Food Thread: What A Lame Post!

—CBD

I am not a fan of specialized kitchen tools.

Okay...to be precise...I am not a fan of specialized kitchen tools that I have bought and then discover that they are not nearly as useful as I thought, throw them into the specialized-kitchen-tool drawer where they sit for four years until I reach into the back of the drawer and cut my finger on them.

But this one might be an exception to the rule! It's called a "lame," and it is used to score bread dough before baking so that the loaf can rise as much as possible. It's secondary use is as a decorating knife...putting small slices into the dough so that after baking they are revealed as some sort of weird design that always irritates because I can't do it worth a damn.

Anyway, my old and very cheap one gave up the ghost, because even soft dough will eventually dull an edge! Who knew.

This one is better than the last because the top of the razor blade is exposed, and can be used to cut, and it is a bit longer as well. So I have a very sharp, single-use tool that I actually like!

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In news that surprise no one with a brain, apparently Afghanistan is a sh*hole.

Researchers Describe Significant Food Safety Risks, Regulatory Gaps in Afghanistan

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And here's more news about our enlightened foreign friends and their interesting ways of producing food for American markets!

FDA Finds Evidence of Limited Food Fraud in Imported Lemon Juice

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I am trying more and more to avoid all foreign-produced food, for the obvious sanitary reasons, but also to support American agriculture and food industries.

It's easy to criticize American food manufacturing, with its commodity products and its fanatical attention to the bottom line. But it is, by and large, quite safe, and there are only a few countries that rival American food safety.

No, we aren't perfect, but I'll take our food any day over Afghanistan's!

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Commenter "frammish" is showing off. That's pancetta, which is salt-cured but not smoked. It is used in lots of Italian cookery, including one of the great culinary achievements of Man: Spaghetti Carbonara!

Anyway, "frammish" got bored with making bacon so he moved on to pancetta.

Of course I didn't get any, so I am suspicious of this "frammish" fellow. He's probably a crypto-communist.

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Coblogger "Weasel," of two-minute meals fame, waxes rhapsodic about Virginia peanuts, specifically boiled peanuts, "or "Goober Peas."

And these are even simpler! But damn...they were tasty. There is very little in the snack world that can compare to a well-roasted peanut that has been perfectly salted.

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Buc-ee's is an interesting place. They charge full retail for everything, but people flock there anyway, because there is something about a well-run store that has pretty much everything that appeals to the American consumer.

I really like their beef jerky, and their breakfast sandwiches are reasonably good too. But this was a surprise! It is actually a very impressive chocolate candy...really a peanut butter cup on steroids. Good chocolate, just enough peanut butter, and a substantial size that is bucking the trend of offensive shrinkage in that industry.

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That's a chicken drummette, Texas style.

Actually, that is one of the legs of the pig that Ben Had procured for the Texas MoMe. The rest of the pig was smoked to perfection by a friend of Ben Had's, Rancher Bob's, and Cowhorse Queen. It was delicious, and a good enough reason to fly 1,200 miles to Texas!

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The great garlic experiment of 2025-2026 was a resounding...meh. Send all of your excellent home-grown garlic to: cbd dot aoshq at gmail dot com.

About the Bourbon Bubble...I think it has burst, but the category is also suffering from the inflation that affected everything else (Thanks Biden!). I think the sweet spot is still $40-$60 for excellent and interesting bottles, and bumping that to $100 gets you an incremental improvement in quality, but nothing mind-blowing. More than that and I think you are paying for hype and rarity, which may look good in your liquor cabinet, but doesn't translate to more quality in the bottle.

The problem...or the solution...is to buy lots of bourbon, take tasting notes, and eventually arrive at your favorites! It should take forty or fifty years, but it is worth it!

Close it up

First World Problems...

—CBD

Great glue!

Lousy packaging.

Why can't Big Glue design packaging that allows more than a few uses of their products before the top cracks from tightening, or the glue hardens inside the nozzle, or the tube itself ruptures from trying to squeeze some glue past the solidified glue in the top?

Oh.

Never mind.

Modern Immigration Is A Far Cry From That Of Our Ancestors

—CBD

The lives that many of our ancestors lived before they made the sometimes arduous trek to America were difficult for many reasons. Poverty of course, but religious persecution figured prominently, and the simple almost world-wide limitation on upward mobility was a huge driver of immigration. No matter our great-great-grandfather's intelligence and drive and desire to better himself, he was stuck as a serf or a blacksmith or a tenant farmer, and it was very difficult to change those circumstances.

Thus the allure of America! But to get there was difficult and expensive, and there was no guarantee that when he arrived he wouldn't be put right back on the ship and sent back to Russia or Germany or Sweden or Italy or...

And that was just the beginning! He had to work...hard, and learn English, and fit into the culture that was American Exceptionalism. There was no welfare or immigration assistance or government payments for new arrivals or public medical care or public housing or any of the myriad services that current immigrants are given.

So who came to America?

The smart ones. The tough ones. The ones who truly valued freedom and chafed under the Czar or the Kaiser or the King or the Emperor. The great mass of people who were miserable, but unwilling to challenge themselves with the great unknown of leaving what they had, no matter how pitiful, stayed, and were gobbled up by the cataclysms that shook Europe.

That selection turbocharged America, which was already the destination of the best and the brightest from its beginning.

But all of that changed with modern transportation, the burgeoning welfare state, and the radical change in our immigration policies that began in the 1960s. No longer did America want immigration to be a reflection of the country. No...the progressives wanted a flood of new voters who would support their cradle-to-grave welfare dreams.

And where to find those people? In countries without a foundation of personal freedom, the rule of law, and at least some sense of entrepreneurship and personal responsibility.

And that's what we got! People who came here to be cared for by government, not to expand their lives and enjoy the fruits of liberty.

It's as simple as that, and the progressive cant that claims the new immigrants (both legal and illegal) are functionally identical to the great immigrations of the 19th and into the early 20th century is arrant nonsense.

A peasant from central America or China without education or any political conviction other than a desire to be cared for is a radically different person than the 19th century immigrant from Germany or Russia who came to America with nothing, built a small business, sent his children to college, and created vast wealth for America.

And that filter of expense and difficulty and fear of the unknown has largely been removed, so there is no impediment to armies of societal leeches invading our country. Hell, there are American charities that teach illegals how to navigate the welfare systems for maximum payout, even before they get here!

How to fix it? President Trump has tightened restrictions on legal immigration, and has simply enforced the law on illegal immigration. It is an excellent start, but the societal modifications necessary to return America to the concept of the melting pot are still very much in flux.

Love of country, respect for individual responsibility, freedom as a powerful driver of political behavior...all need to return to the fore. And that begins with education, which has been completely hijacked by the rabid progressives of the educational establishment.

Yes, it is a tall order, but the indications are modestly positive!

The Book Thread: October 25th, 2026 [MP4]

—Open Blogger

Good morning, ‘rons and ‘ronettes. It’s time once again for the monthly MP4-hosted Sunday Book Thread. Dress for men, as always, is country club casual. Women, it’s time to break out the latest fall fashions:

So ask the barman for a cocktail, covfefe or tea and let’s get started!

In 1946, George Orwell wrote an essay, “The Moon Under Water,” in which he described his favorite London pub. It was quiet, with friendly middle-aged barmaids who knew their customers’ names, had good yet inexpensive lunches and, of course, the perfect pint of stout. The sad reveal, however, was that the ‘Moon’ didn’t exist; it was only Orwell’s vision of what would be the perfect pub.

Why do I bring this up? A few weeks ago, I traveled out to western Massachusetts to visit a used bookstore that was highly recommended on Facebook (yes, I know – more fool me). It was OK, but certainly not worth the four-hour round trip. The selection was eclectic, which I like, though it was a sobering experience to look through the ‘English history’ section and see that I already own most of the titles! But the place was infested with leftist slop – ‘No Kings’ flyers, ICE denunciations, pride flags, &c – and both the staff and customers ran the gamut from A to B in that they were snotty, pot-aroma’d college students, Karens in peasant dresses and jangling bracelets or man-bunned hipsters in locally-sourced clothes and carefully trimmed artisanal beards.

While I came away with a couple of good books, I was ultimately disappointed and angry at myself for wasting time visiting out west when there is a very good Used Book Superstore only half an hour away.

So what makes a good used bookstore? For me, the perfect one was the late Avenue Victor Hugo Books in Lee, New Hampshire. A converted barn with narrow aisles, tomes in every conceivable category tightly-shelved and overflowing, bundles of old sheet music and magazines, classical music at just the right volume, chairs to settle into while leafing through a possible purchase and an owner who loves books and has a story about every one you bring to the counter. And no posters, flyers or handwritten screeds damning everyone to the right of Pol Pot!

But, sadly, AVHB is now only an online business.

What makes a good bookstore for you? Which would you recommend? Which do you hate?

Daily Tech News 25 October 2026

—Pixy Misa

• How did a couple of bugs in one minor programming language that nobody bothers with anymore almost destroy civilisation? (Tech Crunch)
  
  The language Tech Crunch is referring to is PHP, which is literally as old as the web - it first appeared in 1993, the same year as HTML itself, the language that every single web page is written.
  
  Tech Crunch runs on WordPress.
  
  WordPress is written in PHP.
  
  Around 70% of all websites run on software written in PHP, 40% of them on WordPress alone.
  
  Inertia is a hell of a drug.

Saturday Night Club ONT - October 24, 2026 [Disco & Dino]

—Open Blogger

Welcome to Club ONT - a whelming collaboration of The Disco and The Dino.

Open thread - bar is open, too. Come in in, grab a drink or 2. Or 3. Keep it light and friendly. Be careful though. The Moose out front may be jacked up on pumpkin spice.

[Top photo: Evidence of organic brass farming at the Place for the Thing]

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Saturday Night Jokes and Other Funnies

Three couples marry and stay at the same hotel for their honeymoons, where they are taken care of by Dave the bellboy.

The first man married a nurse. Dave thinks to himself, "Nurses are known to be hot to trot."

The second man married a telephone operator. Dave thinks to himself, "Telephone operators have sexy voices."

The third man married a school teacher. Dave thinks to himself, "Poor guy, teachers are frigid."

The next morning, Dave reports to work and gets a room service call from the nurse's husband. He sourly says, "Don't ever marry a nurse. All I heard last night was 'You're not sanitary! You're not sanitary!'"

Then, the telephone operator's husband calls and sourly says, "Don't ever marry a telephone operator. All I heard last night was 'Your three minutes are up, Your three minutes are up.'"

Later that afternoon, the teacher's husband calls and happily says, "When you marry, be sure to marry a school teacher. All I heard last night was 'We are going to do this over and over until we get right.'"

Hat tip to Jim (in Kalifornia)

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Drink of the Night

Kamikaze

Ingredients 2 ounces vodka

3/4 ounce orange liqueur

3/4 ounce lime juice, freshly squeezed

Directions
Add the vodka, orange liqueur and lime juice to a shaker with ice, and shake thoroughly until well-chilled.

Strain into two shot glasses.

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Club ONT Department of Fine Art

Scrapple sculptors create meaty masterpieces in Philadelphia

Amateur sculptors descended on a Philadelphia market to create works of art from scrapple - a breakfast mush of pork scraps and organ meat - in an annual contest.

The Reading Terminal Market hosted its third annual Scrapple Sculpting Contest on Thursday, with sculptors competing to see who could form the most appealing masterpiece out of 6 pounds of meat mush in the 90-minute time limit.

The market itself was this year's theme, and the judge's vote went to Toni Lee, who created a scrapple sculpture of market mascot Philbert the pig.

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Club ONT Department of Science News

Scientists win 2026 Nobel Prize for controlling brain cells with light

A discovery in tiny algae led to a Nobel Prize-winning breakthrough that allows scientists to switch brain cells on and off using light. The revolutionary technique has already helped researchers activate memories and is opening new possibilities for restoring vision and treating brain disorders.

See also: Men in Black Neuralyzer

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Club ONT Department of Truth
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Club ONT Jukebox

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Top 10ish Comments of the Week

Honorable mention:

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Club ONT is brought to you by dating sites

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With the cooler temps of fall upon us, the Club ONT heating system has been turned on. Pardon that "new heat" smell.

Close it up

Saturday Substitute Music Thread - October 24, 2026 [TRex]

—Open Blogger

Looks like we need a music thread for the Hobby Thread afterparty and Club ONT pre-party. As a dinosaur with a small brain and short arms, I can't carry a tune or keep a beat, but I'm impressed but others that can.

Shall we talk tunes?

How about a baseball theme since we're in the midst of the World Series?

Hobby Thread - October 24, 2026 [TRex]

—Open Blogger

Welcome hobbyists! Pull up a chair and sit a spell with the Horde in this little corner of the interweb. This is the mighty, mighty officially sanctioned Ace of Spades Hobby Thread. For this week, the Wheel of Hobbies (TM) is feeling adventurous and decided on a geocaching theme for this Hobby Thread.

Geocaching? What is that? Read on, fellow hobbyists...

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Geocaching is an outdoor treasure-hunting game that uses GPS. Players hide small waterproof containers (called caches) in public places and post the coordinates online.

Other players use a smartphone app or GPS device to find them. Each cache usually holds a logbook and sometimes small trinkets. When you find one, you sign the log, trade an item if you want for equal or greater value, and record the find online. You can also hide your own caches for others to discover.

The hobby combines hiking, problem-solving, and exploration. Caches range from easy urban spots to challenging mountain trails. Some are tiny and hard to spot. Others are larger and easier to find. It takes participants to places they ordinarily wouldn't go and incorporates the challenge of figuring out where the treasure would be stored.

As far as I know, there are no costs involved other than access to a phone or GPS, access to the internet, and the ability to travel outdoors. The global nature of the hobby means you can do it almost anywhere. Like any other hobby, I presume there are casual participants and more enthusiastic and dedicated participants.

The locations are one thing but the containers themselves are another. Some containers are basic weather tight plastic containers or ammo box type containers. They are easy to identify. Others are more difficult to spot, are disguised or are hidden inside fences or trees.

Are any among the Horde geocachers? If not now, have you done it or tried it in the past? If so, please share. Interested in hearing about your adventures, interesting places you found a cache and unexpected hiding places.

What kind of items have you found or traded? Was geocaching a great hobby with friends or kids? Does anyone host a cache on their property or hide/place caches?

Anyone have recommendations about online websites or apps that are good for geocachers?

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The content may not be your favorite but give it a chance before you judge and bail out. More importantly, what are you hobbying? Jump in with your hobbying, interests, stories and questions.

Anything (legal) you are hobbying is welcome. If nothing resonates, offer something else relating to hobbying or just check in and say hello.

As per usual Hobby Thread etiquette, keep this thread limited to hobbying. Leave politics and religion to threads elsewhere (unless your hobby is building or restoring churches). Pants? Nope. As always, puns are welcome and encouraged.

Play nice and do not be rude. Do not be a troll and do not feed the trolls.

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Disclaimer - I had a difficult time finding YouTube videos that don't feel overdramatic. There is a natural inclination/temptation to highlight videos like "you won't believe this crazy hiding place!" or "we went to the most amazing hiding location." There are also people that have strong feelings about how it should be done or not done. The videos in the content below are illustrative but there might be better ones out there. Ace of Spades also does not endorse trespassing or otherwise breaking the laws in pursuit of hidden bounty. Caveat emptor.

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The beginning seems like a good place to start:

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Seems like good advice for more advanced participants:

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Some geocaching items are trackables or travel bugs - they are moved around the world by geocachers and logged in as they go. For example, someone might set up a trinket with a goal of traveling to certain countries or cities. A geocacher finds the trinket, identifies the instruction and carries it with them if they are headed in a direction that can help accomplish the goal. Think of it like a flat stanley type group project.

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As if regular caches weren't challenging enough, some caches require solving a puzzle to access the logbook - here's a good example:

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In memoriam

You may not know Tom Daniel's name, but you're likely familiar with his work.

Tom's art and model designs affected and entire generation, and many of us have carried it with us throughout our lives as artists and model builders.

Tom was an industrial artist. He did many designs for industry and the automotive world. He also did console designs for NASA back in the 60's.

In the late 60's and early 70's he began designing model vehicles for Monogram Models and later Revell Corporation. Having designed over 70 goofy and wild model kits. He was also a fine art painter, He painted mostly landscapes and railroad art.

Although uncredited he designed the "Munster Coach" and "Dragula" cars for the hit show "The Munsters." George Barris built these cars but they were originally Tom's design.

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Not a hobby, but skill that hobbyists would respect:

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You had me at "4.5 meter dragon head." Interesting creation process video:

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In light of the comments last week about spinning wheels, thought the Horde might be interested in a little cotton content. We snapped these photos in Mississippi en route to the Place for the Thing last week. The cotton harvest was underway!

How does a cotton harvester and baler work? Glad you asked!

Farming terminology nugget: a cotton harvester is not called a combine. The term "combine" is reserved for machines that "combines" reaping, threshing, and cleaning into one machine. It is used mainly for grain crops such as wheat, corn, soybeans, barley, rice, and similar crops. A cotton harvester just strips the cotton off the stalk.

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The stores are full of large scale outdoor Christmas decorations. Anyone shopping?

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Horde Hobbying: sea glass work by IrishEi -

I finally started doing something with all the sea glass that I've collected over the years. It's relaxing and fun, and believe it or not, people are paying ridiculous amounts of money for the stuff. I don't have the time to go to craft shows or set up an online business, but a neighbor who makes great goat milk soap takes some of my stuff  to local shows and has successfully sold quite a bit for me.

Outstanding! Thank you!

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Did you miss the Hobby Thread last week? We did a hobby scrapple (MoMe edition) theme. The comments may be closed, but you can re-live the content.

Notable comments from last week:

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Words of wisdom:

"Because despite all our troubles, when things are grim out in that wide round world of ours, that's when it's really important to have a good hobby." Posted by: tankascribe at June 22, 2024 07:41 PM (HWxAD).

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Reminder: if you put links in the comments, use a URL shortener and describe what you're linking to. Failing to do either or both makes you barrel-eligible. Don't make people click to find out what you're linking.

Send thoughts, suggestions and photos of your hobbying to moronhobbies at protonmail dot com. Or just email to say hello. Do mighty things.

Close it up

Ace of Spades Pet Thread, October 24

—K.T.

Good afternoon and welcome to the almost world famous Ace of Spades Pet Thread. Thanks for stopping by. Kick back and enjoy the world of animals.

Let's relax a little with the animals and leave the world of politics and current events outside today.

The true purpose of a yoga mat. (Courtesy Miley)

https://t.co/RCMPTkh4q0

— Your Favourite Cat Page (@catgoesviral) October 17, 2026

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Today I learned that squirrels can be black, and they roll their babies into tiny fluffy balls to make carrying them easier https://t.co/AmRbatTavm

— Nature Unedited (@NatureUnedited) October 15, 2026

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This is pretty funny. 😂😂😂😂 https://t.co/z5sMwiyOzN

— Donna G (@DonnaG1685411) October 19, 2026

Miley's sense of humor strikes again

I think the mystery night chickens are a hoot.

And here's a chicken quilt.

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Meet The PetMorons

OR CLOSE ENOUGH

Irish Red & White Setters

We have two of these.

Misanthropic Humanitarian

What do you want to bet that Misanthropic Humanitarian's setters are just as spoiled as these?

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PetMoron Adjacent Animals
Encountered by Members of The Horde

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This crazy critter showed up on my terrace called a Chinese Mantis. Notice it has different forelegs than a praying mantis. I think because it is a communist.

Sharon(willow's apprentice)

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Just today moved back into the remodeled house, and got a visit from a mama moose and her twin yearlings. They decided to eat the rest of the crabapples and then went after the raspberry bushes. Very tasty, apparently. Mama jumped the temporary fence but didn't find anything better, so she jumped back. The yearlings were behaving like teenagers and wouldn't leave the raspberries when she told them to, so she came back and chewed them out.

tcn in AK

Interesting, but destructive!

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Thank you for sharing your pets and animal photos and stories with us today.

If you would like to send pet and/or animal stories, links, etc. for the Ace of Spades Pet Thread, the address is:

petmorons at protonmail dot com

Remember to include the nic or name by which you wish to be known when you comment at AoSHQ, or let us know if you want to remain a lurker.

Until next Saturday, have a great week!

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If you start feeling nostalgic, here a link to last week's Pet Thread, the
Ace of Spades Pet Thread, October 17

I closed the comments on that post so you wouldn't get banned for commenting on a week-old post, but don't try it anyway.

When you understand the assignment but do it wrong on purpose out of spite.. 😅 https://t.co/Glu31fY96Q

— Buitengebieden (@buitengebieden) October 19, 2026

Close it up

Gardening, Home and Nature Thread, Oct. 24

—K.T.

Above, a spooky pumpkin from Eris Enthroned. Don't you just love it?

And for daytime:

My encore azalea has again provided me with fall color.

Sharon(willow's apprentice)

A great choice.

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Edible Gardening/Putting Things By

Our strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo) is doing well here in the Pacific Northwest, a bit out of its native territory; the berries are in, and we already have the next round of blossoms.

PacNW Lurker

My aunt had one of these trees in Southern California. The small trees are very attractive and the blossoms and fruits are pretty. The fruits are the color of strawberries but don't really taste like strawberries. They are on the bland side and are covered with red bumps that probably protect the fruit from predators before the fruits ripen.

It is interesting to me that the fruits and flowers appear together.

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Quilt Ladder and Halloween Quilts

From a friend:

I absolutely love my custom hinged quilt ladder made by Devan Jenkinson of Jenkcraft.

Red Oak frame, Black Walnut end capped, Black Walnut hinge plates, custom Black Walnut "cycle 100" to commemorate my century rides, and custom Purple Heart inlays because I put love into every stitch, and I put an appliqued heart on the back of each quilt as my signature.

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Seeing Stars and bats

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I could not resist piecing this cow abduction. It's called "Udderly Out of This World." The FPP pattern was designed by Adriana Jaffrani Adrianna - Getting Jazzy with It

This is the 12" version. It was very challenging and I used Jack the Ripper more than I anticipated. Oh well, it's all done and I love how it turned out.
Sadly, this was the last of my sparkly sky fabric.

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Did I make another Halloween quilt? Yes!

"In the quiet hollow, beneath an autumn moon, she prepares her most treasured potion. The darkening night holds its breath as her quiet magic unfolds."

Designer: Angela Angela Wall

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Gardens of The Horde

From Don in Kansas, Six Cubic Feet of Yellow

Click the link for more important information.

Love the light in that photo.

What's going on in your yard or garden?

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Hope everyone has a nice weekend.

If you would like to send photos, stories, links, etc. for the Saturday Gardening Thread, the address is:

ktinthegarden at g mail dot com

Remember to include the nic or name by which you wish to be known at AoSHQ, or let us know if you want to remain a lurker.

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Week in Review

What has changed since last week's thread? Gardening, Home and Nature Thread, Oct. 17

I closed the comments on that post so you wouldn't get banned for commenting on a week-old post, but don't try it anyway.

Close it up

Thread before the Gardening Thread, Oct. 24

—K.T.

FRANCE

Have you noticed the statue of Marianne used as a symbol of the protests in France?

Why the Statue of Liberty's real name is (probably) Marianne

Live updates on the protests and riots in France, NY Post

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One of my first impressions about these protests was that it was odd to think that some sort of "national consensus" must be reached before action could be taken. Here is Macron addressing the nation before taking off for the Gulf States.

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Who thinks that France can recover? Someone who turned around a smaller country.

(translate into English if you want to)

J’ai entendu dire que la France était finie, qu’il était trop tard pour la sauver.

Mais la France est toujours aussi belle, enviable même. Sa grandeur n’a pas disparu, elle ne demande qu’à renaître.

Nous avons surmonté en un an un problème cent fois plus grave, sans avoir les moyens dont dispose la France.

La France pourrait y arriver en une semaine.

— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) October 18, 2026

His first name is Palestinian. That's just a coincidence.

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The Founding of our Country

A Daily Dose of the American Rev

On this day in 1781, General Washington’s aide de camp Lt. Colonel Tench Tilghman arrived in Philadelphia with news of Cornwallis’s surrender. Here is a description of what followed, from Benson Lossing’s Pictorial Fieldbook of the Revolution (1850):

It was midnight when he entered the city. Thomas M’Kean was then president of the Continental Congress, and resided in High Street, near Second. Tilghman knocked at his door so vehemently, that a watchman was disposed to arrest him as a disturber of the peace. M’Kean arose, and presently the glad tidings were made known. The watchmen throughout the city proclaimed the hour, adding ‘and Cornwallis is taken!’ That annunciation, ringing out upon the frosty night air, aroused thousands from their beds. Lights were seen moving in almost every house; and soon the streets were thronged with men and women all eager to hear the details. It was a night of great joy in Philadelphia, for the people had anxiously awaited intelligence from Yorktown. The old State House hell rang out its notes of gladness, and the first blush of morning was greeted with the booming of cannons.

Congress assembled at an early hour, and the grave orators of that august body could hardly repress huzzas while Secretary Thompson read the letter from Washington announcing the capitulation of Cornwallis. On motion of Edmund Randolph, Congress resolved to go in procession at two o’clock the same day to the Dutch Lutheran Church, ‘and return thanks to Almighty God for crowning the allied armies of the United States and France with success.’

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Statues: The People They Salute

The First Continental Congress met from September 5 to October 26, 1774, at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Delegates from 12 of the 13 colonies discussed how to respond to the British Navy blockade of Boston Harbor and the punitive Intolerable Acts passed by Parliament.

Some delegates were more open to trying to work with Parliament, others felt it was futile to think Great Britain was open to addressing the colonies’ grievances.

Patrick Henry, opposed Joseph Galloway's proposal for an American Legislature under the Crown. Henry warned that its members would be bribed "by that nation which avows, in the face of the world, that bribery is a part of her system of government."

Henry also understood that the colonies must unite in joint cause against Great Britain, if they want to be taken seriously.

In the end, the voices of compromise carried the day. Rather than calling for independence, the First Continental Congress passed and signed the Continental Association in its Declaration and Resolves, which called for a boycott of British goods to take effect in December 1774. ON THIS DAY October 20, in 1774, the First Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Association.

Standing before everyone at the beginning of the First Continental Congress, Henry famously declared:

"The distinctions between Virginians, Pennsylvanians and New Englanders are no more. I am not a Virginian, but an American."
In other words, it was Henry who first created the concept of the American identity.

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A Daily Dose of the American Rev

A 1722 law prohibited New Hampshire settlers from cutting down any white pine trees more than one foot in diameter. Those trees, the law declared, belonged to the king for potential use in naval construction. For decades the law was honored in the breach and rarely enforced. But after John Wentworth was appointed royal governor of the colony he decided to crack down on violations. In April 1772 royal authorities arrested sawmill owner Ebenezer Mudgett of Weare, New Hampshire, and charged him with breaking the law.

New Englanders had long resented the so-called “pine mast laws” as infringements on their livelihoods and their liberties. The night of his arrest, after being released on bail, Mudgett and about 20 other townsmen disguised themselves and broke into room in the local inn where the sheriff and his deputy were staying. Mudgett and his colleagues seized the two men, beat them, then ran them out of town before a jeering crowd of onlookers. Mudgett and eight others were later arrested and charged with rioting and assault. A sympathetic judge gave them nominal fines as their punishment.

In the aftermath of the affair the pine tree became a symbol of the resistance to royal authority, and the so-called Pine Tree Riot may have helped inspire the Boston Tea Party. During the Battle of Bunker Hill, New England Continental troops flew “pine tree flags”—red battle flags with a pine tree on the upper left.

In October 1775 George Washington commissioned a pine tree flag for the American navy. Washington’s design was a pine tree on a white field, above which appeared the words “An Appeal to Heaven.” The phrase, frequently used by the revolutionaries, appeared in John Locke’s Second Treatise of Government. “For whenever violence is used, and injury done, though by hands appointed to administer justice,” Locke wrote, “war is made upon the sufferers, who having no appeal on earth to right them, they are left to the only remedy in such cases, an appeal to heaven.” The scripture cited by Locke in support of his argument made clear his meaning: an appeal to heaven for victory in war. In other words, when there is no just temporal authority to whom the oppressed can appeal, their final option is to take up arms and appeal to heaven.

The images are the Bunker Hill Pine Tree Flag and Washington’s naval Pine Tree Flag.

* * * * *

Weekend

The Week in Pictures: Not To My Knowledge Edition

Pay attention, class: Everyone remember Bill Clinton’s famous “it depends on what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is”? That came when he was asked about whether he was having (present tense) or had ever had sex with Monica Lewinski. Later, of course, he redefined “sex” to exclude his bizarre cigar-involved acts. Well, I think we’ve seen the next act in these kind of linguistic improvisations with Ilhan Omar saying she did not “knowingly” marry her brother, after which we can expect a new explanation of what “brother” means in Somalian culture. Oh, and Paris is burning.

* * * * *

Music

h/t Don in Kansas, a Strauss polka to keep you on your toes:

* * * * *

Hope you have something nice planned for this weekend.

This is the Thread before the Gardening Thread.

Serving your mid-day open thread needs

* * * * *

Last week's thread, the Thread before the Gardening Thread, Oct. 17

Comments are closed so you won't ban yourself by trying to comment on a week-old thread. But don't try it anyway.

Close it up

The Classical Saturday Morning Coffee Break & Prayer Revival

—Misanthropic Humanitarian

Good morning boys and girls and everything in between. Before we enter the Prayer Revival there are a few housekeeping matters to go over. (Rulz for those of you in Cottage Grove)

1) This is an open thread. Feel free to lurk, opine and/or bloviate. Praying is also welcome and appreciated.
2) Be kind. Be nice. Or at least don't get caught.
3) No! After the TXMoMe there is definitely no running with sharp objects.
4) May your weekend be great and your upcoming week a breeze.

Daily Tech News 24 October 2026

—Pixy Misa

• NASA is planning to land astronauts on the Moon within two years. (AP News)
  
  Likelihood of missing this target exceeds 100%. Though to be fair nobody has ever done this before, and we don't know all the complications involved in such a heroic effort.

The Empty ONT

—WeirdDave

So sorry everyone. Due to a personal emergency (everything's OK now), I was unable to prepare tonight's ONT as planned. I'll be back next week, but for now you'll have to talk amongst yourselves.

Moonshot Cafe

—Disinformation Expert Ace

Guzman Ramos

The highest-resolution photo of the Moon. (Allegedly.)

Dogs experience a missed connection.

Just a big goofy bear playing with a ball.

A gentle giant of a horse helps a neglected horse get its confidence back.

Sweep the leg, Doggo-San. Wait, Miyagi didn't say that. Well, whatever. I'm not a Karate Kid nerd like you guys are.

Fun Thai ads.

I can almost see her gooch.

Baby has questions.

An Ent, pondering.

Finland is testing wireless transmission of electrical power.

Thinking about body modifications? You want to give yourself a big fluffy tail? There are many benefits of a big fluffy tail.

Very newborn baby gives its mom its first kiss.

Mama bear scouts out the way, then signals the cubs to follow.

Baby beaver nibbles on his tail like he's sucking his thumb.

France Finally Deploys Troops in Wake of Terrorist Attack

—Disinformation Expert Ace

They're claiming, for the moment, that this was not a terror attack by migrants but one directed at migrants, which makes it one of the terrorist attacks they're willing to acknowledge and not pretend that a Car Drove Itself.

Macron claims this is the first time someone has ever been targeted on the basis of his race in a terror attack.

This is, of course, the most absurd of all lies.

The Bataclan terrorists were specifically killing native French and of course the Muslim African terrorists at the Hypermarche were murdering Jews.

But they're allowed to, of course.

Visegrád 24
@visegrad24

Macron says that today's shooting in Trappes was aimed at migrants and the first terror attack in French history against a group of people targeted because of their skin and religion.

He is naturally lying as there have been several such Islamist attacks in France in recent years which were carried out against Jews or Christians.

- 2012, Mohammed Merah attacks a Jewish school in Toulouse and murders a rabbi and 3 kids

- 2015, Amedy Coulibaly murders 4 Jews at the Hypercacher kosher supermarket in Paris

- 2016, Adel Kermiche and Abdel Malik Petitjean storm a church in Normandy and murder the 85-year-old priest Jacques Hamel, by slitting his throat, and also critically wound an 86-year-old man.

2020, Brahim Aouissaoui storms a Catholic basilica in Nice and stabs 3 people to death.

Macron stated today:

"What happened today is a turning point. It is the first time there has been a terrorist act planned to kill our compatriots, our children, because of the color of their skin or their religion"

Oh, now interethnic violence is a turning point? It was NBD before?

And so finally France will deploy troops to oppose rioters.

Supposedly. But he keeps insisting that people have the right to Mostly Peaceful Protest.

A suspected terrorist attack near Paris Friday added to tensions across France as the nation prepares for more potential violence Saturday.

Seventy thousand law enforcement officers, along with helicopters, armored vehicles and water cannons, will be deployed across France as President Emmanuel Macron's government tries to ward off another weekend of violent protests.

"The strategy adopted for the coming days is to ban protests requested by individuals or groups with no legitimate authority," Macron said ahead of the weekend after canceling his planned trip to Nigeria and Senegal originally scheduled for next week.

...

Adding to security concerns, a suspected terrorist attack occurred in the city of Trappes, west of Paris. A 39-year-old man was arrested by police after one person was killed and four others, including a 12-year-old girl, were wounded in what was originally said to be a "relatively random" shooting.

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez has since told local media, "The motive may be racist. The investigation is ongoing, but this is clearly a terrorist crime."

The AFP reported the suspect appeared to fire randomly from a vehicle, and the mayor told reporters the dead victim and at least one of the wounded were "of African origin."

Macron said "the nation is standing with" the victims of this "terrible ordeal."

...

Reuters reports that the Union Nationale des Étudiants de France, or UNEF, one of the nation's oldest student unions, has said its planned rallies will go on as scheduled despite police rejecting their permit requests. Police have so far only approved a union demonstration in Paris, Reuters reported, while denying requests from UNEF and the "Yellow Vest" movement, an anti-establishment force that first emerged in 2018.

So the left gets their protest approved, but the anti-Macron Yellow Vests get their protest denied.

Macron also took aim at those he says are behind the violence, saying, "Last Saturday, we had political and seditious acts by ultra-left groups whose aim is to bring down the Republic."

Until a few days ago they were part of just "the left" and protected by Macron. Now they're a problem, and they're "ultra-left."

Kind of like Russia went from being protected by the Democrat Party to the greatest threat ever.

So are we finally going to see mass arrests of Fiery But Mostly Peaceful Protesters?

Well...

You probably heard that 4,000 Mostly Peaceful Student Activists had been arrested in France for rioting, assaulting cops, looting, and arson.

Here's how the French "justice" system is dealing with the insurgents and invaders: Giving them community service and sending them home.

Visegrád 24 @visegrad24

BREAKING:

The first rioters and looters have been sentenced in France.

The judges practically refuse to hand out prison sentences:

🔴 Toulouse -- Ylan, 18 years old. Throwing a Molotov cocktail at police officer

- Sentence: 12 months suspended + 140 hours of community service + deprivation of voting rights for 3 years.
- Max. sentence: 10 years in prison

...

🔴 Lille -- 23-year-old man, launching fireworks at police

- Sentence: 12 months under electronic monitoring + 140 hours of community service.
- Max. sentence: 5 years

🔴 Reims -- Sahel W., 19 years old. Looting a Carrefour

- Sentence: 105 hours of community service.
- Max. sentence: 7 years

🔴 Reims -- Hugo M., 20 years old. Looting a Caviar boutique.

- Sentence: 4 months under electronic monitoring.
- Max. sentence: 7 years.

...

🔴 Perpignan -- 22-y-old Amazon delivery driver, already one prior conviction. Scooter theft after demonstration with face concealment, in a group and break-in

- Sentence: 8 months under electronic monitoring.
- Max. sentence: 10 years

...

🔴 Pau -- 43-y-old man. Throwing objects at police

- Sentence: 6 months under electronic monitoring.
- Max. sentence: 5 years

🔴 Nîmes -- 24-y-old PE teacher. Throwing objects that injured a police man (3 days of leave).

- Sentence: 18 months suspended prob.
- Max. sentence: 5 years

🔴 Grenoble -- 10 people. Looting

Sentences: from 4 months suspended to 8 months served (served for 1 individual already convicted to suspended in June).
Max. sentence: 7 years

More at the link. Some people actually got some months in prison but they seem to be a minority.

As you know, Macron fled France for a junket in the Gulf States where he could strut around like a Very Important Peacock and pretend that his entire country wasn't on fire. He's a student of Karen Bass.

This "news" organization has a very interesting, very objective headline to describe abandoning France during a violent uprising:

Gulf tour puts spring in Macron's step to tackle protests at home

Oh terrific! He just needed a mental health break and now he's tanned, rested, and ready, and infused with a whole new purpose.

Georgia Meloni has remained in Italy and pushed for harsher anti-rioting laws.

Italy's response to a weekend of street violence has moved from emergency policing to tougher criminal law, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni seeking to reassert control after unrest in Milan and other northern cities

The government approved measures on Tuesday creating an offence of violent participation in demonstrations, extending preventive detention powers to teenagers aged 14--17 and making parents financially liable for damage caused by their children. The package also provides for 500 soldiers to support security operations in Milan through December.

The crackdown presents a defining challenge for a prime minister whose political identity rests heavily on law and order: demonstrating that stronger powers can prevent another eruption while addressing the conditions feeding public anger.

...

As EU Today reported in its earlier coverage of the unrest, police brought 271 people to headquarters following Sunday's disturbances, including 220 minors. Thirty-two were formally arrested, a detail that matters when assessing the scale of alleged criminal involvement.

The prominence of teenagers has shaped the government's response. According to the Associated Press, the decree makes prosecuting minors over 14 easier and includes plans to expand juvenile detention capacity and judicial resources.

Parliament must convert the decree into law within 60 days.

For supporters, the argument is straightforward: shopkeepers should not have to absorb the cost of destruction, and officers need effective tools against groups exploiting demonstrations to commit offences.

Yet preventive detention raises a different question from punishment after conviction. Its credibility depends on clear evidence, consistent safeguards and meaningful scrutiny, particularly when those affected are children.

Here's how it's going in France:

The Week In Woke

—Disinformation Expert Ace

Tim Walz's lieutenant governor, the trans extremist Peggy Flanagan who wears trans t-shirts with a combat knife emblem, says she had nothing at all to do with the massive fraud that Minnesota saw under the Walz-Flanagan administration.

Why it's absurd to claim that Peggy Flanagan has anything to do with wasting the taxpayers' money!

Peggy Flanagan and Tim Walz Steered Millions To Pay for Disgusting 'Booty Bumping' Kits that Help Junkies Take Drugs Through 'the Rectum' Minnesota requires the provider of the booty bumping kits to also give junkies voter registration materials

Chuck Ross
October 21, 2026

Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan's (D.) administration spearheaded the awarding of millions of dollars in grants and contracts to a "harm reduction" group that supplies "booty bumping" kits to drug users to help them safely ingest drugs through "the butthole."

The controversial funding was part of a $100 million grant--announced by Flanagan and Gov. Tim Walz--for "Minnesotans facing homelessness," including so-called harm reduction for drug users. In the announcement, Flanagan, now running for Senate, said that "These grants will ensure that everyone can access the supports they need to find and secure safe, stable housing."

The administration highlighted grants to Southside Harm Reduction Services, a nonprofit that "promotes the health and wellbeing of drug users" through "harm reduction" supplies like syringes, sterile water, and drug cookers to help junkies get high "safely."

A key "harm reduction" offering from Southside is free lube and other supplies to help users in the "booty bumping" scene to ingest all kinds of drugs--including heroin, meth, and ketamine--"through the rectum (anus, butthole)." Southside is also required by the state of Minnesota to give the junkies voter registration materials.

Southside touts the booty bumping kits, also known as "boofing" kits, in social media posts and on its website as safer methods to ingest some drugs and an efficient way to get high. Booty bumping helps drugs "reach the bloodstream quickly," allowing practitioners to "reach a high faster than some other routes of administration," Southside Harm Reduction says.

Southside Harm Reduction offers other instructions.

"Try to poop before. This is so your drugs are absorbed better," Southside Harm Reduction Services advises in a pamphlet contained in the kits.

Is that good advice, JackStraw?

"Stand, squat, or lay on your side in a comfortable position. It never hurts to have a boofing buddy!"

Boofing is controversial among harm reduction advocates. Because the drugs bypass the digestive system and enter the bloodstream quickly, it can increase the likelihood of fatal overdoses.

The state of Minnesota has awarded $7.9 million in grants and contracts to Southside Harm Reduction Services since 2023, according to state spending records. The administration awarded $432,000 to Southside in 2024 to provide "low-barrier access" to harm reduction supplies. The Washington Free Beacon first reported on the grants during Walz's failed vice presidential run.

This is pretty funny: Not all Karens are female.

I'm going to add "Nope," "Absolutely not," F*** that" to my active meme vocabulary.

I mentioned that Joey Swoll built his channel on Gym Whores showing their anuses to the world and then shaming men for looking at their fat butts for one second. Here's a recent example of this e-whore trend.

Here's more Entitled Whore Gym Entitlement: The girl with the nice thick legs sprints on the running machine, which is a perfectly legitimate use for it. They have a setting for it and everything.

But this entitled whore thinks that it's too loud because she can't listen to "my music" when the other girl is sprinting. Note that sprinting is an important gym activity while listening to "my music" is not.

Also note that sprinting lasts for like 20 seconds and no one would probably do more than three sets of it. So this entitled skank is complaining that she can't hear "my music" for a total time of one minute.

These people need to be banned from gyms and public spaces generally. As Joey Swoll often says, if you really want to film yourself without people walking in front of your camera, or you want to listen to "my music" without people rudely using gym equipment in the way it is supposed to be used, build your own home gyms, you broke-ass bitches.

Lisa Britton @LisaBritton

Society: Mankeeping is a burden on women! Why don't men have friendships?! Ugh, men.

Also society: Ban all male groups and spaces! Men don't need other men for support and their health... They're just trouble! Ugh, men.

Two tier justice in the US: some racial groups are allowed to engage in truly nasty racist behavior.

A former student in a Maryland public school system has filed a federal civil rights complaint alleging the school system failed to adequately respond to years of antisemitic harassment that included slurs and an incident in which he received a bomb threat.

The complaint against the Montgomery County Public Schools was filed with the federal Education Department's Office for Civil Rights and alleges the Orthodox Jewish student experienced harassment at two of the system's high schools and that the school district failed to sufficiently protect him.

"Students would throw coins at him and call him a dirty Jew," according to the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, which filed the complaint. The student had to transfer high schools because the harassment was "unbearable," the center also said.

The school system told local news outlet WTOP that it's aware of the complaint but declined to further comment, citing "an ongoing matter."

The complaint asks federal officials to investigate whether the school system violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.

Speaking of two-tiered justice: Disgraced effeminate former UK PM Keir Starmer was the head of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) while it was covering up the grooming/rape gang scandal and allowing foreign invaders to rape lower-class native girls.

He'll now be forced to answer questions about that.

Keir Starmer listed as 'core participant' in grooming gangs inquiry

The ex-Prime Minister will give evidence after announcing the investigation

Sir Keir Starmer will be summoned to give evidence to the national grooming gangs inquiry, GB News understands.

The former Prime Minister, who announced the inquiry last year, has been listed as a core participant.

The inquiry will commence its National Accountability Hearings in London in December and January.

Further hearings will take place in March and April next year.

The inquiry's hearings are expected to examine why previous probes and investigations have not resulted in "meaningful change".

If you pay me six buck I can tell you why previous probes and investigations failed to produce meaningful change: Because the "investigations" were all designed from the start to cover up the previous cover-ups.

The world's money-hungriest socialist wants to sell you more pricey yet cheap bling.

Black TikTokers are complaining that some CVS stores only put skin and hair care products intended for blacks under lock and key. They claim this is "racist."

For six buck I can tell you why the stores are specifically guarding products intended for blacks under lock and key.

I sure don't like that law-abiding blacks feel the shame of being suspected in mass shoplifting. It stings. I have no doubt of that. I am sympathetic.

But I would like very much if they stopped blaming whitey for this poor state of things, and instead blamed the people actually responsible for it: a large and brazen subculture which has decided that they are entitled to rob and loot and pillage as they please and a Democrat Party determined to indulge those antisocial, barbaric beliefs.

BOOM: Ilhan "Omar's" Sister's Marriage Certificate Says Her Father Is Nur Said Elmi, Not Omar

—Disinformation Expert Ace

Uh-oh.

Will Chamberlain @willchamberlain

The New York Post has obtained and published an official copy of Ilhan Omar's sister's marriage certificate.

It describes their father as "Nur Said Elmi," and his profession as a "military officer.

More evidence that she is not who she says she is.

Yesterday I mentioned a social media post in which Ilhan Nur Said Elmi's brother/ex-husband, Ahmed Nur Said Elmi, acknoweldged that Ilhan's third child was a "niece," that is, the daughter of his sister.

Here is that post, via Hot Air, as posted by Ben Weingarten:

She has repeatedly lied under oath about her brother/husband:

The woman who until recently disclosed her net worth as being $30 million now says she's living "paycheck to paycheck."

The Babylon Bee: Not Sure If You Married Your Brother? 9 /saSigns To Look For

1. You have the same parents: This probably should have tipped you off.

...

6. Your mother-in-law is also your regular mother: And she actually likes you.

7. He's straight, but says things to you like "stop trying to kiss me, that's a crime against nature," "why don't you have your own bedroom" and "you are my sister, what is wrong with you?": Contrary to popular belief, this is not playful love banter.

There are more.

Another headline from The Bee:

Ilhan Omar Says She Didn't Know She'd Married Her Brother As They Were Separated At Birth And Hidden From Their Father, Darth Vader

David Steinberg @realDSteinberg

35m

I'm most proud of this @IlhanMN find:

Not long after Ilhan swore 8 times in her divorce filing that she had no idea how to contact Ahmed, I proved -- via the source code of the website for her sister Sahra Noor's company 😎 -- that he was working for Sahra, and quite easy to contact.

Donald J. Trump's
The Lord of the Rings

—Disinformation Expert Ace

Funny stuff.

If you don't feel like watching all three videos, I suggest skipping to the last one, which is the best. And to be honest watching all three in a row is kind of a grind, because most of the jokes are repeated.

Trump's DHS is Knocking on Doors to Ask People About Their Immigration Status and Voter Status as the Left Continues Lying About Its Legions of Illegal Voters
Update: Big Win in Court for Border Enforcement

—Disinformation Expert Ace

Tuq'r Qarlson will continue lying about "Trump not doing anything" because, of course, he's a Democrat/Qatari operative.

Federal agents with the Department of Homeland Security have been knocking on doors in several states to ask residents about their immigration status and if they've registered to vote or voted in past elections.

The operation is part of a broader election-integrity effort to prevent noncitizens from voting ahead of the midterms, CBS News reported.

The Northern California office of Homeland Security Investigations posted photos on X in September showing agents knocking on doors with the comment that "HSI in Northern California will investigate any allegations of noncitizen voting and is committed to ensuring the enforcement of federal election law."

The Kansas City office of HSI also posted photos of its agents knocking on doors with the comment, "AMERICAN ELECTIONS ARE FOR AMERICANS."

The number of home visits increased in September and continued over the past weekend, according to CBS.

The Department of Justice on Monday announced a string of arrests related to alleged voter fraud in California.

...

"These are not isolated instances," another official said, before confirming that the DOJ was reviewing thousands of alleged illegal voting cases across the country.

Charles Schumer and Democrats are suing to keep illegal aliens on the voter rolls.

The Democrats are fighting for the their lives when it comes to battling election integrity efforts. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries announced a federal lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's efforts to identify and remove suspected noncitizens from state voter-registration lists. The 44-page complaint, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., alleges that the Department of Homeland Security has supplied states with unreliable lists of supposedly ineligible voters and pressured election officials to act on them. The plaintiffs offer Nevada as an example, claiming that federal investigators initially identified approximately 16,000 suspected noncitizen registrants before narrowing the figure to 185, whom Nevada officials subsequently identified as apparent citizens. Democrats claim that the administration's actions threaten eligible voters' rights and interfere with state election administration. Of course.

"None of this is lawful," the complaint reads.

Does it sound bad that the feds claimed 16,000 illegal voters but then reduced that to 185?

It does sound bad. Because it's another lie.

David J. Bier @David_J_Bier

Only 28% of a sample of DHS's bogus list of 20,000 voters that it claimed were "verified" noncitizen voters actually voted. So that's 5,600 out of 5 million California noncitizens. That'd be 0.1% (if they are noncitizens, which they probably aren't based on DHS's record).

The DHS isn't claiming these are all illegal aliens voting illegally. It's notifying the states that these are noncitizens who may or may not be voting. They are asking states to verify if these noncitizens, including legal residents and illegal aliens, are registered to vote or not.

And the blue states are of course refusing to undertake this simple clerical step, because they want the illegal hordes voting for Democrats.

Shipwreckedcrew @shipwreckedcrew

You've got the numbers wrong. I'm not saying Lee is right -- he's not.

The 20,000 names are ACTUAL Green Card holders with California addresses with USCIS who match names and addresses with registered voters in California's publicly available voter registration list.

DOJ never said they all voted in the past. It only asked California to independently verify their eligibility to register because if they were Green Card holders they are ineligible.

It is not exculpatry to say, as LA County has said, "Only 28% have vote." That's actually a confession.

0000.00% should have voted if they are Green Card holders.

LA County conceded that 60 out of 200 have a voting history.

DOJ/DHS says those 60 are ineligible because they are not citizens.

If a check of 200 noncitizens find that 60 of them illegally voted, that is bad. That tells you the level of illegal voting going on, if blue states bothered enforcing the law.

Which they refuse to do.

Calif was ASKED to confirm, and if they can't confirm to set their ballots aside until confirmation of eligibility to vote is determined.

I go back and forth between whether your are a liar or just stupid.

The 20,000 are "High Confidence" determinations by DHS that they are not citizens.

There are tens of thousands more that are "Medium" or "Low" confidence that DOJ did not send.

And no one has even broached the subject of illegal aliens who registered when they obtained Driver's Licenses.

Speaking of elections:

The leftwing NGOs and foreign billionaires have a new caravan of illegals coming just in time for the midterms.

A new migrant caravan consisting of hundreds of Central American migrants departed southern Mexico on Tuesday, with some hoping Democratic victories in November's midterm elections could lead to changes in President Donald Trump's immigration enforcement policies.

The group, calling itself "Caravan Without Borders," departed Tapachula, near Mexico's border with Guatemala, with migrants seeking legal status in Mexico or opportunities to continue north toward the United States.

Mexican newspaper Milenio initially estimated the caravan at more than 400 people, while Diario del Sur reported that its numbers had grown to approximately 700 after departing Tapachula.

Participants reportedly include migrants from Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Haiti, Venezuela and Cuba.

Independent journalist Julio Rosas interviewed caravan members who expressed hope that Democrats would win the upcoming midterm elections, potentially signaling a shift in U.S. border enforcement.

...

Participants cited economic hardship, limited employment opportunities and lengthy immigration processing delays as reasons for joining the caravan.

Weird-- none of those are claims entitling them to asylum. Don't worry, though, once the NGOs' corrupt fraud-on-the-court lawyers tell them the lies they need to tell to make an asylum claim, they'll all claim they're being oppressed by local governments or street gangs.

Some reportedly had previously been deported from the United States and were attempting to return to reunite with family members.

...

A separate caravan attempted a similar journey in April but dispersed after Mexican authorities intervened and returned numerous migrants to southern Mexico.

Someone's trying to change the corrupt and absurdly destructive visa lottery, but of course Democrats will filibuster and block it.

Texas GOP Rep. Keith Self introduced a bill Thursday to repeal the State Department's Diversity Immigrant Visa lottery, which offers permanent residency to up to 55,000 applicants annually from countries with lower levels of immigration to the United States.

The Trump administration attempted to end the program last year after the alleged perpetrator behind shootings at Brown University and MIT used it to enter the country. The alleged shooter was a Portuguese national.

A California judge ruled last week that the administration must reinstate the program, which was created by Congress.