Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- It's near impossible to fully appreciate the good JJ Watt did in Houston in the wake of Hurricane Harvey but this Yahoo! article is a good start.

- This thread is awesome. The story has such a great punchline that I literally "laughed out loud" and the comments are just as good.

- And speaking of awesome (in the literal sense) - the Grand Canyon

- Kristallnacht (the night of broken glass) was 80-years ago this week.

- I love Ben Franklin

- This is a sad recognition of the state of things. Description of things that could be reports of today's news but 2200-years earlier. And a reminder - Kristallnacht was only 80-years ago.

- Ford may be "teetering" on the edge of a Junk Bond rating but I feel confident in the management and products of the company. I drive a Ford and I would recommend it to others.

Happy 243rd Marines

Today is the 243rd birthday for the United States Marine Corps.  In honor of the Marines - here's my favorite Ronald Reagan quote:

"Some people live their entire lifetime and wonder if they ever made a difference to the world. Marines don't have that problem." -- January 1995

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

An underlying problem with today's media is they don't spend enough time telling people about heroes like Major Brent Russell Taylor and too much time on self-aggrandizing asshats like Jim Acosta... Heh Heh... This Steven Pressfield post on What Works and What Doesn't (when it comes to motivation for writing) reminds me of the quote from Annie Dillard - "How we sped our days is, of course, how we spend our lives"... There should be a unit of measure called "the Acosta" where every time Jim Acosta appears on air CNN loses .01 ratings points and for every five times CNN loses an advertiser... I think President Trump would win a lot of good will among GOP die-hards by offering an important posts to Scott Walker. Can you imagine the number of heads on the Left that would explode if he tried to make Walker Secretary of Education?...  Heh heh - speaking of open positions in the Administration... Conversely in a show of bipartisanship new House Speaker (assuming that happens) Nancy Pelosi should throw Hillary Clinton to the wolves over the email server investigation. I think this would secretly please many people on the Left who just want Hillary to go away and it would make Pelosi look evenhanded in any moves against Trump regarding the Mueller Investigation. Just saying... 

Theory of General Relativity

A little brain candy this morning.

Conspiracy Theories

Heh Heh - via

Political Prediction

If the nation is heading towards a new debt crisis as the very respected Ray Dalio has predicted - and if it happens in the next two years - then Donald Trump is almost guaranteed to be re-elected in 2020.

Now that the Democrats have re-taken the US House of Representatives and especially if Nancy Pelosi is made Speaker once again - if a debt crisis happens (no matter the cause) - the Democrats will take the brunt of the blame in people's minds.

"The economy was doing great until the 'crazies' took control of the House" will be the talking point of every Republican up for election in 2020. Correlation will absolutely equal causation in the political ads. And President Trump will once again echo "Jobs Not Mobs" as THE campaign slogan of 2020.

I'm certainly not rooting for a debt crisis. And I agree that to avoid this all the Democrats would have to do is not be crazy. But I'm a realist - thus the prediction. Donald Trump will be a two-term President. 

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- NASA's InSight Mars mission to test what's under the surface of the Red Planet

- Supreme Court declines to take on Net Neutrality challenges. And I'm honestly confused on how to feel about this.

- Wow - I want to try this to see if it works (but I'm not sure if I own a sewing needle and thread)

- New discovery sheds light on mystery of pyramids construction

-  Supplementation with spermidine could improve memory of adults at risk for Alzheimer's. But if Pharma companies want adult males to swallow this they are definitely going to have to come up with a better name.

- Deadwood movie is in production! And the gang's all back! But I do wonder what the plot will do with Gerald McRaney's character (have an idea but will keep it to myself).

- And speaking of Alzheimer's - AI detects Alzheimer's six years earlier

Flotsam and Jetsam - Election Results Edition

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Just a reminder that none of our politicians are perfect. Even George Washington had his faults. He didn't like whiskey for one... I want to buy rolls of these stickers and wear one every day... If you raped Peter Pan could you also be charged with statutory? Or would it be elder abuse? Exactly how old is Peter Pan? Asking for a friend... I still think the word "orgasm" should be replaced  with the word "culminate"... From now on if someone tells me "You look familiar" - I am going to respond with "Ya you too. Were we in a police lineup together?" Just to see how that goes over... Heh Heh... Biological Puppets would be a good name for a band... I'm putting the words "Election Results" in this post just to see how many Google hits I get...

One Year Ago Today

Last year on this date the Red Sox announced Alex Cora as their new manager. And Cora made this "prediction":

"Every win we're going to celebrate... hopefully there's like a hundred and something... if we do that that means we're going to have a parade here in Boston." - Alex Cora November 6, 2017.

Give that man a new contract!

Link Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- I wish this unicorn was on my ballot because he would have gotten my vote. (Can't believe how non-plussed the girls watching seem to be - I would have been going nuts!)

- Inigo's guide to networking success

- Your periodic reminder of how to get rich (without getting lucky)

- I wish there was someone on my ballot that I loved as much as the guy on the right loves his pint

- I would so love to try this!

- Well when you put it that way

- I completely agree with Bill Belichick on this. Anyone who knows anything about Belichick knows there's no coach in the NFL who respects the military more or whose actions prove that respect.

Elected - Alice Cooper

For some reason I can't quite put my finger on - this song has been playing in my head today.

Left Hand Free - alt-J

Just a fun song for a Monday morning.

Daylight Savings

OK time for my yearly screed. Daylight savings is stupid. And we should get rid of it. Can you think of anyone who is actually in favor of daylight savings? Me neither.

Why do we continue to put up with this stupidity? Oh and don't forget to turn your clocks back an hour tonight because we are all dumb monkeys.

Iran Sanctions

Looks like the Trump Administration will reinstate all sanctions against Iran - possibly as early as Monday.

And I say good! George W. Bush identified the Axis of Evil but only Trump seems to be doing something about both North Korea and Iran.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Suddenly NFL people are wondering if Nick Mullens is going to do to Jimmy G what Tom Brady did to Drew Bledsoe... Any time I see Newt Gingrich - I picture him as Santa's gay half-brother to see if it makes him more likable... 10 Commandments of Irish Pub Etiquette... Quote of the Day: "I am an old man and have known many troubles, but most of them never happened." - Mark Twain... Heh Heh... Rental Soap would be a good name for a band (or a really bad business start-up idea)... When a bad guy with a gun meets a good guy in a cowboy hat...

Bob Feller

Hall of Famer Bob Feller would have turned 100-years old today. He won 266 games and struck out over 2,500 batters but that's not the impressive thing about this hero.

Just 2 days after Pearl Harbor Bob Feller volunteered for active duty in the Navy. He was the first professional athlete to do so. Ted Williams always said that it was Feller's patriotism that he always admired most about the man and Williams admiration of Feller was great. 

Rest in peace to a hero who did Cleveland and America proud..

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- The US needs to keep the pressure on Iran's regime.

- Maybe the best way to announce your retirement ever.

- Wages and salaries jump by 3.1% highest level in a decade. This news may have gotten more press except there's an election coming.

- It's cool that Assumption College in Worcester is getting so much love this football season

- And speaking of Worcester - UMass Medical researchers near ALS breakthrough

- Ernest Hemingway's guide to life in 20 quotes

- This just cracks me up

Neil Gaiman - Make Good Art

Never hurts to hear this speech now and again.

Podcast Recommendation

Really enjoy the back from the dead Jeselnik & Rosenthal Vanity Project podcast. This podcast is the rebirth of the old Rosenthal & Jeselnik Vanity Project which was cancelled by the NFL Network.

 I may be childish but the humor of this podcast is right up my alley. Don't expect much hard NFL news and especially don't expect predictions.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Just a reminder - the Red Sox magic number is now 163... Ben Franklin's thirteen necessary virtues. Sound life advice then - sound life advice now... I still say that salad bars should be re-named "vegetable buffets"...  This is such an emotional photo... "The wide world is all around you: you can fence yourself in, but you cannot forever fence it out." - JRR Tolkien... Henry Miller's 11 commandments of writing... Halloween came and went last night as quietly and as uneventful as any Halloween in my life. I hardly even knew it was Halloween...