Dropping Pumpkins

I occasionally post video of exploding pumpkins, now from the University of Oregon, the freeze-then-drop maneuver.

 

A Happy #Halloween Hypothesis: Pumpkins chilled in liquid nitrogen to -321 degrees F. will shatter when dropped from four stories. pic.twitter.com/C431YGnNOL

— University of Oregon (@Univ_Of_Oregon) October 31, 2016

Happy Halloween

Re-posting the hilarious Today show Halloween segment from 2009. Drunk Ewoks!

True Crime: The Long Island Serial Killer

Issue dated Nov. 7, 2016: The Long Island Serial Killer

This is a cover I didn't predict and in fact I haven't heard anything about the so-called Long Island Serial Killer. People does love True Crime stories, though, especially when there are pictures of attractive dead women. Yuck.

I've noticed that the covers are getting busier, with 4 sidebar and topline stories in addition to the main story. I checked out Ina's Roast Chicken recipe and the big news is that it includes radishes. Get the recipe here. 

Ellen DeGeneres

Issue dated Oct. 31, 2016: Ellen DeGeneres


I'm a few days late with last week's cover, featuring Ellen DeGeneres. The new issue comes out tomorrow and I'm back in Guessing Game mode, trying to figure out what the cover story will be. One guess is Billy Bush. He's been staying out of the spotlight since the "Grab 'em" tape came out but he'll surface eventually to try and rebuild his career and reputation. I also think we'll get a Chelsea Clinton cover one of these days, but possibly not until after the election. Wouldn't it be cool if People went with a story about the Chicago Cubs and their historic trip to the World Series? #GoCubs!

It's The Lawn Signs

On "This Week with George Stephanopoulos," Donald Trump's younger son Eric predicted a big Trump win, based on, among other things, rally attendance and lawn signs. Lawn signs! Snarky political observers, including your trusty blogger, immediately flashed back to four years ago and Peggy Noonan's (unintentionally) hilarious and now infamous column, published the day before election day. I've been waiting for an excuse to repost it, so thank you Eric Trump! Here's (most of) the good stuff from Peggy on Monday, November 5, 2012: 

We begin with the three words everyone writing about the election must say: Nobody knows anything. Everyone’s guessing. I spent Sunday morning in Washington with journalists and political hands, one of whom said she feels it’s Obama, the rest of whom said they don’t know. I think it’s Romney. I think he’s stealing in “like a thief with good tools,” in Walker Percy’s old words. While everyone is looking at the polls and the storm, Romney’s slipping into the presidency. He’s quietly rising, and he’s been rising for a while.

Obama and the storm, it was like a wave that lifted him and then moved on, leaving him where he’d been. Parts of Jersey and New York are a cold Katrina. The exact dimensions of the disaster will become clearer when the election is over. One word: infrastructure. Officials knew the storm was coming and everyone knew it would be bad, but the people of the tristate area were not aware, until now, just how vulnerable to deep damage their physical system was. The people in charge of that system are the politicians. Mayor Bloomberg wanted to have the Marathon, to show New York’s spirit. In Staten Island last week they were bitterly calling it “the race through the ruins.” There is a disconnect.

But to the election. Who knows what to make of the weighting of the polls and the assumptions as to who will vote? Who knows the depth and breadth of each party’s turnout efforts? Among the wisest words spoken this cycle were by John Dickerson of CBS News and Slate, who said, in a conversation the night before the last presidential debate, that he thought maybe the American people were quietly cooking something up, something we don’t know about.

I think they are and I think it’s this: a Romney win.

Romney’s crowds are building—28,000 in Morrisville, Pa., last night; 30,000 in West Chester, Ohio, Friday. It isn’t only a triumph of advance planning: People came, they got through security and waited for hours in the cold. His rallies look like rallies now, not enactments. In some new way he’s caught his stride. He looks happy and grateful. His closing speech has been positive, future-looking, sweetly patriotic. His closing ads are sharp—the one about what’s going on at the rallies is moving.

All the vibrations are right. A person who is helping him who is not a longtime Romneyite told me, yesterday: “I joined because I was anti Obama—I’m a patriot, I’ll join up. But now I am pro-Romney.” Why? “I’ve spent time with him and I care about him and admire him. He’s a genuinely good man.” Looking at the crowds on TV, hearing them chant “Three more days” and “Two more days”—it feels like a lot of Republicans have gone from anti-Obama to pro-Romney.

Something old is roaring back. One of the Romney campaign’s surrogates, who appeared at a rally with him the other night, spoke of the intensity and joy of the crowd. “I worked the rope line, people wouldn’t let go of my hand.” It startled him. A former political figure who’s been in Ohio told me this morning something is moving with evangelicals, other church-going Protestants and religious Catholics. He said what’s happening with them is quiet, unreported and spreading: They really want Romney now, they’ll go out and vote, the election has taken on a new importance to them.

There is no denying the Republicans have the passion now, the enthusiasm. The Democrats do not. Independents are breaking for Romney. And there’s the thing about the yard signs. In Florida a few weeks ago I saw Romney signs, not Obama ones.  From Ohio I hear the same. From tony Northwest Washington, D.C., I hear the same.

Things turned out differently than Peggy expected, of course, and a few days after the election she wrote a short "mea culpa": 

President Obama did not lose, he won. It was not all that close. There was enthusiasm on his side. Mitt Romney's assumed base did not fully emerge, or rather emerged as smaller than it used to be. He appears to have received fewer votes than John McCain. The last rallies of his campaign neither signaled nor reflected a Republican resurgence. Mr Romney's air of peaceful dynamism was the product of a false optimism that, in the closing days, buoyed some conservatives and swept some Republicans. While GOP voters were proud to assert their support with lawn signs, Democratic professionals were quietly organizing, data mining and turning out the vote. Their effort was a bit of a masterpiece; it will likely change national politics forever. Mr. Obama was perhaps not joyless but dogged, determined, and tired.

Like Peggy, Eric Trump will almost certainly soon learn that lawn signs really aren't the best predictor of victory. For the record, my belief is that Donald Trump is going to go down in ignominious historic defeat. It can't happen soon enough. 

Days until Election Day: 16

Things I Don't Care About: The 3rd Debate

Seriously. Not gonna watch, not gonna listen, not gonna follow along on Twitter.

Days until Election Day: 19

Just A Little Doggie Singing

The owner received noise complaints from the neighbours, so they set up a nanny cam. This is what they saw 😂😂🐶❤️🐶 pic.twitter.com/uELiE441v2

— Heidi (@HeidiStea) October 14, 2016

This made me laugh, a nice change from the nasty and toxic election. For the next 23 days I'm going to do everything I can to ignore it all (other than voting, of course.)

"Habitual Mendacity, Pathological Narcissism, Profound Ignorance And An Astonishing Dearth Of Basic Human Empathy"

That's Conservative columnist Charles Krauthammer describing Donald Trump in a searing new column at the Washington Post titled "It's not the 'locker room' talk, it's the 'lock her up' talk." Key passage:

Such incendiary talk is an affront to elementary democratic decency and a breach of the boundaries of American political discourse. In democracies, the electoral process is a subtle and elaborate substitute for combat, the age-old way of settling struggles for power. But that sublimation only works if there is mutual agreement to accept both the legitimacy of the result (which Trump keeps undermining with charges that the very process is “rigged”) and the boundaries of the contest.

The prize for the winner is temporary accession to limited political power, not the satisfaction of vendettas. Vladimir Putin, Hugo Chávez and a cavalcade of two-bit caudillos lock up their opponents. American leaders don’t.

One doesn’t even talk like this. It takes decades, centuries, to develop ingrained norms of political restraint and self-control. But they can be undone in short order by a demagogue feeding a vengeful populism. Read the entire column here. 

Condemndorse?

I have literally never tweeted out anything from @DailyCaller. But this is too exquisite to pass up. https://t.co/vbEHH1LFqn

— Joy Reid (@JoyAnnReid) October 13, 2016

I'm with Joy. I couldn't have imagined a world in which I would cut-and-paste wisdom from the Daily Caller into my blog, but this, from Jim Treacher, is too good to miss:

It is with a heavy heart that I condemn the actions of GOP presidential nominee Donald J. Trump, and I encourage you to vote for him on November 8.

As the allegations of sexual assault pile up, my conscience will not allow me to support the man I plan to vote for. No woman should ever live in fear of someone like Donald Trump, who is going to Make America Great Again.

Four more years with a Democrat in the White House could mean the destruction of our great nation, and it can only be prevented by electing the man I repudiate in the strongest possible terms.

Donald Trump is a disgrace to the Republican Party and to the United States of America, and I hope you’ll join me in supporting him on Election Day!

Chip & Joanna Gaines (Who?)

Issue dated Oct. 24, 2016: Chip & Joanna Gaines


I admit, I've never heard of these people, because I've never really gotten into HGTV. Chip and Joanna Gaines? Whatever. I would have assumed that "pregnant at 50" Janet Jackson would be the main story, especially with that baby bump picture. And I can only imagine what "The Truth About TRUMP'S SHOCKING BEHAVIOR" will turn out to be. As I'm writing on Wednesday morning I don't see a teaser story at people.com but if they post one later I'll link to it.

You're So Vain

Love this:

"Character Is Destiny"

Late morning update: I admit I'm fascinated as I watch the Trump story play out, and if "GOP Media Guy" Rick Wilson is right, things may yet get worse for The Donald:

If you think this is anywhere near the most morally repugnant thing about Trump to come out before the election, you're going to be shocked.

— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) October 7, 2016

And one more thing: Yes, Billy Bush is one of "those" Bushes. His father, Jonathan Bush, is former President George H.W. Bush's brother; Jeb and W. are his first cousins.

Original post:
To say that I never thought I'd agree with Jonah Goldberg is a massive understatement. He's a Conservative and we have different views on almost everything. To my surprise this morning, however, I agree with, in fact I'm cheering for, his latest article at The National Review, dated last night and titled "Character Is Destiny. Here it is, in full:

Character Is Destiny, by Jonah Goldberg

If you’re shocked that Donald Trump was capable of being this much of a pig, you let yourself be deluded. If you’re surprised that the Clinton campaign — or some allied party — found something like this, you willfully chose to live in a fantasyland. If you think there isn’t more of this stuff waiting, you’re doubling down on your delusions and fantasies. The grab them by the p***y video is the perfect October surprise two days before the debate, when early voting is really coming online, and when Trump’s Achille’s heel is his poor standing with moderate suburban college educated women. That is not a coincidence.

I can’t imagine what the Clinton campaign would be unloading if Trump were five points ahead. Donald Trump is a fundamentally dishonorable and dishonest person – and has been his whole adult life. The evidence has been in front of those willing to see it all along. And there’s more to find. And there’s more in the Clinton stockpile. Character is destiny. The man in the video is Donald Trump. Sure, it’s bawdy Trump. It’s “locker room Trump.” And I’m no prude about dirty talk in private. But that isn’t all that’s going on. This isn’t just bad language or objectifying women with your buddies. It’s a married man who is bragging about trying to bed a married woman. It’s an insecure, morally ugly, man-child who thinks boasting about how he can get away with groping women "because you’re a star" impresses people.  He’s a grotesque — as a businessman and a man full stop.

If you can see that, but still think Hillary Clinton would be worse. Fine. Just be prepared for an endless stream of more embarrassments in your name. And, for my friends in the media and in politics, if you minimize, dismiss or celebrate his grotesqueness out of partisan zeal, just keep in mind that some people, including your children, might think you mean it. Or, they might know you don’t mean it. Which means they now know you lie for a living.

And if you can’t see what a hot mess Donald Trump is yet, I doubt you ever will and I wonder what fresh Hell will allow the realization to penetrate your consciousness. Either way, this video is not an aberration. It is not a special circumstance. It’s him. There’s no pivot in him. There’s no “presidential” switch to flip. He’s Donald Trump all the way down. And he will humiliate and debase his defenders so long as they feel the need to defend this indefensible man.

The Guessing Game

Update: Nope. People goes with the Brangelina Breakup for the second week in a row. Poor Kim is downgraded to the corner (and a not-very-flattering picture.)

Issue dated October 17, 2016: Brangelina Divorce


Original post:
Will the Kim Kardashian robbery be the main cover story this week? Probably.

Huh?

Afternoon update: Twitter, as you might imagine, has some thoughts about this event. I'm going to post some of the interesting comments.

Not sure which is sadder re #Kardashian 1)Level of distrust as to it's PR stunt or not 2) all the haters hating her

— Conor Cunneen (@IrishmanSpeaks) October 3, 2016

I'll just leave this here... #Kardashian #robbery https://t.co/4LsCCfK8lN

— PJ Coogan (@pjcoogan) October 3, 2016

Am I the only one taking the #Kardashian robbery story with a grain of salt?

— Rob Schmitt (@SchmittNYC) October 3, 2016

Mid-morning update: OK, I may be obsessing about something that has absolutely nothing to do with me, but really. How, exactly, did Kim Kardashian get herself unbound and unhandcuffed?

Original post:
Am I a terrible person if I say that the "Kim K was robbed" story sounds strange to me?  Here's how People.com is reporting it, at 9.00 Monday morning:

Five men in ski masks and police jackets were involved in the robbery about 3 a.m. local time Monday, Reuters reports.

Two men entered her room at No Address Hotel, bound Kardashian's hands and feet with tape then locked her in the bathroom before stealing a jewelry box worth $6.7 million in jewelry and a ring worth $4 million, police sources told La Parisien.

Her purse, two cell phones and 1,000 euros were also taken, police sources tell BFM TV. 

Kardashian was gagged and bound at her hands and feet, then handcuffed and held at gunpoint, according to E! News. After the men left with "all her jewelry," Kardashian "broke out of her bindings and got out."

"She begged for them to let her live and [said] she has babies at home. Then they wrapped her mouth in tape and put her in the bathtub," a source told E!. "She thought they were for sure going to kill her." 

The men were able to gain access to Kardashian's private apartment after five men threatened the apartment building's concierge with a weapon, handcuffed him and forced him to open the private apartment, says The French Interior Ministry, according to CNN. Two of the men were able to gain entry and a gun was held to her head, according to the Paris prosecutor's office. Read the entire story here. 

This may just be a problem with the way the story is reported and written but I'm scratching my head. She was gagged, bound at her hands and feet, handcuffed and lying in the bathtub. At some point in all this she begged for her life, and at some point she had a gun pointed at her head. While she was lying in the bathtub? Before they gagged her? 

Then, after the bad guys left her hotel room (and how, exactly did they gain entrance to a major celebrity's room anyway?) she "broke out of her bindings and got out." Really? She somehow unbound her hands and feet and magically got out of the handcuffs? Really? 

Really? 

The only thing I've read about this situation is the story I pasted above. I'm sure there will be a tsunami of information coming out throughout the day and the details of what happened will be sorted out. For now, call me cynical but the story just doesn't make sense. 

The Math

For some reason I felt like writing about numbers this afternoon. Donald J. Trump likes to brag that he got more votes during the Republican primary than any of his opponents, and in fact, he's been known to say he got more primary votes than any Republican ever. Maybe. It is true that he got the most primary votes this time around, but remember, he had, at one point, 16 opponents. If you add up all of their votes, more Republican primary voters voted against The Donald than for him:

Donald's votes: 14,095,993
The other candidates' votes: 17,023,694

The total number of votes cast is 31,119,687, of which Trump got approximately 45%. The other number to keep in mind is 60,933,500. That's the number of votes Mitt Romney got in the 2012 general election, and he still lost.

By-the-way, do you remember all of the distinguished statesmen/women who ran in the Republican primary? It was all kind of fuzzy in my head, e.g., did Gingrich run this time around or was that in 2012? (Gingrich ran in 2012.) Was it Ron Paul or Rand Paul? (Ron in 2012, Rand in 2016.) Santorum and Perry? (Both in both.)

Anyway, here's my blast-from-the-not-so-distant-past list of the 2016 GOP primary candidates:

Declared (and still in the race) GOP Candidates

1. Donald Trump (June 16)

Officially Not Running
Rob Portman (Dec 2, 2014)
Paul Ryan (Jan 12, 2015)
Mitt Romney (Jan 30, 2015)
Rick Snyder (May 7, 2015)
John Bolton (May 14, 2015) 

Mike Pence (May 20, 2015) 

Bob Ehrlich (August 4, 2015)

You're Fired!: Candidates Who Have Dropped Out
Rick Perry (June 4 - Sept. 11)
Scott Walker (July 13 - Sept. 21)
Bobby Jindal (June 24 - November 17)
Lindsey Graham (June 1 - December 21)
George Pataki (May 28 - December 29)
Mike Huckabee (May 5 - Feb 2)
Rand Paul (April 17 - Feb 3)
Rick Santorum (May 27 - Feb 3)
Carly Fiorina (May 4 - Feb 10)
Chris Christie (June 20 - Feb 10)
Jim Gilmore (July 30 - Feb 14) 
Jeb Bush (June 15 - Feb 20)
Dr. Ben Carson (May 3 - March 4)
Marco Rubio (April 14 - March 15)
Ted Cruz (March 23 2015 - May 3 2016)
John Kasich (July 21 2015 - May 4, 2016)

Days until Election Day: 36