To The Hawks

Both in Israel and the US who want to put boots on the ground in Iran. I have a proposal: raise money. Go to Iran. Arrange weapons shipments to get into the country. Arm the opposition and go start killing Basij and Ayatollahs. You won't hear any complaints from me. Good luck. 

Juneteenth

Is it more racist to celebrate Juneteenth or not to celebrate Juneteenth?

Sologamy

Seems weird.

Iran Gamble

Trump took a gamble to get a cheap, swift regime change in Iran, and it didn't work. Not sure why nobody sees this for what it was. We obviously are not going to get bogged down in another drawn-out ME conflict as the hawks want. Was it worth the try? Hard to say. None of these foreign policy adventures are clean winners and clean losers as much as we would like to think. The liberal pundits like to say the US keeps screwing up post-WW2, but I imagine any other country in the world would change geopolitical places with us in a heartbeat if given the option. Explain that to me. 

The Good News About a Bad Deal

Is that neither the US or Iran will honor it. 

Logging

Film: Obsession

The most horrifying aspect of the film was the main character's meekness. I found him almost unwatchable. I take this as by design and part of the power of the film, but I cannot say I enjoyed watching it.

Retard Sympathy

I identify as retarded when communicating through Slack.

These Are Funny

What people do the during day to lifemax (whatever that means). 

Here is mine:

-wake up, did a little work to make some money

-make breakfast for kids, friend kid gets dropped off

-teach class

-eat lunch, make lunch for other kids who showed up at house

-watch some more world cup

-play monopoly with all these kids at my house

-write

-watch more world cup and text a lot of people about game and other shit

-eat dinner w family

-write

-read blogs and look at baseball mitts and try to do some other work but got too tired

-will read teddy roosevelt bio until fall asleep or watch something on apple tv

I'm doing this wrong. Not reading enough classical books or performing skin care routines, athletics, or drinking and fornicating or criminal activity.

Iran War

I love the people who say we lost the Iran war. Are these even wars? In what world does the loser of the war come out richer, with a more intact military, society, and economy? And the winner comes out broke, their instruments of national power literally decimated, including their leadership. Something about the way we talk about these things is utterly lost.

Hankering For Travel

For some reason, I've been craving to take "weirder" trips - Uruguay, rural Germany, and Southeastern USA on the agenda...

Warning: Strange Dad Hobby 

Discovered I enjoy looking at people posting their baseball gloves online. Help!

Democrat Policies

Seems to me that just about all the signature policies designed by Democrats are meant to encourage maximum insanity while still maintaining some vague semblance of legality. 

So, for instance, I'm reading now about how ("people experiencing") homelessness in Los Angeles should be able to vote. Hmmm. Okay. Should they be able to register by the hundreds at addresses where they don't live? Should they have others filling out the ballots for them? Should they be getting paid to vote for certain candidates? If they support conservatives, should they be denied guidance? Because all this shit is going on. And also - what the fuck are we talking about? No, the homeless population in LA should not be voting. Are you kidding me? That is a road to fucking disaster, and every sane person in the world knows it. And also! Homeless people CAN ALREADY VOTE! If they can just follow the basic procedures like everyone else. 

Logging

TV: Widow's Bay

Eh.

Film: Magnificent Seven 2016 remake

Eh. 

TV: World Cup

Big thumbs up.

Hilarious

This Palestinian activist being deported has been in college/grad school for 17 years. One has to wonder: if he were not deported, what would his future be? Seriously, do people like this manage to stay in college for their entire lives?

Funny How...

Mainstream Democrats accept the fact that throughout much of U.S. history, local elections were gamed, cheated, and manipulated, but if you suggest that today the same type of tricks are being used in the LA Mayor race, they think it's a conspiracy theory.  

Nothing to See Here

DSA-LA procedures on how to "get out the vote" aka ballot harvest. 

Tell homeless degenerate losers how to vote for free stuff; withhold information from everyone else. Seems really healthy. Glad mainstream Dems support this.

Logging

TV: Your Friends and Neighbors

Enjoying it begrudgingly. 

Book: To Rescue the American Spirit

A Teddy Roosevelt bio - pretty interesting so far - the man punched out a gun-toting asshole who insisted TR buy him drinks in a Montana bar. Can't imagine any current President doing such a thing, although if they had, I would argue it could make him more electable. 

Film: The Rip

First 3/4 excellent. Carnahan building a quite respectable filmography.

Good on Idris Elba

Let's not make Bond woke. 

Look, there's already a black James Bond. His name is Shaft. 

Nithya Ramen

Surges to second over Spencer Pratt not by winning huge numbers from her home base and area where she's actually known (Studio City, east LA, Hollywood folks), etc. but from DTLA where she handily beats both Pratt and Bass (who's the incumbent). Shady as all hell. This lady isn't from LA, has no natural constituency, no political skills whatsoever, no track record to run on, and isn't even popular in her own district. What the hell is going on here?

Robots

Most people don't like writing, so we've created AI to do it for us. I, however, don't like dancing, so I'm going to get this robot to do it for me.

Vast Stupidity

We've now got journalists and twitter people criticizing Trump for the price of Knicks playoff tickets. 

They are holding the man accountable for the law of supply and demand. 

AI

No one is gonna pay 50-90k a year, much less 30k to "learn" how to use AI from professors and institutions that don't know. Not sure why colleges are advertising themselves in this manner. I think the symbiosis is being formed because the AI companies need to cloak themselves in respectability, which the University is willing to sell them. Meanwhile, the University systems need a huge amount of money to pay their bills. I don't see this as sustainable. At all.

Oil Markets Adjust

NY Times opinion argues what I said over a month ago: Iran loses leverage every day they terrorize the straits. 

What happens? Oil prices go up. Consumers react by using less oil. Countries ration. Higher prices. With higher prices, consumers seek out new sources and invest in new sources, like pipelines, etc. Is it a gigantic pain the ass? Yes. Is it expensive? Yes. But it will happen. We should and could obviously cut all gasoline and oil taxes that were once meant to curb consumption since we are no longer in an abundance scenario. 

The IRGC hardliners hope and pray it will send the world into a recession. They certainly do not know any more about the world economy than the rest of us, so they are bankrupting themselves and impoverishing their own country, gambling on a particular short-term outcome. Maybe they will prevail temporarily. I personally doubt it. 

A Thing I Don't Get

Not five years ago, every media personality and NBA player was up the butt of social issues, wearing jerseys that said things like "Group Economics" and now those same people are basically shills for online gambling. Huh? And it's not like they're short money - I'm looking at Giannis, Bill Simmons, etc - these are folks with more money than they can spend in their lifetimes and so why are they in the pockets of online gambling? I find it very confusing. 

News Anchors

I see this CBS news anchor is mad about being fired. First of all, if you're over 65 and a multi-millionaire taking a huge salary, I'd say any work you're getting is gravy, and you've got no real right to complain. The only way to ensure you don't get laid off in life is to own your job. Which you can't if you're a newscaster. But again, that's the life you choose. Part of the reason there's so much resentment against boomers is precisely this situation: they cling to these prestige positions long past their expiration date, denying the next generation their moment.  

Logging

Film: Speed

Peak 90s cinema. Utterly preposterous and does not once wink or nod ironically at the audience. Takes itself so seriously. Chef's kiss.

Logging

Film: Tommy Boy

Mandatory screening at business schools on how to bring back American manufacturing. Also, one of the most pro-CEO films I've ever seen. Luigi Mangione should be required to watch this movie once a week for the rest of his life.

And as much as I like Tim Robinson, he owes Spade and Farley royalties for stealing their gag in the film Friendship.

Retard

This guy knows nothing. 

Quite remarkable how US politics no longer discusses domestic policy or has any interest in it. There is Israel. There is China. There is an intense debate on which country to attack next. That’s about it

It is, in fact, the exact opposite. Only the loons talk about the other things.

Logging

Film: Red Dawn (original, of course)

Things I didn't pick up on or remember while watching as a teen: 

Lea Thompson's character was anally raped by Russian troops before the film. 

China was our ally and had gotten nuked or something because 40% of their population was gone.

Other survivors around Colorado had resorted to cannibalism to survive.

Dark stuff.