“Listen, $48 million is a lot of money to keep Bishop Skylstad off the witness stand. That’s the crux of the problem. That’s why parishioners of this diocese are going to be paying enormous amounts of money to lawyers and victims.”

– Mike Ross, one of those who has filed a claim alleging sex abuse by a Catholic priest, commenting on a tentative settlement in the Spokane Catholic Diocese’s bankruptcy case.

“There’s only one way to manage wolves in Idaho, and it’s to get rid of them.”

– Hunting outfitter Ron Gillett, of Stanley, Idaho, discussing a petition to force a statewide vote on a proposal to cease all wolf recovery efforts in the state and remove all of those that have already been reintroduced from Canada.

“She has an air of sophistication because of her education and experience, but she is a cop.”

– Spokane Mayor Dennis Hession, talking about new Spokane Police Chief Anne Kirkpatrick, who just completed a substantial reorganization of the department’s command structure.

“Giving a kid a D for good attendance doesn’t cut it anymore.”

– Grandview (Wash.) High School Principal Arcella Hall, president of the Association of Washington School Principals, urging the Legislature to invest more money in instructional programs that will make sure the time students spend in the classroom translates into adequate learning.

“Where were these critics when Saddam’s people were executing whole prisons full of innocent people?”

– Iraqi prosecutor Munkith al-Faroun, talking about critics who protested the treatment of Saddam Hussein prior to his execution last weekend.

“Four weeks ago I could barely lift 50 pounds without going home and taking a nap.”

– Seattle Seahawks center Robbie Tobeck, describing his slow recovery from a hip abscess that limited his availability to the professional football team.

“You could say that I’m a man on a mission, and my mission could be dubbed ‘Operation Restore Trust’ – and trust in the organization and trust between member states and the secretariat. I hope this mission is not mission impossible.”

– New U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, as quoted on the Foreign Policy blog Passport, describing the top priority as he assumes leadership of the international organization.

“I feel OK, but I don’t feel safe anymore.”

– Tacoma student Dmitriy Svezhentsev, 16, who decided with his parents that he should return to class at Henry Foss High School, where a 17-year-old classmate was shot to death in a hallway before class last Wednesday.