Passionate "Price"

The responses on my Price Is Right appearance have been running about 50-50 for and against me, and now that the dust has settled, I can see the aftermath of this whole mess.

1) I should have disclosed my relationship with a CBS affiliate up front, semantical loophole or not. It doesn't matter to many of you that I disclosed it in the end and forfeited $2500 over what is arguably an honest difference of interpretation in the rules.

2) I do not believe I deprived somebody of a chance to win or "took their spot." What about the dozens of people who aren't chosen every day? What about the people who win their way onto stage and lose because they don't understand the pricing games or can't play them very well? You can argue THEY robbed a better player of a chance. Do we need a contestant exam for "Price" now? I'm sure none of you want that.

3) The level of vitriol directed at me over this has been astounding. People have taken a nit and blown it into a gadfly. The fashion police also have a warrant for my arrest because I wore shorts. One person on another message board who described himself as a former newsroom manager said, "with that outfit the guy had on, he looked more like he'd be a cameraman than middle-management! Tack-AY!" (Actually my legs look better in stockings and knee breeches... or a kilt... but that's another story.)

To those who offered supportive and constructive words, thank you. Let us keep some perspective. This is a GAME SHOW here, and just one show out of thousands of tapings. Passion is wonderful, but lets be passionate about the right kinds of things. War, the environment, diminishing liberties, rising violence, incivility and a host of other things are worth our passion, but I doubt a game show contestant -- who ultimately got nothing whether he deserved it or not -- is worth it.

FrancisPage has gotten more than 1,000 hits in the past week because of my game-show antics, much more so than the story of MSgt. Bradley Behling and his battle with PODS to get just compensation for the sale of all his stuff while he was serving in Iraq, a story few others knew or cared about.

Now, if MSgt. Behling had been on Price...