Thursday Open Comments
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82 responses to “Thursday Open Comments”
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Hump Day!
Mornin’ Gang -
Rubio camp accuses Cruz of ‘dirty tricks’ over Hawaii ‘dropout’ email.
We know the little guy is walking on thin ice, but you have to wonder what the power brokers, IE $$$, are telling him, have they cut him off yet, or are they waiting for him to lose big in Florida? -
Early bird gets the worm
Second rat gets the cheese
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A thorough repudiation of the (un-)Affordable Care Act comes from, of all places, state-run National Public Radio. Timed to be buried by Super Tuesday coverage, NPR this week released a new study that indicates that Obamacare has failed on almost all levels.
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I meant to post this column by David Gelernter earlier. He’s one of the brightest, most intelligent people in this country and his take on the 2016 Republican campaign is dead on.
Donald Trump is succeeding, we’re told, because he appeals to angry voters — but that’s obvious; tell me more. Why are they angry, and how does he appeal to them? In 2016, Americans want to vote for a person and not a white paper. If you care about America’s fate under Obama, naturally you are angry; voters should distrust a candidate who is not angry.
and,
But the analysts have it exactly backward. Political correctness is the biggest issue facing America today. Even Trump has just barely faced up to it. The ironic name disguises the real nature of this force, which ought to be called invasive leftism or thought-police liberalism or metastasized progressivism.
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The appetizer…Daily Caller
The Washington Post is reporting that the Department of Justice granted immunity to Bryan Pagliano in exchange for his cooperation with the FBI’s investigation into whether classified information was mishandled on Clinton’s private email server.
The entree…Washington Examiner
Attorney General Loretta Lynch indicated Wednesday that the law doesn’t require the Justice Department to pursue criminal charges against Hillary Clinton for her use of a private email system, even if the FBI recommends criminal charges.
Lynch was asked in a hearing by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, what her department would do if the FBI were to recommend that step. “If the FBI were to make a referral to the Department of Justice to pursue a case by way of indictment and to convene a grand jury for that purpose, the Department of Justice is not required by law to do so, are they — are you?” Cornyn asked.
And the rich dessert…
The aggressive posture of the FBI under Director James Comey is becoming a political problem for the White House.
“He takes very seriously the fact that he works for the executive branch,” added Leo Taddeo, a former agent in the FBI’s cyber division. “But he also understands the importance of maintaining his independence as a law enforcement agency that needs to give not just the appearance of independence but the reality of it.”
The split over Clinton’s email server is the most politically charged issue facing the FBI, with nothing less than the race for the White House potentially at stake.
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I mentioned a young guy who works for us was out sick. Turns out he had typhus. Took the docs a while to figure that out. I guess they did not expect that disease to turn up here. He was certain he only missed one week. Took the time sheets to convince him he was out of it for two weeks.
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From Texpat’s #5
Worst of all its crimes is what invasive leftism has done to our schools. Trump’s unprivileged, unclassy supporters understand that their children are filled full of leftist bile every day at school and college. These parents don’t always have the time or energy to set their children straight. But they are not stupid. They know what is going on.
Isn’t that the truth! I am truly close to the breaking point at my children’s ignorance of American history. I am trying to figure out the best way to rectify that.
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Good morning Hamsters. Enough rain through the night to leave 3.5″ in the gauge and puddles over the driveway into the front yard. A few big ones are still visible in the back pasture, but they will soak in fast. A brief interlude allowed some peaceful rest before 6 and enough time to feed the horses and get breakfast before the next batch of storms moved in. It’s been quite a while since lightning and thunder visited our neighborhood.
#5 Texpat
Slam dunk article on PC and so right that Ted ought to mount a jihad against it, now.
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The city of South Portland, where the pipeline ends, has banned the export of oil through the city because of environmental concerns. Environmentalists say tar sands oil has greater greenhouse gas emissions and is more corrosive so it could leak from the pipeline.
I just love ignorant statements especially the part I bolded. It’s not like the pipeline would not be thoroughly inspected and tested before being put back into service.
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I predict this article in The Hill is the first, as the conventions loom, in a new series fed by the DNC and White House to undermine FBI Director Comey and portray him as a renegade problem.
I thought exactly the same thing when I read that. His suspension will come as a result of the iPhone thing and will have absolutely nothing to do with Hillary Clinton.
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Texpat says:
MARCH 9, 2016 AT 9:24 PMI don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m pretty sick and damned tired of gazing at that old hangdog, depressing face of Angela Merkel.
Gazing at? Man I do not even give her a glance. It might help if you take her poster down from the ceiling over your bed.
But just for you here is Angie Baby in her younger days.
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#8 TexMo
Go to Amazon books and order:
Rush Revere and the Brave Pilgrims, Rush Revere and the American Revolution, Rush Revere and the First Patriots.They are written by Rush Limbaugh (one written with his wife Kathryn) and designed for children, but the history within is accurate and revealing to those brainwashed by the PC garbage and downright lies spread by the lefties in education at every level. Eye-opening information for adults who have wandered in the desert of ignorance if they’re victims of public or private education later than the ’60s.
The most recent book, which I don’t have yet, is on the American flag. All four of the books have been at the top of best sellers lists, much to the chagrin of the New York Times.
In the Brave Pilgrims you will learn how Governor William Bradford of the Plymouth Colony discovered that Socialism didn’t work (long before Marx) and threw out the Mayflower Compact in favor of private property, not communal property, and individual effort for self advancement. Lots of good reading for adults in books designed for children.
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#12 Squawk
That’s Angela in her East Germany days.
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I know Miss Adee. 🙂
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A dreary morning, fellow Hamsters. Hubs had a hard time just getting the trash and recycling bins loaded up and rolled down the driveway this morning. Definitely a morning for me to love being old and retired, not having to drive anywhere today.
Be careful out there, those who do have to be out in it. There are plenty of areas with flood warnings.
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Onward into the 21st Century !
Emine Erdogan was addressing a Wednesday event on Ottoman sultans in Ankara when she lavished praise on the sultan’s institutional concubines.
“The harem was a school for members of the Ottoman dynasty and an educational establishment for preparing women for life,” she said, according to Turkish TV broadcasts and reports in domestic newspapers including Hurriyet.
The term “harem” has long been associated with polygamy and concubines; though during the Ottoman period it was an institution with very strict, detailed rules, which even the sultan adhered to. Each woman was educated in whichever discipline she showed the most promise – for example calligraphy, decorative arts, music or foreign languages.
Of course, they had to be kept busy in between rolls in the hay with the Sultan. Otherwise, you would have had a riot among terminally bored young women.
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I’ve made my share of mistakes, but I don’t think I’ve davilared anything.
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I’m thinking about planning my annual tour of Texas bluebonnets. Typically I’ll run up to Dallas, take the back roads thru east Texas to Lufkin, maybe on down to Houston, then back through Brenham and Austin and back home. So, timing is based on when the bluebonnets are out in full force. I noticed a few had popped out here the past couple of days, so my question to the group is – are the bluebonnets out everywhere yet? If so, where are they. I know where the big regular places are, but some of the places in the hill country on less traveled roads are always interesting.
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My uncle is a certified master photographer, and he had some of the most amazing photos of nature, including the bluebonnets. He paid us for some plumbing work with mounted images, when Hubby refused to take his money.
We didn’t realize he was famous in the photography world until Hubby went to fix a lavatory leak and there was a meeting going on. As he was leaving, he realized they were photographers, and he mentioned my uncle’s name. Their excited reaction told him just how important my uncle was in that realm.
It’s a shame he can’t do that work anymore.
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We got 3.3″ overnight, and it looks like it all soaked in. I was surprised by the amount of standing water I saw on the patio at 10 pm, under the runoff from the house and the breezeway — it was really pouring down.
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I’m pretty sure I was acquainted with Angela Merkel’s West German cousin in 1969. Sure looked like her.
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5.1 in our rain gauge.
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Hammie’s perfect future wife.
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19 ElGordo
Brenham area should start to peak in two weeks. -
If Hillary wins the White House, will she and Bill bring back all that stuff they looted when they left before? You know the O’s will probably strip all the copper wiring out of the walls and plumbing along with everything else (even if it is nailed down). Should the Rep’s be asked to sign an oath that they won’t steal everything in the White House when they leave?
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4.82538645 inches in the official Cut-N-Shoot rain gauge.
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5 3/4″ in Waller County at 6:30. Gage about to overflow
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Everyone having a dickens of a time getting to and fro in the Tomball/ Maggyville area. 2920 shut down, 1774 closed, most back roads at the creeks.
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I don’t know who shot up Senator John Whitmire’s office last night, but given his reputation and likability quotient, the list of suspects has to look like a phone book.
Does Dan Patrick have an alibi for his whereabouts last night ?
And as popular as he is in Washington County, where his ranch is located, they probably should look there, too.
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The last person to leave California should turn out the lights…
The parent company of Carl’s Jr., founded in Anaheim 60 years ago, is relocating its California headquarters to Nashville, Tenn.
Carpinteria-based CKE Restaurants, which also owns St. Louis-based Hardee’s, is consolidating both offices in Tennessee, where it has several company-owned restaurants. All senior executives, including Chief Executive Andrew F. Puzder will be moving to Nashville, Chief Marketing Officer Brad Haley said.
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#31
Hope they leave the commercials alone.
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If all the regular US citizens flee Kalifornia, leaving the Golden State to the illegals, where will Silicon Valley moguls and Hollywood bigwigs relocate to?
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Hope those Kalifornia immigrants leave their politics behind when they leave the state they’ve made such a mess of.
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#13 Adee
I’m almost certain my dad gave me a copy of Rush Revere and the First Patriots. I had forgotten all about it because I had intended to read it first and then give/encourage/brow beat my kids into reading it. I think I had it on my night table for weeks before it was “cleaned” up and moved to a bookshelf.
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#3 – Yep!!
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Just saw something funny on FB:
Q: “How do you starve a Bernie Sanders supporter?”
A: “Hide their food stamps underneath their work boots.”
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Dang, when I kill a blog, I kill a blog.
My condolences to all the casualties.
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So True: I do laugh at some of these:
Things Computers Can Do in Movies
1. Word processors never display a cursor.
2. You never have to use the space-bar when typing long sentences.
3. Movie characters never make typing mistakes.
4. All monitors display inch-high letters.
5. High-tech computers, such as those used by NASA, the CIA or some such governmental institution, will have easy to understand graphical interfaces.
6. Those that don’t have graphical interfaces will have incredibly powerful text-based command shells that can correctly understand and execute commands typed in plain English.
7. Note: Command line interfaces will give you access to any information you want by simply typing, “ACCESS THE SECRET FILES” on any near-by keyboard.
8. You can also infect a computer with a destructive virus by simply typing “UPLOAD VIRUS”. (See “Fortress”.)
9. All computers are connected. You can access the information on the villain’s desktop computer even if it’s turned off.
10. Powerful computers beep whenever you press a key or the screen changes. Some computers also slow down the output on the screen so that it doesn’t go faster than you can read. (Really advanced computers will also emulate the sound of a dot-matrix printer.)
11. All computer panels operate on thousands of volts and have explosive devices underneath their surface. Malfunctions are indicated by a bright flash of light, a puff of smoke, a shower of sparks and an explosion that causes you to jump backwards.
12. People typing on a computer can safely turn it off without saving the data.
13. A hacker is always able to break into the most sensitive computer in the world by guessing the secret password in two tries.
14. You may bypass “PERMISSION DENIED” message by using the “OVERRIDE” function. (See “Demolition Man”.)
15. Computers only take 2 seconds to boot up instead of the average minutes for desktop PCs and 30 minutes or more for larger systems that can run 24 hours, 365 days a year without a reset.
16. Complex calculations and loading of huge amounts of data will be accomplished in under three seconds. Movie modems usually appear to transmit data at the speed of two gigabytes per second.
17. When the power plant/missile site/main computer overheats, all control panels will explode shortly before the entire building will.
18. If you display a file on the screen and someone deletes the file, it also disappears from the screen (See “Clear and Present Danger”).
19. If a disk contains encrypted files, you are automatically asked for a password when you insert it.
20. Computers can interface with any other computer regardless of the manufacturer or galaxy where it originated. (See “Independence Day”.)
21. Computer disks will work on any computer has a floppy drive and all software is usable on any platforms.
22. The more high-tech the equipment, the more buttons it will have (See “Aliens”.)
23. Note: You must be highly trained to operate high-tech computers because the buttons have no labels except for the “SELF-DESTRUCT” button.
24. Most computers, no matter how small, have reality-defying three-dimensional active animation, photo-realistic graphics capabilities.
25. Laptops always have amazing real-time video phone capabilities and performance similar to a CRAY Supercomputer.
26. Whenever a character looks at a monitor, the image is so bright that it projects itself onto their face. (See “Alien” or “2001”)
27. Searches on the internet will always return what you are looking for no matter how vague your keywords are. (See “Mission Impossible”, Tom Cruise searches with keywords like “file” and “computer” and 3 results are returned.) [I *DO* laugh my butt off at these! “Criminal Minds” stretches incredulity, even if their computer maven is a talented hacker.] -
Some of these are good to know.
Especially the chocolate dipped thing. And I would have never thought of doggie treats, but I see where they could be important!
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I’ll talk to you Ms TT
#39The show ‘24‘ has the most amazing computers and gurus.
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Had to run 15 miles out of my way to get home, but it ain’t a thang when you know what creeks will be overflowing. Price you pay when you live in the land of the white privileged garbage man.
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#41 cont
Course this is supposed to be believable since it’s the gubment with unlimited resources when in reality we know gubment computers still have white monitors that weigh 180 lbs.
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Whatever happened to Bonecrusher?
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#44 GJT
That’s a very good question now that you mention it.
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I think he’s being held hostage somewhere in the woods tied up in a hammock.
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44 GJT
He didn’t like the place he was put in.
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I watched a movie in the wee hours of this morning that has to be in the top twenty worst movies of all time – Runaway (1984)
Tom Selleck plays a cop defending the city against runaway robots. Gene Simmons – yes, that Gene Simmons – as the bad guy….named Luther, of course. -
#47
That never stopped him before. 😀
I get it.
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I don’t know who shot up Senator John Whitmire’s office last night
Whitmire has inexplicably been inserting himself into the case of the cop killer Shannon Miles by pressuring the Health Department to fast track a mental ward bed for him. It’s pretty strange. There has to be a back story that hasn’t come out yet but it wouldn’t surprise me if that has something to do with his office getting shot up.
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The one thing that would push that movie to all-time worst would be if they had cast Chuck Norris in the lead.
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Boston – Health experts are calling for OSHA to regulate the fashion industry to prevent the hiring of models who are “dangerously underweight.”
Forbidding “Paris thin” models from working in fashion shows and photo shoots would help prevent serious health issues and even death, authors from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health wrote in an editorial published Dec. 21 in the American Journal of Public Health.
/WASS
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48
If you want to see it, I bet Phil has a copy…with Gene Simmons being in it and all. -
It’s time for some good news…this time from Foreign Policy’s Situation Report (Sitrep):
The Islamic State
An alleged defector from within the Islamic State has handed over a thumb drive to Sky News with what he claims are the names and registration files of 22,000 members of the terror group. The defector, Abu Hamed, had been a member of the Free Syrian Army but switched over to the Islamic State. After becoming disillusioned with the group, he stole the thumb drive with the biographical data from the group’s chief of internal security. The files detail the backgrounds of fighters based on a 23 question form, listing contact information and other demographic information.
Syrian news outlet Zaman al-Wasl appears to have received a similar leak of 1,736 Islamic State’s registration files, some of which it has published. Their data includes information gleaned from a similar 23 question form, which asks recruits basic questions about their identity, travel and professional history, and whether they wish to volunteer for suicide operations. According to Zaman al-Wasl, Turkish citizens make up the majority of ISIS foreign fighters in its registration form data set, followed by French citizens. Taken together, Saudi, Egyptian, Tunisian, and Moroccan citizens make up the bulk of the group’s membership, accounting for two thirds of those identified in the forms.
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#49 Public Service Announcement
Do Not Cross Squawkbox Noise.Over and out.
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#54 Texpat
How convenient that ISIS has adopted the meticulous recordkeeping of the Nazi Party. But then the progenitors of ISIS, The Muslim Brotherhood, were all in favor of Hitler’s ethnic cleansing. In fact they were his pals and supporters. Beautiful irony that the jihadi recruiting files fell into the hands of their targets.
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This early warm spell has brought out swarms of Japanese Beetles, aka June Bugs in the Midwest. They are plastered to windows, screens, walls, and floors outside the house anywhere lights shine through windows or yard lights are on. There’s a steady thump of kamikazi collisions with the house and scores of bodies littering the ground around doors and windows. Care where you walk is required to keep crunching them to a minimum and dragging pieces into the house. It’s a wonder very many of them survive to procreate.
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56 Adee
My thoughts precisely, Madame.
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#39 TT
Some of those are priceless!! -
We have one customer that is a branch of an international corporation. This branch was a customer before they were bought because of their d-gun powder coating process. Some 30 years ago. The locals have stayed with us. Dealing with them is an interesting insight to the corporate world. They were singing the blues and the employee lot had fewer cars every week. Now a plant is being closed in California and they are moving those operations here. The engineer I deal with said the Californians do not want to move here. I will do everything I can to get him to tell them they are right to stay home. This may amount to only 5-6 manager types and a few more machinists, but every little bit helps.
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Hey Brother Phil
You lurkin out there somewhere?
I found you a new picture for your desktop.
Cracked me up when I saw this one. 🙂
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50 Hamous
I’ve always been fascinated with Houston’s inclination towards bizarre, complex murder mysteries. From all the cases of Percy Foreman, Racehorse Haynes, the DeGuerin brothers and others, Houston has generated some of the most outrageous true crime episodes of any American city.
What if the crazed Shannon Miles had, by some twist of fate, chosen to shoot some other LEO instead of Darren Goforth and none of the incredibly tangled backstory had ever been revealed ? The mistress, the multiple investigator lovers, the compromised discovery…it’s almost unbelievable.
There was a former prosecutor from San Antonio who wrote a couple of novels about Houston murder mysteries he claimed were based on true, unsolved cases. I read several of his books. Wild stuff.
And the whole thing reminds me of HPD Detective Johnny Bonds and the Walt Waldhauser/River Oaks soap opera that I still have a hard time wrapping my head around. I read Bond’s book at least twice and was more blown away the second time than the first.
Probably the most riveting true crime book I ever read, including Joseph Wambaugh or Truman Capote.
The true story of the murders of several generations of a wealthy and seemingly happy family. Not only does a family member scheme to have his family killed for their money, but he gets away with it until the cops and a seasoned investigative reporter team up to solve the crime. This is a book that proves that truth is stranger than fiction. A priest turned forensic psychologist, who begins imitating the medical examiner in dress, the good cop who is losing his family to the pressures of the job, and a group of money-hungry, well dressed criminals willing to kill a whole family, including a sleeping child to get what they want.
Still available used on Amazon. New copies are worth $157 if you have one.
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How to survive animal attacks.
With a sense of humor.
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60 gtotracker
Back in the early 90s, an engineering consulting firm with about 70-80 employees pulled up stakes and moved to the Woodlands. They had secured several huge contracts with local O&G companies and were spending most of their time in Houston anyway.
The employees were angry and didn’t want to move to Texas so the owners chartered a commercial aircraft and flew them and their families to Houston. They rented a couple of luxury buses and drove them around to look at new homes in the Woodlands and Kingwood areas.
The employees were so stunned at what they could buy in Houston, most of them changed their minds. They were selling their houses in California and paying cash for homes in Texas twice as big just with the equity they made on the sale.
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Lol–Good find Brother Squawk.
The hair in the cartoon looks better than his own.
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Carson is endorsing Trump tomorrow.
I’m disappointed. I thought Carson had more class than that. Donald’s better than Hillary, but he just reminds of a carnival clown with a stick and a thin skin.
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I’ve been overcome by a fit of acute masochism – I’m watching the current Republican debate.
My take? Donald Trump literally cannot answer any question whatsoever without talking about “doing a deal”. One comes to the conclusion that he literally knows nothing, other than negotiating “a deal”. What does that even mean?
He doesn’t actually know anything himself, he just hires other people to do his work. And, he’s an egotistical braggart.
On a different note, it’s really funny to watch John Kasich try to sound like a tough guy on foreign policy.
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#66 Tedtam:
Apparently his price was a promise of an appointment as Surgeon General. He’s also still nursing a grudge against Cruz.
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Trump was talking about having Carson involved in education.
Cruz wants to dissolve federal involvement in schools and send it back to the states.
I like Cruz better.
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Looks like Cruz is getting into da Bushes.
Hope he doesn’t have to Neil down and pay a landscaping fee.
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In addition to revealing more about the mother-daughter team’s collaboration on the books, the letters explore Rose and Laura’s shared passionate views on politics: They despised Missouri Sen. Harry Truman, Roosevelt, and the New Deal while celebrating liberty, freedom, and a radical commitment to self-sufficiency.
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#64 Texpat, given the explosion of high end housing and oil market job loss in NW HC and Adee’s area of dwelling, I’d bet these imports will find deals they cannot resist. I’ll still lye like a rug if I can do anything to keep one of them home.
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Don’t have a copy of that movie Shannon.
It should’ve ended up on MST3K.
53 and 48. You talking to yourself?:-)
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Will Kasich ever stop bringing everything he did in the past? I’m waiting for him to claim walking on the moon soon.
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72 gto
Agreed.
The Austin area is positively rancid with these California morons. I was used to putting up with all my old, lefty, native Texan, aging regenerated hippie friends. They were few and harmless, but this new crowd is something else.
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71 Shannon
Great back story in American history. I stumbled across it a couple of years ago.
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Haha! Kasich just mentioned walking on the moon!
At least he didn’t claim he did it himself.
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#61 Squawks
Well the cartoonist did leave someone out. Trump slimed Carly Fiorina pretty bad. “That face”. -
Well, my review of the debate is as follows, bottom to top. Last place: tie between Ksick and Micro Rudio. Ksick could probably win the Dem primary if he were running in it, and Rudio could win at liars poker in Las Vegas. Actually, it’s sort of a shame to hear Rudio say all the right things but then do something else – I think he may be on speed or something when he starts talking real fast like the Dems on TV do. Trump had no answers for anything – his bluster is about to wear out, and if anyone watching paid attention to what he said, they had to be disappointed. Cruz won the night on both style and substance – I hope that it’s not too little too late. I think a sleeper in the deal is the fact that Trump does have significant business interests in Florida which might swing a few voters his way. I’d love to see Cruz win Florida – wow, what an upset that would be. Ksick will probably win the out of work rust belt Buckeye state which he thinks will give him a negotiating tool at the covention and buy him a cabinet slot if not VP.
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53 and 48. You talking to yourself?
All the time. Doesn’t everyone?
/shuffling away, mumbling
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I don’t know which one of you yobos gave Ksick my email address.
But pay back is hell.
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