Featuring the Fabulous Dadbots: Dave S., Mark M., Mark O., Dennis Curley, and Geoff Carter ABC Television-ABC Photo, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons The New York Times: “Two Men Acquitted of Plotting to Kidnap Michigan Governor in High Profile Case” (April 8.2022) My Take: This ain’t your Efrem Zimbalist Jr.’s FBI anymore. Acquittal sounds valid. FBI hired loose …
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Category:Social Commentary
Kickass and Balcony Chickens
Photo by cottonbro: https://www.pexels.com/photo/white-chicken-in-cage-4911706/ By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, on this egg-dominated Easter morning, is not sure just where he stands on the request the keeper made to Vista West director Jeanne to keep a small flock of chickens on the 5th floor balcony where he and Phyllis live. Despite having …
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The Good Fight
Artwork by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter As awful and unfortunate as the last two years have been—a time that included the Covid epidemic and its economic fallout, the 2020 presidential election and the subsequent January 6th insurrection, and the George Floyd murder and BLM activism—the war in Ukraine is beyond horrible. In some ways, the …
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Old School Cinema: The Way We Were
Siebbi, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Geoff Carter In his recent Harper’s article “Il Maestro”, Martin Scorsese laments that today’s film industry has become so centered on profiteering that—in the world of marketing algorhythms and streaming platforms—cinematic art has been relegated to the same level as any type of streaming content, be it a commercial, …
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Land of the Lost
formulanone from Huntsville, United States, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Geoff Carter As I mentioned in last week’s post, my wife and I recently took a long cross-country road trip from the mean streets of Milwaukee to the enthralling natural beauty of New Mexico. Part—most of—the trip was spent on Interstate Highway 80 and …
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Kickass and Price of Gas
Daniel Christensen, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, failed in his attempt to prevent the keeper from participating in April-as-poetry-month, and he apologizes for that. THE PRICE OF GAS On stopping at the gas pumps In the company of grumps, Carrying a bucket of money, For …
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Kickass and Moral Posting
BakeNecko, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, informs the keeper that his—the keeper’s seeming ability to ignore the slaughter and suffering of millions of his planetary partners while producing lighthearted commentary about his personal ride on the big ball, does not speak to indifference, but to a coping …
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In Nebraska
Artwork by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter I recently had occasion to take a long cross-country road trip, spanning the Midwest, Colorado, and New Mexico. It’s a grueling ride, taking over twenty hours, but the pain is worth it. Driving through the plains and rolling hills and sometimes bleak plains offers the opportunity to get …
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You Can’t Go Home Again
Kenneth BranaghGiorgia Meschini, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Film Review of Belfast By Geoff Carter As a medium, narrative film is a palimpsest that draws the best from other art forms; like literature, it can convey the impression of a time and place through dialogue, characterization, and setting. Like two-dimensional art, it can frame an …
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Kickass and the Catalytic Converter
Photo by Kevin Bidwell: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-working-under-his-car-1388278/ By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports that in the interests of retaining a semblance of relevance, the keeper now has a job which he created for himself after the bus at Vista West, where he and Phyllis live, was temporarily out of service because some jerk crawled under …
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My Fellow Travelers
Artwork by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter As I was driving to work the other day, I stopped for a red light at a fairly busy intersection. As I waited for it to change, a blue Mustang pulled up next to me in the right turn lane. The driver paused, looked both ways, and then …
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Kickass and Special Communication Powers
Photo: Myrabella / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0 By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, has lent his special communications powers to the keeper as he—the keeper intercepts messages from the Russian oligarch who is buying Wisconsin as a location for his “up-nort” retreat. Obviously heavily influenced by the recent “60-Minutes” portrayal of Wisconsin as helplessly under the control …
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