“Walk This Way”
Olympus E-M10 IV with 40-150mm f/4.0-5.6 lens @ 150mm, f/6.3, 1/1600, ISO 250. Snowy plover at Oregon Dunes.
“Glowing”
Olympus E-M10 IV with M.Zuiko 45mm f/1.8 lens @ f/2.8, 1/3000, ISO 320. Scotch broom seedpods at Oregon Dunes.
Hegseth says ‘Iran has a choice,’ US not seeking regime change
I listened to Hegseth’s presser this morning. Someone needs to send that man a case of chapstick to help him recover from the extended display of ass-kissing. Does anyone seriously believe that Trump actually planned the details of this strike himself? (Also, nice slip in saying we were getting ready to bomb downtown Teheran).
Judge blocks the Trump administration’s National Science Foundation research funding cuts
Yet another piece of DOGE fuckwittery is losing in the courts.
“Eugene”
Olympus E-M10 IV with Mieke 25mm lens @ f/11, 1/250, ISO 200. Eugene from Spencer Butte, with Mt. Jefferson in the background. I’ve lived many places but hopefully this is the last.
#mbjune Day 22: hometown 📷
“Merry-Go-Round”
Olympus E-M10 IV with M.Zuiko 45mm f/1.8 lens with Raynox M-250 macro lens @ f/22, 1/15, ISO 2000. Along the Ridgeline Trail.
US has struck 3 Iranian nuclear sites
Looks like Trump got his war. Hopefully he hasn’t bitten off more than we can chew. But I see no particular reason to assume Iran will be worse at asymmetric warfare than Ukraine - and they have several hundred pounds of enriched uranium to use in radiological weapons if they choose to do so.
“Spores”
Olympus E-M10 IV with M.Zuiko 45mm f/1.8 lens with Raynox M-250 macro lens @ f/3.2, 1/250, ISO 1600. Along the Ridgeline Trail.
“Climbing the Sun”
Olympus E-M10 IV with M.Zuiko 45mm f/1.8 lens @ f/4, 1/250, ISO 160. Along the Ridgeline Trail.
Dr. Demento, Madcap Radio DJ Who Launched Weird Al’s Career, Announces Retirement
End of an era. I can remember passing petitions around my high school to get Tom Lehrer songs into the weekly top ten, way back when we listened to him weekly on the actual radio.
It’s time to write your Congresspeople (again). Democracy.io makes it super-easy. to contact them on any topic.
Pakistan to nominate Trump for Nobel prize
New frontiers in ass-kissing. Fortunately dear leader doesn’t have any obvious way to threaten the Norwegian Nobel Committee.
“Lord of All I Survey”
Olympus E-M10 IV with M.Zuiko 60mm f/2.8 macro lens @ f/20, 1/200, ISO 800. Shot at the top of Spencer Butte.
“Give Me All Your Nuts”
Olympus E-M10 IV with M.Zuiko 60mm f/2.8 macro lens @ f/3.5, 1/4000, ISO 400. Shot at the top of Spencer Butte.
“Pareidolia”
Olympus E-M10 IV with 14-42mm kit lens @ 42mm, f/9, 1/60, ISO 1250. A tree. Also the silhouette of a gorilla. Seen on the French Pete Trail.
#mbjune Day 21: silhouette 📷
“Welcome!”
Olympus TG6 @ 5.4mm, f/3.2, 1/100s, ISO 800. Larkspur on Lowder Mountain.
Finished: Between Dawn and Sunrise, by James Branch Cabell 📚. By some lists this is the final volume of Cabell’s massive Biography of Manuel series. It’s a collection of excerpts from all the other books in the series, chosen and lightly introduced by John Macy. I enjoyed the speed-run, though I probably wouldn’t pick the same selections. Still, it’s a good starting point to see if Cabell’s main writings appeal to you.
Finished: Top Secret, by Ralph Ingersoll 📚. A novel (to me) look at the WWII Allied invasion of Europe from the perspective of a staff officer who served mainly with Gen. Bradley. Much more coverage of politics and bureaucracy than most war histories include. The author doesn’t think much of Eisenhower or Montgomery, and ends with a curious couple of chapters about how the Americans need to keep peace between the Brits and Russians moving forward.
- Judge rejects ‘Duffy Directive’ tying DOT grants to immigration cooperation
- Appeals court allows Trump to keep National Guard deployed, for now
The law giveth, and the law taketh away. I just wish it wasn’t giving us a military dictatorship taking over the country.
Finished: Puppetmaster: The Secret Life of J. Edgar Hoover, by Richard Hack 📚. A straightforward history of a man who believed in authoritarian rule and ignoring the law to preserve democracy. There’s a straight line connection from him through Roy Cohn to Donald Trump, too.