Ring the Bell, School Is in, Sucker

The papers have toured around the world, from London to the Bay, abandoned their slavish devotion to Fort Hood and Afghanistan and come up with a day of fun stories that feature MC Hammer as a fashion icon among others.

After a week of consensus over what the biggest stories were, the papers cut loose a bit today. And it's a lot of fun. The Wall Street Journal continues to maintain a mix of serious business news and the world's most amusing features - MC Hammer pants! Houses without ridiculous jacuzzis! The LA Times have a lead picture that is eerie and captivating at the same time and the Daily News breaks the weirdest celebrity story in a while. And Michael Jackson died this year.

Disclosure: I freelance write and report for newspapers that are included in this roundup. Where there is a direct conflict of interest I will make it clear.