18F but at least it stopped snowing. Got about 8” from this storm. Just finished clearing the drive. Sun came out just now and it’s quite pretty!

@Steve-Miller said in About that Ford employee: $810K? Where do I sign up for a gig like that? The right heckle at the right time! But it’s great that he didn’t back down and his Union stood behind him, and only got a suspension.

Well, you can see this in HUD's new homelessness policy. Every expert knows shelter first is the prerequisite for success. HUD has overturned this methodology and slashed its budget request by 50%. People without housing will not be able to proceed to rehabilitation, jobs, or any meaningful change in life circumstances. They will eventually end up dead for a myriad of reasons. They will also be de facto criminals according to an executive order and jailed. It won't actually matter if they are mentally ill, drug addicts, mentally ill and addicted to drugs, or among the many people of all age groups, in all states, who can no longer afford the cost of living. .

Thanks, both!

Yes, nice. I especially like the respect to those awarded a US Medal of Honor; even a 4 star general salutes the holder first.

Mr wtg tried two different statins and had the muscle pain (and other side effects). He switched to an OTC product with plant sterols and stanols (Cholestoff Plus) that isn't a statin but that does reduce cholesterol very nicely. Problem solved!

Our cat in Hawaii bonded with Not Me instantly. And when we went to sign the papers and then came to get her she was running to the enclosure's metal door to greet him and be taken home. She was nine weeks, fostered, and gentle. The other cats were literally climbing up the walls. She eventually took his side in an argument we had before leaving Hawaii. She actually blamed me for everything. A cat. It was intense. I'll either have a cat like Mik describes (Mik, what a blessing!) or I won't have any cat at all or any other pet. I'm not going through that whole responsibility/ emotional journey in the discard pile again!

I can't believe that was 19 years ago... wow

New Yorker profile on Rubio. https://archive.is/ijTRX

I was rarely a read-more-than-one-book-at-a-time guy but I seem to be now. I generally have something I'm listening to, and something I'm reading in bed at night. In the last week I finished Andrew Ross Sorkin's 1929. Fantastic book. It takes you through the crash and its aftermath in narrative form, telling the story through a handful of principals. It is not an in-depth study of the depression, more about the crash and the legal aftermath and congressional action culminating in Glass Steagel. Its a pretty short book, shorter than it seemed on kindle since over half is endnotes. I was surprised when the book ended and kindle said I was only 43% of the way through. [image: 71ojtb1VxuL._AC_UF1000,1000_QL80_.jpg] I also finished listening to Chernow's new bio of Mark Twain. I enjoyed the book, and never considered putting it down, but I'm going to be honest and say it was a bit of an endurance test. (in fact I think that phrase made it into the NYT review of it). It is 1200+ pages, and the narration was 44+ hours. It could use editing down to maybe 60% of its current length. Having said all that, he was a fascinating man with a fascinating life and I'm glad I read it. I didn't know all that much about him. There are two Mark Twin houses in Connecticut that operate as museums, I may go see them at some point. [image: Mark_Twain_by_Ron_Chernow.jpg]

[image: output.jpg] (I tried three times for a three cornered biretta but this freebie image generator must not be religiously inclined)

"he is seen and heard talking to a woman he had met for a date...." We know what he was thinking!

Coincidentally, I just mentioned the AI hallucination issue on the other post.

Will believe it when it happens.

Here's Gemini's description of an AI hallucination. They're real, and not rare. An AI hallucination occurs when a Large Language Model (LLM)—like the one I am—generates information that is factually incorrect, nonsensical, or entirely fabricated, yet presents it with high confidence. Because these models are designed to be fluent and helpful, they often "fill in the blanks" when they lack specific data, creating responses that sound plausible but have no basis in reality.

Love that show!

Well, the Saturday Night Massacre didn’t do Nixon any good….