YGTBSM!!!

Posted on by April 16, 2026

Well, isn’t THIS just speshul!!!

Four Democrat-led states that rejected President Donald Trump’s policy of no taxes on tips and overtime pay are getting called out by Republicans for going against efforts to increase affordability.

The governors of the three largest Democrat-run states, California, New York and Illinois, are continuing to tax tips and overtime against Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, while Colorado will require taxpayers to report how much is deducted federally so it can be added back for state taxes in future years.

“Gov. Hochul and Albany Democrats believe your money is their money: They are picking the pockets of waitresses, bartenders, and first responders who work overtime just to make ends meet in a state that already has the highest tax burden in the country,” Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., told Fox News Digital.

Full article, HERE from Fox News.

Soooo, the four states that are hard up for money, and chasing out their richest people are doing exactly what we’ve been warned about…

They are coming for the middle class, the little people, and anywhere they think they can get money.

Do you need any other reason to leave California, New York, Illinois, or Colorado???

Or are you waiting until they pass the ‘exit tax’ laws so they can squeeze you on the way out???

Just asking…

 

TBT…

Posted on by April 15, 2026

Sigh… The things one ‘finds’ when you move…

Anybody remember these?

Back in the day

Aluminium travel cups that somehow migrated into the house and became the ‘kids’ cups…

And how many of us old farts had one of these?

Back in the day transistor radio

It’s a Sony no less! And I seem to remember it cost something like $4 bucks… AM only…

Or had one of these? I bought one in the 90s and was still using it in 2014…

And one more…

Hand cranked ice cream in the summer… Kids ARE good for something if they know they get to lick the beaters… LOL

back in the day hand cranked ice cream

Posted in TBT

It’s on now…

Posted on by April 14, 2026

The US Navy (by itself) is blockading Iran…

No ship entered or exited Iranian ports during the first 24 hours of a sweeping U.S. maritime blockade, in an operation involving more than 10,000 troops and over a dozen warships, U.S. Central Command said Tuesday.

The move places U.S. forces at the center of a key global shipping route after President Donald Trump on Sunday said the U.S. Navy would blockade the Strait of Hormuz, a maritime corridor through which much of the world’s oil shipments flow.

Full article, HERE from Military Times.

And the Saudis have the East/West pipeline from  Abqaiq oil field to Yanbu up and pumping 7 million barrels a day across Saudi Arabia to the Red Sea. Now the question is, what will the Houthis do???

One other thing to note is that the Iranians ‘revised’ path through the Straits of Hormuz was basically through Iranian standoff (and shallower water) after they said they mined the straits.

As of yesterday 14 Apr, there was no indication of any actual mines in the straits, and the US had pushed two DDGs through without a problem. Yes, there are mine warfare vessels on the way, but they are NOT fast…

The Chinese did push one ship (type unknown) out of the straits, but I don’t know what the actual response has been after it was turned back the first time. More info HERE from USNI.

Now we have to wait and see what happens next. The question is, who will blink first???

Two down…

Posted on by April 13, 2026

How many more to go? And I have to ask, are their egos really that big that they think they are untouchable???

Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, abruptly announced his decision to resign from Congress Monday evening amid calls for him to step aside after admitting to sexual misconduct with a staffer earlier this year.

The embattled lawmaker was facing an anticipated expulsion vote that could have occurred as early as this week. 

His announcement came just an hour after Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., said he planned to resign from the lower chamber amid serious allegations of sexual misconduct and rape.

Full article, HERE from Fox News.

With Swalwell and Gonzales resigning from Congress, is it time for Cherfilus-McCormick (D-FL) and Cory Mills (R-FL) to follow suit?

The House Ethics committee have already done an investigation on Cherfilus-McCormick supposedly guilty of 25 infractions of House rules. Mills also has some sexual issues apparently…

Congressional approval remains at roughly 15-16%, so maybe it’s time they actually DID some house cleaning. They definitely need it, IMHO!

The other thing Swalwell has done is drop out of the California gubernatorial race, which will help the Dems out there, as right now, the two leaders in the ‘jungle primary’ are both Republicans. Since only the top two go to the November election, there is a very real possibility that NO Dem would be on the ballot for governor…snerk…

Talk about hoist on their own petard!!!

A little humor…

Posted on by April 12, 2026

Since taxes are due this week…

Ambition in America is still rewarded . . . with high taxes.

America is the land of opportunity. Everybody can become a taxpayer.

If my business gets much worse, I won’t have to lie on my next tax return.

Congress has the job of getting the people to pay taxes they can’t afford for services they don’t need.

Golf is a lot like taxes. You drive hard to get to the green and then wind up in the hole.

The income tax has made more liars out of the American people than golf.

I must admit I lied on my income-tax return. I listed myself as head of the household!

A harp is a piano after taxes.

You really can’t beat the system. If you earn anything, it’s minus taxes. If you buy anything it’s plus taxes.

Why does a slight tax increase cost you two hundred dollars and a substantial tax cut save you thirty cents?
+++++++++++++

TAXPAYER’S LAMENT

Tax his cow, Tax his goat;
Tax his pants, Tax his coat;
Tax his crop, Tax his work;
Tax his ties, Tax his shirt;

Tax his chew, Tax his smoke;
Teach him taxing is no joke.
Tax his tractor, Tax his mule;
Tell him, Taxing is the rule.

Tax his oil, Tax his gas;
Tax his notes, Tax his cash.
Tax him good and let him know,
That after taxes, he has no dough.

If he hollers, Tax him more;
Tax him till he’s good and sore.
Tax his coffin, Tax his grave,
Tax his sod in which he’s laid.

Put these words upon his tomb,
“Taxes drove him to his doom.”
After he’s gone, we won’t relax,
We’ll still collect inheritance tax.
++++++++++

A couple of weeks after hearing a sermon on Psalms 51:2-4 and Psalms 52:3-4 (lies and deceit), a man wrote the following letter to the IRS:

I have been unable to sleep, knowing that I have cheated on my income tax. I understated my taxable income, and have enclosed a check for $150.00.

Sincerely,
A Guilty Taxpayer

P. S. If I still can’t sleep, I will send the rest.

Dang it…

Posted on by April 11, 2026

Sigh, R&D doesn’t always go perfectly…

NASA’s X-59 experimental aircraft, part of the “Quesst” (Quiet Supersonic Technology) mission, conducted its second flight on the morning of Friday, March 20. The flight was scheduled to spend roughly one hour in the air, but was abruptly canceled after a cockpit warning. It returned to the ground at 11:03 a.m. PST, roughly 10 minutes after takeoff.

In spite of the flight’s short duration, NASA engineers praised it, claiming that they had been able to collect valuable data that would help in subsequent flights.

The X-59 aircraft, designed to test supersonic flight without a sonic boom, is intended to pioneer an aviation breakthrough that would lift sound-related restrictions on supersonic travel.

Full article, HERE from the National Interest Organization blog.

It is definitely an ‘odd’ looking test article, but…

Even more interesting is that the pilot has zero forward visibility! He is dependant on cameras to be able to see foward. Shades of Charles Lindbergh!!!

A lot of the design work and math behind it are focused on ‘softening’ the crack of the sonic boom as it moves across the ground. If you’ve ever heard them, they are rather distinctive, and an oddity of the space shuttle was that it actually created two sonic booms from different parts of the airframe.

The long nose is supposed to ‘break up’ the boom, and the design of the tail is supposed to focus the noise ‘upward’, rather than down at the surface. Of course, the ‘seating’ would be a tad cramped, assuming there was a second seat, which there is not…

But if the math works, there are folks who would be very interested in upscaling the tech to a full sized aircraft capable of carrying passengers. The Concorde was the last true supersonic passenger transport, and even as big as it was, the ‘tube’ was extremely small, with only 100 seats total, in a 2×2 arrangement and very small overhead storage. And they were approximately $6000 one way from New York to London or vice versa but that was a three hour trip! Thank you

Heritage Concorde com helicopter

Who knows what it will cost when/if this new tech proves out? Or when it will be flying?

I know I probably will NOT be able to afford a ticket, nor do I really see a need to visit London…

I guess what I’m saying is that R&D isn’t quick, nor easy, nor does it always work out. So if, big if, they can make it work, so much the better. If not, well, lessons will be learned…

 

Whew…

Posted on by April 10, 2026

Welp, they made it back 1707 PDT!

I think a lot of us holding our breath can now breathe!

Now comes the debrief and the technical look at the systems…

Whew…

I just…

Posted on by April 9, 2026

Don’t understand the mentality that can do this…

The FBI arrested Courtney Williams, 40, of Wagram, North Carolina yesterday and a federal grand jury indicted her today in connection with her alleged transmission of classified national defense information to individuals not authorized to receive it, including a journalist (the Journalist). Williams allegedly violated 18 U.S.C. § 793(d).

“Clearance holders accept a solemn obligation to protect the classified information entrusted to them,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “That they do so is critical to the security of our Nation. When clearance holders violate that trust, the National Security Division will act swiftly to hold them accountable.”

“We trust our war fighting individuals to cooperate as a team to protect our military and country,” said U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina Ellis Boyle. “We will pursue criminal charges to keep these warriors safe whenever we find leakers exalting their own feelings over the safety of the United States.”

Full article, HERE from DOJ OPA website.

I guess the real irony is the ‘journalist’ is the one that outed her in the article, by name…

She had TS/SCI clearance, and had signed Nondisclosure Agreements (NDAs), which include wording that distribution of ANY of those documents or other things are prosecutable…

So why did she do this for four years??? Was it money? Pissed off at the Army???

WHY???

I cannot fathom anyone doing this, much less to the actual people she worked with every day. I only hope she is convicted and sent to jail for MANY years.

TBT…

Posted on by April 8, 2026

Anybody recognize these???

fuses

Back in the day before ‘breakers’ these were what you had in your house…

They weren’t called FUSE boxes for nothing…LOL

And an ’emergency’ fuse was a real copper penny! As a high school kid, I helped a friend’s grandpa restore a couple of old houses, including rewiring them. We were pulling out CLOTH wrapped wire that dated from the early 20th century, and fuse boxes where you could literally see the burn marks inside the box from fuses arcing as they’d blown over the years…

I’m still amazed those houses hadn’t burned to the ground over the years…

Especially with ‘this’ wiring…

Creative Commons CC-BY-SA-3.0-migrated

Known as knob and tube, it consisted of ceramic knobs were cylindrical and generally nailed directly into the wall studs or joists. The knob was used to secure and anchor the wire, seperating the wire from potentially combustible framework, and ensured that wires were not subject to excessive tension. Because the wires were suspended in air, they could dissipate heat well.

Ceramic tubes were inserted into holes bored in wall studs or floor joists, and the wires were directed through them. This kept the wires from coming into contact with the wood framing members and from being compressed by the wood as the house settled.

OBTW, the ‘maximum’ safe current was no more than ten amps with knob and tube, and the wires were cloth wrapped in most cases…

Today, it’s not unusual to see 30 amp up to 50 amp circuits in homes…

Posted in TBT

This one…

Posted on by April 7, 2026

Bothers me a lot…

Australian authorities have arrested and charged the country’s most decorated living soldier, Ben Roberts-Smith, 47, with five war crime murders allegedly committed during the war in Afghanistan.

Roberts-Smith, a former member of the Australian Defence Force, was arrested at Sydney Airport on Tuesday. His arrest has sparked outcry from a former Australian prime minister, who argued its unfair to judge the actions of “men in mortal combat by the standards of ordinary civilian life.” X owner Elon Musk also weighed in on the arrest, calling it “insane.”

The Australian Federal Police and the Office of the Special Investigator said Roberts-Smith is being charged in connection with the killings of five unarmed Afghans in three separate incidents between 2009 and 2012. AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett alleged that Roberts-Smith either killed the unarmed Afghans himself or instructed a subordinate to kill them. If convicted, Roberts-Smith faces life imprisonment on each charge.

Full article, HERE from Fox News.

It’s enough to make one wonder ‘what’ is the real point? Is this somebody out to ‘get’ Roberts-Smith, or something else? Supposedly, the investigation was started in 2017, so 8 years after the fact???

By lawyers who weren’t there, and who made the original complaint and why 8 years later, rather than at the time???

Of interest is the comment from the investigator that “We don’t have access to the crime scenes, we don’t have photographs, site plans, measurements, the recovery of projectiles, blood spatter analysis, all of those things we would normally get at a crime scene.”

What are they basing the investigation on then? The recall of people that were there? What was the ROE at the time, the specific orders given to Roberts-Smith and/or his bosses?

This kinda reminds me of the BS ROE our folks had to put up with where if the bad guys didn’t have guns in their hands, they couldn’t be shot, even after they had been observed shooting at our folks. And the lawyers wanting to know if any ‘children’ had been harmed.

Not that I ever saw anything defining what a child was… In a part of the world where children were routinely used as lookouts, trigger people, suicide bombers, etc.

Thankfully, I was not there and never had to make one of those decisions, but I knew folks that were and did.

And where does this leave Roberts-Smith? Even if he’s found not guilty, he is ‘tainted’ with the accusations, VC or not.

Sigh…