| Dolls gone wild: Unhappy moms want wholesome alternatives
Moms are hunting through toy aisles for more wholesome-looking dolls, concerned that the scantily clad Bratz dolls with their Party Palaces and Magic Make-up Studios are sending their daughters the wrong message about how they should dress and act. With their heavily made-up faces, short shorts and halter tops, Bratz are the No. 2 best-selling dolls in the country, just behind Barbie, but creeping up on her with their own lines of clothing, school supplies, video games and, most recently, a live-action movie playing in theaters. And some Moms are not happy about it. "I don't want my daughter viewing herself that way," says Gloria Baca of Tempe, Ariz., who has steered her daughter, now 10, away from Barbie and Bratz in favor of an American Girl doll by Mattel named Josefina.
Third-party PS3 developers targeted as Sony halves fees
TOKYO - Sony has halved the fees it charges for a software development kit for the PlayStation 3 video game machine to encourage outside designers to make more games for the struggling console. Sony's gaming unit, Sony Computer Entertainment, said prices for the development package for the PlayStation 3 will be reduced to US$10,250 in North America, US$8,600 in Japan and US$11,250 in Europe. The move follows the price cuts on the PS3 around the world that the company announced last month in an attempt to woo buyers. Tokyo-based Sony will also strengthen backup support for making new games for the PS3 in an effort to make the machine more popular, it said in a statement. Although its predecessor the PlayStation 2 dominated the gaming market, the PS3 has struggled against the hit Wii console, the rival offering from Nintendo Co., which makes Pokemon and Super Mario games.
Lutheran South settles for fourth place plaque
WARRENSBURG - As they gathered on the bleachers for an extended series of pictures with their fourth-place state plaque, the Lutheran South Lancers lingered.South's players, particularly its four seniors, weren't ready for their second straight state final four appearance to come to an end. Especially not the way it went down."After the (St. Francis) Borgia game, I think we left our best game back in St. Louis," said senior middle hitter Emily Mack, in reference to the Lancers' quarterfinal victory. "We were at least expecting to get some revenge from our loss last year, but we just didn't play our best tonight."Mack was refering to Saturday night's third place match at the University of Central Missouri Multipurpose Building, where the Lancers took on Reeds Spring for the second year in a row.
For your gamer's wish list
Someday Mario and Master Chief might replace Santa Claus as spokespeople for the holidays. Mario and Master Chief are the main characters of two of this season's hottest video games, and unlike jolly ol' St. Nick, all kids believe in Nintendo and Xbox. As always at this time of year, video games — specifically, the latest video game systems — are on the top of many wish lists. But what kid has the cash to drop on a new piece of hardware that can cost upwards of $500? It's up to the parents to pony up the coin. "X-Box 360 rocks 'cause the first-person online experience of 'Halo 3' is seamlessly integrated with the wireless technology." Um. What? Discussing video games with your child requires learning a somewhat foreign language. Don't worry about it; we'll keep it simple.
Davies and Jeffries in frame as McLeish quits
Billy Davies and Jim Jeffries are the early favourites to replace Alex McLeish after he quit as Scotland manager to take over at Birmingham. The former Motherwell manager who was sacked by Derby County on Monday and ex-Hearts boss have been installed as 4/1 joint favourites by bookmakers Ladbrokes. .
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