An Armed Gunman Shoots Border Patrol Guards In an "Ambush" As Axios Reports Rich White Democrats Are Demanding Actual Violence and a Literal Bloody Revolution Against Trump

Muh Normzzz. Muh precious Normzzz.

Muh Pillars of Democracy.

Bill Melugin
@BillMelugin_

BREAKING: Three federal & TX law enforcement sources tell me an active shooter with a rifle & tactical gear ambushed Border Patrol agents as they arrived at a Border Patrol annex facility in McAllen, TX this morning. Local police and federal agents returned fire, killing him. I'm told this was a purposeful ambush/attack against federal agents and a press conference is planned for later this morning. No federal agents injured. Im told a McAllen police officer may have been shot, but is in stable condition.

The would-be mass murderer was only doing what his fellow Democrats demanded he do.

From Democrat-mouthpiece Axios: Democrats demand literal blood in the literal fight against Trump.

Democrats told to "get shot" for the anti-Trump resistance

Well, this guy did. So is he a hero now?

At town halls in their districts and in one-on-one meetings with constituents and activists, Democratic members of Congress are facing a growing thrum of demands to break the rules, fight dirty -- and not be afraid to get hurt.

Why it matters: House Democrats told Axios they see a growing anger among their base that has, in some cases, morphed into a disregard for American institutions, political traditions and even the rule of law.

"This idea that we're going to save every norm and that we're not going to play [Republicans'] game ... I don't think that's resonating with voters anymore," said one House Democrat.

Another told Axios that a "sense of fear and despair and anger" among voters "puts us in a different position where ... we can't keep following norms of decorum."

Axios spoke to more than two dozen House Democrats for this story, with many requesting anonymity to offer candid insights about their interactions with constituents and activists.

Zoom out: For months, Democratic lawmakers have fumed that their base's demands to "fight harder" misunderstand the lack of legislative and investigative power afforded to the minority party in Congress.

...

What we're hearing: The grassroots wants more. "Some of them have suggested ... what we really need to do is be willing to get shot" when visiting ICE facilities or federal agencies, a third House Democrat told Axios.

"Our own base is telling us that what we're doing is not good enough ... [that] there needs to be blood to grab the attention of the press and the public," the lawmaker said.
A fourth House Democrat said constituents have told them "civility isn't working" and to prepare for "violence ... to fight to protect our democracy."

A fifth House Democrat told Axios that "people online have sent me crazy s*** ... told me to storm the White House and stuff like that," though they added that "there's always people on the internet saying crazy stuff."

Between the lines: While other Democratic lawmakers said their discussions haven't gone that far, nearly every one who spoke to Axios cited examples of voters' panic and fury fueling demands to adopt brute force tactics.

A sixth House Democrat said that when they try to persuade voters to channel their frustration into a focus on winning back Congress in 2026, "people who are angry don't accept that. They're angry beyond things."

"It's like ... the Roman coliseum. People just want more and more of this spectacle," said a seventh lawmaker.

Who's calling for violence?

No shock -- it's the AWFLs and Karens, who assume that because of their sex and money they will never be held accountable for their incitement of violence, and never be on the receiving end of retallitatory violence themselves.

Zoom in: Many lawmakers said these voters tend to be white, well-educated and live in upscale suburban or urban neighborhoods.

"What I have seen is a demand that we get ourselves arrested intentionally or allow ourselves to be victims of violence, and ... a lot of times that's coming from economically very secure white people," said an eighth House Democrat.

...

The bottom line: "The expectations aren't just unreal. They're dangerous," the eighth House Democrat said.

A ninth lawmaker told Axios: "I actually said in a meeting, 'When they light a fire, my thought is to grab an extinguisher,'" a ninth House Democrat told Axios.

"And someone at the table said, 'Have you tried gasoline?'"

Posted by: Ace at 01:28 PM | Comments (411) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Communist Ghoul Media Goes Straight to Blaming a Republican President for Deadly Weather

Around 70 people died in the floods and we can expect that number to continue rising as some of those reported missing will eventually be confirmed to be dead.

President Donald Trump signed a Major Disaster Declaration for Kerr County, Texas, over the weekend, pledging immediate federal assistance to support rescue and recovery operations after devastating Fourth of July flooding.

Key Details:

In a Truth Social post Sunday, Trump confirmed he signed the disaster declaration "to ensure that our Brave First Responders immediately have the resources they need."
Floodwaters surged through Kerr County on Independence Day, claiming nearly 70 lives and leaving over 20 girls still missing, according to updated reports.
More than 850 individuals have been rescued thanks to joint operations by the U.S. Coast Guard and state emergency personnel, Trump said, noting Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visited the area alongside Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.

Diving Deeper:

President Donald Trump moved swiftly over the weekend to authorize federal support for flood recovery efforts in central Texas, where the aftermath of deadly flash flooding continues to unfold. On Sunday, Trump announced via Truth Social that he had signed a Major Disaster Declaration for Kerr County, one of the hardest-hit regions in the state.

"I just signed a Major Disaster Declaration for Kerr County, Texas, to ensure that our Brave First Responders immediately have the resources they need," Trump wrote. "These families are enduring an unimaginable tragedy, with many lives lost, and many still missing."

The disaster struck during Independence Day celebrations, with sudden and violent flooding sweeping through areas around Kerrville -- including children's camps -- leaving widespread devastation in its path.

The Democrat Media knew from the first moments the cause for this tragedy: Global Warming and the Bad Orange Man who is a Fascist.

It's so strange that no Democrat president, not one, has ever been blamed for the weather-related catastrophes that occur during his term, while not a single Republican president has ever escaped blame.

That seems statistically unlikely, if we assume a non-partisan media, so we should definitely not assume that.

Michael Shellenberger
@shellenberger

Climate change caused the Texas floods that killed at least 27 people, say the media. No, it didn't. The lack of a flood warning system did. We've managed floods for millennia, and deaths from them declined 80% in the last 100 years. Climate reporters are trapped in a weird cult

Michael Shellenberger
@shellenberger

Jul 5
Climate change caused the catastrophic floods that tore through Central Texas over the last few days, killing at least 27 people, including nine children, and turning calm rivers into violent torrents, according to the media.

At Camp Mystic in Kerr County, the Guadalupe River surged from about three feet to nearly 29 feet in just 90 minutes, sweeping away cabins, vehicles, and people with little or no warning. Climate change caused a warmer atmosphere, which holds more moisture, and unleashed it in increasingly intense bursts.

Volumes of precipitation were extreme. They had less than a 0.1% chance of occurring in any given year, according to the New York Times. Texas climatologists warned that the frequency and severity of such events have already increased and could intensify by another 10 percent by 2036. In East Texas, "the number of days per year with at least two inches of rain or snow has increased by 20 percent since 1900," noted the Times.

But that tiny increase in precipitation doesn't explain the floods or the deaths in Texas. Over the past century, global flood deaths declined by more than 80 percent. That happened not because nations reduced rainfall but because they have learned how to live with it. They built levees, dams, and drainage systems. They developed early warning systems and evacuated people before the water arrived. Kerr County in Texas failed to do any of these things.

Despite its location in one of the most flood-prone regions in the United States, the county had no formal flood warning system in place. There were no sirens, no automated text alerts, no rapid evacuation protocol. The river rose, and families had no idea it was coming...

Posted by: Ace at 12:24 PM | Comments (369) | Trackbacks (Suck)

THE MORNING RANT: The Big Beautiful Bill Has Just Kneecapped Green Energy and the “EV Transition”

This is a joyous moment for conservatives and all of us who have been battling the climate hoax. With President Trump signing the One Big Beautiful Bill into law, government subsidization of electric vehicles and “green energy” has effectively been shut down.

I will have much more to write about this, and I also know that a lot of people had reservations about the OBBB because it did not suddenly fix decades of government deficit spending. But what it did do is actually eliminate some of the most egregious government spending that was in service to attacks on America’s energy independence and transportation freedom. Unlike traditional omnibus bills where Republican congressmen get funding for roads or infrastructure in exchange for Democrats getting an expansion of the welfare state, this law is slashing all sorts of left-wing programs, including the funding of Medicaid for the able-bodied who won’t work, and for Planned Parenthood.

Perhaps most significant to me is that the OBBB has killed off the “EV transition” effective almost immediately. In addition, green energy boondoggles will have to come up with a business plan that doesn’t involve taxpayer subsidization. We are also likely near the end of the environmental nightmare of wind energy, and industrial-scale solar.

Specifically:

• Wind and Solar Energy Projects: Tax credits are eliminated, with the exception that projects started within the next 11 months, or those completed by the end of 2027, are grandfathered in.
• Residential Solar: The 30% tax credit goes away at the end of this year.
• Electric Vehicles: The $7,500 per unit federal tax credit for the purchase of new EVs is eliminated effective 9/30/2025 – less than three months! The $4,000 federal incentive for buying a used EV is also killed off.
• EV Chargers: The tax credit for installing an EV charger at home is also killed off effective 6/30/2026, less than a year from now.

There is nothing in this big beautiful law that will stop a person from being true to his faith in The Sustainable Organic Church of the Carbon Apocalypse. He can still buy a Tesla or any other electric vehicle, install a car charger in his home, and produce some of the electricity on his very own rooftop solar array. None of this will be prohibited. It’s just not going to be subsidized by the rest of us. Let freedom ring.

There are still a lot of “small government conservatives” criticizing the OBBB. I’d caution fellow conservatives to be careful about nodding too vigorously with these critics who accuse the OBBB being a “tax-and-spend bill,” since we conservatives are famously anti-tax. Everyone who is losing a “green” tax credit will be facing a “tax increase,” which was really just a very special, targeted incentive subsidized by the rest of us. The elimination of tax exemptions for adversaries seeking to deny me reliable energy and transportation freedom is a “tax increase” I can enthusiastically support.

*****

My latest piece at The Blaze is a non-political piece that ran over the holiday weekend. It’s a little bit of Americana recounting a morning I spent chatting with a wise, ex-convict on a Texas fishing pier.

“You know,” he said, “my biggest regret isn’t those lost years. It’s how it hurt my folks. They had to always try to avoid talking about family. They stopped going out much. It hurts to have to say, ‘My boy is in prison in Huntsville.’ Mom died while I was in prison, and I missed her funeral. I’ve paid my debt to society. I think I’ve overpaid. By looking out for Dad, I can try to repay a more important debt.”

The story is behind a paywall, but if you’re a Blaze subscriber I’d be honored if you’d give it a read.

My latest piece at The Blaze: "From Prison to Pier: The Unlikely Wisdom of a Catfisherman"

"Catching a hardhead always recalls the gentle ex-convict whose path in life briefly intersected with mine one morning on a South Texas pier."https://t.co/MJcSlFmSDU

— Buck Throckmorton (@BuckThrockmort) July 6, 2025

[buck.throckmorton at protonmail dot com]

Posted by: Buck Throckmorton at 11:00 AM | Comments (375) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Mid-Morning Art Thread

People in the Sun
Edward Hopper

Posted by: CBD at 09:25 AM | Comments (284) | Trackbacks (Suck)

The Morning Report — 7/7 /25

Good morning kids, Of course the big story is the massive flooding in Texas that so far has claimed the lives of some 70 people, including 5 children from a Christian summer camp, and with search and rescue operations still ongoing, the death toll is likely to rise.

For all of you and your loved ones who are affected by this catastrophe, our thoughts and prayers go out to you and yours that you may stay safe and that relief and recovery are swift.

President Trump and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem are expected to be on the ground in Texas and more importantly moving resources into the area to aid in recovery and disaster amelioration efforts. Competency and actually giving a damn are indeed a refreshing change from Sponge-Brain Shits-Pants Biden and his handlers. Of course, when disaster struck Red states during their junta's reign, it was more cruelty and retribution than incompetency that made the disasters even worse for the victims.

President Donald Trump announced Sunday that he signed a Major Disaster Declaration for Kerr County, Texas, as the state reels from deadly flooding that has killed dozens and left more missing. . . According to Trump, Coast Guard officials and Texas first responders have rescued over 850 people as of Sunday. At least 67 people have died in the floods across Texas, including 59 in Kerr County, according to local officials. Particularly hard-hit was Camp Mystic, a Christian summer retreat for girls near the Guadalupe River, where 11 children and one counselor remain missing, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha said during a press briefing.

Of course, the response from the anti-American left is about what you'd expect:

When tragedy strikes, you can always count on the left to weaponize heartbreak for political gain. . . Instead of mourning the dead or supporting the heroic first responders—who have already rescued more than 850 people from the floodwaters—leftists are spinning a narrative that blames Trump-era budget decisions for the devastation. . . It’s not enough for them to politicize a tragedy—they have to lie about it, too. As the search for survivors continues, liberal pundits and blue-check Twitter warriors are busy “concern trolling” Texans, suggesting that “this is what happens when you cut too much government.” Some have even gone so far as to imply that red states somehow deserve this fate, as if the weather itself is a tool of cosmic justice for voting the wrong way. The sheer callousness is staggering.

Meh, these are the same twisted reptilian ghouls who cheered on the Islamic hordes from Gaza raping and butchering Israelis if not joining in here at home by verbally and physically assaulting Jews on college campuses and elsewhere.

It's why even I, as an ex New Yorker despite having mixed feelings about what my hometown is in for should the absolutely man-caused disaster of Zohran Momdani and his acolytes take control. NYC didn't and should not have to have been doomed to suffer what is about to hit it, and yet. . .

The city is dying, and we should let it. Progressives are all in favor of assisted suicide, we should join them in the case of New York and help the city kill itself. Only a complete embrace of socialist/fascist/communist policies (and there isn’t a dime’s worth of difference between the three) will ween those people off their addiction to seeking government to solve their problems/improve their lives. Let it die, and let them choke on whatever damage and harm to people it does along the way.

Some people can learn from history, other are too dumb to heed those lessons and avoid the pitfalls of the past. New York falls into the latter, so let them swallow the whole bottle of their own medicine. I can’t bring myself to care.

Republicans in Washington should do everything to make sure that all the socialist policies New York currently has, and the ones in waiting to be imposed, have the maximum impact on the people who voted for their worthless politicians.

As I attempted to articulate, I totally get this sentiment and I even agree with it. Good and hard as the saying goes. But, I still have elderly relatives and some sane friends who simply cannot pack up and leave for a host of reasons and so are trapped. Yes, it's easy to to tell NYC and every other blue shit hole to go to hell. But, unless and until an actual civil war or other political dissolution of the bonds that tie us together comes about, if it and all the other blue states go down, we may very well be sucked down in the vortex as well.

So there's that and then there is the sheer insanity/stupidity/folly or whatever of Elon Musk forming a political party that will only, if it does gain any traction, merely siphon off votes from the Trump base and Trump averse GOP electorate thereby handing the country over to the Democrats for the midterms, 2028 and quite possibly well into the future.

This at the very moment when the Democrat Party is tearing itself apart as it struggles to contain the erupting insanity of the Momdani/Titty-Caca/Bernie Sanders and other bust-out wackadoo maniacs from gaining control from the more effective closeted communists and criminals who control the Party.

President Trump in just the past 6 months has been wildly successful domestically and internationally, with his most successful accomplishment being exposing the Democrats as well as the traitors allegedly on our side in the GOP for who and what they are.
As CBD and I lamented on the latest episode of the podcast in reference to the passage of the Big Beautiful Bill, all it is is the furtherance of the multi-trillion dollar ongoing grift that makes politicians on both sides of the aisle part and parcel of the same hypocrisy.

The irony of course is that the BBB, at least in our early estimation will expose this, but as erudite commenter and friend Dave in Florida pointed out to me (and which i included in the editorial last Friday) there are actually some very good things in the bill, so I look forward to having my reservations about it proven to be wrong.

President Trump in just the past 6 months has been wildly successful domestically and internationally, with his most successful accomplishment being exposing the Democrats as well as the traitors allegedly on our side in the GOP for who and what they are.

Whether the BBB stinks on ice or is indeed a major Trump masterstroke, Musk is violating Napoleon's ironclad principle of when your enemy is making a mistake, let them continue without interference. Jealousy, treachery, duplicitousness? What a scumbag, or am I missing something here? Instead of a third party pipe dream, it should be all hands on deck to wrest control of the GOP.

Elsewhere, has it really been 20 years since the Islamic terror attack on London?

How time flies when westerners have their heads up their ass...

And lastly, a quick shout-out and thank you for your continued support in hitting our tip jar. It truly is appreciated more than you can know.

Have a great day!

ABOVE THE FOLD, BREAKING, NOTEWORTHY
• A general aviation aircraft was intercepted by a North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) fighter after it violated Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) airspace over Bedminster, New Jersey. This event marked one of five unauthorized incursions into the restricted airspace on the day.The civilian aircraft entered the restricted zone at about 2:39 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. To capture the pilot’s attention, NORAD aircraft executed a headbutt maneuver and safely escorted the aircraft out of the area.
  NORAD Intercepts Plane at Trump’s Bedminster.
  
• John Dale Dunn, M.D.: What didn’t happen is that four police officers violated both regulations and laws to kill George Floyd, and the officers were railroaded.
  A Five-Year George Floyd Retrospective Lets Us See What Really Happened
  
• Victor Davis Hanson: Zoran Mamdani built his dream on radical chic—but now that he's winning, he's scrambling to bury the blueprint.
  The Frightening Dream House of Zoran Mamdani
  
• Michael Walsh: The recent accession to the throne of St. Peter by the new pope, Leo XIV, is surely the most significant event in Church history since the doctrinal demolition derby of the Second Vatican Council of 1962-65 unleashed by Pope John XXIII and concluded by Pope Paul VI (both, unaccountably, sainted since their deaths). Nothing did more to destroy the integrity and popularity of the Roman Catholic faith than this disastrous conclave, and nothing could be more timely or encouraging than a restoration of the liturgy by the Chicago White Sox fan, Pope Bob; it just might take an American to clean out the Augean Stables of the Eternal City.
  THE COLUMN: Il Ritorno della Messa Tridentina in Patria?

Posted by: J.J. Sefton at 07:05 AM | Comments (386) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Daily Tech News 7 July 2025

Top Story

• Why AI sucks. (Dwarkesh)
  
  Because it doesn't learn.
  
  Specifically, current large language models are not designed to acquire and verify new facts and to discard old one that turned out to be incorrect, or to adopt new modes of though that streamline reasoning.
  
  They are trained, once, and then left to slowly rot until they are replaced.
  
  Interesting comments on this article too: Arguing about when AI will replace humanity and then admitting that nobody really knows anything and it will probably never happen.

Posted by: Pixy Misa at 04:30 AM | Comments (131) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Sunday Overnight Open Thread - July 6, 2025 [Doof]

Howdy Hordelings! Hope your Sunday has been good and your holiday weekend safe and enjoyable. The ONT is here for you as always. Come on in and share your wit and wisdom in the comments.

Posted by: Open Blogger at 10:00 PM | Comments (370) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Gun Thread: Vacation Edition 1.0

Howdy, Y'all! Welcome to the wondrously fabulous Gun Thread! As always, I want to thank all of our regulars for being here week in and week out, and also offer a bigly Gun Thread welcome to any newcomers who may be joining us tonight. Howdy and thank you for stopping by! I hope you find our wacky conversation on the subject of guns 'n shooting both enjoyable and informative. You are always welcome to lurk in the shadows of shame, but I'd like to invite you to jump into the conversation, say howdy, and tell us what kind of shooting you like to do!

Holy Shitballs! How in the ever-loving hell did it get to be the Vacation Edition v1.0? Yep, that's correct guys and gals, We're headed to the beach for a week. Frankly my rigorous retirement schedule of napping, smoking cigars, and playing with Fun Size Joe & Gertie has been so exhausting I found I already needed a break. Thank you for understanding!

Fun Vacation Update: So we left Northern Virginia Saturday morning and about six hours later arrived at Surf City, NC. As we neared the beach, a portable digital road sign displayed the following message: TROPICAL STORM WARNING IN EFFECT which needless to say was something of a surprise as the last time I had looked at the weather the forecast was for fairly typical summer beach conditions. Anyhoo, it rained and blew bigly all Saturday night and into Sunday morning, but appears to be clearing, and I was able to venture out to get donuts and bagels for breakfast.

With that, step into the dojo and let's get to the gun stuff below, shall we?

Posted by: Weasel at 07:00 PM | Comments (136) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Food Thread: Puttering And Popcorn!

One of the pleasures of cooking is the relaxed pace of a home-cooked meal. Oh, I'm not talking about the frenetic meals that provide little besides fuel and a cursory check that the brats are still alive. You know, the ones that are scheduled between homework and band practice and baseball and picking up the car from the shop and getting that last load of laundry put away.

No... I am talking about the meals with good friends on a lovely and relaxed weekend, or the last evening of a vacation (or even an impromptu breakfast of savory French Toast with salt and butter).

The Roasted Chicken With Leeks and Butter-Sautéed Carrots that you see above was the delicious result of just such an event. And even better, it included shopping for the ingredients!

There are very few things better than puttering around the kitchen with friends, glasses of wine, sharp knives, and no real plan.

But it worked out marvelously, especially since the food really was good. As many of you know, my mantra when entertaining or being entertained is that the real pleasure is the company, and if the food is good? What a wonderful bonus!

We did forget to open the champagne, so there will need to be a reprise of this meal...

Posted by: CBD at 04:04 PM | Comments (192) | Trackbacks (Suck)

First World Problems...

That doesn't look like a problem! On the contrary, it is a delicious and wonderful thing, courtesy of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and a curious blind Benedictine monk.*

But...that is the extent of our Independence Day celebrations, since we are currently 3,650 miles from the greatest country in human history. That's a first for me, and I don't like it.

Seriously. I love Independence Day, because it reminds me every year exactly how lucky we all are, being the beneficiaries of that marvelous confluence of countless events that built the United States of America, none more so than the absolutely stupendous Declaration Of Independence.

56 men, mostly in their 30s and 40s (average age of 44!) signed that document. All of them knew that they were declaring open rebellion against one of the greatest powers on earth. If they lost, they would hang. But they did it anyway!

And against all odds they knocked the snot out of Great Britain, and took the greatest place on earth away from that empire. Little did King George and parliament know what they had just lost.

Luckily for them we are a forgiving people. 141 years later we bailed them out of a catastrophe in Europe, and then we did it again 25 years after that!

We have huge issues in America, and in many ways we have lost our way. But looking at the stunning developments over the past three election cycles makes me far more sanguine about our future prospects as a great country.

Yes, even the many catastrophes have shown us who the enemies of the Republic are, and that is a tremendous advantage. The battle is joined!

We are Americans, so we will win!

* Not really. Champagne wasn't invented by anyone...it evolved over centuries, but existed before Dom Perignon.

Posted by: CBD at 02:00 PM | Comments (180) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Russia Will Win In Ukraine, And It Doesn't Matter At All

I am tired of hearing about Ukraine. I am tired of seeing Zelenskyy and his stupid track suits and smug assumptions that he is a global player. He looks as stupid as Hillary Clinton in her pants suits, and maybe just as arrogant! And I am sick of Putin being elevated into some vaunted position as a global leader when Russia is a regional, not a world power. And most of all I am tired of the histrionics emanating from the media and most European capitols that Ukraine is some bastion of Western Freedom, and we all must rally 'round their flag. What that actually means is that they want America to foot the bill in treasure and blood so that they can continue their lovely cradle-to-grave welfare state lives while spending almost nothing on defense.

Russia is bigger than Ukraine, has a larger army, has access to allies that will assist them, and will most probably win this war. And why should they stop? They are achieving whatever goals they have, and the West without the American military doing the heavy lifting won't, or can't (or both) help.

Ukraine has a power-mad midget dictator (when was the last election in Ukraine?) who wants the West to pay for his intransigence in the face of the current Russian belligerence. But Ukraine is not blameless in this war, and regardless of why it started, they had opportunities to end the war with a negotiated ceasefire, but chose to continue to burn through their men and the West's arms on some ridiculous hope that somehow they could turn the tide. They were wrong, and a lot of people are dead because of that decision.

Putin Tells Trump He Won't Give Up Goals In Ukraine, Kremlin Says

Putin told Trump that “Russia will achieve its goals” in Ukraine and “will not abandon” them, according to Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov, who spoke with reporters following the July 3 call. Russia is seeking to conquer Ukraine and bring the independent country back into its fold. [bold mine]

Wow...where did that assumption come from? It's the first time I have seen it, and I doubt very much that Putin wants all of Ukraine. Hell, what would he do with it? My guess that he wants what he has been saying all along...he wants the Russian parts!

U.S. Pauses Ukraine Arms Shipments Amid Broader Military Aid Review, Pentagon Says

The announcement follows confirmation by the White House that some shipments—reportedly including vital air defense munitions—have been temporarily halted.

“We can’t give weapons to everybody all around the world. We have to look out for America and defending our homeland,” Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said during his first solo press briefing.

And this is the unavoidable reality of the world. We have to make decisions based on what is best for America, but until recently we didn't have a president who cared more for America than for the rest of the world.

I am happy that the administration is prioritizing the defense of America and its armed forces over the defense of a corrupt pseudo-democracy and its tinpot dictator president.

[check below the fold for some clownish stupidity from Bill Kristol. It's almost too stupid to believe it is real!]

Posted by: CBD at 11:50 AM | Comments (250) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Sunday Morning Book Thread - 7-6-2025 ["Perfessor" Squirrel]

Welcome to the prestigious, internationally acclaimed, stately, and illustrious Sunday Morning Book Thread! The place where all readers are welcome, regardless of whatever guilty pleasure we feel like reading (a little something for the 'Ettes, HT: Dash my lace wigs). Here is where we can discuss, argue, bicker, quibble, consider, debate, confabulate, converse, and jaw about our latest fancy in reading material. As always, pants are required, unless you are wearing these pants...(fireworks not included)

So relax, find yourself a warm kitty (or warm puppy--I won't judge) to curl up in your lap, let off any remaining fireworks (preferably not from your lap), and dive into a new book. What are YOU reading this fine morning?

Posted by: Open Blogger at 09:00 AM | Comments (307) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Daily Tech News 6 July 2025

Top Story

• The Nvidia RTX 5090 - the fastest graphics card available - can lose up to 25% performance if it doesn't have full PCIe 5.0 x16 bandwidth. (WCCFTech)
  
  For example, running at half speed - with either a PCIe x8 slot or PCIe 4.0 - it loses... Basically nothing. Maybe 1%.
  
  At a quarter of the bandwidth - so PCIe 3.0 - it loses 10% of its performance.
  
  If you drop all the way back to PCIe 2.0 you finally see that 25% performance loss.
  
  Meaning that PCIe 5.0 doesn't improve performance unless you don't have all 16 lanes available, even on a 5090.
  
  And if you're using it for a workload that resides mostly on the card, like AI processing, you hardly need anything. There's more variability between test runs than between a single lane and a full x16 slot.

Posted by: Pixy Misa at 04:30 AM | Comments (144) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Saturday Night "Club ONT" July 5, 2025 [The 3 Ds]

Welcome to Club ONT! A collaboration of your Sunday through Wednesday ONT Crew - The Disco, The Doggo, and The Dino.

Welcome the the 5th of July, Club edition. We hope you were able to properly honor the USA yesterday, limited your sunburn, broke out an amazing Independence Day outfit, grilled and consumed plenty of protein, and can account for all your fingers (and appendages). No sparklers required this evening.

Posted by: Open Blogger at 10:00 PM | Comments (421) | Trackbacks (Suck)

When in Rome (or Hollywood)... [Lex]

When movie trivia was fun this was a good one: what two films, produced in the 1960s, took a two-decade break before the sequel was made in the 1980s?

The answer: Psycho (1960) and The Hustler (1961), their sequels being Psycho II (1983) and The Color of Money (1986). It was a good trivia question because the practice of a follow up in which the actors reprised their roles, separated by two decades no less, was rare -- if non existent.
How times have changed...

There have always been serial style movies (James Bond or The Thin Man franchise) and regular sequels (The Godfather II, a masterpiece; The French Connection II, pedestrian) and remakes or reimaginings (Ben Hur, The Invisible Man, Road House) and reboots (The Planet of the Apes or Halloween), but I'm not talking about those.

The focus of this post is the continuing of a tale some years later, but there's a difference between what I mean and a straight up sequel. Sequels usually come fast and furious (yes, I meant to do that) upon the heels of the first chapter. So The Fast and The Furious or Superman or Rambo.

The characters may be the same but there is no nostalgic yearning to see what they have been up to after many years, a la Norman Bates or Eddie Felson.

Traditional sequels usually are plot-based. Ethan Hunt is assigned a new mission. Clark W. Griswold goes on his next vacation. We care less about how the characters have evolved or aged or where they find themselves than we do about them saving the day or finding a decent hotel.

Business-wise it makes perfect sense. Hollywood produces a popular film and wants to cash in on sequels, so we get Final Destination part LVIII (or whatever we are up to now) and will keep getting more as long as profit is to be had.

But somewhere along the line, in addition to the traditional sequel, we got the years-later-what-are-they-up-to film.

What changed? Why were the cases of Psycho II and The Color of Money as follow ups isolated?

Posted by: Open Blogger at 07:30 PM | Comments (301) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Hobby Thread - July 5, 2025 [TRex]

Welcome hobbyists! Pull up a chair and sit a spell with the Horde in this little corner of the interweb. This is the mighty, mighty officially sanctioned Ace of Spades Hobby Thread. We gave the Ace of Spades Wheel of Hobbies(TM) a spin and it came up with woodworking.

[Top photo: Bowl from the root of a Pecan tree]

Posted by: Open Blogger at 05:30 PM | Comments (210) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Ace of Spades Pet Thread, July 5

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Good afternoon and welcome to the almost world famous Ace of Spades Pet Thread. Thanks for stopping by. Kick back and enjoy the world of animals.

Would you like a treat?

Let's relax a little with the animals and leave the world of politics and current events outside today.

Posted by: K.T. at 03:28 PM | Comments (87) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Gardening, Home and Nature Thread, July 5

Hi, KT … It's good to see you back in the Captain's Chair again. Excellent column! Attached is a pic I found in files on the Venerable XHD - some spider lilies. These were in a 'kinda-sorta' garden next to what had once been JAX Brewery in the French Quarter.

It was about 0730, and the light was great. Equipment was a Bogen tripod, Olympus OM-4 (black) w/16mm Olympus macro lens. Exposure? Heh. A triple exposure on the same film frame. No easy task with the OM-4. It had a button that had to be depressed when 'advancing' the frame (which kept the film stationary in-camera) for each subsequent exposure. In reality, this was a 'hit 'n hope' shot, and I was quite the happy boy when the print was ready at Colorpix. It was also a good seller. Sometimes luck trumps skill, yes?

Oh. Filmstock? It was probably one of the stocks from Agfa, 'cos I really like its 'European' color balance from that time.

Dr_No

A great trip down memory lane. Timely, too. Great substitute for fireworks in the garden (especially around dogs - ask me how I know).

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Posted by: K.T. at 01:27 PM | Comments (66) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Independence Day Weekend (with a little socialism)

Happy Independence Day Weekend! Along with the festivities, why not take the opportunity to make remembering some history fun for the kids? One of the keys to the popularity of the clearly incompetent socialist mayoral candidate in NYC seems to be that he smiles a lot.

We can do better than this with young people. And older people, for that matter.

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History of Independence Day

Posted by: K.T. at 11:19 AM | Comments (241) | Trackbacks (Suck)

The Classical Saturday Morning Coffee Break & Prayer Revival

Good morning boys and girls and everything in between. I certainly hope you have all of your fingers and toes this morning. Too late to pray for you not to blow those digits off.

Before we enter the Prayer Revival just a few housekeeping matters to go over. (Rulz for those of you in Plover)

1) This is an open thread. Feel free to lurk, opine and/or bloviate.
2) Be kind be nice. Even the trolls have warped feelings.
3) No running with sharp objects.
4) Have a great weekend!

Posted by: Misanthropic Humanitarian at 07:04 AM | Comments (279) | Trackbacks (Suck)