From Pine View Farm

November, 2017 archive

Payday Payback 0

This is good news.

A former Main Line investment banker known as the “godfather of payday lending” was found guilty of racketeering conspiracy charges Monday by federal jurors, whose verdict cast doubt on the legality of business tactics that have enabled the multibillion-dollar industry for years.

(snip)

He is only the latest in a series of payday lenders convicted in recent months of racketeering conspiracy, a crime traditionally prosecuted in cases against Mafia loansharking operations.

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Alt-Rebranding 0

Picture of Smaug-like worm labeled

Via Job’s Anger.

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Light Bloggery 0

If you want know why, call my dentist at 1-800-555-PULL.

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Slurred Speech 0

You can’t make this stuff up.

Words fail me.

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“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0

Practice random acts of politeness.

Ronald Hicks, 28, was treated at Mercy Hospital Joplin for a wound to his upper leg suffered while hiking with his sister shortly before dusk Friday, according to Newton County Sheriff Chris Jennings.

Jennings said several shots are believed to have been fired in the direction of the hikers by people doing some target shooting on private property nearby. Deputies were able to determine the source of the shots a short time after the incident, which remains under investigation.

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QOTD 0

Mel Brooks:

Bad taste is simply saying the truth before it should be said.

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Droning On 0

Boys and their toys:

The man, who was not immediately identified, sent his drone soaring over Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara during the second quarter of the game between the 49ers and the Seattle Seahawks, police said. Later he hightailed it to Oakland, where he deployed the drone over the Raiders game against the Denver Broncos, according to police.

“It was something about free speech and his belief that television stations are corrupt,” said Santa Clara Police Lt. Dan Moreno.

I think he’s missing the boat on television stations. Incompetence and shallowness do not necessarily stem from corruption. They can exist very nicely on their own.

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War Games 0

Just another day at work. . . .

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Twits on Twitter 0

Goat:  Hey, Rat.  I saw that thing you posted on Twitter.  It's not true, and you'd find that out if you'd do some quick research.  Rat:  Oh, I know.  Goat:  So why'd you tweet it?  Rat:  Because lying is quicker.  Goat does double face-palm:  Where am I?  Rat:  Truth is so 2015.

Click for the original image.

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In Security 0

I tend to be skeptical when persons raise concerns about “national security.” Too often that phrase is used to either intrude illegitimately into areas that are nobody’s business or to hide official misconduct or, perhaps more often, official acts of stupid.

Nevertheless, “national security” is a real thing and ignoring or weakening it costs blood and treasure, as when President George the Worst ignored warnings that Osama Bin Laden was determined to attack the U. S.

In The Guardian, Jeffrey H. Smith argues that Donald Trump and his administration are inimical to legitimate national security. Here’s an excerpt:

First, his foreign policy of “America first” has called into question our commitment to our allies and the international framework and norms that have kept us safe and prosperous for 70 years. In turn, the American institutions and individuals who must execute this policy are undermined.

Second, some of his actions and utterances are so far outside the bounds of responsible presidential conduct that many professionals who serve in the national security agencies lack confidence in him as commander-in-chief. Much damage has been done and whether it can be repaired, and if so how, is not clear.

Do please follow the link.

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Passing the Hat 0

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Still Rising Again after All These Years 0

Brian K. Fennessy looks up the history of Confederate statues. What he finds is no surprise: they were statues to racism. Here’s the nugget:

. . . I searched for dedication speeches that were given at Confederate soldier monuments across North Carolina. Most orations were given by veterans and state officials. I successfully tracked down 30, and they support two conclusions: 1) white nationalism was a fixture of Confederate monumentation, and 2) Confederate soldier monuments honored veterans for their postwar success in eroding black equality as much as for their failed wartime sacrifices.

Racist language pervades the dedication speeches. If one assumes that the speaker is excluding blacks from the term “southerners,” when its use clearly meant only white southerners, then white identity politics are present in every speech. But speakers were often more explicit. 14 speeches explicitly invoked “our Anglo-Saxon ancestors,” “love of race,” or “your own race and blood.”

Follow the link for examples.

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“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0

The hunt for politeness intensifies.

When sheriff’s deputies arrived to the scene off CR 500 E. in Middletown, they found Stratton lying on the ground suffering from a gunshot wound to his upper right thigh. EMS treated him at the scene before he was transported to St. Vincent’s Hospital in Indianapolis.

Conservation officers have determined that Stratton’s 12-gauge shotgun had accidentally discharged as he attempted to grab the soft case it was in, which was hanging from a branch next to his ladder stand. DNR says the gun was pointed towards Stratton and the safety was off.

This is why you don’t load the gun until you are ready to use it, for Pete’s sake.

Now, about those IQ tests for hunting licenses . . . .

And, in more news of the polite . . . .

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QOTD 0

Soren Kierkegaard:

People demand freedom of speech as a compensation for the freedom of thought which they seldom use.

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One of a Kind Many 0

Read the letter.

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Moore Trumpling, Reprise 0

Bryan Greenspun, publisher of the Las Vegas Sun, marvels at the hypocrisy. A nugget:

It defies logic and human understanding that in the case of Roy Moore there are still leaders in Alabama, in the United States Senate, in the White House and in the country itself who cannot see their way clear to condemn in the harshest terms the conduct of the former Alabama judge who yearns to be a U.S. senator.

I understand the difficulty most people have when the matter is determined by what “he said” and “she said,” and it is difficult to find the line between fact and fiction. But in the matter of Moore, this is a “he said” and “they said” proposition in which no one yet has refused to believe the many female accusers. In fact, there are some who incredulously say they believe the women — which means they believe the abhorrent behavior of the man who seeks their votes — and yet they will still vote for him.

Follow the link for his reasoning.

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How Stuff Works, Trickle-On Economics Dept. 0

Title:  Trickle-Down Economics.  Image:  Man begging on street in snow storm holding sign saying,

Click for the original image.

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“This Is a Horror Show” 0

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The Trumpled Polls 0

Farron runs the numbers.

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“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0

The hunt for politeness continues apace.

According to Oneida County Sheriff Robert Maciol, Darwin Cooley, 50, Carthage, at around 9:30 a.m. Thursday was hunting with his brother-in-law Travis Dam. 42, Whitesboro, in an area north of the village of Whitesboro when Mr. Cooley shot at a deer that ran between the two of them and the bullet grazed the side of Mr. Dam’s head.

The stupid.

It burns.

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