Ten Piece Nuggets

Git yersef sum.

  1. President Biden visited the border in El Paso yesterday and not a single homeless camp nor any illegals were trying to cross.  It’s amazing what he can accomplish when he puts his mind to it.  He actually said he needs the Republicans to help solve the situation as well.  Oh, yes he did.
  2.  Who possibly buys into this?  A CBS poll said 47% of Americans are “hopeful” for America with Biden as president as they see the country today.  That’s who we guess. “There are three kinds of lies: Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics,” said Mark Twain.
  3. All of that said, the Biden camp is dropping hints that he is gearing up for an April announcement to run in 2024.  A recent Rasmussen Reports survey taken during the last week of the year found that only 33 percent of likely voters in the United States want to see Biden run for a second term in 2024.  As Don king used to say, “Only in America.”
  4. The Mars candy company said Thursday it will debut all-female M&M’s packages for a limited time to honor women.  The company’s feminist-themed candy wrappers will feature only its female characters.  Isn’t that moving?

  5. 4. Virginia Tech denied any wrongdoing but settled with soccer player Kiersten Hening for 100k.  Hening claimed she was removed from her starting position and pressured to leave the team after she declined to kneel during a reading of a “unity statement” before a game against UVA on Sept. 12, 2020, during the height of the BLM movement.  Good for her.

  6. Speaking of BLM, can anyone, and we mean anyone, tell us what the organization did in any community to better it with the money that poured in from Johnny-come-lately, suddenly for the cause companies?  We’ll look in the comments section for the answers.
  7. Pittsburgh Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin ran his streak to 16 seasons of .500-or-better as the man.  It is the longest in NFL history to begin a coaching career.  The Steelers’ winning organization is the epitome of stability in the NFL.
  8. At the opposite end of the spectrum, the Houston Texans fired HC Lovie Smith after just one season.  This comes after they fired David Culley last year after just one season as their leader.  If you count Romeo Crennel, who was the interim for 12 games in 2020 after Bill O’Brien was fired, the next coach the Texans hire will be their fifth in four seasons.
  9. Mattress Mack is at it again.   His customers who buy mattresses ranging from $3,000 to $10,000 or so will get double their money back if TCU wins Monday night’s championship game.  McIngvale hedged the promo with a $1.5 million bet on the TCU moneyline +370 at DraftKings – a wager that would net $5.55 million in profit if the Horned Frogs win.
  10. Vegas is begging you to take that bloated TCU +13.5 line.  Makes one think that the game won’t be close.  TCU has confounded the “experts” all year though.  We’ll take the plunge along with Mack.

It’s the first five-day work week of the year for everyone but Joe Biden.  Enjoy!

Boom Booms Life Lessons #10

Last week’s post about the negotiated old floor mats drew a large and loud response.  We trust it brought a smile to Boom Boom upstairs.

We decided to offer another of our well-worn and well-learned lessons below.  It’s an easy read.  We hope that you do your best today.

One of the many gifts that Boom Boom gave us was the torrent of quips about how one leads one’s life.   He could say so much by saying so little.   A statement at just the right moment resonated in my young, eager eardrums.  How I interpreted or applied it was up to me.  No more words were spoken because no more words were needed.  Today we share a tough one and it’s quickly our 10th.

In the spring semester of eighth grade the PA announcement was music to my ears.   JV and Varsity baseball tryouts would begin that Friday afternoon and continue on that Saturday morning.  His years of hard work with me had reached a pivot point.

The ninth and tenth-grade competition would be tough.  I was confident, however.   I had been running, hitting, fielding, and pitching for weeks prior.  I was pumped.  Perhaps secretly so was he.

After Friday about a dozen were told thanks but no.  After Saturday’s practice, the herd was thinned again, and I was one of 18.  Fifteen would be kept.  So far so good.   Coach had settled me into first base more than anything else.  The competition there wasn’t too strong if you asked me.  As I hopped into the Jetstar 88 for the ride home I wanted to compare myself to others.  He didn’t.   “Did you do your best?”    I said yes.  “That’s all that you can ask of yourself,” he assured me.  “Do your best every day!”  “That’s what you can control.”

Monday, coach approached after practice.  I got the bad news.   As I hopped in for the drive home my face told the story.  Silence filled the car.  After a few minutes, Boom Boom asked, “Did you do your best?” I didn’t want to hear that at that moment.  “But, I was better than David.”  He didn’t want to hear that at that moment.  He asked again.  I finally mumbled a weak “yes.”  “That’s all anyone can ask son.  Do your best!  And let the chips fall where they may.”

Next spring’s tryout was but 362 days away.

 

 

Abby Picks, Week Eight, Year Five

What kennel cough?  That was now two weeks ago!  And, Abby is got a little pep in her step and a little bite in her bark after following up week six winners with a fine week seven.

She won five games while losing four.  Importantly, she put the right bones on the right games including hitting a parlay.  She gathered ten bones while only giving away five!

Week Eight looks tricky.  She’s taking a road less traveled.

         UAB +1 1/2 at Western Kentucky Take the road dog if you need a little Friday Night Lights action.  UAB is the better team.  One bone.

         Texas A&M -3 at South Carolina- Everyone is writing off the Aggies at 3-3.  Maybe so for the national picture, but they still have plenty of talent to handle a pesky Gamecock.  One bone.

         Houston -3 at Navy – This line almost seems like a steal for the Cougars.  Abby will bite, well not in real life.  Two bones.

         UCLA +6 at Oregon -6 –  This is where it all started for Chip Kelly.  And this is where the Bruins’ 7-0 start is left in last-minute ruins by a FG.  But, nonetheless, they cover.  Two bones.

         Ole Miss + 2 1/2 and under 67 1/2 at LSU –  Abby is making this road trip this AM.  LSU has trouble with mobile QBs as well as stopping the run.  Ole Miss does both well.  One bone to win three bones.

         Memphis +7 at Tulane –  Tulane is ranked for the first time since 1998.  Memphis has lost two straight heartbreaking buzzer-beaters.  A straight-up win would not shock Abby.  One bone.

         Purdue +3 at Wisconsin-  Purdue is pretty good this year for Purdue.  Wisconsin is pretty bad this year for Wisconsin.  A straight-up win would not shock Abby.  Two bones.

Abby is feeling frisky enough to drop a hunch bet as well.  Bama is a big 20 1/2 point favorite over Mississippi St.  It won’t be enough.  Saban is rabid after the Vols scored 52 a week ago.

Holy Schmolly seven roadies.  Five dogs, two chalks, one under, and a hunch.

Woof!

 

 

 

Lemon Aids The Cause

CNN’s evening lineup was doing so poorly when new ownership took over that they decided to revamp it in its entirety.  It’s been BBR’s belief for a good while now that a move to the center will pay dividends.

MSNBC reads directly from the DNC and WH playbooks like a dutiful second-grade child desperate for an A on their report card and a pat on the head.

FOX is anything but fair and balanced.  They would carry more water for the elephants to drink if only the lead RINOs had sense enough to tell them where it is.

The middle should have plenty of viewers and plenty of willing advertisers.  But, first, they have to get there.  And, the rebuild is on.

CNN”S carnage is everywhere.  John Harwood, Jeffery “Zoomin” Tobin, Brian Steltzer, and the lovely Chis Cuomo are a few of the more high-profile, on-camera ones to exit stage far left of the daily Democratic theater since new management entered the building.

But, there is one interesting survivor.  And he’s headed to a morning 6-9 AM EST co-host job and soon.  That’s Don Lemon.

And, until he turns from night to daytime you can count on him to continue to turn left-hanging lemons into lemonade. Last night was the latest example.  With Ian bearing down on southeastern Florida, it was time to take a climate change “Lemon aided” stand.

Not once, not twice, but three times did the Don turn the tide back to climate change as a scientist was attempting to inform the viewers of the particulars of this one. Finally, he lectured the expert himself saying “he grew up down there and the storms are intensifying.”

It was six months ago that the forecasts called for a dozen storms to hit mainland America. Ian makes it one.  One.

Intensifying?  Do you think Ian is the first cat four storm to hit Florida?  Since we have been able to measure, six of the seven most intense occurred between 1919 and 1960.

Most intense landfalling tropical cyclones in the U.S. state of Florida
Intensity is measured solely by central pressure
Rank System Season Landfall pressure
1 “Labor Day” 1935 892 mbar (hPa)
2 Michael 2018 919 mbar (hPa)
3 Andrew 1992 922 mbar (hPa)
4 “Florida Keys” 1919 927 mbar (hPa)
5 “Okeechobee” 1928 929 mbar (hPa)
6 “Great Miami” 1926 930 mbar (hPa)
Donna 1960
8 Irma 2017 931 mbar (hPa)
9 “Florida” 1948 940 mbar (hPa)
10 Charley 2004 941 mbar (hPa)
Source: HURDAT, Hurricane
Research Division

Such unfounded speculation by a rank amateur that happens to have a microphone should be squashed by any and all networks.  But, unfortunately, it often isn’t.

It was just a week ago after the Queen of England had passed that Don was asking a British royalty expert on air if her family’s wealth and colonialism should make her realize that reparations were in order.  Lemon was taken behind the school and spanked by her.

Agendas long ago replaced straight facts.  Lemon says what he wants when he wants and how he wants to say it.  Good for him.

And, speaking of straight, the openly gay black Lemon isn’t.  Of course, neither his skin color nor his sexual orientation should have anything to do with his perceived value as an anchor going forward for CNN.

Or, should it?  Ratings talk and all of this blabber about diversity, inclusion, and equality walks when you get down to it.

Harwood, Tobin, Steltzer, and others can attest to that.  Can’t they?

No, they can’t, especially if they aspire to another job inside the cesspool once known as journalism.

So as CNN moves to the center, Lemon’s anchor chair will remain on the far left.

It’s good work if you can get it.

Does Lindsey Play For the Other Team?

The old adage that a tie is like kissing your sister rings true in politics this AM.

Heretofore, this site has long held the belief that the best thing going for the Democrats in DC is the lead Senate Republican in DC, one Mitch McConnell.

He looks old, he sounds old, he is old(80), and he sells out always willing to send two bucks the Democrats’ way if he can send one home to Kentucky.  He inspires few.

But, yesterday, another RINO pulled into a first-place tie with old Mitch.  That senator’s name is Lindsey Graham.

In basketball, you feed the shooter.  In other words, you pass the ball to the man, or woman, who has the hot hand and can score.

Old Lindsey(67) fed the hot hand yesterday.  Except he threw the ball to the other team.

Graham announced yesterday a bill to ban abortion after 15 weeks as debate rages over the issue after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade earlier this year.  President Biden jumped all over that ruling in the early summer saying Roe v. Wade was on the ballot come this November.

And, it is.

And fan-boy Graham just fanned the flames.

Titled the “Protecting Pain-Capable Unborn Children from Late-Term Abortions Act,” (word salad that would make VP Kamala proud) the legislation comes as Democrats hammer the GOP on the campaign trail over state laws restricting abortions.  Apparently, allowing the states to make their own laws wasn’t enough for him.

Graham said Tuesday morning that his bill is similar to laws in other developed countries and could actually help Republicans running in the midterms.  Seven weeks out from election day and he pokes the bear.

You cannot be this stupid naive, can you?

“I don’t know what Democratic candidates in these contested states will say about a bill such as mine,” Graham said.  Our guess is plenty, loud, and often.

Polls show that the Democrats have made up solid ground in house races since the ruling that effectively overturned Roe v. Wade this summer.  In fact, over 60% of all Americans favor abortion.  That number reaches 73% when it’s women only polled.

The Republican’s playbook is paper thin compared to Democratic strategists.

Lindsey just added a page to it.  The play is called “throw the ball right to them.”

And, make no mistake, they know how to shoot it.

We can’t help but ask, “does Lindsey like kissing his sister?”

 

Special Teams

You’ve heard the old adage many times before, “defense wins championships!”   Maybe it does.

Try telling that to Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes, or Matthew Stafford.  Heck, try telling that to the Old Gipper, Ronald Reagan, or even the want-to-be Gipper, Donald Trump.  They think the best defense is a good offense.

And, even before the leaves change, two different seasons are starting.  One is the battle for supremacy in the NFL, and the other is the battle for control of the two chambers of the Capitol Building.

You might say there is defense, offense, and offensive.  Sometimes the lines between the three blur.

Donald Trump won the Oval Office with an offense in 2016 that changed the old guard’s game.  On his way to victory, Democrats threw every name at the book at him.  He was a bigot, a misogynist, a homophobe, a womanizer, a Russian colluder, and a Putin lover amongst other atrocities they asserted.

They tried to make him play defense by labeling him offensive.  When it failed they impeached him a time or two while in office to force him to play defense.

They reached deep into their playbook.  And, Nancy even tore up Trump’s playbook on live TV once.

Enter Joe Biden.  After a decent start, Joe got picked off by Afghanistan. The constant Covid handouts and his stubbornness against drilling led to inflation.  And, quickly team Dem was defending.

Ah, but the Dems, too, think the best defense is a good offense.  And, they are quite accomplished on that side of the ball.

They started throwing money around like a well-oiled (or battery-charged) machine.

More covid relief, free shots, more covid relief, free testing, an infrastructure bill (meaning green for green new deals), another green new deal called the Inflation Reduction Act (it should be called the Manchin double reverse), and now some college debt relief has the base offense back in place.

Uvalde put gun control squarely back on the ticket.

They caught a Hail Mary when the Supreme Court ruled in one case that set aside Roe v. Wade after 50 years of women’s reproductive rights/wellness.  Make no mistake, they hate the ruling but love what it does for their November midterm playoff/run-off hopes.

And, now Biden, who ran on becoming the great unifier is taking a lap to drive the messages home. He’ll soon be tripping down the stairs of Air Force One in a blue suit in a blue state near you to hold pep rallies.  And, while gas is still expensive, the flight is a buck cheaper a gallon now than it was eight weeks ago.

The Great Unifier even called MAGA Republicans semi-fascists this past weekend.  And the Republicans deemed that offensive and want an apology.  They will need to wait for that as long as they have waited for the border mess to be addressed.

It’s time to rally the troops and get them to vote.  Maybe you’ll vote because you feel oppressed like multi-millionaire, MTV VMA winner, acclaimed singer, and eclair lover Lizzo does. She pleaded with fans to vote and “make changes to laws that are oppressing us.” “It means everything to make a change in this country,” she said.

Out of bounds is not out of bounds anymore.  You can be on offense, defense, offended, defended, offensive, and defensive simultaneously these days.  That is unless you are oppressed.

The (de)fenced-in Capitol Building awaits the winner.

 

The Great American Giveaway

Several years ago Oprah gave away a car to everyone who attended her show.  Nice, but it wasn’t necessary to fill up the studio viewing seats.  People would climb over a  wall to get to see one of America’s great icons.

Several years later people are climbing over a wall, walking around a fence, and swimming across the Rio Grande to get into America in record numbers.

And, why not?  Like Oprah, the great American giveaway is full throttle.  It isn’t necessary to fill up the country.  But it does buy votes.

Just two weeks after the green new deal lite (aka the Inflation Reduction Act) lined donor pockets, Biden is closing in on a $329 billion dollar giveaway over the next ten years.  This audience is the college graduate/attendee who borrowed to attend and whose household income is below $125k.

Biden will sign off on a $10k loan forgiveness per person plan.  Then he can check the box on another campaign promise kept.  Forget if it’s good for the country, it’s good for voters that lean left.

Who pays for this handout now that the original signer of the agreement isn’t held to their promise?  You do, the American taxpayer.

If you went to college and paid off your debt, you now get to pay your classmate’s debt too.  If your parents saved for 18 years to get you to and through college they get to pay for any parents who did not.  Native American Elizabeth Warren chuckled about this very inequitable reality yesterday.

If you learned a valuable trade and are now welding, plumbing, pipe fitting, etc. you’re about to learn that you can take a blow torch to an additional $2k that you take home to cover the lackeys.

But not even 87,000 new IRS agents can find enough money hiding between the 1040 lines to keep up with America’s spending appetite.  The reality is we spend WAY more every year than we send to Uncle Sam.  This loan forgiveness will just get added to the mile-high mountain of debt.

What lesson does this teach our young?  It teaches the opposite of doing the right thing.  Why bother paying for your car loan?  House loan?

Diversity, inclusion, and equality(DIE for short) are words thrown down like another round of drinks on Capital Hill.  Except, none of what this administration is doing approaches DIE.  It’s all divisive and unwise.

Give money to green, take it from oil and gas taxes.  Give big money to Ukraine almost daily to protect their border, but leave our southern border wide open.

Enter the country and get a free phone, free medical care, and a free plane ride to an American city.   No vax, no problem unless you want to remain in the military that will fight to protect those that just walked in illegally.

And now we give money to college kids who should be educated to a point to get a job, balance a checkbook, budget their take home, and pay their debt.

Biden says that inflation is zero.  He claims that there is no recession based on the new definition of recession.   He says that the economy is great.

And, in spite of all of that, college-educated young adults can’t be held to their promise to pay down their self-inflicted debt?  What would happen if the economy turned south?

A chicken in every pot gets votes.  But, it doesn’t pay for itself.

And the chickens are getting more expensive in spite of zero(so says the big guy) inflation.

What’s in a Name?

It’s business as usual in Washington DC.  Except, unfortunately, it’s not business it’s government.

Falling one “yea” shy for over a year on the bloated Build Back Better boondoggle, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer negotiated directly with Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va to no longer fall one vote shy.

So, without further adieu and with inflation running at a half-a-century high, the Senate will use a back door tactic to get around filibustering and present to you the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.

What’s in a name?  “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell just as sweet,” wrote William Shakespeare.

In this instance that which we call yet another spending bill would smell just as rotten to those who are willing to read all about it.  You see, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 has nothing whatsoever to do with combating the pain you feel at the grocery store or the gas station.

It’s the third wild spending bill in 18 months as the country stands at $30 trillion in debt and counting geometrically.  We printed money, gave it away, and devalued the dollar making us chase products and services with more dollars.  That’s inflation.

Rather than risking more inflation with trillions in new spending, this bill will cut the inflation taxes Americans are paying, lower the cost of health insurance and prescription drugs, and ensure our country invests in energy security and climate change solutions,” Manchin said.

One, someone needs to stick a microphone under Manchin’s chin and ask what “inflation taxes” mean.

Two, the unaffordable Affordable Care Act just got more expensive for those who pay for it.

Three, it’s a slimmed-down version of the Green New Deal, but it is by no means slim unto itself.   At least the summer heat wave will go away, won’t it?

But wait, this comes with a corporate tax increase and a minimum corporate tax as well.  Doesn’t that make it a pay-for-itself bill?

“It will ensure that the biggest corporations and the wealthiest few pay their fair share,” Pelosi said in a letter to Democratic lawmakers.  Can someone define “fair share for us?”  Tax laws are tax laws. Fair is in the eye of the beholder, period.

So, we just increased taxes on businesses.  Do you know how businesses will offset those increased tax burdens?  They’ll increase their prices to maintain their bottom lines.  That means you pay more.

The Inflation Reduction Act will cause more inflation.  What’s in a name?

It doesn’t sound so rosy anymore, does it?

Didn’t Romeo and Juliet have a tragic ending?

Viva la Mexico

BBR is headed south to the Yucatan Penisula in Mexico this morning.  We’ll return on July 22nd.

We’ve scheduled a couple of best of Boom Boom’s Life Lessons to tide you over till then.  They’re timeless, quick, and thought-provoking reads for you.  Enjoy.

One of our staff members swore the country off over 18 years ago due to comfort and safety reasons.

We’ll give it one more go.

Till then, stay cool.

TEST POST

Sorry to have to do this, but yesterday’s post (which we thought was an important one) did not get out to many/all subscribers via the normal email notification.

We’re sending this one today as a test.  We are hopeful that it was a one-time glitch in the system, but we have our doubts.

Please drop us a comment on the site if you received an email notifying you that we published this AM.

You can always check the site daily for new posts as well, email or not until we get our xxxx straight.

Thanks for your loyalty as always.