This week’s TMQ, after the jump…
TMQ Watch: December 2, 2014.
December 4th, 2014Notability.
December 3rd, 2014I love my XKCD shirts, but I haven’t bought a new one recently.
And I’m not buying anything for myself between now and Christmas except essentials, but darn I want this shirt. (2XL. Not that anyone was wondering.)
(“This person has multiple issues.” Story of my life.)
Random notes: December 3, 2014.
December 3rd, 2014It is official: University of Alabama-Birmingham is shutting down the football program.
On the one hand, I feel a little sorry for the players and staff who are getting jammed up, especially since there’s a lot of speculation that the regents (including Bear Bryant’s son) have been out to screw UAB and the football program. On the other hand, I really want to see more schools shut down their football programs. If the NFL wants a minor league, let them start their own, instead of riding on the backs of universities. On the gripping hand:
They cut the rifle program?! Philistines! (“Don’t shoot my sacred cow!”)
This could turn into something interesting:
Well. Well well well. Well.
December 1st, 2014….
The quota accusation was first raised in 2010 by an attorney for some of the fired officers when they appealed their terminations.
Lt. Paul Henderson, then [Police Chief Jeff] Halstead’s chief of staff, dismissed that accusation, saying, “The Fort Worth Police Department does not have ticket quotas.”
Henderson was later fired after his arrest on suspicion of DWI.
…
…
Houston also had their own overtime scandal, but I’m unclear if it also involved state grant money.
Hattip: Grits for Breakfast.
Here’s another one from over the weekend that also made my jaw drop:
In a shocking action, Judge Morrison C. England Jr. ordered the recusal of every federal judge in the Eastern District of California. (Emphasis added – DB)
What happened? Briefly, Sierra Pacific Industries and some other companies have been fighting the Justice Department for several years. Justice accused the defendants of causing a forest fire, and managed to get 22,500 acres of land transferred to the government, along with $55 million in payments over five years. Sierra Pacific and the other defendants argued that they didn’t start the fire, and that Justice…
Hattip: Overlawyered.
Annual reminder.
December 1st, 2014This is your reminder that, if you use the Amazon link on the right-hand sidebar to do your holiday shopping, I get a small kickback.
Said small kickbacks keep this blog flush, and support my bad habit of purchasing firearms related books. (I am currently pinching pennies towards purchasing a copy of The Rifleman’s Rifle
Lawrence and Popehat are also deserving of your support, if you’d rather fling money at somebody else.
Speaking of Lawrence, this is also your annual reminder that books from Lame Excuse Books make swell presents for every major and minor holiday, especially if you have an SF fan in your life.
A few small notes for December 1, 2014.
December 1st, 2014Noted for the record: Bo Pelini out at Nebraska. He was 67-27 overall, and his teams never won less than 9 games a season.
And it has been a bad few days for defensive coordinators: Ellis Johnson out at Auburn, Mike Breske out at Washington State (along with linebacker coach Paul Volero), and Mark Snyder out at Texas A&M.
This isn’t quite a firing, but ESPN is reporting strong speculation that the University of Alabama at Birmingham is going to eliminate their football program. More here.
Ripped from the police blotter.
November 28th, 2014This is still a breaking news story, so details are sketchy. I note it here because…well, it is strange, and there may be some lessons to draw from it. Also, I’m not sure how much coverage it will get outside of Austin.
Early this morning (around 2 AM), somebody started driving around downtown Austin shooting at buildings. According to the Statesman, he shot at the Mexican consulate, the Federal courthouse, and APD headquarters.
He did not injure or kill anyone, as far as is currently known. The shooter was confronted at or near APD headquarters by the police and killed. There are rumors that he may have had an explosive device in his vehicle, and possibly one on his person, but these rumors are not confirmed.
Don’t know what to say about this, beyond: trouble can happen anywhere, and where and when you least expect it. I’ll add updates if I see anything substantial.
Edited to add: more from the HouChron, which claims “more than 100 rounds” were fired, and that the gunman tried to torch the Mexican Consulate.
I threw together a quick and dirty Google map, just to illustrate (for the benefit of my out of town readers) the locations in question.
Obit watch: November 27, 2014
November 27th, 2014Noted English mystery writer P.D. James has passed away. She was 94.
TMQ Watch: November 25, 2014.
November 26th, 2014Two of our new favorite things in the world:
- Kickended, an archive of failed Kickstarter projects. And when we say “failed”, we don’t just mean “didn’t meet their goal”; these are projects that attracted no pledges at all.
- The Clickbait Headline Generator. The real genius of this is the “View This as a Fake Website” function.
We actually want to write the “Three Types of Fun You Should Never Have With a Freelance Nurse” article, as we have some ideas for that. Unfortunately, those ideas make us cringe so badly we can’t bring ourselves to start writing.
In other news, this week’s TMQ, after the jump…
I heartily endorse this event or product. (#12 in a series)
November 25th, 2014Spam Nation: The Inside Story of Organized Cybercrime-from Global Epidemic to Your Front Door
Blogger, with occasional Krebs.
I actually haven’t read the book yet. (It is at the top of the pile.) But Krebs did a signing here in Austin last night, and he came across as a really nice affable guy. I didn’t get a chance to talk with him much: I’d estimate there were 150 people there for the signing, many of whom were purchasing multiple copies of the book, so time was limited. But he signed everyone’s book, and even posed for photos with those who wanted, and in general it was just a swell experience. Based on that, I have few qualms about recommending that you purchase the book.
Obit watch: November 23, 2014.
November 23rd, 2014Your loser update: week 12, 2014.
November 21st, 2014You had one job, Kansas City. One job. And you blew it.
NFL teams that still have a chance to go 0-16 this season:
None.
With this, our hopes turn to the NBA: Philadelphia is now 0-11.
Obit watch: November 20, 2014.
November 20th, 2014I wanted to wait until the media had a chance to do fuller roundups of Mike Nichols and his career.
NYT. LAT. The Dissolve.
TMQ Watch: November 18, 2014.
November 20th, 2014This week’s TMQ, after the jump…
After action report: Tulsa, Oklahoma.
November 17th, 2014I’ve sort of hinted at this, but now the full story can be told.
Mike the Musicologist and I went on a road trip to Oklahoma the weekend of November 8th.