One thing that's essential in the ongoing discussion about how to regulate guns, everyone agrees, is to hear the voices of ordinary, law-abiding gun owners. So here's columnist Kathleen Parker in the Washington Post, explaining why proposed gun restrictions won't prevent gun crime:

Proving true the old maxim, "good things come to those who wait," rap mogul Diddy, who waited 43 years to begin dating supermodel Kate Upton, is rumored to be dating supermodel Kate Upton.

Last Monday, Madonna arrived in Malawi a VIP. Last Saturday, she left the country with her VIP status revoked.

We may never know if the person who fired his gun into the BancorpSouth Arena parking lot in Tupelo, Mississippi at 2 a.m. Tuesday morning intended to hit the circus elephant traveling there while on tour with a Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey show. We may never know if the shooter, in the heat of the moment, mistook the elephant (Carol) for a much smaller human-sized human with whom he was having a personal conflict. We may never know what the elephant—an honor student, active in her church choir, well-liked and respected by her peers—was doing in the shadowy parking lot so late at night. (Probably just resting.)

It's been a rough year for people who make their living masquerading as beloved children's characters in New York City. Last summer, there was the sad case of Central Park's Jew-hating Elmo (who, by the way, is named Adam Sandler). Two months ago, a man dressed as Spider-Man in Times Square claimed to be the victim of a vicious snowball attack from a stingy mom. Monday morning, the streak continued when a man in a Cookie Monster suit was arrested for allegedly shoving a two-year-old boy.

The grand matriarch of monied, blonde WASP summertime, Lilly Pulitzer, has died at 81. The vivid-print fashion designer and Standard Oil fortune descendant shuffled off to a wine-and-cheese croquet match in the sky on Sunday, presumably after a tasteful Episcopalian service and cucumber sandwiches at the Breakers.

The lives of great figures often resonate with the lives of the ordinary multitudes who admire them. Here's a roundup of some people who found Margaret Thatcher inspirational, and even sympathetic. Truly, the story of the Iron Lady contained a piece of everyone's story.

TechCrunch founder Mike Arrington has strongly denied a host of recent public allegations from an ex-girlfriend, former colleagues, and former friends that he has a history of violent behavior toward women. The string of claims began late last month with a Facebook post leveled by his ex-girlfriend, Jenn Allen, who wrote that Arrington had assaulted and threatened to kill her. Gawker followed up last week with a story reporting on claims from a former co-worker that Arrington was investigated by a former employer for assaulting a female colleague, as well as claims from that he threw an ex-girlfriend into a wall.

While farm animals wandering amok in city parks are often associated with agrarian cities of yesteryear, and also Texas, some Parisian officials have decided that woolly mouton are the latest chic, sophisticated addition to the 21st century metropolis.

Christopher Abbott, better (and forever) known as Charlie on Girls, has just announced his abrupt departure from the HBO series, which follows a group of youths with undiagnosed personality disorders as they careen wildly around New York's Brooklyn borough.

Wantin' a cheeseburger real, real bad. We've all been there. I'm there right now, because I'm having falafel for lunch. Busta Rhymes was there last night, when he reportedly threw such a fit in a Miami restaurant (after his cheeseburger was served to him with ketchup on the side) that the restaurant's owner called the police.

Former Democratic strategist Karen Finney, who was once the first African-American spokeswoman for the Democratic National Committee, was revealed today to be the new host of a 4 p.m. weekend show on MSNBC. Good for her, and good for MSNBC, which adds Finney, pictured at left, to an already diverse roster of talking heads that includes Chris Hayes, Melissa Harris-Perry, and Al Sharpton.

Maybe you thought this was a happy day for sea lions, but sadly, for sea lions not exposed to pop music of the '70s and '90s, it has been a tragic 2013. Federal wildlife officials declared an "unusual mortality event" as hundreds of stranded and underweight sea lion pups have been washing up on the shores of Southern California.

Are you telling me you don't know who I am? That's a sentence that always goes over well. Filled with humility, sympathy for your fellow human, eschewing vanity, beaming with a deep awareness of your small place in the universe. That's everything that sentence captures.

Earlier today, some media outlets published a wackadoo rumor that Facebook co-founder and real life Justin Timberlake Sean Parker was planning to marry his fiancée in a medieval, Game of Thrones-themed, costume-mandatory ceremony this summer.

Glee star Cory Monteith, 30, has admitted himself to rehab for substance addiction, according to a statement from his representative.

Following a successful fan-driven fundraising campaign on the website Kickstarter, actress Kristen Bell's child finally consented to begin production on her life by being born Thursday.

The newly minted Pope washed the feet of two women today, including them in an Easter rite that the church he leads has previously insisted is reserved for men, because that's just how God rolls.

It's no secret that right now, Today is in a tailspin. Once viewed as a cup of Earl Grey in TV form, the show hast lately earned a reputation as a scalding cauldron of poison. The New York Times reports that ratings have dropped about 20 percent since the show took Ann Curry out behind a shed and shot her last June. Unholy god Matt Lauer has become so unpopular—almost overnight—that NBC is reportedly considering replacing him with Anderson Cooper before his rumored $25 million contract expires in 2014. (According to Deadline, Lauer got wind of NBC's plans and phoned Cooper personally to tell him he disapproved of the network's decision, because he is a divabitch.)

In his first public speech since he stepped down, former CIA director David Petraeus apologized for the extramarital affair that led to his departure. "I regret—and apologize for—the circumstances that led to my resignation from the CIA and caused such pain for my family, friends and supporters," he told the audience of 600, including his wife and many decorated veterans, at the University of Southern California's annual ROTC dinner.