5.30.2024

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts




The photo made me laugh a little.

  • The Trump jury is deliberating without the benefit of having a copy of the 55 page jury charge (PDF) in the jury room. That's insane.  And, frankly, even if they had it with them , they wouldn't be able to make heads or tails out of it because it is shockingly confusing. 

    • And I've pointed this out before, but I'll do it again: Anyone want to explain how Juror #2 is going vote to convict?

  • In wake of his flag controversies, Justice Alito wrote a letter (PDF) to Congress yesterday announcing he would not recuse himself from January 6th cases pending before the Supreme Court.  I can't believe he wrote this: 

    • In response, a January 6th defendant, with a case pending before the Supreme Court, congratulated him for not recusing himself.  Does it kind of feel like our whole system is falling apart?

  • All charges were dropped against golfer Scotty Scheffler.  If you think this would happen to a regular Joe, you're nuts.  A video released yesterday of a conversation he had with an officer while he was being detained revealed that Scheffler admitted that he "took him with you" and "took him with your car."

    • But Scheffler's lawyer had a fiery fiery response to this admission. "The officer was actually asking him leading questions and trying to get him to agree with them, and that’s why you don’t talk to the police.”

  • Seeing the video of a guy charged with Driving on a Suspended License appearing for a Zoom court appearance while driving encapsulates misdemeanor court. It didn't go well for him. 


  • The military has crashed another $101 million fighter jet. 

  • Bad prosecutor. Her biggest problem is that she allegedly applied for the loan for a side business while she was an assistant DA when, as an assistant DA, she wasn't allowed to have a side business.


  • The closest election in Texas I found from Tuesday is this one from Jeff Davis County where the jobs of sheriff and tax accessor are combined. 

  • A tremendous story of how the Texas Republican Party is morphing into a Christian Nationalist Party.



  • Messenger: Above the Fold



at 8:30 AM

5.29.2024

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts




Steve Ballmer bought the Clippers from the embattled Donald Sterling.

  • Election results:
    • In something I wouldn't have predicted six months ago, Cary Mellema beat Chief Deputy Craig Johnson last night and will become Wise County's new sheriff. And it wasn't even close.

    • The West Texas Oilman PAC was victorious in installing Andy Hopper as state rep over incumbent Lynn Stucky. The day after the district was redrawn three years ago, I went on a lengthy rant about how, for the first time ever, Wise County would have the clout to elect a local resident as state rep.  But this wasn't exactly what I had in mind. 



    • The Wise County Conservative group has taken their beatings in the past, but they showed up yesterday to vote for their ordained candidates.

    • From a statewide standpoint, Ken Paxton and the mob were hell bent on unseating House Speaker Dave Phelan.  He won by 366 votes.

    • Ugh.

  • The jury will start deliberating today in Trump's criminal trial after (the way too long) closing arguments ended late yesterday evening. What will happen? Compare and contrast these posts from yesterday posted five minutes apart:


    • You know the craziest thing about the Trump trial? The lawyers, because of New York law, had to give closing argument before the jury was given the courts instruction and verdict form. It will be today when the judge will read the charge to the jury. I can't stress enough how insane this is. I've never given a closing argument in life where I haven't held up the jury charge and explained how the evidence fits the law that the judge has just given them. 

    • Didn't expect Robert De Niro to show up outside the courthouse yesterday. “I don’t mean to scare you. No, wait, maybe I do mean to scare you,” he said. “If Trump returns to the White House, you can kiss these freedoms goodbye that we all take for granted.”  

  • The wind blowing a jet away from the boarding walk at DFW yesterday was nuts. Video.  And wasn't that wing bent back there at the end?

  • Nothing stays under the radar quite like the Wise County nudist park. From today's front page of the Star-Telegram:

  • I thought I would have learned of the name of 18 year old who drowned at Lake Bridgeport on Sunday by now. Maybe the Update will have it this morning. 

at 8:30 AM

5.28.2024

Random Tuesday Morning Thoughts




Runoff election flashback.

  • Crazy weather this morning.

     

    • The metroplex seems to be having a tough time.

  • One of the deceased is 29-year-old Kathryn Elizabeth Lain of Boyd.

  • Have I missed it, or has there not been a funeral announcement for the woman and three children who were killed on 1810 a couple of weeks ago?
  • Courthouse restoration update: Wise County Judge J.D. Clark sends along the discovery of an original painting buried under tons of paint on the metal doors protecting what had been become the district attorney's office. 


  • Trump:
    • He provided this heartwarming Memorial Day message to honor all fallen soldiers.

    • He has now learned for the very first time that the State has a tremendous advantage in closing arguments. (He better be glad he's not in Texas where the State gets to go first and last with the defendant sandwiched in the middle.)

    • Those closing arguments are scheduled today. I heard something crazy on NBC this weekend: In New York, the jury does not have a copy of the (complicated) jury instructions in the jury room. They just have to rely upon their memory of them from when the judge read them in open court. I'm having a hard time believing that is true. 
  • And you wonder why there are protests on college campuses. Over 40 innocent people dead.

  • Election day is today with Wise County voters finding out who the new sheriff and the state rep will be. 
    • I noticed that Andy Hopper filed a recent "one day" financial report where the only contribution was from the West Texas Oilman PAC.

    • He also thought it was a good idea to go on Steve Bannon's show on a fringe right wing network.

  • Random home of in Southlake for sale for $7.85 million.

  • I'm mildly interested in the Mike Tyson/Jake Paul upcoming fight, but I did see where Tyson had a "medical scare" on a cross country flight on Sunday.

at 8:30 AM

5.27.2024

Random Monday Morning Thoughts





This is pretty much when everything started to go downhill. And if you want to see an example of why I thought Dewhurst was a horrible campaigner, watch this campaign video that is still up.

  • THWMISB™
  • Tornados in North Texas early Sunday morning left seven dead..  Here's a video from inside the  Shell station (below) on I-35 in Valley View as the tornado went through. 

  • I'm not sure what the back story is on this, but it appears to have occurred near a voting site in Wise County.  Maybe just an innocent conversation. 

  • I noticed that late last week we had a 50 year sentence in Wise County in cause number CR24487. It looks like a guilty plea with judge sentencing, and I'm pretty sure it's the same guy who stole an ambulance in Tarrant County one time. 

  • PGA golfer Grayson Murray, 30, played the Colonial on Thursday and Friday only to withdraw on the 16th hole on that Friday.  He killed himself later that night.  His parents released a statement yesterday revealing it was a suicide -- a statement which was pretty much forced because all of the anti-vaccine nutcases on social media were spreading rumors it was a Covid vaccine death. 

  • Trump was booed at the Libertarian Convention.
    •  I'm not sure why the most unLibertarian person ever thought that this would be a good idea. But it was pretty funny when he got mad and told them to "Keep getting your three percent every four years." Video.

    • For some reason, he vowed to free Ross Ulbricht, a guy who put out five murder for hire contracts on the deep web after creating a website, Silk Road, for drug traffickers. He was the subject of a really good book. 

    • Flashback to my visit the now closed Newseum in D.C. a couple of years ago:

  • I don't think there was any chance they were going to lock him up, but that was a heart-warming reunion with his kids. 




  • Spotted in Dallas: A DPS trooper vehicle with a III Percenter decal.


  • I'm a big fan of college softball, and the Super Regionals this weekend were fantastic.  And probably the most exciting games were the three game series between Texas and aTm -- despite Game 2 being delayed for over 10 minutes after beer bottles and cans had to be removed from behind the outfield protective covering because the panel was sticking out. 

  • The law firm for American Airlines which blamed the 9 year old for not realizing she was being filmed in a bathroom has been sacked.  There are some lawyers sweating bullets in that firm right now because of that screw-up.

  • Shout-out to the Good Samaritan who found my credit card in the parking lot of the Wise County Annex Building in Bridgeport on Friday after I carelessly dropped it. And thanks to the fine ladies in the auto registration office for giving me a call that it had been found. 

 
at 8:30 AM

5.24.2024

It's Friday -- Let's Get Out of Here

at 2:30 PM
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