Happy Friday, everyone. I don’t know about you, but the weather has finally cleared up long enough for me to upgrade the chicken coop and re-cover their run. So that’s my weekend. I used to devote this time of year to watching March Madness wall-to-wall. This weekend, it will be me, two Buff-Orphingtons, and two Rhode Island Reds. I knew I should have put that satellite dish on the hen house.
Don’t ask if you don’t want to know
Vox Populi, Vox Dei is Latin for “The voice of the people is the voice of God.” Unless you are a member of the Biden administration, in which case you think you are God and to hell with the people. When it comes to Biden’s Consumer Product Safety Commission and its potential regulations over gas stoves, the voice of some of the people is loud. And angry. And God probably isn’t that happy about the idea of ditching gas stoves, either. I mean, I can’t know for sure, but God has been around for a while. He knows a dumb idea when He sees one.
According to the Washington Free Beacon, the commission opened public comment on the matter this month, and so far, 400 people have weighed in. 99% of the public comments were negative. Granted, that’s nowhere near a nationwide majority, but most people probably are not aware that they can comment. Incidentally, if you would like to voice your opinion, you might start here. Keep in mind, this is a government website, and you may have to go on a bit of a safari to find the place to leave your thoughts. When it comes to government sites, user-friendly is not an adjective that normally applies. But if you don’t have any plans for the weekend, it might make for a fun project. Remember, I warned you.
I did peruse some of the comments, and many of them were for the ban. Quite a few were of the robo-comment variety, in which multiple people send the same email, or several people send the same email multiple times. The Free Beacon said that in terms of opposition, some people offered polite thoughts. Others minced no words. Some of the comments included:
“Stay the f out of this issue, jackasses.”
How about this, try pulling your head out of your a##?”
“Please inhale my gas emissions.”
Granted, those are not very dignified responses. But then again, this is not a very dignified administration.
Oddly enough, the White House did not offer a comment.
Why didn’t they just call Tony Soprano and put out a hit?
What do you do if you want to save a bird species? If you are New Jersey, you tear down a forest. State officials wanted to make it easier for the American woodcock to thrive. (You in the back, stop snickering. It’s a bird.) I hike and camp quite a bit, and this is the first time I ever knew there was an American woodcock.
The Department of Environmental Protection went to work to improve the woodcock habitat. The New York Post reported that this effort included leveling 21 acres of forest in the Glassboro Wildlife Management Area, destroying two rare plant species and damaging wetlands. This may or may not be good news for the woodcocks of New Jersey, but the devastated area provided habitat for the barred owl and the red-shouldered hawk. And some of the affected lands were the breeding grounds for native frog populations. And to top it off, it appears that the department may have violated state law. If this is how they handle resource management in the Garden State, the Jersey Devil may be looking for a realtor soon.
Related: Weekend Parting Shot: AOC Can’t Take a Joke, and the Trans Crowd is After J.K. Rowling Again
Wine Recommendation: Just in case your team went out in the first round and you’re out of beer.
In case you missed it, and there is no reason you would not have, Monday was International Riesling Day. Sorry, I should have said something earlier. I still don’t have all my Riesling Day cards mailed out. But with that in mind, I decided to spotlight the Forge Cellars Classique Dry Riesling.
One of the great things about this wine is that you get a really good bottle of vino at a very decent price point. You don’t have to shell out a pile of money for a bottle unless you actually have a wine cellar and want to make sure that everyone who comes to your house sees it. The bottle I had was simultaneously slightly sweet and very dry, a byproduct of the location of the winery in the Finger Lakes region of New York. The cooler temps make for a drier wine.
Some people have said they could taste peach, mustard, and apricot. To be fair, I did taste a little peach, but I also got a hint of green apples and a little orange in the mix. Like many whites, it will work well with poultry or game birds and many seafoods. You might also think of pairing it up with pork, depending on the seasoning.
That’s it for me. Check your NCAA brackets and I’ll see you on Monday.
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