Self-Defense in Indiana

I know reporters shouldn't jump to conclusions, even though they often do, but it isn't much of a leap to see a domestic violence case here. Intruder shot dead by homeowner after entering home in Yoder | WANE 15

An armed man entered a home. He was confronted by the male homeowner, and shot several times. He died at the scene.

So far a typical home invasion/self-defense story.

Officers at the scene were told that the intruder was previously in a relationship with the female homeowner. It is unclear why the man entered the home.

I'm going to go out on a limb and assume he was pissed off because she left him, and he was going to kill her, the man in the home, and maybe the kids as well. There were 2 kids in the home.

People need to come to terms with the statement, "It's over."

This took place in the town of Yoder, Indiana. Yoder is about a 10 mile drive from downtown Fort Wayne, Indiana, or about 120 mile drive north-northeast of Indianapolis.

The cops didn't arrest anyone, but the DA will make the decision about any charges after the autopsy is complete, and the cops submit their report.

Lucasfilm No Longer Understands Visual Storytelling

Shadiversity critiques the fight scenes in Disney's Star Wars: The Acolyte. Weapons And Fight Scene Expert Mocks ‘The Acolyte’s’ Lightsaber Fight Scene: “They’re Not Even Aiming For Each Other”

Shad Brooks is a YouTube creator, author and historian. I found him because he is regular on Friday Night Tights. He took a tour of The United Kingdom, and reviewed a lot of castles, even getting a behind-the-scenes tour of at least one castle. If you like history, you might like that series. Most of Brooks' content is about European swords and armor, with a review of a few modern weapons as well.

Most of the complaints about The Acolyte are about the Woke messaging. This critique is about the failure of visual storytelling. Specifically, it is about fight scene choreography. Something that has been dear to my heart since I was watching Errol Flynn and Basil Rathbone in The Adventures of Robin Hood on Sunday TV as a kid. It was taken seriously in everything from the original Pirates of the Caribbean movie, to Highlander: The Series. (The best sword duel committed to film is probably from the 1940 film The Mark of Zorro. That link will take you to my thoughts on it.)

Brooks applied his knowledge of swords and sword fighting to the latest light saber fights in a recent episode of Star Wars: The Acolyte.

Brooks was unimpressed with the show’s lightsaber fights from the very beginning, pointing out that a number of the Jedi knights did not even aim at the Sith, who would later be revealed to be Qimir.

He noted, “Now, we get the first close up. And already we have a bit of a problem. You see, I call him Smylo Ren because of that awful looking helmet, alright. He is attacking a Jedi off to the side, but what about this guy right here. He’s just hanging back. That’s not a good sign. From the very beginning Smylo’s just completely open and this guy right here [doesn’t take the killing blow]. … He’s open. Small thing. Not a good start.”

From that not-a-good start it gets worse. From people waiting their turn, to literally not trying to hit the other guy, you have to wonder who came up with this choreography. Especially when the fight scenes were clearly intended to carry the narrative of the episode. There have been good fight scenes in Star Wars, and not so good fight scenes that still managed to propel the narrative of whatever story was being told. This episode fails on both counts.

Then there is the stupid stuff. In the middle of a sword fight you punch the guy. If he's open for a fist blow, why not hit him with your sword? Oh, because the director, or the fight coordinator thought it looked cool. It doesn't.

Brooks added, “I hate it. I hate it when someone in a fight scene resorts to using a limb, an unarmed attack when they’re holding a weapon and they could have just hit them with the weapon.”

I could go on but you can read the article yourself.

Shad has 2 videos, a 10 minute overview, and the full, hour and 20 minute, scene by scene dissection of the travesty of an episode.

• Star Wars THE ACOLYTE fight scenes are TERRIBLE!!! - Shadlands 10 minute overview
• Star Wars THE ACOLYTE - Fight Scene Autopsy - Shadiversity full 1 hr 22 min review

The first video is a heavily edited version of the longer video. I should note I have not finished the long review, I will get to that later today. The short video is quite good.

Looking for the Summer

Today we have a song I found via Social Media. It can be OK if you avoid the insanity; that is not easy to do.

Chris Rea is a British musician who had a fair amount of success in the UK and Europe, but didn't really make it on this side of the pond. Part of that was his own doing, as he refused to do an American tour for his big, early album. It's too bad really.

This song is "Looking for the Summer (New Generation Mix)" by Chris Rea. The song was originally on his 1991 album Auberge. I haven't been able to figure out when the remix was done. (There was a remix released when the album came out; it was on a 7 inch vinyl. This is listed as "Version 2" so I'm not sure when this was released.)

Tuesday Links - 2 July

Meep is up first with International Lightning Safety Day: 2024 Lightning Death Toll Already at 3.

I’m sorry to report that during Lightning Safety Week this year, we had a lightning strike death:

News 12 New Jersey: Police: Man who died while getting kids off Seaside Park beach was struck by lightning

The Other McCain - Democrats Singing ‘Suspicious Minds’

Democrats are caught in a trap. They can’t walk out. As much as they may want to dump Joe Biden, there are a few problems — perhaps insurmountable problems — with any scenario to replace him.

The Other McCain - A Substack About Nothing

You can and should read the whole thing, which is 3,600 words long, but I figured if I was going to introduce myself to a new readership, the introduction should be thorough.

Lone Star Parson - Who's In Charge?

Look how she roars! Jill Biden, maybe she will save us from Pompey Redivivus, aka Orange Man Bad. Maybe she will, maybe she'll keep the Corrupt Old Fraud in power, forcing him to run again, even though he's a husk of a man, a burned out shell whom the demons have left like a discarded toy.

Tam at View From The Porch - Plane Size

Wow, this photo really gives a good perspective of the relative sizes of these things.

Again from The Other McCain - In Defense of Cynicism

There is an unfortunate shortage of Cynicism among the young nowadays. Their idealistic conceptions of “social justice” make them automatic suckers for every “cause” that comes along.

Self-Defense Appears to Be Legal in Alabama

But then I thought that it was. Man shot and killed by another in self-defense, Tuscaloosa County authorities determined

Two men were shot. One died; one is in the hospital.

The [Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit] said after interviews were completed and the District Attorney's Office reviewed the case, it was determined that [the dead guy] appeared to be the aggressor in the incident and he was shot in self-defense.

Tuscaloosa, Alabama is about a 50 mile drive southwest of Birmingham.

No charges have been filed against the defender, because self-defense is a human right, and this didn't take place in NYC.

Considering that this event took place on June 29th, and cops and the DA made the determination of self-defense in one day, I would say that the evidence must be overwhelming. It can take DAs MONTHS to make a determination of self-defense.

The 5 Years Are Up, And We Aren't Extinct

From Samuel Short of The Western Journal at The Gateway Pundit. It's Been 6 Years Since Greta Thunberg Warned We Have 5 Years to Stop the Extinction of Humanity

Of course like everything that came out of (comes out of?) Saint Greta of the Thunberg, she was only parroting what she was told to say. In this case it was a misquote of someone else. With an emphasis on the Leftist part of her "pronouncement."

So either she was full of shyte, or we've passed the point of no return.

In January 2018, James Anderson, a professor of atmospheric chemistry at Harvard, gave a speech that was covered by Forbes.

Anderson remarked in that speech on damage he claimed climate change is doing to the “permanent ice” at the Earth’s poles, and its implications for the globe, according to Forbes.

“The chance that there will be any permanent ice left in the Arctic after 2022 is essentially zero,” he said, according to Forbes. “Can we lose 75-80 percent of permanent ice and recover? The answer is no.”

Go read the whole thing. From how the media protected their darling spokeswoman, because she was only a child, how dare you give her a hard time. (Well, maybe you shouldn't have used her as a spokeswoman then) to their refusal to fact check her or the article she quoted, and their willingness to attack anyone on the Right who had anything bad to say.

Mainstream Media Recognizes Current Star Wars Reality

Erik Kain of Forbes hasn't been shilling, exactly, for Star Wars: The Acolyte, but has been spinning it a bit in a positive light. That is changing. ‘The Acolyte’ Continues A Long, Tragic ‘Star Wars’ Tradition: Ruining The Jedi

There are two things he covers that highlight what a lot of Fandom has been saying for a long time: Modern Hollywood doesn't understand storytelling. They've also never heard of the idea, "Less is More."

First with one of my all-time, favorite stories, Lord of the Rings. "Less Galadriel was more Galadriel."

In The Lord Of The Rings movies, Galadriel is presented as faithfully to the source material as is humanly possible. She is beautiful, ethereal and mysterious. She is at once a source of courage for the Fellowship and somewhat terrifying when she meets with Frodo by her mirror. She is not in very many scenes and doesn’t have very many lines (though she gets to do the intro narration!) but her presence in the films looms large. You do not forget her.

In The Rings Of Power, Galadriel is transformed into the chief protagonist and in doing so is much diminished. She is a warrior here, the general of the Northern Armies (because elves are big on military titles!) and rather than mysterious and terrifying, she’s petulant and boastful. She is robbed of her power, so much of which came from how little we truly understand her in the books or films. She’s like an angel or a demigod, removed from conflict, apart from it though certainly still consequential in the bigger scheme.

Writers today claim to value mystery. Jar Jar Abrams built his entire production company, Bad Reboot Robot, on "The Mystery Box." But they really don't understand mystery or mysterious characters at all.

The same applies to the Jedi.

The more Jedi we’re given onscreen, the less awesome they become. That’s not to say that young Obi-Wan wasn’t cool, or that I didn’t enjoy Darth Maul (the same rule applies to the Sith) but as more movies have come out and more shows like Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka arrive only to fall flat, the Jedi have just gotten less and less compelling. I didn’t hate old-and-bitter Luke Skywalker from the sequels, but the movies failed to really give him a worthwhile story. He didn’t earn the rushed redemption arc he was given. Face it, Luke’s story was over in Return Of The Jedi, and maybe so was the story of the Jedi.

And I should note that most people hate the "old-and-bitter Luke Skywalker," just as the hate the "old-and-bitter" Indiana Jones, even if Erik Kain didn't. (Hat tip to Echo Base Network.)

Zenith

Ghost is an odd band. Visually they are Heavy Metal through and through. (I guess that I associate corpse paint with Metal.) A lot of their music reminds me more of old school Rock & Roll.

This song is "Zenith" by Ghost from their December 2023 album 13 Commandments.

The Crimes Against Women That Are Ignored

From The Other McCain we get the following: Violence Against Women Update.

Four women ranging in age from late teens to early 20s were kidnapped in Pennsylvania. The ordeal was horrific. You can click thru for the details.

Strange to say, this crime has apparently gotten zero attention from feminists, who have made violence against women a subject of their activism for more than three decades. Likewise, we have heard nothing from the White House about this horrific crime, despite the fact that President Joe Biden frequently touts his credentials on the issue.

I can't imagine why the Left would ignore this story, can you?

Concealed-Carry In Chicago

It is really catching on. Englewood, Chicago shooting today: Concealed-Carry License holder critically injures man during gas station shootout, police say - ABC7 Chicago

A Concealed-Carry License holder shot and critically injured a man during a shootout on Chicago's South Side early Saturday morning, police said.

Englewood, a neighborhood on Chicago's South Side. It is currently listed in the HeyJackass! statistics as the most dangerous neighborhood in the city, with 20 homicides and 89 shot and wounded in 2024.

The investigation is ongoing, so not very many details have been released. I'm kind of shocked that self defense seems to be taking hold in Chicago as fast as it is.

The Demise of Chevron Deference and the Tech Industry

Pixy Misa at Ambient Irony has some straight forward analysis of what this means for the tech industry. Daily News Stuff 29 June 2024: Unreal Estate Edition

Before getting to the general tech news, Pixy Misa covers two stories about Chevron and the FCC's regulatory overreach.

As with the previous article, the writers of this piece freely admit that the regulatory agencies are engaged in an unbridled and unconstitutional power grab; they just believe this is a good thing.

The article notes that the FTC's recent ruling against noncompete clauses is likely in trouble because - once again - the FTC never had the authority to make such a ruling in the first place.

People are wringing their hands over the fact that the FCC can't make shit up as they go, because the laws on the books haven't been updated in decades. Pixy Misa has some advice:

Write better laws.

One item of note in the general tech news:

Mustafa Suleyman, a less-successful clone of OpenAI's Sam Altman, has confirmed that Microsoft is taking all your data to train its AI and they don't give a shit what you think about it. (The Register) [SNIP]

Looks like it's take off and nuke the entire site from orbit o'clock.

Will Police Be Held Accountable for Uvalde?

This is a first step, but I doubt that it will come to anything in the end. Uvalde school shooting: Pete Arredondo indicted over police response

A 10-count indictment made public Friday accuses former Uvalde school district police chief Pete Arredondo of 10 missteps that led to the botched law enforcement response to an active shooter who killed 19 children and two teachers in May 2022.

Authorities booked Arredondo on Thursday into the county jail, where he spent about 90 minutes before being released on bond.

A grand jury also indicted former school district police officer Adrian Gonzales, whose role has been less public in the two years and one month since the shooting. He had not been booked into jail as of Friday, and an indictment in his case remains under seal.

There is the thing called Limited Immunity, which in practice, is more like Unlimited Immunity. It is a doctrine, created out of whole cloth, by the courts. It means you basically can't hold the cops accountable unless they violate your civil rights, in very specific ways. The cops have no duty to protect you, not even if you have a court order of protection. None of the students or teachers had such court orders. I don't see how the prosecution will overcome that. In the end, I believe this is a political move by the DA to gain points with the community.

And here is a reminder of who the biggest group of losers were, on that day in Uvalde, Texas. Namely, the Uvalde PD Swat Team. (They sure look cool in their fancy outfits, but they are about as useful as a screen door in a submarine.) The photo was taken from the Uvalde PD website around the time of the shooting. (Hat tip to Buddy Brown.)

Faustino Oro Youngest Ever International Master in Chess

I find this somewhat amazing. Faustino Oro Becomes Youngest Ever International Master At 10

He is 10 years old, from Argentina. His rating is 2351 in classical chess. By contrast the current World Chess Champion, Ding Liren of China, has a rating of 2762.

Oro went undefeated through the nine-round Club de Ajedrez Barcelona event, which took place from June 26-30 in the Spanish city. The 10-year-old won four out of his first six games and drew the last three. With 6.5/9 points, the young Argentinian finished shared first with [International Master] Cristian Andres Hernandez, half a point ahead of [Grand Master] Hipolito Asis Gargatagli.

The Club de Ajedrez Barcelona event is a 10 player round-robin tournament. That means every player plays each of the other players once, hence the 9 games. I looked but I couldn't find out how the players are invited to tournament.

At 10 years, eight months, and 16 days the Argentinian prodigy has met all the requirements for the international master (IM) title, pending formal approval by the International Chess Federation (FIDE). He had already cruised well above the 2400 rating requirement when he narrowly missed a norm in the Madrid Chess Festival earlier this month.

"Norm" in the above paragraph refers to what exactly is required to be promoted to an International Master, or a Grand Master by the Fédération Internationale des Échecs or the World Chess Federation in English. It is the governing body for chess on the world stage. The organization's name, FIDE, is pronounced like Fee-day.