Maggie's FarmWe are a commune of inquiring, skeptical, politically centrist, capitalist, anglophile, traditionalist New England Yankee humans, humanoids, and animals with many interests beyond and above politics. Each of us has had a high-school education (or GED), but all had ADD so didn't pay attention very well, especially the dogs. Each one of us does "try my best to be just like I am," and none of us enjoys working for others, including for Maggie, from whom we receive neither a nickel nor a dime. Freedom from nags, cranks, government, do-gooders, control-freaks and idiots is all that we ask for. |
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Thursday, May 9. 2019Hate Trump?Life in America - outside AmericaWhile one of my daughters is in Berlin doing the cool things she does and reporting that she much prefers Berlin to LA, Mrs. BD emailed me her pic from her travels with her Dad today. You know where this is. I noticed that the wisteria is ahead of mine.
Thursday morning linksPogo toon via Lileks Mongolian Couple Died of Plague After Eating Raw Marmot Marmot sushi? I prefer my woodchucks medium rare HOW TO PUNISH A PEDOPHILE SEX OFFENDER NPR Host Fear Mongers: Climate Change Will Cause Human Extinction, “Everyone You Love Will Die!”… When? American Physiological Association Creates Climate Change Guide For Unhinged Warmists He misspelled "psychological," but otherwise it's amusing TWO-THIRDS OF MILLENNIALS DON’T KNOW WHAT AUSCHWITZ IS Steyn: The post-free speech world LATIN AMERICA IS COLLAPSING AND TAKING AMERICA WITH IT. They’re dragging us down even as we try to rescue them The Asylum System Is Breaking The Border Feds released 168,000 illegal immigrant family members into communities Crisis: Border Arrests Top 100,000 For Second Straight Month, Highest Since 2007 My Life In the Berkeley Prog MoshPit of the Sixties Democrats Aren’t Returning to Normalcy Christopher Steele Made Damning Pre-FISA Confession; FBI Retroactively Classified Yes, Russia Russia was a scam from the beinning Mueller Mounted A Full-Court Press To Block Release Of Comey’s Memos; Here’s Why Mitch McConnell: Mueller cleared Trump — now get over it Somebody said the Mueller report was like losing the election again. This will never end. Old news: Trump Discussed His Business Losses on The Apprentice! And in detail in his book. He learned a lot from his mistakes 71 things to love about Israel - What made my Israeli heart a little bigger this year? Our humor, brashness, kindness, the intrinsic sense of family, and that dust that gets everywhere Wednesday, May 8. 2019Muscle mass vs. Strength: High reps vs low reps
What do we consider low reps? Low reps are when you can only do 3-8 reps. Higher reps are 10-20. I would never do high reps with powerlifts. Arms, yes. Calisthenics like pushups, for sure. A study which looked at bench-press, military-press, lat-pulldown, cable-row, squat, leg-press and leg-extension found this: High reps good for building muscle mass, not strength . What is your experience with resistance exercise?
Songbird du Jour: Indigo Bunting
The photo is not a good representation because the males are rarely so puffed up, and in most light they appear more dark purple than blue. They like brushy areas, and like to sing from phone wires. Interesting factoid: Blue appearance in birds is not pigment. It's a feather molecule which just absorbs non-blue wavelengths and reflects the blue. All About Birds: Indigo Bunting Wednesday morning linksTransgender Powerlifter Champion Mary Gregory Is Stripped of World Records “My daughter can see CO2 with the naked eye” BATTLING OVER BATTERIES The only efficient battery is damming rivers and streams The Reason Renewables Can´t Power Modern Civilization Is Because They Were Never Meant To How Much Did Physicians Drive the Opioid Crisis? Semenya is intersex. Where should she compete? Don’t Let Students Run The University George Washington traumatizes students Really?
CNN: Have ‘Fewer Children’ or 1 Million Species Will Go Extinct The next decent-sized asteroid will solve everything, same as in the past Can Anderson Cooper and CNN fall even deeper, or have they finally hit rock bottom? Facebook’s latest crackdown begs the question -- Who is the final arbiter of free speech in America? Answer: Me, of course Can Anybody Around Here Admit Out Loud That The Federal Government Cannot Fix Every Human Problem With Another New Program? This Will Be Another Enormous Waste of My Time Feeding the Government Paper Democrats Look To A New Century Of Complaining About Every Little Thing Buttigieg: America never great Defined how? Amusing clips of Biden groping kids Arizona Democrats Claim No Border Crisis - Then Beg Trump For Help With Flood Of Migrants THE BRAINWASHING OF A NATION - From campus identity politics cults to the media, brainwashing is bigger than ever. How those Virginia scandals disappeared Infuriating Democrats, Trump Plans To Redefine Poverty, Cutting Americans From Welfare Obama tried to do that too
White House vs House: The war is on The Gaza Blockade: An Explainer New Cuba Travel Sanctions: Restricting What Doesn't Exist Anyway Is travel to Cuba just poverty porn? Tuesday, May 7. 2019Information monopoliesTucker discusses media censorship
"The worst advice an older person ever gets is, Take it easy."Tuesday morning links97-Year-Old Veteran Still Hard At Work I admire "People keep falling into the Grand Canyon. After a visit, I can see why.... It’s because they’re idiots." Top UK Art Gallery Covers "Blasphemous" Paintings After Muslims Complain Climate Kids Wonder Why Adults Won’t Change Their Lifestyles To Stop ‘Climate Change’ Or Something The spirits of the city - On the new Hudson Yards development in New York. When a leftist university terrified of free speech deep-sixed Jordan Peterson Attkisson: How Media Narratives Became More Important Than Facts Our Lying Garbage Media Is Lying Garbage, But You Knew That Adams' podcast: 85% of CNN’s POLITICAL coverage…is fake news and hoaxes JOE BIDEN: THEY'LL PUT Y'ALL BACK IN CHAINS The unintended consequences of ‘doing good’ laws NYT Editorial Board: Congress, Give Trump His Border Money, ‘Trump Is Right’ The EMP Executive Order — Where Were Bush and Obama? The only thing uglier than an angry Washington is a fearful Washington. And fear is what’s driving this week’s blitzkrieg of Attorney General William Barr. Trump Looks Solid for 2020 In April Former DNI James Clapper Said Bill Barr’s Accusations of Spying was “Stunning and Scary” – On Monday Clapper Admitted They Were Spying Is A Major Real Scandal About To Break Soon? VDH: The fright of James Comey The Malevolent Farce that is Mueller and the Russia Hoax The FBI’s Trump-Russia Investigation Was Formally Opened on False Pretenses Major Mueller Report Omissions Suggest Incompetence Or A Coverup PETER STRZOK SUSPECTED CIA WAS BEHIND INACCURATE MEDIA LEAKS The Overlooked Military Implications of the 5G Debate Inside the Air Force's Plan to Revolutionize Pilot Training Outcry as Turkey orders rerun of Istanbul mayoral election - Erdoğan’s successful bid to overturn vote is ‘plain dictatorship’, says CHP party Hamas launched a cyberattack during rocket barrage, so Israel blew up their cyber command center AMIDROR: IRAN BEHIND THE GAZA ESCALATION. “Why did the Islamic Jihad do this?” former national security adviser asks. “The answer is again and again and again - Iran.” New evidence of China's mission to raze the mosques of Xinjiang - Guardian and Bellingcat investigation finds more than two dozen Islamic religious sites partly or completely demolished since 2016 Monday, May 6. 2019This old houseSometimes referred to as Aaron Burr's house, it is more accurately the Morris-Jumel Mansion. Built in 1765, it is the oldest surviving residence in Manhattan. We stopped by the place on our Sunday hike. The exterior is in poor repair but the inside seems ok. Happy to report that the men's room in the basement is basic but functional. When built, it sat on its 130-acre country estate. The house served, for a time, as Washington's HQ. Washington Heights was countryside then. That Mrs. Jumel was a pip, wasn't she? She divorced Burr. Always looking for a better deal. Wiki has an excellent article on the story of the Morris-Jumel House. The Great Warbler MigrationIt is ramping up right now. I can hear, out my window this morning, the songs and calls of Pine Warbler, Black and White Warbler, Redstart, Red-eyed Vireo (not exactly a warbler), Magnolia Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Black-Throated Blue, Parula, Prairie Warbler, and a few more that I am not sure about. My idea of watching the spring warblers is a chaise lounge lawn chair flat, under a big old oak tree with binocs. Preferably, a big oak near some juniper trees - which is why I planted my junipers and Japanese willows: to watch the warbler migration with minimal exertion. Let them come to you. Just wait for them to pass through the trees. Otherwise, it's a day of neck pain. Knowing their calls simplifies it: you don't have to try to see them. But plenty of them forage silently in the treetops. Especially the odd vireos. Get out there and see these little jewels of Creation, and listen to their morning calls, as they pass by on their trip north. Image: A Peterson pic of a few Spring Warblers Monday morning links5 Countries that Produce the Most Wine Dementia care: 8 skills to cultivate joy Millionaires Flee Their Homelands as Tensions Rise and Taxes Bite GOOGLE CENSORS THE CLAREMONT INSTITUTE You Are Now More Likely To Know A Prostitute Than A Primetime CNN Viewer Scott Adam's podcast: 85% of CNN’s POLITICAL coverage…is fake news and hoaxes The ridiculous reason New York faces a gas shortage Driving Investment, Fueling Growth: How Strategic Reforms Can Generate $1.1 Trillion in Infrastructure Investment ‘An Evening With The Clintons’ Tour Ends, Ticket Prices Plummet To $2.00 Hillary Clinton Claims 2016 Election Was ´Stolen´ From Her Obama Took Hillary's Loss as a "Personal Insult;" Was Sure the Public Would Never "Turn on Him;" Blames Hillary's "Soulless" Campaign and Bad Choices Driven Mad By Trump: Celebrities Express Anger and Depression Over President David LIMBAUGH: The Worm Has Turned On The Democrats Remember when Obama made fun of Trump's 'magic wand' to fix the economy? Foreign Collusion, Confirmed: Ukranian Embassy Confirms That DNC Contractor Asked Ukraine to Provide Negative Oppo On Trump She Could Use in the Election Against Him Sunday, May 5. 2019Somebody, please, give this guy a jobCambridge Capitulates to the Mob and Fires a Young Scholar OK, that is the UK where they are PC crazy. But could that happen in the US? Or does it? Why do people capitulate to the Maoist mobs? It just seems so weak. How do these people face themselves when their weakness goes public? St. John the Divine, and cathedral-buildingAt this moment, our urban hike is probably stopping by St. John the Divine. Why is it unfinished, and why do cathedrals take so long to complete?
In our darkest hour hope lingers onMy sis (hiking with us today) whose dear husband (like a brother to me) died suddenly and far too young last fall, loves this.
Tough getting to church this morning?Saturday, May 4. 2019Dance: A cool thing to do in NYCMrs. BD and her pal attended an open rehearsal at the NYC Ballet today. They are going to the public performance later this afternoon. The NYC Ballet is in the top 5 in the world, but I can hardly tell any difference. Mrs. BD and her pals sure can. They are dance (ballet and modern) enthusiasts. Actually, dance fanatics. No doubt many of our readers can not fully appreciate the art of dance (it's been decades of struggle for me, but I persist), but attending the rehearsals is an eye-opener. Same goes for music rehearsals. NYC has more dance, musical, and theatrical venues than any city in the world. If you give those things a try, it's your place to go for an interesting time and a fun dinner out somewhere.
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Sunday hike, and rainstormsWe are on, regardless of weather. There is always a rainbow somewhere, and human skin is waterproof. Rain gear advised, especially in the morning. Our team hated the idea of canceling an 11-mile hike because of some dumb rainstorms...especially the gals. Rightly so. Maggie's people ain't askeered of weather. My sister's motto: "There is no bad weather, only bad gear." My motto: "Any morning I awake healthy and alive is gonna be the best day in my life." Then I go to the gym whether I believe my motto or not. If my workout doesn't kill me (I do my best to kill myself in it), I figger I am probably good for another 24 hrs. That is comforting.
Saturday morning linksThe power of music: Vicky McClure's dementia choir Can international social media censorship succeed? How Anti-Humanism Conquered the Left A book: Russell Kirk, a Conservative Guide for Our Times US Unemployment Rate Falls to 3.6% – a 50 Year Low! 263,000 New Jobs In April Migrant caravan goes global, attracts refugees from across world trying to enter US How The News Took Over Reality Poynter forced to scrap 'unreliable news' list targeting conservative outlets after outcry ‘They’ve Broken My Spirit’: CNN’s Camerota Bummed By Lack of Action Against Trump A Collage of Creepy and Inaccurate Fake News Reports from Rachel Maddow It is appalling, even by MSM standards De Blasio expected to announce 2020 presidential run next week Biden, Bernie: It’s Not Their Age — It’s the Age of Their Ideas Over In The Congress, It's The "Hoax Of The Day" Every Day Democrats Scared to Death of an Investigation of the Investigation Barr Launches Wide-Ranging Probe Into 2016 FBI Spying New York Times Admits Obama Admin Deployed Multiple Spies Against Trump Campaign In 2016 Just like Nixon So Who Was ‘Azra Turk’ Working For? My guess is CIA 539 multinationals operate in Israel, view nation as go-to place for ideas On Point: Sudan's Protestors Now Confront the Military Transitional Council Explaining Ukrainegate Saturday Verse: Sam Walter FossThe House by the Side of the Road There are hermit souls that live withdrawn Let me live in a house by the side of the road, I see from my house by the side of the road, I know there are brook-gladdened meadows ahead Let me live in my house by the side of the road Sam Walter Foss (1858-1911) wrote plain verse for the "common man". Homey, corny, comfortably instructive stuff. In fact, for many years Foss turned out a poem a day for his local Somerville, MA newspaper. We recently saw a graveyard monument (1936) with "Let me live by the side of the road and be a friend to man." inscribed upon it. Friday, May 3. 2019Friday morning linksYour Love Of Wine Is Driving ‘Climate Change’ Or Something Berkeley Cracks Down on Coffee Cups Saving the earth, one Starbucks cup at a time Most Austrians don’t know 6 million Jews were killed in Holocaust Leftist comedian Bill Maher: 'Nothing is free...Neither is college' At Williams College, Zionists Need Not Apply. The hall of shame. What are they drinking at Williams? And where are the adults? Here Comes the Government, Protecting You from Cauliflower Rice
High School Mulls Removing George Washington Murals Because They 'Traumatize' Students New York Times issues correction after calling Jesus a 'Palestinian man' instead of Jewish as it continues to face criticism for anti-Semitic cartoon of Trump and Netanyahu DePaul professor defends pro-Israel op-ed, says he 'will not be silenced' When Loretta Met Bill on the Tarmac Baltimore Mayor Pugh resigns after month on leave amid investigation into her business deals NYT: New Details Emerge About Connection Of Bidens To Ukrainian Corruption Scandal DIGENOVA LOOKS AHEAD Spying on Trump: AZRA TURK, IF THAT REALLY IS YOUR NAME FBI Sent Investigator Posing As Assistant To Meet With Papadopoulos In 2016 Trump Campaign Responds to NY Times Report Finally Admitting Obama Admin Spied on Him and His Campaign "Democrats and the media are turning the AG into a villain for doing his duty and making the hard decisions that special counsel Robert Mueller abdicated." Barr laid it on the line with the simple question the Russia Hoaxers can’t answer Liberal Hack and Idiot Mazie Hirono Attacks the President and Slanders AG Barr and Demands he Resign — It Gets So Bad Lindsey Graham Jumps In It is war. They lost the Mueller battle, now want to find ways to continue the war. Ilhan Omar Says U.S. to Blame for Venezuela's Problems Why do other member states feel so positive about staying in the EU? European Elections: "The Battle for Europe has Begun" The U.S. and Saudi Arabia Can’t Get a Divorce. Despite Yemen, Khashoggi and U.S. energy independence, the relationship is critical for both sides. Thursday, May 2. 2019Thursday morning linksIt's Time to Bring Back Leper Colonies—for Anti-Vaxxers Victims of Communism Day 2019 - Why May 1 should be a day to honor the victims of the ideology that took more innocent lives than any other. Reproductive MD Association Okays Providing Care Doctors Know Won’t Work Camille Paglia Can’t Say That - Art students are trying to get the social critic fired from a job she has held for three decades. Mathgate: New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio Caught in Massive Grade Fraud Scandal Instagram: Wounded Veteran ‘Violated Community Standards’ by Posing with Trump Jr. Walls and fences: Barriers Against Barbarism RENT-A-CHILD SERVICES THRIVING AT THE BORDER - When a child becomes a get-out-of-detention-free card. Jewish Leaders Refuse to Accept New York Times' Apology for Anti-Semitic Cartoon BETO O'ROUKE SAYS WORLD WILL END 2 YEARS SOONER THAN HE CLAIMED LAST MONTH The End Is Near. Oh, well. Yes, Amazon Pays Taxes Steve Hilton: China Is ‘Funding Biden Family Businesses’ with ‘Billions of Dollars’ The United States Is Giving the Caravans a Huge Incentive to Keep Coming Nellie Ohr Criminal Referral Being 'Finalized' According To Jim Jordan Wasn't she one of the Kremlin-Clinton links? Nellie Ohr’s Emails To DOJ About Russia Collusion While Working For Fusion Should Alarm Us All Bruce Ohr: FBI, DOJ Knew Dossier Was Dirty from the Beginning 5 takeaways from the Barr hearing Thelma Nadler and Louise Schiff - Congressional crazies are taking the Democrat party over the cliff. Watch Live: 'Steele Dossier' May Have Been Part Of Russian Disinformation Campaign, Barr Says Bill Maher to Adam Schiff on Trump: “Now it just looks like you’re stalking him” Not "looks like" Swedish Anti-Extremism Tsar Allows Returning ISIS Fighters Re-Entry As "Caring Citizens" Afghanistan: Tar baby Are we still there? Wednesday, May 1. 2019Assumptions, postulates, and premises
Assumptions, postulates, and premises are what we all stand on when we open a discussion, a debate, or a legal argument. Before getting into the weeds and details of a discussion, it's always wise to identify these foundations of anothers' position. We all like to think that we are capable of questioning or critiquing our own basic assumptions - but are we? I think most of us are as reluctant to impose cognitive dissonance on ourselves as we are to hit our heads with a hammer. And when others attempt to challenge (ie threaten) some of our precious basic assumptions, the natural reaction is to be defensive because these thoughts become part of who we are. Best approach? "I'll question my assumptions if you'll question yours." Big Weights programmingIf you can handle 6-7 days of 1 hr (or so) workouts weekly, you can try putting in 3 days of heavy weights/ big movements. Never two weights days in a row in our view. This is a way to get past whatever strength plateau you might have reached, or to jump start a program. Try it as an experiment. It is working for me. There are all sorts of ways to schedule your routines, but they must be planned. Typical programs are listed here at Old Schoool Trainer. A regular weights program for me is not for body-building, just for the strength component of general fitness, and to slow down entropy: Monday: Barbell squats (5X5-8), Bench press (5X5 or 6X10), dumbell row (3X10), pull-down or pullups (3x10) Thurs: Heavy deadlift (5X5-8), Dumbbell bench (4X10), Seated Row (4X10), pull-downs or pullups (4X10) Sat - A higher-rep (12-20) but not too-light day for me: Leg press (higher reps), Chest press (higher reps), curls + tricep press downs Note: the first number does not include warm-up set. Always do a brief warm-up set for any weight exercise to avoid muscle sprain. I am still giving it time to see whether this is too much for me, considering that on my two calisthenics days I am doing pushups, burpees, body weight squats, kettlebell lunges, box step ups, hand weights, kettlebell swings, kettlebell deads, inclined pulls, etc. - and stair machine on one of my cardio days. My point concerns what amounts of recovery and nutrition are needed for constructive recovery/rebuilding in my program, given my age (ummm, over 50...but I don't look it). Generally speaking, a cardio day is considered active recovery so it's good to sched. that on a day before big weights. Wednesday morning linksWaPo Writer: James Holzhauer Has Become “A Menace” Amazon goes into the freight biz Previewing Gibson’s Bakery v. Oberlin College trial: ‘Social Justice’ free speech or defamation? Should Cory Booker Pay Slavery Reparations to Himself? VDH: The Adolescent Progressive Mind Actor Isaiah Washington To Join #WalkAway Town Hall In Los Angeles Pope Joins Soros In Funding Immigrant Caravan Invasion Of US Southern Border An Adams essay on the "fine people" hoax The press knows it's a lie, and don't care Byron York: Amid good news, can Democrats talk down the economy? Why Are Clapper and Brennan Not in Jail? Puerto Rico won’t recover from bankruptcy unless it embraces fiscal reform German Intelligence Issues Taboo-Breaking Report on Muslim Antisemitism Poor Friendless Erdoğan
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