1.17.2015

From The Anti-Islam Rally In Garland

So embarrassing.

at 7:18 PM

The Fox Business Channel Just Blew My Mind



Is Hannity the editor over there?

(For the very few of you who don't get it -- maybe the "speaks volumes" guy -- the Super Bowl is a 100% guaranteed sell out since at least Super Bowl III, Attendance levels are now based solely on how many people the venue will hold.)
at 9:00 AM

1.16.2015

BOLO


at 8:21 PM

Remember The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven?





The kid now says it was all a lie. It sold over a million copies. 

At first I thought it was a different kid who has told a similar story which he and others made money off of.  I questioned his story on 4/15/14 in Random Thoughts and followed it up with its own post.  As far as I know, he's sticking by his story. Edit: He is.






at 12:55 PM

When The UPI Twitter Account Gets Hacked




The New York Post twitter account has been hacked as well.  There's even been messages about an emergency Federal Reserve meeting.
at 12:39 PM

Boy, Look At The News From That Crazy Liberal Media Today!


at 12:00 PM

A Criminal Mastermind, Indeed


at 11:52 AM

Talk About Felonious Activity!

From the Texas Lawyer, behind a paywall, has the breakdown as this:

The Buzbee Law Firm in Houston received $455,476;

Botsford & Roark of Austin received $180,990;

Jones Day of Washington, D.C., received $169,647;

Baker Botts of Dallas received $141,462;

McDermott Will & Emory offices in Washington, D.C., and Chicago received $126,665.

I cannot begin to tell you how ridiculous this is. In my opinion, it's robbery. And, get this, the lawyer from The Buzzbee Law Firm is a personal injury lawyer who doesn't even primarily practice criminal.

Edit: Told ya!





at 11:50 AM

Rocket Sled Baby



Hey, I don't know anything about this video other than its from Turkey.  And the comments about the video seem to indicate the kid is OK (there is even another video of where he came from.)

But, man, that kid looked like he was in a rocket sled.

The Internet says that a television interview later revealed this is the kid and the path of travel. The kid's family lives at the top of the hill. Back that van up



at 8:53 AM

Random Friday Morning Thoughts




  • I probably could use the Google, but what happened to the Bridgeport guy who won the bid to jump the Snake River Canyon?
  • "Oilfield services giant Schlumberger cuts 9,000 jobs". They have, or at least used to have, a pretty big presence in Wise County.
  • I completely missed the story of the seven year old who survived a plane crash in Kentucky which killed her parents, sister, and cousin. She then walked 3/4 of a mile through thick woods to a home. She told them she thought everyone was dead but hoped they were only sleeping. 
  • Kentucky's basketball team played an eight day exhibition schedule in the Bahamas in August which had a total cost of $792,845.68. Coach John Calipari stayed in a $1,550-per night hotel suite at the Atlantis.
  • I'm not sure what I think about every Oscar nominee for Best Actor and Best Actress being all white. I suppose it's a fluke but it's a crazy fluke. 
  • Based upon some Gov. Perry's farewell speech yesterday, it appears he has been abducted by aliens: "Over the years I have come to see our approach to non-violent drug offenders as flawed," he said.
  • Here's a great picture taken from behind Perry during the speech, but there sure are a lot of empty seats where legislators normally sit. 
  • I think I would be happier if I just stuck to the National Geographic Channel, the Travel Channel and the Smithsonian Channel. (Except the NGC over the last couple of nights has been featuring Africa where there's a heck of a lot of animal on animal crime.) 
  • Our TV is on Nickelodeon quite a bit (I have no scene control), and I rolled my eyes the other day when I saw a commercial for a new series called Bella and the Bulldogs about a middle school cheerleader who takes over the team's quarterback position. But it is interesting that the female star lives in Saginaw.
  • Update thoughts: (1) There are 13 death notices in there. That might be a record. (2) The guy mentioned in the first item might be the most unlucky guy ever.
  • I didn't know that NFL Executive of the Year Jerry Jones, when he replaced George Dunham with Jody Dean as the PA guy for Texas Stadium back in the day, called Dunham personally to let him know. 
  • Sports Illustrated has named Baylor/TCU as the #1 college football game of last season.  It's polar opposite, Baylor/Michigan State in the Cotton Bowl was #6.
  • It seems like the general consensus is that the Texas oil industry could handle these low prices for about six months but then the massive layoffs would start. 



at 8:39 AM

1.15.2015

Get Me This Hippo!



Actually, you can keep that hippo!!
at 4:15 PM

Comedy On The Mean Streets Of Decatur


Decatur revamped all of its sidewalks around the courthouse several years back and promoted a "Buy a Brick" campaign.  I've never really paid attention to them but for some reason glanced down outside of my office this morning.  Every brick I had ever seen was simply a name or names.  But now I've learned there is (at least) one that doesn't: "There is always money in the banana stand."

That's a reference only fans of Arrested Development will get.  The patriarch of the family was in jail for fraud and, in one episode, would say those above words to his son when he came to visit.   The family owned a banana stand on the beach and made a little money off of it.  Then the son, in a fit of rage, burned it to the ground one day. When he goes to visit his father again . . .

George: You what?
Michael: Burned it right down to the ground.
George: Are you crazy? There was money in that banana stand.
Michael: Well, it's all gone now dad, and it was my decision. So next time you want to have a little power struggle, remember that you're playing with fire.
George: There was two hundred and fifty thousand dollars lining the walls of the banana stand.
Michael: What?
George: Cash, Michael.
Michael: Why didn't you tell me that?
George: How much clearer can I say, there's always MONEY IN THE BANANA STAND!
at 11:36 AM

Looks Like That Tire Was Off Before Impact

at 9:15 AM

I'm Releasing My Own Beer Brand


at 9:00 AM

I Have A Pretty Good Idea . . .



. . . this is what it would be like to arm wrestle Satan.
at 8:50 AM

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts



  • Dez Non-Catch Controversy, Part 8,657: For those of you who think the ball didn't touch the ground.
  • So the cops bust a couple in Southlake for growing pot and all the stories say they had "numerous firearms and ammunition" in the house. Anyone want to speculate on the number of Texas homes with numerous firearms and ammunition in them? So what we got here is some pot growers. (Although the book-in photo appears to be what anyone wishes to talk about.)
  • Long term readers know I've ranted for years about how the FBI learns of some idiot "terrorist" on the Internet, sucks him into a plot that he has no capability of carrying out, sets him up, arrests him, and then claim a great victory on the War on Terror. It happened yesterday with a 20 year old in an alleged plot to plant pipe bombs in the nation's Capitol building. Somehow this has made national news. Note: FBI officials said he was no threat to the public during the course of the investigation. That's pretty much all you need to know.  (He did buy two M-15 semiautomatic rifles yesterday but the gun seller was working with the FBI, and I bet the FBI even provided him the money. Oh, and the kid was working with an FBI informant -- a guy who has something to gain -- instead of an undercover FBI agent.)  
  • Mrs. LL had some little kid relative over on Sunday and five minutes before the Cowboy game she (the kid) came up to me and said, "Change the channel to Sponge Bob Square Pants." I was looking at the computer and, without looking up, said, "Not a chance, kid."  Mrs. LL suddenly appeared from upstairs with a, "Honey, you can watch it in the game room. I'll help."
  • I actually watched a little of Sponge Bob an hour before that. Whomever writes that stuff does so when high.
  • On Tuesday, probable right wing presidential candidate Mike Huckabee told People that he questions the parenting skills of Barack and Michelle Obama for allowing their daughters to listen to Beyoncé.  It didn't take long for critics to pull out the video of him playing Cat Scratch Fever with Ted Nugent on his show from 2011. Recap.
  • Watch the Open Carry nuts, or more specifically the Open Carry Tarrant County nuts, harass a state legislator yesterday. 
  • "Starting Friday, the Duke Muslim Students Association will chant [the the Muslim call to prayer], or adhan, from the Duke Chapel bell tower." Source.
  • That's a crazy mystery in Fort Worth: A car crashes in a field and two bodies associated with the vehicle (a mother and her baby) were found 500' away. Both were nude.
  • Question about those two guys who "free climbed" the 3,000-foot vertical wall on El Capitan, the granite pedestal in Yosemite National Park. Where did those safety ropes come from? 
  • "MANILA, Philippines — Pope Francis suggested there are limits to freedom of expression, saying in response to the Charlie Hebdo terror attack that 'one cannot make fun of faith' and that anyone who throws insults can expect a 'punch'."  I guess the Pope would agree with my poke-a-rattlesnake comment from yesterday. 
  • Oscar nominations released this morning. 


at 8:39 AM

1.14.2015

News

Prisoners were from the Middleton Unit.


at 11:31 AM

Cat Fight After Cowboy Game



But I'm not real sure we needed to be running to the Chief Of Police for analysis and video breakdown. But, heck, he acts like he's never seen a fight before.

And I loved how he said the girls will get a "letter in the mail" enclosing a citation.  Best guess is that it'll be a ticket for Disorderly Conduct.  He might as well of said, "We're gonna give them a real good talking to!"
at 11:16 AM

An Image I Think Is Funny


Nancy Grace debating 2 Chainz about the legalization of pot.

“Umm, I’m not sure if you know but everybody has the ability to get their hands on pot right now, whether it's legal or not,” 2 Chainz (whose real name is Tauheed Epps) tried to explain to Grace. 

 The whole interview is here if you're interested.  Guess which one makes more sense.
at 11:10 AM

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts



  • In the first playoff ranking released last October, Ohio State was #16.
  • For some reason, there was a photo of a male appendage on WFAA's website yesterday. (Hey, you go look for it if you want.)
  • A goofy Texas Republican Congressman compared the President to Hitler. And then apologized. 
  • My long term nemesis Ann Curry is out at NBC.
  • Does anyone know shorthand anymore? I know one lady at the courthouse who used to practice it, but I haven't seen her use it in almost twenty years.
  • Someone questioned me on whether gas prices were above $1.00 in the late 1970s. Someone back me up on this. As a new driver back then, I know! Gas pumps back then could only be adjusted to 99.9 cents (sheesh I feel old). So when gas prices went to $1.04, the stations would set the pump price to 52 cents and put a handwritten sign on it that said "Price is for 1/2 gallon. Total price will be double what you see on pump." 
  • A Texas player gave an OU player a longhorn decal for All-Star game. The OU player turned it upside down and put it on his helmet.  I'm not sure if that is the UT player in the background of the pic laughing, but if it is: That is exactly the type of guy UT needs to keep out of the program in the future.
  • Of the 62 Democrats in the new Texas legislature, only 7 are white. Of the 116 Republicans in the Texas legislature, only 8 aren't white. Source. 
  • There's a story in the news about a former football player falling overboard and swimming nine miles to shore. That sounds fishy.  Deadspin wrote an article about it which implies the same thing. 
  • Twenty years ago (well 12 days from now, actually) opening statements began in the O.J. Simpson murder trial. I actually watched a little about it on a CNN special last night and had forgotten that Mark Fuhrman, after having been caught lying on the (irrelevant) issue of whether he had ever used the n-word, took the 5th Amendment when asked, "Did you plant evidence in this case?"  Sheesh. That alone would give the jury a reasonable doubt. 
  • The Los Angeles Dodgers have signed a relief pitcher who was "banned for life by the Chinese Professional Baseball League in 2009, for allegedly accepting benefits from gamblers to throw two baseball games." Holy, cow. What's everyone going to think the first time he loses a game by leaving a curve ball hanging over the plate? 
  • "A potentially disastrous situation at sea turned into a stunning stroke of luck for a 22-year-old man who fell overboard from a cruise ship and was then rescued later by another passing cruise ship after another passenger heard him calling for help in the open ocean." That story is beyond amazing. Heck, the coast guard has trouble finding someone when they know they are in the ocean, and this guy was spotted by someone in a passing cruise ship?! The odds of that happening have to be astronomical. 
  • "Y'all'd've: Best contraction ever?" - Stolen from. And when I first saw it, I knew exactly what it meant. Heck, I sounded it out to see if I was guilty of uttering it. Verdict: Absolutely.
  • I certainly support the French paper's right to publish satire, but if you keep poking a rattlesnake don't you expect to get bit? 



at 8:38 AM

1.13.2015

And Another - Abilene

Thirteen days in, and 2015 starts strong. Story.

(Thanks emailer).
at 5:16 PM

It's Not Too Early



(NEWSER) – It may be a bit early in 2015 to be handing out the Parents of the Year Award, but a man and woman in Indiana are certainly contenders: Police say they found a cellphone video featuring Michael Barnes, 19, and Toni Wilson, 22, encouraging a 1-year-old baby girl to place a .40-caliber handgun in her mouth and say “pow.” “The video also shows the child placing the muzzle of the gun in [her] mouth,” police say in a statement (amended here). “At no point does Barnes try to stop the child from playing with the gun.” Wilson is the girl’s mother, but Barnes is not her father. Authorities obtained the video after arresting Barnes in a separate incident in which he made arrangements via social media to sell a handgun to an undercover cop, Reuters reports. Wilson claimed the gun in the video was just a pellet gun, but police say that’s not true. Barnes has been charged with child neglect, allowing a child to possess a firearm, and criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon, and Wilson faces the same charges, NBC News reports. The baby, as well as month-old twins in the home—of whom Barnes is the father, police say—were put into emergency care.

 If I'm a gun fan, nuts like this and nuts like Open Carry would make me worried that gun laws are going to get a heck of a lot stricter in the future. 
at 11:55 AM

Local sports Media News

Babe Laufenberg (@BabeLaufenberg)
After 17 years, CBS 11 and I could not reach a new agreement. So tomorrow will be my last show. Please watch. It has been a great 17 years.




Barry
at 10:33 AM

Personal Foul: Taunting


at 9:11 AM

Random Tuesday Morning Thoughts



  • There were 14% fewer criminal appeals in Texas last year, and I suppose the decrease in crime is reflected in that stat. But I suppose the government staffing and funding of appellate courts will not decrease accordingly. 
  • I was getting my oil changed on Saturday and a couple in their 40s walked in.  CNN was on the TV and the lady began to ask questions to her companion about what was being covered. She quickly revealed that she had no idea anything had happened in Paris last week. Not a clue. "I haven't watched the news all week." Are there many people like that?
  • I always dog that goofy Texas Supreme Court justice but I learned he wrote an opinion last year dogging the Court for refusing to hear a case challenging the state's civil forfeiture statutes which are constantly abused by the government.  Good for him. (I think I wrote about it at the time, but the judge wasn't being a yuck monkey on Twitter yet.) 
  • Mrs. LL will always yell out, "Spin move!" at least once during a football game. 
  • The "hook and ladder" play would have a far greater success rate if it were run in the middle of the second quarter instead of at desperation time.
  • The equipment manager for Ohio State last night had the greatest hair in the history of ever. 
  • Right after the coin flip last night in the Championship Game, Nike tweeted out a photo depicting the coin in the air with the players looking up at it in the background. But it was fake. And I don't mean photoshopped. I mean fake with actors wearing uniforms. 
  • Cowboys Stadium will enter its sixth year this year. It almost feels newer than on the first day that it opened. No one can walk into that place without getting wild eyed. Edit: It was pointed out that the correct phrase is "wide eyed". Then again, after paying for parking and walking a mile to the stadium, you might be "wild eyed" as well. 
  • An Arlington Martin student/football player was murdered yesterday.  This morning the principal made an announcement to the students -- surrounded by television cameras. Bet she never dreamed that would be in her job description. (Not that it matters -- or I guess it does -- but the student had a kid.)
  • For those that call the President "arrogant", how do you explain his admission yesterday that the he screwed up by not sending a higher ranking official to Paris for the demonstration?
  • Two thousand people were massacred in Nigeria nine days ago, and it hardly makes the news. Heck, even though it basically involves an Islamist attack on Christians, trying to find the story even on Fox News' homepage is like trying to find Waldo. 
  • News you can use: A map of the U.S. showing were goats are most concentrated. 
  • If this inflation calculator is correct, gas today at $1.75 a gallon is the equivalent of paying 54 cents in 1979.  In 1979, gas actually cracked a $1.00 a gallon. Heck, it might have cracked a $1.00 in 1977 or 1978.



at 8:35 AM

1.12.2015

Poor Duck Had Flashbacks To Duck Season

at 8:43 PM

I'm Worried About The Internet



Someone created a video showing people doing amazing (and sometimes stupid) things but no one ends up sprawled out with every bone broken.
at 5:13 PM

Get Me This Dog



Playing in the snow is cute enough, but throw in that he's too dumb to know where the squeak is coming from, and we've got us a winner.
at 3:29 PM

Didn't Even Know U.S. Central Command Had A Twitter Account





at 11:47 AM

Let's Go Grab Some Wings, Honey


Bar Fight After Cowboys Game by EgotasticMedia

Nothing like respect between fan bases.
at 11:44 AM

I'm No Weatherman




But doesn't a cold front come in from the North? So how is Decatur in full cloud cover right now when the front has moved through Arlington causing, oddly, a clear sky.
at 8:51 AM

Random Monday Morning Thoughts



  • I just noticed that the theme from St. Elmo's Fire plays at the end of those Rob Lowe commercials.  
  • Bridgeport's Colin Jones of the Carolina Panthers got some face time during Saturday's playoff game.
  • CBS ran a one hour tribute/documentary about Verne Lundquist in November that I had recorded and finally watched. It was beyond fantastic. It was called In Your Life if you can find it.
  • I also watched A Football Life on UT's win of the National Championship in 2006 in the Rose Bowl. Also really good. But do I dare say it: Vince Young's failed pro career seems frighteningly similar to RG3's current situation. Both won Rookie of the Year and then things began to wobble.
  • Another reason to hate Mark Cuban: He's throwing this party. (By the way, I follow the guy on Twitter and his account has become an infomercial for a ridiculous app that he owns. He's trying to compete with SnapChat, and it is destined to fail.)
  • Sting was at the AAC last night in what might have been the most unpublicized event of the weekend. Tickets for the nosebleed section were going for less than $10. 
  • Fox New is running a commercial dogging Dish for not carrying the network over a contact dispute. Bill O'Reilly appears and says that Dish "is censoring us." Sheesh. Really? It's about money, hoss.
  • There are sex offender lists. There should be a list of prosecutors who are known to have withheld evidence. Those type of prosecutors, quite frankly, are more dangerous.
  • Jury selection will begin in a crazy Graham County murder case where a guy is accused of killing his two year old and six month old sons and then sending a photo of their dead bodies to their mother. It made national news.  The case was moved to Tarrant County on a change of venue.
  • So last week Troy Aikman said he "expected" Jason Garrett to go for it on 4th and 6 but yesterday he disagreed with the Cowboys going for it on 4th and 2 with less than five minutes to play? 
  • Baylor went for it of 4th down a shocking 34 times this season (led the nation) and converted 73% of the time.
  • Horrible story: A Tarrant County child on Sunday after being in a coma since a 2009 DWI crash. Although he'll get no sympathy from the public, it is stunning that the defendant/other driver is still in the Tarrant County jail awaiting trial. (Related note: Applebees got sued over the wreck.)
  • I'm not sure I can do the "Above the Fold" posts with the Messenger's front page because they have tricked up -- in a bad way -- their digital downloads. 
  • There's a "Camel Kisses Ranch" near Wichita Falls where there are actual camels. At least there is for now: One of the camels trampled two people to death over the weekend. 
  • Weird college basketball moment. Baylor was up by 7 on TCU in overtime and it looked like time expired as the ball went out of bounds off of TCU. The ref then stopped the game and went to instant replay and then put a fraction of a second back on the clock.   (The game also featured a ref who went down with a hamstring injury -- he looked like he had been shot.)
  • Trashy girl I can't take my eyes off of. 



at 8:38 AM

1.11.2015

Welcome To Controversy-ville



"If a player goes to the ground in the act of catching a pass (with or without contact by an opponent), he must maintain control of the ball throughout the process of contacting the ground, whether in the field of play or the end zone. If he loses control of the ball, and the ball touches the ground before he regains control, the pass is incomplete. If he regains control prior to the ball touching the ground, the pass is complete."

 Crazy rule. Correct call. (Welcome to my world: Dealing with insane laws on a daily basis.)
at 3:42 PM
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