Sidelights: If you do not have mirth you will certainly have madness--G.K. Chesterton.

There are at least 50 American colleges and universities that offer courses in "video game study." ... Over three fourths of U.S. college students are registered to vote, though only half consider themselves interested in politics, according to a Harvard University survey. A Gallup Poll shows there are now more wine drinkers in America than beer drinkers. British churches sponsor more missionary work in France than in any other nation in the world.... At least seven evangelical Christian churches have been established in Baghdad since the U.S. liberation. Saddam Hussein told his lawyers that if he is sentenced to death by the Iraqi government, his preference is to be executed by a firing squad. John Kerry stated that the Bush administration's use of warrantless wiretaps is "a clear violation of the law" and called for a special counsel to investigate the practice. He then declared in the same ABC interview that Democrats are "prepared to eavesdrop wherever and whenever necessary in order to make America safer." Suicide is the leading cause of death among China's young adults, according to the Chinese government. A quarter million Chinese kill themselves annually. Three million attempt suicide every year. A recent survey by the European Commission found that support for the European Union is declining among its citizens--asked if their country's E.U. membership is "a good thing," an average of only 50 percent now say yes.... Only 32 percent of Austrians and 33 percent of Britons believe being part of the European Union is a good thing for their nation. The British are the most prolific shoplifters in Europe, says a study by the Center for Retail Research. Britons stole $6.3 billion from retail shops in 2004. In total, Europeans lifted $36.7 billion worth of merchandise from their stores.

Sales of luxury goods in the U.S. have almost doubled in the last five years. ...