Taxation without representation. Hmmm. Why does this sound familiar?

I’ve heard it referred to as a “coal chute”. They were probably common in quite a few regions in the US. North/Midwest and North East if I had to guess. Those are areas with lots of houses that were built in the late 1800’s - early 1900’s when central heating was really becoming commonplace. Houses would have typically had a basement and the town would have needed rail access to supply the sheer volume of coal needed.

I think oil became a more common fuel source after WWII because it was cheaper and easier to handle. Lots of the same houses with those little doors also have a small hole that someone cut in the middle of the basement stairs so they could fill the oil tank that was installed under the stairs. Gravity furnaces were not very efficient but they were easy to convert to oil burning.

I grew up in a part of the northern Midwest where just about every house built before the 1940’s has a small steel door in the foundation, usually on the same side as the driveway. It was used to deliver coal which was shoveled through the door, into a bin in the basement and eventually burned to heat the house, most likely in a big “octopus” furnace or a boiler.

It always fascinated me that so many houses had this one little thing that was once an incredibly necessary feature that was eventually shut and sealed from the inside, probably never to be opened again.

Wind blowing though pine trees.

I have this memory from when I was a kid. I was standing in the middle of the woods at my grandparents, watching big fluffy snow flakes fall around me. The only sound I could hear was a light breeze blowing through the pine trees. I don’t know why but it almost felt magical. To this day I still love that sound.

• The Blues Brothers (1980)
• How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1967)
• The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) <- The best film version of “A Christmas Carol”. I will die on this hill.
• Blazing Saddles (1974)
• Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)

“I know a little German… He’s sitting over there.”

Single party states, where power is highly centralized and unilateral action is possible, lack the expectation that justice will be executed unmolested since the system responsible for executing it lacks the autonomy and authority to do so.

People sometimes complain about the constant “tug of war” that naturally occurs in more Republican governments but that’s simply a byproduct of the “Separation of powers”. It can make things long and drawn out but it at least helps prevent things like a legal system with a 99% conviction rate when there’s no conceivable way 99% of the defendants are actually guilty.

• Husband
• Dad
• Son
• Brother
• Entrepreneur
• Engineer
• Resident Handyman
• Household Treasurer
• Church Treasurer
• Outdoorsman
• Family Musician (who barely has time to practice)

Sure. Trying to run a highly dangerous, technologically advanced theme park with two underpaid IT guys and no disaster avoidance and recovery plans.

Lol. That whole project is a grift operation on par with the Kremlin.

I don’t remember exactly because it’s been a few years but I think it had something to do with him “telling it like it is.”

I think that’s what a lot of people like about Trump. Basically the fact that he provides very “concise” answers to their problems. The fact that those answers are usually false, misdirections, or based on a poor or non-existent understanding of an issue doesn’t really enter into it.

I think privatising social security is a terrible idea and medicare for all is a good idea. So I’m basically a communist.

/s

I live in the Bible Belt so as you can imagine I interact with these types of people on a very regular basis.

I once went on a business trip with one of my [at that time] employees. We got along well although I knew he was very conservative politically and a staunch Trump supporter. I am neither of those things which he knew about me as well. We had a long car ride through the middle of nowhere and we talked for a good chunk of it to pass the time.

Eventually I asked him, “What do you like so much about Donald Trump?” I genuinely wanted to know. He told me. I thought his reasons were bullshit but I did ask and so I had an obligation to at least hear him out. He asked me why I didn’t like Trump. I gave him my reasons. We kind of politely acknowledged one another’s opinion and agreed to disagree. We chatted a little bit more and then he said something that I did not expect. “You know those people who go walking around with guns strapped on them all the time? Those guys are idiots. What kind of moron thinks he’s got to prove something so badly that he goes to the store carrying an AR strapped to his back?”

I was honestly shocked. I didn’t expect him to say that and I agreed with him. We talked a lot longer after that about politics and found that we had plenty of other things we agreed on, and plenty that we didn’t. When we finally got to our destination, I thanked him for answering my questions honestly because I genuinely wanted to understand his perspective. I could tell he appreciated that.

That’s a long way of saying that the only way to deal with extreme conservatives is to go talk to them. Its not always easy but you’ll find that you have more in common with them than you might think. Now, that’s easy for me to say. I’m a straight, white, boot wearing, bearded guy with a southern accent. I pretty much fit right in around here. If you’re a minorty, trans for instance, and you don’t want to go talk to people who think you’re some sort of abomination, I don’t blame you for a second. that’s why those of us who are not as “threatening” need to do a better job of being allies.

There’s a passage in the Bible that says “a house divided against itself cannot stand.” It’s true. A “divide and conquer” strategy is incredibly effective. It’s working very effectively in American politics today. And the only way to bridge the gap is to go find some common ground.

Many years ago, there was a televised interview with Saddam Hussein. I don’t remember which TV network it was on but it was a pretty big deal. This was early 2000’s before the US invasion of Iraq. I think the translator referred to then President Bush as “Bush”. Saddam didn’t understand a lot of English but he understood that. He interrupts the translator mid-sentence to inform him that what he should have said was “Mr. Bush”, with a sort of tone that felt like he did not appreciate being misquoted.

I don’t know if that dude even realized how close he probably came to being strangled to death with a microphone cord.

The portal to the underworld in the basement that the previous owner failed to disclose.

That makes sense and I just learned something new. Thanks for the correction!

That style actually pre-dates the 80’s by at least a few decades. In more traditional music, particularly Christian hymns, that’s referred to as a “descant”. It was popularized in church music in the early 20th century by Ralph Vaughn Williams.

Edit: See comment below.

Nothing. As far as I know he’s still there. That company was a raging dumpster fire.

Ah Manage Engine. Lots of full featured products that are roughly 75% complete.

The kind of place where “backups” means playing Russian Roulette with one set of old ass tapes, if you’re lucky.