These are Wild Animals, not cute furry pets. The fact that they are caged in a zoo does not change their nature.

They need to eat, and, if not fed, will hunt for their food.
They hunt, and kill, other animals.
They are predators, doing what predators do.

NEW ORLEANS — Eight animals have now died after a jaguar escaped from its habitat at the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans. CBS affiliate WWL-TV reports an alpaca and fox died Sunday, the day after the male jaguar killed four alpacas, one emu and one fox Saturday morning.

To expect any other behavior is to show your ignorance. 

While the Media keeps pushing the “Russia hacked the DNC in an attempt to “influence” the 2016 elections” meme during the stories about Trump’s meeting with putin, they leave out an important bit of data: One fun fact that they leave out is that no one has examined the DNC server to see what, if any, evidence might point to the accusation that it is the “Russsians”.

Neither the FBI, nor the NSA has been allowed to examine the server. The DNC has refused to allow ANYONE to examine it. Nor has it been kept in a secure location, so it is useless as evidence now.

We only have the word of the DNC that it was the “Russians” that did this.

Odd that, despite there being such an outcry that there was a crime committed the DNC refused to allow any investigation, innit? 

This idiot was pretty much out of line and should have been told by friends to shut up….perhaps a bit too much hops and barley?

On the other hand, He’s being charged with a Hate Crime….which is pretty stupid. Where are HIS Free Speech rights? He had an opinion, and even if it was in bad taste (or just flat out bigoted and wrong) he too has a right to speak, even if his opinion is bigoted and, frankly, stupid.

While I would like to see folks show some pride in the US if they are American Citizens, they too have the right to Free Speech, even if that is a t-shirt that others find distasteful.  Good with the Bad and all that. Either we have Free Speech or we have “RightThink”. Which is it?

So I ask you, why does this drunken idiot guy not get to speak his mind without being arrested for it? Just because some chippie posted her video on Social Media? Because everyone has the right to prove they are an idiot by speaking, don’t they?

I mean, he might have been intimidating (and an ass), but until he laid a hand on her, she had no cause to charge him. Perhaps he was as offended by her shirt as she was by his words…..
And nowhere in our Constitution do I see anything that says you don’t have a right to an opinion or not be offended.

My pilots license, that is….

Met my parents at the Airplane rental hangar yesterday about 4 pm.

We did the chores, fired up the 172 and flew around a bit, looked at their house (what we could see of it, they have a lot of trees) then flew along the Lake Michigan lakeshore for about 20 miles and looked at the beautiful beaches.

Then we flew to Rochester for dinner.

(Rochester is far enough away from our homes that we would normally not drive there for dinner, bust since we were flying at 105 knots, we could get there in a reasonable amount of time).

Someone got smart, and there is a well-mowed grassy area and a path off the paved taxiway that planes can use to taxi and park across the street from a nice little restaurant.

It was a nice dinner with my parents, and a nice flight.
Skies were a bit hazy, but the views were awesome, and the company was good.

I greased both landings, one at RCR and one back at my home airport. (yeah, the winds were light and favorable, but still).

All in all, a great evening and a nice reward for me, having struggled to gain my Private Pilot license.

Plus, I got to show off a bit.

This is why I wanted to fly, at least in part….To go places and see things and get there faster with friends and people I love to be with.

I shouldn’t really complain, but if other parts of my world were different, it’d be a perfect life right now. but overall, I’m pretty content.

If you are a member of a club, you should read this.

Lessons from the Annals of Club Management

Really Really good advice if you are involved in any Social or Civic club. 

Equal protection under the law…right?

When will Peter Strozk be imprisoned for  failing to answer question posed by Congress?

(And, for that matter, one would wonder Lying to Congress as well)

That, after years of the DNC types ignoring court orders, and DNC affiliated heads of Federal agencies being allowed to ignore or dismiss court orders…Especially when it comes to investigations into the practices of their members…..or when ignoring those orders benefits their cause.

Yet now, these same folks are insisting the the Trump Administration follow the courts orders to reunite the kids taken from their (criminal) parents be reunited with them….

Odd how they think that the courts have the power to rule when it benefits them, and not so much when it doesn’t….

(and, again, are we gonna “reunite” all those kids taken from their parents when their (US Citizen) parents were arrested for crimes and incarcerated??? Who is gonna pay for those huge expansions to the prisons and jails for schools and playrooms? I mean, all US citizen arrestees get separated from THEIR children…..How come illegal border crossers get special treatment?)

I’m no economist.
I don’t understand international trade interactions and how they interact to make the economy work better or worse as they change.

But I DO know that China needs the US as a customer more than the US needs China as a customer.

Without the US as a buyer for Chinese goods, China’s economy falls on it’s face.

Now, it could be that I’m wrong……I welcome (sane, polite, somewhat well thought out and not ranting)  comments which will show if I have made a mistake in my thinking.

But I do think that, if the US stays the course, China falls on it’s face without us as a consumer of their products.

Then they will play our game (They will, of course, cheat all they can, because Chinese Culture, but they will play. And then the US will be in a better position. but I repeat myself) go apeshit over the looming additional tariffs TheDonald intends to impose on the PRC. 

32 rounds at a time.

Heat of the day, 15 pushups, 50 yard sprint,,,no sunglasses, as fast as I could squeeze the trigger and change magazines…

And I still hit the 6″ gongs at about 90% at 15 yards.

Man, that is work.

But if it Ever Happens, it ain’t gonna be in a nice airconditioned lane at a range with bottled spring water and at whatever pace I want, when I am calm and with a low heart rate and low blood pressure. SO I do what I can to simulate the physical.

And the SIG 1911 never even had a hiccup. Ran perfect.

a short one.

I had the plane from 10-1.

So, I planned a trip from VPZ to MGC to watch the parachute jumpers, but when I got there, there weren’t any at that time…..So I did a touch and go, and then set course for RCR.

Flew there, with Flight Following from South Bend, and then did a full stop landing and taxied to a parking spot on the grass to check out the restaurant across the street….but, being Sunday, they were packed full of post church folks.

So I taxied back to the ramp and went in to use the bathroom.

At the ramp was a couple of airplanes and one of them was a 337 Skymaster, which have always interested me.

When I came out of the bathroom, the owner of the 337 was waiting to use the plumbing. We started talking and he showed me his aircraft. (He had stopped in and met some friends for lunch at that same restaurant)

I think I want one. Odd airplane, but pretty nice. His was pressurized, and he claimed 220 knots at 20K Feet. (which is pretty fast, but he also said that that makes for high fuel consumption….like 30 GPH). But he did say that at 170 or so at 10K, it is only 20 GPH, so that is doable…

He also said he can carry 6 people, or 4 people and weekend baggage….With full fuel. Which makes that a decent aircraft for my expected needs.

Might be that I will have to get a twin endorsement soon as well.

Overall, it was a good flight. Winds were negligible at 3500 and 4500 respectively, and the traffic was not bad at all. Even SB approach frequency wasn’t too busy. I guess everyone flew yesterday?

as Aaron says….1,7 and 4.