"Thank goodness this is out there, clearly stated, with ample documentation and very reasonably put forward," said Archbishop Edwin F. O'Brien of Baltimore, which is hosting the fall general assembly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops this week. "I think it's going to be a very positive document."

The Catholic Archdiocese of Washington said Wednesday that it will be unable to continue the social service programs it runs for the District if the city doesn't change a proposed same-sex marriage law, a threat that could affect tens of thousands of people the church helps with adoption, homelessness and health care.

Under the bill, headed for a D.C. Council vote next month, religious organizations would not be required to perform or make space available for same-sex weddings. But they would have to obey city laws prohibiting discrimination against gay men and lesbians.

Fearful that they could be forced, among other things, to extend employee benefits to same-sex married couples, church officials said they would have no choice but to abandon their contracts with the city.

"If the city requires this, we can't do it," Susan Gibbs, spokeswoman for the archdiocese, said Wednesday. "The city is saying in order to provide social services, you need to be secular. For us, that's really a problem."

The recall applies to every umbrella stroller Maclaren has distributed in the US since 1999. The specific models are: Volo, Triumph, Quest Sport, Quest Mod, Techno XT, TechnoXLR, Twin Triumph, Twin Techno and Easy Traveller.

The CPSC says the strollers' hinge mechanism, "poses a fingertip amputation and laceration hazard to the child when the consumer is unfolding/opening the stroller."

"Finally, some words of advice – words of advice not so much for those of you here but those leaving comments on other forums and websites (if you would be kind enough to pass the message along): STOP MAKING IDIOT COMMENTS. Note I didn’t say idiotic comments because that would imply that the lion’s share of the idiocy lies with the comment itself rather than the commentator. No, I mean: STOP MAKING IDIOT COMMENTS.

For example, say you have a problem with the James scene in Darkness in which she threatens Riley and Eli after they try spying on her with the kino. You can go ahead and make an argument for the scene being sexist (although I’d argue that there’s a difference between the scene being sexist and the characters in the scene acting inappropriately, especially given that a clearly disappointed Young admonishes both men), but if, in the body of your comment or any subsequent comment, you refer to the James character as Lieutenant Rack or McBoobs, then you’re a hypocrite who has successfully undermined their argument by demonstrating you can’t be taken seriously. Also, you’re an idiot."

Unlike the more kid-friendly SG-1 and Atlantis with its wholesale slaughters of enemy combatants, tortures, stabbings, and occasional live burnings, Universe will touch on the heinous topic of physically intimacy. These “sex scenes”, which amounted to approximately 1 whole minute of the 270 minutes aired to date, engendered a fair amount of controversy. And that’s fine. I don’t mind continuing to read and approve your comments on the subject so long as you don’t mind knowing that nothing will change in this respect and that if you were offended by that broom closet scene in Air I, I guarantee you’ll be clawing your eyes out of your skull given what we have in store later this season. Also, while I can understand why some may have had a problem with that broom-closet scene in the premiere given that it did come as a surprise to many, I can’t muster up much empathy or understanding for those complaining about the Scott-Chloe scene in Light. Again, if it’s a matter of not enjoying shows that focus on the occasional romance between characters, then that’s unfortunate – because that’s the type of show you’re watching. If, on the other hand, it’s an innate response to the very notion of intimacy no matter how modest the scene, then I’d suggest a deep-rooted personal issue that would be best dealt with somewhere other than this blog.

"Officials are trying to rescue a 6-year-old boy who climbed into a balloon-like experimental aircraft built by his parents and floated into the sky over eastern Colorado. The aluminum-covered, dome-shaped balloon is 20 feet long and 5 feet high, Larimer County Sheriff's Office says.

Margie Martinez of the Weld County Sheriff's Office said a sibling saw the boy climb into the basket before the balloon took off. Since the door on the balloon was unlocked, Martinez said it's possible the boy had fallen out. The balloon appeared to be a saucer-shaped, Mylar-coated helium balloon, not unlike a party balloon. The craft was drifting eastward, authorities said.

The helium balloon was tethered to the boy's family home in Fort Collins, the Larimer County Sheriff's Department said. The boy got into the craft Thursday morning and undid the rope anchoring it. The aluminum-covered, dome-shaped balloon is 20 feet long and 5 feet high, the Larimer County Sheriff's Office said. "The structure at the bottom of the balloon that the boy is in is made of extremely thin plywood and won't withstand any kind of a crash at all," said Erik Nilsson, Larimer County Emergency Manager, according to CNN affiliate KMGH."

“The real question Americans are asking is, ‘What has President Obama actually accomplished?' It is unfortunate that the president's star power has outshined tireless advocates who have made real achievements working towards peace and human rights. One thing is certain – President Obama won't be receiving any awards from Americans for job creation, fiscal responsibility, or backing up rhetoric with concrete action.”

I did not realize the Nobel Peace Prize had an affirmative action quota for, but that is the only thing I can think of for this news.

Obama has won the Nobel Peace Prize.

"I would say regardless of the circumstances, congratulations to President Obama for winning the Nobel Prize. I know there will be some people who are saying “Was it based on good intentions and thoughts or is it going to be based on good results?” But I think the appropriate response is when anybody wins a Nobel Prize that is a very noteworthy development and designation and I think the appropriate response is to say “Congratulations.”

"The Norwegian Nobel Committee said it honored Obama for his "extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples."

The prize seems to be more for Obama's promise than for his performance. The Nobel committee cited as his key accomplishment "a new climate in international politics." The president has become "the world's leading spokesman" for its agenda, the committee said.

He has no standout moment of victory. Not surprising. Like most presidents in their first year, Obama's scorecard so far is largely an "incomplete," if he's being graded.

"It's quite likely this committee will reward somebody who is engaged in current processes," said Kristian Berg Harpviken, head of the International Peace Institute in Oslo (PRIO).

"They want the prize to have an impact on things that are about to happen and want to affect events," he told Reuters."

"The day I got my (wrong) prognosis of a few years left to live, I faced the biggest challenge of my life: not cancer, but what to tell my children? I got a copy of Lance Armstrong’s book and I remember setting it down on the table in front of Brittany and Mac and telling them the one difference between Lance and me is that I didn’t have to win the Tour de France. I only had to beat cancer."

"Camp Sundown gets its name because the youngsters that attend cannot go outdoors during the daytime or even stand under fluorescent lights because ultraviolet radiation, any UV radiation, is their mortal enemy. It will give them severe burns, it will give them squamous cell skin cancer, it will cause malignant tumors to grow in their eyes and mouths, and make many of them blind as their condition reaches its late stages. The sun and blue skies we wish for in spring and summer will cruelly ravage their bodies.

The kids, these fragile, beautiful kids, who want nothing more than to be whatever we like to call ordinary in this world, are afflicted with a genetic condition called Xeroderma Pigmentosum that takes the lives of most people with the disorder before they reach the age of 20. It is rare, so rare there are only between 150 and 250 sufferers in this country, maybe two or three thousand around the world."