Sunday, July 31, 2022

Random News: July 31, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 31, 2022, and it’s a Sunday. Here are some thoughts while having coffee in a bathrobe…


  • 100 days.
  • That’s right. 100 days until the 2022 Midterm Elections, which happen Tuesday November 8.
  • What’s it all about?
  • I had a hopefully enlightening chat with a friend the other day who was — like many — not at all feeling enthused by what the Democrats or Republicans were doing. I had to explain that this is a pretty common feeling, especially over the past six or so years but going back long before then.
  • Here’s the deal: stop looking at the names of the parties. Stop looking at the stupid red or blue team colors. That’s for chumps who think of politics like sports teams.
  • Instead, just look at the policies. Now, no matter whether your opinions lean left or right, you almost certainly won’t find that either party has platforms that you believe in 100%.
  • Don’t let that worry you. You’re an adult man or woman or non-binary human. You can see which party has the policies that you share more than the other, and you can make compromises when they’re not perfect.
  • Is this Midterm election important? I’d say it’s perhaps more important than almost any national election before it, including those where Presidents are elected.
  • Why?
  • All 435 seats in the House of Representatives are up for re-election, as they have a 2-year election cycle. At the moment, it’s very closely balanced, with 220 Democrats, 211 Republicans, and four vacant seats. These are literally your personal representatives from your local are (congressional district). They create the laws that affect every American every day.
  • In the Senate, which holds 100 seats (two for each state), 35 of them — over a third — are up for re-election. They are currently balanced at 50 Republicans, 48 Democrats, and two Independents who generally vote with the Democrats. That means just one Senate seat change would allow that party’s laws to be passed. The Senate is where things get approved, be they laws proposed by the House or confirmation of cabinet secretaries, federal; judges and more.
  • The election in November will also include many state and local candidates and proposals that affect you personally where you live.
  • Historically, the party of the current President loses House seats, even with a popular President like Reagan in 1986 or Obama in 2010. Even with everything going on with the January 6 investigation and issues like the massive unpopularity of the repeal of Roe v. Wade, it is quite likely that the Republicans will take control of the House.
  • That assumes that you don’t vote, and historically, you don’t. Midterm elections have far smaller voter turnout than in presidential election years.
  • Vote.
  • The Senate is a little different. Republicans have to defend 21 or the 35 seats for re-election, while Democrats have only 14 to defend.
  • Despite that, with the balance being so razor thin, the four states that are most in danger from flipping Dem to GOP are very close. They are Arizona, Georgia, Nevada and New Hampshire. That being said, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin have very decent odds of flipping from GOP to Dem, and believe it or not, North Carolina, and even Ohio and other states have smaller but reasonable odds of flipping Dem… if people vote.
  • Vote.
  • There are many important, possibly life-changing things at stake in this election, but I’m not going to get into any of them at the moment.
  • However, we’ll look at some of these things over the 100 days between now and the election. For the time being, I just want to make sure that a) you’re registered to vote and b) if so, you confirm your registration to vote.
  • You can do it today. Ask me how!
  • QotD: “Knowledge is power.” - Francis Bacon
  • Today in history… Marc Antony wins the Battle of Alexandria over Octavian, but most of his troops desert (30 BC). Mount Fuji erupts (781). Christopher Columbus “discovers” Trinidad (1498). The Nazi Party wins 38% of the vote in German elections (1932). New York International Airport is dedicated, and is later renamed John F. Kennedy International Airport (1948). Michael Phelps breaks the record for most medals won at the Olympics (2012).
  • July 31 is the birthday of Holy Roman emperor Maximillian II (1527), French Prime Minister Henri Brisson (1835), music producer and label founder Ahmet Ertegun (1923), jazz guitarist Kenny Burrell (1931), tennis player Evonne Goolagong (1951), actor Michael Biehn (1956), guitarist Stanley Jordan (1959), NFL player Kevin Greene (1962), actor Wesley Snipes (1962), musician Fatboy Slim (1963), author and transphobe J. K. Rowling (1965), baseball player/manager Gabe Kapler (1975), musician Zac Brown (1978), and NFL player DeMarcus Ware (1982).


100 days people. It’s gonna go by fast. You have a lot of other things going on, and so do I. But anything we can do together to encourage more people to vote is going to be helpful to the world today and in the future. We’ll talk more about this. Enjoy your Sunday.

Friday, July 29, 2022

Random News: July 29, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 29, 2022, and if you can believe it, it’s a Friday once again! Here are some dribs and drabs…


  • Former President Donald J. Trump, while hosting a tournament by the Saudi-run LIV golf league at his his golf club in Bedminster, NJ, had this brilliant statement…
  • “Nobody’s gotten to the bottom of 9/11, unfortunately. They should have, as to the maniacs that did that horrible thing, to our city, to our country, to the world. So nobody’s really been there. But I can tell you that there are a lot of really great people that are out here today. And we’re going to have a lot of fun and we’re going to celebrate.”
  • IT WAS DONE BY SAUDI TERRORISTS, you dumb bloated nincompoop.
  • Jesus. Anyway…
  • That guy is still trying to win the 2020 election, some 20 months after the fact. He was told yesterday that Wisconsin cannot “decertify” Biden’s victory in that state no matter how much he begs them to. Their Supreme Court found Trump’s request to do so "unreasonable in the extreme" and was filed too late.
  • Real men accept a loss.
  • My thoughts to anyone affected by the flooding in Eastern Kentucky. It turns out that I do know someone who lost a house in that disaster, and I wish them well.
  • If you wanted to make a lot of money over the past decade, you should have made guns and convinced men with tiny little penises that guns will substitute for their actual manhood. AR-15 rifle sales topped $1 billion in ten years.
  • In other business news, Jet Blue has agreed to buy Spirit Airlines for $3.8 billion. Now you can have even less choices in really shitty air travel experiences. Biden’s Justice Department needs to approve the deal, and they might not, because lack of competition always hurts the consumer.
  • Ukraine is still holding up against the onslaught of Russian attacks. They have some successful counter-offensives going in places like Kherson. Slava Ukraini!
  • The GOP reversed course and decided to not help veterans suffering from the effects of burn pits. These people, who fought for our country and now face terminal cancer from exposure to toxic fumes in these burn pits, are on their own due to 25 Republican Senators.
  • "This is an embarrassment to the Senate, to the country, to the founders and all that they profess to hold dear. And if this is America first, then America is fucked.” - Jon Stewart, veterans advocate.
  • Sigh, Back to happy news.
  • Oh hey… ya know my favorite teenager Olivia Julianna, who was fat-shamed by Matt Gaetz? Her safe abortion fund surpassed ONE MILLION DOLLARS yesterday afternoon in less than 72 hours. It’s at $1.4 million this morning. As a result, Matt Gaetz has done more to help safe abortion than just about anyone, so let’s hope he keeps insulting women across the USA, especially teenagers, for similar results.
  • Andrew Yang, who failed in his bid to run for President and then failed in his bid to be the mayor of New York, is now announcing a new third political party to go up against Democrats and Republicans in 2024. Even if you learned nothing from Ralph Nader and Jill Stein, do not get on board with this bullshit.
  • QotD: “Revenge by young men is considered gain, even at the cost of their own lives, but old men who stay at home in times of war, and mothers who have sons to lose, know better.” - Chief Seattle
  • Today in history… Neo-Babylonians sack Jerusalem (587 BC). Crusaders get their ass beat at the Siege of Damascus (1148). Mary, Queen of Scots marries Henry Stuart (1565). The US Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps is founded (1775). The Arc de Triomphe is inaugurated in Paris (1836). Confederate spy Belle Boyd is arrested (1864). Robert Baden-Powell hosts the first Scout camp (1907). Adolf Hitler is named head of the Nazi Party (1921). The Summer Olympics open in London (1948). The International Atomic Energy Agency is established (1957). The Tonight Show with Jack Paar begins, starting the modern dat talk show (1957). Eisenhower signs the National Aeronautics and Space act, founding NASA (1958). David “Son of Sam” Berkowitz kills his first victim (1976). 700 million people watch the wedding of Charles and Diana (1981). Astronomer discover the dwarf planet Eris (2005).
  • July 29 is the birthday of Japanese nobleman Fujiwara no Norimichi (996), organist Johann Theile (1646), historian/philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville (1805), fascist Benito Mussolini (1883), pregnancy test inventor and gynecologist Bernhard Zondek (1891), businessman J.R.D. Tata (1904), actress Clara Bow (1905), amplifier maker Jim Marshall (1923), wrestler Lou Albano (1933), politician Elizabeth Dole (1936), journalist Peter Jennings (1938), actor David Warner (1941), actor Tony Sirico (1942), REO Speedwagon founder Neal Doughty (1946), filmmaker Ken Burns (1953), the all-time god of progressive rock bass Geddy Lee (1953), singer Martina McBride (1966), actor Will Wheaton (1972), and quarterback Dan Prescott (1993).


Alright! It’s Friday! Let’s do fun things and kick fun ass and work fun hard and be a fun fighter! Not a fighter of fun. A fighter who has fun while defending the world of fun. You know what I mean. Shut up.


Thursday, July 28, 2022

Random News: July 28, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 27, 2022, and it’s a Thursday for some reason. Things that I am thinking that will now be transferred to your brain…

  • Remember yesterday when I told you about Olivia Julianna, a 19-year-old who raised $168,000 for abortion rights after congressman and alleged sex trafficker Matt Gaetz publicly body shamed her?
  • That was after 24 hours. Now she’s raised over $500,000 in two days. A half million dollars, thanks to the terrible actions of one insignificant Republican. Anyone else want to insult some teenage girls?
  • Everything you dole out will come back to you tenfold, be it good or bad. In the case of Matt Gaetz, once again it’s time to fuck around, and then find out.
  • On Tuesday, the House overwhelmingly passed a bi-partisan bill to support victims of human tracking. The vote tally was 401-20.
  • Who were the 20 members of Congress who support human sex and slavery trafficking? You will be shocked! Oh wait, no you won’t.
  • Brian Babin (R-TX), Andy Biggs (R-AZ), Lauren Boebert (R-CO), Mo Brooks (R-AL), Ken Buck (R-CO), Andrew Clyde (R-GA), Matt Gaetz (R-FL), Louis Gohmert (R-TX), Paul Gosar (R-AZ), Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), Andy Harris (R-MD), Jody Hice (R-GA), Thomas Massie (R-KY), Thomas M. McClintock (R-CA), Mary Miller (R-IL), Troy Nehls (R-TX), Ralph Norman (R-SC), Scott Perry (R-PA), Chip Roy (R-TX), and Van Taylor (R-TX).
  • Gaetz himself is being investigated by the Justice Department for the alleged sex trafficking of a 17-year-old girl. Boebert is the wife of a convicted sex offender. Not sure about the reasons for the other 18 members.
  • Supposed Democrat Joe Manchin and actual Democrat Chuck Schumer announced a surprise deal on climate change, health care, and taxes yesterday. Not that I’m saying the reason for Manchin’s new cooperative outlook is because polls are showing he’ll lose the significance he’s previously enjoyed, but… it kinda looks that way.
  • In fascinating news, Fox has simply stopped broadcasting Trump’s speeches live. He gave the keynote at some nationalist rally on Tuesday, but Fox chose instead to air a competing speech by Mike Pence for 17 uninterrupted minutes of airtime.
  • Hmm.
  • Also, their “Fox & Friends” show, which I thought was a children’s program about some animals who live together in a magical forest, have been pointing out the better polling numbers of FL governor Ron DeSantis, a presumptive candidate for 2024, compared to Trump.

  • I had to laugh at Trump’s response… “Fox and Friends just really botched my poll numbers, no doubt on purpose. That show has been terrible.”
  • Hahahahahahaha!

  • Speaking of losers, yesterday the former president released a statement about his “intent to sue” CNN and others for calling him a liar. No, really, I’m serious.
  • He wants them to not call his big lie “The Big Lie”.


  • He won’t sue. Or he will, and it will be a total disaster for him. Either way, I don’t care what he does.

  • In fucking vile news, a former Marine named Matthew Belanger has been arrested by the FBI. His neo-Nazi group is called “Rapekrieg”. Their mission, it seems, is to increase the white population by raping and impregnating as many white women as possible (while killing Black and Jewish people).
  • So Nazis will rape you and your state will force you to keep the rapist’s baby. This all sounds very purposeful to me.
  • From the Sports Desk… it looks like Britney Griner might come back home via a prisoner swap with a convicted arms dealer. Some people don’t like this. Too bad.
  • QotD: “By working faithfully eight hours a day you may eventually get to be boss and work twelve hours a day.” - Robert Frost
  • Note about the quote above: about 19 years ago, I started my own company. Be my own boss? Yeah, right. I have 5+ bosses at any given time (they’re called my customers). Work as much as I want? Sure… which always ends up being around 12+ hours every day. So like it or not, it’s true.
  • Today in history… Henry VIII marries his fifth wife, Catherine Howard (1540). Maximilien Robespierre is executed by guillotine in Paris (1794). The 14th Amendment is certified, establishing African Americans as citizens and giving them due process of law (1868). Miami, FL is incorporated (1896). The US occupies Haiti and stays for 19 years (1915). Lyndon B. Johnson increase US troops in Vietnam from 75,000 to. 125,000 (1965). 600,000 people go see bands rock at Watkins Glen Summer Jam (1973). The Sumer Olympics open in Los Angeles, CA (1984). 
  • July 28 is the birthday of musician/piano maker Ignaz Bösendorfer (1796), writer/illustrator Beatrix Potter (1866), activist Lucy Burns (1879), artist Marcel Duchamp (1887), actor/singer Rudy Vallée (1901), inventor Earl Tupper, as in Tupperware (1907), Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (1929), guitarist Mike Bloomfield (1943), keyboardist Richard Wright (1943), actress Sally Struthers (1947), musician Gerald Casale (1948), guitarist Steve Morse (1954), and NBA player Manu Ginóbili (1977).


Well, I’m going to try and enjoy this day and be productive and do various things. I’m very lucky; I do get to create for a living. I write, I draw, I code. I mean, I also strategize and deal with budgets and business politics and all the shit we all do. But I’m still super lucky. Enjoy your day no matter what.

Wednesday, July 27, 2022

Ransom News: July 27, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 27, 2022, and it’s a Wednesday. Let’s see here…

  • Meet Olivia Julianna. She’s a 19-year-old activist focused on abortion rights.
  • Over the weekend, congressman and alleged child sex trafficker Matt Gaetz (R-FL) wrote about how women against abortion didn’t have to be worried because no one would impregnate them since they were all “like 5’2”, 350 pounds”. When Olivia protested this, Gaetz shared her photo and publicly body-shamed her and encouraged his followers to harass her.
  • So instead of getting mad, she got even. In 24 hours, she’s raised $168,000 as of this morning and counting. The money is going to several abortion funds, collected under an Act Blue fund called Gen-Z for Change.
  • Asked this morning in an interview about Gaetz’ sudden silence after having previously posted her picture for ridicule, she said, “I think he’s scared. I honestly think he’s terrified. I would be if I tried to go after someone and their response was to raise $168,000 in less than 48 hours.”
  • Gaetz has real problems with teenagers, on a number of fronts. Hats off to Olivia! Go find her and follow her on Twitter if you do the Twitter.
  • Attorney General Merrick Garland and his Department of Justice made it clear that the investigation regarding January 6 and the 2020 election is aimed directly at Trump and his circle. He clearly stated that it has no bearing whether or not Trump is running for office in 2024; they will take whatever steps are needed to bring those guilty to justice.
  • If you’re pro-police, you have to be anti-Trump. You don’t get to be both.
  • “Brave women and men in uniform across America should never forget that the defeated former president of the United States watched January 6 happen and didn’t have the spine to act.” - President Joe Biden, yesterday.
  • Fun Fact: Sharks were around 190 million years before dinosaurs… and 90 million years before trees. Respect the sharks.
  • Meet Rose Valentino. She’s been an officer with the Cincinnati Police Department for 14 years. She was recently caught on recording while on duty screaming “Fucking n*ggers. I fucking hate them,” and yet still has a job in law enforcement.
  • In the “digging a deeper ditch” part of this story, Officer Valentino later clarified that the term was “not intended to refer to all African-Americans”, and that she’d been "desensitized to racially offensive language by music and hearing people talk on the street."
  • It’s okay, though, because she also said she was having a bad day. I’m sure everyone turns into a disgusting racist when they have bad days, right? No? Oh.
  • They did assign her to desk duty, where presumably she’ll only be able to be racist to people visiting the department and not the public who she swore to serve and protect.
  • QotD: “I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice. And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue.” - Barry Goldwater
  • From the Sports Desk… WR Julio Jones has signed a 1-year deal with the Bucs. If 45-year-old Tom Brady hits 33-year-old Jones for a TD, that will be 78 years of… I don’t know how to finish this sentence.
  • Today in history… Siward invades Scotland and defeats Macbeth near the Firth of Forth (1054). England requires all goods bound for American colonies must be sent on English ships from English ports (1663). The USA establishes its first federal government agency, the Department of Foreign Affairs, later renamed the Department of State (1789). The first transatlantic telegraph cable is completed, running from Ireland to Newfoundland (1866). Vincent van Gogh shoots himself (1890). Chicago race riots erupt (1919). A cartoon called ‘A Wild Hare’ is released starring a new character named Bugs Bunny (1940). The US, China, and North Korea sign an armistice agreement ending the Korean War (1953). 5,000 more US military advisors are sent to Vietnam (1964). The House Judiciary Committee votes 27-11 to impeach Richard Nixon for obstruction of justice (1974). Belarus declares independence from the Soviet Union (1990). A pipe bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta (1996).
  • July 27 is the birthday of Shingon Buddhism founder Kūkai (774), Earl of Sandwich Edward Montagu (1625), pilot and engineer Geoffrey de Havilland (1882), actor Keenan Wynn (1916), writer/producer Norman Lear (1922), game designer Gary Gygax (1938), singer-songwriter Bobbie Gentry (1944), skater Peggy Fleming (1948), singer Maureen McGovern (1949), singer Julianna Hatfield (1967), wrestler Triple H (1969), actress Maya Rudolph (1972), singer-songwriter Pete Yorn (1974), baseball player Alex Rodriguez (1975), pitcher Max Scherzer (1984), quarterback Ryan Tannehill (1988), and golfer Jordan Spieth (1993).


Anyway, let’s go do things on this Wednesday. I remember hearing the reference “humpday” going back to when I was a kid. I think my dad used the term. You know, every day is just a day. Sun goes up, sun goes down. Everything else is a human invention. It’s no more a Wednesday than it is a Blispipheroucio Day. You say I just made that up? Someone made up Wednesday and you had no problem accepting that. Enjoy your humping.

Tuesday, July 26, 2022

Random News: July 26, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 26, 2022, and it’s a Tuesday. Both important and trivial thoughts forthcoming…


  • I got called out yesterday by a number of people who noted that I didn’t mention what was, by every definition, a historical musical performance over the weekend. They were right; I should have mentioned it.
  • Joni Mitchell is absolutely a) one of my favorite singer-songwriters, b) one of my biggest musical influences, and c) correctly regarded as one of the most important songwriting musicians of the past 100 or so years.
  • She performed as the surprise headliner — and a guest of Brandi Carlile — at the Newport Folk Festival on Sunday. It was her first full-set performance since 2002. She’d left music aside due to health issues and a general disdain for the world of music as a whole, which is understandable.
  • I had assumed, at age 78 and in her condition, that she was never going to perform again, but there she was. She mostly sat and sang in a regal-looking chair, but she also stood up and played some guitar.
  • I don’t do the “favorite” thing about music; my preferred song at any given time is dependent on my mood and the circumstances of listening. But if I had to tell someone who’d never heard Joni before about five songs I recommend…
  • “Amelia”, “Black Crow”, “Blue”, “Down to You”, and “Help Me”
  • Or possibly “A Case of You”, “For Free”, “Jericho”, “Song for Sharon”, and “The Last Time I Saw Richard”.
  • This is why I don’t do this, he said, while wanting to name 15 more songs.
  • “Edith and the Kingpin”. Okay, that’s it.
  • Back to terrible things. Ohio US Senate candidate JD Vance said that people should stay in violent marriages rather than get divorced.
  • To be clear, he is saying unapologetically that if you’re a woman whose husband beats the shit out of you, you should be obligated to stay married despite this.
  • Hey Ohio, you gonna send this guy to the Senate?
  • Everyone favorite Nazi, Marjorie Whatever Greene, says that the GOP is a Christian Nationalist party. So if you’re not Christian and/or you believe in working with and doing business with other countries, you are not welcome in her version of the USA.
  • Hey Georgia, you gonna re-elect her to Congress?
  • Meet congressman Glenn Thompson (R-PA). On Tuesday of last week, he joined 157 other House Republicans who voted against the bill that would codify federal protections for same-sex marriage. And then on Friday, he attended his gay son’s same-sex wedding, for which I commend him, but the hypocrisy is fucking vile.
  • Pertinent election year note: per a recent Gallup poll, 71% of Americans, including a majority of Republicans, support same-sex marriage.
  • While we’re in Pennsylvania, let’s meet Gab CEO Andrew Torba, a consultant to PA gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano. Seems like a nice fellow. Let’s see…
  • “We don't want people who are atheists. We don't want people who are Jewish. We don't want people who are, you know, nonbelievers, agnostic, whatever. This is an explicitly Christian movement because this is an explicitly Christian country. Ben Shapiro is not welcome in the movement unless he repents and accepts Jesus Christ as his Lord and savior.” - Andrew Torba
  • Hey Pennsylvania. Instead of Doug, I’m gonna have to recommend Josh Shapiro for governor, alrighty?
  • Let’s wash away that disgusting quote with a better one.
  • QotD: “Ignorance and prejudice are the handmaidens of propaganda. Our mission, therefore, is to confront ignorance with knowledge, bigotry with tolerance, and isolation with the outstretched hand of generosity. Racism can, will, and must be defeated.” - Kofi Annan
  • The Choco Taco has been discontinued. If you work in any kind of manufacturing business, you’ve heard this one before. The ice cream maker Klondike is owned by giant international conglomerate Unilever, and they want to “slim down their portfolio to help meet demand for their most popular items.” Fuckers. How dare they?
  • From the Sports Desk… get Britney Griner the fuck out of Russia. Jesus. If that was a well-known white male heterosexual athlete, it would have been done in days, not months. Sorry, but it’s true.
  • Today in history… Muslim troops rout the Christians at the Battle of Valdejunquera (920). Francis Drake discovers the San Francisco Bay (1579). The Continental Congress establishes a Post Office Department and Benjamin Franklin is named Postmaster General (1775). New York ratifies the Constitution and becomes the 11th state (1788). France annexes Tahiti (1891). They staff the Office of the Chief Examiner, which is later renamed the FBI (1908). The US, Britain, and the Netherlands freeze all Japanese assets in WWII (1941). Aloha Airlines begins service from Honolulu (1946). Truman signs the National Security Act to create the CIA, DoD, USAF, Joint Chiefs of Staff, and NSC… wow (1947). The US military is desegregated (1948). The Cuban Revolution begins (1953). Apollo 15 launches (1971). George H. W. Bush signs the Americans with Disabilities Act (1990). Hillary Clinton becomes the first female nominee for POTUS by a major party (2016).
  • July 26 is the birthday of playwright George Bernard Shaw (1856), psychiatrist Carl Jung (1875), novelist Aldous Huxley (1894), comedian Gracie Allen (1895), actress Vivian Vance (1909), director Blake Edwards (1922), writer/illustrator Jan Berenstain (1923), director Stanley Kubrick (1928), singer Darlene Love (1941), singer and icon Mick Jagger (1943), actress Helen Mirren (1945), drummer Roger Taylor (1949), skater Dorothy Hamill (1956), actress Nana Visitor (1957), actor and alleged sex criminal Kevin Spacey (1959), actress Sandra Bullock (1964), actress Kate Beckinsale (1973), and singer-songwriter Sam Beam aka Iron & Wine (1974). 


It’s Tuesday so… yeah, meetings and work and a grocery trip and all that. I’m not going to worry about things. I’ll just do them. Have you ever stopped to realize that the worst part of the day is the time you spend worrying about shit? I’m as prone to anxiety as anyone, but one thing about getting older is the awareness that time is one thing you don’t have to waste, so I do my best to not spend time in a negative space. Enjoy your day.


Monday, July 25, 2022

Random News: July 25, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 25, 2022, and it’s a Monday. “I haven’t finished my first cup of coffee” thoughts ahead… 


  • After Saturday’s gun incident here in my neighborhood, there was another that was too close to home on Sunday when a gang incident at Peck Park in San Pedro left seven shot and two dead.
  • I grew up not far from there and went to many events in that park as a kid. My mom still lives in San Pedro, and her house is about a two-minute drive from Peck Park.
  • It’s just sad.
  • I hate having to wake up every fucking day wondering how many people will have their lives cut short due to the easy accessibility of high-capacity, semi-automatic firearms.
  • Fuck guns.
  • A bit of good news: last Thursday’s hearing of the January 6 committee drew over 17 million live viewers. Many more watched various clips of the hearing on Friday and over the weekend.
  • MSNBC said that it was the network's biggest prime-time audience since, ironically, the night of January 6, 2021.
  • Something is definitely happening within conservative media in regard to their formerly unwavering support of the former president. TV and newspaper editorials from right-wing publications are now being very critical of Trump’s actions and inactions around the failed January 6 coup attempt.
  • In ocean news, a) a humpback whale breached the water in Massachusetts and landed on a small fishing boat, and b) a 100-pound sailfish leapt from the water in Florida and stabbed a 73-year-old woman who had to be airlifted to a hospital (she’ll be okay).
  • Maybe the denizens of the ocean are trying to tell us something.
  • Myanmar is an example of what happens when democracy fails and the rule of law changes to survival of the fittest. They executed two pro-democracy leaders this week. Myanmar was taken over in a military coup in February 2021.
  • Don’t be like Myanmar.
  • Be like Jason Momoa. He was driving here in LA yesterday on Old Topanga Road, and a motorcyclist crossed over the double yellow and hit his 1970 Olds almost head-on. Momoa pulled over and ran to the guy’s aid, then flagged down other drivers to call 9-1-1. Jason was fine and the motorcycle driver had only non life-threatening injuries.
  • From the Sports Desk, it seems like we’re heading into an era of greatness in Team USA track and field. Americans got 33 gold medals at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon. Most of the winning athletes (many of whom broke world records) are very young, meaning we should have high hopes going into the Paris Olympics in 2024. 
  • QotD: “Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word “happy” would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness. Of course it is understandable that we seek happiness and avoid unlucky and disagreeable chances, but the more you deliberately seek happiness the more sure you are not to find it. It is therefore far better to take things as they come along, with patience and equanimity.” - C. G. Jung.
  • Today in history… Constantine I is proclaimed Roman emperor (306). Henry IV converts from Protestant to Catholic (1593). An 8.5 earthquake kills 42,000 people in eastern China (1668). British forces capture Fort Niagara from the French (1759). Mozart completes his Symphony No. 40 in G minor (1788). Congress authorizes the rank of General of the Army, and gives the job to Ulysses S. Grant (1866). Monosodium glutamate is patented (1908). Bob Dylan “goes electric” at the Newport Folk Festival and everyone freaks out (1965). The first baby is born via in vitro fertilization (1978). WikiLeaks publishes classified documents about the War in Afghanistan (2010). 
  • July 25 is the birthday of Scottish King James I (1394), dramatist George Peele (1556), English Prime Minister Arthur Balfour (1848), actress Estelle Getty (1923), musician Don Eillis (1934), lynching victim Emmett Till (1941), NFL great Walter Payton (1954), model Iman (1955), musician Thurston Moore (1958), and actor Matt LeBlanc (1967).


I’m going to try and have a not-shitty Monday, and I wish a not-shitty Monday to all of you too. You know, the more I do to help people, the better day I have. The more I do that’s productive, the less I worry about the bad shit that happens whether or not I try to do good things. Might as well do the good. It can’t hurt.

Sunday, July 24, 2022

Random News: July 24, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 24, 2022, and it’s a Sunday. Whatever’s coming is coming…

  • Here’s some close-to-home news: there was an active shooter in my neighborhood yesterday afternoon, and the area was on lockdown for awhile as a result.
  • We got an alert through an app at about 1pm. It wasn’t very specific. Here, I’ll show you.
  • "Redondo Alerts: Police Activity. Residents are advised to stay out of this area due to police activity as there is a potential for danger. There is police activity on nearby streets as well. Any residents on the 200 block of N Irena Av specifically are requested to shelter in place until further notice."
  • That’s about a quarter-mile down the street from me, maybe six blocks down and three blocks over. Definitely close enough that the plethora of police agency and SWAT team sirens and hovering helicopters were part of my otherwise pleasant day for a few hours.
  • Anyway, for those who are unfamiliar with Southern California, my city is comparatively a) low-crime, b) mostly-affluent middle-class, and c) suburban family-oriented.
  • I can just confidently say that if it can happen in Redondo Beach, it can and will happen wherever you live, no matter how safe you think it is.
  • Long story short: no one knows why the guy lost his shit. He fired a ton of shots into the neighborhood, hitting houses, cars, and more, but no people amazingly. Then he killed himself. The only thing going on was a realtor hosting an open house in the front unit of his building.
  • In other California news (this time hundreds of miles north of here), the fire near Yosemite is pretty bad. They had to evacuate some 6000 people yesterday who were in harm’s way.
  • In national “it’s hot” news, do NOT think you can tough out the heat wave that’s likely affecting your area. Many young and otherwise healthy people get nailed by heat stroke, exposure, and dehydration, and it’s worse for the elderly and health-compromised.
  • Stay cool however you can.
  • In the “this could get interesting” department, Liz Cheney (R-WY) and the January 6 committee said that they will “contemplate a subpoena” for Ginni Thomas, the wife of SCOTUS justice Clarence Thomas, for her role in the coup attempt.
  • I’m hearing good things about Jordan Peele’s new film “Nope”, unsurprisingly. He’s an incredibly good filmmaker that some are calling the Hitchcock of this generation.
  • From the Sports Desk… the Tour de France is ending while I’m writing these words. Congrats to first-time champion Jonas Vingegaard of Denmark.
  • Also, we’re less than two weeks out from the first preseason NFL game, with the Las Vegas Raiders hosting the Jacksonville Jaguars at the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday August 4.
  • QotD: “I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary; the evil it does is permanent.” - Mahatma Gandhi.
  • Today in history… Louis VII lays siege to Damascus (1148). Mary, Queen of Scots is forced to abdicate (1567). Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac founds a trading post that becomes the city of Detroit (1701). Tennessee is the first state to be readmitted to the Union after the Civil War (1866). Operation Gomorrah in WWII bombs the fuck out of Hamburg (1943). Apollo 11 splashes down in the Pacific Ocean (1969). Nixon is ordered to surrender the subpoenaed While House tapes (1974). George Brett’s “pine tar incident” (1983). Boris Johnson becomes Prime Minister of the UK (2019).
  • July 24 is the birthday of politician Simón Bolivar (1783), novelist Alexandre Dumas (1802), pilot Amelia Earhart (1897), activist/politician Bella Abzug (1920), cartoonist Pat Oliphant (1935), comedian Ruth Buzzi (1936), comedian (I guess?) Gallagher (1946), comedian Michael Richards (1949), actress and very good person Lynda Carter (1951), director Gus Van Sant (1952), politician Charlie Crist (1956), NBA great Karl Malone (1963), MLB all-time home run leader* Barry Bonds (1964), actress Kristin Chenowith (1968), singer Jennifer Lopez, um, Affleck (1969), actress Rose Byrne (1979), actress Elizabeth Moss (1982), and conservationist Bindi Irwin (1998).


Well, I have no interesting or inspiring ending to this report. Oh! While on lockdown, I wrote the first page of a short story yesterday. Maybe it will become a book and then be a bestseller and then I’ll sell the rights to HBO and have some massive series produced and… maybe I should write the second page before all that shit. Enjoy your day.

Saturday, July 23, 2022

Random News: July 23, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 23, 2022, and it’s a Saturday. Here come Saturday things…

  • Former chief strategist for Donald Trump, Steven K. Bannon, was found guilty of two counts of contempt of Congress yesterday. He is appealing the verdict. His sentencing is scheduled for October 21.
  • The minimum sentence he will serve is 60 days. The maximum is two years in federal prison.
  • I don’t give two shits about Steve Bannon, but I give many shits that all people involved in the coup against the United States are found, tried, and punished, and I don’t care if that takes decades.
  • They’re still finding and punishing Nazis from WWII, even those who are 100+ years old. This doesn’t just go away.
  • Unlike the Nazis who stayed in hiding for decades, most of the insurrectionists aren’t quite as smart, and publicize their own crimes on various social media. They continue to make their intentions clear today. Scroll down your feed and you’ll probably see it.
  • My governor, Gavin Newson, signed a bill into law yesterday that allows private citizens to sue anyone who manufactures, distributes, transports or imports assault weapons.
  • Here’s the deal: it’s modeled after the Texas law that allows anyone to sue abortion providers.
  • If the CA law holds up, it’s a win for people who want safe and sane gun control.
  • If the CA law is struck down, it might set a precedent making the TX law invalid.
  • Win-win.
  • President Biden seems to be improving from his COVID. No surprise.
  • Europe is experiencing historic inflation. I’m sure Fox News is stating that the price of bananas in Lichtenstein is controlled by Joe Biden. The GOP sure seems to think Biden has a lot of power.
  • Here’s a secret: no president has nearly as much power as you think.
  • Another secret: you have way more control over your own life than anyone else.
  • The WHO declared monkeypox a public health emergency. I have many gay male friends. Since I am middle-aged, most of them are married and lead rather tame lives similar to mine (except more gay). For those who aren’t, please be super careful about who you fuck.
  • QotD: “I've never met a funny person who wasn't smart. I've met a lot of dramatic people who were stupid. But I've never met a funny person who wasn't smart.” - Rob Lowe
  • The Sports Desk is surprisingly busy for July, the most boring sports month. First, the Boston Red Sox got beaten 28-5 by the Toronto Blue Jays. It was the worst loss in Red Sox history; the old record was 27-3 versus Cleveland in 1923.
  • The World Athletics Championships have been being held in Portland, OR for the last week. Team USA, especially the women, are doing very well. Congrats to gold medalists Katie Nageotte (pole vault), Chase Ealey (shot put), Brooke Anderson (hammer throw), and especially 22-year-old Sydney McLaughlin, who set a new world record in the 400m hurdles. She’s so good that this is the fourth time in about a year that she’s broken her own world record. She’s amazing. US men also took gold in 100m, 200m, 400m, 110m hurdles, and shot put. The games wrap up tomorrow.
  • Today in history… William Austin Burt patents the typograph, a predecessor to the typewriter (1829). The Chinese Communist Party is established (1921). Fox Film buys the patent to record sound onto film (1926). The satellite Telstar relays the first trans-Atlantic TV program (1962). Jackie Robinson is the first Black person to get into the Baseball Hall of Fame (1962). The Detoit riots begin and end up killing 43, injuring 342, and during down 1,400 buildings (1967). Vic Morrow is killed while shooting ‘Twilight Zone: The Movie’ (1982). Comet Hale-Bopp is discovered (1995). Eileen Collins becomes the first female Space Shuttle Commander (1999). Boy band One Direction is formed by Simon Cowell (2010).
  • July 23 is the birthday of Scottish establisher of the penal colony Brisbane, Australia, Thomas Brisbane (1773), crime novelist Raymond Chandler (1888), baseball player Pee Wee Reese (1918), actor Bert Convy (1933), baseball player Don Drysdale (1936), actor Ronny Cox (1938), singer David Essex (1947), musician Martin Gore (1961), actor Woody Harrelson (1961), guitarist Slash (1965), amazing actor Philip Seymour Hoffman (1967), NBA player Gary Payton (1968), singer-songwriter Alison Krauss (1971), activist Monica Lewinsky (1973), and actor Daniel Radcliffe (1989).

I have few tangible plans for today. I’m still in a bathrobe at the moment. It’s lovely and overcast here at the beach, and I’m going to try not to do very much unless doing things is what I want to do. Enjoy your day.

Friday, July 22, 2022

Random News: July 22, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 22, 2022, and if you can believe it, it’s a Friday once again! Here’s what it is…

  • Yesterday was, for now, the final hearing of the January 6 Select Committee. It is likely they will resume in September.
  • Those of you who watched the prime time airing last night already know the focus of this session, which was to show that the former president personally encouraged the coup attempt and then purposefully allowed it to continue, hoping it would somehow be successful.
  • It wasn’t.
  • But as has been said many times, the factors that caused the insurrection didn’t go away. It’s continuing today and will almost certainly happen again in multiple ways. As long as the Big Lie continues to be pushed — and trust me, it is — these people will keep trying to subvert the laws and the will of the people.
  • While it will likely happen regardless, since a lot of these people have been mass hypnotized beyond the point of repair, the one thing that’s essential is that ALL of the people involved, top to bottom, face repercussions. Otherwise, why have laws at all? Why be a country?
  • I found it particularly disturbing to hear about Mike Pence’s security detail, calling their families to say goodbye in case they were killed by the mob. No one should ever have to go through that.
  • Anyway, that’s done for a little while. If there are some immediate next steps, perhaps it won’t be by a congressional committee and instead will be handled by the Department of Justice.
  • President Biden has COVID. He’s fully vaccinated, is in good shape for his age, and obviously has the best health care in the world. He’ll be fine.
  • In the low-percentage odds he’s not, we’ll welcome our first female President with Kamala Harris.
  • In the contempt of Congress trial of Lumpylumpagus, aka Steve Bannon, after all the posturing and blowhard statements of how he’d expose the truth at his trial, the defense called no witnesses and Bannon himself did not take the stand in his own defense. Closing arguments, if there are any, are scheduled for today.
  • In absolutely insane news, yesterday the Secret Service retained outside counsel regarding their role in the January 6 coup.
  • So a department of our own government hired private lawyers to defend themselves against our own government? What the actual fuck?
  • We’ll hear more about that soon enough.
  • New York health officials have reported a polio case, the first one in the USA in nearly a decade. I don’t think it’s a stretch to think that the trend toward vaccine aversion is the cause of this. Polio was declared eradicated in 1979, back when more people were less likely to be stupid and/or crazy.
  • QotD: "Having a bunch of cats around is good. If you're feeling bad, you just look at the cats, you'll feel better because they know that everything is just as it is. There's nothing to get excited about. They just know. They're saviors.” - Charles Bukowski
  • From the Sports Desk… the Seattle Mariners, a baseball team that seemed pretty mediocre this year, is on a 14-game winning streak. That is pretty incredible. Only three other teams this century — the 2002 A’s, the 2017 Indians, and 2021 Cardinals — have done better streak-wise. We’ll see if it continues. Go Mariners!
  • Today in history… Godfrey of Bouillon is named the Defender of the Holy Sepulchre (1099). A second group of settlers arrives at Roanoke Colony (1587). Albany, NY is chartered (1686). Katherine Lee Bates writes “America the Beautiful” (1893). The USA begins compulsory civilian gas rationing for WWII (1942). The Mariner I spacecraft launches erratically and has to be destroyed (1962). Greg LeMond wins his third Tour de France (1990). US military attacks a compound in Iraq, killing Saddam Hussein’s sons Uday and Qusay along with others (2003). 
  • July 22 is the birthday of painter Edward Hopper (1882), philanthropist Rose Kennedy (1890), politician Bob Dole (1923), actor Orson Bean (1928), fashion designer Oscar de la Renta (1932), novelist Tom Robbins (1932), actress Louise Fletcher (1934), godlike game show host Alex Trebek (1940), funk master George Clinton (1941), actor Danny Glover (1946), actor/writer Albert Brooks (1947), musician Don Henley (1947), guitarist Al Di Meola (1954), actor Willem Dafoe (1955), actor John Leguizamo (1964), actor David Spade (1964), NFL player Tim Brown (1966), singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright (1973), actress Selena Gomez (1992), and NFL player Ezekiel Elliott (1995).


It’s Friday, which is always a busy work day for me, but is also the day where I reward myself with a sushi lunch. You know what day of the week is generally really good for me? Thursday. Weird, huh? Friday is often when I get piled on to complete work deliverables that people forgot to tell me about earlier in the week but still need done before the weekend. So it goes. Anyway, I wish you a good day. Do what you do.

Thursday, July 21, 2022

Random News: July 21, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 21, 2022, and it’s a Thursday. A cornucopia of blathering coming at ya…

  • The prosecution has rested its case in the contempt trial of gelatinous cube Steve Bannon. It took them a very short time to lay out the case.
  • Bannon got a subpoena (check), the subpoena was pertinent to the January 6 investigation (check), Bannon didn’t comply (check), and the failure to comply was purposeful (again, check).
  • It is unknown what Bannon’s defense will be, but the judge has already warned that if it goes into political la-la land, it won’t be good for Bannon’s sentencing. The trial could wrap up before the weekend.
  • Lotta people hurting and dying in this heat. I feel like a dick at many of these times; my coastline home has remained cool throughout. Our high today was 75, and it will remain with highs in the low 70s for the foreseeable future.
  • Regardless, Tucker Carlson continues to convince his flock of sheep that any act to help prevent climate change from continuing to get worse exponentially is “the government trying to control you”, so as I’ve said many times before, nothing will stop this and many more people will die as a direct result.
  • A bipartisan group of Senators — well, kinda, if you count Manchin and Sinema — reached a deal yesterday to reform the ambiguous federal laws that would let a person like Trump from overturning the will of the people and the result of a valid presidential election with a pair of bills.
  • This is a good thing.
  • The first is called the Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act, and the second is the Enhanced Election Security and Protection Act.
  • Eight Republican Senators have come out to say they will not support a bill to codify same sex marriage. There will be more. The current Hateful Eight are Bill Cassidy (LA), John Cornyn (TX), Ted Crux (TX), Lindey Graham (SC), Josh Hawley (MO), Jim Inhofe (OK), Marco Rubio (FL), and Roger Wicker (MS).
  • The erased texts of the US Secret Service is almost certainly a violation of federal law, per the Jan 6 panel.
  • Remember that oath… “And I do further swear (or affirm) that, to the best of my knowledge and ability, I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States, against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter, so help me God.”
  • Foreign and domestic.
  • If members of the Secret Service are violating the Constitution, they need to be rooted out and treated as domestic enemies of the USA. It’s right there.
  • Guess we’ll see.
  • Gonna enjoy the Fulton County, GA grand jury next month, even more so now that Rudy “Hands In my Pants” Giuliani has been ordered to appear. That investigation is in regard to Trump’s illegal attempts to overturn the 2020 election results in that state.
  • Italy’s Prime Minister Mario Draghi resigned for reasons that I can’t explain due to not knowing jack shit about Italian politics.
  • I started to watch a playthrough of the game Stray last night, where you play as a cat. Got through the introductory chapter and the moment the cat got injured, I turned it off. I cannot deal with that. Game looks outstanding, though.
  • QotD: “Beware the barrenness of a busy life.” - Socrates
  • From the Sports Desk… In stage 18 of the Tour de France, can Pogacar crack Vingegaard on the last mountain finish? I don’t know what that means or who these people are, but I think this has something to do with bicycles.
  • Today in history… The Temple of Artemis, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, is destroyed by fire (356 BC). Thousands are killed in an earthquake on Crete that caused tsunamis in Egypt and Libya (365). France invades the Isle of Wight (1545). All Han Chinese men are ordered to shave their foreheads and braid their hair like the Manchus (1645). Wild Bill Hickok kills Davis Tutt at the first western showdown in Springfield, MO (1865). Louis Rigolly becomes the first person to drive over 100 mph (1904). The Senate ratifies the North Atlantic Treaty, leading to the formation of NATO (1949). A 7.3 quake hits Kern County, CA (1952). Pumpsie Green plays for the Red Sox, the last team to integrate Black people in baseball (1959). Barack Obama signs the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform act (2010). The Space Shuttle program ends with the landing of STS-135 (2011).
  • July 21 is the birthday of Queen Jeonghyeon of Korea (1462), Archduchess Anna de’ Medici (1616), astronomer Jean Picard (1620), journalist Paul Reuter (1816), singer-songwriter Sara Carter (1898), novelist Ernest Hemingway (1899), theorist Marshall McLuhan (1911), violinist Isaac Stern (1920), actor Don Knotts (1924), Attorney General Janet Reno (1938), music industry slimebag Kim Fowley (1939), singer-songwriter Cat Stevens, aka Yusuf Islam (1948), cartoonist Garry Trudeau (1948), comedic genius Robin Williams (1951), bass player Howie Epstein (1955), actor Jon Lovitz (1957), soccer player Brandi Chastain (1968), actor Josh Hartnett (1978), musician Damian Marley (1978), MLB pitcher CC Sabathia (1980), and NBA player DeAndre Jordan (1988).

Well, here we are. Another day. Socrates was right, you know. A busy life can be a barren life. And yet, you (and I, and everyone) try to find some balance between the things we have to do, the things we want to do, and the things we could have never predicted to deal with regardless. Here’s to balance. Enjoy your day.

Wednesday, July 20, 2022

Random News: July 20, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 20, 2022, and it’s a Wednesday. If you’re somewhere hot, stay cool while you read these meanderings…


  • The House voted yesterday to codify same-sex marriage before the Supreme Court can take it away. The tally was 267-157, with 47 Republicans voted for it (and 157 against).
  • It would likely die in the Senate, like all things that are the will of the people. Maybe they’ll hold off until the Senators commit to vote Yes as part of the midterm election process.
  • The Secret Service texts that were missing from January 5/6, 2021 and were subpoenaed by the Jan 6 Committee? Yeah, those are gone. Yes, it’s illegal for them to delete. Yup, it’s incredibly suspicious.
  • The exodus of people who were former supporters now abandoning the former President continues. 
  • Joe Rogan, the podcaster who many people like for unknown reasons, called Trump a “man baby” on his show last Thursday, and made a bunch of references to Trump’s drug addiction to Adderall. 
  • The chairman of the January 6 committee, Bennie Thompson (D-MS), has COVID. He’ll be fine, but he won’t be present at tomorrow’s hearing.
  • Salute to Nicholas Bostic. He’s a 25-year-old pizza delivery guy in Indiana who drove by a house completely engulfed in flames, then pulled over, ran inside, and rescued five kids, including a 1-year-old baby.
  • He didn’t hesitate, didn’t wait for backup, didn’t ask permission, and put himself at severe risk. He was injured and suffered lung damage, and had to be airlifted out. But he did it anyway. That’s a hero. He’ll be okay.
  • Hey Uvalde PD.
  • The US Capitol Police arrested 35 people at a Roe demonstration near the Supreme Court yesterday. 17 of them are members of congress. 
  • Not understanding how law enforcement works, the MAGA/QAnon community is screaming it was a false flag/crisis actor/staged event.
  • The arrestees were Dean, Velasquez, Lee, Speier, Clark, Jacobs, Ocasio-Cortez, Tlaib, Levin, Maloney, Adams, Watson Coleman, Escobar, Bush, Schakowsky, Omar, and Pressley.
  • Anyway, they’ll all pay a fine, and hopefully did the proper job of a demonstration, which is to keep the conversation going about how abortion is healthcare and should be the right of every American woman in every state regardless of circumstances.
  • In parts of Europe and the USA today, it will be 115º F/46º C. That is heat that will kill people under certain conditions. I used to harp on people to try and prevent global climate change, but I’m pretty sure we’re way past the point of no return now. I promise it will get worse every year for the rest of your life.
  • Speaking of Europe… yeah, Russia is still attacking Ukraine and “annexing” territory. This world sucks ass sometimes.
  • Twitter won a motion for an expedited trial for its lawsuit against Elon Musk. It will start in October.
  • A tiny micrometeoroid hit the James Webb Space Telescope with “significant uncorrectable” damage. So that was fun while it lasted.
  • I don’t know if I’m emotionally capable of trying out this game “Stray”, where you play as a wandering cat in a dystopian city. I just can’t with that. I hear it’s great though.
  • QotD: “Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.” - Frederick Douglass
  • Today in history… Japanese forces capture Pyongyang (1592). Nicéphore Niépce gets a patent on the first internal combustion engine (1807). British Columbia joins Canada (1871). Ford ships its first automobile (1903). Finnish women become the first in Europe to receive the right to vote (1906). Police in Minneapolis fire on striking truck drivers, killing two and wounding 67 (1934). The DOJ files suit against the motion picture industry for violations of the Antitrust Act (1938). California opens the first freeway, the Arroyo Seco Parkway, known today as the 110 between DTLA and Pasadena (1940). King Abdullah I of Jordan is assassinated (1951). The first-ever Special Olympics is held at Soldier Field in Chicago (1968). Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin become the first humans to walk on the moon (1969). Viking I lands on Mars (1976). Same-sex marriage is legalized in Canada (2005). Mass shooting at a movie theater in Aurora, CO (2012). O.J. Simpson is granted parole from prison (2017).
  • July 20 is the birthday of poet Petrarch (1304), paleontologist Richard Owen (1804), explorer Edmund Hillary (1919), NBA coach Chuck Daly (1930), actress Diana Rigg (1938), actress Natalie Wood (1938), singer Kim Carnes (1945), guitarist Carlos Santana (1947), possibly the best rock singer of all time Chris Cornell (1964), guitarist Stone Gossard (1966), hockey great Peter Forsberg (1973), NBA player Ray Allen (1975), hockey great Pavel Datsyuk (1978), model Gisele Bündchen (1980), and NBA player Ben Simmons (1996). 


Well, I hope your day is good. I hope your life is good, more or less. I hope you get to the point where you realize it’s more fulfilling to do things for others than it is to focus on yourself all the time. I hope. I do.

Tuesday, July 19, 2022

Random News: July 19, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 19, 2022, and it’s a Tuesday. Here’s whatever happens next…


  • Steve Bannon, the guy who won the “Most Likely To Portray Baron Harkonnen from Dune in Real Life” award, had his contempt trial start yesterday.
  • Trials are slow and boring. They’re still selecting a jury going into day two. Getting an impartial yet qualified jury for a high-profile case is hard. I’ll be continuing to monitor this for you.
  • The next January 6 Committee hearing is on Thursday, where former Trump aides Matthew Pottinger and Sarah Matthews are expected to testify.
  • Nikolas Cruz, the asshole who killed 14 students and three teachers in Parkland, FL in 2018, is having his sentencing trial, which could last months. He already pleaded guilty to 17 counts of murder and 17 counts of attempted murder. The only options now are death penalty versus life in prison without parole.
  • You should know, Walgreens is doing some nasty shit.
  • First, a woman who purchased a pregnancy test there got added to a mail list without consent and received a baby welcome package at her home from Similac. That means they are sending your data out to God knows who, which could include government agencies in forced-birth states.
  • Then following right up on that, a Wisconsin couple went to buy condoms at Walgreens and the cashier refused because of "moral objections”. The company clarified its position, which is that it’s apparently fine if their employees refuse the sale of condoms and emergency contraceptives to customers if it’s an issue for the employee’s personal faith.
  • Can’t get an abortion. Can’t get contraceptives.
  • I gotta wonder if these people are pro-life or if they’re just anti-sex. Hmm.
  • Also, are all faiths included in this Walgreen’s policy? If I’m a Satanist cashier at Walgreens, can I refuse to sell someone a Bible without repercussions?
  • Shrug.
  • I was snacking on some Fig Newtons yesterday and found myself wondering to whom or what the Newton was in reference. Turns out that in 1891, the recipe was purchased by the Kennedy Biscuit Company, who named it after the city of Newton, MA near where they were located. BUT WAIT… that company then merged with the New York Biscuit Company to form the National Biscuit Company… soon shortened to Nabisco.
  • I learn this kind of crazy shit daily.
  • Not-Really-Interesting-At-All Fact: today, July 19, is the 200th day of 2022.
  • Claes Oldenburg passed away yesterday. He was 93. You may not think you know this great pop artist’s work, but you do. He was known for giant forms of everyday items, like that huge spoon with a cherry in Minneapolis. Anyway, rest in peace.
  • Quick note on monkeypox. Yes, I know, no one wants to talk about it. I don’t either. What I will say is that it is primarily transmitted through prolonged skin-to-skin contact, which is why while it’s not an STD, it’s being passed around via sexual contact, and is primarily affecting gay males to that end. Try not to have sex with random people. I know, it’s asking a lot.
  • QotD: “Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.” - Anton Chekhov.
  • Today in history… The Great Fire of Rome starts and burns half the city down in six days (64). The Iroquois sign a treaty and cede area north of the Ohio River to England (1701). Coronation of George IV of the UK (1821). A women’s rights convention is held in Seneca Falls, NY (1848). Maurice Garin wins the first Tour de France (1903). Opening of the Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Finland (1952). Joe Walker flies an X-15 aircraft to 106,010 meters, beyond the start of space at 100km (1963). Ted Kennedy crashes his car at Chappaquiddick Island, MA, killing his passenger Mary Jo Kopechne (1969). The world’s first GPS signal is transmitted and received (1977). Opening of the Summer Olympics in Moscow, Soviet Union (1980).
  • July 19 is the birthday of sultan of Egypt Baibars (1223), gun maker Samuel Colt (1814), painter Edgar Degas (1834), murderer Lizzie Borden (1860), Mayo Clinic co-founder Charles Mayo (1865), animator/producer Max Fleischer (1883), animator/producer Arthur Rankin Jr. (1924), guitars Bernie Leadon (1947), guitarist/astrophysicist Brian May (1947), keyboardist Keith Godchaux (1948), actor Anthony Edwards (1962), Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon (1970), actor Benadryl Cummerbund- uh, Benedict Cumberbatch (1976), and soccer player Nené (1981).


Well, it’s definitely Tuesday. I have back-to-back meetings through the morning, and a fun trip to the grocery store in the afternoon where I’ll be dodging COVID-infested zombies in the aisles. Good times. You know, someday we’ll look back on this time and… not laugh. Not at all.

Monday, July 18, 2022

Random News: July 18, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 18, 2022, and it’s a Monday. Here’s, like, just my opinion, man…

  • There was a mass shooting yesterday. I can pretty much just keep that as my top bullet point as a default, and then just fill in the location and how many were shot/killed.
  • There will be many gun masturbators today who are proclaiming that a “good guy with a gun” stopped this mall shooter in Indiana before things got worse. That is sorta true! Some 22-year-old happened to be packing heat at the mall, and killed the aggressor.
  • So the best possible circumstances in America, and I’ve literally seen this exact opinion multiple times this morning offered without irony, is that if every person had guns and carried them all the time, things would be fine.
  • What happens when the untrained 22-year-old misses his target and hits a baby in a stroller? What happens when the cops come in and mistake the good guy for the bad guy and kill him instead?
  • The USA has by far the most guns in the world. So we must already be the safest country, yes?
  • Please.
  • In related news, five people were shot last night (including a 72-year-old customer and an employee) at a Walmart in Mount Vernon, WA. Kat’s brother works at that store. We’re pretty sure he’s fine (confirming now).
  • Also, it turns out that 400 good guys with guns and badges didn’t do shit to help the children being slaughtered in Uvalde at Robb Elementary.
  • Sending cooling thoughts and prayers to our UK friends, where it will hit 106º F (40º C) today, a heat record for the area. This will keep getting worse for the rest of our lives.
  • France and much of Europe is also suffering in the heat wave.
  • Speaking of heat: we’re going to get nailed with a direct hit from a solar flare early tomorrow (Tuesday July 19). Could be some issues with GPS and other communications tech.
  • COVID cases in the USA are up 15% in the past two weeks. Hospitalizations are up 20%. Omicron BA.5 didn’t even exist last summer, so your vaccination and boosters almost certainly don’t protect from it. Prior COVID infection also doesn’t help you with BA.5.
  • Those are only the people who report their cases, which is about one in 10.
  • 75% of Americans are now living in a medium- or high- COVID risk area. Mask mandates will likely return, which makes absolutely no difference to me; I’ve continually worn masks in indoor public settings the whole time. You know who never got COVID? This guy (points at self).
  • The deleted texts with the Secret Service are supposed to arrive to the January 6 committee by tomorrow, per their subpoena.
  • From the sports desk… Chris Sale was pitching for the Red Sox against the Yankees yesterday and got a “comebacker”, which is when a batter hits a line drive straight back at the pitcher standing 60 feet, 6 inches away. The ball, which had a velocity of over 106mph, hit Sale on his pitching hand, fracturing his finger and deflecting all the way to center field. That sounds really fucking painful. And then adding insult to injury (literally), NYY beat BOS 13-2.
  • QotD: “Gun control? We need bullet control! I think every bullet should cost 5,000 dollars. Because if a bullet cost five thousand dollars, we wouldn't have any innocent bystanders.” - Chris Rock
  • Today in history… Gauls defeat the Romans in the Battle of the Allia (387 BC). King Edward I banishes all Jews from England (1290). Congress forms the Aviation Section, the first US Army military aviation division (1914). Germany test flies the Messerschmitt Me 262, the first jet-powered fighter plane (1942). Hideki Tojo resigns as Prime Minister of Japan due to war setbacks (1944). The Hough race riots start and last six days in Cleveland  (1966). Intel is founded (1968). Nadia Comăneci gets the first-ever perfect 10 score in Olympic gymnastics (1976). The McDonald’s Massacre in San Isidro, CA (1984). Detroit declares bankruptcy (2013). 
  • July 18 is the birthday of Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II (1552), marshal Virgil Earp (1843), gangster Machine Gun Kelly (1895), politician S. I. Hayakawa (1906), actor Hume Cronyn (1911), actor Red Skelton (1913), activist/politician Nelson Mandela (1918), astronaut/politician John Glenn (1921), musician Screamin’ Jay Hawkins (1929), gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson (1937), pianist and Rolling Stones co-founder Ian Stewart (1938), film director Paul Verhoeven (1938), musician Lonnie Mack (1941), publisher/politician Steve Forbes (1947), super rich bro Richard Branson (1950), actor Vin Diesel (1967), NBA player Penny Hardaway (1971), baseball player Torii Hunter (1975), and actress Kristin Bell (1980).


Well, it’s Monday, so try not to be shitty. If you look on the bright side, Monday is great because everyone is equally in a bad mood so it’s an even playing field. Try and make it better than you expect.

Sunday, July 17, 2022

Random News: July 17, 2022



DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.



Good morning. It’s July 17, 2022, and it’s a Sunday. Things and stuff to peruse…

  • Ted Cruz, who is always in the race to the bottom of the worst of humanity, did something very predictable this weekend. He called for the overturn of Obergefell v. Hodges, the landmark Supreme Court case from 2015 that legalized same-sex marriage across the USA.
  • Ted said, “In Obergefell, the court said now we know better than you guys do, and now every state must, must sanction and permit gay marriage. I think that decision was clearly wrong when it was decided. It was the court overreaching.”
  • So as predicted, he will be using the overturn of Roe v. Wade to continue the removal of rights of Americans, and make it so the thousands and thousands of same-sex marriages in this country are illegitimate. 
  • Spouses will no longer be able to visit their loved ones in hospitals. None of the benefits offered to married couples will be available to same-sex couples, even those who have been married for many years.
  • The weird thing about all this shit is how it all removes all of the positive cohesive aspects of living in a country. Now we’ll be living in states and states alone. You’re in one place where you can marry who you want and safely get health care and so on. You drive a short distance away and all those rights are negated.
  • Divided we fall.
  • As I’ve mentioned before, it won’t stop with Roe or Obergefell. They will be making homosexuality itself a crime, and they will be banning contraceptives for everyone. This is on their immediate agenda.
  • They’d love it to be nationwide. They’d love it if the white supremacist, Christofacism that’s par for the course in Alabama to be what rules the people of Washington, or California, or New York.
  • Fortunately, most of the states where human rights still matter are in overdrive solidifying state laws that make these rights legal no matter what happens in these other states.
  • Unfortunately, if people don’t vote in the midterm election in November, they will try and codify these far-right laws on a national level.
  • Vote.
  • I recorded a demo yesterday. What’s a demo?
  • All musicians make music somewhat differently but also with some similarities. For me, I’ll come up with a musical idea, be it a chord progression or a riff or something, usually just sitting around next to a guitar or keyboard.
  • Most of them suck and I don’t do anything with them.
  • If they have any potential to not suck, I’ll sometimes do a quick recording on my phone or tablet, just me playing it live so I don’t forget them idea. I’ve also jotted down music in a notebook if that’s convenient.
  • If I’m excited about what I wrote, the next step for me is a demo. That’s where I take this musical idea to the next step. I’ll refine the structure, and add some instrumentation, like drums or bass or other guitar overdubs. Sometimes I’ll work on a melody and write some lyrics and record some vocals.
  • The goal is to have a preliminary version of the song that you can then further refine as needed. Sometimes the stuff you do on the demo is good enough for release. Other times you don’t use any of that and start from scratch to record it “for real”.
  • So that was good. I rarely seem to have time to create music, which is pretty shitty for someone who, in theory, is a performing songwriter.
  • In comedy news, trending on Twitter this morning is a right-wing MAGA hashtag to “defund NPR”.
  • How NPR is funded: 2% of their operating revenue is from corporate grants. 98% is from private donations from people like you and me. 0% is from tax dollars.
  • Saying “defund NPR” is like saying “defund Pizza Hut” or “defund Tesla” or any other private entity.
  • And yet, Congressman Dan Bishop (R-NC) is tweeting to defund it. Here’s a better idea: defund Dan Bishop. It’s also way easier to accomplish. Just vote his ass out on November 8.
  • Sigh.
  • Human-sized bag of lumpy pus Steve Bannon’s trial starts tomorrow for contempt of Congress over refusing to comply with the subpoena from the January 6 committee. 
  • Wanna know how guilty Bannon is? On Friday, his attorney David Schoen asked the Republican-appointed judge in the case, "What's the point of going to trial if there are no defenses?" and the judge replied, "Agreed."
  • Ha ha.
  • QotD: “Don't get the impression that you arouse my anger. You see, one can only be angry with those he respects.” - Richard M. Nixon
  • Today in history… Damasus II is named pope and dies 23 days later (1048). Handel’s ‘Water Music’ is premiered on a boat with 50 musicians and King George I on the Thames (1717). Spain cedes Florida to the USA (1821). Willis Carrier invents the air conditioner (1902). Tsar Nicholas II is executed by the Bolsheviks (1918). Harry Truman, Winston Churchill, and Joseph Stalin meet in Potsdam to divide up Germany (1945). Disneyland opens in Anaheim, CA (1955). Apollo and Soyuz spacecrafts dock with each other for the first time (1975). The Summer Olympics open in Montreal (1976). The national drinking age changes from 18 to 21 (1984). 
  • July 17 is the birthday of actor James Cagney (1899), TV/radio host Art Linkletter (1912), jazz pianist Vince Guaraldi (1928), actress/singer Diahann Carroll (1935), actor Donald Sutherland (1935), musician Spencer Davis (1939), quarterback Daryle Lamonica (1941), guitarist Ron Asheton (1948), bass player Geezer Butler (1949), singer-songwriter Phoebe Snow (1950), acorn David Hasselhoff (1952), singer Nicolette Larson (1952), German chancellor Angela Merkel (1954), and musician Lou Barlow (1966).


My list of things to do today includes putting on clothes, vacuuming my downstairs area so I can be pleased with myself when I get up tomorrow, and maybe some more work on my new song, which needs it. Hope you do things that give you a sense of satisfaction today.