This duet with Rosanne Cash and Keb' Mo' came out 5 years ago.

This duet with Keb' Mo' , featuring Rosanne Cash, came out five years ago and rings truer than ever today.

Bornean Clouded Leopard with Cubs spotted

The Bornean Clouded Leopard has not been seen in the Indonesian portion of Borneo for decades. Minimal populations have been seen in two other areas far in the north. Here, a trail camera spotted a Clouded Leopard and two cubs (kittens?) in southern Borneo. 

The second image is that of one of the cubs that inspects the camera himself.

Just a bit about trail cameras now. Trail cameras have been around for a while. For example, trail cameras were used in the hills of Los Angeles 90+ years ago. But the old trail cameras had to be checked by hand, and the film developed with no idea what was on it until the process was complete.

But the advent of remote and constant monitoring - with images sent now via the cloud and web allows a person (or AI) to monitor the camera as it takes pictures every few seconds. The camera area now doesn't smell like people, so animals are more interested in something out of place than afraid.

That is why we have seen the presence of unique animals or animals in places we thought the animals had been driven out of. Anywho, here are the pictures.

The cub

Mom

Let us look at the Media for a moment

 Man, I am ignoring my own rules quickly. But the devil drives where the needs must.

So, the "both sides" of the media can be infuriating. Let's look at this example from this morning.

If you think about it, the phrase "... has turned political" is asinine. 

It hasn't "turned" political. Maghats MADE it political. Do you know how it "turned" political? Trump and his doctors will not allow Trump's actual injury or follow-up check-ups to be shared with the FBI! It would NOT be political if the doctors talked or shared information with the FBI or Secret Service. 

It didn't suddenly turn political. It was turned political so Trump and his followers could tell us all God saved him. As if God had nothing better to do.

And now, back to your regularly scheduled programing.

Save me from both sideism.

Fear of Crazy Maga with Guns

 I was just talking to Lynn, and the country does scare me now. I remember some people worrying when putting on the (Bill) Clinton bumper stickers. At the beginning, with my group of friends, we worried that people would see the sticker, know we were gay, and be pissed off.

Now, I wouldn't put a Harris sticker on my car for fear of being shot at. Really. They are full-on crazy. Last election, a bunch of them tried to push Biden's bus off the freeway into a ditch. Cars were vandalized, and people were threatened with guns while driving.

These people have actually worked as terrorists. See definition:

Dictionary

Definitions from Oxford Languages · Learn more

ter·ror·ist

/ˈterərəst/

noun

1. a person who uses unlawful violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims.

   "four commercial aircraft were hijacked by terrorists"

   Similar:

   bomber

   arsonist

   incendiary

   gunman

   assassin

   desperado

   hijacker

   revolutionary

   radical

   guerrilla

   urban guerrilla

   subversive

   anarchist

   freedom fighter

   insurrectionist

   insurrectionary

adjective

1. unlawfully using violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims.

   "a terrorist organization"

But I think with Harris, we have a little hope.

 

How Hot is Too Hot

 Palm Springs is too hot for people outside now. I mean a quick dip into the pool or walking about a block is fine, but then it begins to overwhelm you. I have drank more water in the last week than ever before!

But I am not complaining. First is "super humid" here right now at 22%, which is nothing, I know. Second we have really divided air-conditioning zones, so we don't have to cool the entire house. And third, we have solar panels, so our electricity bill is not crazy.

 But wow, it is hot. I feel bad for poorer people who can't afford to run their AC enough or whose AC can't cope with this level of heat. The homeless are even worse off. However, I will say that the Coachella Valley (Palm Springs down to Indio) has a lot of shelters with AC or misters during the day where people can cool down. 

Having said that, it is fuck all hot.

However, next week, the lows are expected to be only in the high 70s (it's been 90+ at night for weeks). And the humidity will drop, so it will get better.

I have a funny story (ish). My jacuzzi / pool is almost too hot to enjoy. It is around 100 degrees, without any heating at all. That is what happens when it is over 115 for 10 days and only down to the high 90s at night.

Too, too funny

From Mark Humphries - Australia's 6:57 News Comedy

 

Wells Cathedral

 While in England, we visited Wells Cathedral. It is a famous Cathedral in England and was the seat of Catholic Bishops, then the Church of England (Anglican) Bishops. In fact, one of them still stands next to the King or Queen when they are officially crowned.

The Cathedral was impressive.

One of the impressive items inside was an ancient clock. It was from the 13th Century and has always worked, albeit with repairs often. In the bottom picture, you can see the knights running around the top.

The Tree Kangaroo

 (Now back to our original programming)

Lynn sent me some great news about the Australian Tree Kangaroo. For the uninitiated, the Tree Kangaroo is, just as it states, a smaller kangaroo that has adapted to living in trees. They are endemic to New Guinea, far northern Queensland, and some islands between them.

They are super endangered and the info Lynn sent shows that they are breeding at the Bronx Zoo. It is very cool!

And a pic in the trees.

You can count on the gays to be funny: Even Governors

 

One more thing about Kamala

 If you aren't in the United States, you may not understand this line of attack:

The Republicans in America are fighting against D.E.I. hires. D.E.I. stands for diversity, equality, and inclusion. They are using it as shorthand for the idea that any one person who is not straight, male, and white cannot get a fair break, particularly against a Black candidate. The DEI candidate will get the job over a white guy or white woman.

The idea here, saying Kamala is a DEI hire, means that she got the job because she isn't white or a man. That is, she is not qualified. 

DEI hire is short for lazy Black welfare queen now. Because even Republicans cannot say, "She's Black and therefore not really qualified like a white man would be; those people are stupid."

Well, most of the Republicans got the message; Laura Lomer - a critical voice in Republican circles, who normally trashes Muslims, did not. She referred to Kamala Harris as "ghetto trash."

Kamala Harris

 Well, my "no politics here" will be broken for a moment or so. Kamala Harris has been chosen as the Democratic Nominee for President.

There are few crap pieces of commentary and one real one.

As for crap:

1. She should not be "anointed" as the candidate
2. She should have to face an open convention to be nominated
3. She wasn't a good candidate in 2020

Of these, number 1 and 2 are kind of bullshit. The media is driving these narratives because they would increase interest in the race, which helps ratings.

Number 3 is undeniably valid. She was horrible. But she has grown into a better and more natural speaker and should do fine.

Some positive things:

1. She is the right messenger about women's rights.
2. She is funny. It took a while, but she is funny.
3. She is hard on crime. As the CA Attorney General, she has an excellent record against criminals and crime. FYI - this was a real knock against her during the 2020 campaign.
4. She is a new and young face as the public demands it.
5. She is quick when being interviewed.

Two negative things against her

1. She was the point person on the border, and it did appear to go well.
2. She is a woman, black, and (east) Indian.

The fact that Barack Obama was elected might put the "race" piece of this behind us. But she is still a woman, which sometimes can be tough for Americans. The good news is that she doesn't have Hillary's baggage.

My only warning here is that the polls will be less and less critical. 

Polls traditionally undercount Donald Trump supporters. They also traditionally overcount support for women and Blacks. It is called "The Tom Bradley" effect for a reason. (Tom Bradley, the black ex-mayor of LA, ran for governor of California and was wildly expected to win given the polls, he lost.)