Gov. Perry At The Prayer Convention Thingy Today

Funny observation. (But I heard that the attendance was over 30,000 when they feared it would be under 10,000.)

Edit: And I can't believe I forgot about Ronald Reagan speaking in Reunion Arena as a presidential candidate at what, I think, was referred to a convention of the "Moral Majority." No one really batted an eye back then. (Credit, one again, Bud Kennedy.)

Get us out of there!!!

Is This What The 1960s Felt Like?

Race injected into everything? "Hip-Hop" in this context is only a non-too-subtle code word for "black". Charles Barkley's not a rapper. Chris Rock isn't either. Jay-Z, well, at least he's is a good rapper. And you wonder why Fox News receives so much criticism.

"Wobble, Wobble" Takes You Into The Weekend

Shout out to the white boy giving it the What For. Edit: Since even I'm whipped by the comments you just know are forthcoming, I'll probably screen them out. It's the weekend.

Road Carnage News

- Got a report of a "bad wreck" at 114 and 51 (in between Paradise and Boyd). Anyone?  There's actually two intersections that meet that description but I'm guessing it's the eastern one depicted above.
- Motorcycle death this morning in Ponder.

Texas Confederate Flag License Plates May Be Approved

Austin -A local division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans is just one vote away from gaining approval of a Texas specialty license plate bearing its logo, which prominently features the Confederate flag. The Texas Department of Motor Vehicle license board voted on the group's request in April, but it was a tie vote. One of the nine members was absent, so the board decided to reconsider the request at its next meeting June 9.

The meeting, however, didn't take place because a board member from Houston died June 3.

Now, the Sons of Confederate Veterans must wait until Gov. Rick Perry appoints a new board member, and that might not happen until fall, said DMV spokeswoman Kim Sue Lia Perkes. (More)

But Texas' MoveOn.org wants to stop it. 

(Thanks emailer Walt)

Run Eddie!!!!

Good grief, lady.  That chick in the Blair Witch Project didn't scream as much as you (not to mention that she even held the camera steadier than you.)  My brain feels like it has been pierced.

And if you're not offended by extreme cussing, you can check out her fine work once she finds out that they put the horse "right back to work."

Kind Of Funny College Football T-Shirt

In honor of the unranked Baylor Bears vs #15 TCU Horned Frogs game which is exactly four weeks away. (Coming up with sports related Bible humor is a job that I wouldn't want.)

Link.

Edit: The line is TCU by 9.

Random Friday Morning Thoughts

• Fox News just had to tear up every script they had prepared for today: Unemployment numbers just released show that the rate has fallen to 9.1% and the stock market opened up 135.
• Edit: Me spoke too soon. (Graph at the bottom since I couldn't figure out how to stick it in here.)
• WBAP has been reporting "parking lot temperatures" for the last couple of days. Idiocracy.
• Asked the Third Grader In The House how her day was as she began, "Well, first I woke up. Then I came down and ate breakfast. Then I ....."  I'm pretty much stuck at that point, right? 
• The Aggies begin at #9 in the preseason USA Today/Coaches poll. I've always said life is better when the Ags are good.
• "Outrage over 10 year old model on cover of Vogue."
• Dallas had another wrong way driver last night that resulted in a head on collision. It had been a while.
• Over the last decade, Gov. Perry has an average tithe of 1/2 of 1% according to his income tax returns. Maybe he thinks he is "rendering unto" himself so it doesn't matter.
• Mrs. LL was getting sick. Edit: Sick as in she's sick. Not sick because of a "condition."
• I've said it a million times: For those who think that the sub-prime mortgage crisis was caused by the government forcing banks to loan to the poor, you are smoking crack. Just once, please, listen to This American Life's "A Giant Pool of Money." 
• I think I would have called any child I had "Skyler."  That would have worked for either a boy or a girl. And he/she would have the cool nickname of "Sky."  (But "Skyler Green" is also the name of a failed Cowboy draft pick.)
• Why do I also think I could never talk the momma into believing Skyler is a good name?
• Funny comment yesterday was made about the guy who claimed to have witnessed the Lincoln Assassination. Paraphrased, it said, "He just lived longer than anyone who could call him on it." 
• ESPN had an hour long special on Deion Sanders that I tried to watch this week. Can we please just see some old football footage of him catching a punt and running it all the way back to the end zone? Instead, we have to be bombarded with montage after montage of three second clips. It's ESPN, not an MTV Video.
• I had a water hose explode yesterday. That was pretty cool. 
• Funny line yesterday regarding the heat: Is there any chance the Rapture happened and we missed it?
• Polygamist Warren Jeffs was convicted of sexual assault of a minor yesterday despite firing his lawyers and giving a closing statement that included 30 minutes of silence followed by,  "I am at peace." At least it sounded like a good plan to him. 
• Normally, when cops bust up a prostitution ring we get to see a bunch of gals that wouldn't exactly get the starring role in Pretty Woman. But this group? Not too bad. Relatively speaking, of course.

Edit:

Double edit (it's a rollercoaster):

I'm Insane Now

From tonight's Cowboys' practice: Tony Romo and Pee Wee Herman.

Edit: And another

Exclusive Photo Of Me Jogging

Or it might be TMZ with a pic of 44 year old Troy Aikman.

The Sky Is Falling!!!!! The Sky Is Falling!!!! Blame Obama!!!! Blame Obama!!!

Holy, cow. We might want to listen to Hannity and Beck and buy some gold!! We're not going to make it!! Today's Dow results:

Maybe some of you folks were right. Maybe Obama has destroyed the economy.What did some of you guys ask me? "How's that hopey, hopey, change thing working out for ya?" Yeah, that's it.  Maybe the economy was in perfect shape and we all had big bags of money when he was elected. What was the Dow on election day in 2008 any way? 14,000 points? 15,000?

Oh.........wait:

(Election Day Stock Market Report, 2008)

Maybe things weren't so rosy. I should always remember the words of President Bush just a month before election day.

This is an extraordinary period for America’s economy. Over the past few weeks, many Americans have felt anxiety about their finances and their future. I understand their worry and their frustration. We’ve seen triple-digit swings in the stock market. Major financial institutions have teetered on the edge of collapse, and some have failed. As uncertainty has grown, many banks have restricted lending. Credit markets have frozen. And families and businesses have found it harder to borrow money.We’re in the midst of a serious financial crisis. . . .

And if the federal government does not take action?: 

More banks could fail, including some in your community. The stock market would drop even more, which would reduce the value of your retirement account. The value of your home could plummet. Foreclosures would rise dramatically. And if you own a business or a farm, you would find it harder and more expensive to get credit. More businesses would close their doors, and millions of Americans could lose their jobs. Even if you have good credit history, it would be more difficult for you to get the loans you need to buy a car or send your children to college. And ultimately, our country could experience a long and painful recession.


Maybe things will be OK after all.

Think Our Country Is Old?

Not so fast. When you've got someone appearing on television who witnessed the Lincoln assassination, you're still a baby country.

The Republican National Committee Hearts Me!

Wait. I've got to pay $21 just to participate in a straw poll? Don't they understand that the best way to stimulate the economy is to keep money in the pockets of the taxpayer?

Concerning the issues, they don't care about illegal immigration any more? What about abortion? Who are these people?

(This appears to be an authentic letter from the RNC. It came with a return envelope which goes to the organization's address. But you should take a look at the home page of the RNC - They say Obama's last day in office is January 20, 2017 in the banner!!)

From The Denton Record Chronicle This Morning

What are the odds of the phone number actually belonging to the money order thief? Amazingly, it might be higher than you think.

Side note: Do you get three bedrooms for $1,250 a month?

(Thanks emailer Gina.)

You would think VT would be prepared

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts

• Fox 4 News had a lady from Oncor on last night urging people to do things like "unplug your electric toothbrush" to save energy. That's so dumb that even anchor Steve Eager called her out on it. I bet the annual consumer electricity cost of an electric toothbrush is under $1. 
• And Fox 4 also had an interview of the guy who called the cops on the lady that tapped him in the Grapevine theater for texting. He kept saying that he was bothered by her "haughty" attitude. Trust me guy, you need to stay away from any interviews. You're doing yourself no favors. 
• I'm getting reports that someone drove a golf cart from Runaway Bay all the way to near Jacksboro and then was arrested for DWI. I have no idea if that is true, but if it is: It'll become an Internet viral sensation if there's a dashcam video. 
• Very random "Hey, Now": Some gal named Missy Redford in the Star-Telegram today. (First pic.)
• The attorney who advises the Wise County Commissioners Court told me he's boycotted my blog ever since I posted the picture of the guy falling from the stands at The Ballpark in Arlington. The funniest part was when I learned that  someone told him he had to see something I later posted so he made them read it to him instead. 
• I predicted the Rangers wouldn't make the playoffs. I'm standing by that.
• The USA Today/Coaches college football preseason football poll will be released today. If you're still reading, you'll laugh when I tell you that WBAP's sports director wondered this morning on the air whether Auburn would be #1. Edit: Released.
• The Visitor In The Household announced that there won't be any redheads or blondes in the future. I'm not sure about the time frame, but that's probably correct. 
• WBAP's Hal Jay admitted this morning that he fell for the email that told him to call a number to keep his cell phone number from becoming public to telemarketers at the end of this month. Really? Really? 
• The story of the guy finding all that cocaine in Galveston (below) is pretty fascinating when you think of it. If you had to turn it into cash (at least 50% of its fair market value) within one week, could you? That would be a pretty good comedy movie.
• By the way, I think I could. 
• I'm seeing a lot of people just giving up on their lawns. 
• Tea Party congressman Rand Paul said three days ago that he didn't vote for the Debt Ceiling Bill because it would actually increase the deficit by $7 trillion.  I wanted to understand what he meant, but he didn't explain it in his brief written statement. Now, thankfully, the bagofnothing.com guy pointed out this morning that ABC News did explain it with some pretty good charts. (Wow: The deficit will increase by "only" $7 trillion instead of $9.5 trillion if all the cuts take place. That's how they got the $2.5 million in "cuts".)
• Mrs. LL went back to the Sixth Floor and surrounding attractions and announced last night that there had to be a second shooter.  I heard, "Back, and to the left" a couple of times. I'm bracing myself. 

I Think About Things And They Happen

No Bomb Can Contain Her

Several people pointed out that after I posted my Random Thoughts about the horrible Bomb-Around-The-Neck incident of 2003 that is to be made into a movie, the news broke of a girl in Australia who, well, had a bomb around her neck in the last 24 hours.

An Australian schoolgirl who spent more than 10 hours with a bomb strapped to her by a hooded intruder who broke into her house was reunited with her parents tonight after a dramatic rescue. 

Police bomb disposal experts, who had sought advice from British military authorities as they delicately worked to free Madeleine Pulver from the explosive package that had been attached to her, finally freed her from her terrifying ordeal - into the arms of her relieved mother and father.

The 18-year-old girl had been startled by the balaclava-clad intruder who left the device attached to her - as well as leaving, it is believed, a ransom note for her wealthy parents.
Her father, William, is the CEO of an internet share dealing company, called Nielsen Net Ratings and is said to be one of the richest men in Australia.

More. (Including a picture of  the fantastic house they live in.)

He Turned It Over To The Police?

Does the guy not go to the movies? There is a ton of adventure to be had once you find a big ol' bag of dope. Just think No Country For Old Men with Josh Brolin or True Romance with Christian Slater? Wait. Both those guys ended up getting shot.

Story.

(Little known story: I actually found a marijuana garden n the woods when I was a kid. I pulled up the plants -- in the spirit of a true crime fighter -- and began walking back to the house. That prompted my brother to take off running while yelling, "You can go to jail for a couple of ounces and you've got a few pounds!!!!"  Funny.  Dad actually took one of the plants into the Bridgeport Police Chief to verify it was pot. It was. Those, my friends, were simpler days.)

Almost Forgot: Wise County Wishes* President Obama A Happy 50th Birthday!

___________

*For some reason, I don't think the wishes will be unanimous. 

When Technologies Collide

Remember "People to People" on the local radio where Jim Bob would call up offering his truck camper with broken windows up for trade with anyone who has a refrigerator even if it wasn't working? Well, it has a Facebook group.

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts

• The highest recorded temperature in DFW is 113 degrees. I'm issuing a "might-want-to-watch-that" warning for today.
• Metroplex motorcycle death.
• Did you catch the names of the seven people arrested in Haltom City for alleged illegal gambling/eight liners: Thanh Trang Chau,  Hai Van Nguyen,  Hoang Dung Nguyen, Nia Thi Nguyen,  Tao The Pham,  Vo Van Phu, and Txuy Tran.  It's like the cast of extras from The Deer Hunter.
• We had a case here in Wise County a couple of months back of a woman running over and killing her ex with her car. A famous and similar case in Houston resulted in a manslaughter (reckless killing) conviction instead of murder (intentional killing) conviction.  The same result/verdict happened in Wichita Falls yesterday.
• Edit to above: Come to think about it, the Houston case was actually a guilty verdict on murder but the jury found she acted with "sudden passion" which dropped the range of punishment to the same as Manslaughter. 
• My first wave of electric and water bills has come in. Oh, my. 
• I really haven't gotten a handle on the Deficit Ceiling Deal other than I know the Tea Party is royally angry.  
• I don't understand the "electric grid" everyone talks about. 
• Wow: Texas is actually shutting down a prison - one that held 900 inmates only a few months ago - due to budget cuts. I don't think Gov. Perry will be bragging about that in his speeches.
• Something I'm about to start getting really interested in: The true story of the man who was shockingly blown up by a bomb attached to neck while cameras rolled in 2003.  After robbing a bank with the threat of that bomb, he claimed to onlookers (as the bomb squad was in route) that he had done so against his will. The bomb squad didn't make it in time. Then the much delayed investigation revealed a bizarre and fascinating story which was featured in Wired magazine this year. Now, it gets weirder as the story has been made into a big budget comedy (yep, comedy) called 30 Minutes or Less. 
• A seedy tape involving UNT students was being circulated online yesterday but the oddest thing is that the student newspaper acknowledged it.  

Today's Messenger Above The Fold

Opening Up The Liberally Lean Weather Center For Rest Of The Afternoon

Should update automatically.  We cracked 100 degrees at 10:32 a.m. Wow.

Edit: Screenshot of various weather stations at 5:31 p.m. :

Rick Perry: The Golden Age

Credit: Star-Telegram's Bud Kennedy's Facebook page.

Cowboys' Coach: Rookies Must "Earn" The Star

You heard him. If you're a first year Dallas Cowboy, your helmet in practice will not have a star on it until you show you're worthy enough to have one. That's right. Only those like Bobby Carpenter, Roy Williams, Ebenezer Ekuban, Shante Carter, Quincy Carter, and David LaFleur deserved to have the iconic emblem on the side of their noggins. Shape up, men.

(What's the record? One playoff win in 15 years?)

Oh. One other thing. Every player will have stars on their helmet for the first preseason game on August 11th.

I like Jason Garrett but this is stuff that should only go on in places like Paradise or Boyd. (Edit: That's not a shot at those schools. It's is a high school motivation tactic. Just no place for it in a league where $10,000 fines are paid in "straight cash, homey.")

Downtown Decatur With Dirt Streets. Circa ????

Someone pointed out that they believe that's the back end of a horse within the red circle.

Random Rant

As a prelude to the Hurricane Harbor post, I wanted to at least share this. As I pulled into my very expensive parking spot ($12 general parking), I looked over and saw the above trash under the truck next to me. (I tried to tweak with the photo's contrast to show it better.)  The best I could tell was that someone had a pretty good fast food meal and then dumped all the trash on the ground. They then made the effort to kick it a bit under the truck.

Nice.

I feel pretty good about making assumptions about the person or person(s) responsible. The most basic one being: You don't care much about anything, do you?  I understand eating fast food before going into the park (maybe not in 100 degree heat, but I do understand) because I don't really want to pay the inflated prices inside either.  But it came in a bag. Once you're through, there's a readily available bag for you to put the trash in. I mean the absolute best place to put the remnants of your Bahama Burger is in that bag.  From there, you just have to carry it a few yards to a trash bin.

This isn't a Going Green post. It's an Anti-Slob post.

Random Tuesday Morning Thoughts

• The Aggies have set a school record for season tickets sold for the upcoming season. I would predict big things for the Ags this year but I don't want to put a curse on them before the first game. 
• The lady who was struck and killed by the train in Alvord over the weekend had the same name, was the same age, and lived in the same city as this lady. (Facebook link)
• The entire Family Unit tends to sleep with various lights on but the Guest In The House, like a normal person, likes total darkness. The house has been unusually dark when I've awakened the last two mornings. I think she gets up in the middle of the night and walks around turning off lights.
• A coach for Prestonwood Christian Academy in Dallas (the private school associated with Prestonwood Baptist) collapsed and died on the field yesterday.  I heard on the radio that one of his sons was a player who was on the field at the time. 
• Even if you're the toughest Old School kind of coach, aren't you scared to death for your players in this heat?
• Got a report last night about a DWI, a golf cart, Runaway Bay, and Highway 380. Haven't confirmed anything yet. (No names in the comments please.)
• I went through the horrible where-are-my-car-keys experience this morning. Twenty minutes of searching later, I found them behind my alarm clock. That's a location for them that I never use.
• It's kind of crazy that I mentioned Gabby Giffords yesterday not being on the House floor for the Debt Ceiling Vote only for to her to be there for the first time since her shooting. And I hate to be a killjoy, but is anyone else skeptical about her showing up for a Feel Good Moment when the public's disdain for Congress was at the boiling point?
• And Ann Compton was back on WBAP this morning and Hal Jay triumphantly pointed out that three Democrats weren't present to vote yesterday. (Obviously stinging from yesterday's slap down.) Why is he obsessed with that? 
• Out Guest In The House, who I think is 12 or 13, announced last night that she thinks there should be a Flat Tax. I asked her if her dad watches a lot of Fox News. "Yeah," she said. "He hogs the TV a lot." Thought so.
• When I went to bed last night, Mrs. LL was belting out "Tell me what you want, what you really really want!"  on Guitar Hero in the game room.
• Never thought I'd be interested in Rihanna being in Barbados for Kadooment Day. But I am.
• Lower lake levels lead to the discovery of (probably) a piece of the Space Shuttle that disintegrated over Texas in 2003. 
• Lake Bridgeport is closing in on 10 feet low and dropping. If the lake went completely dry, I wonder what would be found?
• Alert: I went to Hurricane Harbor. A Pulitzer Prize potential blog post is forthcoming. 
• I intend to steal a lot from it, but someone has started a "Remember In Decatur When . . . " Facebook group which seems really active. 

Forgot: Last Sunday's Messenger Above The Fold

Lead story is about solar panels at Bridgeport High School.

Random Images

 Think that's a little false advertising?

The "hot dog girl" from Rangers Dollar Hot Dog commercial.

Decatur temperature at 1:11 p.m. 

Wise County Tea Party Going To Houston For Day Of Prayer

(1) And although Perry probably believes that quote, I don't think he said it. It's just part of the promotional material for the event.

(2) There may be plenty of room. There are reports of only 8,000 registered for the 71,000 seat Reliant Stadium.

(3) I had the leader of the Bridgeport Tea Party yell at me from his car the other day that "The Tea Party is an all inclusive organization!"  I think he meant ethnically, not politically.

I Can't Stand ESPN's "X Games"

But I didn't know they had a sport called Chick Motocross By Chicks That Can't Ride Bikes.

Does This Look Like A Man Who . . .

. . . would file a Class C "unwanted touching" assault complaint against a woman who touched him to complain about the light coming from his cell phone while he was texting in a Grapevine movie theater? He said he suffered a "little whiplash."

(Technically, he said the contact caused him "pain" which is all that is needed for the cops to file Class A misdemeanor charges. For some reason, they decided to go with Class C assault -- the equivalent of a traffic ticket.)

Edit: For the person who sent me "historical" information, it sure sounds authentic. But there's no way I can post it without verification.

Random Monday Morning Thoughts

• There was a chase early this morning around Alvord that ended with cops using spikes and the subject tased. Any updates?
• The Star-Telegram had a couple of stories yesterday reminiscing about the Cullen Davis murder trials many, many years ago. One thing that got my attention was the note that Racehorse Haynes cross-examined Priscilla Davis for thirteen days. That tells me one thing: The judge didn't know what he was doing or the prosecution never heard of a relevancy objection. I can't imagine that happening in Texas today.
• There was a story yesterday of four kids being left in a car for two hours in Dallas while their parents went to donate blood.  My guess: The parents, both in their early 20s, were giving blood for the money.
• We've got another week long teenage guest in the house who I'd never heard of before last week. You think that would drive me nuts, but it's really not that bad. (And the fact she stuck out her hand yesterday and said, "Very nice to meet you" either means we've got a respectful kid in the house or Eddie Haskell.)
• Because Mrs. LL had to make a long journey to pick the kid up, I was responsible for taking the Family Pup to the vet yesterday due to lingering issues. I don't think I've ever done that before, and that temperature taking kind of caught me off guard.
• Oh, and that long trip was sidelined when she tried to take the kids to the roof of a hotel in Rockwall only to find the stairwell door locked and blood on the floor. That sentence is confusing to you as it is to me. She'll probably now be a suspect in some murder.
• Maybe we're not a social melting pot: A guy was killed in an Arlington club early Sunday morning. The club was named Saigon Night. His name was Austin Nguyen.
• Curb Your Enthusiasm has become funnier. Entourage's season premiere made me glad the show was coming to an end.
• Radio topic this morning that I agreed with: I can't stand the "violent lane changer."
• The Kings of Leon stopped their show in Dallas this weekend right in the middle of it due to the heat, health, and/or intoxication. But, sheesh, the youtube clips of the event only prove that the lead singer is an over-cusser.
• I wonder how the bicyclist, Paul Edwards, who was hit by a car last week near Runaway Bay is doing?
• A compromise was allegedly reached yesterday in the Debt Ceiling Controversy and everyone I hear talk about it call it "complicated." Translated: Same old, same old.
• Awkward moment on WBAP when ABC's Ann Compton was on to talk about today's congressional vote on the Debt Ceiling deal. Hal Jay asked in a cynical voice: "Tell me, will all the members of Congress be there to vote?" Compton "Well . . . Congresswoman Gabby Giffords won't be there." 
• We are now 30 days into the 100 degree streak with the record sitting there at 42. We're going see that streak broken assuming we survive this week's 105 degrees every day forecast. Beating. 
• Yankee fan tries to catch near home run foul ball with his face. 
• High school football two-a-days have started for some schools. Prepare to get pummeled with news stories showing players drinking lots of water, coaches talking about how concerned they are about the heat, and "experts" talking about the way it used to be. 
• The Bridgeport City Pool will celebrate it's 45th birthday this week. That is, assuming they can get the "mechanical problem" fixed that caused it to shut down last week. 

The Cowboys New Defensive Coordinator

The man just oozes discipline and commitment.