Machetes, road rage, and fentanyl? Impressive at any age, but most of this type quit or die long before reaching 50, let alone 67; congratulations for lasting so long, Gramps — don’t ever change.

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Wolcott police: Officer arrests machete-wielder driver who was chasing another motorist

Robert Berardi, 67, was charged with second-degree breach of peace, second-degree threatening, illegal possession of a weapon in a motor vehicle, carrying a dangerous weapon, possession of a controlled substance, failure to keep narcotics in the original container and possession with intent to sell narcotics, according to a news release posted on Facebook by the Wolcott Police Department. Police did not indicate where Berardi lives.

Police said the arrest happened just after 11 a.m., when Sgt. Alex Talbot was on patrol in a police cruiser in the area of Nichols Road and Wolf Hill Road when he was flagged down by a motorist. They said the officer saw the motorist to be distressed and yelling, "This guy behind me is crazy, he has a machete."

Police said a search was conducted, and Berardi was found to be in possession of 40 glassine baggies containing a powdery substance as well as a prescription bottle containing pills other than what was on the label. They said the powder was tested by detectives, resulting positive for the presence of fentanyl.

During the investigation, police said, it was learned that Berardi began following the victim as a result of a road rage incident that began on Wolcott Road. They said Berardi was waving the machete from his vehicle in a threatening manner and continued to follow the victim until Talbot intervened.

Go DEI and DIE

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Delusional: Pride Magazine Celebrates Lesbian Fire Chief of L.A. As City Burns Down

David Strom, HotAir

“It's obvious that Fire Chief Kristen Crowley, who is leading the effort to extinguish the L.A. fires, is not exactly killing it, but that isn't how Pride magazine sees it. Kristen is a lesbian, and that is all that matters.”

“I read the article that accompanies the headline and was struck by something that was totally missing: any mention of her efforts to get the fires under control and no mention of how disastrous the situation is. It's all about how great it is that she is a lesbian and how awful it is that people are pointing out that she is a DEI hire who prioritizes DEI in hiring, as she proudly notes in her biography. 

“Pride, though, thinks Crowley is "getting it done." The "it," it turns out, has little to do with fighting fires though.”

The stereotype of lesbians always being prepared for an emergency — everyone knows a queer woman who doesn’t leave the house without a Leatherman multitool and carabiners — holds true for Los Angeles’ first openly LGBTQ+ Fire Chief Kristin Crowley who is overseeing the firefighters trying to stop the Palisades fire.

As of Wednesday morning, more than 5,000 acres in the affluent celebrity-inhabited neighborhood of Pacific Palisades in southern California has been consumed by fire, with approximately 1,000 structures and coastal homes reduced to rubble.

The fire is being called “one of the most destructive firestorms to hit the region in memory” by the LA Times and has already carved a path of destruction along the Pacific Coast Highway.

Strom:

“I had no idea of the stereotype that lesbians are always prepared for an emergency. Who knew? 

“As you can see, Pride acknowledges that there is indeed a massive fire in L.A.--one of the most destructive in memory. So at least there is that. Unfortunately, they can't specify how Crowley is "getting it done" because, in fact, "it" is NOT getting done. Firefighters don't even have consistent access to water, and the fires are killing people, destroying some of the most exclusive real estate in the world, and totally out of control. 

“But Kristin Crowley has a Leatherman multitool, apparently, so there is that. And if you actually need help, that is your problem. DEI über alles.”

In a stunning display of noblesse oblige, Harry and Meghan open their mansion’s doors to the displaced homeless and middle class plumbers

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“Barbara! George! Hunter! So wonderful of you to drop in!”

Well, not quite: their invitation extends only to their celebrity friends. They do, however hope their example will inspire the peasants to welcome all of the unwashed into their own hovels. “We must all do our very best for the less fortunate”, a tearful Meghan explained to the Hollywood Reporter. “Harry’s and my own generosity will hopefully lead the way for the little people to see where their duty lies.”

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have opened the doors to their $29million Montecito mansion to their friends and loved ones who were forced to evacuate the ongoing wildfires in southern California.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex also urged other Los Angeles residents to do the same in a statement on their website, Sussex.com, as the wildfires continue to level celebrities' homes, leaving nothing but ash and rubble.

Ha — I first noticed this at work in Greenwich, when the police chief dropped school crossing guards during a contract dispute with the BET; only later did I realize it was a universal tactic

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stop, stop! Why won’t you stop?

This article from 2013 explains the history and purpose of this classic bureaucratic defense:

Firemen First

Any savvy bureaucrat knows that when budget cuts are looming, you talk about leaving alone what’s unessential and eliminating what is essential. That way, the public will agitate against the cuts.

In 1976, Charles Peters of the Washington Monthly dubbed this approach the “Firemen First” principle, as he explored and explained why firemen and combat troops, rather than desk-bound middle managers, tend to be at the head of the line to be whacked.

Some who are watching the fight in Washington over sequestration—the term for automatic spending cuts that are set to kick in imminently—see the Firemen First principle at play in communications from the White House. “Are they threatening to pare back consultants, conferences travel and other nonessential fluff?” asks conservative Charles Krauthammer in a recent column. “Hardly. It shall be air-traffic control. Meat inspection. Weather forecasting.”

Ever wonder why National Parks are among the first things closed when budgets are being disputed? Because the public will notice. Just as I noticed back in the early 70s when our then-chief laid off $6-hour crossing guards when the BET insisted that he slash costs — his only concession to their demand: “Oh, yeah? How you gonna like seeing your precious children run over? Those are nice kids ya got there, and it’d be a shame if anything happened to them.”

Bonus material

Dates when you couldn’t view the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, or the Washington Mall:

Christian god not my people's Great Spirit — this squaw heapum mad. Me drink firewater, make forget quick

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Warren on the Warpath Against Hegseth

Pete Hegseth’s confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee, on his nomination as Secretary of Defense, is scheduled for next week. All indications are that he has the support of Republican senators and will be confirmed, but Elizabeth Warren, the ranking minority member of the committee, isn’t going down without a fight. Or without a last opportunity to smear Hegseth.

Yesterday, Warren sent Hegseth a 33-page letter that is essentially a brief against his confirmation. She retails every story about Hegseth allegedly drinking too much, and rides every left-wing hobby horse as though they had any credibility. You can read Warren’s letter here.

….

Included in her love note is this complaint about about Hegseth’s Christian tattoos:

You were also removed from President Biden’s inauguration because of concerns that you were an insider threat after reports that your “Deus Vult” tattoo “was a Christian expression associated with right-wing extremism.” We cannot have a Defense Secretary whose fellow servicemembers feel concerned enough about to report as a potential insider threat.

Scary stuff, certainly, and it’s no wonder Chief Warren is so upset. But then there’s this, from Instapundit:



If it's that useful, and it obviously, is, why doesn't our P&Z turn a blind eye and go on to other business?

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Wasting away in margaritaville

The P&Z’s Margarita Albin is once again squawking about the “temporary” trailer parked in the Horseneck parking lot, and she’s growing louder. She says it’s ugly — undoubtedly true — and complains that it isn’t built to code due to its classification as a temporary structure. That, too is undeniable, but, although the (stick-built) building itself may be of temporary construction, it serves admirably for all sorts of temporary uses, and has been in constant service since 2011, serving the needs of a disparate group of town agencies and non-profit organizations. We should keep it.

Greenwich’s Planning & Zoning commission on Tuesday approved a second extension to the Boys & Girls Club’s lease on the building known as the “temporary fire station” at 1 Horseneck Lane.

But not before P&Z chair Margarita Alban warned the commission might get a bit “grumpy about the building.”

Over the years Alban has explained to applicants seeking temporary use of the building that not only was it intended to be temporary, but that it is unattractive, likening it to a Quonset hut in the gateway to Greenwich.

“We’ve been asking you for 10 years to get rid of it,” Alban once said when a previous application was before the board, and she still wants to, but let’s look at the record:

  • 2011-2016 Temporary dormitory for firemen while the Central Fire Station was built

  • 2017-2019 Greenwich International Film Festival (GIFF) received approval from the Planning & Zoning commission to house the festival staff on a temporary basis in the building. They stayed until 2019.

  • 2020 Used by the Byram Fire Dept while renovations were done on their Delavan Ave building.

  • 2021 Used by Neighbor to Neighbor when their new food pantry building construction by Christ Church took longer than expected.

  • 2022-2025 Used by Greenwich Boys & Girls Club while the club building is being renovated/rebuilt.

Back In April ‘22, when the use of the trailer by the Boy’s Club was before the Board of Selectmen for approval, Fred Camillo spoke in support, adding “I know there is some concern about this temporary structure ending up being permanent, but that’s not the intent. The fact is we’re very grateful to have this (structure). It got us out of a lot of jams, having this open to us.”

We no longer live in the Greenwich of 1950, alas, but I believe that the old men running the town back then would have just “forgotten” about the existence of something that cost so little and served so usefully. We could try that here, and then, inspired, perhaps we could find some other “problems” around town that are equally deserving of our benign neglect.

Excellent idea

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and one for you, and one for you, and one for ….

Scott Pinsker, PJMedia

The total population of Greenland is approximately 57,000. Elon Musk is currently worth about $425.2 billion.

Which means that for the low price of just $57 billion, Musk could offer everyone in Greenland a million bucks and simply buy it. (And he’d still have about $375 billion left over.)

….

Theoretically, there’s nothing to prevent Musk from buying the land on his own — and then reselling it to the U.S. government. (In exchange, perhaps, for exclusive rare earth mining rights?) Musk is actually wealthy enough to pull it off without being unduly leveraged.

Financial experts typically recommend that you allocate no more than 25% to 40% of your net worth on housing, although the Biden-Harris real estate market has made that benchmark unrealistic for most young people. Well, $57 billion is only about 15% of Musk’s net worth.

Which means, it’s easier for Musk to buy Greenland than the average American to buy their first home! (Three cheers for Bidenomics!)

Money talks. Money is power. Elon Musk is the world’s wealthiest man; the United States of America is the world’s wealthiest country. Working together, they absolutely could acquire Greenland. 

And sure, there might be a handful of native Greenlanders with strong cultural connections to their homeland. That’s to be expected. But under this plan, a Greenlandic family of five would get $5 million bucks! Throw in a five-pack of American citizenship cards, an apartment in Palm Beach, and maybe complimentary membership at Mar-a-Lago, and Greenland will be empty in less than an hour.

A spoilsport might ask why any mayor should go on a tax-payer-funded junket to a foreign country in the first place, eh?

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have money, will spend — your money, that is

'Where Is LA Mayor Karen Bass?' Democrat Celebrates in Ghana While County Burns, Hydrants Run Dry

Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass (D.) has been celebrating a presidential inauguration in Ghana while wildfires ravage thousands of acres in her city and first responders report that fire hydrants are running dry.

Bass is part of President Joe Biden's four-member delegation that attended Tuesday's inauguration of John Dramani Mahama as Ghana's president.

What possible reason was there for dispatching a Los Angeles mayor on an African safari? Especially when a similar adventure could have been experienced right down the street in Anaheim? No one’s talking.

Ironically enough, Miss Bass formerly took a tougher stance against politicians leaving the country to vacation in foreign lands during emergencies, but she’s apparently changed her views on the matter.

Size, location, design: three strikes, you're out.

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After starting off at $1.795 million in October, new construction at 18 Scott Road (Banksville border) has taken a second price cut and is now looking for $1.688. It’s proving a tough sell, deservedly.

Maxed out by FAR at 2,428 sq. feet, including the finished (sort of) attic, it lacks both a basement (built on a swamp) and a garage, and that first floor will appeal only to a childless couple nostalgic for their former NYC studio.

As for the exterior design? Well, it matches the quality of the interior, so it has that going for it.

The builder (unwisely) paid $423,000 for this lot in October 2023, after it had lingered on the market since beginning at $675,000 in February 2022. Perhaps he was persuaded that he was getting a bargain at such a discounted price; I do hope he wasn’t swayed by the listing agent’s florid prose, quoted below, but I fear he was.

There’s one born every minute.

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