Social Media in Law Enforcement

Surfing around this morning, waiting for our travel partners to start moving around, I find this article in the Baton Rouge Advocate, talking about how law enforcement uses social media.

Seeking to harness a torrent of data gushing from smartphones and computers, authorities are increasingly surfing Facebook, Twitter and Youtube, among other popular sites, for investigative leads and evidence they use to solve crimes. As if patrolling a neighborhood, police monitor social media websites to contact witnesses, identify suspects and look for chatter that might signal potential violence.

Yeah, we do that.  We look at Facebook and Twitter, and all manner of social media to help solve crimes.  People talk about things that interest them, and the drama of crime interests people, and there is lots of that stuff on the intertubes if you're willing to look.  I've made cases off of Facebook, when folks brag online about their thefts, or their drugs, or air their threats and grievaces online.

Id be willing to bet that the good detectives in the NOPD are looking at social media this morning, trying to figure out who shot all those people on Bourbon Street yesterday.   Somebody is going to post something on Facebook, and the digital cops are looking.  Thankfully, the bad guys aren't smart enough to realize that once you put something on the World Wide Web, it's there for all to look at, enjoy, and catalog as evidence.

You have the right to remain silent.

Tunica

We got as far as Tunica, MS yesterday and checked into a nice Quality Inn near the casino strip.  Awoke this morning to thunderstorms, and the Weather Channel on the TV tells me that Memphis is having a really interesting Sunday.

We had planned to go into Memphis today and poke around, maybe eat some barbecue, but it looks as if the weather has conspired against us.  Flash-flooding, stalled cars, heavy thunderstorms, and a threat of a tornado.  Can I pick a vacation spot, or what?

Some thoughts on the Tunica Casinos.  They're built in a corn field.  Seriously, the folks who decided to build these casinos on the Mississippi river in northern Mississippi used agricultural land to build their casinos.  In this motel on a road that's called Casino Strip Resort, we/re surrounded by soybeans, corn, and cotton.

When we left yesterday morning, we crossed the river at Vicksburg and headed north on US 61,  I've driven in Mississippi lots of times but I didn't realize that the Mississippi Delta had so much farm land.  Nearly 200 miles of crop fields along both sides of the highway, about half of that a two lane road.  It was an interesting drive if you like looking at crop land (and I do, I'm basically a country boy at heart).  One thing that surprised me is the amount of rice growing this far north.  Lots of rice being grown in the Delta.

More later.  I'm going to watch the weather and try to plot a course that will keep us entertained today.

Sunday Morning Dawg

Milady and I escaped yesterday, on a long weekend designed to get us out of the net for a few days.  We'll be back sometime Monday or Tuesday, depending on how we feel, and I may do some posting from the road.  Or, I might not.  However, we made sure that the dog is properly boarded at my mother's house, so I'm sure that he's being spoiled rotten.

I took this picture of him Friday, of a cat nuzzling him.

We'll be back next week, and regular posting will continue.

Cat Blogging

Milady and I are on the road this morning on a escape weekend, so I'm giving you a video I took last week of the cats playing on the patio.



Enjoy.  We'll be back next week.

Friday Fatigue

Seems like every time I make plans to go on vacation, something crashes.  Two years ago, it was my home A/C unit that crashed the day before we left.  I was able to get it fixed late that afternoon and I felt truly blessed that I was able to get it done relatively cheaply.

Today, as I worked my list pending Milady and I heading out tomorrow morning, I decided to upgrade my phone.  Bad idea.  That little green Droid icon, the little robot.  You know the guy?

Yeah, him, the little bastard.  He came up on the screen and locked-the-hell up.  Couldn't turn the phone off, couldn't re-boot it, nothing.  I had some errands to run, so while I was out, I went to Best Buy who sold me the phone.  No friggin' luck.  So, I went to the Verizon store, where they piddled around for a while, told me that the phone is still in warranty, but they can't get me a phone until tomorrow at the earliest.  Just Damn.

Oh, and the Verizon store doesn't have a computer that will run the Upgrade Assistant program that comes with every Verizon phone.  Go figure.  They don't have a computer and a USB cable.  That's what the tech told me at the store.

SO, I came home, did some testing, made sure that I had a good connection, with a good USB cable, then let the Repair Assistant look at the phone.  It took about 40 minutes, but the phone booted back up, and installed the upgrades.  So, the phone is working, and I have dodged another bullet.

I'm going to mop the kitchen and take a nap.

Thursday Thunder-Bumpers

Thursday afternoon and we've been tormented by thunder storms all day.  Not much rain has fallen on my acre, but thunderstorms have been around us all day, as Accuweather shows.

As the thunderstorms have swirled around us all day, the dog is terrified, hiding under any available cover and cowering in fear at every thunderclap.  Poor dog is going to give himself a heart attack.  We've tried thunder shirts, we've tried everything, he's simply terrified of heavy weather.

I, on the other hand, have been totally worthless today.  Haven't hit a lick at a snake.  Still in my slippers.  Maybe tomorrow I'll get something done, but today has been a down day.

Game Cam Pictures

Those of you who read this blog know that I like using a trail camera to evaluate hunting areas, to watch wildlife, and to catch cat-food thieves.  This may be time to review a trail cam that I used last year, in case anyone is considering buying one, and to look at photos I've taken on the little camera.

Last year, Milady gave me a Moultrie D55 IR camera as a gift.  I sat it aside for a while, then moved it to the family property to see what type of traffic I might see.  With the loss of my deer lease this month, I've been going through the pictures on the camera and I have some observations that might be valuable.

First, there is a disturbing tendency for the older cameras to "white out" some photos.  I've found that this happens most often during twilight, where the camera can't decide if it wants to shoot a photograph during those times when it can't decide if it's daylight or darkness.  The Moultire doesn't have that problem.  Of over 200 photos on that memory card, each of them was viewable.  For example, this photo:

Of course, you can click on the photo for a larger view, but this pic was taken in mid-December, at 7:23 am, on what obviously was a foggy morning, the perfect time for a camera to "white out".  Clearly, I can see a doe standing in the middle of the photo, a great job by the little camera.

Notice this photo, taken at 6:47 pm on Ocober 25th of a nice, shootable buck.  What I find interesting is that we can see sky through the trees, and while the buck might not have been visible with a lesser camera, it might also have presented itself during the last available minutes of legal shooting hours.  This is a great job by the camera in capturing an image that lesser camera's might have missed.

This picture really gets my interest, because it shows me the caliber of the deer that are using that meadow.

Taken in the wee hours of the morning, these deer are plainly nocturnal and I might never see them during a hunt, but the camera proves that they are there, so we have a healthy deer population in that area.

I really like this photo, taken in late May, or a deer that's just coming into velvet.  That's a nice deer, and I suspect that I'll be looking for him during the coming months.

One other thing that surprised me about the Moultrie, is that it took pictures for seven months on the same set of batteries.  My particular camera uses six C-cell batteries, and I only use Duracell in my cameras.  It took this photo of me in early June, as I was taking the batteries out of it.

I really need to learn to turn the camera off when I take it off the tree.  But, if you're looking for a game camera that displays time, date, temperature and moon phase, takes great pictures with great battery life, you could do worse than the Moultrie D55IR.  For a $120.00 camera, it is a whole lot of camera.

Gun Weights

A recent forum posting asked about carry weights, so I thought I'd get out the scale and see how my various sidearms stacked up.  The scale is an old family scale, and while it may not be exactly accurate (or it might be precisely accurate), it serves to give an idea of some standard weights.

Let's start with my chromed Colt, 3 lbs, 2 oz.  Interesting.

Next, we'll try the Kimber, also a 1911, with the same magazine of ammo.   The Kimber comes in at one ounce under 3 lbs.

So, who's my next victim?  How about the Smith and Wesson Model 38 that goes everywhere with me?  Heh!  1 lb, 7 oz, I knew it was light, but I didn't know how much it weighed.  Now I know.

Next we'll try my duty gun.  A Glock 22 with 15 rounds of ammunition.  At 2 lbs, 3 oz, that isn't bad for 15 rounds of .40 SW goodness.

Okay, one more.  How about that Ruger Super Blackhawk that I carry when I'm woods cruising?  At 3 lbs, 4 oz, it's just a little heavier than the Colt 1911.  Ain't that interesting?

Now, I know how much those guns weigh, fully loaded and ready to go.

Sad Day

Our hunting club disbanded this past month, for a number of good reasons.  It was too hard to find good members, the lease rates were going up, and none of us could financially afford to float the whole lease fee.  So, we held some phone conversations and decided to move our stuff off the lease.  Today we moved stands and feeders.

My deer stand is disassembled and leaning against a fence in the side lot.  It needs a little work, and that's a good place to work on it.  The feeders are stacked by the shed, and I've got a good opportunity now to give them a good cleaning.  It was emotionally draining this morning, taking stuff off a place I've grown to love, but I feel that we made the best decision we could make.

In another month or so, I"ll move the stand and feeder to family land.  Lots of deer there, but I didn't hunt it.  No particular reason, and a variety of reasons.  This season, it will get plenty of use.

Cobbler

Eaton Rapids Joe asked about cobbler recipes, and I admit a fondness for easy, filling, tasty sweetness.  Cobbler fits the bill exactly.

Years ago, when I was scoutmaster for a troop of hungry Scouts, several of my brethren scoutmasters started a little competition during camporees.  Each scoutmaster would make one cobbler, in a large dutch oven on Saturday night, and we'd submit our efforts to the boys who would decide the winner.  I won a few, but my friend Billy Netherland won more than his share.   The basic recipe went like this:

Ingredients.

1 stick butter or margarine
2 cans fruit filling.  Peaches, apples, blueberries, it didn't matter
1 box cake mix.  Cheaper is better.  We're talking Dollar Store, True Value cake mix.

Prep.
Line a large Dutch Oven with aluminum foil.  Melt your butter in a saucepan.  Add the two cans of filling to the dutch oven, then sprinkle that whole box of cake mix on top.  Drizzle that melted butter atop the cake mix, then give it one stir with a wooden spoon.  One stir.  You've not mixing, you're simply giving it one stir.

Cooking.

Put that Dutch oven in the fire and put some coals atop it.  You're going to need the equivalent of about 18 charcoal briquettes on the bottom and about six on top.  Let it bake for about a half-hour, or until the bubbling mixture passes the toothpick test.  You'll know when it's done.

Caveat.  For proper cooking on a campfire, you're going to need a proper Dutch Oven.  One with legs, and a lid that will hold coals.

This one is from Camp Chef, but several manufacturers make them.  I've used Lodge, and other makes, but for proper campfire cooking you'll need the legs and the lid.  One of the cool things about a proper camp dutch oven is that the lid can be flipped over to use as a skillet.

I have my inside dutch ovens, and I have my campfire dutch ovens, and never the twain shall meet.  You can't use a legged oven on the house stove, and you can't really cook on a campfire without legs.

One winning cobbler secret.  Add a tablespoon of vanilla extract into the fruit topping.  (Don't tell Billy I told you.)

Monday Cat-Blogging

Busy this morning, but I've done what I intended to do, and now I'll find a cool, shady spot to siesta for the afternoon.  It's hot out there, about 90F with 70% humidity.  The air is like walking into a wet wool blanket.  The cats are likewise seeking a shady spot, someplace where they might catch a breeze.

This one has crashed on top of the carpeted cat-house and is sound asleep.  Not a bad idea for a hot, humid Monday afternoon.  I'll take care of a few little details when the afternoon heat moderates, but for now I'm going to be inside under the air conditioner.

Three Deloreans

A stretch limo made from three Deloreans.

That's just wrong, and so very cool.

Sunday Morning Dawg

Fooling about with the dog, Milady snapped a picture of me tormenting the dog with my baseball cap.

No animals were harmed in the filming.  Well, except maybe for his pride.  He got over it quickly.

The Game Camera

I'm a fan of game cameras, and love watching the wildlife that appears in the unblinking eye of the camera.  However, a game cam has other uses as well.  Like catching a thief.

Recently Milady noticed that we were going through a lot of cat food after dark, and asked me to set up the game cam to watch the food bowls.  Easy-peasy, I set it on a convenient lawn chair, and turned it on as we went inside for the evening.  Fifty three pictures later, I've got some idea where that cat food is going.

That's our inquisitive kitten, wondering what I've left in the chair.  Several close shots of the kitten, Smokey, investigating the camera.

 Our other cat, Sparkle, getting a snack.  No problem with this cat, either.  That's her food bowl, so she's right where she should be.

Aah, Haa!  The thief.  I've seen this big cat before, but only at a distance.  The question is whether he's a pet who is let out at night, or if he's feral.    Either way, he's found a convenient chow spot for a midnight meal, and I"ll have to make plans to deal with him.

Friday Afternoon

Spent the morning working at the nursing home, installing privacy curtains, until we ran out of material, then took Milady to lunch before heading home.  Driving toward the house, the classic station played this old favorite by Arlo Guthrie.

And the sons of Pullman porters, and the sons of engineers,
ride their father's magic carpet made of steel.
Mothers with their babes asleep are rocking to the gentle beat,
And the rhythm of the rails is all they feel.

That song gives me wanderlust in the worst way, and it's a good thing that Milady and I have a trip planned, or when she got home this afternoon, I'd tell her to put some jeans in a bag, and we'd hit the road.

Majority Whip

I see that Louisiana's 1st District congressman, Steve Scalise, has been elected majority whip for the US House.

House Republicans elected Rep. Steve Scalise (La.) majority whip on Thursday, adding a red-state conservative voice to the upper leadership ranks.

This is a pretty good posting for Rep Scalise, "raised-up" as he was in Louisiana politics, he should be a nice fit for the job.

The victory makes Scalise the chief enforcer for GOP leadership; he will be responsible for whipping votes and corralling a conference that has often failed to unify on major votes.

Scalise represents the 1st Congressional District, which comprises the north shore of Lake Ponchartrain, as well as a big part of the coast line. His district looks like this:

Congratulations, Congressman Scalise.

Urination Festival

It looks like our Governor, Bobby Jindal, today initiated a pissing contest with everybody.  His Secretary of Education, the legislature, the BESE (Board of Elementary and Secondary Education) and school district superintendents across the state.

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal issued executive orders Wednesday to withdraw the state from the Common Core standards and federally subsidized standardized tests, defying his state legislature, his superintendent of education and the business community — but endearing himself to tea party activists across the country who could be influential in early primary states if he chooses to run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016.

Within an hour, his Sec Edu was quoted by reporters.

Within an hour of Jindal’s announcement, state Superintendent John White was telling reporters that the governor had no authority to back out of the Common Core or scrap the exam the state was planning to use, which was developed by a federally subsidized consortium known as PARCC.
“The state will continue to implement the Common Core and continue to implement the PARCC tests — the governor’s comments notwithstanding,” White said.

White needs to pay a little more attention to what happens to appointed officials who buck Bobby.  Those folks are known for ending up in the unemployment lines.

Allahpundit says that Bobby is running for President.  We'll see.  I do think it's interesting that both those links are national, not state links.

Poison Ivy

Eaton Rapids Joe was talking about poison ivy recently (I couldn't find the post), but it sent me into my memory banks, to find an old-home remedy that we used years ago to protect ourselves against the inching, burning, scritchty rash that shows you've been in contact with the stuff.

Lead.  Yeah, that's right.  The same stuff we make bullets from.  Years ago, I heard about lead against the skin as a protection against poison ivy, so I tried it myself.  Simply to tie a lead bullet on a string and wear it against your skin.  We trued it when we lived in the country, a place where poison ivy was a constant companion, and it worked for us.   Later during that period, I even carved some crosses into wood and poured molten lead into those rustic molds for some of the lady-folk.  They wore them around their necks and were also protected.

Go Google it, you won't find anything on it, but it's always been my experience that raw lead, worn against the skin, protects against poison ivy.  Don't aske me how or why it worked.  I didn't care.  All I knew that with rour kids running wild through the woods, I suddenly wasn't buying as much calamine lotion.

Brutal Politics

Hillary Clinton was talking politics yesterday and made a seemingly boneheaded statement concerning her presumed presidential bid.  As Hot Air reports:

“Politics is so unpredictable,” Clinton responded. “Whoever runs has to recognize that the American political system is probably the most difficult, even brutal, in the world.”

Yeah, right, Hillary  Politics is brutal in the US.  Tell that to the Syrians, in the midst of a civil war.  Tell that to the Libyans as their country dissolves into chaos  Tell that to the Ukrainians.  Or for that matter, the Iraqis as the jihadists are beheading people. 

This woman has no idea what brutality is, and is demonstrating that she has no idea, even after her globe-trotting as SecState.

Good Fuel

The old lawn tractor took a dump on me Saturday.  It's a 20-year-old Murray, and it's provided good service for a long time, but I decided to hop down to Sears and see what they had.  I don't need a zero-turn, and I didn't have time for a lot of complicated wrench-bending, and it was time for a new lawnmower.  It sucks, but there it is.

I bought one of these, and the particular lawnmower doesn't matter.  The subject of this blog post is a sticker that I found on the gas tank.

Of course, we all know that ethanol gas damages small engines.  And this sticker tells us that the new E85 fuel is a no-go in that engine.

I don't use ethanol fuel in small engines.  Go to pure-gas.org and find out where to buy real gasoline for your engines.  Especially your small engines.  They'll last a lot longer.