Speculator, NY

When police become partisan, they may very well become defunded 👮🏼‍♂️

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As police become partisan, they may very well become defunded 👮🏼‍♂️

The best way to lose funding and see tough new laws targeted upon your industry is be a strong supporter of the looser’s campaigns. Politicians are unlikely to be funding or supporting the opposition. If you are a Republican supporting cause don’t expect a lot of support from Democrats.

Republicans and often the white and male, conservative leadership of police unions might think people’s fear of crime is a winning issue in the short term it might be but it’s not a sustainable position in an era when crime is historically low and more people are concerned about death and sickness from the pandemic and job loses related to various shutdowns. It’s actually rather tone deaf.

Police unions might think they’re untouchable as law enforcement is viewed as essential service. But essential doesn’t mean irreplaceable – both personnel and agencies can be replaced with new services. Social services, civilian clerks, technology such as speed cameras, and even alternative public safety agencies can replace traditional police forces. Often the alternatives to conventional policing is much cheaper, more just and more humane.

Even if steps aren’t taken to reduce existing forces, police who have largely backed Republicans are certain to face more scrutiny when their future contracts are renewed and when budget allocations are granted in places where Democrats are in control. It’s really not a good place for them to be in politically when they’re identified with one political party.

September 24, 2020 Evening

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Good evening! Partly cloudy and 59 degrees in Speculator, NY. ⛅ There is a west breeze at 6 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 52 degrees.

It was a nice day but a busy one with work. 💼 The colors up in Speculator are pretty nice, 🍂 and it was nice working from the park and at the library. 📚 It was odd though that I ran into one of my neighbors up at Spectulator – he was actually working up at the library too. He apparently was up here on vacation too. With the Wi-Fi and cellphone it was as easy as working at home. 📶 That said, camping in the wilderness.

Tonight will be mostly cloudy 🌥, with a low of 51 degrees at 10pm. Three degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical night around September 18th. Maximum dew point of 53 at 8pm. West wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the evening. In 2019, we had cloudy skies in the evening, which became partly cloudy by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 50 degrees. The record low of 29 occurred back in 1963.

Nice mild evening 🌃. I can’t believe it’s nine o’clock but it’s still warm enough to be sitting outside wearing a t-shirt 👕. Nice fire 🔥 for a while and now it’s burning down as the night progresses. It gets dark this time of year and the nights are long, with nearly more night than day. The eight hour nights have come and gone into a memory.

Tonight will have a First Quarter 🌓 Moon with 58% illuminated. At 7 PM, the moon was in the south (171°) at an altitude of 22° from the horizon, some 234,640 miles away from where you are looking up from the earth. 🚀 At the state speed limit of 55 mph, you’ll make it there by March 21st. Buckle up for safety! 💺 The Hunter 🏹 Moon is on Thursday, October 1. The darkest hour is at 12:50 am, followed by dawn at 6:20 am, and sun starting to rise at 6:48 am in the east (90°) and last for 2 minutes and 57 seconds. Sunrise is one minute and 8 seconds later than yesterday. 🌄 The golden hour ends at 7:26 am with sun in the east (97°). Tonight will have 11 hours and 58 minutes of darkness, an increase of 2 minutes and 57 seconds over last night.

Tomorrow will be mostly sunny 🌞, with a high of 74 degrees at 3pm. Six degrees above normal, which is similar to a typical day around September 12th. Maximum dew point of 56 at 10am. Calm wind becoming southwest 5 to 8 mph in the morning. A year ago, we had partly cloudy skies in the morning with some clearing in the afternoon. The high last year was 76 degrees. The record high of 91 was set in 2017.

Should be another nice day. 😀 Back down to Spectulator in the morning for a Zoom Meetings and then probably walking down by Lake Pleasant. I can do most things from my phone 📱 but the Wi-Fi is helpful for certain things. And as another warm evening. I will probably get up really early to go hiking come Saturday.

In four weeks on October 22 the sun will be setting in the west-southwest (255°) at 6:02 pm,🌄 which is 48 minutes and 6 seconds earlier then tonight. In 2019 on that day, we had mostly cloudy, rain showers and temperatures between 59 and 43 degrees. Typically, you have temperatures between 57 and 38 degrees. The record high of 86 degrees was set back in 1979.

Looking ahead, Average High is 60 🍂 is in 3 weeks, Thanksgiving 🦃 is in 9 weeks, 7:15 AM Sunrise ⌛️ is in 11 weeks, Christmas Eve 🎅 is in 3 months, New Years Eve 🎆 is in 14 weeks, Coldest Week of the Year 🌬 is in 16 weeks, Wolf Moon 🌕 is in 18 weeks, Don’t Cry over Spilled Milk Day 🥛 is in 20 weeks and National Drink Wine Day 🍷 is in 21 weeks.

Untitled [Expires December 28 2024]

July 31, 2020 Morning

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Good morning! Where did July go? Tomorrow is August already – I know, wow. Partly sunny and 62 degrees in Delmar, NY. There is a north-northwest breeze at 6 mph. 🍃. The dew point is 58 degrees.

I went for my morning walk 🚶 and it was quite pleasant. I’m going to head down to the library shortly and work down there, the internet is so much faster and reliable there 💻 plus my phone is a dying so I can’t use that for internet or email right now. 💀

Scheduled my oil change for Tuesday. 🔧 I used do it myself but by the time I ran to two or three stores to buy oil and the in filter, struggled to get the filter off, it just isn’t worth my time. Plus then you have the used oil to return – if u lived out in the country I’d use it to burn brush 🔥 but in the city I have to take it bdck to the store for recycling. ♻ Oil kind of stinks when you burn it too and the synthetic stuff I swear is harder to burn.

Today will be mostly sunny 🌞, with a high of 83 degrees at 2pm. One degree above normal, which is similar to a typical day around July 26th. Average highs are already cooling down a fair bit. Maximum dew point of 63 at 11am. North wind around 7 mph. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies. It was very sticky. The high last year was 81 degrees. The record high of 98 was set in 1917.

Today is work 💼 and then heading out to the folks house for a picnic dinner. 🍲 I haven’t seen them in weeks because I’ve been been traveling. Should be a pretty nice day, still muggy but that’s not expected for late July.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 1:02 pm with sun having an altitude of 65.5° from the due south horizon (-5.3° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 2.7 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:37 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (289°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (296°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:18 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 13 seconds with dusk around 8:48 pm, which is one minute and 8 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌇 At dusk you’ll see the Full 🌝 Moon in the south-southeast (150°) at an altitude of 18° from the horizon, 235,158 miles away. 🚀 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:29 pm. At sunset, look for mostly clear skies 🌄 and temperatures around 78 degrees. The dew point will be 61 degrees. There will be a north-northwest breeze at 6 mph. Today will have 14 hours and 29 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 2 minutes and 10 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will be mostly clear 🌃, with a low of 61 degrees at 6am. One degrees below normal, which is similar to a typical night around August 2nd. Maximum dew point of 62 at 9pm. North wind around 6 mph. In 2019, we had mostly clear skies. It was somewhat humid. It got down to 61 degrees. The record low of 46 occurred back in 1964.

Tomorrow will have patchy fog before 7am. Otherwise, mostly sunny 🌞, with a high of 86 degrees at 4pm. Four degrees above normal. Maximum dew point of 64 at 10am. North wind 3 to 6 mph. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies. It was very sticky. The high last year was 85 degrees. The record high of 101 was set in 1933.

Tomorrow I’m going to a socially distant small gathering 🐐 at a friend’s farm after hiking and fishing 🎣 at Partridge Run. Maybe a tad bit muggy tomorrow but should be a nice day.

Looking ahead to Sunday, a chance of showers and thunderstorms, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 2pm. ☔ Mostly cloudy, with a high near 83. South wind 5 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Maximum dew point of 70 at 8pm. Typical average high for the weekend is 82 degrees.

I will probably stay home on Sunday 🏡 and do some reading 📖 of the many books I’ve gotten out of the library. 📚 I’ve been so busy lately and I need to finish putting away my camping stuff when it’s hopefully not so hot out. 😰

alt-sun-from-horizon [Expires December 20 2024]

Old Route 8

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I am amazed how well banked the curves are along Old Route 8B. While the curves have bad site distance, the banking certainly makes it possible for one to speed along them, at least before the road got so rough.

Taken on Thursday July 23, 2020 at Speculator, NY.

Butterfly

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I spotted this butterfly walking along the boardwalk at te Sacandaga Community Park.

Taken on Friday July 24, 2020 at Speculator, NY.