What's Up, Doc?

There has been a lot of hot air recently about Jill Biden wanting to be called "doctor". Evidently she has a PhD in Education. It takes a fair amount of effort, dedication and intelligence to earn a PhD. Most people I know outside of academia use those initials after their name and don't want to be confused with a medical doctor. I have known lots of folks with doctorate degrees and most of them don't make a big deal about it. Those that do usually have an ego problem or a Napoleon Complex. So lets think about what she and Joe meant with this directive.

What they meant was that they are better than you and me - much better and we should only address them with awe and reverence using the proper title. This, to me, is typical of the Dems. They believe they are smarter than us, they know what we should do and we should follow their orders without question.

I cannot recall a First Lady with this kind of superiority issue. 

Chinese Infiltration?

 About 10 or 15 years ago I noted an increase in the number of Japanese restaurants. The funny thing was that the owners of these restaurants were Chinese. (and they didn't speak any Japanese) I found that odd but thought that a good way to get a large number of Chinese into the US was to teach a bunch of guys to do the knife tricks you see in a Japanese grill and them claim they need a visa for them as those skills could not be hired locally. It seemed a good way to get a bunch of deep cover agents into the country.

I dismissed my own thoughts as being extreme conspiracy theories but with the recent news about Chinese infiltrations of US politicians, I'm not so sure.

Tax Proposals Fail

 We had an election here last Saturday. Besides a DA runoff, we had 5 millage proposals on the ballot. They were for recreation, levees, medical center, mosquito control and senior services. None of them passed! Faced with future tolls from an unwanted bridge being built under a Public Private Partnership (PPP) and a recent user fee for mosquito control, the people had had enough of a spendthrift parish council and rejected their taxes.

Across the river, tax proposals in New Orleans also failed. These were for renewals of millages that were due to expire but were re-packaged to cover different stuff. This is what the politicians call "no new taxes" but people aren't that stupid and understand that renewing an expiring tax is still "new". Also, there was a sales tax for the French Quarter that failed. There was controversy about how the money was to be spent. The residents wanted it to go to the police but the mayor wanted half of it to go to an unarmed force of  "quality of life" code enforcers. People rejected it by 67% ! 

Head Count

 Five months and no heads separated by the KSA. Year to date still stands at 15. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot? 

Glendronach 12 Year Old

 This was one of my favorite whiskeys over 25 years ago but it is difficult to find and almost impossible to get in a restaurant. I just happened to find a bottle when I went into the ABC store in the Red Neck Riviera. Color me shocked.

The distillery was opened in 1826 and underwent several ownership changes over the years. It was  mothballed in 1996, which probably led to my inability to find it. Luckily for us, they started back up again in 2002. 

Glendronach is a Highland whiskey that is matured in sherry casks. It has a pleasing golden amber color and a sweet nose. As you would expect from the sherry casks, the palate is smooth and velvety. The finish is long and warming.

I highly recommend this little known whiskey. It will be worth the trouble to find.

Deanston 30 Year Old

 This is another case where I received a special whiskey and put it aside for an occasion. By the time I opened it, the cork was dried out and I had to push it into the bottle. So now I strain cork pieces from my drink and I had to find a substitute cork to prevent the angels from getting more than their share.

Deanston is a Highland Whiskey from a distillery that started life as a cotton mill in 1785. For those concerned about energy, in 1949 the mill installed water turbines and now all their electricity is generated by these turbine generators. In 1965, the mill closed its doors but by 1974, it was converted to a distillery.

The 30 year old has a pleasant medium amber color. It is slightly phenolic but that soon dissipates and you are left with a smooth and velvety texture on your palate. The finish is warm and welcoming. 

My advice? Enjoy your whiskey before the cork dries out.

Head Count

 Four months and still no beheadings in the Kingdom of Saud. 

Head Count

 For the third month in a row, Saudi Arabia did not behead anyone!!! Year to date head count steady at 15. 

Head Count

 In a belated count, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia again did not behead anybody in the month of August. The Year to Date count remains at 15.

Laphroaig

 Laphroig is a 10 year old whiskey distilled on the Island of Islay. Laphroig means "beautiful hollow by the broad bay" in Gaelic. It has a light amber color, sweet aroma and a slight phenolic taste. The distillery has been around since 1815 and is currently owned by Beam Suntory. (Yes, that's right, Jim Beam is part of a Japanese conglomerate)

Laphroaig has a unique marketing gimmick. They offer you a free piece of the island. You can get a lifetime lease of 1 square foot of the island by becoming a "friend". I had to check how much ilalnd was available for lease. The island has an area of 239.2 square miles. That translates to 6,670,000,000 square feet, so I doubt they will run out space soon.

This is not a entry level scotch as some will not find it smooth, but it is worth a taste in order to learn some of the differences between the areas of Scotland.

Head Count

 KSA made a goose egg in July. No heads were separated. The YTD stands at 15.

Glenmorangie 1971

This is a limited edition whiskey that was bottled to mark the 150th anniversary of the distillery which was opened in 1843. It comes in a wooden presentation box and had I known what it was worth today, I probably would have sold it on ebay. The bottle I saw on the webs was very pricy and carried a warning about the seal. Sure enough, the cork on my bottle was dried out and broke off when I tried to open it. I had to push the remaining cork into the bottle and then strain out the cork pieces.

It is dark amber with a spicy nose. It is very smooth with a long finish. After all, it you are paying over $1000 for a bottle, it better be worth it.

This bottle was a gift and I don't think the giver spent that much and it may have been in my closet for 10 - 15 years. Obviously, if you have that amount of disposable income to spend on Scotch, you can spend your money on a good selection and be just as happy.

Head Count

KSA managed to behead 2 for murder in June bringing their year to date total to 15.

Irony Check and Short Rant

The USMC recently ordered that no confederate flags were to be displayed on base. I know that the Marines can order the troops to do whatever they want, but does anyone else see the irony that the Marines who cannot exercise their First Amendment rights are the same people who have to protect your ability to exercise of those same rights?

In related irony, it has been confirmed in the courts that burning or desecrating an American flag is a First Amendment right. If that is true, isn't it also a First Amendment right to fly a Confederate Battle Flag? It may not be smart or politically correct, but isn't it still a right? Just axin'.

And while we are renaming stuff and tanking down monuments, why don't we start by renaming all the federal buildings, naval vessels, bridges, tunnels and other stuff who are named for the signers of the Southern Manifesto? That was a real racist document signed by actual racists.

Head Count

Saudi Arabia only executed one during May, probably because of Ramadan. Year to date total stands at lucky 13.

Book Review - The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family and Defiance During the Blitz

I like Erik Larson's books. He deviates from his usual true crime story with this biography of Churchill. Many books have been written about Churchill but this one draws upon the personal diaries of staff and family from the time that Churchill came to power until the US entered the war. It gives a unique insight into what was happening, both in the war but within his family as well.

 If you are a WW II history buff, this is a good addition to your library.

Another WW II history book by Erik Larson is "In the Garden Beasts: Love, Terror and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin". This is the story of the American ambassador to the Third Reich in the early days.

The Glenrothes

Glenrothes is a Speyside single malt whiskey. The distillery was established in 1879 in the town of Rothes, about 30 miles north of Edinburgh, by a whiskey maker and a Presbyterian reverend who put the towns economy over his aversion to alcohol. The whiskey is distilled using a slower than normal process and aged in American oak and Spanish sherry casks.

My whiskey was distilled in 1998 and bottled in 2015 making it about 17 years old. It has a pleasing dark amber color and an aroma of grass or hay. It is easy on the tongue with little harshness. It leaves you with a very pleasant warm feeling.

This whiskey can be found for about $50 to $200 depending upon age. It's well worth seeking this one out.

Second Wave is Almost Guaranteed....

My wife and I bought a small 2nd home in Orange Beach just before Mardi Gras. The long term plan was to be able to be near our son (and grandsons) when he retires and moves here but it turned out it was also a good place to hide out from the virus - especially after they sent all the college kids and snowbirds home. Baldwin County has had a low number of infections and only 4 or 5 deaths - so far. It was a lot better than being in a suburb of New Orleans.

The Governor just relaxed the beach closures and we've since had an influx of boaters in the past week or so. They act like COVID 19 doesn't exist. They don't wear masks, the don't adhere to the one way aisles at the supermarket and they aren't careful about keeping distance or touching things. It will only get worse when the condo folks show up.

Our plan is to lay low for a couple of weeks and see what happens to the infection rate after the relaxation. Now is not the time to be complacent.

Head Count

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia executed 2 last month for murder. One of them was for "terrorist murder" which seems to be a new category. In researching it, the man was a Yemeni who attacked a Spanish dance troupe with a knife, wounding three and a security guard. (The dance troupe was part of a effort to liberalize entertainment in the Kingdom). It appears that no one was killed but the Saudis blamed Al Qaeda for the attack, hence the terror connection.

In other legal news of the Kingdom, they have stopped the execution of minors and flogging as punishments.

Glenmorangie 18 Year Old

Being in a self imposed quarantine at home gives me a good chance to sample more of my scotch collection. It has been acquired over years of birthdays, Christmases and Fathers Days. This bottle is an 18 year old Glenmorangie. According to their website, This whiskey is aged in American oak for 15 years. Then, 30% of it is put into Oloroso Sherry casks for 3 more years. It is then recombined and, voila, you have an excellent scotch.

Color: Light Amber
Nose: Grass, citrus
Palate: Light and smooth, not harsh
Finish: Refreshing

You can roll a mouthful of this whiskey around in your mouth and it will not "burn".

This whiskey is an award winner and a good one to ask for if someone wants to give you a special present. If you can find this for around $100, grab it quick.

Head Count

I guess the executioner in Saudi came down with the virus as there were no beheadings in March! The count remains at 10.

Constitution under Covid

In case you ever had any doubt about what the Democrats might do under this crisis, Gina Raimondo, the governor of Rhode Island, just told you. She is getting the National Guard to go door to door to see if any occupants recently came in from New York and is requiring them to quarantine.

"What is constitutional in one scenario is different than in another."

This is from someone who was educated at Oxford and Yale. The constitution is not a flexible document but some governors seem to forget that. The Florida governor has just order the state police to stop cars with Louisiana plates and request that they isolate themselves. And I'm not really  sure how this politicians think they can enforce this as they just don't have the numbers to enforce this order.

How It Spreads

I found this link on the Orange Beach Community website. The video tracks the cell phones of about 6,000 kids who were in Fort Lauderdale for spring break. You can see how far the disease can travel in a short time.

When the virus was taking hold in Louisiana I could look at the map and see that the first cases were showing on the I-10, I-20 and I-49 corridors. It was obvious that the virus was spreading along the interstate system.

The Mayor of New Orleans is trying to blame Trump for the virus spreading so fast from Mardi Gras. She now says that the federal government was not strong enough in warning her about the disease. Had the warnings been stronger she would have cancelled Mardi Gras. I call Bull to that and it is a clear sign that Democrats want to use this crisis to unseat our president.

Here is the link to the virus transmission.

NOLa Gun Ban Possible

Latoya Cantrell, the Democrat Mayor of New Orleans, issued an emergency order that gives her the authority to ban sale of guns and alcohol. Evidently the city learned nothing about the 2nd Amendment after Katrina.

In fact, people who never thought they needed a gun are flocking to stores to pick one up. The thought of all these guns in the hands of inexperienced people makes me more nervous than COVID 19.

Wisdom from the Greatest Generation

Dad was a Chief Machinist Mate on a destroyer in the Atlantic in WWII. One thing that stuck in my head was something he told me when I was very young. It was something the Navy told him. It was that you don't need more than 4 sheets of toilet paper per wipe.

Please keep this in mind when stocking up.

Cajun Hand Sanitizer

This came into my inbox recently.

Corona News

I can't give a source for this information. I got it from a travel blog about Paris. It gives the mortality rate for the virus and is supposedly based on statistics out of China from Feb 11. It clearly shows that age is a critical factor in the mortality rate of the disease. Take it for what it's worth, here it is.

Under 40 years old - .2%

People in their 40's - .4%

People in their 50's - 1.3%

People in their 60's - 3.6%

People in their 70's - 8%

People in their 80's - 15% (because the older you get the more likely you are to have a chronic disease)

Edit: I found the link to the above statistics. It's in French, but the link is here

Here is another site with loads of stats. Link

Head Count

It was a very slow month for the swordsman in the Kingdom. He only got to exercise his skill once during the entire month. The year to date total is now at 10.

Head Count

Saudi Arabia started off the year by beheading 9 murderers.

I see today on Drudge that a Saudi lesbian couple could face death for declaring their love for each other on TV. They are safe and living in London but they have effectively burned their bridge back to the Kingdom, or any other Sharia Law country.

Corona Virus Trickle Down

Economists have been predicting how the corona virus will eventually affect global manufacturing and I got the first indication of that this morning.

A friend who is the offshore support engineer for a major oil company has been involved in planning a turn around for months. A turn around is a period of major maintenance when the unit is shut down and work goes on 24/7 until complete. They are planned out in detail and almost never postponed. However, today he heard that the turn around currently being planned was being pushed back.

It seems that some valve body forgings that were being made in China will not be available because manufacturing was shut down because of the corona virus. This is the first of what will be a chain of trickle down events for the oil industry. He thinks it will next affect the drilling program which will result in a decrease of production over this year. Lower production will mean an increase in oil prices.

On the positive side, Cameron Valve is running 24 hours a day to meet demand and there is a surge of new pickup trucks in town.

The Broken Window Theory - New Orleans Style

There has been a rash of car break ins in New Orleans in the past few weeks. The thieves are quite blatant breaking car windows while people are in church on Sunday. They have targeted certain areas of the city including students at UNO. So far, there has been little police or government response except for one councilcritter who called the crimes a "nuisance".

In other news, the city owes about $25 million to drivers who were ticketed by speed control cameras. Some cameras were ticketing drivers when schools were not in session and even in school zones where the school had been abandoned. This was exacerbated by the actions of Ray Nagin from 2 administrations ago. He turned over the collection of fines to a city department instead of the police. The court ruled against this and ordered all the fines repaid. Obviously, the city can't afford to pay them.

Finally, the current mayor has been found to owe about $95,000 to the IRS. Well, she's a democrat so why not?

Corona Virus Fears

There seems to be a lot of concern about the corona virus. I remember SARS as I was travelling to Asia during that period. We had our temperatures checked on boarding but there was no where near the hype about it. Knowledge is needed.

I found a chart on a French site that graphed the mortality and the ease of transmission of several diseases including viruses, bacteria and parasites. It's in French but I bet you guys can figure it out.

The Link is here.

All of the international hype about this virus makes me wonder if there is something they are not telling us.

Buc-ee's

Folks in Texas are well aware of Buc-ee's but people east of the Sabine River have never seen one.....until recently. Buc-ee's opened their first store outside of Texas on I-10 east of Mobile, Al at the exit that you take to go to the beaches of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. In short, Buc-ee's is the WalMart of interstate rest stops. It is a truck stop without the trucks and therefore ideal for families travelling for vacation. They have 120 gas pumps and rest rooms so clean and large that you could hold a party in them. You can buy all the snacks and road food you desire as well as getting hot BBQ, sandwiches, candy and coffee.

If you are on the road and see a sign with a huge beaver, be sure to stop and take a break.

Migration of the Snow Birds

My wife and I decided to visit our oldest grandson in the Red Neck Riviera to decompress from the holidays. The coast of Alabama is quiet in the winter season. And the people of Alabama are always friendly and helpful so going out to shop and eat is a pleasure. While they don't have the summer crowds, the annual migration of the snow birds is well underway.

Snow birds, for those who are not familiar with the species, are a type of Northern Humanus Yankeeus. They come south to avoid the worst of the winter weather. The migrants are typically the elder of the species as the young enjoy the winter weather and may use the cold and long dark nights as an excuse to mate. The snow bird is typically an early feeder and will frequently leave eating establishments before 7:00 PM leaving the feeding area open for the local species. One can determine the home territory of any particular bird by the unique tagging that can be seen on their method of transport. You can see such strange markings as Minnesota, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. The Snow Bird provides a welcome change to the invasive flocks of Summer Beach Aficionados that arrive after May Day.

John Emerald Single Malt Whiskey

This whisky is not a true Scotch as it is made in, of all places, Opelika, Alabama. John Emerald Distillery is a craft distiller making small batches of whiskey, gin, rum and vodka and is the first legal distillery in Alabama for more than 100 years.

This bottle was a Christmas present from the oldest grandson and is from Batch 135, which was written by human hand on the bottle. This whiskey uses pecan and peach wood to dry the malted barley and this imparts a unique flavor much different from peat. It is aged in virgin American white oak with a slight char. This is a very smooth whiskey even though it is less than 4 years old.One wonders what another 6 or so years ageing would do to it.

Nose: grass and floral
Palate: Very, very smooth
Color: Medium Amber
Finish: Long and warming

This whiskey is not widely available. You can find it in select stores in Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia. But, it you are looking for something unique, it may be worth trying to find it.

Head Count

Saudi Arabia beheaded another 8 druggies bringing the 2019 grand total to 181.