Open Thread

Open Thread - Thurs 30 Jan 2025 - Go Esco!

Go Esco!

I have to admit, I have not paid that much attention to the news, or anything really, in the last week or so, unless it's a story with some feel-good in it. For example, a man was walking his dog, in Renton, WA. They got hit by a car, which of course fled the scene. The man was pretty badly hurt, the dog had some wounds too. The dog ran back home and got the man's wife. Both the dog, Esco, and the man, Richard, are ok. Richard had to have a bunch of operations, but he's ok. And Esco is a hero!


Esco the hero!, from the story on Kiro News.

The Weekly Watch

One Week Down, 207 Remaining

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Trump has sucked all the air out of the news cycle. On Joe Rogan Trump mused, "I don't know why the media is so fixated on me". To which Joe responded, "I know why...cause you say lots of crazy shit!". Well Trump has been true to form in the first week of his presidency. Larry Johnson wrote an article about the first 24 hours with the title "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly", in which he lists all the many executive orders and actions. It is an apt title. To my mind in general he's better on the domestic front than foreign policy. Larry Johnson thinks he's being misled by the CIA, et al. about foreign issues. One thing seems certain, it will be an interesting and entertaining 4 years. Of course there's much more than just Trump news this week. The EU and UK continue their decline, BRICS continues to rise, Ukraine is in dire straits, the Gaza ceasefire is temporarily holding although the IDF continues the capture of the West Bank, plus more below the fold.

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Album of the Week 1-25-25

Afternoon folks!

Leading off this week is an album from Magic Slim followed by some more Chicago blues from Detroit Junior, Luther "Guitar Junior" Johnson and Queen Sylvia Embry. After that it's on to blues rock with albums from John Mayall and Catfish Hodge. I've found some more Funkadelic albums hiding in the basement and there's another one this week. After that we've got some acoustic country blues similar to the work of Jimmy Rodgers from a fellow named Cliff Carlisle. We finish off with an album from a great dobro player, Mike Auldridge.

Enjoy the tunes and have a great weekend!

Saturday Open Thread - 1/25/25: Odds and Ends

I am not a fan of cops, but occasionally run across one that is truly intent on keeping the peace and protecting the public. In my life, I have made good friends with 13 or so, one being an FBI agent.

A hundred, give or take, have been psychopaths, dangerous, and true criminals.

Last election, a constable in the county defeated the sitting sheriff in the primary. The sheriff demanded a recount, and he lost votes. He filed a lawsuit claiming voter fraud, but the case was thrown out.

I could not campaign for the sheriff's opponent, a long time friend. In fact, he was concerned about coming to my office because when he did, a deputy would pull up beside my office a sit for a couple of hours. My friend, a constable, and now, sheriff, has hired me to do wills, deeds, represent his step daughter in a divorce, help his wife form a charity for dog rescue, and on, and on, and on.

The new sheriff swore in, more than half of the deputies quit. They tossed the car keys in a barrel. New sheriff had to match 30 keys to 30 cars, id labels peeled off. He is still hiring new deputies.

Audits showed the Sheriff's office paid an IT guy to take care of 71 computers. Well, there were only 56 Sheriff's Office computers. I wonder where they went. All log ins, codes, data, had been shredded, so they were of no use. Public suddenly unsafe, no concern to psychopath! Public safety be damned!

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