WTH???

Posted on by July 30, 2024

Ford is trying to patent a way for its cars to report speeding drivers to the police.

A patent application from the automaker titled “Systems and Methods for Detecting Speeding Violations” was published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Jul. 18 2024, and was originally filed by Ford Jan. 12, 2023.

Full article and diagrams, HERE from Motor Authority.

As Steve reported, “In the application, Ford discusses using cars to monitor each other’s speeds. If one car detects that a nearby vehicle is being driven above the posted limit, it could use onboard cameras to photograph that vehicle. A report containing both speed data and images of the targeted vehicle could then be sent directly to a police car or roadside monitoring units via an Internet connection, according to Ford. Using vehicles for speed surveillance would make cops’ jobs easier, as they wouldn’t have to quickly identify speeding violations and take off in pursuit, Ford notes in the application. It also means some of that work could be delegated to self-driving cars, which could be equipped to detect speeding violations, the automaker adds…

Ford has also tried to patent a “night drive mode” that would limit vehicle speeds at night for everyone — including first responders.”

We discussed this on the livestream yesterday, and one of the many ‘issues’ noted were the requirement for LEOs to actually observe the infraction. There were others…

That segued into a discussion over police use of license plate readers (originally ‘sold’ for finding stolen vehicles/BOLO vehicles) to what is out there today with the ALPS (Automated License Plate Scan) system, which allows a single database to be used for an entire area! Among other things, this could lead to ‘geofencing’ of individuals based on their daily driving habits, etc. With ‘modern’ (e.g. 2019-2020 or later) vehicles upload their GPS tracking to the vehicle’s manufacturer, they could also use that approach (an oddity of that system, if the vehicle is out of range of cell towers for ‘some’ amount of time, it will shut down the vehicle’s computer to disable the vehicle).

Per Steve, some loggers in Oregon discovered that when their ‘new’ Ford truck stopped working, was towed, & started working again, once it was within cell tower range so it could “phone home”.

Soooo, when Ford implements this crap, any bets on who the Michigan State Police will go to for vehicles? Toyota? Honda? Or???

 

Legacy???

Posted on by July 29, 2024

Is ‘this’ what the Dems really want as Xiden’s legacy?

President Joe Biden on Monday called the U.S. Supreme Court “extreme” as he detailed his proposal for sweeping changes, including limiting justices to 18-year terms, during a speech to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act at the Lyndon B. Johnson Library in Austin.

Biden unveiled his plan for Supreme Court reform, which also included an enforceable ethics code for the nine justices, in an op-ed in The Washington Post on Monday. He also called on Congress to pass a constitutional amendment to limit presidential immunity.

Full article, HERE from the Texas Tribune, since I don’t have a WAPO subscription and the Oped is behind a paywall.

Welp, ‘personally’, I think the constitutional amendment is DOA, but if the dems get control of the entire congress, the other two could very well pass, as long as 2/3 vote is not required.

But I cannot help but wonder if something like this is what they want as his legacy as he goes out the door. I know it’s not going to be ‘good’ anyway, but damn…

A little humor…

Posted on by July 25, 2024

To start the week!

An oldie from Hollywood Squares…

These great questions and answers are from the days when ‘ Hollywood Squares’ game show responses were spontaneous, not scripted. Peter Marshall was the host asking the questions, of course… 

Q.. Paul, what is a good reason for pounding meat? 

A. Paul Lynde: Loneliness! 

(The audience laughed so long and so hard it took up almost 15 minutes of the show!) 

Q. Do female frogs croak? 

A. Paul Lynde: If you hold their little heads under water long enough. 

Q. If you’re going to make a parachute jump, at least how high should you be? 

A. Charley Weaver: Three days of steady drinking should do it. 

Q. True or False, a pea can last as long as 5,000 years. 

A. George Gobel: Boy, it sure seems that way sometimes. 

Q. You’ve been having trouble going to sleep. Are you probably a man or a woman? 

A.. Don Knotts: That’s what’s been keeping me awake. 

Q. According to Cosmopolitan, if you meet a stranger at a party and you think that he is attractive, is it okay to come out and ask him if he’s married? 

A.. Rose Marie: No wait until morning. 

Q. Which of your five senses tends to diminish as you get older? 

A. Charley Weaver: My sense of decency. 

Q. In Hawaiian, does it take more than three words to say ‘I Love You’? 

A. Vincent Price: No, you can say it with a pineapple and a twenty. 

Q. What are ‘Do It,’ ‘I Can Help,’ and ‘I Can’t Get Enough’? 

A. George Gobel: I don’t know, but it’s coming from the next apartment. 

Q. As you grow older, do you tend to gesture more or less with your hands while talking? 

A. Rose Marie: You ask me one more growing old question Peter, and I’ll give you a gesture you’ll never forget. 

Q. Paul, why do Hell’s Angels wear leather? 

A. Paul Lynde: Because chiffon wrinkles too easily. 

Q.. Charley, you’ve just decided to grow strawberries. Are you going to get any during the first year? 

A.. Charley Weaver: Of course not, I’m too busy growing strawberries. 

Q. In bowling, what’s a perfect score? 

A. Rose Marie: Ralph, the pin boy. 

Q. It is considered in bad taste to discuss two subjects at nudist camps.. One is politics, what is the other? 

A. Paul Lynde: Tape measures. 

Q. During a tornado, are you safer in the bedroom or in the closet? 

A. Rose Marie: Unfortunately Peter, I’m always safe in the bedroom. 

Q. Can boys join the Camp Fire Girls? 

A.. Marty Allen: Only after lights out. 

Q. When you pat a dog on its head he will wag his tail. What will a goose do? 

A. Paul Lynde: Make him bark? 

Q. If you were pregnant for two years, what would you give birth to? 

A. Paul Lynde: Whatever it is, it would never be afraid of the dark. 

Q. According to Ann Landers, is there anything wrong with getting into the habit of kissing a lot of people? 

A. Charley Weaver: It got me out of the army. 

Q. It is the most abused and neglected part of your body, what is it? 

A. Paul Lynde: Mine may be abused, but it certainly isn’t neglected. 

Q. Back in the old days, when Great Grandpa put horseradish on his head, what was he trying to do? 

A. George Gobel: Get it in his mouth. 

Q. Who stays pregnant for a longer period of time, your wife or your elephant? 

A. Paul Lynde: Who told you about my elephant? 

Q. When a couple have a baby, who is responsible for its sex? 

A.. Charley Weaver: I’ll lend him the car, the rest is up to him. 

Q. Jackie Gleason recently revealed that he firmly believes in them and has actually seen them on at least two occasions. What are they?

A. Charley Weaver: His feet. 

Q.. According to Ann Landers, what are two things you should never do in bed? 

A. Paul Lynde: Point and laugh. 

Plotting…

Posted on by July 28, 2024

And scheming…

Or trying to figure out what to write next…

Two short stories done, now to see if I make it through the slush piles. The next one up is for the Tom Burnett Memorial Library benefit anthology, Cowboys which is due 30 September.

I’m thinking a 15 year old on his first cattle drive up the Chisholm Trail. Already got some good background stuff plotted out, working on characters to play with, and gotta go find one of my references about cattle drives…

IF I can remember where the @#$%# I put it… or whether I loaned it out.

It was great to see Mike, Nick, Sarah, Wally, Mechelle, et al this past weekend for a bit.

Now back to the salt mines.

And a little Navy humor for y’all. Jeff Bacon!

Oh damn…

Posted on by July 27, 2024

I need to sell more books!!!

Yes, the blued Colt Python is back!

  • Type: Double-action revolver
  • Chambering: .357 Mag./.38 Spl.
  • Barrel Length: 4.25 or 6 inches
  • Rifling: 1:14-inch LH twist
  • Capacity: Six Rounds
  • Frame: Carbon Steel
  • Finish: Polished Blued
  • Overall Length: 9.75 or 11.5 inches
  • Sights: Red Ramp front, fully adjustable rear
  • Grips: Walnut Target Stocks
  • Weight: 42 or 46 oz.

Sigh… I ‘was’ being a good boi and not spending money on one of the new ones…

DC…

Posted on by July 26, 2024

Is gonna DC… IYKWIM…

At least 11 anti-Israel protesters arrested in Washington, D.C., had their misdemeanor charges dropped Thursday evening, one day after protesters scrawled graffiti across federal property and burned an American flag in the nation’s capital.

The charges for the 11 protesters who had their cases dropped included crossing police lines and disorderly conduct at the protest attended by thousands in Washington on Wednesday, according to the Washington attorney general’s office. Additionally, at least seven people charged by the U.S. attorney’s office in Washington were released pending their next court hearing, according to Washington Superior Court records obtained by the Washington Examiner.

Full article, HERE from the Washington Examiner.

If you’re from the ‘left’ side of the aisle, anything you do in DC is fine…

You’re gonna walk on those charges, as long as DC has any control. Where it gets interesting, is when the charges are federal, not DC Metro. THEN things become a bit more, shall we say, ‘fun’. Those charges seldom get dropped because they end up in the federal court system, which is an entirely different ballgame (or used to be).

Today, I’m not sure there is much difference… sigh

A day late…

Posted on by July 25, 2024

And a few million short…

California has nearly one-third of the entire homeless population in America. About 180,000 people live on the streets or in some of the state’s 1,300 homeless shelters. It’s not just a scandal. It’s a tragedy. And the major cause of homelessness is the cost of housing in the state.

<snip>

California’s homelessness problem is homegrown. The Supreme Court just did the state a huge favor by ruling in the case of Grants Pass v. Johnson that local governments could use “anti-camping” ordinances to clean up the unsightly, unhealthy, and dangerous homeless encampments around the state. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-Calif.) wasted little time in issuing an executive order to clean up the encampments.

Full article, HERE from Pajama Media.

Two quick questions…

Where are they going to put them/ship them?

Who is going to pay for that?

The homeless ‘circuit’ on the west coast runs from San Diego to Seattle, following the weather patterns. They ‘winter’ in LA/San Diego and ‘summer’ in Seattle and Portland.

Most of them do not want to be off the streets, they are comfortable there.

This is going to be interesting to watch, and I’m thinking I’ll need more popcorn for this.

If, big IF…

Posted on by July 24, 2024

You are either bored, or need a laugh…

I was the guest this week on Writer Dojo. HERE is the link to their site, with the options to listen to the podcast.

We talked primarily about writing, education of writers, and being panelists at various cons.

Like I said, if you’re bored or need a laugh… sigh…

About time…

Posted on by July 23, 2024

Cheatle is gone from USSS, finally.

Ronald Rowe Jr., the Secret Service deputy director, was tapped Tuesday as the acting director of the embattled agency while the Biden administration searches for a new leader following the near-assassination of former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania earlier this month.

The agency’s current director, Kimberly Cheatle, resigned earlier Tuesday, one day after enduring blistering criticism by bipartisan lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee for the agency’s failures in nearly allowing a 20-year-old sniper to kill Trump during a Pennsylvania campaign rally on July 13.

Full article, HERE from USA Today.

After her disastrous ‘lack’ of testimony on Monday which was so bad even democrats were calling for her resignation, she’s gone!

The deputy at least has been on the detail (with Bush 2004-08), so he knows what it takes. And he’s been there over 20 years, so he’s got a lot of corporate knowledge. Let’s hope he can get things straightened out before something ‘else’ happens!

I wonder if we will ever get straight answers to ALL of the issues from last week’s attempted assassination, especially with the Fibbies and DHS effectively investigating ‘themselves’…

Sigh…

No surprise…

Posted on by July 22, 2024

Commiefornia strikes again…

California is awash in incomplete and misleading publicly-collected data, and experts say it’s letting policymakers and politicians get away with running the state into the ground.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao touted in recent months a massive decrease in crime, but it was later revealed that Oakland published misleading non-violent crime data by comparing incomplete 2024 figures with complete figures from previous years, giving the false impression of improving crime to policymakers and the public. The crime statistics in Oakland are indicative of a larger issue in the whole state, which has routinely used misleading and incomplete data to hide the magnitude of serious issues like homelessness, the COVID-19 pandemic and crime that have ultimately harmed average citizens, according to experts who spoke to the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Full article, HERE from Daily Caller.

As is typical for them, there is NO accountability for anything that happens. It’s always ‘sumdood’, or ‘I didn’t know’, or some other BS…

Which is why my daughters are paying over $6/gal for gas, power is sketchy (but buy more EVs), companies are leaving as quickly as they can, (X et al), some in the middle of the night even.

And the drain is impacting their tax collection, insurance companies are quitting doing business there (too expensive), and law enforcement has their hands tied by .gov and the cities…

Sigh…

Can we just give it back to Mexico, build a wall, and be done with it???