Free Republic

Sales of Bud Light fell yet again over the Fourth of July holiday period as the Anheuser-Busch brand lost more ground to rivals Modelo Especial, Coors Light and Miller Lite. The latest figures show sales of Bud Light dropping 23.6% in the one-week period ending on July 8 compared to the same period last year, according to Nielsen IQ data provided by Bump Williams Consulting. Meanwhile, Coors Light saw its sales numbers soar 30.2% while Miller Lite’s sales jumped 25.3% during the week ending July 8. Sales of Modelo Especial — which is quickly closing in on Bud Light’s two-decade...

<p>Conservative voters don't like Mitt Romney because he seems insufficiently committed to their ideals, but reporters like that he offers them an opportunity to play psychologist. Bow-tie-wearing conservative columnist George Will is so outraged that Romney is a "recidivist reviser of his principles" that he's moved to write in all caps in his next column.</p>

It was certainly regrettable what the media did to Sarah Palin -- attacking her unwed pregnant teen daughter, smearing her for non-existent ties to a secession movement, looking under every rock in Alaska for dirt on her. Much of it was inexcusable, but explainable, perhaps, by the fact that she is running for vice president. Joe the plumber, though, isn't running for anything. He hasn't been elected or appointed to anything. All he did was ask presidential candidate Barack Obama a simple question: If I buy this plumbing company, will you tax me more? When his question made the rounds,...

GILBERT, Ariz. -- Blood tests show former Chicago Bears defensive tackle Tank Johnson's blood alcohol level was below the legal limit when he was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving June 22, police said Monday. Johnson's blood alcohol level was .072, under the presumptive limit in Arizona of .08 percent, Gilbert police Sgt. Andrew Duncan said. Under Arizona law, Johnson could still face a charge for "impairment to the slightest degree." The state has separate charges for blood alcohol levels of .08 or higher and .15 or higher. The "slightest degree" charge usually accompanies the other charges, but the state...

Rep. Patrick Kennedy (news, bio, voting record) crashed his car near the Capitol early Thursday, and a police official said he appeared intoxicated. Kennedy said he had taken sleep medication and a prescription anti-nausea drug that can cause drowsiness. Kennedy, D-R.I., addressed the issue after a spate of news reports. His initial statement said: "I consumed no alcohol prior to the incident."'Later, however, he issued a longer statement saying the attending physician for Congress had prescribed Phenergan on Tuesday to treat Kennedy's gastroenteritis.Kennedy said he returned to his Capitol Hill home on Wednesday evening after a final series of votes...

Slate's Democratic Debate Drinking Game Get drunk on political discourse! By June Thomas Posted Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2003, at 10:08 AM PT This Thursday evening, the nine remaining candidates for the Democratic presidential nomination will meet in Phoenix for the fourth debate of the year. If these events have started to blend together, why not grab a bottle or two of your favorite tipple and bring on the blurriness by playing Slate's debate drinking game. Cheers! Take one drink if: A candidate mentions an ordinary American by name A candidate mentions Bill Clinton A candidate mentions John Ashcroft A candidate...

World stock markets have racked up a third consecutive year of losses, making the current share price slump one of the longest on record. The decline reflects sluggish economic growth, weak corporate profits, a spate of accounting scandals in the US, and fears over war in Iraq. With no obvious trigger for a recovery in sight, the slump is now drawing comparisons with previous traumatic share price collapses such as the 1929 crash or the financial meltdown that followed the oil price shock of 1973-74. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones index of blue-chip US shares - which sets the...