I knew someone who did commodities trading for a bit. They'd rent a desk and a computer with a bunch of screens and a hardcore fast hookup direct to the trading setup and sit all day watching the screen for interesting gaps in the bid/offer spread.
Then when the ag reports came out everyone in the room would be listening and a single word would cause big spike gaps and they'd trade in that second.
Two things: you ain't beating computers doing this, and guess who was making the money? Yeah, the people renting you the desk and the other shit.
Would agree with everything but the analogy. Each of the characters, excepting John, is damned smart. Other than career ass kissers, I don’t recall anyone accusing you know who of that.
I was in safeway yesterday buying onions and panko and also stuff for glühwein and I wanted some eggs as well.
Fucking egg cabinet had been picked over like we're back in the goddamn pandemic again. What the fuck is up with people? Do you think prices are going up? Have you finally realized that TFA isn't going to help? Are you now, post-election, aware that there's a nasty strain of bird flu out there killing the chickens?
This is probably nationwide. Entire flocks of chickens are being sacrificed, amounting to four million birbs last time I heard, because they are getting infected with H5N1 (birb flu).
No eggs to be had at my market either. It's a former membership wholesale market, Smart&Final, that used to cater to restaurants, but they opened their doors to the public around 20 years ago and it's not the same. The option is Vons, and I hate that place. I still have four eggs in the fridge, that's enough for a couple more weeks.
Ok, gonna peace out for the day. The painting that I did for the upcoming show sold so I have to do something else now. I don't really hate when that happens but FUCK! All of you be kind to one another. We have each other to keep us sane and that is a blessing to me.
How many of these dingbats even have jobs which are possibly threatened by H1B workers?
"This nonimmigrant classification applies to people who wish to perform services in a specialty occupation, services of exceptional merit and ability."
Well OK. I managed to convince Mom to stay home and watch Hamilton on Disney rather than drive herself and Dad an hour through heavy rain and a possible tornado to see it live. Bit of a step down, I know, but probably for the best.
Like a lot of older folks, Mom's driving is ... not what it used to be, and I've kind of quietly taken over chauffeuring them when I can, so this is a bit of a load off my mind. Chalk it up as one of life's little victories. 🥳
Both a cousin and my brother were here for Christmas. I am sure they are at least legally blind, but they are still driving. "If my license doesn't expire for two years, then I can still drive". I have advised my brother to have cataract surgery which he can have now that he has new insurance effective 1/1/25. My 88 year old cousin, however, is just plain scary. South Carolina thinks she should go have an eye exam (Yay! S.C.!) but they only sent her a postcard (boo!). Well, maybe she won't drive into someone's living room. With a little luck she'll run a red light and get pulled over. A cop will see her blinking and trying to focus. As an old fart, I understand the resentment of people telling me what to do at every turn, but as a citizen, I don't want my relative to kill anyone.
Giving up the freedom inherent in being able to drive where you want, when you want, is one of the hardest decisions any elderly person will confront, particularly if they live where there is no available public transportation.
Yeah. We had to take away Dad's license about five years ago due to cognitive decline, including three accidents in two years -- none serious, but the last one involved another vehicle, so that was that. Sent him into a year-long depression (we eventually adopted a new cat, which helped).
Mom's eyesight is still good and she's mentally fit, so she's mostly OK behind the wheel, but she increasingly tends to drive by habit and assume she knows what's happening around her even when it's clear she doesn't -- there have been a few close calls. Thank the goddess for lane assist and backup cameras, but even so, I really get antsy when she's out during bad weather or after dark.
Anyway, I'm gonna make some popcorn and sing along to "The Room Where It Happens" now. Cheers!
I made one for my brother who had a stroke that compromised his vision to the point he cannot drive and he loved getting his mobility back for store trips and visiting friends within 10 miles or so.
Looks like FUN!, but I have not had any thoughts of self-harm, so I view that bike with awe, and I hope the17 year old who gets one has a helmet because those young skulls are so soft. What is needed with that trike is a Hoyer Lift so that the rider can be lifted from reclining to some aspect of upright. We sold our very pretty Camry Hybrid and bought a Volvo XC90 plug in because getting in and out of the Camry meant rolling out on to the ground and sort of climbing to an upright position. Not at all classy, and it draws the attention of nice people who are determined to help.
There is a small city out on the coast that had two different high schools. One was the boarding school about 5 miles out of town where the Native students from nearby villages attended, and the Native kids from the city were bussed out there as day students. It was not in great repair.
And then BIA funds came available to rebuild it, and a beautiful facility was built for them, and then suddenly everybody whose kids attended the town school remembered the discrimination on the basis of race was illegal. And so the schools were merged into one, and all the students were bussed out to the new school, and the name of the new school was changed to the town school, and the students voted on which mascot they were going to use, and since the town kids outnumbered the other kids, that was kind of a forgone conclusion.
Yesterday I glanced through an article about a university in Ohio that was getting rid of a gender studies program and getting rid of DEI and “woke“ and yes, they used that term, programs. And I was fantasizing about some billionaires, deciding to leave all their money or gift all their money, which would be even better because then they would have the fun of seeing what happened, to HBCU’s, and then I remembered what happened to that high school, and I don’t even know how that would play out.
There is nothing wrong with retaining a share of immense wealth for yourself and family, but who needs $50 billion in assets? Or a 300 foot long yacht, four or five mansions, and a mid size jet. Especially if you are only paying a 3% income tax rate due to loopholes and financial tricks. It's no different than stealing.
That was exactly what came to mind when doing the capital gain calculation for a very modest stock sale. It didn't really excite me enough to do any day trading, though.
Seems billionaires only want to donate to causes that benefit said billionaires. (With the exception of two women who have attracted elNO's ire of late)
Gaza’s Health Ministry said Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, was arrested Friday along with dozens of other staff and taken to an interrogation center. The ministry said Israeli troops stormed the hospital and forced many staff and patients outside and told them to strip in winter weather, according to the ministry.
In the past few months United Nations-sponsored negotiations to tackle climate change, plastic pollution, loss of global species and a growing number of deserts have either outright failed or come out with limited outcomes that didn’t address the scale of the problems.
I keep thinking that the Bible says that god killed all life on the planet other than the 8 people and the various animals on the Ark (why did they bring mosquitoes on the Ark???? ). God promised not to ever do it again. And yet here we are, destroying the planet all on our own without any help or hindrance from any god.
Thanks everyone!
We have a special event coming up. 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫'𝐬 𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝐌𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐞: 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐭 𝟒𝐩𝐦 𝐄𝐓 as recommended by Rebecca! https://open.substack.com/pub/ziggywiggy/p/new-years-day-wonkette-movie-matinee?r=2knfuc&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
Followed up on 𝐉𝐚𝐧. 𝟒𝐭𝐡 𝐌𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐞 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐢𝐟𝐭𝐡 𝐄𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭.
Two Classics! I'm in!
I'm totally in for trading places and maybe the fifth element.
I'm totally in for fifth element and maybe Trading Places.
So between the two of us we're watching Fifth Places and Trading Element.
How can you pass up on Gary Oldman?
He's so good in that. It's just that I'm more likely to be around on Wednesday rather than Saturday.
He plays Elon Musk PERFECTLY!
"Well, it sounds to me like you guys are a couple of bookies."
I knew someone who did commodities trading for a bit. They'd rent a desk and a computer with a bunch of screens and a hardcore fast hookup direct to the trading setup and sit all day watching the screen for interesting gaps in the bid/offer spread.
Then when the ag reports came out everyone in the room would be listening and a single word would cause big spike gaps and they'd trade in that second.
Two things: you ain't beating computers doing this, and guess who was making the money? Yeah, the people renting you the desk and the other shit.
Both great movies!
Starring Senator Franken.
"sometimes it's longer, and sometimes it's shorter..."
One of my favorites is Hepburn saying “In a world where carpenters get resurrected, everything is possible.”
Would agree with everything but the analogy. Each of the characters, excepting John, is damned smart. Other than career ass kissers, I don’t recall anyone accusing you know who of that.
Jamie Lee Curtis durned near nekkid.
Yeah, I'll watch that again.
This movie might be ok if it had some decent actors in it. /s
I was in safeway yesterday buying onions and panko and also stuff for glühwein and I wanted some eggs as well.
Fucking egg cabinet had been picked over like we're back in the goddamn pandemic again. What the fuck is up with people? Do you think prices are going up? Have you finally realized that TFA isn't going to help? Are you now, post-election, aware that there's a nasty strain of bird flu out there killing the chickens?
I despair.
This is probably nationwide. Entire flocks of chickens are being sacrificed, amounting to four million birbs last time I heard, because they are getting infected with H5N1 (birb flu).
No eggs to be had at my market either. It's a former membership wholesale market, Smart&Final, that used to cater to restaurants, but they opened their doors to the public around 20 years ago and it's not the same. The option is Vons, and I hate that place. I still have four eggs in the fridge, that's enough for a couple more weeks.
Oh, I quite like Smart & Final. I had no idea until recently that the people who started it really were called "Smart" and "Final".
Vons can suckle my nards.
OT
Ziggywiggy, did you see this?
https://www.instagram.com/art_dailydose/reel/DEIdi5TCBGc/
Performance art featuring pigeons!
That's hilarious, I love it!
Ok, gonna peace out for the day. The painting that I did for the upcoming show sold so I have to do something else now. I don't really hate when that happens but FUCK! All of you be kind to one another. We have each other to keep us sane and that is a blessing to me.
You need to invent carbon paper for paint so when you paint one painting, you get a second copy of it.
Congrats on the sale....
That's the best thing we can for each other right now - keep each other sane.
Enjoy a relaxing day!
Missed one yesterday. The great Pops Staples, born on Dec 28, 1914. Here's the Staples Singers and "A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrfcxBaaERs
Sorry to hear that. “I‘ll Take You There” is one of the best basslines of all time.
That was David Hood, one of the regulars in the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, who are all on the recording.
Thanks for the clarification.
Dipshits finally realize we were right about Enlo
https://substack.com/profile/155630927-fukuisanyesota/note/c-83506390?utm_source=notes-share-action&r=2knplb
Money quote: "The left was right"
Yeah, we're correct on most stuff, you pig-ignorant jamboree of slackjawed fascists. How are the price of eggs, btw?
🤣😂😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣
What morons.
Oh dear the genocidal MAGAt orcs might become so enraged by $hitler's betrayals that they stage yet another fake assassination attempt : )
It was fine until it happened to ME!
Do leopards actually exist?
How many of these dingbats even have jobs which are possibly threatened by H1B workers?
"This nonimmigrant classification applies to people who wish to perform services in a specialty occupation, services of exceptional merit and ability."
They are reportedly claiming to do my job (title examination) from Mumbai already. Good luck to them!
You don’t need one to sit in your mom’s basement rage tweeting that’s for sure.
I don't see any criticism of the orange pustule there. NO kudos for them.
The next one is about him.
https://substack.com/@fukuisanyesota/note/c-83507854?utm_source=notes-share-action&r=2knplb
So close to getting it. We told them, again and again, but no, they wanted to see what they wanted to see.
SO close. Jeez what a bunch of idiots.
And now it'll be four years of "waaaah he's doing stuff I don't like! I regret my vote" and we have to put up with them playing the victim yet again.
No mercy. Fuck 'em all. Everyone with a functioning prefrontal cortex knew what Fantler was like.
EXACTLY! They don't deserve anything more than "I TOLD YOU SO" from me. No sympathy, no compassion. They did this to us ALL.
"Grow a brain stem"
"Whose brain was it"?
"Abby someone."
Well OK. I managed to convince Mom to stay home and watch Hamilton on Disney rather than drive herself and Dad an hour through heavy rain and a possible tornado to see it live. Bit of a step down, I know, but probably for the best.
Like a lot of older folks, Mom's driving is ... not what it used to be, and I've kind of quietly taken over chauffeuring them when I can, so this is a bit of a load off my mind. Chalk it up as one of life's little victories. 🥳
I long for the day they take my car keys. "Well, I guess someone else will have to go grocery shopping while I go walk around the harbor."
Both a cousin and my brother were here for Christmas. I am sure they are at least legally blind, but they are still driving. "If my license doesn't expire for two years, then I can still drive". I have advised my brother to have cataract surgery which he can have now that he has new insurance effective 1/1/25. My 88 year old cousin, however, is just plain scary. South Carolina thinks she should go have an eye exam (Yay! S.C.!) but they only sent her a postcard (boo!). Well, maybe she won't drive into someone's living room. With a little luck she'll run a red light and get pulled over. A cop will see her blinking and trying to focus. As an old fart, I understand the resentment of people telling me what to do at every turn, but as a citizen, I don't want my relative to kill anyone.
Cataract surgery cost me an eye. Careful what you wish for!
I had both eyes done with no problems. You are the first person who has mentioned problems to me.
It’s rare, but it happened to me. I’ll die mad about it, too.
I wasn't diminishing the loss. That's terrible, but at the same time, it's rare.
Giving up the freedom inherent in being able to drive where you want, when you want, is one of the hardest decisions any elderly person will confront, particularly if they live where there is no available public transportation.
Yeah. We had to take away Dad's license about five years ago due to cognitive decline, including three accidents in two years -- none serious, but the last one involved another vehicle, so that was that. Sent him into a year-long depression (we eventually adopted a new cat, which helped).
Mom's eyesight is still good and she's mentally fit, so she's mostly OK behind the wheel, but she increasingly tends to drive by habit and assume she knows what's happening around her even when it's clear she doesn't -- there have been a few close calls. Thank the goddess for lane assist and backup cameras, but even so, I really get antsy when she's out during bad weather or after dark.
Anyway, I'm gonna make some popcorn and sing along to "The Room Where It Happens" now. Cheers!
This is why I'm looking at electric three-wheeler bicycles. I know I couldn't control a car at any speed. Slow reflexes.
I made one for my brother who had a stroke that compromised his vision to the point he cannot drive and he loved getting his mobility back for store trips and visiting friends within 10 miles or so.
DRIFTER TRIKE!
https://www.epicwheelz.com/products/fiik-drifter-electric-drift-trike?variant=6403088613408&country=US¤cy=USD&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&com_cvv=8fb3d522dc163aeadb66e08cd7450cbbdddc64c6cf2e8891f6d48747c6d56d2c
Looks like FUN!, but I have not had any thoughts of self-harm, so I view that bike with awe, and I hope the17 year old who gets one has a helmet because those young skulls are so soft. What is needed with that trike is a Hoyer Lift so that the rider can be lifted from reclining to some aspect of upright. We sold our very pretty Camry Hybrid and bought a Volvo XC90 plug in because getting in and out of the Camry meant rolling out on to the ground and sort of climbing to an upright position. Not at all classy, and it draws the attention of nice people who are determined to help.
You can slide sideways to your destination!
There is a small city out on the coast that had two different high schools. One was the boarding school about 5 miles out of town where the Native students from nearby villages attended, and the Native kids from the city were bussed out there as day students. It was not in great repair.
And then BIA funds came available to rebuild it, and a beautiful facility was built for them, and then suddenly everybody whose kids attended the town school remembered the discrimination on the basis of race was illegal. And so the schools were merged into one, and all the students were bussed out to the new school, and the name of the new school was changed to the town school, and the students voted on which mascot they were going to use, and since the town kids outnumbered the other kids, that was kind of a forgone conclusion.
Yesterday I glanced through an article about a university in Ohio that was getting rid of a gender studies program and getting rid of DEI and “woke“ and yes, they used that term, programs. And I was fantasizing about some billionaires, deciding to leave all their money or gift all their money, which would be even better because then they would have the fun of seeing what happened, to HBCU’s, and then I remembered what happened to that high school, and I don’t even know how that would play out.
Meet Charles Feeney
Charles Feeney, Who Made a Fortune and Then Gave It Away, Dies at 92 https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/09/business/charles-f-feeney-dead.html?unlocked_article_code=1.lE4.N1F9.C8w-wvOAXpCA
Whoa! Good 'Ol Uncle Chuck?
There is nothing wrong with retaining a share of immense wealth for yourself and family, but who needs $50 billion in assets? Or a 300 foot long yacht, four or five mansions, and a mid size jet. Especially if you are only paying a 3% income tax rate due to loopholes and financial tricks. It's no different than stealing.
That was exactly what came to mind when doing the capital gain calculation for a very modest stock sale. It didn't really excite me enough to do any day trading, though.
Thank you, I needed that.
Seems billionaires only want to donate to causes that benefit said billionaires. (With the exception of two women who have attracted elNO's ire of late)
There are more. We just don’t talk about them.
https://www.npr.org/2022/09/15/1123104499/patagonia-founder-climate-change
I know there are just seems like not enough of them. (the Patagonia founder was a mensch!
𝗜𝘀𝗿𝗮𝗲𝗹 𝗱𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗻𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗚𝗮𝘇𝗮’𝘀 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗱
https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-news-12-28-2024-57e00c5b1e72503e02a9cfd8d8ab64f8
Gaza’s Health Ministry said Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, was arrested Friday along with dozens of other staff and taken to an interrogation center. The ministry said Israeli troops stormed the hospital and forced many staff and patients outside and told them to strip in winter weather, according to the ministry.
https://substack.com/@mvario/note/c-83510632?r=68h2g
Acknowledge, cannot upvote.
Sadly, we have more frequent need for The Reluctant Upfist of Acknowledgement.
This
Longtime Devo drummer Alan Myers is 70 today. Here's the band playing "Satisfaction":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmKQ2Z1odSc
The sound of my yute
OT: funny review of Nosferatu remake
https://boundingintocomics.com/movies/movie-reviews/nosferatu-review-excellent-cinematography-and-set-design-isnt-enough-to-sustain-the-ponderous-facile-re-remake/amp/
Love the word "facile".
I used 'solicitous' as a backhand at my ridiculous ex son in law the other day. I love that for me.
"obsequious" is another good word
Oh! Another good word!
Oooh, me too. It's not used nearly enough.
𝗖𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸𝘀 𝗳𝗶𝘇𝘇𝗹𝗲
https://apnews.com/article/united-nations-climate-biodiversity-plastics-drought-summits-failure-64b40bc06287a92d33bcdbfea4f3bf5f
In the past few months United Nations-sponsored negotiations to tackle climate change, plastic pollution, loss of global species and a growing number of deserts have either outright failed or come out with limited outcomes that didn’t address the scale of the problems.
There won't be a climate as long as we have a Donald, because a Donald does not allow anything to have more attention than himself . . .
Shitnuts McGee conflates climate with "clean air and water" over and over again ...
... then doesn't even get that bit right
I keep thinking that the Bible says that god killed all life on the planet other than the 8 people and the various animals on the Ark (why did they bring mosquitoes on the Ark???? ). God promised not to ever do it again. And yet here we are, destroying the planet all on our own without any help or hindrance from any god.
The rainbow was YHVH's way of saying, "Next time, it'll be by fire!"
That blows.
This makes me sad. More evidence that we are sliding backwards.