caucus99percent

free-range politics, organic community

“Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist.”
Pablo Picasso

Harvested my first crop of peaches today. About a year after starting to write at C99 started planting trees requiring a little warmer growing season than typical in Central Oregon. The summer temps have been moderate and only a handful of nights the temp stayed above 60 (F). The news has been loud about extreme heat, but it really depends upon where the thermometer is located.

Tuesday was hot. Weather channel predicted 101, it is August hot, dry weather is to be expected. A few chickens were panting even with the shade cloth. Stepping out onto the front porch was comfortable, thermometer read 84. Set a thermometer in the middle of the drive 120 degrees. Five minutes later set by the back porch in the sun only 100.

The news stopped following Puerto Rico some years ago, but that doesn't mean that anything has improved.

Let's start with a reminder of how we got to this place..

Happy Friday everyone. I hope everybody is doing well. As always, post any photos, memes, or music you like.

These Victorian McMansions were built in various areas of San Diego during the 1880s-1890s and moved to Old Town San Diego in the 1970s.

Christian House (1889) This graceful residence was constructed by Harfield Timberlake Christian, founder of an early San Diego abstract company. It is built in a popular late Victorian design characterized by a variety of chimneys, shingles, a corner tower, and encircling veranda.

It's time to revisit the American system of tipping. Well, it's actually time to revisit a bunch of things, beginning with the current minimum wage.

It seems to be a feature of the kewl and bitchen pundits (though Thom Hartmann is a long-term vote Blue no matter who) during the early stages of Presidential election run-ups to put out lengthy criticisms of the "left wing." The "criticize the Left" phenomenon is reminiscent of an earlier criticism -- that of Markos Moulitsas, who told everyone participating on his blog on the Ides of March of 2016 tha

Britain Too:

Recently I ran across a review written by Henry Heller of a book about the history of poverty in Britain: from feudalism to neoliberal capitalism. The review was also published in Popular Resistance.

The writer of the book is Jim Silver, a professor emeritus from the University of Winnipeg in Canada. The book is Scoundrels and Shirkers: Capitalism and Poverty in Britain. The book was just published (May 2023). I will be getting a copy and reading it ASAP!

An image from the Tudor/Elizabethan Age - The Payment of the Tithes by Pieter Brueghel the Younger (or his workshop). I think I know some of these people! (Image is from wikipedia. Click on the image to get the link.)

Thom Hartmann has this opinion piece out on Raw Story titled "why you shouldn't throw your vote away for Cornel West." Of course, you have to buy a membership to participate in Raw Story, so I don't link to it.