SmARTyPants

2026-06-21T15:49:55.635-07:00

https://media3.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPTZjMDliOTUyanJlMTkxZnkwb2JvbWN4a3l2d2dwamUxNm01bW8yenkwNzVhMjAxZyZlcD12MV9pbnRlcm5hbF9naWZfYnlfaWQmY3Q9Zw/ChcGXEzqoFwbwOzRNf/giphy.gif

Opinion | We Finally Know the Case Against Trump, and It Is Strong - The New York Times

2023-04-05T18:03:00.000-07:00

Opinion | We Finally Know the Case Against Trump, and It Is Strong - The New York Times

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/04/opinion/donald-trump-alvin-bragg-indictment-charges.html?unlocked_article_code=WdelqevI6lsgV-J5x0BLyDDWo92-EGlOoTCgGRV74rUnov94hWjWeDOE6LIoYHprL4WG6ZJcZj8_YciRcptXBowNR8b42m-BRvwKGQuJmNxUnc3Uk8v2qYFD77onJF2XeK-3Mh693aTWr7B6h8NM0LvYnU-sPwLvwVKfgWPItSXK5F7ENHL4n8_804RCB10MzZc3KzX_UgKidVQbW5NspkyMoUzRqTT_97TBR4SVZyBDLIPkaisUzuEjZfWuTNV4rRwerpfjLBCMjUaHC5dqpQQJJpuApNwNfiXih0GD84SDLdtnd6_3TKprjl2e1GKKSNbpIiCutMKiHHoZ7SV3HUdnbdXLL3efLpg7mmyY-JsWbWoWxbk&smid=url-share&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

We Finally Know the Case Against Trump, and It Is Strong

April 4, 2023

Illustration by The New York Times; photographs by Brandon Bell and Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

By Karen Friedman Agnifilo and Norman Eisen

Ms. Agnifilo is a former Manhattan chief assistant district attorney. Mr. Eisen is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.

For weeks, Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney, has come under heavy fire for pursuing a case against Donald Trump. Potential charges were described as being developed under a novel legal theory. And criticism has come not only from Mr. Trump and his allies, as expected, but also from many who are usually no friends of the former president but who feared it would be a weak case.

With the release of the indictment and accompanying statement of facts, we can now say that there's nothing novel or weak about this case. The charge of creating false financial records is constantly brought by Mr. Bragg and other New York D.A.s. In particular, the creation of phony documentation to cover up campaign finance violations has been repeatedly prosecuted in New York. That is exactly what Mr. Trump stands accused of.

The judge and jury will make the ultimate determination, but they will be far from the first to consider this question, and the answer has usually been a guilty verdict.

First, a note about the Manhattan D.A.'s office that will prosecute this case: It is hardly a typical local cog in the judicial system. In fact, it is unique. Its jurisdiction is the financial capital of the world. That means the office routinely prosecutes complex white-collar cases with crime scenes that involve the likes of the BNP Paribas international banking scandal. Big cases involving powerful, high-profile individuals have been handled by the office for decades. That was proved most recently by the office's conviction of the Trump Organization and the guilty plea of one of its top executives, Allen Weisselberg, on charges relating to an intricate yearslong tax fraud scheme.

The books and records counts laid out in the charging papers against Mr. Trump are the bread and butter of the D.A.'s office. Mr. Trump, who pleaded not guilty to all charges on Tuesday, is the 30th defendant to be indicted on false records charges by Mr. Bragg since he took office just over a year ago, with the D.A. bringing 151 counts under the statute so far. Indeed, the Trump Organization conviction and the Weisselberg plea included business falsification felonies.

The 34 felony books and records counts in the Trump indictment turn on the misstatement of the hush-money payment to Stormy Daniels arranged by Michael Cohen in the waning days of the 2016 election and the repayment of that amount by Mr. Trump to Mr. Cohen, ostensibly as legal expenses. There are 11 counts for false invoices, 11 for false checks and check stubs and 12 for false general ledger entries. This allegedly violated the false records statute when various entries were made in business documents describing those repayments as legal fees.

Moreover, the statement of facts alleges that deals, including one for Ms. Daniels and another for Karen McDougal that involved The National Enquirer, which had longstanding ties to Mr. Trump, were for the purpose of helping him win the presidency. If that is proved, then the deals would be "attempts to violate state and federal election laws," as Mr. Bragg said in a statement, such as on their amount and disclosure. In this theory, the false records in the indictment covered up the campaign finance violation.

While the particulars of Mr. Trump's case are unique, his behavior is not. Candidates and others have often attempted to skirt the disclosure and dollar limit requirements of campaign finance regulations and falsified records to hide it. Contrary to the protestations of Mr. Trump and his allies, New York prosecutors regularly charge felony violations of the books and records statute — and win convictions — when the crimes covered up were campaign finance violations, resulting in false entries in business records to conceal criminal activity.

For example, the Rockland County D.A. convicted the executive Richard Brega for falsifying business records by misrepresenting the source of funds that he funneled into a campaign. The Oneida County D.A. charged a county political party chair, John Dote, with pilfering campaign funds and failing to properly account for them, resulting in conviction for felony falsification of business records (and second-degree grand larceny). The Brooklyn D.A. convicted Assemblyman Clarence Norman for soliciting illegal campaign contributions and for felony falsification of business records. And on and on, in New York and federally.

There have also been several analogous prosecutions for falsifying records to cover up campaign finance violations in New York and elsewhere that did not result in conviction. That in itself is not unusual, as judges and juries sometimes disagree with a prosecution. And it is, in fact, a good thing — a sign of a criminal justice system that tries to operate with fairness.

What these cases demonstrate is that Mr. Bragg is not navigating uncharted waters. They also support a corollary point in favor of this prosecution. Some legal analysts have pointed to an intent to defraud issue with the charges. The statute says that a person is guilty of falsifying business records when, "with intent to defraud," the individual commits certain acts.

These analysts say that requires proving that the scheme resulted in cheating or depriving another person of property or a thing of value or a right and that there is no such evidence here. That may be the case in other jurisdictions, but in New York, there is no such requirement.

New York appellate courts have held in a long series of cases that intent to defraud includes circumstances in which a defendant acts "for the purpose of frustrating the state's power" to "faithfully carry out its own law." To the extent Mr. Trump was covering up campaign contributions that violated New York law, that seems to be exactly what he did.

It's also worth noting that Mr. Trump was a federal candidate, whereas the other New York cases involved state ones. But court after court across the country has recognized that state authorities can enforce state law in cases relating to federal candidates. Those courts have allowed state cases concerning federal campaign contributions under widely varied circumstances, including for fraudulently diverting funds from political action committees founded to support federal presidential campaigns, violating state law limits on corporate contributions to federal campaigns and transgressing state laws concerning donations to PACs that funded federal campaigns. Some of the examples involve criminal enforcement by state authorities, some civil, but the point is the same: They can act.

So Mr. Bragg's bringing a state case concerning a federal campaign is hardly novel. In an abundance of caution, he not only alleges violations of state campaign finance law but also alleges federal violations. We believe that is permitted, given that the fraudulent books and records and other relevant statutes refer simply to covering up "another crime" or using "unlawful means" and do not specify whether they need be federal or state.

This approach is wise because to throw out the case, a judge would have to rule that Mr. Trump is covered by neither state nor federal campaign finance law. We think it is unlikely that the courts will embrace that Catch-22.

Whatever happens next, one thing is clear: Mr. Trump cannot persuasively argue he is being singled out for some unprecedented theory of prosecution. He is being treated as any other New Yorker would be with similar evidence against him.

The indictment is therefore anything but political. If anything, the more political choice would have been not to indict when there is so much scrutiny. Mr. Bragg appears to have the backbone to avoid such considerations in charging decisions. Good for him — and for the rule of law.

Karen Friedman Agnifilo, a former Manhattan chief assistant district attorney, is a partner at Agnifilo Law Group. Norman Eisen, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, was special counsel to the House Judiciary Committee for the first impeachment and trial of Donald Trump.

Karin's iPhone

...a little night mystery!?

2015-06-21T02:19:00.000-07:00

My brother came across an article about Inga Arvad in some obscure newspaper from 1969 and he happened to mention it on Facebook; and I happened to see his post, and it sorta peaked my curiosity so I wrote and asked him to send me the link. Simple enough, huh. No big deal, right. Just a little request for the link to an article he'd found on the internet that I wanted to read because I was interested in seeing what it was about. It had been a while since I'd even thought about the 'JFK-Inga Arvad' mystery and cover-up theory he'd gotten me interested in...so I was curious as to what he'd found. When he tried to access the article again it had disappeared. Well, it didn't exactly disappear, the page link was just GONE. Needless to say, I was BUMMED!

so I did some internet searching and found this site...looks pretty interesting, doesn't it.

Except that when I tried to access the site, I got this message. Eek!

The articles look like they'd be rather interesting...

Arizona Republic

Sunday, January 05, 1969
Phoenix, Arizona
United States Of America ... Hitler is now Tim McCoy talks about it because... ...why I talk about it at INGA MCCOY is because I think its I...

Fortunately my brother transcribed them before they disappeared

from Pinterest to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

2012-02-04T18:00:00.000-08:00

SO...today I decided I would just mess around on Pinterest for a little while, which is a really cool site and quite addictive, and then I decided to link that to my 'FilmNoir' on Movieweb and then I figured I'd just browse on over to 'SmARTyPants' and link that also. When I signed on to 'SmARTy' I found I had 2 comments for me to approve...say what!!!...comments...I never get any comments, how cool is that! JFK/Inga comments...I had put that little mystery to bed (so to speak and no pun intended) several months ago...But seeing as how it's an election year and I've just finished reading the first two Stieg Larsson books, I just can't help myself. I LOVE a good mystery, and the JFK/INGA relationship is definitely a very good mystery.

posted by dobee on September 13, 2011 at 5:34 am

I didn’t see your Sept. 10 comment until just now.

I agree wholeheartedly that there is a wealth of material for an in-depth book about Jack and Inga. I’ve been trying to wrap my head around this story for a long time now, and I’d love to tackle it myself, but I’m somewhat disabled and living on a very tight income, and don’t think I’d be able to travel to any of the various archives, particularly to peruse Clay Blair’s papers, David O’Selznick’s papers, and of course the National Archives for the FBI surveillance tapes and the transcripts from all the wiretaps and bugs. I have a gut feeling that the columns that Inga and Kathleen K. wrote for the Times-Herald are important too, judging from the other things that Inga has written. In practically everything she wrote, she revealed a little bit of herself.

Assuming that what we have read about JFK and Inga is true.

According to several writers, British Intelligence was going to great lengths to assure America’s entry into the war on their side, and to discredit and embarrass the powerful isolationists in America, including Cissy Patterson and Joseph P. Kennedy. In particular they used Walter Winchell, Drew Pearson and other popular columnists of the day, to insert propaganda and misinformation into the national debate. Lest we forget it was in a Winchell column that the story of Inga and JFK first was made public. In her book The Irregulars: Roald Dahl and the British Spyring in Washington, Jennet Conant talks of this and specifically recounts a heated verbal confrontation between Dahl and Frank Waldrop at a Washington DC party. In another book titled Room 3603 by H. Montgomery Hyde, the author mentions a woman agent code-named Cynthia, who performed some remarkable deeds like breaking into the Vichy French embassy in Washington, and much of her “unofficial” bio reads exactly like that of Inga Arvad, including the story of how Franklin Roosevelt enjoyed reading all of the reports of her exploits, as Hamilton and others have recorded he said about Inga. There are also some similarities with the story of Olga Chekhova, the niece of the wife of writer Anton Chekhov, who starred in many German motion pictures, had affairs with many Nazi leaders and allegedly was a Soviet spy. And then there’s that elusive picture of Inga and Adolf, and those equally elusive articles that she wrote about Hitler for the Danish newspaper Berlingske Tidende.

I would also like to further explore Inga’s marriages to Paul Fejos, Nils Blok and Timothy John Fitzgerald McCoy, and her alleged affair with Bernard Baruch – her old goat – as well as her affiliation with the North American Newspaper Alliance for which she wrote, which was later bought by Ernest Cuneo. During WWII Cuneo worked closely with William Stephenson, Roald Dahl, Ian Fleming and other members of British Intelligence to form the OSS.

Previously posted by me..

According to Nigel Hamilton, it was Inga Arvad (herself) who wrote the original byline for the story of the PT-109, that was picked up by one of the wire services and later appeared “on the front page of the Boston Globe and The New York Times.” Well, here’s the story as it appeared in the Times on January 11, 1944, so this must be one.

and then today I find this in my 'comments'...

Anonymous said...

Here's the article you're looking for.
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=3XUbAAAAIBAJ&sjid=k0wEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3103,3167542&dq=arvad&hl=en

posted February 9, 2011 8:17 PM

humm?

Showin' a little Pinterest...

2012-01-24T19:56:00.000-08:00

2011-05-14T20:26:00.001-07:00

Oiseau_libre Karin Dubiak Oquist

Attended a staff meeting at work yesterday...thought I was in 'Wonderland' then realized I was in the 'Land of the Lost'...help me..PLEASE!

SmARTyShorts! */:)

2011-01-21T20:36:00.000-08:00

Subject: Dr. Laura, Why Can't I Own a Canadian?

In her radio show, Dr Laura Schlesinger said that, as an observant Orthodox Jew, homosexuality is an abomination according to Leviticus 18:22, and cannot be condoned under any circumstance. The following response is an open letter to Dr. Laura, written by a US resident, and posted on the Internet. It's funny, as well as informative:

Dear Dr. Laura,

Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's Law. I have learned a great deal from your show, and try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind them that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination. End of debate.

I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some other elements of God's Laws and how to follow them.

1. Leviticus 25:44 states that I may possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?

2. I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?

3. I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness - Lev.15: 19-24. The problem is how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.

4. When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord - Lev.1:9. The problem is my neighbors. They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?

5. I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself, or should I ask the police to do it?

6. A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an abomination, Lev. 11:10, it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this? Are there 'degrees' of abomination?

7. Lev. 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle-room here?

8. Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev. 19:27. How should they die?

9. I know from Lev. 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?

10. My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev.19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? Lev.24:10

11. Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private family affair, like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev. 20:14)

I know you have studied these things extensively and thus enjoy considerable expertise in such matters, so I'm confident you can help.

Thank you again for reminding us that God's word is eternal and unchanging.

Your adoring fan.

James M. Kauffman, Ed.D, Professor Emeritus,
Dept Of Curriculum, Instruction, and Special Education
University of Virginia

PS (It would be a damn shame if we couldn't own a Canadian)

@:\

.

SmARTyTails *:X

2011-01-17T20:56:00.000-08:00

According to Nigel Hamilton, it was Inga Arvad (herself) who wrote the original byline for the story of the PT-109, that was picked up by one of the wire services and later appeared “on the front page of the Boston Globe and The New York Times.” Well, here’s the story as it appeared in the Times on January 11, 1944, so this must be the one.

SmARTyTails *:X

2011-01-12T21:09:00.000-08:00

as you will find written on my Blogger page..."Art is not what you see, but what you make others see".

My brother was able to suck me into his Inga Arvad story because I was a major JFK/Jackie Kennedy fan back in the early 60's. In my eyes they were perfect; I was super idealistic; and Caroline and John-John were too cute for words. Then... November 22, 1963... I walked out of my high school PE class into the world of REALITY. That day turned me into the 'skeptical-conspiracy-theorist' that I am today. I will reprint on my Blog whatever I find 'here and there', everything that I honestly think, and whatever Page Huidekoper Wilson eventually reveals in her promised forthcoming memoirs...then maybe the truth will finally be known.

It really is all about what you make others see.

@:?

YOU KNEW WHERE THIS WAS GOING...RIGHT?

2011-01-11T20:17:00.000-08:00

from dobee.wordpress

Owls in the Bog: The Inga Arvad Story

It is often mentioned how life imitates art, and art by its very nature draws on the great well of life for much of its inspiration. There is however an inherent inequality and a general lack of reciprocation between reality and perception, that is, between life and art. More often than not they belittle or ridicule one another, which is why art inevitably tends to the abstract and life becomes absurd or comical or even tragic.

When John F. Kennedy fell for Inga Arvad, an alleged Nazi spy, the plot must have felt only too familiar to him, for he had seen it before. He could have read it, I suppose – it was a repeat of one of those hackneyed romantic war stories that pop up from time to time, whenever the supply of armaments exceeds the demand for peace in the world and beautiful and vulnerable women are in abundance – but more probably, he saw it on the screen in one of his father’s theaters.
Joseph P. Kennedy loved money and power, but his hobbies were movies and beautiful women. In the late 1920s he had an affair with an actress Gloria Swanson, and ventured a great deal of his capital into a Hollywood movie production company, FBO, which would later become RKO Pictures. It wasn’t one of FBO’s movies and it didn’t star Miss Swanson, but Joe and Jack Kennedy were probably familiar with the film “Convoy” which would have appeared in 1927 when Joe was still in Hollywood. The film starred an English-born American actress Dorothy Mackaill, a silent-film star noted for her stately rather than beautiful on-screen appearance. Nor was her voice very impressive in her several attempts at sound film, like many other actresses of her era, and her career ended rather abruptly in the early 1930′s. Like Miss Mackaill, the film “Convoy” was quickly forgotten too, but not to a thin and sickly boy with chronic back pain and a romantic nature who couldn’t wait for his dad to return “from Hollywood with Tom Mix cowboy suits,” and reels filled with wondrous tales of adventure to watch on the screen in their private family theater, and not to the power-grubbing father who could manipulate life and art as freely as he could the stock market.

In ‘Convoy’ Mackaill plays Sylvia Dodge, a New York society lady who is recruited during WWI by a Secret Service agent, known only to her by his code-name Smith. Sylvia’s assignment is to gain the confidence of a German spy, Ernst von Drachenfels, who is masquerading as an American named Ernest Drake. Smith tells Sylvia that he knows Drake/Drachenfels is somehow sending coded messages to U-boat captains, waiting just off the American coast, but he doesn’t know how he is doing it. Sylvia soon discovers that Drake and his henchmen are using a clever but simple code involving the flowers of different varieties, that he is sending to his lady friends. By observing the various deliveries and knowing the address and time of day, his agents are able to read each coded message and quickly convey them to the U-boat captains via wireless.

Drachenfels is quickly exposed as a spy and arrested, but in the process Sylvia is also arrested and charged with espionage. Though she could clear herself, Smith urges her to keep silent for reasons of national security. Accordingly, she is convicted and sent to prison to begin serving a long sentence, but, happily, the movie has a happy ending. And so does the story of JFK and Inga Arvad, but I’m getting way ahead of myself and the telling of the tale.

Like Frank Waldrop, in his story that he wrote for The Washingtonian in April 1975 titled “JFK and the Nazi Spy,” we must ask ourselves “Where did it all begin? [Was it] London, Copenhagen, Singapore, Berlin, Stockholm, a peak in the Andes?” Or was it Hollywood or Wikipedia? I would say, Copenhagen, where Inga Marie Arvad Petersen was born in 1913, in either June or October of that year, depending on who you talk to. In fact the whole story depends on who you talk to. Sadly nearly all of the players are dead now and gone and their story is interred with their bones, but as luck would have it they left behind a sizable paper-trail, though in most cases that trail dwindles down to practically nil or leads back around in a circle, or sticks to one of your shoes.

At this point I would like to say that I have read several of the more popular historical accounts of the life of John F. Kennedy, and like the authors I am firmly convinced that he was a good and dedicated man, and one of the greatest presidents of the United States. I was in the 7th grade when he was assassinated, and like most naïve and largely uninformed Americans at the time I accepted the explanation that Lee Harvey Oswald, an ex-Marine shot him from the window of the Texas School Book Depository building on that fateful November day in Dallas, and that he had acted alone. I don’t believe any longer that Oswald was the only assassin working on that day in Dallas, but on the other hand I don’t blame Jackie Kennedy, the Mafia, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon or Ronald Reagan either. I guess like most naïve, and still largely uniformed Americans, I don’t know who to blame or if they are even still alive. But I’d still like to know the truth, and tie up some of the many loose ends.

My dad told me once that he knew Lieutenant Kennedy when he was stationed at the Motor Torpedo Boat Training Station (MTBS) at Melville, RI in 1942, so I am particularly interested in that part of the future president’s life. I don’t know if any of the seeds that grew the assassination were planted that far back in time, but I have found there several loose threads to pull. One of those threads is the story of the romance between JFK and Inga Arvad, the beautiful Nazi spy.

*:o

SmARTyPants: HELPFUL HINTS FOR PRESCHOOL TEACHERS...

2011-01-04T19:17:00.000-08:00

SmARTyPants: HELPFUL HINTS FOR PRESCHOOL TEACHERS...

SmARTyShorts! */:)

2011-01-01T16:05:00.000-08:00

BEST NEW DISCOVERIES FOR 2011

Blog Page...

A Modern Year

Something totally awesome about 2010 is that not only has Modern Family become one of the best comedies on TV, but the show also has some of my art on its set! Here are some stills below. It is such a trip watching the show, laughing my head off, and then all of a sudden seeing one of my paintings in the background. At first I was like, “That looks so familiar…I’ve seen that somewhere….and then “Oh I did that!”.

http://www.courtneyoquist.com/2010/12/31/a-modern-year/

Photograph...

alarkthroughclarke

*;)

SmARTyShorts! */:)

2011-01-01T15:20:00.000-08:00

BEST MOVIE LINE FROM 2010

Marky – “Even if you weren’t in my food chain, I would go out of my way to attack you. If I were a lion and your were a tuna I would swim out into the middle of the ocean and friggin eat you! And then, I’d bang your tuna girlfriend.”

Pause

Will – “Ok, first off, a lion…swimming in the ocean? Lions don’t even like water. If you placed it near a river, or some sort of fresh water source, that’d make sense. But you find yourself in the ocean, a 20 ft wave, I’m assuming its off the coast of South Africa, coming up against a full, grown, 800 lb tuna with his 20 or 30 friends. You lose that battle. you lose that battle nine times out of ten. And guess what, you wandered into our school, of tuna and we now have a taste of blood! We’ve talked, to ourselves. We’ve communicated and said, ‘you know what? lion tastes good. Lets go get some more lion.’ We’ve developed a system, to establish a beachhead and aggressively hunt you and your family. And we will corner your, your pride, your children, your offspring…”

Marky – “How ya gonna to do that?”

Will – “We will construct a series of breathing apparatus with kelp. We will be able to track certain amounts of ox. Its not going to be days at a time, an hour, hour 45. No problem. That will give us enough time to figure out where you live, go back to the sea, get more oxygen and then stalk you. You just lost at your own game. You are out gunned and outmanned. That go the way you thought it was gonna to go?” Shaking his head. “Nope.”

BEST CORNBREAD CASSEROLE FROM 2010

1 can whole kernel corn, some juice drained off. (I use 2 small cans of Mexicorn, instead).
1 can cream style corn.
1 stick of margarine, sliced.
1 package Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix.
2 eggs, beaten.
1 small can diced green chilies.

Beat the eggs; add the other ingredients. Add a little salt and pepper if desired and mix the ingredients together. Do not stir after mixing.
Bake for 1 hour at 350' F. in a 12"x7" baking dish.
Serves 8. May be frozen.

*BEST & FUNNIEST LATVIAN JOKES FROM 2010

Joke:

Three Latvian girl are walk down street. One have knife, one have gun, one have window. They are meet soldier. Soldier is ask first girl, “Why you are have knife?” “If you try rape me, I stab!” she say. Okay! Second girl, “Why you are have gun?” “If you try rape me, I shoot!” she say. Okay! Third girl, “Why you are have window?!?” “If you try rape me, I jump out!”

Joke:

Boy: But mother, I no are like grandma.

Mother: Eat anyway. Is no potato.

BEST EVASIVE RESPONSE EVINCED FROM 2010

Page Wxxxxx to me 11/2/10
Karin, you haven't heard from me because I am too busy. Thanks for your
interest but I will never finish my book and do the other things necessary
in my life, if I don't restrict myself. I'll let you and your brother know
the minute my book is set to be published. I appreciate your interest but
don't expect to hear from me again very soon. Cordially Page Wxxxxx.

*there aren't actually any 'best' or 'funniest' Latvian jokes.

*;]

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

2010-12-16T23:21:00.000-08:00

'And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled 'till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store? What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more'. ~Dr. Seuss

Let the spirit of love gently fill our hearts and peace be our gift this Christmas and our blessing all year through. I wish you all a most wonderful Christmas. @:]

SmARTyTails *:X

2010-11-11T17:00:00.000-08:00

"You can't stay in your corner of the forest waiting for others to come to you.

You have to go to them sometimes."

~ Winnie the Pooh

I am in a sharing mood today so I will share with you some of my exciting correspondence with my new friend, SSEFL. I can feel that we are really becoming close.
           ****************************************************************

from xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx@verizon

to xxxxxxxxxxx@gmail.com

date Fri, Sep 3, 2010 at 11:44 AM

subject: your message to me

mailed-byverizon.net

Sep 3

Dear Kxxxx Oxxxxx, a week or so back you sent an email to the Georgetown Associates Group evincing interest in me. Here I am, in Washington, DC. Do send me an e mail and I’ll respond. Thanks. Pxxx X. Wxxxxx

PERSONAL NOTE   (I got pretty excited about this email, she said if I wrote to her she'd respond! She would actually write to me!!! How cool is that!)

                    *******************************************************

from Kxxxx Oxxxxx <xxxxxxxxxxx@gmail.com>

date Sat, Sep 4, 2010 at 10:20 AM

subject Re: your message to me

mailed-bygmail.com

signed-bygmail.com

Sep 4

Dear Pxxx --

I loved reading your interview at the Georgetown Oral History Project website, and I couldn't help but be impressed by the candor and clarity of your unabashed account of those historic days when you worked in our nation's capital. My mom asked my great-great-grandmother once, what nationality we were, and she told me "We're Yankees;" you sound like you are one too.

But I suppose I should introduce myself first.

I'm xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
x      and post them on my Blog for others to read.

Several years ago I started researching my  xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx burned in a fire in 1973. I suppose I should blame Nixon, but I don't.

In the course of my research I began reading about xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx But it soon became clear that as fully documented and analyzed as xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx but I won't bore you with all the details because they're on my xxxx

I also became interested in your story. I thought how exciting it must have been for you to have worked intimately alongside xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx I'm tied down at the moment xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

I'd love to hear from you, what you have to say about those days, and write about you in my Blog. I think that people like you, and perhaps my father, are our real national treasures. In your interview you mentioned that you were writing a memoir and that you had retained an agent. Can you say if or when that will be published? I'd love to read it.

Well, God bless you.

Wxxxxxx Dxxxxx
Noxxxxx, CA

[Several paragraphs have been blacked-out as is the way you receive the files that you request under The Federal Freedom of Information Act. I thought posting my correspondence in the same fashion would be apropos.

To be continued...

Sweet, simple, elderly, famous lady

SmARTyTails *:X

2010-11-05T21:03:00.000-07:00

In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,

From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,

Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.

From forth the fatal loins of these two foes

A pair of star-cross'd lovers got it on;

Whose misadventured piteous overthrows

Did cause their parents' and others great strife and woe

The fearful passage of their death-mark'd love,

And the continuance of their parents' and others' rage,
Which, but their children's end, might could remove,
But we'll never know.
*
*
*
Once upon a time...whilst reading journals, and blogs, and books, and newspaper articles, and Internet surfing about spies, and conspiracies, and deadly nightclub fires, and super expensive yachts decorated with stuff like machine guns and rifles, and
2 boat-loads of saboteurs sneaking ashore in the middle of the night in Florida and Long Island, and super rich and famous people like John Fitzgerald Kennedy, and Inga Arvad, and Timothy (John Fitzgerald) McCoy, and Buck Jones, and Joseph Timilty, and Joseph Kennedy, and Bernard Baruch, and the mysterious Dr. Marius Petersen, and Axel Wenner-Gren, and Frank Waldrop, and Cissy Patterson, and Clare Boothe Luce, and on- and-on- and-on...a somewhat sweet, simple, elderly lady just happened to stumble upon another sweet, simple, elderly, FAMOUS lady who actually knew all of the aforementioned folks, and all about the aforementioned 'incidents' because she was a well-known newspaper journalist.
So sweet-simple-elderly-lady decided to write to sweet-simple-eldery-FAMOUS-lady and express to SSEFL her interest in the story about her she'd read on the Georgetown Oral History Project website. And lo and behold...SSEFL responded via email to SSEL! But was the responding email actually written by SSEFL...

To be continued...

Sweet, simple, elderly lady

ALL HALLOWS EVE

2010-10-31T17:48:00.000-07:00

Shadows of a thousand years

Rise again unseen,

Voices whisper in the trees

"Tonight is Halloween!"

D. Kozen

HELPFUL HINTS FOR PRESCHOOL TEACHERS...

2010-10-17T21:20:00.000-07:00

RIDDING EVIL SPIRITS

Ridding one's classroom of residual spirits can be quite taxing, especially when this must be done in a religious childcare setting. There are many places 'spirits' can loiter...toy shelves, buckets and baskets, even refrigerators. I personally have never encountered this problem in my more than 22 years as a preschool teacher but I do know of one Lutheran Childcare Center in Huntington Beach that has. Fortunately they have on staff a teacher who is able to exorcise these troublesome little critters and indeed has done just that! In need of a replacement classroom refrigerator the one offered by a former director-teacher was politely refused by the above mentioned staff person because [and I quote], "I just got rid of the evil spirits in my classroom". Humm? Keep up the good work Pastor Paul. You run a commendable facility.

The Lady Vanishes...up in Flames?

2010-10-16T19:04:00.000-07:00

A LITTLE NIGHT MYSTERY

On the night of the tragic Cocoanut Grove fire, the guest of honor, cowboy star Buck Jones sat with his party of 24 movie dignitaries. The large number of guests and close friends were at the club for a combination testimonial dinner in honor of the cowboy star, and a promotional event for his "Rough Rider" series for Monogram Pictures. Sadly, Buck was not destined to be one of the survivors. He died two days later in a hospital. His body had been so badly burned in the Cocoanut Grove fire that skin from his fingers had been pulled off onto the fingerprint card sent to the Technical Section of the FBI's Identification Division. It took nearly 48 hours to identify the prints because so many fingers had to be searched in so many different places. One wonders who were those among the 'large number of guests and close friends' and 'movie dignitaries' there that night...?

We do know John Quinn, a 21-year-old Navy seaman, was there wining and dining his date at the popular Boston nightclub, oblivious to the horror that would soon engulf the gathering and leave almost half of the revelers dead. He and a friend, Dick Vient, had taken their dates to Cocoanut Grove after a football game and were seated in a booth near the main dance floor. Mr. Quinn danced with his girlfriend, Gerry Whitehead, and remembers literally bumping into the huge Buck Jones, the cowboy star, on the crowded dance floor.

“When we'd bump I'd look up and say, 'Hi Buck,' and he would look down and say, 'Hi, sailor.' ” Mr. Quinn recalled. “He had been my favorite cowboy and I felt honored.”

Who was Buck dancing with?

Clipping from a Tuesday, December 1, 1942 newspaper ...

Mysteries remain -

· The fire’s cause most often has been attributed to a bus boy who lit a match, which ignited a fake palm tree. But the fire’s speed and characteristics has led to theories that an accelerant or leaking refrigerant gas, was responsible. Officially, the cause is deemed “of unknown origin."

Gloria Doherty of Newton, a bank teller who survived Boston's Cocoanut Grove fire in 1942, never let anyone around her blame a teenage busboy named Stanley Tomaszewski for sparking the blaze. "She always said, for as long as I can remember, it wasn't his fault. She remembered leaning against the wall that night and the wall was so hot," said her daughter Maura Simmons of Medfield.

(On his death-bed, Stanley Tomaszewski swore that he had not started the fire at the Cocoanut Grove in 1942.)

· Other theories: The fire was caused by faulty wiring; it was set by rival gangsters to scare the club’s owner; Nazi saboteurs were to blame.

· Who really owned the club? On paper it was lawyer Barney Welansky, who was convicted of manslaughter for the fire. But documentation was confusing, and Welansky repeatedly said he was a “fall guy.” Boston Herald archives

City officials and the managers of the Grove were indicted, but only the Grove's owner, Barnet Wilansky, was given a prison sentence. He died of cancer after serving three years.

We Didn't Start the Fire...

>..<

It's Not Just About The Potato Anymore!

2010-10-16T17:25:00.000-07:00

Latvian man shortage leaves women lost for love

Latvian women without men

Latvian potato

* There are 3,000 more women aged 30-39 than men.
* The country has 8% more women than men.
* Women live 11 years longer on average.

The macho culture in Latvia evinces risky behaviour, such as fast driving, smoking and especially heavy drinking.

"There are demands about how [men] should live. And if they cannot meet those standards, they… fall into depression”. Ansis Stabingis, Psychoanalyst

The depression leads to the use of alcohol or gambling because they can't solve their problems. Currently, more than 80% of suicide deaths are men thus causing the shortage of Latvian men. This is pretty sad.

"The smartest girls are alone. The really beautiful girls are alone - if they are smart, they want to find partners who are equal to them. But a man, having all this choice, doesn't need to be very perfect. He just sits in front of the TV and knows he can get a woman. And if she doesn't suit him, he will get another. Smart women simply don't want to have such men as their partners." Dace Ruksane, Lilit magazine

Available Latvian Man

Translation: A Bribe is a Force

Humerous Latvian Potato Cartoon

Humerous Latvian Chicken Cartoon

SmARTyShorts! */:)

2010-10-10T20:47:00.000-07:00

Word-of-the-Day

-mnemonic (nɪˈmɒnɪk)

–adjective
1. assisting or intended to assist the memory.
2. pertaining to mnemonics or to memory.

–noun
3. something intended to assist the memory, as a verse or formula.
4. Computers . a programming code that is easy to remember, as STO for “store.”

Use mnemonic in a Sentence

"... with droshkies all awry under incredibly blue skies, which farther away, melt automatically into a pink flush of mnemonic banality". Vladimir Nabokov, 'The Real Life of Sebastian Knight'

"I am endeavoring, ma'am, to construct a mnemonic circuit using stone knives and bearskins". Spock in 'City on the Edge of Forever'

Reprinted from bills big-blog-o-rama

Origin:
1753, from Gk. mnemonikos "of or pertaining to memory."

Inga's Dog

SmARTyShorts! */:)

2010-10-09T18:20:00.000-07:00

THE ART OF WINTER WEAR

"After 39 dollars and six long years, my black, double-breasted coat and I decided to go our own ways. After such a long relationship, I needed a rebound. I think I deserved not only a new coat, but one that is wild and exciting, but still cute as a button. I wanted a coat that screamed “Me”. Enter this coat. I never really share my purchases, probably because paper towels and art supplies don’t really warrant a post, but this coat took me by surprise. It raises my blood sugar. It makes me want to run outside, fall to the ground under changing color leaves and roll around while the crisp apple air blushes my cheeks. I’ve
fallen for my Fall Coat". Courtney Oquist, Artist

/._.\

SmARTyBriefs

2010-10-09T17:52:00.000-07:00

Evidently in Finland they don’t throw anything away.

My "engagementsleverende" (DN.) has recently obtained a scan of what appears to be a photo taken of Inga Arvad with Adolf Hitler in 1936, that could be the same photo that caused her to be denounced by a co-worker to the FBI as a German spy.

My dear cohort and I greatly appreciate input from interested parties around the globe.

The aforementioned photograph will soon be forthcoming.

@:]

SmARTyShorts! */:)

2010-10-09T11:25:00.000-07:00

JOHN LENNON - 70th. BIRTHDAY

You may say that I'm a dreamer

But I'm not the only one

I hope someday you'll join us

And the world will live as one

SmARTyBriefs

2010-10-03T19:02:00.000-07:00

Excerpted from an upcoming article -

Owls In The Bog: The Inga Arvad Story

Axis and Allies: Europe Goes to War

On the night of August 31, 1939, William L. Shirer, an American correspondent on assignment in Berlin, didn't get much sleep, having been up until 3 AM listening to the German radio broadcast, in a special report, Hitler's rather reasonable “proposals” to Poland. Despite the fact that the great armies of Europe were fully mobilized and ready for war, he went to bed just before dawn hopeful that war had been averted. Three hours later, at 6 AM he received perhaps the most famous wake-up call in history:

At six a.m. Sigrid Schultz - bless her heart - phoned. She said: "It's
happened." I was very sleepy - my body and mind numbed, paralyzed. I

mumbled: "Thanks, Sigrid," and tumbled out of bed. The war is on!

William L. Shirer

*:o