Author: lobotero

I have been a radical, labor organizer, writer, lecturer, teacher, analyst, political activist , convention delegate and I still have my sanity--who knew?

Answers To Inflation

As the country is in the grip of runaway inflation especially on gas and food all our politicians are scrambling to look for answers ahead of the upcoming elections….and there are many solutions none of which will do much for us mere mortals.

The GOP has some big ideas…..

House Republicans gathered this week for an off-site hearing denouncing the Biden administration’s economic and energy agenda, blaming the president for record-high inflation and gas prices while proposing solutions that largely focused on reining in government spending and expanding domestic energy manufacturing.

Led by Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ), members of Congress heard from a panel of witnesses including former Trump administration Energy Secretary Rick Perry and Club for Growth co-founder Stephen Moore at an event held Tuesday at the Heritage Foundation.

For an hour and a half, Republicans considered proposals ranging from dramatically cutting taxes and government spending, enacting work requirements for social welfare programs, and abolishing “renewable energy mandates” that restrict the production of oil and other fossil fuels.

Although some policy disagreements among them were evident, the event’s attendees were unified in their harsh criticisms of President Joe Biden, fixing the blame squarely on his administration for the country’s economic woes.

“With gasoline at $5 per gallon and inflation at nearly 9% year over year, we need to hold the Biden administration accountable,” Biggs argued. “With Democrats in charge of the House, Senate, and the White House, they are the ones who produced this problem.”

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/house/house-republicans-biden-inflation-gas-prices-heritage-biggs

As pertaining to a ‘gas holiday’….this seems to be popular with both parties….apparently the American voter is so stupid that paying $3 a gallon for gas will make them somehow comfortable….to me this is just a feel good solution that will do little to ease the economic pain of us peasants.

Bidenism in a nutshell: After blasting oil companies for price gouging, Biden announced a suspension of the federal gas tax for three months, a move which will do almost nothing to reduce prices at the pump but will almost certainly provide an even bigger boost to oil company profits.

The site fivethirtyeight.com takes a closer look at the idea of a gas holiday……

Earlier this week President Biden asked Congress to temporarily suspend collection of federal gas and diesel taxes for three months as a way to relieve pressure on Americans as national gas prices rise to $5 a gallon. If the price keeps going up, it could top highs not seen since the summer of 2008. High gas prices are also helping to drive overall inflation, which reached 8.6 percent as of May. 

It’s no surprise, then, that Biden is responding to pressure to do something — anything — about gas prices. As plenty of people have pointed out, the cost per gallon is displayed on giant signs everyone can see. Transportation and groceries are necessities that are purchased weekly or even daily, which means Americans feel these changes in a visible, visceral way. It also gets at why they’re so important politically, especially as surveys show that Americans are adjusting their budgets. 

Nearly three-quarters of Americans say they’ve altered their spending habits to save money because of inflation, according to a Morning Consult poll released this week. More than half, 53 percent, say they’ve changed their eating and drinking habits. Families are eating out less often, cutting back on meat and forgoing alcohol and organic produce.

A similar poll from last month found that middle-income households were spending slightly less on groceries overall and shifting to less expensive options, like store brands instead of name brands. (Higher-income families were just spending more.) 

A Gas Holiday Might Be Popular, But It’s Unlikely To Do Much To Lower Inflation

So far none of the solutions being offered by either party will do the trick at easing our economic pain…..at least that is my opinion.

There are answers but they would flying in the face of the oligarchs that have bought a Congress and that will NEVER happen in my lifetime…..the Congress gets paid too well to actually work for the people that send them to DC.

As I have stated inflation is eating away at the fiber of this country….its people…..and we should learn all we can about this deadly situation….

The focus of the US media and economists for the past several months has been increasingly on inflation.  In recent weeks, however, US policymakers awoke as well to the realization that inflation is chronic, firmly embedded, and growing threat to the immediate future of the US economy.

A qualitative ‘threshold of awareness’ was reached this past week when the US central bank, the Federal Reserve, accelerated its pace of rate hikes by 75 basis points—purportedly to bring the rate of price hikes under control. Whether the Fed can succeed in taming inflation and do so without precipitating a recession remains to be seen but is highly unlikely. Taming inflation without provoking a recession is thus the central economic question for the remainder of 2022.

Clearly some think this is possible—i.e. that further rate hikes will moderate the pace of inflation without driving the real economy into recession and result in what is called a ‘soft landing’. Clearly the Fed and the Biden administration believe that will happen. But a growing chorus of even mainstream economists and bank research departments don’t think so.  Almost daily new forecasts by global banks and analysts appear indicating recession is more than 50-50 likely—and arriving sooner in late 2022 than in 2023.

The Anatomy of Inflation

Hard answers are needed……weak responses will be the norm.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Thomas Makes My Case

I have written many times about how the SCOTUS has crapped on the spirit of their position……and Thomas is making it more likely something needs done.

Him and his wife have got politically involved on several occasions…..involved in stuff that he has had a hand in crafting law. And now he proves my point….the next attack is on ‘marriage equality’ and gay rights.

Here is Thomas’ latest….

Attached to the Supreme Court’s majority opinion in overturning Roe v. Wade on Friday was a solo concurring opinion by Justice Clarence Thomas that suggested he’d like to also reconsider cases involving contraception, same-sex marriage, and other private sexual conduct. The pundit consensus has since deemed the chances of the majority of the high court ruling against birth control and gay rights as pretty low, but in her latest op-ed for the Washington Post, Ruth Marcus puts out a red flag over dismissing that possibility. The rights protected in those other mentioned cases are said to fall—just as abortion was, until last week—under a privacy umbrella within the “substantive due process” protections of the 14th Amendment. Marcus concedes that no other justice joined Thomas in taking aim at those other cases, so she poses the question on everyone’s mind: “Should everyone calm down?”

Her answer: “Yes—and no.” She notes it’s true that contraception and same-sex marriage just doesn’t touch the same nerve as abortion does. But she also points out the majority opinion highlighted that, when the 14th Amendment was ratified in 1868, there was no right to abortion recognized—and the same applies to those other cases, meaning the rights they protect could also be threatened in the future. “Thomas may be alone now, but who knows who will be willing to join him down the road?” Marcus writes, noting that what “starts as an extreme, outlier view can migrate into the conservative mainstream.” “When you pull on a thread, an entire garment can unravel,” she adds. “Thomas would like to see that happen, and he is tugging, hard, at the fabric of constitutional law. Who knows what will be left when he is done.”

Read her piece in its entirety here.

Thomas needs to recuse himself from any and all rulings that involve gay rights….he is biased and cannot not make a unbiased ruling.

If he cannot bring himself to recuse then I say impeach him and anyone else that shows a hatred for the Constitution.

But how could we impeach a sitting SCOTUS judge?

Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold, who explains to Molly and listeners what it would take to impeach a Supreme Court Justice, why she believes the conservative justices lied under oath, and what states can do ASAP to protect women.

“It’s so strange because we all knew this was coming and it still feels like just being punched in the gut. It’s devastating. It’s outrageous. I am personally outraged for the fact that the Supreme Court is no longer seeing American women as full people,” Griswold tells Molly Jong-Fast. “I support looking into the impeachment of several of these justices.”

“This is a fabulous notion, but I mean, how would that even work?” asks Molly.

“Basically Congress can impeach and there has to be a basis to do so. They have to have committed some type of legal offense,” explains Griswold, noting that she believes there have been offenses committed by some of the conservative judges to warrant said impeachment.

She points to Clarence Thomas as the first example: “Justice Thomas, who is now saying that marriage equality, that birth control, that all these rights suddenly are at risk, should be impeached for his involvement in election-related cases. He has breached the public’s trust. His wife literally was involved in the attempted violent overthrow of the U.S. government.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/this-is-how-to-impeach-a-supreme-court-justice

I say impeach the bastards!

Then impose terms limits ion judges….no body should have a job for life.

I love the idea to hold the judges accountable for their words and deeds…..but I see a problem…the Congress does not work for the people of this country they are picked and employed by political hacks and any action against a judge would go through the Congress they will do nothing to protect the people only their asses.

Thomas and his 5 cohorts are nothing more than political hacks and none deserve the title ‘your honor’….

Any opinions on this this?

Watch This Blog!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Pentagon Does The Right Thing

In my opinion for the wrong reasons…..

The Pentagon has come out on the side of ‘reproductive rights’….(for now)

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Friday that the Pentagon is working to ensure that members of the military, their families and its civilian employees will still have access to “reproductive health care” after the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Why it matters: The Defense Department currently does not have a policy to accommodate service members or employees who are seeking an abortion but are stationed in a state that has outlawed abortion, Politico reports.

  • Federal law currently allows military medical facilities to provide abortions only in cases of rape, incest or if a woman’s life is in danger, while the military’s health program is allowed to cover abortions at private facilities for those same reasons only.

What they’re saying: “Nothing is more important to me or to this Department than the health and well-being of our Service members, the civilian workforce and DOD families,” Austin said in a statement on Friday.

  • “I am committed to taking care of our people and ensuring the readiness and resilience of our Force. The Department is examining this decision closely and evaluating our policies to ensure we continue to provide seamless access to reproductive health care as permitted by federal law,” he added.

The big picture: The court’s decision may further strain the military’s recruitment efforts — already hampered by low employment and other factors — as potential recruits may fear being stationed in states that have banned abortions, according to Bloomberg.

  • Women make up around 20% of the military’s 1.3 million-member active-duty force, and 95% of them are of reproductive age, according to Stars and Stripes citing department statistics.

(axios.com)

Ain’t that some kind of special?

My thoughts is that this will be a recruiting tool…..I mean the Pentagon has a hard time doing anything about sexual assaults, rape and such, in the military why else would they be so concerned about reproductive rights?

Next this ought o make conservs lose their under productive little minds.  (Something that would give me hours of enjoyment)

But here is a thought for them….punish the Pentagon by slashing their budget by $250 billion and use the cash for infrastructure and social programs.

That is just my wishful thinking for that will never happen….the M-IC and its oligarchs will slip lots of cash to our Congress to soothe their troubled minds.

This is nothing more than a news trap….in other words bullsh*t.

Any thoughts of this little piece of theater?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

All That ‘Breaking News’

This draft was written before the mass shooting in Uvalde and now the SCOTUS ruling…it had to wait for the news to play out.  I apologize for the delay.

I have avoided the MSM since the invasion of Ukraine…..they are pro-war and anti-gun and they are trying to influence the country as best as they can….and their corporate masters continue to set the news….but many of us are disillusioned by the way the MSM handles the news.

A growing number of people are selectively avoiding important news stories such as the coronavirus pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the cost-of-living crisis, according to a report released on Tuesday.

While the majority of people surveyed consume news regularly, 38% said they often or sometimes avoid the news – up from 29% in 2017 – the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism said in its annual Digital News Report. Around 36% – particularly those under 35 – say that the news lowers their mood.

Trust in news is also declining, and is lowest in the United States. On average, 42% of people said they trust most news most of the time; that figure has fallen in almost half the countries in the report and risen in seven.

“Large numbers of people see the media as subject to undue political influence, and only a small minority believe most news organisations put what’s best for society ahead of their own commercial interest,” wrote Reuters Institute Director Rasmus Kleis Nielsen in the report, which is based on an online survey of 93,432 people, conducted in 46 markets.

https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2022-06-14/more-people-are-avoiding-the-news-and-trusting-it-less-report-says

Then there is the manure of ‘breaking news’….

Since the conflict in Ukraine began I have been bitching about the use of the news tag of ‘breaking news’……CNN was the worse offender….it was breaking news for 12 hours, the same report time after time…..of course I have written about this….

Ukraine And The Media

The Reporting On Ukraine

Please read those and see what I am on about….

With the recent mass shooting this story got lost in the headlines….

If you’re a regular CNN viewer, you’re also intimately familiar with one of its most well-known chyrons: the bright-red “Breaking News” banner that seems to accompany a good number of its newscasts. No more, says new network chief Chris Licht, who’s now issued an edict on cutting down on the banner’s use. Axios reports that on Thursday, Licht, 50, informed staff there are now stricter parameters on when to use the “Breaking News” label; updated guidelines have been written by Sam Feist, the network’s DC bureau chief. “Breaking News” has to “mean something BIG is happening,” Licht wrote in a memo to employees. “We are truth-tellers, focused on informing, not alarming our viewers. … The tenor of our voice holistically has to reflect that.”

The reasoning behind the shift, which CNBC calls “the first significant programming alteration” Licht has made, ties to his desire to pull CNN back from a more progressive-leaning, sometimes sensationalist approach to one more focused on hard news. That return to traditional journalism is also said to be a top priority for David Zaslav, the CEO of CNN parent Warner Bros. Discovery. The move is also intended to keep the “Breaking News” banner from become diluted by overuse. “It has become such a fixture on every channel and network that its impact has become lost on the audience,” Licht noted in his memo.

Licht, who took the helm of CNN in early May, was said to have held meetings with staff to try to suss out when and how the banner is employed, at which point he directed Feist to come up with an update on its usage for CNN’s stylebook. Licht noted he’s open to feedback and “tweaks” to the guidelines, but that “this is a great starting point.” He added in the memo: “We must be vital, relevant, and respected—and how we show up for our audiences, in every story, in every part of the country, and around the world, matters.” Deadline has his memo in its entirety.

Maybe someone was reading after all…..

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

All Those ‘Pro-Choice’ Protests

It is said that since the monumental decision by SCOTUS to basically end Roe v Wade the nation has been faced with massive protests (I will offer my opinion on these protests at the end of this post…. so please continue reading)

Over this past weekend protests erupted over the Supreme Court decision….

Thousands of people protesting the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade returned to the streets of dozens of cities on Saturday. Smaller crowds turned out in many places to celebrate the ruling, CNN reports, and the two sides sometimes got in each other’s faces to argue the issue. With some states already putting bans on abortion services in place, clinics canceled weekend appointments, sometimes for patients sitting in their waiting rooms, per the New York Times. Activists said a long struggle is just beginning—with one side trying to further increase abortion restrictions while the other concentrates on electing politicians in the November midterms who will work for abortion rights—despite the fact that they knew the ruling was imminent. “It’s like seeing the train coming toward you,” said Julia Kaluta, 24, at a demonstration in New York City. “And you finally get hit by it. And it still hurts more than you ever thought.”

Developments involved:

  • The ban: Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Oklahoma, and South Dakota have already put a prohibition on providing abortions into effect.
  • The clinics: Providers in Arizona and Arkansas have begun turning away patients, per CNN. Little Rock Planned Parenthood canceled 60 to 100 appointments, said Dr. Janet Cathey. “There were patients who said they were in their car and on their way and asked us, ‘It will be OK, won’t it?'” Cathey said. “And we had to tell them, ‘No, we have to follow the law.'” She added: “Most patients were desperate or panicked.” Patients in some places rushed to book appointments in states where abortions are still legal, such as Illinois and Minnesota.
  • Official resistance: The Republican governors of Massachusetts, Maryland, New Hampshire, and Vermont said they’ll preserve abortion rights, despite the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Polls show them to be have among the highest approval ratings of any governors in the US, per the Washington Post, and all are in mostly Democratic states. Michigan’s attorney general said she won’t prosecute anybody for seeking an abortion, per WMMT.
  • Clashes: Police used tear gas on protesters outside the Arizona Capitol on Friday night. The protest mostly was peaceful, per the AP, and demonstrators called the police response an overreaction. Senate President Karen Fann, a Republican, issued a statement Saturday calling the protest a failed insurrection. In Iowa, a truck was driven into a crowd of abortion rights protesters crossing a street on Friday night in Cedar Rapids. “He tried to murder them,” a local journalist said. One woman was taken to a hospital. No arrests were made, per Yahoo News.
  • Voices: Both sides demonstrated at a clinic in Overland Park, Kan., near the Missouri line. Abortion became illegal in Missouri on Friday, and Kansas has a measure on the Aug. 2 ballot that would remove protections for abortion services, per the Times. “I fear for my child,” said Abbye Putterman, 36, who has a 12-year-old daughter. “I worry that she isn’t going to have choice.” Abortion rights opponents chanted and tried to keep women from going into the clinic. “We don’t believe in moral compromise,” said Valley Scharping, 26, “and we don’t want them to be guilty of murder.”

Okay my thoughts.

Protests are a good way to make the government understand what the people think….sadly these mean little.

The disaster has been done and is becoming law….protesting against it will do little to change the outcome.

This is what we get when there is NO long game….when we react instead of act.

Finally–the will of the people means nothing.  We do not have the cash for the Congress or the White House for them to actually care.  If we cannot bribe our politician then we get nothing from their tenure but policies that effect us and not them.

Protests are good and do not stop yelling….but also realize that it accomplishes little other than a feel good rush.

Find a new plan.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

SCOTUS Does Guns (Again)

It is that time when the Supreme Court hands down its judgements again…this is the latest to be handed down….

The Supreme Court handed advocates for gun rights a major victory on Thursday with a ruling expected to make it easier for people to carry concealed handguns:

  • Decision: The court struck down a New York law requiring that people who want to carry concealed weapons must show a “proper cause” for doing so, reports the New York Times. The 6-3 decision split along the court’s conservative and liberal lines.
  • Majority: The court’s conservative justices declared that New York’s law was so restrictive that it violated the Constitution. “The Second and Fourteenth Amendments protect an individual’s right to carry a handgun for self-defense outside the home,” wrote Clarence Thomas, per the Washington Post. His opinion declared that the state’s law violated that principle.
  • Dissent: “Many States have tried to address some of the dangers of gun violence … by passing laws that limit, in various ways, who may purchase, carry, or use firearms of different kinds,” wrote Stephen Breyer. “The Court today severely burdens States’ efforts to do so.”
  • Precedent: The ruling will have consequences beyond New York, notes the AP. For example, California, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Rhode Island have “proper cause” laws similar to New York’s, and those will likely be challenged, too. The AP estimates that a quarter of the US population currently lives in states expected to be affected by the ruling.
  • Background: New York’s law has been on the books for more than a century, notes the Post. Two men, Robert Nash and Brandon Koch, sued, saying it made it “virtually impossible for the ordinary law-abiding citizen to obtain a license,” per the Times. The court agreed.

Ain’t it grand?

I am sorry but this has nothing to do with personal safety, in my mind, this is just another masculine thing….letting some to feel like a ‘big man’ because that are a tottin’.

There comes a time for sanity but when it comes to the sacred gun sanity leaves the room for paranoia and silliness……since the Court is not positive in the eyes of the population.

With the Supreme Court poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, Americans’ confidence in the country’s top court has fallen to a record law, according to the latest Gallup poll. The pollsters say just 25% of Americans have “quite a lot” or a “great deal” of confidence in the court, down 11 points from a year ago. It’s the lowest number in polling going back to 1973, the year of the Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide, when confidence was at 45%. The previous low was in 2014, when confidence in the court was at 30%. The highest figure over the last 49 years was 56%, recorded in 1985 and 1988.

Gallup says the poll was carried out from June 1 to 20, weeks after the leak of the draft decision on abortion rights. With a conservative supermajority in place, pollsters say only 13% of Democrats have high confidence in the top court, CNN reports. Confidence among independent voters has dived from 40% to 25% year-on-year, according to Gallup, while among Republicans, it has edged up from 37% to 39%. In a poll taken in 2020, before Justice Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed as then-President Donald Trump’s third SCOTUS pick, the figure for Republicans was 53%. Gallup says confidence in the court among Republicans hit a record low of 26% in 2010.

Biden signs ‘landmark’ gun deal…..

  • The bill would make the local juvenile records of people age 18 to 20 available during required federal background checks when they attempt to buy guns. Those examinations, currently limited to three days, would last up to a maximum of 10 days to give federal and local officials time to search records.
  • People convicted of domestic abuse who are current or former romantic partners of the victim would be prohibited from acquiring firearms, closing the so-called “boyfriend loophole.”
  • There would be money to help states enforce red flag laws.
  • The measure expands the use of background checks by rewriting the definition of the federally licensed gun dealers required to conduct them. Penalties for gun trafficking are strengthened, billions of dollars are provided for behavioral health clinics and school mental health programs, and there’s money for school safety initiatives, though not for personnel to use a “dangerous weapon.”

The big tagline for this bill is “it will save lives”……tell me where.

Your thoughts will be appreciated.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

New Mississippi Laws

This is my only post for the day for I have reason to celebrate…..you see today is my birthday and I am turning 75…..which is a big deal for I never thought I would live so long.

I seldom write about my state for most people think Mississippi is just a bunch of toothless in-bred rednecks….sometimes they are not to far off the mark.

Come 01 July 2022 Mississippi will be enacting new laws.

Among the most important:

– The state’s 7.32 billion dollar budget, up 9% from the last.

– Education/Teacher Pay MAEP funding gets 83.2 Million increase.  Teachers get minimum $41,638.

(National average for teachers is $56, 310….so Mississippi is doing their teachers no favor)

– Mississippi will begin gradually reducing income taxes beginning with a drop from 5% to 4.7%.

(Perfect excuse to cut social programs for a lack of income…a GOP dream)

– Medical marijuana becomes legal.  1800 people registered for the program in the first six days of eligibility.

(The process is so convoluted that it will take decades to sort it out)

– Parker’s law makes “fentanyl delivery resulting in death” a crime than get you 20 years in prison or even life in prison.

– Critical Race Theory ban: New law withholds public funding of the curriculum to be taught.

(A waste of time….the course was only taught in Law school and it was an elective not mandatory)

-Governments can no longer mandate COVID vaccinations for employees, with one exception:  Healthcare.

(Typical GOP program that will likely make things worse if the pandemic returns)

-Death Penalty: the preferred method will not change, but if lethal injection is not possible the Department of Corrections will choose among several choices including firing squad or electrocution.

-New State Song:  Steve Azar’s “One Mississippi” will become new “contemporary” state song, replacing “Go Mississippi” which had ties to former governor Ross Barnett.

-Prohibiting discrimination against those with disabilities.

-Allow food trucks to have liquor licenses.

(Not a very good idea)

-Changes to state name, image and likeness laws for student athletes

-Protecting student speech

-Lift ban on hearing aid coverage from state health plan

Mississippi still has its feet in the 20th century…..sometimes they are firmly in the 19th century….these laws do NOTHING to make the people of Mississippi more prosperous and safer.

This was a typical session of our government…..useless policies that is seldom in the best interests of the citizens of this state.

Watch This Blog!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Usual Worthless News

It is Saturday and all the news that does not mean a damn thing to anyone…..

The Martian rover has found evidence of life….just not Martian…..

Earthlings have officially littered on another planet, and it’s spreading in unexpected ways. Per the Guardian,the Mars rover Perseverance captured an image of a shiny, foil-like object stuck between two rocks. It’s certainly a sign of life, but not the type Perseverance is hoping to find on its mission. On its Twitter account—narrated in the first person—Perseverance said “it’s a piece of a thermal blanket that … may have come from my descent stage, the rocket-powered jet pack that set me down on landing day back in 2021.” The blanket either fluttered to its current location during the landing or it was subsequently blown there by Martian winds. According to the New York Times,the blanket scrap is far from the only “otherworldly wreckage” on the planet’s surface. Earlier this year, the helicopter Ingenuity, Perseverance’s “small robotic companion,” spotted the top of the landing craft, or backshell, which protected the rest of the craft on its descent. It’s lying shattered about a mile from where Perseverance touched down with help from Skycrane.

The Guardian says the discovery has “reignited concerns that space exploration risks contaminating the pristine Martian and lunar environments,” a problem addressed by the Outer Space Treaty of 1967, which some say does not go far enough to protect space environments. However, according to one expert, the risk of contamination is low because “everything is sterilized before it goes to Mars.” Per Mashable, the rover “doesn’t have much time to admire trash” as it now headed into the “prime of its mission,” exploring a long-dried river delta in the Jezero Crater, which may have been a watery environment capable of supporting microbial life about 3 billion years ago.

I am sure that some conspiracy junkie will find something that is usable for their website…..it is just junk!

We hear about those pet owners that decide the snake is too big to handle so that go to the Everglades and turn them lose…..and this is what we get…..

A team of biologists recently hauled in the heaviest Burmese python ever captured in Florida, officials say. The female python weighed in at 215 pounds, was nearly 18 feet long and had 122 developing eggs, the Conservancy of Southwest Florida said in a news release. The team used radio transmitters transplanted in male “scout” snakes to study python movements, breeding behaviors, and habitat use, says Ian Bartoszek, wildlife biologist and environmental science project manager for the conservancy’s program.

“How do you find the needle in the haystack? You could use a magnet, and in a similar way our male scout snakes are attracted to the biggest females around,” Bartoszek says. The team used a scout snake named Dionysus—or Dion for short—in an area of the western Everglades, the AP reports. “We knew he was there for a reason, and the team found him with the largest female we have seen to date.” Biologist Ian Easterling and intern Kyle Findley helped capture the female snake and haul her through the woods to the field truck. A necropsy also found hoof cores in the snake’s digestive system, meaning that an adult white-tailed deer was its last meal.

National Geographic documented the discovery, highlighting the continued impact of the invasive pythons, which are known for rapid reproduction and depletion of surrounding native wildlife. Bartoszek said removal of female pythons plays a critical role in disrupting the breeding cycle. “This is the wildlife issue of our time for southern Florida,” he said. Since the conservancy’s python program began in 2013, they’ve removed over 1,000 pythons from approximately 100 square miles in southwest Florida. The state’s python removal program runs for two weeks in August. Participants compete for prizes, including $2,500 for capturing the most pythons

Another good reason to stay out of the Everglades.

Finally….do you kike bananas?

How is this for surprise?

Supermarkets in the Czech Republic got a little more than they bargained for in their banana shipments last week: $83 million worth of cocaine. Police were alerted after grocery workers started discovering blocks of pressed cocaine in with the fruit; ultimately, 1,851 pounds were found, Newsweek reports. The crates of bananas originated in Colombia, and the drugs were meant to be intercepted, but were delivered to the grocery stores before they could be. “The information about the shipment leads outside the Czech Republic, therefore we will use international police and justice cooperation,” police said in a statement, per Reuters.

This week, anti-narcotics police in Colombia found 2,866 pounds of cocaine disguised as potatoes and yucca, Reuters reports. The drugs were seized before being shipped from the Port of Cartagena to Spain, 9 News reports. “This may be the most innovative case discovered by drug traffickers in recent years, they had designed the drug in irregular molds simulating croquettes of cassava and papa criolla,” a police official says. A tipster alerted authorities to the drugs. “The cooperation and support of the people who manage the maritime terminals in the country has been fundamental, we will continue working together to find those responsible and discover who is behind this shipment,” the police official says.

There you have it all the news that means nothing to the grand scheme of things.

Enjoy your weekend…..Be well….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Farewell Roe v Wade

It is 1130 at night and the temp is 109…..it is as miserable as the most recent SCOTUS decision.

The media now has new fodder for their angst…..the shooting in Uvalde has run its course and now the Supreme Court has given them lots of ammo for the next few weeks.

The old farts on the Court have made it mandatory that women become mothers……that women have NO control over their lives unless men say they can……Roe v Wade is now a thing of the past to be taught in history books if the GOP allows it.

Roe v. Wade is no more. The Supreme Court overturned the landmark 1973 ruling that protected abortion rights nationwide in a decision released Friday, reports the AP. The ruling is in sync with a draft opinion that was leaked in May. It’s now up to individual states to decide whether abortions can be provided, and under what restrictions. The New York Times expects the ruling to lead to “all but total” abortion bans in about half the states. Justice Samuel Alito wrote the majority opinion, which was joined by Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett. Chief Justice John Roberts filed a separate opinion, per SCOTUSblog, in which he agreed with the decision to uphold Mississippi’s abortion law (the case in question) but said he would have preferred “a more measured course” that stopped short of overturning Roe.

  • Majority: “We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled,” wrote Alito, referring also to Planned Parenthood v. Casey, a 1992 case that affirmed the Roe decision. “The Constitution makes no reference to abortion, and no such right is implicitly protected by any constitutional provision.”
  • And more: “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start. Its reasoning was exceptionally weak, and the decision has had damaging consequences. And far from bringing about a national settlement of the abortion issue, Roe and Casey have enflamed debate and deepened division,” wrote Alito, per the Washington Post. “It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.”
  • Dissent: “With sorrow—for this Court, but more, for the many millions of American women who have today lost a fundamental constitutional protection—we dissent,” wrote justices Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan in a joint dissent.

The case out of Mississippi is Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, No. 19-1392

Here is the statement issued by “Tater Twat” the governor of Mississippi……

RESS RELEASE) – “Mississippi has led the nation to overcome one of the greatest injustices in the history of our country. Our state’s historic case before the United States Supreme Court was the catalyst for overturning Roe v. Wade and has made the nation safer for children than it was just a few short hours ago.

Let’s be clear: this decision will directly result in more hearts beating, more strollers pushed, more report cards given, more little league games played, and more lives well lived. It is a joyous day! Tomorrow, we will wake to a new world, enthusiastically prepared to take on the challenges ahead and to take every step necessary to support mothers and children.

We must remember that our work is not yet over. The pro-life movement must dedicate itself to ensuring mothers and their babies receive the support they both need during pregnancy and after.

Despite what some may claim, Mississippi’s objective was never simply to win a court case – it’s been to create a culture of life across the country.

Our state seeks to be pro-life in every sense of the word – supporting mothers and children through policies of compassion and working to ensure that every baby has a forever family that loves them.

Mississippi will work relentlessly to accomplish these goals and will continue to build a culture that supports mothers and children, valuing the inherent dignity of every individual. This is our new pro-life agenda.

I applaud the Supreme Court Justices for their courage in issuing this well-reasoned decision. It took bravery to stick to the courage of their convictions, especially amidst an unprecedented leak that was aimed at threatening the integrity of the Court, an assassination attempt, riot threats, and attacks on churches and pregnancy centers. No matter one’s party or ideology, we should all be able to condemn these acts.

I pray that Americans will come together, listen to one another, and debate this issue peacefully. Only by moving beyond our divisions and having respectful conversations can we begin to heal this nation’s wounds.

We stand on the shoulders of giants. This win has been achieved thanks to the tireless efforts of so many over decades. Thank you to the lawyers who argued this case for us, passionate citizens who pushed this issue for years, and those who prayed for this day for many decades. I urge my fellow Mississippians to rejoice today and keep praying as the work is not done.

God bless!”

BULLSHIT!

It was always about winning a court case!

The lives of Mississippians will NOT improve as Reeves predicts….but that is okay for he is a Repub and that is all that matters (sarcasm)

Women need to let this go and formulate a new plan of action….bitching about the ruling will change NOTHING.

There is work to be done…..get to it!

But do not take your eyes off the issues for the GOP is not finished removing our rights as citizens….they will be coming and we need to be ready!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

More On Uvalde

After the disastrous response by the Uvalde police the news just keep coming….and coming….

The Texas House has proved just how cowardly even the Congress can be….in a hearing about the shootings and death….it seems that parents of the dead are intimidating…..

The family of a child killed in the Uvalde mass shooting was forced to leave a meeting about the massacre after an official complained that they were “intimidated” by them.

Journalists, a local chaplain and the relative of a victim were all asked to leave Uvalde City Hall on Monday afternoon ahead of a closed-door hearing before the Texas House of Representatives, according to CNN.

CNN reporter Shimon Prokupec tweeted that they were removed “because people are intimidated by us”.

“Texas legislators are meeting here with law enforcement behind closed doors,” he tweeted.

“The fire marshal also told a local chaplain and father of a victim to exit from the building.”

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/uvalde-family-texas-house-meeting-b2106232.html

Seriously?

The parents are not allowed to sit in these meetings to get an explanation why this happened and keeps happening.

Typical Right wing cowardice!

It appears the the school district’s police chief has been sanctioned…..

The Uvalde school district’s police chief was put on leave Wednesday following allegations that he erred in his response to the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School last month. Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District Superintendent Hal Harrell said that he put Pete Arredondo on administrative leave and that another officer would assume the embattled chief’s duties. In a statement, Harrell did not give a reason for removing Arredondo, the AP reports, but he said it remains unclear when district officials will know the outcome of the investigation into the shooting.

Steven McCraw, director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, told a state Senate hearing on Tuesday that Arredondo—the on-site commander—made “terrible decisions” as the massacre unfolded on May 24 and that the police response was an “abject failure.” Arredondo has said he didn’t consider himself in charge of the response to the shooting, in which 19 students and two teachers were killed.

This situation continues to unfold and the answers are not showing any competence as law enforcement officers.

Watch This Blog!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”