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Strange Daze


If an alien stumbled upon Earth, having no prior knowledge of us, and spent a month or two observing the USA, the cognitive dissonance would leave it utterly confused. It would write in its journal: “Nation incapable of distinguishing between victory and defeat. Loudest voices have total control, insist they are oppressed. Progress towards future rendered nearly impossible by obsession with past. Beautiful place, everyone hates it.” Beautiful Place, Everyone Hates It – Andy Havens

We justifiably rip China to the high heavens for not allowing its citizens unfettered access to the Internet. But why is it better for American tech companies to do the same thing to our citizens? Yes, I understand, these are private tech companies as opposed to a country, but if the result is the same — a stifling of legitimate news if it discredits people in positions of power — then the impact can be just as dismal. China’s government protects Chairman XI just like Twitter and Facebook are protecting Joe Biden. –  OutKick

This is why the media emphasizes social distancing at rallies because it is easier for Biden to socially distance 12 supporters than for The Donald to socially distance 12,000 people.

Support For Barrett’s Supreme Court Confirmation Continues To Rise, Poll Says | 

There was a great Marxist called Lenin
Who did two or three million men in.
          That’s a lot to have done in
          But where he did one in
That grand Marxist Stalin did ten in. Robert Conquest

The real reason most polls in this election are not trustworthy   I pray however that those few data points mentioned above (rally attendance and voter registration numbers) are a true indicator, and that Trump and the Republicans will win in a landslide, winning the Presidency and both Houses of Congress as well as numerous downstate local elections. Such a victory will be the only way to clean up the Democratic Party and make it a true second political choice that supports our country, rather than being the power-hungry and corrupt leviathan it is now.

Study: Almost impossible to contract COVID-19 on an airplane  For the 777 and 767, at 100% seating capacity transmission model calculations with a 4,000 viruses/hour shedding rate and 1,000 virus infectious dose show a minimum 54 flight hours required to produce inflight infection from aerosol transmission. In other words, you can fly around the world more than twice on the same plane, without stopping, without any real risk of getting infected.

Free speech used to be one issue that all sides of the political debate would defend unconditionally. Even those who thought adult material should be restricted to adults opposed bans on speech. Today, it is hard to find anyone in any corner of the political debate defending speech. The free-speech champions are the people called Nazis by the beautiful people. I Have Questions | The Z Blog

On Purpose – Andy Havens  Hitler had a purpose. Dahmer had a purpose. Looters have a purpose. Don’t mistake purpose for virtue, I guess. It’s one thing to wake up with something that motivates you, it’s quite another thing to be able to go to bed knowing you’ve left behind something beautiful.

Anton Yelchin, Star Trek’s Chekov, killed by his own car

It was the rooftop summer, drinks or dinner, a wedged garden with a wrought iron table that’s spored along its curved legs with oxide blight, and maybe those are old French roses climbing the chimney pot, a color called maiden’s blush, or a long terrace with a slate surface and birch trees in copper tubs and the laughter of a dozen people sounding small and precious in the night, floating over the cold soup toward skylights and domes and water tanks, or a hurry-up lunch, an old friend, beach chairs and takeout Chinese and how the snapdragons smell buttery in the sun. — Don Delillo

Comments on this entry are closed.

  • Schill McGuffin October 17, 2020, 9:39 AM

    Apparently current thinking is that wild cheetahs went extinct thousands of years ago, and all the cheetahs around today are descended from ones that were domesticated by the ancient Egyptians and later went feral. That’s why they’re frequently more willing to interact with humans on friendly terms than other big cats.

  • ghostsniper October 17, 2020, 9:58 AM

    I haven’t seen President Trump so far down in the polls since the night he won the election.

  • ghostsniper October 17, 2020, 10:05 AM

    Another positive metric: no incumbent President who received more than 75% of the primary votes during his re-election campaign has ever lost. Trump received 94%.

  • James ONeil October 17, 2020, 10:30 AM

    Andy wrote; “I don’t know what my purpose is. Home and family, broadly speaking. Specifically, things like this:”

    So’s mine I guess, home, family but also things like this as well as things like that; http://www.ipernity.com/doc/319805/50422392

    Yep, I’m intrigued with Steam Punk.

    Ready for test firing before finishing and it is far safer and far less likely to explode than it looks. 😉

    For those knowledgeable enough to shutter at the barrel (everybody), there is a commercial .45 barrel within my twisted, splattered, rusted steel sleeve.

  • Terry October 17, 2020, 12:14 PM

    James,

    Better sleeve that zip gun for a 22 rim fire for first trial. Did you learn the gunsmithing while in prison? If you did you spent your time well. Pretty nice work.