A day in the lies

I read the news today, oh boy
About a lucky man who made the grade

Military.com reported:

The Army is seemingly having buyer's remorse after an $11 million marketing deal with the United Football League and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

The high-dollar, high-profile deal likely didn't lead to a single new Army recruit and may possibly have had a negative impact on finding new enlistments, internal documents and emails reviewed by Military.com show. The service may even seek to get some of its money back.

The Army inked the deal earlier this year with the UFL, the upstart minor league alternative to the NFL that had an inaugural season from March through June with a disappointing debut. More importantly, the deal included Johnson, a global superstar and owner of the league, who was supposed to serve as a pseudo brand ambassador for the Army — though the service said he did not fulfill his end of the bargain to publish a specific number of service-related posts on his social media accounts.

Earlier, the Guardian reported:

The wrestler turned action star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson dealt a blow to Joe Biden, saying he would not repeat his endorsement of the president in his looming rematch with Donald Trump.

Johnson endorsed Biden in his first contest with Trump four years ago, saluting the former vice-president and senator for his “compassion, heart, drive and soul”.

But in an interview with Fox News on Friday, Johnson said: “Am I going to do that again this year? That answer’s no. I realize now going into this election, I will not do that.”

Maybe the contract wasn’t a payoff for his 2020 support. Maybe Hunter actually paints better than Picasso did.

I saw a film today, oh boy
The English Army had just won the war

Robby Starbuck tweeted, “Marsha Blackburn forced the FBI to admit that the GAB account reportedly belonging to Thomas Crooks, espoused a leftist, pro-Biden/Harris ideology. The only right wing comments he made online were made long before that when he was 14. Crooks was a leftist.”

How does the government access these accounts but not figure out a motive?

The Hill reported, “Secret Service leader grilled by GOP over lack of firings for Trump security failures.”

The story said, “Hawley demanded the firing of a number of Secret Service personnel, from whoever approved the security plan to whoever failed to pull Trump offstage despite warnings about a suspicious person.”

It also said that Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe “refused to give names, saying there is a process and conversation around each request, and it’s not just an absolute yay or nay.”

Once again, the deep state is singing that MC Hammer song, Can’t Touch This. Now back to the Beatles song already in progress.

Woke up, fell out of bed
Dragged a comb across my head

The New York Post reported, “The Liberty Bell replica outside Washington, DC’s Union Station was defaced with pro-Hamas symbols and anti-Israel messages, including one that read ‘F–k Israel,’ during a protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech to Congress.”

Jeff Bezos and his Washington Post reported, “Prosecutors have dropped charges against nearly half of the 25 people arrested in Washington on Wednesday during various protests over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress, according to court records and officials.

“The arrests by police from three law enforcement agencies occurred at a number of points and under different circumstances on a day when thousands marched through Washington, voicing their displeasure over the prime minister’s visit and Israel’s actions in Gaza.”

Displeasure? Taking down a government-owned flag and burning it is not displeasure; it is criminal. But, Can’t Touch This.

Found my coat and grabbed my hat
Made the bus in seconds flat

Motor Authority reported:

Ford is trying to patent a way for its cars to report speeding drivers to the police.

A patent application from the automaker titled “Systems and Methods for Detecting Speeding Violations” was published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Jul. 18 2024, and was originally filed by Ford Jan. 12, 2023.

In the application, Ford discusses using cars to monitor each other’s speeds. If one car detects that a nearby vehicle is being driven above the posted limit, it could use onboard cameras to photograph that vehicle. A report containing both speed data and images of the targeted vehicle could then be sent directly to a police car or roadside monitoring units via an Internet connection, according to Ford.

Bronco Nation reported:

Ford is now selling your driving data to a company called LexisNexis. This company is a New York-based global data broker with a “Risk Solutions” division that caters to the auto insurance industry and has traditionally kept tabs on car accidents and tickets.

However, it turns out that LexisNexis is using your driving habits (acceleration, hard braking, speed and how fast you take corners) and forwarding this information on to insurance companies that then increase your insurance rates.

Well, I bought my last Mustang because you no longer own your car, you car owns you.

Found my way upstairs and had a smoke
And somebody spoke and I went into a dream

The Miami Herald reported:

The Biden administration was on the defensive Monday over its policy bet that elections in Venezuela would dislodge strongman Nicolás Maduro, a day after he was declared the winner in presidential elections despite several irregularities and polls indicating his defeat.

In a call with reporters, senior administration officials fielded questions about what the United States would do next and whether the Biden administration’s negotiations with Maduro, which included lifting some oil sanctions and releasing prisoners, had failed to deliver democratic change in the South American country.

The officials defended those decisions as having made it possible for an opposition candidate to be included on ballots — and said they were prepared for the possibility that Sunday’s elections would not lead to change in Venezuela’s government.

The problem in Venezuela is not how the people voted but that the votes were counted in, shall we say, a Pennsylvanian Way?

No? How about Michigan?

Arizona?

Georgia?

Wisconsin?

I’d love to turn. You. On.

The Jerusalem Post reported, “Ismail Haniyeh killed in Tehran, IDF strike in Beirut kills Hezbollah commander.”

The Gatestone Institute reported, “Why Has the Biden Administration Donated Close to One Billion Dollars in Aid to Hamas since the October 7 Massacre?”

We all know why. I am not saying lefties are all Nazis, of course. I am only saying Democrats should end the charade and call themselves the National Socialist Party.

I read the news today, oh boy
Four thousand holes in Blackburn, Lancashire

Senator Joni Ernst announced, “Ernst Exposes Massive Tax Evasion at IRS, Demands an Audit of the Auditors.”

Among her findings were “More than 5,800 IRS and contractor employees owe nearly $50 million in overdue taxes.

“Despite the IRS having the authority to fire employees who willfully fail to pay taxes, just 20 of the agency’s tax cheats were terminated.”

Can’t Touch This.

As Leona Helmsley said, “We don't pay taxes; only the little people pay taxes.”

Except, she didn’t work for the IRS so she went to prison.

And though the holes were rather small
They had to count them all
Now they know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall

No one quite read a newspaper like John Lennon. Nearly 60 years later, that line still makes me smile.

This did too. Ludo Janssens tweeted a story about Dhani Harrison:

“I came home one day from school after being chased by kids singing Yellow Submarine, and I didn't understand why. It just seemed surreal: why are they singing that song to me? I came home and I freaked out on my dad: 'Why didn't you tell me you were in The Beatles?

And he said, 'Oh, sorry. Probably should have told you that.”

He was a Dad.