The Method of the Wolf

As the wolf pack approaches the herd of buffalo they know they stand no chance against the herd. Therefore, likely to some degree by instinct, they seek to separate out the one. Generally, they look for the week one or the one that doesn’t remain close to the heard. The stragglers are the natural target of the pack.

The herd has not the intelligence to know that if they were to always charge the wolves instead of running away, the pack would have to search for dinner elsewhere. The wolf diet would not include buffalo. There is no way the pack could survive the trampling of so many hooves.

We as humans know better than the buffalo, right.

Yet, when Hitler took over Germany, he used the same method as the wolves. When he took over most of Europe, he used the same methods as the wolves. When the Bolshivics took Russia, they used the method of the wolves.

We called it the domino affect, where one small nation falls after the other. However, the truth is they were following the example of the wolves, whether or not they were aware of it. Always seek out the weak and separate. Then in days, they take over Hungary or Romania. The method failed in Afghanistan, but because of the help of the US.

Today, even at this time, the communists play the part of the wolfpack. They have imprisoned hundreds of innocent people from January 6. We, the herd, did nothing. Now what stands in the way. The herd has been scattered and we are in fear.

We live in fear of the woke and we live in fear of a justice system that is controlled by the wolfpack.

The Wonderful Side Affect

The Israelis, from what I understand, are thinking of flooding the tunnels that Hamas have dug. It does sound like a good idea, though there do seem to be some bad results. It does seem that everything that is good, have their negative parts as well.

Nonetheless, I think they should do it. It very well may solve one of the problems the going green bunch keep bringing to mind…you know, the one where they predict the rising ocean levels.

I hear tell, there are miles and miles of tunnels down there. Indeed, after flooding all those tunnels, they might need to pump some of the water back into the sea. We certainly don’t want to lower the oceans too much.

Learned Something Today

I learned something this morning. It wasn’t all that important, I don’t guess. I suppose it might be. Considering the condition of the conditions, it could have a real priority.

As an aside, did I mention a time or two that I really dislike drive throughs. I really thought I knew all the reasons. I mean, let’s face it, it is where all the going green folks go and burn gas, with a supposed good reason. They really do have these very big reasons to go along with their very big cars for not going inside to order.

Incidentally, you ever think about all those neat close spaces taken up by the approaches to the windows. Did you ever notice that 3 orders will generally go out the drive through window for each one over the counter.

Well, I guess that’s neither here nor there. I have little or no control over it. It is something established by the business, not me.

Nonetheless, I rose early this morning to have my almost new car worked on. It had a recall. Nothing major. In order to make sure they could get to me, I arrived promptly at 7.

So, once they had the car, I went into my favorite past time…waiting. Then, I saw a Wendy’s down the hill, easy walking distance.

Then I considered. Yup. I distinctly remember Wendy’s ads about really great breakfastds. And I remembered something about a wide selection.

So, I trapse down the hill and across the little street. I made the mistake about letting my hopes build. However, right there on the door, it said dinning room open mon thru thur, 7 to 11. I took a breath. I gave the door a tug, but it wouldn’t open.

Disappointed, I let go of the door. It was then it donned on me. I should have bought my breakfast on the way in. Then I could have eaten it while they worked on my car.

Naturally, the drive through was open, but I had no car.

Well, it is likely just as well. I don’t like Wendy’s and I did learn the lesson. Besides, on the way home, I did have a real breakfast at Waffle House. They had no drive through.

The Hated Truth; The Fear of the Light

Jesus walked this world a little over 2 thousand years ago. That… is indisputable. He and what He did is Biblical and historical. That He performed miracles was well known. It was one of the reasons the leaders of Israel sought to take His life.

To be sure, Jesus gave his life. They didn’t take it. It was foretold in the scriptures, Isaiah, psalms and Daniel to mention a few. Yet the leaders still did their part to fulfill their part of those prophecies.

And why was it that they killed a man who’s only crime was to do good, heal people and teach the truth. It does seem to be the nature of folks, especially those in power. You see, the leadership looked on Jesus as competition. They were desperately afraid, first that He would replace them in their powerful places of leadership. Second that He would put light on motives and the people would see them for what they were. For most of them, it would have been very embarrassing.

It is not the first time nor will it be the last. People, bad people seek power and they will do whatever it takes to get it. And, such people hate people who tell the truth that others might see their motives and their purpose. Such people fear the light, which will possibly expose their sin, their theft greed and their deeds.

Certainly, President Trump was far from being an angel. He used horrible language. He did things I am sure I would never want to admit to my parents, or anyone for that matter.

However, his primary sin he committed was that he confronted the very worst in government. He spoke the truth and exposed the the wrongdoers on both sides of the isle. He shined the light on the sins of the rich and powerful.

Trump was not nearly anything like Jesus, but when it comes to truth and light, he was accomplishing about the same thing, though in a more crude means.

For his efforts, no one received more torture in perhaps 2000 years. Okay. I admit. I am exaggerating. However you get the idea.

The fact is that he has had falsehood after falsehood leveled against him. Once he disproves one thing, they charge him with two more. And like Jesus, they are going after Trump’s followers.

I guess they figure they don’t want any of his friends spreading the truth either. It would stand to reason they don’t like the idea of any light exposure from any one or anything. It would mean the loss of prestige, money and…of course, power. For sure, how can they maintain control without the power.

and, to the dems, control is everything.

Hope & Change

It was Obama’s saying, which likely propelled him into the White House. One might ask, well, what’s wrong with a little hope. What is so wrong with a little change.

Indeed, the thought sounds like such a good idea. But lets take a closer look. First, let’s look at the obvious flaw, that is the change. Certainly, it was more than a little change. It was massive, certainly to me. Obama care cost me 30,000 dollars. By the way, I could not afford it. The wife and I are living almost totally on Social Security. His change just almost wiped out my 401k. It also forced my wife into drawing Social Security early. If she hadn’t, it would have wiped out the remainder of my 401k.

I suspect there are many others who can site many other things. And, incidentally, other than medical office visits, we had not one claim on it. So, that 30 grand essentially all went into the circular file. Ask me if I like Obama’s change. Moreover, I am very suspicious that many others agree. I have also had a few talks with doctors who agree with me.

By the way, lest you forget, the only way they got Obama care through was by bribe, legal bribe, yes, but it was still a bribe and it was wrong. Moreover, it is proof, positive that it would not have passed on its own merit.

Now, consider my chair, a big recliner. I really like it. However, when I purchased it, I had little hope in it. At the store, I tried it out and, well, I really liked. Still, it’s a chair. The only thing I expected from it was to support me in comfort as I watched TV. I did get a little extra. I am sitting in it while I compose this post on my little hand hand held computer. So far, it has held me, for about 4 or 5 years. So far, it has not collapsed or thrown me as a wild horse. I guess, one day it might but so far, I think it will hold for a while. I HOPE it will. On the other hand, I don’t think it will fetch the mail or fix my breakfast. I have no HOPE of that.

Clearly, I had no hope of Obama doing one good thing for anyone other than himself. Obviously, he gave me not one reason to change my mind.

Near as I can tell, he didn’t help anyone else, least of all, the African-Americans. Maybe they know something I don’t. Maybe he actually did try to educate them, but education was degraded during his presidency.

Well, did he help any ethnicity while in office. Near as I can tell, the Asians are doing some better. Blacks, Latino and Jews didn’t seem to benefit from anything he did. Christians definitely didn’t benefit from anything he did. Thousands of them died in Iraq when he decided to just up an leave. I really don’t think he cares. Never heard so much as one person ask him.

Looks to me, when he promised hope and change, the promise was empty. The only one he really wanted to help was himself. He wasn’t a millionaire when he first entered politics, but he is now. Just where do you suppose all his money came from? He spent less than one term as senator, two terms as president and, poof, instant multi-millionaire.

If you think he came by it honest, you are easily deceived. Deception seems to be Obama’s specialty.

Turn Around, There’s a Cliff Ahead!

I didn’t get all the details as I was distracted at the time. However, near as I can tell, the Disney company is starting to have problems. I would guess their movies are not doing well. I would guess they have had a drop off in park attendance. Maybe they are having trouble selling those little toys associated with the movies.

It is, as I said, a guess. I am not a business genius, but I would suspect they have what we in computers the dumb flip-flop stuck in the on condition.

They need not panic yet, though it would appear they just might be near the precipice.

My advice is simple. When you discover that you are going the wrong way, turn around and go back where you came from. They might improve things when they can tell the difference between boys and girls. They just might start improving things by going back to a true family centered corporation, sorta the way Walt Disney originally intended.

Christians, have a word for this. Repent. That is to say realize that what you are doing is wrong, stop, turn around and go back in the other direction.

Oh yes. One more thing! Bring prces back down, and I mean a bunch. I know Disney deals in fantasy land, but the rest of us must keep our feet solid on dirt, or at least most of us. Disney has done raised the price well beyond what most of us can afford.

Remember, Disneyland is an option. Food, shelter and gas are necessary.

Unexpected Plus for EVs

I already explained in another post how I had to $600 for a battery replacement in my HHR. That is important, you know. Repair on gas powered cars is getting expensive. Right now, the HHR another $3000 on other things I am having to put off.

The thing is, nowadays, you cannot drive a car into a garage without paying out $1200 or more for the simplest repairs. To be honest, some of these repairs are are shared with EVs such as brakes, struts and steering. However, my EV does not need oil changes, transmission maintenance and such. The electric motor very likely will outlast me and possibly the car.

As with everything else on the car, the one weak point is batteries. They last anywhere from 7 to 15 years I’m told, quite likely longer than me. Their replacement is expensive, about 1/3 the price of the car. However, their price is going down while the cost of gas car maintenance is going up.

Nonetheless, consider, 7 or 8 trips to the shop for the repair on the gas car would likely cost 10 or 11 thousand dollars. That would take a big chunk out of the cost of the batteries of an EV. Moreover, there is a possibility of recovering core cost on the EV’s batteries. First, they will likely still be usable for things other than cars for years. Second, they just might be able to recover some of the elements out of the batteries and use them for new batteries.

Finally, they are making improvements on batteries all the time. The new batteries might be good for 20 years instead of 7 to 15. Moreover, they just might be able to store more power, increasing the range of the car. Perhaps if I live that long, I will be replacing the current batteries with batteries able to go 20% or 30% farther. On the other hand, who knows, they might have a big breakthrough that will allow the car to go 7 or 8 hundred miles on a charge.

As near as I can tell, with warrantee and all, I don’t think I will pay any maintenance on the Ariya for at least 7 years, other than for tires.

However, with all the good does come a little bad sneaking in the back door. My car is rated at 218 miles, or there about. If the car is fully charged, I can easily see that happening. With the energy recovering capability, on the open road, it will get right around 4 miles/Kwh. This, of course will very, depending on weather. If it is hot or cold, I need some of the power to keep the cabin comfortable. Also, ambient temperature can effect the operation of the batteries.

Also, fully charging the batteries reduces the life of the batteries. It is suggested that if you have an EV, don’t charge them over 80% unless you need the range. On the other side, letting them get below 10% is a gamble. If you don’t get to a charge station before the battery runs down, you’re stranded. Worse, you will not be able to solve the problem with a gas can.

At best, you make sure you get out of traffic and somewhere safe. Then you call for a tow. I had actually joked about getting me a truck and put a level 3 charger on the back of it. I could hook it up to a stranded EV and have a 20% charge on it in minutes. That might be enough to get the car to a normal charge station. (wonder if a bank would give me a loan on that premise) Meanwhile, I could make my way to the next stranded EV.

The point is this. If you only charge the car to 80% and recharge it at 10%, you are operating the car within a 70% margin on the batteries. In the case of my car, it means I have an effective range, or what some call a net range of of 218 – 60 miles or around 150 miles. In my case, I cheat. I charge my car to 90%. Then, I start getting anxious at 30% and put the charger on it. I have this phobia of being in one of those stranded an EV. Still, because I don’t go but a few miles a day, it means a recharge about every 5 or 6 days. Not an inconvenience; but still, I wished I had gotten the model with the 300+ mile range.

Not that it is so important, but the type of electric motor that Nissan uses will likely still be running after the rest of the car is a pile of rust. It is entirely probable that it will be in its 3rd life doing something long after the car is gone.

Beach or Mountains

Daily prompt

Do I prefer beach or mountains?

This is a really tough one. I guess I have to say beach. However, where I live, there isn’t much of either. There are lakes and rivers nearby, but none are fit for swimming. As Mark Twain said, the Mississippi is too thick to drink and thin to plow. There are a few lakes around, but they are nothing like the beaches of s. California.

There used to be some good public pools, but thanks to the lawyers, they went out of business. Law suits made insurance prohibitive.

When we were younger, we rented a hotel room closeby and used their pool. Regardless, the price of hotels with pools have gotten expensive.

It is the worst part about leaving California. Weather, beaches, mountains and amusement parks and folks are still leaving the place. Shows what the dems can do with paradise in a couple of decades.

Right now, I’d say any place where the dems don’t run things is good for me. If you’d kick in some sandy beaches, all the better. I would say Florida, but according to the experts, it will all be 4 feet under water in a decade.

Guess I’ll just stay here.

My Favorite Things

Daily prompt

Where is my favorite place to go in my city.

Okay. Favorite place, favorite thing; it’s sort of the same. Besides, the word, thing, is more accurate for me anyway. Then too, why not use the song title from Sound of Music if I’m able. By the way, it is also one of my favorite songs. I like it almost as much as the title song.

The thing is, I have always liked parks. When I lived in Orange County, we used to walk nearly 2 miles to a park, play for hours, and then, of course, walk nearly 2 miles home.

Irvine Park was not in walking distance, but all of us loved to go now and then, by car, of course. We always had a picnic lunch and frequently watermelon for desert. The park is quite expansive. We ran all over the place, up and down some sizable hills and did some things that wear me out thinking about it today. Then, of course, when we got home, none of us had the energy to make trouble for any of the adults.

The one park that I really loved though, was Griffith Park. That place had enough there to keep me busy for a week, maybe more. That park is huge.

I also spent time in San Diego, which also has a huge park, which also has a huge zoo. I am sure most people have heard of it.

The city where I live now has a couple of parks, which we visit from time to time. Moreover, there are state and federal parks nearby. As a couple of old folks, we don’t run around so much any more. But it is still nice to visit them for a walk now and then. During the right season we watch Little League games and maybe consume a hot dog. It’s gotten to be more enjoyable than watching the pros.

And so it is that my favorite thing is also my favorite place, the park, no matter where I lived.

Needed, One Bumper Sticker

I was in a restaurant the other day. Already, I can’t remember how long I have had my electric car, but it must be close to four months. The guy that worked in the restaurant asked me if my car was electric. Not all that unusual but he was the first one that asked me.

Now, what makes that significant? Surely, there were others that noticed it was tail-pipeless. However, he was the first one that asked. It got me to thinking, which my wife will tell you, can make me dangerous, or at least somewhat crazy.

First, how many have noticed the car is electric. To be sure, if I’m going to pay 10 or 12 thousand more for the car, I think it should be noticed more easily.

Secondly, just why didn’t Nissan hide the fact it’s electric? If it add a grill in front and an exhaust in back, it would be difficult to tell it’s battery powered. Moreover, I wonder if it was intentional.

So, maybe what I need is a bumper sticker. If so, what should it say? Maybe, “This car is battery powered,” “This Auto is Smokeless,” or “Electrified!”

Maybe you have some ideas. I will welcome all reasonable ones.