A bid to torch the credibility of Texas Gov. George W. Bush backfired badly, sending the person making the allegations up in flames instead. James Hatfield wrote Fortunate Son: George W. Bush and the Making of an American President, a book that alleges that Bush was arrested for cocaine use. However, it appears Hatfield is the one with a felonious past. Hatfield's name is identical to that of an ex-con who served five years in Texas for a murder-for-hire scheme. Hatfield insists it's a case of mistaken identity and serves up a different middle name as proof, but his bio describes a life very similar to the felon's. The convict's parole officer told the Dallas Morning News, "Doesn't it sound a little bit weird to you that all of a sudden, the guy that's accusing potentially the next president of the United States of having his record expunged, all of the sudden miraculously has a record himself in the state of Texas?Ventura Body Slams Those Pesky Local Reporters
Pity the lonely Minnesota political reporter. Governor Jesse Ventura, who graces the cover of the Oct. 11 Newsweek, and recently gave Playboy a lengthy interview, has a preference for national coverage, thank you. While his press secretary, John Wodelle tried to make nice with the locals, Ventura told the Star Tribune that its reporters treat him with "no respect" and are "nothing but political hacks for whatever party or philosophy they belong to." Pressed into firefighter duty yet again, Wodelle volunteered that former professional wrestler Ventura was paid to "stir the pot" and come off as a "provocateaur" in his past life. Gopher State political reporters aren't overly concerned about that -- all they want is access. State capitol reporter Rochelle Olson says Ventura complains that the local press gives little attention to policy matters, yet when Ventura was asked about agriculture he instructed a reporter to "get a glass of milk."
The Land of 10,000 Lakes, a.k.a. Caravanland
Minnesota has the entire nation beat for minivan ownership. There is one minivan for every 10.92 licensed drivers, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Owners of sport-utility vehicles tend to gravitate to the Midwest, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Wisconsin, Indiana and Michigan all share a love for the minivan. Wyoming, by the way, is the state where pickups are king. That state has one pickup for every two licensed driver. The national average is one pickup per five drivers.
Dropping a Bomb in Los Alamos
Which is worse: Being the worst vacation spot, or the runner-up? Or is the greater sin using erroneous information to make those designations? Ask the citizens of Los Alamos, New Mexico, because they were listed alongside Chernobyl, Ukraine as runner up for the worst place for a family vacation. The list, created by The Wall Street Journal also named a park in South Africa where tourists have been attacked by wild lions. The Journal didn't think tourists would be enamored of Los Alamos' nuclear test sites or its National Atomic Museum. The paper was right, sort of. Los Alamos just might kindly inform the Journal that neither the museum nor nuclear test sites exist in Los Alamos. Maybe Los Alamos will start pointing out the most geographically challenged newspapers . . .
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