"Mommy, what were you doing when the war started?"
[pause]
"Your grandma took us to a water park."
Napoleon went to a water park and enjoyed it.
My feelings for Fontainebleau are complicated.
You got the wrong idea about waterloo, ziggy.
Is ajay around? Anyone else know anything about aircraft? Three four engine prop plans just flew very low over downtown, directly over my office, heading towards the airport. Low enough that I could feel the vibrations. One after another. The Montana Air NG has some C-130s, but I'm not sure if these were those.
Are we being occupied? Is this ICE?
C-130J maybe? I didn't get a look at the front.
8: If I'm correctly using the playback feature on ADS-B Exchange, I see a military C-130J Super Hercules took off from your airport around 17:51 UTC, circled around an empty-looking area east of town (around Bonner Mountain?), at about 7,000 feet, then passed right over the middle of town at about 3700 feet as it returned to the airport, landing 17:59.
Just one though.
Correction, it took off 17:48. Playback from here.
Registration 11-5752, for which these seem to be photos.
Maybe the phantom antifa buses are book, cloaked even more invisibly than before.
For some reason I can't seem to follow the radar after 18:00. Maybe they only archive an hour at a time.
On the live feed a military C-130H is approaching the town. But it's at 26,000 ft and started in St. Paul, so that's just a ship in the night.
Aha, now I can see more recent playback. 11-5752 looked like it was landing, went right over the runway, but instead of landing it turned again, went near but not directly over the town at 18:01, this time higher around 9,000 ft & climbing, proceeded much further east, was joined by a C-30J around Deer Lodge... I'll keep looking, but that brings us up to 18:19 so past Charley's report. So I've accounted for two of the overflights. Three if you include the first eastward leg, though that was also not right over town.
3700 feet is pretty low. Airport is at 3206.
Seems pretty ridiculous. I guess they just wanted a quick look around.
From your link, they've flown away, and just over Garrison what was showing as one became two. I'm guessing the three were too close together to register as separate aircraft.
That site is pretty cool.
Oh, C-30J is the type code denoting C-130J for both.
8: can't help much beyond that I'm afraid, but there can't be much flying around in US airspace with four props that isn't a C-130.
If it was Bears we would have a problem. But if it was Bears Charley would now be deaf because those things are really rather loud.
You're right, the one that I said "joins" it further east (reg 07-46312) doesn't have a path tracing its history back, it just suddenly appears on the map. So close formation makes snese.
The only other person in my office today has a green card, based on the Jay Treaty. If either Trump or Noem ever learn of the Jay Treaty they'll surely repudiate it. We're not looking forward to a visit from ICE.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Treaty
If I could do a Trump impression, I'd be blathering on about why this was a bad deal, the worst deal ever.
24: This provision?
As a result of the Jay Treaty, "Native Indians born in Canada are therefore entitled to enter the United States for the purpose of employment, study, retirement, investing, and/or immigration" if they can prove that they have at least 50% blood quantum, and cannot be deported for any reason.[27][28] Article III of the Jay Treaty is the basis of most Native American claims.[29] Unlike other legal immigrants, Canadian-born Native Americans residing in the US are entitled to public benefits and domestic tuition fees on the same basis as citizens https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Treaty
That treaty has had detectors since the beginning.
Look, if democracy ends tomorrow, I don't want to be all "dang, missed the water park while the getting was good." No ragrets!
I'm thinking if democracy ended tomorrow, the water park would be fine.
And 11-5752 has just crossed over the state line into Nebraska, seemingly headed for Omaha.
There's lots of good restaurants there.
Moby, we're trying to transmit top secret info to the Resistance! We can only disclose the Code on Standpipe's blog.
29: oh really? the water park of JUSTICE??
26 Yes. Of course, she's had some difficulties at the border over the last several years. She was in Mexico for surgery and was detained at the border on the way back. Then once the border folks figured out what was happening, she got released even before the efforts of various of us calling on various worthies bore fruit. She has grandchildren in Canada, and visits more than once a year. The morons who guard our border have difficulty understanding this. (I also had the FBI wondering why I went to Canada so often during the years my parents lived there during the summer. Brains in vats pretending to be humans with whips.).
I would never have guessed that this treaty provision had survived, but apparently so.
Damn John Jay!
Damn everyone who that won't damn John Jay!
Damn everyone that won't put lights in his window and sit up all night damning John Jay!
22: P3 Orions are in the air with some frequency in the US, still.
And I've seen the A400 Atlas in the Boston area several times in the past few months.
After a significant recovery in the polls for Trump, he seems to be dropping like a rock again. Giving the timing, I'm thinking it must be immigration/LA.
41: It's because everyone hates a parade.
40 good lord. Really? I assumed they must have all been retired ages ago and replaced with P-8s.
And I wonder who's flying that Atlas. The US doesn't operate them, neither does Canada.
so are all the protests at 5 pm local times? or is that just here and austin? what time is the dumb parade?
There are two here. One at 12:30 and the other at 2. Then one on Sunday.
Either early news reports are exaggerated or billionaires can die from swallowing a bee.
There is one combined with the Pride Parade in Boston, so you don't get to march. There is an hour-long event in the town next door. I was leaning on taking the train to Boston, because that's easier than finding parking in Concord. Tim is sick, so I said I would stay to take care of him and tne dog, but I'm probably being lazy because of the weather and feeling very unsure of what the point of going to a gathering in Boston that you can't march in is for.
Anyone else in MA going to anything?
Control in MN House and Senate are even and +1 D respectively.
Representative and her husband were killed per Walz.
But apparently legislature not in session until January.
The bus downtown is full before it can even get out of Squirrel Hill. I'm not willing to make or fuss with a sign, so I just wore my Harris Walz hat.
About to catch a train into Penn, meeting nosflow and a couple of other friends
The flag on the city county building is at half mast, I assume because of the death of Rep. Hortman. But not the flag at court house.
I came down with whatever Tim had so I just skipped it and will proceed to feel guilty.
That Minnesota thing sucks.
On the train heading to the city center now. My poor mom is so anxious, worrying about things getting out of hand. But yeah. Don't want Rory having to tell the littles one day that their grammy stayed home to garden.
My neighborhood (Clintonville) protest is huge! ( for a neighborhood protest, obviously)
I was once at a baby shower in Clintonville, only baby shower I've been to. It was a lesbian couple expecting twin boys. They did not follow my suggestion and name them "Rod" and "Todd." If they don't want suggestions like that, they shouldn't have given me beer.
67: a lesbian couple baby shower is exactly the stereotype of Clintonville, for all of you far from the Heart of it All.
Wish we'd start marching. Standing still makes my hip hurt.
Now getting ready to march. I hope we sing "Do you hear the people singing?".
Passed a protest on the two-mile drive to the protest we were going to. Lotta horn-honking. Feels good to be reminded that there are decent people out there.
I can't be at a protest, so I'm pointing dumb stuff on BlueSky. Did you know that on the Great Seal of NYS, the escutcheon is supported by Liberty and Justice, and Liberty is treading a crown underfoot? Seems relevant lately.
Also lobbying against Cuomo in the FB comments of a friendly acquaintance who is one of those upsetting people with generally pleasantly liberal politics except for complete hardline support of the Israeli government, and elevation of that set of issues into areas where it's not relevant like the NYC mayoral race.
I did what I could talking up Cuomo's incompetence and corruption, and pushing Lander in his place: he's competent! He's experienced! [unstated: He's Jewish!]
But arguing about politics on FB is a stupid thing to do, and I really shouldn't do it.
I'm really glad I didn't wear my "Free Palestine (with purchase of greater or equal Palestine)" t-shirt.
75: I am so angry at the Dem establishment types who have decided to get behind Cuomo. Shitty Governor and all, but then sexual harasser too. Kristin Gillibrand pushed for Franken to resign and Cuomo's harassment was much worse and more systematic, but she seems to be ok with this. I am also angry with her about the Genius Act sponsorship garbage. It was about 45-50 years before we gradually forgot the lessons of the Great Depression. 16 years before we're willing to introduce worse systemic risk with the Genius Act. Cory Booker completely blew the good he did with his filibuster by voting for that garbage.
71: At least the 2nd of these in P'burgh we've both been at but not run into each other....
My sign was small and too indirect and pointlessly "clever," but I enjoyed coming up with it.
https://bsky.app/profile/jpstormcrow.bsky.social/post/3lrlr456ddc2g
There were at least fifty seven people there. I tried to count, but everyone moved.
Maybe a couple hundred in Berlin still there for No Kings when I turned up about an hour late.
Later on I marched with the Ukrainians and a smattering of Georgians. We went down the street from the Brandenburg Gate, and I stayed with them most of the way around the Russian Embassy, which is huge. The protestors shouted mean things about Russia, but nobody from the embassy appeared at the windows.
This is horrific.Guy still at large, list of protests and lawmakers found in his things, dressed credibly as a police officer. Be safe... chopper?
">https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/14/democratic-lawmakers-minnesota-shot"> https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/14/democratic-lawmakers-minnesota-shot
We had 2000 people show up at our event. It was awesome.
I have not found a crowd estimate for Pittsburgh.
Just saw a Pittsburgh picture over on bluesky. Definitely 57+ in attendance.
It may just be a function of the people I follow on bluesky, and the posts they all choose to share, but the pictures I am seeing from across the country code as mostly to very white. I think that's both good and important.
The April one was reported as having a crowd of about six thousand people. This was clearly bigger. But I can't tell by how much.
71: Damn it. If I'd seen this sooner, I would absolutely have made it happen. Or, anyway, I would have sung loudly in the rough neighborhood of on key.