Geography Div (Time Zone Subsection)

What color is your Mickey (and did you remember to spring forward?).

A Little Saturday Nite Bluegrass Div

The Virginia Luthiers doing one of my favorites, Temperance Reel. Drink Up !!



Wayne Henderson, Guitar
Spencer Strickland, Mandolin
Gerald Anderson, Bass
Tyler Andal, Fiddle

Geography Div (Do you speak Trump?)

Makes ya wonder, eh ?

A Little Saturday Nite Bluegrass Div (Tribute subsection)

Frank Solivan and Dirty Kitchen doing a tribute to banjo pioneer Bill Keith



Dirty Kitchen: Mike Munford-banjo, Frank Solivan-fiddle, Chris Luquette-guitar, Danny Booth-bass - October 24, 2015

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Yeeee Haaaw Div (Cruise Missile subsection)

Kim Il Don is being lauded as "Presidential" by many in the media for his directed strike on a Syrian airfield.  I'll let Dan Rather speak for me on the subject:

The President of the United States is the Commander in Chief. It is an awesome responsibility. Committing the use of force and American men and women in uniform is about as serious as it gets. But the truly great presidents understand that knowing when NOT to act is as important as knowing when to act. 

It is a whole lot easier starting wars than finishing them. And there are many historical examples of where a promise of limited engagement quickly metastasized into something much bigger. 

There is a tendency to rally around the flag, and a President who takes on a war footing can see a boost of support. It is often transitory. There are arguments to be made that President Assad in Syria has crossed a line that demands U.S. military interference. Whether this should have been a unilateral action is something we all must consider. Whether President Trump has a plan for what comes next must be debated. Whether there is a coherence to this missile strike fitting into a larger foreign policy strategy is a question that should give us all pause. 

The role of the press is to ask hard questions. There is ample evidence that this Administration needs to face deep scrutiny. The lies we have heard, the chaos in governance, and the looming questions about ties with Russia - itself a major player in Syria - demand that the press treat this latest action with healthy skepticism. Perhaps it was the right thing to do. Perhaps a strong and wise policy will emerge. But that judgement is still definitely hanging in the balance. 

The number of members of the press who have lauded the actions last night as "presidential" is concerning. War must never be considered a public relations operation. It is not a way for an Administration to gain a narrative. It is a step into a dangerous unknown and its full impact is impossible to predict, especially in the immediate wake of the first strike.

This morning's Los Angeles Times printed the first of four editorials on the "train wreck" called the Trump Presidency.

Part of the article listed what seem to be his good points:

1Trump’s shocking lack of respect for those fundamental rules and institutions on which our government is based. Since Jan. 20, he has repeatedly disparaged and challenged those entities that have threatened his agenda, stoking public distrust of essential institutions in a way that undermines faith in American democracy. He has questioned the qualifications of judges and the integrity of their decisions, rather than acknowledging that even the president must submit to the rule of law. He has clashed with his own intelligence agencies, demeaned government workers and questioned the credibility of the electoral system and the Federal Reserve. He has lashed out at journalists, declaring them “enemies of the people,” rather than defending the importance of a critical, independent free press. His contempt for the rule of law and the norms of government are palpable.

2His utter lack of regard for truth. Whether it is the easily disprovable boasts about the size of his inauguration crowd or his unsubstantiated assertion that Barack Obama bugged Trump Tower, the new president regularly muddies the waters of fact and fiction. It’s difficult to know whether he actually can’t distinguish the real from the unreal — or whether he intentionally conflates the two to befuddle voters, deflect criticism and undermine the very idea of objective truth. Whatever the explanation, he is encouraging Americans to reject facts, to disrespect science, documents, nonpartisanship and the mainstream media — and instead to simply take positions on the basis of ideology and preconceived notions. This is a recipe for a divided country in which differences grow deeper and rational compromise becomes impossible.

3His scary willingness to repeat alt-right conspiracy theories, racist memes and crackpot, out-of-the-mainstream ideas. Again, it is not clear whether he believes them or merely uses them. But to cling to disproven “alternative” facts; to retweet racists; to make unverifiable or false statements about rigged elections and fraudulent voters; to buy into discredited conspiracy theories first floated on fringe websites and in supermarket tabloids — these are all of a piece with the Barack Obama birther claptrap that Trump was peddling years ago and which brought him to political prominence. It is deeply alarming that a president would lend the credibility of his office to ideas that have been rightly rejected by politicians from both major political parties.

The highlighted link contains the links to the other three parts (today, tomorrow and Wednesday. Enjoy .... 

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Geography Div (Giddy up subsection)

You think the mail is slow today ?? Well, today in 1860, if you posted a letter in St. Joseph, MO it would (hopefully) get to Sacramento, CA ten days later. Pretty fast for them days. If you used the early (1860) service you'd be charged $5 for 1/2 ounce.

A Little Saturday Nite Bluegrass Div

Back in 2013, Edgar Loudermilk joined Dave Adkins to form a new band. Here's that band without Adkins doing Steel Guitar Rag.

Glen Crain - Dobro
Edgar Loudermilk - Bass
Jeff Autry - Guitar
Zack Autry - Mandolin

APRIL FOOL not DIV (YA CAN'T MAKE THIS SHIT UP SUBSECTION)

Our esteemed Preznit in Chief (and admitted "pussy grabber")  has signed a proclamation making April  NATIONAL SEXUAL ASSAULT AWARENESS AND PREVENTION MONTH.

You just gotta be shittin' me.

Tired of Winning Yet Div (Jobs subsection)

Well, seems that Kim Il Don has surrounded himself with coal miners, signed an Executive Order aimed at polluting our skies, and promised to "bring back them jobs."
How many you ask ??    Fewer than Arby's.
Thanks Kim.