Linkee-poo, does this broadcast go to Parma

Waves to all my "new" readers. Welcome, folks, pull up a chair.

"Why do places such as the Winchester Mystery House creep us out and induce feelings of disorientation and dread? These places possess combinations of features that humans have evolved to regard with caution, either because they were associated with the presence of predators or natural hazards, or because they provide limited sensory information and restrict freedom of movement in a way that could impair our ability to deal with an emergent threat." Haunted houses and why we are drawn to them. (Grokked from Deborah Beale)

"We live in a layered continuum of time, and ghost stories make this explicit. Ghosts signal memories that won’t go away; they signal the guilt of culprits or survivors; they signal an eruption of the past into our present and the dead’s future as we watch a spirit repeatedly go through the motions of a last act." What we write when we write ghost stories.

"Until now, astronomers had seen only two kinds of Saturnian storms: relatively small storms about 2,000 kilometers across that appear as bright clouds for a few days and Great White Spots that are 10 times as large and last for months (SN: 4/14/15). The newly spotted weather disturbance was a series of four midsize storms. Each was several thousand kilometers across and lasted between about 1.5 weeks and about seven months."

"A tornado tore homes and businesses apart in a densely populated area of Dallas, where only minor injuries were reported, but a person was killed by a falling tree in northwest Arkansas as a late-night series of storms caused chaos in several states."

"Brain scientists are offering a new reason to control blood sugar levels: It might help lower your risk of developing Alzheimer's disease."

"A Colorado mother who sought donations to cover medical treatments for her daughter and promoted the girl's "bucket list" of dreams to fulfill before she died has been indicted on a murder charge in the 7-year-old's death that was previously believed to be from a terminal disease."

"But for the last year, a group of McDonald's employees in the southern French city of Marseille has been fighting to save its McDonald's restaurant." McDonalds as social equity.

"Four more parents have pleaded guilty in the sweeping college admissions cheating scheme, and the former president of a Texas tennis academy has agreed to do the same, federal prosecutors said Monday."

"The group pushing for a statewide referendum to overturn Ohio’s new nuclear bailout law says it won’t turn in petitions by Monday’s deadline, instead placing their hopes in a last-ditch attempt for a federal judge to grant them more time."

How goes Brexit? "The ruling by Speaker John Bercow triggered the government’s Plan B — an attempt to pass a Brexit-implementing bill through Britain’s fractious Parliament before the country’s scheduled Oct. 31 departure date. After months and years of political gridlock, the stage was set for another week of grinding parliamentary warfare."

"Canada's Liberals appear to have won the most seats in Parliament — a result likely to hand Justin Trudeau a second term as prime minister despite a series of scandals that have rocked his government." So he didn't win an outright majority, but he'll likely be able to form a strong government nonetheless. Give the black-face scandal headwinds, that's not too bad for him. And it looks like conservatives in Canada are the same in the US, poor losers. They're also poor winners, it's just they didn't win this time.

"Israel's long-standing Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has said he cannot form a government, handing the opportunity to his political rival." You know, the guy Netanyahu had to woo to get a majority coalition. Benny Gantz will most likely ask for Netanyahu to step down from his party leadership as the price for forming a government and not forcing a third election.

"The clashes have been rooted in a deep distrust of government on the part of the protesters, who view the federal bureaucracy as unlawfully impeding people from using public land for grazing, mining and other economic purposes." Note they're allowed to do this, but they must pay fees for using the public's land for economic gain. And the supposed freedom fighters just aren't willing to pay the exceeding low fees.

"President Donald Trump spoke at length during a Cabinet meeting on Monday about his decision to withdraw US troops from northern Syria -- arguing that the US never agreed to protect Syrian Kurds forever, suggesting the US may secure an oil deal for the Kurds to bolster their finances and saying he's 'the one that did the capturing' of ISIS fighters in Syria." Narcissism rears it's ugly head. Also, just a reminder, the US doesn't have a Status of Forces agreement with Syria.

"Half of Americans say President Donald Trump should be impeached and removed from office, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS, a new high in CNN polling on the topic and the first time that support for impeachment and removal has significantly outpaced opposition." So after touting the polls, I now await the president to restart his, "the polls said I wouldn't win in 2016, what do polls know?" line. And, again, the breakdown and movement in the polls is not surprising, but still interesting. And while not explicitly called out, the movement in the "independent" category is what is shifting the overall numbers.

"Ambassador William Taylor, who has been serving as the interim head of the U.S. diplomatic mission to Kyiv, is scheduled to talk behind closed doors with members and staff of the Intelligence, Foreign Affairs and Oversight committees."

Get yer program. Can't tell the players without a program. "As the Ukraine saga continues, oligarch Dmitry Firtash's name keeps popping up in unexpected places. We examine his connections to the wide cast of characters in President Trump's orbit." No transcript yet, but a good listen. For there being no collusion, there sure are a lot of fucking Russians hanging about.

"Rep. Tulsi Gabbard's clash with 2016 Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton has suddenly thrust her struggling 2020 presidential campaign into the spotlight." The first I heard about Tulsi Gabbard and a connection to Russia was sometime in February, and you know what? Every time she comes back into the spotlight there's something else to connect her to Russia. She may not be an active and willing dupe, but she sure plays into their plans well.

Another's opinion, "Much has been made of Hillary Clinton's implication that Tulsi Gabbard is someone Russia has 'their eye on.' While Gabbard has responded with claims that she is the subject of a coordinated smear campaign by Clinton, she has steadfastly refused to renounce any Russian support she may be receiving. As somebody who worked against Russian intelligence, I agree with Clinton's assessment—Gabbard's campaign and messaging are at risk of being weaponized to interfere with and manipulate our election." And again, for those in the back, Russia's goal is chaos, the breakup of the West, the weakening of the US on the world stage, and our retreat to our borders. The rest is tactics and gambits.

"Donald Trump is going all-in on a trio of Southern governor’s races in November, gambling that a clean sweep will help him regain his political footing at the most perilous moment of his presidency." It also helps his personality disorder to appear in front of crowds and people who "adore" him. These races will be where the GOP rolls out and troubleshoots their tools for the 2020 election.

Speaking of personality disorder… "President Trump, trying to dig out from political holes of his own making, held forth for 71 minutes Monday during what was ostensibly a Cabinet meeting, but ended up being a familiar torrent of grievance, defensiveness and expansive statements about his view of his own powers."

"'I'm trying to get out of wars. We may have to get in wars, too. OK? We may have to get in wars,' Trump told reporters at the White House." More of the winning I'm tired of.