The following is an excerpt from OpinionJournal’s “Best of the Web” at WSJ written by the editor, James Taranto.

Other Than That, the Story Was Accurate

  • “An earlier version of this article misstated the circumstances of Pope Francis’ remarks. He made them in a general audience at the Vatican, not in consoling a distraught boy whose dog had died. The article also misstated what Francis is known to have said. According to Vatican Radio, Francis said: ‘The Holy Scripture teaches us that the fulfillment of this wonderful design also affects everything around us,’ which was interpreted to mean he believes animals go to heaven. Francis is not known to have said: ‘One day, we will see our animals again in the eternity of Christ. Paradise is open to all of God’s creatures.’ (Those remarks were once made by Pope Paul VI to a distraught child, and were cited in a Corriere della Sera article that concluded Francis believes animals go to heaven.) An earlier version also referred incompletely to the largest animal protection group in the United States. It is the Humane Society of the United States, not just the Humane Society.”—New York Times, Dec. 12

News of the Tautological
“Organizational Meeting for Anarchists Ends in Chaos”—headline, Morning Jolt email (National Review), Dec. 15

News You Can Use
“Want to Give Your Son a Decent Education? Get Him Locked Up: Ofsted Report Rates Youth Prison Better Than Hundreds of Schools”—headline, Daily Mail (London), Dec. 13

For more “Best of the Web” click here and look for the “Best of the Web Today” link in the middle column below “Today’s Columnists.”