Aggression

If there were an international court with the power to prosecute crimes of aggression, we might be able to haul North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il before it to answer for his country's sinking of a South Korean warship in March. We could nail Russian leaders for their invasion of Georgia in 2008, and maybe even throw the book at the Argentines who sparked the Falklands War in 1982. World peace could be enforced with the tapping of a gavel rather than the pounding of artillery. It's an inspiring goal.

SAN DIEGO — This is baseball in another dimension. It is the Mike Trout dimension. It is fast, too fast for the other men on the field. Trout put major league outfielders on notice Friday, in the Angels' 7-2 victory over the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Play your best, and it will be a challenge to contain him. Play at less than your best, and an extra base will be lost, or two. "I don't believe in singles," Trout said. "I'm just trying to be aggressive and make some things happen.

Kids who show aggression could have worse health as adults, a study finds. Lifestyle choices -- what you eat, how much you exercise -- may not be the only forecaster of health later in life. A study in the Canadian Medical Assn. Journal finds that behavior in childhood, such as aggression and social withdrawal, could predict more sickness in adulthood. The study, released Monday, followed 3,913 children from 1976 to 1978 when they were in grades one, four and seven, through 1992 to 2006.

WASHINGTON — Rusty Hardin, lead attorney for Roger Clemens, got the former pitcher's chief accuser to admit to a series of lies in a day of aggressive cross examination, but did not undermine his credibility with a single grand stroke. Clemens is on trial for perjury, accused of lying to Congress about his use of performance enhancing drugs. Brian McNamee, a former trainer who worked closely with Clemens, admitted that in 2007 he lied to federal agent Jeff Novitzky and the Mitchell Commission, which was investigating performance-enhancing drugs in baseball.

Domestic partners who treat each other with aggression are more likely to spank their children, according to a study released Sunday that is one of the first to analyze whether interpersonal violence or aggression between partners influences whether children in the household are smacked around too. Many American parents say they spank their kids and feel it is a justified and appropriate form of discipline. This is despite many studies that show spanking is ineffective as a way to discipline children.

David Kaye warns in his June 1 Op-Ed article that bringing the crime of aggression within its ambit may erode support for the International Criminal Court. It is true that the ICC has done an admirable job in the years since its founding in holding trials for those accused of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. Without the ICC, these individuals, accused of the most heinous mass crimes, might not ever face justice and punishment. The ICC is an institution that our nation's founders would have recognized.

Outside of being a cheap shot, what is the logic of Michael Ramirez's cartoon (Commentary, Sept. 21)? The Iraqis turned their government over to the U.S. in the same manner as the French turned their government over to the Germans. Both resulted from wars of aggression. Jerome Johnson Northridge

Egypt on Thursday strongly condemned Libya for aggression against Chad and renewed its support for the government of President Hissen Habre. A Foreign Ministry spokesman said a week of fighting between Libyan troops and former Chadian rebels in northern Chad has posed a threat to the African nation's sovereignty and unity.

Scientists have confirmed an axiom of teenage life: Kids intent on climbing the social ladder at school are more likely to pick on their fellow students. The finding, reported in Tuesday's edition of the American Sociological Review, lends an air of authenticity to TV shows like "Gossip Girl" and the 2004 movie "Mean Girls. " More importantly, it may suggest that efforts to combat bullying in schools should focus more closely on social hierarchies. "By and large, status increases aggression," said sociologist Robert Faris of UC Davis, who led the study.

In response to "Liability Claim: Council Resolution" (editorial, Oct. 30): The United States is busy getting the collective finger to be pointed at Iraq through a liability resolution in the United Nations. Yet the damage or profit that Iraq has done or will reap from all this cannot begin to compare with the damage and profit that the United States has caused (by proxy, mostly) by its foreign policy in Central America. This country is responsible for much aggression committed in civil wars in El Salvador and Nicaragua, among others, during the past decades.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Pitcher C.J. Wilson considers himself "straight edge," a subculture whose adherents refrain from using alcohol, tobacco and recreational drugs. Utility player Mark Trumbo would like the Angels to be more hard edge. Trumbo was fired up after Saturday's 4-2 win over the two-time defending American League-champion Rangers, and not just because he put the Angels ahead with a prodigious two-run homer in the fourth inning. He loved the way Wilson and four Angels relievers pitched aggressively and fearlessly to baseball's most potent lineup, and the way the Angels bounced back from Friday night's lopsided 10-3 loss.

As soon as the whistle blew, Lakers guard Ramon Sessions leaped into action. He pulled his legs up off the floor. His eyes darted toward the Staples Center scoreboard. He paced in frustration. Sessions had just been charged with a foul after attempting to stop a dunk by Nuggets guard Corey Brewer, a play Sessions later said proved a "tough call to make going at that speed. " Yet, Sessions' reaction after Brewer made one of two free throws showed how the call incited his aggressiveness.

To the surprise of hardly anyone, the peace plan for Syria brokered by U.N. special envoy Kofi Annan is collapsing in a hail of bullets and artillery. The question is whether anyone has the stomach for tougher action. Despite low expectations that Annan's plan for averting all-out civil war would have much influence with Syrian President Bashar Assad, it was the only one on offer - a necessary first step, according to veteran diplomats and security experts. Its failure will force the international community to reconsider more aggressive options, such as imposing a no-fly zone or authorizing pinpoint airstrikes on Syrian artillery to end the year-old conflict, which has left an estimated 9,000 people dead.

Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins made it known Thursday after the Kings and Clippers played that he believes the NBA protects - or, as he said, babies - Clippers star forward Blake Griffin . Does Cousins' coach, Keith Smart , agree? "You didn't ask me that question, did you?" Smart half-jokingly asked a reporter before the teams played Saturday night at Staples Center. "Did you see what happened to my big man?" The NBA fined Cousins $25,000 for his comments.

Question: I am a manager for a company that provides property management for several rental communities. We have a limited pet policy in all our properties. Residents can have pets only if we approve the specific animal. We have this policy so that animals unsuited for an apartment community, because they are too large or too noisy, can be excluded. A resident in one of our properties gave us a note from his doctor stating that he needed a service animal to help with his disability.

Mark Walter and his investment firm have made a fortune buying beaten-down assets — and few as troubled as the Dodgers. Walter, the presumptive new controlling owner of the Dodgers, runs Guggenheim Partners, a financial services firm known on Wall Street as low-key but aggressive. Guggenheim capitalized in recent years on the travails of large investment banks, which were pounded during the 2008 financial crisis by bad investments and even worse public relations. Launched a dozen years ago as an investment management firm, Guggenheim has gobbled up a range of properties, including insurance companies, a struggling model-train maker and even a stake in the venture that owns the Hollywood Reporter trade publication.

I was appalled by the fierceness of the recent collision between Jack Clark and Mike Scioscia. A collision in some situations is inevitable, but what I saw on the replays and a picture in the paper was a forearm swung by Clark into Scioscia's face. I think the commissioner should be able to levy fines in these situations where later films or comments reflect an act of aggression greater than is necessary. This is done in basketball, and it is time for it to apply to baseball. OLAF OLSON Reseda

The Nonaligned Movement on Friday condemned what it called U.S. aggression against Nicaragua and said both South Africa and Israel are supporting U.S. military policy in Central America.

Long Beach State guard Casper Ware has "celebrated" playing in the NCAA tournament, reenacting the road to the Final Four in his driveway many times. "I'd watch the tournament growing up, see the guys jumping around when they won," Ware said. "I'd go out and mimic that, pretend I was going to the Final Four. You have that in your head. " Dan Monson, Ware's coach, senses a reality check coming. Long Beach (25-8) has been blessed with the bliss of ignorance as it prepares to play New Mexico (27-6)

UCLA's season in transition ended Wednesday in the first round of the Pacific Life Pac-12 Conference women's basketball tournament at the Galen Center. The fifth-seeded Bruins blew a double-digit lead and lost, 61-57, to 12th-seeded Arizona. UCLA finished with a 14-16 record in Coach Cori Close's first season. Close replaced Nikki Caldwell, who left to take over Louisiana State's program. Arizona improved to 15-16 and advanced to Thursday's quarterfinals, where the Wildcats will meet fourth-seeded Arizona State.