I Know That's Not Representative . . .

Wow. Nasty Trump supporters in Iowa tear up a Latino protestor's sign. RT @GoodSam10 @DREAMIowa pic.twitter.com/G5R6H1lLe8

— ¡Gabe! Ortíz (@TUSK81) September 12, 2015

. . . of Trump supporters. That's really not the point.

My reaction after seeing this was that the prissy gal had no idea about the potential consequences for her actions -- whether deserved or not. To put it another way, she's lucky she didn't get her arse kicked.

Tragedy At Mecca

"Mecca is the birthplace of Muhammad and the site of Muhammad's first revelation of the Quran . . . . and a pilgrimage to it is a requirement at least once for every Muslim." I learned about it on the Discovery Channel, and I think every Muslim also has to touch that center structure at least once. It receives 16 million visitors a year. For the pilgrimage, they walk in a rotation and move in and then out.

Fascinating.

But today a crane collapsed during construction surrounding it. The result: 107 innocent people are dead.

Taking You Into The Weekend: Cop Embracing A Suicidal Man

Dad vs. Upskirt Filmer At Walmart (Neutral Field, I Suppose)

I'll admit that I'm disappointed. I would have bet good money* that we were about to be treated to "Rumble In The Jungle aka Aisle Nine".
__________
*Random Thought Without Googling: Where did the phrase "good money" come from?

Random Friday Morning Thoughts

• Never have understood the hand signs.
• Jerry Jones just had a second hip replacement a week ago?
• I heard a rumor that some kids at Decatur High School were having the lug nuts on their cars loosened without their knowledge.
• In August of 1994, when DA, I wrote a snooty letter to the County Court at Law Judge over who had jurisdiction of the jury room when there was a scheduling conflict: Me if I needed it for a grand jury or him if he needed it for a trial jury.  From time to time, his court administrator who is the same one, will reach down in her file drawer with the greatest smile on her face and pull out that letter to remind me about it. That happened yesterday.  That letter is 21 years old. And she must preserve it like the Constitution in the National Archives.
• A partial sentence from today's Update about a police chase in Bridgeport that will stop you down:    " . . .  turning down First Street and then driving down the railroad tracks until wrecking his vehicle on the tracks."
• As 9/11 was unfolding that morning, as all of our heads were spinning and we still weren't sure what was going on, my dad called me. I remember asking, "This is my generation's Pearl Harbor, right?"  I remember having a little hesitation before I asked the question because what could possibly compare to Pearl Harbor? He said, "Yes, it is."
• And does anyone else find it hard to believe that 9/11 occurred 14 years ago? 
• Baylor has not sold out its home opener tomorrow. Ranked 4th in the nation, defending conference champion, and the second year of the new stadium. Amazing. But there has been article after article of declining attendance of students and young graduates at college games. A couple of years ago I went to an LSU game against Washington -- everyone told me I had to see a night game there -- and there were huge open sections in the upper deck.
• But TV ratings for college and pro games continues to soar. I bet attendance at all sporting events declines over the years as the population becomes more and more composed of people who have always had smart phones, high def giant TVs, and constant entertainment.  Hey, I'm already at that point for Cowboy games. I received free tickets to a Seahawks game three or four years ago, and I'll never go again because it was such a beating.
• A 7 year old from Alvord in in the Update's obits. Anyone know anything?
• Trump is all about Trump. My new theory:  In the beginning, he thought he had no chance but could get on the debate stage and do a bit that would get everyone talking. And then after the free publicity, he would drop out with a rant about how politics are corrupt, "only for losers", and he has multi-million corporations to run. I still think he'll drop out with bang, but now there's a chance he could win the first  two or three primaries. If he drops out after that, he's an icon (for something) and truly an historic political figure. Heck, we still talk about Ross Perot.

Guy Robbing Gal Of Foul Ball

Wow. pic.twitter.com/IXfHjKXF1D

— Eireann Dolan (@EireannDolan) September 10, 2015

Boss move. Great accomplishment Great celebration. Brought back memories of . . .

But how about the gal cracking a smile instead of going into Angry Mode?  Hey, now!

This Is A Placeholder For Later: I Expect Gold

It sounds like he's appearing by phone, and I don't think this was announced previously.

Edit. Maybe it was scheduled and we didn't get the fireworks I hoped for. Just: "She failed miserably at Hewlett Packard. She failed at Lucent. … She then ran for the Senate; she lost in a landslide. Now she's running for president. I'm talking about her persona.”

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts

• I was passed by five Bandido motorcycle riders on 287 yesterday. I'm pretty sure they all gave me a knowing nod of appreciation because of my continued rants against the Waco Bikers prosecution. Hey, how are those prosecutions working out down there?
• Donald Trump goes rogue again by insulting rival candidate Carly Fiorina: "Look at that face. Would anyone vote for that?"  Will it hurt him? No. What have I always said after he does something like this? The people who love him still love him. And everyone else that was even remotely thinking about voting for him take another step back. 
• Huge kudos to Collin County for not being reckless on costs for the special prosecutors in the Texas AG Ken Paxton case. They originally budgeted $2 million (which is ridiculous). They then slashed it to $285,000 after reviewing the cost of the capital murder case in Kaufman County (where a DA, his wife, and assistant were murdered.) Now they are leaning towards $33,000. 
• I couldn't look at the slideshow at the funeral yesterday for Kate who died in her earlier thirties. I didn't know why because I've never had a problem with slideshows at funerals before. Then someone explained it to me: She was young. There should have been so many more slides. 
• And the pastor referenced below had a great message when he mentioned the program in our hands had Kate's date of birth and date of death printed on it and how they were separated by a tiny dash. That's typical. I whole lifetime represented in print by a dash. (He went on to talk about "your dash".)
• The Evil Empire may have an attendance problem next year if (1) they have a bad year, and (2) Charlie Strong comes back. Why: Ticket prices: A season ticket holder "said he was surprised last spring when he was told his $800 tickets in Section 31 would cost him $1,050 this year." You have to be pretty faithful to keep sending in money. There are 15,000 unsold tickets for the season opener. 
• The Kentucky County Clerk, Kim "I'm-Not-Issuing-Marriage-Licenses-To-Gays" Davis makes $80,000 a year plus benefits. (Credit: BagOfNothing). The population of that county is 23,477 -- Wise County is far more than twice that number. Side Note: How many marriage licenses to same sex couples could there possibly be in that tiny Kentucky county?
• Ebby Halliday was 104.  For an unknown reason I thought about Billy Graham. He is 96.

Get Me This Pastor Couple!

I just came from a funeral in Decatur where Rev. Ray Harmon & Rev. Wendy Harmon spoke for just a few moments. They came in from their church in Plano where the church meets in a movie theater.

I don't know anything about them, but they captivated me. And I'm guessing everyone else.

Heartfelt, earnest, and funny ("I've got a little ghetto in me"). And incredibly sweet.

Kate Fostel had attended their church over the last year. The female pastor, while giving a rousing message,  brought out a gift bag next to the pulpit and said that she had "a little something for the family". I promise, at that point, no one knew what to expect. What was it? A sign in sheet from their church's bible study group. An original from a past study. On it, was Kate's signature -- it was the first one she ever attended there.

Pass me the Kleenex.

Guy In Bike Group Attacks Car

Video.

Story.  (Out of San Francisco).

And they think they've got him:

After charging him with criminal mischief, they might want to charge him with impersonating Rollie Fingers.

Cruz Visits The Freed Kentucky Clerk

American Gothic, 2015. pic.twitter.com/3q4fxWjW1N

— dwight silverman (@dsilverman) September 9, 2015

That's pretty clever.

And it was posted by a technology writer for the Houston Chronicle

Random Wednesday Morning Posts

• I'm exhausted.
• Part of that may be because realizing a cold front was roaring through with rain in the middle of the night so I fought to stay up and listen to it.
• One of my best qualities is that I document almost everything that occurs that I think is significant.
• "Fearing retaliation after the wave of high-profile ambushes of officers across the country, the [Dallas Police Association ] president, Ron Pinkston, wrote a letter to Chief David Brown asking him to stop releasing the identities of cops involved in shootings." That's all we need: Secret police.
• I missed the death of "Shootin' Blind" author Harlan Bridwell. He was 97. Recall that a few months back I posted several of his columns written in the 1960's in Bridgeport Index and they were a fantastic snapshot of the time.  I think I said it then: He was doing his own Random Thoughts when I was in diapers.
• The killing of the dentist in an Uptown apartment complex in Dallas keeps getting more confusing after each passing day. I've learned this over the years: Nothing may be as it seems.
• I never thought I would underestimate the anger of the Texas Longhorn fans. They are not pleased.
• Bud Kennedy on Twitter reminded us that a Euless Trinity player intentionally ran over a referee in 2008. (Safety goes after him at around :20 mark.)
• A Wise County deputy  loses his job and is arrested for letting the guys on the work crew use his personal phone and giving them access to cigarettes? Yeah, it's "against the law" but we live in a day and time where everyone gets crushed for the tiniest infractions. You ever know some of the inmates on the work crew? Most are pretty good guys. I almost hope it is more than someone wanting to call his momma and wanting to have a pack of smokes.
• In case you missed the Messenger article of a "panicked mother" being arrested by a DPS trooper for "reckless driving" once she discovered her kindergarten son had been put on the wrong bus. Here ya go. And the kid had never ridden a bus before.
• You may notice my posts have been few over the last few days. I cannot tell you, for now, why that is. However, I will.
• Another bad quality of me once I go into "Intense Thinking Mode". I lose track of time. The Junior In The House's electricity project that had me working deep into the night comes to mind. (But I kept at it and I finally figured it out.)

Random Tuesday Morning Thoughts

• My heart goes out to the family of Kate Fostel who has passed away. 
• I've got this odd quality: When I get immersed in something that I think is important -- something that requires thinking -- I'll do the dumbest things because it distracts me from everything else. I first noticed it well over a decade ago when I was in the drive-thru at Whataburger in Decatur for lunch and was thinking intently about an appellate brief I had worked on all morning. I paid for my order and drove away without the food, and I didn't notice it until I got to the courthouse. 
• And that quality of Intense Thinking And Distraction caused me to have both a glorious yet ruined long weekend.  When you don't care about/didn't realize three fantasy football drafts went on, you know who are into something deep. 
• Martin Milner has died. Milner played Officer Pete Malloy in the old TV show Adam-12 which was a big player in the Green household as I was growing up. We prided ourselves on knowing the Code Numbers when they were called out. 
• I've always called the Fellowship Church in Grapevine the "Church Of Bits."  BagofNothing's post starts off today enforcing my belief. 
• Stolen thought: "5-4 majority in Obergefell [the same sex marriage case] = invalid ruling by 'five lawyers.' 5-4 majority in Hobby Lobby [can't force private businesses to provide contraception is the object for religious reasons] = unquestioned law of the land."
• One of the oddest things about Mrs. LL is that she goes crazy over a "spin move" in football. Wait until she sees this one from last night. 
• I've mentioned many times that the demise of football when we have a death on the field in the NFL or major college program. I think we had a horrible "death on the field" in a Louisiana high school game this weekend although, not that it makes any difference, almost all the reports say he was declared "dead at the hospital."
• Ted Cruz is headed to Kentucky to support jailed clerk Kim Davis.  If he wants to support her for her will to break the law for religious convictions, I guess that's OK. But if he says the jailing is unjustified under the law, you will have a brilliant constitutional lawyer lying to your face. 
• I forgot to mention that Mack Brown was pretty good doing play by play on the Baylor/SMU game. If he ever said, "What the coach is thinking right now . . . " it was normally spot on. 
• You have to love Sarah Palin:  "I think we can send a message and say: ‘You want to be in America? A, you better be here legally, or you’re out of here. B, when you’re here, let’s speak American.’ I mean, that’s just, that’s – let’s speak English."
• I couldn't find the "Attorney's Puzzled" story below online this morning. Maybe it's on the website now. (And I feel the pain of anyone associated with newspapers who is thinking, "And everyone just thinks they should get our content for free.")

Random Monday Morning Thoughts

• It's a holiday. It's Labor Day. And Random Thoughts is up to prove once again that I'm the hardest working man in show business.
• If you haven't seen the two high school football players in San Antonio targeting a referee, you need to. The first guy might have been able to argue that it was an accident (which would be a hard sell), but the second player proves it was an orchestrated attack.  Video.
• Right after I typed that above bullet point, I thought of 9/11. The first plane hit was bizarre but you wanted to believe it was an accident but when the second plane hit -- then you knew. It's interesting how the mind often works based upon what we want to believe.
• "Drugs, divorce and a demanding campaign: The undoing of Dallas County DA Susan Hawk" That Morning News article released today is really good and insightful. She has been though a quite a bit of stress and now suffers from "breaks with reality and bouts of paranoia".  My sympathy for her is building. 
• Sports: (1) Mike Leach might be in trouble at Washington State. They were a 30 point favorite over Portland State and lost last weekend. He is now 12-26 at the school. Ironically, his career is headed in the same direction as that of Craig James. (2) Texas lost 38-3 to Notre Dame.  I used to poke fun at the Evil Empire because I was jealous of the Longhorns' success. But that situation on the 40 Acres isn't funny anymore. (3) Texas can't find a quarterback, and it has been that way basically since Colt McCoy left. You know what justifiably drove every Texas fan crazy? In mop up duty against SMU, Baylor put in a true freshman who was a highly recruited quarterback. On his very first play, he threw a bomb for a 42 yard touchdown (also to a true freshman).  Here's a GIF. Sure it was SMU, but that made every Texas fan yell, "How can we not find anyone?" (4) Funny hypo on The Ticket this morning: Would the worst team in the NFL win the Super Bowl if they were allowed to have on player on the field who was invisible. The answer is "absolutely!", right? (5) BagofNothing was dead on: College football games are ridiculously long. And I remember correctly, when I looked on my DVR to try and record Baylor/SMU, ESPN had allocated three hours. The chances of a college game ending within four hours, not three, is a dicey proposition. 
• I went to downtown Fort Worth for College Game Day. I ended up walking for a short distance with a lady in a Baylor shirt - I was wearing one too - and she told me she had just been "literally attacked" by a drunk TCU kid that and that his buddies had to pull him back.  "I'm a 50 year old woman!", she said. She didn't mean "literally" and "verbally" would be the better word, but I'll give her a break because for 50 years old: Pretty, pretty hot. 
• Shout out to my neighbor who was mowing his lawn at 7:30. I was already up so I really don't care. Everyone else? They might have a problem with it.
• My weekend was spent working on a hunch. I still don't know if I'm right, but I pray that I am. 
• Fox 4 News spent about a minute this morning showing The Gal Surfing In A Dress And High Heels. Scroll down and you'll see I posted that video last week. And to think the publisher of Messenger called me an "Internet pioneer" over 15 years ago. Neither one of us knew the journey would lead to stuff like that. 
• My weird Liberally Lean power: Out of the blue, I mentioned the seldom seen or heard Charlie Sheen on Friday. The next day, the Ranger's Derek Holland throws an absolute gem and then Sheen shows up in the locker room in front of photographers.