local

LOCAL
Girard throws a party
GIRARD -- The Greater Girard Area Chamber of Commerce will present first "Girard Rocks Party" from 6 to 10:30 p.m. Friday in the parking lot across from Amen Corner, 20 W. Main St. Entertainment will be provided by The Rage. Food and refreshments will be available. For more information, call Jeff Kay at (330) 540-4126.
Retailer of the Week
POLAND -- The Ohio Lottery Commission recognized Sami's Quick Stop, 2141 E. Western Reserve Road, as its Retailer of the Week this week. The Ohio Lottery will recognize the store on the "Cash Explosion Double Play" TV show 7:30 p.m. Saturday. The store, which has sold tickets for more than 12 years, has a weekly sales average of $7,819. Regional sales office staff and lottery sales representatives choose the Retailers of the Week based on recommendations.
NATION
Plea for leniency fought
NEW YORK -- Federal prosecutors want former WorldCom boss Bernard Ebbers to go to prison for the rest of his life, urging a judge to brush off his pleas for leniency. In court papers made public Tuesday, the government encouraged the judge to hand down a penalty consistent with a federal probation report that has recommended a life sentence. "The enormity of the crimes that Ebbers committed cannot be overstated: The fraud at WorldCom was the largest securities fraud in history," prosecutors wrote. "Along with Enron, the name WorldCom has become synonymous with fraud."
Suit says ads mislead
WASHINGTON -- A health advocacy group filed suit Tuesday against the dairy industry, accusing it of false advertising in its $200 million campaign that ties dairy product consumption to weight loss. Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a Washington-based nonprofit closely aligned with animal rights groups, is demanding an end to the industry's current weight-loss campaign. It wants a new campaign that admits the current one is misleading and false. General Mills, Kraft and the dairy industry's marketing arm have used product labels and ads that say three servings of dairy products a day, along with a decrease in calorie intake and additional exercise, can help people lose weight. The lawsuit charges that the dairy industry based its marketing overwhelmingly on research by one scientist whose work it has supported. A dairy industry executive, Dr. Greg Miller, said the campaign is based on more than 10 years of research and more than a dozen studies.
From Vindicator staff and wire reports