Friday, June 24, 2016

In the meantime, Mitch, he's acting, like, pestilential



As quoted in Mitch McConnell: Donald Trump Is Struggling And Not Presidential (Full Audio).  (RedState, 6/24/2016)

Donald Trump goes all in for some Anglo-Saxon bonding





As reported in Anglo-Saxon bonding.  (Newsworks, 7/26/2012)

EU referendum: As usual, Donald Trump can't be bothered with the details



As you are probably aware, other celebrations have occurred in the windmills of Trump's mind.

Donald Trump praises Scotland for voting to leave the EU, but it didn't.  (The Verge, 6/24/2016)


Related reading:
EU referendum results and maps: Full breakdown and find out how your area voted.  (The Telegraph)

If we take Ezra's advice, then Hillary is well-positioned at this point in the Presidential campaign


Trump hasn't won a national poll in over a month.

Hillary Clinton’s 7-point lead over Donald Trump still makes her the favorite, but if those numbers flip, take it seriously. Pundits who stick to their priors even when the data tells them to abandon ship are not faring well this year.

For those who buy into the slogan "Make America Great Again" (a.k.a. "Make America White Again"), please pause to consider these graphs


Among newborns, minorities slightly surpass non-Hispanic whites
U.S. demographic change begins with the youngest age groups






















It’s official: Minority babies are the majority among the nation’s infants, but only just.  (Pew Research, 6/23/2016)

Related reading:
Dog Whistle Politics of Trump's "Make America Great Again".  (Thom Hartmann, 4/4/2016)
Donald Trump will make America white again: “White working-class anxiety” is a dog-whistle for racism.  (Salon, 12/22/2015)

Related post:
This Rick Tyler guy is a piece of work.  (6/22/2016)

Headline news: All we need here is a 'feces' typo



The perp's name:  Willneal D. Cheeks.  

Not the first time Willneal has been in the news.

Thursday, June 23, 2016

Don provides a lemon of an explanation


Photo credit:  Wikipedia

As reported in Don Lemon: Don’t Blame Media for Trump Dominating Coverage, Blame His Opponents.  (Mediaite, 6/23/2016)

Don, Trump accept$ all the$e interview reque$t$ becau$e....



...cable new$ network$ know he boo$t$ rating$ and ad rate$.


Certainly, Walker will say anything he wants



As quoted in Walker mum on whether Lincoln Hills worker deserves apology.  (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 6/23/2016)

DOC employee reports she is sexually assaulted, finds that she's the target of the investigation.

In other words, the state of Wisconsin in general and the Department of Corrections in particular did not take her accusation seriously at all.

Related posts:
"The best shall serve the state": Remember, Scott Walker appointed this doofus in the first place.  (4/16/2016)
Friday news dump. (4:52 p.m.) Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development: Attracting, hiring, and retaining (TBD) the best of the best.  (11/13/2015)
Dear Scott Walker, I know someone you should look straight in the eye when spouting this nonsense.  (11/10/2015)
In light of recent actions by Walker and his appointees, does Roger Roth realize how silly he sounds?  (11/7/2015)
Sad Dan Knodl (R-Germantown) enters the Republican, civil service echo chamber.  (10/29/2015) 
Storytime at the Wisconsin Department of Administration.  (10/29/2015)
Terry Katsma (R-Oostburg): Have I got a speedy hiring process for you!! (10/28/2015)
Wisconsin Republicans gut civil service: Are you starting to see a pattern here?  (10/28/2015)
Dear Mike Rohrkaste, Perhaps you weren't paying attention in 2011. Two words: Act 10.  (10/28/2015)
Newspeak just where you'd expect it -- in an Americans for Prosperity news release.  (10/28/2015)
Just think. Once the legislature guts civil service, Scott Walker's former aides can be appointed to all levels of state government.  (10/6/2015)
Scott Walker wants to party like it's 1904.  (9/24/2015)

For gasket-blowin' Bob Gannon, more guns = greater safety



As quoted in GOP lawmaker proposes holding gun-free zone businesses liable for gun violence.  (Madison.com, 6/23/2016)

Can't wait to see if he gets any co-sponsors.  Janel Brandtjen, perhaps?

Other gasket-blowin' posts:
UPDATE: Gasket-blowin' Bob Gannon brings his own stir stick to cauldron of fear.  (6/9/2016)
Al Ott retires after serving 30 years in Wisconsin Assembly; No word yet from that gasket-blowin' Bob Gannon.  (4/1/2016)
Dear gasket-blowin' Bob Gannon, You know this constitutional amendment means the end of Fearless Leader Vos.  (2/25/2016)
Turning the gasket-blowin' Bob Gannon's sneering, small-d democrat slur on its head.  (1/17/2016)
Dear Alan, the gasket-blowin' Bob Gannon lives in Washington County.  (1/13/2016)
When it comes to that gasket-blowin' Bob Gannon, the bird is the word.  (1/12/2016)
That gasket-blowin' Bob Gannon is back on the scene with more words of wisdom.  (12/21/2015)
The way I see it, Bob Gannon's bill doesn't have a snowball's chance in hell in the Wisconsin State Senate.  (11/24/2015)
'Real gun control' as described by the volatile, gasket-blowing Bob Gannon.  (10/3/2015)
Bob Gannon boldly blows another gasket.  (9/15/2015)
Bob Gannon blows a gasket.  (7/6/2015)

Beyond CES 2016: Meet DOGO (TM) tactical combat robot




Introducing: Israeli 12-Kilo Killer Robot. (Defense News, 5/6/2016)
That’s exactly what General Robotics Ltd., a high-tech firm tucked away in this rural community south of Tel Aviv, has developed with its trademarked Dogo, a 12-kilogram, pistol-packing killer robot for close-quarter combat and counterterrorism operations.

General Robotics Ltd. on LinkedIn

Related articles:
Meet DOGO: The Cute Little Robot Out For Terrorist Blood.  (Task & Purpose, 5/11/2016) 
The Little Tank Robot That Carries a Glock.  (Popular Mechanics, 5/17/2016)

Other Beyond CES posts: 
Cocoon cam.  (3/13/2016)
Brita Infinity pitcher.  (3/11/2016)
Meet the smartwatch of the day, the Garmin Vivoactive HR.  (2/21/2016)
Can the LG Rolling Bot locate a hairball hidden under the bed?  (2/21/2016)

Link to most recent CES 2016 post (with links to the rest of the series).

Hidebound Duey Stroebel doesn't like what he hears about Wisconsin's roads



As quoted in Wisconsin's roads aren't as bad as reports suggest, state Sen. Duey Stroebel says.  (Madison.com , 6/21/2016)
Wearing his blinders, as usual.  Stroebel opposes tax or fee increases to help pay for what some claim is a crumbling state transportation system. He said other studies show a different picture for Wisconsin's roads.

But Duey, it's more than just roads.  It's about all of our infrastructure.

Source:  ASCE

The ACSE report card, prepared every 4 years, is not just a road builder's wet dream.


The guy manages to keep himiself in the news:
Duey Stroebel, one of the wackiest ships in Wisconsin politics, meets Lauren Bacall.  (6/15/2016)
Dear Mark, You need one of these. Best, Retiring Guy.  (5/19/2016)
Duey Stroebel gives full-throated support to GOP special interests.  (3/19/2016)
Meet Wisconsin's version of the Freedom Caucus crazies.  (3/17/2016)
Somebody must have told Duey Stroebel that a spoonful of sugar helps the conservative message go down.  (2/16 /2016)
Neanderthals in Wisconsin state legislature support Ted Cruz.  (2/16/2016)
Dear Duey, Your next election is in the future.  (1/21/2016)
School referenda: Wisconsin legislators Schraa and Stroebel are being disingenuous at best, lying at worst.  (12/18/2015)
A special moment in the Wisconsin State Senate: Scott Fitzgerald gets Duey-eyed.  (4/21/2015)
3 Republicans, 0 Democrats in the running for Glenn Grothman's state senate seat.  (2/12/2015)
Who's running for office in Wisconsin's 20th Senate district wow that Mr. Grothman is going to Washington.  (12/17/2014)
To the tune of $692,000.  (8/14/2014)
Duey Stroebel can't be bothered with fundraising, looks to buy seat instead.  (8/1/2014)
Duey Stroebel bashes his fellow Republican opponents while wearing a hardhat.  (7/27/2014)

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

This Rick Tyler guy is a piece of work


Partial screenshots from Rick Tyler for Congress.




But wait!  There's more!

Tennessee congressional candidate faces huge backlash over racist campaign billboards.  (DeadState, 6/22/2016)

The billboard boldly proclaims, "Make America White Again".

No sympathy here for Gomers who leave guns in unlocked cars



As reported in Epidemic of thefts from unlocked vehicles hits Dane County. (Madison.com, 6/22/2016)

DeForest.  Where the larceny is easy.


Ach du lieber! WI DNR head(case) Cathy Stepp compares environmental regulation to flippin' burgers



Not if the bus showed up at 3 in the afternoon, I suspect.  (It happens.)

As reported in Board asks why DNR hasn't fixed water pollution flaws.  (Madison.com, 6/22/2016)

You'll find the names of these Rip Van Winkle board members here

Obviously, they were sleeping on May 29, 2015.



And throughout June.....


....and on and on.

Related posts:
Scott Walker abides -- in his own fashion.  (6/21/2016)
CYA time: Wisconsin DNR board members shocked! shocked! about state's lack of enforcement.  (6/15/2016)
The public trust betrayed: Scott Walker's chamber of commerce agenda for Wisconsin's environment.  (6/11/2016)
Update:  Dear Rob, This is what happens when you run government like a business.   (6/5/2016)
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources takes an environmental violations holiday.  (5/19/2016)

Dear Ron Johnson, Most of us started at the bottom. It's no big deal.


I worked at Gleason's as a dishwasher during a 6-month stint from April to October 1969, during the end of my freshman year and beginning of my sophomore year at UB.  I earned $1.25 an hour.
(I also got O.J. Simpson's autograph that summer, but that's another story for another time.)



During this 6-month period, I also worked as busboy, fountain boy, ELECTRONIC curb service order taker and carhop tray setter-upper, and, finally, cook.  In my final role, during the extended dinner rushes, I'd slap 24 beef patties on the grill in quick order, and the person to my left set up the buns with shredded lettuce and "secret sauce".  Over and over and over again 'til there was so much grease on my glasses I could barely see.

Vote for me!

My name is Retiring Guy and I approve this message!

Ron Johnson says he started 'from the bottom' in new campaign ad.  (Madison.com, 6/22/2016)
Not impressed unless you multi-tasked. The dishwashing trope isn't new to Wisconsin politics. Gov. Scott Walker makes frequent mention on the campaign trail and in policy speeches of his first job, washing dishes at the Countryside Restaurant.

Gleason's is long gone, but it's 'space-age' design deserved to be memorialized in this book.



Transformation center: What's it all about?


Located across from Madison Memorial High School on South Gammon Road, a block north of West Towne Mall, this building is on a route I frequently drive.  


Photo by Retiring Guy

As it turns out, it's not this kind of transformation.  (5th photo)

The full name of the business is Fit Moms Transformation Center.  Men are welcome to join.

Curiosity satisfied.

On the shelf at Ferguson Kitchen and Bath Showroom


A catalog just for towel warmers!

Photo by Retiring Guy

Fred answers the question, "What exactly is a towel warmer?"



My first encounter with a towel warmer was at the Lake Hotel in Killarney, Ireland.

Not an article I'll ever have to read.
Why And How To Choose The Right Towel Warmer.  (Homedit, 4/8/2015)


Get me rewrite. Poll: 41% of voters out of their fucking minds


That's all this poll tells us.


As a point of comparison, 28% of respondents in a May 2014 Gallup poll say that the Bible is the actual word of God and is meant to be taken literally, word for word.  This is the same percentage as a 2006 poll.  It was as high as 40% in 1981.

My dad, a Lutheran (ELCA) minister and life-long Republican, fell into the 'inspired word of God' category.  He would have been horrified by a Trump candidacy.

Digital fatigue: U.S. readers decide not to contribute to this ebook prediction




Source:  E-book Sales Decline, Digital Fatigue Grows.  (Publishers Weekly, 6/17/2016)
The Codex survey also found that though book buyers stated they spent almost five hours of daily personal time on screens, 25% of book buyers, including 37% of those 18–24 years old, want to spend less time on their digital devices. Since consumers almost always have the option to read books in physical formats, they are indicating a preference to return to print.  [emphasis added]

Related posts:

The tables are turning in the publishing business. (3/23/2016)
Read an ebook lately? Increasingly, the answer is 'no'. (7/17/2015)
The bloom is decidedly off the ebook rose.  (4/29/2015) 
Print continues to hold its own.  (1/21/2015)
Is this the future of e-books?  (8/27/2014)
Who's reading ebooks (by household income). (7/20/2014)
Which is what you would have predicted after reading "In So Many Words" in March 1997.  (5/28/2014)
Amazon delivers the "Lesley Gore" ultimatum.  (4/25/2014)
The boom is over for ebooks.  (4/2/2014)
Ebooks and the hype of emerging technology: Have we finally reached the slope of enlightenment?  (3/11/2014) 
Pew Research report on e-reading.  (1/16/2014)
Peering into the reader's mind.  (12/25/2013)

Tuesday, June 21, 2016

It's a tight squeeze in this driveway (Photo not taken in Toronto)



New bylaw restricts driveway parking.  (Toronto Star, 10/5/2010)
While it’s not explicitly stated in the document, residents with a single-car garage may park only one vehicle on the driveway, while those with a double-car garage can park two, said Lance Cumberbatch, director of investigation services for the municipal licensing and standards division.

Speaking of sloganeering



As reported in Supreme Court Turns Away Challenge to Connecticut Ban on Semiautomatic Weapons.  (The New York Times, 6/20/2016)

Related article:
Everything You Need to Know About AR-15 Assault Rifles.  (Rolling Stone, 6/13/2016)
Nicole Hockley, who lost her child in the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting, explained the gun's appeal another way: The man who killed her son, she said earlier this year, "chose the AR-15 because he was aware of how many shots it could get out, how lethal it was, the way it was designed, that it would serve his objective of killing as many people as possible in the shortest time possible." 

Scott Walker abides -- in his own fashion



As quoted in Walker Considering Adding Staff To DNR After Negative Audit.  (Wisconsin Public Radio, 6/20/2016)

Walker sez his administration will do what it takes, but I suspect that doesn't include new positions.  The shift is on.

Related posts:
CYA time: Wisconsin DNR board members shocked! shocked! about state's lack of enforcement.  (6/15/2016)
The public trust betrayed: Scott Walker's chamber of commerce agenda for Wisconsin's environment.  (6/11/2016)
Update:  Dear Rob, This is what happens when you run government like a business.   (6/5/2016)
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources takes an environmental violations holiday.  (5/19/2016)

This week in the cereal aisle


General Mills' first new cereal brand since 2001.

Photo by Retiring Guy




Related articles:
How we created a new cereal brand.  (Taste of General Mills, 6/6/2016)

Related posts:
Kix just keep getting harder to find.  (6/13/2016)
Fewer of us are starting the day with a breakfast "hoop-de-do"!  (2/13/2015)
Kellogg's wants you to put out the box at bedtime.  (12/20/2014)
Decline in cereal sales bite into Kellogg's results.  (Fortune, 10/30/2014)
Americans aren't eating their Wheaties.  (CNN Money, 9/18/2014)
Cereals Begin to Lose Their Snap, Crackle, and Pop.  (The New York Times, 9/10/2014)
Why Don't Americans Like Breakfast Cereal Anymore? The once-loved product whose sales went soggy.  (Adweek, 8/14/2014)
I imagine General Mills has done the research, but what if this is the case?  (7/1/2014)
Maybe it's the rainbow colors.  (7/1/2014)
They still call it 'breakfast cereal'.  (2/14/2014)
Cereal killers:  Americans' new breakfast habits.  (CNBC, 8/23/2013)

The best and the brightest: DOJ mouthpiece sez, "Fuck it, we're not doin' our jobs!"


Among the duties of the Wisconsin Deparrtment of Justice as set forth in Wisconsin State Statutes 165.25(14):


(*as he describes himself on Twitter)

As quoted in Attorney general takes heat for missing Milwaukee safety meeting.  (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 6/20/2016)

But he should be in the business of cooperation, no matter the who and where.

Other 'best and brightest' posts:
Wisconsin DOT Secretary sez, Fuck it, I'm not doin' my job! (6/2/2016)
Scott Walker-appointed WEDC CEO Mark Hogan.  (5/9/2016)
Meet 2 of the 5 Wisconsin Supreme Court contenders on Scott Walker's shortlist.  (4/28/2016)

Harold Gilson (1922-2016) Warren High School Class of 1940



1940 Dragon yearbook

Harold's high-school activities:
Junior Chamber of Commerce (4); Stenographers' Club (4); Bookkeeping Club (2); Junior Shorthand Club (3); Band (1, 2, 3, 4); Dragonette Board (4); Carnival (3, 4).

1967 Warren City Directory
1983 Warren City Directory

'Harold' was a consistently popular name during the 1st half of the 20th century.  Following a precipitous decline starting in 1990, he's been bouncing around a bit of late.



Other class of 1940 members:
Gertrude Crocker Maines.  (5/17/2016)
Virginia Wooster Bielawski.  (5/8/2016)
John Notoro Sr.  (11/7/2014)
Harry Segal.  (10/15/2014)
Mary Wolstencroft Lampela.  (10/2/2014)

Monday, June 20, 2016

Presidential candidate with emotional development of 12 year old cruising on inheritance



As quoted at the time in What blacks must go through.  (Orlando Sentinel, 9/13/1989)

Full quote here.

Related reading:
Exposing How Donald Trump Really Made His Fortune: Inheritance from Dad and the Government's Protection Mostly Did the Trick.  (AlterNet, 7/9/2016)

Other emo posts:
Presidential candidate with emotional development of 12 year old tweets more nonsense.  (5/14/2016)
Presidential candidate with emotional development of 12 year old resorts to name-calling when zinged.  (5/11/2016)
Presidential candidate with emotional development of 12 year old has a very important, major engagement.  (3/16/2016)
Presidential candidate with emotional development of 12 year old still makes case for his beautiful, powerful, large penis.  (3/6/2016)
Presidential candidate with emotional development of 12 year old brags he's the only one who can beat Clinton.  (3/3/2016)
Presidential candidate with the emotional development of a 12 year old disavows.  (3/1/2016)
Presidential candidate with emotional development of 12 year old wings it.  (2/29/2016)
Presidential candidate with emotional development of 12 year old weighs in on Rubio and last night's debate.  (2/26/2016)
Presidential candidate with emotional development of 12 year old tells us how he really feels.  (2/23/2016)
Yes, Donny, get angry, cuz we want a brave man, a cave man.  (2/22/2016)
Thin-skinned Presidential candidate with emotional development of 12 year old fires volley at Pope.  (2/18/2016)
Presidential candidate with emotional development of 12 year old should go ahead and put it in the want ads.  (1/29/2016)
Presidential candidate with emotional development of 12 year old plans to skip debate.  (1/27/2016)
Presidential candidate with emotional development of 12 year old reacts to SOTU.  (1/13/2016)

Donald Trump's campaign staff is melting, melting. Oh what a world!




Donald Trump Advisor Out After Tweeting ‘Ding Dong the Witch Is Dead’.  (The Wrap, 6/20/2016)

Wherein Caputo offers a mea culpa.


Raiding The Wizard of Oz soundtrack, The Fifth Estate, a Connecticut-based one-hit wonder, just missed making it into the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.  The song peaked at #11 during the summer of '67.

"The U.S. Congress", starring "Slo" Mo Brooks, in black and white



As quoted in Rep. Mo Brooks: Muslims want to 'kill every homosexual' in U.S.  (al.com, 6/16/2016)

All members of the gay community living outside of the U.S. will, of course, be spared.  

Yes indeed, "Slo" Mo is a "yuge" friend of the LGBT community!


But wait!   There's more!
Alabama GOP Rep. Mo Brooks on religious freedom and contraception,  (3/24/2016)
Mo Brooks' greatest hits, featuring 'Maya and Fidel'.  (3/3/2016)

Mary Sikstrom Bauer (1932-2016) Warren High School Class of 1950



1950 Dragon yearbook

1967 Warren City Directory
  • Bauer Alvin J meat ctr Warren Super Market r Russell Pa
  • [couuty section] Bauer Mary S Box 104 Russell (husband listed separately)
1983 Warren City Director
  • [county section] Bauer Alvin J rBx 254 Russell
  • [county section] Bauer Mary S rBx 254 Russell


Mary ceded her crown to Linda from 1947 to 1952.  Mary's last year at #1 was 1961.

Other class of 1950 members
Robert Jones.  (6/4/2016)
Lewis McCullough.  (7/6/2015)
Joan Marlene Campbell Berdine.  (2/18/2015) 
Glen Valentine.  (8/18/2014)