Not that I have the kind of options he apparently has but I'm the opposite. I've been moving since I was 2. I want a small place that I have an affinity for and I want to stay. I don't like moving at my age. I don't even like traveling.

@Daniel I wish I had enough money to afford both! If I could truly afford a place in the country and a place in the city--I would most likely spend most of my time in the country. So I think that's the answer. It may simply be due to the fact that I was born and grew up in the country. I know people who were born and grew up in the city and I suspect it might be hard for them to imagine living full-time in the country. But everybody is different, so who knows.

@Bernard said in NIPSCO: Capitalism at it's finest. :rolleyes: Electricity should be a public utility like it used to be before privatization. My sister-in-law got hit with an astronomical increase in her electricity bill making it $800 and a $600 propane bill to heat here house within the same few days. The electricity bill made no sense but had to be paid and she and her son had to endure a night of sub-zero temmperatures without propane to heat their house. She had to spend $600 on tires at the same time. She was not in a good mood. I didn't ask but I'm assuming she had electric space heaters so their lives were not in danger or not in too much danger. This is happening all over the US. This never happened when I was growing up.

Hi, Steve, I won't be able to separate the gloom stuff from the pleasant stuff and not post about the gloom stuff. Pease consider I'm interested in current events and political topics, but to my point, I don't have another community of informed, insightful people who I can talk to about these topics. I'm sorry I don't know how to say this in a way that would sound humble because I don't mean it to be arrogant but most people are uniformed and dumb. I appreciate your post. I will try to post less than I have about these topics. TBH, I have less and less to say because I'm feeling more and more like-- what can you say? TBH, I'm finding there are many times when I can't say what I want without cursing like a sailor. So I don't say anything because this isn't the place for a lack of decorum. Here's what I suggest-- I suggest we try to make it clear in our thread titles if a thread is about current events or politics, giving all of us the the option not to read them or to not read them on any given day.

Heh. That guy should have been locked up in jail a long time ago. I’ll never understand why he isn’t I have no interest in anything he has to say.

I have a warm spot in my heart for Minnesota as I was born there many years ago. Didn’t live there long, but we used to go back and visit relatives from time to time and I remember them as being good solid Midwestern people. I’m very glad to see them standing up for their values.

Gordon Ramsay's scrambled eggs. https://www.gordonramsayrestaurants.com/recipes/scrambled-eggs/

More judicial professorship. Judge's opinion and order regarding ICE attacking protestors. It speaks to issues regarding unconstitutional behavior on the part of government. Judge orders federal officers to stop teargassing 'Portland chicken' and other nonviolent protesters and journalists at ICE facility A federal judge in Portland, Oregon issued a temporary restraining order on Tuesday that bars federal officers from shooting or firing tear gas at nonviolent protesters and journalists outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in the city’s residential South Waterfront neighborhood. The judge's opening remarks. Amen, Your Honor. In a well-functioning constitutional democratic republic, free speech, courageous newsgathering, and nonviolent protest are all permitted, respected, and even celebrated. In an authoritarian regime, that is not the case. Our nation is now at a crossroads. We have been here before and have previously returned to the right path, notwithstanding an occasional detour. In helping our nation find its constitutional compass, an impartial and independent judiciary operating under the rule of law has a responsibility that it may not shirk. For that reason, and as more fully explained below, the Court grants Plaintiffs’ motion for a temporary restraining order. Story: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/live/2026/feb/03/donald-trump-colombia-gustavo-petro-venezuela-jeffrey-epstein-files-bill-hillary-clinton-us-politics-live-news?CMP=share_btn_url&page=with%3Ablock-6982863a8f08cce7778ed2cd#block-6982863a8f08cce7778ed2cd Full opinion and order here: https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ord.190589/gov.uscourts.ord.190589.68.0_1.pdf

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said he was "not in favor" of federalizing elections a day after President Donald Trump said on a podcast that Republicans "ought to nationalize the voting.” “That’s a constitutional issue,” Thune told a reporter who asked him about Trump's remarks. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/senate-gop-leader-john-thune-says-disagrees-trump-congress-nationalize-rcna257260 Well, unlike the orange guy, at least he knows it's a constitutional issue. And he actually said so out loud. I guess that's something. edit: Mike Johnson, OTOH, is still a complete idiot.

Thanks for that article, Bernard.

How many people have your seen try to bring """service animals""" in somewhere that clearly weren't really? How many people don't quite honestly file taxes? How many people speed when they drive or don't come to a full stop? How many people aren't quite honest when writing a resume? The list could go on...

I would not use the word "critique" to describe A.O. Scott's explanation of why Biery's order is a masterpiece of judicial writing.

Interesting. Here in Illinois, the inspections are done by a state agency and you don't pay anything. Well, except the taxes that we pay to support state government. If your car flunks you can't renew your license plates until you can pass the inspection.

Did he sleep his way to the top too?

We're getting a break! Only 40 feels like 38 tonight, 60 today and 65 tomorrow!