Random Notes from a Crank

I guess one of advantages of living in a small town is that you're likely not to serve on jury duty. 

I got summons last month, and I was supposed to be ready to serve on jury duty the past two weeks ending this Friday. I didn't have to show up. 

As a Vikings fan, I had some dark thoughts running through my mind for the first three quarters of the Monday Night Football game. The McCarthy era did not get off to a great start for that portion of the game. 

As fantasy football GM who drafted Jordan Mason, I was happy to see that guy running hard. 

The touchdown by Aaron Jones was bittersweet because the team I was playing started Jones. Before the TD I was winning. After the TD I lost. 

In not surprising news, the reading skills of possible incoming college students is at an all-time low: "Reading Skills of 12th Graders Hit a New Low." 

I don't understand the statement by the Education Secretary at the end of the article. She's just a flunky of Moscow Don. 

Reading and learning by reading is one of the joys of life. It is one of things that make life worth living. 

I've watched lots of videos of farmers complaining about how they're going to lose their farms because of tariffs. But I don't know about the veracity of these videos. 

I do know I wouldn't want to be a farmer who grew a lot of soybeans because China isn't buying any from the U.S. 

I wish the political cartoon was reflective of reality. But I don't know. Most of these idiots are still supporting President Adolf.

Random Notes from a Crank

The anti-vaccine stupidity will be infectious. Literally.  

And it's appropriate that Florida is leading in stupidity by ending vaccine mandates: "Florida Says It Plans to End All Vaccine Mandates." 

This political cartoon by Clay Jones sums up what's happening at the CDC. 

I'm with Lucy. 

I bought some plums from my local Aldi. 

I know Dr. Pepper does not contain plum juice, but its plum-like flavor has made it the second most popular pop in the U.S. 

It's surprising that plums aren't that popular. They're tasty,

As a bourbon drinker, I'm intrigued by the offerings by Holladay. I remember when I used to live near that area in Missouri, and I traveled to Weston back when it was the McCormick distillery.  

But I have a hard time buying a bourbon over forty bucks. It's just booze, man. 

My hope is that there are fewer bourbon enthusiasts in the future and supply leaps ahead of demand. 

Random Notes from a Crank

The Washington Post reports that the National Guard troops deployed for "crime" are cleaning up parks by getting rid of graffiti and trash and raking leaves: "National Guard Troops in D.C. Add Sanitation, Landscaping Duties." 

This move simply shows how President Adolf's "crime emergency" is just another example of his lies and bullshit and misuse of resources. 

I was surprised that the Vikings traded for Adam Thielan. But I guess he's probably close to retirement and might want to end his career with the team he started with. 

In a special election for an Iowa State Senate seat, a Democrat won in what I assume is usually a red district: "Democrat Caitlin Drey Wins Iowa Senate Special Election, Breaking Republican Supermajority."  I enjoyed what the DNC Chair said: "Iowans are seeing Republicans of who they are: self-serving liars who will throw their constituents under the bus to rubber stamp Donald Trump's disastrous agenda - and they're ready for change."

I am going to have to use the phrase "self-serving liars" more often.  

As is easy to expect, the Daily Kos reports that "Of Course Conservatives Are Being Weird about Taylor Swift's Engagement." 

The current administration is possibly going to depress sales of EV vehicles even though EV vehicles are being bought in other countries in the world: "EV Sales Are Booming in America--For Now." 

The big stupid bill killed the EV tax credit. 

Random Notes from a Crank

The BBC has an interesting article about the world's safest countries: "Five of the World Safest Countries for 2025." The article also provide the top ten but just features the top five in detail. 

There were some surprises for me. Neither Norway nor Sweden are in the top ten. Ireland was a bit surprising to me, but Denmark and New Zealand are usually in the top ten of most lists of countries where people are happy and safe. And I've heard good things about Portugal. 

This week's Existential Comic is a good one. It's a commentary on imperialism and the rationales people have used for conquering countries: "The Philosophy of Julius Caesar." 

The character asks a great question of Caesar: "How do you justify it philosophically?"

James McMurtry is a great songwriter. On his most recent album, The Black Dog and the Wandering Boy, he has a song about Pinocchio as an adult: "Pinocchio in Vegas." 

Today is National Dog Day. Treat your dog/s right. 

Random Notes from a Crank

I've never been an avid watcher of South Park, but the show is doing some outstanding work this season taking on President Adolf and his lackeys. 

This week's episode is wonderful satire of many topics, but my favorite part of the episode is how the characters are so reliant on ChatGPT, how stupid people are about how great it's supposed to be. 

My favorite part is when the wife pitches a business idea of turning fries into a "salad," the the AI says it's a great idea. 

I'm reading about the darker side of AI via the following book. 

After reading about the exploitation and the shit jobs people are doing for the tech companies and billionaires, you better think differently about how great AI is. 

The Micah Parsons situation with the Dallas Cowboys is bizarre. Since I am watching the Netflix documentary about the Cowboys in the 90s, the situation seems reminiscent to the Emmitt Smith holdout decades ago. 

Random Notes from a Crank

I need someone with a culinary and scientific mind to explain to me why chili seems to taste better as a leftover as compared to when you make it. 

Sometimes that seems to work the same with red sauce. 

Watching the X-Files makes one remember the terrible stylistic blandness of mid-90s American sedans. 

Well, the meeting of Moscow Don and Putin went as expected. 

President Adolf is still trying to get the taste of Putin's cock out of his mouth. This comic by Clay Bennett sums it up. 

This week's Existential Comic about William James is pretty good: "William James and the Train Robbery." 

As is expected, Moscow Don doesn't know what the hell he's talking about: "Trump Said the US Is the 'Only Country' that Uses Mail-In Voting. That's Wrong." 

I'm still waiting on the release of those Epstein files, bruh. 

Random Notes from a Crank

The other day I watched a commercial that touted "pre-tariff pricing." I suspect we might see more of that kind of advertising in the future. 

Here are some statistics from the July and August Harper's Indexes:

• Percentage of Americans who fear that they or a loved one will be deported: 19
• Portion of Americans who say they have recently delayed a major purchase because of tariffs: 1/3
• Who say they have cancelled such a purchase entirely: 1/4
• Percentage of Americans who said last year that foreign trade represented an opportunity to grow the U.S. economy: 60
• Who say so now: 81
• Average number of instruction hours that it takes to become a lawyer in the United States: 1,250
• To become a licensed hairdresser: 1,500
• Number of excess deaths projected to occur by 2040 if cuts to foreign aid remain in place: 25,300,000
• Portion of people worldwide who say they would contribute 1 percent of their income toward combating climate change: 7/10
• Of Americans who say they would do so: 1/2
• Percentage of Americans who said that the Bible was "true" in 2016: 36
• Who say so now: 48
• Portion of Americans who regard religious leaders as trustworthy sources of medical information: 1/3

I'm surprised the fear of someone being deported is that low. I thought it would be higher. However, maybe the stat reflects the percentage of the Latino population in the U.S. 

Fucking tariffs. 

81% saying that foreign trade is a good thing is reinforced by President Adolf's stupid policies. 

The number of projected deaths because of lack of foreign aid is mind boggling. 

Too few Americans care about climate change. It's embarrassing. 

Regarding the Bible being "true" and trusting religious leaders, way too many people believe in magical thinking. Imbeciles.

Two of the biggest scams in the U.S. is how much ministers get paid and that churches don't get taxed. 

The nonsense Moscow Don is doing with Washington D.C. only strengthens my feelings that both D.C. and Puerto Rico need to become states. 

Puerto Rico has a larger population than these states: Arkansas, Kansas, Mississippi, New Mexico, Nebraska, Idaho, West Virginia, Hawaii, New Hampshire, Maine, Montana, Rhode Island, Delaware, South Dakota, North Dakota, Alaska, Vermont, and Wyoming. That's 18 states. 

D.C. has a larger population than two states: Vermont and Wyoming.  

Random Notes from a Crank

Per the article in The Washington Post, unemployment is up: "U.S. Unemployment Claims Rise to Pandemic High." 

President Adolf is Making America Unemployed Again. 

On the long drive back from Fort Morgan, Alabama, the mind wanders. So I got to thinking about old-school classic rock bands and artists. 

I've sometimes thought about if I had to pick only one band/artist out of these options, which one would I choose?

• Beatles
• The Who
• Rolling Stones
• Jimi Hendrix
• Led Zeppelin
• The Doors

I grew up listening to all of these bands/artists, and they undoubtedly influenced subsequent bands I followed as I ventured headlong into alternative rock in the 80s and 90s. 

Of those six, I think I've probably listened to The Who, Led Zeppelin, and Jimi Hendrix the most. 

It's a silly mental exercise, but if I had to pick one, I guess it would be Led Zeppelin. 

Speaking of which, there's a good documentary on Netflix titled Becoming Led Zeppelin. 

It's worth a viewing. 

Random Notes from a Crank

I haven't chimed in yet about the eventual cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, but the fact he's getting his show taken away is ridiculous. 

He has the highest-rated late-night show on TV. 

Two days before he found out he was losing his show he criticized Paramount for caving to bribing Trump so they can get its media merger. 

Here's a comic that was in Saturday's Washington Post from Tom the Dancing Bug. 

I'm surprised Bezos is letting this cartoonist do his thing since he attended President Adolf's inauguration and is trying to limit the coverage of opinions in what was an esteemed paper. 

Meanwhile, Congress passed a budget that adds to the deficit/national debt and simply helps rich people and corporations. 

And Adolf's tariff's are unlikely, as the authors of "Trumps Global Tariffs 'Victory' May Well Come at a High Price," to do what he purports them to do: "But history tells us that his overarching aim - to return production and jobs to America - may meet with very limited success. And America's long-time trading partners, like Canada and the EU, could start looking to form economic and political connections that bypass what they no longer view as a reliable economic ally." 

Jobs aren't going to return to the U.S. because of these stupid tariffs. Our trading partners are going to find more stable countries to trade with. And prices for Americans are going to go up because of tariffs. 

I'm glad I bought a half of cow over a year ago because apparently beef prices are high as hell. 

And eggs haven't gone down.  

Random Notes from a Crank

As I get older, I worry about how my brain is working. 

So when I got onto The Washington Post during our vacation here in Fort Morgan, Alabama, a couple of articles jumped out to me.

The first one is "Want to Keep Your Brain Sharp as You Age? Science May Have a Recipe." 

It's pretty clear that the Mediterranean diet is something to aspire to. I get regular exercise walking the dog weather permitting, but I could also go back to using dumbbells. 

And in this dark time during the administration of President Adolf, "7 Short, Simple Science-based Ways to Add Joy to Your Life" is worth a read. 

The phrase "little earthquakes in the mind" reminded me of this song by Tori Amos. 

Being down here in the Deep South has reminded me about how so many southerners drive way too damn slowly.

Way too many drivers are camped out in the left lane and driving slowly and clogging up traffic. 

Random Notes from a Crank

The comic above makes a lot of sense. I got it from The Atheist Vanguard on FB. 

As inflation worsens, all signs point toward the U.S. economy suffering stagflation. Read all about in the article by The New York Times: "U.S. Inflation Accelerated in June as Trump's Tariffs Pushed Up Prices." 

And as reported in The Washington Post, the shaky economy and tariffs are seriously affecting the travel plans of Americans: "Americans Are Downsizing Their Summer Vacations." 

If you're interested in a bit of satire, surprisingly from USA Today, check out "I Saw the New Liberal Superman Movie and It Gave Me a Woke Mind Virus." 

Of all the things that the MAGA faithful should be mad about in regard to the doings of President Adolf, they're really concerned about the release of the Epstein files? 

Those are some bizarre priorities. 

Random Notes from a Crank

I read an article in Mother Jones about Rep. Maxwell Frost: "Why Maxwell Frost Wants Democrats to 'Get Caught Fighting.'"

Later that day he was on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. He's sharp as hell. 

When he turns 30, he needs to run for the U.S. Senate to kick out one of the GOP douche bags in Florida--hopefully that penis-look-alike Rick Scott. 

Lately I've become irritable about the drivers where I live. They drive so damn slowly. 

So this past weekend I was in Muncie, Indiana for a baseball tournament, and the drivers around there might be even morse. 

People were driving so slow, especially around corners. It's like I was in the Deep South again with all these slow-ass drivers. 

What's the deal with people calling sports stars/personalities by their first names? My in-laws do this with professional golfers they follow. Or most notably they use when they talk about Caitlin Clark. They call her "Caitlin" in casual conversation. 

I just find that weird because using the first name connotes a personal connection. 

Well, the U.S. under President Adolf is back to bombing brown people because of "weapons of mass destruction." 

We've seen that move before. The president's poll numbers are in the crapper, so the administration gets into some kind of military intervention based on shoddy intelligence. 

There are some consequences here. First, Congress is the only entity that can wage war, not the Executive Branch. Moscow Don has basically involved us in a war because he's just doing what Israel wants. 

Second, one can assume Iran is going to react in various ways, whether it's related to the Strait of Hormuz or sleeper cells inside the U.S. doing terrorist activities.

The Trump administration is making America poor and making American less safe again. 

Random Notes from a Crank

 

I saw this image from the Radical Centrist on FB. I thought I'd share. 

If you were to make a Venn diagram of these assertions, that Venn diagram don't hunt. 

I don't understand why Tottenham Hotspur appears not to be showing any interest in the Canadian striker Jonathan David. 

He's a free agent. He's two-footed. He's productive. He's in his mid-20s. And there's no transfer free. I think he's a fabulous player. 

In a recent YouGov daily survey, 50% of people polled said "Yes" to this question:"Would you ever vote for a third party or an independent candidate?" I said Yes to that question. I'd vote for one for sure if the candidate was viable. 

The third question was "Do you think a third major political party is necessary for the United States, or are the Democratic and Republican parties enough?" 55% answered "A third party is necessary in the U.S." Only 20% agreed with "The Democratic and Republican parties are enough to represent Americans." 25% were "Not sure." 

Mother Jones has a solid short article that describes the importance of preserving and probably expanding wetlands: "The Economic Case for Preserving America's Wetlands." 

As the author relates, wetlands work like sponges, so they can prevent the massive flooding events that are only going to be more frequent because of climate change. Unfortunately, under the the administration of President Adolf, I doubt many projects like the one in Raleigh are going to get going.  

A frightening article in that same issue of Mother Jones is one about Clearview AI, a facial-recognition tech company whose founders have ties to right-wing extremists, Holocaust deniers, and Neo-Nazis. 

Check out "The Shocking Far-Right Agenda behind the Facial Recognition Tech Used by ICE and the FBI."

Here are some interesting statistics from the June "Harper's Index":

• Percentage by which tourism to the United States is projected to decrease this year: 9
• Percentage increase this year in seizures of eggs being smuggled into the United States: 48
• Percentage increase last year in the number of U.S. households that owned chickens: 28
• Factor by which the word "notable" appears more frequently in AI-generated sentences than in those written by humans: 13
• By which the word "esteemed" does: 120

I'm surprised the decrease in tourism is only projected to be 9%. I thought it would be in the high teens.

I'll be on the lookout for "notable" and "esteemed." 

Random Notes from a Crank

I know the Trinidad & Tobago national team is a weak side, but the US Men's National Team had a solid match against them on Sunday in the Gold Cup. As a Tottenham fan and as an American, I want Pochettino to succeed.

 

I like his brand of football. 

But what is the definition of success for the USMNT? 

Saturday's insanely expensive so-called celebration of the military/military parade for Moscow Don/President Adolf was a resounding failure in terms of what Adolf expected it to be. 

The videos on TikTok and the truthful media coverage have been satirically ruthless about how pathetic and how poorly attended the event was. 

So low energy...

So much like a guy with a small dick trying to compensate...

Tottenham hired Thomas Frank after sacking Ange. Of the options available, he was probably the best choice. It should be an intriguing transfer window. 

I just hope we keep Romero and Son for at least another season. Ideally, I'd like to see Spurs extend Son for one more season, have this coming season be his last at the club, and sell him to whatever club he wants to go to for a decent fee. 

I want to see Archie Gray playing in the 6 and the 8 positions. He's a midfielder. Playing as a right or left back or even as a center-back should be emergency option.

Random Notes from a Crank

 

I saw this on Bluesky and thought I'd share it. 

What the hell is wrong with people in the United States of America to think this narcissistic, incompetent, fat-ass, moronic grievance merchant is the right person to be President? 

I answered the daily questions from YouGov today. 

Here were the three questions:

• Do you generally have a favorable or an unfavorable opinion of yourself?
• Do you generally have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of the people you interact with regularly?
• Do you generally have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of Americans overall?

With the first question, I chose "somewhat favorable," which was the highest percentage at 46%.

With the second, I chose "somewhat unfavorable," which was only 8%. The highest percentage was 55% for "somewhat favorable." 

With the third, I chose "very unfavorable," which was only 7%. The highest percentage was "somewhat favorable" at 45%. And "somewhat unfavorable" was 24% and "very favorable" at 16%. 

A lot of people in the U.S. won't get this reference, which concurs with my "very unfavorable" choice for the third question, but Americans are Panglossian. 

They lack self awareness. 

And as George Carlin famously said, think about how dumb the average person is and then consider how many people are dumber than than the average person. 

People who back into parking spaces think they're better than everyone else. 

I was at one of my local grocery stores the other day and was reminded of how lazy people were. [In Seinfeld voice] What's the deal with people not returning their carts to a cart coral and just leaving them in at the entryways? 

Random Notes from a Crank

If you want to watch a solid documentary about the somewhat recent past, you need to check American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden. 

The film starkly contrasts the Bush and Obama administrations. They had bin Laden trapped in the mountains, but for whatever reason, the Bush administration did not use troops to scoop up the leader. 

Whereas when Obama had a chance to get him, and it was a risky call that his Vice President advised against him doing, Obama went forward on the special operation to take down what they found out to be bin Laden. 

This contrast goes against the common thinking that the GOP is tough on crime and terrorism, whereas the leader of Democratic Party is one who ordered the takedown of the mastermind of 9/11. 

Tottenham Hotspur won the Europa League, so there's been quite a party going on in N17. 

I'm an "Ange In" guy, so the club needs to get it together and acquire some players that will make us competitive in the Champions League. 

It's pretty simple. He won silverware for a club that hasn't won a competition in 17 years. 

Get it done. 

Random Notes from a Crank

As was expected, Moscow Don's foolish economic policies have made the economy worse because of his stupid tariffs and the amount of debt the U.S. owes to all kinds of countries: "Markets Rattled on Concerns about U.S. Debt." 

This is what the U.S. gets when the country votes in a moron who bankrupted a casino.

The GOP says they care about budget deficits, but when they get the White House, the deficit increases. 

They only seem to care about the deficit when a Democrat is in office. 

I recently purchased some chia seeds because I've been reading about the health benefits of eating them. People suggest using them with yogurt. 

I've moved from the high-sugar yogurts to something much healthier. I'm going with Greek yogurt with fruit intermixed, and I add some honey for a bit of sweetness. Then I will sprinkle in some chia seeds. 

Here's what Healthline says about chia seeds: "Chia Seeds 101: Nutrition Facts and Health Benefits." 

Tottenham Hotspur won the Europa League yesterday. #COYS

I'm intrigued with which new players will join the club to bolster its squad because of the Champions League competition. 

Random Notes from a Crank

As I can attest to, gardening is good for people from a physical and mental standpoint. The New York Times has a nice little article about the subject: "Why Gardening Is So Good for You." 

As much as I hate weeding, especially flower beds, I enjoy seeding and planting new crops. 

However, there are benefits of digging in the dirt. 

I'm in the midst of watching the Netflix documentary Turning Point: The Vietnam War. It's a good documentary. It's not as good as the PBS documentary by Ken Burn and Lynn Novick, but it's solid. 

As I was watching the third episode "Life Is Cheap," I had the idea or rather the question of whether anyone has ever written speculative novel that narrates what would have happened if Bobby Kennedy would not have been assassinated and would have become President in 1968. 

I guess what I'm looking for is perhaps some positive speculative fiction. 

At an antique bazaar we went to on Saturday, I bought a movie poster for Ferris Bueller's Day Off, easily one of the best comedies of the 80s. 

The poster inspired me to watch the movie yesterday, and it was excellent. 

The one scene in which the teacher talks about the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act that launched the Great Depression and George W. Bush's description of "voodoo economics" is relevant. 

Random Notes from a Crank

Lots of things are going to get more expensive. 

A bunch of idiots are counting on Moscow Don to make some deals that help the U.S. and bring business and industry back to the United States. The New York Times has a good article on this nonsense: "A Flashing Economic Warning and a Sharp Political Jolt." 

The Canadian Prime Minister, who has a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Oxford, has a more realistic view of what's happening: "Our old relationship with the United States, a relationship based on steadily increasing integration, is over. The system of open global trade anchored but the United States, a system that Canada has relied on since the Second World War, a system that, while not perfect, has helped deliver prosperity for a country for decades, is over."

What's more menacing is how President Adolf tariff nonsense has strengthened China's position in the world economy. China is now importing soybeans from South American and getting its beef and pork from other countries. 

I woke up in a pissed-off mood this morning because I was thinking about how the head coach of high school basketball team basically wasted my son's junior year. And to a certain extent, the head coach of the high school baseball team is doing something similar. 

As I was driving to a baseball game yesterday, I caught the broadcast of the Barcelona-Inter Milan Champions League match, the first tie of two matches. It sounded like it was bananas. 

Based on the highlights, it was. 

I don't have a team I'm rooting for in that competition, but I certainly want PSG to beat Arsenal. 

Random Notes from a Crank

In a FAFO moment, the current administration is denying disaster relief to ruby red Arkansas, which is surely a stinging rebuke to his former press secretary who is the governor of the Natural State. 

If you like this image, I got it from SheTraps. 

Apparently, President Adolf and his goons want to eliminate FEMA and leave relief funding/repairs to states and local governments. I'm not sure how that's going to work. That idea is as illogical as his dumbass tariffs. 

The Guardian has a good article about it: "Trump Denies Aid for Arkansas after Storms That Killed More than 40 People." 

Ah, the result of GOP Complicity...

Some Chinese folks on social media are doing some good work: "For China's Trolls, 'Chairman Trump' and "Eyeliner Man' Are Easy Targets." Check out the video of the "Chinese Trump." 

I've been using a 50/50 white vinegar and water mix for cleaning for years. The BBC has an interesting article about the benefits of using vinegar: "'Its Strength Is Its Simplicity': The Benefits of Cleaning with Vinegar." 

Archeologists found a skeleton that provides proof that gladiators had to fight large mammals: "A Roman Gladiator and a Lion Met in Combat. Only One Walked Away." So all those movies about gladiators have some proof about depictions.