It’s a mood.
Bullet Points:
** Southern English Lesson – Language is culture, and culture is nuanced.
** Question for friends in Florida – there are a lot of news feeds about frozen iguanas (hibernating). When people catch them, what do they do with them? Incinerate them? Resell them as pets so that they can escape (cash value)?
** Imagine a robotic arm that can clean up dangerous debris in space. This tool could be vital to keeping orbits safe, but it could also be used to disable active satellites. One person’s trash-removal system is another person’s anti-satellite weapon.” How do we cope with and better understand the challenge of dual‑use technologies in space, and how to ensure safety and security in the cosmos?
** Matt Walsh on Speedy Gonzales.
** I’m not surprised – ICE just arrested a New Orleans Police recruit, Larry Temah, who is an illegal alien from Cameroon with an ACTIVE deportation order and no work authorization! This guy was ONE WEEK from graduating from the NOPD academy.
** The Washington Post fired one-third of its staff across all departments. Do they think that means that people will start paying attention to the filthy sewer?
** PepsiCo announced it will cut suggested retail prices on popular snacks by up to 15% in the U.S. to address consumer affordability concerns and boost demand after years of price hikes. I guess they’re trying to keep sales volume since they’re no longer purchased with EBT.
Talleyrand
Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord was extraordinary in his shameless capacity to be an unprincipled, perfidious chameleon. Several times in his life, he should have found himself ruined, exiled, imprisoned, or executed. Somehow, he not only survived but prospered. That sort of person seems to thrive in evil – think of Hillary Clinton – evil, and cunning without being brilliant. Talleyrand was a scheming, philandering, avaricious opportunist. Certainly, he was one of the most interesting characters of the 18th and 19th centuries.
His father was a count and a lieutenant general in the French army, but a congenitally lame leg and limp eliminated any possibility of a military career for Talleyrand. Instead, he began his career in the church, first becoming an abbot and later serving as one of the church’s representatives in the French government. In 1788, he was appointed Bishop of Autun. (a man of god – small g)
When the French Revolution broke out, Talleyrand exhibited the deftness that would come to characterize his career. Although a bishop and therefore a natural target for the revolutionaries, Talleyrand endorsed the seizure of church property and supported the nationalization of the French church, which led to his excommunication by the Pope. Perhaps fearing that even that might not be enough to save his head, Talleyrand traveled to the United States in 1794, where he spent two lucrative years as a trader and speculator.
Only a year after returning to France, Talleyrand was appointed Foreign Minister. It was while serving in that capacity that he tried to extract a bribe from American diplomats attempting to resolve the French/American Quasi-War Crisis. That episode has gone down in history as the XYZ Affair.
Talleyrand allied himself with Napoleon when he saw that the general’s star was rapidly rising, and he was instrumental in the coup that brought Napoleon to power. While serving as Napoleon’s Foreign Minister, the already wealthy Talleyrand grew even richer, taking advantage of the many opportunities to receive bribes and to trade on “inside” information.
When he fell out of favor with Napoleon and recognized that the Emperor’s expansionist policies were leading him toward disaster, Talleyrand cultivated relationships with the Russian Czar and the Bourbon royalists. For his role in restoring the monarchy, Talleyrand was appointed Foreign Minister by King Louis XVIII, his remarkable path having taken him from bishop to French revolutionary to Bonapartist to monarchist.
The high point of Talleyrand’s long and impressive career as a diplomat came at the Congress of Vienna in 1814-15, when, as chief French negotiator, he was instrumental in redrawing the post-Napoleon European borders.
Talleyrand also had a reputation as a notorious womanizer. (Yes, the Hillary Clinton model still holds) He cultivated intimate relationships with influential and aristocratic women to advance his career and was the father of at least four illegitimate children and likely several more. In 1802, Napoleon became concerned that Talleyrand’s philandering was affecting the public’s perception of his regime, so he ordered Talleyrand to marry Catherine Grand, the beautiful, divorced courtesan with whom he had been living. But after the Congress of Vienna, Catherine was sent off to England, and Talleyrand began a relationship with Dorothea, Princess of Courland, the separated wife of Talleyrand’s nephew.
At the end of his life, Talleyrand reconciled with the church. (Will Hillary make a feeble gesture at a deathbed repentance? Don’t count on it.) A day after he submitted an official letter to the Pope, acknowledging his errors and pleading for forgiveness, Talleyrand was given the last rites reserved for ordained bishops. He died on May 17, 1838, at age 84. By the way, Talleyrand was portrayed brilliantly by John Malkovich in the 2002 miniseries “Napoleon.”
Do you think that Big Mike Obama would be a good choice to play Hillary Clinton in a mini-series about her life? Big Mike is a gay man, and Hillary is a gay woman, so the homosexual community should rubber-stamp that one.
Venezuela – A Month After
(Rand) While many details about the operation are clearer now than they were in the immediate aftermath, it remains uncertain how the sudden change in Venezuela might shape long-term political, economic, and institutional dynamics—both within the country and across the region.
To better understand this uncertainty and identify trends to watch, three RAND experts discuss why Venezuela remains critical for Latin America, how regional players are responding to change in Caracas, the nature of the U.S.-Venezuela relationship, and more.
Why is Venezuela’s political trajectory so consequential for Latin America?
TAHINA MONTOYA Because the crisis extends beyond Venezuela’s borders. Prolonged authoritarian rule has imposed severe costs on Venezuelans, including rising living expenses and widespread human rights abuses, while also driving large-scale migration and enabling criminal and armed actors. At the same time, Venezuela has become a case study for how the United States, hemispheric partners, and adversaries respond, with critical implications for regional norms, security cooperation, and broader hemispheric security.
MARIE JONES Venezuela has become Latin America’s most closely watched case of democratic erosion, followed by uncertain political reconfiguration. Its trajectory matters not only because of its size, resources, and population, but because it shapes regional expectations about whether deeply captured states can recover democratic governance. Venezuela’s experience influences norms around executive power, electoral integrity, and the role of security forces in politics. Materially, its instability has driven the largest displacement crisis in the region’s modern history, straining neighboring governments and regional institutions.
KELLY PIAZZA Venezuela’s fate reverberates across the region. Once one of Latin America’s most prosperous democracies, it has since turned toward authoritarianism and economic collapse, affecting neighboring states through mass migration, humanitarian challenges, and shifts in regional alliances—developments that have strained social systems and reshaped domestic politics across the region. Additionally, Venezuela has long functioned as a key supporter and partner of other authoritarian regimes in the region, most notably Cuba. Its ongoing political turmoil and economic deterioration directly influence the stability and resources of its allies, while also serving as a cautionary tale of how comparable regimes might experience strain or unravel under similar conditions. More broadly, Venezuela’s experience informs broader regional debates about governance, democracy, nationalization, and relations within the hemisphere.
Venezuela has become Latin America’s most closely watched case of democratic erosion, followed by uncertain political reconfiguration.
What are the most plausible scenarios for Venezuela over the next one to three years?
MONTOYA Whatever comes next for Venezuela will require a deliberate, phased strategy and sustained cooperation to avoid further instability and enable lasting change. While a political transition remains possible, recent rhetoric from interim President Delcy Rodríguez suggests it remains fragile. Any credible way forward must incorporate the voices of Venezuelans most affected by the crisis. Their perspectives are essential to restoring governance, addressing security challenges, and achieving durable outcomes.
JONES Several scenarios appear plausible in the near term. One is a form of managed authoritarian continuity, in which political power is redistributed within existing elite networks without meaningful democratization. Another is a partial political opening—such as limited electoral reforms or negotiated power-sharing—that stops short of full democratic transition. A more ambitious scenario would involve a negotiated political reconfiguration leading to competitive elections and institutional rebuilding.
PIAZZA Recent events illustrate that “regime decapitation does not equal regime change.” Although Nicolás Maduro has been replaced by Delcy Rodríguez, most of the ruling structure remains intact. As a result, little has shifted on the ground. The same security forces patrol the streets, fear continues to silence dissent, and state media spouts its familiar propaganda.
Although Venezuela could eventually progress toward a democratic transition—whether organically or through a negotiated arrangement in which Chavista leaders agree to elections under domestic and international pressure—the most plausible near-term scenario remains the persistence of a deeply entrenched authoritarian system marked by ongoing instability.
How have countries around Latin America responded over the last month? How do you see them adjusting to shifts in Venezuela moving forward?
MONTOYA Latin American governments have fallen into four categories as Venezuela’s crisis has unfolded. The first group comprises states that support Maduro’s removal as a blow against authoritarianism and criminal networks (e.g., Argentina). The second group condemns the move as a violation of sovereignty and international law (e.g., Colombia). A third group remains cautious, prioritizing stability, border security, and spillover risk (e.g., Panama). And a fourth group reflects mixed or internally divided positions (e.g., Chile). These divergent responses are likely to persist, making credible solutions for Venezuela critical as developments could either mitigate or aggravate hemispheric instability.
What about Cuba? Does Maduro’s ouster bring the island’s regime and fragile economy closer to collapse, as many observers have speculated?
JONES Any sustained disruption to Cuba’s economic and energy lifeline from Venezuela increases pressure on an already fragile Cuban economy. However, collapse is not inevitable. Havana has shown resilience before, notably during the “Special Period” following the collapse of the Soviet Union, by adapting to external shocks through rationing, diversification of partners, and internal controls. The more immediate effect is heightened economic stress and political risk, rather than sudden regime failure. Much depends on how Venezuela’s energy and foreign policy orientations evolve.
PIAZZA Allies and partners have undeniably been pivotal in sustaining Cuba’s regime. The reduction in Venezuela’s oil supplies has placed significant pressure on Havana, worsening power outages and living conditions, and adding to the broader strain. The regime’s endurance partially hinges on how other nations react to U.S. efforts to isolate and pressure Cuba. Nevertheless, there are strong reasons to believe it will persist as it has for decades: The government remains effectively “coup-proofed,” without a unified or institutionalized opposition, and benefits from both robust mechanisms of repression and a capable intelligence network.
MONTOYA Cuba has long relied on Venezuelan energy and economic support. With that support now sharply reduced, shortages in basic needs are likely to drive internal instability. Given that Cuba is just 90 miles from the United States, instability on the island carries direct security implications, especially as the ongoing crisis in Haiti is already destabilizing the Caribbean.
The most plausible near-term scenario in Venezuela remains the persistence of a deeply entrenched authoritarian system marked by ongoing instability.
How could different political outcomes in Venezuela affect regional migration patterns?
MONTOYA Different political outcomes in Venezuela will shape migration in ways that directly affect security and stability across the hemisphere. A poorly planned or executed transition is likely to sustain displacement, increasing pressure on neighboring countries. By contrast, a coherent, gradual transition could restore confidence and reduce outward migration, particularly if basic needs and security concerns are addressed. For this reason, incorporating the perspectives of Venezuelans most affected by the crisis is essential to easing migration pressures and preventing further instability.
JONES If Venezuela experiences even modest stabilization through improved governance, economic management, or security, then outward migration could slow. Large-scale return migration is unlikely in the near term. Conversely, prolonged uncertainty or institutional breakdown would likely sustain or renew migration flows, particularly toward Colombia, Brazil, Peru, and the Caribbean. Over time, the region’s challenge is shifting from emergency response to long-term integration (PDF); millions of Venezuelans have already established durable economic and social ties outside their country.
PIAZZA If Venezuela’s dictatorship further consolidates or the country descends into deeper chaos, migration would likely intensify as people flee deteriorating conditions, with fewer targeting the United States than in the past because of the current restrictive U.S. immigration climate. Conversely, a democratic transition marked by greater stability and economic recovery would likely slow outward migration and encourage more Venezuelans to remain in or even return to Venezuela. (Roughly 8 million have left in recent years.)
U.S. leaders have said that Venezuela’s vast oil reserves were a key driver behind last month’s operation. What might need to happen on the ground in Venezuela to move the needle for U.S. energy security?
JONES Venezuela’s oil potential is constrained less by geology than by governance. Meaningful contributions to global or U.S. energy markets would require political stability, clear legal frameworks, professional management of the oil sector, and substantial reinvestment in infrastructure. Production capacity deteriorated under Maduro and cannot be restored quickly. Even under favorable conditions, recovery would likely take several years and depend on market access, technical expertise, and confidence that the rules governing contracts and revenues will remain stable.
The U.S.-Venezuela relationship is critical to shaping the post-Maduro transition. What exactly is the nature of this relationship now? Or is it still coming into focus?
MONTOYA The U.S.-Venezuela relationship is still delicately evolving. While U.S. actions have shaped the immediate post-Maduro environment and early rhetoric was inconsistent, the United States has clarified that its role is intended to be temporary and focused on stabilization rather than long-term governance. How the relationship evolves will depend on the consistency of U.S. policy, the direction of Venezuela’s political transition, the role of regional partners, and the will of the Venezuelan people, with direct implications for regional and hemispheric security.
PIAZZA The U.S.-Venezuela relationship is evolving. The Rodríguez administration appears intent on balancing its hold in Venezuela while attempting to meet the demands of the Trump administration.
This tension is particularly evident in the issue of prisoner releases. While many political prisoners have been freed, they are under strict conditions of silence, even as many others remain or are newly imprisoned.
In recent days, these strains seem to have intensified. Early signs of cooperation between the Rodríguez and Trump administrations are giving way to growing friction. Should Venezuela’s interim leadership deviate from U.S. expectations, the possibility of new military action against the country cannot be ruled out.
Should Venezuela’s interim leadership deviate from U.S. expectations, the possibility of new military action against the country cannot be ruled out.
What indicators should policymakers watch to assess Venezuela’s trajectory moving forward?
MONTOYA Policymakers should look beyond rhetoric and focus on actions. Internally, this means watching whether the interim government can stabilize the country, take credible steps toward inclusive governance, improve cost-of-living conditions, and demonstrate a real commitment to human rights. Migration trends—whether Venezuelans continue to leave or feel confident enough to return—will be an important indicator of progress or continued distress. Externally, who Venezuela partners with, and how, will shape its strategic direction and influence broader regional stability.
JONES Key indicators include changes in the independence and behavior of electoral and judicial institutions, shifts in elite alliances with security forces, and decisions about economic governance and public finance. Trends in civic space, media freedom, and repression are also critical. On the economic side, transparency in the oil sector and social service delivery will matter. Over time, these indicators should provide a clearer picture of whether Venezuela is moving toward stabilization, stagnation, or renewed crisis.
A Disney Take on His Life
From the Woke Corner
You can’t beat my meat!
There is always somebody beating a drum about a cause. This time it’s Sarah Isgur (right), who is not as hideous as you might expect her to be. She asks the question, “What issue will future generations judge us by? What is our era’s segregation, torture, or witch trials? Dispatch senior editor Sarah Isgur thinks it might be our treatment of animals—particularly the way we raise them for consumption. She reviews Bruce Friedrich’s new book Meat: How the Next Agricultural Revolution Will Transform Humanity’s Favorite Food and Our Future. In it, Friedrich explores the world of alternative meat.
No, Sarah, just stop it. You and your friends don’t need to eat steaks, bacon, and KFC. Graze like cows if you must, or eat your bean curd. Complain about the weather and tell us how much you hate the fact that the President’s favorite food is McDonald’s hamburgers – but don’t expect us to go along with your BS. You’d look more appropriate if you dyed your hair blue. Move to Somalia, Minnesota, and eat rice and bananas with Tampon Tim and the natives.
VM Note: Have a Spanberger with your (Virginia) governor. Eat up. Spanburger=Shit Sandwich
Cashless Businesses
I haven’t run into a cashless business (cash only) in Arizona yet. They may have them at resorts. I don’t go to resorts in Arizona since I sort of live at one (and we prefer gold). I have been to businesses in California and Hawaii – primarily restaurants – which don’t allow you to pay with cash. Card only. Usually, I throw a tantrum of sorts – no pistols or knives, just harsh language, before I leave without buying something. They accept EBT cards, naturally. On the rare occasion when I’m with grandchildren, and that happens, I’m a good sport and pay with plastic – no tip. Sometimes they try to force a tip. “I don’t want to tip you. Figure out a way to ring this up without a tip, AND DON’T YOU DARE SPIT IN MY FOOD.” Since I can be intimidating (moniker Scary Larry) when I want to be, the bun/pajama boy usually accommodates the Neanderthal who walked in. There should be a requirement that they post a big sign outside announcing that they don’t accept cash (legal tender for all debts, public and private).
VM Note: I often pay by card, but I don’t want to be told I can’t pay in cash.
Identify the Ship
1
Identify the Field Gun/Artillery
2
3
4
Parting Shot
RIP Banner (WSF’s dog), The Ambassador of Smiles
End
1 – HMS Eagle
2 – Gatling gun
3 – 8-inch howitzers
4 – 20-pounder Parrott rifle
Exactly, well done.
#2 is a Gatling gun, but it is of a different nature than the early Gatlings. This one was produced by Krupp. In the era of the Hotchkiss 3-pounder guns.
Cashless
The Australian federal government (left wing Labour) is pushing hard for this.
Paper cheques are banned from June this year. Cash is still ok in most places though the government would like to ban it too.
A lot of food service places with high staff turnover are cashless.
Caused a lot of problems at a major sporting event over three days last year when with a hundred thousand plus people there including lots of children they found out on the day it was cashless.
What’s the difference between a paper cheque and a debit card? You run them both through the machine, and it debits a bank account.
Well, yeah. Neither a check (how quaint) nor electronic transfer allow anonymity. I suspect the anti-checkism is a combination of wanting to avoid the hassle of dealing with pieces of paper [1], plus it’s to herd (as in buffalo-jump style herding) us away from ANYTHING not electronic.
[1] I do NOT miss the days of some woman (usually a woman) who waits for all of her 150 items at the grocery store to be rung up, and only after she is told the total, does she start rummaging in her purse to find her dang checkbook. Gaaah. If you’re gonna use a check, have the check filled out as much as possible. First, FIND the damn thing, write the date and the payee out. Then you can just write the total dollar amount and sign it once you know the total tally. Grrrr.
The fact that you can recall those ancient practices ages you, Mike_C. I have been told about them, but never met anyone who actually witnessed the practice. Maybe Old NFO is old enough to recall that, too.
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My daughters had a play cash register. I recall watching them playing store and “blurrrp” scanning items rather than ringing them up.
True. I’m as old as dirt, only less pretty. Sigh :-(
Yes, I do remember those days, and agree with Mike! Have the damned check READY… Grrr… I have also gotten up and walked out of a restaurant when I was told they didn’t accept cash.
Cashless = Electronic money & e-money can be controlled.
It’s all about control.
X2
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Control and the ability to tax every last digital cent you have.
I still use checks. I pay my rent using them. Allows me to put on the bottom what it is for. And, yes, I use cursive.
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And I have used checks at the grocery store when my debit card was messed up. Again, it’s a thing, and I’m glad that Publix still takes them.
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Cashless? That’ll be ass-less, as in my fat ass ain’t going there. Though I do use debit almost exclusively, I still carry cash for emergencies and such, because I, apparently, am a dinosauroid. But I am not putting my debit card into a vending machine, as one of the times my debit card was messed up was at the hospital one of the times my wife was attempting to die on me (she survived, because of me and not because of the medicos, those rotten bastids and beyotches, no, seriously, I sneak food in, I bring her prescriptions from home so she can stay on schedule (as the nurses apparently steal half or more of her meds, yes, I checked) and so forth.)
100% cashless and that’s all she wrote. Total control of what you do and how you do it, i.e., IF “they” allow you to do it. Better hone your bartering skillz because it’s coming. (Revelation 13:17 (KJV) and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
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Now as to who would play Hilary, what a good way to put all those iguanas in Florida to good use. So many down there, they’re just falling out of trees these days. Wouldn’t even have to pay them and the resemblance is striking.
About 9 months ago, Rand paid me to offer an opinion on the matter. Without stepping on that, I predicted that if you went cashless in the American Southwest, you’d find people paying cash with pesos.
Many people believe that Hillary is an alien lizard in a skin suit. So your suggestion needs to be taken seriously.
Only warm blooded animals hibernate. It’s called brumation when reptiles cannot get enough warmth for activity. Various things occur when found; some idiots put them in their car and drive away giving them enough heat to become active and raise hell inside the car while driving. Most communities will euthanize them since they are an invasive species. BTW, thanks for posting as much as you do. It’s a must read everyday for me!
>Most communities will euthanize them since they are an invasive species
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Hey, Minnesota! There’s food for thought.
You too, Columbus, Ohio and Lewiston-Auburn, Maine.
My son lives in Florida. He sent a picture to us of one that was d-e-a-d dead. It got cold enough to freeze it to death.
A PSA from the area says to put the torpid iguanas in a cloth sack and take them to a center. The unspoken word was, “(to be euthanized)”.
It is actually illegal to even posses a live iguana, so the governor had to put out an amnesty statement that, for the next 48 hours, it would be legal to posses them while they are being transported to a farm so they can run and play with the other iguanas and live long and happy lives.
@Mike_C
Real food for thought.
It beats a steady diet of rice and bananas.
Still a lot of iguana recipes if you ask google.
Mike_C, I think eating those invasive species would be cannibalism, I think.
And as stupid as they are they wouldn’t be much food for thought.
Ok, you guys are hilarious…and those poor iguana’s need our immediate help (like welfare, homelessness, etc)…pretty positive Ms. Isgur would be a willing participant and has plenty of spare rooms for the poor little guys to recuperate. It’s the compassionate thing to do.
>eating those invasive species would be cannibalism
Not if we fed them to Jeffrey Epstein’s pals. By Tyr’s missing hand, but there’s some weird shit in those Epstein documents. (Yeah, I’d sweat too, Bill, you vile creepy bastard. Both Bills.) Anyway, it’s okay for the Eyes Wide Shut crowd to eat us (Somalis, you, me, alla us), not cannibalism.
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Oh, the iguanas aren’t disappeared to a remote farm to run and play with the other iguanas. The “missing” iguanas got glamorous modeling contracts and are off in London and Paris strutting the catwalks. They’re just too busy leading wonderful lives to write to their old friends. That’s why we haven’t heard from them after they went to Pedo Island.
I heard they were placed in the witness protection program, and that’s why they couldn’t be located.
Kinda tough on ‘our’ Somali “asylum” seekers there Mike…how heartless can you be? These ‘oppressed people’ just wanted a better non-persecuted life, and Minneapolis would be ANYONE’s first choice…over…say…St. Pete Beach.
😄
Iguanas haven’t made it far enough north to be in my area, that being North Central Florida (that uncomfortable spot south of I-10 and north of Orlando, where the Villages, Ocala and, bleh, Gainesville reside.
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Apparently, what a lot of people do is toss them into canals for the canal creatures to potentially eat, so there’s that, if it works.
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As to food value, the tail and the legs are what most eat, throwing the body away (into the aforementioned canals often.)
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Otherwise you have to, like with the invasive pythons and boas and Kaman and piranhas and other exotics, have a friggin license to catch, shoot, kill, possess and transport. It’s one of the few really stupid rules we have down here.
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If’n you do have said license, it’s a cash-producer if you don’t mind a bit of a hustle. Iguana hunters, using air rifles (usually the ones with compressed tanks) can make a decent amount from homeowners and the Fish and Wildlife cops (paid by head or by foot or some other esoteric rules that since I do not have said licenses I don’t give a flying fig.)
Identify the Ship:
1. HMS Eagle
Identify the Field Gun/Artillery:
2. 7.7 cm FK 96 n.A. (?)
3. BL 8-inch howitzer Mk I–V
4. 20-Pounder Parrott Rifle
#2 As above, it’s a Gatling made under license by Krupp. My guess is a 3-pounder. The 7.7 cm Feldkanone 96 is a single-barreled weapon, but its recoil mechanism can give it, when covered, the appearance of having multiple barrels.
Ms. Isgur needs to be shown halal slaughter so she can have a cause that matters.
Cashless businesses don’t do well around here. Walked out of the second coffee shop to pull that line on me. The first one had already brewed up the double double espresso and magically discovered they could take my $4 . Next time I’ll burn some euros. Fresh out of Canadian currency, which is worth even less
Once Alberta becomes independent, the Canadian dollar will be worth the same as the Zimbabwean dollar (ZWL/ZWG). They issued 100 trillion-dollar notes, which became worthless. They had to revalue their currency repeatedly and issue new banknotes. Though if it’s cashless, the Canadians won’t see it coming. Meanwhile, Alberta will thrive.
If that’s even close to true, no way will Alberta be allowed to take it’s money and go.
We’ll see how it plays out. Ottawa may not have a choice if it’s three provinces that leave and that’s the way it looks now, with Quebec pushing for independence separately again. Canada doesn’t have an army worth spit to invade Alberta (War of Ottawa Aggression) and if it came to that the US might take sides.
A couple of years ago in a small town in Nevada I encountered a gas station that was cashless – but the attendant said that if necessary, I could put it on her card and pay her the cash. I think for them, cashless was a defense against drive-off theft.
There are situations such as the one you mention that make sense.
Airlines; their plane, their rules, on paying for beverages.
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Mc D’s; Noone waiting at the counter recently when we walk for coffee. Tge kiosk ushers eaters to swipe or wait longer to pay cash, + order errors abound with human interaction.
Again, I’m not upset that airlines are cashless. They have a unique situation and it’s a big pain for them. There are situations where it makes sense. I rarely eat where I need to order at a kiosk. Sometimes when traveling I do but I avoid it.
Pizza shop in Bandon by the sea was cash only last summer. I had a hunger after skipping lunch break. Went in and found a pretzel in their donut case. Also wanted to order a pizza for supper. When I didn’t have cash, they let me eat there without paying first, then had the pizza ready to go when I brought cash later.
“a defense against drive-off theft.”
or holdups?
Where I live in Florida we don’t have enough iguanas to have seen any fall from the trees, but my brother lives in south Florida and I’ve seen iguanas walking around in his yard on my occasional visits “down south.” The newspapers seem to push the idea of turning the thermally shocked iguanas in to places that swear they’ll care for the lizards.
I remember reading of them falling on peoples heads.
That would be disconcerting…having a small dinosaur drop on your head with a splat.
Still better than having to install a scorpion/rattlesnake fence around the yard like those in Scottsdale.
Scorpions fluoresce. You hit them with the black light before you stomp them. Just tap them out of your shoes in the morning, and you’ll be fine.
Occasionally had to do the scorpion stomp dance here in Central Texas. Then some whiptail lizards decided to grace us with their presence. Only seen one scorpion in the last 6-8 months. I’m giving the lizards their due for thinning out the scorpion population. Unfortunately, whiptails can’t hold much water against a rattler but a .22 round, large rock thrown from a safe distance, hoe, shovel, etc. take care of the fanged tail shakers.
I’m surprised that I haven’t seen one rattler at the White Wolf Mine and I’ve been here in to my 8th year. Of course it’s winter now, but not one. No Scorpions here as well. The desert area of AZ has a lot of both.
They’ll care for them, alright. Either by tossing them into a commercial freezer or hitting them with gas. Where some are processed into fertilizer, or leather or animal feed. But most just get dumped.
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The damned lizards will decimate a vegetable garden, and undercut dirt banks, trash foundations and generally muck things up. People should be allowed to whack them without government interference.
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And the thermally-shocked ones can break windows, get lodged in drains and die and stink up the place and hurt if they hit you.
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Damned animal activists won’t let us have any fun.
Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord v HRC: Guessing if one applied the ‘6 degrees of separation’ axiom/rule in a forensic genealogy research, betting there is a link between these two. After weeks of stonewalling all of sudden the Clinton’s agree to testify then – BOOM – Mom Guthrie goes missing from her Tucson suburb home…and THAT single kidnapping takes over the MSM cycle as if this older woman, that most people never heard of before, is a required national focus. Considering too, that Savannah Guthrie, a total reprobate who went after PDJT and Nick Sandman (to name only two), is now some media darling we’re being told to sympathize. (Ps. Betting the her sister and her husband, but employing the ‘wait and see Bongino rule before jumping to conclusions).
***
Banner: An exceptional dog, you can just tell. In my next life coming back as one of WSF’s…now THAT is an epic dog bed.
I should have mentioned it earlier, but I finished the Confederate Cipher. Excellent! It covers a time in history before the War of Northern Aggression that was only covered in my Civil War History class. (Taught by a Southern, ex-military, Professor). So, I learned a lot from the book, and it was a cracking good read to boot. Looking forward to when the second book comes out on Kindle. My wife is now reading the first book, and seems to be liking it.
5 stars. Good read!
Thank you, Ed. I appreciate the good thoughts. Plz review it on Amazon.
I believe I sent you a screenshot where my review did not go through.
I have no idea why it didn’t go through…are you on another “list”?
No review from me yet, still reading (as much as I can get through before nodding off). So far the story line setup is terrific (very well written as I tend to enjoy stories from the minds-eye perspective, living through the events as presented).
I just went back to try again and my review was still as I entered it.
I hit submit and it went through unchanged.
“** The Washington Post fired one-third of its staff across all departments. ”
I’m guessing the best at sucking up remain.
Literally.
Gee, Bezos is deploying DOGE tactics….because it’s good business, nothing more.
Sorry for a very late note.
I just found this pic that I had to share now:
https://x.com/mickitiki/status/2019092935636140113/photo/1
I found it at appalachianrenegade.com
Juan
They need to be distributed to the woke to wave around as they confront law enforcement.
Iced Iguana – Stan Ridgway suggests you sell them in Tijuana,
to be barbecued.
– Kle.
They’re a staple food in the Mexican tropics, and have been for thousands of years. I have never eaten one, but I have spoken to people who were down there on survival training who said they were tasty. I ate capybara and didn’t like it. The meat is very greasy.
The natives eat the whole damned guana. But like alligator, the tail is the best, followed by the legs. The flavor is in the seasonings and cooking, of course. One way, the native way, is to cook the whole thing after gutting it, skin and all, as the skin holds moisture and fat in. Pull off the skin and discard, eat away.
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It can be good. It can also be gawd-awful.
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And with all animals, the taste varies depending on what said animal has been eating. Some capybara can be somewhat tasteful. Though the ones that have sampled local cuisines say that guinea pig and nutria taste better.
Apparently – as I have recently learned – so are ranch rats. (gak!)
Rats are eaten throughout Asia. So are scorpions.
Yes, but not the house/sewer variety. The rats that are eaten are from the rice fields. They are a different variety, cleaner, healthier, and have a better diet. Mostly they are eaten for breakfast. I remember, a few years ago, watching from our upstairs front bedroom window, the rat hunters at work at night in the rice fields opposite our house. You could see them, with their lights strapped to their foreheads and their crossbows in hand, crisscrossing the paddy dykes as they hunted. The rat eating habit seems to be dying out though. It is generally the old people who eat them now, the young not so much. My late brother-in-law, Umnat, used to have them for breakfast occasionally. If fresh, and they have been cooked/roasted properly, they are quite tasty, although not something you would wish to eat on a regular basis.
Just finished the book after 3 days of reading. Great story. Never did too much history study of the Civil War although as a small kid I did have an encounter with two old spinsters who were children when Mosby’s raiders entered their house and terrorized the family. They pointed out bullet holes in the ceiling. I eagerly await volume two of the series. Since you stated that you have already written volume two, I wonder if you have included or will include anything regarding the KGC. As a treasure hunter I have encountered a lot of information about them over the years using ciphers and controlling/guarding the physical assets of the south.
Book #4 – working title, “Vengeance and Retribution” will include the Knights of the Golden Circle a pro-slavery secret society founded by George Bickley, aiming to establish a slave-holding empire across the Southern U.S., Mexico, and the Caribbean. As the war draws to a close the Golden Circle is being pushed and Henry Hudson and his people are called upon to deal with some of the ringleaders who fled the North and the South to establish themselves in Cuba. The Order of the Sons of Liberty (in the North) find themselves betrayed by their own, etc. That is not the sole topic of the fourth book, but it’s a part of it.
Book #2 will be out next week.
Book 4 will be more complicated than Books 1, 2, and 3, Angryolewhitefart. I expect that it will be longer. As you find out at the end of Book 2, the shipping interests of the Peninsula and Oriental Shipping Company are more far reaching than you might have guessed.
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Forward to Book 4
Background – In February 1860, the British and French imperial authorities again appointed Elgin and Grotto as plenipotentiaries, respectively, leading more than 15,000 British troops and about 7,000 French troops to expand the war against China.
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The British and French forces invaded Beijing, and the Qing emperor fled to Chengde. The British and French forces broke into the Old Summer Palace, looted jewelry, and burned it. Among the cultural relics that were looted were the well-known Old Summer Palace bronze heads.
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On the morning of 7 October, the French army broke into the Old Summer Palace and began to rob it. British soldiers who arrived in the afternoon also joined the robbery, and the most precious things in the Old Summer Palace were looted. All twelve bronze statues of animal heads began to be lost overseas. On 18 October, the Old Summer Palace was burned down by British soldiers, and France refused to provide aid. The fire burned for three days and nights, razing the buildings of the Old Summer Palace to the ground and destroying nearby royal properties.
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As of December 2020, seven of the twelve bronze statues have been found and returned to China. The whereabouts of the remaining five are still unknown.
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So the scope of Book 4 expands with the end of the war involving Asia, Cuba and inevitably the British. I am not promising to write Book 4. It’s only an outline now. Book 3 should be out in March/April depending on how much time I have to devote to it. There are some new characters added in Book 3 that play into Book 4 and I’ll let you read it and guess how that works.
PS – Don’t forget to review Book #1 (please).
“As of December 2020” Why stop there?
I didn’t have an update past that date. As far as I know, they are still missing. I’ll do more research if there is enough interest on readers’ part for me to move on to Book 4
I’m interested.
Interested x2
One complaint that you don’t hear about cashless but should is that it erodes a community’s money.
You pay me $100 in cash. I’ve got $100 to spend. I can pay the next guy who can pay the next guy who can pay the next guy. At the end, paid with cash, there’s still $100 available to pay someone.
Pay me $100 with a card and I get $97. I’ve got to come up with another $3 if I want to pay some else $100.
Keep going with that and that $100 becomes $97 becomes $94 becomes $91 becomes $88.50. Only four transactions and $12.50 of the original $100 isn’t available to pay someone in my community, gone to the people pushing for the end of cash. No wonder it’s popular with banks.
It costs me thousands every year to accept card payments and that also explains the, ever more popular, 3% card fee.
Good point.
Is there a check fee?
I haven’t paid one, maybe there is something in the way of the service the merchant pays who debits my account with it?
Overnight EFT typically has no transaction fee ,unless dealing with government who enjoy charging you that pesky $1 “service fee” to use your bank account. A bank money transfer tax that most merchants I deal with never charge. Our local REA charges a $1 per account service fee for online payments, BUT…if you set up auto payment they discount the total $1.50/account. Incentives work, especially considering I never do auto-pay, but will with our new REA outfit.
Paul, I assume your “REA” is not the Railway Express Agency of my youth, with their green trucks and red diamond logo, but I have no clue what it really is. What is your new REA outfit?
“do vendors pay a debit card fee”
Yes, vendors always pay a processing fee for debit card transactions, typically involving interchange fees (roughly 34 cents per transaction) and processor service fees. While these costs are lower than credit card fees, they are mandatory for merchants, though charging customers a direct surcharge for debit use is generally illegal in the US.
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While paper checks generally have no transaction fees for the vendor, they may incur bank maintenance or electronic processing fees.
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My question would be why the cost of a debit card service would be more than a check service?
>why the cost of a debit card service would be more than a check service?
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Because if THEY can get away with it, they will. (And once we go cashless, it’ll be easier to get away with it.) I hope this doesn’t come across as insulting, because it’s not meant to be. “Your problem” Ed, is that you are a normal, decent human being who thinks in terms of logic and cause-and-effect, and efficiency of the overall process. To be able to think like our masters/owners, try operating from a mental space of greed, paranoia, resentment, and poorly-concealed sadism. Try to think like a person who would go out of his way, who would actually inconvenience himself, just to be able to screw other people over.
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Plus, apart from the greed, resentment, etc, tormenting others is FUN. After all, they had it coming. They doubtless were harboring hate for me in their hearts, and were plotting against me, so what I did was PRE-venge. Totally moral and justified. I’m the good guy here. I’m the moral person. I’m the most moral person in the room. I am a light unto others. You get the idea.
Moons ago there was an article about some wealthy self-made guy’s business, a typical innocuous corporate name but I never read anywhere what the company actually did. Turns out it was a credit card transaction processing company that took a tiny percentage for each transaction…billions of transaction dollars flowed through this guys computers. Me….”That’s a thing?” Sure enough this guy made a fortune doing what any company could do themselves but was required to 3rd party it by some sort of government regulation…or some such nonsense. (me? Yeah, uh huh…no graft there)
Mike, I don’t find that insulting at all :)
Paul, that reminds me of Office Space. I know it’s not the same.
Banner
Sisty tells me her Banner Facebook post has 92 hits. Many residents in my building have personally given their condolence. One of his favorite activities was running on the hillside behind our building. Many neighbors enjoyed watching. It was a safe place, about 1/4 acre, and many mornings I would sit on the patio with my coffee while Banner ran to his hearts content. I’ve decided I’m spreading his ashes on the hillside.
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Cashless Society
One person won’t change society much but this one votes his wallet. If they don’t accept my cash, they don’t get my business. When convenient, for me, I use a card.
What I won’t do is patronize any fast food place with the order kiosks. I don’t know how to use them and have no interest in learning how to use them. So says the grumpy old man.
Our condolences as well, WSF.
Thank you.
Banner: I’m sorry for your loss, WSF.
I got surprised by cashless at the last concert, when getting bottles of water from the bar. Since I was already disarmed and trapped in a place with few egresses with a huge crowd, I was unsurprised. It was… certainly an experience of the kind of “seamless future” that urban planners think I ought to enjoy. I tipped the bartender in cash, because the poor soul was doing the best he could despite everything around him, and got a shocked moment of actual human response instead of the professional customer service smile.
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On PepsiCo’s cutting snack costs… You mean to tell me that when we removed a government subsidy, the price fell? I’ll have to go looking for my shocked face. We should do that on a bunch more things, and see if it happens again!
The green vehicle in the top of your post looks like a 1945 Chrysler with all the options added on.
The model featured in “Fury”.
cashless society:
be willing to bet $ to donuts that shortly we’ll be paying with our driver’s licences: y’know the ones with your picture and the big gold star on them. Yah! I’m a paranoid.
Iguanas: pollo de los árboles – mmm, delish AKA poor man’s pollo
Venezuela: I don’t have any problem looking at the economy of various countries as a dentist (wonder why). Were I dentist in pre-Chavez Venezuela, I would have picked up sticks (and my family) after reading VM (and other visionaries), fled to the U.S., taken the necessary exams/boards, and set up practice in a Spanish-speaking area. I knew a few of them who fled Cuba at the beginning of the ’60s.
I (and my family) are now 27 years older, U.S. citizens, and firmly established in the “community”. Why would I go back?
Consider the actions of the European Jews who were prescient enough to flee Poland, etc. prior to ’35; how many of them returned since.
Nah! once a country falls under the Socialist/authoritarian rule…
Ten years after It’s overthown, people start talking about the “good old days” forgetting the starvation and the restrictions on their freedom
Yuh cain’t even convince a smart Democrat (agreed: very few of those) that they’re really Socialist.
Y’ can only hope and pray they don’t get hold of power (very difficult to dislodge): Walz, Mamdani, Hochul, Newsome – to name a couple of our own, as well as the leaders in Europe with the exception of Hungary and Poland
I’d want to see 100 years as a true (economic) democracy (I should live so long) before I’d have any inclination of returning
“There should be a requirement that they post a big sign outside announcing that they don’t accept cash (legal tender for all debts, public and private)”
I find it interesting that government offices won’t accept their own pieces of paper
“be willing to bet $ to donuts”
While you can….
Disney’s negro Pretti. You may laugh, but someone’s been circulating an AI-manipulated photo of Pretti and multiple “legitimate” newsmedia (e.g. MS NOW) have sucked it up and been promulgating it. Here’s a link to PetaPixel (to my knowledge not overtly political — I think it’s some sort of imaging/digital photography site) with the “before” and “after”.
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https://petapixel.com/2026/01/30/this-ai-enhanced-photo-of-alex-pretti-was-aired-by-major-news-outlets/
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Anyway, I have NO idea why someone would do this. Why on earth would someone want to make Alex Pretti look different? Why why why? It’s a mystery wrapped in an enigma shoved up the butt (butts?) of a turducken, there’s so many layers to this puzzlement.
BTW, I object to Joe Rogan calling the altered image “more handsome”. Beloved ICU nurse Alex WAS pretty; inside and out. We are all G-d’s children. We are each perfect in our own way. Shame on you, Joe Rogan.
Can whoever award him with a retroactive MD so that we can call him Dr. Pretti?
Saw that a few days ago…despicable. My first thought: It’s all an illusion to sway public opinion, or as PDJT says, “Fake news.”
👌
The media has been using altered or ‘generated’ images of their martyrs for decades now. Making dark skin lighter, removing tats, showing a younger happier version rather than the mentally-deranged nutcase (the ‘Goode’ lady was/is a perfect example, early hetero pictures show her happy and somewhat good looking, later homo pictures make her look like Jeff Bezo’s stunt double, but not in a good way.)
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They also do the same thing in writing and in reporting. “He was turning his life around (meaning he found a new hustle that got him killed.)” “He was a good boy (meaning he turned over 10% of his illegal take to his momma.)” “She was a loved mother (that turned tricks for crack or meth or heroin, had more diseases than most third-world countries and beat her crotch-fruit so bad said crotch-fruit enjoys life in foster care under two sadistic queers than being around her.)” And so forth. And so on. Like the ever-popular “was an aspiring hip-hop star.” Or “had a potential atheletic career (even though the jerk couldn’t outrun a fat cop wearing about 30 lbs of armor and stuff.)”
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The media’s been using this since at least the mid-60’s to describe the nice, clean-cut, gentle protestors and leftist bomb-throwers.
👍
Another cashless p.o.p.; High school ball games. Since 2020 the various games I’ve attended were all cashless to get in. Snack stands still took cash. Another security measure true?
When I go to the Phoenix Valley to watch my grandkids’ travelball games, it’s the same thing. Cashless at the gate, cash preferred at the snackbar (Aloha Snackbar). I’ve pitched a bitch, but they won’t let me in unless I go with the flow, and after driving 2.5 hours from the WWM to the MLB training camp ballfields, a fold like a cheap napkin.
LL, I had no idea that Talleyrand had been a bishop. Huh. Excellent synopsis and forgive my ignorance!
He was a man of the cloth in the model of your Arch Bitchop at Lambeth Palace who like Talleyrand, also prefers women.