Overnight Open Thread [06/15/2026]

It is immensely amusing to watch the angry, jealous, envious jabberers criticize Elon Musk for having the temerity to create a vibrant and successful space exploration company that he mostly funds with good old cash flow from another vibrant, successful business...StarLink! Who knew that there was a demand for fast and stable internet services in the ex-urbs and rural America? And it won't break the bank either!

Deep in their cold hearts and their tiny little brains they know that they could never have created something like SpaceX or StarlInk or Tesla, and instead of being impressed, they get angry and want to tear him down. His answer to them, as was his answer when they tried to blackmail him into changing Twitter/X is clear.

Another thing that is interesting is that even after the ridiculous EV subsidies have been canceled, his car company seems to be doing okay, unlike many of the others that are imploding. I am no fan of EVs for anything other than performance cars, but if he can make a go of it without sucking on the government teat, it has nothing to do with me. In fact: Good for him!

That's not a mullet; that's an abomination. Not even Doof's mullet is that awful.

Meanwhile, in Alabama's lieutenant gubernatorial race... (Yes, it is real) #alpolitics pic.twitter.com/n4AbmGG2lf

— Jeff Poor (@jeff_poor) June 12, 2026

I have no explanation for that. Maybe it's an Alabama thing?

A man is driving down the road and his car breaks down near a monastery. He goes to the monastery, knocks on the door, and says, "My car broke down. Do you think I could stay the night?"

The monks graciously accept him, feed him dinner, and even fix his car. As the man tries to fall asleep, he hears a strange sound. A sound unlike anything he's ever heard before. The Sirens that nearly seduced Odysseus into crashing his ship comes to his mind. He doesn't sleep that night.

He tosses and turns trying to figure out what could possibly be making such a seductive sound. The next morning, he asks the monks what the sound was, but they say, "We can't tell you. You're not a monk." Distraught, the man is forced to leave.

Years later, after never being able to forget that sound, the man goes back to the monastery and pleads for the answer again. The monks reply, "We can't tell you. You're not a monk."

The man says, "If the only way I can find out what is making that beautiful sound is to become a monk, then please, make me a monk."

The monks reply, "You must travel the earth and tell us how many blades of grass there are and the exact number of grains of sand. When you find these answers, you will have become a monk."

The man sets about his task. After years of searching he returns as a gray-haired old man and knocks on the door of the monastery. A monk answers. He is taken before a gathering of all the monks.

"In my quest to find what makes that beautiful sound, I travelled the earth and have found what you asked for: By design, the world is in a state of perpetual change. Only God knows what you ask. All a man can know is himself, and only then if he is honest and reflective and willing to strip away self deception."

The monks replied, "Congratulations. You have become a monk. We shall now show you the way to the mystery of the sacred sound." The monks lead the man to a wooden door, where the head monk says, "The sound is beyond that door." The monks give him the key, and he opens the door. Behind the wooden door is another door made of stone. The man is given the key to the stone door and he opens it, only to find a door made of ruby. And so it went that he needed keys to doors of emerald, pearl and gold.

Finally, they come to a door made of diamonds. The sound has become very clear and definite. The monks say, "This is the last key to the last door." The man is apprehensive to no end. His life's wish is behind that door! With trembling hands, he unlocks the door, turns the knob, and slowly pushes the door open. Falling to his knees, he is utterly amazed to discover the source of that haunting and seductive sound…

But, of course, I can't tell you what it is because you're not a monk.

The Farside

©1987 AoSHQ LLC. contact us @ ChaoticEvilHobbit@compuserve.com

posted by CBD at 10:02 PM

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