Kickass and Ballpoint Pen Robbery

Attribution: Photo by Feodor Chistyakov on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the keeper mourning the shrinking nature of the honest press and telling Phyllis that during his long journalistic tenure he tried his best to stick to the facts which seemed satisfactory to most but not all readers. When the bank in Bancroft—population less …
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Kickass and Sleeping Cop

Attribution: Photo by Jessica Smith on Unsplash By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports the keeper having grown up in and around a two-man police force town—Barron, recognizes the personal nature of the relationship between the “law” and the citizens.  The records tend to be in the minds of the police and the policed, and the keeper …
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Tightening the Screws

Attribution: Chad Davis, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Geoff Carter I like to think of myself (perhaps generously) as something of a handyman. I’ve made a few repairs around the house. I’ve fixed leaky faucets, running toilets, and squeaky doors I’ve changed storm windows, tuned up our lawnmower, and preformed other sundry houselhold tasks.  …
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Kickass Looks for Hope

Illustration by Michael DiMilo By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper and Phyllis and the entire US population in struggling to survive the incredibly cruel machinations of dim-witted thugs hired by the narcissistic POTUS to traumatize, manhandle and kill the citizens in their own communities. MONEY in the hands of power-mad phonies …
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Kickass and Arboretum Deer Herd

Attribution: John Davis, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper and Phyllis in acknowledging the fact that sharing Wisconsin’s varied landscape with tens of thousands of white tail deer produces a daily mix of pleasures and woes.  There is the constant traffic competition with thousands of …
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Kickass and New Holiday

Attribution: Illustration of Humpty Dumpty from Through the Looking Glass, by John Tenniel, 1871., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports to the keeper with inside information that billionaire POTUS sycophants have purchased Ground Hog’s Day, Easter, Valentines Day, and April Fools Day to fabricated a combined holiday gift …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: Review of “Blue Moon”

★★★1/2 Words Fail Me: Film Review of Blue Moon Illustration by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter Cinema can be magnificent and breathtakingly epic or intensely, even painfully, intimate. David Lean’s Lawrence of Arabia and Ryan’s Daughter presented brilliantly photographed landscapes that at times seemed to dwarf seemingly lesser aspects of the human condition. Films like Twelve Angry Men, My Dinner …
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Kickass and Silver Badgers

Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper in noting that for the past six afternoons Phyllis has joined fellow Silver Badgers at the intersection of Gammon Rd and Tree Lane in a sign-carrying protest against the cruel stupidity and murdering being foisted on the world by the narcissistic …
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