Sunday, July 14, 2024

Yellow Swallowtail Butterfly


 

27 comments:

  1. The FBI has identified 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks as the “subject involved” in the attempted assassination of former president Donald Trump, the agency said in a statement on Sunday, according to Reuters and Associated Press.

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  2. Jul 13th, 2024
    Investigation #2
    by Josh Marshall

    We now have more information on the questions I discussed below. We now appear to have a better idea of where the shooter was and how Secret Service agents were able to shoot and kill the shooter only a few seconds after he opened fire. It appears the distance between the rooftop and the stage was more like 150 yards. The building in question was a large single story building just outside the security perimeter of the event. Much closer and just to the side of the stage was another building, with a higher roof. On the roof, with a commanding over the whole area was a Secret Service counter-sniper team. It appears that some onlookers noticed that gunman on the roof and began trying to alert police and/or Secret Service agents on the ground. At this point the counter-snipers either saw the gunman on their own or perhaps heard warnings about someone on the roof in their earpieces.

    So it appears they were already looking to see what was going on before the gunman fired his first shots. Quite possible this was only a matter of a few seconds. But this helps explain why they were able to shoot the gunman dead only a few seconds after he opened fire. If you see the map of the buildings in question the counter-snipers would have had a direct and unobstructed line of sight toward the shooter.

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  3. listener--- I see that in the weather forecast for Jericho temperatures are supposed to be in the 80's F, with humidity around 50%. That must be very uncomfortable. Must be similarly uncomfortable elsewhere in howardempoweredland. Not bad here; temperature rising into the low hundreds F, humidity declining to 20% as the day progresses.
    ----Alan

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    1. Reminded me to check the weather report her, which I haven't been doing since I got back. Currently 87F and 52% humidity.

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    2. nordy--I haven't posted much in a week. Tuesday it hit 98 with no air conditioning. My brain was baking and every time I tried to post that awful headache that won't stop got me again. So I took a luftpause. Back now, sort of.

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    3. {listener}
      50% humidity is fine. It’s the 70-97% humidity that’s oppressive. We’ve had that with low 80s. Not fun!

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    4. listener, we have constant high humidity here and it almost never gets muggy. Go figure. --nordy

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    5. Welcome back, nordy!
      Humidity without mugginess is great if you can manage it! 😄

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  4. Replies
    1. What goes around, comes around.
      ----Alan

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  5. Who Looted Red Lobster? [Click] Certainly not a unique occurrence.
    ——Alan

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  6. David Frum in The Atlantic: The Gunman and the Would-Be Dictator [Click] “Violence stalks the president who has rejoiced in violence to others.”
    ——Alan

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  7. (Susan) Trump seems to be entirely too stupid to realize that he is so hated there are people who want to unalive him.

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    1. Even among Republicans. And gun nuts. And Republican gun nuts.
      ----Alan

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  8. Moira Donegan in Guardian opinion:
    Trump’s influence – and, at times, his express direction – has arguably made political violence more central, more frequent, and more bloody a force in American politics. What has changed now, with this shooting at a Trump rally, is only that it seems to have been the first time that this kind of violence has been directed at him.
    --nordy

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  9. Repos are reacting like Repos to the assassination attempt, blaming Democrats and "far left" activists. Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., claimed without evidence that "Joe Biden sent the orders" to assassinate Trump. MTG acted as you would expect from her. Sen. Rick Scott blamed "radical left" rhetoric. So much for national unity. --nordy

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  10. When he was a little boy he stood in his backyard throwing rocks at the neighboring toddler. He has grown older and uglier but he is still the rock-thrower he has always been. (Susan)

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