Category: Geezer Alert!

TSO’s posts prompted this! I reckon if he can belittle (SAVAGES!) us for our answers to his poll I can post this:

One of the most difficult concepts to communicate, for me anyway, is that I can admire the vocal skill and emotive chops of an opera star… BUT I still wouldn’t walk across the street to SEE an opera.

Ballet dancers can do amazingly beautiful physical feats, BUT I have no interest in seeing a full ballet either.

Like TSO I can admire a single athlete (although not quite with same  fervor) without being interested in the team or sport.

My point? Imagine if pro sports or the opera adopted a sort of “Radical Islamic Method” for dealing with potential fans?

Don’t wear the correct team t-shirt or fall asleep during the third act and….

I kinda feel like that when I’m called a “SAVAGE” for having differing tastes.

Aside: This is an attempt at humor. I you don’t GET IT I won’t be calling YOU a “SAVAGE”.

With the influx of possibly bad intentioned/diseased  illegal immigrants  from down south AND talk of actually bringing Ebola patients HERE for treatment there are rumors that there may be worse to come!!!!

This cute little critter has been mentioned among some groups as the perfect pet for those with allergies to cats and dogs.  Justification for importing this sweet little thing is that domestic pets have ALWAYS had more primitive and dangerous ancestors, so it will become tame/housebroken if we only give it a chance.  Apparently this is the current logic?

Imagine waking up with this cutie sleeping on yer head.

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The article that spurred this kinda sad attempt at satire is here, All things considered it really ain’t satire to see the uproar from some groups if this ever came into question. And it does mention puppies.

Saw this AP story and fought off a brief episode of paranoia to wonder why he would NOT be calling out Homeland Defense, and/or the CDC or any of the myriad Federal agencies actually tasked with this sort of thing?

I kinda assumed he was talking about CONUS before reality hit? But no…

“WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama on Thursday authorized the Pentagon to call up reserve and National Guard troops if they are needed to assist in the U.S. response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.”

Mind you he apparently didn’t consider extra funding for  WHO or other international health organization? So some shoe salesman from Anywhere, USA could be sent to Africa?

Read Hondo’s post about Global Warming with some concerns.

Then I discovered that SecDef Hagel and the Brass Hats are taking care of it.

“We’re seeing the impacts” from global warming across Army facilities, said Katharine Hammack, assistant Army secretary for Installations. “Wildfires, changes in precipitation, and increased extreme weather events are growing in frequency and intensity,” Hammack said at the Association of the U.S. Army’s annual conference in Washington, D.C.

I always kinda thought the old dictum of “Adapt and Overcome” applied to our military in general? I am REALLY glad to know The Brass is concerned enough to spend millions on  important stuff like:

“The alternative financing is absolutely essential,” said Lt. Gen. Thomas Bostwick, head of the Army Corps of Engineers.

Bostwick pointed to several base projects to save energy – a solar wall for heating buildings at Fort Drum, New York; a ground source heating pump at Fort Carson, Colorado; and solar hot water panels at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington.”

Yeah, that’ll be better than spending the money on foul weather gear, better all weather vehicles, etc.

Aside: the other branches ARE doing the same indeed, I didn’t single out The Army.

Pushing the TAH limits, I’m afraid.

I keep seeing this story during my routine “News” scans during the day.

Mind you,  my interest is sketchy at best, but I hadda bring it up here to be filed under “curious”  as to what you lot might have to say.

I’ve been trying to find another single instance where ANYONE would say this sort of stuff about a sitting President… No joy.  I expanded my Google-Fu efforts to include sitting politicians of any ilk?

Okay: If you missed it…

“You’re so handsome that I can’t speak properly,” the actress, singer and food writer gushed after introducing Obama to several hundred supporters seated on white fold-out chairs in the lush backyard of her home in the movie star haven of Brentwood, a neighborhood in Los Angeles.

I don’t get it, but this erudite lot might fill in the blanks for me?

With acknowledgements  to H. G. Wells.

I’ll offer that, at least, 80% of the jobs on US Navy ships could practically be performed by robots…At least until something breaks – for now anyway.

This story certainly demonstrates a step down that road: “Navy’s Self-Guided, Unmanned Patrol Boats Make Debut“, There is more at Navy.mil

One key paragraph from the ABC story that struck me:

“The rigid-hull inflatable patrol boats can also fire .50 caliber machine guns if called upon to do so. However, a human will always be the one to make the decision to use lethal force, officials said. A sailor on a command ship would be in charge of each of the unmanned boats and could take control over any of the boats at any moment. And if communication between the unmanned boats and the sailor overseeing them were ever broken, the boat would automatically shut down.”

All you Ex-Swabbies imagine reporting aboard the USS Commander Data AND reporting to a darkened hole in the ground for General Quarters?

On a day when bad news abounds, there IS a glimmer of hope.

Beer flavonoid may boost brain power!

As a diabetic I have to be careful,  BUT who didn’t know that beer boosted brain power anyways?

There IS a caveat in the article: “While hops are the only dietary source of the rare compound, it would require drinking 2,000 liters of beer— or 5,636 bottles of beer— for a person to get the same effect.

Gonna take some math and scheduling to make this work… Oh wait! Just need more beer.