A great ones rides- into the sunset

Rick O’Dell:

“Smokin’ US-30 Dragstrip . . . where the great ones ride!”  Simple words on a screen don’t do justice to the tag line of that (in)famous commercial.  If you listened to WLS or Super CFL as I did in the ‘60s and ‘70s, you’ll never forget the turbo-charged voice of Jan Gabriel who, with the help of some technical wizardry, made that commercial blast its way out of your transistor radio.

Jan Gabriel died this past Sunday [January 10th] at the age of 69...

For five decades he worked as a disc jockey, TV personality and executive of an ad agency.  But he’s best known for his in-your-face US-30 Dragstrip commercials, a concept he conceived himself....

Elsewhere:

Posted by: Old Grouch in Radio at 16:17:12 GMT | No Comments | Add Comment
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Ask our Las Vegas correspondent

Something you’d like covered at the SHOT Show?  J.S. Bridges is taking requests.

UPDATE (100119 17:19):  Frank James is there, too.

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Casper’s made his last trip

Daily Mail:

A cat which became famous for catching the same bus every day for four years has been run over and killed - while crossing the road to catch its daily lift.

Crafty Casper died in a hit and run accident as he tried to board the No3 service.

He hopped on the bus around 10am every morning and sat on the back seat throughout its entire 11 mile route...

Posted by: Old Grouch in Linkage at 17:09:41 GMT | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Stands to reason...?

Instapundit:  “Women’s handbags getting lighter”

...Because they’re switching to holsters?


Further up the page:  Oops, maybe that better be shoulder holsters!

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OK, RINO apologists. Tell me where I’m wrong.

In the comment thread of this post at Daily Pundit, poster “TraitorHater” lamented:

Why Republicans don’t run on a program of deregulation and ending corrupt interventionism picking winners and losers this year, which because of the lousy current House and Senate campaign committees it appears they won’t do, I can’t understand.

To which I replied: Because:

• Because deregulation reduces the power of the government and, by extension, the Republican establishment.
• Because without regulation it’s harder to do favors for your buddies in business or in the pressure groups…
• …or screw the folks who aren’t your buddies, which makes it harder to extract protection money campaign contributions.
• Because less regulation means less lobbying -> fewer post-congressional career opportunities.  (Horrors! Ex-congressmen might have to work for a living!)
  
• Because deregulation means that people have more opportunity to do what they want, instead of what they’re told…
• …which is anathema to the political class and the “educated” (see David Brooks)
• And speaking of the “educated classes,” less regulation means less influence for the media, the academy, and the progressive internationalists/socialists generally…
• …also anathema to the political class and the “educated” (see David Brooks)

Vote ’em all out.


LATER (100120 17:55): Quoth Tam:

Nowadays we just have the Party of Big Government and the Party of Even Bigger Government and the easiest way of telling them apart is that one of them doesn't like abortion and gay cooties.

Posted by: Old Grouch in Rants at 02:03:34 GMT | No Comments | Add Comment
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Announcing: New scientific principle

The BBC:

The Met Office has now admitted to BBC News that its annual global mean forecast predicted temperatures higher than actual temperatures for nine years out of the last 10.

This “warming bias” is very small - just 0.05C.  And the Met Office points out that the variance between the forecast and the actual temperature is within its own stated margins of error.

Professor Chris Folland from the Met Office said a re-analysis of weather science might even show that the actual temperature measurements have under-recorded recent warming - making the Met Office forecast even more accurate than it appears.

So when the data disagrees with the model, blame the data.

Via: Daily Pundit

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Less Science Middle School

San Diego Union Tribune:

Students were evacuated from Millennial Tech Magnet Middle School in the Chollas View neighborhood Friday afternoon after an 11-year-old student brought a personal science project that he had been making at home to school, authorities said.

...A vice principal

(probably an Education major...)

saw the student showing it to other students at school about 11:40 a.m. Friday and was concerned that it might be harmful, and San Diego police were notified.

The school, which has about 440 students in grades 6 to 8 and emphasizes technology skills, was initially put on lockdown while authorities responded.

When in worry, when in doubt...

[Maurice] Luque [San Diego Fire Rescue spokesman] said the project was made of an empty half-liter Gatorade bottle with some wires and other electrical components attached.  There was no substance inside.

When police and the Metro Arson Strike Team

!!!!

responded, they also found electrical components in the student's backpack, Luque said.  After talking to the student, it was decided

(Don’t-cha just love that passive voice?)

about 1 p.m. to evacuate the school

...run in circles, scream and shout!

as a precaution while the item was examined...

A MAST robot

!!!!

took pictures of the device and X-rays were evaluated. About 3 p.m., the device was determined to be harmless, Luque said.
...
He said fire officials also went to the student’s home

Oh, I bet that went over well with the parents!

and checked the garage to make sure items there were neither harmful nor explosive.

“There was nothing hazardous at the house,” Luque said.

The student will not be prosecuted,

Gee, that’s really white of them...

but authorities were recommending that he and his parents get counseling...

What the hell for?

Luque said both the student and his parents were extremely upset.

I don’t doubt that one bit!

“He was very shaken by the whole situation, as were his parents...”

And the moral of the story, boys and girls:


Elsewhere (via Reynolds, who calls it “another reason to take your kids out of public school”):

Related (to the “what the government tells you” link):

Posted by: Old Grouch in In Passing at 22:12:11 GMT | No Comments | Add Comment
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Goldberg gets it half right

Jonah Goldberg:

The Democrats’ “bad [political] climate” is a direct result of how they’ve governed.  The populist backlash is fueled by a sense that Democrats both parties are acting on their preferred agenda and by their own rules.  From the shenanigans of the people who write our tax code and collect our taxes to special deals and secret arrangements for big businesses and legislators who play ball, the Democrats have entire political establishment has abandoned transparency in favor of transparent arrogance.

Fixed it for you.

Granted that Goldberg’s topic is the Democrats’ problems in Massachusetts.  Still, anyone who believes the “populist backlash” is only about the Democrats is in for a nasty surprise.

Related:

(Link via IP)

Posted by: Old Grouch in In Passing at 18:14:39 GMT | No Comments | Add Comment
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Avast, wasteland!

C.G. Hill:

So what happens if both Conan O’Brien and Jay Leno decide that they’ve been screwed by NBC...?

He offers some ideas.

Posted by: Old Grouch in Linkage at 02:41:44 GMT | No Comments | Add Comment
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A lesson in how the web works...

Digital marketeer emails Diamond Geezer, complaining about link text.
Hilarity ensues.

Posted by: Old Grouch in Linkage at 02:31:18 GMT | No Comments | Add Comment
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