Democratic Senator John Walsh announced today that he is dropping his bid for reelection in Montana amid allegations that he plagiarised a significant portion of his master's thesis at Army War College. The school is set to begin an investigation into the charges next week. In his announcement, Walsh said that accusations of plagiarism have "become a distraction."

John Walsh looks and sounds like a senator. The Democrat, who replaced retiring Max Baucus earlier this year and is running for reelection this fall, leans on his 33-year as a decorated combat soldier. But like a senator, he may have cheated and stolen to keep that career on track.

"Operation: Game Over"—an initiative undertaken by New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman—recently purged over 3,500 registered sex offenders from online gaming sites. Sexual predators are using voice and text chat functions on the interactive games to troll for victims. One 19-year old Monroe county man pled guilty to sexual abuse charges after luring a 12-year old boy to his apartment; they met on XBox Live. The initiative was backed with widespread support from the gaming industry, with Microsoft, Apple, Blizzard Entertainment, Electronic Arts, Disney Interactive Media Group, Warner Brothers and Sony participating in the plan.

Author/humorist David Sedaris turns 52 today. Jared Leto is 37. CNN's Candy Crowley is 60. AOL chief Randy Falco is 55. Senator Evan Bayh is 53. America's Most Wanted's John Walsh is 63. Chris Daughtry is 29. And record producer (and possible murderer) Phil Spector celebrates his 68th today. Weekend birthdays after the jump.