Benny Hill - Complete & Unadulterated, The Naughty Early Years Set One - I've always been a Benny fan and I'm hoping that this set will be the start of something great. This set, Season One (which spans over 3 years) has 11 episodes over 3 DVDs. I broke my rule about buying DVDs - "spend no more than $8 / DVD" - and paid $33 but I'm happy. It's nice to see Benny again. For those of you unfamiliar with Benny Hill, he's a classic British comedian not as cerebral as Monty Python but still full of wit - a quality rather lacking in American humor. Yes, he's bawdy but not over-your-head-repeatedly-until-your-nose-bleeds bawdy and never blatantly crude. His shows are - were - variety so each episode has a mix of comedy sketches and music, sort of like the format of the Carol Burnett show. What's funny is the portrayals of Americans. We're repeatedly seen as a bunch of cowboy galoots, like we'd have a cowboy as President... Although this early collection is rather tame with the nudity I can't wait for the later years that should have more "exposure".

Flogging Molly - Within A Mile Of Home - I will break my rule about buying CDs - "spend no more than $6 / cd" - and spend $10. It's Flogging Molly - currently the greatest band around (literally and figuratively)! And I'll get it sight unseen - that's how confidant I am about it being another great album. If it isn't, well, the Internet's an unforgiving place to post a review... I went to Circuit City and, despite all their ads saying the CD would be out on the 14th, they didn't have it. Anywhere. Not on the shelves, not in their computer, not on their "New Releases" listing. I'll go to Best Buy Thursday - their web site says they have it and for a buck cheaper.

Chris Sawyer's Locomotion - Chris Sawyer is a Game Program Stud. I liked his Transport Tycoon (of which this is a re-do and upgrade) and Rollercoaster Tycoon is legendary. I just got the game but am waiting for a No-CD patch to appear on Game Copy World. Pretty much any game that requires a CD in the drive to play gets deleted from the hard drive, which is why I find "No-CD" patches a vital part of my game buying strategy. When you have young, computer savvy kids, accidents with CDs will happen. For example, my youngest managed to get 2 CDs in the drive - unhappy drive. Anyway. Locomotion looks like a nice game and for $30 (or $20 on sale) it's not a wallet-buster.

The Sims 2 - I plan to get this mostly for the hereditary and aging additions but I'm waiting for the price to dip below $40. Nice that there's a DVD version as well.

And awaiting Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 - Yummy, first-person view and a sandbox mode. Hopefully, it won't be misssing a lot of rides and themes that - surprise! - will show up in add-on packs. Heck, RCT3 should have all the rides and themes present in RCT2 and then some. We'll see.

Meanwhile if you'd like a good freeware puzzle game try Fish Fillets. My whole family enjoys solving the puzzles together.

As Others Have Noted
Bush is campaigning on a platform of change (and compassion but more on that later) which means he's campaigning against his own [failed] policies. After all, Bush has been President for four years and if things aren't right under his Administration now then he's not qualified for another four years. He can only blame Clinton for so much and milk 9/11 for so long. In four years Bush has demonstrated that as a President he's..well.. awful. He relies on instinct, not brains and analysis, and frankly his instinct is off. He flipflops more than hooked rainbow trout. He can barely orate and if he's missing his script, we get another Bushism. His entire campaign focuses on how unyielding he's been on terrorism. Well, he has been unyielding and utterly ineffective. Unyielding doesn't mean effective, remember that.

As for compassion, what is Bush doing about Sudan? Or any place in the World where people are suffering? That's the reason du jour for the invasion of Iraq - we went in to remove an oppressor. Well, Mr. Compassion, shouldn't you remove all oppressors? And will you remove yourself when all our Freedoms and Liberties are usurped?

What is Colin Powell up to? He slyly slams draft-dodgers (Clinton, Bush, Cheney), decrys Cheney's "Vote for Kerry, Vote for Terrorism" implication, laments the deaths in Sudan. Is he playing Politics, playing both sides? Here's a thought for 2008: McCain and Powell as the Republican ticket. That'd be tough to beat. But a little aggaravation on my rear tells me that for 2008 it'll be Jeb Bush. Eeeeehewwww. What if Kitty Kelley is right about the Bush's being a little powerhungry...