Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Found Guilty (Again) of Murder

I expected no less from the Banana Republic of Italy and their Kangaroo Court, but the Second Appellate Court has found Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito guilty of murder.

Still, I feel outraged and shocked at the sheer injustice and evil perpertrated by these fools.  The verdict feels like a sock in the gut, and I feel heartsick for Amanda and Raffaele. 

Amanda will fight extradition to Italy, and it is unlikely that the US will honor any requests for her extradition due to our double jeopardy laws.  Raffaele, however, attended the trial and is still in Italy.  He is in danger of being incarcerated while awaiting Rome's official acceptance of the verdict, which of course, is a foregone conclusion.

If Raffaele can get out of the country, he should do so at once.

Third Verdict in Trial of Amanda Knox Expected By Tomorrow

Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito

UPDATE:  Both Amanda and Raffaele have again been found guilty of murdering Meredith Kercher.  It is utterly shocking to hear such insanity. 

The never-ending trials of Amanda Knox will mark another milestone by tomorrow. The second appellate court is to render a decision on the guilt or innocence of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito in the 2007 murder of British student Meredith Kercher.

This will be the third court decision in the matter. Having studied the case extensively, I am certain that both Knox and Sollecito are completely innocent of any connection to Kercher’s murder. Rudy Guede, a feral young black man, murdered Kercher after she surprised him burglarizing the house where she and Knox (and other students) lived. Guede raped and murdered Kercher, and was convicted of the crime. However, he was sentenced to only 16 years for the murder. Knox and Sollecito, who weren’t even there, were sentenced to 26 and 25 years respectfully. The Italian Justice System appears substantially flawed, and Knox's persecution nothing more than anti-American prejudice and judicial incompetence.  Italian prosecutors are now trying to salvage their dignity by doubling-down on injustice.

The U.K. Mirror reports on Knox’s attorney’s final plea to the jury:

Knox’s lawyer Carlo Dalla Vedova raised his voice in anger as he urged the judges not to feel they had to protect the reputation of the Italian justice system, following allegations from the United States that a flawed system led to Knox being wrongfully dragged into the case as a suspect.

He said: "Judges, we cannot send two innocent people to jail to ... protect the dignity of anyone we heard in this process.

"What about the dignity of the accused, who spent four years in jail? The dignity of the family? The victim?"

Personally, I will be surprised if the appellate court finds the two defendants innocent. I have long since abandoned the idea that Italian Justice is capable of producing a just result. Let’s hope I’m wrong.

Some Late Thoughts on the 2014 Grammy Awards Ceremony

Busy, busy, busy doing tax returns.  That explains the big slowdown in my posting, if anyone cares. 

I watched the Grammy Awards, because my wife wanted to watch it, and I had no choice.  I liked seeing some of the old rockers like Kris Kristofferson, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr.  I also enjoyed the western groups, and one new female country singer wore a very short dress, and she had fantastic legs.  Those were the good parts of the show.

I was annoyed at the new pop music acts and “artists.”  Some young woman with black lipstick was unveiled to smoke and flames by the raising of what looked like a giant Japanese lantern, revealing her underneath.  Then a troupe of people in tights all emulated grand mal seizures as they writhed around the stage, all while the black lipstick lady "sang."  The music was cacophonous and the words unintelligible.  The lady in black lipstick was later awarded a Grammy (a trophy resembling an old fashioned phonograph with a megaphone on top). 

 Then some black guys in white suits stomped around chanting and grunting to something called “Def Jam,” making me wish I really were def or that I could jam cotton into my ears.

 Surprisingly, the best music group was one from France, whose name I have deliberately forgotten, who wore what looked like white space suits, including helmets with black, opaque visors, so their faces were completely hidden.  Weeeeeeird.  It kind of reminded me of the Cone Heads from Saturday Night Live, with the space aliens explaining in a robotic monotone:  "We're from France."

There is a reason for all this dubious theater by the pop groups:  it is to hide the fact that they  don’t really have any talent.  Their songs are garbage, the lyrics the incomprehensible mutterings of the mad.  Without the giant lanterns, smoke, flames and space suits, they got nothing.

Towards the end of the ceremonies, Queen Latifa “married” 33 couples, some of whom were gay, right after some schmo with a weird haircut sang a non-melodic paean to the wonders of gay love.  How did this figure into a ceremony honoring the best singers?  It didn’t.  The left has control of the popular culture along with their control of the economy, the media and academia.  This enables them to continually propagandize us with their latest compulsions. 

You're Wrong If You Believe These Ten Things -- And Possibly Nuts

I saw a site this week where the blogger bragged about being proud of the fact that he was a "conspiracy theorist."  People who don't believe in his conspiracy theories (like 911 being an inside job) are people who strongly believe what the mainstream media tell them.

He should change the title of his blog to "Proud to be Paranoid."

It's amazing to me how much sheer nonsense is believed by so many people.  So here's a list of things that, if you believe in them, you're wrong at best, and maybe even nuts.

You're wrong or possibly nuts if you believe:

1. That 911 was an inside job.

2. That a great conspiracy assassinated John Fitzgerald Kennedy.

3. That the primary purpose of the American "Civil War" was to free the slaves.

4. That Amanda Knox had anything whatsoever to do with the murder of Meredith Kercher.

5.  That socialism improves the standard of living for most people in a population.

6.  That the wars in the Middle East are over oil.

7.  That Islam is a "religion of peace," no worse or any more violent than any other religion.

8.  That white people are responsible for all the bad stuff in world history.

9.  That criticism of Barack Obama is racism.

10.  That man made global warming is real.

Conservatives: Use Brains More, Adrenal Glands Less to Fight the Ascendant Left

My friend Rick Darby at Reflecting Light has a worthwhile post today, "Where's the Outrage?"  Rick notes that being outraged over the political situation is not enough anymore, we need a strategy.  Rick notes the following destructive trends, with my comments below.

Population Replacement through legal and illegal immigration.  Our formerly European-descent majority is being rapidly whittled away, replaced with third-world immigrants who are not tethered to small government, free markets and low taxes -- and who make far better constituents for the Democratic Party.

Using Government Agencies to Persecute Political Opponents.  Rick is speaking of the IRS and its use as a "weapon against organized criticism."

Widespread Surveillance of Everyone.  The NSA's spying on the citizenry is reminiscent of Orwell's novel "1984."  Phone calls, email and text messages are collected by the millions every day; every aspect of our lives is under government scrutiny.  Lately, we have learned that the NSA even intercepts shipments of computers for installing spying devices within, before allowing them to be delivered to purchasers.

The Militarization of the Police.  Local police forces are being armed with tanks and organized as paramilitary units -- probably to get round the posse comitatus law.  The military may not be able to fire on civilians, but that does not necessarily prevent the police from becoming the arm of tyranny.

Obamacare.  "imposing an untested and conceptually unsound healthcare plan" on the population of the United States is a serious invasion of the private sector and reflects the federal government's growing contempt for its constitutional restraints. 

One other leftist strategy that Rick did not discuss was the global warming fraud, whose "cure" will be a regimented society with great redistribution of wealth, in other words, socialism.

Those are some of the problems that we face.  The left is victorious and on the move.  They see their goal in sight, i.e. turning the United States into a socialist nation on the European model.

But what are the remedies?  What are our strategies for defeating the left?  Or is it already too late?

Freakout Nation Freaks Out Over a Child's Hat

A little black boy in North Carolina was given a Confederate kepi as a prize at his grade school.  As he stepped off the bus on his way home, his mom freaked out.  Omigod, a Confederate kepi!  Slavery!  Racism!  Some dumb-ass leftwing site (Freakout Nation) picked up the story and are now wallowing in self-righteousness.  They don't realize it, but they are also wallowing in ignorance.

The Northern Myth (that righteous Northerners fought the Evil South to free the slaves) is a matter of religious faith for the ignorant, a paean to the mighty federal government, who has the right to compel any of the formerly sovereign states to do what it wants, to invade those states with armies, make war on the population therein, and kill and destroy until the will of the populace is obliterated.  This is a blueprint for internal tyrants to reduce Americans to utter despotism, and even those conservatives who buy into it are promoting the unbridled power of the centralized government.

Grave of a Black Confederate
Cavalry Trooper

And no, the so-called Civil War was not fought over slavery.  There is no moral justification for Lincoln's war of aggression.  (Read the article before hitting me with all the Damn-Yankee talking points.)

I commented over at Freakout Nation, and was quickly banned from further commenting.  Ignoramuses do not appreciate any light allowed into their desiccated brains.

And He's Wearing a Kepi
See Confederate Memorial Here

I told them that this kid is not the first black to wear a Confederate kepi.  Many blacks did, in service to the South.  This unfortunate fact upsets the great moral, self-legitimating myth, and must be suppressed.  The brainwashed like their history nice and neat, like a file cabinet with two drawers, one marked "Good" and the other "Bad."  Actual history is not so neat and tidy, not so easily understood.  And, frankly, I am sick and tired of having ignoramuses slander my Confederate ancestors.

Real Confederate Soldiers
Notice the Tan on the Confederate in Upper Right?

PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL: ROOT FOR YOUR OWN DAMN TEAM

I like professional football, but have learned not to take it too seriously. Nevertheless, I have my pet peeves, and the major one is when people who live in my locality root for someone else’s team.

Say the Forty-Niners are “our team.” But some schmucks root for the opponent instead, like the Seahawks. Now it’s one thing if they used to live in Seattle, or were born and raised there, and have legitimate ties to the place. But most team turncoats don’t have that as an excuse. They identify with someone else’s team, community, city and state because they’re just frigging nuts. Or maybe they’re contrarians, someone who needs to "be different," the way the facially-studded, tattoo-festooned counter culture do. “Look at me, I’m gross! I’m such a rebel! Oh yeah!”

Other possible reasons -- maybe they think the other team’s mascot is cuter. Or they like the other team’s colors better. Or because they would love to live in the city of the opposing team, but can’t afford to move. I mean, who wouldn’t want to live in Seattle where it rains sometimes straight for 100 days at a time, and the sky is mostly cloud cover except for a week in August (I may be exaggerating, but not by much).

The secretary in the tax office where I work roots for any other team that plays the Forty-Niners. I told her if the Russians invaded the USA, she’d root for the Russians, because she thinks their uniforms are cute or their helmets are chic. After the Seahawks won the NFC championship game, she posted her joy on FaceBook. I instantly unfriended her.

I remember several years ago when the Forty-Niners were playing Dallas in the playoffs for the Super Bowl. A friend of mine, who has never lived in Texas, showed up for a lunch meeting wearing a Cowboys hat and sweatshirt. As far as I was concerned, he could have hung a sign around his neck that said “ASSHOLE.”

Now sports turncoats have a right to their unnatural proclivities, but that doesn’t mean I have to like them. Instead of rubbing salt into the wounds of their fellow Bay Area residents, they should just keep their oddities to themselves. I believe in tolerance for gay people, but I don’t want to watch them make out.  So if you are a sports traitor, keep it to yourself. Be sensitive to the feelings of the less insane.

Seattle Seahawks Defeat San Francisco Forty-Niners 23-17 In Close, Hard-Fought Championship Game (1/19/2014)

It was a close game, and the Niners were ahead 17-13 going into the Fourth Quarter.  However, the Seahawks scored a touchdown and a field goal in the fourth quarter to go ahead and win.  The Niners had possession in the last two minutes, and were moving the ball well with Quarterback Colin Kaepernick actually completing some passes for a change.  His last throw of the game was into the end zone, where it was intercepted to end the game with only seconds left.  If the Niners could have scored a touch down, they could have won the game by one point, 24-23, and been headed for the Super Bowl.

It seems to this observer that Kaepernick has some serious weaknesses as a quarterback.  He has trouble completing passes, and makes some bizarre play calls.  His strength is in running the ball.  If he cannot overcome his weaknesses next year, I suspect he will be replaced.  However, I hope he can continue to grow as a 49er and as a quarterback.  

The Niners had a good season and went down fighting hard.  I would rather see them lose the NFC Championship than to go to the Super Bowl and lose there.  Congratulations to the Seattle Seahawks. I suspect that they will be the next Super Bowl champions.

Bill Schmalfeldt's New Hello Kitty Pop Gun (Photoshop)

This is just for fun.

San Francisco Forty-Niners vs Seattle Seahawks Today 1/19/2014

The Niners play the Seahawks today and the winner will go to the Super Bowl.

I'm a long-time Niners fan, so naturally I am rooting for San Francisco.  I'll be happy if the Niners win, but I won't be crushed if the Seahawks do (I'll be mildly down for the rest of the day, but that's all).  The reason is simple:  sports are for fun, they are not the end-all and be-all of existence.

I am supposed to attend a compulsory meeting of the tax preparers for my employer today, and that meeting would prevent me from seeing the game.  Sports may not be the be-all and end-all of existence, but I'll be damned if I am going to miss the game.  So I informed my wife that I won't be attending the meeting, and if anyone asks, it's because I have a temperature.  Yep, a temperature of 49 degrees F.  Or, Forty-Niner-itis.  What if they fire me??? Let 'em.

Seattle has the home-field advantage, and their fans are purposely noisy in order to disrupt the plays of their opponents, when those opponents are on offense.  Seattle has refused to sell tickets to the game to Californians, probably to prevent any rooting section for the Forty-Niners.  That's a bit chickensh*t, but it does show how seriously many people take football.

Oh, there's another game today as well, between the New England Patriots and the Denver Broncos.  That game will decide the other team that goes to the Super Bowl.

Probable winners today?  Seattle and Denver (because both have home field advantage).  However, as I told my friend Curmudgeon of Political Clown Parade, quoting the late Al Davis:  "football is a game of funny bounces."  Nothing is certain when two great teams collide.

Justice Through Photoshop: Brett Kimberlin and Carl DeLong (Photoshop)

Carl DeLong Will Haunt Brett Kimberlin For the Rest of Kimberlin's Life

Carl DeLong is one of the reasons why we can't just forgive Brett Kimberlin for his prior life as a criminal thug and move on.  Had Brett Kimberlin been only guilty of shipping tons of marijuana into the US for sale to hippies, then I could personally care less.  Personally, I see the dumping of all those bales of grass over Texas in 1979 to be more tragic than criminal.  I could easily forgive Brett for that.  And yes, I do believe in the power of redemption, that every one with a nasty past can remake their lives into something better.  However, I have to draw the line at killing people.  The circumstances of DeLong's death are difficult to forgive, and those of Julia Scyphers impossible.  

Kimberlin planted bombs in and around Speedway, Indiana in 1978, possibly (the police believed) to avert public and police attention to the killing of Julia Scyphers (more about that later).  One of the bombs was placed in a gym bag and left on school grounds.


Wikipedia reports:

The last bombing took place on September 6 when another explosive device concealed in a Speedway High School gym bag detonated in the parking lot of Speedway High School shortly after a freshman football game.[2] Injuries sustained in the explosion forced the amputation of Vietnam War veteran Carl DeLong's right leg.[2] DeLong had spotted the bag with the explosive device and had walked over to retrieve it when it exploded, severing his right leg and also severely injuring his left leg and right hand as well as severing an artery in his wife Sandra's leg.

Carl DeLong underwent a painful rehabilitation, but ultimately could not cope with his injuries and pain, and committed suicide in 1983.  Kimberlin is responsible for his death.

Julia Scyphers, 65, was murdered in 1978, shortly after she forbade Kimberlin from seeing her underage granddaughter.  Although eye witness testimony indicates that Kimberlin was not the gunman, suspicion continues to exist that he either ordered the hit, or that it was at least done in his name by one of his loyalists.  If Kimberlin knows the identity of the gunman and has not revealed it to the police, then at the very least he could be an accomplice after the fact in murder.  Only Brett knows for sure.  Well, he and the gunman.

The planting of bombs around Speedway is described at Wikipedia, and the possible motive as follows:

While no motive was established at trial, prosecutors and police believe Kimberlin went on the bombing spree to deflect attention away from an ongoing investigation of the murder of 65 year old Julia Scyphers. Scyphers “violently disapproved” of her daughter Sandra Barton’s relationship with Kimberlin as well as the “strange affection” Kimberlin paid to Barton’s pre-teen daughter who had accompanied Kimberlin on several long unsupervised out of state trips. Scyphers arranged for her daughter and granddaughter to stay with her and on July 29, 1978 she was shot to death just outside her home. Her husband Fred Scyphers, who briefly saw the shooter, identified William Bowman as the man who shot his wife. Bowman was a close associate of Kimberlin in the drug trade but Fred Scyphers died shortly after the murder and Bowman was never charged, as the prosecution’s only witness died. Her murder still remains unsolved.

No one can state catergorically that Kimberlin had anything to do with the death of Julia Scyphers.  However, I believe that it is indeed possible, if not probable, that he did.  Julia Scyphers is one huge reason why we can never forgive or forget Kimberlin's past.   Carl DeLong is the other reason.

Moreover, there is no reason to believe that Kimberlin has repented for his crimes.  Indeed, his latest activities -- the attempted framing of Aaron Walker for a crime, the filing of frivolous, malicious lawsuits against bloggers and others -- all indicate that he is as ruthless as he ever was.

Then there are Kimberlin's suspected connections to SWAT crimes against some of those same bloggers, as well as the recent DDOS attack on the Kimberlin Unmasked website.  Kimberlin's latest activities reveal a ruthless and destructive personality, and not someone who wants to make amends for his criminal past.

My Photoshop above, of Carl DeLong with his arm around Kimberlin, is meant to convey the message to Kimberlin and his pals:  DeLong will haunt you for the rest of your days, and so, I suspect, will Julia Scyphers.

Hispanic Actress Fired For Endorsing Conservative Candidate for California Governor

Anyone who is a member of the Democrats' "protected minorities" can never express forbidden views.  So learned Hispanic actress Maria Conchita Alonso, after endorsing Republican Tim Donnelly for governor of California.

According to KPIX, San Francisco, Alonso was to perform next month at the Brava Theater Center in San Francisco’s Mission District in a Spanish-language version of “The Vagina Monologues.”  However, the show's producer, one Eliana Lopez, stated that it was Alonso's beliefs that cause her to be fired from the production.  Alonso is against illegal immigration, high taxes and runaway welfare expenditures.  KPIX reports that Lopez said:

 “We really cannot have her in the show, unfortunately.  Of course she has the right to say whatever she wants. But we’re in the middle of the Mission. Doing what she is doing is against what we believe.”

Of course, the "Vagina Monologues" implies that women talk from their vaginas.  In Lopez's case, she talks from her ass.

And what does Lopez "believe"?  That illegal immigrants should be allowed to invade the state without consequences, get on welfare and suck California's social services dry?  I suspect that is so.

Read it all here.

Here is the television ad that resulted in Alonso's firing:

Evil Is Ascendant In Maryland; But Legal Payback Will Be A Bitch for Brett Kimberlin

All of the defendants' motions to dismiss the Brett Kimberlin vs Walker et al lawsuit were denied this week. That was disappointing. Now this farce of a trial will go forward, incurring ruinous legal fees and costs for Kimberlin's lawfare victims, wasting many hours of their time, and causing great worry and emotional distress. Even though the suit is transparent legal extortion of zero substance, there is always the chance that a rogue judge or screwball jury will ruin your life because they think the plaintiff is cute. Or because he's a fellow leftist. Or some other lame reason.

It happens -- ask Tom Delay, prosecuted for nonsense and convicted of a serious RICO crime (money laundering) by a rogue, leftist District Attorney.  Several years later, and after astronomical legal fees, an appeals court threw out the conviction and stated that Delay should never have been charged in the first place.  But Delay's political career was ruined.  Why was Delay prosecuted?  To destroy him, because he is a Republican.  

The legal process is very destructive.  And that makes it the ultimate weapon, because it's lawful.  Liars in court are rarely prosecuted for perjury, particularly in civil cases.  There is little downside for plaintiffs, unless they file suits in bad faith, for malicious reasons.  It is obvious why Kimberlin sued a large number of conservatives:  because he's a thug with a history of ruthless behavior.  He is motivated by hate and the desire to destroy those who have written about his criminal past.  No doubt he also wants money, since both of his nonprofit organizations appear moribund -- an online search reveals that tax returns (Form 990) for Velvet Revolution and Justice Through Music Project have not been filed since 2011.  I suspect that bad publicity about Kimberlin's crimes have dried up donations.  

Defendants who prevail in frivolous lawsuits do have some recourse.  In many states they can sue for malicious prosecution, to recover legal costs and punitive damages.  Plaintiffs who file many frivolous suits can be adjudged "vexatious litigants" and forbidden to file any more lawsuits without posting a bond and obtaining the permission of a judge.  

Kimberlin had better win his latest lawsuits.  I have it on good authority that, should he lose, it will be legal payback time.  An army of legal volunteers is waiting to track down every pro se lawsuit he ever filed.  These will be analyzed and compiled as evidence in prosecuting Kimberlin as a vexatious litigant.   On top of that, there will be a bevy of lawsuits for malicious prosecution.  

Finally, there will be a serious conversation with Kimberlin's parole board.  Does Kimberlin's malicious prosecution violate the terms of his parole?  If not, should it?  And if it does, shouldn't Brett Kimberlin be returned to prison?  

Forty-Niners Advance to Conference Championship - January 19, 2014

The San Francisco Forty-Niners defeated the Carolina Panthers in Charlotte, NC today, 23-10.  The Niners will advance to the National Football Conference championship next Sunday, January 19, 2014.

The Niners and the Panthers game was not as close as expected.  The Panthers were very scrappy in the First Quarter, and their defense shut down the run quite effectively.  As the game wore on, the Niners appeared stronger and more confident, whereas the Panthers were faulted with unnecessary roughness penalties on two or three occasions.

Final score in the game was 23-10, Forty-Niners over the Panthers.

Niners vs Panthers Today. Update: Niners Win 23-10, Advance to NFC Championship Game With Seattle

Watching the game between the San Francisco Forty-Niners and the Carolina Panthers.  The Panthers have home field advantage and a stadium filled with noisily enthusiastic fans.  Other than that, the game seems a toss-up.  We'll soon find out!

Half Time:  Niners are up 13-10.  Panthers QB is better than Colin Kaepernick of the 49ers.  Kap has trouble completing passes.  Lacks accuracy in throws.  He's a good QB, but not a great one.

Great pass completion in first second half possession.  Niners up 20-10.  Encouraging, but there's lots of time for the Panthers to come back.

Update:   Niners win 23-10, advance to NFC championship game with Seattle next week.  The winner of that game goes to the Super Bowl.

What is Bridgegate? A Political Scandal Involving Republican Governor Chris Christie

Chris Christie

Lately we've been hearing about the "Bridge Scandal" that has seriously damaged Chris Christie's political career.  Christie is the Governor of New Jersey and a leading member of the Republican establishment.  Many liberals like him, as do many  establishment Republicans.  Tea Party members, not so much.

Back in September, two of Christie's aids ordered lane closings in the city of Fort Lee, New Jersey, restricting access to the George Washington Bridge.  Five or so lanes are generally open to toll booths, but after the lane closings, only one lane and one toll booth were open.  This caused a huge traffic jam and a four hour delay.  One of two seriously ill people who needed to get to a hospital, died due to the traffic jam.  The lane closings went on for four days.

Per the LA Times, the lane closings were orchestrated by deputy chief of staff Bridget Anne Kelly telling David Wildstein, a Port Authority official and Christie appointee, that it was “time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee.”  On its face, the lane closings appear to be politically motivated and utterly malicious, but the reasons for the debacle are not clear.  It has been suggested that the aids sought revenge against Mayor Mark Sokolich of Fort Lee for refusing to endorse Christie for re-election.

Following the lane closings, Sokolich's requests for assistance were ignored.

These actions by Christie's allies were more than mean-spirited, they appear downright criminal as well.  These folks should be relocated to the nearest jail cell, in my opinion.  Using the power of the state to punish political opponents smacks of tyranny.

Here's a USA Today video that explains the lane closings with pictures and graphics.

Here is the article from the L.A. Times that also explains the story.

Tax Season Has Grabbed Me By The Butt

The tax season is upon me and suddenly I am stretched thin and not enjoying it.  So blogging has been light this week.  

San Francisco Forty-Niners Beat Green Bay Packers, Advance to Next Round of Playoffs

It was rumored to become the coldest NFL playoff game in history.  It wasn't, but it was definitely cold in Green Bay, Wisconsin as the Packers played the San Francisco Forty-Niners for the right to advance to the next round of the playoffs.

The Niners won a close contest, 23-20, and will play the Carolina Panthers next week.   The winner of that game will play either the Seattle Seahawks or the New Orlean Saints for the NFC championship, on January 19.

The winner of the NFC championship will play the AFC champion in the Super Bowl on February 2nd.  The AFC champion will be one of the following: the Indianapolis Colts, the New England Patriots, the San Diego Chargers, or the Denver Broncos.  See graph below for the playoff sequence.

As a Forty-Niner fan, I'd love to see the team get another crack at a Super Bowl championship; but they first have to beat the Panthers, who are a very good team.  That game will take place one week from today, on January 12, 2014, and the Panthers have home field advantage.

I got myself properly confused earlier, so I made a graphic on the remaining games to make some sense of the playoff schedule.  Here it is:

Hysterical Laughter at the Ice-Bound Global Warming Believers

The global warming fanatics made fools of themselves lately, and it does my heart good.  A bunch of them took a passenger ship to the antarctic to view the melting ice shelf caused by our boiling temperatures that are caused by man-made global warming.  What they saw instead was a massive ice buildup caused by blizzard conditions.  Their ship, the Russian vessel Akademic Shokalskiy, became ice-bound and couldn't move.  A Chinese ice breaker attempted rescue, but it too became ice-bound and unable to move  So the climate scientists froze their buns off from Christmas day to January 2nd, when they were finally rescued by a helicopter.


Sources:
Here and here.

The Growing Death Toll From Islam

Here are the statistics on modern Islamic murder.

For a more complete list of modern Islamic atrocities, see Religion of Peace, here.

This post also does not take into account the daily death toll throughout the Middle East, with Muslims killing other Muslims, or the ongoing genocide against non-Muslims in the Sudan, where around two million have died in the past 17 years -- see here for more information.

Conclusions:  Islam is one messed-up "religion," and it should be banned from all Western nations.  Islam kills people, lots of people, all the time.

A Weird Trick to Avoid Online Scams

I detest gimmicky and deceptive advertising.  One of the latest memes is the "weird trick" gambit.  We've all seen these online ads that promise miraculous results with "one weird trick."  When I see them, my B.S. detector goes off at full tilt.

Some examples:  Increase your social security payment with this "one weird trick."  Never diet again by eating this "one weird food."  Guitar teachers hate me for this "one weird trick."  Learn a foreign language in ten days with this "one weird trick."  Cut down on belly fat by using this "one weird trick."  Stop diabetes with this "one weird food."   AAAARRRRGGGGHHH!!!

Here is my "one weird trick" to avoid scams and B.S.:  don't ever click on any link that uses the term "one weird trick" as a selling point or come-on.

People tend to be intrigued by "secret knowledge," magical amulets, formulas for solving their problems, finding the key to some magic door that leads to bliss.  Don't be fooled.

Well there is one exception:  If you like your health insurance plan, you can keep it with this one weird trick:  VOTE REPUBLICAN.

A Red Sports Car in the Rain (Photoshop)

I found the best raindrops-on-glass tutorial here, and my application of it is below.

There are a lot of "raindrops" tutorials on the web, and at least half of them are just awful.  This one was therefore a pleasant surprise.

Homosexuality: The Straight Dope (via Taki Magazine)

Elizabeth McCaw has written a common sense article at Taki Magazine on the subject of homosexuality, The Straight Dope on Homosexuality.  McCaw attempts to be objective on a subject that causes strong emotions in many, and she largely succeeds.  I find that I closely agree with her observations and conclusions.  Some of her major points are below, with my comments in red:

1.  That homosexuality is a perversion as that term is defined.  Therefore, those who want to attach that label to the condition are correct. [Many if not most people who apply that term to gays, do so as a derogatory expression. Their intent is to wound rather than to be linguistically precise.] 

2.  That homosexuality appears to be inborn and involuntary, and therefore persecution of homosexuals accomplishes nothing.  [This is my position exactly.  Persecution of gays only creates more Democrats, and nothing else.  Many who dispute that homosexuality is in-born do so to preserve their prejudices.]

3.  That homosexuality is a defect, not a cause for celebration.  McCaw writes:

How should we view homosexuality? It should be treated as a naturally occurring defect, much like deafness or diabetes or asthma. We don’t blame people for these conditions or persecute them, but we don’t treat them like heroes, either. City governments do not vote money for asthma pride day. It is strange and unhealthy to celebrate defects as if they were accomplishments.

[Again, this is my position exactly.] 

4.  That homosexuality has many negatives related to physical and mental health, and same-sex unions are less stable than those between heterosexual couples.  [A fact that supports the view, which I share, that homosexuality is an undesirable condition, for which I hope a cure will be found at some time in the future.]
 
I am paraphrasing McCaw above, so do read her article, here.

Taki Magazine has been routinely excoriated by the leftist gatekeepers of our culture, and those who write articles for it slammed as racists and bigots.  For that reason, I avoided it for many years, but today I linked to the magazine.  I will continue to disagree with some of its paleoconservative views (because they resemble liberalism to me), but Taki Magazine has much to offer for anyone in pursuit of truth, logic and common sense.

New Year's Resolutions

My goals for 2014:

1.  To make significant progress in the following areas of primary importance:

• Photoshop - Using and creating brushes, patterns and textures, mastering the various types of layers
• Playing Bass - 

1. Increase my repertoire by learning at least one new song each week 
2. Learn to play more jazz and jazz swing
3. Increase my use of the standup acoustic bass, 
4. Sing more with a band; sing while playing bass
5. Increase frequency of solo practice -- one hour each day, minimum.

2.  Blogging -  

• Blog more frequently, try for daily postings
• Stop trying to be friends with certain bloggers who just don't seem to like me; provide support and links to others who do; find new friends and allies in the blogosphere 
• Improve my blog content so that it appeals to more readers
• Back up my blog monthly, to avoid losing content should enemies try to shut me down

3.  Other Goals -

• To extricate myself from accounting and taxes so I can focus on more interesting pursuits
• To refurbish and restore my 1966 Volkswagen Bug
• To exercise more by taking a daily walk of two miles, slowly increasing the distance
• To lose another ten pounds (twenty if possible)
• To continue my studies of the French and Spanish languages, by reading more blogs, articles and even books in these languages.