It’s Friday, July 28, 2017, and we’re already nearly into August. It’s National Hamburger Day, the iconic food of America, but, confusingly, it’s also National Milk Chocolate Day. It’s also World Hepatitis Day, but that doesn’t mean to get it.
Here’s a “Kuma Burger” from Kuma’s Corner in Chicago, with two slices of bacon and a fried egg. In 2014 it was named the Best Burger in America by The Daily Meal (sadly, I haven’t been to Kuma’s, as it’s always crowded). Here it is:
I’ll be gone all day for “Schemskepalooza”, the retirement fest/symposium in honor of my friend and colleague Doug Schemske. Posting will therefore be light though I’ve prepared and scheduled some posts in advance. If you have wildlife photos to send, please hold off until tomorrow.
In the political news, the GOP’s last-ditch attempt to repeal Obamacare by passing the “skinny bill” with no substance failed utterly in a late-night vote, with three Republicans—including (Ceiling Cat bless him) John McCain—voted against it.
On July 28, 1821, José de San Martín declared that Peru was henceforth independent from Spain. And on this day in 1973, the “Summer Jam” concert took place at the Watkins Glen International Raceway at Watkins Glen, New York. It was an attempt to recreate the iconic Woodstock festival, and was even larger, but didn’t have as many stars. But I was there, along with nearly 600,000 other drug-addled hippies (the largest audience in history for a rock concert) and we got to hear The Allman Brothers, Grateful Dead, and The Band. Finally, on this day in 2005, the Provisional IRA finally ended its long campaign of terror in Northern Ireland.
Notables born on this day include poet Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844), Beatrix Potter (1866), Marcel Duchamp (1887), Rudy Valée (1901), Karl Popper (1902), and Hugo Chávez (1954, died 2013). Here’s one of my favorite Beatrix Potter characters, but I love them all. If you know Tom Kitten, you’ll remember these pictures:
Those who died on this day include Johann Sebastian Bach (1750. Why did he have so many kids? Because his organ had not stops!); Otto Hahn (1968), Roger Tory Peterson (1996), and Francis Crick (2004). Meanwhile in Dobrzyn, Hili offers her “help” to release a loose insect, but I don’t think she’s serious:
A: Look, Hili. A butterfly is in the room. We have to catch it carefully and set it free.Hili: I will help you.
Ja: Patrz, Hili, motyl wleciał do pokoju. Musimy go ostrożnie złapać i wypuścić na wolność.
Hili: Ja ci pomogę.
I recently had a burger at a local restaurant that had bacon and a Sunnyside up egg on it. It was delicious!
Republicans are a dreadful lot. We’re in a bad place when we end up praising them not for doing something good but for not doing something incredibly harmful.
Especially since 49/100 voted for the incredibly harmful thing.
I think in America they would put bacon on anything. Glad to see the republicans had a really fine plan. And this Mooch fella is turning out to be quite the communicator. Trump will have to decide if he wants Russian mob or the standard New York mop.
He sure can communicate 🙂
http://www.newyorker.com/news/ryan-lizza/anthony-scaramucci-called-me-to-unload-about-white-house-leakers-reince-priebus-and-steve-bannon
Oh and the New Yorker has since said that he asked for part of his conversation to be ‘off the record’ – and they complied: there was more and it was worse.
Funny how those big rock/fest of the 70s want to be the biggest. I went to the Isle of Wight – 1970 and they like to say they had more people at that one – 6 to 7 hundred thousand.
I’ve never been to a concert on that scale, but I’ve been to several that were in the 80,000 – 100,000 range. They were fun, back then. Not sure how much I’d enjoy that kind of concert now. As far as the sound and being able to see what’s going on onstage smaller venues are much more to my liking.
I think you are right about that. The logistics of just going to that one on the Isle of Wight was crazy. Never seen anything like it. I had gone to a smaller one by the Stones in Hyde Park in 69 but could not see anything there either.
What is most interesting to me about the Republican attempt to repeal Obamacare is that it has become a psychological obsession of pathological proportions. The initial resistance to it grew out of desire to oppose anything Obama proposed in combination with an ideological opposition to “big government.” But now, with a majority of Americans against repeal the correct political strategy would be to attempt to make legitimate fixes to Obamacare and take credit for doing so. But, no, they still want to destroy it, which would leave tens of millions of Americans without health insurance. This Republican fixation is not found on another issue, gay marriage, which is of deep concern to its evangelical base. Of course, most Republicans in Congress oppose gay marriage, but it doesn’t appear they spend every waking moment attempting to end it. But, for Republican politicians the continuing existence of Obamacare represents an attack on their individual self-worth. Obamacare remains a symbol of everything they despise. Until the Republican Party gets over this pathology, it will remain dysfunctional and other things important to it, such as giving tax breaks to the rich, will be in jeopardy. As political pundits have pointed out, significant legislation is more easily passed in the early months of a new presidential administration. As time goes by, interest groups have more time to gather their forces to rally against legislation. Also, politicians become more focused on getting re-elected. Thus, the failure of Obamacare repeal may have screwed the entire Republican agenda. And that is actually a good thing.
And all of the people who get to retain their insurance can thank Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, and John McCain, plus 48 democrats. Maybe Obama as well.
And the Fox view
https://twitter.com/mmfa/status/890945599150927879
My wife, who has many talents, painted 5 or 6 Beatrix Potter scenes on the walls of the kids nursery. I was amazed at how well she painted them. Each scene was oval with artificial ivy around the perimeter to frame them.
Guess I’m having a cheeseburger for lunch today. I don’t know of any outstanding burger joints in my town. The best burgers around these parts are my own.
I will see your burger with an egg on it, and raise you a burger with an egg and a hashbrown. Got it in a place in Bethesda, MD. It was AWEsome.
The thought of a burger with an egg on it makes me gag.
How about steak and eggs?
That Kuma burger looks delicious!
Before going to Chicago a few years ago I’d researched “best burger in America” and Chicago’s own Au Cheval’s burger seemed to come out on top most often. I figure you probably know of it as it’s the same configuration – cheeseburger, bacon, fried egg.
It was indeed the best burger I’ve ever eaten. (And absolutely killer version of chicken wings).
Have you tried Au Cheval yet Jerry?