Thursday...I Absolutely Insist

 - Now is as good a time as any to remind y'all of something...but have no idea what it was.

- There are 8 or so people who've started a hunger strike in front of the White House, protesting the Israeli response to Hamas terrorism.  Dumb bells.  If it weren't so far away I'd suspect I would deliver a couple plates of bacon. Serious, people...if you are going to protest a war, protest the animals that started it, not the feeble minded imbecile occupying the building.  He's far too busy destroying his own nation to worry about some other.

- Serious rant:  Technological 'advancements' in the past 8-10 years or so are really fluff, when applied to actual users.  Complete screen control on a vehicle? Cute, but one has to look at it, taking their eyes off the road, to make any adjustments...Hi Definition TVs are fine, no need to throw them out to favor 4K and such displays. The details on these 4 and 5K screen are sharper than what people see in real life, and to me a distraction...Having your home basically bugged by the most prolific data mining bunch on earth (hello Alexa) is basically letting corporations spy into every aspect of your life and then selling that information to whoever wants it...

Point: careful with technology, as before you know it you will end up working for free for Google, Apple, and any number of governments.  Also remember that whenever you are heavily on the grid, someone can turn off access whenever it suits them.

- Then there’s the time I showed up to testify at a hearing carrying a 32oz soda…and ended up in jail. The judge held me in contempt of quart.

- The UN has told Americans to eat less meat in the name of climate change. Anyone care to respond to the UN with a monthly gift basket from KFC? Perhaps a subscription to an online beef seller? The UN stands now for Unquestionably Naive

- A VA doc I’ve been dealing with for several years suddenly left the system. Never was told why, but his little things bag of goodies is already missed. What’s somewhat telling of the future, it only took 4 months to get a replacement for him. Oddly the VA set me up with 3 other identical specialty docs all at the same time, causing me to play telephone tag daily for a week and a half. Still, I’m grateful for what they do, quirks and all.

- The nitwit occupying the White House told American businesses to lower their prices by 18%, not pass on the inflated costs of manufacturing and sales to consumers. This to me clearly indicates biden is either a complete imbecile, has no idea how business actually works, or is overtly trying to eliminate free enterprise.

- As of this writing I’ve never seen any of the Shrek movies, and of The Godfather movies, nor any of the Fast and Furious flicks.  Pretty sure that’s not changing

- I formally go on record saying I like margaritas…ok, the tequila in margaritas.  We usually get Cuervo premixed stuff, but stumbled across the Cuervo Double Strength Premix, and I’m now a believer. This stuff packs a major league wallop, tastes incredible, and let’s me enjoy the medical benefits of alcohol without leaving the house.  Double Z snap and two thumbs up!

Monday..What Do They Call This One?

 - Read a distressing article which detailed how soldiers leaving Afghanistan were told to leave (as in ordered) gear behind, and were subsequently charged for the things. Up to $1000 each. Now there’s a recruiting move.

- Oh, yeah...they call it Cyber Monday.

- Definition of a progressive liberal: a person incapable of letting normal people have fun, and make damn sure to suck the life out of every joyful occasion.

- Between endless emails telling of “once in a lifetime” sales and barrages of Medicare calls, I for one am sick of people trying separate me from my money. If I want your products, I’ll contact you.

- I get amused whenever we sit at our dining room table, and I look across the room at a very nice painting of the Confederate General Robert E. Legacy.

- The Canada Human Rights Commission has declared Christmas is indicative of colonialism and white supremacy.  Dumbshits

- It used to be a set in stone tradition, UT Longhorns playing A&M Aggies, yet somehow they screwed that up, too. Progress is when things improve, not just change…and this wasn’t progress.

- Dept of Homeland Security announced a new policy which enforces agents addressing illegal aliens by their preferred pronouns.  The stupidity of our border security just took another leap toward absolute uselessness. How about you guys keeping illegal aliens out of our nation and not fretting over hurting their feelings.  Besides I’m not sure a male identifying as a female bassoon is likely.

- I believe there’s some truth in the joke that bad guys should be very careful when dealing with seniors…a life sentence just isn’t that much of  deterrent anymore

- We’ve successfully consumed the leftover meals from last week’s holiday period. Whether tossed or consumed it still all goes to waist/waste

Wednesday, 22 November

 - Over the course of my life I’ve met quite a few Texas Troopers, a few Rangers, and an awful lot of local police and sheriff deputies. Out of all these, only one individual stands out to be a gigantic prick, all the rest were friendly, intelligent, and professional when the situation warranted

- Seen: I was going to cook an alligator for dinner, but then remembered all I have is a croc pot

- Food for thought…in 2020 the average income in the US was $67,500, or roughly $5625 a month. The lowest income for so-called middle class is $3175 a month.  A typical journeyman musician has to work 20 gigs a month, $160 a gig to make that.

20 gigs a month is a lot of work…not including travel time, set up/tear down, equipment costs, etc.  not including health care fees and such. A GOOD 5 piece band would need to pull down at least $800 per gig. This is already exceeding the budgets of quite a few/most local venues.

So next time you think “band is just too damn expensive “ think about what you pay an electrician, a real estate broker, lawn care pros, just about every other profession you can imagine.  True, musicians dont fix pipes, replace sockets, and so forth.  But we do bring something to the table, in far too many cases what we bring in someone’s lunch order

- It’s been said we have a mullet lawn…neat and trimmed in the front, long and scraggly in the back

- Why do they call them Congressional hearings when people only listen lo support their 15 minutes on soap box?

- With that, Deb and I wish you a very happy Thanksgiving.

Monday 20 November - Thanksgiving Week

 - For reasons yet to be finalized I’ve decided to cut these things from 3 to 2 a week.  

- All the pro Palestinian rioters should stop what they’re doing, go to the Middle East, and join in the cause there. At least they can be seen as doing something, for right now all they are doing is costing you and I a lot of money. 

Far as I’m concerned we will meet on a battlefield anyway. I just don’t want that battlefield to develop on American soil.

- Biden admin says they are concerned that marijuana users “won’t put away their guns before getting high.” Seriously, WTF? Stoners don’t go around shooting people, they tend to converge in small groups to start a band. Beltway vermin REALLY need to understand what happens outside their 15 mile radius.

- Instead of trying to erase the parts of history we don’t like, let’s try to learn something from them and NOT repeat the same mistakes our forefathers made. We can be either the United States, or we aren’t. There’s just no in between

- Wife and I were talking…if either of us got stopped by police for suspicion of driving under the influence, we’d both fail the field test. Neither of of can walk heel to toe, both of of have cataract lenses that interfere with eye following finger tests, and we both have been known to fall over standing on both feet, much less one.  

- So called Black Friday seems to start the Friday before thanksgiving now.

- I promise that if elected governor, I will sign legislation prohibiting the flying of ANY nation’s or group’s flag from ANY taxpayer funded flagpole that is actively seeking the destruction or is far outside societal norms of the US. This includes terrorist flags, sexual identity flags, flags from groups shunning other skin tones, and the like. Also included in this legislation will be prohibition against flying any other nation’s flags except for times recognizing descendants of that nation. Mexico flags for example, may be flown on Cinco de Mayo, Irish on St Patrick Day, etc.  Acceptable flags include our national colors, state flags, POW-MIA flags, recognized Native American nations, 

It’s always important to recognize where we come from, but it’s much more important to recognize where we are now.

Wednesday..

 - I am so sick of American presidents who are not an embarrassment to the nation, and basically our species. Biden continues to be a babbling stumblebum dementia patient incapable of even the simplest of tasks. Trump was  policy wise one of the greatest ever but lacked the ability to keep his mouth shut when it was necessary. Obama stuck his nose into things (beer summit, anyone) and passed judgement on police whenever he needed to stir up shit, Bush…etc ad nauseum.

Americans deserve and desperately NEED a president that has our best interests in mind, knows how to achieve them, and knows how to STFU when he/she should. As of this moment, we aren’t seeing any choices that meet this very simple standard.

- One thing that raises my attention is the sheer number of guitars and basses in the world right now, and how many will be gifts soon. Yes, even Chinese and Indonesian made ones can be DAMN fine instruments, but consider:

     * There will always be a limit on how much quality wood is available to make instruments.

     * So much of it is wasted on building pieces of crap that will break, fall apart, sound awful, and are pretty much unplayable, for the beginner market. If an instrument is a genuine mid or better quality make, beginners are much more apt to learn. If an instrument is a throwaway, it’s almost always thrown away before the Christmas tree is taken down. 

     * Above all, do your homework. Some $500 instruments rival and can surpass those costing 10 times as much, some several thousand dollar model are hit or miss, etc. Spend a tiny bit more and purchase from actual retailers instead of Amazon and such. Get a teacher and actual books instead of watching endless videos. 

- I’m seeing a lot of internet chatter about reinstating the draft. Current proposals being floated around limit college deferments to the current semester, recalling those who failed to complete basic and advanced training, illegal aliens, and a lot more. I don’t know if this is a good idea, backfilling troop ranks with criminals, illegals, and people so out of shape they can’t walk the circumference of the parking lot. 

- I’m thinking one huge shortfall of our nation, if not the world, is the troubling matter that people receiving unearned charity are more and more dictating the terms of their charity. Illegal aliens *demanding* more money and ‘better’ accommodations, life long welfare recipients stealing thousands of dollars of goods without fear of prosecution, etc. All these folks should understand that we the people don’t have to give them a damn thing, that we can just as easily defend our civilization as throw it away on them.

- When mimes are arrested is it necessary to advise them of the right to remain silent?

- No post Friday, on the road picking a guitar

Monday? C’mon Man

 - I MUST be a minority, a statistical zero in opinions of today’s world. Examples include

    * Voting a billion dollars of school bonds (yes, a property tax increase) when the people who will be in charge of the money have shown nearly zero accountability in past bonds

    * Thinking that if a company was being run like our nation, the CEO, board of directors, and all senior management would be summarily fired with inevitable criminal investigations well under way

    * Censure of congressmen is as much punishment as a contempt charge to congress…in that the only people affected by it are conservatives.  

     * There are more medications available now than at any point in history, and far too many of them might as well not exist because 95% of the nation can’t afford them, even with government employee Cadillac plans

- Interesting how now the US military is striking targets in Syria and Iraq now…haven’t we already fought (and) won these wars lately?  Guess not, as if we had won, we would not be fighting them again so soon

- We’ve got plastic bags. We’ve got plastic bags inside a plastic bag. We’ve got bags of plastic bags inside a master plastic bag. It’s all much like the Russian nesting dolls but made up of plastic bags. 

- Hypocrisy is not illegal, but it’s very telling. Hypocrisy in ‘government’ *should* be punished by voters, AKA those who bother to vote. Hypocrites don’t care what they do, only that you believe what they say. 

- Veterans Day holds a special spot in my existence. My dad fought in WW2, my brother served, I served. Not everyone did, and that’s ok.  

- But my oh my, how the military has changed. Example, the US Air Force has provided training documentation on how to add pronouns to official military correspondence. No one should give a shit WHAT you want to be thought of as…you are either a senior or subordinate rank, regardless. Keep focusing on your ultimate mission of killing the enemy and blowing things up. If you want to be a woke warrior, get the hell out of an organization that your wishy washy crap could cost innumerable lives.

- Speaking of war AKA armed conflict, I find it revolting that more and more of our species find themselves in it but have others either fighting their battles for them or others funding the thing…only to have those people/groups/nations turn on us and starting biting the hand that fed them.  Everyone from illegal aliens to Middle East nations to multigenerational welfare recipients.  People, groups, and nations feel no compunction to even say thank you, much less become allies and supporters anymore, instead opting to continue to engage in hostilities, be it active or guerrilla warfare 

Wednesday…Hot? Cold? Who Knows

 - I want to know how aging singers, songwriters, etc, handle being on the road. Gene Watson for example is 80, playing 200+ shows a year. Kris Kristofferson is 87. Dozens of examples…but how do they do this when I, at 67, can’t walk across the parking lot sometimes.  

- Today’s most absurd viewing: saw a Fender Stratocaster body, with NOTHING else, manufactured 1975…no pickups, no necks, no hardware, nothing, just the piece of cut wood…on sale for $1500. Seriously people, stop it.

- The Texas Teacher Retirement System (TRS) is a decent enough organization until one quits working for  schools district. Got an annual notice the other day saying since my account has been dormant for two or more years, they don’t pay any interest on the small saving. I’m pretty sure THEY are still drawing interest for their coffers, but I won’t see any of that.

So I called, and after navigating voice mails for 15 minutes finally got hold of a human.  She said she’d sent the necessary paperwork, but advised that cashing in I’d lose my years of longevity. Since I’m 100% retired from “honest” employment, with ZERO chance of working in a school again…told her that’s fine. 

Of course MY money is subject to a 20% withholding, not an insignificant amount. BOHICA

- Seen: all mushrooms are edible, but some mushrooms are edible only once.  This is why I don’t eat them, can’t risk it

- During last Saturday’s football game, some dumb guy heckled a Texas Southern player. Not a ball player, a TUBA PLAYER! During the unfortunate encounter, said tuba player knocked said heckler on his ass. Seriously, how ignorant does one need to be to heckle a tuba player? 

- The producers of the 35 yr old cartoon series The Simpsons announced Homer will no longer choke out young innocent Bart. I don’t know how many actual fathers were influenced by a cartoon to consider choking their sons, but now that 1 in 11 billion will be safe…safe from everything except this kind of stupidity 

- I’m not a fan of political polls. At best, they are snapshots of opinions and/indicators of how people will vote in the future. At worst they are blatant matters of election interference, with numbers warped out of reality to promote a candidate/issue. Voluntary ‘Jump on the bandwagon’ ended for me before I had my driver’s license, as how others view things is not going to influence how I feel about those things. 

Be unique, just like everyone else? I’ll pass

- I’m on the road this week, so no Friday edition

- Final thought today. to the imbeciles preaching (more like screaming, rioting, etc) an Israeli cease fire, I say to the people in Gaza, hostile or not, I offer the oldest advise in the world: don’t start no shit, won’t be no shit.

Monday…

 - Hope y’all are enjoying the time change, perhaps the silliest thing ever conceived.

- I’ve said this before, but all religious fanatics are dangerous, spiritual fanatics are not. Political fanatics of any sort do more harm than good. One cannot pick and choose which master to follow based on the moment, you either are or you’re not.

People are born with a certain set of genetic markers which by design (either genetic or higher power) are supposed to define their lives.  Jews are not born Jews, this is a religious choice. 

- Someone might remind the administration that halting oil leases over ‘environmental concerns’ won’t do much good when a population starts freezing to death, can’t afford the so called green electric bills, etc.  Allow the system to work right now, not throw it away 

- People like to identify with celebrities.  Everyone from Roy Rogers to (pick one) a Kardashian.  Me…I identify with Wile E. Coyote.

- The astonishing ignorance of people sometimes makes me think we are as stupid as they say we are.  Folks everywhere are now pushing Israeli cease fire as the only option going forward. If Canada paraglide troops sailed over cities and fired thousands of missiles at New York, and the then demanded New York stop defending itself, what would y’all think? (I admit New York is a bad example) that would be seen as bad…

- Are they any products being sold in California that don’t carry the cancer thread anymore?  I mean, guitar amps, strings, any electronics, onion rings, you name it, carry at Prop 65 warning.

- Dear world: progress is not technologically measured, it is measured in how humans behave. 

- The older I get the more difficult it is to change times. Fall back, spring ahead, blah blah blah. Pick one and leave it.

Friday? Sure, Why Not

 - It sure seems the ratio of legitimate people to scamming sonsabitches on the internet is about 50-50.  Every day I wonder how long I’ll put up with it, and when I’ll just say I’m gone from it. I do believe the world was a better place when folks would get up, dressed, and go someplace to socialize face to face. 

- And while I’m at it, just might treat the cellphone like a home landline, in that when I leave, it stays behind. The only people that make attempts to actually talk are scammers anyway.  Movies and TV always show folks who don’t want to be traced but still have communication using burner/prepaid phones, might look into those (do they still sell these?) The only people people who actually want to chitchat are the ones I don’t want to talk to, and the ones I want to chit chat with , well, you get the idea 

- Remember when AIDS was going to cull our population? SARS? 60 years worth of ‘we have 10 years left as a species because of global warming/cooling/change?’ How about the variety of Bird Flu scares? Now Covid…

If anything obliterates our species, it will be crime, terrorism, war, and drug dependency…you know, self inflicted.

- Maybe Im starting to measure my inevitable progression to crabby crusty bitter curmudgeon by checking my list of people who I want to drop off the face of the earth, completely under peaceful terms of course.

- But then I cheer up by reading 30 minutes of dog shaming posts

- Congratulations to the Texas Rangers, World Series champs.  

- Having run out of other stuff, the American Ornithological Society announced it will be changing names of birds named after humans and anything else it deems offensive. I guess that’s the end of having animals named after people who discovered and cataloged them.  To me, this is just beyond stupid.

- I take that back…even more stupid than that is a movement by some people to introduce trans-species as an acceptable thing. If a guy insists on being treated like a dog, I’ll beat its ass with a newspaper and keep it off the furniture.

- Here’s an idea: when an illegal commits a felony or Capital offense in the US, tally up the costs, all costs, and deduct it from the foreign aid given to whatever nation the crook originated.  Costs to be repaid include ALL funds needed to apprehend, incarcerate, feed, house, etc the criminal…reimbursement to victims…damage to private, local, and state infrastructures…recouping any and all benefits said criminal was gifted including medical…in other words, if (example) Guatemala won’t control their criminals, they’ll pay for it.

Wednesday

 - I’m thinking of writing a book about my life and the things I never did that I wanted to do…it will be an oughtabiography.

- I’m beginning to bring a large percentage of the so called pro Palestinian types would be willing to take up arms against pro Israeli and people who believe Jews should be left alone. If this comes to pass, wouldn’t this basically be military assault on THIS nation with untold thousands of troops pre-staged in metro areas?

- Finally got the package that was supposed to be delivered Monday.  It was a refurbished intel 2018 Mac Mini loaded with RAM and like brand new. Why a seemingly obsolete machine? Because it was significantly less expensive than a silicon based Mac with significantly less power, and face it…at my age and so on I’m not going to need a cutting edge music production system ever again.

- The auto ‘workers’ strike is over. Now everyone can go back to manufacturing vehicles that are as much mobile entertainment centers as transportation, completely unaffordable, and seemingly as reliable as a Crackerjack tattoo in a rainstorm 

- November already? C’mon time, slow down just a bit

- Localheadlines past few days include: youth minister arrested for possession and production of child porn…several shootings with fatalities…16 yr old dies from fentanyl overdose purchased from someone who doesn’t look old enough to shave yet…so much for West Texas values. Before long we’ll be a smaller version of the festering boils known as urban centers. 

- Idea: grocery store customers not using plastic bags should not have to pay for them.  5-10% discount for shoppers bringing their own bags and boxes to take things home.

- Seen: you just can't be on the same page with someone who has a different book

- I see all the flap regarding hate crimes...hate speech...etc ad nauseam.  But is the act of hating a crime, really? If a crime, then how is it enforced?  Some say 'well can't very well control what they think, but we can sure control what they say.'  OK, so freedom of self expression and speech is now outlawed?  

I personally don't hate anyone (anymore) but have some very strong feelings about what they do. Does that constitute a hate crime?  If this is the case 80% of Washington DC should be behind bars.