Tuesday, July 31, 2018

I think we're ready to try anything at this point

C'mon, Oregon, you can do better than this

Making demeaning comments about women is wrong - unless, I guess, you're a NeverTrumper: "Congressional Candidate Calls Melania Trump A ‘Hoe Bag’".

Gee, Mark, I wonder what kind of bag you are.

Monday, July 30, 2018

Sunday, July 29, 2018

Snake(s) in the garden

Uh oh, looks like trouble here in paradise. There's been a crime spree going on in Southport, and I didn't even notice it - probably because it was being perpetrated by the police department:
The police chief in a small Eastern North Carolina town was arrested Thursday, along with one of his lieutenants, and charged with corruption and other crimes, according to multiple news reports.

Southport Police Chief Gary Lee Smith and Lt. Michael Simmons were both charged with obtaining property by false pretense, according to Wilmington television station WWAY. Smith was also charged with obstruction of justice and willful failure to discharge the duties of his office, WWAY reported.
Hey, sounds like it must be an easy job. Since there's now an opening, maybe I'll apply, myself. But only if they let me dress like this...


Sunday funnies




Mitchell and Webb in "Grammar Nazi"...




A couple from Powerline's "The Week in Pictures":






Fetch, boy!


Trump Derangement Syndrome in strange quarters.

Friday, July 27, 2018

But...but...but...they told me he was just a kook

Paul Joseph Watson discusses the recent mass shooting in Toronto (There he goes again! Trying to convince us with facts!)

Dear California: you keep using that word "tolerance"...

...I don't think it means what you think it means: "Left Wing Mob Hurl Feces at Kosher Cafe in LA".

With tongue planted firmly in cheek...

...Mike Adams suggests sponsoring a Che Pride Week at UNC-Wilmington.

Now what?

We've had a week or more of thunder storms here in Southport, and a couple of nights ago a lighting bolt hit a neighbor's air conditioning unit and fried it (I think I can identify the particular strike; it was a deafening triple boom, like a high-powered rifle being fired three times in rapid succession).

This evening, while Mrs. Paco was discussing the weather with another neighbor, the lady mentioned a phenomenon that I've never heard of: something called "Seneca guns". They are loud booms that have no proven source, but are apparently fairly common along the eastern coast. Speculation is that they are the result of either minor seismic events or strange doings in the atmosphere. Here is some additional detail.

If this were a very recent phenomenon, I'd guess it might simply have been me firing one of my .41 Magnums with hunting loads over at Ye Olde Shooting Range, but stories of the booms go back to the mid-19th century, at least.

Happy Feet Friday

Alvino Rey was a bandleader in the 1940s whose performances bore the distinctive sound of his electric pedal guitar. He was married to Louise King, of the singing King Sisters, who frequently appeared with his band.

Here they all are with a rollicking version of "Tiger Rag".

Wednesday, July 25, 2018

Out and about in Brunswick County

The tiny town of Bolivia is the county seat of Brunswick County, and in addition to housing the headquarters for the Brunswick Sheriff's Dept. (where I picked up my concealed carry permit yesterday - Yay!), it is also home to the Brunswick County Botanical Garden, operated by the county's agricultural extension service. Mrs. Paco and I went there in hopes of identifying a plant we brought from Virginia, but the horticulturalist was baffled, although he thinks it may be something in the basswood family.

Anyhow, our main reason for going was simply to wander through the garden. It's a small, but lovely, place, very well maintained. Here are a few pics.









As Wodehouse once wrote...

...it's enough to make you think that perhaps man is not God's last word on the subject: "Santa Barbara Authorizes Jail Time for Handing Out Straws".

Watch for the emergence of powerful bootleg straw gangs, fighting tooth and nail over sucking territories.

Monday, July 23, 2018

BOLO (Silver Alert)

Update and bumped

Well, it looks like the fellows in the white coats successfully employed their extra-large butterfly nets and secured Mrs. Clinton. And, due to the kind and skilled efforts of the staff at Friendly Forest Rest Home, she has finally found herself...



Nothing like being back home, among friends (H/T: friend and commenter JeffS)...


"So, there I was, walking south along I-95, free as a bird, when these Russian agents dressed as highway patrolmen pulled over..."


Name: Hillary Clinton
Age: 70
Height: 5'3"
Weight: 195 pounds
Missing from: Friendly Forest Rest Home, Chappaqua, NY, July 22, 2018.
Circumstances surrounding disappearance: Subject reportedly fled from a paint-by-the-numbers class at aforementioned facility after ascertaining that the picture she was working on was a likeness of Donald Trump.
Description: Last seen wearing a hospital robe and colostomy bag.

If found, do not approach. Subject prone to violence. Contact local police.



(H/T: Gateway Pundit)

Saturday, July 21, 2018

Sunday funnies

Florida Man just can't catch a break: Florida man breaks into car full of cops.

For employees who are just kind of meh.

Two from Powerline's "The Week in Pictures":





For, um, music lovers: Pachelbel's Canon played on a rubber chicken.

"Lemon makes bid for freedom" (this link and the previous one via David Thompson).

Bernie Sanders demonstrates how socialism works.


Adding insult to injury:



NATO claims it's not irrelevant.


T-shirt of the week (via Bad Idea T-Shirts):



How to get your marriage off to a great start:

Friday, July 20, 2018

Dead to irony

In a recent speech, ex-president Jughead McLightworker said the following: "There’s only so much you can eat. There’s only so big a house you can have. There’s only so many nice trips you can take. I mean, it’s enough.”

I guess Barry's $8.1 million eight-bedroom, nine-and-a-half bathroom mansion is the cutoff for "enough".



"Welcome back, sir. I've laid out your heliotrope pajamas and black silk smoking jacket on the bed. Will you be wanting your usual cup of hot cocoa?"

"Yes, Jenkins, thank you. And don't forget the marshmallows, there's a good fellow."

Perfect



Via Ace and Matt's Idea Shop.

Public Enemy Number One

John Brennan.


"Careful, Paco! I'll be back in power some day!"

I believe it was friend and commenter Bruce who hilariously wrote that buried in the ground up to his neck was a good look for Brennan. Only thing missing is a pot of honey and a jar full of ants.

Looks like a meme!

Via Clash Daily: What 3 Things Do You Trust MORE Than Obama’s Intel Agents & CNN?

Happy Feet Friday

Of all the stars in the pantheon of American jazz, perhaps no one was more versatile than Benny Carter. Master of the alto saxophone, clarinet, trumpet and piano, composer, arranger, band leader and talented sideman, and ultimately a music educator, Carter was professionally active for over 60 years. Here he is, from 1946, leading his band in a performance of Rebop Boogie.

Wednesday, July 18, 2018

Socialism explained

Via The People's Cube, here's an actual attempt by a socialist to sell the system. It is bold, clear, succinct and idiotic.



As noted at the Cube, "A Progressive is someone pretending to not be a Socialist. A Socialist is someone pretending to not be a Communist. A Communist is someone pretending to not be a dangerously brutal, lying, primitive, murdering thug."

Tuesday, July 17, 2018

Et up with the dumbass

As a friend's father once said of Arab militants in the Middle East.

The newest Palestinian weapon? "Arson birds".

In the midst of all the NeverTrumpist noise...

...I always turn to Kurt Schlichter, who never disappoints:
Donald Trump goes to Europe, scandalizes the Euroweenies, libs, and cruise-shilling grifters of Never Trump, and comes back victorious. He’s about to get his second SCOTUS justice confirmed – all they have on Brett Kavanaugh is that he likes beer and is named “Brett.” In Congress, the Democrats decided to go all in on abolishing ICE because Americans love open borders and welcome MS-13 or something. In the Mueller farce, the Dems decided that the smart play was to publicly run interference for creepy weirdo Peter Strzok when he went on national TV doing his impression of Lotion Boy from Silence of the Lambs.

Hey Pete, what do those Trump voters smell like? Smells like a red wave to me, you insipid weirdo.

Out and about in Brunswick County

We had to go to the "big city" of Wilmington yesterday (to have a ceiling light rewired), and decided to take the scenic route back to Southport. State Hwy 133 is not exactly desolate, but it is thinly populated and there are sections where it's simply mile after mile of fenced-in pine plantations (owned, I believe, by some big timber company in Georgia). There are a couple of nice parks, though.

River Walk is located on the Brunswick River near the Wilmington end of Hwy 133. It's pretty substantial.



I don't know what those things in the background are (they look like giant lawn chairs). I believe they're situated at a port facility where the Brunswick River flows into the ocean.



There's also a pretty nature trail. The park is part of a larger area that was once a rice plantation.



Down the road a piece is the Brunswick County Nature Park. Man, they don't call it "low country" for nothing. I'm pretty sure I heard an alligator snoring.





We did encounter one outpost of civilization in the wilderness.



Here's a 10-second history of the settlement of Brunswick, now a colonial ghost town.



And here's some followup on one of the items mentioned above. Looks like, back in the day, some sneaky Spaniards attacked the town.



And finally...



Home again!

Monday, July 16, 2018

Purge

The Bolsheviks in the Democratic Party continue to push the Mensheviks to the wall. First, the Sandinista Barrista in New York ousts a long-term establishment donk, and now progressives in California give Diane Feinstein the bird.


"The purge is nearly complete! When Comrade Sanders wakes up from his nap, invite him to come and help us celebrate the fruits of victory!"

Sunday, July 15, 2018

Man's best friend

Certainly the soldier's best friend: "An SAS dog killed one jihadi militant and injured two others, saving a team of SAS soldiers in the process."

Meh

France won some kind of soccer thing.

Sunday funnies

Cops aren't really into splitting semantic hairs: "An inebriated motorist assured Florida police that he was not drinking while driving, but only swigging from a bottle of Jim Beam bourbon when his vehicle paused at stop signs and traffic signals".

When engineers play with their food...




Slow day at the office...





From Powerline's "The Week in Pictures"...



From the invaluable Babylon Bee: "Mexican Restaurant Under Fire For Racially Profiling White Girl, Offering Her Mild Hot Sauce".





Speaking of the Trump Baby balloon...



Saturday, July 14, 2018

The only thing lamer than Hillary Clinton...

...is her propaganda:
I used to worry that they wanted to turn the clock back to the 1950s. Now, I worry they want to turn it back to the 1850s.
That would be the Republicans who, apparently, want to return to the days of slavery.

Speaking of lame, what's going on with Nancy Pelosi? Now, I know her mental engine was never more than a puny four-cylinder, but it seems like the power train is coming apart, as well: "Speech problems mar Pelosi appearance: Says tax cut will add ‘2 children dollars more’ to deficit".

Friday, July 13, 2018

Paraskevidekatriaphobes urged to lie low today

And if you're an avid Trump hater, you might do well to hide under your bed. Don Surber relates the sad history of those who have taken on Teflon Don.

Know your gun history

The CIA-developed "DEER" pistol.

The FBI - then and now

Then (1949, agents arrest commie agent Judith Coplon):



Now (Peter Strzok, lying to Congress about his efforts to sabotage President Trump):



Update: Rebecca, in the comments...
Did you see the video of Strzok smirking and wiggling in his seat? He might as well have shouted: "Ha ha, I don't have to answer you, Nyah Nyah!" I never wanted to crawl through my screen and slap somebody so bad in all my life.
I'm with you on that, Rebecca. He looks like some snot-nosed six-year-old sassing his momma. Here's the video Rebecca's referring to.

Happy Feet Friday

Artie Shaw's swingtastic 1939 orchestra performs Diga Diga Doo.

Thursday, July 12, 2018

The Thing that Wouldn't Die



Update: Photoshop fun, featuring Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez!

Wednesday, July 11, 2018

Sometimes the commenters here are eerily in tune with fateful occurences

In a post yesterday, I linked to a Tweet that showed reporters being led by a dumpster and a painting of Hillary Clinton on their way to hear the President's announcement of his SCOTUS pick. In the comments there was this exchange:

Rebecca: "Dumpster. Hillary Clinton. How do you tell the difference?"

Veeshir: "Fewer bodies around the average dumpster?"

And what striking headline do I read today? "Dead Woman Found In Huma Abedin’s Dumpster At New York Building".

BTW, has anyone called for a wellness check on Monica Lewinsky, lately?

Good catch

Friend and commenter Deborah found the perfect distillation of anti-Trumpism:
Groucho Marx in Horsefeathers from 1932 didn't intend this for the Left, but it is applicable.

"I don't know what they have to say
It makes no difference anyway
Whatever it is, I'm against it!
No matter what it is
Or who commenced it
I'm against it!

Your proposition may be good
But let's have one thing understood
Whatever it is, I'm against it!
And even when you've changed it
Or condensed it
I'm against it!

I'm opposed to it
On general principles
I'm opposed to it!"

Haw!

Via Ace:

I say

Prime Minister Theresa May seems to have made rather a dog's breakfast of Brexit, what?

Tuesday, July 10, 2018

The close of another beautiful day

Update and bumped: Here's another nice sunset from yesterday evening.



Another great thing about our location is that we're not near any town lights, so the night-time sky is beautiful, the stars and planets and Milky Way clearly visible.


Yesterday, actually. I think some of the best sunsets are in coastal areas, because you need clouds in the sky for the reflection and refraction of light, and they are pretty much always available.



My little cell phone camera doesn't really do the scene justice, but still, pretty nice.

Snickers is now, for some reason, putting random words on their candy wrappers. Found the perfect one for me (seeing as how I'm a conservative and all):

Let the confirmation games begin

President Trump has nominated Judge Brett Kavanaugh for a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court, and he strikes me as a perfectly acceptable candidate (in his own right, and certainly in comparison to anyone Hillary Clinton would have nominated - yeah, that's right, I'm looking at you, Eric Holder). The Democrats are already covering themselves with "glory" in their determination to oppose this Trump nominee (it would have been the same, no matter who the nominee was, of course; the donks always put on their Evil Clown outfits in situations like this).

How I learned to stop worrying and love the Donald

Can you imagine Jeb Bush or Mitt Romney pulling a hilarious stunt like this?

The next best thing to tar and feathers

Priceless.

Could Hillary be thinking about another run at the White House?

Could be.

I wonder what James Woods thinks of this?

Monday, July 9, 2018

Fascinating

David Thompson's blog always has interesting stuff you're not likely to see anywhere else, and here's a good example: an interactive web site that provides historical background on a number of "phantom islands" (islands that allegedly have been seen, in some cases visited, over the past several hundred years, but of which no trace now exists).

It took me a few minutes to figure out how to navigate this thing. Make sure you're in "cruise" mode, and note the edges of the page; you'll see the names of islands and little arrows. Click on one, and the screen will take you to where the selected island was first "mapped", and you'll get a pop-up with info.

I note, with pleasure, that they have not yet stumbled across Pacovia.


Welcome to Pacovia! You're just in time for dinner."

Sunday, July 8, 2018

Sunday funnies

"I'm tellin' you, Larry, this is the only way to migrate!"




"H-e-y...wait a minute..."




Always make sure you know how to spell the name of the street you live on. Just sayin' (H/T: the excellent Small Dead Animals blog):




Important public service announcement for people living in Hawaii (H/T: Powerline's "The Week in Pictures"):




Turn that clown upside down!




I'm with Hillary: it's time to get rid of the Electrical College.


Don't have the time or the money to go to Busch Gardens this weekend? No problem (H/T: American Digest)




Millennials' odd preferences.