Cool, and maybe not clear. National forecast has the whole country clear, but not Houston and this part of the South. I guess we’ll see what happens. It ended up being a nice day Sunday, with moderate temps in the 60s.
Not that I took advantage of the nice weather. I did take down the “Fall” decor and hang a couple of Christmas wreathes. That didn’t take too long, and happened late in the day. I mostly read, and puttered around inside, alternating with watching some half dozen auctions close. Nothing I really needed, and nothing I had to have, although I did pick up a couple of things at giveaway prices.
Dinner was turkey leftovers and they were delicious. This week feels like Christmas break, and I’m reluctant to have it end. Real Christmas break is coming and there will be a lot of activity and “stuff” going on for a while. Not much time for relaxing and messing around.
And that doesn’t even count the stuff happening in the wider world.
Things are starting to break loose and move in unfamiliar ways. Stay sharp out there, and get your ducks in a row.
There will be a lot of stuff going on. Being able to stay home and avoid trouble might come in right handy… so check your stacks, and top them off.
And always keep working.
nick
>> And it won’t bring Ashley back to life.
@nick, Ashley??
Ashli Babbitt.
Today’s Tyler Durden cowardice yet again protecting a car “journalist”.
It is kinda crazy to think that Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep and Nissan could be out of business within a year.
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/stellantis-ceo-carlos-tavares-abruptly-quits-over-different-views-board
45F this fine morning… cold and clear so far.
Not thrilled by that, but it is winter.
n
My main auction site is down today. Cyber None-day for auction bidders…
n
Hunter’s half sister, Ashley? She of the diary with the “rubadubdub get busy in the tub with Corn Pop” entry?
She’s still alive.
Naomi is the sister who died in the car crash.
With Beau … Beau … Beau.
Birthright Citizenship:The 14th Amendment Does Not Apply to Illegal Aliens
https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2024/12/birthright_citizenship_the_14th_amendment_does_not_apply_to_illegal_aliens.html
The other argument is the common law principle that a criminal cannot profit from his crime.
Joe Biden, in pardoning his son, is using the same argument, that Hunter’s prosecution was political, that was used by Trump for which Trump was vilified. Apparently that excuse is just fine for a sitting president, but not for a past president.
What about the January 6 prosecutions? Were most of those political? Many of those people spent years in jail before they had their trials. Many of the penalties far exceeded reasonable simply because of political punishment.
Yet Hunter Biden, on more serious charges, was able to avoid any jail time because of his family’s political influence.
When I can have my housed seized by the IRS over a $10K tax bill, but Hunter Biden avoids any such issues over owing millions to the IRS, that is political influence. Hunter Biden did many questionable financial transactions which had us mere peons done the same would be facing severe legal issues.
The Biden family has demonstrated, many times, that justice is not balanced. Those with power, money, and political connections get off with nothing or just a slap on the wrist. The mere peons in this country get slapped with harsh penalties.
Hillary Clinton in her actions did things that would get others arrested. Deleting emails (evidence), misuse of government resources, lying to congress, personal storage of classified information are all crimes that anyone else would be punished for.
Justice should be equal for all. Apparently, money and political influence override the legal system.
The good news about The Bad Son’s pardon, is that it is a double finger FU from plugs to the dirt people. plugs will go down as one of the worst President’s in the history of the FUSA. And, really, a 10-year grandfathered pardon? What the Hell is that?
It is really incredible listening to the LSM trying to defend plugs. I bet there are shit-load of dirt people that will got after plugs Jr. at the State level. He has outstanding bills
Does he owe any IRS back taxes/penalites? The pardon doesn’t forgive those, does it?
FJB’s pardon of his corrupt son means that Hunter cannot be punished for anything he HAS done. Congress needs to subpoena him and demand honest answers about everything that he has done. And if he lies about it, jail him for perjury, because that perjury will be AFTER the pardon.
The 10 years covers the influence peddling, almost as if t he actual convictions were nothing. Since the argument is that the convictions are political, they should be the only thing pardoned.
The whole thing is a farce and an insult to the American people.
n
FJB needs to be asked if he intends to pardon every one of his family that knew of or profited from the influence peddling. Including himself and Jill.
As KM points out above, Hunter cannot plead the fifth and cover up for FJB or anyone else. They need to investigate and charge whatever they can.
They won’t be persecuting Poor Joe, but the more they investigate and charge others, the more corrupt the whole Democrat Party will be shown to be.
NewAG: “Now, Joe, we don’t really want to go after your family and destroy your reputation. OTOH, if we were busy with, say, Pelosi, Schumer, Obama and a few others….”
>>NewAG: “Now, Joe, we don’t really want to go after your family and destroy your reputation. OTOH, if we were busy with, say, Pelosi, Schumer, Obama and a few others….”
You assume Joe was involved in this pardon scheme. FWIW “Joe’s” statement was unsigned.
Saturday was take your Longhorn and dog to the TAMU campus day:
https://x.com/CCMachine/status/1863004020068999321
FJB’s pardon of his corrupt son means that Hunter cannot be punished for anything he HAS done.
Are we even sure Joe knows he pardoned Hunter? I’m thinking “Dr.” Jill had a hand in this.
“US natural gas inventories enter winter at highest levels since 2016”
https://www.ogj.com/general-interest/economics-markets/article/55246684/us-natural-gas-inventories-enter-winter-at-highest-levels-since-2016
“US natural gas inventories entered winter 2024–25 at the highest levels since 2016, sitting 6% above the 5-year (2019–23) average.”
We are ready for a harsh winter.
I am continually amazed at the effectiveness of my industry. I remember Jimmy Carter making his sweater speech about how all of us were going to freeze in the dark. The man had zero vision and faith in the USA.
“How an upstart global payment system led to Trump’s latest tariff threat”
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/how-an-upstart-global-payment-system-led-to-trumps-latest-tariff-threat-185527589.html
Um, no. Trump wants people who export to the USA and kill our labor force to pay for the privilege of exporting to the USA.
“JK Rowling Details Cost Of Speaking Out On Trans Issue, Blasts NYT ‘Rewriting Of History’”
https://www.dailywire.com/news/jk-rowling-details-cost-of-speaking-out-on-trans-issue-blasts-nyt-rewriting-of-history
““Harry Potter” author and female rights activist JK Rowling blasted The New York Times on Monday for the “rewriting of history” about transgender activists’ vicious tactics, while Rowling outlined just how much she and others have suffered for speaking out for girls and women.”
“Rowling posted a screenshot of a Times article that suggests trans activists are going to have to moderate their “unsparing criticism” of those who disagree with them, ever since Democrats lost the 2024 election and Americans are increasingly disagreeing with the trans agenda.”
““The rewriting of history begins,” Rowling wrote. “Opponents of gender ideology haven’t merely ‘endured unsparing criticism’. I haven’t simply been told I ‘betrayed real feminism’ or received a few book-burning videos.””
““I’ve been sent thousands of threats of murder, rape and violence,” the author outlined. “A trans woman posted my family’s home address with a bomb-making guide. My eldest child was targeted by a prominent trans activist who attempted to doxx her and ended up doxxing the wrong young woman.””
Incredibly sad.
Hat tip to:
https://thelibertydaily.com/
Wait, does Hunter’s pardon mean that Biden is getting ready to turn the Presidency of the USA over to Kamala ?
I figured that Biden was going to wait until January to start pardoning all of his family members.
@lynn, I think you have it.
There might be a medical crisis…
n
“RINO Neocon John Bolton Unhappy with Trump’s Kash Patel Pick, JD Vance Responds with Fire”
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2024/12/rino-neocon-john-bolton-unhappy-trumps-kash-patel/
Stuff it John Bolton ! You want us to use the Canned Sunshine all over the globe.
@EdH:
We had a great time down there. Weather was great, daytime temps in mid ‘70s not very windy nor many clouds. Carlee’s Place had live music both Sat. & Sun. nights. https://www.facebook.com/carleesplace
Mustache Boy is the ultimate chicken hawk. Another antique who should never be heard from again.
I still think as soon as Spongey dropped out, or was forced out, there was a plan in place in case the Humper lost the election. Spongey would resign before the end of December. That would put the Humper in office of the president for just a few days. That would qualify the Humper as the first black, Indian, oriental, aboriginal, Polynesian, female whore president.
I also think that Hunter’s pardon was orchestrated by Jill, and Spongey was manipulated into cooperating. Spongey is not capable of making rational decisions.
“Meta takes down more than 2 million accounts in fight against pig butchering”
https://www.malwarebytes.com/blog/news/2024/11/meta-takes-down-more-than-2-million-accounts-in-fight-against-pig-butchering
“Pig butchering scams are big business, with hundreds of millions of dollars involved every year. The numbers are not precise because some researchers see these scams as a special kind of romance scam, while others classify them as investment fraud, muddying the numbers based on which group is counting what type of loss.”
“Still, the general idea is that scammers use elaborate storylines to fatten up victims into believing they are in a romantic or otherwise close personal relationship. Once the victim places enough trust in the scammer, they bring the victim into a cryptocurrency investment scheme. Then comes the “butchering”—an attempt to “bleed” a target dry of their money.”
If you have to pay cash money to get anything on the intertubes, you are being butchered.
“Make babies great again”
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/3245817/make-babies-great-again/
“There’s something unique about the still-forming Trump 2.0 administration: its fecundity. The average number of children per family in the United States is under two children, but in the new administration, the average is far higher.”
“President-elect Donald Trump himself has five children, and his vice president is a young father of three, who has often been seen hands-on parenting, even while he was campaigning.”
“The future co-leader of the Department of Government Efficiency Elon Musk has fathered a cool dozen children; Trump’s pick for Transportation secretary Sean Duffy shares nine children with his wife, Rachel; and Trump’s picks for Defense and Health and Human Services secretaries, Pete Hegseth and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., are each fathers to seven. Trump’s picks for secretary of State (Sen. Marco Rubio) and CIA director (Mark Ratcliff) are fathers of four, and the picks for Interior (North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum), Department of Homeland Security (South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem), and national security adviser (Mike Waltz) each have three children.”
I learned a new word today. Fecundity.
Wait, does Hunter’s pardon mean that Biden is getting ready to turn the Presidency of the USA over to Kamala ?
I figured that Biden was going to wait until January to start pardoning all of his family members.
@lynn, I think you have it.
There might be a medical crisis…
I got the idea from:
https://bayourenaissanceman.blogspot.com/2024/12/the-biden-pardon.html
“Your Truth”
https://areaocho.com/your-truth/
“Women don’t have, and never have had, penises.”
I thought at one time that we had resolved this in the great “Kindergarten Cop” movie. “Boys have penises, Girls have vaginas” was very clearly stated in that movie.
Meanwhile, people still wait hours to ride the Hagrid roller coaster at Universal Orlando and a third “Harry Potter” themed land will join Mario and Donkey Kong in delivering an attendance beatdown of Disney when Incredible Universe debuts this Summer.
“Wait, does Hunter’s pardon mean that Biden is getting ready to turn the Presidency of the USA over to Kamala ?”
Not unless Dr. Jill has a stroke first.
Joe Biden Just Handed Donald Trump the Mother of All Mandates
https://redstate.com/terichristoph/2024/12/02/joe-biden-just-handed-donald-trump-the-mother-of-all-mandates-n2182707
The timing of the pardon, and the suspense as the pressure builds for pardoning the entire Biden crime family, has cut the opposition to Trump’s nominee’s off at the
kneescrotchthroat. There isn’t a single Democrat who has a pot to pizzle in moral high-ground wise. Any sanctimonious b.s. is going to get met by a supercut of their past pronouncements of Biden’s intelligence, morality, principles, and The Whopper “of course he won’t pardon Hunter”.Popcorn futures will go through the roof as the LSM turns on the Democrat Party in a vain effort to look bipartisan and regain some ratings.
It’s already happening:
MUST-SEE: CNN Makes Dan Goldman Watch His Past Proclamation That Joe Biden Would Never Pardon Hunter
https://redstate.com/terichristoph/2024/12/02/joe-biden-just-handed-donald-trump-the-mother-of-all-mandates-n2182707
Q: Why did FJB store classified documents in his garage?
A: Because the safe is full to overflowing with the important stuff: All the dirt on the Clintons, the Obamas, Schumer, Pelosi, and the whole corrupt party.
If the White House doesn’t have a food taster they need to get one quick.
ADDED:
WATCH: Supercut of Corrupt Media Waxing Poetic Over Biden’s Now-Nuked Claim He Wouldn’t Pardon Hunter
https://redstate.com/bobhoge/2024/12/02/watch-supercut-of-corrupt-media-promising-you-joe-biden-would-never-pardon-hunter-n2182722
My 86 year old father got hit by a car today in the Buccees gas station lot. He was walking in to the store to get his gasoline receipt and a lady going 4 mph in her car hit him from the side. She said that she never saw him. He managed to face plant onto the concrete (he is not what I call stable) and has serious road rash.
The ER in Port Lavaca was closed today so they ambulanced him to Victoria. They did a CT scan which said he was all right and dressed his road rash. A neighbor drove up to Victoria and picked him up.
I am hoping he dodged a serious injury here. He is on a double amount of warfarin for his 25 year old mechanical heart valve and hopefully there will be no complications from that.
Be careful out there !
What was the woman driving who hit him?
I believe that a lot of modern cars for the American market have visibility issues which weren’t present twenty years ago.
Progress.
Buc-ee’s used to have attendants/wranglers who kept people from walking away from their cars at the pumps, but the rules seem to have changed in the last year.
My mother-in-law was hit walking across the parking lot of her condo in Florida. We put endured a visit to the in-laws in Georgetown on Thursday so my wife could get a first hand look at the injuries.
Despite the best efforts of the family to trick/guilt us, my wife did not cook a holiday dinner for Big Papi (my name for my ex-brother-in-law).
@lynn, I hope his injuries are minor and that he makes a quick recovery.
The A and B pillars have gotten bigger so they can hold airbags. It’s easy to miss a whole car behind one when you glance that way. I’m teaching the kid to look, look the other way, then look back, so anyone behind the pillar can move out.
People hang stuff from their mirrors too.
———-
Just did my first order from aliexpress. I have two 55″ TCL tvs from my client’s place. They are out of the extended warranty. We got 6 years from them, although the problem, lines in the picture, might have showed up in time to catch the very end of the warranty, IF I knew we were getting close.
Cleaning and re-seating the cables didn’t fix the issue, so I ordered two new boards (used probably) for $5 each. Shipping was free as it was my first order. Should get here in a week or two. I am willing to spend a little bit to keep them out of the landfill if I can, even if I just give them away. If the new T-cons fix the issue, and they should, one will probably go to the BOL, and one might be turned into a game station here, so that someone can play while other someones watch TV.
I hate throwing stuff away if it’s fixable. There are only three boards in a modern TV. The power board, the main (inputs) board, and the T-con that puts the video together and sends it to the panel. If you have power, the power board is probably fine. If you have internal menus without image issues, but can’t watch stuff on the inputs, or have other issues, the main is bad. If you have image issues everywhere, including internal menus, especially lines in the image, then the T-con is bad, or the ribbon cables aren’t seating properly. If cleaning and reseating the cables doesn’t fix it, the board is bad.
The other problem tvs can have is backlights failing. Replacing those is more complicated because of what you need to disassemble to get to them. It’s straightforward though, and strip kits are available, as well as youtube howto vids.
The way they have “value engineered” modern electronics to the barest minimums is not “green” at all. It means stuff ends up in landfills that could have had double the life. And I hate that.
n
Huh, I have put $450 into 4 crypto currencies.
On 8/21 it was worth $540
Today it’s worth $655.
That’s not setting the world on fire, but it’s not bad. Litecoin is dragging me down a bit. It’s still ~50% in 3 years.
n
@lynn, I hope his injuries are minor and that he makes a quick recovery.
The A and B pillars have gotten bigger so they can hold airbags. It’s easy to miss a whole car behind one when you glance that way. I’m teaching the kid to look, look the other way, then look back, so anyone behind the pillar can move out.
Yeah, me too. The problem is that at 86, nothing is minor. And his mechanical heart valve got recalled 20 years ago. You can hear it when he gets excited, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
The pillars on my F-150 are huge and I miss stuff because of them. Ford got themselves a five star rollover rating with them though which is mildly comforting.
I have no idea what the age of the lady was that hit him. I am not sure that he knows. He says that the police arrived within a minute and would not let him get up until the ambulance arrived in 15 minutes. She blind sided him so he never saw her.
Me and my middle brother are trying to decide if one of us needs to run down there in the morning.
“Delaware judge refuses to reinstate Elon Musk’s $56 billion Tesla pay”
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/delaware-judge-refuses-to-reinstate-elon-musks-56-billion-tesla-pay-235034519.html
“The Delaware judge who denied Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk a $56 billion compensation package once did so for a second time on Monday, dealing a fresh legal defeat to the billionaire as he prepares for a major role in President-elect Donald Trump’s new administration.”
“The ruling all but assures another court battle over Musk’s historic pay pact that legal experts expect could go all the way to the Supreme Court. It could also raise new concerns about Musk’s motivations to give as much time as he has to Tesla.”
That is one bold judge.
That is one bold judge.
McCormick, however, didn’t give the attorneys who helped bring the lawsuit against Musk’s pay everything they wanted, either.
Those plaintiffs attorneys argued they should be paid more than $5 billion in legal fees. She instead awarded $345 million.
Unreal. The judge is paying the thieves.
They wanted 10%, or $5.6 billion.
My first contribution to the Fidelity “total stock market” index fund in my current employer’s 401(k) is up 50% in three years with a lot less risk.
The Geico Gecko has done even better in the same period but he will tell you to buy an S&P 500 fund.
Lynn, same. I also hope that the ER that examined him is competent, and didn’t miss anything. From experience: my late father in his 80’s fell getting out of his car in his underground parking. He broke his hip, but when he went in he was examined and sent home. 3 days later, he went back in an ambulance to be treated for the broken hip.
They should have held up Pioneer 11 so this could go on the disc:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyxSvZOby54
They should have held up Pioneer 11 so this could go on the disc:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyxSvZOby54
Nah, this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8al5cSQNmME
Peloton wasn’t invented yet.
>> “US natural gas inventories enter winter at highest levels since 2016”
https://www.ogj.com/general-interest/economics-markets/article/55246684/us-natural-gas-inventories-enter-winter-at-highest-levels-since-2016
“US natural gas inventories entered winter 2024–25 at the highest levels since 2016, sitting 6% above the 5-year (2019–23) average.”
We are ready for a harsh winter.
https://youtu.be/_WRf1w3g0Mw?t=9
>> I have no idea what the age of the lady was that hit him. I am not sure that he knows. He says that the police arrived within a minute and would not let him get up until the ambulance arrived in 15 minutes. She blind sided him so he never saw her.
Me and my middle brother are trying to decide if one of us needs to run down there in the morning.
@lynn / @Greg, hoping for a full recovery all around. Any summonses issued to either driver? Any parking lot video cams? Are accident attorneys a ‘thing’ there?
@lynn, are you familiar with the Victoria hospital? How far is the drive? Can they get you on the phone with the ER doctor to answer any questions you have before they discharge him? Was a Neuro doctor consulted? If I read it correctly, he hit the ground face first?
They should have held up Pioneer 11 so this could go on the disc:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyxSvZOby54
Nah, this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8al5cSQNmME
Peloton wasn’t invented yet.
That video was from 1984. They were jogging in place. Weren’t no Pelotons then either.
We are ready for a harsh winter.
https://youtu.be/_WRf1w3g0Mw?t=9
Dill, Baby, Drill !
@lynn, are you familiar with the Victoria hospital? How far is the drive? Can they get you on the phone with the ER doctor to answer any questions you have before they discharge him? Was a Neuro doctor consulted? If I read it correctly, he hit the ground face first?
Yeah, I recovered from my first heart attack there in the Cardiac Ward back in 2009. Victoria Detar Hospital is 100 miles from my house. They discharged Dad about 430pm. He called me from his house about 530pm.
Dad told me he hit face first. He later told middle brother that he hit knees and elbows first. I may have heard him wrong. His skin is like thin paper, it rips easily.
I will call Dad in the morning and decide. It is middle brother’s turn but he bought a bank in Louisiana today and is very busy.
>> We are ready for a harsh winter.
https://youtu.be/_WRf1w3g0Mw?t=9
Dill, Baby, Drill !
Hmm…pickle juice…