Dr. Laura takes a break from column

Laura Schlessinger, known for her biting, conservative, antigay views, announced she is "taking a break from her column" that she writes for the Santa Barbara News-Press. The decision follows a rough month for the pundit, according to the Santa Barbara Independent.

First, there are reports that the Pentagon is investigating the MySpace page of Schlessinger's son, Deryk, now a soldier based in Afghanistan, because it contains images of rape, murder, torture, and child molestation.

Then Schlessinger stirred angry debate with a comment she made in a story by Matthew LaPlante for The Salt Lake Tribune. "He could come back without arms, legs, or eyeballs, and you're bitching?" Schlessigner said in response to military wives bemoaning the absence of their husbands deployed in Iraq. "You're not dodging bullets, so I don't want to hear any whining--that's my message to them."

In her latest blog entry, posted May 14, Dr. Laura, as she is known, defended the statement, claiming that LaPlante pulled the quote out of context.

"I am a military mom," she later wrote. "I whine to my husband every day about how scared I am for my son and how helpless I feel to protect his body and soul. However, I never whine to my son when he is able to call between missions." (The Advocate)