Oops?

 From Instapunit, we get this heartwarming tale of government incompetence.  Clicking through the link, we get more details.

At the Revere Hotel in Boston, FBI agents and Army Special Ops units were about to conduct a "training exercise".

In the "exercise", they would go into a room and interrogate a "role player".

Yeah, I've played those games.  Set up properly, they are really good training.  But this one went sideways.

Instead, they went to the wrong room, where an unsuspecting airline pilot answered the door.  They handcuffed him, threw him into the shower, and interrogated him for about an hour, before he was able to convince them he wasn't the "role player".

Oh, crap!  They went into the wrong room and bounced a citizen.  Presumably, the agents had badges and guns, Scared the crap out of some poor airline pilot.  I'm sure that  they apologized profusely and begged forgiveness. No?

They then told him that he could never speak about what had happened, and left.

Bad choice.  Everyone knows he's going to talk about it. Groveling and pleading would have ben a better idea, but that didn't happen.

Here is what should happen:  As to the FBI guys.  Move then out of whatever special detail they were on and transfer them to some God-awful posting in middle America.  Let them do white-collar crime until they reach retirement.  Use then as object examples in ethics training.

As to the soldiers, those Spec-Ops guys,  Reduce then one grade and transfer them back to the basic leg infantry.  I dunno, maybe at Fort Riley.  Or Leonard Wood.  Maybe Knox.  But never again in Special Operations.  They can serve out their time in Big Army,

Sunday Morning Dawg

 

Part Time Biden

 The New York Post is reporting that Ol' Joe works about 30 hours per week.  

Days after the 80-year-old formally announced he would run for re-election in 2024, Axios reported Friday that aides say it’s tough to schedule “public or private events” with Biden at certain times of day — namely weekends, mornings, and evenings.

 In fact, the report adds, most of Biden’s public events happen between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Oh, I'm sure that he gets his national security briefings,  But that puts this fool at the part time level of work. It used to be 40 hours to be considered full time, but I understand they have lowered that to 32.  Even so, you would think that the most powerful person in the world would work more than 40 hours per week.

Solving the Homeless Crisis

 Like many of you, I've been reading about the homeless crisis that unfolded in many of our large metro areas.  Portland, OR, New York City, etc.  Even my hometown of Alexandria, LA has a homeless problem, but not to the extent of other metro areas.  I've been thinking about what we could do to help solve this problem.

It returns to economics. In my hometown, we have something called the Central Louisiana Homeless Coalition that seems to be some sort of quasi-governmental agency to deal with the problem.  In Portland, OR, there is something called the Joint Office of Homeless Services, and even in New Orleans, there is an office in the Community Development department to deal with it.  These are just three examples. So, along wit the unfortunate homeless, we have people on the public payroll that are supposed to deal with that problem.  There are people on the payroll who need the homeless so that they can continue to draw a paycheck.  If the problem goes away, there is no reason to pay these people.

There is a truism in conservative economics that if you subsidize something, you get more of it. The simple answer is to quit subsidizing it. Defund those offices and transfer the government workers to another acency like Waste Water or Public Sanitation where they might be useful.

I notice, simply by looking around that we don't have a homeless problem in rural areas.  The land is privately owned, and we don't tolerate it.  I'm just sayin'.

Mowing

The rodeo crew at the church wants to rodeo tonight.  Whether it actually happens in a matter of claim and the arena crew will inspect the arena later today and see if the arena floor is dry enough to run horses.

Regardless, the grass grows whether it is raining or not.  So, we needed to mow.  I loaded the Skag on a trailer this morning and went to the church to knock the grass back.  I got in the spectator are and most of the outer arena .  When the front of my mower started pushing water, I backed off.  As good as a zero-turn mower is at cutting grass, those heavy beasts dearly love to get stuck.  This morning I did not want to deal with a mired mower.

If anyone complains, I'll tell them that it is hard to get good help at the rates they pay,  I'm easy to fire, so if they don't want me mowing grass, all they have to do is say so.

I got home as Belle was leaving the house.  I asked her if she wanted me to ride with her and she said that she was hitting a few stores, looking for crochet materials. I told her to have fun.  SHe needs time away from me, just like I need time away from her.

More Bud Light Controversy

 It seems that there is a bar in Indiana who has made news about its policy on Bud Light.

It seems that they want to have the conversation, but if you disagree with their opinion you should feel free to leave.

However, one venue in Bloomington, Indiana has made headlines with a contradictory message calling for "open conversations" about the subject, yet demanding those who disagree to "leave" their establishment.

I don't know which side of the debate they are on, and i don't really care, but it seems like a poor choice  If you are running a bar, the only thing you want is for your customers to have a good time, enjoy themselves, and buy product.  I was a bartender for a time, and I listened to more nonsense coming over the bar than anyone should have to listen to, but as long as the customer was not starting trouble and was paying his tab, I didn't care.

Rain

 It started raining yesterday about 9:00 and has continued pretty much nonstop.  Sometimes heavier, sometimes lighter, but a continuing period of rain.  Based on my observations of the back yard, we've gotten an inch or so.  

I was supposed to load the zero-turn and do some mowing at the church, but it seems like that's not happening.  The mower is ready, but the weather just won't cooperate.  We are supposed to have a rodeo tomorrow night, but that is in the air right now.  Hopefully the weather will moderate this afternoon and I can get over there tomorrow morning and do the mowing.  Regardless of whether we rodeo or not, the grass will still need to be mowed.

The dawg and I are out here in the shop, piddling at some small projects. We'll continue this for amother hour, thenI have to run to town to take care of some shopping.  It looks like it's going to be a rainy day around here today.

Washington State

 Washington State.  Top left corner of the map, is having a problem with their drug laws.  It appears that in July, there won't be any.

The current law is a stopgap passed after a state Supreme Court ruling invalidated Washington’s felony drug possession law. That stopgap, which makes drug possession a misdemeanor, expires in July.

It seems to be an odd combination of a state supreme court ruling and other laws expiring, and it seems that in July, there will be no drug possession laws in the state. I predict a certain amount of mayhem.

Change

 I see that there were some changes yesterday on the national stage.

Susan Rice left the White House.

Tucker Carlson left Fox News.

Don Lemon left CNN.

Interesting.  I doubt that one had anything to do with the other, but it is interesting.

Politics

 It is customary in presidential politics that a sitting president is not primaried by a member of his own party. This has been a unwritten rule for decades.  But, these are not normal times and politics today is not customary.

Indeed, these last couple of cycles has been weird.  Ol' Joe ran on being the anti-Trump when the country was locked in the Covid crisis.  Very little campaigning, ad-hoc voting rules, the entire cycle was quite bizarre.  And at this stage of the game, Ol' Joe has not yet formally announced his intentions for a second term. His family is mired in scandal, the wolves are at the door and he seems blissfully unaware of the myriad crises that he has led us into.

Robert Kennedy, Jr. the son of the assassinated RFK has announced his intention to run for the presidency.  He's an interesting character. He's a Covid skeptic, a Ukraine questioner, and does not seem to fit the mold of the current Democrat party.  He sounds to me like the Democrats from a bygone era, and he intends to primary the sitting president.

This may get interesting.

Cold

 It's been a cool, pleasant weekend, but this morning it's downright chilly.  47F on my back porch, which required flannel with my morning coffee. This is the last week of April in Louisiana, and this is normally the week when we would open the pool.

I know I shouldn't complain, but this is the third East cold snap we've had this year.  Soon, the summer will be upon us.  Still, I find it disconcerting to be wearing flannel in April.  I have been told that the Gulf is warm this year, and I can only hope that these cool temps will serve to moderate the water temps to help with the hurricane season that starts in another month of so.

One day soon we will drag out the generator for its quarterly maintenance. Part of the ritual of owning a generator is that if we make sure it is well maintained, we will never actually need to use it during a storm.  I intend to comply with that ritual to placate whatever of the minor gods that supervise such things.

Sunday Morning Dawg

 

History

 I am told that back in the day, when cowboys rode horseback, it was customary to carry a small lantern to find your way after dark.

This was the beginning of saddle-light navigation.

Dummies

 It seems that Pete Buttigieg wants to spend $20 million on female crash test dummies. It seems that the science shows that there are major physical differences between male and female humans.

Really, Pete?  There are differences between men and women, in body type, muscle mass and bone density?  Who would have guessed that?  That sort of puts the lie to the whole gender equity model, doesn't t?

I'm just sayin'.

Cleaning Filters

I'm cleaning filters on the shop air conditioners today.  I've even gone so far as the get out the shop vac and take a run at the evaporator and condenser coils.  Air has to move, and dirty coils slow the air.

Between trips up the ladder and waiting for the filters to dry, I'm surfing the intertubes.  It appears that the Hunter Biden story is starting to get some traction. That unnamed IRS whistleblower is seemingly doing it right, checking all the boxes, and is ready to blow the lid on Hunter, his dad Joe, and the rest of the Biden crime family.

Some legal scholars are making the point I made yesterday, that these investigations are taking too long, that it appears that some very high level people may be involved in a coverup.  And, for those of us old enough to remember Watergate, we recall that the coverup is the most damaging to a political career.  Some are saying that the Secretary of State, and the Attorney General may be at risk of criminal prosecution.

To continue the metaphor of cleaning filters, it appears that even CBS is beginning to cover the story.  I gave CNN a cursory review, but didn't find anything.  When Rachel Maddow starts covering it, we will know that all the filters have been cleaned.

Is Biden Corrupt?

 Is Joe Biden corrupt?  Has he used the office of the Vice President and now the office of the President to enrich himself and his family?  Well, of course.

A new article on Fox is telling us that the IRS has been slow-walking the investigation into the Biden family.  That's not news.  We also know that the FBI has had the Hunter laptop since before the election.  How long will these investigations go on? - - As long as Joe is the president.  It's a damned shame.

What else is a damned shame is the fact that we are being subjected to the constant buzz about corruption that we all know exists, without any resolution.  Hunter is a tragic player in a high stakes game of political malfeasance.  We all know this, but the powers-that-be are not compelled to hold him accountable.  Indeed, they seem to be intent on looking away while the rest of America watches, dumbfounded.

I remember when they got Spiro Agnew for corruption.  No one knew that the investigations were ongoing until mere hours before he resigned.  We did not suffer through the continuing drip, drip, drip of minor revelations.  That investigation was done properly and was only revealed when the evidence was so strong that no one could ignore it.  

If the IRS, or the FBI, or the DOJ has evidence that Biden is corrupt and are hiding eh evidence from the American people, that fact alone speaks volumes about corruption in those agencies.  If we find that criminal investigators refused to move on credible evidence of criminality, they should be sanctioned.  But if they don't move on high-level crime, they are simply perpetuating the idea that we do have a two-tiered justice system in our country.

First Mowing

I prepped the mower several weeks ago on a cold, clammy day.   This morning it was simply a matter of checking the oil, adding fuel, and firing it off.  I'm late this year, on April 20h.  The neighbors have been mowing for a couple of weeks.

I'm sure that the neighbors appreciate my sloth.  By comparison, I make their yards look better.  When I was in the livestock business, grass was an asset.  Now, it's a liability. It's simply something that has to be maintained.  Shorter is better. And, I don't do flowerbeds.  I consider them frivolous. When Belle and I bought this place, I promised her that I would mow the grass.  I also promised her that I would never maintain a flower bed.  That is on her.  She was okay with that, and so far, I have kept my vows.

The weather-weenies say it is supposed to rain tonight, and I knew that if I didn't get it done today, it would be another five days before the ground was dry enough to support that big Skag zero-turn I use to mow grass.  I love my zero-turn, but they will get stuck if the ground is damp.  

Mowing season is on us.  I'll continue to mow until the middle of October.

Another Shooting in Alexandria

Yet another shooting in my hometown of Alexandria, LA.  Again in an area I'm familiar with.  On the corner of Monroe and Louisiana.  My college roommate's parents lived on Louisiana Ave when we were in high school.  My grandmother lived several blocks away.  A lot of the girls I dated during high school lived in that area.  In the 79s, it was solid, white middle class.  Retirees and military, just plain folks.

In the 80s and 89s it started to change.  The shooting yesterday and the shooting today make me sad.  That used to be such a nice, friendly area of town.  Now, not so much.

Never Ends Well

Coming home from Georgia today, Belle tis surfing the net and tells me that there is a stand-off in my hometown, and when she gives me the location, I know it well.

Basically, the Alexandria Police Department initiates a traffic stop.  The choirboy leaps from his vehicle and begins shooting at the police.  The police return fire.  The choirboy runs away into a copse of trees nearby.  The police set up a perimeter and they get out their drones.  "Oh, look.  The copse has a corpse"

It seems that the choirboy took at least one bullet in the initial exchange of gunfire, ran into the woods mortally injured, and shortly assumed ambient temperature.

Never shoot at the cops. It does not end well.

On a side not, I wonder if I knew that choirboy?  We'll wait until his name is released.

Georgia State - Day 2

 I went out after seven rounds today.  I shot well, but got outrun by some very good shooters.   There is no shame in that.  Once I was done, I got to leave, so Belle and I came back to the hotel and are lounging around.

Tomorrow I won't have to set an alarm. When we waken and get ready, we'll check out of the hotel and go down the road for a nice breakfast, thence to the range. We have to be there at the bitter end, simply because Belle and I brought all the ammo that is being shot at this mitch.

Cowboy Fast Draw requires a special ammunition.  Basically, it is a wax bullet stuffed into a .45 LC case that has been cut to accept a shotgun primer. According to the rules, all of the ammo must be alike.  Same brand of wax, same brand of primer.  These cases are expensive, retailing at 80 cents apiece, but occasionally, deals can be found.  Belle and I happen to own 5000 of these casings. Our sister club in Silsbee, TX, owns 5000 of these cases.  So, when Georgia club said that they wanted to hold the first championship in the state, we asked if they had enough brass casings to supply the match.  They did not.

So, Belle and I volunteered to supply 5000 rounds, and the Silsbee club volunteered to provide 5000 cases.  The Silsbee club coordinated with me, and Belle and I brought all 0,000, loaded and ready to go. The Georgia club has purchased enough wax and primers resupply us, and I'm going to haul them all home, clean them, and load them for Louisiana State in  three months.

That is how Cowboy Fast Draw works.  We help each other. We are a family and we help each other out.

Georgia State - Day 1

 We're shooting under a roof with no walls.  It looks like an equipment shed, but it's not big enough for much equipment.  It kept the rain off of us and we were able to shoot.  They put your humble scribe into something called the Old Timers category. After the gunsmoke cleared, I believe I was in 2nd place, so I'll take home a minor trophy.

Tomorrow starts the main match, where all shooters are equal, and I have no illusions about my placement there.  All I an do is hit the target, but often that is enough.  Belle and I will get a good nights sleep and we'll start again tomorrow.

On The Road Again

 In another hour of so, Belle and I will be on the road to a shooting competition on the north side of Atlanta, GA.  We are looking forward to a weekend away and enjoying time with our shooting family.

The dog will be considerably confused, but he stays confused a lot.  He's staying home this time, and a grandson will make sure that his kibble is available and the water bowl filled.  He will be fine.

It has been several years since I was in north Georgia, and from what I remember, it is beautiful country.

Cancellation - I Think Not!

 Let me push back just a little on this cancel thing that Budweiser is experiencing.  I've read that Anheuser-Busch market cap has lost some $3 billion over the past month, but is that the fault of the American beer drinker?

A quick inventory of my personal beer lockers shows no Anheuser-Busch products. I have Miller High Life, Miller lite, Corona, Abita, and Sam Adams products.  But no Bud.  I haven't had a Budweiser since college.

American consumers are making a choice, individually.  Luckily we have lots of choices in the beer aisle. If you want to market to transvestites, go ahead.  It's all about choice.  If you are selling beer and want to market to beer drinkers, that might be a better choice.  I'm not sure how much beer the transvestite community drinks.

I don't drink much beer.  Maybe one a month, but when I do drink beer, it's good beer.

Bud LIte - Dude!

 For years one of the biggest brands in beer has been Budweiser, and Bud Lite.  Who is their market?  Guys who drink beer. Note, I said, GUYS who drink beer.

So, Bud Lite's marketing director wants to be more inclusive and partners with a noted transvestite to promote the brand.  Hilarity ensues.

Here is the lesson for Bud Lite.  Guys are going to drink beer.  Whether it is Bud Lite, or something else, there is very little brand loyalty. The guys who buy beer by the case will swap to another brand the instant they feel slighted. You can play it down all you like, but in the near term, Bud Lite is now the transvestite brand.  Enjoy the notoriety, and the market share.

DMV Express Office

Over the past several years, Louisiana has done something that seems to make sense.  They have opened some contract offices that provide DMV services.  We all know what a pain it is to go to the DMV.  Long lines, surly civil servants, wasted time.  But, my experience in the Express office is totally unlike everyting I've ever known about dealing with the DMV.

For example, Belle needed to renew her drivers license.  So, we went to the Express office this morning. She was not fully signed-in when a staffer called her to a table.  Fifteen minutes later we were walking out the door.  When I got my license renewed last year, it was much the same experience.

The Express offices charge a small fee, but Belle got a 6-year drivers license for $41.75.  Not bad at all.  If you are a Louisiana resident, look around for an Express office.  It is worth the search.

NPR is State Media

 Listening to Tucker Carlson, I learned that Twitter has officially labeled NPR (National Public Radio) as state media.  King of like how Pravda is Russian state media.

My grandmother used to listen to NPR, back in the 60s.  She liked the music they broadcast.

I honestly didn't know that NPR was still a thing, but I knew that they were federally funded. And linked with state affiliated radio like Louisiana Public Broadcasting

So, I clicked over to the NPR website, and they are not happy about it.

Twitter added a "state-affiliated media" tag to NPR's main account on Tuesday, applying the same label to the nonprofit media company that Twitter uses to designate official state mouthpieces and propaganda outlets in countries such as Russia and China.

I haven't listened to NPR for years.  Not since I was at my grandmother's house.   But, this is funny, right here.  If Elon Musk says NPR is a propaganda arm of Democrats, I have no reason to disagree with that opinion.

Pop Culture

 Surfing around this morning, I clicked on a video that I mis-interpreted and found myself watching some Gen X tutorial on something called ASMR.  It is supposedly a relaxation technique triggered by whispering voices and gentle stimulation that is characterized by a tingling in the scalp and down the back.  Very strange.

I recall a relaxation technique from my early years, triggered by gentle touches and whispered voice of the female gender. The resulting activity proved to be very relaxing.  But, I don't think, from my limited study, that ASMR is set on a similar goal.

Pop culture is very confusing, and I have to be much more careful what I click on.

Be forewarned.

Two Days

 It's been a busy two days, taking care of a list of things that needed to be done.  My plate is clear now, at least till Monday, when things get started again.  It's the Holy Weekend, and I intend to waste the rest of the day and take it easy tomorrow, remembering why we celebrate Easter.

I did notice that retired Admiral John Kirby lost all credibility on Thursday when he briefed the press.  He said that the withdrawal from Afghanistan was a success and he didn't see any chaos. It was an amazing perspective from a retired officer, replete with the bullshit that we normally expect from career politicians. He should resign in disgrace.

In more pertinent news, Belle and I found some leftover brisket and made sandwiches for lunch.   Good, thin sliced brisket on French bread, run through the sandwich press.  Not bad for a Saturday

That will do nicely.

Y'all have a great Easter.

Death and Taxes

 I ain't dead yet, but it is time to worry about our yearly tax problems.  I may have finally figured it out.  It looks like I'm braking even on the state and getting a little back from the feds.

Be;;e fully retired during 2021, and I've been fully retired since 2019.  We are living within our means, and while we're okay, if Joe Biden's economy continues to go south, things might get a little sketchy.  But at this point, I can still afford good whiskey and Bell has her wine.

I'll file on Monday or Tuesday, because I can.  Tax Day isn't until the Monday after the 15th, so we have another week or so.  It will get done.  But, I am pleased that I'm not sending anyone a check this year.

Making A Marksman

 My eleven-year-old grandson is involved in 4H shooting.  This morning his dad had an obligation and asked me to take the grandkid to shooting practice.  I was happy to do so.  He recently qualified for his first state match, and they are trying to get in s mush practice as possible.

His skill level shoots .22 rimfire, position shooting.  Prone, sitting and standing.

They shoot prone and sitting at 50 yards.  You can't see the kiddo, because he is prone, in front of the coaches. Then, they move forward to 25 yards for the standing portion.

That is him on the far left, with the yellow tee shirt.  I got a chance to look at his targets when he was finished and I was pleased.  His shots were evenly clustered around the 10 ring, the vast majority of then 8s and 10s.  This tells me that his rifle is set up correctly and he needs to concentrate more on the basics of sight alignment and trigger squeeze.  He runs a Ruger 10/22, which seems to be the most common rifle on the line.

It was fun watching the kiddo shoot.  He is learning the basics of competitive shooting, he is safe and competent with his rifle.  And, he's turning into a pretty fair little marksman.

Garbage Disposal

 This weekend, our garbage disposal in the kitchen crapped the bed.  It was installed when the house was built, so it's over 20 years old.  Not bad for a grinder pump that is used almost every day.

This morning after coffee, I went to Lowe's and got another one.  Same brand as the old one.  The installation was not particularly easy, but it was straight-forward.  Very little cussing involved.  It's hanging under the sink now, and appears to be leak-free.  We'll see.

In installations like this, YouTube is your friend.

Dark Day

 Today, former president Donald Trump will surrender to police authorities in New York to be formally charged with crimes that are, as yet, unpublished.  He will be booked, which normally consists of filling out forms, being fingerprinted, and a photo taken. Then he will go to a courtroom where he will be arraigned.

Every criminal defendant in the US has certain protections.  These are outlined in the Miranda warning, and it behooves all criminal defendants to exercise these protections to their fullest.

President Trump will be represented by counsel and will have the right to remain silent. Like Ron White, I don't know if he will have the ability.  It would behoove him to only speak through his lawyers until this matter is settled.

Kel-Tech?

 Some folks are identifying this photo as a Kel Tech Sub2000 which is a pistol caliber carbine.  Whatever it is, it certainly doesn't seem to be an AR platform firearm.

I don't have a problem with pistol caliber carbines.  As a matter of fact, I like them a lot.  But, if the Nashviille shooter was using a Kel Tech, why are the anitis screaming about AR rigles?

Drawbridge

 The bridge that links the two downtowns of Alexandria and Pineville, LA  is a drawbridge.  THe bridges to the north and south of town are both hig enough that river traffic can proceed unhindered, but that downtown bridge must be raised for vertain vessels.

This morning I was heading toward Alexandria and found that the bridge was up.

It was a minor inconvenience, and I was allowed to proceed within minutes,  I suppose that this is a more common occurrence than it appears, as the Red river has significant river traffic.

Ruger Re-Introduces Marlin 336

 Termite tells me that Ruger is re-introducing the old Marlin 336, an iconic lever rifle from the late 1900s.

Sure enough, the link is here.

When I was a mere youth, the two most common deer rifles in the piney woods of central Louisiana were the Marlin 336 and the Winchester 94. Both chambered in .30-30, they were very useful for deer sized game.  As a matter of fact, the very first rifle I ever bough was a Marlin 336.  I paid $87.50 for it at the now defunct Gibson's Department Store in Alexandria, LA.  This was in the Autumn of 1973.  I suspect that the MSRP is a little higher now. I mounted a Burris 2.5 power scope on it, and the rifle still wears that scope.  IT resides at my son's house.

Even in these days of long-range, bang-whiz cartridges and high-tech rifles, a fellow could do a lot worse than a classic levergun to collect his yearly quota of venison.  I'm glad to see that Ruger is bringing it back.  Now, if they would bring back the Camp rifle in .45 ACP that fed from 1911 magazines, I might pick up one of those for the gun safe.