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Show Pase 2 Tbrfm/slssue Russia recognizes independence Celebs&People of two Georgian regions Today is Wednesday', Aug. 27, 2008 Today's issue of The Utah Statesman is published especially for Molly Willis, a junior majoring in family consumer and human development from Taylorsville, ClarifyCorrect The policy of The Utah Statesman is to correct any error made as soon as possible. If you find something you would like clarified or find unfair, please contact the editor at 797-1762 or TSC 105. Afar/Briefs Poverty holds steady WASHINGTON (AP) - The number of people without health insurance fell by more than 1 million in 2007, the first annual decline since the Bush administration took office, the Census Bureau reported Tuesday. Incomes edged up for the middle class while poverty held steady. The numbers represent a scorecard on President Bush's stewardship of the economy at the kitchen-table level. But they only went as far as the end of last year, before the current economic downturn started gathering force. Although there were some bright spots, it was a mixed picture. Some analysts said that global trends, not just administration policies, are shaping the economic fortunes of individual Americans. Jury awards Mattel $40 million in lawsuit RIVERSIDE, Calif. (AP) - A federal jury awarded Mattel Inc. $40 million in damages on Tuesday in a federal copyright lawsuit that pitted the house of Barbie against MGA Entertainment Inc., the maker of the saucy Bratz dolls. Damages were awarded for contract interference and copyright infringement. No punitive damages were ordered against MGA. The same jury that decided the damages phase concluded last month that Bratz designer Carter Bryant came up with the ftratz concept while working at Mattel. In his closing arguments, Mattel attorney John Quinn said MGA owed Mattel at least $1 billion in Bratz profits and interest, while MGA chief executive Isaac Larian aided in the breach of contract. Ohio man sentenced for writing racial hate CLEVELAND (AP) - A man who wrote hundreds of threatening letters over 20 years to black and mixed-race men — including Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter — was sentenced Tuesday to three years and 10 months in prison. David Tuason apologized in federal court, saying he never meant to hurt anybody. He said he sent the threatening letters because a black man "stole" the girlfriend he planned to marry. Tuason, 46, pleaded guilty in May to six counts of mailing threatening communications. MOSCOW (AP)-Russia stunned the West on Tuesday by recognizing the independence claims of two Georgian breakaway regions, and U.S. warships plied the waters off of Georgia in a gambit the Kremlin saw as gunboat diplomacy. The announcement by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev ignored the strong opposition of Europe and the United States, and signaled the Kremlin's determination to shape its neighbors' destinies even at the risk of closing its doors to the West. "We are not afraid of anything, including the prospect of a Cold War," President Dmitry Medvedev said hours after announcing the Kremlin's decision and one day after Parliament had supported the recognition. While the risk of a military clash with the West seemed remote, the lack of high-level public diplomacy between the White House and the Kremlin added to an uneasy sense here at least of an escalating crisis. Medvedev also promised a Russian military response to a U.S. missile defense system in Europe. Washington says the system would counter threats from Iran and North Korea, but Russia says it is aimed at blunting Russian nuclear capability. The Kremlins recognition of the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia suggested it was willing to risk nearly two decades of economic, political and diplomatic bonds with its Cold War antagonists. R U S S I A N PEACEKEEPERS sit atop their armored vehicle, in an undisclosed location in the breakaway Georgian region of Abkhazia on Tuesday. AP photo Medvedev's grim announcement, carried on national television, inspired jubilation on the streets of the rebel capitals. In the South Ossetian capital of Tskhinvali, a parade of cars bearing the South Ossetian and Russian flags blared their horns, women cried for joy and gunmen fired their weapons in the air. The United States, surprised by the speed of the Russian response, threatened a veto in the U.N. Security Council should Russia ask for international recognition for the territories. "Abkhazia and South Ossetia are a part of the internationally recognized borders of Georgia and it's going to remain so," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice saidrPresident Bush calfed~~ the Russian rnove."ifresponsible." The Kremlin insists, despite Airliner hijacked from Darfiir TRIPOLI, Libya (AP)Hijackers in Sudan's wartorn Darfur region seized a jetliner carrying nearly 100 people, including local Darfur officials, and forced it to land at a World War II-era airfield in the heart of the Sahara Desert in neighboring Libya, officials said. A Libyan official at the remote Kufra airport said there were 10 hijackers belonging to a Darfur rebel group and were demanding enough fuel for the Beoing 737 to continue to France. But the rebel group quickly denied any link to the hijacking. The flight was commandeered soon after taking off from Nyala, capital of southern Darfur, en route to Khartoum, the national capital, said Yusuf Ibrahim, director of Khartoum's airport. The plane was diverted to Kufra, a desert oasis in southeast Libya close to the Sudanese and Egyptian borders, some 1,000 miles from Tripoli. The Kufra airport official said the hijackers belonged to the Darfur rebel Sudan Liberation Movement led by Abdul-Wahid Nour. They rejected Libyan requests that they release women and children on the flight and allow provisions onto the plane, refusing any negotiations and demanding the refueling, the official said. The official, who was privy to communications between the plane and airport officials, spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the press. SLM-Nour spokesman Yahia Bolad denied any involvement, saying his group has "no relation to this act." "This is a fabrication by the Sudanese government and some criminals," said Bolad, from London. "We denounce and condemn this act. We want the protection of civilians wherever they are. This is a dirty conspiracy to defame" the rebels. In the early hours Wednesday, the plane had not refueled and it was not known whether the Libyans would allow it to do so. The airfield has little communications equipment, and it was unclear how extensive the contacts were between the plane and the officials. Some Libyan troops B L A C K S I LAK VT"" ' \ some doubts in the West, that its invasion of Georgia was a spur-of-the-moment response to the Georgian military's surprise crackdown on South Ossetia. By contrast, Moscow has had weeks to weigh the consequences of recognizing the breakaway regions. The Kremlin said it accepted the independence claims because the Georgian military assault amounted to "genocide." But beyond a handful of resolute U.S. foes, such as Cuba and Venezuela, few other nations seem likely to follow the Kremlin's lead. Still, the Kremlin recognition marked an initial step toward what could become a push for territorial expansion. Many South Ossetians have expressed a desire for integration into Russia. are located at the facility, but their numbers were not known, and no additional forces or higher-ranking officials had arrived hours after the plane landed. The hijacked airliner belongs to a private company. Sun Air, and was carrying 95 people, including crew and passengers, the Sudanese civil aviation authority said in a statement carried by the Sudan Media Center, which has close links to the government. Among the passengers were former rebels who have become members of the Darfur Transitional Authority, an interim government body responsible for implementing a peace agreement reached in 2006 between the government and one of the rebel factions, a security official at Nyala airport said. He spoke on the same condition of anonymity. A spokesman from another rebel group, the Justice and Equality Movement, Ahmed Hussain, accused the government in the hijacking, saying it was trying to "divert attention" from an attack by the Sudanese military. NEW YORK (AP)-David Mamet's "American Buffalo," a robbery tale set in a Chicago junk shop, has found its third partner in crime — Haley Joel Osment, who will be making his Broadway debut in the production. The 20-yearold Osment, who was an Academy HALEY JOEL OSMENT Award nominee for "The Sixth Sense," joins John Leguizamo and Cedric the Entertainer in the revival that opens Nov. 17 at the Belasco Theatre. Preview performances begin Oct. 31. LOS ANGELES (AP) - Nicollette Sheridan and Michael Bolton have ended their engagement. The split was amicable, said Nicole Perna, a publicist for the pair. The 44-year-old actress and 55-yearold singer have been engaged since March 2006. They first started dating in 1992 and spent five years together, Perna said, then rekindled their romance in 2005. Sheridan plays Edie Britt on ABC's "Desperate Housewives." LOS ANGELES (AP) -Dr. Dres 20year-old son has died, the rapper's publicist said Tuesday. "Dr. Dre is mourning the loss of his son Andre Young Jr.," publicist Lori Earl said in a statement. Young Jr., was found dead Saturday by his mother at their home in suburban Woodland Hills, county coroner's Lt. John Kades said. An autopsy was performed Monday, but the cause of death wasn't likely to be determined for eight weeks, Kades said. Top Ten Ways to Make the Democratic Convention More Fun 10- Offer John McCain $1 million if he correctly guesses how many homes he owns 9- Ever)' night, one lucky lady gets to go home with John Edwards 8- In honor of the party mascot, serve assortment of delicious donkey and mule treats 7- Each delegate gets a kitty, superdelegates get a super kitty! 6- Special appearance by the exhumed remains of Lyndon Johnson 5- Call the Pepsi Center something crazy like the Bird's Nest or the Water Cube 4- Give John Kerry's crazy wife five minutes to say whatever she wants- remember her? 3- Kick things off with a song from Dennis Kucinich 2- Five Words: hot volley babes in bikinis 1- Try to squeeze Al Gore into the same suit he wore at the 2000 convention S T O N E •OOD IAS i A |