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Jack Mallory

Thanks, Joanie. 

Jack Mallory

Last day in Florida, kayaking in the mangroves. Hugely different from the Everglades and the mangrove swamps where I've worked in Chiapas. Only a couple of miles from downtown Miami, the mangroves themselves their usual green, dense, swampy selves; but the wildlife, the birds, EVERYHERE! Hard to take a picture of an egret without an ibis in it, a great blue heron without a yellow-crowned night heron. Hundreds of turkey vultures. Fortunately we had a guide to point them out and identify them. 

A few pix. I'm restraining myself. 
 

Paddling into the stilt-rooted world of Los Manglares.

Some of the residents:

American White Ibis (really, MAGATs, not a furriner Ibis. And it's WHITE!)

Green Iguana--call ICE, an immigrant!

Green Heron. Citizen. 
 

Turkey vultures. 


Brown pelican. Carries his U.S. passport all the time because he's a brown pelican. 

Jack Mallory

More from Trump to make America proud of our President. Comments from anyone who voted for him? Did it give you guys some chuckles?

https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/06/politics/donald-trump-obamas-apes-truth-social

Joanie Bender (Grosfeld)

Jack, your photography is really gorgeous...you are really gifted in taking those nature shots of animals and scenery...Wow, thank you for the posts. Love, Joanie

Jack Mallory

Truly racist and proud of it? Or just currying votes from the truly racist voters' block? Which is worse? Whaddya think?
 

Jack Mallory

When you're in the Nashville airport, anything to amuse. Ok, guys, could you do this?

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/feb/06/team-gb-winter-olympic-skier-gus-kenworthy-targets-ice-graphic-message-in-snow

John Smeby

Just finished my nineteenth year playing senior softball in The Villages Florida. This is the team picture for the "Jets" at the end of the Fall 2025 season. Can't believe I lasted this long doing this silliness. Am now in my twentieth year in the Winter season 2026. There has been some interference from the weather as the cold fronts have extended down to central Florida causing delays and cancellations to scheduled games in January and early February. For you northerners, can you please keep your crummy winter weather up north where it belongs??!!?? By the way, I am the dork in the blue shorts if you don't recognize me. 

Jack Mallory

I'll admit to using WTF frequently. I presume you all understand this is what I mean?

Joanie Bender (Grosfeld)

Jack, Thanks for the article about the US skier Kenworthy. I love his very personal message in the ice.  They are killing Americans and hurting immigrants who for the most part have NO criminal record.  Even a 5 year old and a 2 year old are not immune from their cruelty. Of course the children represent the worst of the worst criminals.  Love, Joanie

Jack Mallory

Joanie, I and I suppose other honest men would entertain doubts about the physical possibility of creating such a message by hand, so to speak. Maybe in cursive?

Joanie Bender (Grosfeld)

Yes Jack.  Also i think the color of the writing in the ICE is a clue🤣🤣🤣❤️

Jack Mallory

HuffPost makes this punny comment, Joanie:

"Kenworthy said on Instagram that the message in the snow, 'fuck ice,' was written in pee, hinting that he urinated the words. (Granted, it would take quite the peenmanship to do it.)" 

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/gus-kenworthy-threatening-awful-anti-ice-snow-pee_n_698a1367e4b0959e2d941fee

Joanie Bender (Grosfeld)

Thanks Jack for this post...I admire this athlete Kenworthy for speaking out  or peeing out about the cruelty of ICE....Love, Joanie

Jack Mallory

"Peeing out about the cruelty of ICE."

Thanks for my first chuckle of the morning, Joanie!

John Smeby

Speaking as a man that has, on numerous snowy occasions at my cabin in western Virginia, urinated in the woods and can unequivocally guarantee that the picture is a fraud. Why? 1) You would need a race horse size bladder to write that much, 2) given the always presence of wind you would end up spraying yourself more than you would anything else, and 3) it is impossible to urinate curved letters with the degree of accuracy shown in the picture. You idiots continue to show your true TDS colors! Always and forever, a believer in the rule of law where ICE is an integral part in enforcing "legal immigration" and should be supported and respected. Given the tens of thousands of illegal immigrants that have been arrested without violence and deported, yes it is a shame that at least one or two excessive situations occurred and should be dealt with accordingly.

Jack Mallory

A judge once described the ease a prosecutor usually has in gaining an indictment as making it likely a grand jury could be convinced to indict a ham sandwich. Using what these days we might call "Trumped up" charges!

The Trump Justice Department attempted to accuse six Democratic senators and representatives--all veterans of the U.S. military or security services--of interfering with the loyalty, morale, and discipine of the U.S. armed  forces. They had encouraged service members to abide by the law that allows and orders non-compliance with illegal orders. 

But the grand jury recognized this accusation as nothing more than a ham sandwich, and refused to indict.

Exoneration for the six, and a thumb in the eye for the First Felon, who called for their execution for utilizing the First Amendment to the Constitution he is sworn to enforce: “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” Mr. Trump wrote on his social media site. He shared another person’s post that said, “HANG THEM GEORGE WASHINGTON WOULD !!”

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/us/politics/trump-democrats-illegal-orders-pirro.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share

******
John, if you read other people's posts you wouldn't work yourself into such a hissy fit. The unlikelihood of such "peemanship," as Joanie suggests, has already been noted on the forum. Take a few deep breaths--you're sounding a tad deranged.

Joanie Bender (Grosfeld)

Jack, so glad you got a chuckle. We need more laughs since we have to deal  with Trump. Love, Joanie 🤣❤️  Jack thanks for that post about Trump calling for the execution of reps who stated the law that the military should not obey illegal orders. Since Trump is about self love and ruling as an authoritarian dictator, those comments are a big threat to him.  So glad they were exonerated.  love, Joanie

Jack Mallory

Lots of different routes to the United States, over the centuries. Lots of different starting points, lots of different reasons for coming. All worthy of remembering. This is a FB memory from a post of mine in 2017. 

Joan Ruggles (Young)

Mr Smeby, I've said it before and I'll say it again, as administrator of this forum, I have to keep reminding you and reminding you that we don't call each other stupid names. The rest of us have found ways of making our opinions known without insulting each other. This seems to be too hard for you. If you continue, I will erase your posts as I've done in the past. We welcome you to express your thoughts, no matter what they may be. But you're going to have to figure out a way to do it without resorting to schoolyard insults. I know you can do it! Tell us what you think! Please tell us how you feel about the Trump administration and how it's doing. Just do it without insulting other posters. Give it a try!!

Oh and BTW, nobody thought that the pee in the snow was a real representation. It was a meme or metaphore or a joke. I guess you didn't get it. 

Jack Mallory

A brief comment on the "rule of law" John "always and forever" believes in. A very brief review of our (national or world) history reminds us of the many foul, unfair, and brutal laws throughout  history: laws promoting child labor; laws defining human beings as less than human and permitting slavery; laws prohibiting free speech; laws enabling wars of aggression and genocide.

​Laws per se are not worthy of our honor. What many of us honor is justice, a far more universal concept. Our heroes were not necessarily law-abiding: George Washington broke laws; John Brown broke laws; Susan B. Anthony broke laws; Nelson Mandela broke laws; Rosa Parks broke laws; Dan Ellsberg broke laws--just to name a very few.

We honor all of these, and many more, not for obeying the law but for their fight for justice. Laws are transient, justice is forever. I don't honor laws with a jerk of the knee, as John would have us do; I, idiotically(?) ask, "Is this law just?"

Joanie Bender (Grosfeld)

 Jack thank you for that interesting story of the Espinosa family.  I love the immigrant stories.  My grandmother who was a Russian Jew lived 100 miles south of Kiev.  Since Jews were not liked she left under an assumed name in a ship. She memorized every detail of the person she pretended to be. She landed in Germany and next came to the US.  Her father had already come to America.  Her mother fled the Natzis and died running away.

 Also love your comment about laws and your being driven by justice.  
 

Joan your note is spot on. We are fine with all points of view expressed but it's not ok to call us insulting names.  Love, Joanie❤️

Jack Mallory

Sunday forecast for 50 degrees, here--there is hope! 

Joanie, did your grandmother have stories to tell about life in Russia or her immigrant experiences? 

*****

Joan, just let John go ahead and sound like a fifth grader.  It just underscores the fact that he lacks facts or rational arguments and can only bolster his opinions through juvenile name-calling. The rest of us will try and avoid the temptation to respond in kind by calling him a poo-poo head. 

Joanie Bender (Grosfeld)

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Aleksandr-Sergeyevich-Pushkin

Jack my grandmother told me that she spent a lot of time at her cousins house. She was very close to her father but she found her mother cold and thought she didn't care about her...However, when she told her she was leaving Russia, her mother cried. Her father had already come to America. My grandmother was a Russian teacher. She told me often about how she admired Alexander Pushkin. She would mention sayings from him but I forgot them already. He was one of the greatest poets and writers in Russia...the link above is about him. I adored her and my grandfather. He came over from the same village as she did and they got married. He said that his father came out to get a drink of water in Russia and was shot dead....they had a tragic past...My grandmother loved America and couldn't wait to leave Russia. I'm sorry I don't have more details of her life there. She was adorable and when we visited and had to leave, I always saw her sad Russian face in the window watching us go. Love, Joanie

Jack Mallory

Thank you, Joanie. What a fascinating family tie to history! If we all knew such details of our ancestors' histories, could share them with each other, see what we all share regardless of our national or ethnic origins.

Joanie Bender (Grosfeld)

Thank you Jack. It would be nice to share our stories of our ancestors. Love, Joanie ❤️