Warning: spoilers for The Prisoner, Mr. Robot, Westworld season 1 and Orphan Black.
This came about because someone asked me my opinion about the finale to The Prisoner. The problem is, watching the show today gives a completely obvious answer. Had I seen it when it was broadcast…
The black hat means he’s a bad guy
A long time ago there was a communication medium called “television.” This consisted of a device which could take a signal and convert it in real time only into a blurry image on a small screen. Fine detail was impossible, and any given viewer would be able to see any given “program” only a few times at most, and on a schedule determined by a broadcaster. In practical terms, any storyteller who wanted to use “TV” (as it was then called) had only one shot at telling their story. So for effective communication, they used various symbols and conventions that had been previously established by live theater, which itself that has issues with the intended audience having limited viewing opportunities and non-ideal viewing conditions1. Just like a theater could drop
a scrim behind the actors, or change lighting, etc. to indicate that the onstage action was not “literal” (in the sense of the rest of the performance) so too could a TV storyteller indicate flashbacks, dreams, insanity and the like through the use of sound or visual effects. A loud “bang,” followed by an actor gripping their chest and falling down, indicated a fatal gunshot wound. The same, but with the actor gripping their shoulder, indicated a gunshot wound that was non-lethal.
The screens got bigger and clearer, and these conventions (or “tropes”) multiplied and ossified. But then something happened: home video. Now people could watch something over and over, increasing the chance that they’d notice something subtle. Relatively soon thereafter, the internet came along, rendering it a lead pipe cinch that any storyteller’s cleverness would be noticed by someone that would then propagate it to the rest of the world so that the cleverness could be acknowledged by everyone who would then pretend that they had figured on R + L = J all by themselves. Of course, this capability did put an end to some of the pranks such as putting porn still in kiddy cartoons, but it allowed for some greater potential for storytelling. In particular it removed the need for expository dialogue. You could rely on the audience to figure things out, and the audience needing to figure it out encouraged them to pay attention. Plus you can give the audience a “penny drop” moment in a way that just wouldn’t be possible otherwise. Both Westworld and Mr. Robot did this masterfully. While this technique of dropping the flashback signal had been done previously in movies3, I don’t know that it had ever been attempted for such an extended period of time… except maybe in The Prisoner. But We’ll get to that.
I could have sworn there was a town around here
Don’t worry. This time it’s not her blood.
The other interesting thing that you can do by choosing to jettison tropes is you can make the narrative more “real,” since you’re choosing to show how things work in the “real world” as opposed to TV world. Orphan Black is my favorite example of this. The premise is silly – there are a large number of clones who while being (nearly) genetically identical somehow have completely different personalities, interests, and sexualities. But when you’ve got people focusing on “wait? Did that really happen?” then the silliness takes a back seat. Example 1: The clone’s toddler gets hit by a car in a relatively low-speed collision. It’s fine. Is this an example of any of the tropes (or network Standards and Practices rules) involving not splattering children? Or is it an attempt to communicate that the clones are somehow tougher than usual? Example 2: Clone v. Clone fight. One clone takes a blunt piece of rebar and shoves it completely through the torso of the other clone, in a location that corresponds to the liver IRL. The wounded clone staggers off bleeding, but after obtaining some vodka, gauze and a sewing kit pulls the rebar out of her torso, and patches herself up. Now in TV world, anatomy is fungible, heroes can do things like shove a blunt piece of metal completely through another human being, improvised weapons always work, and major characters survive fatal wounds as a matter of course. But in this case, I believe it was a hint that the clones were in fact stronger and more durable than standard model humans. This is never explicitly stated in the series, but some other instances of breaking a trope in favor of real world accuracy2 make me believe it. It makes watching a TV show a more active experience for the viewer. I like that, YMMV.
So if you want to communicate that something weird is going on, you just show something that is impossible. In Mr. Robot, the first time I noticed that something is not right here was the scene in which Eliot goes to a shooting gallery to score some smack. A girl who has just injected heroin into her arm becomes super-horny and tries to jump his bones. In my extremely limited experience with opioids, this is not something that actually happens, and as it turned out, it didn’t happen. But the definition of “impossible” isn’t quite so easy in a world where most people believe a horse walking sounds like coconut halves banged together, a defibrillator can resurrect people without heart rhythm, and swords can cut through steel, as long as you’ve folded the blade enough times.
It gets even more difficult in genre fiction. To return to The Prisoner, so many impossible things happen that it should be easy to just say “the dude is mental.” But, each era has it’s own set of bullshit that people believe and of course there are the genre tropes in which the impossible is taken as fact. For the former, people actually believed that computers had ultra-predictive power, that secret government agents had hyper-tech, hypnotism really was involuntary mind control (and could also let you recover memories with photographic clarity), psychic powers and aliens were plausible etc.
Hate Bill Gates all you want, but before him this is what computers looked like.
And as for genre conventions, ever since Sherlock Holmes, it’s been canon that people were capable of “logic” that would let the protagonist deduce that the clocks were set an hour off from where they should be, based on the tide and shipping schedules of four different seaports even though he had been sealed in a crate the entire time. So when I watched the series, I had to wonder “is this something that was TV-reality in the mid-1960s?“ Furthermore, there’s so much I didn’t know about BBC’s standards and practices that when I would see something not right, I would have to wonder if there was a IRL reason for it. So when No. 6 pulls a stack of dollars out of his London safe in order to make a getaway, is that a clue that something weird is happening, or was there some sort of rule against counterfeit British currency? Likewise, why would the guards be using Thompson submachine guns4? To indicate that the Americans were behind the whole thing? Surely British prophouses were stuffed with Stens – it should have been easier (and cheaper?) for those to be given to the actors.
TFW you look at this picture and think that the guns are the oddest part.
And it was those little bits of wrongness that made me reexamine what I had presented with and conclude that no, none of this was “real.” Another major inconsistency — the location of the Village. The aforementioned superhuman logic episode established that the Village is one time zone away from London. The episode where the Village is empty and No 6 escapes by raft and navigates by the stars (and even in 1960s genre fiction, people don’t have the ability to fake the sky5) also establishes that it ain’t in England. Except that it totally is and you can quickly drive from there to London according to the last episode. But really, the most compelling piece of evidence that the entire run of The Prisoner is just a psychotic break is…
The leader of a government funded black site dresses like this? You really expect me to believe that?
- This is not just limited to western theater. In Japanese theater, ninjas were not typically represented onstage (since they were invisible assassins). Instead a grip would put a prop weapon into/onto the victim indicating that the arrow/dagger/whatever suddenly seemed to appear out of nowhere. At some point, these stagehands came to represent ninjas in the popular imagination, which is why the “shinobi” “uniform” is exactly the same as a grip’s outfit.
- A clone “rescues” her cryogenically stored embryos by transporting them in a Dewar flask, sometimes storing the flask on its side. A later episode has her holding a funeral for them because “nobody told me I needed to refill the liquid nitrogen.”
- Two obvious examples of this are of course The Sixth Sense and Fight Club. Of the two, I personally prefer the former since (IMO) it takes more skill to pull off the misdirection while showing the audience what is happening as it is happening without relying on the crutch of “oh, that scene you watched didn’t really happen.” However, that camera-as-unreliable-narrator can be used effectively, as in Mr. Robot.
- And were they chambered in 11.43x23mm or 11mm43?
- Being able to fake the sky is a major plot point in Three Body Problem. I guess I should include a spoiler tag for that too.
Crackpot’s Corner: The Prisoner and Storytelling Changes
Wait a minute. We’re Crackpots?!?!?!
Should have provided a spoiler alert.
Furthermore, there’s so much I didn’t know about BBC’s standards and practices that when I would see something not right, I would have to wonder if there was a IRL reason for it.
I remember a British sci-fi show, I think “Blake’s Seven”, which had a space ship catch on fire as its launched.
This article had me thinking of Space: 1999. The entire first season is sort of a mind-fuck. Some of that was down to much TV of the era playing fast and loose with the idea of a “story arc” (because nobody was expected to actually care about watching the thing in order) – there are unofficial viewing orders out there but it’s actually not possible to place the episodes in an order than makes complete sense – but there was a lot of genuine WTF going on besides. The producers (ITV) said no more of that and the second season was much more conventional – to the point where Martin Landau was bitching about the stupid plots and corny dialog.
I never saw that show. I had some friends that liked it.
“Firefly” was shown out of order for those episodes that aired.
Yeah, in US syndication (which I saw as a kid) they didn’t even bother trying to show them in any consistent order.
I have Firefly on DVD but haven’t watched it yet.
*(Space: 1999, that is)
I have the Firefly DVD set. I re-watch it every now and then.
I think the last time rewatched the whole series was a few years after Serenity came out on DVD. Might be time for another rewatch.
I don’t think it holds up terribly well after multiple rewatches.
there was a lot of genuine WTF going on besides
Like a nuclear explosion that can propel the moon through space fast enough for interstellar travel without destroying it?
That’s the least of it.
I think the calculation of how much fission going on would be a great physics final. (high school)
State all assumptions.
show your math.
“Sorry Mr. Science Denier, but the consensus of the class is that 500 megatons would do the job.”
*teacher throws robo’s paper in the trash.
Space: 1999 was a pretty good concept that got screwed up in production. It does have one of the more, depressing? comeuppance? TV episodes I can remember: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earthbound_(Space:_1999) (which has parallels to the X-Files episode “Apocrypha”).
Also, Space: 1999 considered the return of the Voyager spacecraft 4 years before Star Trek did.
Good one. Plus, Christopher Lee.
Yeah, no. I watch it 2nd, because they’re clearly not far from Earth yet.
FWIW: last time I checked S:99 was on AmPrime.
Likewise, why would the guards be using Thompson submachine guns4?
The Brits did receive a lot of American equipment through Lend-Lease.
/drools over his Lee-Enfield No. 4 Mk 1/3 with “US PROPERTY” markings
Was it made by Savage? I have a Westinghouse Mosin-Nagant 1891 Infantry.
Yes.
I have seen both Remington and Westinghouse 1891s. I haven’t bid on any. There is one, I think a Westinghouse, on display at one of the Springfield Museums.
I bid on a Remington made Berthier from the Amoskeag Auction. I lost. It had no serial number. French practice was to put serial numbers on military firearms only after acceptance. The French rejected the rifles for “reasons”. Remington sold off the rifles. Back then, there was no Federal requirement for a serial number on firearms.
I’m out for the night. Have a song.
Surely British prophouses were stuffed with Stens – it should have been easier (and cheaper?) for those to be given to the actors.
OK, yeah, they did have a lot of Stens.
and even in 1960s genre fiction, people don’t have the ability to fake the sky5
The Moon Landing dude.
You know it was faked.
/spoiler – it wasn’t and it wasn’t possible to fake it.
. . . it wasn’t possible to fake it.
That’s because nobody put Kubrick on the case.
Idiots.
Ahh, but they did, that’s you believe it,
Why
When Kubrik was making 2001 he had to decide between the two competing hypothesis on what the lunar surface would look like. He chose the “sharp” edges because no air=no erosion. Before the movie was released the Surveyor images came in and showed the surface was overwhelmingly “soft” edges because micrometeorites=erosion. But there are still some sharp edges.
I give you a 400ft boulder on top of Tycho’s central peak.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/LRO/news/lro-tycho.html
Thank you. I shall take this boulder and name it
The Boulder Of The Bearded Hobbit
So let it be.
+1 Pittsburgh Nelly
The leader of a government funded black site dresses like this? You really expect me to believe that?
Some people have strange kinks.
Don’t judge
And were they chambered in 11.43x23mm or 11mm43?
Don’t care. Were they fun to shoot?
It’s this kind of shit, that makes Pynchon unreadable. Once being “clever” is more important than being “entertaining” an art form is fucked. See painting circa Duchamp, Architecture circa Venturi, Film circa Fellini, web commenting circa Brochettawad.
The shark is jumped, this is known,
<a href="https://youtu.be/BFd3rGIa5UY" title="Pyncho
n?” target=”_blank” >Pynchon?Meh, the link still works.
After V. Pynchon is so high that he thinks saying Toilet is the height of literature.
Fuck Gravity’s Rainbow.
Being an entertainer is a vulgar trade. Being clever gets you invited to salons with bored rich women, and they have the best sandwiches at those events. The booze is occasionally pretty good too.
Thot Thursday is tedious and pointless.
https://archive.is/6syjj
The DickRocket never made it to space…..
Walt Disney isn’t dead, he’s thawing….
Biden isn’t dead, he’s Animatronic, he’s in the hall of Presidents already,
Biden is a cheap sideshow at Showplace Pizza.
Showbiz Pizza Place
A staple of my youth.
https://showbizpizza.com/about.html
Dick the birthday boy.
Rock isn’t dead, just in nursing home with Covid,
The Rock, or Rock Hudson?
Rock, and his friend Roll, I need to write an article,
Tenacious D wrote the epitaph.
Yep, my viewpoint is a bit larger, I’ll write it up, see what you think,
Long live rock!
…and Roll!
Long live rock n roll!
?
The Devolution of Rock and Roll
The Double Trouble Devolution of Rock and Roll
I’ve had a few and am not following…I hope. How is SRV an example of the devolution of R&R?
Moar Debil? I’m not getting why you are not getting it. I think I should have said ‘Devilution’.
Devolution
The heart of rock and roll is still beating.
Lou Reed isn’t dead, he’s a time traveler, I saw him once in 23c, he wasn’t doing autographs,
The entire run of The Prisoner is available on the Shout Factory website, but they are in airing order, not production order (of course the networks always screw up the order) so to get the intended experience (which no one in the 60s got) you’ll have to jump around. I rewatched in, I believe, the 6 of 1 order last year.
Also, Iron Maiden.
Kinda meh, Invaders?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttYYODfH-QY
Also, more Iron Maiden
I have the DVD set. I started but only got into a couple of episodes. I need to drag it back out.
If it’s the A&E DVD set, it’s in the order that I recently watched it in.
JP,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hn74sNysCKc
“We lie to you news”. Looks legit.
AMC did a reboot of The Prisoner with Ian McKellen and Jesus. I missed it when it aired and never got around to watching it. Looks like it might be on youtube, might check that out if I get some free time.
It was okay but only okay. I didn’t like the ending.
It’s anti-DeSantis if you are a covidiot.
I’ll repeat what I said on an earlier thread about this vid: is it real or parody? Take a look at the names of the newspapers beginning about 1:21.
LOL you’re right.
I didn’t watch that far before.
these fucking people. It’s too hard to tell, and morons will think this video is on their side
You don’t have to = You’re forced not to. I hate people.
Now I’m on a Tenacious D trip. Featuring Meatloaf and Dio.
“A girl who has just injected heroin into her arm becomes super-horny and tries to jump his bones. In my extremely limited experience with opioids”
A junkie has the opposite of limited experience. So that’s totally plausible.
Fuck, I haven’t seen all of the original “The Prisoner” so I have to skip this..
Fuck
Well, you can just listen to this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dm_iq5OicM
Sounds good but I hope no spoilers
See my comment 15.
I haven’t seen any of it so ??♂️
I’ve seen about 3 eps. I think we might have the whole series here on dvd? not sure.
I saw them when I was a kid, so I have weird memories of them.
Sorry, off-topic, but I just saw this and had to share here.
Some cheeky Aussie figured out how to get around the Youtube censors on Covid-19.
Plus, it will make you laugh your ass off regardless.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvFdgdH61W4
(Poor fucking Aussies. I still love those people, but Oz-Man need to start killing the authorities in their homes while they sleep).
“…by a bee’s dick” LOL
fucking great metaphor
This was also my take-away
nice!
That was fucking Great! thanks Ozy!
That is hilarious!
I laughed, I cried, and then I laughed some more.
Speaking of people who need the Kendrick treatment
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-school-board-group-asks-biden-help-against-growing-threat-2021-09-30/
First, school boards shouldn’t have or belong to a trade group. Second, the school boards are completely in the wrong. Being threatened for the shit they’re doing, and not just the mask, is the least they deserve. Dewalt to the kneecaps would be understandable.
Lol. Thanks, Ozy, this is why I read the whole overnight thread every morning, so I don’t miss out on the good stuff
I should watch The Prisoner again. I was watching it about a year ago and my younger son (6 at the time) was watching it with me. He kept referring to it as “the bicycle show”.
Holy Shit when did Bob Odenkirk become an action hero?
I know, right?!? I’ve been ignoring the film on my file forum a I thought it was something from that awful (IMO) Breaking Bad franchise. Today, however, I watched the Critical Drinker review and was stunned.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7888964/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1a
do you have a link?
“The antidote to modern action movies.” https://youtu.be/BireP8dKHVU
Fuck. Yes.
Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul are both great.
I just starting watching Breaking Bad last month. I love that series.
I am a fan of both, but haven’t watched Better Call Saul since Season 2.
I love, love, LOVE The Prisoner, but I found the remake unwatchable; ditto Westworld. I did recently watch a fan recut of Pulp Fiction that presented every scene in chronological order… It was terrible. I will always be the first to mock Tarentino, but his non-linear storytelling is on point.
I sees one Billy the Kid.
Boa tarde, wokesters, snowflakes, and shitlords. And imaginary female libertarians of course.
DO NOT FEED THE BEARS
Wife and I looking at a house right now, where our closest neighbors… well, there are a couple on the other side of the paved road. But in the back 40, we’re talking black bears. So she asks me ‘Do you think they have bear food at that country store down the road?’. WTF? No, do not feed the bears! I swear, I will shoot their eye out!
The bear food is coming from inside the house.
That’s exactly what I was afraid of…
Whut, bear kibble?
Isn’t all food bear food?
https://www.superdelivery.com/product_image/604/2/6042671_1000.jpg
It’s considered polite for you to offer it packaged in a pic-a-nic basket.
Man, y’all need to get on New World. I don’t know if we can start private guilds. But I’m thinking the Glib Guild rules the Island and enslaves all the others. I mean, in this economy with inflation, stagflation, and shrinkflation, you never can tell when you will run out of good orphans.
what’s good about it?
Exploration and Crafting, so far.
Hah! The premier (governor) of New South Wales – who’s been one of the worst on lockdowns – just resigned as a corruption investigation (going back 8 years) was opened.
Be careful what you wish for.
/New York
Whycome you disobeying God’s will, unbeliver?
I have failed Her. ?
Story needs more woodchippers.
I just got kicked in the head, see you around peeps!
whaa?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7jgZTDLeIs
Deer?
I think it’s more like “How lucky can one guy be?”
He survived the Oort Cloud and Space Milfs, so he’ll probably survive MI deer. Seriously, those are not like IN deer, which are corn fed and the size of Moose. Their anorexic asses are eating pine needles. But does give the jerkey that fresh alpine scent.
Close, it still hurts,
Space Ladies are hard, but Fun!
Too lazy to see if anyone else has linked Rand giving some nerd a swirly.
Quite a beat down. Won’t matter, of course, but still fun to watch.
Thanks for sharing.
Watched it via Forbes, via YT suggestion. Rowr. Ffft ffft.
I wish I liked TV, I really do. There are a lot of shows that sound interesting, but the inserting stupid jokes, plots that go nowhere, obvious Just In Time writing, it’s just so boring.* I would rather read a good book.
Speaking of which, I put new tires on my truck the other day, and stopped by the thrift store on my way home, as they will sell the old, beat-up copies which I like. Anyway, while digging through the stacks, I found a first edition of Hemmingway’s A Farewell To Arms. Correct on all points, only missing a dust jacket, which takes it from being worth a few thousand to a few hundred. Oh well, can’t have everything.
*except for sitcoms that go nowhere. I like those in the background. Fuck Heisenburg.
Magnum PI
Firefly
The Shield
Seinfeld
Rockford
That would suit me for a long time.
Add Bob’s Burgers to that and I would be good.
I love this man. https://youtu.be/REaFrUdldLA
Well, I hope you love this
frogman too, because I hear he needs some TLC?Nobody Love Kermie Any More
A lot of people
“is”are talking about…NBC might want to fix their illiteracy problem, just saying…
It’s not just him. They’ve been winning on luck for the last 2.5 years, and I kept telling my husband that it DOES matter how you get the win. Because if you don’t pay attention, getting the win on bad habits eventually means you don’t get any wins anymore.
KC are a great team and they’re playing well. It’s just that the competition has stepped up.
That is also true. They’ve all figured out our tricks and adjusting accordingly (and some are starting to adopt those tricks, like the no-look pass).
oh yes! ID4 – when they blow up the US Bank tower in LA, is my favorite part. It’s just such a great moment when they show all the dumb hippies on the roof with their “we love aliens” signs and then the aliens blow them to plasma (though I will say it hits a bit … differently post-9/11 than it did before that).
But then I love all the LA disaster movies. “Volcano” is basically the perfect film – uses locations near my house and fills them with lava, while Tommy Lee Jones runs around being all authoritative. Is it ridiculous? Sure, but it’s awesome.
ID4 is probably my favorite movie of all time. I don’t think about it until somebody mentions it, but yeah, it’s up there.
Tommy Lee Jones is nom nom nom nom nom. I have had the biggest crush on him since The Fugitive.
Tangentially: The 90s were awesome for movies.
When I drink Boss Coffee, I hold it like TLJ.
And his performance in Under Siege was perfect. *chefs kiss*
They drank coffee in Return of the Jedi?
I love the episodes where he fixes character problems while still maintaining the basic plot of the movie.
I feel like I have been kicked to the curb, it hurts, but old dogs get over it I suppose,
Arf!
Listen to me. You’re coming back better than ever. Don’t make me come up there, I don’t like cold weather.
I’m working it, but I could use some help,Help!
You can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but you can get a bitch to turn one.
+1 Pimp’s love
+1 Chayfedd
Waynes World!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s86AAjLLRKo&t=28s
suh’ fam
Went into work early, got home early….TALL 0500h CANS!
also, yo whats goody yo
☕ ?
Well, here I am in the ER again. Just one last hurrah at this hospital before I move away. Between trips here for me and trips for my husband, I’ve seen quite enough of this place.
I drove myself here this time, so I doubt it’s too serious but some of the symptoms were matches for some potentially serious stuff.
Had the ekg, had the blood draw. Now to wait for the verdict or next diagnostic test. I’m lucky; never seen this place so quiet and uncrowded.
They said this is the “lull”; things pick up at 5:00am.
Cause 5 am is when the people that have been drinking/drugging all night fall-over and split their head open/OD.
Also probably when people wake up with just about any condition that they thought was gonna get better overnight but it got worse.
Mine has gotten worse since Tuesday in some days, better in others. I ain’t risking it.
But they gave me a narcotic pain killer so I won’t be able to drive myself home when I’m done. ?
Ah well. First world problems!
? Sorry to hear that. Hope you feel better.
Was there a punch card involved? Did you get a free sandwich?
Now, there’s an idea!
Perverse incentives though…
I AM getting an almost free CT scan though…the insurance I have costs $150 co-pay for each hospital encounter, whether I’m here for 12 hours or a week. Weird. And I still have some money left on my FSA card.
Perverse incentives?
Have you considered selling your chest x-rays ?
/asking for a friend
Ha! That would be mostly bones though…with just a vague outline of the rest.
And thanks for the sympathetic words, Sean!
Update: they gave me a “lidocaine cocktail”, as they call it, for the abdominal pain and just stuck an IV in my arm for a contrast CT scan.
Back to the waiting room until radiology calls me back for the scan.
Fortunately, they have a big screen TV with NFL network on!
That’s much better than CNN.
contrast CT scan
Ah, the feeling of peeing yourself. Enjoy. Seriously though, I hope you’re better soon.
Back in the waiting room for about an hour to kill (they said) for results.
They warned me about the feeling of warmth that would make me feel like I’d peed myself-/they weren’t kidding! Weird. I wonder why the warmth settles there? The iliac veins?
Whatevs! They also did a thorough abdominal ultrasound.
Now we wait…
I wonder why the warmth settles there?you hit
I meant to look it up, but I was miserable in pain. After I felt better, I forgot all about it.
On a side note, it’s been well over a year and I still have not received a “settled” bill for that wonderful day. You must have a stack of paperwork with all your visits. What’s both sad and funny is when you hit max out-of-pocket, you don’t care anymore. Just let the doctors/hospitals and insurance companies fight it out with each other.
High deductible health plans = Devil’s Work.
WTF? Hope it’s nothing serious. OTOH I can think of worse ways to kill time, Narcotics + NFL Network is cool. I spent Election night 2016 in the ER similarly doped up watching CNN. Good times
https://www.fox29.com/news/18-year-old-killed-12-year-old-injured-in-north-philadelphia-triple-shooting
No arrests. Good job Philly!
Too early for bad news. Need moar covfeve.
something something snitches
https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2021/09/30/chester-police-searching-for-driver-who-fatally-struck-dragged-man-for-several-blocks/
Dragged the body for a half mile. No one in custody. Good job Chester!
Dropped down in the 40s last night. I left most of the pepper plants outside. The peach reaper and Ghengis were brought inside. I don’t think the rest are gonna be too happy today. ?
Well , the more “paper shell” types might be ok if you dry them.
Thick walled types you might have to pick and come up with a creative use like a Cajun dish where they don’t need a firm texture.
You’ve inspired me to try some container pepper plants next year…
Sweet.
The fruit should not be a problem from the low temps, but the plants will move into the end of the season phase.
I’m not sure if I’m gonna keep the peach inside through winter. It’s the smallest and most efficient of the bunch. The rest will get tossed and we’ll start a new batch next year.
I guy here at work is growing them on the windowsil. He tried to pollinate with a Q-tip, but that didn’t work. He took them home for a weekend and the bugs got it done.
So he returned with bare stems, the rest of the plants having been devoured?
Nope, they’re producing nicely.
Said pepper plant, circa now:
https://www.glibertarians.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/peppers-scaled.jpg
I’m terrible at keeping plants alive. The bugs would have eaten mine.
Not going to be producing nicely for long, unless he gets that pest problem under control.
I am seriously reconsidering my commitment to always provide alt-text.
Why is that? Good article BTW. Glad it is slow enough around here to read it.
I’m guessing no one openly remarked on it.
I would think that you of all people would have noticed how completely unsuitable those gloves are for his role.
I’m in non-exaggerated danger of falling back asleep while sitting in this chair.
I haven’t seen the article, let alone any images or their properties.
Hey, thanks for the article, NA. Do phones do alt-text?
I think so, but I’m sure it depends n your browser.
In “Brave” you can just put your finger on the picture and it pops up but the text is often cut off.
But you know it’s there, and that’s what’s important. Going the extra mile is its own reward.
I always read Glibs on my phone. Not sure how to get the alt text to show…
But your work is alway appreciated. We just take it for granted like some ungrateful socialists sometimes…
Supposedly the feds are digging into Protonmail using Jan 6th (I would assume) as a pretext:
https://mobile.twitter.com/SebGorka/status/1443686769833168905
I know, consider the source and all, but I haven’t been able to find a lick of evidence that his tweet is true. Has anyone read something about this elsewhere?
All the articles I saw pointed back to that tweet, so I’m in wait and see mode.
Yeah, plenty of articles referencing the tweet but no further elaboration. Hopefully Seb’s just blowing smoke.
How are you holding up after a day on the road with toddler & infant, trashy?
Day one was good. Infant was pretty sick of being in the car after 5.5 hours, as is to be expected. We had all afternoon at the great grandparents’ house for her to move around and play so hopefully she still has some endurance left for the biggest driving day of the trip today (8.5 hours in the car plus stops). After that, we’re staying in Pigeon Forge for almost a week before driving again.
I was hoping to find some non-interstate options for some legs of the trip after the conversations here on Glibs a few days back. However, rather than adding an hour or two to each leg, the non-interstate paths consistently doubled the time. Maybe we’ll do that when the kiddos are old enough to entertain themselves. We’ll have to content ourselves with viewing the countryside from the interstate this trip.
Mornin’. And Brr, it is getting nippy here.
Watched The Prisoner when in HS, was one of the shows the whole family watched. I didn’t quite get it then, but Scottish stepdad loved it so I went along for the ride. Not planning to watch again, I do not need reminders of HS days.
Hey, can any of you miscreants recommend some really comfy safety boots (or safety shoes) for all-day walking and standing?
I’m gonna need some for the new job. I had some Nautilus that I liked in the past but wondered what other options I might have. I’ve got ankle problems from an old injury.
I got nothin’, but Nancy Sinatra has a recommendation.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=SbyAZQ45uww
Most of facilities maintenance wears Sketchers. I have a pair of low Timberland Pros that work well for me, but I’ve had Timberlands in the past that were unwearable after 30min, so…?
My Sketchers safety work shoes are fantastic, with the memory foam. Super comfy. I have another pair, which are a different style with in the same series that are not near as comfy. Try before you buy.
Sketchers are great, but they don’t seem to last very long.
I seem to get about 2 years of life from a pair of the work series.
I didn’t know sketchers made work boots! I’ll check it out.
Thanks
I think I’m on my third pair in 4 years, and that’s with the 4 months of no work plus many days off w/o pay last year.
I like to buy Carolina logger boots usually. I get the highest tops I can (usually 8″) because I roll my left ankle easily. I think they’re comfortable, but YMMV.
My steel-toed boots are Walmart specials. Had to look high and low for a men’s size 5.
Vatican To Punish Employees Who Refuse To Comply With COVID-19 Certification:
https://www.zerohedge.com/covid-19/vatican-punish-employees-who-refuse-comply-covid-19-certification
Way to go there Pope, provide governments with legitimization of oppression and exclusion of tens of millions of your believers.
Welp, there goes returning to Catholicism. ?
We have not looked back since our departure. As soon as I hear/read the words Pope or Vatican, I tune out.
This from the Pope who ruined “Is the Pope Catholic?” as a phrase.
Jesus hung out with the outcasts and healed the sick. Rome sides with oppressors and advocates shunning the sick while claiming to preach Christ crucified. I opened a hymnal last night, I miss singing, but will not be returning to my church.
Home churches are going to become the norm soon methinks.
Yup. Back to the roots
I <3 Tejas!
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/jpmorgan-blocked-texas-muni-bond-market-over-anti-gun-virtue-signaling
“broke banks mounting”. Lol.
The Nevada town I’m moving to has 36k residents and at least 17 gun stores. One that has piqued my interest is “Regular Dude Defense”.
They show NOTHING on their website, but their Google maps result shows a nice customer photo. Looks interesting to me, after 3 years in California.
Another variation on a recent Glib theme.
https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2021/09/30/bear-steals-package-front-porch-Gatlinburg-Tennessee-Robin-Sutherland/6681633034477/