palindromic…or rather Otto is a palindrome…the same backward or forward…A Man Called Otto…Tom Hanks newest film for us to see…from Wikipedia: “A Man Called Otto is a 2022 comedy-drama film directed by Marc Forster from a screenplay by David Magee. It is the second film adaptation of the 2012 novel A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman, and an American remake of the 2015 Swedish film of the same name written and directed by Hannes Holm. The film stars Tom Hanks in the title role, with Mariana Treviño, Rachel Keller, and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo.”…along with Hanks’ son Truman as the younger version of Otto…filmed in 2022 in Pittsburgh… the film is a tear jerker…we find out the reason Otto is a curmudgeon…through flashbacks…and we witness his coming back from the dark with the help of his new neighbors…Elissa had seen it last week ( without me, haha ), she said it was good…and she was willing to see it again…today is her birthday…a party planned for her tomorrow…today she was laying low…I texted her that I was celebrating her birthday by going to the movies…it’s at the Hiway and the Ambler…I went to the Hiway…Rita Wilson, Tom’s wife, along with Tom are executive producers…the film is a family affair…on a $50 million budget, it’s made $38 million…and will probably make a profit… it’s good…go see it…to celebrate Elissa’s birthday…
as if we needed one more reason to demand George Santos resign…here’s another story from The Daily Kos by Laura Clawson: “McCarthy gives Santos his committee assignments just before the worst story yet emerges: Almost immediately after Speaker Kevin McCarthy and House Republicans announced that Rep. George Santos would get committee assignments despite having been elected to Congress under a largely false identity, news broke that is low even by Santos’ terrible standards: According to two veterans, in 2016 Santos scammed one of them, a homeless disabled veteran, out of money for livesaving surgery for his service dog. The two provided the Patch of Oyster Bay, New York, with screenshots of social media posts and texts with Santos, going by his frequent alias “Anthony DeVolder,” to back up their account.
This is a conman who conned his way into Congress, and Republicans are not kicking him out—they’re putting him on committees. Amid calls for his resignation, the single way Republicans have penalized Santos is by only giving him low-level committees, not the high-profile ones he lobbied for: He’s going to be on the Committee on Small Business and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology.
It sure will be interesting to hear Republicans answer questions about the latest on Santos, because the service dog story is horrific.
Richard Osthoff is a disabled Navy veteran who got a service dog named Sapphire from a veterans’ charity. When Sapphire got a life-threatening (but benign) stomach tumor, a vet tech referred Osthoff to a charity that could supposedly help: Anthony Devolder’s Friends of Pets United. Devolder, aka Santos, set up a GoFundMe that raised $3,000, much of it from people Osthoff knew. In June 2016, Osthoff posted on Facebook, “We made the goal, and then some.”
Osthoff had a vet ready to do the surgery, but Santos/Devolder insisted he go to a different vet. “It was a tiny little hole in the wall place, but looked legitimate. The vet there said they couldn’t operate on the tumor,” Osthoff told Patch. Santos/Devolder refused to give Osthoff the money raised for his specific dog to go to the vet that was willing to do the surgery.
In November 2016 texts, Osthoff wrote Santos/Devolder, “I’m starting to feel like I was mined for my family and friends donations,” and, “My dog is going to die because of god knows what.” He told Patch that in a phone conversation, Santos/Devolder told him that because Osthoff “didn’t do things my way,” he had put the money raised for Sapphire into Friends of Pets United “for other dogs.”
Santos/Devolder claimed, in texts sent to Osthoff as he refused to turn over the money to save Sapphire, “Remember it is our credibility that got GoFundme them seves to contribute. We are audited like every 501c3 and we are with the highest standards of integrity.” In a text about an ultrasound he would supposedly arrange for Sapphire to get, Santos/Devolder said Osthoff couldn’t go with his service animal for the test because: “We do not drive people around nor do we give them rides we transports ANIMALS in NEED not needy owners.”
He went on to write, “Sapphire is not a candidate for this surgery the funds are moved to the next animal in need and we will make sure we use of resources to keep her comfortable!”
That same month, Osthoff posted on Facebook, “To everyone who helped me and Sapphire raise the money for her surgery, I’m sorry to say that we were scammed by Anthony Devolder [words redacted] and Friends of Pets FOPU Through a series of bad veterinary contacts and subterfuge regarding payment, Sapphire has NOT received veterinary care, and her growth is 3 to 4 times bigger than it was when the campaign was fulfilled. She is facing euthanasia within months.”
In other words, this is not a case of someone coming forward to take advantage of the Santos situation. There is contemporary documentation of Santos’ scam, though he deleted the GoFundMe. Additionally, another veteran, retired police Sgt. Michael Boll, shared the GoFundMe and tried to help Osthoff get Santos/Devolder to turn over the money, without success.
”I contacted [Santos] and told him ‘You’re messing with a veteran,’ and that he needed to give back the money or use it to get Osthoff another dog,” Boll told Patch, describing Santos/Devolder as “totally uncooperative.”
Sapphire died on Jan. 15, 2017. After having been out of work with a broken leg, Osthoff couldn’t afford her euthanasia and cremation and was forced to panhandle while grieving his beloved companion.
In 2015 and 2017, Santos faced evictions. In 2017 he held a fundraiser for Friends of Pets United, which was not in fact ever registered as a legitimate charity. To this point, the nonexistent charity had sounded like a way for Santos to maybe con some donors and make himself sound like a good guy. Conning a desperate pet owner and ultimately causing the animal’s death is a huge and horrific next step. In 2019, Santos launched his first congressional campaign, losing in 2020 to incumbent Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi. In 2022, after Suozzi retired, Santos was elected after campaigning under essentially an entirely false identity, from his family background to his educational and career accomplishments. ( apparently, it’s not against the law to lie )…
Republicans have a very narrow majority in the House and need every vote, so despite calls even from some Republicans for Santos to resign, Kevin McCarthy is standing by him as a member who supported McCarthy through 15 speaker votes. Will the disabled veteran’s dead service dog be the final straw, or will McCarthy refuse to do the right thing and boot Santos? I’m betting on the latter.”…because McCarthy’s republican majority is so slim…I guess he’s willing to hold onto Santos no matter what!…and that “what” is getting worst every day…let’s not forget who sought pardons from trump before he left office – Reps. Andy Biggs of Arizona ( on the Judiciary and Oversight committees ), Matt Gaetz of Florida ( the Judiciary Committee ), and Scott Perry of Pennsylvania ( the Foreign Affairs and the Oversight committee – he’s the fox in the hen house )…all probably under investigation…and luckily, the slim majority can do all they want, there’s no chance the Democrat controlled Senate will even bring whatever it is to vote…they slashed funding for the IRS…saving their wealthy donors from paying their fare share…but it doesn’t have a prayer of even coming to vote in the Senate…that $80 billion was part of the Inflation Reduction Act…we only have to worry about the debt ceiling…be afraid, be very afraid!…
in the Australian Open a lot of Americans have won, sending them into the third round…
want some more palindromes?…
- kayak
- deified
- rotator
- repaper
- deed
- peep
- wow
- noon
- civic
- racecar
- level
- mom
here’s some palindrome phrases…
- Borrow or rob?
- Never odd or even.
- We panic in a pew.
- Won’t lovers revolt now?
- Ma is a nun, as I am.
- Don’t nod.
- Sir, I demand, I am a maid named Iris.
- Was it a car or a cat I saw?
- Yo, Banana Boy!
- Eva, can I see bees in a cave?
- Madam, in Eden, I’m Adam.
- A man, a plan, a canal, Panama!
- Never a foot too far, even.
- Red roses run no risk, sir, on Nurse’s order.
- He lived as a devil, eh?
- Ned, I am a maiden.
- Now, sir, a war is won!
- Evade me, Dave!
- Dennis and Edna sinned.
- Step on no pets
Art Salazar 