6.20.2025

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

at 2:30 PM

Random Friday Morning Thoughts







This was wild. A guy shoots into the Dallas PD headquarters very early on a Saturday morning, flees in tricked up van, police corner him in a parking lot and negotiate with him, and then just decide to use a sniper to kill him. Then police blew up the van. 

  • Link.

  • Those big flag poles installed at the White House this week have a connection to Wise County.

    • The flag is actually on a $55 million ranch which, I think, is technically in Wise and Jack counties. (Here are some pictures on Facebook of its installation.)

  • There was (another) fatal shooting in Deep Ellum last night, and @Fox4Terry was hard at work capturing my favorite bit: Detectives still wearing long-sleeved white shirts and ties.

  • Trump somehow has managed to turn the Israel/Iraq war into an extended "look at me" moment as he, as always, says he will make a decision  "in two weeks"  about the U.S.'s role.

    • But to think that this was a written statement prepared in advance by Trump is comical:

  • Totally normal. 


  • This ought to be a winning platform: Less holidays.  (Not to mention he just happened to have fired this post off on Juneteenth.)

  • In the constant battle over presidential powers, the courts are ill-equipped to handle it. This is a prime example. Is the California National Guard even still there or needed? And this isn't even a final decision. It's just a temporary order.

  • I used to pass this building all the time back in the day on I-35 going south out of Dallas. Always wondered what was going on there. Now I know. 


  • This is a judge on Texas' highest criminal court speaking at a conference yesterday.

  • This is the defense team in the Karen Read case.  Those seated with Read are her four lawyers. The rest are support staff, many volunteering, including law students from Harvard and Boston College.  This doesn't include the multiple expert witnesses who were called to testify on her behalf.

  • Lauren Whitener Clock: 5 years and 353 days.

at 8:30 AM

6.19.2025

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts






Today, neither the Supreme Court or the State of Texas would take the positions they did.
  • That Karen Read case was wildly interesting. And it's a textbook example of prosecutors over-charging their case and losing all credibility because of it.  They never stood of chance of proving their case of murder. (A documentary about the first trial, which ended up in a hung jury, is on Netflix. It's great.)

  • Jacksboro's David Spiller announced his re-election bid for the Texas House on Twitter, and the comments were, well, something. 

  • The most important thing for Trump, above all else, is to be the center of every news cycle.


  • They're coming to where you work. 
    • In Wichita Falls. "Some of those picked up by ICE agents were restaurant workers, but he said most were arrested at apartments where they were living."

    • To a horse track in Louisiana.

    • And it is beginning to show.

  • The president just casually turning around looking for a brown-skinned guy to ask him if he is illegal. Video.



  • Israel:


  • Elon is having a very bad year. This happened last night. Video.


  • From yesterday. I'll never get tired of him believing that some aircraft are literally invisible.

  • The Business Plan of Elon's X:  Monetarily reward posts that have a high engagement,  never mind that lies are more interesting than the truth, and never sanction any user for lies. Then you get stuff like this every day: 

  • Re: Headline from today's Messenger.   I have an idea to solve this problem. Allow those on probation to "buy out" their required community service hours with monetary donations as is already done utilizing a couple of local food banks. Just add Meals on Wheels to the list. 

  • The Business Second™.


  • Gift link.

  • Legal stuff: This can't be real, can it? A federal district judge is very upset (includes PDF) over someone sticking gum under a counsel table. 

  • Messenger - Above the Fold

at 8:30 AM

6.18.2025

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts




The Charleston Church shooting by Dylann Roof that left nine dead. 

  • Lot's of Israel/Iran news:
    • This is quite the 180.

    • And what's this "we" stuff that he fired off yesterday? This is all nuts.  


    • Iran responded this morning. 

    • But with Israel and Iran launching missiles at each other for the sixth straight days, rest assured that Trump was closely monitoring the situation last night. 

    • Sidenote: This headline from last Friday. Jenner got out last night. Jennings is still there.
    • He's gone from threatening deputies at a rodeo in Amarillo to threatening Iraq in the third person.

    • Tucker Carlson and Ted Cruz got heated at each other. This is pretty good: Video.

  • His radio tag line as a traffic reporter used to be "We'll see ya on down the road."
  • A lot going on there. 

  • Wise County's Andy Hopper scored high on the "most conservative" scale.  But I think he would be at the bottom of the still yet-to-be released "Most likely to get passed a routine water district bill."
  • The Fannin County courthouse renovation project led to the County judge, two commissioners, the project manager, and an accountant being indicted for theft and related charges.  The case was then assigned to the Dallas DA as special prosecutor.  He then dismissed all the cases for insufficient evidence. 
  • Meant to post this the other day. He testified in his own defense, and the jury couldn't reach a verdict. 

at 8:30 AM
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