Statement

Annapolis-based hotel investment firm Chesapeake Lodging Trust priced its pending stock offering at $18.50 a share and increased the shares to be sold to 6.5 million, the firm announced in a statement Thursday. That's a million more shares than the trust originally said Wednesday that it would be offering. The offering's underwriters also have the option to buy up to 975,000 additional shares. The trust hopes to raise a total of $115.2 million in the offering, expected to close Tuesday.

The attack on the American consulate in Libya that left four dead, including our ambassador to that country, Chris Stevens, is outrageous and deplorable. The senseless loss of life there should be a cause of mourning for Americans, not a flash point in the presidential election. That said, Mitt Romney has a point in criticizing some of the Obama administration's statements about the attack. The violence in Libya and simultaneous unruly protests at the American embassy in Cairo were ostensibly sparked by outrage over an obscure, unreleased film that is said to depict the Prophet Muhammad negatively and criticizes the Muslim religion.

In his letter, William Smith writes that Rep. Paul Ryan lied in his convention speech regarding the GM plant in Janesville, Wisconsin ("No denying Ryan's lying," Sept. 5). The facts are that Mr. Ryan categorized the plant in these exact words, that it was a plant "we were about to lose. " By saying they were about to lose the plant, Mr. Ryan acknowledged that the plant was already scheduled to be shut down when candidate Barack Obama visited it in 2008. Therefore, it is ridiculous to claim that he was making the charge that the plant was closed because of something President Obama didn't do. No, the point of the statement was that candidate Obama visited the plant and said, "I believe that if our government is there to support you … this plant will be here for another hundred years.

In the last year, as Baltimore city schools' budgetary decisions -- $14 million in overtime, generous leave payouts, a renovated IT Department -- have faced heightened scrutiny, officials have defended much of their spending as "the cost of doing business. " In April, The Baltimore Sun sought to get a better picture of what exactly some of that business was -- and several sources informed us that credit card and procurement card statements, which outlined day-to-day activities at the system's central headquarters would do so. We began a four-month task by requesting credit and procurement card statements showing activity by central office staff from 2009 through 2011, through a Maryland Public Information Act Request in April.

Missouri Republican Rep. Todd Akin recently said some morally objectionable things about rape and abortion, but in his attempted apology he included a statement that can't be dismissed lightly by anyone interested in moral or legal justice: "I do not believe that harming another innocent victim is the right course of action. " This invites a closer look at the logic behind the rhetoric over abortion and to see whether there is some merit to Mr. Akin's position that deserves a more thoughtful response than the name calling that has ensued.

The House GOP caucus in Annapolis put out a statement this afternoon that they are "troubled" by the behavior of Republican Del. Don Dwyer, who has acknowledged being drunk while piloting a  speedboat that collided with another vessel and sent six people to the hospital. Dwyer admitted that he had a .2 blood alcohol level -- more than twice the legal limit -- when he was driving his boat Wednesday evening in the Magothy River. Dwyer's boat sank. Two adults and four children were hospitalized.

This is the 12th season I have covered the Baltimore Orioles. And at some point - usually it is before the All-Star Break - the club stumbles and the season crumbles. Honestly, and maybe it is just habit, I've been waiting for that moment since about May. And though the players will tell you differently, I'm sure that thought has been in the back of their minds at times this year. That's why I was struck by the comments of center fielder Adam Jones after the Orioles' 5-1 loss to the two-time defending American League champion Texas Rangers on Monday night.

DETROIT -- Orioles first baseman Mark Reynolds said Saturday he expects to receive a fine for his critical comment about the umpiring in Friday night's 5-3 loss to the Tigers, but he didn't really retreat from his statements. Reynolds was ejected in the fifth inning after first-base umpire Jeff Kellogg's out call on Jhonny Peralta at first base was overturned. After conferring with home-plate umpire Tim Timmons as the request of Tigers manager Jim Leyland, they reversed the call and ruled Peralta safe, saying that Reynolds' foot came off the bag. Reynolds slammed his glove on the ground and was immediately ejected by second-base umpire Vic Carapazza, then unloaded a postgame tirade on the umpires.

Label 56, the Baltimore-based record label that released music by End Apathy - the band fronted by alleged Sikh temple shooter Wade Michael Page - released a statement Monday afternoon, regarding Page's relationship with the label. It reads: Label 56 is very sorry to hear about the tragedy in Wisconsin and our thoughts are with the families and friends of those who are affected. We have worked hard over the years to promote a positive image and have posted many articles encouraging people to take a positive path in life, to abstain from drugs, alcohol, and just general behavior that can affect ones life negatively.

Those who have followed the years-long saga of the Gateway School site in Clarksville might be experiencing deja vu after County Executive Ken Ulman's announcement last week that the county had reached a deal to sell the 7.8-acre parcel for $5 million to a developer for a commercial project that would stand out for its environment- and pedestrian-friendly design. If the statement had a familiar ring, it's because the county made essentially the same announcement in May 2010 - the same price, the same land on Clarksville Pike across from the River Hill village center, the same developer and the same celebration of the promise of the project.