Who's been collecting clothes in blue bins at shopping centers?

Q. Blue clothing donation bins with no clear ties to a local charity have appeared at three Charlotte shopping centers -- two off South Boulevard and another off Independence Boulevard. The boxes say "Bianca" and include a list of two charities and a church as "our references." Goodwill Industries, which uses blue in its marketing materials and collection trailers, fears the bins could confuse donors. In 2004, more than 100 blue clothing bins from a Canadian charity placed in the Charlotte region were removed after regulators ordered the group register with the state. "People in Charlotte know us," Goodwill spokesman Bo Hussey said. "They don't know that their donations (in those boxes) are not going to help people in the Charlotte area." Mr. Watchdog found the boxes come from Long Island, N.Y.

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Shopping for sports schools targeted

The state's interscholastic sports leagues have been asked to come up with more uniform policies to prevent schools from recruiting top athletes from competitors, as well as keeping student athletes and their parents from "shopping" for the best high school team to play for. The request, by a Board of Education committee, is designed to prevent an overemphasis on athletics and athletic prowess and keep schools focused on academics, say educators. League directors, however, said the interscholastic leagues generally have strong language in their by-laws preventing recruitment of athletes from other schools. "All the league rules have put a damper on this action, otherwise it would be chaos," said Ken Yamase, executive director of the Big Island Interscholastic Federation.

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Plan to help drug addicts with shopping vouchers

DRUG addicts receiving treatment could be given shopping vouchers to help them tackle their problem under a new proposal being suggested by an NHS body. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) says the idea would be cost-effective and there would be a public health benefit because addicts could also be screened for infectious diseases - such as HIV and tuberculosis. Evidence from international trials shows modest financial incentives can cut drug abuse by hardened addicts. .

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