While driving a Studebaker!

 

'The detainees at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas, the largest detention center in the U.S. for children and families, describe nightmarish conditions: moldy food, contaminated drinking water and limited medical care. In a letter sent to ProPublica, one child says the only medical advice they get from the doctors is to drink more water. “The worst thing is that it seems the water is what makes people sick here,” he wrote. At least two cases of measles, a highly contagious and often deadly disease, have been detected in the facility, leading officials to lock down the jail. But for many parents, keeping their kids in Dilley is preferable to the alternative: staying in detention — and possibly being deported — without them." Huffington Post Takk for alt, Al

Collateral Damage!

      The ICE invasion causes much collateral damage. Many residents, here legally, are afraid to leave their houses. Consequently house construction is lagging for lack of workers. Many restaurants are short of workers, especially minority owned, and many have had to close. Numerous students are too afraid to attend school, so they are missing out on learning. School districts' reimbursement is tied to pupil days so, with many students staying home, the districts are suffering financially. 

   On and on it goes, all to keep orange man from facing up to the Epstein Files.

Takk for alt,

Al

The Epstein scandal is taking down Europe’s political class. In the US, they’re getting a pass.

Heather Cox-Richardson

"As of yesterday, members of Congress who sit on the House or Senate Judiciary Committees can see unredacted versions of the Epstein files the Department of Justice (DOJ) has already released. As Herb Scribner of Axios explained, the documents are available from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM on computers in the DOJ building in Washington, D.C. The lawmakers cannot bring electronic devices into the room with them, but they are allowed to take notes. They must give the DOJ 24 hours notice before they access the files.

The Epstein Files Transparency Act required the DOJ to release all the Epstein files by December 19. Only about half of them have been released to date, and many of them are so heavily redacted they convey little information. After members of Congress complained, on Friday, January 30, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said they could see the unredacted documents if they asked.

In a letter dated the next day, Representative Jamie Raskin (D-MD) immediately asked for access on behalf of the Democratic members of the House Judiciary Committee, saying they would be ready to view the files the following day, Sunday, February 1.

After viewing the files briefly yesterday, Raskin told Andrew Solender of Axios that when he searched the files for President Donald Trump’s name, it came up “more than a million times.” Raskin suggested that limiting members’ access to the files is part of a cover-up to hide Trump’s relationship with the convicted sex offender, a cover-up that includes the three million files the DOJ has yet to release despite the requirements of the Epstein Files Transparency Act. One of the files he did see referred to a child of 9. Raskin called it “gruesome and grim."

Taxes...

     Today was the day to begin preparing my taxes for the preparer. With agriculture interests, etc., my filing is too complicated for me to attempt alone. All was going well until I discovered that the brokerage firm will not have a report ready until next week. Minnesota Soybean Processors, (MSP), with whom I hold a couple of stocks, sent a letter saying they are working on some complicated tax issues. Their advice was to file for an extension while MSP works out the details. When the brokers report next week I should be able to hand over my material. Once in the CPA's hands I can just wait to see what MSP sends. Last year their tax packet was about 30 pages! none of which I could understand.

Takk for alt,

Al

'"Nothing is certain but death and taxes" is a famous maxim regarding the inevitability of mortality and taxation, popularly attributed to Benjamin Franklin in a 1789 letter concerning the US Constitution. It highlights the unavoidable nature of taxes to fund government services and the certainty of death, often used to emphasize realism."  Internet 

Super Bowl, redux!

     Watching the replay of my favorite team winning was the perfect alternative to a football game last night. The women's game began at 11:00 a.m. local time to avoid the Bowl. My subscription to BTM allows me watch many games live and most on replay.

   Today, long-time friends came for lunch. Many years ago she I worked together and we've been friends since. Though we don't see each other regularly we stay in touch. During lunch I asked them, "So, who won the Super Bowl game last night?"  They looked at each other, looked blank, and she said "I think it's the one owned by a woman for gives money to charities."  Neither even knew the teams that were playing. Three at lunch, largely oblivious to the NFL.😀

    Tonight I'll watch Unrivaled basketball. Unrivaled is the one-year old league founded by Napheesa Collier and Brenda Stewart, both of whom are WNBA players. In this league there are only three players for each team on the floor. It makes for fast play, the floor is also slightly shorter, and emphasis on offense. The players all come from the WNBA and are divided into teams for the season. Being a WNBA fan I recognize all the players by sight. It's another great alternative to football and its season is when the WNBA is not playing. Much of the motivation was to provide an alternative venue for the players to playing overseas. Overseas play pays much better than the WNBA, however. a new agreement between the league and players is being negotiated. WNBA player salaries have been very low. Check it out if you like basketball.

Takk for alt,

Al

Super Bowl Sunday!

     It's Super Bowl Sunday I guess. Something tells me the Vikings aren't playing. I'm so glad that I'm not allowed to watch football. While the game is on I have perfect alternative, basketball!

   The University Of Minnesota Women's basketball team is on a roll. They are tied for 5th place in the Big Ten Conference. Last week they beat Iowa in Iowa for the first time after ten losses there. This morning, I was otherwise occupied, they beat Rutgers for their 6th straight conference win.

  While football is being played I'll watch the replay of the Minnesota/Rutgers game. Replays are sweet. No anxiety because the outcome is assured...yes, I'm overly invested. There's fast forward through time-outs, quarter breaks and halftime, so there are NO commercials! Want to review that action? Instant replays are at the touch of a button. Sure beats football!

Takk for alt,

Al

They are all camera shy!

Will Farmers gain political sense?

    Heather Cox-Richardson comments on the situation in agriculture.

"On Tuesday, February 3, a bipartisan group of 27 former Agriculture Department officials and leaders from farm and commodity groups wrote to the leaders of the agriculture committees of both chambers with a dire warning about “the damage that is being done to American farmers.”

Linda Qiu of the New York Times highlighted the letter, which noted that “just a few years ago,” farm export surpluses and farm incomes were at record highs. This year, “[f]armer bankruptcies have doubled, barely half of all farms will be profitable this year, and the U.S. is running a historic agriculture trade deficit.” The authors blamed this crisis on the fact that “the current Administration’s actions, along with Congressional inaction, have increased costs for farm inputs, disrupted overseas and domestic markets, denied agriculture its reliable labor pool, and defunded critical ag[ricultural] research and staffing.”

They warned of “a widespread collapse of American agriculture and our rural communities.” They noted that administration cuts to healthcare will add to the decimation of rural communities, wiping out a way of life. Rural voters tend to be an important part of Trump’s base."

This poem is from Lars' college friend.

Takk for alt,

Al

Heather Cox-Richardson again!

 These would be very helpful changes!

"Also last night, Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) sent Senate majority leader John Thune (R-SC) and House speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) a letter outlining demands Democrats want incorporated into a measure that will appropriate more funds for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). DHS is the department that contains Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol. Democrats insisted on stripping DHS funding out of the bills to fund the government for 2026 after ICE and Border Patrol agents began to inflict terror on the country.

Those demands are pretty straightforward, but if written into law as required for the release of funds, they would change behavior. The Democrats want federal agents to enter private homes only with a judicial warrant (as was policy until the administration produced a secret memo saying that DHS officials themselves could sign off on raids). They want agents to stop wearing masks and to have their names, agencies, and unique ID numbers visible on their uniforms, as law enforcement officers do. They want an end to racial profiling—that is, agents detaining individuals on the basis of their skin color, place of employment, or language—and to raids of so-called sensitive sites: medical facilities, schools, childcare facilities, churches, polling places, and courts.

They want agents to be required to have a reasonable use of force policy and to be removed during an investigation if they violate it. They want federal agents to coordinate with local and state governments, and for those governments to have jurisdiction over federal agents who break the law. They want DHS detention facilities to have the same standards of any detention facility and for detainees to have access to their lawyers. They want states to be able to sue if those conditions are not met, and they want Congress members to have unscheduled access to the centers to oversee them.

They want body cameras to be used for accountability but prohibited for gathering and storing information about protesters. And they want federal agents to have standardized uniforms like those of regular law enforcement, not paramilitaries.

As Schumer and Jeffries wrote, these are commonsense measures that protect Americans’ constitutional rights and ensure responsible law enforcement, and should apply to all federal activity even without Democrats demanding them."  Heather Cox-Richardson

Takk for alt,

Al