Random Thursday Morning Thoughts

This was awful and made national news. The 16 year old was driving when he fell asleep in Louisiana as the Wills Point family was driving to Disney World. And that 16 year old survived. Both parents were elementary school teachers in Terrell. 

---

• So a deputy's safety check at home where the occupants had not been heard from for "several days" reveals two people dead and another person injured but alive?
  

  

  
  
  
  
• Fun at Love Field. Video.
  
  
  
• In normal times, Gaetz would never be confirmed for AG because of his complete lack of experience. But these aren't normal times.  And payments to young women for sex, or even previously lying about it, doesn't move MAGA one iota. I still think he'll be AG one way or another. And even if not, the real story is that the head of the Justice Department, no matter who it is, will be Trump's personal hitman who will bring about carnage unlike anything we've ever seen. 
  
  
  
  
  

  

  
  
  
  
• I'm not surprised that she was denied parole - if you are a high profile defendant, you have no chance -- but I am surprised that it has already been 30 years. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
• All for show.
  
  
   
  
  
  
• Tarrant County -- where the Wise County case of Tanner Horner has been transferred to - currently has two death penalty cases ongoing this week.  One guy actually was sentenced to death yesterday.  The other was found guilty and moves into the punishment phase today. 
  
  
  
• DPS has a new $350,000 Man as the replacement for the outgoing director has been named. Get this: He was already making $315,000 as a deputy director.  We'll find out it he also acts as the governor's political lapdog, but the overwhelming odds are that he will. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
• We had another conviction yesterday of a "patriot", "hostage" or whatever else Trump calls them. And by the time Trump is done, January 6th will be a national holiday.  And I'm only halfway joking.
  
  
   
• Idiocracy.
• Good gawd. This was yesterday from the President-Elect.
  
  
  
• This is the new Secretary of Education who was once upside down as she was about to be pile-driven. Video. 
  
  
  
• The Business Second™. The amount of money that AI chipmaker NVIDIA is making is insane.  It released its earning for the third quarter yesterday afternoon. 
  

  

  
  

  

  
  
   
  
  
• Legal nerdy stuff. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals reversed a lower court yesterday that had held it wasn't fair to a defendant to have his trial conducted inside a jail building.  But the dissent started with a banger and included a photo in the opinion: 
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Messenger - Above the Fold

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts

It never had a chance. The company would file for bankruptcy protection in February of 2015.

---

• You thought I was crazy when I wrote about concentration camps? Get ready.
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Should we be worried?
  

  

  

  
  

  
  
  
  
• Flashback: Nothing to worry about. Trump promised us he will have the war ended "in 24 hours."
  
  
  
• The clown car of appointments continues. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
• And these people are going to end up in those positions one way or another. 
  
  
  
• Wait a second. DFW broke ground on a new terminal yesterday, Terminal F, but you can't enter it directly? You have to check in, check your bags, and go through security at Terminal E -- across the highway -- and take Skylink to Terminal F? 
  
  
  
  
  

  

  
  
  
  
• Trump was convicted on 34 counts but now the DA says, "We can just hold off sentencing for at least four years." Everyone is running scared. 
  
  
  
• Wise County new state rep wants to give the death penalty to sex offenders. This is so dumb that there is not a prosecutor in Texas who would support it.  Most notably because the conviction rates would plummet to next to nothing. (Not to mention it is clearly unconstitutional.)
  
  
  
• I loved this guy in the 1980s because he seemed to be one of the few who really understood Christianity -- or at least how I understood it. And there's not a Baptist out there who didn't get enthralled with his, "It's Friday, but Sunday's coming" sermon. And his "Party With Prostitutes" (video) speech is a favorite.
  
  
  
  
  
  
• This seems like a big deal. (Free link.) And I'm guessing it is not good news for MSNBC and CNBC.
  
  
  
• And Morning Joe is on MSNBC. This is an update from yesterday which, if true, is really disturbing.   I'm not sure there will be anyone left to challenge the State under Trump. 
  
  
  
• This is quite the graphic from Monday night:
  
  
  
• Here's a mind-blowing odd fact involving the Evil Empire: When Kentucky plays in Austin on Saturday, it will equal the farthest west that the Wildcats have ever played a football game. (They also played in Austin 73 years ago.) I didn't believe that when I first saw it. 

Random Tuesday Morning Thoughts

As the Decatur team heads to the state tournament today, I figured that the team a decade ago, who did the same, would want to be remembered. 

---

• In one of the wrecks over the weekend in Wise County, a 34 year old named Zach Wyatt Ellis was arrested for Intoxication Manslaughter (book-in #113112).    It may be a total coincidence, but I found an old web page that shows someone with that exact same name and of the same age who was sentenced to 14 years in prison in 2013 for Intoxication Manslaughter out of Runnels County. Once again, I have no idea if it is the same guy or even if that page is accurate. 
• The bromance continues. For now.
  
  
  
• Oh my. Now the third victim has died.  
  

  

  
  
  
  
• Trump went back to the Fox News well for an appointment. He was also on MTV's "The Real World."
  
  
  
• I still don't think he'll need to invoke recess appointments. 
  
  
  
• Here's the video of it falling before last night's game in case you haven't seen it.
  
  
   
  
  
  

  

  Another loose one remained in the rafters.

  
  
• It's in Allen. (He actually listed it last summer.)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• I was going to ask if everyone knew that Daikin was an a/c manufacturing company, but then I got distracted with the photo of the mascot being at the press conference.
  

  

  
  
  
  
• Get ready for a week's worth of fake "the busiest travel day of the year" stories.