Above The Fold

Any Chance The Troopers Are A Little Beaten Down By Now?

Troopers use bolt cutters to unchain a protester from Senate gallery railing. (Photo by Rodolfo Gonzalez) #txlege pic.twitter.com/TbABjGvRGt
— Austin Statesman (@statesman) July 13, 2013

Oh, My. It's A Real Life Ron Burgundy Moment.

Bay Area news station KTVU just reported that the pilots of Asiana's disastrous flight 214 were the crack team of "Sum Ting Wong," "Wi Tu Lo," "Ho Lee Fuk," and "Bang Ding Ow."

Despite the names obviously being just a bunch of racist jokes, KTVU, which has since apologized for the report . . . . more (with video)

Michelle Keegan Taking You Into The Weekend

At The Texas Legislature Senate Vote Today, Protesters Will Be Kept In Check

Yes, DPS is chucking any potential projectiles into the trash, including tampons. CHL holders can still bring guns in. #txlege #HB2
— Forrest Wilder (@Forrest4Trees) July 12, 2013

But then this observation is made:

In the #TXLege, @Forrest4Trees notes that CHL holders can bring guns into the gallery today but tampons are confiscated. cc: @iamJohnOliver
— Bud Kennedy (@BudKennedy) July 12, 2013

She's Doing A Bit, Right?

This is going viral today as the "crazy reporter" video. She serious?

Shown On Tour de France Coverage

Oh, the places I want to go.

Wiki page.

The Running Of The Bulls

Should be renamed Running Of The Idiots Alongside The Bulls.

Link (a little gruesome.)

Obvious Breaking News Headline

Crazy GIF Of The Day: From The Cubs Game Last Night

Source.

Random Friday Morning Thoughts

• George Zimmerman's attorneys got off to a horrible start with the "knock knock" joke, but since then they have been fantastic.
• I think it's shocking that Florida only uses six person juries in a felony case. But the Supreme Court said in 1970 that it's OK. 
• Stolen from bagofnothing.com: The Zimmerman judge looks like Chris Farley. Funny and accurate. 
• Even though it seemed like a funny bit, I couldn't force myself to turn into Sharknado last night. (But here's a link to a video clip of it that depicts movie making at its very best.)
• I did watch a little bit of the Tour de France with the Fifth Grader In The House and discovered I had no idea how to explain it because I had no idea what was going on. 
• There's a new Matt Damon sci-fi flick called Elysium being advertised, and it looks awful. More shocking was to see that Jodie Foster is in it. What's she thinking?
• I liked that I had a couple of blog readers whom I've never met send me a link to an article about the 500th episode of This American Life because they thought I would enjoy it.
• The NFL Channel's A Football Life on Tom Landry was really good. But as private and all business that he was, that scene of him cleaning out his desk after his firing by Jerry Jones was beyond staged. I mean, he absolutely authorized a camera in his office to show him sadly packing up his stuff.
• I walked in the house last night and I detected a slight odor.  The Fifth Grader In The House says, "Mom's in bed." Me (experiencing Slumped Shoulders): "Really?" Her: "Yep, she's been sick all day. She's thrown up and everything." Oh, my. 
• Had someone tell me the other day that they couldn't imagine putting up with the attacks I receive in the comment section much less have the gumption to publish them. It's really odd. They tend to make me laugh more than anything else. 
• First sentence from news story: "The Irving Police Explorers participated in the Fort Worth Police Department SWAT camp at Sid Richardson Scout Ranch in Bridgeport, TX from June 27-30." The headline associated with the article: "Police Explorers Go Commando At SWAT Camp". Sheesh. 

An Admitted "And Another" Awarded $338,000 For Defamation In Unrelated Matter

It getting complicated out there. Story.

Fox and Friends Tried To Break A Kid's Nose This Morning

It's The War On Pelts

A bunch of game wardens on the Internet resulted in 154 arrests in Texas. And, of course, we had to have a catchy name: "Operation Wild Web."

And Captain Greg Williford, who leads the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s criminal investigations unit, sounds like a guy right out of Gladiator:“It’s not just the uniformed warden that is going to sneak up on you while you are doing your dirty deed. We’re watching you on the Internet, too.”

And I'll bet dollars to donuts (whatever that means) that he is oblivious to the true meaning of this quote: “We threw a lot of resources at this . . . . " And by "resources" I presume he means "government paychecks".

Story.

Animated GIF Of The Day

It's from a convention of "mostly-male internet nerds obsessed with the new animated series My Little Pony."

I'm insane now.

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts

• Twinkies are about  to be back on store shelves in packaging that reads, and I'm not making this up, "The Sweetest Comeback In The History Of Ever."
• I've been preaching it for years: Mark Cuban has no idea what he is doing and that is being proven over the last two years of "We're keeping our powder dry" and "Have you read the CBA?"  
• And when I said that free agents didn't want to come to Dallas because of racism, I was referring to the city - not the team. 
• The lead item in the Update refers to Park Springs. Am I alone in thinking, "Where's that in Wise County?"
• As of June 28, law school applications for the upcoming fall term were down 18 percent nationwide from a year earlier. In Texas, applications are down 12 percent. People are finally coming to their senses.
• Man, there is a huge buzz about the new FX series called The Bridge. So much so that I recorded the pilot last night. 
• The SB Nation blog celebrates the greatest high school football game in the history, yes, of ever.
• You have to agree if you've heard it: The radio commercial about having the proper child safety seat ("Oh, yeah, I knew that) is extremely irritating. 
• I have no idea why I labeled it "Wednesday Random Morning Thoughts" instead of "Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts" yesterday. That's kind of disturbing.
• Do you remember when I told you about the guy who walked up to me in a side room at the courthouse and began crying uncontrollably because of a criminal case he had pending? I talked to him to calm him down even though he said he had a lawyer. The details: He was on probation for Resisting Arrest when he committed a new offense of Assault in Tarrant County to which he pled guilty. The State in Wise County wanted to revoke his probation for that violation and were offering a plea bargain of 90 days in jail even though he was subject to a year if he had a hearing. I told him to consult with his lawyer, but, in my opinion, I would take the 90 days instead of having a hearing and face an uncertain sentence. So what happened after that? He ended up representing himself, turned down the 90 day plea bargain offer, and yesterday was sentenced to one year in jail. 
• Cutting your loses is sometimes very hard to do. 
• If Zimmerman is convicted you will feel the pain of many a defense attorney over the years when receiving a "guilty" verdict when there is clearly a reasonable doubt.
• And that State-oriented judge was completely out of line yesterday asking Zimmerman directly, even out of the presence of the jury, if he was going to testify. There were still a couple of witnesses to go so that decision didn't have to be made yet. I've had judges ask me at that point, "Just for scheduling purposes, do you think your client will  testify?" But to talk directly to Zimmerman over the objection of his lawyers really showed her true colors. 

This Is Not A Good Sign

Billboard #saginawpurple @wfaachannel8 pic.twitter.com/cnKS3MHa5S
— Todd Unger (@ToddWFAA8) July 10, 2013

@ToddWFAA8 @wfaachannel8 We passed at least two on our way to Denton today. I hope they catch the killer soon.
— Lori (@loriio) July 10, 2013

Makes you think the cops have next to nothing as far as leads are concerned.

Get Me This Dog!

The Family Pup doesn't mind 1% as much as this dog. Come to think of it, no person in the house minds that well.

Tragic Irony

 More.

Web site.

I don't know the lady, but I'm always taken aback, and reflective, by the amount of emotion that can erupt in a negative way with people.

Elvis (The Baseball One - Not the Dead Singer) Has A Funny Bit Going

"Continuing a comedy bit they've been acting out for a couple months now, Beltre and Andrus at least pretend to fight over pop-ups to the left side of the infield." More. (Although I think it is more of Andrus jacking with Beltre than a combined comedy team.)

Woman Removed From Texas Abortion Bill Hearing After Scolding GOP Lawmakers

I find this fascinating. Were her remarks worthy of having her physically removed?  What if the bill had expanded abortion rights and a conservative was at the mic ranting about the "life of the unborn". Would that make a difference.

Story.

Wednesday Random Morning Thoughts

• MTV is filming a reality TV show about the Redneck Heaven restaurant. It's at Beach and 820 in north Fort Worth. Never been there, but it looks shocking. 
• It's interesting that only six people were arrested for DWI in Wise County over the long 4th of July holidays. Some speculated that it was because of the publicity of Vampire Weekend, and I won't rule that out. But I heard a pretty good alternative theory yesterday: No one came and went from Lake Bridgeport because it is so low.
• CVS in Decatur was broken into over the weekend with only cigarettes being taken. For years, a carton of cigarettes has been used as currency in the black market.
• Elisabeth Hasselbeck will leave 'The View' for 'Fox and Friends'. Who would have thought that Fox would have hired an attractive, young, blond, and shallow female?
• The teenage driver of a red pickup involved in a horrific wreck on Burleson-Retta Road last month had a blood-alcohol content of 0.24, three times the legal limit.  I wonder if that is hospital blood or blood taken by law enforcement? One is a heck of a lot easier to prove than the other.
• Gordon Keith this morning: "Don't ever marry crazy. It never gets better." (They were talking about the Anna Benson story.)
• Someone told me yesterday that I needed to look at Rick Perry's calendar before I called his job easy. Puhhhleeeze. Any event he attends, he attends because he wants to. Give me a plane and an expense account and my schedule would be packed, too.
• Random high school football thought: Beginning in 2013, four teams from each Class 3A and Class 2A district will make the playoffs. I bet we'll see a 2-8 team make it. 
• When the new Dallas Star tweeted this weekend that  “Only steers and queers in Texas, and I’m not a cow”, I thought of the original quote from the drill instructor from An Officer and A Gentleman instead of Full Metal Jacket.  (But not only did he mangle the quote, what the heck was he trying to say?)
• Misleading headline I'm seeing everywhere: "Police: Man arrested in Odin Lloyd's death ID'd [Former New England Patriot] Aaron Hernandez as shooter." Not quite. That man said that another man told him Hernandez pulled the trigger. Big difference.  

Above The Fold

Well This Seemed Like A Bad Idea

Story.  More images.

Random Tuesday Morning Thoughts

• The Kids In The House and I played basketball on a school hoop, but I required that we string up a net before doing so. It was hard to explain how playing without a net is no fun at all. They didn't understand. 
• Eleven bears have found a new home in the animal sanctuary in Boyd. That's becoming quite the place over there.
• The Muslims and the Buddhists are warring. I saw several tweets this weekend that said, "If you read one thing today read this" with a link to a long and horrifying article of the slaughter of 36 Muslims, mostly teenagers, in Myanmar last March. After that, I noticed a news flash about explosions last weekend in Buddhist temples by Muslims in India.  
• A fruit/vegetable stand on the side of the road is one of life's great joys, but I have no idea where one is. 
• Rick Perry, in his announcement that he won't run again for governor, said  that he'll miss it "because it is the greatest job in modern politics.”  Yeah, you get paid a ton to live in a mansion to do nothing other than sign or veto bills for a couple of weeks every two years. What's not to like?
• I think Perry would have a better chance of beating John Cornyn for U.S. Senate than winning the Republican presidential nomination (which he has absolutely no chance of.) 
• Rev. Robert Jeffress did in fact appear at the pro-life rally in Austin yesterday and said this: "Anyone who opposes this bill, whether he or she realizes it, is a tool of Satan being used by Satan to accomplish Satan's purpose of death." Wow. 
• Interesting: DWI roadblocks are illegal in Texas (at least until the legislature approves them with guidelines) but Saginaw police set up roadblocks yesterday stopping everyone coming in and out of the area in the search for information about the murder of the little girl from last week. Is that legal? Oddly, yes. 
• The Rangers played Baltimore and official Liberally Lean MLB player Chris Davis last night. Davis struck out four times. I hope the Ghost of Texas Past doesn't cause him to spiral out of control now.
• Worth watching from last night if you have any interest in baseball rules: Nick Swisher hits a slow roller foul down the third base line and turns away. The catcher follows the slow moving ball and lets it roll back in to fair play, scoops it up, and rushes over and tags Swisher out. Good stuff. 

Was This Headline Offensive?

The paper apologized for it. (Remember, it was Asiana Airlines.)

And Another - Texas

Starting off the second half of the year strong.

Breaking: Our Long Statewide Nightmare Is Over

Rick Perry announces he will not seek re-election as governor. pic.twitter.com/kvq7mUi4T1
— FOX 4 NEWS (@FOX4) July 8, 2013

Greg Louganis Would Be Jealous

Grade A quality slow-motion and sound.  Perfect 10 for execution.

But the most tense part was thinking Timmy was going to land on the little kid in the yellow floatie. No kid could have survived an impact like that.

Incoming!!!!

You can actually see the potential crushing blow develop in the background. And I love how all the guys in the background just stand around like it ain't no big thing.

From The Weekend: Captain America

An escaped sex offender had his mugshot posted in an Ohio convenience store. Patron of the store sees mugshot and tackles escapee.

The fact he's wearing red, white and blue makes it even more dramatic.  (And I bet he drove away listening to Toby Keith in his truck.)

Brad Cooper and Gerald Gerard Butler At Wimbledon

Their image stopped Mrs. LL down this weekend.

Random Monday Morning Thoughts

• There's a fire going on at an old house near the courthouse this morning and, although the picture on the Messenger's website doesn't look that bad, Decatur Fire Department has called for all sorts of help from neighboring fire departments. And, based upon scanner traffic, they are extremely concerned with firefighter safety (which might be due to the recent news of firefighter deaths.)
• Drownings over the holidays: (1) A 21 year old at Lake Grapevine, (2) a 27 year old at Possum Kingdom lake (which caused the fireworks display to be cancelled), and (3) a 7 year old at Joe Pool Lake.  And a 20 year old woman was left in the water for hours in the dark before found. 
• Told ya: Dwight Howard decides not to sign with the Dallas Mavericks.  And one rumored reason that free agents don't want to come to Dallas is that ol' South racism still exists here. So who did the Mavericks send to visit with Howard in LA to try to bring him Dallas? Six white guys: "Cuban, Mark Cuban, Dirk Nowitzki, president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson, head coach Rick Carlisle, athletic trainer Casey Smith and director of analytics Roland Beech."
• There's a political rally in Austin today by a pro-life group. Among the speakers is Rev. Robert Jeffress of First Baptist Dallas. Is that guy running for office somewhere? 
• Watching the Wimbledon finals -- men's or women's -- on the 4th of July weekend in the morning is always fantastic. 
• How more people didn't die in the 777 crash in San Francisco is amazing. That plane got so close to cart-wheeling on the runway and, had it, all of them would probably be dead. 
• I ended up laying "four square" with the Kids In The House over the weekend. Unfortunately, the four squares were set up right by a curb going into a parking lot. As I should have expected, I ended up falling into the parking lot.
• As I'm on my back, with two faces staring down at me, my first thought at my age was "did I break anything?" Fortunately, I just ended up with a scraped hand since I broke my fall better than Emmitt Smith ever did. 
• So those in charge of Wise County's Vampire No Refusal Weekend, what are the stats? 
• Rick Perry makes a "big announcement" today at 1:00 a.m. I bet he's nutty enough to make another presidential run. 
• For some reason I watched a portion of the Arkansas/Texas 1969 classic game on the Longhorn Network this weekend. The crowning moment for the Longhorns was a shocking pass on fourth and short with about four minutes remaining. I looked up the stats on the game and learned Texas threw only 10 passes and had two of those intercepted. Oh, how the game has changed. 
• No arrests in the murder of that little Saginaw girl? 
• From the Update:  "The Decatur City Council will discuss a $261,500 incentive package for 'Project Walter' . . . . " What the heck is that? 

Little Pink Houses For You And Me