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In Hollywood, scouts' honor has a new badge

By TIMES WIRES
Published October 21, 2006

The Boy Scouts still give merit badges for stuff like building a campfire and backpacking. And they still promote loyalty and helpfulness and the wearing of snazzy kerchiefs. But this is the 21st century, and now a Scout has new ways to be trustworthy. So a new badge will reward Los Angeles area Scouts who learn to respect copyrights. Scouts will be instructed in the basics of copyright law and learn how to identify five types of copyrighted works and three ways material may be stolen. They can also create their own public service announcement on the evils of piracy. It's L.A., so the movie industry is behind the badge.

She was statuesque, and he was in love

Around Ferndale, Mich., it's hardly even news anymore when a mannequin is stolen. Ronald Dotson, 39, has been convicted at least six times in the past 13 years for making off with a model. The latest incident involved a cleaning-supply company's display of a black and white French maid's uniform. Dotson had been out of prison for less than a week when that happened. "It's pretty bizarre," said Dotson's lawyer, Edward Cohn. No argument there. The police thought they had a plan. "He told his parole officer he was going to buy a mannequin so he didn't have to do these break-ins anymore," said Detective Brendan Moore. "Apparently that didn't work out."

Finally, resolution on spelling of Kiev

Of all the things the State Department has on its plate right now, its nice to know that one issue is solved: the spelling of the Ukraine capital. If you thought it was Kiev, you're wrong. From now on, it's Kyiv. Spokesman Tom Casey said the change was in keeping with how Ukrainians pronounce it, and not politically motivated. Kiev is the Russian spelling, and the Ukraine is trying to be more, well, Ukrainian. (The Associated Press says it's sticking with "Kiev," so the new spelling may not take in these pages.)

Japan rebuilds its workforce, tax base

Japanese officials got a little freaked last year when the birth rate went down. All they could see is a labor shortage and smaller tax base. So they put in a bunch of measures to convince people that procreating was a great idea. They built more day care centers. They encouraged men to take paternity leave. And it worked! August marked the seventh straight month that the rate increased, with 98,276 births, which was 3,001 more than the same month in 2005.

[Last modified October 21, 2006, 01:49:43]