Saturday, May 20, 2017

Point/counterpoint: That gasket-blowin' Bob Gannon wants to lock them up



Reported in Bills would impose stricter penalties for serious youth offenders in Wisconsin.  (Capital Times, 5/17/2017)


Bob Gannon lives in West Bend.

He used to live in Slinger, which is 97.2 % white.

Other gasket-blowin' posts:
That gasket-blowin' (and precious snowflake) Bob Gannon threatens to quit Rotary Club.  (3/1/2017)
That gasket-blowin' Bob Gannon wants to lock her up.  (11/9/2016)
That gasket-blowin' Bob Gannon urges GOP to unite behind 'Sassy Trump'.  (8/19/2016)
3 GOP Wisconsin State Assembly frosh running unopposed for re-election.  (7/27/2016)
For gasket-blowin' Bob Gannon, more guns = greater safety.  (6/23/2016)
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)

Climate change as a matter of fact: Global Seed Vault on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen




Arctic stronghold of world’s seeds flooded after permafrost melts.  (The Guardian, 1/19/2017)
The vault is on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen and contains almost a million packets of seeds, each a variety of an important food crop. When it was opened in 2008, the deep permafrost through which the vault was sunk was expected to provide “failsafe” protection against “the challenge of natural or man-made disasters”. 
But soaring temperatures in the Arctic at the end of the world’s hottest ever recorded year led to melting and heavy rain, when light snow should have been falling. “It was not in our plans to think that the permafrost would not be there and that it would experience extreme weather like that,” said Hege Njaa Aschim, from the Norwegian government, which owns the vault.

Other climate change as a matter of fact posts:
Madeline Island, Wisconsin.  (2/23/2017)
Mexico City.  (2/19/2017)
Kansas.  (1/29/2017)
Moose of Maine.  (1/21/2017)
Florida Keys.  (1/14/2017)
California wine country.  (1/11/2017)
Kaktovik, Alaska.  (12/20/2016)
Bolivia.  (7/11/2016)
Alaska's Glacier Bay National Park.  (7/7/2016)
Kiribati.  (7/6/2016)
Peru,  (5/21/2016)

Greetings from Southern California, where water-sucking palm trees line a 'typical' residential street


From Retiring Guy's postcard collection

Source:  KCET

Other greetings:
Mojave Desert (Joshua trees).  (5/20/2017)
Rose Hill Motel in Mena, Arkansas.  (5/20/2017)
Will Rogers Ranch.  (5/20/2017)
Grauman's Chinese Theater.  (5/18/2017)
Hollywood Boulevard.  (5/18/2017)
Barstow, California.  (5/17/2017)
California.  (5/14/2017)
Parklabrea Towers, L.A.  (5/14/2017)
La Jolla Children's Pool.  (5/13/2017)
Los Angeles.  (5/11/2017)
Laguna Beach, California.  (5/10/2017)
California.  (5/9/2017)
Los Angeles.  (5/9/2017)
California.  (5/8/2017)
Pomona College, Claremont, California.  (5/7/2017)
La Jolla, California.  (5/6/2017)
Hope, Arkansas.  (5/4/2017)
Bakersfield, California.  (5/3/2017)
Little Rock, Arkansas.  (5/1/2017)
California.  (4/28/2017)
Little Rock, Arkansas.  (4/19/2017)
Superstition Mountain, Arizona.  (4/15/2017)
Tucson, Arizona.  (4/12/2017)
Phoenix, Arizona.  (4/8/2017)
Monument Valley, Arizona/Utah.  (4/8/2017)
Dothan, Alabama.  (4/5/2017)
Mobile, Alabama.  (4/5/2017)
Anniston, Alabama.  (3/29/2017)

Greetings from the Mojave Desert, where the Joshua Tree, 'weird member of the lily family', is found


Grows only in the Mojave Desert

From Retiring Guy's postcard collection
(postmarked July 17, 1957)

Text on message side.  The Joshua Tree, weird member of the lily family, grows to an average height of 20 to 30 feet and a spread of 15 to 20 feet.   Its clusters of waxy bells are like beacons in the desert though it does not bloom every year, depending on the rainfall.  Birds and lizards live in these trees and Indians used the smaller red roots for designs in basketry.

Source:  SoftSchools

Other greetings:
Rose Hill Motel in Mena, Arkansas.  (5/20/2017)
Will Rogers Ranch.  (5/20/2017)
Grauman's Chinese Theater.  (5/18/2017)
Hollywood Boulevard.  (5/18/2017)
Barstow, California.  (5/17/2017)
California.  (5/14/2017)
Parklabrea Towers, L.A.  (5/14/2017)
La Jolla Children's Pool.  (5/13/2017)
Los Angeles.  (5/11/2017)
Laguna Beach, California.  (5/10/2017)
California.  (5/9/2017)
Los Angeles.  (5/9/2017)
California.  (5/8/2017)
Pomona College, Claremont, California.  (5/7/2017)
La Jolla, California.  (5/6/2017)
Hope, Arkansas.  (5/4/2017)
Bakersfield, California.  (5/3/2017)
Little Rock, Arkansas.  (5/1/2017)
California.  (4/28/2017)
Little Rock, Arkansas.  (4/19/2017)
Superstition Mountain, Arizona.  (4/15/2017)
Tucson, Arizona.  (4/12/2017)
Phoenix, Arizona.  (4/8/2017)
Monument Valley, Arizona/Utah.  (4/8/2017)
Dothan, Alabama.  (4/5/2017)
Mobile, Alabama.  (4/5/2017)
Anniston, Alabama.  (3/29/2017)

Greetings from Rose Hill Motel in Mena, Arkansas


Where John and Josephine Harbaugh spent a night in late November 1951 on their honeymoon.  
(You can read about it here -- on page IV-20 of John's "Memoirs".)

Postcard from Retiring Guy's collection

Note the motto.

Source:  Wikipedia

Mena (population about 4,445 in 1951; an estimated 5,653 in 2015) is located in Polk County (est. 2015 population of 20,216), where Donald Trump received 80.4% of the vote in last year's presidential election.  It's a very red place; McCain took 71% of the vote in '08.

Other greetings:
Will Rogers Ranch.  (5/20/2017)
Grauman's Chinese Theater.  (5/18/2017)
Hollywood Boulevard.  (5/18/2017)
Barstow, California.  (5/17/2017)
California.  (5/14/2017)
Parklabrea Towers, L.A.  (5/14/2017)
La Jolla Children's Pool.  (5/13/2017)
Los Angeles.  (5/11/2017)
Laguna Beach, California.  (5/10/2017)
California.  (5/9/2017)
Los Angeles.  (5/9/2017)
California.  (5/8/2017)
Pomona College, Claremont, California.  (5/7/2017)
La Jolla, California.  (5/6/2017)
Hope, Arkansas.  (5/4/2017)
Bakersfield, California.  (5/3/2017)
Little Rock, Arkansas.  (5/1/2017)
California.  (4/28/2017)
Little Rock, Arkansas.  (4/19/2017)
Superstition Mountain, Arizona.  (4/15/2017)
Tucson, Arizona.  (4/12/2017)
Phoenix, Arizona.  (4/8/2017)
Monument Valley, Arizona/Utah.  (4/8/2017)
Dothan, Alabama.  (4/5/2017)
Mobile, Alabama.  (4/5/2017)
Anniston, Alabama.  (3/29/2017)

Greetings from Will Rogers Ranch


Postcard from Retiring Guy's collection

Remembering Will Rogers: 80 years on, how the ‘cowboy philosopher’ popularized political humor.  (PBS News Hour, 8/15/2015)

I'll bet the majority of people don't know that.....
  1. Rogers’ weekly radio broadcast, one of the first comedic political shows, had become the most listened to program in the country on Sunday evenings by 1935.  [Rogers died at age 55 in an airplane crash in Alaska on August 15, 1935.)
  2. [A]n estimated 40 million people read his “Daily Telegrams,” published by The New York Times and syndicated to hundreds of other newspapers throughout the U.S. and Canada. 
  3. He was also the second highest grossing movie star, behind Shirley Temple.



Related link:
Will Rogers Ranch overview.  (California Department of Parks and Recreation)

Other greetings:
Grauman's Chinese Theater.  (5/18/2017)
Hollywood Boulevard.  (5/18/2017)
Barstow, California.  (5/17/2017)
California.  (5/14/2017)
Parklabrea Towers, L.A.  (5/14/2017)
La Jolla Children's Pool.  (5/13/2017)
Los Angeles.  (5/11/2017)
Laguna Beach, California.  (5/10/2017)
California.  (5/9/2017)
Los Angeles.  (5/9/2017)
California.  (5/8/2017)
Pomona College, Claremont, California.  (5/7/2017)
La Jolla, California.  (5/6/2017)
Hope, Arkansas.  (5/4/2017)
Bakersfield, California.  (5/3/2017)
Little Rock, Arkansas.  (5/1/2017)
California.  (4/28/2017)
Little Rock, Arkansas.  (4/19/2017)
Superstition Mountain, Arizona.  (4/15/2017)
Tucson, Arizona.  (4/12/2017)
Phoenix, Arizona.  (4/8/2017)
Monument Valley, Arizona/Utah.  (4/8/2017)
Dothan, Alabama.  (4/5/2017)
Mobile, Alabama.  (4/5/2017)
Anniston, Alabama.  (3/29/2017)

As if you didn't already know: More evidence of an inept, incompetent White House




Amid federal uncertainty, states confront opioid crisis.  (The Hill, 3/8/2017)
The scale and scope of the opioid addiction crisis has startled lawmakers in recent years, even as crime tied to the illegal drug trade has fallen to all-time lows. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in January that more than 52,000 Americans died from a drug overdose in 2015, and nearly two-thirds of those cases involved opioids.

Related reading:  
Drugs are killing so many people in West Virginia that the state can’t keep up with the funerals.  (Washington Post, 3/7/2017)

More evidence that the wrong people are in the White House -- this former Freedom Caucus crazy, in particular.



Robot delivery: Supervisor wants a walkable, accessible, and safe San Francisco





Photo credit:  City of San Francisco

Quoted in San Francisco to Delivery Robots: Get Off the Damn Sidewalk   (CityLab, 5/19/2017)
According to the video,"the robots look like a kitchen appliance crossed with a Mars rover."  These delivery robots are what folks strolling around Washington, D.C., have been seeing in recent weeks: six-wheeled boxes, roughly the size of beer coolers, ambling along city sidewalks, delivering food and other items. If passed, Yee’s legislation would halt all deliveries via robot in the city. Violators could face punishment that includes criminal penalties of up to $1,000 in fines or up to six months’ imprisonment. 


Original 5/16/2017 post, "How high the boon?", starts here.



Robots on wheels may soon deliver takeout to Madison humans.  (Capital Times, 5/9/2017)
Delivery robots from the London-based startup Starship Technologies are already operating in cities across the world in pilot programs. Visit Redwood City, California, and you might glimpse one zipping along a walkway, a human handler strolling along behind it to make sure nothing goes awry. 
According to Redwood City economic development manager Catherine Ralston, the sight is a big deal for tourists, kids and dogs. Otherwise, people don't think twice about it.  
“We have Google self-driving cars going around, so it’s not a big deal when there’s a robot going down the street,” she said.

Ground floor delivery only in the Towering Isthmus?


UPDATE. The healthiest county in each Southern state: Arlington County, Virginia


Healthiest County in Every State.  (24/7 Wall Street, 5/9/2017)

Part of the Washington D.C. metro area, Arlington is one of Virginia's fastest growing counties.   Its population has increased 50% since 1980, compared to a 21% decrease during the same period in the City of Petersburg, the state's unhealthiest place. Williamson's nonwhite population is 37.5% (9.2% African-America), compared to 84.9% (79.1% African-America) in Petersburg.



Other numbers
% of population living in poverty
  • Arlington County | 7.1%
  • Petersburg | 28.0%
  • Virginia | 11.2%
  • U.S.  13.5%
    % of population 25 and older with bachelor's degree
    • Arlington County | 72.9%
    • Petersburg | 15.9%
    • Virginia | 36.3%
    • U.S. | 29.8%
    Median household income:
    • Arlington County |  $105,763
    • Petersburg | $31,798
    • Virginia | $65,015
    • U.S. | $53,889

    Source:  Wikipedia


    Other posts in this series.
    Shelby County, Alabama.  (5/10/2017)
    Benton County, Arkasnsas.  (5/11/2017)
    St. Johns County, Florida.  (5/12/2017)
    Oconee County, Georgia.  (5/13/2017)
    Oldham County, Kentucky.  (5/14/2017)
    Cameron Parish, Louisiana.  (5/15/2017)
    Rankin County, Mississippi.  (5/16/2017)
    Orange County, North Carolina.  (5/17/2017)
    Beaufort County, South Carolina.  5/18/2017)
    Williamson County, Tennessee.  (5/19/2017)


    Original 4/10 post starts here.

    The least healthy counties in every state.  (24/7 Wall Street, 3/15/201\7)

    Petersburg, Virginia (An independent city, the only state with such an organization of government)


    Source:  Wikipedia




    Other numbers
    % of population living in poverty
    • Petersburg | 28.0%
    • Virginia | 11.2%
    • U.S.  13.5%
      % of population 25 and older with bachelor's degree
      • Petersburg | 15.9%
      • Virginia | 36.3%
      • U.S. | 29.8%
      Median household income:
      • Petersburg | $31,798
      • Virginia | $65,015
      • U.S. | $53,889
      Other counties in series:

      Friday, May 19, 2017

      Meet Mo Brooks, the Uniter



      Quote 1 from In One-Party Alabama, Senate Primary Sinks Into ‘Swamp.  (The New York Times, 5/15/2017)

      Quote 2 from Rep. Mo Brooks: Immigration A Plot To ‘Dilute The Voting Power Of Americans’.  (Right Wing Watch, 9/19/2014)

      Related reading:
      Mo Brooks defends 'war on whites' comment as he kicks off Senate bid.  (al.com, 5/15/2017)
      Rep. Mo Brooks' bill seeks $14 billion for border wall.  (al.com, 4/17/2017)

      More Mo:
      U.S. Senate race: Mo Brooks, Roy Moore sucking up most of stinky Alabama air in challenge to incumbent Luther Strange.  (5/19/2017)
      Donald Trump declares war on the Freedom Caucus.  (3/31/2017)
      "The U.S. Congress", starring "Slo" Mo Brooks, in black and white.  (6/20/2016)
      Alabama GOP Rep. Mo Brooks on religious freedom and contraception,  (3/24/2016)
      Mo Brooks' greatest hits, featuring 'Maya and Fidel'.  (3/3/2016)

      Rookie biography for rookie president, part 7: Oh, how happy?



      Yup, everything's just hunky-dory!

      Shades of Blue, a one-hit wonder, scored with "Oh How Happy", which debuted at #89 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the week ending May 7, 1966.  It spent 12 weeks on the chart, peaking at #12.







      Part 6, "What the text and glossary omit", starts here.


      Part 5:  "Just another day at the altar:


      Telling Trump’s Story to Children: For Book Publishers, It’s Tricky.  (The New York Times, 4/5/2017)
      Among the unusual considerations were how much to include scandals, including those related to Mr. Trump’s three marriages. “Ordinarily with a book like this, I wouldn’t put much of a focus on relationships and marriages, but I thought it was important,” she said. “It was from the marriage to Ivana, and their divorce, that he became a celebrity.”


      Part 4, "Skating over the specifics of Donald Trump's business ventures", starts here.


      Let's take a look at some actual research.




      It appears that most of Trump's business ventures "didn't work out" or "had problems" as reported in Donald Trump’s Ventures Began With a Lot of Hype. Here’s How They Turned Out.  (The New York Times, 10/6/2016). 


      Part 3, "Young readers will have to wait for account of racist housing practices of Fred Trump", starts here.


      ‘No Vacancies’ for Blacks: How Donald Trump Got His Start, and Was First Accused of Bias.  (The New York Times, 8/27/2017)

      Telling Trump’s Story to Children: For Book Publishers, It’s Tricky.  (The New York Times, 4/5/2017)
      In the days after the election, Ms. Sutinis scrambled to produce a profile of the person who was elected instead. “It was one of the harder things I have had to do in a long career of writing and editing nonfiction for kids,” she said.


      "Part 2: The generic Donald Trump", starts here.


      Source:  Amazon

      Currently, #96 in Books > Children's Books > Biographies > U. S. Presidents & First Ladies.

      Doesn't fare as well at GoodReads.


      Part 1, "Donald Trump surprises (5/4/2017), starts here.

      Book cover credit:  Scholastic Books

      Trump has a bit of a history in toying with a run for President.


      Primary source of timelime.  
      Here's a Timeline of Every Time Donald Trump Ran for President.  (TV Guide, 7/28/2015)
       
      Other sources:

      How this all got started.   Telling Trump’s Story to Children: For Book Publishers, It’s Tricky.  (The New York Times, 4/5/2017)

      Immediately after reading the article, I placed a hold on a copy ofo this Rookie biography on LINKcat.

      Then and now on the automobile assembly line


      Then.  (No audio.  A moment of silence for a more 'hands-on' assembly line.)



      Now



      A Robot Revolution, This Time in China.  (The New York Times, 5/12/2017)
      1400 human workers, according to the video.  At Ford’s newest car assembly plant in Hangzhou in east-central China, at least 650 robots, resembling huge, white-necked vultures, bob and weave to assemble the steel structures of utility vehicles and midsize sedans. Workers in blue uniforms and helmets still do some of the welding, but much of the process has been automated.

      Photos to accompany "Is the Supermarket Done For?"


      That's the print headline, anyway.

      What’s New in the Supermarket? A Lot, and Not All of It Good.  (The New York Times, 5/16/2017)
      Mr. [Michael] Ruhlman is the author of several books, most of them about cooking and chefs. He loves grocery stores and rarely passes up the chance to check out an unfamiliar one. It’s a predilection he ascribes to his father, Rip Ruhlman, who did the food shopping for the family and who makes frequent appearances in his son’s latest book, “Grocery: The Buying and Selling of Food in America” (Abrams).

      All photos by Retiring Guy

      “Our food is making us sick,” he said. “Here we have candy bars masquerading as cereal bars — no wonder we’re confused by our food.”  (Woodman's offers a huge selection.")


      He picked up a Special K Caramel Coconut Chewy Snack Bar. “You think Special K is healthy because it tastes so bad,” Mr. Ruhlman said. “But one of these has seven grams of sugar in it, meaning it’s 25 percent sugar.”


      That brought us to the cereal aisle, which Mr. Ruhlman considers the worst in the grocery store; one chapter in his book is titled “Breakfast: The Most Dangerous Meal of the Day.”



      A few aisles over, Perfect Size for One, a new Duncan Hines mix that makes a single cupcake in a mug using a microwave, caught his eye, first for its sugar content (35 grams) and then as an example of how supermarkets are trying to reach younger consumers.
       (Surprisingly, I didn't find the Perfect Size for One, just the Perfect Size offering.  The package includes a 6-inch cake pan and frosting.)

      Treating our planet like a trash bin




      38 million pieces of plastic found on remote Pacific Island.  (Axios, May 16, 2017)
      The 17.6 tons of debris estimated to be present on Henderson Island account for only 1.98 seconds' worth of the annual global production of plastic, they found

      You'll know these sad sacks by their 'I Support President Trump' stickers


      5/18/2017 Team Trump email blast

      Trump 2020 campaign claims a fundraising record amid Russia probes.  (Newsweek, 5/18/2017)
      According to a Wednesday statement from Donald J. Trump for President, the "combined total for May 17 for the campaign and its joint fundraising committee with the Republican National Committee exceeded $314,000, a new campaign record since Election Day, coming almost exclusively from small contributions

      What happens to all this money after Trump resigns or is impeached?  And did we ever get a full accounting of this?

      UPDATE. The healthiest county in each Southern state: Williamson County, Tennessee


      Healthiest County in Every State.  (24/7 Wall Street, 5/9/2017)

      Part of the Nashville metro area, Williamson is the Tennessee's fastest growing county and the 34th fastest-growing county in the U.S.   Its population has increased 538% since 1970, compared to a 37% increase during the same period in Lauderdale County, the state's unhealthiest. Williamson's nonwhite population is 14.6%, compared to 39.4% in Lauderdale.


      Other numbers
      % of population living in poverty
      • Williamson County | 5.0%
      • Lauderdale County | 26.2%
      • Tennessee | 16.7%
      • U.S.  13.5%
        % of population 25 and older with bachelor's degree
        • Williamson County | 55.7%
        • Lauderdale County | 9.1%
        • Tennessee | 24.9%
        • U.S. | 29.8%
        Median household income:
        • Williamson County | $96,565
        • Lauderdale County | $30,281
        • Tennessee | $45,219
        • U.S. | $53,889

        Source:  Wikipedia


        Other posts in this series.
        Shelby County, Alabama.  (5/10/2017)
        Benton County, Arkasnsas.  (5/11/2017)
        St. Johns County, Florida.  (5/12/2017)
        Oconee County, Georgia.  (5/13/2017)
        Oldham County, Kentucky.  (5/14/2017)
        Cameron Parish, Louisiana.  (5/15/2017)
        Rankin County, Mississippi.  (5/16/2017)
        Orange County, North Carolina.  (5/17/2017)
        Beaufort County, South Carolina.  5/18/2017)


        Original 4/9/2017 post starts here.

        The least healthy counties in every state.  (24/7 Wall Street, 3/15/201\7)

        Lauderdale County, Tennessee


        Source:  Wikipedia




        Other numbers
        % of population living in poverty
        • Lauderdale County | 26.2%
        • Tennessee | 16.7%
        • U.S.  13.5%
          % of population 25 and older with bachelor's degree
          • Lauderdale County | 9.1%
          • Tennessee | 24.9%
          • U.S. | 29.8%
          Median household income:
          • Lauderdale County | $30,281
          • Tennessee | $45,219
          • U.S. | $53,889
          Other counties in series:

          Thursday, May 18, 2017

          Greetings from Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood


          From Retiring Guy's postcard collection

          Chinese Theatre marks 90 years as Hollywood glamour hotspot.  (The Times of Northwest Indiana, 5/18/2017)
          Opened for business on May 18, 1927. Sid Grauman's masterpiece movie house stands on a bustling corner of Hollywood Boulevard, next door to the Dolby Theatre where the Oscars are now presented and across the street from the historic Roosevelt Hotel, where the first Oscar ceremony was held in 1929. Like a Hollywood take on a Chinese temple, it boasts a pagoda-shaped roof and ornate marble carvings, with a cement forecourt filled with celebrity footprints.

          Other greetings:
          Hollywood Boulevard.  (5/18/2017)
          Barstow, California.  (5/17/2017)
          California.  (5/14/2017)
          Parklabrea Towers, L.A.  (5/14/2017)
          La Jolla Children's Pool.  (5/13/2017)
          Los Angeles.  (5/11/2017)
          Laguna Beach, California.  (5/10/2017)
          California.  (5/9/2017)
          Los Angeles.  (5/9/2017)
          California.  (5/8/2017)
          Pomona College, Claremont, California.  (5/7/2017)
          La Jolla, California.  (5/6/2017)
          Hope, Arkansas.  (5/4/2017)
          Bakersfield, California.  (5/3/2017)
          Little Rock, Arkansas.  (5/1/2017)
          California.  (4/28/2017)
          Little Rock, Arkansas.  (4/19/2017)
          Superstition Mountain, Arizona.  (4/15/2017)
          Tucson, Arizona.  (4/12/2017)
          Phoenix, Arizona.  (4/8/2017)
          Monument Valley, Arizona/Utah.  (4/8/2017)
          Dothan, Alabama.  (4/5/2017)
          Mobile, Alabama.  (4/5/2017)
          Anniston, Alabama.  (3/29/2017)

          In Human Beinz mode, Trump gives himself a pep talk at United States Coast Guard commencement



          Trump: No Politician 'Has Been Treated Worse Or More Unfairly' Than Me.  (NPR, 5/172017)

          One-hit wonders the Human Beinz scored a top 10 hit with "Nobody But Me", which debuted at # on the Billboard Hot 100 for the week ending December 9, 1967.  It spent 15 weeks on the chart and peaked at #8 for 3 weeks.

          1980 views from the top of the whatsit-name building


          John Hancock Center could change owners — and names.  (Chicago Tribune, 5/17/2017)

          Photos by Retiring Guy

          In addition to 897,000 square feet of office space and a 730-space parking garage, a buyer would acquire control of the naming rights at one of Chicago's most recognizable buildings. John Hancock, the city's fourth-tallest building at 1,128 feet, has an unusual ownership structure in which residential condominiums, retail and restaurant space, the 360 Chicago observatory and broadcast antennas atop the tower are all owned separately.