Wednesday Open Comments
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Good morning.
I’m kinda surprised at the dearth of government shutdown sob stories.
I guess they’re too busy reporting on the President killing Guatemalan children.
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Well even if Stevie Wonder didn’t play Atari – He darn sure designed the cut up interior layout of H.E.B. stores!! 🙂
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Good morning the Day After Christmas, Hamsters
Well celebrating, feasting, gift opening, and resting from yesterday should have kept everyone out of serious trouble, one can hope. Now it’s back to the real world of December 26th and some time to plan the looming New Year’s Eve activity such as it may be. And of course there are the leftovers from the dinner to be managed today and perhaps tomorrow.
Of concern according to the weather wizards is the next front scheduled to arrive in the wee hours tomorrow after today’s predicted rain or drizzle. It is to be a strong one with T-storms and wind with possibly 4″ in scattered areas. This could very much impact travel home for those who went elsewhere and is worth considering.
Be safe out there. -
#1 Shannon
Perhaps it indicates the press is finally noticing that a whole lot of Americans are with President Trump on border security and that wall. The more the press/commentators whine about it and insult those who are for it, the faster their readership/viewership tanks. And the faster they alienate even more folk.
Guess the learning curve is intertwined with their pocketbooks.
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Drag some poor child across 1500 miles under the worst conditions and these idiots are surprised a couple of them get sick and die.
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Good morning, all.
The gastric hangover is still going on. I will have my coffee this morning, but today may be a good day to fast.
My tummy feels like one of those highway construction areas with the cones that take things down to one lane.
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The only proper thing for us to have done was to provide a mobile hospital for their entire trip.
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Hubby thought he gave me the best Christmas present ever by telling me, on Christmas Eve, that he thought the neighbors had left. This is the junky neighbor house with the vicious dog that gets loose; the place where the dogs are left tied up without love, care, food on short leashes for days on end. I see a teenage boy occasionally come out and practice something that looks like roundhouse kicks and martial arts moves. He has some kind of ball tied up in a grocery bag, hanging from a support that he punches. While he can be fun to watch during his five minute workouts, I do give the kid props for at least getting off the couch. There’s now an abandoned vehicle on the property.
Hubby came home Christmas Eve and announced “The dogs are gone, all the kid’s workout crap is gone. I don’t think there’s been power on over there is weeks. I think they’re gone!” I did my happy dance.
Short lived. The dogs are back and the people are gone again.
If I didn’t think I’d have to deal with the vicious dog being loose, I’d report them for animal abuse. Again. Unfortunately, their way of dealing with citations is simply to cut the dogs loose and let them roam. With the friendly labs, that would have been preferable to the life they were living on their 8′ leashes. These dogs….I’d have a real worry for my safety and the safety of my guests.
Sucks.
Hubby mentioned something about seeing if they were behind on their taxes so we might look into making an offer for the property. I looked them up, and the taxes are incredibly low. It seems they are claiming the owner of the property is the elderly lady we haven’t seen in years. We think she’s dead; they probably haven’t changed official ownership of the property to keep the taxes low. Wouldn’t surprise me.
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#7 Shannon
Yup, and today’s Chron is heavy on innuendo in a front page above the fold, anonymous—as in Chronicle Wire Services—screed, “2nd child dies at border”.
Somehow I can’t believe this thing is an orphan left at its doorstep in a basket. -
8
There should be a way for you to make an anonymous offer through an intermediary. Just lowball it and cross your fingers. -
Happy Boxing Day!
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When all you critics stop putting out your hummingbird feeders and your bird-seed holders…
All those feral cats gotta eat something, right?
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Where’s Wall Dough?
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Morning, y’all. #13. Here ya go, phil.
No, I don’t understand it either.
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#11
Boxing Day, you say? -
#14
The funding for the wall is peanuts (amount) compared to the total budget? Yet some are worried about the amount? Someone’s gonna make money off it?
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Wow. Just got a math test. Good thing I’ve had my coffee…
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Tucker Carlson interviewed by the American Conservative Union.
https://www.c-span.org/video/?452882-1/after-words-tucker-carlson
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I’m trying to figure out how to turn that off.
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No more 2nd grade arithmetic required.
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Just barely had gotten up when contractors began rolling up on all sides. Never got my proper cup of coffee. Y’all pray for me.
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Just barely had gotten up when contractors began rolling up on all sides.
You don’t seem to understand how this works.
You are powerless. You now must get in the truck and go hang out at Denny’s for a while. Then catch a movie or two. Then head for the bar until 4pm.
Have fun.
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Bar sounds good. 😀
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I just requested our business number for the plumbing company be shut down. Over the years, that landline number has been used less and less. Hubby’s regular customers had all acquired his personal cell number and were using it, anyway. Earlier this year we requested the City change our official contact number,and sent out notices to our vendors and business associates to make the change.
It’s like the end of an era. That was the business number that Hubby first used when he hung his shingle out in 1990. But keeping that number was costing us $80/month.
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I guess everyone waited until today to go home.
Traffic on I-10 at the Brazos is extremely heavy – in both directions.
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We are keeping our fax number, however. We went to an online service that costs us about $5/month. The city went to an email service to deliver our work orders and most of our business is done via email now, but every now and then, we need to fax something or receive a fax.
And all those junk dealers need a place to send their ads.
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No more standing in line for permits?
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God has anointed me Destroyer of Faxes. It is my destiny to rid this mortal coil of that pernicious technology of the ’60s. All faxes must die!
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#27 Shannon
No more standing in line for permits?
You are sooooo funny!
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Mornin‘ Afternoon Gang
I got up and went hunting this morning and when I got back, my sister came up to the house with some hybrid, dry smoked bacon for breakfast. It’s grown locally and the pork is a cross between a Russian Boar and some sort of Scandinavian pig. Dayaam, it was good, very lean and smoky. She made some grits and popped some Kelly’s frozen biscuits into the oven while I scrambled up some of her free range eggs. When I say free range, I mean it, Every afternoon she turns the hens loose in the field beside the house and the have a time. She has no trouble rounding them up because they’re almost like pets.
We’re having our Christmas today since the boy and his bride are arriving this afternoon with the munchkins. We got our Charley Brown tree yesterday and my wife finished wrapping all the presents. Now she is off to Panama City Beach Airport to pick them up.
Yup, Life Is Good. -
Our father acquired some of the first fax machines in Houston for his small chain of pharmacies. At his headquarters store, he set up a separate wholesale drug company that bought in large bulk and then repackaged pills into smaller amounts to be sold to his retail locations. The wholesale operation was a breakeven deal, but it allowed his stores to be very competitive on price with the larger chains.
Each evening, the individual stores would write up their orders and fax them to the wholesale outfit and they would fill the orders. He had a series of vans including a couple of VW buses over the years that would make the daily deliveries to each of the seven stores.
These fax machines were big and clunky – 6 minutes per page. And you couldn’t buy them. They were only available on lease.
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1949 GMC FC253 Pickup w/9′ bed.
Bob Dyck’s ’49 GMC 1 ton rests in the back 40 in Vassar KS on a winter day.
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These guys are very good and worth following: Security Studies Group
Entire classes of Washington fixtures including media outlets and think tanks have been unable or unwilling to address and communicate the most basic requirements of American nationhood, our security and sovereignty. While this Beltway ‘ruling class’ is being swept away, there remains the urgent need for a replacement infrastructure – new forums to debate and educate on the most pressing national security issues.
SSG focuses on defending the value of American power against the true threats we face. Both the legislative and executive branches need rapid access to concise and factual data to inform strategic re-orientation in counterterrorism and national security policy. That’s what Security Studies Group is all about.
This is one helluva an expose on the whole Jamal Khashoggi affair and the Turkey/Qatar/Muslim Brotherhood/Al Jazeera conspiracy to poison the new US/Saudi Arabian alliance engineered by Trump.
By the end of the first week of October 2018, when the disappearance of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi set off a global media firestorm, these voices, including many that were prominent in American media, were primed to take advantage—and revenge. Faced with a common enemy, members of the media and policy community who comprised the “echo chamber” that spun and amplified the positions of the Obama administration soon found themselves aligned with a sophisticated Turkish and Qatari information operation to target the US-Saudi alliance.
and,
Over the course of the next hours and days, SSG generated several research products, including backgrounders, articles and interviews that punctured the narrative by linking Khashoggi to the Muslim Brotherhood and other extremist Islamist groups. We had opened the narrative space in the debate for questioning and thoughtfully assessing Khashoggi’s Islamist background and sympathies. SSG Sr. Fellow Matt Brodsky published the first widely-distributed article about the late columnist’s Brotherhood connections, “Why is the Media Ignoring the Most Glaring Questions about Jamal Khashoggi?” at the Spectator. Using our research, soon other allies felt emboldened enough to publish aggressive push-backs on the unwarranted praise for Khashoggi in the mainstream media.
I knew this Khashoggi incident was about a lot more than a “journalist” being kidnapped and murdered and would blow up into a huge international scandal. Nothing is ever as simple as it appears in the Middle East.
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Y’all watch your bank accounts. We just found a payment that cleared an account in our name, but it was Handsome Son’s name on the payment record. Gotta go to the bank and file an affidavit this afternoon. HS & LDIL said they didn’t order anything from this company. LDIL said that her credit card on Netflix was charged 4x, in varying amounts.
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Speaking of fax, I was trying to remember the name of that other ancient technology that required a separate phone line. All big businesses had it up until about 1990. And since google is my friend, I found it: Telex.
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Yeah, why doesn’t the FBI videotape all interviews in investigations ?
The FBI often conducts interviews of persons. Rather than videotape these interviews, the FBI assigns an agent to take notes of the interview. Then, if the FBI believes that an interviewee has lied during the interview, he or she can be prosecuted for false statements to the government. The penalty for this is quite serious. Under 18 U.S.C. 1001, making a false statement to the federal government in any matter within its jurisdiction is subject to a penalty of 5 years imprisonment. That is a long time.
How does the FBI prove the false statement? One might think that they would make a videotape of the interview, which would provide the best evidence of whether the interviewee made a false statement. But if one thought this, one would be wrong, very wrong.
The FBI does not make videotapes of interviews. Apparently, there are FBI guidelines that prohibit recordings of interviews. Instead, the FBI has a second agent listen to the interview and take notes on it. Then, the agent files a form—a 302 form—with his or her notes from the interview.
What is going on here? Why would the FBI prohibit videotaping the interviews and instead rely on summaries? The most obvious explanations do not cast a favorable light on the Bureau. If they don’t tape the interview, then the FBI agents can provide their own interpretation of what was said to argue that the interviewee made a false statement. Since the FBI agent is likely to be believed more than the defendant (assuming he even testifies), this provides an advantage to the FBI. By contrast, if there is a videotape, the judge and jury can decide for themselves.
and the always excellent law professor Michael Rappaport ends his article this way,
That is outrageous. This aspect of the FBI—which does not mainly involve politics—needs to be reformed. It is corrupt and pernicious.
I’m not holding my breath. In the meantime, don’t expect me to respect an organization that behaves in this way.
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Raining hard in the barrio
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Daughter reported hail in Midland about 1:30 PM, she texted a radar map showing a hellacious front coming through. Sunny and warm here in SE Alabama, but that is going to change tonight, rain and warming up to the low 70’s.
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God has anointed me Destroyer of Faxes.
I am become Email the destroyer of faxes.
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Re some of Tedtam’s comments and others. We have had the same phone # since 1954, given you now have to dial the area code. The phone company wants to take away our copper and connect us over our internet. We will still have the same number. Municipal work is still bid by fax, so we still use that. We get some prices by email from vendors but the subcontractor bids go to the GCs by fax. I don’t quote much municipal work anymore but the process has not changed. Usually fax a scope of work so they know what we are covering/excluding. Then a phone call to adjust a final price shortly before the deadline. Can’t give those guys time to bid shop. We only turn on the fax machine to send out a bid, though, unless I fax out from the computer at home. Otherwise nothing but junk comes in. Our fax line ends with -1987, the year we got it.
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I don’t know how the faxes come out at the other end, but they do. Still get the acknowledgement confirmation.
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If anybody wants to look at public work you can sign up at civcastusa.com for free. Not that anybody may want to but you can see what the low bidder at the proposed school,water plant, etc was at bid closing.
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I had to buy a couple of cheap umbrellas.
Took a gander at the tag which I had to cut off of them. Among other things was this:
WARNING: CANCER AND REPRODUCTIVE HARM. http://WWW.P65WARNINGS.CA.GOV
On an umbrella, Gomer.
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Looking at the forecast, it’s seems we’ll be waking up at 3am to some fast moving storms.
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They had fresh pineapple at the store for 98 cents each.
Fabulous.
Best I’ve ever eaten. -
Johnson’s Baby powder had asbestos in it?
True or false?
Inconceivable.
I used it many time in lieu of underarm deodorant because underarm deodorant was rough on my nice work shirts.
The Hell?
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46 phil
One stupid jury damn near took the whole company down.Why aren’t the cemeteries running over with babies; victims of Johnson’s Baby Powder?
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-causes/talcum-powder-and-cancer.html
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If smactle shows up, fireworks are still legal in San Leon and we have safe places to set/launch them. The timer is gone and the image thingy as well.
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phil, unless you nicked the skin while shaving your armpits, a little bit of asbestos not likely to harm you there.
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#48
Goatsy, it’s called “back to normal!” -
My 51 is a duplicate of 48 but can’t delete an empty post. Sort of liked that.
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Alie vera extract and bracken fern are P65 substances.
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Happy New Year, wherever you are Smacktle.
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Make it non-empty and then delete it?
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Evening gang. Just checking in. Been storming here in Big D most of the day, but that’s fine with me. I haven’t looked out lately to see if anyone is still alive what with the government shutdown and all, but I’ll mabe take a look in the next week or so. You all keep having a good one.
PS – My Dallas based BFF’s cats have sort of started accepting that I’m around. Does that mean I’ve been here too long?
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The breath of God himself is a carcinogen in California.
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55 ELG
Never trust them. Keep your door locked at night.
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Here we are awaiting the arrival of the predicted storms tonight sometime in the wee hours. The Old Farmer’s Almanac predicts a wet winter, and that is certainly happening. I believe it also expects colder than normal temps, but thus far our coldest have been two mornings at 28 degrees and a few at or below 32.
In anticipation of the Almanac being correct as usual and having lived through several nasty wet winters with horses to care for sheltered in the barn, we’ve been stocking up on essentials in advance of need. Got 20 bags of absorbent wood shavings for stall bedding on hand, as in wet winters there is restricted lumbering in the forests because it’s too wet and muddy at times to get in to the trees. No trees cut, no stall bedding produced as a wood byproduct. Importing such bedding from elsewhere gets expensive because of the shipping costs.
And currently there is a shortage of good horse hay owing to a wet fall around here, so the price per square bale is at least $11 here and in some places nudging $12. Shipping costs from elsewhere is the culprit. We get hay well in advance of need while it is available.
Fortunately the mares have some 5 acres of pasture that has good winter grass growing, though it’s not as bountiful as summer grasses. So they have plenty to eat during the days weather permits them being out. And the price of grain feed for senior horses has also inched up. Woe to anyone who has horses and hasn’t planned ahead.
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Adee, your story about being a prudent horse owner caused me to ponder that there are quite a few horses held in Acres Homes, a historically black section of north Houston. It is not uncommon to make the local news such as The Leader, weekly free neighborhood-oriented newspaper, when the occasional dead horse is found in that area. I follow (and support) a dog rescuer who specializes in Melrose Park, about the same latitude as Acres Homes but further east. The first time she found a dead horse, she contacted a regional horse rescue/support group and they arranged some horse feed handouts that would load up and deliver to selected locations where people have horses they can’t afford to feed. Seem to recall the horse support group was based in Sugar Land, but I can’t search in the Melrose page to retrieve that info.
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From now on it’s Bond.
Gold Bond. -
Taught Steve McQueen how to drive a Mustang.
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60
LOL -
The gun-slap scene.
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As I loaded the dishwasher, I heard Joe Walsh on his radio show talking about this story. Mayor of Portlandia has ended the mounted police program in that city — that’s Ok with me, cops on horses seems a bit bizarre nowadays — to be replaced with non-commissioned unarmed pretend-cops. Their job will be to respond to “non-violent” crimes like break-ins. A caller to the show said the Mayor was going to pass a new law against criminals being armed if they do a break-in. ‘Cause otherwise, this plan would not work at all.
The attached story sounds like the real cops will accept this plan only if the Public Safety Support Specialists are accompanied by a real cop with a gun anytime they leave the police station.
https://defensemaven.io/bluelivesmatter/news/portland-mayor-pushes-forward-plan-to-use-unarmed-officers-CmtM9EgBPkaOsxrSl_eykg/ -
Well, I just had some fun, trying to post #64 above.
I got this error message: Access Denied-Take off, Hoser
I appeared to be logged in Ok, but logged out and back in anyway. Seems normal now. -
As far as I know, cops on horseback aren’t some kind nostalgic hat tip to days gone by but a very effective form of crowd control.
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#66
Yabbut mounted police were a side issue. The main thing is the unarmed “cops” or PS-3s as they were being called in the radio discussion. -
Anyone one else ever get called a “hoser” on The Couch? Izzat something that an evil wizard with the keys to the Executive Head could put up just to harass me?
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Hoser: (n) Canadian hockey derogatory term that is similar to the American “idiot” or “loser”. It is derived from the pre-zamboni days, where the LOSING team would have to hose down the ice after the game.
Urban Dictionary
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Canadian not you are?
Eh? -
I wonder how Texanadian is doing these days.
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Besides freezing his butt off.
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#64 – HOW the HECK does some ignoramus get elected Mayor of A N Y T H I N G with this type of thinking?
going to pass a new law against criminals being armed if they do a break-in
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Izzat something that an evil wizard with the keys to the Executive Head could put up just to harass me?
Lol. That’s a little paranoid, don’t you think?
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About to turn in for the night, we’re anticipating some donner und blitzen to arrive during the wee hours with some amount of rain. Presumably it will wake us up. Expect Mariposa kitty to dive under the bed when it comes and not peek out until all the racket is long gone.
Batten down and stay dry.
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That’s quite a formidable line of thunderstorms currently rolling through the Austin area. Time to hunker down, Shannon.
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Cheez-It Bowl?
Need to play a Cheese Shop Bowl with John Cleese named as an honorary coach.
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Pull out Max’s thundershirt.
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76
Yep. Time to give Max a Benedryl soon. -
Storm was right on time, about 3:10am.
As it approached, the worst of it was over a hundred miles wide. But as it rolled over us the back side started breaking up. Probably be past here by 4:15.
Boomers headed your way. -
….This comes on at 4am:
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The back side of this thing is nastier than the front. Get on outta here!
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Not much thunder on our end, just lots of rain
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That storm seemed like it was all lightning last night when it rolled through the Austin area. It took me a long time to fall asleep.
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We had a power outage between ~2:30 and 3:30 am. I got up to call it in to Centerpoint. Had to walk through a very dark house to the kitchen where the flashlights are kept. I then dialed by flashlight, but they know the address from the landline I was calling from, and it was already reported. This morning, I had 2 email alerts from CP, one to tell me when the outage had started “affecting approximately 1241 customers”, the other to tell me when it had been corrected.
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I got my CoH water dept e-bill, for an astonishing $81 during a winter month. I was told when I called how to read my own meter, and went out to do it. After I got the cover off, i saw that the subsurface meter box is itself full of water. No way to know if it is rain from last night or a leak in the pipes. In my neighborhood, these boxes contain meters for 2 adjacent homes, and the neighbor had a leak in their pipe from the meter to their house, maybe 10 years ago, so I know that happens.
I decided to see if I could dip it out enough to read my own meter, but the ground was too squishy right around there. I need to look in the garage and find a scrap board I could stand on.
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