Compared to you, we're in a heat wave at 28F, headed to 50F later. I'm dreading a possible ice storm over the weekend here. I don't mind snow, but ice is a different matter. Breaking trees sound like gunshots across the mountain. Hopefully it will track north of us. It's touch and go at this point. Forecasts should be better tomorrow.

Trying to prepare with water jugs, charging back-up batteries, and cooking a pot of soup and another of chili. Maybe we'll dodge the bullet. I hope so.

I was amused by the escaping bathing viking, and the dysfunctional carrier toilets. Typical government bungling in both cases.

Stay warm friends. Thanks for the OT!

I expect to be without electricity as of Saturday. Although the electric company continuously trims trees alongside their high lines, this is The East Texas Piney Woods. There is a portion of Sam Houston National Forest just outside our city limits.
A gas stove at home is handy for heating a couple of rooms, the hope is that my office, which is hooked up to the courthouse grid, will be kept running, and we can camp out there.
Hilly, curvy highways will be dangerous. We will shop Friday, stock up on whatever we might need.
For those in the cold, I hope you are prepped.

Thanks for the OT. Really sorry about your weather, but I sort of assume that you are somewhat used to those temps and prepared for them and all the hassles that come with them. This is the time of the year when the population of a lot of my favorite places grows by several hundred percent and if you don't already have reservations then you won't be getting any. All along the eastern shore of the Salton Sea, for example, is already wall to wall snowbirds.

I have no psych degree and am therefore limited to more general diagnoses, like, for example, "batshit crazy". I am pleased to report the the Danish Dude at Davos told the Trumptoid that he was going to use language said Trumpoid would underestand, followed by "Fuck Off!". The press now reports that Trump says he won't use force but insists that it is time to begin negotiations. That means only that he won't use force duing the interview he gave, since he is a chronic liar, and could still attack at any time. Meanwhile there's no guessing what lies ahead, so it's maybe time to break out the ouija board.

We westies have been informed that La Niña has crapped out, but the future is uncertain (duh) and might or might not transition into an el niño. Ah well.

be well and have a good one

Yoraboon, anyang! Jengpi haneun geoyo:
Hi everyone! What a shame!

My latest for the Guardian on former S. Korean PM Han Duck-soo sentenced to 23 years in prison for playing a key role in ex-president Yoon Suk Yeol's failed martial law.

The verdict marks the first judicial ruling that the event constituted insurrection.https://t.co/QsoHX6TpQs

— Raphael Rashid (@koryodynasty) January 21, 2026

The court found no genuine remorse, noting that Han had continued concealing evidence and lying throughout the trial.

"No one will ever know," statement I heard often at the pub. Usually followed by an arrest.

I suspected this from the outset-

Trump administration says DOGE may have misused Social Security data

The Supreme Court in June reversed the restraining order and allowed members of DOGE to access Social Security data. The DOGE team argued last year that it had a need to access Social Security Administration records “to modernize technology” and “to maximize efficiency and productivity.”

A whistleblower report filed in August accused DOGE staffers of mishandling Social Security data by putting millions of people's data “in a cloud environment that circumvents oversight.”

In Friday's filing, the Justice Department acknowledged that some data was not handled properly.

"SSA has learned that, beginning March 7, 2025, and continuing until March 17 (approximately one week before the [temporary restraining order] was entered), members of SSA’s DOGE Team were using links to share data through the third-party server 'Cloudflare.' Cloudflare is not approved for storing SSA data and when used in this manner is outside SSA’s security protocols," the filing said.

The tip of the iceberg maybe.

What kind of Love (무슨사랑) Yoo Jina 2010 Korean lyrics from musicmatch. Sony copyright songwriter Joanna Wang

you were such a liar
Well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well.
He was a liar, He was a liar
all lies!

It's all lies
In my tender heart
(In my tender heart)
The words he whispered
(Even the words he whispered)

It's all lies
While you were leaving a painful scar in my heart
I said I was going to run away alone

What kind of love is this, immature playing with fire?
Did you say I love you?
(Didn't you say I love you)
Did you say it would be forever?
(Didn't you say it would be forever?)

You bad liar.
Well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well.
He was a liar, He was a liar
It's all lies
It's all lies

finger
(finger hooked)
That oath back then
(That oath back then)
It's all lies

closer to a family reunion of the head choppers.

Syria on Wednesday accused Kurdish-led forces of breaching a ceasefire after seven soldiers were killed in a strike, while authorities entered a camp holding suspected relatives of Islamic State jihadists https://t.co/PwKt23h1e4 pic.twitter.com/ZrEDnS4H88

— AFP News Agency (@AFP) January 21, 2026

the current situation. The MSN will simply regurgitate his words and his MAGA followers will lap it up.

No explanation needed.

'Denmark was unable to protect either itself or Greenland from Germany in the Second World War' - Trump cites historical arguments why they should give him the island.

'Do you want me to say a few words about Greenland? I was going to exclude this from my speech, but I thought… pic.twitter.com/qXZIwRgBzF

— Zlatti71 (@Zlatti_71) January 21, 2026

The rest of the tweet:

I was going to exclude this from my speech, but I thought I would be judged very negatively for it. I have great respect for both the people of Greenland and the people of Denmark. But the fact is that no country or group of countries, except the United States, is in a position to ensure the security of Greenland. We are a great power, much more powerful than many people realize. I think they understood this two weeks ago in Venezuela.'

We have already seen something similar during the Second World War, when Denmark fell under the onslaught of Germany after just six hours of fighting and was completely unable to protect either itself or Greenland. Then the United States was forced to intervene. We did this because we considered it our duty to send our own forces to hold onto the territory of Greenland. We did this at a huge cost and effort. They didn't have a single chance of getting there, although they tried. Denmark knows this.'
- SK

Facts don't matter when the Dotard gives a speech.

China is very smart, they produce windmills and sell them for crazy money - Trump

"China produces almost all windmills. And yet, I couldn't find a single wind power station in China. Have you ever thought about that? This is a good way to look at it. They're smart. They sell… pic.twitter.com/WB5KfDUJn8

— Zlatti71 (@Zlatti_71) January 21, 2026

The rest of the tweet:

They're smart. They sell them to stupid people who buy them. But they don't use them themselves," said the president.

Minor detail that he failed to recognize.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind_power_in_China

China has the largest installed capacity of any nation and continued rapid growth in new wind facilities.

With its large land mass and long coastline, China has exceptional wind power resources: Wind power remained China's third-largest source of electricity at the end of 2021, accounting for 7.5% of total power generation.