11.01.2024

It's Friday -- Let's Get Out of Here

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Random Friday Morning Thoughts




Ten years ago, I reprinted this old "Dear Abby" type of letter from an old Bridgeport High School newspaper which was printed by the Bridgeport Index. Pure gold. 

  • Even I'll admit that Drudge is a little over the top this morning in saying he "calls for" Liz Cheney's execution.  But if you think that is 100% not possible at some point, you are seriously underestimating Trump. The actual clip from last night's interview is here. 

     

    • This caught my eye from the same interview. Look, I've said that I don't understand how this election is even close. Or how anyone can vote for Trump after January 6th.  But I will go to my grave absolutely dumbfounded on how the Christian community can support him and this guy's role in it. 

  • ChatGPT, as of yesterday, now has up-to-date web search capabilities.  Let me offer this hot technology opinion: This is the biggest development since the advent of the Internet itself. It's amazing, and Google, whose search capabilities have fallen off a cliff in the last couple of years, is now in major trouble. 


    • No ads. No searching through a ton of meaningless links.  Here's a couple of just silly examples I tried out: 


  • Weird airport things this week. One local, one not.
     

  • Trump has sued 60 Minutes for "editing" its interview with Kamala Harris. And he wants $10 billion. Since every interview by every outlet is edited -- and he has to know this -- this is nothing more than just a stunt despite his explicit desire to control the free press.

    • But he filed it in federal court in Amarillo so that its guaranteed to land in the court of one of his sycophant appointees, Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk .  It will get dismissed, and it may take a higher court to finally do it, but it will. 

  • They are all crazy.


  • This guy might single-handedly turn Tarrant County blue by the time he's done with his antics.



  • Texas Monthly is after Sen. Phil King for potential ethic violations. I was always suspicious of him.


  • Former Patriots coach Bill Belichick, 72, posed with his 24 year old girlfriend for their Halloween photo. 

  • The Religion Second™: The iconic Park Cities Baptist Church off of Preston Road in Dallas is leaving the Southern Baptist Convention.  This is a big deal in Baptist circles.

  • Elon Musk is one weird guy. He "purchased an Austin mansion for his 11 children along with adjoining properties for two of the three mothers of his children." (Gift link.)

  • Random tricked-up basketball tournament format for the Sun Belt next year which I'm on board with:

  • Re the Brandon Aubrey jury trial: Although the trial took last Monday off, it wasn't done to fit the schedule of the Cowboys' kicker. The 297th District Court in Tarrant County normally has a regular docket on Mondays and resumes all jury trials from the preceding week on Tuesdays.   (And one of the lawyers involved, Decatur's own Robert Keating, sends his regards. Nice guy.)
  • Time which has passed since the Wise County Sheriff's Office, despite having a full male DNA profile, has failed to solve the murder of Lauren Whitener in her home at Lake Bridgeport: 5 years and 119 days.

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10.31.2024

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts




When a girl got arrested on Halloween in Denton for an offense which is ultimately 
punishable by fine only.

  • According to the Tarrant County DA web site, the case where the Cowboys' kicker was sitting on it now officially over. It ended with a 65 year old sentence. (That tells me the guy had priors. I'm working on getting more info.)
  • So someone explain Trump's campaign strategy to me. 
    • After a comedian at Trump's ill-advised rally at Madison Square Garden called Puerto Rico "garbage", Trump thought it would be a good idea to trick up a garbage truck with his logo plastered on it and drive around in circles in Wisconsin. Maybe the greatest self-own in history?


    • And he ends up creating the worst campaign photo since Michael Dukakis decided to get into a tank. (Original photo in link.)

    • Then he compounded the problem by wearing that goofy vest to a rally last night where he said the was going to "protect women" whether "they like it or not" -- which the Harris campaign immediately turned into an ad. 

  • A little trouble this morning on I-35 south of Fort Worth.  Any you think self-driving trucks and vehicles would be worse than this? 

  • Your annual reminder that no matter what politicians tell you, people are not giving away their drug on Halloween. 

  • Your Dallas Mavericks.

  • As of late last evening, your Texas Rangers are no longer reigning World Series champions. 

  • Global news quick hits:
    • While we haven't been looking, Russia has been advancing in Ukraine. "In October, Russia made its largest territorial gains since the summer of 2022." 

       

    • Spain is being hit by crazy rains bringing lots of death.
       

  • The Business Second™.  The very conservative Wall Street Journal editorial page today: 

  • Texas judge controversy. Hays County district judge who was recently appointed by Abbott to fill a vacancy and is running for election for the first time.  He should be indicted because of the hat alone. 


  • Messenger - Above the Fold

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10.30.2024

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts




And I thought this was weird a decade ago. Little did I know what was about 
to happen to society.


  • According to the Tarrant County D.A.'s web site, the case that Cowboy kicker Brandon Aubrey is sitting on as a juror, reached a verdict on guilty/not guilt yesterday. But the case will fire up again today when the jury hears any punishment evidence.

  • Does Ken Paxton ever spend anytime doing regular work?

  • Kamala Harris returned to the exact place of Trump's crime last night to deliver some closing remarks before next week's election day.




    • Lets see how the objective Fox News network handled the event by looking at a collection of chyrons they used at the bottom of the screen during the speech. 

    • Flashback to Trump's January 6th rally at that location before the Insurrection:

  • The Liberally Lean Weather Team tells me that Wise County will see about an hour of "a pretty good little rain" shortly after midnight. 
  • Locally relevant quote from this Christian Post story: "We love you, Jesus, and we also love our country," Pastor Jack Graham of Prestonwood Baptist Church prayed. "And we thank you that you have raised up a man, Donald J. Trump, to be a warrior for the Word of God." Incredible. 

  • The "Let's Go Brandon" crowd is claiming that President Biden called "Trump supporters" "garbage" last night. Not true. What they are doing is playing a few second clip and cutting it off after the word "supporter's" in an effort to give the impression that Biden said "supporters" without the apostrophe.  The full clip matches the transcript below. 



    • He's clearly calling Tony Hinchcliffe garbage.
    • And if you want to see what you want to see, fine. Don't vote for Biden. (And then go by a little book by Strunk and White.)
  • The great overseas travel guide Rick Steves wasn't holding back last night regarding this election.

  • It's coming. He thinks he is going to lose Pennsylvania and the election, and he is doing pre-emptive lying Get ready. 

  • The Business Second™. D R Horton shares fell up to 15% yesterday after its quarterly earnings were released. But I wouldn't exactly say the sky is falling: "In the three months through September, buyers signed contracts for 19,035 homes, up 5% from a year earlier [but] analysts [had] estimated 19,994 . . . ."

  • Remember how windy it was yesterday evening? Well, there was an outdoor volleyball game in it in Argyle. Video clip of the action which was way too normal.

  • In case you missed this crazy moment in the World Series game last night, here it is.

  • Thanksgiving is in 29 days. Christmas is in 56 days. 

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