Doug's Darkworld

We survived the heat wave, I hope all my gentle readers did the same. Oh heck, all my readers, who am I to judge? I do like weather, but extreme heat or extreme cold I can live without. Fortunately my garret has an AC unit, so my suffering was limited to the times I ventured forth to obtain beer. Sadly, extreme weather events are the new normal as we proceed with our planetary experiment: ‘What happens when the Earth’s atmosphere is pumped full of greenhouse gases?’ We’re finding out more all the time, and oddly enough very little of it has been good. Who would have guessed? That’s a rhetorical question.

Someone asked me if the current nonsense going on with Iran will lead to war. I am always honored by such questions. The answer is, damned if I know. I don’t think so, the US has been goading Iran since 1979 or so, and it hasn’t led to war yet. Without the Iranian bogeyman it would be a lot harder to justify American militarisation in the region, not to mention it’s a great distraction for Saudi Arabia and Israel’s aggressive foreign policy.  I can predict that a war with Iran would almost certainly be a bad thing with unintended consequences. Always a safe prediction when it comes to wars.

In crime news I was pleased to see that the Jenner beach murders have been solved. A couple sleeping on the beach were shot to death in 2004. A horrible crime, big news at the time. I lived in Northern California then, heck, I’ve slept on beaches there. Basically the killer recently murdered his brother, and while being questioned about that, he essentially confessed to the beach murders. The murders were senseless, the killer had apparently damaged his brain with an LSD overdose. He was sentenced to life without parole. God rest the souls of his victims, I hope his capture and sentencing gives the friends and families of the victims what peace it can.

In today’s ‘What is wrong with people?’ file, some people are keeping leeches as pets. Let me repeat that, some people are keeping leeches as pets. Frankly I find it a bit disgusting, I couldn’t even finish the article. I grew up swimming in lakes with leeches, and I honestly have a hard time seeing the appeal. Some of them have striking colour patterns, but still, it’s a freaking leech. On the plus side, no need to worry about stocking leech food I guess. And another item for my upcoming post on “Things third worlders have a hard time grasping about Americans.”

And on the topic of disgusting creatures, Congress has called for an investigation into the theory that Lyme disease was created as a biological weapon spread by ticks. I note lots of people are taking it at face value, I’m skeptical. Pretty sure Lyme disease has been around a long time, and it’s easily treatable and not debilitating/fatal. And ticks as a vector? They are slow moving and easily defended against. Seems like an odd choice for a biological weapon all around.   And digging just a little on the Interwebs, expert opinion agrees with me. So I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting for this investigation to find anything. Anything is possible though, money was spent on some pretty crazy stuff during the Cold War.

Did I hear a voice in the back? What about Chronic Lyme Disease (CLD,) that’s certainly debilitating! Well yes, it would be, if it actually existed. Like MSG sensitivity, CLD doesn’t appear to be an actual condition. Or more accurately, whatever it is, there isn’t any scientific reason to link it to Lyme Disease. People convince themselves of all sorts of things, which doesn’t mean their suffering isn’t real, just that science doesn’t know how to treat it yet. And yes, not kidding, double blind studies have yet to find a single human who has a bad reaction to MSG if they don’t know it’s in their food. Food for thought for some I hope.

Looks like India is poised to become the fourth spacefaring nation. They are doing it for the same reasons as Apollo in my last post. Good for them, India’s ambitions are no threat to the world. I actually wish the best for the people of all countries, we’re all in this together. People are people, most of them are decent human beings when push comes to shove. That’s why I am horrified by the current situation in America. So many on the right think liberals are monsters who should be put in zoos, and so many on the left think Trump voters are all knuckle dragging racists. Neither attitude is helping.

OK, that sure wandered. As always comments appreciated, shares as well, envelopes full of portraits of dead presidents on linen paper especially appreciated. Have a safe week everyone.

Copyright © 2019 Doug Stych. All rights reserved.

(Image: Heat Wave. Credit: Snappygoat image, public domain under US copyright law.)