Like a Willys in four wheel drive

There is nothing more boring for people who do not care for the Grateful Dead than reading about them. 

I get it. 

The chasm is impossible to span.

I have been listening to some jams they did with Duane Allman of late. 

I was so lucky to see Duane twice when he was alive and his brilliance should not be forgotten. 

The story of his playing on Hey Jude with Wilson Pickett is legendary, knocked Clapton off his feet.

I read an interview with someone talking about a discussion they had with Duane once about Hendrix, he picked up a guitar and did Hendrix pefectly, note for note and set it down. The man could play anything in any way he wanted to.

That is why I like this Sugar Magnolia so much. 

I have seen Jerry play with so many guest guitar players including Carlos Santana, John Cippolina, Gary Duncan, Mick Taylor, Steve Miller, Steve Winwood, etc.. None of them could match his genius or energy standing beside him.

Duane could and so could Peter Green.

Duane takes the reigns here and doesn't let go.

Friday Mosh Mish

 So, what's up?

My buddy Jeff in Fairbanks sent this beautiful picture. He didn't take it, a friend did. Alaska is on my bucket list.

And speaking of buckets how long before a certain Senator kicks his? You think there is a betting pool with an over and under out there? I want in.

Mitch has been fairly decent the last year or two regarding the Orange regime but I will never forgive his Merrick Garland perfidy and lies.

*

My buddy Mick is in the Sierras with his son. Caught a nice trout yesterday.

I saw blast reader Valerie at the nail salon yesterday. 

It was time for the farrier to trim my hooves. No color.

*

Leslie found racks of lamb at Sprouts for $4.99 a rack. She bought seven of them at that price. The Super Shopper.

This is super cheap, I  have seen them for $35.00.

Yesterday she soaked a rack in a cumin soy lemon marinade all day and I cooked it up on the trusty Weber last night.

Three minutes a side direct heat and then about twenty minutes to 125° on indirect. I parboiled Yukon potatoes that I had tossed with olive oil, salt, pepper and rosemary for fifteen minutes and stuck them on a grill pan next to the lamb on the indirect side. 

I have never done them in the charcoal Weber like this. Leslie caused a near explosion hitting the fire with duck fat spray. But it all worked out beautifully.

Just have to watch the potatoes and keep turning them.

Really good!  Make sure you don't overcook, you have to find the magic pink zone.

*

What else?

I ran into an aging Superman at the swap meet the other day.  Sad when they go to seed. But let's face it, who hasn't? Takes a lot of commitment to get the eponymous tattoo, even for a superhero. Wouldn't be racing any locomotives at his age, I will tell you that.

Sad to hear that my old swap meet pal David Lido had perished in a car wreck recently. Great guy.

*

I love that Premier Xi brought up Thucydides yesterday with President Trump.  I am sure he lost him on the first syllable. Thu - what?

Interestingly, the Thucydides trap was first conceived by the author Herman Wouk at the Naval War college.

The expression was inspired by the ancient Athenian historian and military commander Thucydides (died c. 400 BCE), used first in a speech by Herman Wouk in 1980, and then revived by the American political scientist Graham Allison around 2011. Wouk described the trap as a precedent for the 20th-century Cold War:

You remember that Athens and Sparta were the two great adversaries, the 'superpowers' of the Greek world; that they had allied themselves to fight off and defeat a common enemy, Persia; and that after the victory their alliance fell apart in a cold war.

Wouk lamented the recurrence of superpower rivalry, particularly in the nuclear age, but concluded that he found hope in two sources. First, he pointed backward in time from Thucydides to the Biblical age, and specifically to Isaiah's prophecy:

And they will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks, nation shall not lift up its sword against nation, nor will they learn war anymore.

Good luck with that. 

*

Let's hear it for the Padres, they just clinched a playoff berth for the third straight year. 

They have the best record and have been playing the best baseball in either league for the last half of the season after a horrid start.

Not how you start, it is how you finish and everybody is getting hot at the right time.

Cubs lost the first game of a doubleheader in Boston today. Padres might be hosting the wild card series with a couple more timely wins and losses.

*

I was driving to work this morning when I found myself behind a dark full sized truck making the left on Brandon.

It was a red light but the truck didn't care, crossed right in front of two oncoming vehicles, right through the red.

I had two immediate thoughts, either a deranged patient or employee at the Fallbrook Hospital or a cop?

After the green I saw the truck pull in behind the Sheriff's office, through the employee gate. 

Bingo.

Because we all know that to law enforcement there's two types of people, cops and criminals and they think that the rules that apply to the rest of us do not apply to them.

Don't let go - Roy Hamilton

Whodunit?

 

I bought this painting from Bill at Long Beach Sunday. I believe that it may be a view of San Francisco near the Baker Hamilton building. It is signed M. Wolf. Nineteen forties, early fifties frame. Ashcan style.

Bill originally bought the painting from Cam.

Cam got it when he sold the estate of Arnold Wolf in Monterey, from Arnold's daughter Vivian, he thinks. He has long since lost contact info.

I am trying to figure out the name of the artist. I believe Arnold Wolf's wife was named Maxine and besides the daughter he had two sons, Gordon and Michael. So that is two m's that could be the artist. I would wager money it is a family member if not Arnold himself. Don't know his middle name.

I have tried to contact family members on Linked in and through internet sleuthing to no avail. Think the kids are in Tustin maybe, niece in Aptos. Can't get a call back.

Now Arnold Wolf was an interesting character. Here is his obituary. He was an industrial designer and the one time head of JBL. He designed the groundbreaking Paragon loudspeaker system in 1957. His wiki page says that his father was a photographer at RKO.

Paragon speaker

I don't know much about him but did see this and took note:

He was born in San Francisco on April 30, 1927. In the early 1930s, his family moved to the East Coast, eventually settling in New York City, where he attended the Bentley School in Manhattan and the Bronx High School of Science, graduating in 1943. In 1942-43, he performed as a radio actor in a number of network programs. When the family moved to Los Angeles, he went to work as a draftsman and perspective sketch artist at the RKO film studio. 

This excellent urban painting exhibits precisionist skills that a draftsman and technical perspective sketch artist would have. Could M be his middle initial?

We have a saying in the business, no mark, no money. People seem to want paintings from a known artist, irrespective of quality.

This is a long shot but if anyone out there knows the kids and they can put a name to the author of my canvas I would much appreciate it. 

About thyme

So as I was saying, the fall means I can start cooking heavy winter meals again. oh boy! Short ribs came off without a hitch last night.

I used fresh rosemary of which I have plenty but had to use dried thyme.

I need to start growing thyme.

Leslie made a pot of pappardelle noodles that went very nicely with this.

I splashed the rest of the bottle of wine open on the table in but was not enamored with the smell.

So I added some marsala and cooked it all down.

Ended up tasting great.

I see a pot roast and beef stroganoff in my near future.

Baby, it's you

Nanny state, redux

Think about the worst humiliation you could ever endure as a sixteen year old. And then think about this.

Starting Jan. 1, CA Kids 8 To 16 Must Use Car Booster Seat Unless They Pass 'Five-Step Test.'

Beginning Jan. 1, 2027, Assembly Bill 435 will require children ages 8 to 16 to pass the "Five-Step Test" before graduating from a booster seat to a standard seat belt.

The Five-Step Test includes that when a child is sitting all the way back against the auto's seat, knees are bent comfortably over the edge of the seat; the seat belt crosses the child’s shoulder between the neck and arm; the shoulder belt should snugly cross the center of the child’s chest and shoulder, not the child’s neck; the lap belt is as low as possible and is touching the child’s thighs; and the child can stay seated like this for the whole trip.

Can you imagine the looks that a sixteen year old will get at high school when the other kids see mommy unstrapping them from their booster seat? The ignominy and shame?

I am a lover of freedom. I was bummed when they passed the law that you couldn't sit in the bed of a moving pickup truck, once got a ticket for it. That is how we grew up. Basically free. Now a parent can get arrested for letting their kid walk to school by themselves. And you wonder why Generation Z is so dysfunctional. Over protected and neurotic.

So California is going to force a sixteen year old into a booster seat. Why not all short adults as well while you are at it? 

Stop with all these silly attempts to save us from ourselves.

Give me a freaking break.

Searching for Madge

Equilibrium

Yesterday was Yom Kippur, the day of atonement. Observant jews fast, pray, typically wear white and both forgive and ask forgiveness. I did none of those things however I did lose Melissa's spoon and would like to ask forgiveness now if it is not too late?

I will find her another one.

Today is the fall equinox, well tonight at 5:04 p.m. pacific time anyway. What does that mean? It means that the sun is directly above the equator and that day and night is as even as it gets for light. Neither the southern or northern hemispheres is tilting away from the sun.

In astrological terms, the equinox marks the start of Libra, the sign of the scales, or balance. Makes sense.

The Jewish New Year started on the eleventh. It comes from the hebrew rosh or head and shanah year, the root noun shnai, time. The head of the year. It signifies the beginning of time and the start of Yamim Nora'im, the "Days of Awe." The Hebrew word for Rosh Hashanah biblically was Yom Teruah or the "day of trumpets."

In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a sabbath-rest, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation. You shall do no customary work on it; and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord. Leviticus 23.

I was thinking driving to work about the Jewish calendar, which is lunar and the difference between the Gregorian calendar which celebrates a January New Year. I guess it is totally arbitrary, could have started on any day in the cycle, I suppose.

The Persian New Year Mowruz falls on the Spring equinox in March. In Thailand Songkran is celebrated mid April. The Chinese calendar is solarlunar and Chūnjié takes place somewhere between January 21st and February 20th. The Maori New Year Matariki is celebrated in late May or early June. It is marked by the arrival of the Pleiades in the dawn sky.

So I guess the new year can start anytime, just depends on your culture and point of view. How do you enter a circle?

*

*

I have been hankering to make a pot roast or brisket and my wife keeps saying no. "It is summer, that is winter food." Now with the equinox I have a green light again. She bought bone in short ribs and I am going to go to town tonight. Yay!

*

I was just asking Leslie if she had seen Grumpy around? He was a very early contributor here who may have burnt out on the blast. I haven't seen him in years and was wondering if he was still alive?

I was hanging out with the car guys this morning and who should get out of his car? Nelson. Amazing, still with us if a little worse for wear.

*

Truman showed up to coffee in his 68 Plymouth Station Wagon. Single owner I believe.

As beat up as the rest of us, this baby has 598,000 miles and change.

On its third engine.

His Mustang is on the fritz and he is back to the wagon.

Classic like its owner. Love this car. Grew up with a Plymouth fury station wagon, green. 64. With simulated wood paneling on the side.

*

I see so much crazy stuff out on the road. I am at a stoplight waiting to make a u-turn in Temecula last week, inside lane, two lane left turn. We get a green and the car to my right makes a u-turn in front of me.

Unbelievable!

So lucky there was no accident. You just have to ask yourself if it is malevolence or stupidity? I think that young drivers are not getting trained properly these days, we have no road etiquette left whatsoever. 

The passing on the right, the tailgating, the turns across your forwards bow with no inches to spare, they think it is one big video game with no consequences.

And the ebikes might be the worst. I see the kids driving so crazy, was happy to see this yesterday:

TEMECULA, CA — Riverside County sheriff’s deputies impounded several vehicles and issued 13 citations during an enforcement operation targeting illegal electric motorcycles and e-bikes in Temecula, authorities said Sunday.

The Sept. 18 operation, conducted by the Southwest Sheriff’s Station Metro and Community Outreach and Engagement team, aimed to curb unlawful riding and educate community members on safety regulations.

Deputies towed and stored four electric motorcycles and pocket bikes during the crackdown. They also stopped multiple juveniles to explain local and state restrictions on motorized bicycles. Sheriff’s personnel formally admonished the youths and their parents about the dangers of unlicensed drivers operating motorized vehicles.

Department officials issued a public reminder that vehicles lacking pedals and featuring motors exceeding 750 watts are legally classified as electric motorcycles. Unlicensed drivers are prohibited from operating them on public thoroughfares. Authorities added that certain electric motorcycles are built exclusively for off-road use and lack the safety equipment required for driving on public roadways.

The kids simply do not have the training or expertise to be on the road. It wasn't long ago that an Oceanside woman went to jail because her stupid kid ran over an old man and killed him. Wasn't the first time the child had been cited.

We need to reign them in.

*

Many of you do not know that for the last fifteen or twenty years I have supplemented my income by writing educational curriculum for teachers. I worked for a private company that was affiliated with a college located in Southern California.

My first course took me a year or so to finish. It was a history of Vietnam. After that I wrote so many courses, dyslexia, a book on basketball, Lewis and Clark, FDR, a Beginners guide to Photoshop now in its third revision and printing, more courses than I can remember frankly.

Things went swimmingly. I was paid a lump sum for every course and nine dollars for every course sold. This made for a nice annuity of about six or seven thousand extra dollars a year.

At a point in time several years ago the company was sold to the University. I worked with a wonderful dean, could not have been nicer.

He retired and things started to change. They sent me a new contract a few months ago with all sorts of new conditions like me having to grade papers for practically nothing and having to drive to school to meet with students. I told them I would not sign and they said that the contract was wrong and should never have been sent to me, with their apologies.

I called them on Friday needing a tax statement for the prior year. The woman said that there was going to be a big change coming. I got the letter yesterday. My services are no longer required. But they are apparently still going to sell my course, at least three of them are still listed. They just will no longer pay me any royalties. 

I wrote them back. They can get rid of my courses if they like but if they keep them without honoring our agreement I think there will be legal consequences.

I have to think that they have been less than honest with me. Ever since the old Dean left the communication lines were severed and things were in a state of flux. I could no longer trust them.

All good things come to an end. I enjoyed this job. It gave me an opportunity to learn and research and I think I made a valuable contribution to teacher's learning as well.

On to the next thing.

*

Woman at Long Beach @ Robert Sommers 2026

We drove to Long Beach Sunday and got a few fill in pictures for my new book, Early Sunday Morning, twenty years at the Long Beach Flea Market. I have a good company that I am working with and a layout person in Ohio. 144 pages, 11 x 14" hardcover. Still deciding if we will print in China or Korea, the latter cheaper but better quality in China. About a thousand dollars difference in price, hope to go with China. I think I have at least fifty pre-sold already, maybe seventy five.

It is all starting to happen very fast. I finished the rough layout this week.

I'm very excited about it.

Duality

I heard a cut of this percussion band on Pandora and they blew me away. Do a deep dive on them.

Seen at the donut shop

 A guy walked in yesterday with the perfect misanthropic t-shirt. Somewhat concur.

*

A good American citizen, Laura Berlin, put out an interactive map out, Who is profiting from ICE? 

At this point, it’s clear that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been taking legally questionable and violent action across the country to arrest, detain and deport thousands of people. But as easy as it may be to point the finger at a single evil boogeyman, ICE depends on a massive infrastructure of individuals, companies and suppliers to achieve its goals.

Laura Berlin, a Texas mom with a background in nonprofit communications, decided to create an interactive Google Map called “Who’s Profiting from ICE?” In it, she pinpoints the hundreds of businesses and corporations across the country that have reportedly been complicit in enacting ICE’s mass deportation campaign, along with a short description of how each company retains ties with the agency.

Berlin gathers most of the information on the website from government databases that are accessible to the general public — so there are no big secrets to reveal. “In a handful of cases, information comes from other sources, like credible media reports or job listings,” Berlin tells me. “In the very rare event I receive a tip that I can’t verify with public records, I reach out to the company to give them a chance to respond before adding a listing.”

Good to know. Interesting to see how global the co-operation is, click on the map link above and see.

And what does the government think about her site?

The U.S. government labeled Berlin’s website a “tool for domestic terrorism” in a February intelligence bulletin — a pretty serious accusation.

Of course they do. If you don't support our current regime's draconian and inhumane agenda you are terrorists.

Quinn the Eskimo

Come from away

 

I am not much of a theater guy, certainly not a musical theater guy, as Dylan once said, just ain't my cup of meat. Or did he?

In any case, I will go grudgingly when asked and my wife definitely enjoys it. Last year we saw Fiddler on the roof at Moonlight and it didn't send me looking for a roof to jump off of so I am making some slow progress.

Our friend Richard is a donor and has second row seats and asked us if we wanted to see this play, Come from away? I am so glad that he did, it was incredible.

The true story recounts an interesting vignette of 9/11. Thousands of airline passengers coming back from various countries were not allowed to fly into New York and were instead diverted and forced to land in the small town of Gander, Newfoundland.

The town was not prepared on any level to take in thirty eight planes, six or seven thousand passengers, the buses were on strike for one thing, there was limited place for shelter but the townspeople and passengers made it work.

The play is a nonstop and captivating ninety minutes. The characters deftly switch roles from passengers to townspeople. It won a Tony and various Olivier awards. The Moonlight gets its original La Jolla and Broadway director, Geno Carr. The cast was topnotch, I was especially taken with the beautiful voice of the woman who played the real life pilot, Beverly Bass, Lulu Lloyd.

I think that the play goes another eleven days. If you want to see it I would buy tickets now, it was marvelous and thought provoking, and mirrors tragic events that happened twenty five years ago this week.

Trust me, you will love this play.

Graceland

Happy 5787

I received a couple emails.

From Steve -

Bet the duck was fabulous.  Keep up the great work. No mention of Rosh Hashanah, but Happy New Year anyway!

I didn't mention Rosh Hashanah? Sorry about that, I hope that I have not offended my jewish readers. But after 5787 years, what's a couple days really?

And another apparent oversight. An overseas reader sent this - 

WTF? Was surprised you didn't jump on this one already! I'd do my own research, but am concerned that AI will 'flag' me! I mean what percentage of the potential labor force could this possibly effect? Seems like a move of self-protection more than anything else.

https://edition.cnn.com/2026/09/15/politics/kash-patel-hiring-bestiality!

Jeez. Don't know how to tell you this but the subject of animal husbandry has never been high on my hit parade. Sorry to let you down but I am sitting this one out, in deference to all parties concerned throughout the earthly kingdom.

*

Changing the subject. I stayed home and had coffee and breakfast with my wife today. Feeling little motivation even though I need to work on my taxes. 

She made good coffee and chicken quesadillas. She makes mine first and brings three sauces, Cholula, Tapatia and Melindas and I mix them on my pie shaped sections as I wish.

When she brought hers I mentioned that she sauced hers individually instead of hitting the whole quesadilla.

She looks at me and says "I've been doing it just like this for 37 years in front of you. You're not a very observant jew, are you?"

I guess not, I laughed. Good one.

*

Interesting article on Appetizing stores at A.P. today.  It mentions a new deli in Los Angeles, Mish, which I am dying to try. I wrote a snarky reply to a comment which did not get published. 

Oh well. Next year.

Seared duck breast with a brandied cherry sauce, roasted potatoes and glazed carrots with star anise

I have been on a duck binge lately and thought I would head in that direction again for tonight's dinner. But I also thought that it was time to really pull out all the stops and make a meal I could be proud of. A complicated meal.

My initial plan was duck with a cherry sauce, glazed carrots and dauphinoise potatoes. Upon discussing the meal with my spouse the potatoes were ixnayed, too fattening.

I got home at about four o'clock and started working my prep. I was going to make Adam Byatt's glazed carrots with star anise and I tried to do the cute little thing he does paring the end of them and failed. I needed bunch carrots, not commercial carrots. Now I know.

Did the best I could.

I then prepped my yukon gold potatoes. I would make the long Kenji Lopez Alt version. I boiled in baking soda and water for about eighteen minutes and when they had passed the knife test I drained them in the colander, then sauteed olive oil, garlic, fresh chopped rosemary in a small pan for about three minutes.

I put a sieve over the potatoes and poured in the infused oil mixture and added a little butter and parmesan too. 

Salt and pepper for good measure. 

Cayenne and paprika, a bit of parsley. 

I reserved the solids for later.  

I tossed the whole thing and fluffed it all up. 

Then I stuck it on a baking sheet and grabbed the duck fat out of the fridge and gave the sheet pan a healthy dose.

Stuck it in the oven at 400° for twenty minutes, then a turn with the spatula for another thirty minutes.

It was time to start on the duck. 

Once again I was amalgamating two recipes, Ina Garten's and James Beard's. 

I omitted the demi glace and the creme fraiche because I could. No shallots because my wife doesn't like them.

I crosshatched my duck breasts with a sharp paring knife and rendered them in a cold Le Creuset skillet. 

They had been brining in a heavy salt rub for about twenty four hours in the refrigerator. 

After about seven minutes they joined the potatoes in the hot oven for about four minutes. 

Clocked them at 135° and they went on a plate on my dining room table to wait.

Now the sauce. I was going to do a port reduction but Grocery Outlet was out of port and I decided to go with what I had. Why buy more stuff? Red wine would be fine.

I used the same skillet, why not? and added some olive oil and garlic to sauté for about thirty seconds. Hit it with champagne vinegar to loosen up the burned bits, not the sherry vinegar that was called for because I have eight vinegars already in my cupboard and didn't need to add another one. Almost went with the rice vinegar or the red wine vinegar but the champagne worked just fine. 

I then added a half cup of chicken stock and a cup of a bordeaux wine that I opened for the meal, Chateau Fontana. 

I let it reduce at a boil for a few minutes and added my dry cherries which I had been soaking in brandy all afternoon. 

They really plumped up.

I added orange zest, squeezed a half a valencia orange from my tree and a splash of Grand Marnier for good measure.

I cooked and reduced it down for about fifteen minutes.

Boy was it delicious. The rest is going on ice cream.

I started the glazed carrots, added two star anise, butter and sugar and placed my handmade paper cartouche in the pot. 

Cooked it for ten minutes at high heat. 

It glazed okay but it will be better next time and I will omit the anise. 

I expected more from the dish, frankly. 

Honestly think it needs more sugar and butter.

I plated the duck, poured on the sauce and joined my wife for dinner. 

She said they were the best potatoes I have ever made, crisp outside and soft, creamy centers.

It was a satisfying yet complicated undertaking and I am proud that my timing on everything was letter perfect. 

Took a bit over three hours, not counting some prep.

I honestly think you could serve this meal at a fine restaurant and it would set you back about fifty or sixty dollars.

Watch out, here I come.

Denny Hoskins

I have been following the political machine in Missouri for several years now. Sort of like looking at a bad accident on the freeway. It has to be one of the most contentious battlegrounds in the nation in terms of the culture war. Fascinating, in a way.

And it is obvious that the conservatives that run the show there have no use for democracy and the people's voice.

It all started in 2024 when voters approved Amendment 3, which provided for a state constitutional right to reproductive freedom, which was defined to include abortion. The measure won by 51.8%.

This sent the powers that be, including the Governor and Senator Hawley, into a tizzy. The poor people of Missouri were obviously being swayed by dark, venal, out of state interests.

Been a bit of a roller coaster since then.

On December 20, 2024, Jackson County Judge Jerri Zhang ruled Missouri's total abortion ban, 18-week ban, 14-week ban, eight-week ban, and "reasons ban," were unconstitutional and unenforceable by the courts. Judge Zhang also struck down other laws, including the 72-hour waiting period, mandatory informed consent requirements, the requirement that physicians be physically present while the patient takes the medication to induce an abortion, and criminal penalties associated with abortion bans.[2]

On February 14, 2025, a Jackson County Circuit Court judge blocked further restrictions that prevented abortion clinics from operating, which included a facility licensing requirement, which restored abortion access in the state. The lawsuit was brought forward by two Planned Parenthood affiliates in Missouri.[3]

On May 27, 2025, the Missouri Supreme Court reinstated the state's abortion ban by overturning the lower court rulings. The court determined that the lower court had applied incorrect legal standards in its decisions and ordered a reevaluation of the case.

The legislature tried something new then. New referendums would require 80% of the people, not merely a majority and they would have to have a majority in every congressional district in the state.

This was a radical reshuffling, Missourians had been using the referendum process for over a century, in fact over 424 times since 1908.

In August 2026, the Republicans came up with Amendment 4, requiring voter approval of citizen-initiated constitutional amendments in each congressional district, rather than statewide; adding language prohibiting ''foreign nationals'' and ''foreign adversaries'', as defined, from spending to support or oppose ballot measures, with penalties for violations; and add language regarding penalties for ballot initiative signature petition fraud, among other changes.

Missouri voters rejected Amendment 4, which would have require voter approval of citizen-initiated constitutional amendments in each congressional district, rather than statewide. At the time of the election, no other state had this supermajority requirement.

The voters blasted this amendment overwhelmingly.

This made the GOP powers that be quite pissed off, which brings us to today.

*

I have been following Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins for the last several years with a mixture of revulsion and curiosity. Sort of like viewing a car wreck.

Hoskins, along with current Governor Mike Kehoe, is doing everything he can to thwart the will of the people. It's not democracy it's mob rule, as Hoskins calls it. He is a true federalist, power should not come from mere people but instead only from their duly elected and gerrymandered representatives.

Republicans control five of the seven districts in Missouri. But evidently, that was not enough for them.

In July 2025, The Missouri Independent reported that the Trump administration had urged Republican Party leadership in the state of Missouri to redistrict the state's legislative boundaries to benefit Republicans. 

In September 2025, Missouri lawmakers passed—and Missouri governor Mike Kehoe signed into law—an act changing the state's congressional districts. The new districts dismantled the strongly democratic leaning 5th congressional district and left it for dead.

The proposed new map intends to give Republicans one additional seat in the 2026 United States House of Representatives elections. 

Before the new map went into effect, Missouri was hit with a lawsuit and a veto referendum. The lawsuit argued the new map was unconstitutional, and violated the part of Missouri's Constitution stating that redistricting had to occur after a United States census. 

The Missouri Supreme Court, mostly Republican appointees, disagreed, ruling 4–3 that the state constitution requires redistricting to happen after a census, but does not otherwise explicitly prohibit it.

The veto referendum, in which voters decide whether to pass or reject a law, was initiated by a group named People Not Politicians Missouri after they gathered over 300,000 signatures. Although the number of signatures submitted was sufficient, Hoskins refused to place the measure on the ballot, stating that it was an unconstitutional measure.

His reasoning was quite specious. 

He said it was the province of legislators to establish districts, not voters and referendums.

On September 3, 2026, the Supreme Court of Missouri ruled that the veto referendum was constitutional, and that it could be held on redistricting, ordering the Secretary of State to use the enacted map from 2022 in the November 2026 elections.

Hoskins refused. 

Then his cohort, Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway, filed an emergency appeal to the US Supreme Court and filed a motion requesting the state Supreme Court to pause its ruling from taking effect while the appeal plays out.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh denied this request on September 8, keeping the 2022 maps in effect for the 2026 election.

You would think that that would be enough, the Supreme Court weighing in. But no, the same day they tried one more power play and got a federal judge to side with them against SCOTUS. Chief U.S. District Judge Stephen Clark of the Eastern District of Missouri issued a temporary restraining order in a separate lawsuit prohibiting the state from using anything but the new 2025 maps.

On September 10, the U.S. Supreme Court granted an emergency stay of Judge Clark's order, putting the 2022 map back into place for the 2026 elections.

Hoskins decided to stay and fight, even against the highest court of our land.  On September 10, 2026, the Supreme Court of Missouri found Hoskins in contempt of court for his refusal to implement their ruling regarding the state's congressional maps and 2026 Missouri Proposition A. He subsequently agreed to direct clerks to use the correct legal map.

Now this thing ain't dead, no telling what happens next year bit for the present, their dog will just not hunt.

Interestingly, for me anyway, is that now Hoskins looks like he might be in real hot water. 

You see, the Director of Election Integrity in Missouri, Nicholas La Strada, sued Hoskins on Monday, saying he was ousted from his job after repeatedly reporting conduct he believed was illegal or unethical.

La Strada says senior officials in Hoskins’ office discussed manufacturing a whistleblower complaint about Missouri’s voter-registration system and making it look like it came from an anonymous outsider. The idea was to use an “IP scrambler” and a burner phone to hide where it really came from, then introduce the complaint as evidence in a federal proceeding.

He also alleges serious meddling in a local election in Marshall, Missouri that ulltimately changed the final outcome of a City Council election.

La Strada alleges, Hoskins ordered a retabulation of write-in votes in a city election in Marshall after a complaint about this year’s April election. The election had been certified and a winner named by a single vote. 

After a complaint, Hoskins ordered the votes retabulated, resulting in a different winner, and threatened city officials if they did not comply. La Strada said that exceeded Hoskins’ authority because only a judge can order a recount of votes after certification.

In the other, La Strada said he warned Hoskins in April 2025 that using public funds for an anti-Proposition B mailer appeared to be an election offense.

If what La Strada is saying is correct, I would think Hoskins should be thinking about changing his familiar red coat for prison pin stripes soon.

And if all that is not enough:

 Five Missouri voters from St. Louis City and St. Louis County are suing Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins for $80 million over the handling of a ballot measure that challenged the use of the 2025 state congressional map.

In a lawsuit filed on Friday, the five plaintiffs state they are seeking between $100 and $500 in damages for more than 162,000 Missouri voters who signed a measure to have Missouri’s 2025 congressional map put to a vote. The 2025 congressional map was heavily endorsed by President Donald Trump.

The suit states that more than 162,000 petitioners were certified as Missouri voters out of 300,000 who signed the measure. The lawsuit states that Hoskins’ actions affected multiple voters in the same manner, making it grounds for a class-action lawsuit due to the volume of people affected.

The lawsuit goes on to state that Hoskins considered the measure filed by certified voters as insufficient and refused to place it on the next general ballot. He did not challenge petitions supporting the claim that the measure had enough signatures.

Hoskins wrote a self serving editorial today, which unfortunately sits behind a pay wall. He was merely protecting his innocent constituents from evil bolshevik outside influences. 

Why do politicians think that their constituents are too stupid to think for themselves? I think Hoskins is definitely going down, will it take Kehoe down too?

9/15

Leslie went to a fundraiser for Nepal relief efforts out in Valley Center Sunday. 

She had a great time, there was great music, Nepali food, a petting zoo.

She hung out with a sloth, and not the one she is married to.

 She asked me if I wanted to go but I really haven't felt social or comfortable in large gatherings.

Couple friends came down with covid recently is my excuse but honestly have been enjoying my own solitude.

Anyway I thought this was a beautiful picture of my lovely wife.

*

I was cleaning out my van this afternoon and found this card somebody, somewhere gave me.

I dig. Perhaps I am the poster child.

The heat has been killing me, thought I was getting heat stroke for a moment there yesterday. Taking lots of down time the last couple weeks, not stressing unless I have to.

My plants at home are stressed, even though Leslie is doing her utmost to keep everything alive.

Bougainvillea is stressed, so are the oranges.

Plumbago is real happy and the cactus never complain much either.

One day it is sharp and pointy and the next day it is delivering you pretty bouquets.

Sometimes it just takes waiting for the wind to change or the heat to break.

Things ain't so bad.

I could be undergoing chemo right now.

So happy to get that reprieve.

Always have the birds.