The good
news out of Maui is that the death count has not moved from 115 and 95% of Lahaina
has been searched for bodies. Still a terrible tragedy that is going to take
some time for the island economy to recover but at least in the resort areas
not affected by the fires have 500 or so FEMA personnel staying there at around
$1000 a night. With homes destroyed, business destroyed, and no tourist in
their right mind wanting to visit the area, many Lahaina residents are
frustrated, angry and out of money.
On the
medical front, astute gamblers know the House always wins but in addition to
rolling snake eyes, the House at the tables is dealing Legionnaires’ Disease in
Las Vegas, 2 cases at Caesar’s and 1 at the Orleans Hotel and Casino. In
Sonoma, the grueling Mudder’s Race, 22 contestants broke into rashes of painful
pus filled spots, fever and fatigue indicating possible infection by the aeromonas
bacterium which fortunately is not contagious.
On the
eco-front disturbing news as many states in an attempt to reduce plastic
contamination of our waterways and oceans have banned plastic straws and
replaced them with paper. Well-intentioned but a new study reveals that 90 % of
the paper straws contain very toxic “forever chemicals” that degrade so very
slowly they are called “forever”. But the good news for those wanting to
preserve our fragile and assaulted environment, they should know if you use a
permanent stainless steel straw, no “forever chemicals.”
College
football returns this Saturday which may mark the end of the PAC 12 that loses
this year USC and UCLA who had earlier indicating they were leaving and now
joined in departure by the two Arizona schools, Utah, Oregon, Colorado and
Washington. With Name, Image and Likeness putting huge dollars into college
athletes pockets and athletic departments thirsty for TV revenues, any
conference that does not generate huge ad revenue for the networks is going to
be doomed. Texas and Oklahoma who are paying a combined $100 million to leave
the Big 12 to join the SEC in 2024 are not leaving on warm and fuzzy terms as
Texas’ logo and motto is “Seize the Hate” which has gotten a lot of flak on
social media. In the game between San Jose State and USC, the Spartans increased
their scoring by 21 points over last year’s loss of 30-7 but USC increased its
scoring to win 58-28 (if Troy Taylor was watching he must be feeling a world of
concern on how to slow down USC’s scoring machine).
On the
crime front, at a Dollar General Store in Jacksonville, Florida, an unnamed man
wearing a tactical vest with an AR-15 entered the store and killed 3 black
shoppers in what appears to be a racially motivated attack, based on social media
posts, that ended when the shooter shot himself to death. Friday Night High
School Football is supposed to be Friday Night Lights not Friday Night
Gunfights as during the 3rd quarter of a game at Choctaw, Oklahoma
gunfire broke out killing one student and wounding 4. No suspect has yet been
named.
More
than any other tweeter Biden needs a fact checker before he unleashes his
gaffes and exaggerations onto the internet as the Biden Gospel as he proudly
announced that due to his efforts renewable green energy was powering 81% of
our power grid when the unmistakable fact is that the figure is only 20% of our
power grid powered by renewable green energy.
August 26, 2023 Michael P.
Ridley aka The Alaskanpoet
Noted Holidays: National
Toilet Paper Day: Celebrating one the products that disappear off the
shelves when any disaster threatens but I am clueless to know who created the
holiday or when it was created only to know it racks very high on the ranking
of things needed to make life bearable and that the first roll of toilet paper
was patented by Seth Wheeler in 1883.
Word
of the Day: The word of the day is “athanasy” which
means immortality which humans fortunately do not possess.
Song of the Day: The
number 1 song on this day in 2005 was “We
Belong Together” by Maria Carey on a run of 14 weeks non continuous to share number 1 status with 7 other songs
achieving number 1 ranking while 5 acts achieved number one status for the first time. Here is
a music video with lyrics of Maria Carey performing “We Belong Together”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0habxsuXW4g
August
26 Birthdays: “How Could One Not Enjoy Horse Videos”—Sophia Dinverno, Better
Known to Her U Tube Followers as Violet Flowergarden, Born on this day in 1999 in Coon Rapids, Minnesota
was a noted equestrian and avid player
of Star Stable which enabled player to train and care for their virtual
horses. She died of an overdose on January 17, 2023 without a finding of foul
play, suicide or human error but her father may be a person of interest.
August 26 Historical Events in Rhyme
1. On
this day in 2021 as our military forces were guarding the Kabul Airport so U.S.
citizens and Afghan allies could flee/A suicide bomber melded into the
terrified crowd desperate to from Sharia Law be free/Detonated bomb to wound 18
and kill 13 U.S. military personnel to fulfill his Paradise quest/To pour freezing
water on Biden’s claim the evacuation due to the collapse was a success.
2. On
this day in 2018 David Katz gave being a “sore looser” a new name/A
Jacksonville tournament for the NFL Madden 19 game/He lost a game and refused
to shake the winner’s hand and left to quickly come back/With two guns
revealing any sense of sportsmanship he clearly lacked/Killed the winner with a
laser sighted shot to his chest/Then firing indiscriminately into the fleeing
crowd, killing one and wounding 10 before killing himself to avoid arrest.
3. On
this day in 1970 Betty Freidan supported by NOW organized a strike to the
passage of the 19th Amendment to celebrate/A Women’s Strike for
Equality that women were no longer willing to wait/20+ thousand marched down 5th
Avenue With the slogan “Don’t Iron While the Strike Is Hot” to be
viewed/Demands of free abortion on demand, workplace equal opportunity and free
childcare/After more than another 50 years most women would say fulfillment of
those demands are not there.
4. On
this day in 1920 after years of protests and struggles the 19th
Amendment took effect/Women could now join with men to candidates to elect/A giant
first step on the road to equality/Although the gender pay gap has narrowed
more needs to be done to further this odyssey.
5. On
this day in 1883 after since May 20th, on Krakatoa intermittent eruptions
had raged, the volcano entered its final paroxysmal stage/with violent eruptions every 10
minutes spew ash and rocks into the air/Until finally four massive loud explosions
and when the ash cleared 70 percent of
the island was no longer there.
Quote on Krakatoa by Simon Winchester, Author of Krakatoa: “ The explosion itself was terrific, a monstrous thing that still attracts an endless procession of superlatives. It was the greatest detonation, the loudest sound, the most devastating volcanic event in modern recorded human history, and it killed more than thirty-six thousand people.”
© August
26, 2023 Michael P. Ridley aka The Alaskanpoet
www.alaskanpoet.blogspot.com
Poems on Events of the Day
Unique Commissioned Poems for Special Events
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