PET PERILS

Pets pose potential for falls

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention researchers have found that 86,000 people a year will be injured by a fall involving a cat or dog. Most of the injuries involved people under the age of 14, or between 35 and 54.

Fido and Fluffy are great companions, but keep an eye out when they're underfoot.

FINAL FANTASY

Hawaii's future didn't quite plan for this

Holding his father's hand, a 12-year-old Iranian schoolboy has registered as a candidate challenging hardline president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, reports The Scotsman, the daily in Edinburgh, Scotland.

If elected, “;I will buy Hawaii, (President) Obama's birthplace, from the United States,”; young Kourosh Mozouni told reporters, “;and lease it to the Israelis who will go to live there—so that they don't kill children in Gaza.”;

Right, that'll go a long way in easing international tensions. Send that boy back to school—diplomacy school.

IDOLATRY

'Idol' comes down to the wire

It will be a study in contrasts as Adam vs. Kris rocks the “;American Idol”; season finale tonight. (Come on, admit it: “;Idol”; has been a guilty pleasure this season due to the high level of talent.)

In this corner: Energetic, campy rocker Adam Lambert, with his jet-black hair and matching goth nail polish, all confidence and magnetism. In that corner: Kris Allen, the boyish Arkansas crooner with his soulful guitar-playing ways, giving off that “;aw shucks”; Opie vibe and seeming genuinely surprised to be in the Top 2.

Despite an average 7 percent ratings drop from last season, tonight's results show is expected to attract the highest ratings for any regular program this year. And maybe the Fox network has something more up its sleeve: The Internet is abuzz with rumors that Michael Jackson will perform tonight. Ooooo, more suspense.

Stay tuned.