Starbase Update, 7/9/25

NASA SpaceFlight Channel on YouTube

 

@6:22 mark, there's the ship static fire adapter--- not enough info here on how that is going to be worked out

The plot thickens?

7/9/25:

 

It may be a bunch of weasel words, but if the DOJ found no evidence, then that is all that they have to say. The absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.

 

If you can't prove the charges then what are you supposed to say? You can run hearings until you're blue in the face. If someone is determined enough, they can whitewash the thing so clean that you'll never find it. It seems ridiculous to sit there and claim that the Trump DOJ is withholding evidence, or covering up anything unless you can prove it. On the other hand, if the client list does exist, an innocent explanation for its absence could exist too. Not defending any true mis-steps that may well be. But what do you expect from a corrupt government? They're not going to confess any crimes, you know.

 

7/8/25:

 

Obviously the Epstein investigation is holding back something. Obviously, Bannon has some connection with Epstein. Obviously, Bannon has a connection with Trump.

What is not obvious is whether or not that Bannon is a pedo himself. Otherwise, it is all guilt by association. If there's something I'm missing, by all means, let somebody say so. Because this proves nothing to me. Of course, I could be missing something. However, I'd prefer to have stronger evidence than this. Did Bannon go to Epstein's Island? Did Trump? If they didn't, then where is the controversy?

There actually could be a good reason to withhold information. It may protect somebody who should be held accountable, but larger issues could be involved. Sorry to disappoint. This stuff was predictable, and it is why I didn't go chasing after it for this long. Only now have I ever posted on the Epstein thing. The Epstein thing isn't going to result in any scalps, because the scalps are probably too important to be taken.

We live in a real world here, folks. I'm not condoning it. Just explaining it, or trying to.

Say it ain't so Mr. President

 

Sometimes you can get stuck on a set of assumptions that may prove to be wrong. The assumption that MAGA is really about what it says its about, and Trump is following that without fail. Is MAGA being sold out, and is just another con job? It says so here.

But what makes this hard to believe is the hysterical opposition of the political left. They LIE all the time. Surely Trump isn't lying about his core principles? Or is he? Trump is going to arm Ukraine. Weren't we done with this kind of crap?

I warned people for months that the MAGA influencer crowd would degenerate into another Con Inc scam where people would take money from the GOP establishment & corporations & foreign governments to sell out the movement.

Who was right and who was wrong?

— Emerald Robinson ✝️ (@EmeraldRobinson) July 9, 2025

Elon Musk's X won't let me embed this

 

Supposedly, X has become some sort of right-wing extremist haven. Well, if this cannot be embedded, then they've still got censorship over there.

With the politial left, censorship is TOTAL. X may have loosened up the speech a bit, but not completely.

So Musk wants us all to believe that he's the super patriot. He's not alone. From the way they're talking, the political left consider themselves the heirs of the Founding Fathers. Yep, they could be singing Yankee Doodle Dandy on July 4th. These are the same guys who want to pull down all the statues.

The political left only supports the Constitution when they're out of power. That ought to tell you something, but if you're on the left, you're only high-fiving each other for these antics when it is out of sight and out of mind. Censorship helps them hide what they're really up to.

Oops! Tried it again, and this time it worked. It happened when I got out of James Wood's thread ( I think ). It doesn't invalidate my point. This has been happening a lot. RUN YOUR BUSINESS, ELON.

pic.twitter.com/yzdrXlkCCp

— Greg Mamishian (@GregMamishian) July 8, 2025

Somebody left the cake out in the rain...

LA mayor Karen Bass is worried about gangs making a living. They don't bake cakes there... What's she really worried about, eh?

 

Remember the Time LA Mayor Karen Bass Barged Into MacArthur Park and Ordered the MS-13 to Leave? https://t.co/3SaUYnfBx9 --- Wow, the so-called "racist" Trump actually cares about McArthur Park. It's only full of gangs and such. Why can't Trump leaves the gangs alone???

— BootsandOil (@BootsandO6892) July 8, 2025

The political left is just plain crazy

7/8/25:

 

11:25 AM:

 

Just to illustrate how crazy they are, they are leaving themselves open to an accusation of sabotage in the drowning deaths of those girls in Kerrville Texas.

 

There's a story right here, which says that the officials in that area can't or won't answer questions about what was happening at that critical hour in which the waters were rising rapidly.

 

Could there have been a refusal to inform based upon malicious incompetence? In other words, did somebody refuse to raise the alarm when it was appropriate to do so?

 

This may be dismissed as conspiracy theorizing, but wait. Didn't the Democrats say that there needs to be BLOOD or VIOLENCE or something like that?

 

This isn't a direct accusation. Just using the situation to illustrate how foolhardy they are to talk the way they are talking. Anything that happens can caused suspicion to be directed towards them. If that happened, who would be the fault for that, hmmm????

 

 

6:59 AM:

 

Let's see: by her calculations, only white folks should care about other white folks, because white folks don't care about any colored folks. If everybody thought that way, there'd still be slavery in this country. Seems like loss of life is a universal tragedy, unless we have something like separate but equal again. If she's claiming that they're white supremacist, what is her evidence?

 

Dem Houston Mayoral Appointee, Princeton Fellow, Slams Girls Killed in Texas Flood for Going to 'White Only' Camp via @WestJournalism https://t.co/SE81pKb9Di -- Wasn't Princeton supposed to be one of those prestigious institutions? The quality of their alumni needs improvement.

— BootsandOil (@BootsandO6892) July 8, 2025

 

7/7/25:

 

No way the system is rigged against them. They're the ones setting up drum-head courts and such. Sheesh.

Democratic Lawmakers Disturbed as Their Own Voters Demand Violence: 'There Needs to Be Blood' via @WestJournalism https://t.co/nH6r3LMzTj --- The article says that some Democrats think that the system is rigged against them. That's really crazy. The system is rigged FOR them.

— BootsandOil (@BootsandO6892) July 7, 2025

Flooding down in Texas

The political left is all wet on this one. Folks are talking out their backsides on this, since they don't know the area. Floods can come up really fast. It could be a matter of minutes, and you can be in big trouble. It goes with the territory. It's like tornadoes and such. You can predict them up to a point, but not with that kind of precision. If you get caught in a bad spot, well, there's no one to blame.

 

You cannot move out of the area. Any new areas have their own issues. California has fires and earthquakes. Not so much here, but we do get floods. It goes with the territory. If you've got a thing about it, then you can roll the dice elsewhere. You pays your money and you takes your chances. It's life.

One of the crazy things that the left is pushing was covered in a previous post. The left may want these kinds of things to happen so that they can make political hay out it.   Some of their ideas involve SABOTAGE.

The idea that you can prepare for all eventualities it probably not feasible. Safety is a relative thing. Perfect safety all the time may not even be possible.

Elon Musk's Third Party

 

Trump calls third party bid "ridiculous".

History shows that a third party bid can have an impact. The GOP itself got its origins as a result of the sectional controversy that preceded the Civil War. Lincoln doesn't get elected President without the fracturing of the Democrat Party.

Woodrow Wilson got elected because former President Teddy Roosevelt's third party bid for office. The GOP party was split that time. Roosevelt got on Mt Rushmore for this???

Richard Nixon got some help from Dixiecrats when the Solid South abandoned the Democrat Party. Democrats have run hard left since then.

If you wargame it, what would be the likely outcome of a strong showing by a new party? Musk may try to peel off never-Trumpers, but Trump won't be on the ballot in 2028. In my opinion, the GOP will revert to its old ways. Therefore, I don't think it will have much of an impact. If a Trump clone comes along, it may come down to how well Trumpism plays in 2028.

The midterms won't matter. The bigger impact will be on the Electoral College. Musk may try to be a spoiler, but it won't come out well unless the Democrats split up. Nothing good can come from this for the so-called right. Musk may want to be like the Liberatarians, who have always been around.

Up the proverbial crick without a paddle

Let's get personal

This is going to be a bit of a personal post. Why make one? Well, it is being mentioned as being a personal type of post because this isn't really supposed to be Facebook. There is no need to share every damned thing with every damned body. However, that may be a bit of a flawed attitude. One thing that it could definitely be is dysfunctional. There are times when you must mention something. The trick is to know when to say when.

That time may be now, as far as this blog is concerned. So here goes.

There have been other times when I mentioned personal stuff on this blog. I shared the fact that I got diagnosed with cancer, and it was life-threatening. It might be useful to the readers to know if I should not blog anymore. On this side of eternity, one is able. On the other side, it is no longer possible. As of now, I am still around. That isn't going to be a permanent situation. Everybody has to go through this little bit of reality at some point.

There is no mention here of impending doom. However, the progress of things are in an unfavorable direction, which is unavoidable. It may be delayed for awhile, but it is inevitable at some point that it will no longer be delayed. Although doom is not imminent, at least not to my knowledge, there are some issues that are making themselves known.

One issue is a lack of mobility. It's getting harder and harder to get around. To that end, I've been casting about for solutions to this issue. There's solutions out there, but those solutions are on a continuum of feasibility.

It is always handy to have someone around. There's Wishbone, who is right next door. But he's got his problems too. Everybody does. You can ask for favors from folks, but let's face it. If you ask for favors, you will be called to do a favor from time-to-time. I don't really like to ask, but there are times. If I need a ride, I can ask. While I was still in Houston, I could get Uber to take me somewhere if I didn't want to ask. Or a cab. However, out here in the Hill Country, Uber isn't really available. Maybe that would be a possible solution if a request to send an Uber all the way out from Austin to come pick me up, but that would seem absurd. Indeed it would be.

What other solutions are available?

Personal transportation is pretty handy. I can still drive. My van is still operational. But what if it breaks down? You can get help from the insurance policy with a road service contract. In case of a breakdown, just call the service, and if you need a tow, then it is possible to use that means to get around to a repair shop. Indeed, I've done that before.

This post is getting long, so maybe I'll shorten it up a bit. There are times when you can't drive, and somebody may not be handy. Then what? If all other solutions won't work, then try a motorized device. With that in mind, I purchased a small scooter. I had one of these back in Houston. I decided I couldn't keep it anymore, and gave it away. Now I can use one again, so here we are. A small scooter may have enough range to get to a nearby grocery store. Or around this property. Actually, this property is rather large. Not large if your mobility is still good. But mine isn't.

E-bikes are a popular item these days. The scooter wasn't all that much, but it may not be good enough for all possibilities. An e-bike would have greater range than this electric scooter. It can go faster, too. Maybe a scooter would be better for really short trips, and an e-bike with a top speed of 30 mph could be good enough for longer trips.

Next up is the problem of storage. Where do I keep these gizmos? It's a bit too crowded in here for all of them, but perhaps one can be inside, and one could be in the van.

But what if the scooter breaks down? Use a cell phone, I suppose. Geez, I think I worry too much.

Flood waters prove deadly in Texas Hill Country

 

Girl's Christian Camp Washed Away: Dozens of Campers Missing as Texas Sees Devastating Floods https://t.co/2miiDK0Y5j --- Hilly areas and sudden downpours don't mix. Fast moving water really is dangerous. Too easy to underestimate the risks.

— BootsandOil (@BootsandO6892) July 6, 2025

What happened to Ship 36 and what to do about it

Use all metal containers, and pay a small weight penalty.

 

Slow motion coup d'état

7/4/25:

The Declaration of Independence... Is it out of date? There are those who act as if it has. There are those who still believe. What say you?



12/23/13:

You may have heard of Angelo Codevilla.  He wrote an article about the ruling class that Rush Limbaugh refers to from time to time.

My impression, after reading the second time, is that the ruling class is overturning the rule of law and making themselves the law itself.  Clearly in opposition to the Constitution, which is intended to be a government of law as opposed to a government of men, and thus overthrowing it as the Constitution is sovereign.

They want to rule over us, not with our consent as stated in the Declaration of Independence.  Note what they did in Utah.

They don't like us much either:

In sum, our ruling class does not like the rest of America. Most of all does it dislike that so many Americans think America is substantially different from the rest of the world and like it that way.

The rest of America is the "country class"

the country class is the other side of the ruling class's coin: its most distinguishing characteristics are marriage, children, and religious practice. While the country class, like the ruling class, includes the professionally accomplished and the mediocre, geniuses and dolts, it is different because of its non-orientation to government and its members' yearning to rule themselves rather than be ruled by others.

The ruling class is the minority, but they are organized and determined.  The country class needs to unite, or it will be forever doomed to subservience to the ruling class.  The safety is in the Constitution, which is being shredded on a daily basis, and it is no accident who is doing it, nor why.  It's the ruling class.  They are doing it for themselves regardless of what their rhetoric is to the contrary.

Making the complex more simple? Let's get to the point.

Video: Why you can't manufacture in America

Reaction: Takes too long to get to the point, and even at 15 minute mark, there's no answer to the why you can't manufacture in America.

The guy doesn't know what he is doing. But nobody else does either. This is by design.



Note: There's a lot of celebration about now with the Bill with Many Adjectives passed. There is also a lot of sad faces. AOC was doing her "silly girl" routine with a crying jag. Boo-hooey.

An ad hoc definition here of economics is the management of scarcity. Scarcity can be managed top-down, with some authority who will distribute the scarce goods according to an arbitrary system. Or goods can be managed through the price system. The latter is free, the former is not. Which is better? It seems that the free side is more productive, because people respond to incentives.

How does this relate to the point? The question is why you cannot manufacture in America. There is no incentive to do so, otherwise decision makers WOULD DECIDE to be manufacturing in America, as opposed to elsewhere. The incentives are gone.

You can't manufacture in America because to manufacture means to have self-reliance. Trading is not in the spirit of self-reliance. If you trade for your existence, then you are always dependent upon the source of supply. If the supply comes from someone else, then you are dependent upon someone else. We don't manufacture in America anymore because we lost our sense of independence. It has been drummed out of us by the decisions of the leadership. The leadership has believed that to develop dependence is a good thing, but that dependence has a downside---dwindling freedom.

Tariffs won't solve the dependency problem. Indeed, dependency is a feature, not a bug--according to policy makers. There will have to be a major reordering of the society in order to bring back manufacturing. It won't happen because most people don't want it. They prefer their bondage. Indeed, that is what the leadership wants. Whether or not they really know that they've done this is another topic.

Spidey might feel at home there

 

WE’LL BE FIGHTING GIANT MARTIAN SPIDERS, WON’T WE? NASA’s Curiosity rover takes a closer look at ‘s https://t.co/6x0AjgY91s --- Well, there was a movie in which they had to fight a spider like creature. It was called the Angry Red Planet. Saw it at the Yale Theater in Houston

— BootsandOil (@BootsandO6892) July 3, 2025

Note: This was not the strange dream I had recently.

How will the "Culture War" end?

Re-posted:

With a bang or a whimper?

Remember when the term "culture war" was popularized?  It was Pat Buchanan's speech at the Republican National Convention in 1992 that brought the term to the forefront.  Conditions seem to have gotten much, much worse.

But it really isn't a war.  Words like "war" are continually being dropped into the national conversation.  The purpose of which seems to draw attention to the one using the word.  What if one of these days, somebody threw a war, and nobody came?  What a day that would be.

People like peace and quiet.  Real wars are a messy business.  It never became popular.  Even a "good war" like World War  II was said to be, was met with monster celebrations when it was finally over.  The people who clamor for war, a real war, are in the minority.  War is never going to be popular, and rightly so.

But you have to be prepared for trouble, because trouble has a way of finding you.  The ancient Romans had a saying: if you want peace, prepare for war.  Weakness invites attack.  It is a law of nature and of war itself.  No predator will attack the strong point, but rather the weak one.  The moral being, don't be weak.

It has been noted that highly aggressive people will ignore you if you are perceived as weak.  Standing up to the bully will make him friendly, the old saying goes.

Which way the "culture war" ends is anybody's guess.  But the most optimistic scenario is one in which people are inclined to talk rather than kill each other.  People will talk when killing is not an option.

Disarming the population seems a way towards that end.  But that only leaves the most aggressive people in control.  At that point, talking will no longer be allowed.

It is a knotty problem, hard to solve, make no mistake.  But give me my opportunity for self defense, and I will be happy to take the risks.  Better to live and die free than to ever be anybody's slave.


Update of the post on 7/9/18:

Who's winning the Culture War? Maybe the so-called "right" is winning. I'm thinking that it is already lost to a certain extent. It's just a matter of how bad the loss will be. At best, we may be able to cut our losses.

She OWNS Him: As UPenn Bends the Knee, Keith Olbermann Can't Stop Crying About Riley Gaines https://t.co/W142HtiqK8 --- Culture war rages on.

— BootsandOil (@BootsandO6892) July 2, 2025