NEW YEAR'S EVE - Sunday

 

In The NEWS

Every year on Jan. 1, a new batch of copyrighted works and intellectual property enters the public domain. On Monday, the first versions of Mickey and Minnie Mouse, featured in the 1928 short “Steamboat Willie” (watch here), will become available for public use.


Russia launches 122 missiles, 36 drones against Ukraine.
At least 30 people were killed and 144 injured across Ukraine Friday from the attack. The Ukrainian military said it had intercepted most of the missiles and drones. The attack is considered the largest aerial barrage since the war between Russia and Ukraine began in February 2022. See war updates here.


South Africa accuses Israel of genocide in case brought to top UN court.
South Africa, which has been a critic of Israel's military campaign in Gaza and has compared it to South Africa's past apartheid regime, seeks an order from the UN's International Court of Justice to halt Israel's attacks and declare Israel in violation of the Genocide Convention (see 101). Israel maintains it is abiding by international law. Separately, tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza moved south to Rafah, while a delegation met in Egypt Friday for cease-fire talks. See war updates here.


World population projected to top 8 billion on New Year's Day.
The world's population grew by more than 75 million people this year, up 0.95% from New Year's Day 2023, according to the US Census Bureau. On Jan. 1, the population is expected to reach a little over 8 billion, from 7.9 billion a year ago. Next year, 4.3 births and two deaths are expected worldwide every second. Track the Census Bureau's US and world population clocks here.


California keeps Trump on state's 2024 primary ballot.
Former President Donald Trump will appear on the Republican ballot in California's Super Tuesday (March 5) presidential primary after Secretary of State Shirley Weber (D) published a list of official candidates, including Trump, late Thursday. The news came hours after Maine's secretary of state nixed Trump due to a 14th Amendment clause (see previous write-up). See a state-by-state tracker of challenges here.


At least eight people injured after huge wave batters California coast (w/video).
The massive 20-foot-plus wave crashed onto Ventura, California, flooding surrounding areas and sweeping up a truck. California has been experiencing huge waves this week as a result of low-pressure storm systems in the eastern Pacific Ocean. Coastal flooding and waves in the range of 15 to 20 feet are expected along California's coast through this evening.

SOURCE:  1440 News

Somewhat Political

 

Facts About the USA

More people live in New York City than in 40 of the 50 states.




The word “Pennsylvania” is misspelled on the Liberty Bell.






There is enough water in Lake Superior to cover all of North and South America
in one foot of liquid.





There's a town in Washington with treetop bridges made specifically to help
squirrels cross the street .






In 1872, Russia sold Alaska to the Unites States for about 2 cents per acre.






It would take you more than 400 years to spend a night in all of Las Vegas's hotel rooms.





Western Michigan is home to a giant lavender labyrinth so big you can see it on
Google Earth.


There’s an island full of wild monkeys off the coast of South Carolina called
Morgan Island, and it's not open to humans.




There's enough concrete in the Hoover Dam to build a two-lane highway from
San Francisco to New York City.




Arizona and Hawaii are now the only states that don't observe daylight savings time.




Boston has the worst drivers out of the nation's 200 largest cities. Kansas City has the best drivers.




Kansas produces enough wheat each year to feed everyone in the world for about two weeks.




Oregon's Crater Lake is deep enough to cover six Statues of Liberty stacked on top of each other




The Empire State building has its own zip code.






The Los Angeles Coroner’s Office has its own quirky gift shop called Skeletons in the Closet.








The Library of Congress contains approximately 838 miles of bookshelves—long enough to stretch from Houston to Chicago.








Massachusetts’s Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchahas the longest place name in the US. (even though it's based on a joke).






In 1922, a man built a house and all his furniture entirely out of 100,000 newspapers.
The structure still stands today in Rockport, Massachusetts.








The entire Denver International Airport is twice the size of Manhattan.







In 1893, an amendment was proposed to rename the country to the "United States of Earth."








A highway in Lancaster, California plays the “William Tell Overture” as you drive over it, thanks to some well-placed grooves in the road .






The total length of Idaho's rivers could stretch across the United States about 40 times.





The town of Centralia, Pennsylvania has been on fire for 55 years.





The one-woman town of Monowi, Nebraska is the only officially incorporated municipality with a population of 1. The sole, 83-year-old resident is the city's mayor, librarian, and bartender.




The number of bourbon barrels in Kentucky outnumbers the state’s population
by more than two million.

New Year's Resolution(s)

A New Year's resolution is a tradition, most common in the Western World but also found in the Eastern World, in which a person resolves to continue good practices, change an undesired trait or behavior, accomplish a personal goal, or otherwise improve their behavior at the beginning of a calendar year. Wikipedia

Almost every year that I can remember which is not too many because my age prevents accurate memory recall...  LOL...  I wrote down a list of new year's resolutions that I was faithfully going to execute the following year.

I made great lists, but my follow-through always SUCKED...

So, after years of listing all the things that I would like to do differently or start doing, I have finally realized, I should only focus on those tasks that I know that I can accomplish.  That is not to say, I don't have goals...  goals are different than resolutions.

I have only one new year resolution:

BE MORE ACTIVE

Now, there are several items I want to continue doing, such as:

1. continue eating healthy
2. continue writing
3. continue to manage stress
4. continue not to worry
5. continue to take things one day at a time
6. continue to think before I speak
7. continue to be kind to animals
8. continue to be friendly to next door neighbors
9. continue to not be so critical of everything
10. continue to be proactive and positive
11. continue to be more helpful around the house
12. continue to learn something new each day

Ball, Dog, & Turtle

 

The Challenge of Fast Charging Stations

Sometime in 2024, maybe as early as February, half a dozen electric vehicle charging companies will face a reckoning.

For years, they had little competition except for each other, which is to say, not much. Soon, though, they’ll have to contend with Tesla’s much-lauded Supercharger network.

The EV world, from a charging perspective, was previously split in two. There was Tesla and then there was everyone else. Tesla owners enjoyed widespread, speedy and reliable charging. Everyone else made do by cobbling together accounts from a number of different companies, none of which could boast reliability ratings anywhere near that of Tesla’s.

Then, in May, the wall fell. Ford signed an agreement with Tesla to give its EVs access to 12,000 Superchargers, a subset of the network. Starting in 2024, existing owners will be able to charge at those stalls by using an adapter, and in 2025, Ford said its future EVs will swap the Combined Charging System (CCS) plug for Tesla’s plug, also known as the North American Charging Standard (NACS).     READ MORE...

Motivation

 

That Which is Important to Me

 It is difficult to say what is important to me after living for 76 years with cancers, heart disease, and a fused lower spine...

One's first thought might be HEALTH but without financial security, my health would be more or less irrelevant.

So, the first important issue for me is the peace of mind that comes from having financial security...

However, now that I've used peace of mind, it is necessary to understand that financial security is intertwined with peace of mind.

One cannot happen without the other.

My second area of importance is MY HEALTH...  and while that may not seem logical, given all the health issues I have, one must understand that I am still above ground because of my health and my body's ability to fight off what's attacking me.

My third area of importance is having and being dedicated to the hobby of writing.  Without that hobby, being retired would be incredibly BORING.  Bored retirees do not live very long.

My fourth area of importance is having the partner that I have and while we do not always get along and have said things to each other, we regretted saying later, we have remained together for over30 years - a second marriage for both of us.  We have the reassurance that we can count on each other as we grow older.  

It is that emotional security that helps us both with the knowledge that we have that kind of security as we grow older and realize we cannot take care of ourselves without the help of someone else.

We have different interests and don't rely on each other for our happiness while at the same time, we know that the other person will always be there.

My fifth and final area of importance is friendship.  After 76 years of life, I only have ONE TRUE FRIEND,,,  We have known each other since high school and have remained friends even though we went off in different directions.

I had a second true friend that I had known since 3rd grade, but he died of colon cancer about 10 years ago.

There are a couple of people living nearby in the same community that will do things for me as I will do things for them, but I would not really consider them to be TRUE FRIENDS.  I would say they are being neighborly.

It is interesting, I think, that I have not included FAITH in my list.  I believe in a CREATOR, but I am not a fan/follower of institutionalized religion, nor do I really believe what is in the BIBLE because there are so many inconsistencies.

So, some aspects of religion are there but are not an important part of my life.  Yes, it is possible that my life is being directed, regardless of the decisions or choices that I make.  If that is the case, I have no explanation as to why that is happening.  Is that religion?  or faith?  I don't know.

If I am being kept alive because there is something that I have to do or accomplish, I have no idea what they is, at least at this point in time.  It may be revealed to me later and my list will change.

In The NEWS

Former President Donald Trump will not appear on the Republican ballot in Maine's presidential primary after Secretary of State Shenna Bellows (D) ruled his role in the events of Jan. 6, 2021, made him ineligible under a clause in the 14th Amendment. The decision follows a ruling with similar effect by Colorado's Supreme Court, and a decision by Michigan's Supreme Court leaving him eligible for the primary race.

US stock markets are on pace to wrap up the year with double-digit gains. The S&P 500, which is hovering near its all-time high, closed up 25% for the year yesterday. The technology-heavy Nasdaq closed up 45% for the year and is nearing its best year since 2003. The Dow closed up 14% for the year, setting a seventh record high for the month yesterday.

Gypsy Rose Blanchard, convicted of coordinating the 2015 murder of her abusive mother, was released from Missouri state prison yesterday after serving seven years of a 10-year sentence. The 32-year-old Blanchard's story garnered international attention via numerous documentaries, with a series of prison interviews set to air next week on Lifetime.



University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Chancellor Joe Gow fired after pornographic videos of Gow and his wife are uncovered (More)



College Football Playoff kicks off Monday with No. 1 Michigan taking on No. 4 Alabama (4 pm ET, ESPN) and No. 2 Washington against No. 3 Texas (8 pm ET, ESPN) (More) | See full college football bowl schedule (More)



Mbongeni Ngema, iconic South African playwright and six-time Tony and Grammy Award nominee, dies in a car crash at 68 (More)



US military's X-37B space plane begins seventh mission; vehicle was launched via a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, allowing it to reach as high as 22,000 miles above Earth (More)



Scientists discover source of mysterious type of immune system cells known as stem-like central memory T cells, which play a key role in remembering previously encountered pathogens (More)



Study suggests ultra-dense neutron stars contain quarks—fundamental particles that make up protons and neutrons, which help make up atoms—at their core (More)



Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi unveils first electric vehicle in bid to compete with Tesla, Porsche (More)



An estimated 150,000 people forced to flee central Gaza as Israeli troops expand operations against Hamas to refugee camps (More) | See updates on war here (More)

Biketober

 

Iran Increases Its Nuclear Program

VIENNA (AP) — Iran has increased the rate at which it is producing near weapons grade uranium in recent weeks, reversing a previous slowdown that started in the middle of this year, the International Atomic Energy Agency said in a report to member states.

Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said in the report that Iran “in recent weeks had increased its production of highly enriched uranium, reversing a previous output reduction from mid-2023,” according to an IAEA spokesperson Sunday.

Iran had previously slowed down the rate at which it was enriching uranium to 60% purity. Uranium enriched at 60% purity is just a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%.  READ MORE...

Somewhat Political

 

In The Year 2023

In the year 2023, I had my 76th birthday with a celebration meal at Cheddars where I ordered blackened salmon, baked potato, and broccoli.  My wife ordered a salad.  We both had water with lemon to drink.  We added an 18% tip to the check.  We paid $20 more than we did last year for the same meal.

What did the year 2023 provide us with?

1. Higher food and gasoline prices
2. War on Fossil Fuels
3. Our National Debt is increasing
4. Our Global respect is declining
5. Government mandate of EVs
6. Increased Illegal Immigration
7. Increased in Illegal Drugs
8. War in Ukraine
9. War in Israel/Gaza strip
10. Iran's proxies attacking USA
11. Double Standards of US Justice
12. Global Anti-Israel Sentiments
13. A weakened US military
14. China threatening global dominance
15. Higher taxes
16. Decay of US Democracy
17. An Ineffective Congress/President
18. Destruction of American Dream

While that might bother some Americans...  it does not bother me...

It does not bother me because:

• I own my home
• I am debt free
• I have saved money for retirement
• I live in East Tennessee
• I'm not bothered by crime
• I'm not bothered by illegal immigrants
• I'm not bothered by illegal drugs
• I purchase only what I need

I am part of the BABY BOOMER generation.  We protested against the Vietnam War and against large government TELLING US WHAT TO DO.  We were the generation of some of the best rock and roll music that the world has ever heard.  We were the generation that gave you WOODSTOCK and MUSCLE CARS.  We were the generation that made it COOL to have long hair and beards, jeans, t-shirts, and cowboy boots.  We were the generation of ENDLESS LOVE without the fear of AIDS or SEXUAL HARRASSMENT.

Whenever I experience a year like 2023, I just think back to 1966 when:

1. cigarettes were $0.20 a pack ($0.25 in a machine)
2. gasoline was $0.18 cents a gallon
3. a six pack of beer was $1.25
4. Hamburgers were $0.15
5. French fries were $0.10
6. Movie tickets were $0.25

When I experience a year like 2023, I just think back to 1967 when:

• I purchased a 1967 Plymouth Barracuda convertible with a 383 and 4 on the floor for $2,500.
• I remember all the beer I drank in that car and all the women that went to the drive in movies with me in that car.
• I remember racing that car on the city streets of Alexandria, turning down side roads to escape the police.

You may be younger than me, but 

YOU WILL NEVER EXPERIENCE 

WHAT I EXPERIENCED...

That's why I don't care about the crap that has taken place in 2023 and will continue to take place in 2024.

Black Swans

 

Sterile Neutrinos Unlocking Secrets

The neutrino is perhaps the most fascinating inhabitant of the subatomic world. Nearly massless, this fundamental particle experiences only the weak nuclear force and the much fainter force of gravity. With no more than these feeble connections to other forms of matter, a neutrino can pass through the entire Earth with just a tiny chance of hitting an atom. Ghosts, who are said to be able to pass through walls, have nothing on neutrinos.

The neutrinos’ phantom properties are not the only thing that sets them apart from other fundamental particles. They are unique in that they don’t have a fixed identity. The three known forms of neutrinos are able to transform into one another through a cyclical process called neutrino oscillation. In addition to being subatomic specters, they are also quantum chameleons.  READ MORE...

Vanilla Fudge

 

In The NEWS

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas traveled to Mexico City yesterday, meeting with Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador over a record number of migrants flowing through Mexico toward the US border.


The New York Times sued Microsoft and OpenAI yesterday for mass copyright infringement, estimating damages to be worth billions of dollars. The Times, the first major media company to file a lawsuit against Microsoft and OpenAI, accuses them of using its articles to train artificial intelligence chatbots without permission.


South Korean actor Lee Sun-kyun was found dead Wednesday of an apparent suicide in central Seoul. His death came amid a national investigation into his alleged drug use, reports he denied and characterized as extortion. He was 48.


NBA approves majority stake sale of Dallas Mavericks from Mark Cuban to casino magnate Miriam Adelson for a reported $3.5B (More) | Detroit Pistons' losing streak reaches NBA single-season record 27 games (More)


US domestic box office hauls in $8.58B in 2023, the highest since the pandemic and a 15% jump from 2022; see year-end box office numbers for each studio (More)


Tom Smothers, comedian best known as half of the Smothers Brothers musical comedy duo, dies of cancer at 86 (More)


Apple Watch ban paused by US appeals court as regulators consider whether proposed software updates are sufficient to end ongoing patent dispute (More) | Series 9, Ultra 2 watches were banned for US sale Tuesday; see previous write-up (More)


Researchers demonstrate glucose-responsive insulin, capable of regulating blood sugar for up to a week; may eventually provide an alternative to daily injections for patients with Type 1 diabetes (More)


The Small Magellanic Cloud is likely made up of two separate dwarf galaxies, with one situated behind the other (More) | The galaxies are viewable from the Southern Hemisphere and played a role in the lore of ancient societies; see overview (More)


Pizza Hut franchises in California to lay off 1,200 in-house delivery drivers in February ahead of new state law boosting fast-food minimum wage to $20 an hour (More)


At least five people killed in Ukraine's southern city of Kherson after Russia fires nearly 50 drones, knocking out power for 70% of households (More) | The US to deliver $250M military aid package to Ukraine amid congressional stalemate over future assistance (More)

SOURCE:  1440 News

Bodybuilders

 

Second North Korea Nuclear Reactor Active

Somewhat Political

 

The Basics of Our Government

The United States of America is comprised of 48 contiguous states plus Alaska and Hawaii.  We are a Democratic Republic governed by a constitution and various amendments.  The first ten amendments to that constitution is called THE BILL OF RIGHTS which no other country in the world has.  Consequently, people from all corners of the world want to immigrate to the USA to participate in and enjoy or Bill of Rights.

Our constitution gave us three branches of government:  Judicial, legislative, and Administrative and provided laws to the States that were not exclusively reserved by the federal government. 

States Rights versus Federal Rights has always been a bone of contention as evidenced by some states legalizing marijuana while the Federal government still sees it as being illegal.

Nowhere else will something like that (above) exist in the world today.  That makes the USA incredibly unique while at the same time separates from the rest of the world, that is controlled by dictators, socialists, and communists.  While the UK and the EU are forms of democracy as well, they still don't have all the freedoms that we have here in the USA.

Our two party system, Democrats (liberals) and Republicans (conservative) is what perpetuates our democracy by providing the people with TWO POINTS OF VIEW.

Liberal want:

• Large government
• High taxes
• Small military
• Social welfare programs 

Conservatives want:

• Small government
• Low taxes
• Large military
• limited social welfare programs

Note:  there are several other issues, but these are the main points.

Take for instance ABORTION.

Republican don't think the federal government should pay for abortions and the decision to make abortions legal or not, rests with STATES not the federal government.

Democrats believe just the opposite.

Currently, the USA is leaning heavily in the direction of SOCIALISM that has been approved by both parties over the years.  Here are some examples of socialism:

• public education
• public parks/recreation
• social security
• unemployment insurance
• medicare/medicaid
• public transportation

Here's the question that also separates the two parties:  Should our Federal Government go into debt to pay for all the social programs given to its citizens, knowing that the wealthy hide their money from taxes?

Republicans say no

Democrats say yes

Let me leave you with this thought...

The most effective form or government, maybe not the most efficient, is COMMUNISM, not DEMOCRACY.

• People who argue with a Communistic government go to jail
• People do not strike for higher wages in a communistic government
• People are not exposed to all the news or all the truth in a communistic government
• People do not protest in a communistic government
• There is no private ownership in a communistic government
• There is no freedom of speech or religion in a communistic government
• The government easily controls the people in a communistic government

Attacked by Car Door

 

America's New Oil & Gas Boom

Last week I pointed out in a TikTok video that the U.S. is poised to set a new oil production record. In response, someone took exception to my claim by stating that he works in the industry, and drilling rigs are stacking up.

It is correct that the rig count has fallen. According to data from Baker HughesBHI, the number of rigs drilling for oil and gas has fallen by about 20% in the past year.

This decline reversed a steady increase that began after the rig count bottomed out below 300 in the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. The rig count recovered back to nearly 800 rigs by the end of 2022 but has since declined back to about 620.

Nevertheless, U.S. oil and natural gas production are both poised to set new annual production records, after monthly production has risen steadily all year. How can that be if the rig count is falling?  READ MORE...

Bill O'Reilly on Claudine Gay

 

Odds and Ends

In 1969, I enlisted in the US Navy Reserves in what was called back then a 2X4 program.  Two years active duty and 4 years in the active reserves.  I actually spent 21 months on active duty because I got out 3 months early to return to college.  The GI Bill paid for my last two years in college and the entire two years of graduate school.  I WAS LEFT WITH NO STUDENT DEBT.

My professional career lasted 45 years and in 1990 I formed and incorporated a consulting company through which I flowed all my money, and which afforded me a reduction on my taxes.  I was also able to purchase three homes when I was unemployed by using my company's income tax returns.

I am not wealthy, nor am I well off financially but I have saved just enough money to pay for my wife and my expenses until we are both age 95.  At which point, I will have no money at all.  We will both die broke.  Both our children have told us that never counted on receiving an inheritance from us so they have prepared for their own retirement accordingly.

During the course of my lifetime so far, I have struggled with understanding mankind's purpose on earth.  Some believe there is going to be a spiritual afterlife, but I cannot imagine what it would be like to live life as a SPIRIT.  Having awareness but no physical form.  The evidence is strong that there is no spiritual life but not conclusive.

Which brings me back to PURPOSE.

Why live just 80-100 or so years and then one's life is over.

What's the point of making tons of money when all you do is leave it behind to family or give it to charity?

Whatever one has achieved will be forgotten 5-10 years after their death.

Do you still think about Reagan, Nixon, or Kennedy?

How many dead celebrities do you think about?

So, if it is not about money or accomplishments, what is our PURPOSE?

• To endure life's struggles
• To give to those that don't have
• To achieve global peace
• To learn as much as we can
• To enjoy and be thankful for what we have

At 76, I no longer want for anything.  I don't need a fancy car or house or expensive clothes.  I don't care if you like me or not.  I don't care if you don't approve of how I live.  I expect very little, but I am grateful for waking up each morning.

After I retired, 90% of my stress was gone.  The other 8-10% comes from tying to understand my wife and this new technology in which we all must live now.  For me the technology is frustrating and difficult to understand, while at the same time incredibly convenient.  I cannot imagine my life without a tablet and a cell phone.

I have split it up between 8-10% because I think at least 2% is me trying to deal with myself, my internal criticism and lack of motivation, compared to what it used to be like.

Still, none of this resolves my PURPOSE...

In The NEWS

Top Israeli officials are reviewing a draft peace proposal crafted by neighboring Egypt to end fighting in the Gaza Strip, focusing on initial steps including renewed hostage and prisoner swaps, according to reports yesterday. The role of Hamas in a postwar governing structure—a nonstarter for Israel, say experts—remains a key hurdle. Hamas and partner militant group Islamic Jihad were said to have quickly dismissed Egypt's plan.


A ban on the sale of two of Apple's flagship smartwatches will continue for the foreseeable future after a ruling by US trade regulators over a patent dispute went into effect yesterday. The Biden administration declined to veto the decision, which affects US sales of the Series 9 and Ultra 2 watches, early yesterday morning.


Temperatures across much of China rose above freezing for the first time in weeks Sunday, capping the most severe cold snap in the country in seven decades. Thermometers in Beijing had remained below 0 degrees Celsius since Dec. 11, with some parts of northeastern China reaching minus 40 degrees (in both Celsius and Fahrenheit; see here).


Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You" breaks Spotify record for most streams in a day, bringing in nearly 24 million streams on Christmas Eve (More)


Taylor Swift's "1989 (Taylor's Version)" returns to No. 1 on Billboard 200, tying Swift with Elvis Presley for most weeks by a solo artist spent atop the album charts (More)


"The Color Purple" musical film adaptation leads domestic box office with $18M on opening day, the second largest Christmas Day opening ever (More) | Kamar de los Reyes, "One Life to Live" star, dies of cancer at 56 (More)


Apple expects to ship an estimated 500,000 Vision Pro headsets in 2024, going on sale in the first two months of 2024; $3,500 device is Apple's first big step into virtual reality (More)


Study suggests reindeer can go to sleep while eating, allowing the animals to maximize energy conservation during Arctic winters (More)


Engineers develop fiber offering similar warmth to down jackets despite being 80% less thick; material mimics polar bear fur, with each strand possessing a porous core and a waterproof outer layer (More)

SOURCE:  1440 Hews