The Iowa caucuses have generally been the first test in the quadrennial race for the White House. This year the Democratic Party is trying to demote Iowa’s first-in-the-nation status, but the Republicans are committed to keeping it first. Iowa Democrats are trying to keep some semblance of being first, although it may not include an actual tallying of votes.
Nevertheless, most candidates still seem to treat Iowa as a must-visit state. We have been inundated with TV commercials for many of the candidates and most make a trip to the Iowa State Fair, which covers 11 days in August. This year there were thirteen of them who appeared at the Des Moines Register Soap Box on the main concourse of the fair, where they get to give a stump speech to the fair attendees who care to listen. The list this year, in chronological order: Doug Burgum, Mike Pence, Francis Suarez, Perry Johnson, Larry Elder, Ryan Binkley, Vivek Ramaswamy, Marianne Williamson, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Nikki Haley, Will Hurd, Chase Oliver, and Asa Hutchinson. (No, I don’t recognize some of those names, either.) Of course, Donald Trump did it his own way, eschewing the soap box for giving a speech in front of the Pork Tent (also on the main concourse).
Mrs. Whiz and I go to the fair every year, although I generally don’t pay attention to who is campaigning at the fair, or when. So, one day we were walking down the main concourse before lunch, trying to decide what to eat. I opted for a pork chop on a stick (one of a multitude of items you can get on a stick at the Iowa State Fair), while she wandered down the main concourse looking for something else at one of the many food stands. The line at the Pork Tent was fairly short, and I said that I would catch up with her in a few minutes.
Silly me. The first warning was when several big, black SUV’s come down a side road. Then they hold up the pork line as men in suits start checking out everyone in line with an electronic wand, telling us to move back against the wall and to keep our hands in sight. The man next to me and I exchange a sigh – all we really wanted was a pork chop. Trump then exits one of the SUV’s and proceeds to go down the pork line, offering a handshake to everyone there. When he reached me, I declined – he didn’t force the issue, and just moved on.
Finally, after a 15-minute delay, I get my pork chop. But now a crowd has formed in front of the Pork Tent where Trump is about to speak, putting several hundred people (or more) between me and Mrs. Whiz. It takes another 20 minutes to find her.
The moral: when going to the Iowa State Fair, make sure you know when and where the political candidates are going to be there, and plan accordingly. Especially if it’s someone like Donald Trump.
I am disappointed. I wanted to hear all about the short fingers.
I Could Have Shaken Trump’s Hand – but could you have gotten a hand job from Lauren?
Wasn’t there an Italian pornstar/politician who promised blow jobs to every man who voted for her?
I do believe there was
Biden promised everyone an ass fucking and followed through.
What happens to anyone carrying a knife or pistol?
The gulag, of course. I didn’t even want to get out my cellphone to take a pic because of what they might have thought was going on.
I though of that too. I always have my Leatherman clipped to my pocket. And occasionally my small .38 in my jacket.
When you see the black SUVs coming, scram!
Anything in NYC with diplomatic plates.
Especially awful/dangerous when there is a general session.
Always good advice.
Trump did it all wrong, he’s supposed to shake babies and kiss hands. Good thing you noticed.
Still better than being trapped in your building for hours because cocksucker Obama is in town.
How was the pork chop?
The chops are delicious. It wasn’t really on a stick, but rather it was bone-in.
Bone In?
I worked downtown NYC near the heliport on the east side by the battery during Obama Part 2.
He came to NYC to rally and fundraise so many times I lost count. When it happened it ground everything around the office to a complete halt. Traffic stopped, ferries stopped. Couldn’t get west to get to other commute options. One time I remember taking 3 hours to get home because of ferry congestion and missing a train.
The city would let you know he was coming, but they would only give you a 4 hour window for security. Private pilot friend of mine said check out the NOTAM issued by the FAA. Using that you could figure out what hour the POTUS was really going to show up.
Musings from Air Traffic Controllers
Obama – Hated working his traffic. His administration demanded helicopter tours not run while in town, not just when he arrives/departs. Typically a military controller handled him, not the people that you know…are paid to handle traffic. See Sensei’s comments. Obama or his handlers really wanted to have the air of he could be assassinated at any moment!
Trump – ATC actually loved handling him. In and out, minimal disturbances.
Biden – SS always appears grumpy. AT doesn’t mind handling him arriving/departing.
I’d totally buy that.
Plus they had to send divers in the river and the did a practice run a day or so or before. Everything is also done in pairs. So you have two presidential helicopters and two limos. You don’t know which one actually carries the POTUS.
The couple of times Obama came to the Norfolk area, his security was a complete pain in the ass. I get the distinct impression Barry’s a prick.
You know what surprises me – we have not had an assassination carried out by a member of the protective detail yet.
Stayed suck on the ground at White Plains (Westchester Co.) for several hours for an Obama visit in the area. Airport announcements were all that all the flights were stuck because of “weather” at ALL of the destinations, when everybody with a smartphone could see that was BS. When we were finally boarded, the irritated pilot told us all the truth.
I would have shook his hand, looked him straight in the eye, and said, “I’ve know you were a terrible person ever since you named Joan Rivers the Celebrity Apprentice.”
Whisper softly to the hair: “I know you’re real hair, no matter what that damned hat says.”
LOL. I just watched that last night. Awesome.
Since 1989 when he was stiffing small contractora and was the original too-big-to-fail.
Hah, I beat you by 3 years!
The destruction of the USFL was the giveaway to me.
Listen, You are going to hell for what you helped the Saudis do to Yemen.
I was reading in the student union when Hillary and Chelsea came through campus. I buried my face in the book I was reading to avoid an approach. I did not want to get arrested that day.
I’m sure it would have been an outstanding handshake. Really firm. Big hands. Yuge, yuge hands. Everyone says so. There would have been so much shaking, you’d get tired of shaking.
“Whole lotta shakin’ goin’ on”
we both shook Sinatra’s hand
The girlfriend will tell the story of getting baptized in bourbon by Sinatra when she was younger.
I think this is the full quote:
“You and I both shook Sinatra’s hand, and there’s a code among the guys who shook Sinatra’s hand.” Pacino: “Screw Sinatra’s hand.”
Many jobs back, I had an older co-worker who was in college in the 70’s. He would tell the story of the time he was standing there and Nixon was standing on a platform in front of him giving a speech. He said he started moving forward as Nixon’s feet were directly at hand level, and was thinking of tying Nixon’s shoelaces together.
He said three men in suits came up and told him, “Don’t even think about it.”
OT – because nobody who was beta testing the new iPhone 15 would have used any of these incredibly rare apps.
But Apple also says it has identified “a bug in iOS 17 that is impacting some users” and that specific apps like Uber, Instagram, and the game Asphalt 9: Legends are all “overload[ing] the system” and causing heat problems
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/10/apple-and-devs-plan-software-fixes-for-iphone-15-pro-overheating-issues/?comments=1&comments-page=1
Bonus from the Top Men comment section at Ars Technica:
Remember Capitalism doesnt (sic) produce the best possible products for the consumer, world, or regulatory agencies.
It produces the cheapest product you will pay the most for.
stupid is as stupid posts
Product quality, affordability and availability is fantastic in non-capitalistic systems. It is known.
It’s what made business travel to Russia and China so enjoyable.
That is why I don’t read Ars anymore. Comments are balls.
They just know best.
Beth Mole is the archetype Top err… Person.
Just look her work – https://arstechnica.com/author/beth/
She has the weak chin and malnourished look common to psychotic leftists. All that’s missing are the giant glasses.
I wouldn’t call that a weak chin. She does have the Head Tilt o’ Virtue, though.
Pointy chin. I stand corrected.
Sometimes I read the comments in Covidian articles just for the delusions.
Related – this is just worth it for the whole experience
https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/03/health/pediatric-covid-vaccines-rollout/index.html
Ignoring the questionable need for this vaccine for the vast majority of children…
1. Pediatricians aren’t offering it
2. Many pharmacies won’t do young children or infants
3. Our friends at the CDC say not to mix manufacturers.
4 Hilarity ensues with parents trying to find the proper shots and social signaling among the parents
It’s like the perfect long form CNN piece.
That’s gold, Jerry, gold!
I’m guessing the opioid lawsuits, which tagged the pharmacies, have them a little gunshy about doing shit with known risks.
Every website that is not specifically non-leftist is now full of leftists. I don’t read any comments anywhere except here, TBH. Who has the time?
That’s a really interesting way to say that California produces what is most wanted say the least cost… terrible system
The only problem of capitalism is that it invented auto correct.
Your Will Alone Won’t Guarantee Your Money Goes to Your Heirs
News you can use.
blocked by the firewall
Summary?
Make sure your life insurance and bank beneficiary forms are up to date.
thanks
https://www.wsj.com/personal-finance/estate-planning-will-money-family-heirs-8f2eb6e8?st=1upyj26q1ep5tda&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
I just went thru changing beneficiary documents. My wife remains primary, but changed the secondary from my daughter to a trust set up for my daughter.
Changing my will was not enough. Had to change those docs too.
Basically, what the article says.
Banks freeze joint accounts until probate when one account holder dies (in WA state anyway). Best for each party to have individual accounts in their own names so as to have money available when another party dies.
Are you sure? If the account has rights of survivorship then it should pass without having to go through probate.
Back in the 90s a foreign head of state visited the agency I was at. A coworker and I left the office for the cafeteria. The Secret Service locked down the elevators in our area so we took the stairs. We came out in the middle of a group heading the direction we wanted to go. They stopped at a display with the HOS just two people in front of us. We realized what was going on so we made our way back through the crowd to take an alternate route. A couple of agents looked nervously at us as we left the group.
One day, long ago, I was returning from Bozeman to Livingston on interstate 90. I saw a big black bus surrounded by multiple big black SuVs laboring up the Bozeman Hill in the opposite direction (fortunately). Following, at a “respectful” distance, were two lanes of backed-up traffic stretching as far as the eye could see. It was either Obama or Biden; I can’t remember which. Probably Biden. I can’t imagine them putting Obama’s precious ass on a bus.
Biden routinely interfered with rail operations at Union Station while VP. The SS shutdown the entire upper platform whenever Biden was riding.
So he was right, he did ride the train like a regular guy. A regular guy with a huge security detail that shut down part of the station.
I used to take the trains at Wilmington, DE. That was the one Northeast Regional Amtrak train that was going to be on time that particular day.
Post guards at each crossing. Shutdown 10 minutes before the train gets there to be sure.
When I lived in Slovakia in the 90s it was interesting how little security there was for politicians. I walked up to the president a couple times and shook his hand, rubbed shoulders, literally, with the Prime Minister, walked past the Spanish Prime Minister while he was getting a tour of the town, and was within arms length of the Polish president when he was visiting.
So he was right, he did ride the train like a regular guy. A regular guy with a huge security detail that shut down part of the station.
“Whaddaya mean, the train station is full of smelly bums? I’ve never even seen one, unless you count reporters.”
Gaetz responds:
https://twitter.com/mattgaetz/status/1709177565166862833
This guy Gaetz it.
Looks like that’s not all he’s gonna Gaetz:
https://twitter.com/manofbert/status/1709292896439120082
O M G
He’s going postal! /Press
Jeebus. McCarthy stabs in the back, twice (once with the funding bill not going through “regular order”, and then with the side deal to fund Ukraine), and those cucks are still slobbing his knob.
Have some self-respect, you gormless weasels.
Sure…we’ll get right on that.
Jaelynn Chaney, a travel and lifestyle creator based in Vancouver, said her aim is to make the travel industry a more accepting place for all – and demanded changes to hotels to accommodate bigger vacationers.
Back in April, she started a petition to the US Federal Aviation Authority to ‘protect’ plus-sized travelers and make flying in coach ‘comfortable and accessible for everyone.’
In her latest video, Chaney referenced multiple demands specifically for hotels across the world, including: ‘Make elevators and hallways spacious, to allow for easy movement of larger individuals and those utilizing mobility devices.’
You know what will make those seats feel bigger and those hallways appear wider? Losing some of that tonnage.
So she would have the airlines add wider seats for everyone rather than purchase her own ticket in business class or first class. I’m not necessarily opposed to wider seats if an airline so chooses because flying can be damn uncomfortable, but the consequence is that tickets will be more expensive for everyone. She wants other people to pay more rather than bear the burden herself. And how big do you have to be that you require a wider hallway?
Have you seen pictures of this woman?
I’m a fat bastard and I’m narrower than she is.
I found a picture.
https://www.skool.com/@jaelynn-chaney-5396
Makes me look anemic.
In some third world countries hallways can be uncomfortably narrow.
Better idea:
https://www.amazon.com/Why-We-Get-Fat-About/dp/0307474259
Hell. Have the TSA do something useful for once and deny entry to anyone with an ass that won’t fit in the seat for the ticket they bought.
Maybe they need something like they have for carry on luggage. “If your ass doesn’t fit, you must check it.”
“Why do restaurants charge plus-sized eaters more to satiate their hunger.”
Well, there are buffet restaurants…
People suck. And I hate corporations that need to be shamed into being helpful.
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/10/tux-the-cat-found-after-lyft-fiasco-dragged-on-for-days-lyft-to-pay-vet-bills/
Corporations and their drones suck. Most people, not so much.
Now we know why men think about the Roman Empire. TW- The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/oct/01/red-caesar-authoritarianism-republicans-extreme-right
I don’t think about the Roman Empire very much.
I do think about twin 30’s firing non-stop in a long sweep alot.
The narrative has been around a while that anyone who doesn’t vote D is dangerous. They keep going down that path, and I’m more than a little nervous about where that’s headed.
Funny that they included some long quotes from Anton, then wave them aside without addressing the arguments. Is this that “debunking” we’ve heard so much about? Do the Guardian editors think this actually keeps their readers from thinking forbidden thoughts?
I’ve never heard this idea. I guess I’m hanging out with the wrong extremists.
The parallels between the 2 Roman collapses (Republic then Empire) and our own are impossible to ignore. The transition from Republic to Empire didn’t fix the Romans’ problems, just swept them under the rug for a couple of centuries while the rot progressed.
You missed an opportunity to engage with Trump. Ask him if you could have Melania’s private number, for example. Sen.Arlen Specter once visited my employer. On the way out, he sees me in the lobby, stops short, comes over and admires my Statue of Liberty tie. I tell him that it’s my official Libertarian Party tie. He says that libertarians have some good ideas but those ideas are impractical. I tell him he has some impractical ideas and they are bad ideas. He just grinned, shook my hand and left. Of course I had to explain myself to my boss ( who had invited Specter) and assure him that Specter had initiated the contact.
Come to think of it, we could support our site by auctioning a signed photo of the Hat and the Hair. It might fetch dozens of dollars!
This is armchair quarterbacking! The man did what he could. He just wanted a damn pork chop, not a handshake.
He shoulda gone for the bacon on a stick instead.
I did that later.
Silly Germans
Europe’s locomotive is turning into a drag. Germany, the European Union’s largest economy and its traditional growth engine, is headed towards a contraction this year. The country’s top economic institutes see output shrinking by 0.6% in 2023, before a slight rebound next year to 1.3%. The slump has immediate causes that also affect the rest of the EU. But it is also throwing a stark light on decades of domestic under-investment, both public and private. Berlin can’t afford not to tackle the problem.
——-
The country’s obsession with fiscal discipline – a legacy of the hyperinflation of the Weimar Republic in the 1920s – may have played a role in the dearth of investment, notes ING economist Carsten Brzeski. Because of political and constitutional restraints, the reluctance to spend explains why the government has failed to provide the necessary public goods in infrastructure, education or the digital economy. Public finances have remained in the black every year between 2011 and 2019. But constrained by its constitutional rule known as the “debt brake”, which limits structural budget deficits to 0.35% of GDP, the government didn’t dare invest more.
Limits on government debt? That’s just stupid.
Shooting yourself in the foot leads to a limp.
They need to invest in Ukraine more.
In 1992, for some reason or the other, Clinton’s motorcade came through the little town I lived in. All I remember was my mom being pissed that she had to take an alternate route home from my kindergarten.
So she would have the airlines add wider seats for everyone rather than purchase her own ticket in business class or first class.
She should ship herself in a crate.
I’m amazed Eskimos aren’t chasing her with harpoons.
Shipping is by the pound, she wouldn’t be able to afford it.
Excuse me I need to talk to your supervisor.
Latest from Gordilocks.
As usual, Gord kills it.
Another one of his articles. Maybe Taylor Swift is ok after all.
https://www.newsweek.com/taylor-swifts-100000-bonus-her-drivers-should-shame-other-elites-treating-truckers-right-1818535
Tell me we’re not firing up #GlibsTigerBeat again.
Whether it’s a PR stunt or not, Tay-tay and Kelce has been a publicity bonanza for them.
Team Perry
He’s too big time to post with us.
Looser entry rules for qualified immigrants and faster bureaucratic authorisations to allow them to work would go a long way to alleviate labour market tensions and put the country on a healthier growth path. Labour productivity has been barely growing since 2020, because firms prefer to keep employees on their payrolls in the downtime, fearing they won’t be able to hire again if and when business picks up, notes economist Sebastian Dullien, research director of the Macroeconomic Policy Institute.
Addressing demographic tensions in the labour market will require a more decisive push to favour the immigration of skilled non-EU workers. Germany’s growth potential is estimated at an annual 0.7% over the medium term by the Scope rating agency, about half the euro zone average. That could rise to 1% a year if some 400,000 immigrants are allowed in. A sound economic decision would however be fraught with political risk: the far-right party Alternative for Germany, polling at around 21%, is now Germany’s second-largest behind the mainstream conservative Christian Democrats.
Something tells me the EUreaucrats have their own special definition of “qualified”. And it has nothing to do with skills or education.
“Labour productivity has been barely growing since 2020, because firms prefer to keep employees on their payrolls in the downtime”
Why do I suspect it has more to do with the legal hassles that I imagine firing someone in the EU creates?
Yes. These are the biggest issues right now.
Dipshits.
When I lived in Playa del Ray, CA, presidential motorcades would go right past our apartment whenever they flew into LAX. Bush Sr. flew in once or twice. Clinton was there all the time.
I was driving down the 105 Freeway when Clinton famously shutdown LAX while getting “a haircut” in Air Force One.
Stop complaining peasant.
“Iowa Democrats are trying to keep some semblance of being first”
Paging the Bro. Brochettaward to the white courtesy phone.
They shouldn’t be part of a party that has bastardized what the word First means. No self-respecting Firster would celebrate doing something because of their genitalia, sexual identity or racial identity.
Firster’s know they are a cut above everyone else and are a brotherhood predicated on Firsting prowess.