August 3

Florida's toughest soap salesman (and Baltimore's most famous Victoria's Secret shopper) Ed Norris will be released from home detention Friday. Welcome back, big spender... thanks again for sending the musical panties at Christmas. Speaking of musicals, are the rumors true that you and John Waters are in talks for a biopic? Lunch on me, the least I can do after all those lap dances you picked up over the years? Anywhere but the Polo Grill.

In the Espinoza trial, jurors heard evidence of a second knife.

Unless you've been living in a cave you know that our Dirty Bird Raffy tested positive for steriods, but claimed that he took them 'unintentionally.' The lastest is that said steriod was a powerful anabolic-- not something easily slipped into a cocktail.

Blogger Matthew Yglesias poated a noteworthy link: the press release from the Mayor's Office from nine months ago that claims Baltimore has a dramatic reduction in violent crime. So my questions are, first, are these numbers accurate? Second, how do they compare to the per-capita reductions in other American cities? And finally, how do these facts relate to the Freakonomics abortion theory? Discuss.