80F and 98%RH this morning. Broken clouds and hot is the forecast. It was certainly hot yesterday, and no relief from the sun.
The march to war continues–
“Tensions between the US and Iran flared on Thursday when the Iranian Revolutionary Guard shot down an American drone that was said to have flown into Iranian airspace (the US claims the drone flew over international territory). The drone was reportedly flying over the Strait of Hormuz – that critical chokepoint for the global oil trade – not far from where two oil tankers were recently attacked.”
Iran is supposedly a major state sponsor of terrorism. Open war with Iran would increase the risk of a major terror attack dramatically, imho.
================================================================
And remember all the posturing in Uganda that they were ready for Ebola, well equipped to deal with it? — they didn’t even have access to the vaccine for treatment and won’t for another two weeks according to this article… https://allafrica.com/stories/201906190375.html (although the article says they are vaccinating people, so they must have some vaccine for prophylaxis).
“If you use them, the number of those who survive increases compared to supportive treatment where they mainly use fluids and nutrition,” Prof Kaleebu stated.
Uganda has not registered any new confirmed Ebola case, but there are two people displaying Ebola symptoms who have been put under isolation at Bwera Ebola Treatment Unit.
“Currently, 92 contacts to the confirmed Ebola cases in Kagando and Bwera are being followed up daily,” the press statement issued on Tuesday states.
By Monday, a total of 128 contacts and non-vaccinated frontline and health officers had been vaccinated.”
This is a country where the health minister advised ‘if you have access to gloves, you should use gloves…’ Top men.
Swim meet today, last normal meet of the season. LONG day ahead of me. The competition has been very fast, so my kids are quite discouraged. Oh well, you can’t control the other guy, you can only control yourself.
And that’s a life lesson worth learning.
nick
Iran is supposedly a major state sponsor of terrorism. Open war with Iran would increase the risk of a major terror attack dramatically, imho.
Again, lets hope it is a bluff on Trump’s part.
I have no doubt that the Iranians possess something to sink or at least cripple a carrier, courtesy of the Chinese or the Russians.
I have no doubt that the Iranians possess something to sink or at least cripple a carrier, courtesy of the Chinese or the Russians
If not, I’m sure it is only a phone call away. Both countries would gladly supply something.
Ebola: Peter Grant has written a couple of good blog entries about it, and about Africa. The culture there is hostile to modern medicine. People don’t want to go to medical centers: look how many people die of Ebola when they go to a medical center! If you don’t want to die, don’t go. Better to hide, and maybe take some shaman’s magic potions. In short: they haven’t got a clue how many people are actually sick, because lots of them hide, spread the disease, and die in secret.
It’s partly an educational problem, partly a cultural problem, and partly a problem of nonfunctional governments. Regardless, it is also an excellent reason to refuse any and all immigrants from affected areas, and to establish a quarantine for ordinary travelers. If Ebola gets loose in a Western metropolitan area – well, no level of preparation is enough – there won’t be enough hospital beds, much less isolation wards.
– – – – –
Trump… He’s turning into a total disappointment. Has he actually kept any of his major campaign promises? He hasn’t closed the borders or built the wall. He hasn’t drained the swamp. He’s still playing soldier games in the Middle East.
Looks to me like he has been fully co-opted by the system. Or maybe he was always a part of it.
If not, I’m sure it is only a phone call away. Both countries would gladly supply something.
Prove that you have a weapons system capable of touching a US carrier, and everyone will want one.
Reparations. This is happening on the Hill only because Dumbocrats are stirring the pot. The Sins of the Father. OFD would say “grievance whores and pimps.” What other minority wants to get in on the bandwagon. Don’t we *owe* all those illegals some cash for locking them up in concentration camps. The LGBTXYZ community is already squawking about some cash.
The good think about reparations is nothing will happen and the Dumbos and Redumbos get nothing done. Wasting time on this shit means our tax dollars aren’t wasted.
I’m of Irish descent. I want mine.
And what’s happening down in Tejas? I thought the right was still in charge down there.
https://www.nationalreview.com/2019/06/texas-governor-signs-bill-sex-joke-reporting-college-campus/
Has he actually kept any of his major campaign promises?
Well two SCOTUS judges, 100’s of Federal judges, tax cuts… The tax cut alone saves me over $10K a year on the 1040. Somewhat less on the 1120.
I agree tRump meanders all over the place. Mostly bluster which means less tax money is spent. I do like when he calls a spade a spade. And #FakeNews has resonated with me. But I read behind the scenes a lot and already knew the news networks are totally partisan.
Well we all know that Blazing Saddles line.
The Cxxx and the Nxxx can stay, but no Irish.
well sorta…
https://www.reddit.com/r/ShitRedditSays/comments/1e7gx2/alright_well_take_the_niggers_and_the_chinks_but/
Curses. Foiled again!
But that’s okay. The Irish part was less than 25% anyway. Now if that were Indian casino money…
And I’m a ‘Murican, doggone it. History is in the past. The future is what I’m working on.
Reparations. This is happening on the Hill only because Dumbocrats are stirring the pot.
Where is the money supposed to come from?
The 30 year T-bill is already headed back below 2% which means the Fed is eating the paper again.
Someone at work made me hip the new video from the “Doors” candidate and her CA money people.
Don’t worry about MJ — she’s back opening the doors to her C suite job at Dell.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bIYHz6fPAgo
And what’s happening down in Tejas? I thought the right was still in charge down there.
Instead of using the recent legislative session (one every two years) to squish the Socialists in Austin and San Antonio, the Governor and Legislature decided to burn political capital to chase the ghost of former Governor Ann Richards, passing new abortion restrictions. Various other bills were either passed or dropped as part of the political deal to curry favor with the Dems.
Ann Richards daughter runs Planned Parenthood.
“Iran shoots down US surveillance drone, heightening tensions”
https://apnews.com/e4316eb989d5499c9828350de8524963
“The two countries disputed the circumstances leading up to an Iranian surface-to-air missile bringing down the U.S. Navy RQ-4A Global Hawk, an unmanned aircraft with a wingspan larger than a Boeing 737 jetliner and costing over $100 million.”
That is a big drone. I would be ok with a fleet of cruise missiles to the mullah’s dachas.
The 30 year T-bill is already headed back below 2% which means the Fed is eating the paper again.
Seniors retirement money is desperately looking for a “safe” place to hide since the stock market is approaching a new high. Too bad tbills are not safe.
Has he actually kept any of his major campaign promises?
Well two SCOTUS judges, 100’s of Federal judges, tax cuts… The tax cut alone saves me over $10K a year on the 1040. Somewhat less on the 1120.
I agree tRump meanders all over the place. Mostly bluster which means less tax money is spent. I do like when he calls a spade a spade. And #FakeNews has resonated with me. But I read behind the scenes a lot and already knew the news networks are totally partisan.
Hilary is not president.
Trump had me with the appointment and confirmation of the first SCOTUS judge. Everything else has been tasty and thick gravy.
And yes, my overall federal tax rate dropped from 18% to 14%. I am ready to spend that money on a house.
I have no doubt that the Iranians possess something to sink or at least cripple a carrier, courtesy of the Chinese or the Russians
If not, I’m sure it is only a phone call away. Both countries would gladly supply something.
The Chinese have their hands full with the 25% tariff at the moment. I am not sure that they would want to supply a few silkworm missiles to the Iranians for the huge amount of trouble that would cause. Of course, they have probably already sold and delivered them. But, have they been maintained ? As you well know, military equipment requires high maintenance.
From @Greg yesterday:
Surely no wallpaper in the bedrooms. Surely not.
Beats a home dungeon or a stripper pole in the extra bedrooms.
In FL, my wife’s handyman friend installed both.
Kinda surprised that a house built in 2010 had it in the bathroom. That’s been a known no-no for at least a decade.
Heh. We looked at a house in 1985 where the entire master was painted flat black, walls and ceiling.
I drove by the house yesterday. There is a dumpster outside with what appears to be sheetrock in it. One wonders if they are hurriedly replacing bedroom walls that were wall papered. Surely not. I know that the house did not get water in it during the May 7 flood, the house is too high. About 5 or 6 houses around the corner did get water in them during the May 7 flood though.
https://www.har.com/5810-bridlewood-drive/sale_95209455
Seniors retirement money is desperately looking for a “safe” place to hide since the stock market is approaching a new high. Too bad tbills are not safe.
T-bills are no longer investments. At 2% the 30 year bond is a liquidity instrument with buyers actually paying negative interest for the privilege of holding the paper.
There is definitely a market for the liquidity, but it isn’t as huge as $1 Trillion a year. The Fed is eating the paper left at the auctions to keep rates low and the housing/stock markets from imploding.
Fidelity called this week, ostensibly looking to update the address on my wife’s 401(k) from Florida … eight years later … but, say, looking at the returns, the investments could use a little freshening, get a little more risk/reward, right?
I thanked the gentleman for his time and had my wife update the address online. Post Vantucky, the 401(k) accounts are the last significant assets we have left — the WA adventure cost us a cool $100k, most of our non-401(k) savings/investments and money which cannot be recouped, along with nearly a decade of my career.
That is a big drone. I would be ok with a fleet of cruise missiles to the mullah’s dachas.
An unmanned drone is still unmanned.
A shooting war would, at a minimum, get impeachment articles sent to the Senate.
“I would be ok with a fleet of cruise missiles to the mullah’s dachas.
I don’t see it. The US didn’t lose anything in Iran. Leave them the fsck alone. Aren’t running wars in Afghanistan, Libya, Pakistan, Somalia, and Syria enough?
This incident with Iran reminds me of the war with Iraq, started over “evidence” of WMDs that turned out to have been faked. It was even a poor fake, and lots of people outside the US pointed this out, but the US media was one great echo chamber.
Here we are again. The US deliberately provoked this incident. The US will now deliberately scale up the tensions. Someone wants war with Iran. Who? And why?
Here we are again. The US deliberately provoked this incident. The US will now deliberately scale up the tensions. Someone wants war with Iran. Who? And why?
Confrontation-obsessed nitwits including Mustache Boy (John Bolton, National Security Advisor), weapons manufacturers, and the drunk, perverted officers and contractors at MacDill who run the “wars”.
As one who very much believes we have (and should maintain) the finest military in the world, I believe we should get the fsck out of the middle east & Asia altogether. It’s not our sandbox. They’re not our monkeys. Leave them to drown in their own urine.
Here we are again. The US deliberately provoked this incident. The US will now deliberately scale up the tensions. Someone wants war with Iran. Who? And why?
The US Military knows how to “kill, crush, destroy and eat dead babies” better than any others. It’s the goobermint numbskulls like M-boy who want to force Western Democracy down the Turd World throats. We are still losing troops in Turd Land thanks to THE GOOBERMINT!
“Aren’t running wars in Afghanistan, Libya, Pakistan, Somalia, and Syria enough”
At least one side of each of those conflicts is supplied, encouraged, and funded by Iran. According to the reports anyway. Who knows that would tell?
Do we have compelling national interests in those places? Do we need to keep the straights of hormuz open so the saudis can sell their oil? Do we need to be engaged in those areas so that we can identify and keep track of the players to prevent another 9-11?
Who knows.
I’d bet that T and the cabinet have better information than any TV pundit though. It shut BHO right the fusk up on a couple of topics as soon as he had his first national security briefing… I forget now, but it was striking at the time.
People think small when they hear drone. Nope UAVs are and can be BIG. No pilot corpse being desecrated in the streets with drones. (And how the fusk did that not cause the US to rise up in righteous anger? Answer, someone didn’t want it to.)
It’s a bit cooler today, only 98F here in the driveway. I looked out to see almost every leaf on my grape vine eaten to a ghostly outline. The Neem oil was NOT effective against the pest, which turned out to be caterpillars. So I soaked the whole thing down with thuricide. Hopefully not too little too late to save the vine, but def too late to save the crop. We got 8 grapes from the vine this year and should have gotten 40 bunches. I did see that we have ONE small apple developing on the tree, but still no hint of peaches.
n
(And how the fusk did that not cause the US to rise up in righteous anger? Answer, someone didn’t want it to.)
Yup. There is no way the drone was just tooling around out in that area without radar coverage. Or at least jamming platforms at the ready. Maybe they were flying right down the line to goad the enemy into shooting.
That is a big drone. I would be ok with a fleet of cruise missiles to the mullah’s dachas.
An unmanned drone is still unmanned.
A shooting war would, at a minimum, get impeachment articles sent to the Senate.
Not a shooting war. Just a return gift.
And yes, it is past time that we leave the middle east.
We cannot leave Asia yet. We have a 1945 treaty with Japan that we will protect them from all comers, especially Russia. The Japanese emperor signed that treaty on the deck of the Missouri. Yes, Japan is a USA protectorate and they like it that way. I am not sure what our agreement with South Korea is.
Not a shooting war. Just a return gift.
Send the Ayatolla’s the pictures we have of them sitting on the toilet along with bowel movement schedules.
I’d bet that T and the cabinet have better information than any TV pundit though. It shut BHO right the fusk up on a couple of topics as soon as he had his first national security briefing… I forget now, but it was striking at the time.
Gitmo went away real fast as an issue on Barry’s agenda in 2009.
My neighbor who boasted about running the snake torture at Gitmo for Booz Allen Hamilton had her house up for sale through the inauguration and then suddenly pulled it off the market in Feb/March, right after BAH cancelled plans to sell the division that did that kind of “wet work” for the Government.
Send the Ayatolla’s the pictures we have of them sitting on the toilet along with bowel movement schedules.
My neighbor who boasted about running the snake torture at Gitmo for Booz Allen Hamilton had her house up for sale through the inauguration and then suddenly pulled it off the market in Feb/March, right after BAH cancelled plans to sell the division that did that kind of “wet work” for the Government.
Snake torture up the bowels ??? “shudder”
Not a shooting war. Just a return gift.
Send the Ayatolla’s the pictures we have of them sitting on the toilet along with bowel movement schedules.
The ayatolla’s probably give those pictures to their boyfriends.
The ayatolla’s probably give those pictures to their boyfriends.
LMFAO!
Team America, Fuck Yeah!
Snake torture up the bowels ??? “shudder”
Nope. Corn snake in a burlap sack placed over the prisoner’s head and tied in place around the neck. To most of those guys, “snake” means something deadly, and, apparently, that broke the momma’s boys (most of them) real quick without any injury.
The ayatolla’s probably give those pictures to their boyfriends.
I’m serious. Those guys have all read the Clancy books, guaranteed, and I remember one ending with a laser guided bomb going through an Ayatollah’s window in Tehran.
We don’t have to go that far, just demonstrate how close we can get.
And people are dropping dimes on Plugs left and right this week. I hope the change is brought up during Plugs’ debate week.
I’m serious. Those guys have all read the Clancy books, guaranteed, and I remember one ending with a laser guided bomb going through an Ayatollah’s window in Tehran.
We don’t have to go that far, just demonstrate how close we can get.
Ok, send one cruise missile into each of the 12 ayatollah’s windows as we are leaving the middle east.
I drove by the house yesterday.
Speaking of buying a home …
And people are dropping dimes on Plugs left and right this week. I hope the change is brought up during Plugs’ debate week.
The Cory Booker originated fuss over the quote about the segregationist Senator won’t stick. “Spartacus” won’t survive the circular firing squad in Miami.
That’s an easy choice: read real estate paper. With my luck, the third choice would be to listen to Turkish pop music 😛
Prepping: We went to Costco today and I saw powdered eggs on the shelf for the first time. These are packed in sealed paperbacked foil packets (6 containing 13 eggs each) in a light weight cardboard box. They have a 1 year best by shelf date on the package, not as long as canned versions. The price is $11.49 ($3 off today and for ?, not quite 11 cents an egg) – significantly less per egg than I’ve seen from any other source. WildRoots Whole Egg Powder, 36 oz, 78 eggs.
Prepping: We went to Costco today and I saw powdered eggs on the shelf for the first time.
Maybe store in the fridge? I have no clue about powdered eggs.
Did you buy any? How do they taste?
Compare with Augason Farms Dried Whole Egg Product ? #10 can.
Cooked a brisket today.
Four hours or so on the Trager to get a smoke ring. Fat side down. Then into a roasting pan, on a rack, fat side up, with a couple of coffee cups of water, with the lid on, and in the oven at 225 or so…. the thermostat is getting wonky again… for five hours.
Sheesh. Buy a range in ’92, over the years and replace a couple of burners, replace a burner control, replace a burner socket, and replace the oven t-stat. Well, when the oven light burns out the stupid thing is going to the trash. 🙂 Not really, I’m too cheap.
And now, two hours later, in the covered pan sitting on the stove top, it’s still molten hot. Kind of pot roasty, but I do like pot roast. Especially without all the taters and carrots and onions. The dogs are VERY interested. It will firm up and be easy to slice tomorrow.
Might be the best we have ever cooked. Though we say that almost every time…. we have made brisket jerky a couple of times.
Seasoning was Fiesta Brisket Rub, about a third of the bottle. Er, a lot. Will use more next time. Plus three or four tablespoons of garlic powder. Will use more next time too…. but the bottle ran out. Sit overnight in the fridge to “soak”. That was it.
Going to try the flour tortilla mix tomorrow. Heh, it can’t be much more of a mess than making pizza crust from scratch.
Compare with Augason Farms Dried Whole Egg Product ? #10 can.
I honestly don’t know. I do know the Augason cheese powder and butter powder turned into rock a couple of months after opening.
I need to figure that out.
Remember the story a few years ago about the Chinese guy with an eel up his arse? Methinks something along those lines might be even more effective….
It’s taken me about a year of roughly weekly practice to consistently make a pretty darned good loaf of bread. It’s trickier than you’d think but a worthwhile skill. Learning how to roll flat,unleavened bread like tortillas or Indian rotis or chapati is easier and it really helps to have one of those Indian rolling pins known as a ‘balan’ (IIRC).
I’m a big fan of Indian cooking and when Nick posted his bugout 6 week pantry list I noticed a glaring lack of legumes. beans, beans, the musical fruit! And lentils, split peas, et al. When it comes to nutrition, chickpeas (garbanzos) have a zillion grams of protien per ounce and are cheap as all get out.
Compare with Augason Farms Dried Whole Egg Product ? #10 can.
I opened up a can and made scrambled eggs. It was awful. I have five more cans, I bought the cans for $12 each when Bob said “buy them now”.
@Paul’
Part of the trick to bread or totilla dough (or practically any dough!)is getting just the right amout of water/ iiquid to flour. If youre making tortillas, start with ‘masa harina’, a simple, fine all corn flour. Just add water. not nearly as messy as wheat flour.
I thought you were going to pressurre cook the brisket in a turkey fryer?
@lynn, no one ever eats rehydrated eggs plain! You add stuff for a scramble, preferably lots of stuff with strong flavors!
I have a couple of #10 cans that are in my OH SH!T pile of long term stuff. I prefer the HEB liquid whole eggs (not egg whites only or egg beaters). I freeze the quart milk carton packages and thaw one occasionally. I just used one that thawed when my freezer door got left open a crack. Just as good as new. With any kind of addition at all they make great tasting scramble…
I’d be interested in smaller serving packets of dried egg. A #10 can is a commitment once you open it. Please let us know how it goes.
WRT the tortillas, I picked up a cast iron press, which was very difficult to use to squash the dough. The dough is TOUGH. I watched some vids and the correct thing to use is a rolling pin made from a section of broom handle, called a ‘comal’ in spanish. That produced much thinner tortillas.
We won our last swim meet of the season. Kids had a couple of good races so they ended happy. Hot as hades in the club though. 12v fan ran the whole meet and was still going strong off the same old tired battery… Definitely a prep worth having and expanding on here in the hurricane zone.
I have one of those 2ft x 4ft cargo carriers that goes into a hitch receiver. We mainly use it on the wife’s minivan, but it also fits on my Expedition. It has been great for moving the wagon full of chairs, fan, and battery, and the handtruck with my popup canopy. If you’ve already got a receiver on your vehicle, one of the carriers is highly recommended. Get some ratchet straps and you are good to carry a LOT more stuff if you have to bug out. Two of the black tubs with yellow lids fit side by side on mine, and I could stack them 2 high if needed. You don’t want tons of weight back there, but it’s super handy. I see them at yard sales for ~$20, but they aren’t very expensive even new.
WRT powdered cheese and cream, I have been using products from this company–
https://www.amazon.com/Hoosier-Hill-Farm-Cheddar-Powder/dp/B0099XPG94/?tag=ttgnet-20
And am pleased. The cheese I use all the time for mac and cheese, and the cream I put in my coffee when I run out of real cream. The jar of cheese has been open for months if not a year and is still mostly powder, and easily dissolves in milk to make sauce. I do usually use a whisk to break up the little balls that form. I also have their butter and sour cream, but haven’t had occasion to use them yet.
n
@Nick
A broom handle is perfect.
Dont lets prepare for the apocalypse by buying powdered eggs or tortilla presses.
Learn how to make do, or do without.
Well, I do live in TX. A tortilla press is way more common than a potato ricer in more northern climes….
n
I’m more a fan of living from my preps than making do. Less disruptive for the family, and more familiar.
When the stinky brown hits the rotary impeller, we’ll learn to make do. I’m not a fan of doing without, though, without good reason.
I thought you were going to pressurre cook the brisket in a turkey fryer?
That’s the plan if the power goes out.
@paul How is the Traeger? I have thought about getting one, but have read of problems with the thermostat control with only a 25 degree window being the best it can do.
NFW I am clicking that link.