angeles 57 38 .600 _

Oakland 51 44 .537 6

Texas 50 46 .521 7 1/2

Seattle 37 58 .389 20

___

Tuesday's Game

No games scheduled

Wednesday's Game

No games scheduled

Thursday's Games

Detroit at Baltimore, 7:05 p.m.

Friday's Games

Oakland (Blanton 5-12) at N.Y. Yankees (Mussina 11-6), 7:05 p.m.

Detroit (Galarraga 7-3) at Baltimore (Guthrie 5-7), 7:05 p.m.

Toronto (Burnett 10-8) at Tampa Bay (Shields 7-6), 7:10 p.m.

Texas (Millwood 6-5) at Minnesota (Perkins 6-2), 8:10 p.m.

Kansas City (Greinke 7-5) at Chicago White Sox (Buehrle 6-8), 8:11 p.m.

Boston (Buchholz 2-4) at L.A. Angels (Lackey 6-2), 10:05 p.m.

Cleveland (Laffey 5-5) at Seattle (F.Hernandez 6-6), 10:10 p.m.