Unfortunately, things have conspired to prevent Sugarfree from releasing his latest dispatch. We are hoping to send STEVE SMITH in to clear out the blocker.
Enjoy the brief reprieve.
Midday Open Post
About The Author
Unfortunately, things have conspired to prevent Sugarfree from releasing his latest dispatch. We are hoping to send STEVE SMITH in to clear out the blocker.
Enjoy the brief reprieve.
AND BY SNAKE THE DRAIN MEAN… oh that’s not even worth going for.
There are no tariffs on imports from Cascadia.
Just saying…
My
For those whom Cleveland is not far and who like guns:
https://guncon.net/
I’ll be in town that Friday at a minimum, as Less Than Jake will be playing here with Fishbone and the Suicide Machines.
What if you like guns, but don’t like Gunfluencers?
Yeah. It looks like a SciFi convention where there is nothing to do but get pictures and autographs from first glance.
Well, you could head down to Lancaster, OH (about 2.5 hours from Cleveland) for a Mid-Century Barware Show.
I know I’m hoping to head down for at least Saturday.
I thought there was going to be vendor booths, but since I’m not going, I hadn’t looked into it.
It’s only a 140 hour walk.
So you have set up a rape off between STEVE SMITH and the tentacled horrors? The cosmos is fucked.
Never call the the police unless you have exhausted all available options.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/video-idaho-police-shoot-teen-victor-perez-knife-autism/
Only 2 exceptions….
1. There is a dead body on your property.
2. You need to file an insurance claim post-robbery/car crash.
Fuck me sideways. I’m sitting here trying to figure out how a physically disabled teenager with a knife is somehow a deadly threat on the other side of a fucking chain-link fence?
1. Somebody else was in the yard and being threatened. (Note the cops claim he was coming at them so not likely.)
2. He could have thrown the knife and somehow hit somebody beyond the fence.
3. Insert South Park reference.
Back in NV one of my neighbors was a young disabled guy. Wheelchair-bound and developmentally disabled in some way or other (although able to live independently). One day I hear shouting over at his place, so I look out my window and he’s out in his driveway, face down, out of his wheelchair, screaming voice instructions into his phone “CALL MOM!” and getting really agitated. I started to go out to see what was up and my mom goes “Maybe we should call somebody” and I was like “absolutely not, he’s liable to get tased or worse.” Turned out he was having some kind of argument with his mom, who was supposed to pick him up for an appointment, and fell out of his chair going down the ramp too fast. I helped him back in, lent him my phone (his was broken by that point), and got him on his way to the nearby gas station to meet somebody to pick him up. It’s absolutely sick that you should have to think that way, but…
I’ve said this before, but I’ve never had a bad experience with cops. If I’ve been stopped, they’ve been businesslike to bordering on kind. I could speculate why: I’m a white woman, I’m driving a halfway decent car, I’m in a nice area of town, don’t know. I got stopped TWICE for speeding on I80 in Wyoming on the SAME DAY. One gave me a ticket. One didn’t.
They’ve stopped to help me when I’ve been stranded. They’ve stopped my son on a hot day when he was pushing his bicycle to find out if he was all right, had water, and/or wanted a ride home. We’ve had to call them with regard to my son, and they’ve always been polite, respectful, and had been able to defuse a situation while giving us solid advice. My husband approached an off-duty officer at Home Depot to ask for advice re son (we wouldn’t normally impose, but we were desperate), and he took the time out to listen and advise, which advice we followed. All the times my son got in trouble and had to callme, they were polite and helpful.
Since my son got home from where he was for a year, he’s been stopped for speeding. Got a ticket. When he’s working and cops come in, he feeds them for free. He made friends with the cops in Redneckville because of it and was on a first-name basis with an older cop who pulled a rookie up short when he got in my son’s face.
So, even when we are in trouble, we’ve never had a problem with cops.
BUT I KNOW that there are assholes out there and I’ve instructed my children accordingly. Be respectful, but at the point you think cop is going into asshole territory, shut your mouth unless you need to ask for a lawyer, and do what you’re told. Do not try to lawyer there on the side of the road. That can all get straightened out later. And the cops in the hood are different from the cops deep in the outskirts of well-off suburbia.
I can count my total interactions with police on one hand without resorting to binary.
1: Dude Parked a Buick in the wheel well of my Focus. Got confusing instructions of how to pick up a report on the incident. They ticketed me for the guy playing invent a lane and hitting me because I turned left.
2: Bad snow storm had entombed my car, they had heavy equipment out to free vehicles, gave me the chance to move it without towing. I still had to climb in through the passenger side and wait for the heavyy equipment to move enough snowpack before I could move it.
3: Another snowstorm while I was digging out my car, sociable conversation. I think he was just bored.
4: I forgot to move my car on street cleaning day, caught a $50 ticket
5: Talked to the detectives when filing my permit application.
I had bad and good experiences with cops. The bad one was when I was in the burbs visiting someone and I was walking to the train to get back to campus in Chicago. A cop stopped me and asked me innocent enough questions but then wanted to search my bookbag and my pockets. I asked if he had probable cause (which in hindsight was kind of stupid) and if he didn’t, he can’t do so. He got peeved. I was scared shit less when he started asking about my timeline of my evening (apparently there was some robberies in the area that day) and said that I left DePaul’s campus, came to see my friend and heading back there and that if he needed proof, he could call campus security and look at the videos and logbooks. By some miracle he let me go on my way.
But I was one of the lucky ones because that same Spring, some student from Loyola got falsely arrested for murder and was held at the county jail for months before they figured out that he was the wrong suspect.
I’ve had extremely mixed experiences with various gendarmes in various locales, from my parents’ domestic violence call at age 5, to getting pulled over for ostensibly running a stop sign last year. I’ve escaped with only one ticket and no arrests. The prick to tolerable ratio has been probably 3:1, and since I stay noided, I’d just as soon avoid them if possible.
As someone who was involved in plenty of subcultures where people had… questionable… relationships with law enforcement (bigger bands in the day would generally come with Copwatch zines), I’ve had quite a few encounters with police that I would categorize as “bad”. A couple of them were entirely my fault. Most were just the cop making assumptions about the skinny long haired punk driving a car at 0300.
As I’ve gotten older (and had to lose the hair), the amount of harassment and bad encounters with cops fell off a cliff.
Growing up my family was known and respected and I still had problems. My interactions with police have included being spread eagled on the back of an auto through no fault of my own.
My interactions in the town 100 miles away from where I grew up and am completely anonymous 50/50. BTW the median home price in my town is $1.2m.
My interactions with NYC cops have all be positive surprisingly. They would appear to have real issues to deal with.
My interactions with NYC cops have all be positive surprisingly. They would appear to have real issues to deal with.
My cousin was “on the job” in NYC for years and “I have actual shit to deal with” was a common attitude, AFAICT.
Most(?) don’t feel like hassling citizens when there are so many shitbirds to deal with (it was always “citizen” vs. “shitbird”).
I’ve been stopped while driving thrice. Stopped while walking twice. Stopped while standing once. I had no problems.
Things?
Gnostic rituals to summon the Great Old Ones? Kidnapped by STEVE SMITH? Hitched a ride with ZARDOZ to repress the grain slaves? Spying on a gathering of trans-lesbians? Conducting research that will expand the Sugarverse? Preparing for the imminent return of Warty Hugman?
I can’t wait to see what happens next.
No post from Sugarfree? I don’t know what to do. I feel lost. Is it really even a Wednesday without it?
STEVE SMITH FILL OPENING WITH POST.
My bed at home is such that going anywhere, no matter how good the bed, is a massive downgrade.
It’s sucks when you’re on “vacation” (I suppose my current trip fits a certain definition of vacation) and can’t fucking sleep.
Have you tried liberal amounts of alcohol?
Agreed. Once you have a waterbed…
My bed’s pretty meh. What kind of mattress do you have and how much was it?
STEVE SMITH READY TO GO HALP SUGARFREE HOOMAN.
HIM FLY AIR CASCADIA!
LOL
I predict that flight will be turbulent for some of those passengers.
One of the brands I represent in [big box store] at my part time merchandising gig is Dr. Squatch. Gives me a chuckle every time.
I switched to Duke Cannon.
That stuff is at Costco. Saw it the other day.
Aside from P&G’s Bounty paper towels, I don’t think I use a single product in our portfolio myself. Suave body wash, Pantene 2 in 1 shampoo and conditioner, and unscented Speedstick for me. I’m a walking California warning label. And on the plus side, the reproductive harm is backup birth control in case my personality doesn’t work.
That’s fantastic. Especially the sweater.
STEVE SMITH PARK BOEING IN CESSNA HANGAR!
What a cutie patooty.
https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/markets/amazon-cancels-some-orders-from-china-as-the-u-s-china-tariff-war
Suck it, China.
Dun… Dun… DUUUNNNNNN!
Buffalo Trace Distillery is under water.
https://notthebee.com/article/frankfort-kentucky-is-under-water-and-so-is-buffalo-trace-distillery
Distillery sells bottles of flood water, consumers praise the improved flavor.
OH NOES!!!!!
How’s Four Roses Distillery looking?
Twenty years ago Buffalo Trace had a roof ripped off of one of its warehouses by a tornado. A few years ago Barton 1792 Distillery had a warehouse collapse. The surviving bourbon from both sold at a premium.
Asking the real questions. Although I am also concerned for the Woodford Reserve Distillery.
(Buffalo Trace is quite good for the price, though)
Actually tastes fine with a splash.
I have heard that story about Buffalo Trace. There was a delay in repairing the roof, and some barrels at the top were exposed to the elements for a while. They expected to throw them out, but decided what the hell, let’s taste some, and it turned out they were great.
Sounds like trump will be lowering everything down to 10% except for china.
China can, apparently, eat a large bag of dicks.
Everything I was looking at on Aliexpress last night had slashed their prices. Lots of wiggle room when you produce something for a $5 that usually sells for $100.
True. We shall see what happens.
I still remember the fallout from the stupid chicken tax. We are still living with it.
“Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters at the White House that the tumult in the market came because investors didn’t understand Trump’s tariff strategy.
“The market didn’t understand, those were maximum levels. The countries can think about those levels as they come to us to bring down their tariffs, their non-trade barriers,” Bessent said.
He said Trump “created maximum negotiating leverage for himself” and the Chinese have “shown themselves to the world as the bad actors.”’
Me likey. Indeed, let them see and feel how flex from the world’s largest economy. Countries sending diplomats going to meet Trump, negotiations, swift action. A poke to remind ’em how important the wealthiest ~340M people on the planet really are. Gentle ‘no more Nice Guy’ stuff.
*curious squint, strokes chin*
Ermmm ok
Cops shoot kid: local news. Not much info on what led up to it.
If it’s the article above a third party called 911 when they saw the kid threatening people in the yard with the knife.
A heaping helping of self serving nonsense
Adding to the complexity is that air travelers are apt to openly criticize the TSA for its efforts to protect the air system, claiming it is more theater than substance. Yet if you asked these people how security operations could be improved, they can offer no better solutions to what the TSA offers, except perhaps less screening.
There is a nugget of truth to what they are saying. Over-screening is indeed ubiquitous. Yet there is more to airport security than intercepting 10-ounce bottles of shampoo and six-ounce tubes of toothpaste at checkpoints. It is about maintaining a complex network of security layers, many of which are invisible to flyers, which collectively provide a nearly impenetrable shield designed to keep bad actors from compromising the air-travel system.
The TSA relies heavily on technologies, the most visible of which are full body scanners and detection of threats in carry-on bags. The challenge with such technologies is that they are slow, creating bottlenecks at airport security checkpoints, which are viewed as an inconvenience rather than enhanced security.
——-
Lee says that airlines should provide their own security. Such a hodge-podge of protocols would be far less secure than what the TSA currently provides. Privatizing airport security is an option, which the TSA already offers through its Screening Partnership Program. However, the TSA, not the private-sector companies, set security standards and performance benchmarks.
On any given day, at any given airport, the TSA may not execute its security tactics in the optimal manner. What it does get right are its security strategies, which work toward giving flyers what they want and deserve: a seamless process that protects them and the air system in the most nonintrusive way. That is why the TSA is needed today, and for the foreseeable future.
We have to keep those tigers off our airplanes.
Also- we need more facial recognition. Why? I’m not sure.
You know how you can easily defeat the shampoo and toothpaste thing? Large pockets. My brother taught me this trick and it 100% works. Just walk through security.
I thought the new strip scanners could detect liquids.
Uh oh.
I don’t see where they mention how often they test the TSA by trying to smuggle in a weapon, and the TSA fails.
“Yet if you asked these people how security operations could be improved”
Anybody who wants can carry a knife.
President Donald Trump on Wednesday dropped tariffs under his new trade plan to 10% on imports from most countries, as he announced a 90-day pause for stiffer, so-called reciprocal tariffs that took effect this week.
So it would appear he’s not completely dumb. He mostly only picked a China fight at the moment.
https://www.cnbc.com/2025/04/09/trump-announces-90-day-tariff-pause-for-at-least-some-countries.html
At the risk of tiring everyone out on this subject I’ll just say these points.
1) 10% is still too high when they aren’t intended to be punitive. Maybe part of the strategy? Doubt it.
2) Navarro should be fired straight into the sun.
3) most important: The president should not actually have this power should he?
Are you suggesting Congress do its job?
Or the Supreme Court. Not sure how such a thing could come about though.
Why, it’s almost like he has a negotiating strategy in flight here.
“You have 90 days to cut a deal. You’ve seen what no deal looks like. Except you, China. On account of you responded by escalating, I can’t give you a pause because backing down under pressure from the other side is bad negotiating.”
While he’s no genius, he’s also not a moron.
We need autonomous AI facial recognition drones capable of identifying people who look shifty. Armed, so they can take out the bad guys before they can cause any harm.
just kill them all and use AI to sort the guilty post mortem
https://www.engadget.com/ai/uk-is-going-full-minority-report-with-murder-prediction-research-214254968.html
Pre-crime is where it’s at.
This will die the second the demographics start coming in.
Once you have fully criminalized bad speech, bad thought is the next area to work on, and predictive AI is a safe and unbiased way to root out all those evil white bigots who hide their evil by not speaking their hate.
Pickle – they will “normalize” that data the same way pollsters do. Problem solved!
The UK read 1985 and V is Vindetta and was like, “These are some marvelous ideas,” and went on from there.
Ed – the distinction between the films and books for both is rather wide.
Oddly I didn’t hate the film version of V for Vendetta, but it’s a far cry from the original.
The Catholic school wants to interview me. Hallelujah! Did one of you guys pray the rosary for me or something?
If I can get 4 teaching jobs in this state, I can get 5.
What state? I know a bunch of catholic schools needing teachers.
Florida, the Meth Lab of Democracy
I probably said a prayer for you at one point, not a whole Rosary. But I have had a lot of things work out for me lately, so perhaps someone is listening.
give the students wine and say it is is Jesus would have wanted.
Derpy: Don’t do this! Get the job then keep the job. Life throws enough misery your way without seeking it out.
Pie: Stop trying to increase global wine demand!
Well, I got fired after 2 days at the Protestant school without even saying a word to any student. Hopefully I’ll have better luck with the Papists.
I think if you are teaching you are actually supposed to say words to students.
It was before classes started, so there were no students. I was helping paint a classroom when I was asked about my “faith journey”. I said I was raised Christian but am now non-religious and added that I wasn’t there to rock the boat.
Not good enough. Board member got spooked, I was given a $500 check and fired the next day.
Sounds like the trick isn’t getting a job, it’s keeping a job.
Good luck!
Yes. 19 jobs in 24 years and at least 40 job interviews.
How do I *not* get fired again?
I just had a horrible beer. two sips and down the drain. paid 7 bucks american for 330 ml. Awful stuff.
Though I have a weird feeling there is at l;east one degen on this here site that would like it
https://untappd.com/b/van-moll-the-black-lodge/6081283
You’re on untapped? I’ll friend you. The only social media network I really like.
I am not. I wanted to show the beer here somehow.
I liked it more before they kept trying to push me to buy boxes of beer or glassware through them. I’ve noticed quite a few breweries have seemed to sour on it as well.
Oh boo.
It’s the best one. You post pictures of your beer and other people say “that’s a nice beer”. And then you look, at other people’s beers and approve of them as well.
“ I liked it more before they kept trying to push me to buy boxes of beer or glassware through them. I’ve noticed quite a few breweries have seemed to sour on it as well”
They definitely are still trying to figure out ways to make money. The thing that ruins all internet things.
Urthona:
In case you were unaware, they also own BeerAdvocate, Oznr, and a couple of other outlets as well.
From my understanding, the business model for Untappd is similar to the Yelp model, but with less fake reviews. As in you have to pay a fee to have your taplist hosted on Untapped, have special badges, and the like.
BADGES!!??!?!!
WE DON’T NEED NO STEENKING BADGES!!!!
I didnt know any of that. Mostly just like sharing pictures or beer.
Urthona:
Back in the day, there was both RateBeer and BeerAdvocate as the online beer rating sites, community forums, and event calendars. RateBeer was the bigger one, was more user friendly, trading was common, and had a mass of users. BeerAdvocate went for a print magazine (that was quite good, and included some bigger names in the industry writing for it), but they had a smaller user base, changed their ratings several times (from point based to letter based, and back IIRC), and had more robust trading groups.
RateBeer was purchased by AB In-Bev (through their VC firm) which was not publicly announced. When the news broke, there was a mass exodus of users over to BA. The BA magazine eventually stopped being published, was shifted to digital only, and then stopped entirely. Untappd’s parent then acquired BA.
Now you know the middle history of online beer culture.
Urthona:
Just went to pull some details on my stats, and found that RateBeer is D-E-D now.
BA I spent the time to review 316 beers.
Untappd, I’m at 4,611 unique beers and 3,708 badges.
“Bunnahabhain, Speyside Whisky & PX Sherry Barrel Aged Imperial Coffee Stout.”
Those casks can’t be cheap, but that just screams “trying too hard”.
I thought libertarians were in favor of consumption taxes.
*lights Winston beacon*
I thought libertarians were primarily in favor of arguing with everyone, particularly other libertarians. Hmm, I guess I am still a libertarian at heart.
You’re wrong.
I like arguing with people who aren’t libertarians just as much.
Slumbrew: No, you are wrong!
Urthona: If you properly apply the no true libertarian concept no one except you is a libertarian so that becomes a tautology.
True
There is, at most, one true libertarian.
There can be only one.
If I can get 4 teaching jobs in this state, I can get 5.
Have you considered/tried private tutoring?
You have one job, cvs.com – allow me to refill my prescriptions.
One f*ckin job.
But no, let me endlessly ask you for permission to show your own prescription information but never actually show it.
Most of their R&D actually goes into developing the world’s longest receipts.
Can you cancel this prescription? It was replaced with another.
No.
Then can you at least stop asking me if I want to automate refills on it?
Also, no.
Small independent pharmacies is where it’s at. I walk in, get a “Norm!” Cheers style greeting, and they are bringing my pills/insulin/devices up to the counter before I even ask. My insurance wants me to use CVS, they can pound sand.
I wish.
Nothing local, sadly. CVS & Walgreens for miles.
President Donald Trump on Wednesday dropped tariffs under his new trade plan to 10% on imports from most countries, as he announced a 90-day pause for stiffer, so-called reciprocal tariffs that took effect this week.
Trump blinked!
I literally saw someone write that unironically.
I could write a short book about all my run-ins with the cops, here and abroad. I should note that cops have helped me, and I don’t hate cops.
That pervert (serial groper) in Chicago I tracked down and who later became the subject of the Derponomicon called the cops on me. A cop SUV was parked outside my apartment for a couple hours, and they shined their light at me when I went out of my apartment.
I filed a police report in Tanzania when I got pickpocketed(?) in Dar es Salaam. Those pants were baggy, so I might have just dropped my wallet.
While driving through Shepherdstown WV when I was 16, there was a cop directed traffic. He pointed left, I signaled left, but out of force of habit, I turned right. He was pissed. That’s about the only time I’ve dealt with an angry cop.
In June of 2021, I got pulled over in Durango CO for no license plate. The cops in Nevada and Utah didn’t notice for some reason. I explained I had just bought the car and was driving back to GA. The cop went easy on me because I was an Army veteran. I got a temp license plate in Durango later that day.
And of course, most recently I was arrested in Florida for carrying a lever action rifle like Ash from Army of Darkness while wearing a plastic Viking helmet. That was a show of force after several people tried to run me over.
Oh yeah, and all that other stuff I did in Chicago:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VFIPCpocLk
https://platedlizard.blogspot.com/2014/06/farewell-to-my-85-chevy-celebrity.html
I forgot one walking stop from my earlier list. I got stopped in California carrying a rifle and ammunition down a residential street on a Saturday morning. Back then they were more tolerant. They asked why and verified the weapon was empty and the ammo case locked then let me go on my way.
I got a roadside sobriety test in Texas back in 2014 because I went “too slowly” through a flashing yellow and the cop behind me claimed she almost hit me.
When asked if I had any weapons, I said I had a folding knife in my pocket and a bow and arrows in the trunk. When they asked if I’d been drinking, I said yeah, I finished killing a 6 pack about 4 hours ago (I went to watch a pal from work drag race at the local track). I passed the sobriety test and ate at Whataburger after a minor delay.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjYqpiLEUq0
I was stopped walking through a parking lot after leaving a bar. I was clearly intoxicated. The cop let me go when I told him I was walking home. He followed me through and watched me go down the street for a while.
For your viewing pleasure, the sanity-blasting horror of…
THE DERPONOMICON
https://platedlizard.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-derponomicon-part-1.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0utsyWNoupM
That car is adorbsables. My kinda car. (My 94 Mercury Sable in 2004 was my favorite. Ugly, ripped seats, many issues. But that V6 was just fine. Beast lasted 2.5 years.
Coming back from a Death Cab concert in Nashville, I got pulled over in Madisonville, Kentucky. I was with my best friend, and told him to keep quiet. (We *were* riding dirty, but just weed.) They asked to search my vehicle and I probably stated ‘I don’t consent to a search’ in a bit of a panicky, 17-year-old manner. They called the K9 on us. The small town managed to get NINE dogs swirling ’round my car. One cop thought he caught paydirt and pulled a baggie out of my seat when searching ‘In plain view.’ He exclaimed that ‘I GOT YOU!’ before I pointed it out it was just a damn plastic straw wrapper. Then, sans straw.
I think I got a speeding ticket but they let us go. Good on Will for keeping still, mouth shut.
Let’s see. Almost arrested at Liberty Bell for handing out political literature. Questioned by a squad of Capitol cops while wandering around the deserted Rotunda on New Year’s morning.
The other was in Korea, when my school’s owner fake-fell after I told them I was leaving after the contract and wasn’t accepting their refusal to pay for contractual shit I earned.
I was questioned inside the school by the police. They were quite nice, IIRC. Nothing bad, certainly. I had an appointment for my official interrogation at the courthouse. (Such a small closet, I was questioned in.)
That ended up working out pretty OK, other than lawyer fees, cuz we had the CCTV. That bitch came at me, got in my face, and I successfully never touched her or responded to her provocations. She walked back with a sudden thought! She purposefully tripped herself and fell down. Bosses tried to turn that into *my* assaulting a grandma. They interrogated me pretty hard for three hours. They *did* try to get me to admit to some shit, but these guys were mostly on my side after they saw the video. I clearly didn’t do anything wrong. Once that discovery was made, I was in the clear.
I was never in too much danger, though my passport was flagged and I couldn’t just ‘leave’ the country. It wasn’t pleasant, certainly, but not (really) a biggie.
a classic on dealing with the cops:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uj0mtxXEGE8
I’m bogged down in compliance training. I curse the people who caused management to require everyone to take training in areas they will never deal with.
“I curse the people who caused management”
I believe that would be, umm, management.
Has this already been posted?
Babylon Bee explains the tariffs:
https://youtu.be/lfql4toLd4g?si=M9nTaJ0DK0YwbSJm
That was great
I showed this clip to my students at my last teaching job. I prefaced it by saying it was not meant to humiliate or antagonize, just an important part of US history which is rarely taught. There were no complaints.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdiJx53LaBc
https://x.com/BreitbartNews/status/1910042292452495516
That bitch be crazy.
And I don’t really think it’s just performative, either.