Hackwhackers

Tuesday, July 21, 2026

Skeets Of The Day

Operation Epic Fail: bombing fail, another front, quagmire --

Scoop: U.S. intelligence reports offer a pessimistic view of new rounds of U.S. military strikes against Iran: They are unlikely to have a significant impact on Iran or soften its negotiating position, current and former officials tell Warren Strobel and me
— John Hudson (@johnphudson.bsky.social) July 20, 2026 at 8:08 PM

uh oh. * TWO OIL TANKERS LADEN WITH SAUDI CRUDE MAKE U-TURNS IN RED SEA, HEAD FOR SUEZ -- DATA @reuters.com
— Carl Quintanilla (@carlquintanilla.bsky.social) July 21, 2026 at 8:46 AM

‘This is what a quagmire looks like’: Trump enters bleak new phase with Iran

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— Politico (@politico.com) July 21, 2026 at 5:49 AM

The unending corruption of the Malignant Fascist and his regime --

Taylor Farms' parent company has given $2.2M to GOP PACs this election cycle. That includes $1M to Trump's own PAC, just 6 days after the FDA delayed new food tracing requirements last year. Money in politics is sickening.
— Robert Reich (@rbreich.bsky.social) July 20, 2026 at 7:22 PM

The Trojan horse was a gift too. Air Force One never should have been gifted from another country. That raises serious corruption and national security concerns.

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— CREW (@citizensforethics.org) July 20, 2026 at 3:28 PM

The MF's criminal defense lawyer is the quintessential mob lawyer / pedo protector --

Every crime family needs a mob lawyer. Meet Donald Trump's.

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— The Lincoln Project (@lincolnproject.us) July 15, 2026 at 10:00 AM

Todd Blanche says there are no investigative leads left in the Epstein case.That simply isn't true. The FBI never questioned key figures tied to Epstein, and survivors continue to say critical records remain missing. He is unfit to lead the DOJ.

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— Rep. James Walkinshaw (@repwalkinshaw.bsky.social) July 20, 2026 at 6:55 PM

The MF's idiotic tariffs on Canada going to bite us back --

Such a damned idiot. He is taxing us for breathing smoke because of the climate change he doesn't think exists. "Trump imposed an additional 50% tariff on certain goods from Canada, including wine, hockey sticks and cement" www.wsj.com/economy/trad...

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— Jeff (Gutenberg Parenthesis) Jarvis (@jeffjarvis.bsky.social) July 20, 2026 at 8:29 PM

FBI's "Ka$h" Patel heading to Russia (for instructions?). Stock up on vodka, comrades! --

The FBI director is traveling to Russia weeks before the midterm elections. “His host is likely to be the FSB, the Russian security service that is heir to the Soviet-era KGB” www.politico.com/news/2026/07...

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— Roger Sollenberger (@sollenbergerrc.bsky.social) July 20, 2026 at 8:24 PM

Yes, it's not like ICE ever harmed any U.S. protestors... --

Trump on an authoritarian regime killing protesters: "Savages!!!"

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— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) July 21, 2026 at 9:00 AM

Will the White House Stenographers Association cancel their dinner? You must be joking --

This weekend, President Trump and his top aides will be guests at the White House Correspondents' Association's annual dinner, which theoretically honors the First Amendment. But you can't celebrate the First Amendment with a president who doesn't believe in it. www.mediamatters.org/donald-trump...

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— Matthew Gertz (@mattgertz.bsky.social) July 20, 2026 at 1:14 PM

Are you cheering now, MAGAts? --

Oh how the cultists used to cheer at his campaign rallies when he said this.

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— Ron Filipkowski (@ronfilipkowski.bsky.social) July 21, 2026 at 9:27 AM

Respected world wide <snort> --

Canada turning red is the geopolitical version of your golden retriever biting you.

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— 𝕊𝕦𝕟𝕕𝕒𝕖 𝔾𝕦𝕣𝕝 (@sundaedivine.lol) July 21, 2026 at 5:46 AM

Rinse and repeat --

U.S. Suffers Additional Casualties In War It Won Last Week

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— The Onion (@theonion.com) July 20, 2026 at 10:30 AM

More Tariff Idiocy From The Malignant Fascist

Always looking for ways to undermine our friends abroad, while pleasing our adversaries, the deranged and vindictive Malignant Fascist is imposing 50% tariffs on many Canadian goods, ostensibly in retaliation for Canada restricting U.S. goods. The tariffs would take effect in 30 days. The MF has also mused nonsensically about punishing Canada for the fires burning there which have caused smoke across the upper Midwest and east coast. From the Associated Press:

"President Donald Trump on Monday imposed 50% tariffs on most Canadian goods, declaring that Canada has unfairly discriminated against American autos, alcohol and dairy products.
The move could unleash a new wave of economic chaos, with risks of higher inflation and further fraying of relations between two nations that had been closely woven together before Trump’s return to the White House. The administration official previewing the action said that Canada was one of the only nations other than China that retaliated against Trump’s previous tariffs and must be held accountable.
The official insisted on anonymity on a call with reporters to preview the president’s actions and said that Trump signed three proclamations to launch the tariffs under Section 338 of the 1930 Trade Act. Several Democratic lawmakers last year proposed repealing the section because they said Trump could use it to destabilize the economy." (our emphasis)

Of course, this destructive action will raise prices for American consumers, and likely force Canada to impose similar tariffs on U.S. imports, all because the MF is unmoored and vengeful over the smallest perceived slight. The MF is ordering the tariffs under section 338 the 96 year old 1930 Trade Act, after having been rebuffed by the Supreme Court last February on broad tariffs that he imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, but without Congressional authorization.

Today's Tomorrow Cartoon

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Ah, the "greatness" of the unhinged and corrupt Malignant Fascist era. From explosive diarrhea and measles outbreaks, to endless war in the Middle East, to rigging elections for the MF, to ICE murders in our streets. No, we've never seen the likes of it before, as the MF would phrase it, and hope we never will again.

Please consider supporting Tom's work by going here.

Trump's "Meritocracy"

ICYMI, The Daily Show's Jon Stewart covers a range of topics starting with "Cankles Muldoon's" photobombing Spain's World Cup celebration, last week's bullshit gaslighting on election security, the explosive diarrhea outbreak that was un-monitored by the incompetent regime, along with many other examples of Trump's clown car "meritocracy" -- Whiskey Pete Hegseth's testosterone testing, Bobby "Brainworm" Kennedy making America un-healthy again (Stewart eviscerates this particular clown), and more. A great puncturing of the anti-DEI balloon.

Monday, July 20, 2026

Judge Pauses Trumpian Paramount - Warner Merger

A coalition of twelve states' attorneys general won a 14-day temporary restraining order from a Federal judge to delay the Malignant Fascist-friendly merger of Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery. From NBC News:

"Paramount Skydance’s takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery hit a roadblock Monday after a federal judge temporarily paused the proposed merger, granting a request from a coalition of 12 state attorneys general who sued to thwart the $110 billion deal.
U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín of the Northern District of California issued a temporary restraining order barring Paramount from closing the transaction, a corporate tie-up that would unite two movie studios, two streaming platforms and two news organizations under the control of David Ellison, the son of billionaire technology tycoon Larry Ellison.
Martínez-Olguín’s order said the restraining order will remain in effect for 14 days. She scheduled an Aug. 3 hearing on the states’ motion for a preliminary injunction, which would freeze the transaction while the legal process plays out."

Right-wing MF-megadonors father-son duo Larry and David Ellison got the MF's regime's green light from the Justice Department and the FCC, likely by suggesting that CNN -- which is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery -- would be giving the MF more favorable coverage in the future if the merger went through. Earlier this year, the MF's regime approved the acquisition of Paramount by Ellison-owned Skydance Media which resulted in CBS' turn to the right under David Ellison and his pick to head CBS News, right-winger Bari "Bad News" Weiss. A number of journalists were fired, including 60 Minutes stalwarts Sharyn Alfonsi, Cecelia Vega and Scott Pelley, while Stephen Colbert's The Late Show, which targeted the MF for criticism and ridicule, was cancelled.

Skeets Of The Day

The Epstein-Trump files coverup / delay, delay --

Today, 7/20, is the deadline for Acting AG Todd Blanche to respond to my latest filing demanding: *specific documents from the Epstein Files be produced in the judge's chambers AND *for Blanche to pay a $1000 fine/day until he complies with the rest of the preliminary injunction entered in my favor
— Katie Phang (@katiephang.bsky.social) July 20, 2026 at 4:04 AM

Operation Epic Fail / crude inventory/ Trump's forever war --

Crude Oil has 43 days of supply left in the U.S. — the lowest inventory in 45 years @barchart.com ⛽️

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— Carl Quintanilla (@carlquintanilla.bsky.social) July 20, 2026 at 7:19 AM

BREAKING: Iran’s Houthi allies in Yemen declare maritime embargo of Saudi Arabia. Trump's war is escalating. This has all the makings of a forever war that could spiral out of control. www.cnbc.com/2026/07/20/i...

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— Dean Obeidallah (@deanobeidallah.bsky.social) July 20, 2026 at 8:57 AM

Narcissist at the World Cup / all in a week's work --

Infantino tries to get Trump to leave. “Nah I’m okay standing right here.”

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— Rav (@rvbdrm.com) July 19, 2026 at 7:04 PM

is there a pulitzer for photo captions because if so @theguardian.com just won it

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— shauna (@goldengateblond.bsky.social) July 19, 2026 at 7:29 PM

Spain edited Trump out of its celebratory photo.

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— MeidasTouch (@meidastouch.com) July 20, 2026 at 6:26 AM

A 25 and 19 year old dead in another endless Republican Middle East war while Trump played golf, hosted a high dollar fundraiser, and tried to jump on a stage to act like he won the World Cup.

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— Ron Filipkowski (@ronfilipkowski.bsky.social) July 20, 2026 at 8:12 AM

Explosive diarrhea company's payoff. Most. Corrupt. Regime. Ever --

Total purchase price for a Trump administration public statement: $1 million donation

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— Matt Ortega (@mattortega.com) July 19, 2026 at 9:16 PM

Trump and the lunacy of the moment --

This combination, two days apart, will serve for future historians as an effective shorthand for the lunacy of the moment.

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— Philip Bump (@pbump.com) July 20, 2026 at 7:04 AM

Trump's taxpayer- paid flying $400 million ~~palace~~ tub --

You mean the luxurious Palace in the Sky that is costing us a fortune which he plans to keep for himself in 2 years after we’ve spent all this money to upgrade it?

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— Ron Filipkowski (@ronfilipkowski.bsky.social) July 20, 2026 at 6:22 AM

The turmoil of "Whiskey Pete" Hegseth's feelings --

She makes a Very Valid Point….

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— Brant Reeves (@bireeves95.bsky.social) July 20, 2026 at 5:33 AM

It would've been better in the original German (context here) --

This is what a Nazi would have tweeted about making Germany “Judenfrei.”

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— Rachel Bitecofer (@rachelbitecofer.bsky.social) July 20, 2026 at 12:01 AM

Picking the World Cup winner (#ETTD) --

Donald Trump makes his official World Cup Finals prediction: youtu.be/8z3FKaepSYM?...

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— J-L Cauvin (@jlcauvin.bsky.social) July 19, 2026 at 12:15 PM

QOTD -- A Disgusting, Reprehensible Display

"... Trump’s display, therefore, was not just embarrassing. It was disgusting. It was reprehensible. It was yet another instance of him showing disregard and contempt for our military. Indeed, while reports came in of Americans killed and missing over the course of the weekend, he played golf, he attended parties, and he could barely be bothered to comment on the tragedies unfolding thanks to his malevolence and incompetence. 'Very sad,' was all he could muster, almost dismissively as during past such instances when he shrugged off the loss of life as just the sort of thing that happens in war.

"Happens to soldiers. Happens to innocent civilians. Does not happen to serial draft dodgers or rich guys who live in gilded palaces and who care not one whit for the consequences of their actions and policies.

"It was another nauseating, Nero-fiddles-while-Rome-burns display of insensitivity from the American president. Gut-wrenching. Infuriating..." -- David Rothkopf in his "Need To Know" Substack, on the Malignant Fascist's trying to bask in Spain's glory yesterday at the World Cup final as troops die in his war with Iran, in "Ten Reasons Why The war with Iran Is Going From Bad To Worse." Read his excellent piece, and you'll see the tie-in.

Sick Trump Thinks He's The Star

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The delusional and deeply narcissistic Malignant Fascist has to have everything be about him. He shows up every time the cameras are rolling at a major event, this time at the World Cup final yesterday. He also expects "participation" trophies and trinkets to make him feel part of the moment. When he carried the cup along with his butt-boy, the corrupt Gianni Infantino, to the stage for presentation, he was loudly booed. Later, he would not get off the stage to let the Spanish national team celebrate. He wanted to believe the cheering was for him.

It's noteworthy that both the King and Prime Minister of Spain were in attendance, but had the character and dignity not to insert themselves into the team's celebration. After his attacks on Spain at the recent NATO summit, it's no wonder that the King and Prime Minister wanted little to do with him. The MF is a huge national embarrassment.

BONUS: As hoped, Spain edited the disturbed clown out of their picture. Well done!

(photo: The MF stands next to the Spanish team trying to bask in their victory. Tom Weller/Picture Alliance via Getty Images)

The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly

The good:

Troy Jackson has effectively secured the Democratic nomination in the crucial Maine Senate race, winning the support of a majority of the state delegates who will officially nominate a candidate next weekend.
While they are not legally bound to support him, nearly two-thirds of the 601 delegates have committed to voting for Jackson at that statewide convention. Jackson dominated the county-level meetings this weekend that selected those delegates, with two rivals falling far behind — and one of them, Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, dropping out of the race partway through the process Sunday.
The party’s statewide convention in Bangor, Maine, next weekend will cap a tumultuous scramble to replace Graham Platner, who won the primary but dropped out this month after POLITICO reported that a woman he previously dated said he forced her to have sex with him. Platner denied the allegations.
A progressive 5th generation logger from the far-northern corner of Allagash, Maine, Jackson has had a long career in organizing progressive activists and ties to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who had endorsed him in his gubernatorial race earlier this year.
The candidate will have less than four months to spin up a major battleground Senate campaign against GOP Sen. Susan Collins, the only Senate Republican running for reelection in a state carried by former Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024.
Jackson turned his attention to the general election at a Sunday morning rally ahead of the delegate meeting in York County, where he secured the support of enough delegates to cross the 50 percent threshold.
“Whether you supported me from the beginning, or are still deciding, or support another candidate, there is a place for you in this movement,” he told a few dozen supporters in a school parking lot in Sanford, Maine, echoing what has been a familiar line in his speeches since entering the Senate race. “Because we’re not going to defeat Susan Collins by making this movement smaller. There’s no way that that’s ever going to work.”
Bellows dropped out of the race just minutes before voting began on Sunday and encouraged Democrats to coalesce behind Jackson...

The process need not be dragged out any longer. It's time to get on with the business of defeating the useless Susan Collins and edge closer to flipping the Senate. No time to waste. (UPDATE: They wasted no time: Jackson's the one.)

The bad:

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents recently have been told that the FBI will no longer investigate claims of assault against the federal officers, according to a report by The New York Times.
On Thursday, FBI managers received written notice of the change, sources told the Times, and some ICE agents throughout the country were informed by their FBI counterparts.
In incidents where ICE agents have been involved in fatal shootings, the FBI under the Trump administration has been tasked with determining whether the agents were assaulted before opening fire. But evidence revealed during those investigations could later be used in civil rights investigations or prosecutions against ICE agents.
The new guidance would likely mean Homeland Security Investigations, an arm of ICE, would investigate such assault claims by their own agents, according to the Times. Allowing DHS to handle those investigations could lead to less accountability for immigration agents, sources told the NYT.
Since DHS does not have the jurisdiction to investigate civil rights violations, the policy change could lessen the likelihood that ICE agents who shoot unarmed people would be investigated for breaking federal law...

This amounts to legal immunity for brutalizing and killer ICE thugs. Not that lawless, Korrupt Ka$h Patel would have it any other way.

The ugly:

Influencer brothers Andrew and Tristan Tate, whose social media empire promoting wealth, male dominance and misogyny has made them among the world’s most polarizing internet personalities, were arrested Saturday in Miami as British authorities sought their extradition on rape and sex trafficking charges.
The brothers were taken into custody by the U.S. Marshals Service on a sealed warrant, agency spokesperson Brady McCarron told The Associated Press, placing the United States at the center of an international legal saga that has stretched from Romania to Britain.
British prosecutors announced Saturday that they were seeking the brothers’ extradition on charges alleging they raped and trafficked women between 2010 and 2017.
The dual U.S. and British citizens moved to Romania in 2016. They were arrested there in 2022, accused of participating in schemes to lure women for sexual exploitation. They denied those allegations and the Romanian case hasn’t gone forward because of legal and procedural problems.
Last year, they were allowed to leave Romania and flew to Florida on a private jet.
The brothers are expected to appear in Miami’s federal court early next week, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke to on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive law enforcement operations.
The pending charges in the United Kingdom accused the brothers of abusing women in an area north of London, where they grew up. Their lawyers had said they denied the allegations.
Joseph McBride, an attorney representing the Tate brothers, said in a phone interview Saturday evening that he has not been able to speak with his clients but called the new charges out of the U.K. “filth and slander” intended to derail defamation lawsuits filed by the brothers in the U.S.

“They’re pulling out all the stops to make sure these guys never get their day in court,” McBride said.
“We are confident that once a competent judge sees the facts, and once the Department of Justice confronts this egregious abuse of its own authority, Andrew and Tristan Tate will walk free. America does not do Britain’s political dirty work.”
Andrew Tate, 39, first reached a mainstream audience as a contestant on the U.K. reality television show “Big Brother” in 2016. He was removed from the show when a video surfaced that appeared to show Tate assaulting a woman. He and his brother Tristan Tate, 38, are vocal supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump.

Of course, these sleazebags are vocal supporters of the adjudicated ~~rapist~~ sexual abuser MF. Of course, their mouthpiece thinks the fix will be in for them because of that. Let's see how corrupt the MF's "Justice" Department is in how they handle this.

Sunday, July 19, 2026

Across The Universe, Cont. -- Protostars

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From NASA/ ESA, July 2, 2026: NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope captures the infrared light from bright protostars in young star system FS Tau. FS Tau A, a pair of protostars that creates the largest diffraction pattern slightly to the left of center, is about half the mass of our Sun. FS Tau B, the orange protostar slightly right of center, is thought to be responsible for the red (molecular hydrogen) and orange (soot-like molecules known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) outflows that we see amid the dusty region. The blue ridges are areas where light has been scattered by dust.

The different colors of the background galaxies indicate how much dust is in front of them, as dust both absorbs and scatters light. Redder galaxies lie behind larger amounts of dust, yellower galaxies lie behind thinner layers of dust, and whiter galaxies are mostly unobstructed.

Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI)

Today's Cartoons

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(Mike Smith, Las Vegas Sun)

(Bob Englehart, caglecartoons.com)

(Adam Zyglis, The Buffalo News)

(Clay Bennett, Chattanooga Times Free Press)

(Michael Ramirez, Las Vegas Review-Journal)

(Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

(Sean Delonas, caglecartoons.com)

(Clay Jones, claytoonz.substack.com)

(Ed Wexler, caglecartoons.com)

(Daniel Boris, @danboriscreates)

(David Sipress, @dsipress)

QOTD: Grievances, Fear, And Accountability

"The same man whose grievances stirred up that violent mob that sacked the Capitol still cannot let go of is shame and humiliation at having been dealt that defeat by voters here in Georgia and across the country. And so, at a moment when his war spirals out of control, prices for American families climb higher and higher, instead of focusing on the nation's needs, as always, he nurses his grievances. As always, he forces the rest of us to help him process his shame. As always, he centers his own fear of the accountability he'll face when we win decisively this fall." -- the charismatic and Dem superstar Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia, at a campaign rally laying out the bare facts about what motivates much of the sick Malignant Fascist's actions.

Please consider contributing to Senator Ossoff's campaign for reelection by going here. It's one of the most impactful contributions you could make this year.

(photo: Megan Varner/Getty Images)

Troops Die, Trump Golfs

News item:

Two U.S. service members were killed, and another remains missing after an Iranian missile and drone attack on Jordan on Friday, U.S. Central Command announced.
The military confirmed the deaths on Saturday, as President Donald Trump was visiting his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf course. It was not clear if he had already been informed of the deaths, but a White House press pool call scheduled for noon was pushed back to 2 p.m., and then later to 4 p.m., suggesting damage control behind the scenes. [snip]
The two deaths mark the 15th and 16th U.S. service member fatalities in the conflict with Iran since Trump, 80, started the war on Feb. 28. [snip]
The president, who has repeatedly claimed that Iran’s military had already been wiped out and that the country is “dying to make a deal,” previously snubbed 14 troops recovering at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center when he visited the facility for a physical examination in May.
Those on active duty told CBS News last month that they believed there had been an effort to downplay the severity of their injuries after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth claimed that “almost 90 percent” of the roughly 400 Americans injured at that time had suffered only minor injuries...

We know Cadet Bone Spurs thinks that service members, including those who lost their lives serving their country, are "suckers" and "losers." So why disrupt a perfectly good round of golf out of respect for the sacrifice they made in a war you blundered into? Wouldn't want to mar an almost perfect weekend habit:

Here's an unoriginal thought: maybe he should resign and go somewhere far away where he can play golf all the time. Better yet, how about this place?

(Photo: Trump yesterday at Bedminster, via The Daily Beast; Image: www.pbump.com/projects/golf.html)

Sunday Reflection: Your Palace

"You have to study and learn so that you can make up your own mind about history and everything else but you can’t make up an empty mind. Stock your mind, stock your mind. It is your house of treasure and no one in the world can interfere with it. If you won the Irish Sweepstakes and bought a house that needed furniture would you fill it with bits and pieces of rubbish? Your mind is your house and if you fill it with rubbish from the cinemas it will rot in your head. You might be poor, your shoes might be broken, but your mind is a palace.” -- Irish-American author Frank McCourt (8/19/1930 - 7/19/2009), from his Pulitzer Prize-winning book "Angela's Ashes," the poignant memoir of his deeply impoverished childhood. His book "'Tis" picked up where "Angela's Ashes" ended, and his last memoir "Teacher Man" described his time as a teacher in New York City public schools. His lasting works were created from the palace of his mind, rising from his tragic and dire family situation that would have left others in despair.