Lying

 

Damages

 

Losers

 

Morality

 

The Plan

 

Hopping Around

 

Reflecting on 2024

 

I think the main things that immediately stick in my mind are the killing of the healthcare CEO and the burning of a sleeping woman on a subway by an illegal immigrant.

Sad that this is how most of us are going to remember 2024.

Obviously, Trump won the Presidential election in November and the GOP won the Senate and the House by a slim majority.  The GOP will once again be tested to see if they can govern rather than fight among themselves.

We also have wars continuing in Ukraine and Israel, but Assad was kicked out of Syria and now the rebels are in charge and while that hurts Iran, I am not sure if this new regime favors the USA.

Amazon and Starbucks called a worker strike right before Christmas and while their timing was perfect, I don't think it prevented Amazon from making their delivery commitments.  Perhaps the workers will get something out of this, but it will only raise prices which will result in some of them getting laid off.

I believe the biggest problem facing the USA in not any of what I just listed but the following:

• The National Debt
• A Divided America

Both of these items are critical, and it seems like the hate in America is so strong that neither side is ever going to take a step forward to compromise.  It is either my way or not way at all.

2024 was good for my wife and I because we achieved our savings goal and the money that we had in a CD is generating enough money for us to buy a year-old car in 2025.

All in all, it has been a good year.

Somewhat Political

 

Surprise Planet Discovery

New research reveals a fourth planet in the Kepler-51 system, altering our understanding of this unique system with three known ultra-low density “super-puff” planets.

Researchers utilized a range of telescopes, including NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, to detect unexpected transit timing variations that suggested the presence of an additional planet. This discovery adds complexity to the system’s dynamics and poses new questions about the formation and characteristics of these rare super-puff planets.

New Planet Discovered in Kepler-51 System
A team of researchers from Penn State and Osaka University has discovered that an unusual planetary system, known for its three ultra-low density “super-puff” planets, includes at least one more planet. While observing Kepler-51d, the third planet in the system, with NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the team encountered a surprise: the planet transited its star two hours earlier than predicted by existing models.

To solve the mystery, the researchers analyzed both new and archival data from a range of space- and ground-based telescopes. Their investigation led to a compelling explanation: a previously undetected fourth planet, whose gravitational influence affects the orbits of the other planets in the system.

This groundbreaking discovery is detailed in a paper published on December 3 in the Astronomical Journal.     READ MORE...

THE ROLLING STONES - Honky Tonk Women

Jimmy Carter Dies

Former President Jimmy Carter, a man who redefined what a post-presidency could be, died Sunday. He was 100.  His son, Chip Carter confirmed that the former president died at his home in Plains about 3:45 p.m.

Explore:  Read the life story of former President Jimmy Carter, the man from Plains

Carter, who lived longer than any other U.S. president, entered home hospice care in Plains, Georgia in February 2023 after a series of short hospital stays.

The only Georgian ever elected to the White House, Carter left office after a single term that was highlighted by forging peace between Israel and Egypt, but was overshadowed by the Iran hostage crisis. In the decades after, his reputation grew through his and wife Rosalynn Carter’s work at the Carter Center in Atlanta and his philanthropic causes such as Habitat for Humanity.  

“People will be celebrating Jimmy Carter for hundreds of years. His reputation is only going to grow,” Rice University history professor Douglas Brinkley wrote in his book “The Unfinished Presidency of Jimmy Carter.”        READ MORE...

In The NEWS

Azerbaijani and US officials suggest plane crash caused by weapons fire.

Russia's aviation chief claimed a Ukrainian drone attack was occurring in Chechnya as the Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed (see previous write-up) was attempting to land in Grozny. The aviation chief did not confirm if Russian air defenses accidentally shot it down. Azerbaijan Airlines attributed the crash to unspecified “physical and technical interference” and has suspended flights to several Russian airports.



Fallen cryptocurrency mogul Do Kwon to be extradited to the US.

Montenegro agreed to release Kwon, the cofounder of the collapsed cryptocurrency firm Terraform Labs, to face federal fraud and conspiracy charges in the US. The collapse of Terraform Labs, triggered by the 2022 crash of its TerraUSD stablecoin and its Luna sister token, caused investors to lose $40B. Kwon also faces charges in South Korea, which also sought to take custody of him.



Longtime CBS Sports broadcaster Greg Gumbel dies.

Gumbel died Friday at age 78 after a battle with cancer. His broadcasting career spanned over 50 years, during which time he became known for his work on major events like the Super Bowl and NCAA March Madness. He also served as an anchor for ESPN's "SportsCenter" and was an announcer and studio host for NBC Sports in the mid-1990s.



South Korea installs second acting president in two weeks.

Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok will take over as the country's next acting president after the National Assembly voted to impeach the previous acting president, Han Duck-soo. Lawmakers impeached Han for his refusal to fill three vacant seats on the high court; the appointments were needed for the court to rule on the impeachment of former President Yoon Suk Yeol.



CDC says bird flu virus likely mutated within a Louisiana patient.

Genetic analysis of the bird flu virus in a Louisiana patient showed the virus had mutated during infection to become more transmissible to humans, similar to changes seen in a patient in British Columbia. The Louisiana patient is in critical condition after being exposed to sick and dead birds from backyard flocks. According to the CDC, the overall risk to the public remains low, and there's no evidence of human-to-human transmission.



NFL Christmas Day doubleheader sets streaming record on Netflix.

Netflix's doubleheader broke records as the most-streamed NFL games in US history, with an average of 24.3 million viewers for the Ravens-Texans game and 24.1 million for the Chiefs-Steelers game. Both figures outpaced the NBA's five-game Christmas Day lineup, which averaged about 5.25 million viewers per game across its platforms.



NASA's Parker Solar Probe survives closest-ever approach to sun.

The 1,510-pound Parker probe (see overview) successfully came within 3.8 million miles of the sun on Christmas Eve and confirmed its safe status by transmitting a beacon signal back to Earth ahead of schedule late Thursday night. The milestone marks a significant achievement in NASA's mission to study the sun's corona and solar wind, with more detailed data expected to be received Jan. 1.

SOURCE:  1440 NEWS

Ongoing Battle with Cancers

 At the end of this month, I will complete my 16th year of being treated for non-Hodgkin's small B cell Lymphoma and 14th of being treated for Melanoma.

I have had 365 infusions averaging right at 2 each month, even though some month during those years, I had 3 infusions each month.

My body has handled all those toxins pretty well although, my WBC & RBC & Platelets have remained consistently at the lower level or below the recommended range for males.

I never lost my hair but for 6 months my infusions made me so sick that my wife took me to the ER in order to get my vomiting to stop.  The vomiting was not normal to me as my body would sweat so much it was like I had just gotten out of shower.

When I vomited my body would arch up like an angry cat and retch for a minute or more until the green toxins came out of my mouth.  I could feel my body pulling it up from my groined it seemed.

When I stopped, I was so exhausted, I just laid on the cold tile floor for several minutes shivering so violently my entire body shook.

Sixteen years later, my treatments are immunotherapy, which is not so hard on my body, but I am still left with constant fatigue daily, blurred vision, loss of hearing, night sweats, and intermittent nausea.  I think it has ruined my teeth but there is no evidence for that other than anecdotal.  

My Oncologist tells me that I will be getting treatments for both cancers for the rest of my life.

I am thankful for each day.

Somewhat Political

 

BRICS Controls 41% of the Global Economy

BRICS keeps expanding, adding 9 partner countries in January 2025, after admitting 4 new members in 2024. It now makes up roughly half of the global population and more than 41% of world GDP (PPP). It’s an economic powerhouse, with top producers of key commodities like oil, gas, grains, meat, and minerals.

BRICS, the Global South-led forum for economic cooperation, continues to grow in influence, as its seeks to de-dollarize and transform the international monetary and financial system.

After admitting four new members in 2024, BRICS officially welcomes nine new nations as partner countries on January 1, 2025. 

They are:

• Belarus
• Bolivia
• Cuba
• Indonesia
• Kazakhstan
• Malaysia
• Thailand
• Uganda
• Uzbekistan

With its nine members and nine partners, BRICS now makes up roughly half of the global population and more than 41% of world GDP (PPP).     READ MORE...

Barry McGuire - Eve Of Destruction

Mr. President Elect

 We are waiting around for our next President to be sworn in and already there is much speculation and conjecture as to how horrible of a President he is going to be.  They say they cannot believe that the American public elected someone who had been found guilty of 34 felonies.

What I find curious and almost humorous about their concerns is that not once have they stepped back and looked at the bogus charges that were brought against the man, especially since the statute of limitations had expired on the misdemeanor charges that had been bootstrapped into felonies and how the jurors paid no attention to the evidence that the prosecution presented.

Instead, they say felonies are felonies and the man should be in jail...

Instead of doing a little introspection to analyze why they lost the election, they are implying that the election should be invalidated on the grounds that the voters have been manipulated into casting a misunderstood vote.

Always someone else's fault, never their own.

Now they vow to not just oppose our new President but not refer to him as Mr. President at all.

This leaves one wondering if these people are adults with childish minds...

Time will never convince them otherwise.

In The NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> Wicked" set to be released for rent or purchase on streaming platforms Dec. 31 (More) | "Mufasa" ($15M) tops "Nosferatu" ($11.6M) and "Sonic 3" ($10.7M) to lead Christmas Day box office (More)

> Baltimore Ravens' Lamar Jackson breaks NFL record for most career rushing yards (6,110) by a quarterback, topping the record previously held by Michael Vick (More)

> Richard Parsons, former CEO of Time Warner and Citigroup chairman, dies of bone cancer at 76 (More) | Bill Bergey, five-time NFL Pro Bowl linebacker, dies of cancer at 79 (More) | Hudson Meek, child actor known for role in "Baby Driver," dies at 16 after falling from moving vehicle (More)


Science & Technology
> UK patient successfully receives country's first double lung transplant using "lung in a box" device; technology reconditions organs from donors that may have been damaged (More)

> Archaeologists uncover 535-million-year-old fossilized embryos of roundworm-like creatures; discovery sheds light on the evolution of ancient organisms during the Cambrian period (More)

> Chimpanzee study shows individuals vary in their ability to crack open nuts using stones, suggesting a wide degree of cognitive ability within the same group (More)


Business & Markets
> US stock markets close mixed (S&P 500 -0.0%, Dow +0.1%, Nasdaq -0.1%) in thin holiday trading (More) | Apple stock notches all-time high in intraday trading as it nears $4T market cap (More)

> US holiday retail sales from Nov. 1 through Dec. 24 rose 3.8% year-over-year, up from 3.1% last year, per preliminary data from Mastercard (More)

> Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba and South Korean retailer E-mart to form online shopping joint venture in 2025, with entity valued at roughly $4B (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> Israel strikes multiple targets in Yemen, including the country's international airport, where the World Health Organization director was present, reportedly killing six people and wounding 11 more; attacks come after Houthi militants struck a Tel Aviv playground last week (More) | See war updates (More)

> India's former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh dies at age 92; the first Sikh to hold the country's highest office, Singh was known for liberalizing India's economy during his tenure from 2004 to 2014 (More)

> World marks 20 years since the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami killed an estimated 230,000 people across a dozen countries, the deadliest tsunami in history (More) | See photos from the disaster (More)

SOURCE:  1440 NEWS

Resolutions

 

With only 3 days left before NEW YEAR'S EVE, have you been doing any thinking about what your New Year's Resolutions might be?

Historically, 90% of the people who make resolutions never follow through with them 100%.  In fact, most resolutions are abandoned after the first 2-3 months of the new year.

WHY?

Good question.

• Some were not serious about the resolutions to begin with
• Some made the goals too far away to reach
• Some were serious but lost motivation and determination

When I turned 40 years old, I made the following resolutions:

• Stop smoking cigarettes
• Stop drinking alcohol
• Strop eating fried foods

All of this was done COLD TURKEY and I never looked back on the cigarettes and alcohol but do allow myself 1-2 cheeseburgers a year and 3-4 pizzas.

As I get older, no cheeseburgers at all and pizzas have dropped down to 1-2 annually.

My resolutions that I have been considering are:

• think before I speak
• try not to get angry
• Try not to raise my voice

There is a lifetime of doing things and many of us have programmed ourselves and in order to reach these goals one must first de-program oneself...  and this, my friend, is not all that easy.