Monday 07 October 2024 11:20:26 PM CDT


Thursday 03 October 2024 11:23:59 AM CDT

Edgar Rice Burroughs was born in the 19th century and began his writing barely into the 20th. Even then the idea of a hollow earth wasn't seriously considered by scientists and enough was known about Mars to make his Martian stories improbable but they were a lot of fun. The Tarzan concept has been given serious consideration as to plausibility but it's just good entertainment to fans. I often compare the life and writing of ERB and Robert E. Howard and the only similarity is their quality as good adventure stories. Howard's prehistoric world was based on the real history of several thousand years ago and he doesn't much indulge in humor. Burroughs slips in little bits like that and he has some humorous characters and situations in most of his books.

Most are fairly quick reads if you have an evening free now and then. Recommended are obviously Tarzan with the Mars books close behind. The Pellucidar series (he actually has Tarzan visit Pellucidar) and Moon series are also worth a look.

Some of the paperbacks from the 70s and 80s have Frazetta covers - those are nice. A few movies based on Burroughs works are worth watching. The recent ones (early 2000s) are about what I expected. The ones from the 70s based on the Caspak series (forgot to mention that one) and the first Pelludidar book are fun. Doug McClure, Patrick Wayne, Carolyn Munro and Peter Cushing are some of the actors - I liked Peter a lot in the Hammer films and had a crush on Sarah Douglas.

Alright, enough culture. Lessee what passes for news in our little corner of Arkansas.

Pretty minor crime so far, dunno how come people can be so dumb. If nothing else I was always terrified of going to prison to break any laws. Got one speeding ticket and decided I didn't want any more so I didn't exceed the speed limit any more. Got three more tickets though - one was in Forrest City and they would look for cars that looked like they were from out of town and give them tickets for stuff. Improper lane usage - whatever that is. It wasn't the passing lane on the highway either. Anyhow I got a ticket in Tennesee after driving through three traps on I-40 with the cruise on 70 and they never gave me a second look. Fourth one wrote me for going exactly ten over. Funny how that works. I checked the speedo and it was near dead on. Why I avoid cops no matter what, just don't want anything to do with them.

Much as this was going on when I was in high school I'm guessing only about .2% of them get caught. Wasn't as much female teachers doing it back then - not with boys anyway - but the coaches and a couple of teachers was getting with it. Funny thing was it was common knowledge back then too and nobody got arrested.

A rapper went to sleep driving around Memphis the other day. So many rappers - or hip-hop 'artists' - it's hard to know if one is important or not. I guess the one that got kilt here and they had the trial for the killers was important, but did getting kilt make him more important? Anyhow this dude got arrested. Then they named a couple of streets after some local rappers:

"Across this country when they talk about Memphis, they're gonna mention Elvis, but they're also gonna mention 8ball and MJG," said Memphis City Council Chairman JB Smiley.
Um, no. Don't think so.
The rap moguls were honored over the weekend in their hometown of Memphis and, best of all, in the community they grew up in, Orange Mound.
Usually when Orange Mound is in the news it's somebody getting kilt there.

The trial over the police beating death in Memphis has gone to the jury. In other news my best girl just called and asked if I wanted to do Mexican for dinner. I'd been thinking about pizza but OK, es bueno.

Friday 04 October 2024 09:32:19 AM CDT

Well, my first thought was ... nevermind. By the time we got back the verdict had already been announced. I had figured on the jury taking a couple of days if the court was buying meals. Don't know if that was the case or what kind of jurors they had. Maybe they wanted to get it over quick. Anyhow they convicted them of obstruction only except one who got obstruction and conspiracy. Who did he conspire with? Not the other two unless... whatever.

What, Chris?

No, haven't seen any pics of the jurors. No video interviews either.

What happens in the state trial remains to be seen. I didn't consider whether prosecution really wanted any convictions. Maybe wanted to be seen as doing something.

Someone or other finally got around to updating the chase from Mississippi County over into Jonesboro. No word on what kind of car the gray car driven by the perp was. Couldn't tell from the pic if the police car was a Charger or not. The cops use them a lot since the Caprice and Crown Vic ain't available any more. Back in the day a guy got the cops after him and if it was the city or county boys they'd stop at the county line and if the cops in the next county weren't advised to catch him he'd be home free. Knew a guy that tried it in Forrest City one night and didn't make it to the line. He was a no-good type but rich family and they bailed him out pronto and all he got was a 30-day license suspension. He was raised the way Johnny Boins was but sadly has thus far escaped coming to a bad end. Anyway from the looks of the cop car took some damage as can happen when you do that.

Whether it's a key of weed or twenty pounds of meth mailing it to yourself ain't smart. Good thing there aren't many smart criminals or we law-abiding types would be in trouble.

Of course the smart criminals are the ones you don't hear about because most don't get caught. Knew one or two back in the day - one of them died young anyway because he liked riding motorcyles and one rainy day became a statistic. Good kid if you overlook the law-breaking that didn't harm innocent people.

Seems the FBI shot a dude dead over in Mississippi. At a Super 8 motel doesn't sound like a hit on a dissident. That was the ATF anyway but sometimes they gang up for these things. Perhaps more information will be forthcoming, perhaps not.



Saturday 05 October 2024 11:42:29 AM CDT

Seems he judge that had a domestic issue and got arrested got someone doesn't want him doing any judging. His behavior as described seems to indicate he might have some kind of problem with alcohol or something but you got people doing bad stuff - worse stuff - that don't have their fitness to serve questioned. That judge that molested young male offenders and took nekkid pics of them was a pretty sick puppy and people knew about that for decades. I knew about it over twenty years....

What, Chris?

No, I wasn't one of them. I never got caught offending at any age. Knew a guy who knew a couple of guys who were victims and they talked. It got around good that long ago and nobody did anything. Knew some of.... nevermind. Long as you don't get exposed it's all good.

You can generally find that some study or other has found about anything you want a study to find. That's why they do studies, whoever they is. Sometimes a supposedly reliable source like Forbes or Scientific American (SA is about anything but reliable these days) or this or this. These are clickbait articles that are about as scientific as Scientific American on their better days. That's why when I read them I sanitize them so they don't get any ad revenue, or none to speak of.

Both articles are from Consumer Affairs. The one about Memphis had just one Arkansas city - Little Rock - and it's way down the list. Since Little Rock is the worst of Arkansas population-wise that's where most of the bad driving is. I can believe that Memphis is bad - you see cars without windshields on the interstate and I ain't getting off to see what it's like on the streets. And since a good percentage of the cars are not only stolen but driven by unlicensed (often underaged) drivers it ain't a good scene. Of course being shot at doesn't improve the experience.

Slow Sadderday afternoon in and out of the house doing a little yard work and snoozing occasionally. Watching a couple of concert videos featuring the late John Wetton. Sadly he left us too soon but technology has preserved a few of those treasures. Just now I'm watching a set from 2009. John and Asia bandmate Geoff Downes assembled a group of wonderful musicians to perform some Asia, Wetton-Downes, King Crimson and other songs. You can read about them there but I must mention the lovely Anne-Marie Helder (Panic Room) who does some duets with John who was always solo with Asia.



Sunday 06 October 2024 16:12:49 AM CDT

It's early for weekend crime so what we got? Been neglecting the Jonestown paper - actually I haven't but there's been nothing worth mentioning. A Cal Thomas column up there now is pretty good. Memphis just has Memphis stuff. KAIT has a couple of items about local people going to help out with the hurricane recovery. They need all the help they can get - the government is trying to make it worse by keeping aid out and coming right out and saying they hope it will help the dims win North Carolina. Those are some evil people.

Governor Sanders has ordered flags at half-mast on the anniversary of the muslim attack on Israel a year ago. Wonder what kind of reaction that will get.



Monday 07 October 2024 18:22:39 AM CDT

Only dead person found - don't know how he got that way but there was window believed to have been shot out in the house where they found him. One source said there was a domestic disturbance call and another person (alive) was there. Guess they'll come up with something eventually. More people piling on the judge that got drunk. Well one more person sending a whole bunch of letters to people. One of those, whaddyacallem, people that make a career of working for outfits funded with opium - whether taxpayers or donations. Checked her LinkedIn resume:

Executive Director
..............................
Aug 2024 - Present · 3 mos


Finance Director
..............................
Nov 2023 - Aug 2024 · 10 mos


Homeless Programs Director 10 mos
..............................
May 2022 - Nov 2023 · 1 yr 7 mos


Independent Consultant 1 yr 7 mos
Jul 2021 - Dec 2021 · 6 mos
Dunno about the judge. Pretty bad behavior for somebody in that position but whether it should disqualify him... not like he embezzled or child-molested like that other judge. It might be he'll clean up his act and if he don't he won't get elected again. He won't, will he? Will he? Just kidding.

Okey-dokey, the District 1 candidates for Congress debated. Two of them anyway - said incumbent Rick Crawford wasn't there as they didn't receive a response in a timely manner. Not that it matters as he'll win anyhow. This was the Democrat and the Libertarian. Liberterians are like a box of chocolates so you never know what will show up, the dim will be a dim and he'll bash the Republican but there wasn't a Republican so they talked about other stuff. Just a few here:

Both candidates were asked how they would improve broadband access to rural communities.

"What I want to do is for every dollar that goes into a corporate subsidy to the AT&T's and to the Comcasts of the world, I require that you take $0.25 of that dollar and go into a town of less than 5,000 people and build adequate broadband," Govens said.

Parsons said increasing broadband access should be like starting a company, and that the state already had two of three necessary things to expand this access: power and telephone lines.

"You need broadband and that can be scarce, especially when going through the delta. So, let's go ahead and expand and do exactly what I've been doing. We know how to implement these processes correctly so that we can go ahead and enjoy the fruits of the very labor that we've been putting in for decades." (Arkansas Right Now)

With the ignorance of almost all politicians on just about everything they may actually believe there are people somewhere who don't have 'broadband access'. My place in Cross County ain't even in a town of any size and the nearest thing to a town is fivesix miles away. Got TWO gig fibers going by from two companies - one on the poles and one underground. And a couple of 5G phones. And the welfare people and illegals get free phones paid for by me.

I'm guessing that if you tax AT&T or Comcast or anyone else at 25% they'll be out of business pretty quick whatever you used the money for.

What else? The dim would like rent control, the lib favored capitalism. They usually do but like I said, you never know who they'll put out there. The dim was in favor of letting the student loan deadbeats off. The old maternal care thing - let's look at a map of the first district - hospitals in Craighead, Cross, St. Francis, Lawrence, Independence... that's nowhere near all of them. I don't know of any hospitals that don't do babies - I've hear of hospitals doing away with their OBGYN but haven't heard of one in Arkansas. Arkansas does have some people not well off in having health care and food stores in their vicinity but not so much in the first district. Even if you're in Earle or Parkin you can go to Wynne where they got doctors and a hospital and clinics and stuff.

Time to close this one. Catchalater.






























































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There seemed nothing to do but stand supinely and await my end. I thought of Perry -- how he would wonder what had become of me. I thought of my friends of the outer world, and of how they all would go on living their lives in total ignorance of the strange and terrible fate that had overtaken me, or unguessing the weird surroundings which had witnessed the last frightful agony of my extinction. And with these thoughts came a realization of how unimportant to the life and happiness of the world is the existence of any one of us. We may be snuffed out without an instant's warning, and for a brief day our friends speak of us with subdued voices. The following morning, while the first worm is busily engaged in testing the construction of our coffin, they are teeing up for the first hole to suffer more acute sorrow over a sliced ball than they did over our, to us, untimely demise. At The Earth's Core Edgar Rice Burroughs
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Twisted Mentat 48 minutes ago Not that I expect an acquittal or even a hung jury but if there was would there be riots? It is by will alone I set my mind in motion. It is by the juice of Sapho that thoughts acquire speed, the lips acquire stains, the stains become a warning. It is by will alone I set my mind in motion. Reply +4 Goldry Bluszco 32 minutes ago Some people need no excuse. It was pittie one so wittie malcontent, leaving reason should to treason so be bent. Reply HG Belushi Speedball 22 minutes ago That's for sure. Those who are inclined to suffer fools gladly should plan to spend a lot of time suffering. Reply HG Sinanju Master 30 minutes ago Since there are no whites involved I would guess not but you never know. Maybe some agitators will try to stir things up for that reason. Before you can learn anything, you must know what you are studying Reply oG
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Twisted Mentat 41 minutes ago Verdicts announced in Tyre Renvcnntatss (iene nt Thad expected them to convict them of something serious. Isn't not being beaten to death a civil right? It is by will alone I set my mind in motion. It is by the juice of Sapho that thoughts acquire speed, the lips acquire stains, the stains become a warning. It is by will alone I set my mind in motion. Reply +4 Jawbreaker 30 minutes ago Without knowing the makeup of the jury I wouldn't try to guess. Some might have just not cared what they do to each other. And all the pressure that's been building up, For all the years it bore the load, The cracks appear, the frame starts to distort, It's ready to explode. Reply oG Mandroid 12 minutes ago Depends on who's doing the beating I suppose. Don't expect normal in Memphis. Electric eye, in the sky, Feel my stare, always there, There's nothing you can do about it, Develop and expose, I feed upon your every thought, And so my power grows.
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DePloraBelle 48 minutes ago flags to half-staff to mourn lives Will there be a lawsuit or just a rant in the Arkansas Times? What difference, at this point, does it make? Reply +3 Rosetta Stoned 32 minutes ago I'm sure the usual suspects will have something to say. Fanaticism consists in redoubling your efforts when you have forgotten your aim. ~ George Santayana Reply +1(4+]-) Remo Williams 16 minutes ago LecternGate 2.0? That's the biz sweetheart. Reply 0 )
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