Saturday, June 29, 2019

Pension "Death Spiral" Crisis Reaching Fever-Pitch In The US

Pensions across the U.S. are falling deeper into a crisis, as the gap between their assets and liabilities widens at the same time that investment returns are falling, according to Bloomberg.
Chief Investment Officer Ben Meng told the board of the California Public Employees’ Retirement System last week: “For the next 10 years, our expected returns are 6.1%, not 7%.”
And if you think you've seen panic now, just wait until he finds out that Calpers' target of 7% - lowered in 2016 - is still a pipe dream.
Put simply: the record, decade long bull market hasn't been enough to save pensions. The average U.S. plan has only 72.5% of its future obligations in 2018, compared to more than 100% in 2001. The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College attributes the deficit to "recessions, insufficient government contributions and generous benefit guarantees."
Jean-Pierre Aubry, associate director said: “The really bad plans went heavily out of equities after the financial crisis.”

Pensions that aggressive bet on stock outperformed funds that moved money into alternative investment vehicles, like hedge funds.
Andrew Junkin, president of Wilshire Consulting, said: “Sometimes diversification, while it’s the right strategy, makes you look dumb.”
And this success isn't a guarantee in the future, either.
Phillip Nelson, asset-allocation director at pension advisory firm NEPC said: “The discussion we have internally is over the next ten years is do you see an equal amount of Fed support and profit margins increasing by another 50% from this level? Both seem really unlikely to us.”

Public pensions have increased their exposure to PE to 10.2% on average in 2018. This is up from 5.6% in 2008, a trend that will probably continue. Many pension funds, like the Texas Teachers’ Retirement System, are hiring new staff to manage private equity. Their fund invests 40% of its portfolio in alternatives.
Mohan Balachandran, senior managing director of asset allocation at Texas Teachers said: “Our pension liability duration is 20-plus years. We felt that we could invest for the long-term in some of these vehicles where your money’s locked up for seven to 12 years.”

Now, about 85% of the 129 public pensions in the U.S. have cut return assumptions since 2014. These targets are expected to continue moving lower.

Keith Brainard, research director at the National Association of State Retirement Administrators said: “Each month and each quarter that goes by with low inflation and interest rates remaining low provides more ammunition to justify lower investment returns.”

And lower assumptions aren't always well received by taxpayers, despite lowering the risk for pension funds. Often, they lead to money out of the pockets of taxpayers to cover the difference.
The Kentucky Retirement Systems’ plan for 123,000 employees in non-emergency jobs could be one of the worst off systems in the U.S. It currently only has $2 billion in assets for $15.6 billion in liabilities. The burden has resulted in government service cuts, pay freezes and a falling headcount.

Executive Director David Eager said: “We call it the death spiral. You can’t earn your way out of this.”

From:  https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-06-29/pension-death-spiral-crisis-reaching-fever-pitch-us

Wisconsin's GOP speaker says he wants to consider legalizing medical marijuana, just after rejecting governor's plan

From JSOnline:

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (Photo: Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

MADISON – Days after rejecting a medical marijuana plan, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said Friday he wants to debate the issue this fall even though it would be extremely difficult to pass.

Vos, of Rochester, in recent years has shown support for legalizing medical marijuana, but other Republicans who control the Legislature have expressed deep skepticism toward the idea.

"I'd like to have at least a discussion about medical marijuana," Vos said Friday when asked about his top priorities for lawmakers when they return to the Capitol in the fall. 

5 signs you’re actually a Puritan psychopath

by Joe Jarvis via The Daily Bell

Hanging women thought to be witches in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 and 1693 was probably the pinnacle of religious Puritanism.
That type of Puritanism used God and the Bible to force its own form of tyranny on anyone who challenged its authority.
But Puritanism doesn’t need to be based on God or the Bible. All it needs is fanatics convinced that their worldview is the only moral way and that others must be forced to adhere to it.
Puritans ignore logic and reason and stick to their dogma. That often leads to some form of a witch-hunt and “public hanging.”
Here are five signs that you’re not really a tolerant free thinking warrior for social justice, but actually a Puritan psychopath.
1. Sex is to be strictly regulated

This one is actually pretty similar to the religious Puritans.
They hated sex (outside of marriage) and regulated it strictly. Sodomy, masturbation, and pre-marital sex were strictly verboten.
Today’s Puritans have banned any talk of sex for fear that it will be classified as an unwanted sexual advance. People are terrified of sex because pursuing it in the wrong way could land them at the gallows .http://www.thedailybell.com/all-articles/news-analysis/texas-wants-to-make-sex-jokes-illegal/
Some sex-Puritans even maintain that it is impossible for a woman to consent to sexwith a man. Others say that just being asked out against their will is a form of sexual assault.
2. You can’t remember the last time you were wrong about anything.
You know all the data… even though you really haven’t read a book in a while.
And you’ve considered every side… even though you only get your news from echo-chamber websites.
You’re totally open-minded… except to opinions you regard as “hate speech”… which is basically any opinion that differs from yours.
But you’ve got the whole world figured out down to a T. And you are sure your worldview is the only good and righteous way to see things.
If people don’t see things your way, that itself is proof of their bigotry, prejudice, sexism, and intolerance.
And you won’t tolerate that.
3. You think some ideas are too dangerous to be discussed.
Some views must be silenced because they are too dangerous to be tested in the marketplace of ideas.
This really means you see other people as inferiors, lacking an internal moral compass, or too weak to resist the gravitational pull of dangerous ideologies.
You think it is perfectly reasonable to ban people from saying certain things that might offend someone, or plant a dangerous idea in the mind.
Of course, nothing you ever say could be reasonably seen as offensive…
Anyone who says otherwise is being dishonest. You know this to be the case because…
4. Evidence is not required– you already know.
It’s like you have a sixth sense that can always tell you when someone is guilty of a transgression. Their evilness manifests itself in their appearance.
In Salem, proof that women were witches could include warts. Today, proof that someone is a rapist might include muscles. Proof that someone is a Nazi might require only a smirk.
Your paranoia leads you like the inquisition to see hidden signs of white supremacists and micro-aggressions everywhere.
And like a righteous and holy judge sent from the heavens, you will condemn the transgressors for their sins.
5. You reject the scientific method when it doesn’t support your dogma.
Sometimes you use phrases like, “the science is settled,” to cut off any discussion or debate.
That is a direct contradiction to the scientific method, in which nothing is ever settled. Debate leads to clearer and clearer truths.
The Salem Puritans knew it was the devil causing the stricken girls’ illnesses–that was not up for debate. And after all, the Puritans were the educated ones, they even started Harvard.
But other times, science itself is offensive, such as saying someone with an XY chromosome is a biological male. And that’s not up for debate either (See 2-4).
So if you think of yourself as progressive, just make sure you’re not actually regressing to a state of Puritan tyranny.
You don’t have to play by the rules of the corrupt politicians, manipulative media, and brainwashed peers.
When you subscribe to The Daily Bell, you also get a free guide:
How to Craft a Two Year Plan to Reclaim 3 Specific Freedoms.
This guide will show you exactly how to plan your next two years to build the free life of your dreams. It’s not as hard as you think…
Identify. Plan. Execute.

From:  https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-06-28/5-signs-youre-actually-puritan-psychopath

Widow of truck driver files lawsuit over fiery I-94 truck crash in Racine County

From JSOnline:



The widow of a truck driver who plunged off an I-94 overpass to avoid hitting cars involved in a fiery collision in Racine County has sued the company that employed a second big rig driver the suit says caused the crash
.
The bizarre daytime crash on June 19 near Highway K in Mount Pleasant resulted in giant fireballs and the closure of the freeway in both directions for hours.

Authorities called Jeffrey Johnson a hero for his evasive action to avoid striking other cars. Now his widow and administrator of his estate, Lillian Moss Johnson of Milwaukee, is seeking unspecified compensatory and punitive damages for his death.

Jeffrey Johnson died in this fiery crash June 19, when he veered off an I-94 overpass to avoid hitting cars that had crashed when a piece of concrete median was suddenly pushed into northbound lanes by a southbound truck. (Photo: Katelynn Planka)

Man accused of killing Racine Police Officer John Hetland had been released from prison 4 days earlier

From JSOnline:

Dalquavis T. Ward (Photo: Kenosha County Sheriff's Department)
The man accused of killing Racine Police Officer John Hetland was released from federal prison just four days before the veteran officer was shot during a robbery.

Hetland was shot June 17 during a robbery at Teezers Bar and Grill, 1936 Lathrop Ave.

Dalquavis T. Ward, 26, of Milwaukee, had just gotten out of prison on June 13, federal Bureau of Prisons records show.

Ward appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge William Duffin Friday afternoon where he was ordered detained for an alleged violation of his probation, according to minutes filed in his federal court file. 

Ward is set to appear before U.S. District Judge Pamela Pepper July 25 for a revocation hearing. 
He was on supervised release — standard when someone is released from federal prison — according to court records. Officials from U.S. Probation and Parole Office did not immediately return a call from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel for comment Friday afternoon. 



He's happy to be back in the "system."  Jail/prison is the closest thing to a father that many of these felons have.

Trump's attacks on the legal immigration system explained

Iowans rally against anti-immigrant bill.
Photo: AFSC / Jon Krieg

Policy
The Trump administration has been making changes both small and drastic to U.S. immigration policies. While Trump’s cruel policies at the border and his ramping up of deportations and ICE raids have garnered the most attention and outrage, his other efforts to transform legal immigration have been no less radical. As administration officials and conservative commentators have said, deportations alone may not halt the demographic changes taking place in the country -- so the administration is aggressively reshaping the legal immigration system.

Taken together, these policies support a white nationalist agenda. By keeping more people out, deporting people who are here, and creating an atmosphere of nativism and fear that affects everybody, Trump is attempting to dramatically reduce immigration to the United States, particularly of people of color.

Most people don’t support the Trump agenda – the majority of the public thinks that immigration is a good thing and shouldn’t be decreased. That’s why it’s important to understand and oppose the changes underway. Here is a running list of changes and planned changes to the legal immigration system.

Read more: https://www.afsc.org/blogs/news-and-commentary/trumps-attacks-legal-immigration-system-explained


The bullshit that the left writes and posts.  They don't see immigration as an orderly process.  They believe it is racist to oppose the flood of illegals into our country.  Fuck them.  They are ignorant or, more likely, stupid.  Either way, I don't care.  I've lived my life and owe them nothing but my disdain.  Watch Foxconn hire a legion of illegals.  Then maybe the local left will wake up.  Or not - they despise the truth.

Good Point:

Good point. Cleaning toilets is a skill that could be trained into
them. When they go back, it will be a useless skill, because
installing and maintaining toilets is a skill that they are not
capable of mastering.

In Sub-Saharan Africa, missionaries dig wells for the locals, and come
back to find the wells fouled, unused, destroyed. Wells are too
high-tech for the Sub-Saharans: if given a hole in the ground with
water at the bottom, they are unable to maintain it.

http://voxday.blogspot.com/2019/06/listen-to-his-holiness.html

Listen to His Holiness

The Dalai Lama is not only a big hitter, he speaks more truth than all the politicians and corrupt churchmen of Europe combined:
The Dalai Lama has claimed 'Europe is for Europeans' and that the continent could become 'Muslim or African' if migrants are not sent back to their home countries. The Buddhist spiritual leader, who has been living as a refugee in India since fleeing Tibet in 1959, said only a 'limited number' of migrants should be allowed to remain. 
During an interview with the BBC, the Dalai Lama added that refugees who have fled to Europe should be given skills before being returned. He said Europe was under an obligation to take in those who needed help, but ultimately they should be returned to their homelands. The 83-year-old said: 'European countries should take these refugees and give them education and training, and the aim is return to their own land with certain skills.'
When asked what should happen to those who want to stay in their adopted countries, he replied: 'A limited number is OK, but the whole of Europe [will] eventually become Muslim country, African country - impossible.'
He's almost entirely correct. Because the only alternative is the continent-wide war between the European nations and the migrants, refugees, and quislings that appears to have already begun in Norway and in Germany.

The only point at which I disagree with His Holiness is the idea that Europe has any obligation to take in anyone for any reason. Neither the continent nor the people who live on it are obligated to do so under any moral standard.

Dalai Lama: Europe Will Turn "Muslim Or African" If Migrants Not Returned "To Their Own Land"


The Dalai Lama has warned that 'the whole of Europe will eventually become a Muslim, African country" unless refugees that have been taken in are not returned to their home countries.

Speaking with the BBC's Rajini Vaidyanathan from his home in the mountainous town of McLeod-Ganj in Northern India, the 83-year-old spiritual leader said that while Europe was under an obligation to take in those who need help, they must ultimately be returned to their homelands.

"European countries should take these refugees and give them education and training, and the aim is return to their own land with certain skills," said the Dalai Lama, adding "A limited number is OK, but the whole of Europe [will] eventually become Muslim country, African country - impossible."



"Receive them [migrants], help them, educate them, but ultimately they should develop their own country. I think Europe belongs to the Europeans."

We wonder if virtue-signaling liberals will peel off their "Free Tibet" bumper stickers now that their idol is one pair of Khakis and a tiki-torch away from Europe's identitarian movement?

The Dalai Lama sought refuge in India, where he has been living in exile with 10,000 Tibetans.


The view from the Dalai Lama's residence in the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh (via BBC)

His monastery - which overlooks the snow-capped peaks of the Dhauladhar range in the Himalayas - is breathtakingly beautiful. But the view is bittersweet.
His life's cause - to return home - remains a distant dream, even if he insists it may yet happen. "The Tibetan people have trust in me, they ask me [to] come to Tibet," he says.
But in the next breath he adds that India has also become his "spiritual home". An implicit acceptance, perhaps, that his goal of an autonomous Tibet is far from reality. -BBC
When asked about President Trump, the Buddhist monk said that he "lacked moral principle" and that the administration's America first policy is "wrong."

From: https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-06-27/dalai-lama-europe-will-turn-muslim-or-african-if-migrants-not-returned-their-own

Photo of Drowned Migrants Captures Pathos of Those Who Risk It All


CreditCreditJulia Le Duc/Associated Press


MEXICO CITY — The father and daughter lie face down in the muddy water along the banks of the Rio Grande, her tiny head tucked inside his T-shirt, an arm draped over his neck.

The portrait of desperation was captured on Monday by the journalist Julia Le Duc, in the hours after Óscar Alberto Martínez Ramírez died with his 23-month-old daughter, Valeria, as they tried to cross from Mexico to the United States.

The image represents a poignant distillation of the perilous journey migrants face on their passage north to the United States, and the tragic consequences that often go unseen in the loud and caustic debate over border policy.

It recalled other powerful and sometimes disturbing photos that have galvanized public attention to the horrors of war and the acute suffering of individual refugees and migrants — personal stories that are often obscured by larger events.

Like the iconic photo of a bleeding Syrian child pulled from the rubble in Aleppo after an airstrike or the 1993 shot of a starving toddler and a nearby vulture in Sudan, the image of a single father and his young child washed up on the Rio Grande’s shore had the potential to prick the public conscience.

As the photo ricocheted around social media on Tuesday, Democrats in the House were moving toward approval of an emergency $4.5 billion humanitarian aid bill to address the plight of migrants at the border.

Mayor Butterball Lawn Gnome


Mayor Butterball Lawn Gnome tries to grab some free publicity.  Get out of the way, Butterball, so that the police can do their job.

Four for Fridays!

Good morning everyone I hope you had a good week. Yes I am up early today because I have lots of errands to do and I have to take Drew to work. Here are your questions.

1) Do you have plans for the 4th of July?

2) Are you going to see any parades?

3) Are you going to spend the 4th of July with family or friends?

4) Are you planning on cooking you for the 4th of July?

Be safe on the 4th of July but do enjoy yourself!

Thursday, June 27, 2019

Officer Hetland's alleged shooter arrested with his handcuffs

From The Journal Times.com:

RACINE — The suspect who law enforcement officials say shot and killed Racine Police Officer John Hetland last week was arrested Thursday.

The alleged perpetrator was captured in Milwaukee and was taken to jail wearing Hetland's handcuffs. The identity of the suspect was not released during a press conference Thursday evening at the Racine Police Department, 730 Center St.

Hetland, a 24-year Racine Police Department veteran, was shot and killed the night of June 17 at Teezers Bar & Grill, 1936 Lathrop Ave., while trying to stop an armed robbery.

“We are pleased to announce we have caught that killer," said Racine County Sheriff Christopher Schmaling, during the press conference. "This coward is in our custody."

Alongside Schmaling at the joint press conference were Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth and City of Racine Police Chief Art Howell. The officials spoke from a podium next to the quad memorializing Hetland, covered in notes and flowers.

"Hopefully the family tonight will find some comfort,” Schmaling said. “We have worked night and day to see closure."

 Read more:  https://journaltimes.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/with-video-officer-hetland-s-alleged-shooter-arrested-with-his/article_633f7d64-f021-5277-9fe0-6077bce7763d.html#1




Thank you, officers, thank you, thank you.

News of the Weird: June 27, 2019

From The Shepherd Express:

Getting a Head in Life
Laurence Pilgeram, who died in 2015 in California, paid Alcor Life Extension Foundation $120,000 to preserve his body indefinitely at -320.8 Fahrenheit (-196 Celsius) in the hope of being brought back to life in the future. But a month after his death, his son, Kurt Pilgeram of Dutton, Mt., received a box containing his father’s ashes: the company had sent him all but his father’s head, which was still being stored in liquid nitrogen at Alcor’s facility in Arizona. “They chopped his head off, burned his body, put it in a box and sent it to my house,” Kurt told the Great Falls Tribune. He is suing Alcor for $1 million in damages and an apology—plus the return of his father’s frozen head. “I want people to know what’s going on,” he said. For its part, Alcor says its contract was with Laurence Pilgeram, and that it met that agreement. The company contends Kurt is trying to get the life insurance money that paid for Alcor’s services. The trial is expected to begin in 2020 in California.

Clooney Clone Con Job

Francesco Galdelli, 58, and Vanya Goffi, 45—a.k.a. the Italian Bonnie and Clyde—were arrested on Saturday, June 15, at a luxury villa in Pattaya, Thailand, after years of avoiding Italian authorities for various scams and frauds. The Telegraph reported that Galdelli had confessed to posing as George Clooney and opening an online clothing business “to trick people into sending him money.” The two would also sell fake Rolex watches online, sometimes sending packets of salt to their customers instead of the expensive jewelry. Clooney testified against the couple in 2010, but they fled Italy before being arrested there. Galdelli was arrested in Thailand in 2014 but escaped after bribing prison guards. The pair will be returned to Italy for trial.

Unctuous Onc

German Instagram “influencers” Catalin Onc and Elena Engelhardt have faced a digital dressing-down after they set up a GoFundMe page requesting donations for a bike trip to Africa. They want to raise about 10,000 euros for the jaunt, but some people aren’t on board. Onc and Engelhardt live with Onc’s mother, who supports them by working at two jobs, the Independent reported. They posted on their Instagram page: “Some will just tell us to get jobs, like everyone else does, and stop begging. But when you have the impact we do on others’ life (sic), getting a job is not an option. A normal job at this point would be detrimental.” Commenters let loose on the couple: “Get a job and treat your mum; she shouldn’t be funding her grown son to wander the world like a lost boy.” And: “You’re not impacting anyone’s life; you are just a couple of freeloaders.”

Desperate Times Call for Useless Measures

In the Colombian city of Buenaventura, violence and corruption are on the rise, and after a shocking Saturday, June 1, murder of a young girl, the local bishop devised a plan to “purge the city of evil.” Monsignor Ruben Dario Jaramillo Montoya intends to perform a mass exorcism, and to help him, he has asked the Colombian Navy to fly a helicopter over the city and spray “holy water” on those below. The ritual is scheduled for mid-July during annual patron saints festivities. “We want to drive out these demons that are destroying the port,” the bishop told Caracol Radio.

Think You Hate Your Job?

Last year, Eli Aldinger, 23, told police officers in Bothell, Wash., he intentionally drove his Toyota Camry into two different groups of pedestrians in order to “get out of going to work.” Aldinger, who worked in food service at McMenamins Anderson School, first hit a woman who was crossing the street with her husband, admitting to police that he sped up to 35-40 mph so he could “hit her before she made it across the road,” reported the Bothell-Kenmore Reporter. Later, he swerved to hit another pedestrian but declined to strike a third, thinking that would be “a bit too excessive.” On Friday, May 31, Aldinger was sentenced to 14 years in prison for assault.

© 2019 ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

From:  https://shepherdexpress.com/news/news-of-the-weird/notw-june-27-2019/#/questions

Foxconn may be pushing back the construction schedule for its Wisconsin factory

From JSOnline:



Foxconn Technology Group may be pushing back the expected completion date of the display panel factory it has begun building in Mount Pleasant.

In March, the Taiwan-based electronics manufacturer announced it would start building the plant by summer, and that the factory would begin production in the fourth quarter of 2020.

Construction did begin by summer, but on Thursday, an update on bid opportunities at the project mentioned that the factory building is “set for completion in early 2021.”

The update did not say when production at the factory is expected to begin. A Foxconn spokeswoman did not immediately respond to questions about the construction and production schedule.

Milwaukee man punched, killed 5-year-old son for eating Father's Day cheesecake, charges say

From JSOnline:

Travis Stackhouse (Photo: Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office) 


A Milwaukee father punched and killed his 5-year-old son because the boy ate a piece of his cheesecake, prosecutors say.

Travis Stackhouse, 29, told police he punched his son in the stomach Friday because he was upset three of his children were eating the cheesecake he’d gotten for Father’s Day, according to a criminal complaint. Stackhouse told police he only had one piece.

Prosecutors on Wednesday charged Stackhouse with first-degree reckless homicide in the death of his son. He is held on $25,000 bond, according to the Milwaukee County Jail website. He faces up to 60 years in prison, if convicted.

Paramedics arrived about 2 a.m. Saturday at the home in the 2600 block of West Ruby Avenue and pronounced the boy dead after CPR did not revive him. The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office determined he suffered a ruptured stomach, bruised kidneys and a torn adrenal gland. He died from blunt force trauma to the abdomen.

Abandoned Haunted House gets beer license


MOUNT PLEASANT — Haunted house enthusiasts can now enjoy a beer at the Abandoned Haunted House before or after they make it through the spooky experience.

Contingent on the fire alarm system being approved by South Shore Fire Department, the Abandoned Haunted House Complex, 2825 Southeast Frontage Road, will be serving beer for the first time during this upcoming season.

The Class B liquor license, which only covers beer, was approved by the Mount Pleasant Village Board on Monday on a 4-2 vote with trustees Bud Eastman and Jon Hewitt voting “no.”

Trustee Gary Feest said “the potential for disaster is there.”

“But in all honesty, he’s open for 15 days, he’s got a cop on the premises,” Feest said. “As much as I’m not a big fan of alcoholism, drinking and everything else, I can’t deny this license just because of the potential that the haunted house might chaotically create a problem.”

Read more: https://journaltimes.com/news/local/abandoned-haunted-house-gets-beer-license/article_c636ad13-af7f-5c8b-ba22-343715446753.html

Sheriff: Drive-by shooting in Racine on south side, no one injured


The Racine County Sheriff's Office responded to 17th Street, between Racine and Mead streets, after what Sheriff Christopher Schmaling said was a drive-by shooting early Wednesday afternoon. No one was injured, he said.

RACINE — Authorities responded to a report of gunshots on the south side Wednesday afternoon.
Shots were fired near 17th Street between Racine and Mead streets at approximately 1:15 p.m.

Racine County Sheriff Christopher Schmaling later said it was a drive-by shooting but that no one was injured. The suspect fled in a vehicle.

At the scene, deputies interviewed nearby witnesses and said they were searching for a white sedan that may have been involved in the incident.

The Sheriff’s Office is investigating, Schmaling said.

From:  https://journaltimes.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/sheriff-drive-by-shooting-in-racine-on-south-side-no/article_9e570357-4bb4-5b9f-9ec5-460cf410731a.html#1


See:  https://www.jtirregulars.com/2019/06/summer-in-city-lovin-spoonful-hd-stereo.html

'Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel' visits with former Bucks coach of the year Don Nelson, now a marijuana farmer in Maui

From JSOnline:



LINKEDINCOMMENTMORE
Don Nelson was 540-344 from 1977-87. (Photo: Lynn Howell, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)


On Monday, Milwaukee Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer was named NBA Coach of the Year for 2019. On Tuesday night, the last man to win that award for the Bucks, Don Nelson, will be profiled on HBO's "Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel," profiling his life of retirement farming marijuana in Hawaii.

Nelson, who was named coach of the year with the Bucks in 1983 and 1985, helped build the Bucks into one of the powers of the Eastern Conference in the early 1980s and has been hailed by such greats as Pat Riley as one of the greatest innovators the game has ever seen. Nelson, who also put the building blocks in place that turned the Golden State Warriors into today's NBA superpower, has been out of coaching for nine years and has found a chill next chapter living in Maui.


Read more: https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/nba/bucks/2019/06/25/former-bucks-coach-don-nelson-profiled-hbos-bryant-gumbel/1564534001/

MPD, sheriff, State Patrol have a message for bad drivers: We're watching for you

From JSOnline:

Vehicles race through the red light at West Capitol Drive and North 60th Street on June 20, two days after Milwaukee Police Officer Kou Her was killed at this intersection on his way home by a driver accused of blowing through the traffic signal. (Photo: Jim Stingl / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Police have a message for reckless drivers speeding through red lights, passing illegally in bike lanes and cruising Milwaukee's streets with no license plates:

You will be stopped and forced to deal with the consequences.

The Milwaukee Police Department, Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Department and Wisconsin State Patrol are teaming up for a second summer to combat reckless driving in the city.

Their saturation patrols are expected to last through the end of the summer.

“Our community knows that it's necessary and it's needed because the recklessness that is in our streets is unacceptable,” said Milwaukee County Sheriff Earnell Lucas. Bad driving is the No. 1 topic Lucas hears about.

For the past four weeks, the three law enforcement agencies have been flooding notorious bad driving hot spots on the city’s north and south sides.

Such concentrated efforts can deter impaired driving and promote safer behavior, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Read more:  https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/solutions/2019/06/26/milwaukee-police-sheriff-state-patrol-crack-down-reckless-driving/1546968001/

Magnet fishing is a slimy new hobby where people pull guns, bikes and weird stuff out of Milwaukee-area rivers, lakes and lagoons

From JSOnline:



Some folks in southern Wisconsin find themselves facing a magnetic attraction to the region's hidden heavy metal scene.

They have taken up what's known as magnet fishing, a hobby that — measured in terms of social media — is all the rage in Europe but is just now becoming a pastime in the American Midwest.

The hobby consists of attaching a powerful magnet to a rope, then tossing the magnet into a waterway. Once the magnet hits bottom, you drag it until it locks onto something metal. Then you haul the item to the surface.

Sometimes the result is treasure, most of the time it's junk, and sometimes what you haul to the surface is just plain weird.

"It’s one of those hobbies where it’s kind of silly and it takes a lot of time and it’s kind of stinky and the water’s gross and you have to wear gloves and my wife’s always like, ‘Ugh, where are you going?' " said Jim Walters, a magnet fishing hobbyist from West Bend.

Suspect charged on his birthday for possession of marijuana brownies

From The Journal Times.com:


A Saturn hatchback was abandoned on English Street between Wisconsin Avenue and Main Street with the engine still running after a Racine County sheriff deputy attempted a traffic stop late Monday afternoon. Deputies allegedly found 476 grams of marijuana brownies, and ammunition inside the car that matched a handgun that a suspect discarded.

RACINE — The driver accused of abandoning a car with 476 grams of marijuana brownies inside it on Monday had his initial appearance in court on Tuesday, which happened to be his birthday.

Kemont M. Regulus, of the 4100 block of Marquette Drive, Racine, spent his 19th birthday in court, where he was charged with a felony count of possession of over 200 grams of marijuana with intent to deliver, which carries up to four years in prison. He was also charged with felony counts of attempting to feel or elude an officer and possession of a firearm by a felon and a misdemeanor count of possession of drug paraphernalia.

Read more:  https://journaltimes.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/suspect-charged-on-his-birthday-for-possession-of-marijuana-brownies/article_2d1f5977-8b2c-5d50-aa7a-82823255cdc9.html#1

Unnamed city employee's resignation agreement approved

From The Journal Times.com:

RACINE — An unnamed city employee’s resignation agreement, the terms of which have been undisclosed, has been approved by the City Council and its Executive Committee.

On June 18, the Executive Committee met in closed session, citing a Wisconsin statute that permits a meeting to go into closed session to discuss “employment, promotion, compensation or performance evaluation data of any public employee over which the governmental body has jurisdiction or exercises responsibility.”

When the committee reconvened in open session, its members voted unanimously to forward the agreement to the City Council with a recommendation to approve. Later that same evening the council did so.

Dear Madame Zoltar

My Friends,

I've been tending to Mr. OrbsCorbs, who recently underwent surgery to remove a blockage in an artery.  I should return with my regular column next week.

I love you all!

Mme. Zoltar

One Born Every Minute

From The Shepherd Express:


Jun. 25, 2019
4:24 p.m


I’m Art Kumbalek and man oh man manischewitz what a world, ain’a? So listen, since being rather new and somewhat clueless as to the appropriate lifestyle of being an “old fart,” I found myself on a pleasant Sunday afternoon wondering just what the fock to do. Shortly, I had an “aha” moment. Golf! Yes sir, watch golf on TV. That’s what old farts do on a pleasant Sunday afternoon, what the fock.
So I fired up the Philco, and yes, there was golf on TV to watch. Oh, boy. Exciting? Perhaps, but only if you’re the kind of a guy who can get a boner from listening to paint dry.
One thing I’ll say about those golfers though. You don’t really ever hear about them getting arrested for waving a gun around at 3 a.m. in the parking lot of some hotsy-totsy discotheque, nor do you often read in the papers where any of these well-compensated duffers get pulled over for a routine traffic stop that culminates in the discovery of a crack pipe under the front seat and a hundred pounds of pot in the focking trunk, as you may read about those involved in the less gentile sports.
But after about 15-focking-minutes, five words popped into my head: “I am such an idiot.” Yes sir, the old-fart lifestyle is going to take some time to get used. So off went the TV, had a smoke, mixed up a nice cocktail and cracked open the latest issue of Bendover magazine, what the fock.
The big feature was a historically pictorial spread called “The Tarts of the House of Hohenzollern.” I never knew the box camera had already been discovered by the 1700s. Sometimes their research articles seem a little shaky, like the time they said that scientists had discovered a food that diminishes a woman’s sex drive by more than 90%. So I’m reading and reading, and it turns out the food is Wedding Cake, I kid you not.
But in this issue, they had a Father’s Day article that said a bunch of scientists whipped out some newfangled research on the male line of this DNA stuff that led them to surmise, if not downright deduce, that all beings of human actually have the same one-kind-of father from ’round about 250,000 years ago, give or take a couple, three millenniums.
Imagine that. One dad, lots of kids. Me and you and Plato. Me and you and Marie focking Antoinette. Me and you and Fyodor Dostoevsky. Malcolm X. Pinky Lee. Peggy Lee. Lee Marvin. Marvin Gaye. Faye Throneberry. Fay Wray. Martha Raye. Martha Mitchell. Billy Mitchell. Billy Martin. Martin Heidegger. Dean Martin. Dean Wormer. Dizzy Dean. Daffy Dean. Muammar al-Qaddafi. Al Jolson. Prince Albert. Princess Grace. Gracie Allen. Allen Toussaint. Eva Marie-Saint. St. Guy of Pomposa. Guy de Maupassant. Buddy Guy. Buddy Hackett. Cesar Chavez. Julius Caesar—all right, you get the picture.
You and me and everybody, past, present and future, we’re all honest-to-gosh related. One big family. And still people wonder why there’s war all the time all over the world? Give me a focking break. Like they say, you can pick your friends, you can pick your nose; but you can’t pick your relatives, so it looks like we’re stuck but good. Have a nice day.
The one thing that bugs me about Bendover is they’ve got too many goddamn advertisements featuring some kind of semi-celebrity douche bag or knobshine—none of whom is me. HEYYY! I’m available anytime, anywhere to push your line of crap, so just call me. It’s time these big corporation companies and marketers start coming up with big dough to writers for endorsing their focking products. I dream of the day BiC Pen comes to ink some several hundred dollar exclusive endorsement deal contract with me. I even got the magazine ad already played out in my mind. Picture the picture:
Caption: “Art Kumbalek, Newspaper Hack.” I’m sitting on a stool in some swanky cocktail lounge with two showgirls on each knee. Art’s saying, “Yeah gals, not only am I glad to see you but that is a BiC in my pocket. It’s the only pen I’d use to sign the check for the tab we’ve run up the last couple days. Fock, the check will bounce but you two, and my BiC, are coming back with me to my place.”
Or how ‘bout Kraft Macaroni & Cheese (“Breakfast, lunch, dinner—I live on the stuff, America!” Or baloney: “Not only do I write it—I eat it, too. Get Real!”) And of course, any kind of liquor you got.
Which reminds me, Bendover also had a story with this headline: “Study shows some health benefits from alcohol.” What the fock, what say we go get healthy big-time, but you buy the first round ’cause I’m Art Kumbalek and I told you so.

From:  https://shepherdexpress.com/advice/art-kumbalek/born-every-minute/

San Francisco passes ban on e-cigarette sales, a US first