HEROIC: All 41 construction workers are free

Thursday, November 30, 2023

FROM 1440 (hello@join1440.com) 

*** begin quote ***

Good morning. It’s Wednesday, Nov. 29, and we’re covering the rescue of 41 men trapped in a tunnel for 17 days, a convicted murderer’s financial crimes, and much more. First time reading? Sign up here.

You share. We listen. As always, send us feedback at hello@join1440.com.

*** and ***

India Tunnel Rescue

All 41 construction workers are free after being trapped inside a collapsed tunnel in northern India for over two weeks. The men were treated at a hospital and are reportedly in good health.

The men, reportedly working for $250 per month, were pulled through 187 feet of steel pipe on wheeled stretchers after the rescuers used hand-held drills to break through. The drilling machines had broken down Friday after rescuers had bored horizontally through a section of nearly 200 feet of fallen rock, coming within 50 feet of the cavern. The men were able to survive on food and oxygen supplied through narrow pipes.

The landslide-induced collapse first occurred Nov. 12 amid the construction of the three-mile Silkyara tunnel. The tunnel is part of the government’s $1.5M Char Dham highway project to connect four Hindu pilgrimage sites. The event has cast a spotlight on environmental concerns in the earthquake-prone Himalayan region.

*** end quote ***

I call the “heroic” because humanity forced its way though several technical problems to get these men out alive.  No one sat around and did a cost benefit analysis.  Men and women got to work and “figured it out”.

Was it expensive in time, energy, and resources?  Sure.  Was it worth it?  Absolutely!

As a pro-life little L libertarian, EVERY life is worth saving.

41 families got to see their bread winner come home.  That’s what humanity is all about.

And, why I’m so anti-war; killing human beings over problems that can be solved makes little sense to me.  That’s why I’m anti-recreational abortion.  Or things like China’s one child policy; I guess they learned their lesson that more people is not a “problem” but asset; that yields more productivity.

Any way, kudos to all those who make it happen and even to those of us who just followed the story and preyed for their safe return.

Now let’s focus on saving more humans from war and “reproductive rights”.

Dona Nobis Pacem

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INTERESTING: Indo-Pacific species demonstrates they are the “smartest”

Wednesday, November 29, 2023

https://www.iflscience.com/first-dolphins-to-work-out-how-to-steal-bait-from-crab-traps-caught-in-the-act-71683?utm_source=join1440&utm_medium=email&utm_placement=newsletter

First Dolphins To Work Out How To Steal Bait From Crab Traps Caught In The Act

  • World-first footage shows that even among the three famously intelligent dolphin families, the Indo-Pacific species manages to excel again.

Stephen Luntz  — Freelance Writer

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Crab traps exist all over the world, but it’s only off Bunbury that dolphins have worked out how to safely steal the bait.

Superb film has been obtained of dolphins stealing bait from crab traps and escaping to tell the tale to their fellow pod members in what may be a unique behavior caught on film for the first time. Moreover, when crab fishers tried to make the traps dolphin-proof, their first efforts didn’t succeed for long. It wouldn’t be fair to call it an arm’s race when only one side has any, but it certainly seems the dolphins are up for the challenge of solving problems humans put between them and a meal that can’t swim away.

*** end quote ***

At first it made me laugh.  Then, it made we wonder if we don’t understand “intelligence”.  

Dolphins, of any “family”, might be more intelligent than humans?

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NOTRECOMMENDED: Napoleon (2023)

Tuesday, November 28, 2023

Napoleon (2023)

# – # – # – # – # 

Save your money and wait for it on free tv.

The only thing good was the costumes.

And, if you weren’t anti-war before the movie, you would be after it.  Marching lines of people into cannons is the height of stupidity.  And, why would Joe Grunt do it?

Argh!

Dona Nobis Pacem

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INTERESTING: Houston forced nonprofits to work together?

Monday, November 27, 2023

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12785247/Houston-Democratic-city-homelessness-housing.html

How one Dem-run city SOLVED its homelessness crisis…and did it on the cheap: Houston forced nonprofits to work together, then exploited city’s loose planning regulations to build one-bed apartments for vagrants

  •     A collective effort made of 100 different nonprofits has found a way to get apartments for homeless people
  •      In the past dozen years, 30,000 homeless Houston residents have been housed and supported 
  •     The city made sure to take a more direct and cheaper approach to do so 

By Emma Richter For Dailymail.Com
Published: 17:24 EST, 23 November 2023 | Updated: 17:24 EST, 23 November 2023

*** begin quote ***

A democrat-run city has managed to solved its homeless crisis with nonprofits that have worked together to obtain one-bedroom apartments for vagrants. 

Houston, Texas has gone on to create one of their ‘most important innovations’ – the Coalition for the Homeless, along with exploiting the city’s loose planning regulations. 

The independent agency, known as The Way Home, co-ordinates with 100 nonprofits to combat homelessness under a collective effort in the city. 

*** end quote ***

Well, “solved” might be an overstatement.  I’m not sure that it can be “solved” without addressing the drug addiction and mental illness that seems to be at the root of the “problem”.

The reporting make it sound like “loose planning regulations” are the problem.  Maybe it’s regulations in the first place that are the “problem”?

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NEWJERSEY: Ban gas cars by 2035? The State Gooferment has lost their collective minds!

Sunday, November 26, 2023

https://nj1015.com/nj-will-ban-all-gas-cars-by-2035/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=NEWS%2C%20Weds%20Nov%2022:%20Murphy%20bans%20gas%20cars&utm_term=All%20Valid%20Users

NJ will ban all gas cars by 2035
Eric Scott  — Published: November 21, 2023

*** begin quote ***

  • Gov. Phil Murphy presses ahead with gas-powered car ban
  • All new vehicles will have to be electric by 2035
  • Some regulations go into effect in just two years

*** and ***

Jim Appleton, president of the state Coalition of Automotive Retailers told New Jersey 101.5, “Governments can mandate and auto manufacturers can build, but none of these goals will be met if consumers don’t buy the vehicles.”

*** end quote ***

Will this cause a revolt?

One can only hope!

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SECESSION: Haven’t heard much about secession; maybe revolt it the next relief valve?

Saturday, November 25, 2023

FROM 2022

https://www.unz.com/article/stupid-party-except-for-trump-betrays-atlantas-buckhead-secessionists-but-it-cant-stop-white-americans-from-protecting-themselves-forever/

Stupid Party (Except for Trump) Betrays Atlanta’s Buckhead Secessionists. But It Can’t Stop White Americans from Protecting Themselves Forever

Jack Dalton • April 7, 2022 • 1,700 Words • 3 Comments • Reply

*** begin quote ***

Secession movements are flourishing across America. Angry right-leaning Oregonians want to join Greater Idaho to escape the crackpot leftism oozing out of Portland. Conservative Old Line Staters in western Maryland want to join Red West Virginia [3 Maryland counties have asked to join West Virginia. Here’s how they could do it, by Mia Salenetri, WUSA.com, October 28, 2021]. Right-leaning counties in Northern California want to form their own state [Another Conservative Revolt in California: The State of Jefferson, by Arthur Schaper, Townhall , May 13, 2018]. Those are exciting macro-level movements of predominantly rural whites who don’t have a voice in Leftist, anti-white state capitals. But a struggle at the micro level might be the one that cements secession as an idea whose time has come … if Stupid Party strategists would get out of the way. Buckhead, the large, predominantly white section of majority black Atlanta, Georgia, is ready to secede from the City Too Busy To Hate. But top GOP leaders in Georgia killed a ballot measure in February [State GOP leaders scuttle Buckhead secession push in 2022, by Greg Bluestein, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, February 11, 2022].

*** end quote ***

Haven’t heard much about secession movements lately.  Except for the people voting with their feet from Blue States to Texas.

Guess the entrenched politicians and bureaucrats have a parasitic death grip on that can’t move.

Argh!

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GUNS: 2+ mile shot seems impossible

Friday, November 24, 2023

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12770127/Ukrainian-sniper-claims-new-world-record-picking-Russian-soldier-2-36-miles-away-using-Lord-Horizon-gun.html

Ukrainian sniper claims new world record after ‘picking off Russian soldier from 2.36 miles away using “Lord of the Horizon” gun’

  •     A Ukrainian claims to have the record for longest sniper kill in history
  •     The SBU sniper reportedly managed to pick off a Russian soldier from 2.36 miles
  •     The previous record was held by a Canadian special operations soldier 

By Perkin Amalaraj
Published: 04:33 EST, 20 November 2023 | Updated: 08:58 EST, 20 November 2023 

*** begin quote ***

The Ukrainian military gave no other details, such as when or where it was filmed, nor did it say how it had confirmed the sniper’s effort.

*** end quote ***

I suspect all these claims.  Personally, it’s hard enough to hit a static target at great distances.  The least little wind or hand tremor can make a shot miss widely.  And at those distances, you need to compensate for the bullet drop and maybe the rotation of the earth.  In this specific case, was the unlucky Russian soldier just standing around?  Goofing off down range is a sure way to get killed. Even the article cites several seconds between trigger pull and target dropping.  That implies that the target was a sitting duck.

Maybe this is just more propaganda for the Ukraine War, the rifle maker, and the military?

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INNOVATION: Preventing dead birds is too easy for Bank of America; shame on them

Thursday, November 23, 2023

https://www.biographic.com/city-of-glass/?utm_source=join1440&utm_medium=email

Solutions
10.31.2023
City of Glass

  • Meet the dedicated cadre of experts and volunteers working to protect birds from glass in the window-strike capital of the United States.

Story by Ben Goldfarb

*** begin quote ***

The film seemed to be working: Collisions at the Kellogg Hub had declined by half, and for 20 minutes I watched red-winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) alight easily on its railings and roof. Even better, at the nearby Frances Searle Building, whose windows the university had covered with faint horizontal stripes, bird deaths had virtually ceased. Yet the projects had been neither cheap nor perfect. The Searle Building alone had cost the university $250,000 to retrofit, and large swaths of the Kellogg Center remained unprotected. Retrofitting existing buildings is crucial, no doubt; Chicago isn’t about to dismantle its existing skyline for the sake of birds. Still, “the best solutions are the ones that are designed into the building from the beginning,” Claire Halpin, a landscape architect who sat on the board of the Chicago Ornithological Society until her recent death, told me later.

*** and ***

Not everyone was so receptive. During our rounds, Prince and I passed the Bank of America Tower, where three trees beckoned to birds from behind glass so clear it was surprising more humans didn’t hit it face-first. Prince had begged the building’s sustainability officer to put up a patterned film, or move the trees, or even hang a temporary banner during migration season — to do literally anything. “The answer,” she told me, “was ‘no, no, and no.’”

*** end quote ***

Maybe we all can put some political pressure on BOA to address the problem?

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NEWJERSEY: Repeal the 17th Amendment; like alcohol prohibiition and the “war on some drugs” it was just a mistake

Wednesday, November 22, 2023

https://savejersey.com/2023/11/is-this-really-the-best-we-can-do/

Is this really the best we can do?
November 16, 2023 Matt Rooney Election 2024 0

*** begin quote ***

Direct election of U.S. senators wasn’t always the case; it was viewed as a necessary reform. One infamous instance in the late 19th century involved our immediate neighbor to the south (Delaware) lacking representation in the U.S. Senate for two whole years owing to an epic impasse in its state legislature. Reformers believed, perhaps understandably, that the people would produce better results than the bosses and their hand-chosen state representatives.

The law of unintended consequences had other ideas. Cory Booker is no Daniel Webster, folks, as if you needed me to tell you!

*** and ***

A crook, an evil queen and an empty suit (who donated his suit to the Smithsonian).

Is this the best we can do? Really?

Even for New Jersey, notorious for making questionable electoral choices, this primary constitutes a new low. We’re slumming it and it shows in the results.

*** end quote ***

Time to get out the Constitutional Eraser and repeal a bunch of “amendments” the 16th, 17th, 25th, 26th, and 27th.

While we are at it, time to enact  term limits on ALL elective federal offices to ZERO consecutive terms in the same office.  And, let’s put some teeth in the 9th and 10th!

Argh!

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RANT: The Real Story About Al Shifa Hospital, Hamas and Israel

Tuesday, November 21, 2023

https://sonar21.com/the-real-story-about-al-shifa-hospital-hamas-and-israel/

The Real Story About Al Shifa Hospital, Hamas and Israel
15 November 2023 by Larry Johnson

*** begin quote ***

A tip of the hat to Bernard at Moon of Alabama. He has a knack for finding hidden gems and his latest is a doozy. Most of the media is peddling Israel’s Big Lie that Hamas has its headquarters and the hostages underneath Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza.

Israel-Gaza war: US says Hamas has command centre under Al-Shifa hospital – BBC – November 14 2023

But Bernard then links to an astonishing article from 2014. DID YOU GET THAT? Nine years ago — July 29, 2014 to be precise — The Tablet published this: Top Secret Hamas Command Bunker in Gaza Revealed. To quote Yogi Berra, it is Deja Vu all over again. Check out what was published in The Tablet for yourself.

*** end quote ***

Now isn’t that hoot.  The ISRAELIs built it. 

Reminds me of Bush’s claim about Iraq have WMDs.  How did we know?  Because we sold them to him.

Argh!

Trust nothing.

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DISCOURAGING: Africa IS “dependent on handouts…and philanthropic intervention.”

Monday, November 20, 2023

[TIP ‘o’ the HAT to: FARK for highlighting this one ]

https://www.fark.com/comments/13049658/165664230/I-dont-know-what-MrBeast-is-but-apparently-he-built-a-bunch-of-fresh-water-wells-in-Africa-with-his-own-money-Some-have-a-problem-with-that-because-of-reasons#c165664230

# – # – # – # – # 

https://www.outkick.com/mrbeast-hears-it-from-critics-wells-in-africa/?utm_source=fark&utm_medium=website&utm_content=link&ICID=ref_fark

MrBeast Is Hearing It From Critics After He Built 100 Wells In Africa…And That’s Completely Insane
by Matt Reigle November 8, 2023, 2:05 pm 

*** begin quote ***

YouTuber MrBeast is no stranger to critics, but those criticisms usually come in places you’d expect. Criticisms of his videos or his burger chain, stuff like that. What you wouldn’t expect is to see people pounce on the 25-year-old for providing drinking water to half a million people across Africa, but guess what? it happened.

*** and ***

Take Saran Kaba Jones, founder and CEO of FACE Africa, for instance. According to CNN, that’s an organization that aims to improve water infrastructure and sanitation in Sub-Saharan Africa.

“I’ve been doing this for 15 years, but we’ve been struggling to continue the work because funding, awareness, and advocacy all take work,” Jones said.

That’s all true. So then she must have been pretty jazzed that MrBeast decided to use his gobs of money to help in this endeavor instead of buying another Island or filling a swimming pool with Fanta or whatever it is he does.

Nope. She told CNN this: “(O)vernight, this person comes along, who happens to be a white male figure with a huge platform, and all of a sudden, he gets all of the attention. It’s kind of frustrating, but it’s also understanding the nature of how the world is.”

Wait, wait, wait. Hold the phone here. Shouldn’t she be ecstatic that half a million people have access to water and now there’s way more attention brought to it?

*** end quote ***

# – # – # – # – # 

So, it’s less important that ½ MILLION should get access to clean water than he took the spotlight for doing it.

Sorry, her ego got hurt.

And, later on in the article an “aspiring politician” is upset that it appears Africa is “dependent on handouts…and philanthropic intervention.” 

Well it is.  I’ve been hearing about “poor Africans” for more than SIX DECADES.  And, I’d assert that the reason they are poor is that the politicians and bureaucrats are robbing them blind.  In conjunction with the colonial powers that like them just that way.  Gandhi showed a nation how to free themselves, but did NOT show them how to get rid of the parasitic drone class.

Argh!

I’m speechless.  

Perhaps, the Second Amendment is the way to rid oneself of the oppression of dictators.

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GOVEROTRAGEOUS: How come SF “homeless” can be “cleaned up” for Xi but not for thee

Sunday, November 19, 2023

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2023/11/13/nolte-democrats-will-clean-san-francisco-for-dictators-but-not-voters/

Nolte: Democrats Will Clean San Francisco for Dictators but Not Voters
John Nolte — 13 Nov 2023

*** begin quote ***

It took a Chinese dictator to get the city of San Francisco, California, cleaned up after five years of deterioration.

The Democrats who run San Francisco and California finally, Finally, FINALLY cleaned up that city’s filthy streets and removed the dystopian homeless encampments. At long last, San Francisco has been beautified in a dozen ways.

Yes, after some five years of increasingly dangerous streets littered with dirty needles, feces, trash, and filthy tents, not to mention aggressive vagrants, drug dealers, the deranged and addicted, the city took action.

*** end quote ***

So I guess it’s not about “rights” or anything else than politics.

Argh!

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GOVERNACIDE: A “death panel” claims another life!

Saturday, November 18, 2023

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2023/11/14/baby-indi-dies-after-uks-socialised-healthcare-removes-life-support/

‘This is Murder’ — Baby Indi Dies After UK’s Socialised Health System Removed Life Support, Blocked Parents from Seeking Private Care

Kurt Zindulka1 — 4 Nov 2023

*** begin quote ***

Lila Rose, the director of the anti-abortion group Live Action, said: “Let me be clear: the British government murdered her. They denied the right of Indi’s parents to pursue other treatment for her, keeping her captive by the court-mandated medical team that decided Indi must die. The medical team violated their sacred duty to Do No Harm.

“This is murder, plain and simple. It’s a stain on the national conscience of the United Kingdom. There must be a reckoning, there must be reform, and there must be reparations for the evil acts committed by both the medical teams and the UK courts.”

*** end quote ***

Sorry but every one laughed at Sara Palin calling out the “death panels” in socialized medicine.

What would you call this?

Who owns the child?  Certainly not the Gooferment, the Medical Profession, or the doctors.

If this baby was named Buffet, Gates, or Bezos, then you think the decisions would have been different?  

Where do the politicians and bureaucrats get off deciding life or death!

I guess “human rights” come when you can pick up a weapon and defend them.

Argh!

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VOCABULARY: “death-by-queue” caused by socialized medicine?

Friday, November 17, 2023

https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2023/11/restoring_public_trust_in_doctors.html

November 17, 2023
Restoring Public Trust In Doctors
By Deane Waldman, M.D. 

*** begin quote ***

After unaffordability, inaccessibility is another compelling reason for distrust. What good is an assigned physician if I can’t get to see the doctor? Before the Affordable Care Act (ACA, 2010), the maximum average wait time to see a primary care physician was 99 days. After ACA went into effect, wait time increased to 122 days, causing death-by-queue. Cutting wait times requires reinserting free market forces into healthcare so that clinicians are incentivized to provide timely service and can afford to do so.

*** end quote ***

The only solution is to get Gooferment and Big Insurance out of health care.

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INTERESTING: Dog leads to cat; rescue

Friday, November 17, 2023

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-cornwall-67349494?utm_source=join1440&utm_medium=email&utm_placement=newsletter

Dog leads owner to cat stuck 100ft down Cornish mine shaft
Published  —  5 days ago (EDITOR’S NOTE: 08 Nov 2023)

Daisy alerted her owner to Mowgli’s predicament

By Christine Butler & Charlotte Cox  — BBC News

*** begin quote ***

A lucky cat was rescued by firefighters after falling 100ft (30m) down a mineshaft in Cornwall – and it was all thanks to a quick-thinking dog.

After six days of searching, Mowgli’s owner Michele Rose said she had “almost given up hope” of finding her missing pet.

But she said she saw her dog Daisy “going berserk”, running in and out of woods near their home in Harrowbarrow.

Daisy’s intervention led to the rescue of her feline friend, Ms Rose said.

*** end quote ***

Stories like this prompt two reactions on my part:

1) It’s good practice for a child rescue; and

2) What was done to prevent a child from falling in the same hole?

Inquiring minds want to know.

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RANT: Violence in Gooferment Skrules is unacceptable

Thursday, November 16, 2023

https://palexander.substack.com/p/shock-video-white-high-school-student?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=579356&post_id=138823236&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=onvra&utm_medium=email

SHOCK VIDEO: White High School Student Severely Beaten and Kicked to Death by 15 Thugs at Las Vegas School After Defending His Friend (VIDEO) (GATEWAY PUNDIT): these are feral animals, no excuse, IMO once we know the 15, I would hang them…all of them…15 blacks beat a white male to death, thats racism & Justice Department must act; if 15 whites killed a black kid, I would want same; hang them!

Dr. Paul Alexander
Nov 13, 2023

# – # – # – # – # 

Gooferment Skrules are training grounds for prisons.

This was a clear example of: black on white MURDER; black gangs in the school; and media bias.

While I’m not sure I want hangings, clearly this requires punishment to communicate that it’s not tolerated.

All 15 should be treated as adults.  With long prison time.

And, this can’t be an isolated incident.  The school must be shutdown and the staff dismissed.

Argh!

Gooferment Skrules are the root of the problem.

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INTERESTING: The individual choices that played a role in the Titanic disaster

Wednesday, November 15, 2023

https://www.boredpanda.com/interesting-history-uncovered-pics/

History
Nov 12, 2023
50 Fascinating History Facts And Pics You May Not Have Been Shown At School
Gabija PalšytėRokas LaurinavičiusGabija Palšytė and Rokas Laurinavičius

*** begin quote ***

#26 Charles Joughin, The Chief Baker Aboard The Titanic, Emerged As An Improbable Survivor Of The Tragic Sinking Of The Ship

During the British Titanic inquiry, he faced questioning by Mr. Cotter, a part of the investigative effort to determine the circumstances of the ship’s demise. Here is an excerpt from his interrogation: Mr. Cotter: “What did you do with the children when you put them into the boat?” Joughin: “Handed them into the boat or dropped them in.” Mr. Cotter: “Threw them in?” Joughin: “Threw them in.” Mr. Cotter: “And what did you do with the mother?” Joughin: “We wanted to throw her in, and I think she preferred to try and step in.” Mr. Cotter: “What happened?” Joughin: “She missed her footing.” Mr. Cotter: “You said that you never went into your boat. Why did you not go, seeing that you were in charge?” Joughin: “I would have set a bad example if I had jumped into the boat. None of the men felt inclined to get into the boat.” Mr. Cotter: “When you found your boat had gone you said you went down below. What did you do when you went down below?” Joughin: “I went to my room for a drink.” Mr. Cotter: “Drink of what?” Joughin: “Spirits.” The Commissioner: “Does it very much matter what it was?” Mr. Cotter: “Yes, my Lord, this is very important because I am going to prove, or rather my suggestion is, that he then saved his life. I think his getting a drink had a lot to do with saving his life.” Despite his responsibilities in assisting women and children into lifeboats, Joughin repeatedly returned to his cabin for alcoholic drinks. As the final lifeboats left, he remained composed and rode the sinking Titanic down to the icy waters. In general, a person under the influence of alcohol is more susceptible to freezing to death due to vasodilation, the widening of blood vessels, which causes blood to move away from vital organs toward the skin’s surface, increasing the risk of hypothermia. However, the frigid temperature of the North Atlantic Sea that night, approximately -2 degrees Celsius (26.4 degrees Fahrenheit), was cold enough to constrict Joughin’s blood vessels, offsetting the effects of the alcohol. Joughin reported feeling relatively calm in the water and experienced no pain. Joughin spent two hours in the water before managing to climb onto an overturned lifeboat. He was later rescued by a passing lifeboat. This incredible tale of survival underscores the extraordinary circumstances and individual choices that played a role in the Titanic disaster.

*** end quote ***

I’m not sure what lessons one can take from this.  Other than, luck has a lot to do with survival!

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ECONOMICS: The “rich” can move to avoid taxes; what about the “little” people

Tuesday, November 14, 2023

https://jeffjacoby.com/27330/jeff-bezos-moves-to-florida-leaving-washington

Jeff Bezos moves to Florida, leaving Washington — and its rising tax burden — behind
by Jeff Jacoby  — The Boston Globe  — November 8, 2023

*** begin quote ***

But as the Tax Foundation’s lead researcher, Jared Walczak, immediately observed, Bezos is almost certainly going to save money — a lot of money — once he is no longer subject to Washington’s tax laws.

To begin with, Washington has a new capital gains tax, which was upheld by the state’s highest court in March. The tax takes a 7 percent bite of all investment gains above $250,000. In 2020 and 2021, when Bezos sold several million shares of Amazon stock, the proceeds totaled $15.7 billion. Assuming he disposed of stock he had owned since Amazon went public in 1997, Walczak calculated, Bezos “saved nearly $1.1 billion in taxes by selling those shares before the new state capital gains tax went into effect.” By relocating to Florida, he ensures that future stock sales will likewise remain untouched by Washington’s new capital gains levy.

That’s not all.

Washington had no estate tax during the years when Bezos was building Amazon into a commercial giant, but that changed after 2005. Now Washington has the steepest death tax in the nation, with a top rate of 20 percent on estates worth more than $9 million. Florida, on the other hand, has no estate tax at all. For a man with a personal fortune of more than $160 billion, the move from Washington to Florida could be worth $30 billion or more to his heirs.

*** end quote ***

The “rich” can move to avoid taxes; what about the “little” people … …

… … who can’t afford to move.  Don’t think that the taxes are only on the “rich”.  Inflation ensures that everyone is hit.  Maybe not equally, but enough to hurt.  And, they have no choice but to stand and take it.

Argh!

—30—

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RANT: if you hate a relative, make them your executor

Monday, November 13, 2023

FROM QUORA

*** begin quote ***

I just received an overdue bill for my father who’s been deceased for almost 3 years. What should I do with it?

*** end quote ***

I hate to play can you top this. But the hospital where my wife died, billed her two years after her death for 1.5M$. My usual lawyer was conflicted out because his firm had a partnet who represented the hospital. Because of the amount involved, I wasn’t comfortable fighting on my own. The hospital reported it to the credit agencies and my credit took a nose dive. My new lawyer requested all the bills which was about 9 inches tall. Then he asked the insurance company for their records and contract with the hospital. Turns out that the hospital failed to submit the bills to the insurance company within the one year time frame specified in the contract, The final letter from my lawyer to the hospital’s lawyer cited that, and that the estate had be completely and legally closed. (A step ignored most DIY executors! Not me, I’ve done enough for my family that I should have gone to law school.), and that they had no right to disparage my credit. If the matter was not resolved, he would be filing a big lawsuit. Needless to day, the hospital’s lawyer quickly responded: “We have reviewed the case file and it’s the interest of all the parties to deem the matter resolved.” (That annoyed me even more.) My lawyer filed that letter with the Surrogate as a settlement of “an objection to a closed estate” and included the hospital’s insurance contract so that it was available for any potential litigant to see. (Providing a roadmap for other lawyers.) It cost me about 2k$ for his fees, which I got to deduct from my income tax since I had to declare the executor’s commission as income. A slight pleasure from my victory.  

There’s a proverb I’ve heard that if you hate a relative, make them your executor since estates bring out the worst in everyone. Argh! I have other estate stories but they are not as on point as this one. If you’re an executor, you can hire an attorney to advise you for a few hundred dollars. In my county the Surrogate has an easy-to-read booklet that tells you the steps to open and close an estate and why each step is necessary. And, I’ve found that the Surrogate’s staff (all gray hair old ladies who have been there for decades) are extra helpful. They also have the Bar Association list of estate lawyers — with note who will advise and who will only become an executor.

YMMV but be prepared to have some struggles. The only estates that don’t have struggles and problems are those of people who die broke.

—30—

 

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DISCOURAGING: Any wonder why the Catholic Church has lost its “moral authority”?

Sunday, November 12, 2023

https://www.breitbart.com/news/pope-forcibly-removes-a-leading-us-conservative-texas-bishop-strickland/

Pope Francis has removed from office the bishop of Tyler, Texas
 By NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press

*** begin quote ***

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis on Saturday ordered the removal of the bishop of Tyler, Texas, a conservative prelate active on social media who has been a fierce critic of the pontiff and has come to symbolize the polarization within the U.S. Catholic hierarchy.

A one-line statement from the Vatican said Francis had “relieved” Bishop Joseph Strickland of the pastoral governance of Tyler and appointed the bishop of Austin as the temporary administrator.

Strickland, 65, has emerged as a leading critic of Francis, accusing him in a tweet earlier this year of “undermining the deposit of faith.” He has been particularly critical of Francis’ recent meeting on the future of the Catholic Church during which hot-button issues were discussed, including ways to better welcome LGBTQ+ Catholics.

*** end quote ***

The Catholic Church is shadow of its past self.  This is an example of why.

—30—

https://www.breitbart.com/faith/2023/11/12/vatican-says-transsexuals-and-homoaffective-persons-can-be-baptized-serve-as-godparents/

Vatican Says Transsexuals and ‘Homoaffective’ Persons Can Be Baptized, Serve as Godparents

—30—

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SECURITY: PSEG is behind the times

Sunday, November 12, 2023

https://pseg.mypreferencecenter.com/Global/StandardEmailView?subscriberId=0b431ab7-81ba-4b16-a2c5-64639c48d2fb&campaignSendId=85b7bcf6-ed43-40f1-8b1c-874631f58ed8&isTest=False

*** begin quote ***

Lastly, you’ll be required to enter a phone number where you will receive an authentication code.

*** end quote ***

I guess PSEG hasn’t gotten the message that codes via text is NOT secure.

Argh!

And, no where to complain.

BPU? Maybe!

—30—

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VETERANS: Sgt. Henry Gunther and just how much your Gooferment cares for you

Saturday, November 11, 2023

https://dailyreckoning.com/a-tribute-to-sgt-henry-gunther/

Dr img1 11 11 22

A Tribute to Sgt. Henry Gunther
Brian Maher
Posted November 11, 2022

*** begin quote ***

Recall the divisional chieftain who condemned 61 of his men to the grave that morning so that others might bathe — a certain William Mason Wright.

This human gem received promotion to Executive Assistant to the Chief of Staff of the Army after war’s end.

He could claim the distinction, after all, of capturing the final American objective of the war.

A less gaudy distinction fell to a young man under this man’s command that morning of Nov. 11, 1918. We refer here to Sgt. Henry Gunther, aged 23 years, of our former city of Baltimore.

This poor fellow was the last allied fatality of that fateful morning — and of the Great War itself. His time of death:

10:59 a.m.

*** end quote ***

So anytime that a Gooferment politician or bureaucrat expresses concern for the troops, vets, KIA, WIA, or MIA, think of Sgt. Gunther and you’ll know what’s true.

Sadly, true.

—30—

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GOVEROTRAGEOUS: How about the sneakiness of the Gooferment with our “money”

Friday, November 10, 2023

FROM NEXTDOOR

Ronald P. Society Hill • 2 Nov • 

*** begin quote ***

The sneakiness of manufacturers! 

One has to be so aware of how manufacturers dupe their customers. 

We have been a big fan of Chock Full O’Nuts Coffee for many years. Always liked to wait for when the coffee went on sale for $1.99 per can. The new sale price at ShopRite reducing it from $5.69 a can is now $2.99. We put the coffee in a canister instead of using it out of the can. Suddenly the canister did not get filled. Apparently the amount of coffee that is now in the can is 10.3 ounces instead of 13 ounces! So now the sales price went up 50% and the quantity of coffee went down over 20%. 

I have found that manufacturers slip in a new reduced package size when they put the item on sale and customers don’t pay attention to the quantity. 

This is not unique to this company but seems to be practiced widely. It is always buyer beware.

*** end quote ***

Let’s not ignore the Gooferment’s role in all of this.

It has inflated the number of dollars in circulation by several trillion.  

Don’t you think that has some role in all this?

See my blog rants about penny candy, nickel cigars, and dime comics!

Shrinkflation is the manufactures’ response to a dollar devaluation.

“Dollar stores” are proliferating because that’s what people can afford.  

I can’t imagine shopping for food in a dollar store, but I think we are going to see more of this.  Not less.

Time to vote the clowns out and just resist.

—30—

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Man had appendix surgery, claims doctors took out wrong organ

Thursday, November 9, 2023

A Washington man is suing a hospital and two of its doctors for malpractice for allegedly removing the wrong organ during surgery, nearly costing him his life.
— Read on nypost.com/2023/11/09/lifestyle/man-

# – # – # – # – #

Sure glad that the Goofermentregulates “medical care”!!!!

—30—had-appendix-surgery-claims-doctors-took-out-wrong-organ/

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GOVEROTRAGEOUS: Is destruction of a dangerous dog in the dog’s interest?

Thursday, November 9, 2023

https://reason.com/volokh/2023/11/08/let-us-kill-your-dog-or-go-to-jail-for-a-year/

Animals
Let Us Kill Your Dog or Go to Jail for a Year
Eugene Volokh | 11.8.2023 8:01 AM

*** begin quote ***

The county code allows destruction of a dangerous dog under specific circumstances. It allows destruction when an owner does not redeem an impounded dog within 96 hours. And it allows immediate destruction when “a dog is suffering from a serious injury or disease, and destroying the dog is in the interest of public health and safety, or in the interest of the dog.” The code does not authorize destroying a dog in any other instance….

*** end quote ***

I found this “in the interest of the dog” amusing.  How is killing the dog in “its interest”?

Argh!

—30—

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RECOMMENDED: Diana Nyad movie

Wednesday, November 8, 2023

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5302918/

It tells the remarkable true story of athlete Diana Nyad who, at the age of 60 and with the help of her best friend and coach, commits to achieving her life-long dream: a 110-mile open ocean swim from Cuba to Florida.

# – # – # – # – # 

I’m not a big fan of movies that don’t make me laugh.  

However every once in a while, one comes along that I feel is a “must see”.

I’d make it required watching for every student in the world.

Overcoming obstacles. Exponentiated.

Hard to say enough good things about this movie.

On a personal note, I didn’t recognize Annette Benning until I went to write this post.

I’d put this in my “Rudy” file of “motivational” musts.

Unlike the trash that Hollywood usually produces, there was a tasteful nod to sexual abuse and lesbianism.  But didn’t detract from the message.  If anything, it focuses on the hidden obstacles that one would never know about.

—30— 

 

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