WELL, DE GUSTIBUS ETC: Someone had to say it.
August 5, 2025
SURE, WITH SOME QUIBBLES: Tax the Hollywood Hypocrites. Virtue signalling commies should get a taste of their medicine.
The quibbles being: cut small writers/businessmen some slack. Most of the pulp writers plain forgot to renew copyrights, because they were writing 10 books a year, raising families and trying to make the rent. A lot of us live like that. Don’t hit us because you want to hit Hollywood. (Colorado has tax code thing to “catch” doctors and lawyers that unfortunately means taxing all self employed hard.)
Second: while my kids can make their own money, and don’t get me started on my putative, hypothetical grandkids, (trust funds destroy people. Not that I make money worthy of that, anyway) let me say that yeah, I could be gone tomorrow, but given family longevity 40 years isn’t out of the question. I know all writers slow with age. I’d just hate to hit 80 or 90 and not be entitled to anything from the long tail, because the copyright has expired.
SPEAK UP. SOME ARE: I Love Israel: Talks of possible Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to boost Israeli investments into the Philippines.
After October 7 to stand with Israel is to stand with civilization.
YES, “HOSTAGE PUPPIES” DO SUFFER UNWARRANTED JEOPARDY: Hostage Puppy vs Hostage. Some critical differences.
But they need to kick the Stockholm syndrome and find other ways to survive. No one is obligated to finance evil just to fund your just cause.
August 4, 2025
THE 21st CENTURY ISN’T TURNING OUT THE WAY I HAD HOPED: Jim Acosta ‘Interviews’ AI-Generated Avatar of Deceased Teen Promoting Gun Control.
Former CNN host Jim Acosta “interviewed” an AI-animated avatar of deceased Parkland victim Joaquin Oliver on Monday to promote a gun control message.
“I would like to know what your solution would be for gun violence,” Acosta asked the avatar, for an interview on his Substack.
“Great question. I believe in a mix of stronger gun control laws, mental health support, and community engagement. We need to create safe spaces for conversations and connections, making sure everyone feels seen and heard,” Oliver’s avatar said. “It’s about building a culture of kindness and understanding. What do you think of that?”
“I think that’s a great idea, Joaquin,” Acosta responded.
This isn’t creepy at all:
NEW: Former CNN host Jim Acosta gives an interview with an AI version of a deceased Parkland victim to push gun control.
Acosta: “I would like to know what your solution would be for gun violence.”
AI Joaquin Oliver: “Great question. I believe in a mix of stronger gun control… pic.twitter.com/ArAvRy939l
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) August 4, 2025
It’s not playing well with Acosta’s fellow leftists on BlueSky:
As Glenn rhetorically asks, “Can we add some intelligence to Jim Acosta?”
UPDATE: Ryan Saavedra tweets that Acosta received “3,000+ responses…on Bluesky in response to his ‘interview’ with a deepfake AI chat bot of a kid who was killed in a school shooting Surprisingly, this seems to have even crossed the line for everyone on that platform.”
CONGRATULATIONS, BUT SUBORBITAL FLIGHTS AREN’T MUCH OF AN ACHIEVEMENT IN 2025: Blue Origin successfully completes another human flight.
10 or 15 years ago this would have been a big deal. I’d like to see Blue Origin going gangbusters, but . . .
OPEN THREAD: Monday, Monday.
OKAY, SHE’S A REPUBLICAN:
Total package. 🥰Not just a pretty girl😆 pic.twitter.com/cGcEMsjXju
— I am Ken (@Ikennect) August 4, 2025
AMERICA’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD:
WHAT ARE THE DEEP SEVENS UP TO NOW? Mysterious boost to Earth’s spin will make Aug. 5 one of the shortest days on record.
DOES ANYBODY REMEMBER LAUGHTER? The Critical Drinker on The Naked Gun: Are We Allowed To Laugh Again?
Christian Toto concurs with the Drinker’s assessment: The Naked Gun Shovels More Dirt on Woke Comedy’s Grave. “Perhaps the best part of ‘The Naked Gun’ is its running time – 86 tight minutes. That’s what a comedy should aim for – a not-so-hidden message to the team behind ‘Happy Gilmore 2: We Needed Two Hours to Include All the Gratuitious Cameos.’ Get in. Get out. Leave us laughing. ‘The Naked Gun’ clears that low bar. Hopefully, it’s a sign of very funny things to come. HiT or Miss: ‘The Naked Gun’ apes the comic chaos created by David Zucker in the ’80s. The results, while imperfect, are undeniably funny.”
(Classical reference in headline.)
THE ETERNAL QUESTION: Why Are French Cars So Strange?
Update (From Ed): How weird can French cars get? This weird:
QUESTION ASKED AND ANSWERED:
Shot: How did the men who bombed Hiroshima live with themselves?
Eighty years on, the atomic bombing of Hiroshima continues to provoke fierce debate, reflection, and deep moral inquiry. How did the thirteen men aboard the Enola Gay – the US aircraft that delivered the bomb that killed at least 150,000 people – live with the knowledge of what they had done?
The morning of August 6, 1945 began like any other on the Pacific island of Tinian. That was, until the Boeing B-29 Superfortress lifted into the sky. Its destination: Japan. Its payload: “Little Boy,” the first atomic bomb ever used in warfare. Piloted by Colonel Paul W. Tibbets Jnr. and manned by a crew of twelve, the mission forever altered the course of history. The explosion over Hiroshima ushered in the atomic age, marked the beginning of the end of the Second World War, and created a moral legacy that haunted and defined the lives of those aboard.
—Spectator World, today.
Chaser: 75 Years Later, Purple Hearts Made for an Invasion of Japan are Still Being Awarded.
The decoration, which goes to troops wounded in battle and the families of those killed in action, had been only one of countless thousands of supplies produced for the planned 1945 invasion of Japan, which military leaders believed could last into 1947.
Fortunately, the invasion never took place. All the other implements of that war — tanks and LSTs, bullets and K-rations — have long since been sold, scrapped or used up, but these medals struck for their great grandfathers’ generation are still being pinned on the chests of young soldiers.
In all, approximately 1,531,000 Purple Hearts were produced for the war effort, with production reaching its peak as the Armed Services geared up for the invasion of Japan.
—History News Network, August 9th, 2020.
FASTER, PLEASE: Israel to Complete Occupation of Gaza? “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reached a decision for the full occupation of the Gaza Strip, including operations in areas where hostages are held, a source in the Prime Minister’s Office told The Jerusalem Post on Monday. The Prime Minister’s Office conveyed the message to IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir: If this does not suit you, then you should resign.”
LIMITED TIME DEAL: OLANLY Dog Door Mat for Muddy Paws 24×16. #CommissionEarned
THAT SEEMS GOOD: The Mere Sight of a Sick Person Can Trigger Our Immune System.
THINGS YOU WEREN’T SUPPOSED TO WRITE ABOUT WHEN BIDEN WAS PRESIDENT: Dementia, Depression, and the Nuclear Button: The Shocking Reality of Mental Decline in Command.
READER FAVORITE: 4500 Sq.Ft Energy Star 2025 Dehumidifier. #CommissionEarned
DON’T GET COCKY, BUT DO ENJOY THE FLOP-SWEAT: ‘More like a blue trickle’: Dems are hoping for a blue wave that might not happen.
LEFTISM AS A NEUROSIS, EXHIBIT #1,000,006: Chicken Funerals and Watermelon Rage: The Left’s Latest Cries for Help.
READER FAVORITE: Bose QuietComfort Bluetooth Earbuds .#CommissionEarned
YET ANOTHER INJUSTICE: Biden Put This Harmless Mechanic In Prison. Now, Troy Lake Is Asking Trump for Help.
HER IDEAS ARE TERRIBLE: If Kathy Hochul’s Plan for Doing Something About Crime Was Applied Nationwide . . .