That Is Not Going To Buff Out

On April 30, quite a storm rolled through Oakland County.

While the winds were gusting heavily, the flight school successor to Flight 101 that currently owns N73455, a Cessna 172M, was apparently trying to move it to shelter with a tug.

Unfortunately they had decided to get it to shelter, and then tried to do so, but too late.

 

It flipped and was damaged.

A recent photo taken by a friend who saw it this week, shows it was even more substantially damaged after that first photo was taken, with the damage possibly occurring when they went to flip it back over afterwards. 

A sad end to the plane I did my first solo in.

N73455 was, verily, a flying aluminum beer bucket of bolts (with non-essential pieces of the interior consistently falling off).  

So much so, that at least one local DPE had consistently refused to ever do a checkride in it (and all the other aircraft in that flight school) because of its condition.

But for all that, it was still a great and smooth flying aircraft.  When you were a student and didn't know any better about what condition an aircraft should be in, it was great. 

So farewell to N73455, she had a rough life, and wasn't cared for as she should have been, and her life was ended due to the same neglect she suffered all her life as a flight school aircraft.  

For all that, she always flew true, and gave many a student pilot their first thrilling gateway to a future of flying.  

When You Impeach President Trump And Still Lose The Support Of The Progressive Left

Congressman Shri Thanedar's performative impeachment action of President Trump, intended to shore up the progressive wing of support in his Democrat-lock district has failed, bigly.

The Detroit Free Press: Rep. Rashida Tlaib endorses Donavan McKinney in Democratic race against Shri Thanedar

There are two strikes against Thannedar:

1.  He's not pro-terrorist so he lost the "progressive" Islamist and Arab vote; and

2.  He's not Black.  Yes, Democrats are all about race. He's in a solidly Democrat Black district, and the Black Democrat powers-that-be want a Black representative.

Congressman Thanedar needs a T-shirt that reads: 

 "I filed impeachment articles against Trump, and all I got was this lousy t-shirt."

Nice Plate There

Well done, Doctor.

 

 

The new model Odyssey TARDIS Edition by Honda.

AG Nessel Folds To Her Progressive Base

The Detroit Free Press: Michigan AG Dana Nessel drops all charges against U-M pro-Palestinian protesters

In yet another example of two-tier justice when Democrats are in  charge, Attorney general Dana Nessel has dropped all charges against the pro-Hamas protestors at University of Michigan.

One cannot imagine her doing so for non-leftist approved criminal acts during protests.

Since she is most likely be running for a US Senate seat this year, she had to shore up her leftist progressive base by supporting the pro-Hamas wing, and this is the result.

Flying - A Solo Brunch Flight To Jackson

The weather was perfect for flying today.

Light winds of 7-11 knots out of 080-110 at Pontiac and similar at Jackson.

So I get the Archer all pre-flighted and was soon had picked up flight following and was up and away. 

Over the auto proving grounds I went.

 Sky was completely clear, and I got routed around some glider activity by Detroit Approach on the way to Jackson.

The heading change put me right due East to Jackson and I soon had the airport in sight.

 

I told Approach I had the ATIS and Jackson in sight, and was told to contact the Tower.  Called them up and they set me up to enter the right downwind for Runway 7.

Entered the downwind, turned base and landed on Runway 7 a tad fast and long, yet smooth. Not my best visual approach by any means, but it worked. I got to report a bunch of ducks waddling across  the runway for the next pilot who was about to take off.   No ducks were harmed during the landing nor the other plane's takeoff.

Had a nice brunch, albeit with quite a wait as they were slammed with people for Mother's Day, and then headed back to the plane and did a pre-flight before departure. 

Jackson Tower was having radio issues with their Tower frequency so they kept me on Ground for the takeoff clearance.  No problems, and they even set me up with flight following.  Always a great and friendly bunch at Jackson Tower.

A nice departure and I headed straight out from Runway 7 towards Pontiac.  

I then flew past Brighton airport.

 Flight following was useful as Detroit Approach warned me of some traffic, and then, as I got closer to Pontiac, requested I descend from 5,500 to 3,500 for traffic, and I was happy to oblige that request.  So, I descended earlier than expected but it was fine and actually got me in a nice position for the approach to landing.

Then I got handed over to Pontiac Tower who had me head straight in for Runway 9R, which I did. For practice, I backed up my visual approach with the RNAV 9R approach, and did an excellent and smooth landing. I mean, it was a very nice landing.

Then they had me roll down the runway to Juliet taxiway, cross Runway 9L without delay, and back to the hangar I went.

A great day to fly.

That's 1.5 and a good landing and a great landing. 

Chat GPT - Don't Trust, But Verify

Chat GPT as a large language model AI that is supposed to make your research easier.

Just for fun, I decided to give it a try and asked it a legal question regarding a point of law on a case I'm working on. 

The answer is known to lawyers quite well as it is a pretty basic property principal that a possessing joint owner of a property does not owe rent to a non-possessor joint owner except under certain circumstances.

Finding Michigan state case law on this principle is somewhat difficult - because everyone knows the rule so there really hasn't been cases litigating it (there's some good cases on this situation when they are tenants in common but that's not the same as a joint tenancy).

So, I asked Chat GPT the question and it came back with the rule as expected, that rent isn't owed except under certain circumstances, and very quickly, too. 

It also came back with two Michigan cases with quotes supporting this rule - complete with very nice authoritative and proper legal cites to the two cases it helpfully cited.

Which do not exist.

Nor do the quotes themselves exist. 

Yes, I checked.

The citations, while looking completely correct, do not go to the case names Chat GPT identified as the cases, but to other totally unrelated cases, and those case names themselves either do not exist or are cases with completely different citations and for completely unrelated issues.

Chat GPT completely made up two case quotes and legal citations to them, probably trying to be helpful.

It's a good thing I did not blindly accept such good sounding quotes as factual but tried to verify them on a proper legal research tool.  I'm rather suspicious like that, and as an attorney you can never use made up cases to support your position.

Chat GPT is certainly not ready for prime time when it comes to legal research and I would be rather skeptical of it being an authoritative source for anything else without using it as a springboard to find verifiable and authoritative sources. 

Caveat usor. 

Compare and Contrast - Ages and Stages

The [Democrat-dominated] Michigan Supreme Court has now ruled that 19 and 20 year olds murderers cannot be sentenced to life without parole for their crimes.  This is an increase from the prior 18 and under ruling that barred life without parole for those 18 and under.

MiLive: No mandatory life sentences for 19- and 20-year-olds, Michigan Supreme Court rules

600 (yes, six hundred) 19-20 year old murderers in Michigan will now need to be re-sentenced.

The ruling is based on the idea that even 19-20 year old's brains are not fully developed and thus its unfair to impose a life sentence for a decision they made then:

The central arguments for exempting juveniles and young adults from mandatory life sentences has been that their brains are simply less developed, their character less fixed and their control over their environments more limited than is true for adult offenders.

“Children have a ‘lack of maturity and an underdeveloped sense of responsibility,’ leading to recklessness, impulsivity, and heedless risk-taking,” the United States Supreme Court wrote in 2012 in Miller v. Alabama, ruling that sentencing juveniles to life without parole constituted cruel and unusual punishment.

Yet, also in Michigan, a person with an brain that is, verily as determined by law, simply less developed can get "gender affirming care"  and irreversibly change their bodies at a far younger age than that.

The Detroit News:  Trans kids' treatment can start younger, new guidelines say

With puberty blockers permitted to be taken in Michigan at as young as 8 years of age, and hormone treatments at 14, not to mention surgery - far, far below the "recklessness, impulsivity, and heedless risk-taking" of a 19-20 year old. 

But, it's totes ok to impose a life sentence on children with irreversible changes to their bodies.

The lack of consistency is rather impressive.

The Houthis FA'd And Now They FO.

So the Houthis launched a ballistic missile that hit nearby to Israel's main airport, the missile's likely intended target. Thankfully, there were no deaths but 8 injuries were reported from the attack.

So Israel, in response, just destroyed the Houthis' main sea port and airport, preventing two easy access points from being used to funnel in more missiles to the Houthis from Iran. 

We will see if the Houthis learn anything from this, or if they need to find out further.

Jai Hind

So it looks like India has finally had enough of Pakistan's FA, and is having them FO the cost of having proxy Islamic terrorist groups attack India.

After Pakistan has been funding, sheltering, and using not-really-deniable terrorist groups as proxies, the Indians have finally had enough.

AP:  India-Pakistan Live: Islamabad vows retaliation after India's 'Operation Sindoor' strikes kill 26

Pakistan's latest supported terrorist group's terrorist attack in April was a step too far for India to tolerate.  Pakistan had been the supplier and base for the Mumbai attacks and countless others and they've gotten away without retaliation for doing so.

Until now.

India hit terrorist training sites in Pakistan in response to the latest attack. Part of this is due to India's new more friendly relationship with the United States and both nations troubles with Islamic terrorism.  The USA had long backed Pakistan over India as India was semi-involved/kinda sorta/it's complicated,  in the Soviet sphere of influence, but that support has worm thin, especially as Pakistan was supporting the Taliban against us in Afghanistan.

This does up the stakes, as Pakistan and India have had open warfare before and as each side has nuclear weapons things can get out of hand unless overall deterrence is reestablished.

However, a relationship where Pakistan can continue to send terrorists over the border to attack Indian civilians without any response is no longer tenable or acceptable, nor should it have been. 

Pakistan has long organized, trained, sheltered, funded, and then sent terrorist groups over to India and then  said "Who, Us?" each time after an attack, and continued a low-level conflict.

India is no longer permitting that, which is a good thing and may just re-establish an overall deterrence to have Pakistan stop the continued attacks when there is a cost imposed on Pakistan for these acts.  

It's a high-risk situation, but the current status quo of ignoring Pakistani responsibility for the myriad of terrorist attacks is not acceptable to India, nor should it be.

May The 4th Be With You!

 

Spring Cleaning With TSP

As part of the results of hair-shirt environmentalism and enshittfication of everything you likely have noticed that your clothes are not as clean as they used to be some years ago, even as you've had to buy high-efficiency washing machines and detergent.

 This is because environmentalists and progressives worked to remove phosphates from laundry detergents. Clothes haven't been properly clean since.

This has not gone unnoticed: Why Everything Is Dirtier

Strangely enough, one can find trisodium phosphate,  TSP on Amazon. 

Now I'm certainly not suggesting that one should theoretically take 1/4 cup of TSP, dissolve it in hot water (beign careful not to splash it one yourself), and then add it to your laundry washing water, add detergent and then add your dirty clothes and run the laundry.

But, if you theoretically did, and again certainly not advocating doing such a thing, you might very well notice they come out one heckuva lot cleaner than without the added TSP.  

Michigan Democrats Against Securing Elections

Compare and Contrast:

The Detroit News: Proposal requiring proof of citizenship to vote falls short votes in Michigan House

and

NPR: Michigan election review finds 16 non-citizens likely voted in November 2024 presidential election

We've gone from Democrats in the state saying:  No non-citizens are voting in our elections, our elections are totes secure;

to Democrats now saying, well, at least one non-citizen voted in the 2024 election, and his ballot counted, but it's not a real problem;

to Democrats now saying at least 16 non-citizens voted in the 2024 election but it's still super rare and just fine;

One can expect Democrats to start saying it is just fine and dandy that non-citizens are voting any day now.  

Given that you can vote in  Michigan with no ID at all, using an affidavit claiming you're a citizen,  and you can vote with just a student id card - which does not establish citizenship in any way, it's a rather clear and unnecessary vulnerability. Combine it with motor voter registration, and its an open door for non-citizens to vote in this state, and other shenanigans.

But, Michigan Democrats won't close the loophole. Instead, they consistently vote against measures to prevent that happening.

Funny, that. 

Mr. Taggart, Your Dimes Have Arrived

Anybody got a dime?

The Detroit News:  Cha-ching! Millions of dimes spill onto Texas highway after truck rolls

No report as to whether a toll booth was nearby.

A Bit More Canadian Content: Hockey

So tonight, we will see if the Toronto Maple Leafs can close the deal and beat the Ottawa Senators to advance in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Playoff hockey is the best hockey. 

The Leafs took an early lead in the series winning the first three and then lost two in a row with Tuesday's loss in Game 5 being most especially egregious.

All that can be said about the 4-0 loss, including two empty net goals is:

 

So will the Leafs pull off a win tonight, or will the Curse of Harold Ballard continue? The game has now begun, so we shall see.

All I want is one Maple Leaf Cup Victory in my lifetime, which really shouldn't be too much to ask, but it hasn't happened yet, and it looks a long way still to go. 

Update:  And the Leafs win tonight 4-2 in a very hard-fought game.  Now to take on the Florida Panthers.

More On Canada

Yes, pun intended in the title.

Understand dear readers, the main element of the Canadian identity is one thing and one thing only.  It's not poutine, it's not hockey, it's not peacekeeping, its not even the reason the Geneva Convention is now referred to as the Geneva checklist. 

It is one thing and one thing only:

 They are not American. 

The Canadian psyche is locked in on differentiation from being American.

Ask them what is a Canadian, they're going to almost reflexively say Not American.

They may then proceed to other elements of their national essence like Government-run healthcare and gun control, but again these are simply enumerating ways how the country is different from America.

Indeed so much of Canadian identity is simply being not American or trying to differentiate itself frrm the US.  From a reaction to the USA's  melting pot, Canada announced the policy of multiculturalism. Most things Canadian are simply reactions to America.

So much so that they threw the election to the Liberals, after almost a decade of Liberal misrule and decline.  

The Liberals immediately got a campaign issue by immediately championing standing up to Trump for Canada and claiming to be preservers of Canada's unique (non-American) identity.

This  championing is even as the Liberals have: consistently degraded the Canadian identity; gone woke on the nation's history; imported tons of immigrants with no attempt to Canadianize them; and have tried to trade in what it means to be Canadian for a more universalist, citizen-of-the-world, euro-type definition. 

And Trump came along and threw the Liberal party and Mark Carney, who is perhaps the very definition of a citizen of the world, not just a lifeline, not just some red meat patriotism to campaign on, but a literal red carpet to hold onto power.

Even further polling showed that Trump running his mouth cost the conservatives. Politico: Poll: Canadians despise Trump and distrust US

Had Trump not decided to inject himself into Canadian politics with the repeated stupid "51st state" nonsense, and then did his quixotic tariff attack over the questionable claim of fentanyl being illegally smuggled over the border,  there would be a conservative in power in Ottawa right now to turn Canada around. 

So yes, the results of this election is Trump's fault.  This was an absolute blunder and completely counter-productive.

The more on Canadians certainly share the blame and will get the government they voted for good and hard as a result. But, had Trump not decided to run his mouth, the results would have been far different.

The Conservatives would have been a far better friend and ally to the USA than what we're about to get.

On the upside, with the Liberals back in power and likely pushing ahead full steam with corruption, net zero, and other progressive economic bromides, it can be predicted that Canada's per capita GDP for the entire country will now continue its drop and slip below that of the state of Mississippi.

So, they've got that decline going for them, which isn't nice, but, at least it will be very Canadian.

Shri Thanedar Moves Farther Left To Protect His Flank

Facing a challenge in Detroit due to his not being Black enough,  and for not being crazy progressive enough, Shri Thanedar decides to dabble in leftist performative irrelevance.

Congressman Shri Thanedar Introduces Articles of Impeachment Against President Donald J. Trump for High Crimes and Misdemeanors

The announcement about the impeachment has all the right proggy buzzwords, like tyrannical overreach" even though it doesn't actually identify any real impeachable offenses, basically it is "Orange Man Bad".

Shri is facing at least two primary challengers, both from the farther left end of the spectrum:

From the more left:

The Detroit News:  Adam Hollier running for Congress again, aiming to defeat Shri Thanedar

Hollier is basically running as a challenger yet again on the "Thanedar is not Black and I am so you Black Detroiters should vote for me" angle, with likely the same results as last time.

But, Thanedar is also facing a challenge from the much farther and less sane left:

 The Detroit News: Detroit lawmaker Donavan McKinney jumps into race to unseat Shri Thanedar in Congress

[Donovan] McKinney, first elected in 2022, starts out with the backing of the progressive group Justice Democrats that helped elect Reps. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez of New York and Rashida Tlaib of Detroit, and the endorsements of 14 current and former  state lawmakers, many of them representing parts of Thanedar’s district that covers a swath of Detroit, the Grosse Pointes and Downriver communities.

So Thanedar, after basically acting as a relatively sane Democrat in Congress, loudly announces he is impeaching President Trump in response to this announcement of a progressive challenger.

Because nothing, absolutely nothing, helps establish your far-left bona fides and gets the progressive left vote like tilting at windmills by filing impeachments against President Trump.

Since the 13th District is a complete Democrat lock, the winner of the Democrat primary is the representative in Congress so Shri is just trying to catch some of the loony left vote early and shore up his vulnerabilities in that area with this forlorn hope of an impeachment filing.

President Trump's Unforced Error - Woe Canada

An election that Canada's conservatives had in the bag after years of Liberal Party misrule and the promise of further misrule was lost due to President Trump unnecessarily injecting himself repeatedly into the race.

The Detroit News:  Mark Carney’s Liberal Party wins a Canadian election upended by Trump

The Liberals looked headed for a crushing defeat until the American president started attacking Canada’s economy and threatening its sovereignty, suggesting it should become the 51st state. Trump’s actions infuriated Canadians and stoked a surge in nationalism that helped the Liberals flip the election narrative and win a fourth-straight term in power.

Yep, Trump unfortunately often says stupid stuff, and then keeps saying stupid stuff, and this just cost him an ally as a result and put a

 Instead of the campaign being about Liberal party misrule, it became all about Trump.

CBC: Carney vows to govern for all Canadians after winning election upended by Trump

Mark Carney achieved what seemed like an impossible feat just a few months ago, leading the Liberals to another victory after an election that was shaped by U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war and threats of annexation. 

. . .

Then came Trudeau's early January resignation, U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war and persistent barbs about making Canada the 51st state — flipping the political script.

With Trump announcing, pausing, then re-announcing devastating tariffs on Canadian goods, the campaign largely became a race about who is best to steer Canada through global uncertainty.

Carney focused campaign on Trump

Carney tried to define himself as a steady, mature outsider who is best to deal with the unpredictable president and map out a new economic and security relationship. Heading into the campaign, Carney did not have a seat in the House of Commons. That changed Monday as CBC News projects he's won the Ottawa riding of Nepean.

While criss-crossing the country, the freshly minted leader pointed to his time as the governor of the Bank of Canada during the 2008 global financial crisis and head of the Bank of England during the Brexit years as evidence that Canadians should trust him to steer the country's economy through turbulent times.

This is the result of a completely unnecessary and unforced error on Trump's part.

Catching And Deporting Predators From Michigan

The Detroit News: 2 accused of trying to meet girl for sex, being undocumented immigrants arrested in Livingston Co.

First things first:  Kudos to Bikers Against Predators for their work, including this latest excellent job in catching two alien scumbags trying to take advantage of underage girls.

These two illegals possibly arrived in to Michigan via one of Biden's many illegal alien flights to our state,  or simply perambulated along to end up in Livingston county. These two illegals instead of "doing jobs Amwericans won;t do" as the bromide goes, instead decided to do some highly inappropriate conduct with underage girls.

Thanks to Bikers Against Predators, they got caught.

Second, it's high time to quite using the term "undocumented immigrants" and restore the accurate and legal term illegal aliens as the proper description for those whom illegally cross our borders.  

While we have yet to call drug dealers undocumented pharmacists, nor shoplifters undocumented purchasers, one can expect the progressives to do so eventually.  

Let's quit using language designed to mislead and not reflect reality.

Flying - A Pleasant Ride To Mt. Pleasant And Back

Today was a great day to fly.

Absolutely gorgeous weather.

Got the Dakota pre-flighted and was soon on my way to Mt. Pleasant to meet up with Mr. B.

 

 The weather was nice and I was soon doing 140 knots groundspeed at 6,500 feet.

After a very pleasant 45 minute flight I landed at Mt. Pleasant on Runway 9. Bit of a crosswind, but a nice, easy landing.

Soon afterwards, a very nice Scottish Aviation British Bulldog aircraft landed.

 Had a chat with the owner. Very nice guy. Not a lot of Bulldogs are in the USA apparently only 35, and his is now out of a fresh annual and ready for flying.  It does look absolutely amazing.  He soon took off and went on his way.

 

Mr. B. arrived soon after that with his friend.

We then took the shuttle to the casino and played craps there for a couple hours.

I managed to come out a little bit ahead which was nice and bought dinner with the winnings.

Then we headed back to the airport, got our preflights done, and headed on our ways home. 

The flight home was as smooth as the way there, flying at 5,500 feet.  I had flight following and did a practice RNAV approach to 27L.

 

 

Soon I overflew Flint Airport.

Then I got handed off to Detroit Approach and had Pontiac airport in sight.

 For practice I did the RNAV 27L approach and did a very nice landing on 27L. Will need to do some simulated instrument approaches soon to maintain proficiency, so this practice one was not a bad way to get back into the procedures.

 Then I crossed 27R, and headed back to the hangar.

Got the plane refueled, cleaned off the bugs, and put it to bed in the hangar for the night.

That's 2.1 with 2 good landings and a great pleasant time with Mr. B. in Mt. Pleasant. Flying is better when you can do it to meet your friends.

Range Trip - Shooting The Rust Off

Went to the range today with Tosh. It had been quite awhile since I got some shooting time in.

Did a little bit of everything today.

First, shotgun.  

I shot the Tavor TS-12  and ran it through its paces.  Birdshot, buckshot, and slugs all functioned through it flawlessly. Nothing like pumping out 16 rounds of shot as fast as you can pull the trigger and rotate the next tube into firing position. Much fun was had.

I patterned some 9-pellet 00 Buck Federal Flite Control I bought at Lucky Gunner with very good results at 10 and 25 yards. The buckshot was a nice tight group at both distances, staying in the chest of the USPSA target. Quite spiffy, that Flite Control.

I also shot some Federal Truball slugs and again they hit their mark most impressively.  The first one, shot at a steel reduced size USPA target Tosh had setup, knocked the heavy steel target right off the post at 25 yards, even with the retaining clip being in place.  Slugs tend to have a lot of kinetic energy and all of it got transferred to the target there.

I also got to shoot Tosh's Mossberg 590, which was very nice indeed and a joy to shoot, and he got to shoot the Tavor.  Much shotgun fun had by all.

Next was rifle.  I had my SBR'd AR-15 300 Blackout along.  With the AAC 7.62 SDN suppressor and shooting subsonic ammunition, it was pretty much hearing-safe shooting and the loudest sound was the bullet hitting steel 25 yards away. Much fun, and very civilized in terms of noise level.

Next we did some handgun.

I brought the Israeli marked FN Hi-Power to the range and as expected it ran flawlessly. Shooting an all-steel pistol in 9mm after shooting polymer pistols really makes you realize how much a steel pistol sucks up recoil, as in it didn't feel like there was recoil by comparison. Plates fell with aplomb to the pistol and it functioned 100%. Tosh liked it as well. The Hi-Power feels great in the hand, points onto the targets very naturally, and the single-action trigger is rather nice.

It was good to get some iron sight practice in after regularly using red dots.  Fundamentals are the same, but it does feel different, but the time with the dot seems to have made even my iron sight acquisition and accuracy better, whioch is interesting.

Next I got out my Sig P365 and at 7 yards we ran single shot drills form concealment and then bill drills on an A-Zone target, and then shifted to single shot from concealment at 25 yards.

In short I sucked.  7 Yard singles were around 2.0 - 1.7  seconds, and Bill Drills were in the 3.4+ second range.  Single shot at 25 yards were 2.0+.  

Pretty ugly, and certainly shows what happens when you don't practice and haven't shot recently.  Pistol shooting is a perishable skill.

I could of course make an excuse that I'm using a rather small pistol to do the drills, but since I often carry it, I ought to work to be good with it.  I will do the drill with the larger handguns as well as I should get better with them, too.

So, lots more handgun practice is needed, and I expect to get to the range more regularly, especially now that winter has left the building.

A darn nice morning at the range.  Then home to give them all a nice thorough cleaning. 

Harvard Sues For The Right To Discriminate And Still Get Paid

So what is Harvard objecting to exactly>

The letter to Harvard that is conditioning federal funding on the University complying with the demands in the letter can be read here - Letter to Harvard.

Take a moment to read it.

There's really nothing in the demands in the letter that a reasonable person would find objectionable - Harvard needs to end a pattern of discrimination and hire faculty and administration and intake students based on merit alone; end a tolerance for antisemitism and related threats and vilenceeat the University; build up tolerance and viewpoint diversity in higher education; and actually reform and enforce current student disciplinary rules.

Harvard is apparently fighting in order to be allowed to keep on discriminating, not hiring on merit,  and tolerating antisemitism and student disruptions on campus - and to continue to receive Federal funds while doing so.

Quite a noble hill for Harvard to die on, but they can do themselves.

Harvard of course claims it is its first amendment right to make its own rules.  As a private institution it can - and indeed the Federal Government is not saying it cannot.

Instead, it is stating - correctly - that the Federal Government is allowed to condition funds on adherence to federal policy objectives.

For Harvard to be able to claim that the Federal Government cannot condition spending on adoption of certain policies and conditions in return for the funds is ludicrous and  goes against quite established constitutional law.

If Harvard wishes to continue its actions, all it needs to do is forgo Federal funding and then it can be as discriminatory and non-compliant with Federal guidelines as it may wish. 

But instead, Harvard is suing to have its cake and eat it too.

One should note well that Harvard, the Left, and progressives in general didn't make a peep when the Obama administration sent out his "Dear Colleagues" letter to Colleges to change their procedures on Title IX matters -- to reduce the due process due to the accused in such matters -- and "disparate impact on racial groups" in disciplinary actions -- or else.

Harvard's case should be dismissed and Harvard should be required to make the choice everyone else must make when deciding to accept Federal Government funding - accept the strings that come with the dollars, or forgo the dollars.

Happy Compost Your Girlfriend Day

It should not need to be said, but to be clear, this blog does not condone nor advocate composting your romantic interest. 

If it's reached the point where it is clearly absolutely not working out, don't try to bury your problems, just say goodbye, get on with your life, and handle it like a rational adult.

The co-founder of Earth Day didn't quite figure that part out. 

NBC News: Earth Day co-founder killed, composted girlfriend - NBC News

Ira Einhorn was on stage hosting the first Earth Day event at the Fairmount Park in Philadelphia on April 22, 1970. Seven years later, police raided his closet and found the "composted" body of his ex-girlfriend inside a trunk.

That's taking recycling way too far, and one would think in this day and age having that on your record would have you disowned by the Left rather than being celebrated.

However, his tactic of extorting corporations to pay his organization and in return be free from harassment has been copied and adopted as a model shakedown tactic by multiple leftist groups over time.

Ira Einhorn died in a US prison in April 2020, after having fled the country after the murder to Sweden and then France before being extradited back to the USA in 2001.  

There's no word on whether his remains were composted after his demise, but it would have been appropriate.

Michigan Becoming More Bear-able

The Detroit News:  More black bears seen in Lower Michigan. Here's how to avoid them, DNR says

Black bears are expanding their territory in Michigan's Lower Peninsula and as they roam about, state officials say the best way for residents and bears to both stay safe is to ensure they can't find a reliable snack in their human neighbor's backyard. 

Indeed, do not feed the bears.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources gives some advice for what to do if you encounter a Bear, but a key effective tool is not mentioned for some reason:

If someone does encounter a black bear, the DNR said, they should not play dead (that will only work on a grizzly) and they should not run away (that can trigger the animal's chase response).

Instead, stand your ground, back away only when the bear stops its approach and make yourself look bigger by raising your arms and jacket, and/or standing on a rock or stump, state officials suggested. One can also yell at the bear loudly and always provide a clear, unobstructed escape route for the bear.

If the bear makes contact with you, fight back, the DNR advises, by hitting, kicking and using anything available like a knife, sticks, rocks, binoculars or a backpack.

 I'd recommend using something that is a lot more effective than a knife, sticks, rock, binoculars or a backpack if you're being attacked by a bear. Funny how they don't list the far more effective tool as an option.  

Flying: 3 Up And 3 Down

3 up and 3 down is either the end of an inning, or enough takeoffs and landings to be current to carry passengers.

So I did 6.

It was a beautiful day to fly today, with a negligible crosswind of 10 knots from 060-080 using Runway 9L. A nice cool and sunny day with great performance from the Archer. 

I did touch-n-goes rather than full stop landings.

I was the only one in the pattern so I had no delays. and could get the touch-n-goes in quickly. 

 Tower on occasion had me extend my upwind for spacing for other arriving aircraft which was fine.  Kinda neat to know why he would extend based on the other radio traffic.

The first pattern wasn't perfect, but I got it dialed in more and more with each pattern.  I soon had it right where I wanted it performance-wise and soon was right on the numbers.

It was great to shake the rust off and get back in the air.

That's 6 landings and 0.7 to start off the flying season.

If At First You Don't Succeed, Tee Up To Fail Again

Apparently, there is a little-known progressive group, run by a convicted sex offender, who had announced a prior economic boycott on February 28 that fizzled and had no measurable effect.

So now they've announced a second attempt at it with Boycott 2.0 to be held on Good Friday.

The Detroit Free Press: Economic Blackout 2.0 boycott dates set for this weekend

Clearly, they are getting closer to days when people are not typically shopping. 

I suggest for Boycott 3.0 to be set for April 31st. The assured lack of any shopping activity will certainly show 'em, and thus be a great success.

When Prosecuting Someone For Mortgage Fraud

It's generally best not to be doing it yourself.

 NY AG Letitia James (D), who was elected on the promise of "Getting Trump" and who prosecuted President Trump for alleged mortgage fraud for allegedly overstating the value of his properties in securing a loan (which was paid back in full), now faces prosecution for mortgage fraud in connection with a house she bought in Virginia.

CBS News: New York Attorney General Letitia James accused of possible mortgage fraud

New York Attorney General Letitia James has been referred for federal criminal prosecution for alleged mortgage fraud related to a Virginia home and a New York property.

William Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), wrote a letter obtained by CBS News New York to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi alleging that James "has, in multiple instances, falsified bank documents and property records to acquire government backed assistance and loans and more favorable loan terms."
Details of the allegations

Pulte alleges James may have falsified her residence status at a home in Norfolk, Virginia, to get a better mortgage rate.

According to Pulte, in 2023 James granted Shamice Thompson-Hairston power of attorney to make the Norfolk property, purchased in August of that year, her "principal residence," despite James actually living and serving as attorney general in New York at the time.

But wait, there's more: 

Pulte also alleges James bought a five-family property in Brooklyn in 2001 with a loan that is only available for homes with four units or less.

"Spanning the last two decades, Ms. James has consistently misrepresented the same property as only having four units in both building permit applications and numerous mortgage documents and applications," Pulte wrote. "It appears that Ms. James may have listed the Brooklyn, NY property as four units instead of five units in order to meet the conforming loan requirements, and thus receive better interest rates."

But wait, there's even more!:

It's also alleged James and her father signed mortgage documents in 1983 stating they were husband and wife.

"Ms. James, for both properties listed above, appears to have falsified records in order to meet certain lending requirements and receive favorable loan terms," Pulte concluded, adding that it could lead to charges such as wire fraud, mail fraud and bank fraud, along with making false statement to a financial institution. 

Talk about keeping the fraud in the family.

Not a good look when you made your bones prosecuting someone who you allege did something you yourself have done, apparently on multiple occasions.

Worse for Ms. James, she's allegedly  committed federal crimes with her acts of mortgage fraud, and she defrauded federal government lenders as well,  so she can't count of the New York state judiciary to help her out. 

Bring popcorn, this should get good.

PA Arsonist Is A Mentally-Deranged Leftist

So, a bit of an updated for those who leapt to conclusions and claimed the scum who broke in and set fire to Governor's Shapiro's mansion was "MAGA".

Well, as it turns out, not so much.

Instead, he's apparently the run-of-the-mill, mentally ill, Leftist.

A Pro-Palestinian, run-of-the-mill, mentally ill, Leftist:

NBC: Arson suspect angry with Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro over Palestinian stance, search warrants say

The man accused of setting fire to Pennsylvania's executive mansion early Sunday dialed 911 after the attack and suggested he was upset by Gov. Josh Shapiro's position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, according to newly released search warrants.

       . . .

But Balmer's mother said she was concerned about his mental health in recent days, and told The Associated Press on Monday that he was not taking his medication and that "nobody would help" when she called authorities last week. 

Yep, and a further piece of evidence, in addition to his joining the parade of a long list of leftists going forth and burning things they disagree with,  helps point to his progressive pedigree:

As noted in the Daily Wire: Arsonist Arrested For Attack On Josh Shapiro Hated Israel, 911 Call Reveals

Balmer’s storage unit in Swatara Township reportedly had stickers of South American Marxist revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara inside a toolbox.

I daresay damn few MAGA types have Che Guevara stickers. Che is after all, the darling of the progressive left, and certainly not the right.

Yeah, so those who jumped to conclusions and proclaimed this was a "MAGA"  attack may need to do a correction. 

In short, burning other's peoples things is wrong. Burning other people's houses while they are in them is wrong.  Leftists apparently have forgotten this lesson yet again.

Scammers Take Their Toll

Gotten texts saying you owe a toll?  It's almost 100% going to be a scam. I've gotten quite a few such texts, allegedly from states that I have never even driven through.  Yes, not only is the cake a lie, but the text is a scam.

Especially so if they claim you owe for a toll in Michigan.

That's because Michigan doesn't have any toll roads.  As in none, zero, nada.

The Detroit News: Scammers run toll scheme with imposter government website, MDOT says

Government agencies are not going to send you a text saying you owe a toll.   

Nor do governments want payments in gift cards, crypto, or wire transfers.

Your best course of action is to not click on any links in the text, and immediately delete the message and mark it as junk when you do so.

Update:  Talk about timing! A few hours after I posted this I got the following text:

Yes, it is very, very fake.

Stupid Criminals: Not Cruisin', Gettin' A Deserved Bruisin'

A Michigan man gives Florida man a run for his money over being left behind on vacation. 

NBC News: Michigan man upset that girlfriend went on cruise is sent to prison for ship bomb hoax

A Michigan man who was upset that he had to watch pets while his girlfriend’s family went on a cruise was sentenced to eight months in prison Monday for making a false bomb threat.

The email forced Carnival Corp. to check more than 1,000 rooms after the ship had departed Miami in January 2024, prosecutors said.

While it is Carnival, and people mainly go on a Carnival cruise to get bombed, they're not there to get bomb threats.  

Way to get a felony record over not going on a vacay with your gal there pal.

I daresay the ship has sailed on that relationship.

Tax Day 2025

This is the day where the IRS demonstrates it's got what it takes to take what you got.

I wish today was also Election Day so people could reflect and vote on whether they were getting their money's worth from the taxes they pay. Politicians are too smart to do that.

I've already completed my taxes and filed my business and personal returns. Not enjoying the, in my view, rather excessive amount I'm paying to both the state and the feds, that's for sure.

For those of you who haven't, it's time to get it done or file an extension quickly.

For those of you who think there's some magical incantation in the tax code that can let you out of filing, you're sadly wrong.

Anybody who tells you not to file on the basis that: the tax system is "voluntary"; that you're a state citizen and not a United States citizen; that you're not an "individual"; that wages are not income; or that Section 869 of the tax code says you don't have to pay taxes is setting you up for a really bad fall.

This fall can include not just penalties and interest on top of the taxes you owe, but also possible misdemeanor and felony convictions for being a dumb-ass and willfully failing to pay your taxes and/or filing false returns.

There is no magical incantation or distorted, partial, and out-of-context reading of the tax code or portion of a case that lets you out of filing and paying taxes on income. It doth not work that way.

The IRS has pages and pages devoted to taking apart these scams, along with the cites to the court cases demolishing them: The Truth About Frivolous Arguments.

It's a very extensive series, as it's impressive as to how many dumb arguments are out there and how they've been shot down.

Short of permanently moving out of the United States and renouncing your citizenship while doing so and never working in the USA again, which I wouldn't recommend, you're going to have a very hard time coming up with a valid argument as to how income you receive is somehow not subject to income taxation.

If you want to stop filing taxes and paying income tax then stop having an income --  which is kinda hard. 

 Or, you can spend your time working on campaigning and voting for politicians who will end the income tax, which is also rather hard if not well nigh impossible. Indeed it is much harder than simply falling for a fake don't-pay-your-taxes scheme, but at least it doesn't result in interest, penalties, and a criminal conviction, so it has got that going for it, at least.

Happy Passover!

Tonight is the first night of the Passover Holiday.

So, goodbye to bread and other prohibited grains for the next 8 days. Yep, chametz ain't happening around here.

Happy Passover to those who celebrate! 

So, Penguins Really Can't Fly

At least, they certainly can't fly rotary wing aircraft.

BBC: Unsecured penguin caused helicopter crash in South Africa

Send that bird to flight school.

The Revolving Door Stabbing Plan

More revolving door criminal justice in Michigan, this time out of Washtenaw County:

MILive: Man sentenced to year in jail, 2 years probation for slashing man’s neck

A man who pleaded guilty to slicing a man’s neck in downtown Ann Arbor will spend roughly 90 days in jail.

Kimani Angelo Hamilton, 30, was sentenced to one year in jail and two years of probation after he pleaded guilty to two counts each of assault with a dangerous weapon and assault less than murder, according to court records.

And this isn't his first jaunt into stabbing and attempted stabbing. 

The other charges stem from a second aggravated assault around 1 p.m. May 26 near South Fourth Avenue and East Huron Street, Page said.

He pleaded guilty Jan. 28.

Hamilton has previously been convicted of a misdemeanor charge of assault and battery after he pulled a knife on a 35-year-old man while inside The Blind Pig, 208 South First St. in November in Ann Arbor. [for which he got all of 93 days in jail]

So he'll now be out in 90 days after slashing someone in the neck.  Any bets on how long it will be until his next stabbing will take place?

Better Late Than Never Doesn't Quite Apply

It's good that the Oakland County prosecutor is going after a murderer and seeking enhanced penalties for a the fact that the scumbag has a very long rap sheet of violent felonies and use of firearms in crime.

The Detroit News: Tougher penalty sought for man accused in Oxford Christmas Eve shooting

In December, after driving his car into a ditch, the felon in question went on a killing spree, shooting motorists who had stopped to assist him after his crash.

His list of crimes is rather extensive, the punishments for them not so much.

The kicker is that had the law been fully enforced on this criminal, he would still have been in jail and unable to kill anyone:

While in prison, Webb was also charged in 2019 with possessing weapons as a prisoner. He pleaded guilty in 2020. The conviction could have added another five years to his sentence, but the time was served concurrently with his previous sentence, leading to his July discharge from prison. 

In short, he was able to do a crime, while in prison no less for a slew of serious felonies, effectively for no penalty at all, and get out to commit multiple murders when he should have been in prison for that crime.

It's nice that the prosecutor is now declaring this is a case oif double secret probation and treating him as a "super habitual offender" - it's just a pity that he wasn't effectively punished and interdicted before he went off and shot a bunch of people.

Well This Is Some BS

Woke up this morning and:

Snow on April 10.

After no snow for weeks we get this.

Yuck.

Just Michigan winter's standard way of saying: Didja miss me? I ain't gone yet!

One May Hope

Given that the Michigan Republican Party more often resembles a circular firing squad than not, one may hope that Jim Runestad can get the party back on track as he claims he will do.

The Detroit News: Buss: State GOP chair says party is clicking

As he continues to clean up the Michigan Republican Party, newly elected Chairman Jim Runestad is also running an aggressive messaging campaign to put Republicans in a competitive spot for 2026. 

He's urging the GOP to focus on delivering the promises they made in the last election cycle.

The party definitely needs to clean up and improve its message if its going to be competitive in 2026.

When Proggy Law Students Overvalue Themselves

Leftist law students at elite law schools tend to have oversized sense of self importance and the egos to match, not to mention a highly developed yet undeserved sense of entitlement.

They also, in a fit of TDS,  seem to have forgotten the dynamic of the employer-applicant relationship.

Forbes:  Law Students Push Back On Firms That Have Capitulated To Trump

This week, first year students at Georgetown Law were required to submit their final rankings of which law firms they most wanted to interview with—for summer associate jobs in 2026, after their second year. The hiring of summer associates hit an 11-year low last year, but these summer gigs are still highly coveted. That’s because they pay more than $4,000 a week and boost the chances students will snag a Big Law job paying $200,000-plus when they graduate after year three, assuming, that is, they excel in law school and don’t have a prestigious judicial clerkship or a public interest law job lined up.

But this year, the 1Ls (as first year law students are known) are confronting an unusual question: Whether or not to rank Skadden Arps; Paul Weiss; Milbank; and Wilkie, Farr and Gallagher among their choices. These four firms have one thing in common: They’ve bent the knee to Trump following the threat of, or the actual signing of, executive orders that aim to restrict their ability to represent clients with government contracts. All four have agreed, for example, to provide a combined total of at least $340 million in pro bono legal work for causes Trump favors and to swear off any “illegal” programs aimed at promoting diversity.

Read the article to see the entitlement inherent in the (rather privileged if one might borrow the term) leftism!

“The legal recruitment process is the only leverage that we really have to influence the behavior of law firms,” says Caleb Frye, a 33-year-old second-year law student and copresident of the Georgetown Law Energy Group

That's not how this works, verily that's not how any of this works. 

By not applying, you don't get considered for employment.  

Publicly announcing that you're a TDS-infected entitled brat who criticizes decisions of your potential employer and demonstrating you will noisily put your own interest ahead of your potential employers likely renders them as a less-than-desirable hire.

University Of Florida Visit - Go Gators!

So, this weekend I went to Gainesville to visit the younger child at University of Florida.

With the weather being sunny and in the low 80s it sure beat the wet and cold of Michigan this early April.

Flew into Jacksonville and drove the couple hours to Gainesville.

Met up with the kid and we watched the Gators advance into the finals.

Victory for the Gators was assured as Leah took us out that night to feed the campus feral cats. 

Quite a few ferals around and apparently it's lucky to feed them prior to exams for good results, and during various sportsball games to ensure the Gators do well.

The offerings to the cats must have worked, as the Gators ended up beating Auburn to earn a place against Huston for a shot at the national championship in b-ball. 

Much cheering throughout the dorm was heard when they game resulted in the Gator's victory.

The next day we did more sportsball, in this case Gator Baseball.

 Got some grass seats on the left berm, inside the foul ball danger area and had a great view of the game. Gators vs the Vanderbilt Commodores.

Initially during the warm-up, it appeared it was unclear to the Commodores as to what sport they were there to play.

 Yes, he's throwing a football around.

The game got off to a good start with hits by both teams in the first but no runs.

By the third inning it was tied 1-1.

 

That would change.

Sadly, an offering to the cats had not been made, as the Commodores swept the series and harvested the Gators 11-3 in the game we watched.

Still, even ending in a loss, it was a lot of fun to watch and the atmosphere at the ballpark was very family friendly and had great sportsmanship.  The crowd applauded for great plays regardless of which team made them, and it was a highly enjoyable time.

After that we head back to her dorm where she studied preparing for an exam that was set to occur tonight - right at the same time as the championship game - and I did some work.

She then found out via email that the prof, recognizing the historic nature of the championship game was offering all students the opportunity to defer the exam so they could watch the game as part of the college experience. This was happy-making and she'll be viewing the game with friends tonight and taking the exam another day.  Pretty cool on the part of the professor.

So she had three classes today so I did some work as she did and then took her to lunch. 

On the way to lunch we passed by the pond near her dorm.

 

They're serious about that sign.

Did you see the gator to the lower right in the picture?

 Gilbert, the dorm gator, was back from brumating for the winter.  He's been known to sunbathe on the grass and even hang out by the dorm entrance at times.

That he's back has been declared to be a good sign that the Gators will do well tonight. 

It was a great visit.  Good luck to the Gators tonight.

Worst Genocide Ever - Hamas Actual Casualty Figures Get Reduced Yet Again

Hamas' Health Ministry just revised its casualty figures yet again.

Israel Hayom: Study exposes: Hamas 'quietly' erases thousands of deaths from Gaza death toll

Yahoo News/The Telegraph: Hamas ‘quietly drops’ thousands of deaths from casualty figures

The result is rather interesting.  In short Hamas has been lying yet again about casualty rates and even more importantly who the casualties are in Gaza.

With this revision, instead of the casualties being 70% women and children as falsely claimed by Hamas' Health Ministry, and believed by the gullible around the world, the new percentage when looking at the revised Hamas' Health Ministry stats is that 72% of casualties are males of Hamas combatant age. 

Funny, that.

In short, even Hamas' own stats are showing that Israel is not only not committing a "genocide"  but also that the civilian casualty rate is again lower than claimed by Hamas and they're caught lying- yet again.

Don't expect the media and those who have been reporting and believing Hamas' lies to apologize for such anytime soon, nor to be at least a tad bit skeptical before reporting claims from Hamas as credible.  It's clearly too much to as news agencies to state when they republish Hamas' casualty claims that Hamas has been caught making these casualty figures up multiple times now.

Cruise Day 7 - At Sea

The last day of the cruise was at sea, heading back to New Orleans.

Quite a perfect day it was, too.  Taking it easy, going to the hot tub, imbibing adult beverages, and watching a show.

Sadly, we then had to pack up and be ready to go.

This was tempered by having an excellent diner at the French Bistro on board as our final dinner on the ship.

To say it was fantastic is an understatement. Service was the best we had experienced on board and the food was beyond amazing.

I had escargot for the appetizer, and the sole grenobloise for the main course. Quite superb.

 Dessert was the marquise au chocolat. Which was the best dessert I've had in a long time.  A chocolate aficionado's dream.

 Really fantastic food. Norwegian certainly has some of the best food at sea, or anywhere, really.

After that, we took a walk around the ship and we had left the Gulf of America and were on the Mississippi River.

It was a bit foggy out and the tightness of the channel led to ships appearing seemingly out of nowhere to be right close by.

 

Neat to see and it was a very pleasant night to be walking laps of the deck.

Heading back inside, the lights were low in the main areas, and decoratively lit up for the evening.

 

Headed back to the stateroom, and the luggage was already picked up.

In the morning we were back in port in New Orleans.  So we got up, had breakfast, disembarked, and headed to the airport back home.  That had been a great vacation.