Refinery profits soar

As Californians confront the looming pocketbook reality of $3-a-gallon gas, state figures reveal that refiners are making twice as much money as they did back in January.

Yes, crude oil prices are up. And, yes, there are growing concerns about summertime supplies.

The average gallon price in California hit $2.91, according to AAA, with Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo already breaking the $3 level.

But from early January to April 10, the cost of oil used by California refiners increased only 16 cents a gallon.

In the same time frame, retail prices at the pump jumped 60 cents a gallon, doubling refinery gross profits, according to state figures. Page C1

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Governor-actor reports income

Gov. Schwarzenegger’s tax returns show that despite entering public service, he’s still pulling down major money.

Listing his occupation as “Governor-Actor,” Schwarzenegger earned $16.8 million in 2004 while paying $4.3 million in federal and state taxes. The money -- 21% more than the year he began his successful run for governor -- was from movie royalties, interest and dividends from investments and a magazine endorsement contract, since terminated.

He reported paying household help $390,000 in 2004 and giving $460,000 to charity.

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In other rich-guys-still-make-a-bundle-in-office news, President Bush and his wife report earning $735,180 last year and paying $187,768 in federal taxes. They donated $75,560 -- slightly more than 10% of their income -- to charity. Page A6

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From party animal to suicide bomber

While living in California, he was into sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll. After seeing news footage of the World Trade Center collapsing, he turned to a friend and said, “Not all Muslims are like that. Not all of us hate America.”

But last year, Jordanian-born Raed Albanna became a suicide bomber, pulling off the deadliest single attack in Iraq. A hand chained to the steering wheel of his shattered vehicle produced the fingerprints that identified him.

Friends and family can’t explain what happened, but there were clues of a change toward the end. Page A1

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Longtime worker, short-time retiree

Arthur Winston, the MTA bus cleaner who missed one day of work during 76 years of employment, dies at age 100. He had retired only last month saying, “100 years seemed like enough.”

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Op-Ed: Senator favors diplomacy

In a Times op-ed article, Sen. Dianne Feinstein says no one concerned about national security favors Iran acquiring nuclear weapons.

But she argues for stronger diplomatic efforts and against a preemptory military attack against Iran. Page B15

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Deadly Iraq clashes

An apparent ambush of a convoy carrying 80 Iraqi police officers kills at least seven and possibly dozens more Thursday night near a U.S. base in Taji. Elsewhere, two U.S. Marines are killed and 22 wounded in western Iraq, military officials say. And attacks against Shiite and Sunni houses of worship continue. Page A15

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BUSINESS

Is Japan addicted to airports?

In the Land of the Rising Sun, AA could stand for Airports Anonymous. Japan seems to be hooked on building airports, experts say. The small nation now has 97 -- including the new $3-billion Kobe airport -- and many of them are struggling to break even. Analysts blame the boom on local politicians trying to show off. But the surplus of runways and crisscrossing flight paths is turning Japan into a destination that many international travelers now try to avoid. Page C1

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Livin’, breathin’ roach jewelry

Attached to a tiny leash and decked out with Swarovski crystals, 3-inch-long Madagascar hissing cockroaches are now being peddled as jewelry. The live, crawling “roach brooches,” which sell for $40 to $80, are made in Salt Lake City. Animal rights activists aren’t impressed, but designer Jared Gold says he can’t keep the bejeweled bugs in stock. It takes about one hour to decorate each insect, he says. If properly cared for -- they like to eat bananas -- the critters can live a full year. Page C2

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CALENDAR

Too perky for prime time?

“Perky” isn’t a description you want to hear if you belong to certain professions: linebacker, prison guard, national news anchor. But just try to find an article about Katie Couric’s transition to “CBS Evening News” that doesn’t use the word. Is the label accurate or offensive? Page E1

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‘South Park’ axes Muhammad image

Censors at Comedy Central yank a depiction of Islam founder Muhammad in the latest episode of “South Park,” but allow a scene in which Jesus and President Bush fling excrement at each other. It’s the latest religious dust-up for the cartoon series, which recently had a run-in with Scientology. Some pundits accuse the cable network of hypocrisy. It should be renamed “Cowardly Central,” says one writer, noting that a 2001 “South Park” episode depicted Muhammad as a superhero. Page E14

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Celebrity gossip’s seamy underbelly

There are two villains in the case of Jared Paul Stern, the New York Post gossip writer who allegedly tried to shake down billionaire Ron Burkle in exchange for keeping the tycoon’s personal life out of the paper, writes columnist Tim Rutten. One is Stern himself, “a preening and rather preposterous character” who “already is on his second lawyer and third story about what happened.” The other is the American public. “The people want to hear unsubstantiated Paris Hilton rumors and see pictures of Brad Pitt’s vacation ... and we don’t care how you get them,” Rutten writes. Unless that appetite for celebrity fluff goes away, he concludes, “the sleazy trade in innuendo and phony items will continue.” Page E1

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THE CRITIC: ‘The material is presented in a manner at once realistic and highly charged, communicating the disorienting excitement of new places and people and the transitional wonder of being 14 years old.’ Robert Lloyd on “Carrie’s War,” Calendar, E9

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Coming Sunday

The new foreign aid, a 4-part series

Throughout the U.S. and other wealthy nations, immigrant workers pick crops, pour concrete, nurse the sick and fill a host of other jobs.

The money they send home -- an estimated $250 billion a year -- helps feed, clothe and house families across the developing world.

Nearly 1 billion people, one-sixth of the world’s population, draw support from this lifeline. To learn more, read “The New Foreign Aid,” a four-part series that begins in Sunday’s Los Angeles Times. On the Web:

latimes.com/foreignaid.

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SPORTS

Cypress pitcher weighs his future

He’s not very good at doing laundry, but Michael Morrison of Cypress is no slouch. He throws a 91-mph fastball, has posted a 16-1 record over the last two seasons, and recently delivered a 17-strikeout performance. The 18-year-old also has a 3.6 grade-point average, an award for good character and a scholarship waiting for him at Cal State Fullerton. Morrison’s name could turn up in the June draft, which would force him to decide between college and professional baseball. Page D2

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ON LATIMES.COM

Lacrosse scandal

Lacrosse: Sports columnist J.A. Adande weighs in with his Overtime blog on the rape allegations under investigation against the Duke University lacrosse team. Did a sense of entitlement lead the players to go out of control? latimes.com/overtime.

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Carmen who?: The star of “Scary Movie 4” has spent a decade courting controversy and scandal -- going from game show hostess to wife of Dennis Rodman to living self-satire. Read our Dummies Guide to Carmen Electra at

latimes.com/entertainment.