Mistakes

A battery investigation involving a neighbor, walking shirtless through airports and hotels, and donning a gas mask on London streets, it's all a part of being young and making mistakes, Justin Bieber says. In an interview with Us Weekly , the 19-year-old pop star chalks up some of his recent public missteps to youthful inexperience. “I'm young and I make mistakes. That's a part of growing up,” Bieber said. “I mess up sometimes. It's part of growing up.” Despite his age, Beiber is facing a very adult situation: an investigation that he battered his Calabasas neighbor.

Chicago made another huge mistake in the red zone, and the Atlanta Falcons held on for another wild victory over the Bears. Michael Turner scored the go-ahead touchdown on an otherwise forgettable night, powering over from five yards with 3:06 remaining, and the defense held at the end to preserve a 21-14 victory Sunday night. Matt Ryan threw two touchdown passes for the Falcons (4-1), who matched the best five-game start in franchise history. The Bears (3-2) will surely be moaning about all the mistakes down close that helped end their three-game winning streak: a fumble at the one, an interception at the nine and a crucial penalty when they had fourth and one at the Atlanta five with less than a minute to go. The teams played a thriller for the second year in a row. This time, the team that was behind couldn't pull off the comeback.

With nine starters returning on offense, the competition to become USC's starting quarterback probably won't be determined by who makes the most plays. It could come down to who makes the fewest mistakes. Sophomore Aaron Corp arguably took an early lead Tuesday by avoiding what befell junior Mitch Mustain and freshman Matt Barkley: interceptions. Meanwhile, Corp emerged unscathed in the turnover department as the Trojans completed the second of their 15 workouts.

Stepping back into the spotlight for the first time Sunday, Mitt Romney offered a blunt critique of President Obama - accusing his former rival of playing politics rather than finding a resolution to across-the-board spending cuts now being enacted. The former Massachusetts governor and Republican presidential nominee acknowledged a handful of mistakes in his first post-campaign interview with "Fox News Sunday," during which he also said he did not envision a future in politics. He called his failure to engage minorities in 2012 "a real mistake" and admitted that he had suffered "real damage" from the fallout of his now-infamous comments that 47% of Americans were dependent on government assistance and unlikely to vote for him. But he did not back away from his controversial assertion that Obama won the election by securing the loyalty of key groups such as Latinos and African Americans with programs like his healthcare plan.

Regarding "Price Blunders on the Internet Can Spin a Very Tangled Web" (Travel Insider, March 9): What about the ethical aspects of taking advantage of a ridiculous offer? It is shameful to seize upon another person's mistake for your own benefit. So you saved a few bucks. I want to pay the lowest price, but a fair price. I expect people to do the same when dealing with me. Will Wennerberg Marina del Rey

I read Dawn Dominy Mayeda's article about remodeling her kitchen ("Ad Was Recipe for Cooking Up New Kitchen," Sept. 20), and it reminded me of so many stories I've heard before. I'm a professional carpenter, and am often surprised at how willingly non-professionals dive into complicated building projects on their own. It's not that easy. We've already made most of the mistakes Mayeda tells about, and our goal is to make each of those mistakes just once. And, with the guidance of a good contractor, we all work together--framers, electricians, plumbers, etc. We try to make things easy for the next tradesman down the line.

ABOUT THIS SERIES This is the second in a series of occasional articles that will examine how DNA evidence is transforming criminal justice. -- State crime lab analyst Kathryn Troyer was running tests on Arizona's DNA database when she stumbled across two felons with remarkably similar genetic profiles. The men matched at nine of the 13 locations on chromosomes, or loci, commonly used to distinguish people.

A hospital where errors killed one patient and left another with the wrong leg amputated has admitted another mistake: nearly sterilizing a woman without her consent. The woman, whose name was not released, had one of her Fallopian tubes tied during a Cesarean delivery March 16 at University Community Hospital. The doctor stopped the procedure after an operating room staff member told him the woman didn't authorize it, the hospital said Thursday. A woman can still give birth with one tube tied.

Most of the competitors in the Congressional Cup Masters regatta are older sailors with rusty skills. But Harold Cudmore, the most recent winner in 1986, still makes sailing his business and was coach and adviser to the French team that was recently eliminated from the America's Cup. After winning his first three races Wednesday, however, Cudmore forgot in which match he was sailing in the final round and was late entering the starting area.

Please, please start Rusty Hilger next year. It's obvious from his performance against Indianapolis that he has all the attributes of a top quarterback without experience. The only way he can get that is to play. I would rather watch him make mistakes in games, knowing he will get better, than watch a formerly great but, let's face it, old Jim Plunkett struggle, or a supposed veteran Marc Wilson make bonehead mistakes. So, hire Plunkett as the quarterback coach, dump Wilson and play Hilger.