Morning Update: 09/13/24
Friday the 13th Edition
Welcome to one of the most dreaded days of the year (by some)! Those who are superstitious are likely staying in bed today if they can, or being extremely careful if they can’t. I do want to put something to rest quickly, though: THERE IS NO FRIDAY THE 13TH IN OCTOBER THIS YEAR. I’ve seen the memes going around since June. They’re wrong. There is a supermoon, but the 13th lands on a Sunday next month. I know some were hoping for a super spooky Halloween season, but that particular element isn’t happening. If you are a spooky-oriented person, celebrate today instead.
Only one person gave me any direct feedback on yesterday’s video edition, and views were down compared to other days this week. I think, at least for today, we’ll mix it up a bit, giving video coverage where it makes sense, but going ahead and typing out the rest. There was some mention that some of the videos were blocked for some people. I don’t understand that at all. Most of the videos came from YouTube and should have been available to everyone. For them to be blocked doesn’t make any sense.
Kat is still quarantined. Queen Bit and Fat Guy have been taking care of her, Bit insisting on lying on her head most of the day. I’m not sure what that’s supposed to cure, but she’s definitely committed to the task. At least no one here is running to AI for medical advice. According to this morning’s Times, many Americans are taking the advice of AI chatbots for medical information. The primary reason is that it takes too long to see an actual doctor. But, of course, the question immediately raised is whether the advice is accurate. The answer is obvious: not always. Go see a real, living, breathing doctor before doing anything stupid.
Can we stop with the Springfield-related memes already? Yeah, I’ve seen some cute ones, but the issue is that they’re causing problems. Here’s your first video of the day.
As much as anything, this is a clear example of the degree to which words do matter, and Republicans such as the Orange Felon and his idiotic running mate don’t seem to care. If anything, they’re delighting in the chaos because it keeps bringing people back to the concept that immigrants are ruining the country. They’re not. They’re not ruining Europe, either. Immigration is not out of control. This is clear fear-mongering from the GOP. In the case of Springfield, they need immigrants. So, let’s just cancel the memes, okay?
Of course, the big news of the day is that 33,000 Boeing factory workers went on strike after rejecting the contract offer. This is going to put a big dent in Boeing’s cash flow as it means they can’t deliver the 737s that airlines have ordered. Boeing is already cash-strapped thanks to its multiple failures this year. They really can’t afford to let this strike go much longer than the weekend, and even then the ripple effect is going to cause numerous problems for the company. Boeing workers have put up with a lot of flack and no small amount of bullshit of late. This is their first work stoppage since 2008. The folks in Boeing’s C-Suite need to get their act together and end this strike quickly.
I totally forgot that there was a football game last night. I can’t believe that I let that slip my mind. I was in bed shortly after 9:00 anyway, and the Bills pretty much handled the Dolphins without any problem. No one is terribly surprised by that. There was some drama, though. Tua Tagovailoa sustained a concussion after hitting his head on the turf. This was a scary moment for Dolphins fans as much of the team’s hopes for this season ride on the quarterback’s abilities. There have been a number of problems with the turf in various stadiums already this season. If you were watching the Colts/Texans game last Sunday, you saw both quarterbacks plagued with slipping on Lucas Oil’s new turf. There were plenty of complaints at other stadiums as well. None of the teams want to lose their highly-paid star players to an injury. But can the problem even be addressed now that the season is underway?
Time for another video. This one is actually a little frightening in my opinion.
Considering that North Korea isn’t supposed to have any nukes at all makes this a slap directly in the face of the UN and its member countries. Why should this bother us? First of all, the world does not need another nuclear power, especially not one controlled by a family of power-hungry deranged lunatics. No one trusts a nuclear-equipped North Korea to not attempt a takeover of South Korea. Most critical, though, is the Russian factor. Putin has been under increasing pressure to utilize the country’s nuclear weapons against Ukraine. Among the multiple problems with that idea, including the fact that fallout would likely blowback over Russia, is that their nuclear arsenal is decades old and operates on what is now horribly obsolete technology that hasn’t been tested since the 1980s. However, European intel is saying that Russia has a new kamikaze drone. Putin’s been getting cozy with North Korea’s Kim of late. If Russia were to put brand new North Korean nukes on kamikaze drones, it could spell danger for all of Eastern Europe, including several NATO countries. Now, see why this is really a big deal?
There is some interesting moon-related news this morning. On one hand, New research suggests the moon had active volcanoes when dinosaurs roamed Earth. Granted, this was millions of years ago, but it’s still important as it may mean that underground deposits of both water and magma may still exist. This could be extremely important if anyone wants to actually attempt colonizing the moon.
However, the Times is reporting that a new mini-moon is being captured by Earth’s gravity. There are a couple of caveats here. First, what scientists are tracking is an extremely small space rock. So small, that you wouldn’t likely be able to see it with the naked eye. Second, not everyone agrees that it’s a moon. Again, size matters, but so does the shape of its orbit, which is still up for questioning. Nonetheless, it would be exciting, in my opinion, if Earth were to join the collection of cool planets that have more than one moon. It will be interesting to see how this develops. Who knows, maybe the little rock will grow!
Locally, it’s looking as though the drought across much of Indiana is going to continue. Any rain effect from Tropical Storm Francine is going to be limited to the Southwestern part of the state, leaving the rest of us hot and dry for at least the next week. This is unusual since September is normally a fairly wet month. Without any rain, fall foliage is going to suck. Already, I’m seeing the leaves on trees in our neighborhood beginning to turn brown. Belvedere’s been digging holes to lie in because the surface ground is too hot. This is not a good sign at all.
Fortunately, there’s football tomorrow. The big game for everyone in Indiana is Purdue vs. Notre Dame. Purdue is 2-0 and ND is coming off a devestating loss to Northern Illinois last week. This in-state rivalry is always a big game, but this year it could possibly determine how the rest of the season goes for both teams. The winner gets a shove forward in the polls, which is important come bowl time. The loser could be down for the count, especially if it’s Notre Dame. Either way, we’re looking forward to an exciting game tomorrow afternoon.
I need to eat breakfast and then probably take a nap. Or two. Maybe three. Or four. Never underestimate my napping ability.
Nor my need for MORE COFFEE!!
Morning Update: 10/15/24
Yesterday was full of surprises, the biggest of which was PELICANS at Eagle Creek! Jen and I were out again, along with her daughter Ali, to see if we could catch some larger birds than we had the last time out. There was the usual collection of smaller birds floating on the water, and we caught a handful of blue herons and egrets wading around the shoreline. We first saw a couple of pelicans out in the middle of the lake and considered it unusual, but they were too far away for either of our cameras to get a good shot. But then, as we came around the North side of the land bridge, the first group flew in right over our heads, the shot above. Over the next several minutes, more came in groups of three, five, or seven. In total, nearly forty pelicans were taking a breather along the shallow water.
Why is this a surprise? Because pelicans don’t belong in Indiana! Sure, one might occasionally find one up around Lake Michigan during the summer, but we’re too far inland for them to be interested in hanging out here. More often, they prefer the warmer climates of Southern California and … Florida. Our best guess is that Helene’s winds blew the sea birds up here and now they’re trying to get back home before frost hits tomorrow night. I’ll share more pictures in a separate post later this morning.
Then, I came home, took a nap, and went outside to find that it rained? Not a lot, nothing more than a brief shower, just enough to leave droplets on top of the trash bin and make the road wet. But, there wasn’t any rain in the forecast yesterday morning! Conditions with the advancing cold front were just right to generate spotting showers around the region. More could pop up today. The cloud cover prevents air tempts from dropping too low. Only when the skies clear Wednesday night will we see frost.
Solaris wants you to know that he thinks human life is silly and that we should spend more time napping in the sunlight and cleaning ourselves. In fact, he’s decided that if a human touches him, he needs to clean the filthy area immediately. I gave him pets as I sat down and now he’s ferociously attempting to remove the stink from his body. Too bad that desire for cleanliness doesn’t extend to things like cleaning up his vomit from the floor.
Other news? It’s concerning that the UN is concerned about the safety of their peacekeepers. This is a sign that no one is playing fair and none of the leaders can be trusted. None of them. Just toss the Geneva Convention out of the window. War crimes are being committed daily and no one is doing a damn thing about them. I have ideas, but they’re probably too extreme.
North Korea is throwing a hissy fit, blowing up roads and rail yards in its own country. Those with multiple children will recognize this tactic of throwing toys all over the room while yelling and screaming in frustration. Why? Who the fuck knows. Perhaps the tomato slipped out from their cheeseburger. Maybe their wearing the red outfit when they want to wear the dirty brown one. Possibly a sibling walked past without saying anything. North Korea has a brain deficiency that doesn’t allow them to progress and grow. And their diaper stinks.
Oh, if you’re one of those selfish people who thinks that the US needs to seriously crack down on immigration, I hope you’re ready to pay more for milk. You see, the price of milk has long been regarded as a bellwether for families with children. When milk prices rise, family health declines. Dairy farms rely on migrant labor because lazy Americans don’t want to work seven days a week. Most milk cows have to be milked twice a day, every day. No exceptions. Take away the migrant labor and… you see where this is going, don’t you? A hard line on immigration almost immediately relates to higher prices on the most basic necessities. Perhaps we need to rethink our approach.
I know October is a spooky scary month, but most people prefer their horrors to be pretend. Russia, however, is making them real. As the trial in the death of a British woman in 2018 began yesterday, we found out that the vial containing the poison that killed her had enough to kill thousands of people. That only one person was killed was not Russia’s intended outcome. Let that sit and simmer in your nightmares for a while.
FEMA workers change some hurricane-recovery efforts in North Carolina after receiving threats. You would think that people would welcome those trying to help them. That doesn’t seem to be the case in the backwaters of North Carolina where apparently Fox News is the only television station anyone watches. One person was arrested yesterday for apparently attempting to carry out violence against federal aid workers. Maybe next time we let them drown.
I know, that statement is cold, harsh, and inhumane. I’m over all the stupidity, though. When people are trying to kill those who want to help, we’re no longer in a position to offer them humane support. The election is getting tighter as we move closer to November 5 and whether or not the election is peaceful is a serious concern! Who the fuck have we become? Last week, Australia sentenced a man to prison for giving a nazi salute in public. There’s no tolerance there for the kinds of stupidity that lead to people being killed. The problem with the US taking that approach at this juncture is that we’d have to jail a quarter of the population! We have become too tolerant of the type of speech and behaviors that lead to violence. We have become too tolerant of rhetoric that marginalizes immigrants, LGBTQIA+ populations, and women. Continuing down this path inevitably leads to a fall that makes what happened to the Roman Empire look like a child’s birthday party by comparison. We must vote better. We must scream louder. We dare not sit silent.
I’m glad I’m old and probably won’t live to see Mad Max become a reality. There’s little question in my mind that the US, and perhaps the world, is headed in that direction.
Don’t mind me, though. I’m just going to sit over here and drink coffee and take pictures of birds.
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