The Holdout Juror Reportedly Identified...

...only a few days after the mistrial was declared and after the same amount of days after the judge mandated that the identities of the jurors could not be divulged. That restriction was to last for two weeks, as I understand. I recall as a safety measure. According to a report at Fox news: "NBC10 Boston reported it attempted to contact the juror identified by the others as the holdout but had not received a response."

Get that "...identified by the others...". (Source:  https://www.foxnews.com/us/lindsay-clancy-juror-admitted-reasonable-doubt-still-refused-insanity-verdict-foreperson-says). If that is true, I imagine they can be prosecuted. If the hold out juror comes to harm because they ID'd him, they may be will be prosecuted and sued.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well Damn, It Certainly Has Been Hot...

 ...although, I suppose that does not have much or anything to do with global warming (or is it climate change) and that is has been hot where I live because I live in the deep south of the USA and because it has been summer in the Northern Hemisphere. I wonder if it is cold in the southern hemisphere due to the global cooling which was predicted to hit before global warming, decades before. I think it back when they predicted the big global freeze that global warming was never even a twinkle in the eyes of liberal kooks back then. Of course, it simply could be cold in the southern hemisphere because it is winter south of the equator! 

 

Anyway, I hope you all have been enjoying the summer. I have been stuck, for the great part in that pimple on the backside of Arkansas known as Texarkana. Of course that is right next to the pimple on the nose of Texas which is known by the same name as it is the name of twin cities on each side of the border. Since it's on the backside of AR and on the nose of Texas, I guess Texas has it's nose up the arse of Arkansas. Of course Texans might see it the other way around - who cares, this place is the dregs especially when it is almost as hot as hell in the summer months.

 

 I am hoping to be free to do some traveling around February or March of next year. That would be nice if my hopes come to pass. I may head over to AZ to do some hiking. Speaking of hiking, I have not really done any in years. Well, maybe a tiny bit of 1/4 to 1/2 mile in the wood once or twice in the past two years but I find my right hip screams bloody murder each time I try. So I don't for the great majority of time. This September, I'll be seeing an orthopedic surgeon though, to set up hip replacement surgery on my right hip hopefully for mid October or a bit later.. If that goes well I hope to be doing a lot of dog walking for a few months though, to strengthen the area around the new joint and then if free after February I think I'll headed somewhere to do some trekking if not to bad a winter. That would be nice being I have been stuck pretty much local for half a year now.

 

That is all, except to say, hope you are all doing well.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Trump Is Hurting Republicans' Chances For Winning Big In Midterms

 Let me start this off by saying this: While I am neither a Democrat nor a Republican, and am registered as an independent, I hold no grudges against President Trump. In fact, I voted for him all three times. I support most of what he has done. That support only changed from me virtually supporting everything he's done (or at least not criticizing it or finding fault with it), to it now being that I have seen a big mistake that I think he has been making. I think that he is handling the situation in Iran rather poorly and is also making a mistake in how he portrays how the war is going. 

 

Let me start on what I think is a big mistake in his portrayal of the events and the ongoing situation in our war with Iran. For months now, the president has been saying things like: The Iranian navy has been wiped out completely. Yet, time and time again, we are told how the Iranians have laid mines in the Strait of Hormuz and have go fast boats that could attack our naval fleet. So,tell us - which is it - is their navy completely wiped out or not. It most certainly seems that it has not been wiped out because we keep hearing president Trump tell us over and over again of new confrontations with Iranian naval forces, be it big ships or small boats, they evidently still have naval capabilities.

 

Then we have been told time and time again that we have total air control. This again, to say it mildly, seems to be an untruth. If we had total air control there would be no missiles or drones being sent through the air, toward U.S. military bases that are located within the borders of our allies in the Middle East and there would be no ships being destroyed or damaged, in the Strait of Hormuz and elsewhere, by airborne Iranian weaponry.

 

We have also been told by President Trump, time and time again, that we have an abundance of ordinance and that we have not depleted them by any significant amount. Those particular things being missiles or bombs. Yet, there have been reports from other sources saying just the opposite. Add to that the fact that we keep stopping the bombardment of military targets in Iran, only to start up again after a while; that giving the possible appearance as if we are trying to conserve ordinance to some extent. I am not saying we have  used to many, more likely I think we have not used enough; but what I think voters in the U.S. may see it as is what I just mentioned above and thus maybe they will come to the conclusion that President Trump has lowered out ability to defend our nation by over using our ordinance o Iran or to the opposite conclusion that he has not used enough. y

 

Either of those conclusions about have used too much or too little ordinance will have folks on both sides of that issue finding fault with him and thus could negatively have poor effect for republicans in November. Folks are also going to find fault with President Trump  escalating the war with Iran in the first place and note I said escalating the war because even though not to the current extent, we have been at war with Iran since November 4, 1979 when Iran committed an act of war against the USA. Of course, there are those among us, myself included, who think it was about time for us to attack Iran and to destroy their ability to create or otherwise obtain nuclear weapons. All the dealing inn the world does not seem like it will help in that regard, as evidenced by previous failed attempts; yet, President Trump keeps trying to make a deal with them. That does not sit well with those of us who think military force is probably the only thing that will end Iran's tyrannical government's plans to obtain nukes and then to use them as they have promised again and again. Now besides being a question of whether or not President trump was right to attack Iran militarily or if it would have been better for him just to try to make a deal with them, that dilemma also speaks to our usage or ordinance or maybe I should say to our stop and go use of our ordinance. Does he keep trying to make a deal with Iran (even though they have broken every other deal ever made, by the U.S., with them since 1979) instead of constantly bombing or otherwise attacking them because our stock of ordinance is low? It certainly seems like a possibility and that will be enough to also sway voters away from Republicans.

 

I could go one with other examples from the iran war but if you have been following it at all you know what I am talking about. It all has me wondering if that is helping or hurting chances for Republicans gaining seats in November, while I hope not, I think quite possibly it is hurting their chances.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

 

 

Are You Staying Up To Watch For The Collision...

 ...of the spacecraft into the moon? I saw an Instagram post saying a spacecraft or a big part of one is going to collide with the surface of the moon t 0244 hours on August 5 (which is now today). Since one often cannot depend upon any claims made on Instagram, I did some checking to confirm that.

 

I just checked online and found an article from Forbes saying this is supposed to happen at 06:35 UTC, which here in Arkansas translates to 0135 hours. Quite the difference from 0244, that even if 0244 was supposed to be EDT, which would have made it 0144 in CDT. A few minutes could mean maybe missing it as it happens; although, given what may be seen from earth, that result may be visible for hours if not days or longer.

 

If you are looking up to see it, the actual crash, of the SpaceX Falcon 9 upper stage rocket (as per Forbes), will not be visible even with powerful telescopes. What it is guessed may be seen is the resultant dust cloud that collision may kick up; I suspect that with the much lower pull of gravity on our moon than on earth, the dust cloud may remain over the impact area for quite some extended time. Right now, as I type, it is 1247 hours; so, there are only 48 minutes for me to wait, give or take whatever their estimate may be off by. I plan to be looking up at the moon (which is a half moon tonight) at least 10 minutes early and will look for some time afterward if I do not see it by 0135 CDT.

 

As for what I plan to use to see it; well, I do not have a telescope but I do have a 16X50 pair of binoculars. I also have a 10x50 pair but have not found where the monster in my closet, or maybe the goblins, gnomes, dust bunnies or elves hid those. (Of course, it could be that I simply forgot where I put them.) Anyway, the 16 power pair is ready and waiting. The only bad thing about them is the slightest movement makes the view go sort of helter-skelter all over the place. While they are stronger than the 10 power pair, the weaker ones allow a much steadier view.

 

If you are watching, enjoy the show if there is indeed one to enjoy. The rocket is supposed to hit the sunny side of the moon but since it is only a half moon tonight I guess it has to hit the lit up part to be able to see the result. 

 

Addendum: I just checked another site, Earth Sky, and they had a very informative photo for where it is believed the rocket will smash into the moon. It reportedly will be on the lit up side of the half moon (good news) and will be on the outer edge of the viewable moon at somewhere (about halfway) between the numbers 10 and 11 on an analog clock (we old timers understand that, you youngsters need to figure it out if you do not know). Good luck if you are watching the skies/moon tonight.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Things Go Better With Coca Cola

Maybe things do go better with Coca Cola but I am now aware of at least one thing that does not go well with coke, at least not canned Coca Cola Zero. That would be 142 degrees Fahrenheit heat inside the passenger compartment of my car (as per a thermometer). 

 

I bought a case of Coke Zero, just before I had hernia surgery. Forgot it on the floor behind my seat. Did not take it out after surgery because I am supposed to wait 6 weeks before lifting anything even slightly heavy. Today as Skye and I were driving to the dog park, we heard a loud pop. She jumped a bit on the back seat, I thought that maybe something hit my car on the outside. Then I smelled coke. No hissing like soda spraying everywhere, just that pop. Here is what had happened, one can flipped its lid, two others swelled up, a the rest looked okay:

 Lesson learned.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

 

 

 

1970s Music - Frank Zappa

I saw Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention 4 times,, always in NYC. That was at two concerts at the Palladium and two at the Felt Forum in Madison Square Garden and always on the night before Halloween. He and the Mothers of Invention were absolutely1970s fantastic. His songs usually told a story, for example Mudshark (the complete medley including Happy Together).

Turn up the volume and enjoy. By the way, this song is not for snowflakes of any ilk. If you are easily offended by weird raunchy sexual innuendo descriptive language, listen to it at the peril of you melting down. I readily admit, this is one of my favorite Zappa songs.

 

 

All the best, 

Glenn B

Resident Alien

 Have you watched the show Resident Alien on Netflix? If not and if you like Sci-Fi, comedy, and philosophy, I think it is a must watch. 

 

Resident Alien was the best show I have watched in decades. I am truly saddened that it has come to its end. I watched the final episode tonight and even though it became obvious, during the show that it would be the finale, I must say that the ending was excellent. 

 

One other truly wonderful thing about Resident Alien were Harry's (the antagonist turned protagonist) insightful thoughts about life, living it and his philosophical musings about humanity. Not only was it Sci-Fi and a comedy, it was also a philosophical lesson about living as a human being. I will miss this show very much.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

July 4, 1776

 JULY 4, 1776 WAS THE OFFICIAL AND VERY FIRST NO KINGS DAY IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA! LET'S NOT FORGET THAT EVER. ALSO BEAR IN MIND, NO PRESIDENT OF THE USA HAS EVER BEEN A KING, NOT THE FIRST ONE ALL THE WAY UP TO OUR CURRENT & VERY PATRIOTIC ONE DJT. 

Happy Independence Day

 

Life & Freedom

• Caught this in my kitchen yesterday. 
•  
• 
  
  Took it outside, to set it free, and a moment or two later it flew off of my hand and landed in the grass maybe 10 feet or so away. Immediately after it landed, a Mockingbird flew over, landed next to it, grabbed it or gobbled it up right there, then flew away. It hapened so fast I am not sure if it ate it right then or flew away with it in its beak. You never know when your time is going to be up. Life is short, freedom can be fleeting, enjoy them while you have them.

 

All the best,

Glenn B

The Governor of PA Is A Disgrace In My Opinion

 I hope you all have a very Happy Independence Day. Well except the governor of PA, who, in my understanding, refused to have PA officially participate in Freedom 250 to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding and the independence of the USA, Which came about by way of the signing of our Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia, PA. See: 

 

https://www.pennlive.com/politics/2026/06/shapiro-says-pa-is-opting-out-of-trumps-great-american-state-fair.html

Imagine the governor of the state in which our founding document was signed seemingly hates not only President Trump but also the USA so much as to make such a disgusting terribly partisan and disrespectful decision. Freedom 250 is not a partisan event, every state was invited to attend, that regardless of whether a blue or red state. Not surprisingly many blue states have opted out claiming Trump made it partisan when in fact, it seems to me, the governors of the states not attending are the ones making it partisan and are not living up to the first word in our nation's name ' UNITED'! 

If it was legal, I could imagine seeing the governor of PA being tarred and feathered for that disrespect toward our great nationbeing that our Independence was first declared in PA. I am not condoning or advocating such an illegal action but my guess is that if it was legal, it probably would bring on a satisfactory feeling for many patriotic U.S. citizens.

HAPPY IDEPENDENCE DAY TO THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE PATRIOTS AND WHO LOVE THE USA.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Venezuela - Lending Them A Hand

Tonight, I donated $100, plus an optional processing fee, to the Salvation Army for Venezuela relief. If you want to donate, you can go here, supposedly a website of the Salvation Army, and it certainly looked to me to be legitimate:

https://sawso.org/

 

At the top of the page, a box comes up about Venezuela with a donate icon in its lower left. If you click on donate anywhere else, it does not seem to go to Venezuela but to other areas helped by the Salvation Army. 

 

Maybe some of you can also donate. I am hopeful anything you can spare would be appreciated and go toward doing good for the people who suffered so long under Maduro and who now have been devastated by the recent earthquakes. If you cannot afford to donate, say a prayer for them, prayers are free. If you do not pray, at least keep them in your thoughts and hopes.

 All the best,

Glenn B 

 

The Price Of Gas About To Go Up Again

I expect, now that we are again bombing Iran, the price of  gas is going to get higher again, very soon. 

 

I like President Trump, I admire he does more of what he says he is going to do, by far, than any other president in my lifetime. I appreciate he is the master of the deal.  Now that Iran has recommenced attacks on our allies and has fired on two ships in the Straits of Hormuz, I hope the president will fully realize there is no making any deals with the unmitigated scum who govern Iran. 

 

I an  no war monger, I detest violence, but I know when it is necessary from a one on one self defense action and maybe know right up to a full fledged war to protect not only a country but also from psychotics much like new wave Hitlers or Stalins who want to rule the world and do not care how many they kill to achieve that goal. Thus, I think it long over due to for the U.S. to attack Iran, not only by air and sea but on land with a full fledged invasion.

 

Of course that is merely my opinion and we all have more opinions that we do have arses. Yet, I really see no way to ever make a deal with the fanatics who run Iran and to assure they do not acquire weapons of mass destruction. Let's face it, all they did in the time frame of the current negotiations was to falsely agree to a deal, apparently only to rebuild their offensive weapons capabilities and then to again attack our allies and shipping. 

 

The only ways to deal with heinous tyrants like them has been proven again and again throughout history. Either you hope and wait for them to die but until then they keep killing innocent folks; or you annihilate them asap and end their reigns of terror much more quickly; thus  saving a countless number of lives. Of course if the USA invades, many, too many, of our troops  will be killed or terribly wounded. All I can say about that is I truly believe that if we don't put down the tyrants in Iran now, they will acquire nukes or other WMDs sooner or later and they will launch them, in the name of their version of god, on as much of the world as they can reach. I pray to the God of Christianity that I will not be around to see it and, that I am around to see their reign of terror obliterated. So, I hope President Trump terminates the problem now for once and forever.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

An Apology To My Readers

 As you must be aware by now, if you regularly were a reader of my blog, I stopped posting here quite a while back. Let me just say, there was a life changing personal event that took place in my life back in February. Due to that, I figured it maybe was wise to not blog as much. As anxiety, and I guess even some bit of depression, caused by the outcome of that event crept into my life, I more or less stopped blogging almost altogether. I think in all, I have made only half a dozen blog posts since the beginning of February. 

 

I am not about to write about the event that caused me to essentially stop blogging except for what I have already said: It was and remains a life changing personal event and it has caused me a great deal of anxiety and some depression as well. So much so that I have an appointment with a mental health counselor in the near future. No I have no lost my mind but I am extremely anxiety ridden due to that event. The thing is, it promises to drag on like that for up to a year or more so I am seeking out some helping coping with it.

 

I will probably blog about it at a later date, maybe once the whole mess, in which I find myself, has been concluded - but not now. I just wanted to say sorry for not explaining before, why I have not been blogging.

 

I may put some effort into blogging again soon. In that case, I guess there is a lot to blog about with politics being as truly insane as it has become (such as that weirdo, my opinion of him, running for office in Maine; the abject insanity of leftists; the attacks on ICE and leftist support of criminals; and the seemingly never ending saga of hatred for President Trump (aka: he's your daddy) along with the attempted assassinations). Other subjects of interest are, as always: guns and ammo; travel; tidbits of interesting history; current events; and anything else that strikes my fancy. Hope to be writing more soon.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

It's That Time Of Year Again...

...so allow me to wish all my Jewish readers a very happy and holy Pesach (Passover). Enjoy your seder. Enjoy your wine too but please, no driving after 4 cups.

 

I pray peace will come soon in the Middle East.

 

All the best,

Glenn B.

Stupidest Caption, I Think, I Have Read In A Long Time

So, Chuck Norris is gone from this earth, hopefully to wind up in a much beter place. I admit, I was never a huge fan of his but I did enjoy his  Walker Texas Ranger show and some of his movies. What I liked best about him was his love for our country and the fact he supported our great nation respectfully. 

I hope he will rest in eternal peace and that his family will take solace in how much folks admired him. 

 I just read an article, 

https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/chuck-norris-death-inspires-tributes-sylvester-stallone-jean-claude-van-damme-lead-hollywood-reactions, on Fox News about tributes from other celebrities and politicians. In that article, there wasvat least one photo of him and Bruce Lee. I was quite surprised to see its printed caption: "Bruce Lee remembered Chuck Norris after his passing on Friday." Even when the media outlet is Fox News, it seems the so called journaliats who write the pieces, cannot havecenpugh respect to getvsomething like that correct. They truly are, in my opinion, disrespectful, moronic, mindless twits when it comes to reporting facts. If you are unfamiliar with who was Ruce Lee, he was a marshal arts expert and a friendly contemporary rival of Chuck Norris. The kkey word in that last sentence is the word "was", that because Bruce Lee passed away at the age of 32 in 1973. Yet someone decided to write this caption: "Bruce Lee remembered Chuck Norris after his passing on Friday."  The truth is Bruce Lee did not remember anything after Mr. Norris passed away on Friday. Maybe his soul remembered but as I see it, it most certainly qas nt Bruce Lee remembering any thing! A little respect from journalists would certainly be nice instead of rediculous balderdash.

 

RIP to them both.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

I Have Been Having A Hankering...

 ...a frozen or fresh duck for quite some time now, in fact for months - since Christmas week. The only place I have seen any has been Walmart. They offer frozen ones containing 12% added water. As I said though, I have been desiring a roast duck; I am not looking for duck soup.

 

 In the wee hours of the still dark morning on which I write this,  Idecided to search for one online, and figured I would look first at the sites of local supermarkets. So, I checked Albertson's. The Albertson's near me is, like all others in my opinion, an overpriced less than well stocked yuppy haven. After all, it is in the pimple on the backside of Arkansas wherein I reside and you would be hard pressed to find anything much        better here as far as supermarkets go. Kind of makes me miss NY for its shopping. I checked anyway. 

 

I was amazed to discover they sell or at least advertise what must be the Gozilla of poultry when it comes to quackers. Here is what it says on their website about the ducks they offer for sale, and I quote it here to educate you as to what they claim is available: "This pack features a premium quality whole duck, ranging from 4 to 8.25 s. each, up to a a total weight of 36 pounds." 

 

 Now, I note, they say this pack, that seemingly indicating it could be more than one duck but then again it says the pack contains "...a premium quality whole duck..." which seems to clearly indicate they are talking about a single packaged duck. Now look at the weight range, they show it as: "... ranging from 4 to 8.25 lbs each, up to a total weight of 36 lbs." Did I say it must be the Godzilla of ducks. I think I did. Either it is that or, I guess, is encased in a huge chunk of ice, enough to make Walmart's duck with 12% of added water look like a great deal.

 

As it turns out, I have digressed from my duck hunt by waddling down the slope to the marshy edge of the shallow waters, then hopping into the cool wetness and swimming across the pond to Blogger Island to write this post. Now, I need to change course and head to over to Aldi Island to search there. My guess though is: I may have to order a frozen flat billed defeathered quacker from an online poultry monger. The hunt continues.

 

All the best,

Glenn B

 

 

Kristi Noem

 I have never had much negativev to say about president Trump except maybe that I think he should speak along the lines of being more presidential instead of him using speech more resembling the trash talk I believe is a characteristic of Dan Bongino when he crtisizes those he opposes. one other thing, and it goes hand in hand with what I justbsaid, is I think President Trump sometimes reacts, to his disdatisfaction with people, more like a Democrat (aka: a spoiled rotten child) than like a well mannered conservative man.

 Today though things are different. I am absolutely befuddled as to why he has reportedly ousted Kristi Noem from DHS and moved her to another probably less critical position. I worked my entire career in federal law enforcement, always within agencies the main duties of which were the protection of the borders of the USA and mostly 

 enforcement of  Immigration and Custom's laws. My career spanned just over 32 years. In all that time, I never saw a Department head more competent, or even equal, to Kristi Noem - in any department within the US government. She was competent in as much as she knew the law more than well enough to do the job, was extremely well spoken, stayed cool under pressure, was absolutely firm in her resolve to keep our borders secure while also keeping all of our nation secure internally as well, was and remains a true patriot and was extremely loyal to President Trump but also, and much more importantly than loyalty to the president, she was loyal to the United States of America. Butvshe pissed off Trump recently in testimony to Congress over something if true that was probably at most an embarassment to the president andvas is too often the case, in my opinion, he had an overly emotional reaction on an interpersonal and out she went. For Trump to have done to her what Democrats have been trying to do to her (and in essence to him) by ousting her is a shameful disgrace in my estimation. I think, it highlights one of his true weaknesses, his vengeful over reacting to what I believe he wrongly takes as as disloyalty. 

 

I strongly believe, he should be apologizing to her and begging her to return to her position as number 1 at DHS. His replacement has little to no experience to qualify him for the position from ehat I have read about him but honestly I need to do morev research on that. Instead of disposing of her as if her outstanding level of competence and loyalty could easily be bested or even matched, he and the country would have been betterboff, in my opunion, had hevshown her half as much loyalty as she gave to him. Instead of firing her, he should have awarded her with the highest of acolades and the greatest of honors. Presudent Trump's knee jerk reaction is something I would have expected of president Biden had he found someone in his administration who was even half as competent as was Kristi Noem when it came to the protection of our borders, the protection of our legal resident aliens, enforcement of our laws and her loyalty to the president and as I said above more importantly her loyalty to the USA.

 

 All the best,

Glenn B 

I Decided Years Ago To Stay Out Of Mexico..

...and I am happy I did so.  When I first left NY and a bit later moved to Texas (now in AR) I had thought, I'd like to visit a border town in Mexico. As much as I used to love going to Mexican border towns, I wound up deciding againt such a trip. So, it probably was well over 6 years ago,, when violence in Mexico had me decide that I probably would never visit there again. I am happy that I have held to that decision because violence has increased exponentially over the years. 

 

Violent chaos is going on there right now, as I type, due to the killing of "El Mencho" the head of a narcotics cartel called the Jalisco New Generation Cartel. People are being killed, roads blocked,  vehicles and buildings set ablaze. The members of the cartel are armed so well, with military type weapons, that the Mexican army needed back-up from the Mexican Air Force during a confrontation with them in the last day or so. More at the link: https://www.foxnews.com/us/death-toll-rises-after-mexican-drug-cartel-leader-killed-us-backed-operation

 

Many U.S.citizens, and probably those of other nations, who are on vacation in Mexico are trapped there right now as airlines have canceled flights to and from Mexico as cartel members have gone berserk and in essence have declared war on that nation.

 

If you intend to travel to Mexixo, please take heed of my opinion, which is you should avoid going there if at all possible, at least, while the violence persists.

 

Stay safe. 

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

No Details But I Have An Important Recommendation For Pistol Carriers

Get yourself firearms shooting insurance (or whatever they call it) from a place like USCCA or another like it, in the event you ever are in a self defense situation and have to fire a shot. I cannot make it any higher of a priority than right at the top of what you should and need do, if you have not done it already. That is all I can say. Please do not ask me why I posted this and please do not even post your guesses in the comments. If I knew ho to turn off comments I would do so for this post. If anyone asks why I posted this, or tries to guess why I posted this, I will delete your comment. Just please consider it a public service announcement and leave it at that for now. Details probably will be released in the future but it may take a long time.

 

All the best,

Glenn B