The Price Family Home Companion

Get aCLU

Rumsfeld should apologize for approving the use of such barbaric, unethical, and inhumane methods as hooding, interrogation, and isolation (oh my). It's simply unconscionable!

The next thing you know, detainees and enemy combatants will be forced to participate in Rock, Paper, Scissors tournaments!

What has the world come to?

Really now, does the A in ACLU still stand for American? I'm just asking...

EZ Come, EZ Go

You'd think that at some point prior to reaching $17,651 in fines, the Harris County Toll Road Authority would have realized they had a problem collecting from this offender.

Don't miss the sweet bit of irony in the story though:

She should know how to deal with the situation — Adams listed her occupation on booking records as a collector for United Recovery Systems, a debt collection agency.

2004: Year in Review

One of my favorite links towards the end of the year is the Google Zeitgeist. The Zeitgeist gives you an intriguing peek into global social trends.

This year they have a fascinating interactive version to recap 2004.

Election Creates Conservative Ethos?

Wayne Llewellyn, president of distribution at Paramount, tells the New York Times that the movie Alfie may be failing due to the conservative ethos reflected in last week's election results.

"It could be the mood of the country right now," he said. "It seems to be the result of the election..."

So, which is it? Did the election results reflect the conservative ethos of the country, or did the election create it?

Sharon Stone and other Hollywood Utopians would have you believe that Bush is responsible for creating the conservative climate. The fact they believe this only shows how out of touch they are. They still don't get it.

They wholeheartedly reject the notion that the conservative climate of the country existed prior to and was instrumental in Bush's election... or, for that matter, that Alfie is simply a bad movie.

Kerry's Misunderestimation

Sources inside the Kerry campaign are, for the first time, admitting it lacked sufficient manpower for the invasion of Ohio's court system.

We had an idear; A plan that would have brought together a true coalition of voters, judges, attorneys, U.N. monitors, and non-partisan PAC's to the table for a summit in Ohio. It was a good, secret plan. We simply underestimated the number of trial lawyers necessary to secure the victory in the war on Bush.

Senator Kerry, who is also a decorated Vietnam veteran, does, however, add the distinguished title of ex-Presidential contender to his growing list of credentials. While waiting for public opinion to suggest his next move, he plans to catch up on some much needed R&R.

Meanwhile, the DNC is calling for an apology from the also-ran for the senator's gross miscalculation and rash judgment in planning for the subsequent insurgency.

More Excitement Too Close to Home

HoustonChronicle.com - High-speed 18-wheeler chase ends:

Houston police captured the driver of an 18-wheel truck in Fort Bend County after a 20-minute-plus high-speed chase that started around 2 p.m. in the 6500 block of Bellaire Boulevard.

Police and deputies finally were able to stop the 18-wheeler and grab the driver on southbound U.S. Highway 59 at Crab [sic] Road in Fort Bend County.

Remember, this is probably less than a mile from our house and is the same location of that acid spill just a couple months ago.

Kerry's New Old Idear

Kerry has rounded a corner in his campaign and is finally starting to sound like what you'd expect from a liberal candidate. I guess this is his way of absolutely taking off the gloves.

Playing from the same, tired play book of fear-mongering, Kerry suggests that Bush wants to re-instate the military draft, rob senior citizens of their medications, soil their quilts, and step on their chickens.

By the way, is anyone else amused by people that consider themselves to be intellectuals and pronounce idea with an R?

Politics of Google

A search of news items about Bush, Cheney, or Republicans bashing, ripping, attacking, berating, belittling, criticizing, or accusing Kerry, Edwards, or Democrats results in 421 hits.

Meanwhile an equal and opposite search of news items reporting on Kerry, Edwards, or Democrats bashing, ripping, attacking, berating, belittling, criticizing, or accusing Bush, Cheney, or Republicans results in 1320 stories.

It's a good thing that Kerry has delayed his decision to absolutely take his gloves off until just now. Otherwise we might have already been subjected to a endless cacophony of bitter leftist invective.

Officer Remembers Bush as "Gadget Geek"

Allegations swirl that newly found National Guard documents are actually forgeries written using Microsoft Word. Meanwhile, even more potentially damaging testimony surfaces:

Sgt Michael York, quartermaster of the PX while Bush served in the Air National Guard, distinctly recalls a conversation he had with the young George W. Bush in the store one chilly January morning in 1972.

He says that Bush had just heard about this man named Al Gore and his invention of "the Internet." He foresaw great things and was on his way to Alabama to start a "blog" for the Republican National Committee.

"He was frantic about locating an iPod before his trip," says York. "He specifically asked about the G3 models. The one that holds over 1,000 hours of digital music."

"He didn't look to disappointed when I told him that the RIAA wouldn't allow the base to sell them. He just hopped on his Segway in search of the nearest Fry's Electronics. He was quite the gadget geek," York quips.

Consider it Brought

This article is so rich, I don't even know where to start!

Democrat John Kerry on Friday dismissed the Republican convention as "bitter and insulting" and promised to be a president who would tell Americans the truth.

I can only imagine how comparing Bush to Hitler is somehow acceptable, but highlighting Kerry's abysmal 20 year Senate record is bitter and insulting.

It's a long journey ahead for Kerry. He claims he'll be a president that will tell the truth. Hopefully, we'll never find out, but it is humorous as it sounds he'll start to tell the truth only after he's elected. It sounds a lot like his Secret War Plan (he allegedly has diplomatic "chips to play," but only if he becomes president will he reveal the leverage he alleges).

Surely, rational individuals would agree: If you testify to personal, first-hand knowledge of something and talk about it for 20 years only to change your tune when you run for president (when, suddenly, people care what you think), it's not nuance. No matter what the definition of is is, it's called lying.

He listed some of Bush's reasons for the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq -- weapons of mass destruction and connections to al Qaeda -- and added after each: "That wasn't true."

Kerry mis-characterizes the evidence again. Never mind the fact that Kerry himself has been quoted numerous times saying that Sadaam had WDM. He did vote for the war (but not funding it). According to the 9/11 Commission, there was substantial evidence proving al Qaeda and Sadaam Hussein connections (they did however say Iraq's involvement in 9/11 was unlikely).

The article further states:

[Kerry] would not allow President Bush or others to question his fitness for the White House.

Is this whiny elitist snob the same photo-op-jock-strap-buyin', wind-surfing, bike-ridin', medal-totin' (or was it ribbon-throwing, I forget), tough-guy that told Bush to BRING IT ON?