Elton Aims to Adopt 'Heart-Stealing' Ukraine Orphan

Orphanages told to give kids better surnames

(NEWSER) - No longer will "state" or "party" be the last name of children in Chinese orphanages, Jezebel reports via MSNBC . Until now, orphanages commonly gave kids those generic surnames—which enabled people to peg them as orphans for life and leave them feeling marginalized. So China issued the rule last week, echoing the comment of a child welfare worker in a state newspaper: "We don't want children who grow up in orphanages to carry labels that imply they are different from those who have parents." More»

Officials want more monitoring of children's welfare

(NEWSER) - Russian officials concerned about treatment of children adopted by Americans are considering suspending all adoptions by US citizens. The Foreign Ministry is weighing the suspension until a new accord with the US is signed allowing officials to better monitor the welfare of children taken to America, reports ABC News . Adoptions were temporarily halted in 2010 when a Tennessee mom put her 7-year-old son on a plane, alone, to Russia with a note pinned to his shirt saying she was returning him because he was "mentally unstable." Another couple was convicted of involuntary manslaughter last year in the death of their 7-year-old adoptive Russian son. They're already out of prison. US citizens have adopted close to 50,000 Russian children in the last 20 years. More»

Singers, critics, pros all call her one of greatest ever

(NEWSER) - Tributes are pouring in for the career of the late Whitney Houston, after her shocking death yesterday, focusing on her uniquely powerful voice and incredible catalogue of hits. A sampling:

• "At her peak, Houston was the golden girl of the music industry," praised Billboard . "She wowed audiences with effortless, powerful, and peerless vocals that were rooted in the black church but made palatable to the masses with a pop sheen."
• "A light has been dimmed in our music community today," said the president of the Recording Academy , calling Houston "one of the world's greatest pop singers of all time."

As death toll from Europe's week-long cold snap rises to 114

(NEWSER) - Eastern Europe's week-long cold snap shows no sign of relenting, with increasingly tragic consequences: The death toll has risen to 114, and some 11,000 Serbians living in remote villages are trapped, reports the AP . Heavy snow and blizzards have made the roads impassable, stranding those living in some 6,500 homes tucked into in country's mountains—and more snow is expected. "The situation is dramatic, the snow is up to five meters (16.5 feet) high in some areas, you can only see rooftops," said one Serbian. Things are equally extreme elsewhere: More»

Ukraine sees 30 die in recent days

(AP) - Thirty people, most of them homeless, have died of hypothermia in recent days in Ukraine, part of a surge of deaths across eastern Europe as the region grapples with an unusually severe cold spell. In all, at least 58 people have died from the cold in Europe over the last week. Of the victims in Ukraine, 21 were found frozen on the streets, five died in hospitals and four died in their own homes, according to Ukranian officials. More»