Caption: On September 11, 2012, at 9:40 p.m. local time, members of Ansar al-Sharia attacked the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, resulting in the deaths of both United States Ambassador to Libya J. Christopher Stevens and U.S. Foreign Service Information Management Officer Sean Smith.
At around 4:00 a.m. on September 12, the group launched a mortar attack against a CIA annex approximately one mile (1.6 km) away, killing two CIA contractors, Tyrone S. Woods and Glen Doherty, and wounding ten others.
Food
Some of this blog’s readers were aware of my efforts to start a food bank on the Mogollon Rim in Arizona, where I live. There is no town within an hour or so of here; I live in a zip code. I became aware of people who migrated into the National Forest, where I live seasonally. They live in tents, trailers, cars, etc., very unobtrusively. When the snow gets deep, it moves to lower altitudes – wherever. Some of these people live on Social Security payments. Some don’t have that income option and live on much less. Children are involved.
I’m not close to a bleeding-heart liberal, but I wouldn’t say I like the idea of hunger in America. There are food banks in the larger towns like Flagstaff and Payson, but it’s over an hour’s drive each way, and fuel is expensive. Often, their cars were unlikely to make the drive. I did my research. Catholic charities in Payson handled the food bank there, augmented by food provided by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints that was given to the general public. Flagstaff worked differently, but not much. I counted the cars lined up and watched when the bank ran out of food. Very little of this translated into food that made it to the forest people.
I did not want to affiliate with a religious organization, so I found corporate charity money to fund my effort. I moved forward and planned to open once weekly and make distributions. I also found people who would volunteer on distribution days. This was a cash-negative process where my pocket was concerned, but I thought it would be an excellent way to help a population I knew was hurting with primarily canned goods. It sounded good, and I think that it was good. Then, I learned that the local Community Church and the Baptist Church were preaching against me. They encouraged members to arrive and clean out my non-religious food bank even though they didn’t need the food. My decision to exclude any religious means testing was perceived as potentially taking food off the collection plate even though I did NOT solicit private donations. I didn’t want them. Corporate money was not political, and local money would be.
Local anger toward my program was significant enough that I shut it down before it opened about a year ago. I’m not sharing this to virtue signal or to drag the sack for money. I’m just sharing the politics of food in this place and time.
Debate Prep
“Don’t cackle!”
Strategy Session: Thanks Elsa
Bullet Points:
** (Pelosi trolled) He added that imprisoning Trump was “the only hope for democracy,” adding: “We just have to win the election.”
Pelosi agreed, replying: “We do.”
Strenger then asked Pelosi: “What stocks should I buy?”
** Some of you know I’m working hard to get into shape, running on the elliptical, chewing amino acids to add some muscle bulk as I turn the kegger into a six-pack, etc. One question for the blog at large: When you do squats, are your knees supposed to sound like a goat chewing on an aluminum can stuffed with celery?
** Jules is struggling seasonally with her wolf. Of course, there are two wolves, but only one is mentioned in dispatches.
** Fisherman’s Wharf has been officially shuttered/closed in San Francisco. I realize that some of you might give a smug nod to that, but it’s quite sad to me. Along with others, I have fond memories of the place that stretch back to my childhood. Yes, it was a tourist trap, but so many places are, and we still go. It’s inevitable that as the City turns into a ghost town, Fisherman’s Wharf must close. Democrats/cultural Marxists do this wherever they crawl out from under a rock. Businesses won’t return without law and order, and we know that the Marxists want to defund the police and burn it down. The concept is woke. Go woke, go broke. I don’t want to see the whole nation go this way, but that is the stated goal, isn’t it? I don’t expect ABC News to do an expose. CNN and MSNBC? Crickets.
** Blue Origin—not quite ready for prime-time? NASA has canceled Jeff Bezos‘s plans to launch a pair of Blue Origin space probes to Mars next month. The Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers (EscaPADE) small spacecraft was set to launch onboard New Glenn sometime between October 13 and 21, which would also have been the rocket’s inaugural flight. NASA isn’t convinced that New Glenn – Blue Origin’s partially reusable, heavy-lift rocket slated to launch the probes – will be ready for liftoff by then.
** Duelling Women Of Color (WOCs) – (link) What do you do when thin Oprah shows up to upstage you – revealing that she’s a real WOC and you’re an octoon with a more distant claim to the title?
** When one door closes and another door opens, you are probably in prison.
** (h/t Claudio) “Environmental regulations and mitigations serve a noble purpose, stemming from common-sense safeguards to enable progress while preventing undue environmental impact,” SpaceX said. “However, with the licensing process being drawn out for Flight 5, we find ourselves delayed for unreasonable and exasperating reasons.” — If Elon backed the Whore instead of President Trump, these problems wouldn’t have arisen.
The End of Mainstream Media?
Identify the Armor
1
Not a Greyhound
2
Identify the Aircraft
3
4
Two graphics to aid you. This may be a bit more challenging to ID than the iconic aircraft above. It’s an experimental helicopter built to test the Derschmidt rotor system (your hint), which aimed to allow much higher speeds than traditional helicopter designs.
Parting Shot
End
4 is Bölkow Bo 46 – West German
Have not been to Fisherman’s Wharf for 21 years but it was a fun mix of tourist traps and some quality merchandise. I still use a leather jacket we bought there (amazingly it still fits).
Squats are a thing of the past now for me. One knee replacement so far and one more at some point. Definite grinding before the operation.
Yes on #4. Well done.
**
Its Marxist rulers have functionally destroyed San Francisco. I had some good times in the city, working and hanging out with friends. Some truly world-class restaurants are gone now, never to reopen there.
Went there once. Streets of San Francisco was filming there also.
Sad story. Sadder are the reasons.
Fisherman’s Wharf back in the 60’s was a combination of tourist trap and working fishmongers. And it was good.
–
I can not say anything else about it as I have avoided California since, well, we stopped, as a family, there to catch a flight to Florida in mid 73.
–
I weep for what California once was, and never will be again short of a massive plague or sudden-die-off.
(1) M-38 Wolfhound.
(2) Captured SU-100?
(3) BV-138.
*
Gotta go to work early.
*
– Kle.
You rounded them out, Kle – get to work.
Identify the Armor:
1. M38 Wolfhound
2. SU-85
Identify the Aircraft:
3. Blohm & Voss BV 138
4. Bölkow Bo 46
Surly, I think that it’s an SU-100 but you can convince me otherwise.
I too had that thought but the cupola views I’ve seen make me think it is a SU-85. SU-100 has a cylindrical cupola while the SU-85’s is more dome-shaped with a vision device on the top.
I can never tell the SU-100 and SU-85 apart w/o poring over a pair of pictures and comparing.
*
I never would have gotten the helo w/o beaucoup research.
*
– Kle.
Blue Origin’s owner should be worried about his investment in the WAPO becoming a liability when Hilary 2 and Awalz crash and burn.
Blue Origin always seemed to me like more of a Bezos hobby project.
Everyone needs a hobby. I just wouldn’t want to fly on a hobby craft.
…or dive to great depths in one run by a Nintendo Playstation controller.
Eggs Ackley
Knees – Started having surgery on one knee back in my high school days. Yes, squats do create interesting crackling noises. Food – don’t suppose a delivery system to those in need, instead of having the needy come to the food, would help prevent the sanctimonious “Depart from me, I never knew you” crowd from interfering?
The people up here in need camp in the forest. They don’t advertise their locations.
Guess something like the old “swap tree” from moonshine days would be too iffy.
Not sure how much food we’re talking.. I suspect it’s more than pickup towing trailer could hold. If it wasn’t, word would get around to the forest people when it was out there parked in a specific spot that one afternoon a week…
Harris didn’t lie…but the voice in her ear did. She’s only the mouthpiece, like a Ventriloquist Dummy, only not at all funny. It was a disgustingly obvious display of 3 on 1. Today Pennsylvania starts mail in balloting (yeah, uh huh, nothing to see here folks, move along). Harris will have 700,000 votes already in before Election Day with another mil or so in mail trucks to guarantee the steal.
***
Crackling knees- For the interim until the 1-Pack becomes more Flat(ish) Belly, replace weighted squats with deep knee bends, 50-100 at a time, to build up older tissues and grease the joints (assuming they are grease-able at this stage of well-seasoned). Some WD40 (joint juice) might help lube the cartilage.
I’m doing as much mountain (non-trail, steep incline) running as possible in addition to gym workouts.
Running? Wow…good on you. I used to run like the wind. Now? Might take me a while to work up to some semblance of “smooth gait”…but it is doable… am very active in my day-to-day. But still, some old soft tissue injuries are starting to manifest as stiffness in the morning. (a good day starts with getting the pants on without injury – heh)
I’m not running fast, and I’m not hauling a 40-lb ruck on my back, so let’s be clear that joint pain and aches aside, I’m doing it and taking supplements. I’m certainly not 45 years younger. But my A1C is 6.3 and blood panels are clear.
When I run, I run out of wind.
Me as well, if I compare to ten years ago. But that’s fixable.
Hey Larry-
I’m an aging tactical athlete, so I feel your pain! Squats are a “no-go” as I’ve had several spinal compression fractures from my old Airborne Mil days that now limit my performance. Here’s what I do: one leg step ups (loaded and unloaded)-start LOW and LITE! Also, and my favorite, for that posterior chain is the Romanian deadlift – done with a small kettlebell, dumbbell or even a concrete block! You can go to Military or Mountain athlete and watch their videos on these. These, Sir, are MONEY, and will work some most of the same groups you use for squatting without the pain! Good luck and God bless-
Don’t
Sound advice!!!
Thanks for this…will add to my regiment for strengthening. I bought a Air Rower, low impact but stretches the front of the knee (and the rest of me) while helping the muscles and ligaments.
San Francisco used to be fun and LL is correct some really fine restaurants are gone. Going to the top of the Mark for drinks, lunch or dinner was fantastic. Riding the cable cars just to ride or visiting Fisherman’s Warf, Ghirardelli’s chocolate factory and other fun spots are just fond memories now.
X2
X3. Both of my parents were born and raised on the east side of the bay. I have childhood memories from the 60’s. In the early 70’s, I would drive from my dad’s place to the Rockridge BART station, then take BART over to S.F. I would get off and walk a few blocks to the San Francisco Gun Exchange. Then I could back-track and ride cable cars over to Fisherman’s Wharf. No smugness here, just sad. The younger generations have no idea of what has been taken from them.
Dad had great stories of Fisherman’s Warf when he was a squid at Treasure Island after coming back from the South Pacific in ’45. He and Mother even lived out there for a couple of years in the late 40’s. He sent us to Alioto’s restaurant the first time Mrs. and I went out there along about 1991 and although others have told us it was a tourist trap, we were not disappointed in either the food or the service and went back on subsequent trips. Sad to think all that is gone now.
Alioto’s was good food and people stacked up to eat there. I always had difficulty finding menu items my children would enjoy, but they liked the chocolate factory across the street and then there was the Buena Vista that only seemed to serve Irish coffee during hours of operation. I think that they’re still open if you want to get hammered.
Even a Florida native like me has been to Fisherman’s Wharf. The last time was in 1997, the first time about 10 years before that. Beautiful place and I still have nice memories of dinner at Alioto’s.
As mama used to say, “this is why we can’t have nice things.” The dire situation covering California is because of the morons voting even bigger morons into positions of power.
They break everything they touch…on purpose…with glee.
They’ve closed Fisherman’s Wharf !?
*
Why not just padlock the city, at this point?
*
It’s a shame, SF used to be a cool place, even with all the Pinkos.
*
NYC is dying, too. I was in Manhattan last month, and the streets were essentially empty.
Like Hartford, CT levels of pedestrians. Even worse, it has become a place where pedestrians…
saunter. Used to be a 24-hour high speed stampede of Humanity. There wasn’t even really any
mechanized traffic, and the only times it seemed like there was, it was just because nobody there
knows how to drive, anymore. Making it into the “NYC Experience Resort & Condos” appears
to have killed it. I miss the filthy, crime-ridden 1970s NYC, at least it wasn’t just a shambling corpse.
*
– Kle.
I still retain a fondness for NYShitty (Manhattan, that is) though I haven’t been back since ’bout a year or so after Dinkins was elected mayor.
My first foray was in the spring 1945: my mom had read S. Kleins on the (Union) Square was holding a dress sale (the first one, I believe since Jan ’42) and she decided to take the subway down from Da Bron’x and take her 4-year-old along (what a mistake!) and while there, visit his dad whose lab was in the building next door.
Prior to Dinkins I’d take the bus, subway, ferry, walk all over NYC from the far reaches of Queens up to where The Bronx joined Westchester County and the ferry to the forgotten borough with nary a problem, not a care in the world.
After Dinkins had been in office for about a year, I became an owl for the first time in NYC, my SA was at the max – full time; almost never reported in the papers, but people were being attacked/assaulted in the streets daily and I no longer felt comfortable; put an entry call system and electronic lock on my office door (dental offices in unguarded buildings were prime targets) and unconciously I had gone into defensive mode when on the streets. We left for Portland (OR) shortly thereafter (which was still a very pleasant, safe city at that time before the Califs began moving in).
I’ve visited a number of cities in this country and throughout the world (some on my dime, some on yours) and have never found any as vibrant and exciting as NYShitty.
They killed it, starting with Dinkins (not really; it started sliding downhill slightlyafter Wagner): what a shame!
I spent time in NYC during the Giuliani years. Manhattan was manhattan but they kept the streets safe. The Bronx was the Bronx and they weren’t. Now it’s dying like San Francisco.
That’s a crazy food bank story, LL. I don’t know what’s wrong with people when a church(es)
advises their congregation not to feed the poor, and in fact to steal food donated by others
to the poor, so they can’t have it. I am far from a great philanthropist or humanitarian, but geeze.
*
I would ask for clarification on the motives, but IDK if I want to learn them.
*
Sorry it didn’t work out.
*
– Kle.
It’s like a turf war and he’s cutting in on their turf.
If he feeds the poor, they lose their salary.
Matthew 7:15-20…bad fruit purveyors in a self-righteous cloak.
x2
As others said, very much ‘turf wars’ regarding charitable donations.
–
I’ve experienced that, here, during an especially shitty and turbulent time of my life. Literally could not get anyone to help me get food at a time when all my money was going to keeping the roof over my wife’s head. All the big charities have locked up territories and they won’t cross territorial lines and the ones that were in my area refused to help me and mine because we were too white and were still fighting to keep the roof over our heads. We finally got a bag from ‘Catholic Charities’ but it was jasmine rice and weird cans of really inedible food. Broke down one day in the street and just cried and some old lady came over and we talked for an hour, and she got her church to open up their donation room for me, giving me access to basic foods and stuff. That allowed me to survive (I couldn’t even sell plasma as my proteins were too low.) When I tried to donate later they said it was all good, they were happy to see me alive and doing better.
–
I have no truck for large charities anymore. If it isn’t run out of someone’s house or garage, locally, without interference by the bigs, then it will do no good.
–
Yes, I passed that rough spot in life and we are doing… okay. Better now that the wife’s pension from work is coming in, amazing what just a measly $1k a month can do to improve the world. I figured it out later that we were living on about $250 a month for food and that’s with wife’s severe food allergies.
–
Which, of course, watching my food cart get more and more and more expensive every month just really pisses me off, especially when those butt-holes laugh at me and tell me to my face that this is the best economy ever and inflation is very low, when, in fact, it’s been running at between 19 and 22% every year since Biden/Harris took over.
–
I don’t know how to get around the organized charities, short of shooting them. I could gladly kill every executive of Catholic Charities and most managers and most workers due to their funding and aiding the invasion of this country, let alone screwing over actual people in need here in this country.
BTW, may need to re-watch 13 Hours tonight…so I can get even more outraged at that scumbag crew of politicians who believe We The People work for them, they should be nowhere near the “war” button. Grrr.
* I am not a physician, orthopedist, physiotherapist, or physical trainer (the reason I have to employ the prefatory clause isn’t only because I strongly agree with Dick the Butcher). but, when I was still able, I would run up anywhere from five to ten flights of stairs twice daily, but rarely if ever used anything but an elevator to descend (never did any squats except as requested). As I progressed (I dont know why, but I’ve begun to hate that word), I would carry weights in my hands. (In my earlier years, I had to carry a fifty pound dental “kit” in my right hand.)
Before proceding with any excercise program, I’d discuss with a comparatively recently retired (we’re currently in “The Days of The Dancing Doctors”) orthopod any issues you may be having with your knees and I don’t believe a couple of sessions with a good cardiologist would go amiss – unless I’m mistaken and you’re really somewhere between 30-35 (not just think you still are).
* having been born and raised strongly believing in a Supreme Being and I still do (and having my forehead closely examined for signs/scars of dehorning/disbudding [there are none] and being told what a marvelous job the surgeon had done many times over the years), I tend to take a jaudiced/wry-eyed (but not necessarily negative) view of the good souls/institutions who wish to/feel they must provide for the “less fortunate”.
When I was in my late teens I watched my father train a black kid (with zero education and less desire for one) off the streets who came in looking for a job as a “delivery boy” into a valuable member of a blue collar profession, as well as a much loved member of our family. Sorry! but the words “less fortunate” have a bad tendency to stick in my craw.
Whenever I read about a church program helping the “less fortunate”, I’m always reminded of “I’m from the government and I’m here to help you.”
Speaking of whch: I had a good friend (and a referrer) who had a daughter about my age who was taking home from a “government job” about as much as I was making as a “mid-town endodontist” for essentially teaching the “less fortunate” which agencies to go to for assistance and how to fill out their forms to obtain the maximum benefits.
Please don’t ask if any of the foregoing helped shape my political and economic belief system.
> just sharing the politics of food in this place and time
Sounds like the politics of food in MOST places and times. I am sad, but not surprised, to hear about the political maneuvering by your local churchians. I have no right to comment on other people’s genuine religiosity (or lack thereof) but from what you describe, these are the kind of persons who latch onto a particular cause or ideology and use it to fill holes in their psyches. I’m guessing these people need to feel righteous, and to be acknowledged publicly as such; they probably do not do quiet, anonymous acts of charity; and they need to feel they control their “turf” — which is troublesome when their turf is human suffering. Had they not latched onto Churchianity, they’d be equally susceptible to nearly anything else that would give them those “hits”. Bolshevism probably came out of similar psychocultural pathologies.
—
Most diverse administration. That was probably a Bee graphic, but the Biden Admin is hardly diverse, at least the Cabinet. Sure, the faces are pale, but it’s not exactly WASPy. And while it IS full of people from a minority group (definitely NOT under-represented), but it is NOT diverse.
X2
Knees? Mine are fine in spite of my age, no noise at all. Hips are good as well. I generally start my day with a walk that can run between 2-4 miles. On the other hand I have to take a pile of pills daily to keep the BP in the happy place, and I’m rockin’ a cow valve in the ticker.
Oh and I view the term “Honorable Hillary Rodham Clinton” as an oxymoron. Benghazi still pisses me off.
Food
No good deed goes unpunished?
Food bank is a no go. How about setting up a bus service? Subsidized. Maybe weekly runs to some population center (Walmart / food bank). Stay for four hours and return. There are probably other programs. If the people are native american, everything would be paid for. Example:
https://www.grants.gov/search-results-detail/356407
It’s difficult to explain how completely rural my location is. Given that I live in the middle of a national forest, there isn’t anything around but these odd campers who live well off the grid. I’ve spoken with a few in my comings and goings. Some are pulling disability and bought a 5th Wheel. Some camp out of a car. Then one day, they’re gone and you don’t see them again.
bumper sticker on all my vehicles: benghazi- blood on their hands. right beside the “have you hugged your assault rifle today?”sticker.
Heh…good to let people know the truth of things.
Sigh…actually, I’m NOT surprised about the food bank story. You stepped all over their ‘toes’ by challenging their control of the zip code. It’s not the first time I’ve seen/heard about stuff like this. We saw this in a few places where we did HA/DR visits and support in the third world and the Catholic and Mormons did everything they could to get the locals to tell us to leave.
Churches are governments, and starvation is a foreign policy strategy for governments.
But how come an able-bodied population isn’t working for their living?
To which population do you refer? I don’t know everyone who visits the blog, but I’ve met a few, and everyone seems to work or claim an earned annuity.
I meant, what are the circumstances by which the National Forest “migrants” (settlers?) are not working to feed themselves? I’m guessing the insufficient food is just a symptom, and what got them to a housing situation in which they can’t support themselves? It sounded like most of them weren’t disabled.
No two stories are the same but there are common themes. Some are mentally ill (cluster B, etc), some are living in 5th wheel or trailers and are old, trying to make on SS. Some families can’t afford rent, few job skills, minimum wage goes farther when you’re in a tent, etc.
And that’s the issue. As LL says, some are mentally ill. But a lot of the forest dwellers (vs city dwelling homeless) are prideful people who are trying to live. And just need a little help occasionally. But are often cut out of any social support by stupid crap like owning their own vehicle or trailer or even their crappy home in the back beyond.
–
People glamourize the ‘homesteading’ lifestyle, but it’s a brutal, soul-killing life to have to survive on minimal support out in the back beyond.
–
A lot of the forest dwellers, here in Florida or out there in Arizona, don’t have enough pension or SS coming in to afford even crappy apartments because the housing situation is so screwed up. Crappy apartments that shouldn’t be going for over at max $700 are in the thousand or more range. To someone on the edge, $300 a month is the difference between food and meds or a roof and running water. So, a crappy trailer in the back beyond that’s already paid for is far superior to an apartment in a town or city.
–
And, well, one of the things about being in the Forest is not being around people who will constantly steal everything you have, not being around people that affect your mental health, not being around drug users and dealers and temptations.
–
Just think of it. All of your life comes tumbling down and you have, what, $1,500 to live on a month. All your worldly possessions, your books, your adult toys, your expensive libations, that fancy house, poof, all goes away because you no longer have any money coming in. Now what? Do you move into the ghettos? Or try to get Section 8 housing (where the waiting period is years especially if you’re white?) Or, with your last free cash you buy a travel trailer or a van and go into the woods? That’s what lots of good people have faced in the last three years, especially with the new corporations buying up all housing and renting it at a huge price.
–
If not for a few instances of help and actual luck I’d be there. Or dead. Most likely dead, as I wouldn’t have been able to keep my wife alive in those situations and she was and is my rock.
–
And what I’ve said is what ‘normal’ people are going through. I can’t manage how horrible it is for combat vets with PTSD and health issues, dealing with often the very unfriendly VA and watching everything they’ve fought for being given to illegal aliens, often illegals who are actively attacking this very country while being paid by our federal government.
My third daughter (an accountant), her husband, and their three children live in a very ordinary apartment in Brea, California, that costs them $3,000/month. That’s the going rate. You can make of that what you will, but homes in the area require a $500K downpayment to get the monthly (mortgage, insurance, HOA) down to something they can afford. Yes, they can move, but that’s where they live, and they don’t live high. If they could skip the rent and buy a fifth wheel and live in the forest rent-free, they’d likely do it if they could keep their jobs.
–
Beans lays it out and it’s not pretty.
No, it isn’t pretty.
–
Most people don’t understand that just one major medical emergency, like a stroke or cancer, can be the death of one’s financial safety. Especially if one is insured through their company. The company gets notified as to who costs the company most medical-wise. Cost the company too much and “Adios, thanks for your years of hard work and achievement, but you’re a financial rock around the insurance. Bu-bye.”
–
The movie “Falling Down” is an excellent condensed version of how people end up going from ‘Everything’s Great’ to ‘Dooom.’
–
Especially in harsh job climate times. Try going from ‘serious executive worker’ to ‘Grocery store won’t hire me as a bag boy’ and see how horrible the world is. And we kind of have an example at kimdutoit.com (Splendid Isolation) who’s gone from an excellent career in advertising and polling and now has basically a ‘living right on the edge of the precipice’ life, and has had months where he openly talks about how he and his are scraping by and ‘it’s time to sell another gun.’
–
Doesn’t take much to fall all the way down. “Chutes and Ladders” sucks as an adult.
When life was total crap our dream was to buy an old school bus and fix it into a home and become forest dwellers, jumping from one camp site to another.
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We could have done it, if we just stopped eating and having utilities and that pesky roof over our head.
–
As it is, a crappy good apartment in a semi-good section of town is where we live, and I work very hard to be the ‘good’ renter and not cause problems and clean up the yard after storms and report issues that happen.
–
Sigh. All those dreams and hopes flushed down the drain of reality due to medical issues.
–
And that’s the warning I can give, from experience. You can plan all you want but it’s the ‘Unknown Unknowns’ that will cut your legs out from underneath you at the worst possible time. And pummel your nuts like clamping them in a paint shaker.
FOOD: I learned to not trust churches and “religious” people long ago.