Random Monday Morning Thoughts

• On Friday, there were were 123 more DPS Troopers in Texas. 
• Liberally Lean curse: On Friday I said the Baylor Scandal had become a dumpster fire. On Friday, there was an actual dumpster fire in Southlake. 
• Billy Bob from Varsity Blues died on Friday.  (Side note: The girl in the whipped cream scene from that movie is now 40 years old and still very hot.) 
• We've got another just-six-months-in-jail sexual assault story. This time it comes from Alabama and involves a state trooper. 
• "A 23-year-old Fort Worth man was found not guilty this week in the fatal shooting of an aspiring rapper in the parking lot of an Arlington sports bar two years ago." Two things: (1) Both defense lawyers are former prosecutors and one of the them left after the new administration took over, (2) This case involving a shooting outside of a club with no scientific evidence. The not guilty verdict demonstrates the problem that exists with all the  Waco Twin Peaks bikers prosecution.
• I went to Benihana yesterday. It's like Panda Express on acid.
• Hasbro has created a "Chewbacca Mom" action figure. Will we ever get rid of her?
• Today is the first day of Summer and a full moon.  I don't know the significance of that but it is pretty rare. I tried to look up dates for the last time and the next time it will happen, but I came across a story that said it depends on what time zone you are in. That gave me Tired Head so I abandoned the search. 
• It took a game seven with historical consequences, but I finally watched 1/2 of one game of an NBA game last night. CBS News said President Obama stayed 10 minutes longer on Air Force One after landing to watch the end of the game.
• Three years ago Skip Bayless tweeted: "Johnny Football will one day be bigger in Cleveland than his buddy LeBron ever was."
• Some guy in the Liberally Lean Pick 'Em tournament a few years back received an autographed Lebron James jersey that a buddy gave to me to give away as a prize. I think it was a Cleveland jersey. 
• “Hey, you want to hit the papers tomorrow? Let’s get that horse. I’ll ride that horse. The problem is, even if I make it, they’ll say I fell off the horse and it was terrible.” - Donald Trump at Gilley's in Dallas last week when he confused the mechanical bull with a mechanical horse.
• "These 50 Sodomites [in Orlando] were all perverts and pedophiles and they are the scum of the earth and the earth is a little bit better place now, and I’ll even take it a little further I heard on the news today that there are still several dozen of these queers in ICU and I will pray that God will finish the job that that man started" - Fort Worth Pastor Donnie Romero of Stedfast Baptist Church. (The place looks like it might have a salad bar.)
  
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• He also has hot religious opinions regarding today's churches: "[Our] church is old-fashioned, has traditional music, and is King James Bible only! The new evangelical movement in America has been a complete disaster. The worldly, rock and roll, contemporary-style churches are not getting the job done when it comes to preaching the Gospel to every creature, teaching Bible doctrine, and preaching hard against sin. We do not pattern our church after these trendy social clubs. Stedfast Baptist Church stands for the old paths and zero compromise preaching." He should trademark "Preaching Hard". That's pretty catchy.
• A thought: If you asked a male under 25 what King James refers to do you think they would refer to a version of the Bible or Lebron?
• Fox 4's Jenny Anchondo got married over the weekend. Any "Hey, Nows" in this pic?
• Top 10 in alcohol sales in DFW in April: (1) Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center $1.87 million. (2) American Airlines Center $1.31 million, (3) Toyota Stadium $1.14 million, (4)  Happiest Hour $1.07 million, (5) Hilton Anatole Hotel $1.06 million, (6) Globe Life Park $969,162, (7) Omni Dallas Hotel $967,354, (8) AT&T Stadium $837,251, (9) Varsity Tavern $727,472. (Source)  Happiest Hour is near Uptown. Varsity Tavern is in Fort Worth.
• I pulled the following data for March in Decatur. I guess Bono's in not in the city limits:
  
  
  
  
  Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/living/food-drink/article84500557.html#storylink=cpy
• I do not understand how to navigate Reddit.

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/community/fort-worth/article84469317.html#storylink=cpy

Above The Fold

Readable pdf.

It's Friday. Let's Get Out Of Here.

Trump Protest In San Antonio With Comedic Twist

pic.twitter.com/4DkVuX9pi9

— Filipa Ioannou (@obioannoukenobi) June 17, 2016

Cat Like Reflexes

Waitress with crazy reflexes stop mug from crashing to floor in the best way https://t.co/TkXS6AWOIu pic.twitter.com/libMqp5D4E

— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) June 17, 2016

This Is Like The Zapruder Film

I could watch this all day. Nothing I enjoy more than watching a bro being a bro get served up a perfect mouthpiece. https://t.co/gxETUOFAsd

— Josh Jordan (@NumbersMuncher) June 17, 2016

Guy gets hit by mouthpiece as Curry gets ejected last night.  It was like he was hit by a sniper.

Random Friday Morning Thoughts

• There was just something uncomfortable about that Trump appearance in Dallas last night. A predominately white crowd inside, minorities protesting on the outside, and more cops than you could shake a stick at. It feels like the 1960s.
• And what in the world was FBC Dallas pastor Robert Jeffress doing on stage?
• With Briles turning on Baylor yesterday, we have an official Dumpster Fire ongoing at Baylor and it may go on for years.
• Briles' lawyer is Earnest Cannon out of Stephenville. I know nothing about him. But he does have a swagger about him . . .
  
• Someone told me there was a metroplex news crew on the Decatur courthouse square this week. I didn't see them. What was that about?
• There was an alleged upskirt photographer on the prowl in McKinney, Celina, Prosper and Frisco.
• Odd moment of the week: I'm fishing. Get a fish on the line. The fish makes a run for it to a nearby brush and gets hung up. I have the Seventh Grader In The House hold the rod and reel. I load up in the kayak knees first to retrieve said fish. And the Family Pup, in an unauthorized move, jumps on the back of the kayak because it wishes to eat the fish. Verdict: Delicious Bass successfully retrieved and released. Family Pup wonders how fish just disappeared. 
• Valley Ranch shuts down this week. I've never even driven by it. 
• So what are the rules for buying a gun at a gun show? Do I have to show an ID? Is there a background check? Waiting period? Or is it like buying a radio at a garage sale?
• Obscure story: A man in Virginia finds a bunch of antique clay pigeons originally delivered to a descendant of Admiral Stephen Decatur. The man called a "museum in Texas" and sent them a few. Is that our museum in Decatur? 
• I heard long time televangelist James Robison on The Mark Davis Show promoting a new book and a relatively new website, The Stream. He said the website had gained one and half million new visitors over a two day period the week before. I know nothing about the site, but that assertion has all the makings of a lie. 
• I bet 75% of you have no idea who James Robison is. He was a big player in DFW back in the day, and he and Cullen Davis "later destroyed more than a million dollars’ worth of jade, ivory, and gold objects because they honored what he called false gods." Tell me you know who Cullen Davis is.
• I'm actually caught up to date on the O.J. documentary. No judge had less control of a courtroom that Lance Ito. Now 65, he retired two years ago.
• Random TV Judge Trivia: Judge Wapner is alive at the ripe old age of 96. "Rusty the Bailiff" died in 2002.

Fox 4's Steve Eagar Needlessly Calls Out Former Fox 4 Employee

What you see there is Eager (who comes across as a jerk on Twitter) saying that someone wasn't ethical. Former Fox 4 gal Lari Barager asks "who?", and Eagar posts Rebecca Aguilar's tweet to him a couple of days ago. Aguilar was frustrated that many of the local affiliates were ignoring the murder of a local Telemundo media guy. 

Eagar got meaner:

I tend to agree with her. Fox 4, as does every local news station, uses content from other media outlets all the time and simply gives them attribution. (Although stealing content by everyone is rampant.) 

But, wait, there's more.

Hmmmmm

Two things: (1) His blood test was .12 but "“What it really came down to was the [video]. He just did not look like somebody who was intoxicated." per his defense lawery, and (2) The only reason it went before the grand jury was because there was a person in the car under 15.  If not, the case would almost certainly have been filed directly as a misdemeanor and have a public cause number right now.  Story.

This is the second time in the last couple of weeks where the Tarrant County grand jury has acted, from a historical standpoint, unpredictably. I wonder if it is because of a new law which requires grand juries to be composed much like regular juries -- from a cross section of the community.

New York: Gas Can Ignites

Stop, drop and roll! https://t.co/kiGliWFMBr pic.twitter.com/xBI0DOtsNb

— NBC DFW (@NBCDFW) June 16, 2016

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts

• The first two stories on NBC Nightly News weren't good for Disney. The first one was about the alligator attack and the second one was about the nightclub shooting complete with a photo of the shooter holding a kid wearing a Mickey Mouse shirt.
• Clever headline: "Tragic Kingdom".
• There was a standoff in Dallas yesterday evening. Think they brought enough cops? (Fox 4 says the following are all "first responder" vehicles)
  
• Tell me this is not an ad: Tony Romo, who never tweets, posted a photo of himself with the caption of "I had so much fun helping @Target shoppers pick out Father's Day gifts in Dallas tonight!" Target paid Romo for that, right? No question. (I saw it on Fox 4 who just acted like Romo just happened to be shopping at Target. Was Fox 4 paid by Target to promote it as a human interest story, too?)
• You would think e-books would cost only 20% of the hardback price. I mean, when you boil it down to manufacturing, storage and shipping, they shouldn't be in the same ballpark.  (I just decided to check the prices on Amazon. Stephen King's new book sells for $17.36 with the Kindle price being $14.99. Something ain't right.)
• Former Dallas mayor Tom Leppert was of Fox 4 last night to talk about "what to expect" at the Trump rally today and he went into a Trump Talking Points spiel. I tried to Google some connection between the two but got totally distracted by a story of Leppert auctioning off his 8,000 square foot kick arse ski house in Park City, Utah earlier this year.
• I didn't understand the pose of Tech's Coach Bro which was revealed yesterday as the cover photo of Dave Campbell's Texas Football.  Then I discovered it's a re-creation of the 1963 cover featuring Darrell Royal.
• Someone to me at the courthouse yesterday: "Did you hear about Lil' Wayne's seizures?" I didn't expect to be asked that. (Ticket fans: That was very similar to, "Did you know Fat Joe left Atlantic?")
• Under the radar Waco Twin Peaks Biker news: (1) The DA sheepishly wanted a gag order which a "whatever you want" district judge granted, (2) the order was appealed to the Waco Court of Appeals which overturned it, and (3) the DA still tried to get the gag order by appealing to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals which yesterday, after initially granting the DA a stay, refused to help him out.  Now if the DA would only get to work on the cases. It's been over a year. 177 arrests. No trials. No convictions. No plea bargains.
• I've not followed the Oakland PD news but it sounds like its a mess. There is some "sex scandal" going on which caused some suspensions and the resignation of the chief. Then they appointed an "interim police chief" who was fired after six days with authorities calling the hiring a "mistake".
• The Supreme Court will issue some big opinions today or within the next week. Two I'm interested in are (1) can the State make it a crime to simply refuse to submit to a breath test after being arrested for DWI even if you are ultimately not guilty of DWI? (Prediction: The answer will be "yes"), and (2) Are Texas' new abortion restrictions unconstitutional? (Prediction: "Yes" again). I listened to the oral arguments in the DWI cases and the justices, amazingly, had no idea there was a massive difference between a portable breath test on the side of the road and an Intoxilyzer test at the jail.
• ABC News didn't explore the angle of whether Disney should have had alligator warning signs. Why? ABC is owned by Disney.

More Trump News

Right now outside Trump rally in Atlanta. (Via @JimDalrympleII) pic.twitter.com/8BDb6wb8zY

— Breaking News Feed (@pzf) June 15, 2016

And Dallas is gearing up:

.@DallasPD riot training at Fair Park. Just before political rally & protest tomorrow. @NBCDFW #NBCDFWNow pic.twitter.com/Deh0QGuHB6

— Ken Kalthoff (@KenKalthoffNBC5) June 15, 2016

Trump Announces Dallas Venue

Preview:

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts

• A horrific vacation story this morning out of, incredibly, Orlando: A two year old boy was attacked and dragged into the water by an alligator off the shores of Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa. He was wading in about one foot of water with his father at around 9:30 p.m. last night. He is still missing. 
•                                 
• The exact name of the body of water is Seven Seas Lagoon which is surrounded by Disney hotels and the monorail system. I swam in it as a kid. 
• I watched Part 2 of the 30 for 30 on O.J. last night. It's getting really good and far more of a history lesson than an O.J. lesson. (I had completely forgotten about Latasha Harlins  who was a 15-year-old African-American girl who was shot in the back of the head in 1991 by Soon Ja Du a 51-year-old female Korean-American store owner. It was caught on video. She received 5 years probation which led to racial unrest.)
• Donald Trump was supposed to make a stop in DFW but Grand Prairie said no and then Irving said no. The cities claim it was a logistics problem. Some think it was a potential protester problem.
• Speaking of protests, Trump's visit to San Antonio on Friday might be pretty eventful.
• I think this is big Texas news that is flying under the radar: "The Texas Attorney General's Office has found a new way to punish parents who are behind on child support payments: Blocking their vehicle registration renewal."
• I wondered how long it would take Alvord's native son, Danny Neighbors, to get back into coaching. 
• I do need to get out more: I had no idea that Frilly's had opened up a Tex Mex place and will soon open up a BBQ place at Sean's old location. (Speaking of BBQ, I've heard good things about the new place up near Alvord in the old Cow Camp location.)
• Bridgeport Police Chief Steve Stanford had a funny quote about Facebook which helped his agency solve a theft case: "Something positive finally came from social media."
• I've been listening to a multi-part podcast on World War I which I know nothing about. I was stunned by this number: On the first day of Germany's full blown invasion into France, France lost 27,000 men. Holy cow. The bloodiest one day battle the U.S. has ever gone through is Antietam in the Civil War which left 7,650 dead (and that includes those who died in later days and weeks from injuries.)
• I had a defendant (not mine) in court the other day who randomly started complaining to me about President Obama's portrait hanging on the wall. "Why?" he asked. "He don't even know how to put his hand over his heart."  I'm sure the guy didn't enjoy being called to court, but that was some misplaced anger right there.
• Did you know there are actually four stanzas of the National Anthem?  There are always over/under prop bets for the Super Bowl on how long it will take to sing the anthem and they normally come in at around 2:20. So to sing the whole thing would normally take nine to ten minutes. 
• Very random trivia: The longest #1 Billboard hit ever was Don McLean's American Pie which clocked in at 8:36. The Beatles Hey, Jude ranks second at 7:11. And, now, for the most random link in the history of ever: Listen to the Brady Bunch do a cover of American Pie here.
• I've mentioned before about how often I think flags are flown at half-staff. I'm right. Last year they were officially flown in that manner on 64 days (not to mention how local entities take it upon themselves to lower it on additional days for local incidents or deaths.)

Above The Fold

Full page readable pdf.

Apple Sidelines Cowboy RB

Out two to three months.

President Firing Off Hot Opinions -- Now Waiting From Trump Tweets

Official Liberally Lean Girl

Ed O'Neill didn't know who she was. She just approached him the airport because she was a fan of Modern Family.