New Icecream Named After Stephen Colbert

NEW YORK -- Stephen Colbert may have no taste for the truth, but he does have a sweet tooth.

Ben & Jerry's has named a new ice cream in honor of the comedian: "Stephen Colbert's Americone Dream." It's vanilla ice cream with fudge-covered waffle cone pieces and caramel. Announcing the new flavor Wednesday, Ben & Jerry's called it: "The sweet taste of liberty in your mouth."

The Vermont-based ice-cream maker is known for naming its flavors after people such as Jerry Garcia, Wavy Gravy and the band Phish -- which Colbert sees as a political bias.

"I'm not afraid to say it. Dessert has a well-known liberal agenda," Colbert said in a statement. "What I hope to do with this ice cream is bring some balance back to the freezer case."

Colbert, who spoofs flag-waving conservative pundits on his Comedy Central show, "The Colbert Report," is donating his proceeds to charity through the new Stephen Colbert Americone Dream Fund, which will distribute the money to various causes.

AP

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Groomer Cuts Dog's Ear Off, Glues It Back On

GIG HARBOR, Wash. -- Anni Sheriffius said she was trying to wash off what she thought was dirt on her dog Jasmine’s ear when the ear fell off. Then she realized her dog’s groomer cut off the dog’s ear and super-glued it back on.

A Washington dog owner says she’s been crying every since she discovered that a dog groomer cut off her dog’s ear then super-glued it back on.

“And I saw the ear float away, and it freaked me out,” described Sheriffius.

She says she couldn’t believe what she was seeing when she saw her dog, Jasmine’s, ear fall off during a bath.

Sheriffius rushed her dog to the veterinarian, who told her the dog’s ear had been cut off and super-glued back on.

Jasmine, a Shi Tzu, had to undergo treatment for an infection. Sheriffius said she still has the ear in a plastic bag and has been crying for weeks at the thought of someone hurting her dog.

Pierce County sheriff’s investigators are looking into possible criminal charges against the unlicensed dog groomer.

“Once they tried to hide it and glued the ear back on, that’s not good for the dog. There are all kinds of things that can happen, infection, it’s cruelty to animals,” said Det. Ed Troyer.

The shop where Jasmine was injured in Washington, J’Rae’s Pet Grooming, appears to have shut down according to KIRO-TV.

“I’d like her never, ever to touch another dog. That’s what I’d like to see,” said Sheriffius.

Copyright 2007 by WSBTV.com

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China Senteced To Death An Ant-Breader.

BEIJING (AP) -- A Chinese business executive was sentenced to death for swindling $385 million from investors in a bogus ant-breeding scheme, a court official said Thursday.

Wang Zhendong, chairman of Yingkou Donghua Trading Group Co., had promised returns of up to 60 percent for buying kits of ants and breeding equipment from two companies he set up, the reports said.

Ants are used in some traditional Chinese medicinal remedies, which can fetch a high price. Wang sold the kits, which cost $25, for $1,300, the Xinmin Evening News and other newspapers reported.

Wang promoted his products through advertising and drew in more than 10,000 investors between 2002 and June 2005 when investigators shut down his companies, the Web site of People's Daily reported.

Prosecutors told the court in northeast China that one investor committed suicide after realizing he had been duped, and only $1.28 million of the swindled money had been recovered by the time the case was filed with the court last June, Xinhua News Agency said.

The Intermediate People's Court in Yingkou on Tuesday sentenced Wang to death, said an official in the court's case office who gave only his surname, Yin.

Fifteen managers of the company were given prison terms ranging from five to 10 years and fined from $12,800 to $64,000, Xinhua said.

Fake investments and pyramid investment schemes have become common during China's transition from a planned economy to a free market. Chinese leaders have tried to eradicate the scams, fearing widespread losses could add to already percolating social unrest.

The death penalty is used broadly in China. Though usually reserved for violent crimes, it is also applied for nonviolent offenses that involve large sums of money or are deemed to have a pernicious social impact.

© 2007 The Associated Press.

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