wednesday newstrip

Flat-earther to launch himself in homemade steam rocket Saturday to show why you shouldn't buy an Amazon Echo or Google Home as a gift, & how Black Friday is changing · is the US Navy falling apart? 'Suggestive' statue of a saint handing a loaf of bread to a boy raises alarm about the military · voluntary assisted dying bill passes Victoria's Upper House, patrons at Bavarian beer bar forced to use public toilets · breastfeeding mom shames two scowling women at Disney World with perfect photo, sparks nuclear reactions in the sky · silent for more than a week, Precedent DoNuts T®ump all but endorsed embattled Alabama Republican Senate nominee Grope More, discounting the sexual assault allegations against him & insisting repeatedly that voters must not support More’s "liberal" rival.

the staff of — oops

the other side of the piece in the letterbox

wednesday newstrip

Woman, 42, charged with the murder of her wealthy sheep farmer partner. Mr Dunbar's body was reportedly found on the property on the town's outskirts, Pandora, by police connected to a helium canister · what would Japan do if they discovered North Korea was about to start a nuclear war? USQ astrophysicists make surprising, ancient find · T®ump Tweets “I Should Have Left Them in Jail” about Australian Pram Minister Malcontent Turnipballs ministers divided over religious protections in same-sex marriage bill · coin released for Queen's 70th anniversary complicates search for missing sub · Mugabe vows to stay on in national address, even though arrested for breaching AVO & for dangerous driving.

the dollar sign

text tile #3

wednesday newstrip

Facebook is killing off the Messenger Day brand & merging the chat app’s stories feature with Facebook Stories after discovering Australia's economy is built on shaky foundations · BMW i3 electric car prices get a charge for 2018 after learning that a Mormon mother-of-two started making hundreds of thousands as an escort · DoNuts T®ump has ended a marathon trip to Asia by skipping an international summit after the event was delayed by about two hours · 10 great, perfect, solid-Mithril ideas for Lord Of The Rings TV spin-offs including "how sugar is killing us slowly" · illegal puppy trade surges in UK ready for Christmas.

suicide squad

incidental to

wednesday newstrip

Japanese host Shinzo Abe forced to play second fiddle to ego of DoNuts T®ump. Mental health is your problem here, this isn't a guns situation, says T®ump · I never knew there were so many countries, DoNuts T®ump tells banquet dignitaries in Japan. Mental health is your problem here, this isn't a guns situation, says T®ump · Three US navy aircraft carriers to 'wargame' as T®ump tours Asia. Mental health is your problem here, this isn't a guns situation, says T®ump · T®ump is opening up a new front in his war against Obamacare. Mental health is your problem here, this isn't a guns situation, says T®ump · T®ump voices support for Saudi leaders amid political purge. Mental health is your problem here, this isn't a guns situation, says T®ump · We have every reason to fear T®ump’s pick to head Nasa. Mental health is your problem here, this isn't a guns situation, says T®ump.

text tile #2

you're kidding me

I remarked on this

in the days of Bush. Even more appropriate now.

“The larger the mob, the harder the test. In small areas, before small electorates, a first rate man occasionally fights his way through, carrying even a mob with him by the force of his personality. But when the field is nationwide, and the fight must be waged chiefly at second or third hand, and the force of personality cannot so readily make itself felt, then all the odds are on the man who is, intrinsically the most devious and mediocre — the man who can most adeptly disperse the notion that his mind is a virtual vacuum.

“The Presidency tends, year by year, to go to such men. As democracy is perfected, the office represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. We move toward a lofty ideal. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their hearts desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.”
—H.L. Mencken, The Baltimore Evening Sun, July 26, 1920

random salamanders

Now out. A Wanton Text Production.

"Mark Young's playful and allusive new book of poetry engages words as both sources and objects."

68 pages
$US6.95
http://www.lulu.com/shop/mark-young/random-salamanders/paperback/product-23382538.html
Drew B. David, Publisher.
(To whom my thanks.)

text tile #1

wednesday newstrip

T®ump's endless spats & Twitter tantrums reveal a man who is thin-skinned, self-obsessed, & pathetically insecure · Google shrugs off Pixel 2 issues, but adds an extra year to its warranty anyway · what a small, pitiful man DoNuts T®ump is. His ego is gigantic, yes, but it’s also pathetically fragile · UK minister embroiled in sex toys scandal · The National Lottery ‘Lotto’ draw results from Saturday 28th October 2017. Saudi Arabia has become the first country to grant a robot citizenship — & critics say “Sophia” already has more rights than the country’s women · Australian PM had to repeatedly explain refugee deal to T®ump during call — here's how the Aston Martin DB11 V8 really compares to the V12 · Oxfam urges Australian fashion brands to end worker exploitation.