Thursday Links

On the last Thursday of the first half of 2017, here are some things going on:

From Philly(dot)com, the death toll and damage from the derecho of 2012.  (The meteorological term derecho is the Spanish word for "straight", if I correctly recall reports of that event.)

From The Guardian, Tasmania tries to help the shy albatross.  (The "shy albatross" is the name of the species.)

From Reuters, studies to show how pesticides banned in Europe affect bees show mixed results.

From the Washington Examiner, if President Trump has his way, under his wall will go his pipeline.

From The Daily Caller, the Redskins will get to keep their trademark.

From the Belfast Telegraph, three men in Armagh have been arrested for displaying anti-Islamic material.  (via Jihad Watch)

From Breitbart London, more than half the people in Frankfurt, Germany "have a migrant background".

From Al Arabiya, in Somalia, Islamic militants block the flow of food.  (Just like their predecessors did during the 1990's.)

From the Birmingham Mail, an imam in Birmingham, England faces extradition to Spain.

From Gatestone Institute, why it's not "silly" to fear sharia.  This article was discussed in the BlogTalkRadio show of Red Fox Blogger, and linked by The Religion Of Peace, who also linked several of the articles above.

From MSN, a woman fatally shoots her boyfriend in a YouTube stunt gone wrong.

From RedState, the president's Tweets are going beneath the dignity of his office.

From National Review, why Trump's Tweets matter.

From FrontpageMag, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and his wife are under investigation.

From Fox News, the House passes Kate's Law.  (via Townhall)

From AhlulBayt News Agency, Iraqi troops take the Nuri Mosque in Mosul from ISIS.

From Assyrian International News Agency, ISIS is losing land and going broke.

From The Daily Signal, a couple banned from a farmer's market for not holding gay weddings on their farm speak out.

From The New York Times, a jury rules that the government can seize a skyscraper in Manhattan, because its owners violated American sanctions against Iran, and laundered money.

From Russia Today, a gas canister and an "ignition device" were found in a McDonald's in Berlin, and a man tried to run his car into a French mosque.

From Euractiv, the Czech Republic might be getting its own version of the Second Amendment.

And from Vanity Fair, Greta van Susteren and MSNBC go their separate ways.

Ten Commandments Monument Gets Knocked Over

In a recent links post, I noted that a monument to the Ten Commandments was placed on the grounds of the Arkansas State Capitol.  I must regretfully relay the news that the monument, dedicated only yesterday, has already been knocked over and broken into three pieces, by a man who allegedly drove his car right into the monument.  He appears to be a self-appointed arbiter of "separation of church and state", and reportedly did the same sort of thing in Oklahoma about three years ago.

Read more at THV 11, CNN, ABC News, Reuters and Arkansas Online.

For what happened three years ago, read more at NewsOK.

Wolf And Dog Sign Animal Cruelty Law

The Wolf is a governor, and the dog is a cruelty survivor.  From Philly(dot)com:

HARRISBURG — Gov. Wolf and an iconic Boston Terrier on Wednesday signed legislation to strengthen Pennsylvania’s laws against animal abuse and neglect.

The Democratic governor used a pen and ink. Then Libre's paw was dipped in paint and he put his stamp on a copy of the bill. The now-healthy dog was rescued from severe neglect last year in Lancaster County, and became an inspiration for activists and lawmakers seeking to revamp animal-cruelty statutes.

That's Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf and Libre the Boston Terrier.  Read the full story.

Tuesday Topics

Here are some things going on out there:

In 24 hours, London has had three fatal stabbings.

President Trump goes after CNN.

"Russia is for ratings."

Denmark thinks something's rotten with immigrant smugglers.

A look at the 2017 Pro-Life Women's Conference.

California declares a weed killer carcinogenic.

The Arkansas Capitol grounds now includes the Ten Commandments.  (You know, just like the U.S. Supreme Court.)

Comcast and Sprint are talking.

The Flint airport policeman who was stabbed is now out of the hospital.

ISIS-linked Filipino groups terrorize civilians.

They've also desecrated a Catholic chapel and its Communion hosts.

ISIS celebrates the Grenfell Tower fire.

Car-fire jihad, seemingly common in France and Sweden, comes to Norway.

An Islamist group in Syria rejects Turkish-Russian intervention.

Illinois has become a fiscal mess.

Five Senators oppose starting debate on Trumpcare.

The European Union's attempt to fine Google proves Brexit right.

It was twenty years ago today.  (No, this is not related to a certain Beatles album.)

Although now out of office, former President Obama still takes some pretty expensive vacations.

And to finish, although this is under development in one of my ancestral countries, I think I'll decline.

SCOTUS Rulings And Other Monday Links

As the first Monday of summer is now upon us, here are some other things that have recently been upon us:

From NBC News, the Supreme Court, in a 9-0 decision, will allow parts of President Trump's travel pause to take effect, but won't actually decide on its merits until this fall.

From LifeNews, SCOTUS rules that government programs can't exclude Christian organizations just for being Christian organizations.

From Philly(dot)com and the "Are you serious?" department, former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Cal) says that her party has momentum.

From Breitbart London, in Sweden, children cannot talk about the Bible or even say "amen", in Christian schools.  (Will children in Islamic schools be likewise forbidden from saying "Allahu akbar" or discussing the Koran?  I won't hold my breath.)

From The Guardian, a Swedish man held by Islamic fighters in Mali has been set free after almost six years.

From the Express, ISIS terrorists in Yemen vandalize the graves of British war heroes.

From Morocco World News, ISIS uses the Koran to justify slavery.

From AhlulBayt News Agency, the Hashd al-Shaabi attack ISIS across the Syria-Iraq border.

From YNetNews, five Muslim artists have asked to have their works removed from an Israeli exhibition.

From the Daily Mail, Australia will deport a Muslim immigrant for kidnapping a girl and forcing her to marry him.

From The American Spectator, it's the new Persian Empire.  (If my understanding of ancient history is correct, there have already been two Persian Empires.  The first conquered Babylon, let the captive Jews go back home, and eventually fell to Alexander the Great.  The second, known as the Sassanid Empire, fought against the Romans and Byzantines, and was later conquered by the Islamic Caliphate.)

From FrontpageMag, the left's hierarchy of victim categories gets tested by a murder in Fairfax County, Virginia.

From National Review, the repeal of Obamacare won't cause mass dying.  (NR also has stories related to the two SCOTUS decisions above, so go ahead and browse around the site.)

From Townhall, some advice for Democrats in 2018.

From Haaretz, a Jewish lesbian asks why she and her Israeli pride flag were excluded from Chicago's Dyke March.  (via The Tower, who report that the ADL wants an apology from the march's organizers)

From ESPN, is John McEnroe sexist, or just realistic?

From Radio Poland, Poland has taken in 1.4 million migrants - from Ukraine.

From Sputnik International, a Ukrainian family seeking asylum in Germany poses as Syrians.   (It seems that they should have tried Poland, instead.  They wouldn't have needed to pose as anything other than what they really are.)

From The Washington Free Beacon, the anti-Trump leak campaign is hurting more than just the president.

From the Independent, the next recession could be caused by countries such as China.

And from HokieSports, former Virginia Tech quarterback Bryan Randall has been inducted into the Virginia High School League Hall of Fame.

The Jug Bridge Marker

The Jug Bridge Marker currently sits just of Maryland Route 144, near its interchange with Interstate 70, but this is not its original location.  It once sat at one end of a bridge over the Monocacy River in Frederick, MD.  Because the monument resembles a demijohn, a type of whiskey jug popular in the 19th century, the bridge became known as the "Jug Bridge".  (It reminds me a bit of Buddhist stupas.)  There has even been a rumor that a real jug of whiskey is embedded somewhere within the monument.  In 1942, the bridge collapsed, and the monument was moved to where it is now.  From the parking lot, it's a short walk to the marker.  The marker, the rock in front of it and the plaque to right will be shown in greater detail below the fold.

A Sasquatch's Various And Sundry Dozen

Just combining two of my links post titles.  Here are twelve various things in the sundry (or sun-dried) news:

To the chagrin of fishermen, monsters invade the Pacific coast.

Please tell us, lefties, would this be considered "hate speech"?

BlackLiesMatter gets chided by a guy who can't even perceive blackness.

Ladies on the right, one of you is telling you to speak up.

Schoolchildren will no longer be taught evolution.  Darn those fundamentalist Christians!  Oh, wait.

In Kashmir, a cop gets stoned.

The Arab world's political problem is really religious.

Those robocalls are gonna cost ya, pilgrim.

In the first round, the NBA drafts ten players from the ACC.

President Trump signs the VA reform bill.  (intermediate source)

A year after Brexit, other countries might follow their example.

And to finish, a country up to its nose in migrants is urged to take in more.

Thursday Links

Some stuff going on out there:

From Breitbart London, immigration has boosted the United Kingdom's population numbers.

From ABC News, the Donald claims that he did not tape conversions with FBI Director James Comey.

From the Express, the other Donald thinks that Brexit can be reversed.

From WRCB TV, the Tunisian-Canadian man who brought an "Allahu akbar" to the Flint, Michigan airport is thought to be a lone wolf.  (via Legal Insurrection)

From CNS News, Representative Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) wants Nancy Pelosi (D-Cal) to step down as their party's leader in the House; and in Washington, DC, you can get a gender-neutral driver's license.

From Twitchy, the New York office of BuzzFeed literally gets bugged.

From The Star, immigrant drug gang fights plague Spital, England.

From The Daily Caller, an MSNBC host makes three errors in a nine-word sentence.

From PopZette, some fat guy from Michigan criticizes the Democrats for losing Georgia-6.

From Philly(dot)com, three college campuses near Philadelphia are among 20 finalists for the most beautiful in America.

From Deutsche Welle, ISIS targets children to punish their parents.

From the Daily Mail, an Islamic preachers says that Allah is displeased by crying when someone dies.

From Greek Reporter, the Greek government objects to a Koran reading and Islamic prayer held in the Hagia Sophia, which is now a museum, but was a mosque, and before that, a church.

From The Indian Express, if you want to root for Pakistan's sports teams, go live there.  (I could say the same thing about people who root for Mexican soccer teams playing in the United States.)

From FrontpageMag, one writer predicts that Germany will be Islamic in 20 years.

From National Review, political violence done by groups "is hard to pull off".

From TownHall, a bill in North Carolina to protect free speech is opposed by a Charlotte newspaper.

From Breitbart's National Security, Canuck sniper 1, ISIS terrorist 0.

From The Jerusalem Post, former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair recommends a different approach to peacemaking in the Middle East.  (via The Tower)

From The Federalist, "Who does the FBI work for?"

And from the Los Angeles Times, there will soon be no more Cats on Broadway.

Handel Beats Ossoff

Karen Handel (R) defeated Jon Ossoff (D) in the special election in the 6th district of Georgia.  The seat had been vacated by Tom Price (R), who became President Trump's Health and Human Services Secretary.  The seat was once held by Newt Gingrich (R), who spent two terms as Speaker of the House.  The final tally was about 52 percent for Handel and 48 percent for Ossoff.  With over $50 million spent by the two parties, this contest now stands as the most expensive House race in history.

Someone who apparently supported Ossoff created the Twitter hashtag "#VoteYourOssoff".  I'd say that Handel kicked his Ossoff.

There have been reports that Ossoff doesn't actually live in the 6th district.  Looks like he won't have to worry about needing to move.

Read more at CNN, NBC News, Politico, The Washington Post and The New York Times.

Naturally, the analysts have started analyzing:

From ABC News, what the results mean for each party.

From the Daily News, the "real lessons of Handel-Ossoff".

At HotAir, Allahpundit asks, "Did the polls get the Handel/Ossoff race wrong?"  (My follow-up question would be, "You mean like they got the 2016 presidential race wrong?")

Form MarketWatch, why Handel and Trump won, and Ossoff lost.

And from the Washington Examiner, Ossoff complains about "money in politics", after spending six times as much as Handel.  The hypocrisy is strong in this one (though present to some extent, in my opinion, in just about all politicians).

Links Before The Solstice

Some things going on out there, on the last full day of Spring:

From The Hill, in the 6th District of Georgia, there's a special election today.

From Breitbart's Big Government, "Clinton 3.0" (as they called her) scolds Steve Bannon.

From Fox News, at the main railroad in Brussels, an "Allahu Akbar" breaks out.

From The Daily Caller, the FBI will announce their findings concerning the baseball field shooting.

From The Telegraph, the Finsbury Park attacker allegedly wanted revenge for the London Bridge attack.

From MHW Magazine, a van driver was killed when he drove into trucks stopped by obstacles placed in the road by migrants near Calais, France.

From France 24, a man killed when he rammed a police van had a gun permit, although he was on a jihadist watch list.

From The Jerusalem Post, nearly half of Muslim youth in Austria think that Jews have too much influence.

From Egypt Independent, a mosque in Berlin that allows men and women to sit together causes some consternation.

From the Daily Mail, an ISIS-inspired Lego knockoff is available in Australia.

From FrontpageMag, leftists have "anger privilege".

From National Review, even "hate speech" is free speech.

From HotAir, a look at how the left treated Otto Warmbier.

From The Roanoke Times, Congressman Tom Garrett (R-VA) calls for North Korea to be put back on the list of state sponsors of terror.

From the Express, EU member states argue over who should get to host the two agencies that are currently located in London, but must be relocated due to Brexit.

From Yahoo News, and the "Are you sitting down?" department, former Attorney General Eric Holder is thinking about running for president.  (via American Lookout)

From the New York Post, if you want to be Mickey Mouse, it's a good idea to learn sign language.

From The Blaze, Press Secretary Sean Spicer doesn't know if President Trump has seen a draft of the Senate version of what could become Trumpcare.

From The Daily Signal, reports of the death of criminal justice reform have been greatly exaggerated.  (They actually quote Mark Twain.)

And to finish with some satire from The Babylon Bee, and the anachronism department, the Apostle Paul's copy of the King James Bible is up for auction.

Music Break

I've been wanting to put up one of these for a while, and it looks like I finally got around to it.  Like last month, I'm presenting songs that aren't all that well known.  The first one, It Came Out Of The Sky, in reality came from Creedence Cleanwater Revival's album Willy And The Poor Boys.  The video includes subtitles in Spanish.

In London, Vehicle Hits Pedestrians - Again

Once again, a vehicle has hit pedestrians in London.  This time, however, it was not on any bridge, and the victims, not the suspected perpetrator, are Muslim.  At around 12:20 a.m. British Time, a van struck people who were reportedly leaving the Finsbury Park Mosque after a Ramadan night prayer service.  Twelve people have been reported injured.  The van's driver has been arrested.

Read more at the Express, The Guardian, the Independent, BBC News and The Sun.  Of these articles, The Sun states that two people are "feared dead", but I've found no confirmed reports of fatalities.

UPDATE:  The links now indicate that one victim has died, eight have been taken to hospitals, and two were treated at the scene.  Authorities are now calling the attack an act of terrorism.  The attacker allegedly said that he wanted to "kill all Muslims".

Some More Stuff

Another day, more stuff to read and link:

Surprise, surprise.  Europeans want their own governments to decide on immigration.

Open a suitcase, find a migrant.

Removing monuments isn't just for over-sensitive Americans any more.

Like I said, removing monuments isn't just for over-sensitive Americans any more.

Two rightwing protesters interrupt the simulated stabbing of Donald Trump/Julius Caesar.  For the record, I don't condone what they did.  Like it or not, this play, where ancient Romans are given a modern makeover, and in which the Caesar character looks like our current president, is free speech.  However, I would also submit that what these two protesters did is microscopic compared to the leftwing violence that cancelled a speech by Milo Yannopoulos, among other recent incidents.

What happened when Officer Jeronimo Yanez shot Philando Castile?  We don't really know.

Christians and Muslims to rebuild Mosul university library.

In the area of sports, here comes the Judge, here comes the Judge.

Which "head" was she referring to?

Mr. Bill's troubles are not going away any time soon.  (This is not about a former president.)

The names of Mr. Bill's jurors will not be revealed.

She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie.  You can guess the rest.

Could economic ties be established between these two countries?

Happy belated birthday, your Majesty.

Virginia Tech's athletic director uses science and art to hire the right coaches.

And to finish, summer internships are allegedly ruining the American dream.

A Sasquatch's Dozen - And A Bonus

Here's the Sasquatch's Dozen, 12 things in the news today:

From Breitbart London, more asylum recipients are going on vacation back where they came from. (If the old country is so dangerous that you had to leave, isn't going back a bit risky?)

From the Express, French voters don't want President Emmanuel Macron to have too much power.

From Israellycool, some questions for Linda Sarsour.

From CBC News, Canada looks to make citizenship requirements easier - and removal of citizenship more difficult.

From the Daily Mail, British politician Jeremy Corbyn has some ideas on where to house victims of the fire that destroyed the Grenfell Tower.

From National Review, let's all just grow up.

From AhlulBayt News Agency, more than 100 groups agree to join the Syrian army.

From Straits Times, an Indonesian tribe converts from Animism to Islam.

From Russia Today, a man wields a knife outside the British Parliament building.

From The Local ES, Spaniards don't appear to want a Spexit, but they welcome a referendum.

From Fox News Insider, Kellyanne Conway hypothesizes about the reaction if she were to be shot.

And from Billboard, it's time for Carlos Santana to change his theme song.

Here's the bonus story, from this past April:

From Breitbart Texas, the sorry state of our southern border.  I'll add my own opinion on this.  If you support open borders and/or oppose any new wall, you effectively support the horrors reported in this article.

Congressman And Others Shot At Baseball Practice

This morning at a baseball field in Alexandria, Virginia, House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA) and at least four others were shot, including two Capitol Police officers.  Scalise was shot in the hip, has undergone surgery, and is expected to fully recover.  The alleged shooter has been taken into custody.  Scalise and other Republicans were practicing for a charity baseball game against congressional Democrats.

Read more at WTOP, USA Today, NBC News, Fox News and The Hill.

UPDATE:  The suspect, who had been shot by police, has died of his injuries.  He has been identified as James Hodgkinson, from Belleville, Illinois.  He had worked in Iowa for the presidential campaign of Bernie Sanders.

Various And Sundry

Some various and sundry things going on out there.  Considering that today's forecast in Maryland is sunny and mid-90's, trying to dry something in the sun would have a pretty good chance of success.

In Germany, a man steals a policewoman's gun and shoots her.

Lefties gonna keep going left.

In India, a man is arrested for using the Koran to print bank checks.

A fake imam is arrested for assault.

The Helsinki airport to go solar.

President Trump is not surprised by the latest court ruling.

And that was just one of Trump's morning Tweets.

Trump's Tweets might get archived under (Are you ready for this?) the COVFEFE act.

What did Trump tell Janet Yellen?

North Korea releases an American student....

....and will shortly welcome another American for his fifth visit.

Feminists, anyone?  Where are the feminists?

In another non-surprise, Iran blames the U.S. for ISIS.

In Australia, theater-goers hear "Allahu akbar!", but no one is killed, stabbed or injured.

Fewer Irish women are traveling to Great Britain to get abortions.

Znowu, Polska mówi "nie".  (Again, Poland says "no".)

The E.U. sues three countries for not taking refugees.

Here's America's newest submarine.

Young British voters want tuition fees scrapped.

And to finish, Verizon acquires Yahoo.

Sunday Links

As global warming, er, climate change, um, warm weather hits my area, here are some things going on:

From The Blaze, Senator Reed (D-RI) thinks President Trump should not testify.

From AP News, Attorney General Sessions, on the other hand, will testify.

From The Guardian, Trump's visit to the United Kingdom will have to wait a while.

From Assyrian National News Agency, Syrian fighters capture parts of Raqqa.

From The Baloch News, a Balochi human rights activist is kidnapped.

From National Review, Reagan's SDI (a.k.a. "Star Wars") looks pretty good in hindsight.

From Breitbart London, Syrian asylum seekers in Germany allegedly molest girls at a swimming pool.

From Trend News Agency, 20 Iranians are lashed for breaking the Ramadan fast.

From Fox News, a Pakistani man is sentenced to death for insulting Muhammad.

From The Times Of India, one of the London Bridge terrorists had been trying to get a job with the agency that provides security for Wimbledon.

From the Daily Mail, an Islamic bookstore in Australia displays books on Sharia, and another claim that the caliph of ISIS is dead.

From AhlulBayt News Agency, people in Ankara, Turkey protest in front of the Saudi embassy.

From Russia Today, 2,500 more migrants are rescued in the Mediterranean.

From the Los Angeles Times, Uber's directors will meet to discuss the fate of their CEO.

From the Washington Examiner, respect for the flag brings America together.

From Gatestone Institute, pro-Erdogan political parties are popping up in Europe.

From The Daily Caller, Canadian troops arrive in Latvia.

From Philly(dot)com, Puerto Ricans vote on statehood.

From Yahoo News, Chinese kids play American football.

And from the Fresno Bee and the "you can't make this up" department, a man is assaulted by someone known as "Cheeseburger".

"Let's Start Talking About Islam"

I found this article at The Religion Of Peace.  It was published on June 4, while I was out on my most recent road trip.  From Sp!ked:

Another month, another terror attack. Britain’s third in three months. This time the targets were Saturday-night revellers in London Bridge and Borough. Mown and stabbed for the crime of having fun, of being free. And already we are seeing the same craven, baleful response that follows every act of Islamist terror. ‘Watch out for an Islamophobic backlash’, aloof observers say, their minds always more agitated by the thought of stupid white people saying something rude about Islam than by acts of Islamist mass murder. ‘Don’t say anything bad about this wonderful religion or its adherents’, they tell us. This is a really bad response, because it is becoming increasingly clear that one of the major problems we face today is not that our society is too mean about Islam, but that it flatters Islam too much.

The thesis of this editorial is basically, "Protecting Islam from criticism is contributing to violence by Muslims", which is the opposite of the politically correct view that the violence is caused by such criticism.  Read the full article.

Seneca Rocks

Seneca Rocks is a rocky outcrop at the top of a mountain in West Virginia, a small town below and to the west of this mountain, and a state park encompassing the mountain.  The center of town is marked by an intersection between US-33, WV-28 and WV-55.  From the state park's parking lot, just north of the intersection, I could see the west face of the outcrop, although it was partially obscured by some trees in the foreground.

I was lucky enough to be able to park near the trailhead, marked by a sign indicating that the trail was 1.5 miles long, gained 1000 feet of elevation, and led to an observation platform.  After the first few hundred feet, the trail led to a bridge spanning the Potomac River.  Well, actually the North Fork of the South Branch of the Potomac River.  This shot looks northward and downstream.

After crossing the river, I continued onward and upward, around switchbacks and even up a stairway, which was thankfully made of wood instead of stone.  After I reached the observation platform, I took this shot of the parking lot and a nearby picnic pavilion.  The Bigfootmobile is hiding below some trees toward the left.

Here's the view looking north.  The main road is both WV-28 and WV-55.

This sign was pretty close to the observation platform.  Let's just say that I went here and no farther.

I was able to work my way down a small side trail to see a bit of the east face of the rock.  It's hard to tell rock from sky because both were grey, but you can see some of the east face through the trees.

After taking this shot, I decided it was time to retreat down the mountain to the parking lot.  As you might expect, a whole different set of muscles started to complain during my downward hike, but I made it down, tired and bit sore, but ready to drive back to Maryland.

For more on Seneca Rocks, go to Virginia Trail Guide and Trip Advisor.

Point Pleasant, West Virginia

Continuing northward from Huntington and Lesage, and passing various things named after a certain former klansman Senator from West Virginia, I arrived in Point Pleasant.  This place is notorious for alleged sightings of a creature called the Mothman during the late 1960's.  The Mothman was reportedly seen by over 100 people, and is thought to have possibly been an omen that warned of impending disaster.  Today, the Mothman Museum sits in downtown Point Pleasant, with a statue of the creature just down the street.

Here he is from another angle.  The locals appear to like driving red cars.

Point Pleasant also includes Tu-Endie-Wei State Park, at the confluence of the Ohio and Kanawha Rivers.  This park commemorates a battle fought in 1774 between a Virginia militia led by Colonel Andrew Lewis and Shawnee Indians led by Chief Cornstalk.  (Considering that corn was very important, and sometimes sacred, to many Indian tribes, being named "Cornstalk" may well have been a great honor.)  The Battle of Point Pleasant was the principle battle of Lord Dunmore's War, Lord Dunmore himself being at the time the governor of the colony of Virginia.  This circular stone monument commemorates a magazine located in the area.  Directly behind it is the Kanawha River, with the Ohio to the right.

This building, called the Mansion House, was originally a tavern, and is now a museum.

In the middle of the park is this obelisk.

The monument to Chief Cornstalk, leader of the Shawnee, sits near one corner of the park.  West Virginia Route 2 passes over the green trestle bridge in the background.

Some people and organizations, such as the Daughters of the American Revolution (one of whom taught me how to play the piano way back when), consider the Battle of Point Pleasant to be the first battle of the American Revolution.  I consider this rather dubious, because the Virginia militiamen were not at the time rebelling against the British crown or the colonial government.  In other words, the sides that fought in the American Revolution had not yet been established.

On a personal note, I was already familiar with the name Andrew Lewis because there once was a high school in Salem, Virginia bearing his name.  Also in the area is Fort Lewis Mountain, named after Fort Lewis, this fort having been previously named after Lewis himself.  All of these are not too far away from where I once lived in southwestern Virginia.

Thursday Links

Now that I'm back from my road trip, let me pass on some things in the news.

From The Times-Picayune, 16 anti-Trump vandals appear in court.

From Greek Reporter, the Greek government will freeze pensions until 2022.

From Assyrian National News Agency, Germany warns Iraqi Kurds against having a "one-sided" election.

From The Blaze, while former FBI Director James Comey testified, Donald Trump sent out Tweets.  (No, I'm not talking about the president.)

From Yahoo News, Senator John McCain (R-AZ) admits having given Comey confusing questions.

From the Los Angeles Times, a talk radio host in Arizona blasts Comey.

From Fox News, Comey's testimony, in their opinion, exonerates President Trump.

From Twitchy, Trump's former rival appears to be stuck in an "infinite loop".

From The Telegraph, the United Kingdom appears to have elected a "hung parliament", and the Saudi soccer team would not line up for a moment of silence in honor of the victims of the London Bridge terror attack.

From The Tower, the Labour Party's candidate for Prime Minister, Jeremy Corbin, has "extremist ties".

From The New American, according to the National Association of Secretaries of State, the 2016 election "was not hacked".

From Breitbart London, the brother of one of the London Bridge terrorists had received money from a government anti-radicalization program.

From Stinson Hunter, video of a man attacking police with a hammer near Nôtre Dame Cathedral in Paris.

From the International Business Times, and perhaps the non-sequitur department, Iran's Revolutionary Guard blames the terror attack in Iran on President Trump's visit to Saudi Arabia.

From Sp!ked, private jokes can get you expelled from Harvard.

From Breitbart's Big Government, the Charlotte (gay) Pride Parade bans a pro-Trump gay group.  (So much for the "inclusion" the left likes to preach.)

From The Hill, the House scales back Dodd-Frank.

From World Israel News, Palestinian leader Abbas agrees to meet Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu without a settlement freeze as a pre-condition.

From the Daily Mail, ISIS warns of future attacks.

And from The Washington Times, you can fish without a license in Michigan - but only this weekend.

A Most Interesting Place To Eat

If you drive northward from Huntington, WV on WV Route 2, you soon get to the small community of Lesage and its noted grub joint Hillbilly Hot Dogs.  The place includes quite a few old dilapidated vehicles such as this school bus, which the public is not allowed to enter.

The place has a "Weddin Chapel", with the "Kissin Cuzins Maryin Booth" to the left, and a van somehow driven into the tree above them.

We're allowed to enter this other old school bus, with a bicycle on its hood and another vehicle on its roof.

Between WV-2 and a stone driveway is a scaled-up moonshine still.

I suspect that the "Hillbilly Gas Station" is not a place to get gas, but to leave your gas.

This scaled-up hot dog is probably the biggest wiener in all of West Virginia.

The bathrooms are guarded by Darth Vader.  Beware the Dark Side!

Here's some more junk - lots of it.

The actual restaurant is to the left of the junk in the pic just above.  Its adjacent dining room comprises yet another bus.  For more information go to their website.

Huntington, West Virginia

After visiting Rabbit Hash, Kentucky, I headed eastward, back toward Maryland.  I stopped in at Huntington, located on the south side of the Ohio River.  It is one of two prominent cities in the area where Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia meet, the other being Ashland, KY.  Huntington is also the home of Marshall University.  There were two places in Huntington that I wanted to see.  The first was Ritter Park, which includes this ring made of iron, with stripes radiating on the inside.

The park also includes some stone sculptures, but they were surrounded by a fence.

This pit of sand is partially surrounded by a stone dragon.

Here's the other side of the iron ring, with stripes radiating on the outside.

This pedestrian bridge spans a stream that runs through the park.

The other place I wanted to see in Huntington was more somber.  In the Spring Hill Cemetery is the Marshall Memorial, dedicated to the coaches, football players and others who died in an airplane crash in 1970.  This side of the memorial, in sunlight, shows the names of the players.  You can see the numerous items left in tribute by previous visitors.

Here are two other sides of the memorial.  On the right, under the heading "staff members" the sixth name from the top is Frank Loria, an assistant coach who had played at Virginia Tech.  Head coach Rick Tolley, who name appears at the bottom of the "staff members" list, had also played for VT.

The story of the plane crash and Marshall's efforts to rebuild of their football team are told in the movie We Are Marshall.  However, the movie was not exactly true to reality.

After my visit to this memorial, I was back on the road heading northward along the Ohio River.  I had some other things to see before turning east and crossing West Virginia.

Rabbit Hash, Kentucky

Rabbit Hash is a very small unincorporated community, located on the south bank of the Ohio River, southwest of the Cincinnati metropolitan area.  I had previously noticed that the place seems to have a penchant for electing dogs to the office of mayor.  Apparently, the town's name does indeed refer to an item of food made with rabbit meat.  (Elmer Fudd would be proud - and maybe a bit jealous, too.)  I don't know what this building is called, but it might include restaurant facilities, as implied by the name The Scalded Hog on the contraption to the right.

Two local dogs were hanging around, but neither one is the current mayor.

Across the street from the building shown above were two old gas pumps, in front of an antique shop, which was in front of the Hashienda.

On one side of the building shown above is a stage.  You can see the Ohio River and a bit of Indiana in the background.

Across the Ohio was this steamboat.

I could also see the town of Rising Sun, Indiana.

This building, as you can tell, is the General Store, which reopened this year after being gutted by fire.

This old cabin houses a museum, but it wasn't open.

It might be a very small place, but Rabbit Hash has its own historical society.  In my opinion, if you're ever in northern Kentucky or the Cincinnati area, Rabbit Hash is a nice place in which to stop and relax, if you don't mind driving on some hilly and winding roads to get there.