"Highly Respected"

As long-time readers of this blog know, I love language. In particular, I love the linguistic discipline of semantics, the scientific and philosophical study of meaning in language, signs, and symbols, and of how words, phrases, and sentences carry meaning.

We're living in a fascinating era if you're a semantic linguist, in particular as we look at how our understanding of common words and phrases changes according to our political, religious, and social ideas. Listening to the garbled word salads of Der Furor and the carefully disingenuous pronouncements of other political figures on both the right and the left can be instructive for those of us interested in what words and phrases actually mean, and the degree to which meaning can be twisted for political advantage.

I was inspired to write this post because of a particular phrase - "highly respected." 

The phrase, along with the similar "highly regarded," is commonly used to ascribe authority to a figure who is being quoted to support one's position in an argument, as it implies that the opinions of the individual being cited are more worthy of note than those of lesser beings. Nowadays, though, it is frequently used by Der Furor and his noisier sycophants to mean "someone in an important position who agrees with my position." For instance, judges who rule in his favor are "highly respected;" those who do not are "radical lunatics."

For the record, I do not consider anyone serving in the current regime to be "highly respected." Or even just "respected." If anything, I consider most of them "highly suspect." 

And that's my semantic rant for today.

Have a good day, and endeavor to conduct yourself in such a way as to be highly respected.

More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

Monday Mountains

It's the last week of October, and time for the last iteration of Monday Mountains for the month. Ready? Let's go ...

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10 - 

Monday Mountains will be back on Mondays in November - come back for more majestic inspiration.

Have a good day. More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

Poetry Sunday

Our second and final Poetry Sunday poem for the Halloween season comes from the matchless pen of Edgar Allan Poe, who tells us of his undying love for a beautiful, doomed woman ...

Annabel Lee

by Edgar Allan Poe

It was many and many a year ago,

   In a kingdom by the sea,

That a maiden there lived whom you may know

   By the name of Annabel Lee;

And this maiden she lived with no other thought

   Than to love and be loved by me.

I was a child and she was a child,

   In this kingdom by the sea,

But we loved with a love that was more than love—

   I and my Annabel Lee—

With a love that the wingèd seraphs of Heaven

   Coveted her and me.

And this was the reason that, long ago,

   In this kingdom by the sea,

A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling

   My beautiful Annabel Lee;

So that her highborn kinsmen came

   And bore her away from me,

To shut her up in a sepulchre

   In this kingdom by the sea.

The angels, not half so happy in Heaven,

   Went envying her and me—

Yes!—that was the reason (as all men know,

   In this kingdom by the sea)

That the wind came out of the cloud by night,

   Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.

But our love it was stronger by far than the love

   Of those who were older than we—

   Of many far wiser than we—

And neither the angels in Heaven above

   Nor the demons down under the sea

Can ever dissever my soul from the soul

   Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;

For the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams

   Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;

And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes

   Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;

And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side

   Of my darling—my darling—my life and my bride,

   In her sepulchre there by the sea—

   In her tomb by the sounding sea.

This weird, beautiful poem contains one of my favorite passages, that never fails to send shivers down my spine - 

For the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams

   Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;

And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes

   Of the beautiful Annabel Lee

Have a good day, enjoy the rest of your weekend, and get those Halloween decorations up! More thoughts coming. 

Bilbo

Cartoon Saturday

We're one week away from Halloween. Sadly, most of the really frightening stuff is taking place not in haunted houses and graveyards, but in the news ...

The Gilded House claims that the First Lady has brokered a humanitarian cease-fire in a Ukrainian city occupied by Russia; Der Furor has ordered the Department of "Justice" to file a lawsuit blocking certification of the Senate election in Alaska if the Republican incumbent loses by a narrow margin; a priest saying mass in his church in Guayaquil, Ecuador, was killed when a large wooden crucifix fell on him during the service; the National Hurricane Center said hurricane Vance is strengthening rapidly and could become a Category 3 as it nears Mexico’s Pacific Coast, threatening to cause as much damage as another dangerous windbag named Vance; and in (where else?) Florida, a man who stole $769,500 worth of earrings and swallowed them following his arrest has been found guilty of robbery and grand theft ... no word on whether he was also required to pay for cleaning the earrings after their ... recovery.

This week, our Cartoon Saturday salute to the Halloween season continues with a look at mad scientists and their assistants ...

I hope that's a really good patent attorney ...

When you're not yet a fully-fledged mad scientist ...

... or a disappointed scientist ...

Even mad scientists have to deal with grant paperwork, I guess ...

She's better prepared than Der Furor's last press secretary was ...

True. Very true ...

Oops, wrong department ...

Maybe it wasn't the best compromise, but still ...

Maybe that's the problem with our current regime ... their brains are all improperly stored ...

He's at a meeting of his HMO - horribly maniacal organization ...

Not all of the mad doctors are working for HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, although it'd be understandable if you thought so.

Have a good day and a great weekend, and be sure to come back tomorrow for our second Halloween Season Poetry Sunday and a visit to Edgar Allan Poe. See you then with more thoughts.

Bilbo

Ass Clown Special Award

It's been that kind of year, hasn't it?

Between the bizarre chaos of Der Furor's regime, the ghastly expense of the midterm elections, and the behavior of many of our fellow citizens, 2026 is surely going to be a year for the record books ... as well as a year for Ass Clown Awards. This month has already seen two routine (Right-Cheek and Left-Cheek) and one Special ass clown awards, with an On-Crack award scheduled for a week from today. But such is this insane time that I find it necessary to wedge in yet another

Ass Clown Special Award

and it goes to not one, but two supremely deserving ass clowns - 

Steve Witkoff

(he's the one on the right)

and

Vivek Ramaswami

Mr Witkoff, Der Furor's "Special Representative" for whatever needs special representing, set a new standard for - in the words of historian Steven Beschloss - "sniveling obeisance" when he told murderously psychopathic Russian president Vladimir Putin at a meeting in St Petersburg (Russia, not Florida),  

“You talk so much about my president, President Trump, being a humanitarian. You are a humanitarian also, sir, and I salute that. I commend you, and I thank you again.”

That such a woefully unqualified and sycophantic representative of the United States government would debase himself and his position and undercut the honor and dignity of the nation is beyond despicable.

The second awardee, Vivek Ramaswami, plumbed new depths of cruelty and dishonor this past week when he published a nauseatingly cruel and utterly false video ad that used recordings of the seriously unwell mother of Dr Amy Acton to lie about Dr Acton's history of childhood abuse. Dr Acton's brother responded this way,

"After [our stepfather] was arrested and Amy and I were removed from their custody, our birth mother stayed married to Amy’s rapist until he died. This desperate, disgusting attack reveals exactly who Vivek Ramaswamy is at his core—a pathetic excuse for a man who is willing to hurt anyone as long as it gets him what he wants."

For her part, Dr Acton said,

“I think it was a terrible thing to do this to someone who is not well, as my birth mother isn’t. I know my opponent will stoop to anything to get ahead.”

Mr Ramaswamy not only refused to apologize for the slanderously misleading ad, but instead doubled down, spending another $4 million to keep running it while a handful of Republicans tepidly and performatively objected. And were that not enough, Vice Furor JD Vance told an Ohio rally this past Wednesday,

“I have to admit that I’m a little bit disgusted when I see Republicans across the country who are whining more about that advertisement than they are about what the congressional Democrats and other Democrats want to do to the United States of America.” 

Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Readers, I present this out-of-cycle Ass Clown Special Award to two of the worst representatives of American "leadership" and values I've seen in my lifetime - Steve Witkoff and Vivek Ramaswamy. They make me ashamed to be an American.

More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

Great Moments in Editing and Signage

It's time for the last installment of Great Moments in Editing and Signage for the month, so let's get right to it ...

When you need a gift for the person who has everything ...

Perhaps that was not exactly the best place to park the janitor cart ...

Maybe Der Furor was onto something (as opposed to just being on something) when he accused immigrants of eating dogs and cats ...

So, what if the dog lives with a Jewish family? ...

I guess the narrator just shouts the text ...

Useless signs 101 ...

Well, I suppose it would work and save money ...

At my age, I have to worry about buzzards, so I won't be trying to attract their attention ...

Now, that's service ...

You have to wonder what happened to the Unsinkable I ...

And that's it for our last collection of Great Moments for the month of October ... next Friday we'll have the On-Crack Ass Clown presentation.

Have a good day and come back tomorrow for the next edition of our Cartoon Saturday salute to Halloween - this week featuring Mad Scientists. See you then if you dare.

Bilbo

Thursday Trees

It's time once again for Mike's Thursday Trees! Feel free to contact him if you have any complaints.

Are we ready? Let's go!

1 - an amate tree, known for its interesting roots ...

2 - a bristlecone pine ...

 3 - a forest in Cornwall, UK ...

4 - Happy Halloween ...

5 - a hackberry tree ...

6 - it looks to me like they're dancing ...

7 - Menwood Park, Leeds, UK ...

8 - I shamelessly stole this one from my friend Andrea's Facebook page. I hope she'll forgive me ...

9 - a sweet cherry tree ...

10 - This is a wachholderbaum (a juniper tree, in English), but it looks like me trying to do a downward facing dog pose in yoga ...

Oh, and here's a bonus, copied from a post by my friend, fellow blogger, and curmudgeon-in-training John ...

And that's it for this week's Thursday Trees - I hope you enjoyed them. Have a good day, and come back tomorrow for this month's last collection of Great Moments in Editing and Signage ... see you then!

Bilbo

Government for Sale

One of the most depressing things about an election season in the United States is the staggering amount of money being spent by those seeking office and those hoping to purchase favors from those seeking office.

Elon Musk alone has spent at least $276 million - that we know of - trying to prop up unpopular Republicans, in particular in Texas, where he seeks to buy compliant elected officials who will not interfere with his vast SpaceX empire. Der Furor has "suggested" that his Super PAC will spend at least $400 million by election day. Michael R. Bloomberg, the billionaire former mayor of New York, is said to be giving roughly $80 million to help Democrats. 

As of October 19th, the Federal Election Commission estimates that $1.83 billion has been spent on House races, and $1.03 billion has been spent on Senate races. And there's still two weeks to go until election day.

No one really knows the grand total that will end up being spent not only on the election, but on the near-certain flood of lawsuits that will be filed by losing candidates and by a GOP-dominated federal government desperate to somehow prove that Republican losses are the result of vast, imaginary fraud rather than public disgust at their ineptitude and blatant corruption.

This is obscene.

In the wealthiest nation on earth, ordinary people are being bankrupted by medical debt and crippled by the skyrocketing cost of food and fuel. Rural hospitals are closing or eliminating vital services like labor and delivery. Deadly diseases we thought had been eliminated are back and killing us. Infrastructure is crumbling. People are being sickened by products and foods no longer being tested by a government more interested in currying favor with corporations than in protecting our health. Money is being wildly wasted on gilding the Oval Office, building an unnecessary ballroom at the Gilded House, erecting a useless "triumphal arch," and replacing a popular public golf course complex in Washington with a single "championship-level" course real people will almost certainly never be able to use. We are spending vast amounts of money on a needless war against Iran, on testosterone screening and supplements for military personnel, and on tax cuts that benefit the wealthy and big corporations.

A lot of money is being spent on this election by those who want to keep feeding at the trough you and I fill with our taxes. Let them know what you think of them. Vote like your future depends on it, because it does.

Have a good day. Vote the bums out, and make sure the new bums you vote in work for you, not for Vladimir Putin and the Musks and the Bezoses and the Zuckerbergs and the rest of the wealthy elite.

More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

Citizen Soldiers

The United States has a long tradition of "citizen soldiers" - ordinary men and women who step up and do the ugly job of soldiering when the nation is in need. That tradition began with the so-called "minutemen" of the revolutionary era, who stopped plowing their fields, picked up their muskets, and answered their nation's call, and it continues to the present day.

We do not, at least until the modern era, have a tradition of a large standing army ... indeed, the Founders worried that such a force could be used to oppress the citizens, rather than defend them. When we needed a big army, we built it, and once the need was gone, we sent the soldiers home and relied on a smaller force that could be augmented if needed. At the outbreak of the First World War, the U.S. Army (including the National Guard) had a strength of about 200,000 and was the ninth-largest army in the world ... vastly inferior to the armies of England, France, Germany, and Imperial Russia. At the outbreak of the Second World War, it ranked 19th in size, smaller than the army of Portugal and slightly ahead of powerhouse Bulgaria.

Of course, our armed forces grew dramatically with the introduction of conscription for the World Wars and continuing through Vietnam, reaching a strength of about 12 million at the height of World War II and 800,000 at the end of the Vietnam War in 1973. Disgust with Vietnam led to the end of conscription in January, 1973 ... since then, we've been an all-volunteer force that today consists of about 480,000 active duty troops and another 524,000 in the National Guard and Reserve, even as the nation fought new wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, and other places.

My point with this little, off-the-cuff history lesson is that we are now, as we have been through most of our history, a nation of citizen soldiers. 

Which brings me to the current Secretary of Defense (not War), who has a vision not of an army of citizens reluctantly but bravely doing a dirty job for a nation in peril, but of a supremely lethal force of clean-shaven, chiseled, testosterone-oozing giants unencumbered by useless distractions like law and morality. I am horrified at what he has done to the honorable tradition memorably documented by historian Steven Ambrose in his wonderful books "Citizen Soldiers" and "Band of Brothers." I am especially horrified that there appears to be actual discussion among our national "leaders" that our citizen soldiers might be employed to ensure the desired outcome of our elections - something we might once have thought happened only in the banana-est of banana republics. Indeed, there was consternation earlier this month in Washington, DC, when armed National Guard troops were photographed at an official ballot drop box.

As you head to the polls on November 3rd (if you didn't vote early), think about the type of nation you want to live in, and ask yourselves how comfortable you are with the idea of our citizen soldiers being used to still your voice.

Choose wisely.

Have a good day. More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

Monday Mountains

For those of you who asked, the wedding was great fun, nobody dropped the cake, and I learned that too much dancing on two artificial knees is not for sissies. Buy your stock in Tylenol now.

Time to start the new week with your mountain fix ...

1 - Someone knew how to frame a photo ...

2 - Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada ...

3 - The Bavarian Alps, with the castle of Hohenschwangau in the foreground ...

4 - Chugach Mountains, Alaska ...

5 - Colima volcano, Mexico ...

6 - autumn in the French Alps ...

7 - I could wake up to this vista every day ...

8 - If you look up "rugged" in the dictionary, this might be the illustration ...

9 - Whoever sited this castle knew what he was doing ...

10 - in the Peruvian Andes ...

That's your Monday Mountains fix for this week ... I hope you enjoyed it. 

Have a good day and as good a week as the social and political hysteria will allow. More thoughts coming. 

Bilbo