Thursday, August 31, 2023
Penguin
The Sydney Morning Herald: Not a single emperor penguin chick survived spring in parts of Antarctica By Laura Chung
Spain
Washington Post: Opinion - Spain is held hostage by a faction of breakaway regional extremists By the Editorial Board
Spain’s main parties on the left and right have relied in the past on alliances with smaller parties including regional blocs — Basques, Canary Islanders and others — that push for increased autonomy.
War
NY Times: Russia-Ukraine War - Ukraine Takes the Next Step in Its Hard-Fought Counteroffensive
After breaking through the first major line of Russian defenses around Robotyne, Ukraine appears to hold it securely enough to press on to the nearby village of Verbove.
Bye Bye
This is a gift article, available to anyone.
Washington Post: Proud Boy leader Joseph Biggs sentenced to 17 years for Jan. 6 crimes By Rachel Weiner and Tom Jackman
“That day broke our tradition of peaceful transfer of power,” said U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly as he sentenced Joseph Biggs, 39, of Florida. “We don’t have it anymore.”
Georgia
...the former president stated that he was “freely and voluntarily” waiving his right to be present at his arraignment and have his charges read to him in open court.
Fraud
The fraud was so pervasive, she said in a court filing, that Mr. Trump had falsely boosted his net worth by between $812 million and $2.2 billion each year over the course of a decade.
Disaster
Wild guess here, but I suspect insurance companies will bail on parts of Florida if not all of it.
Loser
The development is merely the latest example of a Trump ally suffering direct consequences and even being forced to pay up for promoting bogus voter-fraud claims. The other big one, of course, was Fox News agreeing to pay a $787.5 million settlement to Dominion Voting Systems over its defamation claims.
Signs
Experts aren’t sure how many companion animals suffer from dementia. Estimates range from 14 to 35 percent of the pet dog population age 8 and older, according to one study.
Idalia
The remnants of Hurricane Idalia were causing flash flooding across southeastern North Carolina early Thursday, after the storm lashed its way across the Southeast, leading to widespread power outages and at least two deaths.
The Market On Thursday
Good morning. At 7:00 a.m. ET DOW futures are +111, S&P futures are +3, and NASDAQ futures are -17. The market is poised to open mixed.
Wednesday, August 30, 2023
Defaming
To me this is a satisfying story, Rudy earned this.
NPR: Rudy Giuliani is liable for defaming 2 Georgia election workers, a judge says By Jaclyn Diaz
McConnell
Washington Post: Mitch McConnell appears to freeze again while talking with reporters By Marisa Iati and Paul Kane
McConnell, 81, chuckled and said, “Oh, that’s, uhh —” and stopped speaking. After about seven seconds, an aide approached and asked the senator if he had heard the question.
McConnell stared straight ahead, and the aide asked reporters to give them a minute.
War
NY Times: A Thousand Tiny Quakes: Documenting Russian Bombings in New Detail By James Glanz and Josh Holder
For the first time, researchers in Norway and Ukraine studied data from dozens of earthquake sensors around Kyiv, estimating the position and strength of each explosion to see the full extent of the Russian barrage.
Yeats
The Second Coming by William Butler Yeats
Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.
Surely some revelation is at hand;
Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out
When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
Troubles my sight: somewhere in sands of the desert
A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,
Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it
Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds.
The darkness drops again; but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?
'Bodhi'
My collaboration with singer Denise Glover, yours truly on piano. The lyrics are based on a classic Buddhist text, 'The Way Of The Bodhisattva'.
John Flannery - August 29, 2023
If you can only listen to one video clip on the blog today, listen to this one.
Top 20
Good News Network: The Top 20 Things That Make People Feel Good–And a New Positivity Bench in London By Good News Network
1. A good night’s sleep
2. A sunny blue sky
3. Summer
4. Receiving a compliment or praise
Produce Prescriptions
Washington Post: Fruit and vegetable ‘prescriptions’ may lead to better heart health By Teddy Amenabar
“Produce prescriptions” are part of a growing effort in health care to provide food as medicine to potentially prevent or improve chronic health conditions like obesity, diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure.
Idalia
Washington Post: Idalia intensifies to Category 4 hurricane, set to make landfall
...warned Florida residents to prepare for long power outages and said some locations may be uninhabitable for several weeks or months. Parts of eastern Georgia and southeastern South Carolina also could experience damaging winds.
Prison Or The Presidency
It is a Trump-dominated clash that will define not only the course of the 2024 presidential primary but potentially the future direction of the party in an eventual post-Trump era.
Idalia
Idalia is expected to come ashore along the Big Bend, a section of the Florida coast that is marshy and dotted with tiny fishing villages. In one, Cedar Key, the mayor begged about 100 holdouts to leave town. “We haven’t seen a storm this bad, ever,” Mayor Heath Davis said.
The Market On Wednesday
Good morning. At 6:50 a.m. ET DOW futures are +4, S&P futures are -3.75, and NASDAQ futures are -25.75. The market is poised to open mixed.
Tuesday, August 29, 2023
Comment
Trump is running for the presidency and/or prison. That is a plot line that no decent novelist would embrace. It’s just too stupid. It’s light on maturity and big on grandeur. On the other hand, we don’t think of Trump as having any creative abilities at all, unless you consider decorating all your living spaces with golden toilets, golden chandeliers, and garish self portraits, creative. So in a sense this reality show that we are all being forced to engage in, ‘The Presidency Or Prison’, is a product of the garish imagination of a creatively handicapped man, a man who believes that at age 80 dying his hair strawberry blond and combing it over in a way that defies science and logic is a good look. The plot fits Trump's mind but it doesn't fit us.
Surge
NPR: Hurricane Idalia live updates: Forecasters predict lethal storm surge in western Florida
...bringing destructive winds and life-threatening storm surge as high as 15 feet in some parts of the Big Bend region and 7 feet in Tampa Bay.
Meadows
Washington Post: Opinion - Mark Meadows paints himself into a corner By Jennifer Rubin
Meadows said, “There is a role for the chief of staff to make sure those campaign goals and objectives are implemented at the federal level.” That’s balderdash; the Hatch Act prohibits such activity.
Water
“From an objective standpoint, this is a crisis,” said Warigia Bowman, a law professor and water expert at the University of Tulsa. “There will be parts of the U.S. that run out of drinking water.”
Off
Washington Post: Opinion - Secretaries of state might decide to keep Trump off the ballot By Jennifer Rubin
Primary voters, who might be contemptuous of the demands of democracy, should, at the very least, understand that they risk nominating someone who might not be on the ballot in one or more states.
Masks
Time matters, too: Darting in and out of a packed grocery store is less risky than working all day in a busy office, for example. Ten minutes is a good marker to keep in mind, Dr. Pekosz said. If you’re headed somewhere indoors for longer than that, you may want to put on a mask beforehand.
Friedrichstadtpalast Ballett
My guess is that this was the dance routine of a German variety show from the 80s. Who doesn't enjoy seeing beautiful dancers, but you got to admit the costumes are pretty funny.
Friedrichstadtpalast Ballett - Black Hands
Friedrichstadtpalast Ballett - Black Hands
Zenzic
zenzic - Pronunciation: (ZEN-zik)
Meaning: noun: Square of a number. adjective: Relating to the square of a number.
Idalia
Washington Post: Storm strengthens into hurricane, expected to rapidly intensify before hitting Florida By Jason Samenow, Matthew Cappucci and Kelsey Ables
The storm surge — or rise in seawater above normally dry land at the coast — could reach 12 feet in the hardest-hit areas, inundating homes, businesses, marinas and roads. Evacuation orders were issued in 21 Florida counties Monday.
Atlanta
“But this was like a big show, this was a circus. He had this big police escort and all of that. If it were me or any other Black man accused of what he is accused of, we would have already been under the jail and they would have thrown the keys away.”
Michigan
The battleground has steadily grown safer for Democrats. No Republican has won a statewide election there since Mr. Trump won the state in 2016.
Water
In other areas, including parts of Utah, California and Texas, so much water is being pumped up that it is causing roads to buckle, foundations to crack and fissures to open in the earth. And around the country, rivers that relied on groundwater have become streams or trickles or memories.
The Market On Tuesday
Good morning. At 6:45 a.m. ET DOW futures are +15, S&P futures are +3.25, and NASDAQ futures are +12. The market is poised to open moderately higher.
Monday, August 28, 2023
Fossil
Washington Post: Late at night on a deserted beach, she found a 15 million-year-old fossil By Justin Jouvenal
The fossil, it turned out, was a remarkably intact skull of a 15 million-year-old, now-extinct dolphin-like creature that once swam in a shallow sea that covered most of Maryland.
Meadows
In the hearing, Mr. Meadows said that Mr. Trump directed him to set up the now-famous phone call on Jan. 2, 2021, between Mr. Trump and Brad Raffensperger, the Georgia Secretary of State.
Obstruction
Washington Post: Trump’s D.C. election-obstruction trial set for March 4, 2024 By Rachel Weiner, Devlin Barrett and Maegan Vazquez
“I take seriously the defense’s request that Mr. Trump be treated like any other defendant appearing before this court, and I intend to do so,” Chutkan said at a hearing Monday morning.
Trial
“Mr. Trump, like any defendant, will have to make the trial date work regardless of his schedule,” Judge Chutkan said, adding that “there is a societal interest to a speedy trial.”
Have An Excellent Monday
Edward Elderman - "Electric Detroit Model D has a range of 100 miles and can reach 25mph - but was abandoned in favor of gasoline cars. 1910."
Pilots
Washington Post: 5,000 pilots suspected of hiding major health issues. Most are still flying. By Lisa Rein and Craig Whitlock
The pilots under scrutiny are military veterans who told the Federal Aviation Administration that they are healthy enough to fly, yet failed to report — as required by law — that they were also collecting veterans benefits for disabilities that could bar them from the cockpit.
Wisconsin
Washington Post: Wisconsin Supreme Court flips liberal, creating a ‘seismic shift’ By Patrick Marley
“We’re about to usher in a very progressive state Supreme Court, the likes that we have not seen in quite some time. And it’s really going to change how everything operates.”
Voters
Republicans in particular hold a fatalistic view of the future of the country. In a recent Times poll, 56 percent said they believe we are “in danger of failing as a nation.”
Wave
Public health officials said that the latest increase in Covid hospitalizations is still relatively small and the vast majority of the sick are experiencing mild symptoms that are comparable to a cold or the flu.
The Market On Monday
Good morning. At 7:00 a.m. ET DOW futures are +76, S&P futures are +6.5, and NASDAQ futures are +36.5. The market is poised to open moderately higher.
Friday, August 25, 2023
Weekend!
Have an excellent weekend and see you bright and early Monday morning. It's been a strange week, to put it mildly.
True Story
A friend of mine in property management took on a customer who owned a rental unit, a single-family house in a small city on a quiet street in upstate New York. They had the house for rent, the description was posted on a website along with pictures and rent pricing, they were searching for a tenant.
The house was empty, no furniture, no curtains, no rugs, nothing. Periodically they would check on the house to make sure everything was okay, no leaks, no vandals, etc. They kept finding cigarette butts and used tissues thrown on the floor, even an air mattress, all kinds of signs that pointed to someone breaking into the house and sleeping there, but no signs of how they got in. They assumed it was a homeless person, a squatter. Property management workers screwed the windows in place so no one could get in by opening up a window, all the doors were re-secured, and finally they installed a video camera.
One morning my friend reviewed the video footage from the preceding night and saw on that video that someone had pulled an entire window out of its track, creating an opening to get into the house that way. They saw the person scramble into the house through the opening and pull the entire window back into place, good as new. He also saw on the video no signs that the person had left. Immediately he calls the police to meet him at the house and together they would catch the squatter. They enter the house with a key through the front door and find a surprised couple, both described as being extremely overweight, and probably in their 40s. Turns out the couple was using the house in order to carry out an extramarital affair. They were not homeless, not squatters, not addicts. After the guy scrambled into the house through the window, he’d go to the back of the house and let his woman friend in that way and once in the house they would carry on with their affair.
The house was empty, no furniture, no curtains, no rugs, nothing. Periodically they would check on the house to make sure everything was okay, no leaks, no vandals, etc. They kept finding cigarette butts and used tissues thrown on the floor, even an air mattress, all kinds of signs that pointed to someone breaking into the house and sleeping there, but no signs of how they got in. They assumed it was a homeless person, a squatter. Property management workers screwed the windows in place so no one could get in by opening up a window, all the doors were re-secured, and finally they installed a video camera.
One morning my friend reviewed the video footage from the preceding night and saw on that video that someone had pulled an entire window out of its track, creating an opening to get into the house that way. They saw the person scramble into the house through the opening and pull the entire window back into place, good as new. He also saw on the video no signs that the person had left. Immediately he calls the police to meet him at the house and together they would catch the squatter. They enter the house with a key through the front door and find a surprised couple, both described as being extremely overweight, and probably in their 40s. Turns out the couple was using the house in order to carry out an extramarital affair. They were not homeless, not squatters, not addicts. After the guy scrambled into the house through the window, he’d go to the back of the house and let his woman friend in that way and once in the house they would carry on with their affair.
Variant
Washington Post: This latest covid variant could be the best yet at evading immunity By Fenit Nirappil
...it (BA 2.86) has even greater potential to escape the antibodies that protect people from getting sick, even if you’ve recently been infected or vaccinated.
Live
"Live your life in such a way that the whole fucking world isn't anxiously awaiting your mug shot." - Jeff Tiedrich
Have An Excellent Friday
"Kenyan born artist Magdalene Odundo, considered one of the premier ceramicists working today"
Debate
Washington Post: Opinion - Everyone who thinks Trump won the debate, raise your hand By Dana Milbank
“Obviously,” he said, “I’m not going to support somebody who’s been convicted of a serious felony.” The crowd lustily booed both him and Christie, who is also an afterthought in the polls.
Victim
Washington Post: Opinion - Trump’s aggrieved victimhood is a recipe for carnage By Eugene Robinson
Seen through Trump’s warped lens, the nation was in dire straits before he took office, plagued by crime, drugs and poverty; molested by hordes of immigrants; laughed at by our adversaries.
Mug Shot
It is possible, he added, that in the future the mug shot will seem the ultimate bookend to a political arc in the United States that began decades ago, with Richard Nixon’s “I am not a crook.”
Putin
Mr. Putin is securely in the Kremlin, publicly eulogizing Mr. Prigozhin as a talented person with a “complicated fate,” who made many mistakes in life.
The Market On Friday
Good morning. At 7:05 a.m. ET DOW futures are +108, S&P futures are +12.5, and NASDAQ futures are +19.75. The market is poised to open significantly higher.
Thursday, August 24, 2023
Random Thoughts
Curious that Giuliani prosecuted mobsters using the RICO act, then ends up working for Trump, who runs his enterprise exactly like a kingpin mobster.
I realize that after 2016 we are shell shocked with the knowledge that Donald Trump actually became president. Someone of so low a standing across a wide array of desirable attributes became president. It remains shocking. However, is it really possible that Donald Trump now indicted four times on ninety one criminal charges could really become president again? Is this country really and truly that screwed up? Really? I'm paying attention. I read the papers, listen to the videos, watch some TV, and I know full well that the political bisection of America is complete. Still, could a four time indicted person be re-elected to office on a platform of "I'm overflowing with bullsh*t", and "I'm more cray cray than ever", and "I have nothing to offer anyone except endless anger and lies, along with a overflowing dose of my narcissistic neediness".
When did the GOP decide that its core mission was to carry the Jerry Springer mantle - high octane, all nonsense, extra stupid emotional theater.
Why Not
“I asked, ‘Do you think we should get married?’” Potenzano recalled. “It was the second time I’d brought it up. The first time, I’d asked if she’d ever consider marrying again, and she said she didn’t know.”
This time, Elkind said she responded, “Why not? Let’s do it.”
Smile And Say Coup
Ms. Ellis, who has portrayed her indictment as an unfair political persecution to be overcome through faith and positivity, tried to take ownership of a process more often seen as intimidating or humiliating.
Arraignment Thursday
Another week, another Trump arraignment. This could become a salient part of the new great American reality show sweeping the country - 'Donald Trump - Prison Or Presidency'.
Hands
If Donald Trump is the party’s nominee for president as well as a convicted criminal, will they still support him?
(Duh)
Hapless
Washington Post: Opinion - The GOP debate introduced voters to 8 hapless contenders — and an absent lead By Karen Tumulty
She (Nikki Haley) was the first to criticize the former president by name — noting that his administration piled $8 trillion onto the federal debt and adding, “Our kids are never going to forgive us for that.”
Winners?
Washington Post: The winners and losers from the first Republican debate Analysis By Aaron Blake
Losers - FOX News - When candidates talked over moderators Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum as they tried to move on, the moderators often just relented and gave them the stage.
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